OBS Chapter 388 My oxen and horses~ This bastard!
Chapter 388 My oxen and horses~ This bastard!
Since the Imperial College was located in the capital, it was inevitably influenced by the gentry group from the Jiangnan region.
However, if each province of the Ming Dynasty had an Imperial Academy, then the Jiangnan gentry group could only influence the seven Imperial Academyes in Jiangnan at most, while the six Imperial Academyes in the north could avoid the influence of the Jiangnan gentry group.
If handled properly, a system of checks and balances could be formed between the thirteen Imperial Colleges in the north and south.
This also prevented the court from having a single official from the Jiangnan region wield excessive power.
And this is only the first benefit of splitting up the Imperial College.
The second benefit of splitting up the Imperial College involved the issue of integration between the North and the South.
Because no matter what, the number and quality of scholars in the North cannot compare with those in the South in the short term.
Therefore, the Imperial Academy, which was split into the six northern provinces, would definitely still need to transfer scholars from the south to serve as instructors and teachers.
These people would then take their families to the north.
It may not be noticeable after one or two generations, but after three or five generations, these scholars from the south will become thoroughly northerners.
They might bring some southern customs, or they might be completely assimilated.
However, it can be considered a precedent for the integration of the North and South.
Of course, splitting up the Imperial College also presents a rather troublesome problem.
The sudden addition of twelve branch offices of the Imperial Academy meant that the Ming Dynasty would need to increase the number of Imperial Academy offices by twelve.
According to the existing staffing of the Imperial Academy, apart from the Duke Yansheng, there are a total of 46 academic officials from the Chancellor to the professors. The addition of 12 sets of staff for the Imperial Academy means that more than 500 people will need to be paid.
In addition, with the reforms of the Censorate and the Court of Judicial Review, the additional staff numbered well over five hundred.
Meanwhile, even the servants of local government offices started receiving salaries, amounting to tens of thousands...
Emperor Zhu couldn't help but smack his lips and said, "Brother Shanchang, Mr. Qingtian, you have to help us think of a way to see if we can save some money and grain this year."
For the first time, Li Shanchang felt that having a doctor with such excellent medical skills wasn't necessarily a good thing.
If it weren't for that doctor's exceptional medical skills, I would probably still be recovering from my illness.
If I were recuperating, I wouldn't need to hear such disgusting requests.
How the hell can we save some money and grain?
You don't even know what kind of good deeds you, Zhu Chongba, have done!
Taxes and provisions will be waived!
Now you know you need to save some food?
I bother!
Besides, what's the point of saving money and food?
Are you sending troops to smash the windows of the Iron Pot's house?
I'll spit on you again!
Li Shanchang secretly grumbled to himself, but Liu Bowen's eyes lit up, and he stroked his beard and smiled, "Your Majesty, I believe that simply saving money and grain is ultimately not enough."
Emperor Zhu frowned slightly, but Liu Bowen smiled and said, "Why doesn't Your Majesty send an envoy to Dengzhou to ask the Prince Consort when the Dengzhou market will open?"
"If it can be opened this year, the superior can have people buy more grain from vassal states such as Annam and Goryeo."
"For other food items such as luncheon meat, pancakes, and dried shrimp, we can send people to purchase more in Ningyang County and Dengzhou Prefecture."
"In this way, the problem of food supply for the army's northern expedition can be solved."
"As for cattle and horses..."
Emperor Zhu chuckled and said, "We have no shortage of cattle and horses. Our Bao'er attacked Kaiping, captured Yingchang, and on the way back, he also took Xingzhou. More than 40,000 Yuan soldiers and civilians surrendered, and we captured countless cattle and horses. Hmm, later we'll pick out the usable warhorses and steeds, and the rest..."
Before Emperor Zhu could finish speaking, Zhu Biao, the Grand Vice Emperor of the Ming Dynasty standing next to him, said in a low voice, "Um... regarding the cattle and horses that my cousin captured, I had 1,500 head sent to Dengzhou Prefecture."
Emperor Zhu was slightly taken aback, then flew into a rage and asked, "Five hundred heads? Dengzhou Prefecture?"
Zhu Biao hummed in agreement and chuckled awkwardly, saying, "My brother-in-law said in a letter from home that Dengzhou Prefecture had missed three years of farming season because of corrupt officials like Xu Zheng and Qu Mingjie who were reselling plows. They urgently needed three thousand head of cattle and horses, so I wrote to my cousin and asked him to send fifteen hundred head of cattle to Dengzhou first."
"Fifteen hundred? Fifteen hundred?"
Emperor Zhu muttered a couple of things, then slammed his hand on the table and cursed, "That bastard! He not only lied to us, he even lied to Biao'er, that honest kid! This dog is getting more and more lawless!"
After scolding Yang Shaofeng, Emperor Zhu then began to scold Zhu Biao: "And you, you spendthrift son, you're really stupid! Don't you think about it? If he writes a letter home to you, how could he not write a letter home to us? And when he writes a letter home to us, does he ever not complain about being poor?"
After berating Zhu Biao, Emperor Zhu began to sigh deeply, "My damned beast!"
Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen both rolled their eyes.
Without a doubt, it must be that Emperor Zhu himself had also allocated some cattle and horses to Dengzhou, which is why he was so furious.
But who is to blame for all of this?
It's all because you spoiled them!
Emperor Zhu sighed deeply, then spat out a curse before looking at Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen and saying, "Let's follow Mr. Qingtian's suggestion and, while this case of the blank seal is still unresolved, let Xia Yu make another trip to Dengzhou Prefecture."
……
As it turns out, the energy unleashed when the bureaucratic system of the feudal era was in full operation was astonishing.
From the time I returned to Ningyang County for the Spring Festival to the time I returned to Penglai County after the Lantern Festival, only two months had passed, and Penglai County had completely changed its appearance.
Wang Shaoyu, a senior official in the Ministry of Works' Construction and Maintenance Department, smiled as he introduced the new Penglai County to Yang Shaofeng.
"The eastern part of the city was mainly occupied by yamen runners and market stalls."
"The western part mainly consists of the government offices, prefectural schools, and county schools."
"Site will be reserved for a primary school in each of the four directions of the city: east, south, west, and north. It is expected to be completed in June this year."
"As for the entire Penglai County town, it will probably not be fully completed until next autumn."
Yang Shaofeng thought Wang Shaoyu and his ilk were truly damn awesome.
The city wall was over ten zhang high?
The base of the city wall is more than ten zhang thick.
Yes, city walls are thicker at the base and narrower as they go up, with the top possibly only three zhang wide.
But three zhang wide is obviously too far-fetched.
Moreover, there are hidden soldier tunnels in the gate openings at the bottom of the city wall.
Not to mention the numerous military facilities on the city walls, such as watchtowers, corner towers, enemy platforms, and artillery emplacements.
For a moment, Yang Shaofeng couldn't tell whether this was the capital of Dengzhou Prefecture or a military fortress that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.
After passing through the city gate, Wang Shaoyu pointed to the busy construction site in the city and said, "According to the plan, there are five vertical and five horizontal roads in Dengzhou Prefecture, and ten main roads. This is one of the main roads that is being built now."
As Wang Shaoyu finished speaking, Xu Jingyu, the magistrate of Penglai who had come with Wang Shaoyu to greet Yang Shaofeng, couldn't help but chuckle and say, "Your Highness, before the New Year, Duke Cao sent people to Penglai to allocate three thousand head of cattle and horses. This matter..."
Yang Shaofeng was slightly taken aback and asked, "How much?"
Xu Jingyu tentatively asked, "Three...three thousand?"
Three thousand?
Yang Shaofeng immediately gasped.
Holy crap, is it Old Zhu who's being more generous or Young Zhu?
So, how many cattle and horses did Li Wenzhong actually bring back this time?
Could you get some more from Ningyang County?