bestfiction Chapter 135 Military Affairs
Chapter 135 Military Affairs
Meng Jun recovered Zhejiang and now controlled the territory from Suzhou Prefecture, Songjiang Prefecture, Hangzhou Prefecture, Huzhou Prefecture and the whole Zhejiang Province. Meng Jun recruited soldiers, maintained his own troops, collected taxes, selected officials, and all military and political affairs were handled by the Governor's Office. He had become a de facto warlord. Even the Emperor Longwu had hardly any edicts sent to Meng Jun, not to mention the two small courts far away in Guangdong.
By June, the weather had become extremely hot and humid. With the expenses of rewarding soldiers and providing pensions, the silver in the treasury was already stretched to the limit.
Meng Jun, together with Yang En, Gu Yanwu and others, went out of the city to inspect various counties.
"Governor, our territory is so vast now. The Governor's Office has selected hundreds of officials to go to various places, and soldiers are being recruited from all over. All of these require money," Yang En said to Meng Jun.
Jiangnan is rich, and they already control the whole of Zhejiang, so the issue of money and grain is not a big problem. Then Meng Jun turned around and asked, "Does the Governor's Office have an estimate of how much money and grain can be collected for this summer tax?"
Yang En frowned and said, "Governor, I have checked the files of various places. In Zhejiang Province alone, the land tax can reach 1.4 million taels. If Suzhou, Hangzhou, Songjiang and Huzhou are included, the tax collected in one year is 225 taels. However, this is the record of previous years. Now that various places are experiencing war, it would be fine if we can collect 1.6 million taels according to the estimate of the Governor's Office."
Meng Jun nodded and asked, "Well, how much money is left in the Governor's Office?"
"There are still 680,000 taels of silver in the treasury, all of which are autumn grain collected in February this year. The silver and money seized from various places have been used up," Yang En replied quickly.
Meng Jun was calculating in his mind. The regular troops in the army now were Changlin, Kewu, Ningwu, Wuxing, Wuning, Guwu, and Wu'an under Zhao Yongping. There were a total of seven garrisons of soldiers. The monthly expenditure would be 140,000 taels, plus 40,000 auxiliary troops. The monthly expenditure would be more than 200,000 taels. The cavalry and heavy armored troops were also being planned for expansion. There were also craftsmen and firearms manufacturing. All of these things cost money.
Meng Jun thought for a moment and said aloud: "Then we should open the sea. Jiangsu and Zhejiang are so rich in products, such as silk, tea, and porcelain. Let's form a fleet to go to Japan and Southeast Asia to conduct maritime trade."
Gu Yanwu scratched his head and then asked, "Governor, opening the sea is no small matter. In the past, Emperor Chengzu made seven voyages to the West, wasting the national treasury. Governor, opening the sea..."
Before Gu Yanwu finished speaking, Meng Jun interrupted him with a smile, "Mr. Gu, Zheng was born as a maritime merchant and gained a lot of profits from maritime trade. Otherwise, how could he support an army of more than 200,000 people in the barren land of Fujian?"
The Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions have the Yangtze River and Qiantang River, convenient transportation, and rich products, especially silk, tea, and porcelain. The Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions were also one of the most important commercial centers in the Ming Dynasty. The handicraft industry in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions was also very developed, with weaving, papermaking, printing, and shipbuilding as the representatives. However, when Meng Jun came here, he was either fighting or on the way to fight, and he had no chance to develop the advantages of the Jiangnan region.
As everyone walked and talked, Meng Jun looked at the fields that had resumed production and couldn't help but nod and smile.
…………
At this time, Meng Bian was still staying in Huzhou. After controlling Huzhou City, he immediately asked Lin Shiqi to dispatch a thousand garrison troops to garrison Huzhou. The original garrison camp was firmly controlled by Meng Bian. All soldiers and officers cut their braids. Huzhou Prefecture was under the jurisdiction of Wucheng, Gui'an, Changxing, Deqing, Wukang, and Anji counties. Except for Changxing County, the other five counties all surrendered.
After finishing his business in Huzhou, Meng Bian originally planned to return to Suzhou City, but something happened on the way that made him stop.
Tao Zhenming knew that Meng Bian was like a Jinyiwei, so he introduced someone to him, saying that this woman was an extraordinary woman who would be of help to Meng Bian.
Located in the north of Huzhou City, Jinyilou housed a large number of women who had fled from Nanjing, Hangzhou and Zhejiang. Originally, the first impression of the city's common people was that it was another brothel, but Jinyilou had always regarded itself as a pure restaurant, art house and music house, claiming that it only sold art and not bodies. However, the more it acted like this, the more scholars and men of letters flocked to it, and as a result, the restaurant and music business of Jinyifang became more and more prosperous.
The owner of Jinyi Building was named Gu Qingmei. Gu Qingmei had experienced many vicissitudes of life and was very capable. According to later generations, she was a socialite who was good at dancing with long sleeves. This kind of woman undoubtedly received the best education of the era. She was proficient in piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, and was both beautiful and talented. So when Meng Bian heard about this person, he decided to meet her.
If Gu Qingmei did not have the ability to deal with people like a fox and the decisiveness in making choices that are different from ordinary people, how could she have supported Jinyi Building with just a group of weak women?
"Miss Gu, please sit down," Meng Bian said with a smile.
Gu Qingmei smiled, bowed and said, "Thank you, Master Meng."
"Miss Gu, you want to see me, what's the matter?" Meng Bian took a sip of water, but his eyes were fixed on Gu Qingmei.
"Lord Meng has changed the situation in Huzhou with his own efforts. I am saddened and come here to ask to see you just to express my gratitude." After Gu Qingmei finished speaking, she took out a silver note from the box and handed it to Meng Bian. It must be said that this woman's expression and tone, just a few words, like the flattery of Wu Nongyi, can make people feel like spring breeze.
Meng Bian took it and saw that it was a deposit of 10,000 taels of silver. He raised his eyebrows and said, "No reward without merit. I wonder what Miss Gu wants?"
"Sir Meng, there is no need to be so alert. I truly admire you, sir. And I admire Commander Meng even more. Commander Meng has won every battle and is truly the backbone of the world. I am willing to serve Commander Meng and do my best to expel the Tartars," said Gu Qingmei with great enthusiasm.
Meng Bian laughed and said, "Expelling the Tartars is a man's job. You are a woman who can't lift or carry anything. How can you be of any use to the governor?"
Gu Qingmei listened to Meng Bian's words quietly, then laughed and refuted: "Lord Meng recaptured Huzhou without mobilizing a large army to attack the city. As a woman, I am naturally not good at fighting, but when it comes to connections and intelligence gathering, I dare say I am well-informed."
Yes, Meng Bian has always known that the brothel is the best place to get information, but if these women are willing to help, Meng Bian thinks that the inquiry department will definitely gain more, instead of always touching the tail of the Zhang family. Then Meng Bian asked inquiringly: "Why did Miss Gu do such a dangerous thing? Why would a woman come here?"
Gu Qingmei's face showed a trace of pain when she heard this. After a long while, she slowly said, "My husband, my parents-in-law, and my parents all died at the hands of the Tartars. I have also fallen into prostitution. I have a deep hatred for them and I think about revenge day and night."
Meng Bian sighed, then said: "Okay, since Miss Gu wants to serve the country, I will do it. Since you have found me, you know what I do."
"Yes, I know that Lord Meng is the person Governor Meng trusts the most, and he is in charge of the Detective Department, which is an important position like the Embroidered Uniform Guard. To be honest with you, my Lord, I, Gu Qingmei, have extensive connections in Nanjing, and I have people in all the romantic places along the Qinhuai River. I have a letter of intelligence in my hand, and I would like to give it to you. I wonder if it will be of any use to you." After saying this, Gu Qingmei handed another letter in the box to Meng Bian.
Meng Bian took it and looked at it, frowning. He saw that it was written on it, "Emperor Hongguang, Prince Lu (Regent of Hangzhou), Prince Qin, Prince Jin, Prince Heng, Prince De, Prince Jing, Prince Hui, Prince Zhou and other nine princes were secretly killed together in Beijing by the Qing court."