ATPnovel Chapter 39 cannot be maintained by deception and perfunctory approaches.
Chapter 39 cannot be maintained by deception and perfunctory approaches.
He paused.
"And I will distribute these thirty-five taels to the various towns."
"The general should keep one copy, the deputy general should keep one copy, and the brigade commanders, guerrillas, and garrison commanders..."
"If, after passing through each level, the soldiers receive ten taels of silver, I'll consider myself to have done right by them."
Chen Zhiyuan clenched his fists in his sleeves.
"So you're not going to report it? You're just going to let them embezzle?"
"What's the use of reporting?" Yuan Chonghuan retorted.
"During the Tianqi era, Xiong Tingbi, the military commissioner of Liaodong, offended powerful figures in the court by repeatedly reporting insufficient military funds. He was dismissed from office, imprisoned, and eventually his head was sent to the nine border regions."
"I, Yuan Chonghuan, am not afraid of death."
He continued, and finally a slight fluctuation appeared in his voice.
"But if I die, who will defend Liaodong? Who will fulfill the promise of pacifying Liaodong in five years? His Majesty has placed great hopes on me. I cannot fall, at least not when it comes to matters like military pay."
"Imperial Censor Chen, do you know how long the border troops have been owed wages?"
"Some units were six months behind, and some were a year behind."
"Soldiers need to eat, horses need to graze, cannons need gunpowder, and city walls need to be repaired. Without money, nothing can be done."
"The Ministry of Revenue didn't provide enough rice and beans, so I had the soldiers cultivate the land—even though the harvest wasn't good, it was better than starving to death."
"Since the canal transport authorities were delaying, I borrowed from merchants—the interest was high, but it was a lifesaver."
As he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer.
"Five years to pacify Liaodong... Ha, five years to pacify Liaodong. When I said those words to His Majesty on the platform, I meant them sincerely."
"I thought that as long as I had power, money, and time, I could do it. But I was wrong."
"Where did we go wrong?" Chen Zhiyuan asked.
"My mistake was believing that the entire court was truly united against external threats."
Yuan Chonghuan raised his head, and finally his eyes showed emotion—a bottomless sorrow.
"My mistake was thinking that if I said I would pacify Liaodong in five years, everyone would work together to help me."
"But what's the reality? I'm fighting on the front lines, and they're sabotaging me from the rear. I need money, and they won't give it to me. I need supplies, and they delay. I need to mobilize troops, and they say it's against the rules."
"The same goes for Mao Wenlong's case," he continued.
"I know killing him will cause trouble. But he disobeys orders, falsifies troop numbers, and colludes with foreign powers. If I don't kill him, Dongjiang Town will be a bottomless pit forever."
"If I kill him, people in the court will say that I am tyrannical and domineering."
He suddenly laughed, a very desolate laugh.
"Imperial Censor Chen, what do you suggest I do?"
"If you follow the rules, you won't get anything done. If you don't follow the rules, this is what happens."
Chen Zhiyuan remained silent for a long time.
The light in the cell grew dimmer, and the little light that shone through the iron bars was fading.
"Commander Yuan," he finally spoke.
"I understand what you're saying. Corruption in officialdom, rigid systems, factional infighting... these are not things you can change by yourself."
Yuan Chonghuan looked at him, waiting for him to continue.
"But there's one thing you've thought about?"
Chen Zhiyuan's voice was soft, but every word was clear.
"Where did the military funds allocated by the imperial court come from?"
Yuan Chonghuan was taken aback.
"It's taxes. It's the taxes paid by the people."
Chen Zhiyuan spoke each word carefully.
"The farmers of Shaanxi, the weavers of Jiangnan, the merchants of Shanxi, the fishermen of Huguang... they scrimped and saved, handing over their hard-earned money to the imperial court, hoping that the court would protect their homes and defend their country."
"But what about this money? Once it's handed over to them, it goes through the prefectures and counties, through the Ministry of Revenue, through the Ministry of War, through the Grand Canal, and through layers of officials. Every time it passes through a layer of hands, it gets skinned alive."
"In the end, out of a hundred coins, only ten coins remained in the hands of the border soldiers."
He stood up and walked to the center of the cell.
"You say you have no choice, that it's the rule, that everyone does it this way."
"Okay, I believe you. But have you thought about the ordinary people who pay taxes?"
"Shaanxi has suffered from severe drought for years, and people have to sell their children to pay their taxes."
"Locust plagues are rampant in Henan, farmers are starving to death on the roadside, and the government is still demanding taxes."
"The weavers in Jiangnan weave cloth day and night, until their eyes go blind, just to collect enough to pay their taxes."
Chen Zhiyuan turned around and looked directly at Yuan Chonghuan.
"But what actually happened? What did that money become?"
"It became the new residence of a certain high-ranking official in the capital, the jewelry of a certain minister's concubine, the banquet of the canal transport officials, and the expenses of the escort officers for whoring and gambling along the way."
"General Yuan, when you put on your armor, you kept saying you were fighting for the country."
"But have you ever thought that the 'rules' you've tacitly accepted, this set of 'natural' corruption, is just sucking the blood of the people and betraying their trust?"
Yuan Chonghuan's expression changed.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but no words came out.
"You said you had no choice," Chen Zhiyuan continued.
"Yes, you can't do it alone. But you are the Governor-General of Jiliao, the Minister of War, and a high-ranking official who was personally granted the Imperial Sword by His Majesty."
"If you don't dare to speak up, if you don't dare to break the ice, then who will?"
"I……"
"You've joined them in their corrupt ways," Chen Zhiyuan interrupted him.
"Maybe you didn't do it willingly, maybe you were forced. But the result is the same."
"By acquiescing to these rules, you have become part of this corrupt system."
"You take 30% of the military pay and fight 100% of the battle, then tell the soldiers that the court has only given them this much, so everyone should just bear with it."
"You may not have taken a single penny, but you have condoned corruption. You may have wanted to get things done, but you used the wrong methods."
"You think you are compromising and putting the overall situation first, but in reality, you are fueling this corrupt atmosphere and letting the Ming Dynasty's border defenses rot away to the core."
The cell was deathly silent.
The sound of a wooden clapper could be heard in the distance; it was already late afternoon.
Chen Zhiyuan took a deep breath and calmed himself down.
"From the imperial court to the border, I want to find out exactly how much each person at every level has consumed and how much they have taken."
He looked at Yuan Chonghuan.
"You may think I'm young, naive, or that I can't change anything."
"Maybe you're right. Maybe in the end, I won't be able to touch any of the real big shots."
"Perhaps this case will be dropped, or perhaps I will be dismissed from office and imprisoned for 'provoking public anger'."
"But there is one thing I must do."
Chen Zhiyuan's voice was firm.
"I want to expose this chain of corruption, to make these figures public, to let His Majesty see it, to let the court and the people see it, to see how the Ming Dynasty's military funds ran out, and why the soldiers on the border are not receiving their pay."
"As for you, Commander Yuan," he paused.
"You may feel wronged, or you may feel helpless. But in my opinion, the things you didn't do when you held great power were your greatest sin."
Yuan Chonghuan raised his head, his eyes bloodshot.
"What do you know?" His voice trembled.
"Do you know how difficult things were in Liaodong? Do you know how powerful Huang Taiji was?"
"Do you know that I didn't sleep for three days and three nights to defend Ningyuan? Do you know that in the battle of Guangqumen, I personally charged into the enemy lines and was hit by three arrows?"
"I know," Chen Zhiyuan said calmly.
"I know everything. I've investigated your war achievements, your hard work, and your loyalty."
"But merit is merit, and fault is fault. You won the battle and saved the capital, that is merit."
"You have tacitly approved the corruption of military spending and tolerated the deterioration of border defense; this is a mistake."
He turned and walked towards the prison door.
He stopped at the door without turning around.
"General Yuan, you say I don't understand. Perhaps. But I do know one thing—the Ming Dynasty's rule cannot be preserved by compromising and yielding."
"Peace on the border cannot be achieved by withholding military pay."
"The people's trust cannot be maintained by deception and perfunctory treatment."