Ten billion military funds, this number sounds a lot, and in reality, it is quite a lot, but the concept of much or little is relative, not absolute.
For England, France, the Silly Eagle, or Tsarist Russia, these four benefactors, ten billion military funds would be enough for them to fight a high-intensity war with great pleasure, and it would even be enough for them to fight several nation-destroying wars in Europe.
As for the current Great Ming, ten billion military funds might not even last half a month.
Fighting wars is not a computer game, you can't just click and AoE. It requires solid war plans, preparation of food, mobilization of troops, preparation of weaponry, and then the transportation of personnel and supplies, and finally the actual engagement.
According to the habits of the Great Ming army when fighting wars, they would surely use the cannons on their warships to bombard the enemy first before landing. After the Marines capture the beachhead, they would bombard again, followed by the landed army setting up a temporary command center and supply depots. During this process, the conventional routine of artillery bombardment followed by the use of grenades and firearms to clear the area would also be carried out.
To put it bluntly, the preliminary preparations would not cost much military expenditure, but from the moment the cannons officially opened fire, the daily consumption of troops would be in the millions or even tens of millions, not to mention all sorts of other hidden expenses.
Ten billion?
On the surface, it's enough military funds to last a hundred days, but in reality, it might not even last two months.
Liu Huaiwen certainly understood this.
However, despite understanding, for Liu Huaiwen, who considered anything less than a gain to be a significant loss, ten billion military funds was like taking his life!
After a long period of silence, Liu Huaiwen said resentfully, "There isn't much surplus money in the national treasury, and the Great Ming has more places where money is needed. Your Majesty should be more frugal."
Zhu Jinsong did not argue with Liu Huaiwen anymore, but simply smiled and nodded, saying, "I know, Uncle Huaiwen can rest assured."
As the saying goes, one doesn't know the cost of firewood and rice until they keep house. Slave chieftains like Qianlong the old dog certainly didn't need to spend money sparingly. After all, everyone in the world was their slave, and as slave owners, they didn't care about the lives of their slaves.
But it's different for a Han emperor like Zhu Jinsong. The Jian Yi chieftains had long planned to retreat beyond the passes if they couldn't hold on in the Central Plains. Where could an emperor like Zhu Jinsong retreat to?
Just thinking about the Jian Yi, Zhu Jinsong's expression turned even more grim. "I still can't understand why there are people willing to revive the reputation of that dog Qianlong."
Zeng Cheng and the other elders were somewhat bewildered, because from the Ottomans to Qianlong the old dog, these were completely unrelated matters. So, how did His Majesty the Emperor suddenly think of Emperor Qianlong from the Ottomans?
Seeing that Zeng Cheng and the other elders all looked bewildered, Zhu Jinsong simply turned to Zhang Dequan and ordered, "Bring those newspapers, articles, and poems to Elder Zeng and the others."
Zhang Dequan immediately bowed in response, then ordered a young eunuch to fetch a stack of newspapers, articles, and books, and place them before Zeng Cheng and the other elders.
Zeng Cheng no longer cared about thinking why Zhu Jinsong suddenly jumped from the Ottomans to Qianlong the old dog. There were dozens of newspapers and books placed before him alone, and it was similar for all the other elders. If the content of these newspapers and books were all different...
Even more terrifying was yet to come.
Each newspaper or book had a note attached by the Brocade-Clad Guard, clearly detailing the information of the authors, such as their birth dates and places of origin, when they surrendered to the Great Ming, when they cut off their queues, and when they wrote these articles.
Born during the Qianlong era, surrendered to the Great Ming in the first year of the Holy Emperor or even earlier, cut off their queues upon surrender, and wrote these articles to whitewash Qianlong the old dog in the Holy Emperor's teens...
That's right, whitewashing Qianlong the old dog.
"On the Merits and Demerits of Emperor Qianlong's Fifty-Year Reign," "Why Emperor Qianlong Made Six Southern Tours," "What the Great Qing's Hundred and Fifty Years of Reign Left for Future Generations"...
Articles like these, which might appear as fair commentary to others, could only be described as utter nonsense by Zeng Cheng, the Grand Secretary of the Great Ming Cabinet.
The merits of Emperor Qianlong's fifty-year reign?
If reducing taxes and grain were considered merits, then how should the damage caused by his six southern tours be accounted for?
If his six southern tours had some legitimate purpose, then how should the flood case in Xiayi, Henan be accounted for?
If the Great Qing left behind territories like Ü-Tsang and Domi, then what about the Great Ming's Ü-Tsang Pacification Commission, Domi Pacification Envoy, and Nurgan Regional Military Commission?
Let alone direct rule, the Great Qing's rule in Ü-Tsang and Domi was similar to their rule in Mongolia, which implemented a policy of population reduction. The actual ruling power was far inferior to that during the Yongle to Wanli or even Tianqi periods.
Not to mention the territories that the Great Qing ceded. The so-called Ten Great Campaigns were actually a defeat against even Burma, and it was only because Burma voluntarily conceded that peace was negotiated, resulting in a truce and tribute after eight years.
With such a record, how could he be whitewashed?
Yes, Zeng Cheng also admitted that when the founding emperor of the Great Ming, Zhu Yuanzhang, ascended the throne, there were indeed some literati who refused to serve. In the eyes of these literati, the Mongol Yuan, driven to the northern deserts, was the legitimate dynasty, and Zhu Yuanzhang was merely a rebel who usurped the throne.
However, was the situation then the same as the current situation?
No.
Zhu Yuanzhang initially fought under the banner of the Song Dynasty, and even surrendered to the Yuan. It was only after his rebellion succeeded that he raised the banner of the Great Ming. Of course, the fact that Old Zhu surrendered to the Mongol Yuan court was recorded in the "History of Ming" compiled by the Qing Dynasty, while the "Veritable Records of Ming" or any other documents did not mention it, making it an isolated piece of evidence open to interpretation.
On the other hand, Zhu Jinsong from the beginning fought under the banner of the Great Ming to rebuild it. After his rebellion succeeded, he continued to use the Great Ming as his state name, and continued to honor Zhu Chongba as Emperor Taizu and Zhu Laosi as Emperor Taizong. This was different from Old Zhu's honoring of the Song Dynasty and the young King of Ming to establish the Great Ming.
Furthermore, the Mongol Yuan destroyed the Song, while the Jian Yi entered the passes under the pretext of avenging Emperor Chongzhen, and then stayed as permanent residents, conveniently orchestrating several "Third Prince Zhu" incidents, thereby sealing their fate.
Strictly speaking, the Mongol Yuan's destruction of the Song was a conflict between two countries. The nature of the Qing's entry into the passes was not a conflict between two countries. The Mongol Yuan's destruction of the Song could be considered legitimate. Did your Great Qing destroy the Great Ming?
No.
The Great Ming was destroyed by dog Chengzi, not by the Great Qing.
Therefore, Old Zhu's destruction of the Yuan could also be considered a rebellion, while Zhu Jinsong's rebellion was merely to reclaim his own country.
It was precisely because of this that Zeng Cheng felt a chill run down his spine. It was already outrageous enough to remain loyal to the Mongol Yuan, but now there were people who wanted to remain loyal and dutiful to the Great Qing?
This was unacceptable to Zeng Cheng. Even setting aside whether Zhu Jinsong's rebellion was justified or whether Qianlong the old dog truly had no merits at all, purely from Zeng Cheng's own perspective, he could not accept anyone whitewashing Qianlong the old dog.
Zeng Cheng was formerly the prefect of Tai'an Prefecture in the Great Qing.
If Zhu Jinsong's act of expelling the Jian Yi and reclaiming the Han homeland was defined as that of a rebellious minister and traitor, then how would Zeng Cheng, the former prefect of Tai'an, be classified?
Thinking of this, Zeng Cheng said with a gloomy expression, "I implore Your Majesty, I believe this should be strictly investigated. If these people dare to slander Your Majesty's meritorious deed of expelling the Jian Yi and rebuilding the Great Ming as a rebellion for personal gain today, tomorrow they will dare to say that our Great Ming's founding is illegitimate, and the day after tomorrow they will rebel!"
Zhu Erdan, who had just put down a small booklet, also cursed with a gloomy expression, "Damn it! I'm really f*cked up. These bastards have eaten too much!"
In his excitement, Zhu Erdan even let out the common Shandong inverted sentence structure and referred to the villagers of Liu Miao Village.
Zhu Sanshun also said with a gloomy expression, "Now, I finally understand the words my imperial brother taught me before he raised his army."
After glancing at Zeng Cheng and the other elders, Zhu Sanshun slowly said, "Before my imperial brother killed Scholar Liu and rebelled, I once said to my imperial brother that when the Yi Di enter China, they become China."
"My imperial brother told me that the nonsensical saying 'When the Yi Di enter China, they become China' originated from Hao Jing, a false Confucian of the Jin Dynasty, who proposed it to legitimize the Mongol Yuan regime, stating 'If one can use scholars today and follow the ways of China, then they are the rulers of China.' Following this, the second son Yongzheng, in his 'Great Meaning Unveiled Record,' altered Han Yu's 'Original Way' to read 'When Confucius wrote the Spring and Autumn Annals, if a vassal used Yi rituals, they were to be considered Yi; if they entered China, they were to be considered Chinese,' twisting the sentence to 'Han Yu said: "If China is Yi Di, then it is Yi Di; if Yi Di is China, then it is China."'"
"My imperial brother said that these two people, one a false Confucian traitor and the other a false emperor of the Jian Nu, were all spouting nonsense."
"At that time, I didn't believe him. Later, after things settled down, I also searched through the Four Books and Five Classics, and also read Yongzheng's 'Great Meaning Unveiled Spirit' and Han Yu's 'Original Way,' and only then did I discover that my imperial brother was absolutely correct."
"I have to admit that the Jian Yi have cultivated a large number of pedantic Confucians who are loyal to their Great Qing over the years. These people are all fools who have been brainwashed by their studies!"
However, after Zhu Sanshun finished speaking, Zhu Jinsong sneered and said, "These people are fools who have been brainwashed by their studies? I think you are the one who has been brainwashed by your studies!"
Zhu Sanshun was stunned, then asked bewilderedly, "Why does Imperial Brother say that?"
Zhu Jinsong snorted, "Why say that? Because you are stupid! Do you think these people are all fools who have been brainwashed by their studies? Actually, they are not!"
"The truly brainwashed fools wouldn't openly spout such nonsense in newspapers, nor would they print pamphlets with their own money and distribute them everywhere. Their true purpose is not to revive the Jian Yi, nor to whitewash Qianlong the old dog!"
Zeng Cheng also nodded in agreement and said, "Your Highness, the Prince of Jin, can look at the author's notes that the Brocade-Clad Guards attached to those newspapers and books."
Zhu Sanshun looked at them, then asked with a bewildered expression, "What's wrong with this?"
Zhu Jinsong snorted and said to Zeng Cheng, "Minister Zeng, please tell him. I don't want to talk to this foolish brother right now."
Zeng Cheng suppressed a smile and said, "Your Highness, please look. Most of the authors here surrendered to the Great Ming before the Great Qing had completely collapsed. At that time, the Great Qing still occupied Shunyi Prefecture, and although our Great Ming had occupied Shandong, we did not stop them from going to Shunyi Prefecture to join the Jian Yi."
Zhu Sanshun hurriedly flipped through the remaining pamphlets and newspapers in his hand and found that the author information recorded there was indeed similar to what Zeng Cheng said. Most of them had surrendered to the Great Ming before the fiftieth year of Qianlong.
Zeng Cheng continued, "If these people were truly loyal to the Jian Yi, why did they not defect to the Jian Yi before Qianlong's fiftieth year, but instead surrendered to our Great Ming before Qianlong's fiftieth year?"
"If these people were truly loyal to the Jian Yi, why did they voluntarily cut off their queues, why are they cultivating the land allocated to them by our Farmer's Association, and why did they apply for household registration in the Great Ming?"
These four questions directly stumped Zhu Sanshun.
Seeing Zhu Sanshun fall into deep thought, Zeng Cheng continued, "They knew that the rule of the Jian Yi would not last long, so they voluntarily cut off their queues and surrendered to our Great Ming. They coveted our Great Ming's land and the benefits that the people of the Great Ming could enjoy. That is why they are cultivating the land allocated to them by our Farmer's Association and applying for household registration in the Great Ming."
"And now, the reason they write these nonsensical articles is not because they are truly loyal to the Jian Yi, but because during the rule of the Great Qing, they could buy official positions, they could become officials through the imperial examinations, and they could collude with officials to oppress the common people at will."
"Such privileges do not exist in our Great Ming. Our Great Ming does not allow the purchase of official positions, and the imperial examinations have been completely abolished. Therefore, they are not truly loyal to the Great Qing, but are reminiscing about the privileges they enjoyed during the rule of the Jian Yi."
The more he listened, the darker Zhu Sanshun's expression became.
Zhu Jinsong snorted, "Do you understand? These bastards are not truly loyal to the Jian Yi, but they are trying to find ways to gain benefits for themselves."
Zhu Sanshun first nodded, then shook his head and asked doubtfully, "My brother is dull-witted. I really can't figure out what benefits they can gain from just a few pieces of nonsensical articles. Moreover, Qianlong the old dog is completely dead!"