Chapter Fifty-Seven: A Little Fan

After a while, the guards returned with the severed head to report, leaving Wang Zhengyue so terrified that he stared in shock, while a timid soldier fainted on the spot, and the yamen officers were so frightened that none dared to move. Sun Chuanting instructed his guards, “Sun San, you and Sun Si ride out and display the head at every county garrison. Let them see the consequences of opposing this official.”

Then, speaking gently to Wang Zhengyue, he said, “You, County Magistrate, were not afraid of the powerful and acted according to the Emperor’s strategy. I will report your merit. Continue to clear the military farmlands; if there’s an issue, report it to me, and I will stand behind you.”

Wang Zhengyue, having witnessed the Prefect casually execute a fifth-rank commander, was only now regaining his senses. Hearing the Prefect’s praise, he hurriedly replied with humility, “It was all due to your wise arrangement, sir. I merely followed orders; it’s not my accomplishment.”

After entering the inner hall of the county office, Wang Zhengyue formally began his report. He had assigned the registrar and assistant magistrate to promote the new crops, had already signed contracts with several large landowners, and believed two-tenths of the task could be completed. The greatest obstacle in clearing the military farmlands had been Commander Chen, but now that resistance was gone, the land survey should be completed before the spring sowing next year.

Sun Chuanting, still uneasy, personally went with Lu Xuan to inspect the military farmlands. He observed the hidden fields being uncovered by the county clerks and sighed deeply. This was merely the clearing of military land, yet so many issues had emerged; civilian land would pose even greater problems. The Ming Dynasty was riddled with parasites, which is why the court could not collect taxes nor raise strong troops—a small tribe of Jurchen could run rampant.

After two days inspecting Ansai, Sun Chuanting and Lu Xuan turned their attention to Bao’an County, satisfied with the results. It seemed the method of displaying the head at each garrison had worked; the county magistrate of Bao’an reported that until a few days ago, a captain had obstructed them, but now he had obediently accepted the county’s inspection and relinquished the excess hidden fields. However, the magistrate raised two concerns: one, a shortage of military farmland. Originally, the garrisons had enough land, but with the increase in surplus laborers, each adult male could no longer be allotted fifty acres. The second issue was the abolition of the garrisons, which might lead to insufficient military strength. When the garrisons existed, they lacked real fighting power, but at least there was a tiger's skin to frighten others. Now, without that pretense, should trouble arise, they might be caught unprepared.

Sun Chuanting smiled, “These two issues are actually one. I intended to address them after the military land was cleared, but since you mention it, it’s already affecting the process—my oversight. There are two solutions: one, reclaim wasteland, and after one year, no taxes will be levied on newly cultivated land. Two, recruit soldiers. Each county is different; I’ve asked Magistrate Lu to set quotas based on population. Each county will recruit some soldiers, solving both the surplus labor issue and deterring troublemakers. Send people to begin recruitment now, and take advantage of the slack farming season to start training.”

Sun Chuanting submitted a memorial to the Emperor, first detailing the current situation, then focusing on two matters: one, the training of recruited soldiers, especially the shortage of instructors; and two, the handling of sweet potatoes and potatoes after the harvest. Upon receiving the memorial, Zhu Youjiao ordered several monks from Huiming’s group to be sent to Yan’an Prefecture as instructors to train the new recruits. As for the second matter, since it wasn’t urgent, he put Wei Zhongxian in charge of finding people to produce sweet potato and potato vermicelli.

By the time the Shaolin monk instructors arrived in Yan’an Prefecture, Sun Chuanting had already recruited over five thousand soldiers. He selected them according to Qi Jiguang’s method, rejecting the cunning and specifically enlisting sturdy, honest farmers. Since the garrison’s firearms were so outdated as to be useless, the soldiers were divided into two types: spearmen and shield bearers. Sun Chuanting established four training grounds by region, with instructors leading daily drills.

In the second month of the first year of the Tianqi era, the clearing of military farmlands in Yan’an Prefecture was finally completed. In total, three hundred thousand acres of hidden land were uncovered, and one million three hundred thousand acres of wasteland were reclaimed. In the process, Sun Chuanting had executed only five people, which was impressive.

The promotion of new crops was proceeding smoothly as well. Sun Chuanting distributed seeds free to each county, stipulating that as long as the planting quota was met, each county could keep the proceeds from selling seeds. This greatly motivated the county officials, who went to the countryside to publicize the yield and benefits of sweet potatoes and potatoes with wild exaggeration. Though the villagers might not believe the hype, the contractual guarantee to purchase crops at set prices persuaded many, especially discerning landowners. After calculating, they found these crops more profitable than millet or wheat, and eagerly bought seeds, leading to shortages in some counties. Upon hearing this, Sun Chuanting sighed, realizing the Emperor’s saying that money’s power is limitless was indeed true. When had county officials ever been so proactive? If not for the seed profits staying local, they would never have promoted so enthusiastically.

In the ninth month of the Tianqi era, Wei Zhongxian’s trusted aide Li Yongzhen arrived in Yan’an Prefecture with several eunuchs. By then, the young eunuch sent by Sun Chuanting had completed experiments and drafted cultivation management regulations, all of which Li Yongzhen now oversaw.

Originally supervising the reconstruction of the Three Great Halls, Li Yongzhen was reassigned by Wei Zhongxian after Zhu Youjiao halted the project, to manage the vermicelli production experiments. Using sweet potatoes and potatoes from the imperial estate, and following the method for making mung bean vermicelli, he quickly mastered the process for sweet potato and potato vermicelli. After repeated refinement, he was sent to Yan’an Prefecture to handle the harvest.

Li Yongzhen immediately purchased four large houses—one each in Fushi County, Bao’an County, Suide Prefecture, and Shenmu County—near the granaries, then began hiring workers. By the time preparations were done, the sweet potatoes and potatoes were ready for harvest.

Sun Chuanting began large-scale procurement of these crops at the agreed price. This year, the weather in Yan’an Prefecture was favorable, and both crops yielded well. If not for the silver Li Yongzhen brought, Sun Chuanting would never have been able to buy up all the farmers’ produce.

Li Yongzhen was well prepared. As soon as the harvest began, he started vermicelli production. After repeated testing, the final product proved excellent, especially the sweet potato vermicelli, which was resistant to boiling, smooth, elastic, and delicious. Li Yongzhen had a keen business mind; he set up sales outlets in the larger cities of Shaanxi, primarily supplying restaurants and brothels, and quickly opened the market. Private households soon took notice, and demand outstripped supply. Li Yongzhen swiftly established more vermicelli factories in other counties and began supplying the capital and southern provinces. Soon, the “Delicacy” brand vermicelli, produced by the imperial estate, became highly sought after in both capitals. After deducting labor and Sun Chuanting’s purchase costs, this small vermicelli business earned over 1.2 million taels of silver in the first year of Tianqi.