Tall and heavy draft horses are indeed good, but they cost too much and are not affordable for ordinary people. Moreover—
"Perhaps hybrid horses are more suitable for the climate of the Ming Dynasty." The emperor casually suggested and handed it over to the Ministry of Agriculture headed by Xu Guangqi.
"Next year, we will conduct large-scale trials of rye and potatoes in Liaodong. We will also conduct planting trials in Henan, Zhili, Shaanxi, and other places." The emperor pondered and said, "Chen Zilong is good. Let's send him to Liaodong!"
Liaodong had experienced war and all industries were in need of development, especially agriculture. It would take at least a year of recovery before it could become a food and material base for the Ming army's expansion to the north.
Next year's spring plowing is of even greater importance. Not only will the Liao people be mobilized, but officers and soldiers will also have to take part in farming to increase the cultivated area to a new level.
The situation of too many people and too little land did not exist in Liaodong. Therefore, the emperor specifically instructed the frontline generals to take good care of the liberated Liao people.
If one more young and strong person lives, we can cultivate dozens more acres of land next year. In the future, the benefits generated will be far more than what the temporary grain withdrawal can bring.
If rye cultivation succeeded in Liaodong, the emperor would initiate a resettlement program after a year or two, starting with the landless and land-poor people of Zhili and Shandong, thus marking the beginning of the great development of Northeast China.
Only when Liaodong becomes a reliable material base can the Ming army's pace of expanding its territory northward be firm and unremitting.
"I have organized dozens of agricultural experts, led by Chen Zilong, to rush to Liaodong after the New Year to prepare for spring plowing." Xu Guangqi hesitated for a moment, then said, "I don't know how the Liaodong government is set up. If they can cooperate, the spring plowing will go much more smoothly."
Zhu Youxiao nodded and said, "I have already drafted a draft for the Liaodong officials. Chen Zilong will be temporarily appointed as the Left Minister of Liaodong and the Superintendent of Agricultural Promotion."
In the Ming Dynasty, in the establishment of local agricultural administration official posts, at the provincial level there was a governor who was responsible for managing civil and financial affairs, and there were also left and right councilors and councilors as deputies. The number of these officials was not fixed and was often set up according to the circumstances.
For example, during the Xuande reign, the Zhejiang Provincial Government requested the appointment of four additional councilors, two of whom were assigned to supervise agricultural work in the Wenzhou and Taizhou prefectures. Furthermore, in the eighth year of the Hongzhi reign of Emperor Xiaozong, one councilor was appointed in Shandong to "supervise agricultural work and also manage water conservancy."
When Chen Zilong was appointed as the Left Councillor, he was no longer just a professional bureaucrat in the Ministry of Agriculture, but a government official with authority.
"On behalf of Chen Zilong, I would like to thank Your Majesty for your reward and promotion." Xu Guangqi stood up and bowed to express his gratitude.
The emperor smiled, raised his hand, and said, "Liaodong has been through a long period of war and is in need of reconstruction. Farming is the foundation of the country. Let Chen Zilong take care of it."
After a pause, the emperor continued, "The Ministry of Agriculture should not only pay attention to Liaodong, but also to all parts of the north. When a major disaster strikes, the north will suffer the most, and we must not take it lightly."
"Your Majesty, rest assured. I have made arrangements and submitted the memorial. Please take the time to review it."
The emperor smiled and said, "I trust you, Mr. Xu, to handle the affairs. Well, if there is nothing else, Mr. Xu may take his leave."
Xu Guangqi bowed and took his leave, then left the hall and breathed a sigh of relief.
He said something to his disciple Chen Zilong, but he didn't expect the emperor to be so generous and immediately grant him an official position. This was an appreciation and promotion for Chen Zilong, and a favor from the emperor for himself.
It’s a pity that I am already old, otherwise I would go to Liaodong in person to help Your Majesty with his worries and difficulties.
Xu Guangqi shook his head and walked out of the palace with a little regret.
The emperor found Xu Guangqi's memorial, opened it and read it, and agreed deeply with the suggestions therein.
The central agricultural officials of the Ming Dynasty were directly responsible for the formulation and implementation of agricultural promotion rituals, as well as the formulation and promulgation of national agricultural promotion policies. As for specific agricultural promotion matters, they were mainly responsible for supervision and monitoring, and did not bear direct responsibility.
At the prefectural level, there were Tongzhi and Tongpan, whose responsibilities included "governing agriculture." At the county level, there was a magistrate who managed the affairs of the county. His jurisdiction was complex, and since he was directly responsible for local agricultural production, encouraging farmers to cultivate sericulture was often a regular task.
Although most officials in the Ming Dynasty, especially local officials, were responsible for encouraging farming.
However, in order to better supervise and promote local agricultural production, it would be a more reasonable approach to set up agricultural promotion officials who are specifically responsible for supervising agricultural policies. This would not only supervise local agricultural production but also check the performance of officials in promoting agricultural production on time.
For example, the emperor had considered this when appointing Chen Zilong, so Xu Guangqi did not say much and let the emperor read the memorial.
During the Ming Dynasty, the use of local assistant and deputy officials as agricultural promotion officials was partly due to the desire to avoid undermining the administrative authority of the principal officials. However, this also resulted in the officials, especially those at the prefecture and county levels, being placed in a lowly position. They were often assigned other tasks by the principal officials or their superiors, which affected their work.
His thoughts became clearer. The emperor picked up his pen to write his comments, put it down, and leaned back comfortably in his chair.
The subdivision of official duties was always planned and implemented by the emperor. For example, the county magistrate was responsible for everything, but many of them were not within his professional scope.
Think about it, having to judge cases as a judge, collect taxes as a tax collector, and encourage farmers, etc. It is inevitable that the tasks are too numerous to handle and it is not surprising that mistakes will occur.
In the past, the number of officials in the Ming Dynasty was due to financial considerations and concerns about redundant officials, but the emperor had a different idea. According to his research and analysis over the years, he believed that the number of officials in the Ming Dynasty was not large, and was far less than that in later generations.
An agricultural society might not be able to support so many people who rely on public funds, but to promote social progress and improve the professional quality of officials, it is extremely important.
With rye, potatoes and sweet potatoes, and the expansion into Southeast Asia, the emperor was quite confident that he could survive the disaster of the Little Ice Age.
Zhu Youxiao disagreed with the claim that the Little Ice Age was the cause of the Ming dynasty's demise. He argued that the main cause of the Ming dynasty's demise was institutional flaws and the collapse of the bureaucratic system.
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