A resurgence of the late Ming Dynasty, starting with a trillion-dollar clone.

Chapter 43

The following spring arrived in the blink of an eye. Ma Yongsheng's health had improved, and he was able to ride a horse again. He decided to go north to take a look.

Our first stop is Kaifeng.

Jin Shenghuan greeted him ten miles outside the city. Upon seeing Ma Yongsheng, the bearded general's eyes welled with tears: "Brother Changsheng! You've finally arrived! Look, look at Kaifeng City, it's come alive again!"

Ma Yongsheng looked up. The city walls of Kaifeng were still dilapidated, but there were pedestrians at the city gates and the cries of vendors. In the fields, a few people could be seen working. Although it was far from prosperous, at least it was no longer a dead city.

"General Jin, you've worked hard," Ma Yongsheng said sincerely.

"What's so hard about it!" Jin Shenghuan laughed heartily. "Seeing the people have land to cultivate and food to eat is more satisfying than winning a battle!"

After arriving in the city, Ma Yongsheng made a special trip to visit several farmers who had been newly allocated land. They were all the poorest families, living in thatched huts with nothing but a few pieces of broken furniture. But when the topic of land came up, their eyes lit up.

"General, look, this is my land deed!" An old farmer tremblingly held out a piece of paper. "Three and a half mu! All good land! I planted wheat this year, and it grew very well!"

Ma Yongsheng took the land deed and examined it. It was genuine, stamped with the official seal of the Jingnan Army's General Command. He nodded: "Farm well, and things will get better."

"Thanks to the General! Thanks to the General!" The old farmer was about to kneel again, but Ma Yongsheng helped him up.

Leaving the farmer's house, Jin Shenghuan whispered, "Brother Changsheng, this method of land distribution is truly effective. Now, the people in the north all give a thumbs up when they mention the Jingnan Army. In some places, before our troops even arrived, the people themselves drove away the original county officials and raised our flags."

"Popular support is valuable," Ma Yongsheng said, "but we must also guard against people taking the opportunity to seize land. The land must be distributed to genuine farmers, not to those local tyrants."

"Don't worry, I'm keeping an eye on it," Jin Shenghuan said. "We've sent a work team to each county to specifically supervise the land allocation. Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be beheaded."

Ma Yongsheng nodded, then asked, "How's the clearing out of those 'living zombies' going?"

Mentioning this, Jin Shenghuan's face darkened: "There are still a few scattered ones. This thing is strange, hidden deep in the mountains and forests, and it's very difficult to find them all. However, there aren't many left, so they won't amount to much."

"We can't be careless," Ma Yongsheng said. "We need to send out more patrols and eliminate any such creatures we find. Also, we need to inform the people that if they see anything strange, they should not approach it and should report it immediately."

After spending three days in Kaifeng, Ma Yongsheng continued north, visiting Zhengzhou and Luoyang before finally arriving in Shangjing.

Today, the capital city of Shangjing is nothing but ruins. The Forbidden City has been burned down to its foundations, and less than one-tenth of the houses in the city remain. Ma Yongsheng stood outside the former Meridian Gate, looking at the devastation, and felt a mix of emotions.

This city witnessed the rise and fall of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, and now it has been destroyed in his hands.

But it's not a pity. Some things must be completely destroyed in order for there to be a possibility of new life.

"Prepare for reconstruction," he said to the officials accompanying him, "but not to restore the old capital. Build a new city with wide streets, good drainage, parks and green spaces, public schools and clinics. Most importantly—no palace. This will be the capital of a civilized nation, not the emperor's home."

The officials took notes. Although they felt it was strange not to build a palace, no one dared to question it.

On his way back to Wuchang from Beijing, Ma Yongsheng made a detour to Shanxi. He had heard that there was a "miners' uprising" there and wanted to go and see for himself.

The uprising took place near Datong, in a coal mine. The miners had originally worked for the Qing government, but after the Qing dynasty collapsed, the mine owner tried to abscond with the money. The miners refused, and a fight broke out. Local officials from the Jingnan Army tried to mediate, but the mine owner bribed the officials and instead arrested the mine foreman. The miners then rebelled and occupied the mine.

When Ma Yongsheng arrived, the mine had already been surrounded by the Jingnan Army, but they did not attack; they were merely in a standoff.

He sent someone to announce that the General himself had come and wanted to meet with the miners' representatives.

The miners were skeptical, so they sent out three representatives. They were all dark-faced men, covered in coal dust, with wary eyes.

"I am Ma Yongsheng." Ma Yongsheng cut to the chase, "Tell me, why are you causing trouble?"

One of the representatives mustered his courage and said, "General, it's not that we want to cause trouble, it's that the officials are forcing us to rebel! Mine owner Wang is going to run away, owing us three months' wages! We went to the county government, but the county magistrate took Mine owner Wang's money and then arrested our leaders! We have no other way to make a living, so we seized the mine!"

After listening, Ma Yongsheng turned to the local official and asked, "Is that so?"

The local official broke out in a cold sweat: "Great...General, this humble official...this humble official did not know..."

"Don't know?" Ma Yongsheng's eyes turned cold. "Then I'll help you look into it."

He sent someone to the county government office to bring all the account books and case files. In front of everyone, he examined them one by one. Sure enough, he found evidence of bribery by Mine Owner Wang, as well as records of the county magistrate's misconduct.

"Bang!" Ma Yongsheng slammed his fist on the table. "Execute these two corrupt officials on the spot!"

The soldiers stepped forward, dragged the terrified local official and mine owner out, and beheaded them on the spot.

The miners were dumbfounded.

Ma Yongsheng walked up to the miners' representatives and said, "I'll take care of your matter. First, all of Mine Owner Wang's assets will be confiscated and used to pay your back wages. Second, this mine will henceforth belong to your collective of miners. You will elect a management team to run it yourselves, and the profits will be shared among you. Third, the foreman who was arrested will be released immediately."

The miners were stunned for a long time, then burst into cheers. They knelt on the ground, shouting "Your Honor, the Just Magistrate!"

Ma Yongsheng helped them up: "I am not a lord, but a public servant. Remember this from now on: if you are in the right, speak the truth; if you are wronged, appeal your case. But you must not resort to violence again. We, the Jingnan Army, follow the law and reason."

After settling matters with the miners, Ma Yongsheng continued his journey south. This trip took him two months, covering more than a dozen prefectures and counties. In each place, he not only listened to reports from officials but also conducted incognito visits to hear the truth from the people.

There are many problems: in some places the new policies are being implemented well and the people are living in peace and contentment; in other places they are being outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant, and the gentry are still oppressing the people; in some places officials are corrupt and in other places military discipline is lax.

But overall, hope outweighs disappointment.

When they returned to Wuchang, it was already summer. Huang Zongxi came from Nanjing, bringing both good news and bad news.

"The good news is that the Jiangnan Council has been elected," Huang Zongxi said. "Of the 240 representatives, 30% are gentry and 70% are commoners. Although many representatives did not understand the rules of procedure and made quite a few jokes, at least it's a start."

"And the bad news?"

Huang Zongxi smiled wryly: "The bad news is that some people want to push you to be emperor. It's not just in Jiangnan, but also in the north. They say the world cannot be without a ruler, and since you have made the greatest contributions, you should ascend the throne."

Ma Yongsheng frowned: "Who started this?"

“There are all sorts of people,” Huang Zongxi said. “Some genuinely believe that a new dynasty should be established, some want to be meritorious officials who support the new dynasty, and some… may be remnants of the Qing dynasty stirring up trouble, trying to get you caught up in internal strife.”

"What's the parliament's stance?"

"There's a huge division in parliament," Huang Zongxi said. "Most of the gentry representatives support your claim to the throne, while some commoner representatives support it and some oppose it. They've been arguing for days without reaching a conclusion."

Ma Yongsheng pondered. This was a problem he would have to face sooner or later. He could forcefully promote civilization, but if the people's hearts were not with him, even the best system would be a castle in the air.

"Let's hold a general meeting," he finally said. "Invite all the parliamentary representatives, local officials, and military commanders to Wuchang. I want to explain things to everyone in person."

Two weeks later, Wuchang was bustling with activity. Representatives, officials, and generals from all over the country gathered together. The main hall of the Governor-General's Office was not enough to accommodate everyone, so a tent was set up in the courtyard.

Ma Yongsheng stood on the stage, looking down at the dense crowd below. These people would decide the future of this country.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, his voice calm but clear, "I have invited you all here today to decide on a major matter—the future of our world."

The audience fell silent.

"Some people say that a new dynasty should be established, and there should be an emperor," Ma Yongsheng continued. "Logically, that's how it should be. After the war is over, rewards should be given based on merit, and kings and marquises should be enfeoffed. If I were to ascend the throne, many of you here would be able to obtain an official position and bring glory to your ancestors."

Some people nodded, while others looked at him expectantly.

"However," Ma Yongsheng changed the subject, "I want to tell everyone today that I cannot be this emperor. Not only can I not be, but no one else can be either."

The audience erupted in uproar.

"Why?" someone asked loudly.

"Because the imperial system is the root of all chaos in the world." Ma Yongsheng raised his voice. "When one family or clan rules the country, in order to protect their own rule, they have to guard against everyone—guard against military generals who become too powerful, guard against civil officials who form cliques for personal gain, and guard against the people who gather to rebel. And what is the result? In all this guarding, they create a dead end. No matter how wise the emperor is, after a few generations, there will be a tyrant; no matter how powerful the dynasty is, after a few hundred years, it will perish."

He paused. "What have we just experienced? The Ming Dynasty fell, and the Qing Dynasty fell too. If we establish a new dynasty, and two hundred years later, will it all happen again? There will be war again, people will die again, and thousands of miles will be deserted again?"

Silence fell over the audience. Those words struck a nerve.

"Therefore, I want to forge a new path," Ma Yongsheng said. "This path is called 'The World Belongs to All.' There is no emperor, no hereditary succession. Power is granted by everyone, officials are elected by everyone, and laws are established for everyone. I call this system 'Civilized Country.'"

He looked around at the crowd: "I know many people think this is too far-fetched and unreliable. For thousands of years, emperors have ruled the country as a matter of course; suddenly saying they don't want it anymore makes everyone uneasy. But please think about it: how have the common people fared during these thousands of years of emperors ruling? How many peaceful years have there been? How many good days?"

"Let's not talk about distant times, just take the Chongzhen era. Wasn't the emperor diligent in his duties? Weren't the ministers capable? But what was the result? Natural disasters and man-made calamities, the people suffered, and in the end, the country perished. Why? It wasn't that the emperor and ministers didn't work hard, but that the system was flawed. This system was wrong from the root—it treated the country as the private property of one family, rather than the home of everyone."

Ma Yongsheng became increasingly agitated as he spoke: "Today, we have the opportunity to change this fundamental problem. The Qing Dynasty has collapsed, the old order has crumbled, and it's time to establish new rules. If we miss this opportunity, in a few decades, new interest groups will form, and it will be much harder to change things then!"

He took a deep breath: "I, Ma Yongsheng, have never lied in my life. Today, I assure you all: I will never claim the title of emperor. Not only will I not, but neither will my descendants. This world belongs to all people. What we are building is a country without an emperor, where everyone can live in peace and prosperity; a country without hereditary succession, where the virtuous and capable are given their positions."

"This path is difficult, and it may require the efforts of several generations. We may take detours, we may fail. But at least we tried. It's better than walking the same old path again and waiting to die again two hundred years from now!"

After he finished speaking, he quietly looked at the audience.

A long silence followed. Then, someone stood up—it was Yue Zhenbang.

"The General is right!" he shouted. "My ancestors served their country with utmost loyalty, but what country? The Zhao family's country! And what was the result? Fengbo Pavilion! Today, we have the opportunity to serve the country of all people, why not seize it? I, Yue, support civilization!"

Then, Huang Zongxi stood up: "I have spent my whole life studying the classics, learning that 'the people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important.' But for thousands of years, which dynasty has truly put the people first? Today, I have the opportunity, and I am willing to personally test this new law!"

Jin Shenghuan also stood up: "Old Jin is a rough man and doesn't understand grand principles. But Old Jin knows that by following the General, we won the battle, the plague was controlled, and the people had land to cultivate. The General said to take a new path, so Old Jin will follow! We've already braved mountains of knives and seas of fire, so what's there to be afraid of taking a new path?"

One by one, the representatives stood up. Gentry, commoners, officials, generals... Although some still hesitated, the die was cast.

Ma Yongsheng's eyes welled up with tears as he watched this scene.

This path has finally taken its first step.

The first attempt at civilization by humankind began in the East in the 17th century.