Zhu Yuanzhang no longer demanded that every prediction from the heavenly voice would come true—listening to them as amusing stories was quite enjoyable in itself.
If these occurred three to five times a year, he could even save on the banquets he hosted for his brothers.
Coming from humble peasant origins, although he had gained some knowledge over the years, the internal factional struggles within the court remained largely unfamiliar to him. He had thought the scheming and rivalry among the several marshals in Haozhou City were troublesome enough, but he never imagined the grudges and conflicts among court officials could be even more vexing.
Leading troops into battle was difficult, managing an army was challenging—everything seemed hard. Ah, living truly wasn’t easy.
After this spontaneous moment of reflection, Old Zhu continued focusing on the light screen to listen to the story.
【After Fan Meng’s forged edict seizing power, the officials in Henan Province were excessively cooperative, leading some to suspect he might have been sent by the emperor to stir up trouble. However, before Fan Meng’s actions, Guo Ge had already begun contacting Tuotuo and others to plot Bayan’s removal. At the time, Bayan’s influence was too overwhelming; after repeated discussions, they concluded their chances of success were slim, so they kept postponing the plan, too afraid to act.】
【Considering Fan Meng’s previous purely vengeful behavior, it’s likely he had no connection to the emperor. If the emperor wanted to plant someone in Henan Province, he wouldn’t have chosen Fan Meng.】
【Henan Province was Bayan’s stronghold in the official circles, where his orders were absolute—even the emperor’s words carried less weight there. When Fan Meng caused such a major incident on his turf, Bayan completely lost his composure, lashing out at everyone in sight. Had the emperor been present, Bayan wouldn’t have hesitated to curse him too.】
【The Henan Pingzhang appointed by Fan Meng, Duan Fu, was a retired inspector. The inspector served as the head of the Suzheng Lianfangsi, a highly important official position specifically responsible for monitoring local officials. The Yuan Dynasty established this oversight agency shortly after its founding, but after Emperor Kublai Khan’s death, internal strife within the Yuan court intensified. The vast monitoring institution lacked proper management, with many inspectors serving long-term in local posts where they colluded with local officials, becoming complicit in corruption and rendering the agency completely ineffective.】
【The collusion between officials and local powers has always been a major issue, which is why nearly every dynasty implemented regulations limiting local officials’ terms to a few years, requiring them to relocate after completion to prevent them from forming interest groups with local clans. Monitoring officials like inspectors certainly needed regular rotation as well; otherwise, they would inevitably develop local ties—an unsolvable problem.】
【Although the court neglected management of the various Suzheng Lianfangsi offices, this didn’t stop them from considering these positions lucrative. Since they were lucrative posts, they had to remain under Mongol control—Han Chinese could stay out of it.】
【That Duan Fu managed to rise among the Mongols to become an inspector demonstrates his capability. Someone of his caliber couldn’t possibly have failed to see through Fan Meng’s deception, yet he still took up the position as Henan Pingzhang. It doesn’t take much thought to realize he must have done so intentionally.】
【Already furious and exasperated, Bayan escalated his attacks in his rage, persistently complaining before the emperor: “I’ve always said we shouldn’t trust Han Chinese with important positions. Now look—even some minor official can pull off such an outrageous scheme, and even Duan Fu, a former inspector, joins the rebellion. This proves Han Chinese are fundamentally corrupt! If we had approved my memorial to purge all Han Chinese back then, we wouldn’t be dealing with this mess now! Your Majesty, what do you have to say to that?”】
Guo Ge had nothing more to say; he had simply solidified his resolve to eliminate Bayan. Previously, he hadn’t dared act because the odds seemed unfavorable, but now he could delay no longer. He feared Bayan might depose him on a whim if displeased.
Li Shanchang clapped his hands and laughed, “That’s entirely possible. Bayan holds immense power—he was the one who escorted the emperor to Dadu, and removing the emperor would require just a word from him.”
“When the ruler is weak and the ministers strong, chaos is inevitable. A domineering minister monopolizing power is certainly no good,” Zhu Yuanzhang said gravely. “If I were the emperor in Dadu, after removing Bayan, I would never allow Tuotuo to become another powerful minister.”
No matter how intricate the court situation, if it couldn’t be unraveled, he wouldn’t bother. Whoever disobeyed would lose their head—as long as his methods were ruthless enough, those below would have no choice but to obey.
[At this point, everyone understands why Fan Meng succeeded in causing trouble and why the officials in Henan Province joined him. Well, this Fan Meng was indeed a ruthless character—withholding wages is truly unacceptable.]
[But why call him the Grave Digger of the Great Yuan? This leads to the importance of Henan Jiangbei Province.]
As this was said, the light screen switched to a map, and the audience in the Council Hall perked up, knowing the crucial part was about to begin.
The title “Grave Digger of the Great Yuan” wasn’t one just anyone could claim. Liu Futong and Han Shantong had stirred massive upheavals without the heavenly voice bestowing such a label upon them. It couldn’t be that Fan Meng received it merely because his actions preceded theirs—there had to be more to the story.
On the light screen, the map shifted uncertainly, depicting the Song, Liao, and Jin dynasties in three distinct colors, each gradually swallowed by the color representing the Yuan Dynasty. If nothing else, the sequence of the Mongols conquering such vast territories was clearly visible.
[In the 28th year of the Yuan Dynasty’s Zhiyuan era, corresponding to 1291 AD, the court officially established Henan Jiangbei Province. This was the ninth province set up after Shaanxi, Gansu, Liaoyang, Sichuan, Yunnan, Huguang, Jiangzhe, and Jiangxi were fixed as the highest local administrative divisions.]
[The formal establishment of Henan Jiangbei Province occurred exactly sixty years before the outbreak of the late Yuan peasant uprising and only twelve years after the fall of the Southern Song.]
[From the map, it’s clear that the areas south of the Yellow River and north of the Yangtze were newly conquered by the Mongols after subjugating the Jin and pacifying the Song. These regions had just been incorporated into the Great Yuan Empire’s territory, and anti-Yuan sentiment among the populace was high. The court needed to govern—or more aptly, suppress—these areas, requiring significant effort.]
[With the establishment of a new province, adjacent provinces naturally had to be adjusted. After Henan Province was created, the court ordered “the northern Jiangbei prefectures to be assigned to Henan Jiangbei Province.” Jianghuai Province lost the Lianghuai region and was renamed Jiangzhe Province. In the 29th year of Zhiyuan, the court abolished Henan Xuanweisi, merging its jurisdictions—Bianliang, Xiangyang, Henan, Nanyang, Guide, and other routes and prefectures—into Henan Province. Additionally, “De’an, Hanyang, and Xinyang from Huguang Province were assigned to Jinghu North Circuit; Qihuang to Huai West Circuit; and the three Xuanweisi of Huai East Circuit were all placed under Henan Province.”]
[The adjustments to administrative divisions weren’t finalized until the sixth month of the 30th year of Zhiyuan, thus forming the Henan Jiangbei Province as seen in the late Yuan Dynasty.]
Among the ten provinces of the Yuan Dynasty, Henan Province did not govern a large number of prefectures, counties, and subprefectures. Its importance lay in its exceptionally vast jurisdiction and strategically vital location.
The functional emphasis of each province in the Yuan Dynasty varied. Lingbei Province and Gansu Province focused on controlling Mongol princes, thousand-household tribes, and military supply logistics. Liaoyang Province and Yunnan Province prioritized pacifying and administering frontier ethnic minority regions. Jiangzhe Province, Jiangxi Province, and Huguang Province emphasized suppressing the former Southern Song territories and extracting wealth and taxes.
Henan Jiangbei Province spanned from west to east, encompassing the vast region between the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. This included numerous strategically vital locations such as Xuzhou, Yangzhou, Anqing, and Xiangyang. From a map perspective, Henan Jiangbei Province controlled the Yellow River to the north and the Yangtze River to the south, dominating both the Central Plains heartland and the gateway to the Yangtze. With this single province, both the Yellow River and Yangtze River—two formidable natural barriers—could be held.
Clearly, its role in the national military garrison structure was exceptionally prominent, primarily serving to control the various provinces of Han territory.
The map on the light screen transformed from a simple flat map into a three-dimensional topographic map showing mountain ranges and river courses, stunning the few people who had been hastily taking notes. They could manage to sketch the earlier floor plan, but now that the image had become so lifelike, even with eight hands they couldn’t replicate it.
In the Council Hall, aside from Mu Qing, everyone had experience leading troops in battle. Despite Zhu Wenzheng and Zhu Wenzhong’s youth, they were well-versed in military affairs. No military commander could resist the allure of a three-dimensional map. Since reproducing it was impossible, they focused intently on memorizing every detail of the terrain.
The provinces of the Yuan Dynasty also functioned as major military districts. After the Mongols conquered the Southern Song, the Mongol armies that pacified Jiangnan were ordered to “gather and garrison” in regions like Henan and Hebei. Henan Jiangbei Province became the garrison zone for forces under the Henan Huaixi Mongolian Military Command, boasting exceptionally strong military presence and the capacity to monitor surrounding provinces such as Jiangnan and Chuan-Shan.
The Mongols occupied the Mobei grasslands and vast swathes of the Central Plains. Their systems differed significantly from those of traditional Central Plains dynasties, with military garrison structures centered on both the Mongol heartlands in Mobei and the newly conquered Han territories.
Key point: Henan Province was precisely situated at the core of the Han territory military garrison zone.
Such a critical military region would naturally host substantial troop numbers.
Henan Province not only commanded the “19-wing armies under its jurisdiction” but also permanently garrisoned main Mongol-Yuan forces like the Henan Huaibei Mongolian Military Command, Shandong Henan Mongolian Military Command, and the Tanmachi Army within its borders and near its northern frontiers. Additionally, Yangzhou and Luzhou were overseen by Prince Zhennan and Prince Xuanrang. Some officials in Henan Province even held concurrent posts as commanders in two or more Mongolian Military Commands, such as Shandong Hebei and Henan Huaibei.
Among the ten provinces of the Great Yuan, only Henan Province had this unique configuration.
In general, the military forces within Henan were primarily divided into three components: the Mongol Chief Military Commission, the provincial-controlled troops, and the provincial-attached troops. The Mongol Chief Military Commission was directly subordinate to the imperial Privy Council and nominally had no hierarchical relationship with Henan Province. Meanwhile, the “nineteen wings of provincial-controlled troops” and the “provincial-attached troops” composed of a thousand Mongol soldiers were the forces that the provincial administration could mobilize.
The court had explicit regulations: officials in Henan Province responsible for military affairs could not arbitrarily deploy subordinate troops. Even the “nineteen wings of provincial-controlled troops” required court approval before “deployments could be made from among the various forces.” This was a strict court mandate that provincial officials had to abide by.
However, rules were one thing, but implementation was another. Some officials in Henan Province also held concurrent positions as chiefs or commanders of the Mongol Chief Military Commission, granting them extreme flexibility in mobilizing troops within the province, often without needing court approval.
The Fan Meng case illustrates this clearly. By merely presenting a counterfeit Mobilization Tally, he was able to mobilize troops from all routes across the province, demonstrating the immense power wielded by the Henan Pingzhang.
The three-dimensional map was incredibly intuitive. As the heavenly voice spoke, the corresponding areas would zoom in, leaving viewers envious and practically drooling.
Truly, this was the work of immortals—it perfectly aligned with their desires.
At that moment, everyone had only one thought: they wanted such a marvelous tool too!
Unfortunately, such divine methods belonged only to the immortals; mere mortals could only look on wistfully.
Let’s return to the map. To the southwest of Henan Jiangbei Province lies the Daba Mountains, which serve as the watershed between the Jialing River and the Han River, the geographical boundary between the Sichuan Basin and the Hanzhong Basin, and also the dividing line between Henan Province and Sichuan Province. To the northwest are Tongguan and the Han River, bordering Shaanxi Province. Holding strategic strongholds like Tongguan was sufficient to contain Guanzhong. To the south, along the Yangtze River from west to east, it borders Huguang, Jiangxi, and Jiangzhe provinces. To the north lies the directly controlled Zhongshu Sheng of the court.
Spanning both banks of the Yellow River and straddling the Yangtze River in areas like Xiazhou and Jiangling, the province stationed hundreds of thousands of troops in its strategically vital locations, enabling it to influence the entire situation with a single move.
Given Henan Province’s exceptionally high strategic geographical importance, the Yuan court exercised extreme caution in appointing officials here.
Among the successive Pingzhangs or Chancellors of Henan Province, many were related by family ties, such as fathers and sons or brothers. Members of Mongol aristocratic families serving in the same province, especially in top positions like Pingzhang or Chancellor, clearly violated the personnel avoidance systems of Han Chinese dynasties. However, this practice aligned with the Mongol tradition of hereditary leadership in the thousand-household units. Stationing Mongol nobles in Henan Province allowed the central court to control the Central Plains heartland and the critical junctions of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers. This arrangement was essential both militarily and politically.
Moreover, when members of Mongol aristocratic families served in Henan Province, it was not a straightforward hereditary succession. They would assume office after skipping several terms, and they were counterbalanced by Semu and Han Chinese deputies, preventing any single aristocratic family from monopolizing control over Henan Province.
Zhu Wenzhong listened until his eyes spun like mosquito coils. “Brother Wenzheng, did you understand any of that?”
Zhu Wenzheng was equally bewildered, but he couldn’t show weakness in front of his younger brother. So, he replied with unwavering conviction, “Understood.”
He wasn’t sure if he had understood it correctly, but in any case, Henan Province was very important, this territory was extremely formidable, the imperial court valued it immensely—in short, it was just that impressive.
Zhu Wenzhong rubbed his face to clear his mind. “Brother, how did you understand it? Explain it again in a way I can comprehend.”
Zhu Wenzheng: …
Damn, he didn’t know how to explain it either.
Zhu Wenzheng stared solemnly at the light screen, feigning impatience as he said, “No time to explain now. We’ll talk after the Divine Manifestation disappears.”
Mu Qing sighed weakly, feeling that the video he had made was quite easy to understand—apparently, that was just his own misconception.
Feeling disheartened, he wanted to be left alone. Wuwuwuwu.
Zhu Wenzhong, having been rebuked by his elder brother, noticed the little one beside him looking somewhat dejected and empathized. “Wenqing, did you not understand it either?”
Mu Qing sighed again, his weariness belying his youth. “Brother Wenzhong, this part is about how whoever gains the Central Plains gains the world.”
Did you really not understand it? Wuwuwuwu?
Zhu Wenzhong widened his eyes in astonishment. “You actually understood it?”
Not only Zhu Wenzhong, but several others nearby who could hear their conversation were also overjoyed. “Elder brother, our Wenqing is truly clever.”
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded reservedly. “Our sister taught him well.”
Li Shanchang glanced at the little child “shyly” hiding behind Zhu Wenzheng. Recalling that the kid had recently begun studying the Four Books and Five Classics with Fan Zugan and Hu Han, he thought to himself that those fellows must be teaching quite well. He hoped they wouldn’t waste the child’s talent.
If he weren’t so busy all the time, he would also like to mentor a clever little one—who knows, he might even gain prestige through his disciple in the future.
Old Li chuckled at his own thoughts, then quickly straightened up and pretended nothing had happened.
[The importance of Henan Jiangbei Province is already clear to everyone. Now, let’s discuss the reaction of the Dadu court after the Fan Meng case occurred.]
[After Fan Meng and others were executed, Bayan “petitioned to dispatch Zhi Shumi Yuan Shi, Tanma Chihan, to lead a large army out, causing panic in the capital.” At the time, Zhongshu Canzhi Zhengshi, Gao Nalin, was ordered to handle the case.]
[Gao Nalin was a Western Xia man who thoroughly implemented Bayan’s anti-Han policies. His handling of the matter in Bianliang resulted in “over five hundred families implicated,” “thousands entangled by association,” and “countless families in Bianliang ruined and lives lost.”]
[The officials appointed by Fan Meng had an extensive reach—from the routes down to the prefectures, and from the prefectures to the counties—the entire Henan Province was embroiled in it.]
[The most unfortunate in this affair were the officials of Henan Province. Those who had disobeyed Fan Meng were killed by Fan Meng, while those who obeyed Fan Meng were later executed by Gao Nalin. Over five hundred families of provincial officials were exterminated—it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say an entire generation was wiped out.]
[Fast-forward over a decade later, to the eleventh year of Zheng, when Han Shantong and Liu Futong rebelled in Yingzhou, captured Chenggao, seized the granaries, and gathered tens of thousands of followers.]
[With this first uprising, responses erupted from all directions. Zhima Li rebelled in Xuzhou; Peng Yingyu and Xu Shouhui attacked Qizhou and Huangzhou; the Southern Lock Red Turban Army and Northern Lock Red Turban Army occupied Nanyang, Xiangyang, and Jingmen; Liao Yong’an and his brother Liao Yongzhong gathered forces and entrenched themselves in the Chaohu Water Fortress to resist bandits and protect their homeland—the nascent form of the Chaohu Navy began to take shape.]
The three-dimensional map reverted to a flat map. With each name spoken by the heavenly voice, a corresponding area on the map lit up.
【Upon closer inspection, these massive rebel forces were all, without exception, located within Henan Jiangbei Province.】
Xu Da’s eyes widened like bronze bells. After staring blankly for quite a while, he finally said, “Very well, I admit that Fan Meng was the gravedigger of the Great Yuan dynasty.”