Han Shizu

Chapter 2152: Emperor Shizong Chapter 28: City of Morning Sunshine, Old White Dragon
Zhaohui is a city built along the water. The dense harbors and crisscrossing water networks make a large number of buildings inside and outside the city surrounded by water, or even on the water. Due to the limitations of the topography, Zhaohui City is not regular in appearance. Some strange arrangements and designs have destroyed the overall sense and beauty of traditional Han-style architecture, but combined with the surrounding environment, it does not look abrupt.

The scale of the city is not large. Strictly speaking, it is the size of those small cities in the empire, or even smaller, but it has clear layers. Chaohui City is surrounded by ditches and has six water and land gates, so ships can pass directly inside and outside.

The city is divided into the inner and outer cities. The inner city is the royal city, which is exclusively for the residence and administration of royal family members; the outer city is larger, which is where the Wu nobles, bureaucrats and Han people with certain status and property live and live. At the same time, the main government offices, institutions, warehouses and other buildings are also located in the outer city.

The city is well-ordered, closely patrolled and heavily guarded. This is also a common feature of Chaohui City or the entire Han cities and towns in the Nanyang region, that is, racial segregation. The city is where the Han masters live.

Generally speaking, the local aborigines were not allowed to enter the city. Of course, some menial jobs such as cleaning the city, removing excrement and transporting excrement, and carrying coolies were still done by the barbarians. At the same time, some naturalized aborigines with a certain status could also report to the city regularly.

It is easy to imagine how different Chaohui City is from the outside. Dirty, messy and poor is an appropriate adjective, but it is the port, commerce, land and a large number of indigenous residents outside the city that support the cleanliness of the city.

To be fair, the situation in Chaohui City does not conform to the atmosphere of a new country that strives hard and develops upward. However, considering the realistic conditions, it is extremely difficult and requires huge sacrifices for the Han people to cross the sea to open up the country. If they do not live for wealth and enjoyment, do they have to share the joys and sorrows with the local natives?

At the same time, whether it is for the convenience of management, or to maintain rule, maintain the lofty status of the Han people, and ensure their expansionist desires, it is necessary to carry out a certain degree of exploitation of the indigenous people.

Without exploitation, how can there be development and prosperity? In a sense, hard work and abiding by the law are also a form of exploitation, but in the vast South Seas, the Han people can openly pass this exploitation on to the indigenous people. This is the price of accepting civilization, and it is also a spur and encouragement to the indigenous people. They are too lazy and too barbaric. How can lazy people who do not know etiquette have a bright and beautiful future?
When the Han civilians arrived here, as long as they dared to fight and struggle, they would soon become "Han masters" in the eyes of the natives. Of course, this situation only existed in the early stages of development. As time went on and the population increased, the threshold for upward development of the Han immigrants was also constantly increasing.

Therefore, there are also many Han civilians in and around the city, and although they enjoy the same treatment as in China, they do not have the "aristocratic" privileges. It is understandable that if they rely solely on the indigenous people, their productivity cannot supply so many Han masters. For many Han immigrants, a good life still needs to be created by their own hands.

Gouwu State was a place with extremely feudal characteristics. The "feudal" here refers to the establishment of states. In this country, almost all actions of all classes revolved around serving the nobles.

Its administration, judiciary, economy, people's livelihood and even military all implement the will of the powerful. Compared with the central empire, the greed and exploitativeness of the powerful are greatly magnified.

At the same time, in addition to the powerful and wealthy, a new class called "the rich" has emerged. This is also caused by geopolitical factors. These feudal states in Southeast Asia all have strong commercial attributes and can only survive without business.

In this context, the rise of merchants who got their start in trade was predictable. Although their say in the country was still far from enough, they had legitimately entered the ruling class and, like the Han plantation owners, were part of the superstructure of the feudal state.

The rise of the new merchant class has become a huge trend throughout Southeast Asia. With sufficient economic strength, they will inevitably hope to obtain the corresponding political status and security. This is an instinct, and it will take a long time to achieve.

Although the living environment of the Han immigrants in Southeast Asia has changed, it is not so easy to completely break the shackles of traditional concepts from the mainland, especially with the suppression of a large number of powerful nobles who are the most powerful conservatives.

It is conceivable that with the continuous development of commerce in the Nanyang region, the growing strength and influence of the commercial class will eventually have an impact on the ruling structure of the Nanyang feudal states.

But at present, they are not qualified and need to accumulate. In this era, the powerful represented by the feudal monarchy still has the final say. Even in the Southeast Asian countries, Confucian scholars and Buddhists have a higher status than plantation owners and businessmen.

Especially the former, which was the most fundamental guarantee and source of strength for the spread of Han civilization in Southeast Asia and the conquest of the vast continent by the Han people. No feudal state did not attach importance to it. After the first Confucian school was established on Liangping Island during the Kaibao period, in the past few decades, Confucian schools of all sizes have sprung up in Southeast Asia. Although they vary in size, the classic teachings of Confucianism have also been spread in this process and permeated this vast world.

Of course, the Confucian teachings spread to Southeast Asia were obviously untraditional. The Confucian schools in the empire, including those emerging local schools, all looked down on the Confucianism of Southeast Asia, because it was difficult for good Confucian scholars to emerge in a barren land. Also, because the Confucianism of Southeast Asia was increasingly deviating from the traditional path, it was even changed.
Taking things out of context, tampering with classics, and insulting sages are the strong criticisms and accusations made by the traditional Confucian schools of the empire against Nanyang Confucianism. There are too many expansionist and inhumane things in it, and even money-seeking merchants can openly enter the doctrine propaganda. How can this not make the traditionalists feel sad and angry.

However, no matter how much criticism there is locally, it does not affect the support and even admiration of Nanyang Confucianism by other countries. After all, there are no Confucian scholars from the mainland who have criticized it harshly coming south to correct it.

Moreover, it is timely and appropriate for Confucianism, which was born in the mainland, to change in the different environment of Southeast Asia. In addition to being incompatible with the Confucianism of the mainland, there are also considerable differences in Southeast Asia, especially among the countries. Over the past few decades, many sparks of thought have been generated.
But no matter what, while the major vassal states were moving away from the imperial center, the Han people in Southeast Asia, although culturally consistent with the mainland of the empire, had already deviated in development, which was particularly obvious during the Jianlong era.

Inside Chaohui City, there is a large Confucian academy, which is the official school of the Wu State. There are more than 300 students, all of whom are children of dignitaries and wealthy merchants, as well as hostages of naturalized indigenous chiefs and leaders. Each student is a reserve force for the ruling class of the Wu State.

In the residential areas outside the city, there were also many Han schools, bookstores, and private schools that developed based on Confucianism Institutes. These were the grassroots forces for the dissemination of Han culture, and they also received policy and financial support from the kingdom.

Moreover, not everyone can enroll in the school. Knowledge, learning and the glory of civilization are not cheap. In addition to the fact that many Han immigrants are reluctant to invest in the expensive tuition fees for their children and grandchildren, there is also discrimination based on identity. However, over the past few decades, many local indigenous people have discovered this way to truly change their destiny and are willing to sell everything they have to learn the advanced culture of the Han people.

There have been some such examples in the Wu Kingdom. Some smart indigenous people who were considered untouchables even in the Brunei era successfully broke away from the original slave class by getting closer to the Han people and learning and becoming familiar with Chinese culture. They have become upper-class indigenous people who are attached to and united in the kingdom system, and are also an important tentacle for the kingdom to deepen its management and control over the indigenous people.

In contrast to Confucianism in Southeast Asia, there is the development of Buddhism, which is equally outstanding, even better than Confucianism. Obviously, the indigenous people of the Southeast Asia region also need more advanced gods in their beliefs to comfort and even redeem them.

Therefore, the most conspicuous building outside Chaohui City is not the port, the street market, or the building, but the golden temple on the road leading to the city - Jialan Temple. As long as the weather is clear, you can always see the strong incense rising, the Buddhist chants, and the natives who burn incense and bow their heads are more than the Han people. The positive role of Buddhism in the kingdom's rule is much more obvious than that of the empire itself.

Chaohui is a commercial port city. The outer port's dock can accommodate large ships with a draft of 2 meters. The excellent hydrological conditions and the port facilities that were built and maintained at great cost have also attracted a large number of merchant ships.

Of course, in addition to trade and commerce relying on the benefits of the port, the main driving force for the development of Chaohui City still lies in agriculture, fisheries, salt industry and small handicrafts.

Salt-making is a tradition here, and some immigrants from Huainan (initially specially recruited by Zheng Zhi) brought the advanced technology and experience of salt-making in Huaidong in recent decades, greatly improving production and quality. It also enabled Chaohui's salt to be sold across islands and countries to East and West Java (Xiyong and Dongyue) and even to North and South Jinzhou (Qi and Liang).

The handicraft industry was brought entirely by Han immigrants, especially carpentry. In addition to various carpentry tasks surrounding Han architecture, the culture of wood carving and wood engraving has also been significantly spread, giving the city a more artistic atmosphere.

During the day, the port area was bustling, but apart from the Han business owners, most of the busy people were indigenous people who were enslaved. In contrast, at night, it was even more prosperous, and restaurants in and outside the city would hardly stop until late at night.

After all, it is in the tropics, and it is hot during the day. No matter which class of Han nobles they are from, they are not very willing to go out. Only at night can they feel a little cool, enjoy the comfort of the sea breeze, and enjoy the fruits of their development.

In addition to the prosperity of bright lights at night, some things that are not allowed to see the light can exist and happen more easily and conveniently. Under the cover of darkness, a three-masted Fuzhou ship slowly sailed into the Chaohui Outer Harbor, and under the command of the guide ship, it dropped anchor and docked in a berth that had been cleared long ago.

A row of torches were lit on the wooden pier. Under the dim light, dozens of strong men were waiting with weapons in hand. Among them was an old man with a thick beard.

He looked quite old, with an obvious scar on his face, but his eyes seemed to radiate a brilliance that could not be concealed by the thick night. The awe-inspiring aura that emanated from him also indicated his unusual status.

It can be speculated that this old man is a powerful figure in Chaohui City, and in fact, in the entire Wu Kingdom. His name is Shen Bailong, and he is the Viscount of Gouwu Kingdom, a legitimate aristocrat of the kingdom.

In the kingdom's title system, titles were also not granted lightly. In addition to members of the royal family, only those who had made special and significant contributions to the Wu Kingdom could be awarded titles. Even Zheng Zhi, who was designated as the "first meritorious official in the founding of the country", was only a horse post. It is conceivable that Shen Bailong, a viscount, had a high status in the Wu Kingdom.

Shen Bailong was the famous "Brother White Dragon" at the Shanghai docks. He was also one of the first group of reclamation groups that followed Zheng Zhi to the south of Brunei. At the beginning, relying on his clever mind, outstanding courage and powerful means, as well as the support of his brothers, Shen Bailong was very successful in the reclamation group.

Shen Bailong also seemed to have found his organization. He worked extra hard and quickly rose to prominence. With Zheng Zhi's promotion, he became a senior member of the reclamation group. He participated in the suppression of several major families in Brunei; he led his men to cut down trees and open up wasteland to provide space for the arrival of subsequent immigrants; he also led his troops to repel countless attacks by indigenous tribes, traveled far and wide, quelled repeated rebellions, and penetrated hundreds of miles along the river to capture tens of thousands of indigenous people, livestock, and property; the navy of the Wu Kingdom, which had only dozens of ships, was also organized by Shen Bailong.
That is to say, his birth was a bit low, otherwise he would have been an earl, but the kingdom's gift of viscount was enough to show the kingdom's recognition and commendation of his achievements. Nearly thirty years have passed, and the original "White Dragon Brother" has become "Old White Dragon", and he has also retired from the military and political front line of the kingdom, but his power and status in the country have never faded much.

During the past thirty years, the formation of the Shen family with Shen Bailong as the core was a natural thing. In addition to Shen Bailong's own children, he also sent people to bring some brave and aggressive members of the Shen family from his hometown in Zhoushan to enrich the Shen family's power in the State of Wu.

Shen Bailong is now old, with white beard and wrinkles all over his face, but his heart is young. Even though he is over 60, he still manages the family business. Given his status in Wu, the business that he can personally take care of is obviously extraordinary.
(End of this chapter)