Chapter 14: Answering Fluently

It was clear that the questions from the Hongzhi Emperor had no pattern at all. One moment he was worried about selling ancestral property, and the next moment, he shifted the topic to the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains.

Fang Jifan immediately realized that the emperor had come here, most likely because of the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains.

He felt a little excitement inside. Had the emperor read his essay? It seemed… the essay had pleased him.

Fang Jifan said, “Yes, this subject’s answer.”

The Hongzhi Emperor remained silent for a moment before saying, “But if the imperial court implements the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains, it will definitely cause the chieftains in the Southwest to rebel. A big revolt will come soon. So, though the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains is a fundamental solution, it is still too superficial.”

Yes, once the imperial court implemented the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains, it would be like the Reduction of Feudatories. Why would those chieftains accept it? They would surely unite and start a bigger rebellion.

Fang Jifan said, “That is why this subject suggested starting with using natives to control natives. The imperial court could transfer Military Households or natives from Huguang to the Southwest to control the chieftains there and divide them. Besides, using the method of showing favor, both methods should be used together. After all, these chieftains would rebel now and then. As long as the suppression army and the Wolf Troops could temporarily keep them down, different strategies could be applied to different native regions. For those who refused to submit, the imperial court could order local Wolf Troops and guard stations to suppress them and remove their chieftain titles. If they were willing to obey, then they could be given high positions and wealth. Even if they lost their power, they would still live in luxury.”

The Hongzhi Emperor showed no expression and just stood quietly with his hands behind his back.

Fang Jifan did not know if what he said was good or not. His mouth felt dry, but he continued, “Actually, the most important reason for the frequent rebellions in the Southwest is that the imperial court has always had a huge blind spot.”

The term “blind spot” made the Hongzhi Emperor raise his eyebrows slightly and show displeasure.

Liu Qian, standing nearby, was overjoyed inside. This guy was so bold! Though the term “blind spot” was unheard of, its meaning could be understood. Wasn’t it accusing the court officials of being blind? If looked into more deeply, it meant His Majesty was confused and could not see clearly?

Fang Jifan gradually calmed down. When he spoke earlier, his tone was a bit disjointed, but now he started to become “bold.” “In governing the Southwest, the imperial court has always treated the chieftains, native officials, and native people as one. So when wanting to help the natives, the court often rewarded the native officials. But in fact, even if the native officials received countless rewards, what good did it do for the native people? The native people got no benefits from the imperial court. All the benefits were taken by the chieftains and native officials. They naturally would not feel grateful for His Majesty’s kindness. And these chieftains and native officials knew very well that the imperial court rewarded them to keep them from rebelling. So they naturally had an arrogant attitude because they knew that by challenging the imperial court a little, the court would become more worried, and they could gain even more benefits.”

“The imperial court has been very generous to the native regions in the Southwest, but if the native people did not really get any benefits, how would they feel grateful to the court? Now, the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains is essentially aimed at those hereditary chieftains and native officials. While the imperial court weakens them, it must not treat the native people and these chieftains as one. They should be treated separately. Be strict with the chieftains and native officials, but try to give the benefits meant for the chieftains and native officials to the native people instead. If, during the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains, the imperial court gave money and food to poor natives, and also ordered local guard stations to provide enough salt and iron to the natives, plus gave them some land to farm, and selected some smart natives to set up Schools, allowing them to study and later take the Imperial Examination to become officials, then even if the chieftains and hereditary native officials felt their interests were harmed and wanted to rebel, if the native people refused to follow them, could just thirty or fifty native officials resist the imperial army?”

“This subject believes that no matter where, the people in one place come from all walks of life. They have different needs. They must not be treated as one group and handled the same way. To govern the native regions, we must divide and rule. Dealing with chieftains is one method, treating smart natives is another, handling ordinary natives is a different strategy, and dealing with weak women and children should have its own effective method. Only then can the imperial court tell friend from foe, who can be won over, and who must be firmly opposed. As long as the imperial court follows this method, sends a capable minister to the Southwest to lead the Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains, and stations local guard stations and Wolf Troops at key places, in three to five years, replacing the hereditary chieftains with appointed officials can completely solve this problem.”

At first, the Hongzhi Emperor listened casually.

He was very interested in the term “Bureaucratization of Native Chieftains,” but initially, he thought it was impractical. Now… he suddenly realized that not only did Fang Jifan speak convincingly, but it also made a lot of sense.

Why were the chieftains never fully subdued? It was because the imperial court treated the chieftains and their people as one. So when the court gave rewards, it gave them to the chieftains. The native people who wanted a better life had to rely on the chieftains. The chieftains then distributed the court’s rewards to the natives to win their support. And if a chieftain rebelled, the imperial court saw the whole tribe as rebels and attacked without distinguishing good from bad. The result was that the natives who benefited from the chieftains stood united with them. Once a chieftain rebelled, the natives would live and die together with them.

Divide and rule… The more the Hongzhi Emperor listened, the more he found it interesting. Though the imperial court was good at using divide and rule, for example, when dealing with the Oirats and Tatars, they often stirred up internal conflicts among the tribes so the court could benefit. But the divide and rule Fang Jifan talked about was about separating the different classes in the native regions and dealing with each group differently.

The Hongzhi Emperor’s eyes lit up. He had a feeling that this strategy could work.

Strangely, a long-standing problem that the court officials could not solve was clearly explained by such a person. The Hongzhi Emperor felt deeply shocked.

He could not help but take a deep look at Fang Jifan with curiosity. Where did this kid learn all this? But he was always steady. Though shocked inside, he showed no expression and smiled slightly. “I heard that you are a spoiled Young Lord who knows nothing. But today, meeting you, I feel the rumors are mostly untrue!”

When he said this lightly, Fang Jifan cautiously looked up and saw that the Hongzhi Emperor had a cold look on his face.

Fang Jifan had felt proud just moments ago, thinking his time to rise had come. But now, his heart sank.

A terrible thought rose in his mind.

His past actions had indeed created an image of a scoundrel and a rogue. But today, the emperor saw him behaving properly and answering fluently. This…

This was not right.

How could a person who was usually rotten to the core suddenly change his character?

Then… what would the emperor think? The worst possibility was that the emperor would believe he had been pretending to be foolish. A person who usually acted stupid but showed great cleverness at key moments—wasn’t that telling the emperor that Fang Jifan was very scheming?

No emperor would want his subordinates to be too cunning and unpredictable. Could the emperor ever trust such a person? So…

Fang Jifan understood that his excellent performance just now was like asking for death.

Thinking of this, Fang Jifan was drenched in cold sweat. He felt like hitting himself in frustration.

Did this mean that if he stopped being a wasteful son, he would be seen as a schemer and ambitious person?

So, it seemed Fang Jifan must be a villain, a scum, and a spendthrift!