Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 705 Tainan City

Liu Ye then asked, "Brother Huang, have you ever thought about evading taxes? After all, it's a vast ocean, and the patrolling warships can't catch you every time, can they?"

"That won't work either," the merchant surnamed Huang shook his head vigorously. "Holding onto this侥幸心理 (a gambler's mentality) is risky. If we're caught by patrolling warships at sea and can't produce proof of tax payment, the cargo will still be confiscated, and we'll lose everything. It's not worth it to save a little money. More importantly, Japan only has Nagasaki as an open port right now. The Japanese and the people here are colluding. Without proof of tax payment here, the townspeople at the magistrate's office there won't allow you to unload your goods and go ashore to trade, blocking the last door. So, after thinking it over, the only option is to honestly pay the taxes..."

Liu Ye was very pleased to hear what the businessman surnamed Huang said. Hearing from an ordinary businessman was more credible than reports passed up through layers of bureaucracy. This showed that the Tainan Customs was operating very successfully. The strict system minimized the chances of corruption and kept the customs in a relatively efficient and clean environment.

The biggest advantage of this timeline compared to later generations is that it doesn't need to consider issues of human rights and the inviolability of private property. It can use extremely simple and brutal methods to punish and curb corruption. Whether it's punishing corrupt customs officials with caning and then sending them to mines, or confiscating the cargo of bribe-giver merchants, these actions are unimaginable in later generations. To paraphrase later terms, they are "a wanton trampling on democracy and the rule of law, and a blatant violation of the people's property."

Liang Xiaoming, as the second-in-command in charge of technology, also came to Taiwan for the inspection. After parting ways with the businessman surnamed Huang, he couldn't help but whisper, "Is this kind of barbaric method really okay? Isn't it a bit too much?"

Liu Ye replied directly: "Compared to Old Zhu skinning people, stuffing them with straw, and pouring mercury into them, this is already very polite, okay? I can't improve everyone's quality and standards in a very short time, so I can only use the most direct, simple, and brutal method. As it turns out, this method is effective."

Liang Xiaoming asked worriedly, "Merchants are driven by profit. Even if one or two people are punished, others will still flock to join the ranks of maritime merchants for the high profits of maritime trade. But what about the customs officers? Won't simply sending them to mining make them disheartened, eventually leading to disunity and a lack of capable personnel?"

"You're overthinking it. You only see merchants pursuing profit, but you forget that people are naturally inclined to seek advantage and avoid harm. Although I use high-pressure methods to punish corrupt officials, their economic benefits are extremely generous. An ordinary tax collector's annual income is no less than that of a prefect—including the court's normal salary and various gray incomes—they are different from court officials. Even if they don't engage in corruption, they can live a comfortable life with their normal salaries, so why would they take the risk?"

Discussing the system of high salaries to prevent corruption along the way, the group arrived at Fort Zeelandia.

Liu Ye looked up at the castle gate, where the three large characters "Tainan City" were engraved in the center. It seemed that this was to officially replace the name "Fort Zeelandia" and erase the traces left by the Dutch on this island.

Upon entering the city, one is greeted by a bustling crowd, its liveliness rivaling that of major inland cities in this timeline. The majority are Asians with yellow skin and black hair, predominantly Ming Chinese, but also including merchants, mercenaries, and sailors from Japan and Korea. However, there are also blond-haired, blue-eyed individuals. Inquiring with passersby reveals that these white people include merchants from Batavia and those left behind by the Da Yuan trading company when it withdrew from Zeelandia. These individuals have no official background; their purpose in coming to the Far East is to make a fortune. Although the East India Company retreated to Batavia, they were unwilling to lose everything and chose to stay. Those with capital started their own maritime trade, while those without applied for interpreter positions at the customs office, where the pay was quite good.

Because Liu Ye's inspection tour of Tainan was not announced in advance, the Governor-General of Taiwan, Zhu Dadian, and the Customs Chief, Zheng Hongkui, were unaware of the arrival of their big boss and naturally did not send anyone out of the city to greet him. It wasn't until the group arrived at the Governor-General's Mansion and was stopped by the guards that Zhu Dadian hurriedly came out to greet them.

"Why didn't you inform me of your arrival, Lord Marquis? I could have led men out of the city to welcome you!"

Liu Ye laughed and said, "I came to see how Mr. Yanzhi and Hongkui are doing with their mission. I certainly didn't inform you in advance, so you wouldn't try to fool me by covering up the truth. From what I've seen and heard along the way from the dock, the customs affairs sound pretty good. Now it's time to see how your land reclamation project is going."

Zhu Dadian laughed and said, "A few months is a bit rushed, and many things haven't been done carefully enough. I might be scolded by the Marquis. But an ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her in-laws eventually, and what needs to be seen should be shown to the Marquis. We've just disembarked and must be tired from the journey. Why don't we go in and rest, have a simple meal, and see what's going on tomorrow?"

"It's alright. A few days on the ship is nothing. I'm here to work, not to relax and enjoy myself. Put your work aside and come with me for a walk. We can eat when we get back."

Seeing that Liu Ye had abandoned the formalities of welcoming and seeing off officials, Zhu Dadian no longer insisted.

“Alright, I’ll arrange a few carriages. The area of ​​the settlement is quite large; even just going to the vicinity of Tainan would take most of the day, so it’s more convenient to travel by carriage.”

Even at Cambodia's request to keep things simple, the entourage eventually grew to over a dozen carriages and several hundred guards. Apart from Shimazu Chiyo's sword-wielding squad, Liu Ye did not bring a guard; only a few dozen people accompanied him when he disembarked. However, Zhu Dadian insisted on transferring several hundred guards from the Governor-General's office, citing Liu Ye's safety as the reason.

Liu Ye and Zhu Dadian rode in the same carriage. Liu Ye asked with some confusion, "Mr. Yanzhi, Zheng Zhilong has turned to dust, and the Red Hairs have withdrawn from Tainan. Logically speaking, there should be no hostile forces in Tainan anymore. Why are we still so on high alert?"

"My lord, you may not know this, but the absence of enemies outside the island does not mean that the island is safe. Those local natives often appear, causing considerable trouble for our land reclamation. Relying on their familiarity with the terrain, they frequently come out to cause trouble."

Liu Ye slapped his forehead, realizing he'd forgotten about these indigenous people. He'd heard from former Grand Duchy commander Putmans and Grand Duchy fleet commander Van Bommel that the indigenous communities surrounding Grand Duchy alone had caused considerable trouble for Dutch expansion. The Dutch and the Ming soldiers they employed were constantly attacked by the natives. Before Putmans took office, fifty Dutch soldiers, armed to the teeth, had been wiped out in a single attack. Although the natives' culture and weaponry were centuries old, they were extremely familiar with the terrain. In guerrilla warfare in the jungle, even with only spears and blowguns, they could inflict heavy casualties on armies equipped with firearms.