"Although the court has always been very lenient towards the tribute from various Jurchen tribes, it is indeed common for tribes to impersonate garrison identities to trade for profit in Liaodong... but the ’Manjing Guard’ is still too special! The court has heavily rewarded this garrison, even appointing ’Deputy Commander’, instead of ’Secretary’ multiple times. If it draws the attention of the Liaodong Governor, things could become quite troublesome, unless we coordinate well with the Inner Eunuch..."

As the Harman Chieftain Ali spoke, he pressed his chest, his expression gradually changing as his brows knitted. Ancestor Shaman was unaware of the Great Ming Government’s usual practices: as long as something doesn’t draw attention, it can be done any way you like. But once it draws attention and is openly weighed on the scales, it could cause big trouble!

"Ancestor Shaman, you can send people from the tribes directly under our ’Harman Guard’ identity to the south for tribute trade with the Great Ming. Just let me lead the group! And if you want to pretend to be another tribe to get extra rewards... well, it’s better to use the smaller ’Fuduo River Guard’ around us."

"This garrison was breached by Wild Men twenty years ago and no longer exists. Their Copper Seal is in the hands of my Harman Tribe. I’ve used this Copper Seal to obtain extra rewards before... though not much, it’s good that no one came to check. The Inner Eunuchs responsible for tribute might have noticed but didn’t care about such minor rewards... because each time a tribute reward is issued, they also get benefits from it. Tribes like us, if sensible, also need to give them some kickbacks. They can then give a call to the border, allowing us to take away more valuable ironware..."

The Harman Chieftain Ali worked hard to describe and explain the Great Ming’s tribute system and the complex internal factional groups of Liaodong Town to Zuwaro, the "Wild Man Shaman" who knew nothing about the Great Ming.

Among these were the "Inner Eunuch Snake", "Civil Official Priest", and also the "General Corps Commander" who were suppressed and supervised by both sides. The most dangerous and troublesome were the high-ranking "Civil Official Priest". Usually, the civil officials in Liaodong also followed the national policy of the Great Ming, treating the tribute from various Jurchen tribes generously, to appease these "Northeast Barbarians", without strict inspection...

Impersonation to fraud the tribute is indeed frequent in the garrisons of Northern Land. And the attitude of the Great Ming Court towards the tribute from various Northeastern Jurchen tribes, especially the Outer Northeast Wild Man Jurchen’s tribute, has always been "turn a blind eye", much more lenient than towards the Southeast Overseas Tributary!

One must know, the Northeast where various Jurchen tribes reside, is the right arm of the Empire, extremely close to the heart of the empire at Shuntian Prefecture. Moreover, there is the threat of the "life-and-death enemy" Mongolia to the north; if various Jurchen tribes get enticed by Mongolians and attacked from both sides, it would be the Empire’s nightmare!

This makes the Great Ming Court, with Northern Land as its ruling center and Shuntian Prefecture as its heart, view the united front value of various Northeastern Jurchen tribes as extremely high, incomparable to the "Eastern Fan", "Japan", or "Manlajia".

The court ignores the Eastern Fan right before its eyes. The court strictly guards against Japan which seeks profit, even tightening maritime prohibition. When Manlajia was attacked and extinguished by sea barbarians, the court only sheltered the fleeing Manlajia Royal Family and expelled the Francisco people who impersonated Manlajia for tribute trade without any intention of sending troops. But once Jianzhou Jurchen is unstable, the court would rather spend millions of taels of silver to deploy an army to handle it...

Since the Zhengtong Era began, the Great Ming Court has issued special instructions for the tribute from various Jurchen tribes. First, "If it is a border report, regardless of the time or month, let them come to court." This is a clear political principle; all Jurchen tribes willing to offer tribute are accepted, politically given the green light.

Next, "As for other matters like tribute and title inheritance, allow an annual tribute or once every three years; no need for frequent numbers." This stipulates the tribute process; Haixi and Jianzhou’s nearby tribes can offer tribute annually, whereas the distant Wild Man Jurchen once every three years. The undertone of "no need for frequent numbers" is that the tribute from Jurchen tribes is a loss-making deal for the court, an appeasement expenditure. Fewer tributes mean less spending; the court’s money is still money. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Lastly, "Those having business and trade deals, trade at Liaodong Kaiyuan, no need to come to the capital." This is the specific handling regulation; the court knows that frequent tributes from Jurchen tribes desire some rewards and trade goods. Let them trade at the border towns, sell their local products and be sent away quickly, avoiding their arrival at the capital to "beg." This is still for saving money and trouble; tribute envoys visiting the capital, seeing the Emperor means more rewards for the empire’s dignity and the Emperor’s delight.

Moreover, whenever foreign tribute envoys go to the capital, all inns and garrisons responsible for hospitality along the way report huge amounts of Money and Grain and take the opportunity to clear accounts. Those without connections suffer greatly, unable to afford the large groups of envoys’ meals, leading to troubles with Barbarians. The Zhengtong Era’s foreign tribute caused several problems... As for Korean envoys who can afford their meals and drinks and never cause trouble, they are the minority. Obviously, poor Jurchen tribes are not among them.