Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 298: Family inheritance

"Well... My lord, this capital city is quite beautiful, but it's just so cold!"

"When you get to the capital, speak less of your hometown dialect and speak the Mandarin I taught you."

"I know, I know."

At the end of September, when a horse-drawn ship with more than a thousand materials docked at the Jiangdong Pier in Nanjing, hundreds of soldiers immediately took over the place.

On the boat, several dark-skinned men got off the boat one after another, but it looked like they were not on good terms.

"Finally home……"

When his feet stepped on the land of Nanjing City, Xu Huizu burst into tears.

Times have changed. When he came to Nanjing three years ago with Dao Gan Meng, this was still the capital city and the emperor was still Emperor Hongwu.

Three years later, the current emperor has become his brother-in-law Zhu Di, and the prince has become his nephew Zhu Gaoxu.

"If I could control the military and political affairs of Yunnan, why would the imperial court be like this..."

Xu Huizu sighed, but his words were not realistic.

His foundation in Yunnan is too shallow. Let alone him, even Muchun may not be able to surpass the three brothers Fu Mao and Wang Xuan and his son.

If he had this ability, the Southwest Corps would not have been pinned down at the border for two years.

"Wei Guogong, since you have arrived at Yingtian, please do it yourself."

A harsh voice came from behind. Xu Huizu frowned and looked, and sure enough he saw the three brothers Fu Mao, who were plain-looking but fairly tall.

Beside them were Mu Chun, He Fu, Wang Xuan, Qu Neng, and Gu Cheng.

But for the three Fu Mao brothers, almost no one in this group except Wang Xuan has a good face.

If it weren't for the restraints of Wang Xuan and his son and the three Fu Mao brothers, Zhu Gaoxu might not have been able to break through the Jianghuai defense line so easily.

Xu Huizu hated them as enemies, while Mu Chun, He Fu and Qu Neng had mixed emotions. Only Wang Xuan didn't care.

"Wei Guogong, see you in court tomorrow morning."

Muchun stepped forward and bowed, then left with He Fu and Qu Neng.

Seeing Muchun and the others leaving, Fu Mao and the others also bowed to Xu Huizu and then left.

The remaining Wang Xuan walked to Xu Huizu, bowed to Xu Huizu with a calm expression, and reminded:

"Wei Guogong, no matter what happened in the past, this is the Yongle Dynasty. Our matter can be revealed. Continuing to help the court is the top priority for me and other military attachés."

"Hmph!" Xu Huizu snorted coldly: "I don't think you look like a military attache, but more like those civil servants in the temple who are plotting conspiracies."

After that, Xu Huizu walked away, and Sinaimo, who was his bodyguard, also followed.

After he walked away, Wang Xuan chuckled and shook his head, seemingly helpless at Xu Huizu's pedantry.

After compiling his mood, he walked towards Jiangdong Gate with more than ten guards, only to find that many carriages had been prepared at Jiangdong Gate.

The three brothers Fu Mao and Muchun had already left. When Wang Xuan arrived, Xu Huizu's carriage also drove away.

There was the last carriage left. Wang Xuan knew that it was his own without much thought, so he walked directly onto the carriage.

But when he opened the carriage door, he was stunned by the situation inside.

"Your Highness...Your Highness?"

What appeared in Wang Xuan's eyes was Zhu Gaoxu, who was now the prince, and beside him was Yi Shiha, who had had several interactions with him.

"Your Majesty, Yunnan Yongchang..."

"Okay, come up first."

Wang Xuan reacted and was about to salute, but Zhu Gaoxu stretched out his hand and pulled him into the car.

Without them having to say anything, the carriage was already heading towards the inner city.

Feeling the irresistible power in his hands, Wang Xuan came back to his senses and bowed quickly: "How can I bother Your Highness to come and pick me up?"

"You and I are brothers. If it weren't for your meritorious service, I wouldn't be able to become the crown prince today." After Zhu Gaoxu said this, he also explained:

"In addition to calling you to the capital this time, I want to meet you. I also have other things to arrange for you and to find a title for you."

He has never forgotten Wang Xuan's contribution, and finding a title for Wang Xuan was also a way he came up with through Zhu Di's attempt to analyze Luchuan.

The Yunnan of the Ming Dynasty included most of Myanmar in later generations, but only half of Yunnan in later generations was actually in the hands of the Ming Dynasty.

This is the result of Mu Chun defeating Dao Gan Menghou.

How to capture the vast Yunnan area and solve the problem of more than 300 chieftain families is something that Ming Dynasty needs to consider.

In addition, for the three-promulgation and six-comfort methods of restraint, it is also necessary to further implement the reform from the strong restraint to the local people.

However, whether it is to take actual control of Yunnan or to change the country and return to the countryside, it will require a huge population.

Therefore, Zhu Gaoxu is destined to give up some things temporarily. For example, the strengthening of actual control of Sanxuan and Liuwei is what needs to be given up temporarily.

Zhu Gaoxu didn't know how long he could live, and to what extent the Ming Dynasty could increase its population in the decades he lived, so he had to take control of Yunnan first.

He came to Wang Xuan to talk about actual control of Yunnan.

"This is a map of Yunnan..."

Zhu Gaoxu took out a map of Yunnan, and Wang Xuan and Yi Shiha took it and pulled it away.

This map of Yunnan covers most of the Three Proclamations and Six Welfares, but it has a vermilion line drawn by Zhu Gaoxu.

This line starts from Lijiang, which has a high degree of acceptance of Chinese culture and obeys the instructions of the Ming Dynasty, and goes southward to include Yongchang, Nandian, Chuxiong, Kunming, Lin'an, Qujing, Guangnan, Guangxi and other prefectures.

"The area north of the Zhu Line is where the imperial court has strong control, while the area south of the Zhu Line is where the most native officials and chieftains are. Although they pay taxes to the imperial court and are willing to obey the imperial court's dispatch and send troops, it is difficult for the imperial court to do so. Interfering in its internal affairs, it is impossible to send wandering officials.”

Zhu Gaoxu explained to the two the differences between the north and south of the Zhu Line. This was also the first time that Wang Xuan saw the full map of Yunnan.

From his experience, there is basically nothing wrong with this map, and the mountains and rivers are better drawn, even better than the map used by Yunnan Dusi.

However, judging from the north and south issues of the Zhu pen on this map, the Ming Dynasty can control at most one-third of Yunnan, and the remaining two-thirds are basically in the hands of the more than 390 surviving chieftains.

This was the result of Zhu Yuanzhang being influenced by the southwest gold, silver and copper mine named by Zhu Gaoxu and spending four years eradicating the small chieftains. Otherwise, the number of chieftains in Yunnan should have been more than 540.

Of course, because more than a hundred small chieftains have been eradicated, the remaining 390 or so families are mostly medium and large chieftains, so the difficulty has not been reduced much.

"I plan to have your father stationed in Yongchang, your brother stationed in Zhenkang, and you stationed in Nandian."

"As for how to return to the land and how to conquer the place, my father will explain this to you when he meets you tomorrow."

"Anyway, you have to keep an eye on Luchuan for me, and you must never let Lucchuan join forces with the white (Dai) chieftains of various families."

When Zhu Gaoxu said this, he stared at Wang Xuan, and Wang Xuan's eyes stayed on the map. However, after he heard Zhu Gaoxu's words, he couldn't help but frown and said:

"Although there are more than 160,000 acres of arable land in Nandian, and fruits and vegetables are available all year round, the output of each acre of land is only one and a half kilograms of solid grain."

"Besides, of the 40,000 local people, 30,000 are in white clothes, and the remaining 10,000 are Jianwen's ministers who have been assigned. At most, they can hand over 40,000 shi of grain as military rations."

"Forty thousand stones of military rations can guarantee the military salary of more than three thousand brothers at most..."

Wang Xuan said, but Zhu Gaoxu interrupted him: "I will transfer military pay from Dali Prefecture and Yongchang Prefecture. How many soldiers and horses can be solved by the local 40,000 shi?"

"About seven thousand people." Wang Xuan responded without hesitation. Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu continued:

"In the few days you have been in the capital, take my token from the East Palace and go to the Grand Training Ground to learn the art of firearms warfare from the Eight Jurchen Guards of Bohai."

"I will also find ways to have the Yunnan Chief Envoy expand the road from Dali Prefecture to Yongchang and Nandian into a two-foot-long road."

"What you have to do is encourage the local people to reclaim wasteland, and I will find a way to deliver food, cattle, firearms, and gunpowder to you."

After Zhu Gaoxu finished speaking, he turned to look at Yishiha: "Send five hundred Bohai officials who are good at land reclamation to Wang Xuan to take back."

After he finished speaking, he continued to look back at Wang Xuan: "In three years, the cultivated land in Nandian must be doubled, and it must be enough to support an army of 20,000."

"I understand!" Wang Xuan bowed in agreement without complaining about the difficulty.

Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu patted him and said: "Capture Nandian, Qianya, Longchuan, Mengmao and other places, and then deal with the local officials in Zhenkang, and I will confer a count on you."

"If you can capture Meng Mian, Meng Lian, Che Che, Meng Ken and other places, I will give you a marquis."

Zhu Gaoxu said nothing more, but Wang Xuan understood what it would take to get the Duke.

The Duke must at least have the merit of destroying a country, and there are many countries in front of him. Among the three declarations and six consolations, there are many countries that are trying to escape from the control of the Ming Dynasty.

It's just that it's too difficult to actually control the three announcements and six comforts. At least Wang Xuan won't think about it now.

"Your Highness, we have arrived."

The carriage stopped slowly. After hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu also put away the map and handed it to Wang Xuan: "Take this map. The place outside the car is the yard where you live. Don't be too small."

"Wherever Your Highness is, for me, as long as I have a place to stay, that's fine."

Wang Xuan bowed with shame and prepared to get off the car after the ceremony.

Looking at his leaving figure, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but greet him: "You need the title, but you also need to take care of your health. I heard that the Marquis of Xiping contracted the miasma when he used his sword to kill Meng. You must also be careful."

"Don't worry, Your Highness, I am familiar with miasma. I am the one who can solve the miasma of Marquis Xiping."

Wang Xuan smiled and also explained the reason why Muchun did not get sick and die.

Regarding the fact that Muchun is not dead, if it is placed in Jingnan, it will definitely be bad news for Zhu Gaoxu, but now it is Yongle.

"Be careful yourself, I'm still waiting to see you become a veteran of four dynasties."

Zhu Gaoxu ordered with a smile. Wang Xuan also nodded with a simple smile and then closed the door of the carriage.

After the door closed, the carriage drove out of the alley. Instead, what appeared in front of Wang Xuan was a small courtyard guarded by two soldiers.

Looking at the familiar courtyard door, Wang Xuan also had a smile on his face...

"No wonder His Highness has always had people guarding the courtyard. It turned out to be reserved for Wang Xuan."

On the carriage that had already left, Yishi smiled and mentioned the yard related to Zhu Gaoxu. At the same time, the carriage also drove out of an archway.

There are several large characters written on the archway... Habayashi Zuoweifang. "After all, that yard has my memories. No one else can live there, but my brother can live there. I just hope he doesn't look too small."

Zhu Gaoxu couldn't hide the smile on his face. It was obvious that he was really happy about Wang Xuan's arrival, but also felt guilty at the same time.

In Zhu Gaoxu's opinion, the contribution of the three brothers Wang Xuan and Fu Mao was no less than that of Ta Shi and others, and could even be compared with Meng Zhang.

He repaid the Fu family by conquering Annan and restoring the dukedom of Ying State, but Wang Xuan had no chance.

Therefore, he could only create the opportunity to actually control Yunnan and give it to Wang Xuan, so that he could win a title for himself.

But even so, Zhu Gaoxu still felt sorry for Wang Xuan, because he should have been knighted.

Seemingly seeing regret on Zhu Gaoxu's face, Yishiha also comforted him: "Your Highness, don't bother yourself, Wang Xuan has the ability to win the title."

"Besides, if the affairs in the southwest are explained clearly, then I'm afraid the group of people in the temple will be unsafe again."

"Hmph!" After hearing what Yishiha said about the group of people in the temple, Zhu Gaoxu snorted and asked, "Did Hu Lun spread the news?"

"The news has spread, and many people in Yingtian Mansion know about it. However, it will take time to spread it to Jiangdong, eastern Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong, etc. It will take at least two or three months to see results."

"Two or three months..." Zhu Gaoxu murmured, and then asked: "In what month will Zheng He and the others return?"

"It should be almost time, no later than October." Yishiha calculated the time and responded. Zhu Gaoxu just nodded and remained silent.

After a while, the carriage slowly stopped, and Yi Shiha skillfully opened the door for Zhu Gaoxu and got out of the car first to help him.

When Zhu Gaoxu got off the bus, what appeared in front of him was the "Wei Guogong Mansion" in the busy city.

"We'll see you eventually."

Looking at the Duke of Wei's palace in front of him, Zhu Gaoxu wondered whether Xu Huizu, who did not participate in the Jingnan Campaign, would still be as stubborn as in history.

Although Xu Huizu's commanding ability is not outstanding, having him is the icing on the cake for Ming Dynasty.

What's more, he took care of himself after all.

"Your Highness Chitose!!"

The sound of singing was heard, and the guards of Duke Wei's Mansion obviously recognized Zhu Gaoxu. After all, his appearance and figure were so eye-catching.

He nodded as a greeting, and then walked into the Duke of Wei's mansion.

Yishiha understood what Zhu Gaoxu meant, so he took out a lot of money from his arms and threw it to one of the guards.

"His Highness gave it to you, you can discuss it among yourselves."

After that, he followed Zhu Gaoxu and walked through the screen wall and corridor together to the broad and majestic central hall.

When the two appeared, many people gathered in the central hall, among whom Xu Huizu was the most conspicuous, followed by Xu Yingxu and Xu Zengshou.

Although Xu Zengshou saved his life, he lost his title.

However, in Zhu Gaoxu's view, this does not matter, because as far as the relationship between Xu Zengshou and Zhu Di is concerned, as long as Zhu Di takes Xu Zengshou to participate in several northern expeditions, Xu Zengshou will get the duke sooner or later.

"My nephew has met three uncles..."

Zhu Gaoxu bowed and saluted five or six steps away. Xu Zengshou who saw his arrival quickly came out to greet him. Xu Huizu snorted coldly, while Xu Yingxu looked at his eldest brother and was in a dilemma.

"I have nothing to say to the rebellious officials and traitors!"

Xu Huizu sat and mocked Zhu Gaoxu, but Zhu Gaoxu walked into the central hall, found a chair, sat down, and chuckled: "Rebellious ministers and traitors?"

"The current emperor is Emperor Yongle. How can we talk about rebellious ministers and traitors?"

"I remember that the current emperor is Emperor Jianwen." Xu Huizu spoke carefully. He knew that Zhu Gaoxu had sharp teeth and a sharp mouth. If he was not careful, he might fall into his trap.

"Then may I ask where Emperor Jianwen went?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked Xu Huizu, and Xu Huizu also mocked: "Of course he was killed by you and his son, a pair of rebellious officials and thieves."

"Kill?" Zhu Gaoxu chuckled: "Zhu Yunwen felt that he was not good at governing the country, and he burned himself to death out of shame. What does it have to do with my father and son?"

"It's just sophistry. No matter what you say, His Majesty is also the emperor who holds the title of Emperor Taizu and Gao." Xu Huizu was still arrogant, but his words were what Zhu Gaoxu and others said.

"Did Emperor Taizu Gao teach him to force his uncle to death and kill his own uncle?"

"You..." Xu Huizu was speechless. After all, what Zhu Yunwen did was indeed unreasonable, and it was hard for him to say anything.

"Emperor Taizu Gao told him to rely on me and my son, but what he did was always aimed at killing me and my son."

Zhu Gaoxu raised his chin, and what he said made Xu Huizu lose his temper: "My father and son gave him more than 300,000 troops and horses, but he still wants the lives of both my father and son."

"The Proverbs of the Ancestors says: Whenever a new emperor takes office in the imperial court, the kings will send envoys to express their congratulations and guard the border vassals, and will not go to court for three years."

"If the court abides by the ancestral rules, appoints good ministers, and has no evildoers, the princes will still come to court three years later."

"If there are no honest ministers in the government and there are evildoers in the government, the prince will train the troops and be on standby. The emperor will secretly issue orders to the kings and lead the troops to suppress them."

"After peace is achieved, gather the troops in the camp and return to the emperor."

"If the king does not arrive and sends generals to seek peace, the generals will also withdraw their troops in the camp and bring several people to the emperor. They will stay in the capital for only five days and then return. Their merits will be rewarded and surrendered later."

Zhu Gaoxu brought out the "Ancestral Instructions" approved by Zhu Yuanzhang, and then said: "We did not wait for the emperor's edict, because the emperor has been deceived by the sycophants."

"In one year, we had millions of soldiers but lost the war. Isn't this a rebellion caused by sycophants?"

He didn't mention Zhu Yunwen's ability at all, and seemed to want to confirm the case of Ni Chen.

In this way, if he wanted to refute him, he would have to admit that there was something wrong with Zhu Yunwen. Once Xu Huizu did this, he would become a sycophant who humiliated the emperor he recognized.

Xu Huizu wanted to refute, but after thinking about it, he shut his mouth and stopped responding to Zhu Gaoxu's words.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Zhu Gaoxu chuckled: "No matter what uncle says, it can't be justified logically."

"It is not my father who wants to sit on the throne of emperor, but the ministers begging my father to sit on it."

"Hmph!" Xu Huizu snorted unconvinced: "The emperor supported by these sycophants is just an emperor who makes good use of sycophants."

"Then do you think, who in the world can be a king?" Zhu Gaoxu asked back, when Yi Shiha poured a cup of hot tea, he blew it and took a sip.

Seeing Zhu Gaoxu's actions and demeanor as if he were strolling in the courtyard, Xu Huizu clenched his fists and said, "No matter how much you talk, you can't change the identity of your father and son as treacherous ministers and thieves."

"Since uncle is so obsessed with my father and son being traitors and traitors, how dare I ask my uncle why this loyal minister is still here?" Zhu Gaoxu put down his teacup and shook his head.

"Loyal ministers die, what does that uncle mean now?"

"Gao Xu!" Xu Yingxu couldn't help but groan when he heard what Zhu Gaoxu said. Xu Zengshou also frowned and looked at Zhu Gaoxu.

Xu Huizu, on the other hand, was speechless by Zhu Gaoxu's words, and Zhu Gaoxu was not worried that Xu Huizu would seek death.

Historically, Xu Huizu died of illness in the fifth year of Yongle. Of course, there is also a theory that Zhu Di ordered him to commit suicide, but Zhu Gaoxu thought it was impossible.

After all, Xu Yingxu, who was also dissatisfied with Zhu Di, lived until the fifteenth year of Yongle. Moreover, whether it was Xu Huizu, Xu Yingxu, or Xu Zengshou in Xu Da's lineage, it seemed that no one in the four generations had lived beyond the age of fifty.

Even if we count the entire Ming Dynasty, there are very few people in the Xu Da family who live to be over sixty years old. One of the two clans has been passed down for nine generations, and the other has been passed down for eleven generations. As a result, there are only four people over sixty years old.

Thinking about it this way, it was normal for Xu Huizu to die of illness in his forties, but this thought made Zhu Gaoxu uneasy.

He thought of his mother, and even more of Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Gaosui.

It seems that neither of them lived past fifty, and the only predecessor who might have lived past fifty was turned into a crock pot chicken by his eldest nephew at the age of forty-seven.

Thinking of this, one can imagine Zhu Gaoxu's mood.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Xu Huizu also walked out of Zhu Gaoxu's sarcasm. He said slowly: "It is said that you ran a school similar to martial arts."

"Huh?" Zhu Gaoxu was brought back to reality by Xu Huizu's words, but he heard Xu Huizu say: "I can teach others, but I will never become an official."

"Okay." Seeing Xu Huizu say this, Zhu Gaoxu nodded in agreement.

He is now a little unsure about how many years Xu Huizu can live. Judging from the current situation, the three brothers are still in strong health. The history books do not mention how Xu Huizu and Xu Yingxu died of illness. This makes Zhu Gaoxu not sure what to do if he wants to take precautions. Be on guard.

"You..." Xu Huizu obviously didn't expect that Zhu Gaoxu would agree so readily. He also couldn't imagine what Zhu Gaoxu was thinking at the moment, so he opened his mouth hesitantly, then remained silent for a moment, then stood up and left the central hall.

Xu Yingxu chased after him, but Xu Zengshou stayed to greet Zhu Gaoxu.

However, Zhu Gaoxu was not in the mood to chat with Xu Zengshou now. When he saw Xu Huizu getting up and leaving, he also got up and bowed to Xu Zengshou.

"Uncle, please stay. My father may send troops to Modong the year after next. I will ask my uncle to help me then."

Zhu Gaoxu revealed a piece of news to Xu Zengshou, and Xu Zengshou smiled when he heard the words: "You and my uncle, why do you have to be so polite?"

He stood up and escorted Zhu Gaoxu out of the Duke of Wei's mansion. When he reached the door, Zhu Gaoxu turned around and bowed: "Uncle, please stop and don't see me off."

"Okay, I'll go and persuade brother, don't get angry with him." Xu Zengshou did not forget to say a good word for Xu Huizu, but Zhu Gaoxu's mind was not on that. After nodding in agreement, he took Yishiha into the carriage.

The carriage had only been driving for a short time when Zhu Gaoxu asked Yishiha, "Who are the famous doctors in the world?"

"Of course it's Dai Sigong, the imperial envoy of the imperial hospital, but he seems to have been promoted to official position recently." Yi Shiha didn't understand why Zhu Gaoxu asked about this.

"You want to become an official?" Zhu Gaoxu was surprised and asked: "Why?"

Hearing this, Yi Shiha also explained: "First, he is getting older. Now he is seventy-seven, which is the year of his birthday."

"Secondly, he is appreciated by Emperor Gao and promoted by the common people, so he is unwilling to serve His Majesty."

After Yi Shiha said it, Zhu Gaoxu also knew that this person could not be retained.

However, although people cannot be retained, medical skills must be retained.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoxu said: "If he insists on becoming an official, he can do it, but we can transfer a few spiritual students from hospitals outside the customs to follow him back home to study, so as to prevent the inner court from running out of useful medical officers in the future."

"Yes..." Yi Shiha thought it was Zhu Gaoxu who was afraid that no one would use him in the future, but he didn't know that Zhu Gaoxu was worried about whether he could live past fifty.

Zhu Gaoxu clenched his fists and felt the power of this body, feeling a little guilty.

"With my body, it shouldn't be a problem to live to seventy..."

(End of this chapter)