Rebirth of Zhu Di's son

Chapter 348 How to manage the grassland
In the second year of Qianxi's reign, it was the tenth day of the eleventh month.

Xue Lu, Marquis of Yangwu, Zhang Fu, Marquis of Xincheng, and other meritorious officers of the East Route Army who marched north to the desert, escorted Adai Khan, who was supported by Alutai, to the capital in triumph.

In front of Fengtian Gate, Adai Khan presented the jade seal of the Northern Yuan Dynasty (Mongolia) to Zhu Gaoxu, the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, marking the official demise of the Tatar Khanate (Mongol headquarters).

Previously, the de facto leaders of Wala, Tuo Huan, Ye Xian and his son, and others died in the battle of Helin City. The de facto leaders of the Tatars, Arutai, Angke Polo, his father and his son, and others also died in the battle outside Helin City. on the grassland.

From today on, the two nomadic regimes of Oara and Tatar competing for the dominance of the grasslands have become history.

What Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di and his son failed to do, Zhu Gaoxu did it!

Therefore, Zhu Gaoxu and his prince Zhu Zhanyu visited the Ancestral Temple the next day. He himself knelt in front of the statue of Zhu Yuanzhang, spoke many words with emotion, and even shed tears of excitement uncontrollably.

After leaving the Imperial Ancestral Temple and returning to the Wuying Hall, Zhu Gaoxu summoned the six ministers and nine ministers as well as the left and right governors of the Metropolitan Governor's Office to discuss how to manage the desert.

For the meritorious officers of this Northern Expedition, the Military Staff Department, the Military Justice Department, and the Military Honors Department of the Metropolitan Governor's Office have already submitted their inscriptions after public deliberation. However, Zhu Gaoxu did not quite agree with the list of officers who were awarded titles and titles in the inscriptions. Not only did he let The Secretary of General Affairs returned the title book and ordered the Duke of Cao, Li Jinglong, and the Duke of Wei, Xu Huizu, to draft it again.

Logically speaking, Li Jinglong and Xu Huizu, as the left and right governors of the Metropolitan Governor's Office, have no right to participate in this imperial political meeting.

After all, managing the desert is a political matter, not a military one.

But Zhu Gaoxu asked Qingyao and Liu Jingzhong to personally deliver oral instructions to Li and Xu, and asked them to come to Wuying Hall to attend the meeting.

Zhu Gaoxu personally conquered Mobei and wiped out tens of thousands of soldiers of the Wala leader Tuohuan in the first battle. He even reduced Helin City to ruins. He then led his accompanying civil and military officials to climb Yanran Mountain and record their merits with stones.

After this battle, the emperor's prestige of Qianxi Emperor Zhu Gaoxu was no less than that of Yongle Emperor Zhu Di who conquered Mobei three times!

Although the civil servants represented by Jian Yi, the Minister of Civil Affairs, did not understand why Zhu Gaoxu did this, they did not dare to ask more questions in the face of Zhu Gaoxu who returned triumphantly with the power of victory.

Zhu Gaoxu looked around at the ministers in the palace, his gaze focused on the faces of Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji, and said loudly: "Before starting the discussion, I want to announce a decree."

Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji seemed to realize something, and looked in the direction of Li Jinglong and Xu Huizu almost at the same time.

"The Duke of Cao, Li Jinglong, and the Duke of Wei, Xu Huizu, also serve as cabinet advisors to assist in political affairs."

In May of the first year of Qianxi, Zhu Gaoxu used the Lu Zhen case to make personnel adjustments to the six ministers and nine ministers. At that time, the seven cabinet members were Jian Yi, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, Yu Yanzhao, the minister of the Ministry of rites, Xia Yuanji, the minister of the Ministry of household affairs, and Song, the minister of the Ministry of industry. Qi Tai, the Minister of Li and the Ministry of War, as well as Zheng Fang Xiaoru and Xie Jin, the chief and deputy chief of the Printing and Printing Department.

Later, Fang Xiaoru became an official in old age, and only six of the seven attendants and advisers in the cabinet were left.

In May of the second year of Qianxi, when Zhu Gaoxu implemented the new policy and implemented the governor system, Qitai, although he also held the post of Shangshu of the Ministry of War, was far away from the central government and rushed to Guizhou to take up the post of governor.

Therefore, Qitai's position as cabinet adviser was removed by Zhu Gaoxu.

At this time, there were two vacancies among the seven cabinet advisers.

Zhu Gaoxu transferred Li Jinglong and Xu Huizu to the cabinet, which was equivalent to filling the two vacancies of cabinet attendants and advisers.

However, his actions aroused rebuttal from many civil servants.

"Your Majesty, since Emperor Taizu established the cabinet in the late Hongwu period, there have never been any ministers or generals serving as advisors, not even during the Yongle period."

Yu Yanzhao, the Minister of Rites, was the first to stand up and object.

Although he is older than Zhu Gaoxu, he is a student from Jinling Regular Academy and is Zhu Gaoxu's disciple.Yu Yanzhao knew Zhu Gaoxu very well. He was afraid that Jian Yi or Xia Yuanji would speak unpleasantly and anger Zhu Gaoxu, so he objected at this time. In fact, he did it deliberately to show it to Jian Yi, Xia Yuanji and other civil servants.

"Did Emperor Taizu say that honorable ministers or military generals are not allowed to serve as attendants and advisors?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked rhetorically.

Yu Yanzhao bowed and replied: "No."

"Did my father-in-law say that ministers or generals are not allowed to serve as advisors?"

Zhu Gaoxu continued to ask.

Yu Yanzhao bowed his head again and said: "No."

"Since Taizu and my father have never said that ministers or military generals are not allowed to serve as attendants and advisors, then today I am transferring Cao Guogong and Wei Guogong to the cabinet as attendants and advisors. Do you have any objections?"

Zhu Gaoxu looked down at Yu Yanzhao and asked calmly.

Yu Yanzhao hurriedly bowed his head and said: "I don't dare."

"Do you have any objections to my decision?"

Zhu Gaoxu moved his eyes away from Yu Yanzhao and glanced at Jian Yi, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, Xia Yuanji, the minister of the Ministry of household affairs, Song Li, the minister of the Ministry of industry, Chen Qia, the acting minister of the Ministry of war, Xiong Gai, the minister of the Ministry of punishment, Liu Jing, the censor of Zuodu, Gu Zuo, the censor of Youdu, and others asked in a deep voice with a cold face.

"I dare not wait."

Jian Yi and others hurriedly stood up and saluted.

"Okay, since there are no objections, let's start the discussion."

Zhu Gaoxu said something first, then his eyes fell on Jian Yi, the Minister of Civil Affairs, and said: "Jian Aiqing, please tell me, after the destruction of Oara and Tatar, how should the imperial court govern the grassland tribes today?"

"Your Majesty, during the Qin and Han Dynasties, the Huns multiplied on the grasslands. After the Xiongnu were destroyed, Turks emerged in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and even in the Zhao and Song Dynasties, Mongolia emerged on the grasslands. Now Your Majesty has sent troops to destroy the Oara and Tatars, and pacified the Mobei grassland. All tribes surrender."

Jian Yi bowed and said: "If we follow the old practices of the Han and Tang Dynasties, we should implement a system of enfeoffing the grassland tribes and prohibit each tribe from conquering each other, so as to prevent the grassland from reappearing in the situation of one dominant family."

When he said this, he bowed his head and bowed his hands in salute: "I forgive you for being stupid, but I really can't think of any other way to manage the grassland."

Zhu Gaoxu nodded indifferently, then turned his gaze to Xia Yuanji and said, "What is Xia Aiqing's opinion on this?"

"Your Majesty, with all due respect, the management of the grassland is nothing more than enfeoffment and prefectures and counties. If enfeoffment is implemented, it is just repeating the same old tune and following the old path of our predecessors."

Xia Yuanji stood up and bowed, and then said eloquently: "After a hundred years, another hero will be born to unify all the grassland tribes, establish a new political power, and threaten our country, the Ming Dynasty. However, if we can leave it to counties, Then we can once and for all solve the grassland problems that have plagued the Central Plains dynasties in the past."

He changed the subject and said: "However, as far as I know, the entire desert is more than three thousand miles deep from north to south and more than four thousand miles long from east to west. The grassland is so vast. If we set up counties, how many counties should we set up?" Where should we establish prefectural and county governments?”

"Should the people under the rule herd cattle or cultivate fields? How should the court collect taxes?"

"If there is a natural disaster such as snowstorms or drought in the future, will the imperial court send people to travel thousands of miles to transport food to provide disaster relief?"

(End of this chapter)