Rebirth of Zhu Di's son

Chapter 352 Bold Conjecture

November of the second year of Qianxi was even colder than last year.

Especially after nightfall, the indoor and outdoor temperatures drop even lower.

There is an idiom called the coldest month in winter, which refers to the three coldest months before the Spring Festival. The cold month is October, the winter month is November, and the twelfth month is December.

It stands to reason that at this time, the Ming court officials who were not on duty should be hiding at home to avoid the cold and keep warm, and prepare to rest.

However, at this time, in the living room of Jian Yi's home, the Minister of Civil Affairs, there were a group of courtiers sitting who could not sleep, or dared not sleep.

They are Xia Yuanji, the Minister of Hubu, Jin Youzi, the left minister of the Hubu, Yang Shiqi, the right minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and Huang Huai, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites.

Two ministers and three ministers gathered together in private, discussing nothing more than matters related to government affairs.

At present, there is only one thing that most affects the civil and military hearts of the entire dynasty, and that is Zhu Gaoxu, the Emperor Qianxi of the Ming Dynasty, decided to set up a real Tudusi in the grassland, and at the same time added cultural and educational officials to supplement it.

"What Wei Zhe (Xia Yuanji's nickname) just said is really shocking!"

Jian Yi was sitting on an armchair on the left side of the main hall. He looked at Xia Yuanji, who was sitting next to him, and slowly stroked his beard and said: "The herdsmen on the grassland don't even have enough to eat. How can they read, read, and receive education?"

In the early Yongle period, after Xia Yuanji was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Hubu, he took charge of water control affairs in western Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Song Dynasties, and was entrusted with important tasks. In the middle and late Yongle period, he and Jian Yi, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, were called "Jianxia".

Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji are not much different in age. They have a very good relationship and often refer to each other by words in private.

Xia Yuanji just put forward a point of view, that is, whether it is setting up a real territorial division or setting up counties and counties, the Ming court will always have direct control over the grassland.

However, as long as the Ming Dynasty directly managed the grasslands, it would inevitably face an unavoidable problem, that is, the production and income methods of the nomadic tribes.

Because rainfall on grasslands is low, climate changes are large, and soil moisture easily evaporates, most habitable places are not suitable for farming.

Although areas like Helin City can grow fruits and vegetables such as carrots and onions, and can also cultivate a certain area of ​​farmland to grow rice or wheat, such places are very few.

Therefore, independently raising cattle, horses, sheep and other livestock herds is the biggest feature of the nomadic tribe’s production method!
Xia Yuanji believes that after the people of the Ming Dynasty migrated to the grasslands and settled there, if they did not want to starve to death, they would eventually adapt to the life and production methods of the grassland nomadic tribes.

And this method of production is destined to inevitably cause various disputes and even large-scale wars.

why?
If two herdsmen graze livestock too close to each other, or if the size of the herd is too large, competition between the two parties will intensify.

This kind of competition will cause the livestock to be underfed or trampled, which will reduce the number of livestock and ultimately reduce the livestock income of the herdsmen.

Not only that, those herdsmen groups with relatively isolated activity ranges and small numbers are particularly vulnerable to attacks by other herdsmen groups.

After all, if you can directly annex the weaker party through force and thereby strengthen yourself, who will go out to herd honestly?

This is why plunder has often occurred on the grasslands throughout the ages, and annexations or aggressive wars have often broken out between tribes.

Therefore, in the past, various tribes had to migrate frequently on the grasslands, which was the so-called living in pursuit of water and grass.

Otherwise, a heavy snowfall or a drought can kill most of the herdsmen's livestock, and even take away the lives of the herdsmen.

To develop and grow, nomadic tribes need relatively broad pastures where they can graze freely so that their livestock can thrive.

As the livestock herd grows, the herdsmen can obtain a stable supply of dairy products and meat, thus ensuring the reproduction of the tribe's population.

However, if herders want to improve their quality of life, such as salt, condiments, tea and other beverages, they need commercial trade.

If there is no commercial trade, then we have to rob others.

To put it bluntly, the land on the grassland with rich water and grass is limited, and only the strong can live there, while the weak can only be slaves or subordinates of the strong.

This is the fundamental reason why there are always fights on the grassland!

If the Ming Dynasty wanted to manage the grasslands well, the first thing they should do was not to allow the tribes to get into chaos and prohibit annexations or invasions of each other.

Before Zhu Gaoxu returned to Beijing, he specially left five battalions to garrison Mobei and Moxi for the purpose of intimidating all the grassland tribes.

There are more than [-] people in the five camps, and eating horse chews every day is a very huge expense.

Currently, there are more than [-] logistics auxiliaries in Heishui City and Datong, and they still transport a batch of military supplies northward every ten days.

Xia Yuanji was the Minister of Household Affairs and managed the finances of the Ming Dynasty.

He knew that the Ming Dynasty's treasury was now full, but he also knew in his heart that Zhu Gaoxu could not continue to support the officers and soldiers of these five battalions.In the spring of next year at the latest, as long as the weather gets warmer, Zhu Gaoxu will definitely immediately move those former guardsmen and their families who decide to go north to the grassland.

Before that, they, the civil servants, had to come up with a way to keep the guardsmen and their families going north, as well as the local herders who had lived on the grasslands for generations, enough to eat.

Otherwise, the former soldiers and their families who moved to the grassland may find it difficult to adapt to the local environment and regret it after arriving at their destination. This may lead to trouble, or even collude with the local tribes to rebel!

"In my opinion, it is not impossible to ensure that the guardsmen and their families who have moved to the grassland, as well as the local herdsmen, have enough to eat."

Jin Youzi, the left minister of household affairs, thought for a long time and then said very seriously.

The two ministers of the Ministry of Hubu and the Ministry of Personnel were in front of each other, so he had to call himself "Xiaguan" to show respect.

Jian Yi, Xia Yuanji and others all looked sideways at Jin Youzi.

"Promote trade and transport grain there!"

Although Jin Youzi liked the feeling of being noticed when he was young, he is now 58 years old, so he did not choose to interest everyone, but simply added another sentence.

Everyone heard the words and reacted differently.

Xia Yuanji frowned and said nothing.

Jian Yi lowered his head and thought.

Yang Shiqi and Huang Huai looked at each other and hesitated to speak.

Only Huang Huai looked at Jin Youzi and said after Yang Shiqi chose to remain silent: "Promoting trade is easy to say, but very difficult to do."

"There are two reasons."

"First, the output of the grassland is relatively simple. Apart from livestock, it is dairy products, and there is nothing new. The businessmen are only interested in profit. They transport grain to exchange for cattle, horses, sheep and other livestock. It would be fine if they can come back smoothly, but if they encounter bandits or robbers on the road, If the livestock dies of illness, then all the money lost will be lost.”

"Of course, powerful businessmen can hire bodyguards, hire veterinarians to treat sick livestock, and then purchase large quantities of livestock at low prices, thus making a lot of money. But looking at the world, how many such businessmen are there?"

"Secondly, and the most critical point, the road is impassable."

"Although there is little rain on the grassland, there is often heavy snow. After the snow melts in the spring, the roads are muddy, making it unsuitable for horses and vehicles. The winter is severely cold, which is not conducive to people and horses. Therefore, only summer and autumn are suitable for trade, but the most beautiful seasons on the grassland are The hardest parts are winter and spring.”

After hearing Huang Huai's words, Jin Youzi was speechless.

However, what was unexpected was that Xia Yuanji, who had been frowning and saying nothing just now, suddenly broke the silence and said, "Well said!"

He looked at Jin Youzi and Huang Huai, and said with a smile on his face: "What you two said is great!"

"Does Wei Zhe have an idea?"

When Jian Yi saw Xia Yuanji's expression of joy, he immediately became energetic and asked hurriedly.

Xia Yuanji replied: "I don't have a solution to the problem raised by Zong Yu (Huang Huai's name), but your Majesty does."

"What do you mean by that?"

Jian Yi asked.

Xia Yuanji smiled slightly and said: "I would like to ask the giant businessmen in the world, which one can compare with the companies under the Royal Commercial Bank?"

Jian Yi and others suddenly looked surprised.

"The roads are impassable, so just build them."

Xia Yuanji added: "In the 23rd year of Yongle, composite stone mud (cement) came out. The emperor was very happy and decreed to reward the meritorious craftsmen of Mo Qiaosi. If I remember correctly, the emperor should have canonized seven viscounts and ten viscounts at that time. The three barons later posthumously named Ren Ziyuan, the first Sizheng Taoist priest of Mo Qiao Division, as 'Tong Xuan Mo Qiao Zhenren'."

In the third year of Yongle, Mo Qiaosi created the earliest stone clay. Since then, the company has been improving stone clay.

The composite stone mud created 20 years later is not only highly viscous, but also waterproof, fireproof, cold-resistant and heat-resistant. It is an excellent material for paving roads and building bridges.

When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but make a bold guess in their minds.

Could it be that the grandson of the Hongwu Dynasty and the crown prince of the Yongle Dynasty, and now Emperor Qianxi of the Ming Dynasty, had long expected that royal merchants and stone mud would be used to manage the grassland?

(End of this chapter)