Ming Dynasty: Every day, Zhu Yuanzhang is in trouble

Obviously, everyone was very curious about the fact that Prince of Yan Zhu Di went to Chongming Island to capture Wu Zhen.

And before that, he wrote this in the battle report he wrote to Zhu Yuanzhang.

It just said that Wu Zhen and others were taken down, but did not give any details.

Under such circumstances, the curiosity of many people was aroused.

I am eager to know what methods Prince of Yan Zhu Di used to take down such a brave general as Wu Zhen and the numerous naval forces prepared to attack the Japanese.

This process is bound to be full of dangers.

When Zhu Di heard Mei Yin ask this, he smiled and said, "Actually, this matter is not that complicated. It's quite simple."

Several people did not quite believe what Zhu Di said.

Simple? How can it be simple!
That’s Wu Zhen, Marquis of Jinghai!

A man who has fought in wars for most of his life can be awarded a title based on his military achievements. This is not something that ordinary people can do.

"Didn't I go to the Japanese navy in the name of rewarding the troops?

Moreover, I had few soldiers with me, only two hundred-man guards of the Prince of Yan.

Considering my identity, Wu Zhen didn't have much suspicion at all.

I am the Prince of Yan of the Ming Dynasty. No matter what he thought, he never expected that my father would send me personally to capture him.

And he only brought so few people with him.

When I got there, I rewarded the troops personally first.

Then, under the pretext of a banquet, Wu Liang and his subordinates, middle and senior generals in the navy preparing for the Japanese invasion, were gathered together.

At banquets, smashing cups was used as a signal to initiate direct action.

Let my two hundred personal guards capture these people one by one.

I also controlled Wu Zhen at the first opportunity, capturing the leader first!

Then things went more smoothly.

Although Wu Zhen was arrogant, there were also many people with ulterior motives in the navy preparing to fight against the Japanese.

But that's not the case for everyone.

After all, there are still many people who are loyal to the court.

They received food and salary from the imperial court.

And now, our Ming Dynasty has once again made a name for itself.

All the powerful enemies around were destroyed.

Who doesn't know the reputation of our father?
I am acting in accordance with the emperor's orders and my identity is the King of Yan.

Therefore, after taking down all these leaders, the remaining people did not make any rash moves.

In addition, before taking action against them, I, on behalf of the imperial court, gave a good reward to the many soldiers in the navy preparing for war against Japan.

All rewards for everyone were given by me personally.

Spending so much real money made them feel the sincerity of the imperial court...

Not to mention how much they recognize me as the King of Yan, at least I can make myself familiar to them.

As long as we can control the situation at the beginning, everything will be easy afterwards.

Just over a day later, people from the Chaohu navy also arrived.

Things will become easier..."

Zhu Di briefly recounted what he had done in Chongming.

The language seems a bit understated.

As if this was a common occurrence.

From what he said, it seemed like it was an easy thing to do.

It was easy and he dealt with it with a sneak attack.

But think about Wu Zhen's character and the large number of troops on the side of the navy preparing for war with Japan.

They all knew that this matter was definitely not that simple.

Many things sound easy, but are actually very difficult to do.

With just a little thought, one can understand that what Prince of Yan Zhu Di did this time must have been extremely dangerous.

If you are not careful, you will be doomed.

It's just that he is not willing to say it out loud.

But now, through his story.

Mei Yin knew roughly how Zhu Di went there and defeated Wu Zhen and others with a smaller force.

He is a man who is bold but careful, brave and resourceful.

Mei Yin couldn’t help but pour a glass of wine, picked it up and said, “Fourth brother is mighty, wise and brave!

Such things can be accomplished by you, fourth brother!
I toast you! "

Zhu Di laughed when he heard this and said, "It's not a big deal, but I can't stand your praise.

If you keep praising me like this, I, your fourth brother, will become arrogant."

He said this with a smile, but his body was honest as he took the bowl of wine from Mei Yinjing.

He drank it all in one go.

I suddenly felt relieved.

I also feel that the taste of this wine is better than ever before.

The only regret is that the third guy didn’t come along.

If the third brother comes, I can show off a lot at this time.

I think the third brother must have a very good look on his face.

This was mainly because the third brother was not present. If the third brother was present, when Zhu Di talked about his trip to Chongming Island this time, it would be as if he was going to a meeting alone, and he would capture Wu Zhen and those high-ranking officials of the navy that were prepared for the Japanese invasion at the same time.

It's not that brief.

I can definitely make it sound vivid, exciting, thrilling and stimulating.

Don't say what you should say in front of the third brother.

He is not Zhu Di!

He also feels sorry for his dear third brother!
The third and fourth brothers like to quarrel with each other for no reason, and it's not just talk.

After chatting for a while, Chang, Princess Ningguo, and Xu Miaoyun and others who came with them went out to prepare dinner.

Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and Mei Yin were left to talk.

“But it was very correct for my father to assign me such a task.

If one wants to deal with the brothers Wu Zhen and Wu Liang, one must definitely take Wu Zhen down as soon as possible.

There are many high-ranking officials in the navy preparing for war against Japan who are not loyal to the Ming Dynasty.

Instead, they are closely connected with those pirates.

If we are not careful and these guys slip away, they will definitely rebel against the Ming Dynasty.

In the future, the navy of the Ming Dynasty will also become pirates that bring disaster to the people and endanger the navy of the Ming Dynasty!"

On this matter, Zhu Di really identified with his father and was deeply touched.

I feel that my father is indeed far-sighted.

After hearing Zhu Di's words, Zhu Biao and Mei Yin both nodded.

I agree with what Zhu Di said.

Zhu Di's voice continued, "However, the pirate situation outside is very serious.

I checked the accounts there and got a lot of information from some people.

I found that I had some misunderstandings about the pirates outside. "

Hearing Zhu Di say this, Crown Prince Zhu Biao immediately became excited.

There are some things that Zhu Di doesn't know yet, but he knows them very well.

His father cleaned up Wu Zhen and Wu Liang not only because they did many things that were too excessive and deserved to be put to death.

Another very important reason was that his father, the emperor, was going to abolish the maritime ban and open the Maritime Customs Office.

Under such circumstances, the navy, which had seemed less important after the conquest of the world, suddenly became important.

People like Wu Zhen and Wu Liang have too big appetites.

It's too hard to satisfy.

Under such circumstances, we must definitely clean them out and put things in order.

To prepare for the future development of the Maritime Customs.

If we want to develop the Maritime Customs, we need to find a way to deal with the overseas pirates.

At this time, I heard the fourth brother say this.

How could Zhu Biao not care?

But Zhu Di's voice continued to be heard.

“At the beginning, I also felt that the pirates outside were too numerous to be completely eliminated over the years.

Even after Wu Zhen and his men had been clearing out the Japanese invaders for several years, these bastards became even more powerful.

It was because Wu Zhen and his gang were deeply connected with the pirates, and they were supporting the pirates and colluding with them.

However, I later discovered that this was indeed part of the reason.

But that’s not all the reason.

In addition to these, there is a more important reason.

That is, the power of those pirates is indeed strong.

Even if Wu Zhen led the navy to fight against the Japanese in an open battle on the sea, he might not be able to win.

It can even be said that we lose more than we win.

The reason why Wu Liang secretly transported ten large sea ships of 2,000 tons each and sold them to Chen's pirates was because of this.

In addition to their greed and desire for money, and their desire to gain such huge benefits, there is another side to this.

That’s because the Fangbu pirates have greatly increased in strength.

They already have many large ocean-going ships of 2,000 tons each.

In terms of strength, they crushed Chen's pirates.

He wanted to strike a balance, so he shipped these ten large ships out and sold them to the pirates of Chen's army.

In this way, the strength of the two pirate groups can become similar.

You can let them fight each other.

The navy prepared for the Japanese invasion can sit back and watch the fight between the two tigers and gain some corresponding benefits.

Maintaining stability on the surface of the sea."

After hearing what Zhu Di said, Zhu Biao became so angry that he started cursing.

"You bastard! I've never seen such a useless person before!
I don't understand how to play balance.

What kind of balance is he doing?

It's so stupid!

If we play the balancing game, shouldn't one side, when one side becomes stronger, unite with the weaker side and beat up the stronger side?

Weaken it again so that the power between them can return to a balanced state?
How could he do that!
One side is strong, so I don't want to beat it up.

Instead, it helped the weaker party obtain a 2,000-ton sea ship, a good thing on the sea.

Let the weaker party become stronger again and catch up with the level of the stronger party.

Damn it, after such a stupid operation, the weaker party was made stronger!
Stupid! It's really stupid! "

Zhu Biao was so angry that he couldn't speak!

“Who said it wasn’t true? I was also shocked when I saw their behavior. I really didn’t expect that Wu Zhen, this bastard, would actually do this.

It's really hard to understand what he was thinking!"

After scolding Wu Zhen, Zhu Biao quickly realized that there was a big problem.

Wu Zhen, this bastard, is using such stupid means to play with the balance here.

Now that Wu Zhen has been dealt with, the pirates are still left behind.

Chen Fang and his two pirate groups have become increasingly powerful over the years.

By now, it has been clearly confirmed that the combined combat effectiveness of the two pirate groups at sea is definitely greater than that of the Ming Navy.

The sea is ruled by pirates.

The Ming navy was not very good at naval battles.

The most important thing is that the ship is not as big as the other one.

And each of these large sea ships is extremely difficult to build.

Therefore, even if his father was fully preparing for war, he would allow the Longjiang Treasure Shipyard to start work again, quickly build large sea ships, and vigorously develop the navy in the future.

Training the navy is not an option either.

However, it is not so easy to form effective combat capability in a short period of time and to defeat the pirates at sea.

It takes at least two years.

And his father, the emperor, is now impatient to develop the Maritime Customs.

I definitely can't wait two years.

But if we insist on opening a Maritime Customs Office, we have to clear out the pirates outside.

Because now, Zhu Biao already knew that an interest group had long been formed between the navy preparing for war against the Japanese pirates, the sea pirates, and the many wealthy families in Jiangnan.

There is a clear division of labor among them, and they have made huge profits through smuggling.

Now, my father has taken over the navy to prepare for war with Japan, and then opened the Maritime Customs Office, which will be a great blow to maritime smuggling.

Cutting off someone's wealth is like killing one's parents.

Once the Maritime Customs Office is opened, it will definitely hit the weak spots of these pirates, wealthy businessmen and many other people!
It’s not about whether the wealthy families in Jiangnan will resist, but those pirates will definitely not surrender.

They will certainly find ways to oppose the imperial court and prevent the Ming Dynasty's Maritime Customs from going out to sea to do business.

The Ming Dynasty’s Maritime Customs could no longer operate.

Besides, the two largest pirate groups on the sea, Chen Fang and others, already had a deep hatred with the Ming Dynasty.

Now that our interests are about to be greatly damaged, it would be strange if we don’t take action against the Ming Dynasty’s Maritime Customs.

But its power is too strong. It will not be easy for the Ming Dynasty to capture it in a short time.

Zhu Biao fell into deep thought, feeling that the matter was extremely tricky.

"Brother, we must find ways to deal with those pirates from now on.

It may seem like a minor problem at this moment, but in my opinion, if we ignore it, these pirates will become more and more rampant in the future...

It is only the early years of the founding of the country, and these pirates dare to do this.

The key is that there are so many benefits to be gained.

What if we just ignore it and continue on like this?

These pirates will inevitably become more rampant.

In order to deal with these people, our Ming Dynasty implemented a maritime ban, but the results are not ideal.

Pirate harassment along the coast is not serious nowadays, but what about in the future?

In the next few decades or hundreds of years, will there be a scene where pirates will come to the coast in broad daylight, burn, kill, loot, and then leave?
Moreover, pirates like Chen Fang also absorbed some manpower from many surrounding foreign countries.

Among them, the largest number of people are from Japan.

If we don’t strike hard at these people and just impose a maritime ban and blindly avoid them, it will be difficult for the people of the Ming Dynasty to enjoy peace.”

After hearing what Zhu Di said, Mei Yin couldn't help but nod vigorously, thinking that what Zhu Di said was really great.

He is worthy of being the future Yongle Emperor.

In some things, it means having foresight.

See it thoroughly.

As a person from later generations, he knew very well that at that time, in the eyes of Zhu Yuanzhang and many others, the pirates were not worth paying attention to.

In the future, the coastal areas will be ruined beyond recognition.

"Fourth brother said it well!"

Mei Yin couldn't help but cheer for Zhu Di.

Crown Prince Zhu Biao also looked delighted.

I feel that the fourth brother is truly talented and knowledgeable.

I had never thought about these things before.

It was only after listening to my second brother-in-law's death-defying admonition to my father regarding the maritime ban and the Maritime Customs that I realized how dangerous it was.

The fourth brother didn't know about this death-defying remonstrance.

But the fourth brother was able to think of it and say such words.

From this we can see that the fourth brother is indeed very talented and capable.

There is a reason why he can become the emperor in the future. After hearing what Zhu Di said, Zhu Biao no longer hid his feelings.

Looking at Zhu Di, he said, "Fourth Brother, to be honest, this maritime ban was indeed ill-considered.

The Maritime Customs Office also had some shortcomings.

Before, the emperor was deceived by these treacherous villains and did not realize how profitable the Maritime Customs was.

Nor did they realize how harmful the maritime ban would be.

But my father has recently figured out all of this and has come to his senses.

He was planning to abolish the maritime ban and re-establish the Maritime Customs.

And the pirates outside will definitely wipe them out.

In the past, they were just considered minor problems and not worth making a fuss about.

Moreover, these bastards move like the wind on the sea and are difficult to deal with.

Now look, these pirates have reached the point where they must be destroyed!"

Hearing his elder brother say this, Zhu Di immediately nodded and said, "Brother, you are absolutely right.

That's the way to do it!
I also find those people arrogant and domineering and I don't like them.

They were just defeated generals of the Ming Dynasty, hiding in the sea to survive.

But now he has become arrogant.

If they dare to act like this, they must be destroyed!

Otherwise, I really can't swallow this breath!"

“Old Four, it’s just… after hearing what you said, I realize that it’s not easy to wipe out these pirates.

These pirates are too powerful and their ships are too big.

I once heard Marquis Deqing say that in addition to discipline, risking one's life and many other factors in a water fight, the most important thing is to see whose boat is bigger.

Whoever has the bigger and taller ship is right.

Gain the upper hand in naval battles.

If the side with the larger ship wants to deal with it, the side with the smaller ship will need to make several times or even dozens of times the sacrifices to make up for the size gap between the warships of both sides.

But if the warships of both sides are so large, there is no way to grind them down.

Even if many people were sacrificed and many lives were used to fill the gap, it might not be possible to fill this huge gap.

We in the Ming Dynasty now have many warships, but most of them are warships for fighting in rivers, lakes and reservoirs.

Needless to say, the navy of our Ming Dynasty is really capable of fighting.

We can fight any tough battle.

The Chaohu Navy, the best in the world, now has no leader.

But the influence still remains.

However, there was a lack of warships to fight at sea.

Especially large sea vessels of 2,000 tons.

Now there are only five ships left, which is really a difficult situation.

It’s too difficult to solve it in a short period of time.”

After hearing what Zhu Biao said, Prince of Yan Zhu Di also felt that what his elder brother said made a lot of sense.

I couldn't help but fall silent.

“This is indeed a difficult issue to resolve.

Now it seems that we can only speed up shipbuilding and naval training, and try to get rid of these bastards within two years."

As he said this, Zhu Biao couldn't help but sigh with some reluctance.

But no matter how unwilling you are, you have to endure it.

"Brother is right. Without large enough warships, it will not be easy for the Ming Dynasty to defeat the pirates at sea in one fell swoop."

As we talked about these things, the atmosphere in the room seemed a little heavy.

Both Zhu Biao and Zhu Di were filled with resentment.

Ever since his father came to power, the Ming Dynasty has been victorious all the way.

Although they suffered some defeats in the middle, they soon fought back.

Crush the enemy.

As a result, these not-so-small pirates are nothing compared to the rest of the Ming Dynasty's enemies, and they are nothing if they are involved in land warfare.

But they will have to wait at least two more years before they can destroy it.

It really makes people feel uncomfortable.

At this time, Mei Yin said, "Brother, Fourth Brother, we don't have to wait until we have built enough large ships before we can go to sea and fight those pirates and destroy them.

I do have a way that would allow the Ming navy to destroy the pirates on the sea even if it does not have enough large warships.

As long as they dare to chase and intercept the Ming Navy, they will definitely be defeated by the Ming Navy with overwhelming force! "

After hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di were both cheered up.

What their second brother-in-law said was too unexpected and too surprising for them.

At the same time, there was a lot of disbelief in my heart.

After all, they all knew very well how big the gap was between the Ming Navy and those pirates outside in terms of warships.

How difficult it is to make up for it.

But now, my second brother-in-law said this.

He then looked at Mei Yin with burning eyes, waiting for Mei Yin's next words.

They believe that the second brother-in-law is a very reliable person.

When it comes to such important matters, I will never speak carelessly or without purpose.

Mei Yin said: "This matter is actually very simple."

Simple?
Upon hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di couldn't help but look at each other.

I always feel that what my second brother-in-law said is a little too unbelievable.

Simple?
How could this be simple!
Mei Yin said: "As the saying goes, strong ships and powerful guns! If we don't have enough strong ships, we can use guns to make up for it.

Wouldn't it be enough to install more cannons on the ship and attack them with them?

Give them a covering fire!
As long as there are enough cannons and they are powerful enough, no matter how big their ships are, they will be destroyed!"

After hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di both felt a little confused.

This...the method proposed by my second brother-in-law does make some sense at first glance.

But if you think about it more carefully, it doesn't seem very reliable.

"Second brother-in-law, these...the pirates' warships are also equipped with cannons.

Their Huihui artillery can fire very far and is very powerful.

Moreover, the enemy ship is large. If we engage in a head-on attack, they will have the advantage of being on high ground.”

Zhu Biao didn't say anything, but nodded secretly.

Obviously, he agreed with what Zhu Di said.

Mei Yin said: "If we load ordinary artillery onto the ship and engage them, we will definitely not have an advantage.

But if there is a kind of artillery, the effective range can reach at least seven miles, and at most nearly eleven or twelve miles.

How about installing such cannons on warships and then going to fight those pirates?"

"what?!"

Hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di were both shocked.

And then there was joy.

“If there were such artillery, it would be a different matter!
But...is there such artillery?

The best artillery in our Ming Dynasty can only fire three miles away.

And they were attacking from the city wall..."

Zhu Di said hesitantly.

Zhu Di was very interested in firearms and was well aware of the artillery of the Ming Dynasty.

But I have never heard that the Ming Dynasty has such powerful artillery.

Mei Yin nodded seriously and said, "Yes, I just made it."

After hearing this, Zhu Di and Zhu Biao became even more surprised.

This... actually exists?

Or was it cast by my second brother-in-law? !
This... this second brother-in-law is too amazing, right? !
Generally speaking, Zhu Biao knows a lot about things in Shuangshui Village.

But he didn't know now that Mei Yin had invented the cannon.

The truth is that this time, Mei Yin took too short a time to forge the cannon.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang knew the news, he was busy with a series of things.

I have been busy dealing with Wu Liang and others these days, so I didn't have time to tell Zhu Biao.

So Zhu Biao was not aware of this.

"Second brother-in-law, really?!"

Although they all knew that their second brother-in-law would definitely not tell lies.

Especially on something as important as this.

But I couldn't help but confirm it.

It was really because of what my second brother-in-law said that it was too shocking and too subversive to people's cognition.

Mei Yin nodded and said, "It must be true. The cannon is not far away. I will take you, my eldest brother and fourth brother, to have a look.

Try a few more shots yourself, and you will know, Brother Four."

After hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di no longer cared about drinking tea.

He hurried out the door.

At this moment, even if the delicacies from heaven were placed in front of them, they would not be interested!
Soon, they arrived at a place outside Shuangshui Village.

I saw that this place was tightly guarded by a team of the prince's personal soldiers, and there was something that was covered tightly.

There are many disguises on it.

"Wow! It's so big!"

Zhu Di came over and worked together with Mei Yin to tear off the lid.

The true face of this red cannon was revealed.

Zhu Di was immediately frightened by the red cannon.

The red cannon in front of me is really too big!

It was more than two times larger than any ordinary cannon he had ever seen!

At first, he was a little bit skeptical that the range of the cannon his second brother-in-law made could be so exaggerated.

But now, after seeing the appearance of the cannon, he no longer had any doubts.

A cannon this big might really reach the exaggerated level that my second brother-in-law mentioned!

At that moment, the two of them surrounded the cannon and studied it carefully for a while.

The test firing must have begun.

After loading the gunpowder and bullets and waiting here for a while, someone came and told us that the area had been cleared.

Mei Yin lit the fuse.

A moment later, an earth-shaking roar was heard, and in the smoke-filled air, a bullet the size of a human head rushed out!

Carrying immense power.

After firing a few shots in succession, Mei Yin personally took Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and others to check where the bullets landed.

After some measurements, it was confirmed that everything Han Cheng said was true!
The farthest shot was fired as far as eleven miles away!
The most recent shot hit more than eight miles away!
"Hahaha, great! That's really great!"

Zhu Biao and Zhu Di couldn't help laughing.

"Brother-in-law, your idea is great!

With this cannon, we don't have to worry about those pirates anymore!"

After that, Zhu Biao asked again: "Second brother-in-law, how long does it take to cast a cannon like this?"

Mei Yin thought for a moment and said, “If the materials are complete, then a skilled person will do the operation.

It takes about ten days to complete one cannon.

If the people who cast the metal later are more skilled, the speed can be even faster..."

"Second brother-in-law, that's great! You've done a great job again!!"

After hearing what Mei Yin said, Zhu Biao couldn't help laughing.

Some of the worries in my heart disappeared at once.

Such a cannon can be cast in about ten days, which is much faster than building a large ocean-going ship of 2,000 tonnes.

Moreover, they can also find more craftsmen at the same time.

For example, get a hundred groups of craftsmen and have them start casting cannons at the same time.

In this way, three hundred cannons can be cast in one month!

In this way, it would take at least two months to produce 600 cannons, install them on ships, and fight against those pirates!

Far less than the time it takes to build enough large sea-going ships.

The Maritime Customs Office can be opened about a year and a half in advance.

How much money will the Ming Dynasty be able to make during this period of time!

At least there are several million strings of cash in profit!

Just thinking about these makes people feel particularly envious.

It is indeed a good deal.

An idea from my second brother-in-law is worth so much money!

He really is worthy of being my second brother-in-law!

The title of Earl given by my father was not in vain.

And it’s sealed too small!

“Second brother-in-law, don’t try this cannon again in the future.

Moreover, this information must be strictly guarded and not disclosed to outsiders.

This is our secret weapon to deal with the pirates in the future.

After these pirates learned that their father was planning to develop the Maritime Customs, they would definitely encircle and suppress the Maritime Customs as soon as possible.

This is a rare way to bring them together.

We have to give them a big surprise.

Let’s kill all these pirates gathered together in one fell swoop!

If they get wind of this and know that we have such powerful artillery,

From now on, you will not dare to engage in direct combat with the Ming Dynasty.

The ocean is so vast and boundless, it would be too difficult to find them and kill them one by one!"

Zhu Biao looked at Mei Yin and gave a serious explanation.

In such a short time, he had considered a lot.

Mei Yin heard this and nodded, “Don’t worry, brother.

The people watching the artillery are all personal guards sent by the eldest brother.

When the cannon was being cast, it was only Jinglong and I who did the work.

When the artillery test was carried out, the area was cleared.

Only a few people were present.

They are all trustworthy and I have explained everything to them.

The news will definitely not get out.”

When Zhu Biao heard Mei Yin's words, he suddenly became extremely happy.

I just feel that my second brother-in-law is reliable when it comes to getting things done.

Reassuring.

All aspects can be considered.

But at this moment, Zhu Di, who had just been excited, suddenly changed his expression.

As if he had thought of something important.

“Second brother-in-law, I’m afraid… even with such artillery, it’s not easy to destroy those pirates.

There is another particularly difficult problem to solve! "(End of this chapter)