King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

Zhu Tan never expected that Lan Yu, Chang Mao and Li Jinglong were just the first wave who came to him to ask for permission to go to sea.

At dawn the next day, a row of carriages were parked in front of the Prince of Lu's mansion. Almost all the veteran generals in the capital who were enjoying retirement at home came, and they came in an endless stream.

Zhu Tan wanted to entertain them, but he was not a celestial being and didn't have that much time.

Therefore, he could only close the door of his mansion, refuse visitors, and let the butler inform everyone in the court that Tang He was responsible for selecting the generals.

My father-in-law Tang He is a ready-made shield, so why not use him?

Zhu Yuanzhang made Tang He Zhu Tan's deputy general, in fact, he also wanted to help him block the arrows.

In this way, Zhu Tan spent another two days in peace in Yingtian Prefecture.

It was another evening, and Zhu Tan was sitting in the back garden drinking. Princess Lu came over and sat directly next to him with a strange look on her face.

Zhu Tan naturally knew what was going on, but he looked at his wife and jokingly asked, "Madam, what's wrong?"

"Didn't you go out to visit friends? Who made you angry?"

"If anyone in Yingtian Prefecture dares to make you angry, tell me and I will avenge you."

Princess Lu turned to look at Zhu Tan, her lips moved, but she finally sighed and said, "My father has left Beijing."

"Huh? So fast?"

Zhu Tan was a little surprised and asked, "Why didn't you notify us?"

"Shouldn't I be the one to inform you?"

Princess Lu looked at Zhu Tan with some resentment and said softly, "It's all because of you."

"Since the day you said that father was in charge of selecting generals, so many veterans have come to visit us that the threshold of our house has been trampled down."

"In the past few days, more than 300 jars of the old wine stored at home have been drunk."

"My father said that if he didn't leave, all the money he had saved would be taken away by those people."

Hearing this, Zhu Tan almost couldn't hold back his laughter, but he couldn't laugh too much in front of his wife, so he quickly turned his head and grinned twice, then looked at Princess Lu and said with a straight face: "They are too outrageous!"

Upon hearing this, Princess Lu rolled her eyes at Zhu Tan and said, "It's all because of you!"

"Why didn't you just say you didn't want to choose? Why did you insist on asking them to go find their father?"

"Is it easy for an old man to store some wine?"

"In the past, his old subordinates basically didn't go home, and my father wouldn't let them. But now, they're following your orders and are legitimately asking for money, including food and gifts."

"You haven't seen what father looks like. Today I know what it means to want to cry but have no tears."

Zhu Tan laughed dryly twice and said nothing. He just held Princess Lu's hand, with a comforting look on his face, but without any guilt in his heart.

Of course he did it on purpose.

Who was Tang He? He was Zhu Yuanzhang's right-hand man who followed him to conquer the world. Looking at all the civil and military officials in the court, among all the founding heroes, only a few people like Chang Yuchun could compare with him.

Now that the older generation of dukes are almost extinct, Tang He is the only one with the most experience among the founding fathers, so it is reasonable to let him be selected as the general.

Besides, Zhu Yuanzhang entrusted such a big task to Zhu Tan and Tang He to see how they would handle it.

Tang He was an old and experienced man, so how could he not know what the emperor meant?

The generals in the capital will inevitably request a fight, so how Zhu Tan and Tang He will handle this matter will be a mystery.

If the father-in-law and son-in-law took advantage of this to win over the people's hearts and made lavish promises, the emperor would certainly make a note of it in his little notebook and wait for the reckoning later.

Now, Zhu Tan refused to let these people in, and Tang He only invited them to a banquet, never mentioning the matter of using troops at sea. However, he took out so much wine out of concern so that he could cry to the emperor when the time came.

In this way, the hearts of the generals in the capital were appeased, the emperor's suspicion was dispelled, and the mouths of those civil officials were shut up, achieving three goals at one stroke.

Although my father-in-law Tang He looked miserable, he actually didn't know how to smile in his heart.

"Father left the capital overnight and went to the palace to see His Majesty before leaving."

Princess Lu sighed softly, "As long as he's in the capital, those old subordinates have to eat one more day. My father really can't stand it."

Hearing his wife say this, Zhu Tan pursed his lips and chuckled, comforting her: "It's okay, your family is well-off, you won't go broke after a few days of eating."

"You also said..."

"oops!"

Just as Princess Lu was about to say something, Zhu Tan suddenly slapped her thigh and said, "Not good!"

"what happened?"

Princess Lu was startled and asked hurriedly, "Did you think of any loopholes?"

"No, I have to leave Beijing quickly too!"

Zhu Tan looked at his wife and said, "They are used to eating at my father-in-law's place. Now that my father-in-law is gone, they will definitely come to eat me!"

"We are poor and cannot afford such hardship."

"No, no, we have to leave Beijing tonight."

"Madam, wait a moment. I will go to the palace and tell you in detail when I come back."

After saying this, Zhu Tan stood up and rushed into the palace in a hurry.

Looking at Zhu Tan's back, Princess Lu didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

King Lu is poor?
God have mercy on him. He has amassed all the wealth in the world. Even the emperor is jealous of his wealth. How could he be poor?

Evening, Forbidden City, Imperial Study.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Tan with a smile and asked softly, "Aren't you in a hurry to leave Beijing? Why are you leaving now?"

"Father, we have to leave now."

Zhu Tan showed a bitter expression and said with a smile: "I am also afraid of being cheated."

"The generals in the capital are almost bankrupting my father-in-law. I..."

"Not a cent."

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and nodded at Zhu Tan, then looked at Zhu Biao beside him and said, "Your brother is really stingy."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao chuckled but did not say anything.

He knew in his heart that his tenth brother Zhu Tan came to the palace to act. Was he crying poor? He was afraid that his father would think too much.

"Where are you going when you leave Beijing this time?"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Tan again and asked, "Go straight to Shandong Dusi?"

"I plan to go to Peking first."

Zhu Tan said truthfully: "I heard that Fourth Brother has some elite soldiers and generals, and I want to borrow them for use."

"Not only is he stingy himself, but he also wants to fleece others."

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and shook his head: "Old Ten, who did you inherit this temper from?"

Who did you follow? Didn't you?
Zhu Tan complained in his heart, aren't the Zhu family's evil and suspicious problems rooted in you, old man?

However, he could only think about this in his mind and dared not say it out loud.

"It's up to you to decide."

Seeing that Zhu Biao was silent, Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "Whether the fourth brother is willing to lend you people or not is not our business. You can ask him yourself."

"But if you fail in this expedition to Japan, don't blame me for beating you."

"That can't be."

Zhu Tan grinned and said, "Japan is a small country. Our Great Ming is a mighty country with a mighty force. It is impossible for us to lose."

"Don't talk big, kid."

Zhu Yuanzhang rolled his eyes at him and said, "You can't destroy a country with just ironclad ships." "Don't worry, father. I have already made a plan."

"I plan to first eliminate the Japanese pirates along the coast, train my troops, and then conquer Japan after I am fully prepared."

"You just issued an order to the King of Japan. There is still time."

"Stinky boy."

Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him, then waved his hand and said, "Go away, I'm annoyed just looking at you."

Zhu Tan grinned, made a face at Zhu Biao, then turned and left.

After Zhu Tan left, Zhu Biao spoke up, "Father, judging from how my tenth brother has been behaving these days, your worries are probably unnecessary."

"Humph."

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted, closed his eyes slightly, and said softly: "Now he is still sensible and knows when to advance and retreat."

"But it's hard to say what will happen next."

Zhu Biao wanted to say something else when he heard Zhu Yuanzhang say, "Conquering Japan is like a lion fighting a rabbit. There won't be any big problems."

"Biao'er, have you ever thought about how to manage the situation after conquering Japan?"

"Besides, why did Old Ten insist on conquering Japan? When has this kid ever done a business that lost money?"

Hearing this, Zhu Biao's heart was slightly moved, and then he smiled and said, "Son, I understand."

"What do you unserstand?"

Zhu Yuanzhang opened his eyes and looked at Zhu Biao indifferently.

"I will send an order right away. Have the generals of Shandong follow my tenth brother and see what he wants to do."

"If rich mineral resources are discovered, they will be nationalized."

"Ah."

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled lightly and said nothing more.

……

Zhu Tan left overnight without notifying anyone.

Before leaving, Zhu Tan and the princess made love for a while. Both of them seized the last bit of time and wished they could rub the other into their bodies.

Therefore, when Zhu Tan got on the carriage leaving Beijing, he felt weak and fell asleep before leaving the capital.

The carriage journey was smooth. In the early morning of the next day, the convoy had left Yingtian Prefecture and headed north.

Zhu Tan sat beside the car, looking at the scenery on both sides of the official road, his thoughts running through his mind.

He, a butterfly from another world, came to this world and flapped his wings a few times, which changed the previous course of history.

But even so, the Ming Dynasty still had a lot of work to do.

Hundreds of years ago, during the transition from Song Dynasty to Yuan Dynasty, the north changed hands several times. Years of wars left the land barren, the cities dilapidated, and the people even more miserable.

Now, the economic and political centers of the Ming Dynasty are in the south, while the north is in a state of disrepair.

Looking ahead, the boundless plain was covered with wild grass, and there were few people on the hundreds of miles of paths and fields.

Before, Zhu Tan conquered Goryeo and Northern Yuan, and did many things in the north, and even now he is going to conquer Japan. These things are indeed meant to pave the way for the future, but more importantly, he wants to develop the north of the Ming Dynasty.

In the past, the threat of the Northern Yuan Dynasty was always there. After the fourth son Zhu Di pacified the rebellion, he moved the capital to Beiping and waged wars year after year. He recruited more than a million civilians, most of whom were from the north. Although he defeated the Northern Yuan Dynasty repeatedly, the economy of the north became increasingly decadent and did not recover for many years.

Later, the Battle of Tumu Fort, fought by the Ming Dynasty's god of war and diplomat, basically destroyed the family fortune left by the previous four generations of emperors.

After that, the Ming Dynasty was always on a downward trend. The economic gap between the north and the south became increasingly serious. The relocation of the capital to Beijing resulted in a lack of control and regulation in the south, and corruption became rampant. Gradually, the court was unable to collect taxes.

There were many reasons for the eventual demise of the Ming Dynasty, but in Zhu Tan's opinion, this was largely an economic problem and the result of internal chaos.

What he is doing now is to expand the territory by sweeping away the barbarians from all directions and strangling the enemies in the cradle. He also has to find ways to develop the economy, eliminate the differences between the north and the south as much as possible, and make the north prosperous.

In his plan, taking over Goryeo, destroying the Northern Yuan Dynasty, and conquering Japan were just the first steps.

After the war in the north is settled, we must turn our attention to the south and allow the north to develop steadily and become the rear base of the Ming Dynasty.

In this way, the country's destiny will change, and his fate as the King of Lu will naturally change as well.

The heart of an emperor is hard to predict. Zhu Tan knew that even if he, as a prince, was the best in the world, like a god from heaven, he could not even think about the position of emperor, let alone touch it.

The future emperor of the Ming Dynasty can only be Zhu Biao, but Zhu Tan's deepest ideal is far beyond the throne.

After leaving Yingtian Prefecture, Zhu Tan stopped and walked along the way. By the time he arrived near Peking, more than ten days had passed.

Zhu Tan was really not in a hurry to travel.

It took time for Tang He to go to Shandong Dusi to deploy troops and gather intelligence.

Moreover, during this process, the father and son in the capital must have also been taking actions. Zhu Tan deliberately slowed down his pace to show his feelings.

When the carriage arrived near Peking, they saw a group of cavalrymen coming from afar. All of them were wearing iron armor and looked very majestic, like a gust of black wind blowing across the wilderness.

The carriage stopped and Zhu Tan leaned out, only to see a man with a resolute face and somewhat dark skin dismounting from his horse and bowing to him.

"General Zhang Yu greets His Royal Highness Prince Lu."

Zhu Tan looked at the man in front of him and felt a slight movement in his heart.

The fourth brother Zhu Di had many capable people under him, among whom Zhang Yu and his son were the real backbone.

Zhang Yu made great contributions in the Jingnan Campaign, and his son Zhang Fu was an even more powerful general. He fought all his life but was eventually betrayed by the Ming Dynasty's God of War. He died in Tumu Fort at the age of 75.

"General Zhang, thank you for your courtesy. Please get up."

Zhu Tan chuckled and asked, "Where's the fourth brother?"

"The prince has already set up a banquet at the palace, and has specially ordered me to go out of the city to receive you."

Zhang Yu stood up, his face calm, and said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, please follow me in your carriage. I will escort you into the city."

"Okay, you lead the way."

Zhu Tan lowered the curtain, leaned back in the soft carriage, and closed his eyes slightly.

Zhang Yu is a fierce general, and so is his son Zhang Fu. Calculating the time, Zhang Fu is only in his early teens now, so he is really of no use.

Peking, in front of the city gate.

Prince of Yan Zhu Di rode on his warhorse, looking at Prince of Lu's convoy slowly approaching from a distance, his eyes slightly narrowed.

Behind him, General Zhu Neng stood on horseback, his eyes like an eagle with a strange glow in them.

"Your Highness, Prince Lu is fighting in the front, but he chose to come to my Beiping. What is his intention?"

After a while, Zhu Neng asked softly, "Does he want to transfer the Beiping Guard?"

"It doesn't matter if he wants to or not."

Zhu Di spoke softly, his voice calm: "I must participate in this naval battle."

"This matter..."

Zhu Neng hesitated to speak, but Zhu Di knew exactly what he meant.

Although the old man gave Zhu Neng the right to transfer generals at will, it was still extremely difficult for him, the King of Yan, to participate in the war.

For the vassal kings to send troops, they must have the imperial court's order, which means that Zhu Tan has no say in this matter.

"If I want to send troops, the old man will definitely not allow it."

Zhu Di said again: "But if the Tenth Master and the old man say it, then it's a sure thing."

There was something bitter about what he said, but it was the truth.

In terms of rewards, ten Yan kings are probably not as good as one Lu king. (End of this chapter)