Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Chapter 119 A great victory
The start of the imperial examination in the 27th year of Hongwu was predictable to everyone, but the progress and ending were almost beyond everyone's expectations. Many people are still unable to react even now.

After leaving the court, Old Zhu was in a good mood. He looked at Zhu Yunhuan and asked, "I'm in a good mood today. Can I have one more drink?"

Zhu Yunxun smiled and said, "Okay, I'll drink less and have a drink with grandfather!"

Old Zhu was even happier, and immediately shouted at Zhang Fusheng, "What are you standing there for? You have no vision at all, how can you do anything!"

While Zhang Fusheng was arranging for the meal to be served, Zhu Yunxun said, "I think the civil and military officials were frightened this time. Let's not talk about other things for now. These civil officials in the south will not be able to make any progress in a short time."

Old Zhu became more and more proud and said, "These people who are pushing their noses and taking advantage of others have always been against us."

During the period of conquering the world, the civil officials in eastern Zhejiang looked down on Zhu Yuanzhang. Later, after the founding of the country, they also fought with the nobles in Huaixi.

Whenever they have the chance, these people want to fight for power in the court and try to restrict the imperial power. However, they have also suffered setbacks. They were not able to defeat the nobles in Huaixi before, and they were seriously injured in the Hu Weiyong case. Now, they have finally made some progress, but their momentum has been suppressed again.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "Zhao Yu has been taken down by us now."

This made Zhu Yuanzhang even happier. Previously, in order to restrain the Jinyiwei and quell some public wrath, he had to take away the authority of Zhaoyu from the Jinyiwei and give it to the Three Law Departments.

And now they can take it back legitimately, but the only difference is that it is not the Jinyiwei who is in charge, but the Beizhenfusi.

Zhaoyu is different, because Zhaoyu is the one that the emperor has the final say on from arrest to final conviction, and outsiders cannot interfere. The Northern Pacification Office is an institution that the emperor personally manages. For Zhu, who has a strong desire for control, Zhaoyu should exist!

This not only killed two birds with one stone, but also killed two birds with one stone. Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Yunhuan won a great victory.

All the concessions and forbearance they made last year were for this moment. With this series of achievements, their previous efforts were worth it.

If the civil and military officials were to review the situation at this moment, they would only feel more frightened. The emperor and the crown prince were too scheming, and their control over the court situation had always been very firm. Even many things were being carried out according to their wishes.

He poured a glass of wine for Old Zhu, and Zhu Yunhuan poured himself one, "Grandfather, let's toast!"

Old Zhu happily clinked glasses with Zhu Yunhuan, and then drank it all in one gulp. Today's wine was especially delicious!
Looking at Zhu Yunhuan, Old Zhu said, "It should be stable in the past two years. Civil officials and military generals dare not act rashly."

In Zhu's eyes, no matter whether it was civil officials or military generals, they might not be of the same mind as him. Especially what happened in recent years made him realize that some people who like to talk about great principles are also very dirty in private.

"It's better to be more stable. I still need to gain experience." Zhu Yunhuan also said with a smile, "If it is the current situation, it will be easier for me to do things if grandfather can scare me a little."

Zhu Yunhuan was not unhappy with what he said. His crown prince never needed to be cautious about the transfer of power.

As the crown prince of Zhu, he always inherited as much power as his children and grandchildren were capable of. The more successful and capable his children and grandchildren were, the happier Zhu was, instead of being suspicious and worried about power falling into someone else's hands.

Old Zhu thought the same and said, "You have been learning from me for the past year and have made some progress. If the situation is like this now, I can leave and feel at ease."

Seeing Zhu Yunhuan's unhappy face, Lao Zhu quickly said, "I said the wrong thing, okay!"

Old Zhu couldn't help but complain, "I'm the emperor, your grandfather, and I have to coax you and give in to you! In my life, how many times have I been so careful to talk to you?"

Zhu Yunhuan was amused and analyzed, "Of course it's inevitable. When you were in your hometown, you must have been careful with your great-grandparents, right? When you were with the Prince of Chuyang, you were suspected, so you also had to be careful, right? My grandmother and my father are also strong-willed, and they quarreled with you a lot."

Old Zhu thought it made sense, but he still said, "That's different. In front of our parents and brothers, we are sensible and have good family education. In front of the King of Chuyang, there is nothing we can do. People have to bow their heads under the eaves. Your grandmother and your father are not unreasonable in front of us."

But then Lao Zhu also found it funny. "I am happy when I quarrel with them. It makes me feel like I am at home. Even if I become the emperor, there is no one to talk to. My life is meaningless."

After chatting, Lao Zhu said, "Last year we didn't have much energy to do, but this year we have a lot to do."

Zhu Yunhuan nodded in agreement and said, "The inheritance of titles and positions by the sons of military officers mentioned earlier must be decided this year."

Needless to say, many nobles inherited titles, and the Ming Dynasty's military household system also required many military commanders to pass down their official positions.

Just like Zhu had a personal soldier named Qi Xiang, who died in battle when he followed Fu Youde to pacify Yunnan, but his descendants inherited the title of General Mingwei. More than a hundred years later, there was a general named Qi Jiguang who inherited his father's position and served as the commander of Dengzhou Guard.

Zhu Yunhuan naturally understood that such hereditary system was not good, but for now, the Weisuo system was suitable for Ming Dynasty. Even if some things needed to be changed, they should be changed later, not immediately.

The military officers' sons were also in a hurry to inherit the post, and there were quite a few who were content with pleasure. Previously, there was a Yangzhou Guard Commander Shan Shou who inherited his father's post, but he fled from the battlefield when he was fighting in Taizhou to capture bandits, resulting in defeat.

This is simply ridiculous. Although the Ming Dynasty has occasionally been defeated since its founding, it has never been defeated by bandits! In fact, it is not just the sons of military officers. Some garrisons are also neglecting drills. This situation will occur after peace is restored.

Old Zhu also continued, "We think that now is the time to recuperate and the people should live and work in peace. We should build water conservancy projects, dredge the river when necessary, build embankments when necessary, and dig ponds and weirs when necessary."

It is imperative to develop water conservancy projects, which can also ensure the food security of the Ming Dynasty.

Developing water conservancy projects is also a way to prevent floods and disasters. These things are what must be done for any dynasty. It’s just that some dynasties don’t pay much attention to them, while some dynasties pay special attention to them.

Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunxun and said with satisfaction, "It's a good thing that you asked your uncles to cultivate the land before!"

Zhu Yunhuan was not modest either, and said, "It's a good thing. Huguang is fertile to begin with, and now there are few people and a lot of land. If we open up more land and turn it into fertile fields, it may become the next Jiangnan!"

Old Zhu said with some anticipation, "More land, more food, then the country will be stable."

Old Zhu then added, "When you are full, you forget hunger; when you are warm, you forget cold. You have no worries at all. But if you really encounter a disaster, you will be at a loss. We know this is human nature, but we should also urge the people to remember these things."

Zhu Yunhuan asked, "How to supervise?"

Old Zhu said directly, "Let the people plant some mulberry and jujube, so that they can survive in times of disaster. Let the people plant more cotton, so that they can supplement their families and earn some pocket money. For those who plant more cotton, we will exempt them from taxes."

Zhu Yunhuan said sincerely, "Grandfather is so kind!"

Zhu was indeed overbearing at times, but he was generally very kind to the people. It is an exaggeration to say that he loved the people like his own children, but the hardships he experienced in his youth made him understand the difficulties faced by the people, so many of his policies were also designed to take care of the people.

Previously, Zhu Yuanzhang also encouraged people to grow cotton, but the effect was average as people preferred to grow grain on the land.

Then it is tax-free. Of course, not all fields are tax-free. Only fields planted with cotton within a specified number of acres are tax-free.

Otherwise, some powerful landlords would definitely use all their land to grow cotton. There is no shortage of people who exploit policy loopholes, and they will be complacent about it.

The old and the young were talking and laughing, discussing the affairs of state.

There was an uproar outside. The fate of many people was changed because of it, and many people were trembling with fear at this moment.

Especially when thinking of the civil officials who had oppressed and despised the emperor and the crown prince last year, their legs were weak at this moment. Those who were close to Zhao Mian, Zhan Hui and others, or had once attached themselves to them, were even more afraid of being implicated.

As for some scholars, they soon found out what happened in the court.

Naturally, some people are happy and some are sad. Some people think that the emperor is wise, but some people think that these policies are a suppression of them, etc.

However, the weight of these people is not enough to change the court's policies, so it is useless even if they jump up and down. If they jump too much, they will be easily suppressed by the emperor.

However, the examination is still going on, and now we just have to wait for the results to be announced and for the treatment of some officials.

Including Lu Guanxiao, who was originally resting in the guild hall. He originally thought that he was about to be on the list of successful candidates and could look forward to being in the top three.

But just when he was still inviting his friends, a team of ferocious Jinyiwei suddenly arrived.

The case was discovered, and the charge of impersonation was confirmed, which caused an uproar among some scholars present. They felt sorry for Lu Guanxiao's talent, but it was obviously impossible to expect them to stand up for Lu Guanxiao.

Some people might even be secretly rejoicing, thinking that with one less Lu Guanxiao, there would be one more chance of passing the imperial examination!

Zhu Yunhuan can't take care of those things now, he still has a lot of things to deal with.

Although the North-South List case is basically over, there is still follow-up finishing work to be completed. A journey of a hundred miles begins with a single step.

If some unexpected changes occurred at this time that led to failure, Zhu Yunhuan would definitely be furious, and that was something he absolutely could not accept.

Hiding his talents for more than a year does not mean that he does not have great ambitions. After a short period of dormancy, he will take action, especially now that he cannot hide even if he wants to. Who among the civil and military officials in the court dares to underestimate this black-bellied and ruthless grandson of the emperor!

(End of this chapter)