Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Chapter 132 Continuity (Subscribe!)

The emperor preferred to make the third daughter of King Xu Da of Zhongshan the Crown Prince's Consort, which naturally caused some people to have some opinions.

However, it is not the first time that this has happened in the Ming Dynasty. It happened before the founding of the country, and there are still cases now.

Zhu's nephew's wife was Xie Zaixing's eldest daughter, while Xu Da's second wife was Xie Zaixing's second daughter. The same was true for Fu Youde, whose son was a consort and whose daughter was a princess.

It seemed that in order to ensure the status of the Crown Prince, the Hongwu Emperor had begun to become more and more domineering.

Zhu Yunhuan didn't bother with those things and called Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji to Wenhua Hall again.

"Your Majesty will certainly summon you to inquire about the treasure notes in the next few days. You should make some preparations." Zhu Yunhuan said, "You should pay attention to these things. If there are many discounts on the treasure notes and the circulation is not good, report them to His Majesty in detail."

Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji would naturally pay attention to these things. They had paid some attention to the matter of the Baochao, and they knew that even if the current Baochao was not hated by God and people, it actually did have some less than ideal aspects.

Yu Xin also said at this time, "Your Highness, in the early years, His Majesty abolished the Secretariat and established six ministries. The minting of banknotes belonged to the Ministry of Revenue, and the minting of coins belonged to the Ministry of Works. Now, the Baochao Supervisory Office has been transferred to the Ministry of Revenue."

Zhu Yunxun looked at Yu Xin with a smile and asked, "Just say it directly."

Yu Xin then boldly said, "I don't know how many treasure notes have been issued."

Although Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji could not remember everything they saw, they had excellent memories. Old Zhu had tested Yu Xin before, and he could answer all the data on the population and land tax in the country, as well as the geographical conditions.

But now, the Baochao has been issued for nearly twenty years, and the Minister of Revenue, the chief steward, does not even know how much has been issued!

Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji also became nervous. This Crown Prince had never been a kind person. In the short two years since he was appointed as the Crown Prince, several high-ranking officials had died or been demoted.

Even though there is no direct evidence for some things, it is said that the crown prince was in charge.

For example, Zhou Dexing, Marquis of Jiangxia, who died in an unclear manner, and Ouyang Lun, the former imperial concubine who had been executed, were also rumored to have been killed by the crown prince. As for Zhan Hui and others, it was obvious that the crown prince had put them to death.

Zhu Yunhuan thought for a moment and said, "Call Yan Zimin."

"It's not your fault." Zhu Yunhuan said kindly, "These are just some of the oversights in the past. You don't need to take the blame."

These words seemed to make Yu Xin feel relieved, but he still couldn't help but worry.

Because he knew very well that if the emperor and the crown prince really needed a minister of sufficient importance to take the blame, they would push him out without hesitation.

This is how those in power are. Whether it is Chao Gai or Wang Hu, they have killed many officials in order to achieve some goals.

But at this moment, Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji still wanted to express their gratitude, at least this difficult time was over.

Yan Zhenzhi came hurriedly, and Zhu Yunhuan also said straight to the point, "Let the Ministry of Works check how many treasure notes have been produced in recent years. Assist the Ministry of Revenue, Xia Yuanji, you will be responsible for the liaison between the two ministries, and report directly to me if there is anything."

Yan Zhenzhi had no objection to this, and Zhu Yunhuan continued, "This time, the students of the Imperial College are ordered to go to various prefectures to build water conservancy projects, and the Ministry of Works will also send people to follow. These students have some skills, but the reality of water conservancy projects is so huge that some officials in the Ministry of Works are more familiar with it."

Yan Zhenzhi immediately replied, "Your Highness, we have already sent officials and craftsmen to follow."

Zhu Yunhuan was very satisfied with this answer. "Zhenzhi, you are indeed a talented person promoted by my grandfather!"

Yan Zhenzhi was a little proud. The grandson only called him by his courtesy name, which was a kind of recognition of him. As for the age difference, who cares about age at this time? The difference in status is the most obvious.

Seeing Yan Zhenzhi here, Yu Xin said, "Your Highness, the court has been focusing on water conservancy projects and building border cities in recent years. Many places are remote and cold. Although there are military farms to cultivate fields, there are still many important border military locations where it is difficult to store grain."

Yan Zhenzhi immediately understood what Yu Xin meant and said quickly, "Your Highness, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works often work together with the Five Military Commandery and the Ministry of War to ensure the money and food for the troops. However, there are many losses along the way. Often, when one stone of grain is transported to the border, there will be more losses along the way."

Zhu Yunhuan also became serious. He naturally knew what was going on in this matter.

The Weisuo system is very suitable for the Ming Dynasty at present, and it can be as self-sufficient as possible. However, this is not absolute, and not all Weisuo can cultivate enough fields. Salt, cloth, or food and wages still need to be transported.

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it carefully before saying, "You should go back and prepare first. You should have a plan in mind on how to deal with these things. I will then summon the dukes, marquises, officers and soldiers of the Five Military Command Office to discuss it together."

Yu Xin and the others naturally had no objections, as many things require collective efforts.

Zhu Yunhuan was more accustomed to all this. The morning court was not the place to really discuss things. He would summon relevant officials to the Wuying Hall and Wenhua Hall for discussions, and sometimes they would only be announced in the court.

Chang Sheng came running over happily, "Your Highness, we have selected the officers who will accompany you."

Zhu Yunhuan took a look and said with a smile, "Okay, let the Five Military Commandery get ready. As for the navy, let the Longjiang Shipyard speed up and recruit good shipbuilders." There is no need to worry too much about the sailors, as the main issue is with the craftsmen.

Chang Sheng carefully asked, "Your Highness, should I pay more attention to officers who are good at naval warfare?"

"That would be the best." Zhu Yunhuan also became serious and said to Chang Sheng, "Don't just stick to the dukes and marquises. Remember to pay attention to some of the garrison commanders and chief commanders who are good at water warfare."

Zhu Yunhuan attached great importance to the navy, which was something many people in the Five Military Commandery had begun to notice.

Last year, I thought that the Crown Prince just liked to go to the Longjiang Shipyard for fun, but now it is clear that the Crown Prince had planned it long ago.

After further controlling the power in the court this year, the Crown Prince quickly arranged for people to go to Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong to crack down on smuggling at sea and to fight against the Japanese pirates.

All of this was planned in advance and was just launched accordingly.

Zhu Yunhuan reminded, "Remember to keep an eye on some people. The big families that go out to sea privately have their own people. It is said that water and fire are merciless, and I think it is even more dangerous on the rivers and oceans. If you catch those who go out to sea privately, don't kill them, just find a way to clarify the matter of going out to sea for me."

Chang Sheng understood immediately and said, "Your Highness, I understand."

"Uncle, the Five Military Command Office will be adjusted in a few days." Zhu Yunhuan said, "You took the lead in submitting a petition, and said that you can't be in charge of an army for a long time."

Chang Sheng naturally had no objection. He was not particularly capable or talented, but he relied on Chang Yuchun's influence and Zhu Yunhuan's status to sit in the Military Governor's Office.

If his subordinates did not respect him, he would certainly not be able to manage as well as Li Jinglong and Xu Huizu. As for the situations of Fu Youde and Lan Yu, Chang Sheng did not dare to compare them.

Although he is a little mediocre, Chang Sheng is self-aware most of the time.

The Chang family supports the crown prince, and the Xu family will be further bound in the future. Li Jinglong said that he is loyal to the royal family and follows the royal orthodoxy. Fu Youde is almost the same, but the crown prince showed favor to Fu Zhong a few days ago, which is also a further bond.

The Five Armies Commandery, now the Crown Prince can directly control more than three armies. Even if Chang Sheng is not very smart, he knows that as long as he controls the military power, the country will be safe.

After handling official business for a day, Zhu Yunhuan walked towards the Wuying Palace.

Old Zhu was reading the memorials with a serious expression. When he saw Zhu Yunhuan, he didn't say hello, but turned away as if in a quarrel.

Zhu Yunhuan also asked someone to serve him food. Both the old man and the young man looked at each other with displeasure.

Zhu Yunhuan took the initiative to break the stalemate and said, "Eat first. People are made of iron and rice is made of steel. If you don't eat, you will be hungry."

Old Zhu joked, "It's only a glutton like you who is like this. In the early days, it was common for us to not even get a meal a day."

"Grandfather, the issue of the treasure notes is more serious than you thought, right?" Zhu Yunhuan poked at Old Zhu's lungs, saying something that was completely out of the question. "If you ask me, it's right to hand over the country to me. Otherwise, who can protect the country?"

Old Zhu, who had just picked up the chopsticks, immediately let go, and Zhu Yunxun dodged beautifully by lowering his head.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "If we really ban the use of money and banknotes, the situation will definitely get more chaotic in the future. Baochao was originally created to facilitate the people and save copper, but if we continue like this, it won't be long before Baochao is just waste paper."

Although Old Zhu was angry, he couldn't bear to see his grandson acting like a mean man.

But he was only unhappy on the surface. The emperor still had to maintain his face and dignity. Some of his policies that he was proud of were refuted as useless, and the convenience measures that he was proud of actually brought a heavy burden to the people. He must have felt disappointed and disappointed.

Although he was unhappy, Mr. Zhu was of course happy that his grandson could see through these problems and was trying to find a way to solve them.

"Then what do you think can be done?" Old Zhu said with some worry, "It has been twenty years, and the people have cursed Zhu Chongba countless times."

Zhu Yunhuan said, "Although there are some troubles now, fortunately the treasure notes can still be used. We must ensure that the treasure notes are effective and cannot continue like this. Otherwise, it will be difficult to recover in the future."

"I know this, but I also think that we can't do it all at once." Old Zhu said, "We still have to keep the money and grain. The court has many places to use money and grain. If we really let go, our copper in the Ming Dynasty will be even less."

Zhu Yunhuan understood this principle, and some restrictions on Baochao had to be maintained and could not be relaxed all at once.

It was not only because the court needed some physical things, but also because it was worried that the policies were too drastic and would cause some turmoil.

To avoid further deterioration of the situation and to continuously adjust and optimize is also a good option.

However, this also requires that the power of those in power is stable and the policies are consistent and continuous. Otherwise, changing policies every day will be a frustration and nuisance to the people.

(End of this chapter)