Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Chapter 154 Picking Peaches

The foundation of the noble families' livelihood is military merit. When the court needs to use troops, these noble families basically have nothing to retreat to and will actively seek opportunities to go to the battlefield.

Even if you can't become the commander of an army, you can still aspire to become a deputy general. If that's not possible, even a general accompanying the army is acceptable.

It is good to enjoy wealth and prosperity in Yingtian Prefecture, but that will make other noble families look down on you and make your own family a laughing stock, which is something that many noble children cannot accept.

Martial arts is not just a casual talk. Even though some of the nobles' children are indeed dissolute, most of them have some clear understanding. They can be dissolute and even disobey the law in normal times, but when it comes to war, these people will rush forward.

Zhu Yunhuan never worried about having no generals to use; his only worry was that he had too many generals.

Among the royal family, there are the King of Qin, the King of Jin and the King of Yan who have already proven themselves. There are also potential stocks such as the King of Chu, the King of Xiang, the King of Shu and the King of Ning. They are all royal princes with outstanding military strategies.

Not to mention Fu Youde, Lan Yu, Feng Sheng and others in the court, Xu Huizu, Li Jinglong, Wu Gao and others were also constantly growing.

Including Zhang Yu and Zhu Neng, who had just been transferred to the Beijing Army Camp in Yingtian Prefecture, they were immediately called away by the Duke of Liang before they had even had a good rest.

After arriving in Yingtian Prefecture from Beiping, these two middle and senior generals naturally had no complaints, and they had more expectations for the future. There were many opportunities to make achievements with the Duke of Liang, especially now that they seemed to be reused, which was even more worth looking forward to.

Old Zhu was also very much looking forward to it. After taking a look at the memorial, he said perfunctorily, "Okay, just take care of these military matters."

Zhu Yunhuan said dissatisfiedly, "I don't know military affairs, but my grandfather is not unaware of this."

"Lan Yu dare not treat you perfunctorily, Xu Huizu and Li Jiujiang also know their limits." Old Zhu had his own opinion, "It doesn't matter if you don't understand military affairs, as long as you can make decisions and don't give blind orders on the battlefield."

These words left Zhu Yunhuan speechless. In an instant, he thought of the master of micro-manipulation and the historical Zhu Yunwen.

Zhu Yunhuan asked again, "I don't know much about military affairs, so what if my subordinates fool me?"

"That means you are incompetent. If your subordinates can fool you, your regime will be unstable." Old Zhu said decisively, "You also know that you are not good at military affairs. Just focus on the general direction and don't plan the details. You are still a little bit behind me."

This made Zhu Yunhuan speechless, because Zhu used to plan the army's marching route and deploy the troops himself. He had this ability, so he would naturally not be a hands-off manager in these matters.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at the fields and asked, "How many kilograms of rice can we harvest?"

Old Zhu glanced at Zhu Yunhuan and said casually, "Two hundred pounds is not that good."

Zhu Yunhuan said with some doubt, "I've seen some reports that the yield of some good farmland is only about 200 kilograms per mu."

"It's just two or three hundred kilograms, and our fields are about the same." Lao Zhu said, "Do you really think that the little fertilizer you made can grow three or four hundred kilograms of rice?"

Zhu Yunhuan was a little frustrated. "I thought I could produce more, but after all my efforts, it's not much better."

Old Zhu immediately said, "That's right. You just need to keep an eye on the court, and we'll take care of the farming. A few days ago you asked someone to make fertilizer, and we know how to do it, so we don't need you anymore."

Seeing that Old Zhu was about to wave him away again, Zhu Yunhuan said unwillingly, "Grandfather, if you really say that, I will be suspicious. The fertilizer must have worked, otherwise you wouldn't care so much. You can't cross the river and then destroy the bridge. The method of making fertilizer has not been perfected yet."

When Old Zhu heard this, he immediately said, "It's not that I don't allow you to manage it. You still have to manage it. Think about it. I'll find you some more farmland outside the city. We'll start making fertilizer after the autumn harvest. We'll always find better fertilizer."

After saying this, Old Zhu went to the fields barefoot, carrying a hoe. The energetic Old Zhu hadn't attended court for more than a month, and didn't care about the news that he was seriously ill.

Zhu Yunxun took a look and asked Concubine Ning, "Your Majesty, give me a definite answer. How useful are these fertilizers?"

Concubine Ning was in a dilemma, but she still said, "These royal fields are fertilized, so the yield is naturally high. If ordinary people farmed, they could get at most 160 or 170 tons, but this time it's estimated to be 220 or 230 tons."

Zhu Yunhuan was immediately unhappy, "Isn't it normal to have an output of around 200 per mu?"

Concubine Ning explained, "That's top-quality land. Once cultivated, there's no shortage of water, so it grows well naturally. These acres of land aren't good in nature, but if it weren't for these fertilizers, a yield of more than 150 per acre would be considered pretty good."

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it carefully and said, "If we use the manure and compost to fertilize these fields to the level of top-grade fields, we can produce an extra 10 or 20 kilograms of rice. Is that right?"

Concubine Ning suppressed her laughter and nodded, "You can't count it that way. How can ordinary people have so much fertilizer for farming? Besides, there is no shortage of manpower. Your Majesty does the farming himself, and there are people in the palace taking good care of it. It's normal that it grows well."

This was not normal. Zhu Yunhuan was furious. "That's true, but my fertilizers have such a great effect, and you kept it a secret from me!" Zhu Yunhuan ran to the edge of the field angrily and asked loudly, "Grandfather, you produced 50 to 60 kilograms of extra rice, and you still wanted to hide it from me?"

Old Zhu said without even looking up, "How can ordinary people do this? If ordinary people use these fertilizers, they can only produce an extra 10 to 20 kilograms of rice at most."

"That's 10% more rice!" Zhu Yunhuan was not fooled and said immediately, "Let's make it clear that this is a good way to farm that the emperor found, and it was the crown prince who helped to come up with the plan. Is that okay?"

Old Zhu refused to admit it. He was very sensitive when it came to farming. "Wait until you plant a few dozen acres of land next year. Two acres won't do."

The peaches were picked just like that, even before they were fully ripe.

Regardless of whether the fruits were picked or not, for Zhu Yunhuan, the manure had been initially proven and the composting had also shown some effect. This was the most joyful thing, as it proved the potential and value.

In the future, we will certainly continue to explore the potential and value and further improve the manufacturing and research of those fertilizers, but for now there is nothing to worry about. If we see the value, it is worth investing more research and resources.

When Zhu Yunhuan returned to Wenhua Hall, he saw the big bald man and asked, "Master, what's the matter?"

Daoyan then said, "Your Highness, is this military deployment just for deterrence?"

"How can it be considered just a deterrent?" Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "The imperial court holds a routine autumn hunt every year, and the imperial court's troops are constantly appearing in the south of the desert. How dare the Mongols go south?"

Daoyan agreed and said, "Ever since the Duke of Liang went north to defeat the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols have been like grasshoppers in autumn, getting weaker day by day."

When Xu Da and his men led the Northern Expedition, they forced the Mongols to leave the Central Plains, but the Mongols' team and framework remained. Lan Yu's victory at Buir Lake made the Mongols return to the nomadic era, and it was difficult for them to form some court structures and patterns in a short period of time.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and asked, "What do you think?"

Daoyan smiled and said, "After the Battle of Buir Lake, the leader of the remnant Yuan Dynasty was killed by Toghon Temur, who seized the seal and dominated the northern desert. But I think this tribe is not enough to be used as evidence, as Yesudiel is dead and the Oirat tribe is now in turmoil."

Zhu Yunxun smiled and said, "It seems that you don't know enough. Yesudiel died three years ago, and his son Borjigin Enke was killed in the civil strife, and the Khanship was lost again."

The Oirat tribe was in internal strife, and the same was true for the Tatar tribe. These two major Mongolian tribes were fighting for the Khanate and were also in constant internal strife. The Khanate had to be fought for with the sword in hand, rather than caring about the so-called golden family's bloodline as before.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Daoyan and said jokingly, "Master, do you have any ideas?"

Daoyan asked, "Your Highness, may I know how Your Highness intends to deal with these Tartars?"

"If it were me, of course I would think that all land under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people in the world are his subjects." Zhu Yunhuan became serious and said, "It's just that those people are running away because they can't win. Besides, they can't rest and recuperate. How can they die without a breath?"

Daoyan smiled and said, "Your Highness's intentions are probably not just the north, right?"

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Daoyan and said with a smile, "That's true. I wonder if the monk likes reading history."

Daoyan was not modest at all. "Your Highness must know that I am well versed in Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. As for history, I have a rough understanding of it."

This is a modest statement. Zhu Yunhuan's "rough understanding" really means that he had only read it roughly. He only knew some general things or was interested in them. However, Daoyan's rough understanding basically knew all the allusions, and even the allusions and sources of the allusions, which needed to be verified.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "Since the First Emperor, all emperors with some ambition have wanted to unify the country. All emperors with some ambition have wanted to expand the territory. What do you think, Master?"

Daoyan said jokingly, "Your Highness is just Your Highness, how can you say such words?"

"If the emperor hears this, he will praise me for my ambition." Zhu Yunhuan said indifferently, "Master, you said that my grandfather took over the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, and Yunnan and Guizhou were also included in the territory of the Ming Dynasty. He has done all these things. If I don't take over the south and north of the desert to the north, take over Goryeo and Japan to the east, and take over Annan and other places to the south, wouldn't it be too bad?"

Zhu Yunhuan did not mention places like U-Tsang. Those places are now nominally part of the Ming Dynasty and pay tribute to it.

Daoyan looked up at Zhu Yunhuan and said, "It would be great if Your Highness has ambitions, but I'm afraid that the territory is too large to govern. Taking over so much land will probably put a heavy burden on the people."

Zhu Yunhuan said, "Yes, that's why I want to govern the people and keep them safe at home, and make progress abroad. There is too much land to manage, didn't the Mongols divide it up? What the Ming Dynasty lacks the least is powerful vassal kings, right?"

Daoyan looked at Zhu Yunhuan, who seemed to be smiling, and couldn't guess how much truth and falsehood there were in his words.

(End of this chapter)