Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Tang He was seriously ill, which naturally attracted the attention of many nobles. The main reason was that there were fewer and fewer founding heroes in high positions of power. Especially Tang He, even though he seemed to be far away from the court, his influence could not be ignored.

Therefore, at this time, there were more relatives of dignitaries on the road to Fengyang. It was not easy for those who held official positions in the court to go there, but it was definitely no problem for the children of the mansion to go there to visit.

Zhu Yunhuan didn't intend to say much. In his opinion, these things were normal and not flattery.

For Zhu Yunhuan, it seemed that he should just let things take their course, because he had other things to focus on.

Tang He had suffered a stroke a long time ago, and some people were mentally prepared.

Zhu Yunhuan left the palace and this time went to Longjiang Shipyard, northwest of Yingtian Prefecture. This was a government office of the Ministry of Industry, with six workshops, including sailing, wood, paint, iron, rope, and cable, and the craftsmen were all from the coastal areas along the river.

It is no exaggeration to say that this shipyard that can manufacture warships or transport ships is already very standardized.

This shipyard has a long history. It was called "Du Shipyard" in the Southern Song Dynasty. It was also used in the Yuan Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty expanded on the basis of the old shipyard.

There is even a complete set of production standards here to ensure product quality, and the standards for materials, prices, processes, acceptance, etc. are also constantly being implemented.

However, in addition to the Longjiang Shipyard, there is also a Baochuan Shipyard in Yingtian Prefecture.

This can be considered as some small moves of Zhu Yunhuan. The ships built here are bigger. They are basically special shipyards that build large treasure ships.

In simple terms, the treasure shipyard manufactures large seagoing ships, which can produce treasure ships of about 2,000 to 3,000 tons. The Longjiang Shipyard manufactures more types of ships, including military ships, merchant ships and even fishing boats.

Zhu Yunhuan was in a good mood, naturally because such an enthusiastic look made him happy. As for the formation of a large fleet, he had always been looking forward to these things.

Looking at Yan Zhenzhi, Zhu Yunhuan asked, "Are there enough shipbuilding craftsmen now?"

Yan Zhenzhi immediately replied, "Your Highness, we have already recruited craftsmen from all over the country who are good at building large ships to come to Beijing. The Longjiang Shipyard certainly has enough craftsmen and apprentices. The Baochuan Shipyard is also not bad, and most of them are shipbuilders from Fujian."

Treasure ships also have a history. This is a type of ship that has been constantly developing and improving. In the Song Dynasty, there was a single-keel pointed-bottom ship that was "as flat as a balance, with a lower side as sharp as a knife, and valuable for its ability to break through the waves." This was basically a Fu ship.

This type of ship was even still in use. In the Qing Dynasty, there was a ship called "Qiying" that departed from the Hong Kong River, passed the Cape of Good Hope and the east coast of the United States to reach Britain. However, this ship was a Fujian ship, but the owner and others were British.

Maritime trade was relatively developed during the Song and Yuan dynasties, naturally because there was a series of ships that were more suitable for ocean voyages.

Zhu Yunhuan didn't need to worry about shipbuilding. The Ming Dynasty just didn't have much ocean awareness. Crossing the Pacific Ocean might be difficult. After all, no one had discovered the New World or Australia, and no one knew about ocean currents and waterways.

But there is no big problem with going to Southeast Asia, etc. Although the government did not organize it, many people from the private sector went to Southeast Asia.

Even three years ago, Zhu Yuanzhang specially approved the request of the vassal state of Ryukyu, King of Zhongshan, and sent craftsmen from the 36 surnames of Fujian who were good at shipbuilding and navigation to help Ryukyu. Shipbuilding was not difficult for the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yunhuan turned his head and looked at Chen Xuan, saying, "When you are in charge of the canal transportation in the future, you should also pay attention to the ships. You should know how big a ship can be used on the Grand Canal."

Chen Xuan immediately replied, "Your Highness, I will keep it in mind."

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "If we transport grain to the north, I'm afraid that the canal transportation will not be enough, and we will probably have to transport it by sea."

Lan Yu immediately said, "Your Highness, I think if we want to send troops to Liaodong and Mobei, we need to transport food and grass to Beiping and other places first."

Beiping has a special geographical location, which is indeed a very important location and can be regarded as an extremely important hub.

Zhu Yunhuan immediately thought of the name of a city, Tianjin, which is Tianjin Wei.

Tianjin prospered because of water transport. After the construction of the Grand Canal in the Sui Dynasty, this place was the intersection of the South Canal and the North Canal, and was historically known as the Three Meetings Port.

After the middle of the Tang Dynasty, it became a water and land port for transporting grain and silk from the south to the north. In the Jin Dynasty, Zhigu Fort was established in the Sanchahekou area where the North-South Grand Canal and the Haihe River meet. It was the earliest establishment in Tianjin. In the Yuan Dynasty, "Haijin Town" was established, which was a military stronghold and grain transshipment center.

During the Yongle period, a city was built and a garrison was set up here, which was called Tianjin Wei.

Zhu Yunhuan replied without thinking, "How about this, build a city and set up a garrison in Haijin Town, and change its name to Tianjin Garrison."

For a moment, the accompanying civil and military officials had strange expressions on their faces, and even Lan Yu seemed a little frightened at this moment.

Changing the name is a small matter, but "Tianjinwei" is really too big. If you don't know it, you will first think that this is the dock where the emperor once boarded a ship, and he boarded a ship for an extremely important matter, so it was given such a special name.

The Crown Prince has definitely never been to Haijin Town, but calling it "Tianjin Wei" so bluntly is almost like not disguising his thoughts and ideas.

But on the other hand, Lan Yu, Xu Huizu and even Li Jinglong were all impressed. They all knew that the crown prince was proud of his martial arts skills and was said to be good at riding, shooting and spearmanship.

However, they also knew that the crown prince actually had no ability to lead troops into battle.

Now building a city and setting up defenses in Haijin Town can be said to be a very strategic thing to do.

In particular, many nobles knew that Zhu Yunhuan had always been wary of Mobei, and some nobles knew that the court might use military force against Goryeo when the time was right.

Now building a city and setting up guards in Haijin Town is obviously a preparation for a series of wars in the future. If you think about it a little more, setting up guards in Haijin Town is also a deterrent to the King of Yan, the King of Qi, the King of Liao and others.

The reason is very simple. Once Haijin Town becomes Tianjin Wei, it will definitely be an important military town.

Zhu Yunhuan didn't care what the people under his command were thinking. He was not afraid of being impeached for giving him such a name.

If it really doesn't work, just throw the blame to Zhu. Zhu Yunhuan is just a mouthpiece. Many things should be prepared now, not for the purpose of reducing the power of the vassal states, but for a series of plans for the future.

Zhu Yunhuan had already made preparations for some things, whether it was a shipyard or training shipbuilders, or asking Chang Sen and others to recruit a large number of shipbuilders with seagoing experience in Fujian and Guangdong, etc.

All of this is also in preparation for future voyages and the expansion of maritime civilization. This is an important part of Zhu Yunhuan's plan, even far exceeding his coveted interests in Goryeo, Annan and other places.

After inspecting the shipyard, Zhu Yunhuan prepared to return to the palace.

Chang Sheng approached stealthily and asked in a low voice, "Your Highness, there are many people in the shipyard, and some things may be hard to hide."

Zhu Yunhuan probably understood Chang Sheng's worries and said with a smile, "Don't worry about these things. Even if I don't mention it, Grandfather will. Instead of thinking about it, you might as well think about how to train the three camps well and how to find a suitable naval commander for me."

The Beijing Army may add two more special camps in addition to the Shenji Camp. Some nobles have now learned of the news. It is said that the Crown Prince instructed Duke of Liang Lan Yu to make preparations, with the three camps as the backbone to maintain the combat effectiveness of the Beijing Army.

As for the navy, the Crown Prince has been looking for excellent shipbuilders and training suitable naval commanders in the past two or three years. Many people also know about this.

In the past, there were some founding nobles who were good at naval warfare, such as Yu Tongyuan, Liao Yongzhong and others. However, these people were better at naval warfare in rivers and lakes, rather than naval warfare.

After returning to the palace, before Zhu Yunhuan had time to think about anything, Old Zhu sent someone to summon him.

Seeing Zhu Yunhuan, Old Zhu teased, "Tianjin Wei, our grandson has such great ambitions, no wonder he can become the crown prince."

"I just said it casually. I didn't have any bad intentions." Zhu Yunhuan said innocently, "But we still need to build the city and set up defenses. This is extremely important for the use of troops and development in the north."

Old Zhu certainly did not object to these statements. "That's right. If it's for canal transport, then Tianjin should be used. But the location here is different after all. In the future, all the generals over there should be your confidants. Don't let your fourth uncle and his men get involved."

This is Old Zhu. Although he always blindly protects his shortcomings and dotes on his children and grandchildren, he also has some precautions. It is definitely not easy for the princes of the Ming Dynasty to hold real power. The court has too many policy restrictions.

Zhu Yunhuan also understood this and said, "I will write another letter later. Firstly, I don't want to let Fourth Uncle think too much, and secondly, I want Fourth Uncle to help supervise the construction of the city and the establishment of the garrison."

When building a city and setting up guards in Tianjin, Zhu Di could not help but have some thoughts, such as worrying that this was a defense against him and so on.

Old Zhu smiled and said, "He is a minister, you don't need to explain everything to him. If he, the King of Yan, is not happy about such a big thing as building a city and setting up guards, will you not do it?"

Zhu Yunhuan also laughed, "That's not the case. Whether Fourth Uncle is willing or not, I will definitely build Tianjin. It's just that I should make it clear. It's definitely best not to hurt the harmony among family members."

Hearing what Zhu Yunhuan said, Old Zhu was naturally happier. He knew that his grandson would definitely become a good head of the family.

It's not just because of their abilities, but more importantly, they care very much about their family members.

As for occasionally thinking about reducing supplies and a series of suppression, Zhu didn't think there was anything wrong. Speaking of concern, it was out of concern for family members, and being vigilant was a major issue for the country that a crown prince should consider, and there was no conflict.

Old Zhu said in agreement, "That's true. Your fourth uncle doesn't need to say anything about Tianjin. He just needs to do his job well. If he really says something irresponsible, then we'll have to let him go back to his hometown to farm."

"No!" Zhu Yunhuan said hurriedly, "In the future, if we want to use troops against Mobei, Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle are my generals. I have already thought about it. One is the General of Conquering the Enemy, and the other is the General of Conquering the North."

The Ming Dynasty naturally did not establish generals with important titles like the Han Dynasty. There were no generals of cavalry, chariots, guards, four expeditionary generals, and four garrison generals. Most of the time, when troops were deployed, the generals would simply be given the seal of a general according to the needs of the war.

Old Zhu joked, "When your third uncle and fourth uncle go to war together, they will definitely compete for merit. Remember, you can only use one of these two people in the future."

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it carefully and said, "I remember that the third uncle and the fourth uncle can only go to the war alone."

"If you really want to gain experience, let your fourth uncle lead the troops for this autumn hunt." Old Zhu became serious and said, "We know what you are thinking. You won't feel at ease until you have pacified the north."

Zhu Yunhuan certainly did not deny this statement, and also expressed his own thoughts, "Now that the Tartars are weak, I naturally want to hit them hard and completely cripple them in one go, so that my Ming Dynasty can have peace for decades or even hundreds of years. Our two generations have fought for decades of peace, and that's worth it."

Zhu Yuanzhang agreed with these statements even more. If he had not been exhausted in recent years, he would have made a series of major moves. In fact, the Ming Dynasty had been founded for so many years, and the war had never stopped.

While the military is strong now, it is natural to create a more peaceful environment. At least there should be no war within the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and using military force abroad is the current military strategy of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Old Zhu and said, "What I fear most is excessive military spending, but I also know that some wars have to be fought."

Old Zhu understood Zhu Yunhuan's concerns and quickly said, "In the past two years, you have often expressed your ambition to use troops, and it doesn't seem like a small fight. I won't say much because I know you are sensible and not someone who seeks glory and success."

Zhu Yunhuan said sarcastically, "It's hard to say for sure. Maybe in the future, history books will record that I was aggressive and ambitious."

"If you win, then it will be easy." Old Zhu said more bluntly, "But you should also be careful about the degree of control. Let the people rest for a while before using the troops. Naturally, it will not be considered as excessive military spending."

There is absolutely nothing wrong with saying this. As long as it is not a war of aggression, then everything will be very easy to deal with.

Just when Old Zhu and Zhu Yunhuan were still discussing some things, Zhang Fusheng's face changed drastically and he hurried over.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, the Yunnan Provincial Command has an urgent report that the local officials of Longzhou, Fengyi, Nandan and other states are resisting the imperial order and rebelling."

Zhu Yunhuan stood up all of a sudden, he was still discussing some war matters with Old Zhu. But now, the southwest was in chaos again.

But he didn't seem to be particularly surprised, because there have been many rebellions of all sizes over the years, and most of them were in the southwest, so there wouldn't be much of a problem. (End of this chapter)