Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Lao Zhu was quite curious and really wanted to know what he would gain from this trip to the sea.

In his heart, Zhu was still against opening the sea, thinking that it would do more harm than good. But he also knew that each generation had its own ideas, and Zhu Yunhuan was a stubborn person.

So some things can't be forced, and Zhu Yunhuan can only try it out, and then educate him after hitting a snag, and then he can make it clear. After all, in the eyes of Zhu Yunhuan, his grandson is still obedient.

Old Zhu was curious, and Zhu Wenyao was even more curious. Although he was held by Xu Miaojin, the child was restless and wanted to be held by Old Zhu after a while, babbling and being disobedient.

Concubine Guo Ning had no choice but to carry the little one away. She watched the child constantly bending over and reaching out to Old Zhu, and she was really afraid that the child would fall if he continued to make a fuss.

Old Zhu hugged Zhu Wenyao proudly, "After all, he is our child, so he is close to us. This child is good, and our love for him is not in vain."

"Grandfather, you're telling me this, aren't you?" Zhu Yunxun was a little skeptical. "If you continue to spoil Wen Yao like this, I'm afraid I won't be able to control him if he gets mad in the future."

Old Zhu said nonchalantly, "Before I left, I left him a will to stop you from doing anything wrong. How can a child we raised not have rules? If anyone has no rules, you are the one who has no rules."

His biological grandson is no longer important. In Mr. Zhu’s eyes, his great-grandson is the most important one.

"I was going to sea a while ago, and I wanted to help the royal family." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "I will be generous this time. I will double the money my aunt and sister gave me."

Hearing Zhu Yunhuan's words, Old Zhu was stunned for a moment, "Don't be too generous to me, their supplies and dowries are already quite a lot. The sum you gave you last time probably adds up to tens of thousands of taels, giving them double that would be outrageous!"

Zhu Yunxun said proudly, "Wen Yao is the future crown prince of the Ming Dynasty, so he should have better things in his hands. I'll give him some South Pearls and let him roll around and play with them!"

Pearls are good things. They are not just jewellery, they can also be used for beauty treatments. There are even many medicinal prescriptions that contain ground pearl powder.

The royal family naturally had no shortage of pearls, but if they were to be wealthy enough to give them to Zhu Wenyao as toys, it was not that Zhu was reluctant to do so, but he felt that he would have to find some larger and rounder pearls.

"My queen, I will give you some more gems when the time comes, just to thank you for taking care of Wen Yao." Zhu Yunhuan continued to be generous and said, "Emerald, ruby ​​or agate, just choose what you like."

Old Zhu coughed quickly. It is better not to take out your own things easily. Concubine Ning helped to look after the children. That was what she should do. There was no need to give her too many good things.

He was generous to his family, but stingy to outsiders. Even though Concubine Guo Ning was considered Zhu's confidant for many years, she was still just a confidant who was slightly closer to him than outsiders.

Concubine Guo Ning naturally knew what kind of personality Old Zhu had. "Your Highness, do you still think that I am an outsider and it is not my job to help take care of Wen Yao?"

"How can you say that? I got a lot of treasures this time, and I can't give them all away." Zhu Yunhuan said proudly, "They say that the outside world is wild and barbaric. I think some people just don't know the treasures."

Zhu Yunhuan continued to boast, "I think about it carefully. This time we went out to sea in a hurry and were not well prepared."

Old Zhu spoke up, "If you really have a lot of treasures, keep them and put them away. No matter how many good things you have, it's never too much. You are the head of the family, so you should know how difficult it is to be the head of the family."

"I know. I am thinking of bringing back not only gold, silver and jewelry, but also copper." Zhu Yunhuan said quickly, "The copper in the Ming Dynasty is not enough, but there is a lot of copper outside."

Old Zhu was stunned for a moment, then immediately became excited, "Did they really find copper? If so, it would be a big deal."

This is natural. A big part of the reason why Zhu Yuanzhang created Baochao was that the Ming Dynasty did not have enough copper, so he once wanted to ban the use of copper coins.

If the copper problem can be solved now, many things will no longer be difficult. The Baochao will be more confident in normalizing, and the court will have enough gold, silver and copper coins as ballast.

Old Zhu urged Zhang Fusheng, saying, "Hurry up and send the report here! Hurry up!"

Zhang Fusheng quickly turned around and urged the guards to hurry back. Since the emperor was anxious, it must be a big deal, and at this time, we must hurry to send some reports back.

Old Zhu asked again, "Yun Hu, we can let you joke about some things, but there are some things that cannot be vague. This is a big deal, you can send someone to sea to make a small defeat, but you can't hide the news."

Zhu Yunhuan naturally knew this. He sent people out to sea and naturally invested a lot of resources. Everyone was aware of this matter.

In fact, even a small defeat is acceptable. At that time, we can say that there are winners and losers in war, and there is absolutely no problem with that.

But if you falsely report your military achievements, that is another matter. If you really want to make up stories, it will not work, because the lies will be exposed one day, and then it will be even more embarrassing, and your reputation will also be affected.

"Grandfather, I understand this, so I kept it a secret." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "I originally thought that I had gained a lot, so there must be a lot of benefits. I was also afraid that the subordinates would exaggerate in order to seek credit, so I waited until I found out the truth before speaking."

Old Zhu was very satisfied with Zhu Yunhuan's attitude. Sometimes the emperor is naturally suspicious and distrustful of others.

Or they would be like Qin II and Emperor Hui of Jin in history, who didn’t even know what was happening outside the palace walls when the world was in chaos.

If the emperor had not been more careful, his ministers would have dared to report that the world was peaceful when the country was in chaos.

Therefore, it is normal to find out some things clearly before boasting about achievements. It is absolutely impossible to believe everything reported by the ministers under your command.

Don't say that there are no people in the Ming Dynasty today who are worthy of Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Yunhuan's unreserved trust. Even if there are, they should not have such an attitude, otherwise it will cause trouble sooner or later.

But Old Zhu also understood that what Zhu Yunhuan said made sense. But more importantly, perhaps the gains were really great, so the boy wanted to hide some benefits, and maybe he had some other little ideas.

But why bother about it? In Lao Zhu's opinion, as long as the job is done, that's enough. This is the most fundamental thing.

Everything else can be put aside for a while. After all, Zhu Yuanzhang had delegated power completely, and he also knew that it was very normal for Zhu Yunhuan to have some little thoughts.

Zhang Fusheng took the report and quickly presented it to Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Yuanzhang had just glanced at it when Zhu Wenyao in his arms quickly grabbed the paper and tore it off. He then stuffed a piece of paper into his mouth. Zhu Yuanzhang and Concubine Guo Ning immediately got busy, and even Zhu Yunhuan couldn't sit still, so he grabbed Zhu Wenyao's little hand to prevent him from stuffing the paper into his mouth.

This child has really grown up now, and now he wants to put anything he grabs into his mouth. He has to be extra careful when eating, not because he is worried that Zhu Wenyao will knock over the food, but because he is worried that he will put anything into his mouth.

"This kid!" Zhu Yunhuan was both angry and amused, "This hand is so fast, it's hard to even look at it."

Old Zhu was used to it and said calmly, "He's greedy now. He's drooling when he sees us eating. I think we should not let him eat. He's just teething."

We have to wait a little longer before letting Zhu Wenyao eat complementary food, even though he is extremely curious about some foods now. We still have to wait a little longer.

As for the teeth, they are just a little pointed now, but this is enough to make Lao Zhu and others very happy and expectant. These are one of the best proofs that the little guy is growing healthily.

After much difficulty, Zhu Wenyao was finally appeased. Old Zhu was actually happy, "No wonder you are so arrogant. If you ask me, you are still petty."

Zhu Yunhuan just smiled awkwardly, because he seemed a little stingy, "Let's do this, your aunt and the others took some money, that's what you wanted. They also benefited from you, so don't do that again in the future."

Zhu Yunhuan said quickly, "Of course. I originally thought that it would be good for the royal family to benefit from this matter. I can't just think about my aunts and sisters, I also have to think about my uncles and brothers."

For Lao Zhu, this answer is absolutely perfect and there is no need to question it at all.

Old Zhu was quite happy, but also felt a little unbelievable. "Now, looking back, I have figured out how those wealthy businessmen accumulated their wealth. Over the years, many people have always clamored to open the sea. The court has strict laws and regulations, but some people still go out to sea privately."

Zhu Yunhuan also said quickly, "I have had this idea for a long time. Whether it is the Tang Dynasty, the Song Dynasty, or even the pre-Yuan Dynasty, they all went out to sea frequently, and they also brought a lot of income to the court."

Old Zhu did not say anything about this. The reason was naturally because he had previously banned private voyages, and the enforcement of the maritime ban became increasingly strict.

Lao Zhu was naturally averse to trade and he never had a good impression of businessmen.

Even now, Lao Zhu still has no good impression of businessmen. It is obvious that changing some concepts does not happen overnight.

Zhu Yunhuan did not force these things. It was not a big deal that Zhu's ideas had not changed. As long as he stopped opposing the opening of the sea, these would obviously be enough, and this was also the most important thing.

He did have some self-awareness. Even though Zhu Yunhuan seemed to be in power now, there was obviously no way to compare his prestige and reputation with that of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Old Zhu thought about it carefully and said to Zhu Yunhuan, "If this happens, I guess many civil officials will start to argue. These matters should not be left in the hands of the royal family and nobles. The court is the most important thing after all."

Zhu Yunhuan nodded repeatedly and said, "I think so too. The royal family and nobles can naturally share the benefits, and the treasury should also take some. However, the national treasury should also have more financial resources."

It was not that Zhu Yunhuan wanted to play it safe, he simply hoped that the opening of maritime trade could be as comprehensive as possible.

"That's what I thought, and it should be done now." Zhu Yunhuan said, "If all of it is included in the treasury, it will just mean that there will be more money in the treasury, and we can build a palace. If the treasury is fuller, we can also do some big things."

Old Zhu had no doubt about this. He was a frugal person and he also knew that Zhu Yunhuan was not very interested in pleasure.

So sometimes, it is still necessary to fill the treasury so that we can do some big things, and this is also the most important thing.

As for worrying about corrupt officials, it is certainly worth worrying about. But that does not mean that we should stop eating because of choking. Only when the treasury is full can we have enough confidence to do more.

"I felt that the commercial tax was too low before, and I am still suppressing these things this time." Zhu Yunhuan said, "After this fleet comes back, some people will definitely be tempted. If the commercial tax is really based on the previous one, the big sea merchants and wealthy families will be the ones who get rich."

Old Zhu became even more silent, as he was clear about some things.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "I can't let the court's navy go out to do business all the time. If the Five Military Commandery has too much money, it will be troublesome again."

Old Zhu immediately spoke up, "That's right. If the Five Military Command had money, they would have more things to think about."

The army must not be allowed to engage in business, and must not be out of control, so the navy can be allowed to go out to sea for the first time. But this cannot be done in the future, otherwise the emperor's coffers may be enriched, and the coffers of the generals may also be enriched.

By then, naturally nothing good will happen, and the hidden dangers will be too great. This is obviously not worth the loss, and it is definitely a situation that needs to be avoided at all costs.

Zhu Yunhuan spread his hands and said, "Before, I was worried that the fleet would get into trouble, suffer heavy losses, and return empty-handed. Now it's all good, the matter is done, but I have new troubles to deal with, and they are all big things."

"This is politics. Being an emperor is not easy." Old Zhu has a lot to say about this. He said, "Now we should think of some ways. We should take some things into consideration. Don't be too partial. We can't let this go all at once."

We still need to try to take care of the interests of different groups as much as possible, so that some things can last for a long time.

Zhu Yunhuan couldn't agree more, "So I'm thinking about reopening the Maritime Customs Office. This matter can only be done by the court now. I will definitely not allow some merchants to participate too much, otherwise there will be no good results."

It doesn't matter if we give some benefits to merchants, but we can wait a little longer until things are stable, and then merchants can participate more. At this stage, we must not even think about it.

Some things have to be kept secret for now. When Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Yunhuan have basically confirmed some things and formulated a relatively good strategy, they can let more people know about it.

This is not because of the desire for control, but because this matter is so important that there must not be any mistakes. There is definitely no harm in being careful.

As for whether other interest groups have any ideas now, that is not important, as they do not know too much about the situation yet. (End of this chapter)