Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Going to bed late and getting up early, at most taking a short nap at noon, this was Zhu Yunhuan's daily routine.

Who made him the crown prince, and he is in charge of the government? This means that he needs to take on more responsibilities and work harder. There is no way he can be lazy.

Zhu Yuanzhang is now in good spirits and looks very healthy, perhaps because Zhu Yunhuan has relieved Zhu Yuanzhang of his considerable pressure. In addition, he is now almost free from government affairs, so he is also relieved.

The dragon throne was still empty, and the civil and military officials had long been accustomed to it. In the past, it was rare to see the emperor attending court, but now it has become rare to see the emperor attending court.

But it doesn’t matter. The Crown Prince can handle the affairs of state, so there is naturally nothing to say.

After the normal reporting session ended, Zhu Yunhuan said, "Many countries' tributes have not been smooth. The Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple should think of a solution."

As soon as Zhu Yunhuan finished speaking, many ministers became excited, as they had finally received some of the news they hoped to hear.

The news about what was happening at Taicang Port was spreading like wildfire. The true and false news made these important officials feel confused and bewildered, and they were eager to know some news.

However, the emperor and the crown prince had suppressed the matter and chose to deal with it coldly, which of course made some officials feel dissatisfied, but they seemed helpless.

And now, we finally see some light at the end of the tunnel. At least the Crown Prince has finally spoken, and this has given everyone some hope and expectations.

Even if this is specious, and it seems to be discussing tribute, but think carefully, is this really a tribute?
Zhu Yunhuan continued, "Now our great Ming is strong, but many of the surrounding foreign countries are dissatisfied. My dear ministers, it is time to promote the kingly way and educate people."

In history, Joseon was a loyal vassal of the Ming Dynasty, and they did receive the protection of the Ming Dynasty. But the current Ming Dynasty does not recognize the legitimacy of Lee Seong-gye at all.

Needless to say, Japan's life was easy. Historically, Japan had a bad relationship with the Ming Dynasty, and it was still the same today. Apart from pirates and Japanese pirates, Japan had almost no contact with Japan.

In Southeast Asia, Annan was not recognized by the Ming Dynasty, so Zhu Yunhuan was waiting for the right time to take over Annan and set foot in the Indochina Peninsula.

Luchuan was indeed defeated, but he just didn't dare to cause trouble on the border of the Ming Dynasty. As long as these people have the strength, they might continue to jump around.

The most loyal vassal states to the Ming Dynasty are actually the three Ryukyu Kingdoms. However, the three small countries are too small and their strength is not enough to be taken seriously. They can only be praised for their appearance.

Therefore, the so-called "all nations coming to pay tribute" is still unrealistic at present, because the Ming Dynasty does not seem to have good relations with all the surrounding countries. Some countries will be fought by the Ming Dynasty sooner or later, or the war is ongoing.

The expressions of many civil servants were also very complicated, because the emperor and the crown prince were a bit overbearing, especially the crown prince, who basically cared more about hegemony and the kingly way towards foreign countries.

This naturally did not fit the image of a "sage king" in the eyes of some civil officials, but they could only accept it silently.

Zhu Yunhuan obviously would not care much about the ideas of these civil officials. He couldn't just "rule the country with ease" or "govern the world together with the literati and officials", right?

If that really happened, the country would be in chaos. If that really happened, we might see the reappearance of the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties and the middle and late Ming Dynasty in history. It is definitely not a good thing for scholars to have too much power.

Some things must be insisted on. Even if Zhu Yunhuan delegated power, he could not really let go of power. The necessary checks and balances must still be in place.

As soon as he returned to Wenhua Palace after the court session, Zhang Fusheng reported, "Your Highness, the Minister of Personnel Ru Yan requests to see you."

"He is impatient." Zhu Yunxun smiled and shook his head, "Xuan."

Ru Rong could barely be considered a member of the "Grandson Party", and could even be considered the second official in the name of the Eastern Palace after Ren Hengtai. Of course, this was only in name, after all, the imperial court and the Eastern Palace were inseparable.

However, we have to admit that sometimes "background" is more important. In addition, because of Zhu Yunhuan, Ru Hong got real benefits, and the label of the Prince's Party could not be removed.

When Ru Rong saw Zhu Yunhuan, she saluted politely and said, "I am the Minister of Personnel, Ru Rong, and I pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. May Your Highness live forever."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "Okay, we are now familiar with each other. Tell me, what are you doing here this time?"

"Your Highness, the Ministry of Personnel's assessment has already concluded." Ru Huang immediately replied, "I have come to report."

This reason seemed impeccable. After all, Ru Hong had been doing her job before. In addition, with Zhu Yunhuan's urging, the evaluation of officials also needed to be accelerated.

However, for such a matter, Ru Rong could have directly submitted a memorial or a proposal. She did not necessarily have to come to the Wenhua Palace to report in person. There must have been some ulterior motive behind this.

Considering Ru Heng's identity as a celestial official in the Ministry of Personnel and his previous style of doing things, this was not really about seeking to show off in front of Zhu Yunhuan, but because he now had something he cared about.

Zhu Yunhuan was at his ease. He looked at Ru Rong and asked, "Okay, send the memorial over. I'll take a look at it in the next two days and then call the relevant officials to discuss it."

This answer seemed to be so flawless that it did not give Ru Hong any room or opportunity to make use of the situation.

Although Ru Yan was a member of the so-called Taisun Party, in Zhu Yunhuan's view, this was not necessarily a true confidant. Of course, he did not care much about this, which was a very normal thing.

In the final analysis, Ru Hong has his own pursuits and ambitions, and his own understanding of the country, self-cultivation, family harmony, governance of the country and peace in the world. He is loyal, but he is not necessarily a yes-man of imperial power.

Ru Hong no longer concealed the truth and said, "Your Highness, in the seventh year of Hongwu, the three customs offices in Guangzhou, Guangdong, Quanzhou, Fujian, and Ningbo, Zhejiang were all abolished. If the customs offices are to be reopened, they should follow the precedent."

Zhu Yunhuan was instantly delighted. This was indeed the official from the Ministry of Personnel. Although Zhu Yunhuan only revealed a little bit of the information, people came to him.

Ru Heng's meaning was also very clear. In fact, he wanted to bring the Maritime Customs Office under the jurisdiction of the civil service system, rather than relying basically on imperial power to maintain it as it is now.

Many civil servants are feeling aggrieved now. The Maritime Customs Office has been basically abolished, so they are helpless about some things.

For example, when the fleet docked at Taicang Port, there were all kinds of rumors. However, the Five Military Commands Office was making a fuss, insisting that they were ordered to go out to sea to suppress Japanese pirates and destroy pirates, and the civil officials should not have said anything. Even though they knew that those were the words of the nobles, the civil officials could not impeach them. It was not necessarily that the emperor and the crown prince were biased, but the reasons of the nobles were also tenable.

"Why, do you think the Maritime Customs Office should be brought under the control of the Provincial Administration Office?" Zhu Yunhuan smiled, "I remember that the Maritime Customs Office has existed since the Tang Dynasty, and is in charge of overseas tribute and trade."

Ru Ying immediately replied, "Your Highness, our dynasty has been following the old system of the previous dynasty. The Maritime Customs Office is responsible for the tribute and trade affairs of overseas countries. There is one supervisor, who is of the fifth rank, and two deputy supervisors. The supervisors are either specially appointed or concurrently appointed by the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner and the Supervisor of the Salt Tax Administration."

There is nothing wrong with saying this, because the original system is just like that. So on the surface, Ru Heng did not ask for an official position or raise the status and treatment of the Maritime Customs.

However, the implicit meaning of the words is that the Maritime Customs Office should belong to the civil service system. Especially for taxation, the Maritime Customs Office should be under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Government, so the power of taxation is completely in the hands of the Provincial Government and other officials.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "This matter has not been finalized yet, so let's put it aside for now and discuss it again when things are more clear. Okay, you can leave now."

Although Ru Heng was helpless, he could only leave at this time. In the final analysis, the Crown Prince was unwilling to discuss this matter now, so this matter could continue to be delayed.

So you can only leave obediently. If you make a fuss and continue to hold on to this matter at this time, that would be the stupidest thing to do.

But there is no need to worry too much. The Crown Prince thinks it can be delayed and is unwilling to discuss these matters directly. Then Ru Rong and others can naturally seize the time to think of countermeasures.

Ru Rong and others were in awe of the imperial power, but they also felt that it needed to be restricted. Naturally, some powers belonging to civil officials also needed to be fought for. This was what they should do.

After all, the imperial power is too strong now. If the civil servants don’t work hard to do something, their living space will become smaller and smaller in the future.

When Ruhong left, Zhu Yunhuan couldn't help laughing, "This is really amazing. He gets anxious at the slightest sign of trouble. I'm afraid he will become more and more restless in the future."

This is inevitable, there is no need to doubt it. It can even be said that this is just the beginning for Ru Heng, but he is impatient, has a high official rank, and has the right identity, so he took the lead and tested it first.

Naturally, more civil servants will come to test and strive for it. There is no doubt about this. It would be the strangest thing if they did not show any expression.

Perhaps to confirm Zhu Yunhuan's conjectures, Zhang Fusheng said lightly, "Your Highness, the Minister of Rites is outside the palace asking to see you."

Zhu Yunhuan said without even raising his head, "If it's about the Maritime Customs, there's no need for him to come. Just say I'm busy and ask him to go back and take care of the affairs of this office. Don't say anything too much."

Chen Di, the new Minister of Rites, was originally quite ambitious. After all, the Maritime Customs was ostensibly responsible for matters such as tribute, which naturally fell within the responsibilities of the Ministry of Rites.

Therefore, there is naturally no problem for him to fight for it now, and no one can find fault with this matter.

However, he was sent away before he even met the Crown Prince. Chen Di could only leave in frustration. There was nothing he could do as the Crown Prince was too powerful.

It seems that everyone's mind is very simple. As long as they can fight for power and profit, they will be extremely active and enthusiastic. If there are some benefits, of course they will be extremely enthusiastic.

For example, now, just now some news about the reopening of the Maritime Customs was leaked, and the two great ministers rushed here in a hurry, both wanting to gain more benefits from this matter.

And this seems to be just a beginning, just a signal, because there will still be some people who will continue to be passionate about this matter.

Zhang Fusheng reported again, "Your Highness, the Minister of Revenue is outside the palace asking for an audience."

"Xia Yuanji is not here, otherwise I would definitely make him look bad!" Zhu Yunxun said with a smile, "This matter is not going smoothly, and his benefactor still wants to come and bother us. This is good!"

The six ministers got the signal and came one after another. The Minister of War might come soon, as it was about going to sea. The Minister of Works might come too, as it was about building ships.

The words of the Minister of Justice Bao Zhao should be weighed carefully. He really couldn't find a better reason. In addition, he had just become the Minister of Justice and his foundation was not solid, so he could only hint at it and make slogans on this matter.

Zhang Fusheng whispered, "Your Highness, the Minister of Revenue was talking about reporting summer taxes and household registration."

"Do you believe it?" Zhu Yunhuan couldn't help laughing. "These people are really cunning. They know I don't want to talk about the Maritime Customs, so they find a reason to come and see me."

Zhang Fusheng didn't know what to say about this, although he was also a very shrewd man and his guesses about Zhu Yunhuan's thoughts were quite accurate.

But he always abided by his duty, and always pretended to be deaf and dumb when it came to matters concerning state affairs, and was always clueless. This included the royal family, and they were all clueless.

This is actually very good, Zhu Yunhuan no longer needs to rely on eunuchs to control the court. So even if Zhang Fusheng is extremely trusted, he should not have any presence in the court.

At most, as the personal eunuch of the Crown Prince, some important officials would give him superficial respect and occasionally inquire about some not particularly sensitive information in private, but that was all.

If others say or do more, wanting to become the Nine Thousand Year Old Man or Li Fuguo, they are courting death.

Zhu Yunhuan thought about it and said, "Let Yu Xin come over and tell the Duke of Kaiguo to wait outside the palace and report urgent matters when it is time to do so."

Zhang Fusheng understood what he meant. Whether the Duke of Kaiguo had any urgent matters to report would depend on how His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Minister of Revenue discussed the important matters.

Yu Xin was a capable minister after all, and Zhu Yunhuan still valued this Minister of Revenue very much. So when it is time to give him face, you should still give him some face, even if it is just to cover up one's own faults, it is good for everyone to end the dispute decently.

Even though he is in power now, Zhu Yunhuan will not act on his own, nor will he think that suppressing a few ministers will make him look particularly powerful.

Governing the Ming Dynasty well is what he cares about.

He also understood that some things also require assistance and help. One person cannot really govern the country well. It requires a group of capable officials! (End of this chapter)