Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Yan Zhenzhi came to Wenhua Hall again. The Minister of Works was frank, "Your Highness, if we want to dredge the Grand Canal, I think we won't have enough craftsmen and laborers now."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "I don't want to recruit all the soldiers in the world at once. The example of Emperor Yang of Sui is still before my eyes. How can I not understand this truth? Minister Yan, you are worrying too much, right?"

Daoyan also smiled and said, "Sir, I think dredging the Grand Canal is what the court should do."

Yan Zhenzhi said directly, "It is natural to dredge the Grand Canal. Besides, dredging now is not as good as digging the canal in the past. Even the Mongols would have to dredge the canal."

This is true. Even during the Yuan Dynasty, the Grand Canal was dredged and renovated.

Yan Zhen looked at Zhu Yunhuan and said, "The Mongols were immoral, but they did do something. When the Mongols established their capital in Peking, they had to dig a canal to transport grain from the south to the north in order to connect the north and south, instead of going through Luoyang. When they renovated the canal, they also bypassed Luoyang."

Zhu Yunhuan naturally understood this matter. The Grand Canal during the Sui and Tang Dynasties was divided into four sections: Yongji Canal, Tongji Canal, Han Canal, and Jiangnan River.

However, Luoyang was an unavoidable point on the Grand Canal at that time, and Yangzhou was prosperous for a time because it was a hub between the north and the south.

The Mongols spent ten years digging three sections of waterways, transforming the original horizontal canal of the Sui Dynasty centered on Luoyang into a longitudinal Grand Canal centered on Dadu and heading south to Hangzhou.

The Jeju River and Huitong River were dug to connect the natural rivers and lakes between Tianjin and Qingjiang River in Jiangsu. The south of Qingjiang River was connected to the Han Canal and the Jiangnan Canal, reaching directly to Hangzhou.

The originally abandoned Tonghui River was reopened to form the Tonghui River from Beijing to Tianjin.

This can be regarded as the predecessor of the Grand Canal, and the Ming Dynasty can still benefit from it now.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Yan Zhenzhi and said seriously, "I think you should understand how important it is to transport grain from the south to the north! Now you are talking about this, just to know whether the court will reopen the section to Luoyang!"

Yan Zhenzhi didn't say anything. This was indeed what he was thinking. This was extremely important as it was related to the next work.

Zhu Yunhuan did not hide his thoughts. "According to the dredging and construction of the canal during the Yuan Dynasty, many places have been blocked by too much silt in recent years. You should also know that diverting the Huai River into the sea has caused floods in many places. Think carefully about how to use the opportunity of dredging the canal to improve the flooding."

This does not necessarily mean that Zhu Yunhuan wants to kill two birds with one stone. It is simply that if conditions permit, he still hopes to bring more gains and have a longer-term vision.

After all, there are some things that have to be considered. Although a lot of effort was spent on the Grand Canal during the Mongolian rule, the wars and other events of that year have also made many sections of the river impassable today.

Yan Zhenzhi immediately said, "Your Highness, I think that when dredging the canal, we should start with the Jiangnan section."

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Yan Zhenzhi and said seriously, "Everyone can have selfish desires. I won't ask too much about this. But if you can't explain the reason, I will have to investigate it carefully."

Yan Zhen was shocked. It could be said that he was one of the ministers that the Crown Prince appreciated the most, and he had received a lot of preferential treatment over the years.

It is no exaggeration to say that this was the most severe warning Yan Zhenzhi had ever received. This was truly a treatment he had never received before, and it was like being warned by the Crown Prince.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "You have heard a little about the Taicang Port incident. Now, there is collusion between court officials and local gentry. Even before anything happens, these people are racking their brains to come up with a solution. Why do you think so?"

Yan Zhenzhi complained bitterly. The time he chose to report the matter was really unfortunate. He had to report it at such a critical moment when the situation was at its peak and the Crown Prince was suspicious. No wonder the Highness began to suspect.

However, even if His Highness had some doubts, Yan Zhenzhi still had to express some of his own opinions. He also believed that he had nothing to fear as he was upright. After all, he came from a wealthy family and looked down upon ordinary money.

Achieving political achievements was even more attractive to Yan Zhenzhi, and becoming a capable official was also one of his ambitions.

Although he was the Minister of Works, he was not a proper scholar, and was different from his colleagues who entered the government through the imperial examination. He entered the government as the Minister of Grain, which can be said to be the first person in the Ming Dynasty.

This is his pride, but also his pressure. He must do some things better to gain recognition from his colleagues and repay the emperor's grace of selection.

Although he was complaining in his heart, Yan Zhenzhi still said, "Your Highness, the river in the south of the Yangtze River should be built and dredged. On the one hand, it can make Yangzhou prosperous again, and on the other hand, it can lay the foundation for Shandong."

Zhu Yunhuan also understood some things. The Grand Canal was basically blocked in some areas of Shandong, while the situation in the south of the Yangtze River was slightly better.

Yan Zhenzhi continued, "After the Jiangnan grain transport arrives in Huai'an along the canal, it must be transported by land, cross the river dam, and then reach Qinghe via the Huaihe River. The court can start from Guanjia Lake on the west side of Huai'an City, dig a 20-li canal, name it Qingjiangpu, and divert the lake water into the Huaihe River, so that it can also flow directly into the Yellow River."

This is one of the "benefits" brought by the Yellow River's diversion. Some of the Yellow River waterways in the southern section are near Huai'an. The current Yellow River is not the "old Yellow River course" of the future.

When Zhu Yunhuan heard this, he immediately felt that it made sense. It seemed that Yan Zhenzhi had indeed put in a lot of hard work on dredging the Grand Canal. He had not only considered dredging the Grand Canal, but also had many other plans.

As for what Yan Zhenzhi proposed, including the strategy for governing the Huanghuai River, it is estimated that if the court still has spare capacity, a series of major projects can be launched in the future.

After thinking about it carefully, Zhu Yunhuan said, "What Minister Yan said makes sense, but we cannot jump to conclusions on this matter. Call someone to discuss it, and then report to Your Majesty."

This is not necessarily an excuse that Zhu Yunhuan thought of, although he was in charge of many things. However, dredging the Grand Canal and regulating the Yellow River and Huai River were things that Zhu Yunhuan could not ignore, even if he did not care much about government affairs.

In the final analysis, these things are really too important. This is not just related to the recent few years, but even to the next few hundred years. It is related to the country and people of the Ming Dynasty.

No matter how seriously we take it, it is not too much. It is because these things are too important that we must take them seriously.

What Yan Zhenzhi said really moved Zhu Yunhuan. If there was no other choice, he would indeed prefer this option.

But there is no need to rush to reply now. It is not that Zhu Yunhuan is hesitant, but he knows that he will never regret his decision. He can listen to more plans before making a decision, and once he makes a decision, he will resolutely execute it. Now he can wait a little, but Zhu Yunhuan also knows that when he has to make a decision quickly, he has to make it.

The morning court of a new day began, and Zhu Yunhuan looked unhappy with a gloomy face. When the censors impeached the Jinyiwei for their reckless behavior, his expression looked even uglier.

People who don't know would think that the crown prince was very dissatisfied with the Jinyiwei's domineering behavior again, but some people felt that the crown prince's expression might mean that some censors were about to be in trouble.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at the ministers and spoke slowly, "Sima Qian of the Song Dynasty said that when selecting censors, three things should be prioritized: first, they should not be greedy for wealth and honor, second, they should cherish their reputation, and third, they should understand the system of governance. I think Your Majesty also agrees with this, so you allow the Censors of the Censorate and the Six Departments to advise the Emperor, influence the public opinion, impeach officials, and inspect the local areas, etc."

The censors of the Ming Dynasty did have a lot of power. Although their ranks seemed low, all government offices at all levels, from the central to the local, from the emperor to the officials, from national affairs to social life, were within the scope of the censors' supervision and comments.

This is also the reason why censors have a higher status, because these people do have the power of supervision.

"But in recent years, some people may have gone too far." Zhu Yunhuan said very unhappily, "Those who speak are not guilty, and those who report based on hearsay, impeach each other, and those who are found to be true are rewarded, and those who are not true are not punished. This is good, and it can open up the channels for people to speak. But look at it now, do you want to impeach no matter what?"

It is no wonder that Zhu Yunhuan is so sensitive. It is because some officials nowadays perform too poorly, and their moral character is almost the same as that of the Donglin Party and censors in the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

Anyway, they can impeach people by relying on their status as censors, no matter what the matter is, they will impeach them first. If the impeachment is correct, it will be a political achievement. If the impeachment is wrong, there will be no punishment.

As a result, some officials are now impeached first, no matter what the matter is. On the other hand, some people have begun to be clever and let the censors come out to attack their political opponents.

If this is really done, it will actually be the same as the party struggles in the middle and late stages of history.

Looking at the kneeling civil and military officials, Zhu Yunhuan asked, "Have you asked why the Jinyiwei arrested people? Or did your noble censors impeach people because they saw something they didn't like? Without asking for the reason, just based on their own feelings?"

Looking at the pale-faced censor, Zhu Yunhuan scolded, "The person you put in jail is your colleague, right? Should you be arrested for colluding with the gentry to discuss state affairs? Should you say that the court should interrogate and deal with the case, not the Jinyiwei? Then I ask you, since you are so selfless, why dare you collude with the gentry?"

Zhu Yunhuan was indeed very annoyed. He had thought that many things were under control, but now looking back, he felt that he was too optimistic. Some things were not really under control at all.

No matter whether some officials are still corrupt, or some officials form small groups, it is also because when the Jinyiwei do something, other people immediately know about it and impeach them. The reaction of these people is surprisingly fast!
He did not like the way these censors formed cliques, and what he disliked even more was that some officials had turned the power of impeachment and supervision into a tool for party struggles and power scrambles.

If there are no restrictions and crackdowns, such situations will only increase, and a deformed group of censors may be formed, each of whom appears to be righteous on the surface but is actually full of evil.

There needs to be restrictions on censors, but they must still have the right to report on matters they hear. Otherwise, if they lose their supervisory power, some officials may become even more self-indulgent.

However, it is necessary to limit the rank of officials who can be impeached when reporting rumors, to prevent censors from being used by important officials of the court and becoming weapons of struggle.

It is also necessary to limit the scope of speech, requiring that "the virtue of officials is related to people's livelihood" to avoid making memorials over trivial matters.

It was not that Zhu Yunhuan was overly suspicious, but that some censors had previously submitted reports on matters that had nothing to do with state affairs.

The censors are innocent in what they say, and they submit memorials only out of their own selfish motives.

At that time, whether there is any concrete evidence or not needs to be investigated before a conclusion can be drawn, which greatly consumes the energy of the court. Once an impeachment is filed, no matter whether there is any evidence or not, it must be investigated and implemented.

All kinds of groundless accusations and slandering of opponents are inevitable. The censors are likely to be the sharp weapon of party struggles and the props of some people who are bent on climbing up the ladder.

Zhu Yunhuan did not want to learn from Dorgon, nor did he think that the demise of the Ming Dynasty was the responsibility of the censors.

But these people must be restricted, lest they become irresponsible and do not do their jobs properly. Such things must never be allowed.

We still need to discuss it carefully, and we must give some people certain constraints. If we delegate too much power, it will harm others and ourselves, and we must never do such a thing.

Some of Zhu's previously planned policies now seem to have some shortcomings. Some things do need to be adjusted and some loopholes need to be plugged in a timely manner.

It seems that there are quite a lot of things that need to be done. Now we need to hurry up and deal with them, or the problems that have been exposed need to be solved. There is no way to delay it any further.

After returning to the East Palace, Zhu Yunxun said, "Miao Jin, distribute the things of the nobles as soon as possible. This matter cannot be delayed any longer."

Xu Miaojin immediately said, "Your Highness, I will check the accounts in the next two or three days. Is it in time?"

"That's fine. Three to five days won't be a problem." Zhu Yunhuan said with a rather tired look, "If these benefits are not implemented, the nobles will have concerns. The most important civil servants are still under scrutiny."

Even at this time, some people still don't give up. It can only be said that people die for money and birds die for food. Knowing that there are huge benefits, they are willing to take huge risks and even continue to do so.

Because those people knew that once the adventure was successful, they would receive unimaginable rewards. They would have the opportunity to move the mountains of gold and silver that originally belonged to the court into their own warehouses and earn the greatest profit.

They can even be fearless, thinking that as long as they have control over some things, the imperial court will be powerless to do anything to them.

If he really thought so, Zhu Yunhuan would be helpless. He wanted to see what other tricks these people had.

There are some things that he will never let people get what they want. What belongs to the court belongs to the court, and it is best for others not to have any evil thoughts, otherwise it will only bring disaster! (End of this chapter)