Prodigal Son of the Ming Dynasty

  Chapter 1696 My virtuous prince

  Xie Qian was dumbfounded.

   Lowering his head in disbelief, he continued to read the letter.

  But in this letter... you can roughly see a few points.

   First, the cousin has changed.

  Second...my cousin is doing well in Luzon.

  Even the days when the whole family lived in Luzon were good.

   Most importantly...in Luzon, they have extremely high yields.

  The value of the output of the land replaced in Jiangnan to Luzon far exceeds that of the past.

  As for why the cousin changed, that...is unclear.

  Xie Qian's face was flushed.

  Zhu Houzhao said at this time: "Master Xie keeps saying that I have wronged the gentry in the south of the Yangtze River, that I have exiled them, and that I have been brutal. This... is simply nonsense!"

Zhu Houzhao continued to speak righteously: "Tell me, how did I treat them so poorly? Lao Fang still wants to go to a good place like Luzon, but I don't allow it. I always tell him, Lu Song For a good place like the Song Dynasty, let's not compete with the gentry from the south of the Yangtze River, it's not easy for them..."

  The smile on Fang Jifan's face disappeared, and he opened his mouth to say, I never said that.

   After all, he still didn't lose his face. After all, it depends on Zhu Houzhao's upcoming enthronement.

Zhu Houzhao continued: "Father treats the gentry so favorably, treats your relatives so favorably, but in the end, you are dogs biting Lu Dongbin, and you don't know good people. What does this mean? Some of them must have bad intentions and spread rumors to cause trouble." , I would like to ask, who is telling the truth, and what is their intention?"

   "This..." Xie Qian breathed a sigh of relief.

   These days, he seems to be blocked. As if there was a lump in his throat, now it seems... He began to realize that his relatives were really safe, so he was a little relieved.

  The other officials were both surprised and strange.

  It's just that now...no one dares to make a sound, but they are thinking that they have to wait for the letter from Luzon to arrive, and then they understand the whole story.

Zhu Houzhao snorted coldly, and then turned to Emperor Hongzhi and said: "Father, the reason why the sons and ministers dressed in military uniforms into the palace is to conform to the popular will of gentry like Master Xie's cousin. They scold the Portuguese, and the Portuguese are in Java. Doing nonsense, my Ming Dynasty is a superior country, how can I turn a blind eye to it, now they are asking for help, and they are willing to fund the military, my Ming Dynasty can use Luzon as a springboard to expel the Franji people, this Western land will no longer allow these people to wreak havoc Yes. This is the report of the governor Liu Yi and the gentry, I implore the emperor to read it."

  He held up the stack of letters high.

  Eunuchs hurried forward, took the letter and put it on Emperor Hongzhi's desk.

  Emperor Hongzhi was shocked, took the letters, lowered his head, and read each letter.

  The more I look at it... the more frightened I feel.

  These gentry are in Luzon, where did they get so much money and food?

  Emperor Hongzhi took a deep breath before looking up at Zhu Houzhao: "Prince...this..."

"Father, the land in Luzon is not only fertile, but also the manpower is lower than that of my Ming Dynasty. Not only that, but also can grow a large amount of sugar cane and spices needed for sucrose. The purchased sugar and spices cost tens of millions of taels of silver. In the past, these had to be purchased from other vassal states, but now... since Luzon is collected, it is more convenient to purchase from Luzon. When the gentry arrived in Luzon, it is really It's like a mouse fell into a rice bowl..."

   "..."

  Although it is described as a mouse, but... no one is arguing with Zhu Houzhao now.

Zhu Houzhao said again: "According to the accounts of Sihai Commercial Bank, I have already calculated that the same acre of land in Luzon can earn three to five times the income of an acre of land in the south of the Yangtze River. My father, the emperor, relocate them. To Luzon, it was a great grace for them. Naturally, the ministers were also very wise. During the process of migration, the Zhenguo Mansion contributed the most and prepared a lot of medicine for them. When Luzon divided the land , and tried my best to be fair, my father...I implore my father's permission to mobilize troops against the Portuguese in order to obey the people's will."

  Emperor Hongzhi was taken aback for a moment, and then he was overjoyed.

  Based on these letters alone, he still couldn't understand why these gentry were full and insisted on mobilizing troops against Java, but after listening to the prince's analysis, he finally understood.

   What surprised Emperor Hongzhi was not that these gentry were properly placed, but that the prince's performance in the process.

  He looked at the crown prince with eagerness in his eyes, and said, "So...these... are already prepared by the Zhen Guofu."

"It is indeed well prepared." Zhu Houzhao said seriously: "Father wants to relocate people. This is a major event. There are many people in the south of the Yangtze River, but there are very few people who own land. Father's move is good governance. But these The gentry migrated to Luzon. Although they got the land, they were left alone overseas. If they were not properly dealt with, they would inevitably be alienated from their virtues. What the ministers believe in is the new learning, and the new learning does not shy away from profit-seeking. A person In the world, everyone wants to have enough food and clothing. If you skip this premise and advocate enlightenment, it is tantamount to seeking fish from a tree. Therefore, my ministers often heard Wang Bo'an say that if you have enough granaries, you know etiquette, and if you have enough food and clothing, you know honor and disgrace. If a gentleman When they arrived in Luzon, their life was not good. Under the circumstances of centrifugation and detachment, they were too tall and the emperor was far away. Wouldn't it be a disaster sooner or later? They are the people of my Ming Dynasty after all. Therefore, while migrating, the Zhen Guofu also planned A charter, on the one hand, ordered the Four Seas Trading Company to purchase a batch of medicines and agricultural tools, and send them to Luzon at a low price, so that the gentry could gain a foothold in Luzon. On the other hand, it focused on the purchase of Luzon's agricultural and special products, Naturally, these purchases are not free of charge, but they are the treasures needed by Ming Dynasty. They are purchased from wherever they are purchased, focusing on Lu Song. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone. They signed a plan to purchase the amount of spices and sugar, and paid a sum of money in advance so that they could feel at ease. With these, the gentry had a bottom line in their hearts, and they could have sufficient income expectations. Afterwards, manpower can be immediately recruited and production resumed.”

"The gentry have made enough income, they are natural, they are so grateful to the emperor in their hearts, and there is no complaint." Zhu Houzhao said: "These gentry are in Luzon. It is closely related to my Ming Dynasty. Although this Luzon is isolated overseas, there are these loyal gentry. It is of great benefit for my Ming Dynasty to conquer the West and fight to the death with the Franji people. Father... If my army conquers In Java, with the full support of the Luzon gentry, we can get twice the result with half the effort. In this way, the Four Seas Trading Company has made a lot of profits in the trade; "Sugar and spices are imported into the hinterland of our Ming Dynasty in large quantities, so that the common people can obtain relatively cheap food materials, which can kill two birds with one stone."

   It's okay if you don't analyze it, but after analyzing it, Emperor Hongzhi's face suddenly changed.

  The crown prince actually...thought so far.

  In this way, it can be said that the town government's relocation of the people by order is indispensable.

  After Zhu Houzhao finished speaking, he secretly glanced at Fang Jifan.

  Fang Jifan looked dumb.

Zhu Houzhao lowered his head, but he didn't know how Emperor Hongzhi would react. He said silently in his heart: These are what Lao Fang taught Ben Gong to say. Like Ben Gong, they are all loyal people. If he becomes the emperor of Japan, he will repay him well, and Ben Gong must be more loyal than him.

  For some reason, these days, Zhu Houzhao feels more and more that Lao Fang is not only a confidant, but also that he can't even see Lao Fang's past flaws. He only feels that Fang Jifan's whole body is shining, and there is nothing that makes him dissatisfied.

  Zhu Houzhao continued to lower his head, and the hall was completely silent.

   All the officials tried their best to digest the words of the prince.

  Someone's heart skipped a beat, could it be... the crown prince has already made arrangements?

   Behind this absurd migration, is it the result of deliberate deliberation?

  Prince... so unfathomable!

  Emperor Hongzhi has grown up.

  He walked down Jin Luan slowly, and then slowly walked in front of Zhu Houzhao.

  Zhu Houzhao could only feel his father getting closer, and his heart seemed to jump into his throat.

  Being in awe of Emperor Hongzhi for many years, at this time, Zhu Houzhao did not dare to blatantly observe Emperor Hongzhi's face, so he did not know whether Emperor Hongzhi was happy or angry at this time.

  Although he is calm on the surface, he is still afraid in his heart that what Fang Jifan taught him, if there are any loopholes, once his father finds out, he will inevitably be beaten.

  Emperor Hongzhi finally stood still in front of Zhu Houzhao.

  Zhu Houzhao still lowered his head, did not look at Emperor Hongzhi, his hands still arched.

  Emperor Hongzhi suddenly said: "Raise your eyes."

  Zhu Houzhao raised his head, grinned...he was happy again.

  Looking at this fawning, silly look, Emperor Hongzhi was expressionless: "The Zhen Guo Mansion was laid out earlier?"

   "Yes, it is...father, son... son..."

  Emperor Hongzhi said, "Is this your idea, or the successor's idea?"

  Zhu Houzhao's heart skipped a beat, and he glanced at Fang Jifan subconsciously.

  Zhu Houzhao simply said: "Father, the follower vassal gave advice to the son, and the son thought it was appropriate, so...so..."

   "That is to say, this is Jifan's idea?" Emperor Hongzhi pressed harder and harder.

   "Yes, yes, it's Lao Fang's idea that a real man should not tell secret words." Zhu Houzhao is really not good at lying, so he simply stared with eyes bigger than copper bells, as if he was ready to die at any time.

  Unexpectedly... Emperor Hongzhi laughed heartily: "Hahahahaha..."

  Zhu Houzhao: "..."

After Emperor Hongzhi laughed, he looked relieved, and said: "A king doesn't need to be the smartest person, but... he must be able to weigh the pros and cons, follow the good, and overcome all difficulties to do what he thinks is right. This is the duty of being a king. You can accept Fang Qing’s family’s advice and choose the right person to implement it... This is enough to prove that you are a virtuous prince. Liu Jin is in charge of the Sihai Commercial Bank...Isn’t it?"

   "Yes, it's him!"

  (end of this chapter)