Brother Zhu Youxiao

Chapter 670 Fan Wai (Eighteen) Taisun Patrol
In March, as expected by Li Dingguo, Zhu Youxiao rejected Zhu Ciran's idea of ​​reducing the army by [-].

Compared with Zhu Ciran, who has never experienced any hardships since childhood, Zhu Youxiao is scheming after all.

He changed the retirement age for ordinary soldiers to 30 and for generals to 50.

In order to stabilize the situation, Zhu Youxiao walked out of the Qianqing Palace on a rare occasion, and held a midday morning at the Huangji Gate Tower on the fifth day of March, showing his health to all officials.

At the same time, Zhu Youxiao ordered Juan to exempt Beizhili from taxes for one year, and let the people fallow for one year to cultivate soil fertility.

Such a move is undoubtedly announcing that there will be no wars in Ming Dynasty this year and next.

Of course, such a move also made many generals in the army very unconvinced.

But without waiting for them to make a move, Zhu Youxiao announced that the emperor's grandson Zhu Heyin would lead Yiluan guards to escort Qi Langya County King back to Qi State.

Although the purpose is to escort, everyone knows that Zhu Youxiao asked Zhu Heyin to go to Qi State and Zhu Youjian to consolidate his future position.

Although Zhu Youjian has been in the feudal clan for many years, most of today's military generals are students from the Military Academy.

Most of their subjects in school were replays of King Qi's four Northern Expeditions, three Western Expeditions, and three Southern Expeditions.

Under the influence of ears and eyes, it is inevitable that he is a little afraid of Qi Wang Zhu Youjian, who has never met.

Therefore, Emperor Zhu Youxiao once again suppressed the military officers in the name of his younger brother.

At the end of March, Emperor Taisun Zhu Heyin led Yiluan Guards to escort Langya County King Zhu Cihuang from Tianjin Port, which officially opened the prelude to the first official mission of the Ming Dynasty to the Qi Kingdom.

It just seemed that there was too much good news, and the heavens wanted to cast a cloud over this year's Daming, so on the fifth day of April, a piece of bad news came from Qi.

On the third day of the second day of April, Mangui, the Marquis of Xuanhua, passed away. According to the official commentary on the daily life of the State of Qi, "the king cried for grief, suffered from the wind and cold, and fell ill..."

However, in the external news, Qi State did not publicize Zhu Youjian's illness, but only talked about Man Gui's eldest son Man Xian attacking Xuanhua Bo.

It just seemed that in response to the good news in spring, the bad news in summer seemed to reach the capital one after another.

On the sixth day of March, Zhu Zhishu, king of Shu, passed away. When the news reached Daming, it was already the first day of April. Daming pursued his posthumous title of "King Zhuang", and his son Zhu Pingchun succeeded him.

On the fifth day of April, Qi Yuanbi, the governor of the Southern Army, died of illness at home.

Emperor Zhu Youxiao decreed that his son Qi Wuxian would succeed Dingxihou, and Feng Guogong Qi Wulong would succeed him as the governor of the Southern Army.

On April [-]th, the emperor called Zhu Cijiong, the king of Ding and the governor of the Northern Army, back to Beijing, and asked Yanchuan Boguan Fumin to take over the governor of the Northern Army.

On April [-]th, Emperor Taisun Zhu Heyin arrived at Beidao Prefecture, Yingzhou Province by boat.

On April 22, Chen Zizhuang, the inspector of Kunlun, died of illness and took office. Geng Zhongming, the commander-in-chief, tried to separatist the rebellion, which was discovered by Zhou Peigong, the deputy inspector, and quickly suppressed it.

On the sixth day of May, Geng Zhongming was defeated and committed suicide, and Zhou Peigong reported the victory to the capital...

"Woooo-"

On May 41, [-] Apocalypse, when the Ming Dynasty was extremely busy, nine ships sailed into Xijing Bay with the sound of sirens.

They hung the three-star flag of Ming Dynasty high, and entered the bay area, one of the most prosperous in the world.

In the endless bay, many ships lined up from the sea to enter in a long line, like a bunch of seagulls or albatrosses.

Some of them are going to Jinmen, some are going to Xijing City. Although their purposes are different, they all have the same appearance, they are all steam ships.

"I'm afraid there are no fewer than a thousand of these steamships, right? Qi's shipbuilding industry has already developed like this?"

When Zhu Heyin's voice sounded, at this moment he was standing with Zhu Cihuang on the deck of the ship among the nine ships, leaning on the guardrail, looking at the countless Qi Guo ships in the distance in a daze.

"You asked me... I can't tell you the answer..."

Zhu Cihuang responded with a wry smile. After all, he was only 12 years old when he was sent to Daming, and he didn't have much access to things.

"Woooo-"

When Zhu Cihuang smiled wryly, a boat two or three feet long appeared beside the nine ships.

Although it is a small boat, its speed is very fast, almost twice that of a steamship.

At the stern of the boat two young men in green waistcoats and red sleeves on their arms were waving two banners, one white and the other red.

"what is that?"

Zhu Heyin asked curiously, and Zhu Cihuang glanced at him and replied, "The tugboat will lead the way."

During the conversation between the two, the helmsmen of the nine ships also followed the towing ship to take the fast channel to Xijing Port under the command of the Qi State sailors who had boarded the ship earlier.

So far, the Qi State that Zhu Heyin has seen is no different from Daming, except for the tug boat.

However, with the passage of time, when they sailed into Qishui and arrived at Xijing Port in the afternoon, what Zhu Heyin saw would completely overturn him.

"Woooo-"

Amidst the ear-piercing whistle, the nine ships finally arrived at Xijing Port after an hour of sailing.

Led by the towing boat, they entered the ship's position prepared for them one by one.

"Bang bang bang-"

Twelve gun salutes sounded, and Zhu Heyin, who experienced this battle for the first time, was taken aback, but was quickly appeased by Zhu Cihuang next to him.

"Don't worry, it's just a welcome salute, but I don't know who father sent to pick us up..."

"Uncle Nine! Uncle Nine——"

Suddenly, a child's yelling came from the pier.

Zhu Cihuang and Zhu Heyin looked down and saw a red carpet was laid on the pier.

On the red carpet at the disembarkation position, a middle-aged man was leading a seven or eight-year-old child, waiting quietly accompanied by more than a dozen officials and hundreds of soldiers on both sides of the red carpet.

"Second brother! Brother Xi (lǔn)!"

Zhu Cihuang couldn't wait for the ship ladder to be set up, so he stood on the deck and waved his hands to Zhu Cixuan and others below.

"Brother Xi? Is it Uncle's eldest son Zhu Hexu?"

Zhu Heyin was just stunned for a moment before realizing it. After all, Zhu Cilang had lived in the capital for more than 20 years and often went to and from the inner court. He had also brought Zhu Hexi to the palace to meet Zhu Youxiao before, so Zhu Heyin had also met him.

So after Zhu Cihuang spoke, he suddenly remembered.

While recalling Zhu Hexiu, he also looked at the child in the red round neck robe who looked only in his early ten years old.

It just so happened that the ship's ladder had already been put in place at this time, and Zhu Cihuang couldn't wait to get off the deck, completely losing his composure in Daming.

Zhu Heyin looked at his back thoughtfully, maybe this is what a child should look like when he comes home...

Thinking of this, he followed suit.

When he touched the ground that he had not seen for a long time, Zhu Cihuang had already embraced Zhu Cixuan, and after letting go of his hand, he immediately hugged Zhu Hexuan next to him in his arms, and held him up high.

He carried Zhu Heyin around like this, and then put him back on the ground. At this time, Zhu Cixuan and others who had just been reunited also saw Zhu Heyin who had stepped off the boat.

"Minister Zhu Cixuan, see the grandson of the emperor..."

Zhu Cixuan often hugged Zhu Heyin when he was young, but now Zhu Heyin doesn't remember it anymore, so he can only bow politely in return: "Second Uncle..."

"My father is suffering from a cold and cannot entertain guests for a few days, so we can only let the emperor and grandson wait for a few more days."

"But please don't worry, the grandson of the emperor, today's state banquet will be held by my brother instead of my father."

Zhu Cixuan bowed to explain, but when Zhu Heyin heard the sudden news, his heart tightened, and he couldn't help worrying about the uncle he had never met before, "Is there no problem, uncle?"

"If you have an old illness, you can just rest for a while, and the emperor's grandson doesn't have to worry too much."

Zhu Cixuan replied with a smile, and Zhu Cihuang also acted as the person who adjusted the atmosphere between the two, and said with a smile:

"The pier is very windy, let's talk about it after returning to the palace first!"

"Okay..." Zhu Cixuan and Zhu Heyin responded in unison, looked at each other subconsciously, and then smiled at each other.

Seeing that everyone was familiar with each other, Zhu Cixuan also took Zhu Heyin into an open four-wheeled carriage.

Such a carriage made Zhu Heyin feel very insecure, he looked around unconsciously, and Zhu Cihuang, who was sitting next to him, smiled and comforted him: "Don't worry, Qi is very safe."

While he was speaking, Zhu Cixuan and Zhu Hexuan also sat down, and the carriage set off for Xigang Town on the edge of Xijing Port.

During this period, Zhu Hexuan kept looking at Zhu Heyin, and Zhu Heyin also kept looking at Zhu Heyin.

Zhu Hexi's long pink and jade carvings, his cold white complexion, thick eyebrows, big eyes and long eyelashes make him look like a jade doll.

Zhu Heyin has a good impression of his cousin. Although the two haven't seen each other for several years and Zhu Hexiu doesn't remember him anymore, he still chats with Zhu Hexiu without saying a word.

As for Zhu Heyin, he also has some unknown affection for Zhu Heyin, so when he asked some questions, he also actively answered them.

However, such questions and answers disappeared when the carriage entered Xigang Town, and Zhu Heyin's eyes were attracted by the prosperity and humanities of Xigang Town.

The architectural style of Xigang Town incorporates the style of Jiangnan ink painting, but compared with the folk houses in Daming, the houses here are very clean.

Green bricks, green tiles and white walls have become a landscape, and the wide ten-foot main road is surrounded by green belts full of flowers.

Looking beyond the green belt, in addition to the architecture, Zhu Heyin also saw a strong humanistic culture.

The people of Qi state dress "plainly", although they wear common clothes like the common people of Ming Dynasty, but the common clothes do not have such fancy embroidery and decorations.

Even if there is some embroidery, it is basically "dark embroidery" according to the style of white embroidery on white clothes and yellow embroidery on yellow clothes, without being ostentatious at all.

Such a simple dressing style made Zhu Heyin, who was used to the gaudy clothes, feel very fresh, and he was very curious about the spiritual outlook of the people of Qi State.

The people of Qi State seem to be full of vigor, and the street planning of Qi State even builds many concrete benches on the sidewalks.

Some elderly people were sitting on concrete benches under the shade of the trees and chatting, and the pedestrians passing by were not in a hurry, not as eager as the people of Ming Dynasty.

Coming to the streets of Qi State, Zhu Heyin seemed to feel that even time had slowed down.

But when the carriage drove out of Xigang Town, even if Zhu Heyin came back to his senses, he only thought that this was the humanistic appearance of the town of Xigang Town.

"It's the subway station!"

Zhu Cixuan's voice brought Zhu Heyin back to reality, he looked up curiously, and saw an existence similar to a train station beside the carriage.

Compared with Daming's railway station, Qi's "railway station" seems to be wider and has a higher floor height, which makes it less oppressive.

"Why is the railway station called the subway?" Zhu Heyin asked curiously after getting off the carriage.

"This is not a train station, this is a subway station."

Zhu Heyin explained in a big way, but Zhu Heyin asked curiously, "Is there any difference?"

"Of course it's different, the subway runs underground..."

Zhu Heyin explained roughly, but Zhu Cixuan patted him, then looked at Zhu Heyin with a smile, and explained in more detail:

"The subway is a short-distance, high-density, high-capacity urban rail transit that covers urban areas and has exclusive land rights both underground and above ground."

"Specifically, let's wait for the emperor's grandson to experience it for himself later."

With that said, Zhu Cixuan led Zhu Heyin and others into the subway station.

Speaking of which, only Xijing City in Qi State currently has subways, and the subways in Xijing City are also trains run by steam engines.

It is less than fifty miles from Xigang Town to Xijing City. In order to take care of the future urban construction of Xijing City, Zhu Youjian designated this place as the future outer ring city of Xijing City.

Therefore, there are not many people who take the subway to go to Xijing City here.

Although Zhu Cixuan and the others are the county kings, they are honestly queuing up to buy tickets at this moment. This phenomenon shocked Zhu Heyin deeply.

"Got it, let's go."

Zhu Cixuan took the ticket he just got, and then led Zhu Heyin, who was still in shock, to the underground passage next to him.

Since there is no electricity, only oil lamps can be used as lighting in the underground passages and waiting stations.

Looking at the dark underground waiting room, Zhu Heyin asked puzzledly:
"Isn't it okay to build a railway directly on the surface instead of walking a train? Why do you want to build a subway?"

"Naturally, it's for the future." Zhu Cixuan smiled and said, "Don't the grandson of the emperor feel that the traffic in Beijing has started to get a little congested?"

Zhu Cixuan's question caused Zhu Heyin to nod unconsciously: "Indeed...now every time it's the end of the shift, the intersection will be congested."

"That's right..." Zhu Cixuan explained:
"Courtyards are the main buildings in the state, and Qi State is no exception."

"Therefore, it is very inconvenient to build a viaduct to connect to the railway, and it will affect the daily life of the people."

"However, the subway doesn't have that effect."

"Besides, the Academy of Sciences has also begun to study electric lights and electricity. As long as electric lights and electricity can be researched, it will be like daytime even underground."

Like Zhu Heyin and Zhu Cixuan, they are all high-ranking and powerful people, so no one knows better than them what subjects the Armament Academy and the Academy of Sciences study.

The terms electric light and electricity are actually no strangers to them.

Therefore, after Zhu Cixuan's explanation, Zhu Heyin also nodded to express his understanding, but he still felt that this excuse was a bit far-fetched.

"Woooo..."

Suddenly, a siren sounded underground, and before Zhu Heyin could react, a train drove out slowly through the dark passage.

Zhu Heyin took two steps back unconsciously, and his nose also smelled the pungent smell, which made him frown uncontrollably.

Fortunately, the car door opened at this time, Zhu Cixuan and Zhu Cihuang took him to the subway, and the underground ventilation of the subway station was not bad, so he felt much more comfortable after getting on the car.

"This subway is cool."

Feeling the coolness of the ground, Zhu Heyin couldn't help but praise.

"It's very cool, but there are still more disadvantages than advantages, but it will gradually get better in the future."

Zhu Cixuan explained with a smile, while Zhu Heyin nodded unconsciously.

A few minutes later, with the sound of a bell, the doors of the subway were closed by the flight attendants, and the train set off for Xijing City, fifty miles away.

"Qi's subway is constructed by excavating, pouring underground spaces and passages, and then backfilling."

"The railway has been in operation for two years now, and only Xijing City in the whole country has it. There are four subway lines in Xijing City."

"The four subway lines carried more than [-] million passengers last year alone."

"Because the subway must be pulled by steam locomotives, and the exhaust gas released by the locomotives is harmful to the human body, so the tunnels must have ventilation slots connected to the ground at intervals to prevent passengers from being poisoned."

"The speed of the subway is one hundred miles per hour, so it only takes less than half an hour from here to Xijing City."

Zhu Cixuan seemed to be instructed by someone, anyway, he was introducing to Zhu Heyin all kinds of things that Daming did not have along the way, and Zhu Heyin also listened with great interest.

It just seemed that time passed quickly under such circumstances, so they hadn't finished talking about the topics they wanted to talk about, and the subway took them to the terminal.

Zhu Cixuan took everyone out of the subway, and then walked to the ground from the underground passage.

The glare of the sun made Zhu Heyin squint his eyes unconsciously, and the carriage was already waiting for them at the gate of the subway station.

After adapting for a few seconds, Zhu Heyin took a few steps forward and looked around.

Just looking at it, Zhu Heyin couldn't look back.

I saw that the subway station is surrounded by a wide, clean and busy commercial street.

On both sides of the commercial street are small two-story buildings about three feet high. Their walls are wall to wall and eaves to eaves, like a huge square wall.

On the commercial street, the passers-by are still dressed so plainly, many of them are carrying backpacks, and some are carrying messenger bags.

Their faces were full of smiles, their pace was unhurried, and they chatted while walking.

In the city, the sidewalks are no longer concrete piers, but wooden chairs and stone tables with backrests.

Some old people sat there and played chess, while others made tea with the tea stove they brought.

What made Zhu Heyin unbelievable the most was that some sanitation workers just sat on the chairs in such a blatant manner, while the yamen guards on horseback patrolling on horseback turned a blind eye and even greeted the sanitation workers.

"Emperor grandson, you can get in the car."

Zhu Cixuan's voice brought Zhu Heyin back to reality, he suppressed his curiosity and got into the car.

As the coachman shook the reins, the humanities of Xijing City began to be displayed in front of Zhu Heyin at a glance.

Is there any difference between Qi and Ming?Yes, but not much...

However, the leisure of the people of Qi State is something that the people of Ming Dynasty can never learn, and it is impossible to learn.

In Daming, if you do things too slowly, you may face risks such as dismissal.

But in Qi State, Zhu Heyin saw wooden signs saying "recruit shop assistants" on many shops, even though he was just strolling around in a carriage.

These wooden signs may be the confidence of the people of Qi to relax...

Zhu Heyin took a deep breath, and became more interested in the next trip to Qi.

(End of this chapter)