Jingming

Chapter 512 The tree wants to be quiet but the wind doesn’t stop
After leaving Beijing for the fifth time, this time Zhu Houcong felt more silent after leaving De'an Station.

At the junction of De'an Mansion and Anlu Prefecture, which was upgraded to Chengtian Mansion, the two prefects saluted each other and winked at each other.

Prefect De'an breathed a sigh of relief, but Prefect Chengtian saw reminders and concerns in his colleagues' eyes.

It was not until the staff and officials from both sides who had handed over the details of welcoming and escorting the convoy came back that the prefect of Chengtian heard about the situation.

"But the road is not smooth, and it's more bumpy than the railway?"

"I didn't say anything, Master Fu, I didn't say anything."

"Is that... caused by grief?"

"...Maybe, anyway, His Majesty has a bad intention."

The emperor's mood was not high, and local officials were on tenterhooks.

After thinking about it, I finally felt that Zhang Juzheng, who was called to accompany the driver, was suitable to inquire about something.

Zhu Houcong smiled.

"The New Year is coming, and the Holy Heart is worried. How can I, or my nephew, tolerate it?" Magistrate Chengtian looked loyal, and then looked at Zhang Juzheng earnestly, "I am not asking for secrets, I just hope that things will happen later. All the best! My wise nephew is a leader in Huguang. He has extraordinary circumstances and a promising future. He is also willing to show his loyalty and filial piety to the people of Huguang, right?"

"...The student thinks that this kind of seed is already sprouting. Places like Chengtian Mansion, because it is the land of Longxing, have actually changed a lot among ordinary prefectures. But if His Majesty can see it at a glance, it has changed a lot. Compared to the past, we would have to wait another generation or two. If nothing else, this newly paved road with earth and rocks, if there were not more business transactions and scholars traveling, there would really be no need to build a cement road next to the capital."

Zhang Juzheng was a little helpless, but after thinking for a moment, he felt that it was not a bad thing to talk about it.

I had long decided to go back to my hometown to pay my respects. Naturally, all the way from De'an, the roads had been renovated.

"Is that what you guessed?" Zhu Houcong looked at Zhang Juzheng in surprise.

They were in a dilemma because of the emperor's mood. After Zhang Juzheng said those words to the prefect of Chengtian, he reported it to Zhu Houcong.

However, Zhang Juzheng said at this moment: The emperor probably just blamed himself. After so many years of new laws, the local results are not enough.

There must have been some changes in the lives of ordinary people, and they were good changes. Zhu Houcong was confident about this.

Although he did not go out to see the surrounding area again, after leaving the railway line, the scenery of this hinterland prefecture did not change much from Zhu Houcong's childhood memories.

In fact, he, the prefect of De'an and even the important officials of Huguang Province all guessed that the emperor wanted to find out the actual situation in Huguang from this person.

Zhu Houcong shook his head and stopped talking.

The prefect of Chengtian let out a long sigh: "Chengtian Mansion is not a place for transportation, and the land of Longxing cannot build buildings rashly. What can be done?"

"Actually, Your Majesty is just sad because Huguang has not changed much over the years and the new law still does not benefit the people enough."

Following the imperial driver slowly towards the former royal palace and now Chengtian University, the officials accompanying Chengtian Mansion were troubled in their hearts.

"...It's really too much."

What more?

Not only the changes in his hometown of Jingzhou, but also when traveling with the prince, he did go to many other places.

"Your Majesty the Holy Ming..."

Zhang Juzheng bent over: "The biggest changes in the village are two things. In the past twenty years, the officials have been bullying a lot less and the burden has been lighter. This is one. The second is that the children have become more respectable. In this period, whether you are looking for a way to study, work, or do business, there are many ways out, and it is not that difficult to find the way..."

But seeing the power accumulated over time with his own eyes made him understand more and more that the new law was only beginning to slightly deflect the direction of the Ming Dynasty. Under the huge inertia, if we really want Ming Dynasty to enjoy the good changes to a higher level from the central government to the local governments, from officials to civilians, everything has just begun.

Naturally, they were afraid that there would be something inappropriate in their daily governance that would make the emperor unhappy.

He began to talk about his insights from the experience.

"Your Majesty, when you arrive, the troops will clear the way, and the officials and the people will welcome you. The students think that they cannot be prepared for what they see and hear, so they mistakenly think that they have not been effective in serving the people for many years." Zhang Juzheng added, "The students were poor when they were young, and later because of Heaven's grace accompanied His Royal Highness as a student, and when he returned to his hometown, he lived there for several years. What the students saw and heard was even more real."

"...How can there be no reason not to compete for the top?"

Magistrate Chengtian was stunned for a moment and could only say: "Huh?"

Zhu Houcong looked at him carefully, and finally admitted frankly: "You were right this time, but it's not that serious. Although twenty years is not a short time, it is definitely not a long time. The local conditions and foundations are different, and some If a place does better or develops faster, there are special reasons. I am still clear about this."

When he arrived in front of his subordinates, he relayed Zhang Juzheng's meaning, and everyone looked at each other in shock.

It is true that if there are changes that can be seen, the most effective thing is to update the infrastructure.

This gives him more content to compare.

Zhang Juzheng sighed: "That's probably true. Your Majesty's concern for the country and the people is rare in the world. Over the years, the capital and border towns have changed a lot, and they can be said to be changing with each passing day. During Jiajing's three-year southern tour, he mainly visited the canal, Huanghuai . But His Majesty was born and raised in Huguang. Nearly thirty years have passed. Although Huguang has undergone some changes, how can it compare with the prosperity of the two capitals and Caohe? Your Majesty, there is no need to worry about other reasons."

Magistrate Chengtian looked at him with a somewhat complicated mood.

The low mood is indeed what Zhang Juzheng guessed.

"Your Majesty forgives the students for assuming the holy will. It's just that the students were frightened when they saw Magistrate Jin, and I wanted to remind them that there is no harm in good governance and enriching the people."

It has to be said that Zhang Juzheng's experience is indeed different from ordinary people. He indeed had the most impoverished childhood, and a young man who reached the sky in one step. Later, he was released to his hometown "due to crimes", and he was teased and even suppressed by others who mistakenly thought he had been knocked down from the mortal world.

After all, it was for the reception of the emperor’s return home!
Facing Zhang Juzheng, although the other party had not yet held an official position, the prefect of Chengtian was respectful and apprehensive.

"...Neither can Dean."

On the one hand, it is the fact that I have been thinking about it for more than 20 years, and on the other hand, it is the country that at least seems to be solidified. It seems that all these years of hard work are just like throwing a pebble into a deep lake, and the ripples are not obvious.

"Oh? Tell me."

"Water conservancy, agriculture, culture and education...the province places more emphasis on Chengtian Mansion. Lord Fu, after all, Your Majesty is still dissatisfied with Chengtian Mansion's many years of governance. What should we do?"

Zhang Juzheng was not arrogant. He just returned the gift and said, "How dare you speak nonsense? Your Excellency, I'm afraid you are overly cautious."

Is it necessary? Don't really create some impractical image projects for him.

Zhang Juzheng saw the emperor laughing and continued with a smile: "More people are still farming with peace of mind. Nowadays, the taxes and servitude are lighter, and there are more and more elementary schools. It is easy to learn simplified Chinese characters, but there are more ordinary people." Live frugally and hope that some of your children and grandchildren will be successful. You will be less bullied and your future will be more promising. Such days are indeed better. Your Majesty has been diligent in governing for more than 20 years, and the Ming Dynasty has achieved great results. Thousands of people praise his holiness, and this is not false."

"Okay, I'm going back to my hometown to celebrate the New Year and pay homage to my parents. I don't want to make them worried." Zhu Houcong looked at him, then looked at Wu Chengen, "No wonder you always find what I said unbelievable. After all, it’s just like this now. However, it’s really just a foundation now.”

Development is definitely not balanced. Fast places with good resources and foundation will appear to be fast.

It is still a matter of grasping the main points first, and then how to make it universally beneficial.

What he has to do is, after all, a process from zero to one. However, this emotional change also reminded him: in the past two decades, although he thought he paid great attention to domestic affairs, it was easier for him to pay attention to such obvious goals as eradicating foreign troubles and establishing certain new systems.

Daning in Hetao is back, the Khan Court is gone, Japan is destroyed, science has laid a foundation, and steam engines have come out...the positive feedback from these things to him is obvious.

From this time back, Daming needs to truly integrate the many moves he has already practiced and master his internal skills.

Industrialization is a path that must be taken. Only when productivity increases can the people of Ming Dynasty be truly richer than before and have a different standard of living.

……

The emperor returned to his hometown, and it was the first time that Zhu Zaiyi presided over many major events before and after the Chinese New Year in the capital as the prince and supervisor.

The new team of important ministers includes General Assistant Yan Song, Chief Staff Officer Tang Shunzhi, other state affairs and counselors, and preparations for the general examination and palace examination.

There is war outside, but it is no longer a concern for the Ming Dynasty.

All domestic affairs are also in good order.

Zhu Zaiyi was hosting a banquet with important ministers, including the former General Assistant and General Staff who had made great contributions.

Yang Shen was not yet sixty, but Mao Bowen grew old very quickly after he was relieved of the burden of the Northern Expedition.

Both of them were granted the title of Duke, but the meanings were different.

Mao Bowen was about to become an official, but Zhu Zaiyi said to Yang Shen sincerely: "Master Yang, Jiaozhi was originally the homeland of the Ming Dynasty. Now that we have established a province, it should be a good education."

"...I am really exhausted mentally and physically, Your Highness..."

"You don't need to be quick, but you need to be safe and have the right direction." Zhu Zaiyi hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Although the emperor is the king of Yue, this time he is conquering Burma, which is more long-term and more needed in the eyes of my father. Good business..."

Yang Shen looked at him, then at Tang Shunzhi, and could only wave his hands: "We will make a decision after His Majesty returns to Beijing."

He rose quickly and stepped down early.

He is less than sixty years old and has already served as a general assistant. Staying in the capital is scary. If you don't just become an official and go home to run a school, then you have to go to the vassal state like Xia Yan and continue to shine.

But the prince's current idea is to get Jiaozhi in one step.

Anyway, during the Yongle period, he had already worked on the Ming Dynasty, but later he failed to manage the strategy correctly and finally gave up.

If Jiaozhi is in place in one step, then the King of Yue will not need to be sealed in Jiaozhi.

In the prince's mind, it would be better for the King of Yue to go to Myanmar. Even, in his mind, it would be better for the King of Yue to stay in some eight hundred Dadian or in a car.

No matter what, Jiaozhi not only has fertile fields, but also is an important maritime trade area from Guangdong to Nanyang. If you let the eldest brother seal it there, how can you move the vassal and turn it into a solid land?

Now that the emperor has gone to Huguang first, Zhu Zaiyi hopes to use this time to reach an agreement with the ministers and turn Jiaozhi directly into solid soil.

Yan Song had no opinion on this. He listened to the emperor anyway.

I can only say there are pros and cons.

The advantage is that it can create many more local official positions and local taxes that are directly assigned to the Ming Dynasty. The disadvantage is that it intensifies the fear of other Nanyang vassal states.

After the Ming Dynasty had eradicated the Northern Troubles, it was prepared to adopt a strategy of slowly trying to deal with other small vassal states in the Indochina Peninsula and Nanyang Islands.

There is only one, and that is to use the Nanyang Navy, together with the merchants and the Great Maritime Company, to truly establish a vassal state on the giant island of Nan'ao that His Majesty mentioned. In this way, all the countries in Nanyang would also be sandwiched between the Ming sects and vassals.

If Cochin is directly established as a province, it will probably make many small countries there even more fearful. There is no talk of resistance, but there are distinct rainy and dry seasons, making it difficult to attack but easy to cause trouble.

Everyone has his own way of survival. The most advantageous approach for Ming Dynasty was to first occupy the most fertile and easily controllable places.

Gao Gong came back from the Nanyang Protectorate, and now he is only serving as the chief of the imperial study.

Xu Jie, the chief minister when he last stayed in the Imperial Study Room, finally returned to Beijing and became the Minister of Agriculture.

And Gao Gong is only in his thirties, so it will probably take a long time for him to fill the transitional position like the chief of the royal study.

"I have been in the Nanyang Protectorate for several years, but I think that it is enough to establish a province in North Jiaozhi, and a vassal state in South Jiaozhi..."

Gao Gong expressed his opinion. In his concept, the areas that Ming Dynasty failed to effectively control in the past should be divided into as trivial a piece as possible in this opportunity.

"The same principle applies to Hamgyeong Province and Gangwon Province in North Korea." Gao Gong expressed his opinions and concluded, "Divide and rule. There is a difference between the real land and the vassal land. Whichever side sees the achievements, the people's hearts and minds are more important."

In the absence of Zhu Houcong, the discussion between his son and the ministers was destined to be inconclusive.

The cake that Ming won this time was enough to be divided for many years, and Gao Gong's opinion was very supported.

There are many people of third rank and above who can be transferred out. Although the vassal states and frontiers are difficult, their power and status are not small. There are so many people of level three or above to move in the center, so naturally there are more people below who can climb up.

"When Jiaozhi is restored, I am willing to go." Huang Zuo suddenly said, "I am from Guangdong, and I am used to staying in Jiaozhi. If I go with Xiu, I and the other two will spend the rest of their lives, and at least North Jiaozhi will be willing to do so. For the people of China.”

Several people were shocked and looked at Huang Zuo.

Yan Song is almost seventy years old. Among the possible candidates for the next general assistant, Huang Zuo cannot be ignored.

He is only in his fifties now, two years younger than Yang Shen, so he is ready to give up this possibility so early?
Zhu Zaiyi was overjoyed: "With Duke Xi Zhai and Master Yang, Jiaozhi will naturally submit to him wholeheartedly!"

Now Yang Shen doesn't have to hold up the sky alone, right?

Yan Song looked at Xu Jie, then smiled: "That's the safest thing to do."

Because of Huang Zuo's sudden statement, it seems that this matter can really be reached.

Only Tang Shunzhi looked at the prince and sighed in his heart.

Have you started making efforts for the future situation before and after your succession? I don’t know how His Majesty feels when he knows that his legitimate son is worried about his eldest son’s future power in the feudal country.

If there is the first example, it will naturally be possible to directly turn Myanmar into solid soil later.

In that case, where would the King of Yue arrange to go?
Tang Shunzhi actually knew that the situation was clear, and it was time to use gentle strength to digest it.

But they seemed to be still trying to cause trouble, and quite unwilling to let this war machine stop.

Although those small vassal states are poor and weak, they can still jump around.

(End of this chapter)