My father Zhu Gaoxu

Chapter 295
In the Hall of Martial Heroes, Zhu Di frowned as he listened to the report from a minister next to him, but the more he listened, the more he frowned.

Finally, the minister concluded: "Your Majesty, according to my estimate, the cost of rebuilding the three halls will be about [-]% higher than the previous cost."

"How is it possible, the foundation built last time can still be used, shouldn't it be cheaper than last time?"

Zhu Di asked with an unhappy face, he even wondered if the other party was fooling himself?
"Your Majesty does not know that although the foundations of the three main halls can still be used, because the three main halls were destroyed, the burned buildings must be demolished first. The cost of demolition alone is much higher than the cost of the foundation."

The minister reported with a wry smile.

I saw this minister in his 40s, tall and thin, with regular facial features and a long beard. He looked shrewd and capable. His name was Cao Ying, and he was the minister of the Ministry of Industry appointed by Zhu Digang.

"The cost of demolition is so high, can't we save some money?"

Zhu Di still asked dissatisfied.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this is already the cost that I have simplified. Some materials that can be used have been recycled, but even so, the total cost is still astonishing."

Cao Ying secretly glanced at Zhu Di while speaking.

Before Song Li burned down the three halls, many officials of the Ministry of Industry were implicated. Cao Ying, the former official of the Ministry of Rites, had nothing to do with Song Li, so he took over the Ministry of Industry very smoothly.

Hearing Cao Ying's answer, Zhu Di also showed a worried expression.

The cost of rebuilding the three halls far exceeded Zhu Di's budget, even with the money donated by Zhu Zhanhe and the nobles, there was still a big gap.

"Have you discussed this matter with Xia Yuanji?"

After Zhu Di pondered for a moment, he raised his head and asked Cao Ying.

"I have already discussed this matter with Xia Shangshu, and I also hope that the household department will allocate more money, but Xia Shangshu said that the household department is also very tight, and there is really no money to spare."

Cao Ying replied helplessly.

In fact, what Xia Yuanji said was true, because after the Yanglian Bank was established, the household department increased a lot of expenses, so now the household department doesn't have much money to spend.

Zhu Di also knew Xia Yuanji's difficulty, and when he heard that the Ministry of Household Affairs could not provide the money, his brows became even tighter.

The last time Zheng He came back from his voyage to the West, the income he brought back was much less than before. Although Zhu Di had another source of income, which was printing precious banknotes, treasure banknotes should not be printed indiscriminately, otherwise the depreciation would be too fast, which would cause the country unstable.

In fact, Zhu Di has a sum of money in his hand, but that money is specially prepared for his Northern Expedition. As long as the enemies on the grassland are not wiped out, his Northern Expedition will not stop for a day. This is related to the great Ming Dynasty. Therefore, this money must not be used lightly.

"Retire first, the reconstruction of the three halls will still be done according to the original plan, as for the money, I will find a way!"

Zhu Di finally waved to Cao Ying.

"Yes, I retire!"

Cao Ying agreed, and slowly exited the hall.

After Cao Ying left, Zhu Di couldn't help sighing.

The three halls must be rebuilt, because this represents Zhu Di's determination to move the capital, but lack of money is also a very real problem. Even if he is the emperor, he can't let the craftsmen turn them into three halls out of thin air.

"It's really not possible. We can only temporarily embezzle the cost of the Northern Expedition and push back the plan for the Northern Expedition."

Zhu Di whispered to himself.

As an emperor on horseback, it was absolutely unacceptable for Zhu Di to stop the Northern Expedition.

Moreover, Zhu Di knew very well that if he could not solve the threat from the north when he was in power, it would be even more difficult to solve the threat from the north when Zhu Gaochi or Zhu Zhanji succeeded.

When the power on the northern grassland recovers, it is likely to become a confidant of Daming in the future, which is why he has made repeated expeditions to the north.

Just when Zhu Di was hesitating, a servant suddenly came to report: "My son, Cheng Guogong, Ding Guogong and others are asking to see each other!"

"Let them in!"

Zhu Di immediately said that he also wanted to discuss this matter with Zhu Zhanhe, but he did not expect him to come by just in time.

After a while, Zhu Zhanhe, Zhu Yong, Xu Jingchang and other nobles entered the hall, and then saluted Zhu Di together: "Your Majesty, I will see you!"

"Don't be too polite, why are you all here?"

Zhu Di was also very surprised, he didn't expect Zhu Zhanhe to bring so many people into the palace together?
"Grandpa Emperor, I entered the palace with Cheng Guogong, Ding Guogong and others. I have an important matter to discuss with you!"

Zhu Zhanhe stepped forward and replied.

"what's up?"

Zhu Di asked curiously, even if he was going to court, the group of nobles would not come so neatly, which made him even more curious.

Zhu Zhanhe didn't answer, but looked at Xu Jingchang next to him.

Although Xu Jingchang was afraid of Zhu Di, he could only bite the bullet and said at this time: "Your Majesty, part of the fleet from the voyage to the West has returned. Now the ship has been repaired and the crew has rested for a long time. The goods brought back have also been returned." It was sold, and now those seagoing ships are a bit of a waste to berth at the port, so I... my minister..."

At the end of Xu Jingchang's speech, he didn't dare to continue, so he turned his attention to Zhang Chang, who was the most active.

Zhang Chang was also willing to go all out at this time, so he stepped forward and said loudly: "Your Majesty, I want to send the fleet to go to sea again. Overseas trade is very profitable. For example, the spices in Nanyang can buy a hundred catties with regular money. Bringing it back to Daming can sell twenty guan, and the court can also collect taxes from it, which is really beneficial to the country and the people!"

When Zhu Zhanhe heard Zhang Chang's words, he couldn't help but glanced at him in surprise. He didn't expect Zhang Chang to have this kind of ability. He even knew the price of spices. It seems that he also did a lot of homework on sea trade.

"You want to go to sea again?"

Zhu Di finally understood the purpose of these people, which made his face darken.

The last time they sailed to the west, the ships of the nobles left with Zheng He's fleet, which can be explained, but if the nobles are allowed to go to sea alone now, it would be a blatant violation of the sea ban. It drew criticism from many ministers.

"Grandfather, it is said that Dayu's success in water control is because he learned the lessons of his predecessors and understood that it is better to block the sea than to open it. The same is true for the sea ban. Instead of imposing a sea ban for mere pirates, it is better to support the sea trade and strengthen the court Sailor, in the future, there is hope to wipe out the Japanese pirates in one fell swoop!"

Zhu Zhanhe stepped forward again and said.

He has been holding these words in his heart for a long time, and today he took this opportunity to spit it out quickly. The sea ban was imposed because of the Japanese pirates. It cannot be said that it is unreasonable, but it is also a bit of a waste of food because of choking.

With Zhu Zhanhe taking the lead, Xu Jingchang, Zhang Chang and others became more courageous and expressed their dissatisfaction with the sea ban.

(End of this chapter)