I'm sure of the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong!

Chapter 562 Giant Panda

Nanjing this summer is even more lively than in previous years.

First, a shocking case broke out in the Coastal Shipping Department, and then the Xiamen Shipping Department murdered an imperial envoy, which in turn raised the issue of corruption in coastal areas.

Countless corrupt officials were arrested and escorted to Nanjing, awaiting trial by the Three Laws Division. Those who deserved beheading would be beheaded, and those who deserved exile would be exiled.

Although the emperor said that officials involved in smuggling and accepting bribes do not need to be tried and can be killed directly. However, the rules and procedures still need to be followed, and to kill so many officials in important coastal areas at once, all departments of the Three Laws Department must also register.

Otherwise, killing officials without any reason will easily arouse unnecessary reverie in the world. These records must also be published in the latest edition of "Da Ming Yue" so that they can be easily circulated by the people and officials all over the world.

Regarding the execution and exile of so many coastal officials at once, the gentry and common people in the mainland all shouted in praise: "Your Majesty is wise!"

The gentry in the mainland felt that the emperor was dissatisfied with the monopoly of maritime trade by coastal merchants, so they used the topic to allow the gentry in the mainland to get a share of the pie and balance the interests of maritime trade between the coast and the interior.

The people were more pure. The emperor punished and exiled corrupt officials and maritime merchants, so they felt very happy.

The coastal area has come to an end. After this case, there should be no major erosion problems for at least the next ten years.

Zhu Yijiong no longer paid attention to it. Although the coastal shipping case was quite big, fortunately it did not involve too much the central government, or that the high-level officials were not corrupted. Only the middle and low-level officials were really corrupted, and overall they were not corrupted. Not much to say.

After all, real cabinet ministers basically have titles, and those without titles are only temporary. Everyone is young and has a bright future. Who would not be wise and have nothing to do, and get involved in coastal smuggling for a gray income of tens of thousands of taels of silver a year? This is a slippery slope that cannot be touched (I will not touch it either).

Even Mr. Lu Ge, who had resigned from Beijing and returned to his hometown in Hebei for retirement, had a useless son. His title was only an earl, and he was not even awarded a rank. It can be said that he suffered a huge loss!

At the same time that the Coastal Shipping Department case was concluded, the good news from western Sichuan finally arrived in time for summer and was delivered to Nanjing.

The Tibetan nobles and monastery lamas in western Sichuan refused to succumb to the imperial court's request to return to their native land, and incited slaves and monks to gather troops to rebel.

Then, in less than half a month, these rebels were easily suppressed by the well-prepared garrison in western Sichuan carrying firecrackers and mortars.

I don’t know what these Tibetan nobles in western Sichuan are thinking. They have been isolated from the world for so many years, and their military structure is more than an era behind them. They rely entirely on the plateau climate to resist foreign forces.

They couldn't even defeat the Tatars and Mongols, so what confidence did they have that they could defeat the more powerful Ming army?

Accompanying the Western Sichuan Express to Nanjing was a giant panda that Zheng Dingrui accidentally hunted in Sichuan.

Yes, it's the giant panda. Its original name should be the iron-eating beast.

But when the emperor received the report, he blurted out "giant panda", but the new Propaganda Minister Wang Jingqi secretly wrote it down. And then he wrote it in the new edition of "Da Ming Yue Bao". He also deliberately used the more mysterious name of Iron-eating Beast first, and then used the mythical Battle of Zhuolu in historical records. It has also been compiled into it, and it is also deliberately placed in a conspicuous section of the page.

If the previous killing of corrupt officials and merchants only made the common people find it quite enjoyable. The giant panda brought by ship from Sichuan aroused everyone's curiosity and interest.

Even the intellectuals are talking about the giant pandas in Sichuan.

"Gentlemen, I heard that Sichuan's army not only put down the rebellion in western Sichuan, but also accidentally captured the legendary giant panda."

"Big bear...cat? What kind of beast is this? Are there such cats in the world?"

"It is said that His Majesty gave it the name. The original name was the iron-eating beast that Chi You rode in the legendary Battle of Zhuolu in ancient times. It likes to eat iron by nature."

"There is actually a strange beast that likes to eat iron. This must be a mythical beast, right?"

"But I read in the monthly report that this iron-eating beast... seems to just like to lick the salt used for cooking in the farmhouse's iron pot, and does not really eat iron. Moreover, this iron-eating beast is recorded in the ancient books published in the monthly report. It has lived in the Sichuan area very early, and it may just be some kind of rare beast."

"Brother Li, if you say that, it will ruin the mood."

"It's disappointing. Since this giant panda was named by His Majesty, I have to take a look at it."

"Didn't the monthly report say that it has been raised at the Purple Mountain Racecourse? It should be open in two days. Let's go and see it together then?" "..."

In all the major restaurants and teahouses in Nanjing, ordinary people can hardly talk about it without the giant panda who has just arrived in Nanjing.

Scholars are concerned about what is the secret of this giant panda, that it was named by His Majesty the Emperor and given such a weird name, and whether the iron-eating beast really eats iron or is just a rumor.

The citizens, on the other hand, were simply attracted by the mythical stories in the conspicuous pages. This is a legendary beast mount, and now they can actually see it?

Your Majesty is your Majesty, he is indeed the True Dragon Emperor!

Many people even believe that this is His Majesty's wisdom in punishing corrupt officials and investigating the Ming Dynasty's official affairs. This is why God sent mythical beasts to earth to help the Ming Dynasty create a prosperous world.

There are not a few people who have this idea, and most of them are literati.

Some of them may really think so, but most of them are still following the trend and praising the emperor.

Zhu Yijiong ignored these. At this moment, he was taking his concubines and princes to Purple Mountain to escape the summer heat. The weather was too hot, and he really couldn't bear it.

Moreover, the summer palace in Purple Mountain is very close to the horse farm, so you can stop by to see the giant pandas kept in the horse farm.

This is also the only time in his life that he has truly seen a living giant panda up close.

"Father, why is this giant panda not moving?"

The young third prince Zhu Bozhen looked curiously at the giant panda under the fence.

I saw the panda lying on its back, lying motionless under the shade of a tree on the grass. If you look carefully, you can see that only its chest is rising and falling rapidly and rhythmically (the panda is panting).

Zhu Yijiong shook her head and laughed: "Father doesn't know either! Maybe the giant panda also thinks the weather is too hot, so it doesn't want to move, right?"

It was true that the weather was hot on one hand, and on the other hand, the injury hadn't fully healed yet. After all, the panda in front of me was a wild beast that ran out of a Sichuan ravine. I don't know how Zheng Dingrui captured it alive.

Anyway, it seems that there were no casualties from the Ming Army in Western Sichuan. On the contrary, this wild panda's legs were broken. It is almost recovered now, but it still walks with a limp.

After watching it from such a close distance and condescendingly for a moment, everyone was a little uninterested, mainly because it was far different from what they expected, and the iron-eating beast did not eat iron.

Apart from being black and white and looking a little cute (and silly), there doesn't seem to be much special about it.

As a child, Zhu Bozhen was outspoken. After watching it for a while, he felt bored: "Father, you are lying. This panda doesn't eat bamboo at all, and it's so lazy that it can't even move. It's not as good as the puppy I raised."

Zhu Yijiong: "..."

Zhu Boxhen pouted and said, "Father, I'm so hot. I want to go back and eat smoothies."

After hearing this, Queen Wu Alan on the side stepped forward and frowned: "Children can't eat so much smoothie. Didn't they just eat it this morning?"

"But Queen Mother, I just want to eat." Zhu Boxhen still wanted to act like a child.

Zhu Yijiong said in time: "Haha, the weather is so good today, it is just right to go out for horse riding. Come, my father will take Zhen'er to the racecourse to ride horses, okay?"

Zhu Bozhen immediately beamed when he heard that he could play.

The concubines also burst into smiles and decided to go back and make preparations. Since it is rare to go out on horseback to relieve boredom, I also plan to show my feminine charm in front of His Majesty. It is best to let His Majesty stay in the palace at night, and then conceive a dragon fetus and give birth to a prince.

The wars in the harem are often so silent, and Zhu Yijiong is also happy to see the results, since he will not suffer any loss anyway.

(End of this chapter)