Ming Dynasty: Evolution from snake to national guardian beast

Chapter 39: Lao Na worked hard for the great cause of King Yan and died.

Ten thousand guards is already a large number. Generally speaking, a prince can only have three guards as bodyguards.

According to the Ming Dynasty's military system, the strength of a guard was 2,500 people, and Zhu Di was only a prince and could control more than 7,000 guards at most.

However, Zhu Di's status is very special. With Zhu Yuanzhang's permission, the number of his personal guards has reached 10,000.

During the war, Zhu Di could even directly transform into the commander-in-chief of the Northern Army. A hundred thousand troops must obey Zhu Di's orders.

However, the more than 100,000 people under Zhu Di were not Zhu Di's private army, and it was impossible for them to follow him in rebellion.

Zhu Di has no military talismans and no imperial edict, so he cannot use these soldiers and horses. The only thing Zhu Di can rely on now is these 10,000 personal guards.

Now, the old monk has recruited 10,000 elite soldiers for Zhu Di, and all of them are elite soldiers. During the war, they can charge on horseback.

It can be said that he rebelled for Zhu Di and was heartbroken.

Zhu Di was frightened and anxious, and yelled.

"Old monk, if my father knew about this matter, he would definitely not let it go."

The old monk was very calm and said:

"Don't worry, King Yan. These people are all ordinary people, and they all make a living."

"How can they go to the battlefield without weapons or armor?"

"Moreover, it is only natural that we recruit bodyguards to provide bodyguards for our coal business."

"The most important thing is that these people are carefully selected by the monks and will never leak any information. Please rest assured, King Yan."

Zhu Di stared at the old monk, and then said to Bai Chu:

"Mr. Bai, what do you think?"

Bai Chu thought that Zhu Yuanzhang would die soon, within a year at most, and he had to be fully prepared.

In this case, it is better to be bolder and at least have some ability to protect yourself.

He didn't want to be overwhelmed by Zhu Yunwen like he did in the early days of Jingnan.

"This is a solution."

"Sooner or later, this matter will be exposed. Your Majesty, you don't need to pay too much attention to the minutiae."

"Now, we have handed over 70% of the proceeds to the court, which should reassure the emperor."

"We must seize the time, race against time, and improve our strength."

Seeing that both Bai Chu and Yao Guangxiao agreed, Zhu Di said nothing more.

"Old monk, you can't be careless about this. If the old man finds out, both of us will lose our heads."

"Okay, so be it."

The old monk agreed very readily, and then said in an extravagant manner:
  "Your Majesty, we don't have much iron material left."

"In a few days, when we sell coal, I'm afraid we won't have stoves to give away."

When Zhu Di heard this, he was immediately furious. With a depressed look on his face, he said
  "I just purchased several thousand kilograms of ironware a few days ago. Where are they now?"

"This is all next month's expenses, is it gone?"

"Where did you take all those iron materials?"

There is no iron ore in Peiping, so we have to buy it elsewhere.

However, things like salt and iron were monopolized by the imperial court. It was very difficult for even Zhu Di to obtain so many things.

Zhu Di reported these iron wares to Zhu Yuanzhang, and with Zhu Yuanzhang's approval, he asked the Ministry of Industry to sell all these iron wares. Naturally, this batch of ironware was not transported from Yingtian City, but from Beiping Prefecture.

However, even if Beiping Prefecture has a large amount of iron ore, it has nothing to do with Zhu Di. If Zhu Di dares to touch these iron ores, Zhu Di will definitely be severely punished by a memorial from the prefect of Beiping Prefecture.

If you want to get iron tools, you must go through strict procedures. According to the Ming Dynasty's procedures, it is impossible without ten days and a half.

He originally thought that these iron tools would be enough to support his consumption for a month, but now, the old monk told him that there were not many iron tools left.

The old monk was startled by Zhu Di's eyes and said quickly:

"To have a warrior, you must have weapons, horses, saddles, and horse hooves, all of which are metal."

"Does the prince want them to go into battle empty-handed?"

Zhu Di didn't know what to say. The old monk really couldn't hold his breath and forced himself to run all the way to rebellion.

Not only did he recruit new soldiers on a large scale, but he also secretly manufactured weapons and armor. If his father knew about it, he would not even be able to explain it even if he jumped into the Yellow River.

But then I thought about it, I really couldn't wash it away, who knew that I was here to rebel.

However, Zhu Di was taken aback by the old monk's eagerness for success.

But Zhu Di didn't know that the cause of this incident was Bai Chu.

That is to say, Bai Chu calculated that Zhu Yuanzhang only had less than two years to live, so the old monk was so anxious and wanted to rebel.

Before this, the old monk was not in a hurry. He felt that his body was still very strong and he could survive for two more years than Zhu Yuanzhang.

Although the old monk claimed to be talented, he lacked confidence in front of Zhu Yuanzhang.

If Zhu Yuanzhang were alive, there was no guarantee that he would be able to rebel under his rule.

This is why the old monk kept clamoring for rebellion when Bai Chu didn't come, but he was just talking.

But when he learned that Zhu Yuanzhang was about to die, with Bai Chu's help, he immediately became an activist and silently did what he wanted to do.

At this point, King Yan was on the same front as him. He had no choice, either to make great achievements or to die in battle.

In the palace, Zhu Di also had a headache.

The iron tools he finally collected were used by the old monk to refine weapons.

So, where to find the materials for your next stove?

Do you want to ask your father for it? This is absolutely impossible.

If he goes to ask his father for it again, it will arouse his suspicion. Once traced, it will be a disaster.

Zhu Di also had a headache and glared at the old monk, and then asked Bai Chu:

"Master Bai, what do you think about this matter?"

"Without iron tools, our stove cannot be made. I'm worried that my father will send someone to investigate this matter."

Bai Chu also looked embarrassed. The reason why he sold the alchemy furnace was to collect materials openly and use them to refine weapons.

But during this period, the demand for coal was so great that even the steel borrowed by the court was not enough to build a furnace, let alone weapons.

But the old monk secretly used up all the materials, which caused a gap in the iron material.

Although the old monk's approach was a bit extreme, iron materials were also a big problem.

Bai Chu also had his own ideas. The resources provided by the court were not enough, so he could practice on his own.

However, the sound of blacksmithing is really too loud. If someone discovers it, it will be troublesome.

(End of this chapter)