Brother Zhu Youxiao

"Don't miss it when you pass by! Today's grain price has dropped to three pennies per catty, don't miss it, don't miss it!"

"Hey! I want a stone, send it to..."

"I also want!"

In mid-April, the capital became lively, and the reduction in food prices in Huangdian stopped many passers-by, shouting at the entrance of Huangdian for the rice noodle business.

"Speak slowly, I can't keep up with this paper..."

"A few people in the shop to help!"

The clerk standing at the entrance of the imperial store had no choice but to speak, and then he yelled into the store.

As the Yongshi Square in the inner city, Xijiang Mixiang Store, although its scale is not ranked among the top ten imperial stores in the capital, it still has two floors, [-] shops along the street, and an area of ​​nearly two acres. It is like a Ming Dynasty version. department store supermarket.

The clerks at the door are busy. They have to write down the amount of rice and wheat that each customer wants to buy, and then write a shopping note to the other party, asking the other party to go to the store to write down the address and pay the money.

In the end, the customer left with the Huangdian's invoice, and the guys sitting beside the cash register started queuing up to get their own delivery slips.

The reason why Huangdian can occupy a large market is to put it bluntly because of its low price and service.

The guy in charge of the delivery went to the inner courtyard with the ticket, and then picked up the goods with the ticket, and put the goods on the donkey cart.

After confirming that the goods are complete, the courier will start his personal delivery journey with the delivery address.

This method of "delivering express delivery" or "delivering food" was actually not uncommon in the Ming Dynasty.

As early as in Bianliang City in the Song Dynasty, there was already a door-to-door and food delivery business, but generally the important person had to pay extra for door-to-door delivery.

Naturally, you have to pay more in the Huangdian, but it's not as much as the normal store.

The Huangdian has a large volume, so it is distinguished according to the distance.

Each Huangdian has its own area. Normally, it can be delivered within five miles of a Huangdian, and the delivery price is uniformly charged at five cents.

If it is said that in these rules, Zhu Youjian added the rules for food delivery and express delivery in later generations, then in terms of salary, Huangdian can be said to be more conscientious.

The delivery guy's daily salary is [-] Wen, and he gets [-] Wen for each delivery, which is equivalent to the imperial store earning [-] Wen.

But this price is not exaggerated, because the Huangdian has to guarantee the fodder and care of the livestock, not to mention the work intensity of the delivery guys, which is much lower than that of Lifu at the dock.

Lifu at the docks earns no more than [-] renminbi a day, while the clerks in the Huangdian earn at least [-] renminbi a day, and it is not surprising that it is more than [-] renminbi a day.

The common people enjoy the service, the imperial store expands its business, the workers earn wages, and the imperial court solves the problem of employment, killing four birds with one stone.

Of course, this era does not have as much delivery demand as later generations. Even in Beijing, a city with a population of more than 130 million, the combined monthly delivery volume of 10,000 imperial stores is only around [-]+.

Adding the delivery fee to the basic salary, the monthly salary of the dispatcher Lifu is basically around one tael to one tael.

Just this delivery position has solved the employment problem of more than 2000 people in the capital, and behind these 2000 people are more than 2000 families and nearly [-] people.

This is just the tip of the iceberg of jobs in Huangdian. There are only 5000 Huangdians in the capital, which accommodate more than [-] people.

The Huangdian in the current model was created by Zhu Youjian to earn money, but until now, the Huangdian has basically guaranteed the minimum wage in local towns.

Under the method of basic salary plus share, such as Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou and other big cities, the daily wage of the shop assistants in Huangdian is basically at least [-] yuan.

As in the case of Huangdian, other shops naturally need to stabilize their wages. Unless there is a severe drought like in previous years, the hungry people in various places cannot survive, and Huangdian takes the initiative to lower wages to accommodate some hungry people. Otherwise, private shops dare not cut wages privately.

However, this kind of system is only effective in the city. Outside the city gate, the market towns outside the city gate don't care about it, because the imperial store can't affect them.

Facing hungry people, they usually choose to lower their wages. The lowest is [-] yuan to hire a hungry person for a month, which is the price of more than [-] catties of rice.

In this case, Zhu Youjian has nothing to do, or the court has nothing to do.

However, such a situation will become less and less since the successful development of the fourth version of the steam engine.

"Your Highness! Huanglong asked Jinyiwei Feige to send a creed, requesting the court to increase troops. The specific situation will not be known until Xiaoxiyang's letter arrives in the capital in one and a half months."

In Prince Qi's mansion, Li Ruolian hurriedly walked into the Chengyun Hall with a note, and while offering the creed with both hands, he also relayed the content.

When he bowed to hand over the note, Zhu Youjian, who was wearing a sky-blue round-neck robe, was meditating on the "General Map of Kunyu of the Ming Dynasty" in the hall. Seeing this, Wang Chengen hurried up to take the letter and handed it to Zhu Youjian. hands.

Zhu Youjian frowned after listening to Li Ruolian's words, because right now he has more difficult things to deal with.

The reduction in the price of rice in the capital is not something that can be decided with a pat on the head, but the result of Zhu Youjian's deliberation.

The common people are happy because the price of rice has fallen, but Zhu Youjian has to wipe his ass for some things after the price of rice fell.

When he got Huanglong's creed, he took a cursory look at it. There was not much content written on it, just a short line of words.

[The southern captives invaded the south, the natives rebelled, and there were more than [-] enemy troops inside and outside. The dragon tried his best to defend the land, please add another [-] troops to the center]

It's just a short line of words. People who don't understand the subculture of the Southern Subculture and the strength of the Mughals may think that Huanglong is not good, but Zhu Youjian knows that Huanglong must have encountered a problem, otherwise the court would not let the court increase its troops.

It takes only seven days for carrier pigeons to travel from Xiaoxiyang to the capital, but it takes nearly two months for the messenger to reach the capital.

After all, Zhu Youjian could only learn about the situation in the South Asian continent from Huanglong's handwriting and the local Jin Yiwei's handwriting after a month and a half.

But to understand is to understand, he still knows the strength of Mughal.

An army of nearly 40, with a fiscal revenue of more than 7000 million taels, 10,000+ cavalry, thousands of artillery pieces, and a population of 5000 million...

Such an existence, excluding technology, is enough to be regarded as a first-class power in terms of economy and population.

You must know that as the drought recedes, the Ministry of Household Affairs estimates that this year's tax amount will increase every month, but even so, based on their estimated amount, this year's annual revenue after the Ming Dynasty will not exceed 500 million taels.

In terms of finances, Mughal was much richer than Ming Dynasty, and it also occupied a favorable location, so it was not an easy opponent.

Of course, this refers to the evaluation under the existing military equipment and logistical capabilities.

If Daming really wants to increase its troops, it can naturally increase by tens of thousands, but it is not necessary for Zhu Youjian and Daming.

The first is that Da Ming cannot eat the South Sub-Asia continent, and the second is that it is impossible for Da Ming to implement a bloody policy on the South Sub-Asia continent and plunge himself into the quagmire of war.

In history, Britain did not send a large number of troops to forcibly conquer the local area, but let the British East India Company operate because the local area was too difficult to manage.

Even after the British used the army to obtain the first colony in India, the British didn't want it, but gave it to the East India Company to take care of it.

After taking care of it, the East India Company found that the benefits of taxation and other items were rich, and it was faster than doing trade to get money. Only then did it take the road of colonial expansion.

However, in the process of conquering India, the East India Company did not manage the captured lands themselves, but handed them over to the old local princes and nobles to manage them, and only grasped the main military and financial power.

Under such a system, the rulers of the Indian people are still the original princes and nobles, and the Indian people do not feel too different and invaded, which alleviates the resistance and resistance of the Indian people.

At the same time, they handed over the captured land to the old Indian princes and nobles, and they were also grateful to the East India Company.

The old Indian princes and nobles without financial power and army can only rely on the East India Company.

In the struggle of various forces in India, the British East India Company pulled one side and fought the other. On the surface, the East India Company played a role similar to "mercenaries", as if it was just a "customer".

In this process of borrowing strength, Britain often used methods such as bribing the opponent's generals to make them turn back and wait and see.

Due to the relative independence of Indian tribes and weak national consciousness, this trick works well in India.

Borrowing strength, defeating each of them, and ruling India with India, the East India Company achieved the greatest effect with the smallest cost in the process of conquering India.

Not only that, but during the British East India's conquest of India, many local Indians were hired as soldiers, called native soldiers.

This method has been adopted in the colonial process of Western countries, but the British East India Company is superior to other countries in terms of military organization.

For example, the French method is to organize the native soldiers and French soldiers separately. In wars, it is easy for the native soldiers to fail to dispatch.

The British East India Company is not. They only let Indian soldiers serve as soldiers, and the officers are trained British. In this way, during the war, the British way of dispatching troops is more effective than the French.

The rational use of native soldiers reduced the casualties of the British. In the process of conquering India, Indian native soldiers played a very important role.

In the colonial wars in other parts of the UK, Indian soldiers often appeared.

In this whole system, Daming can learn part of it, but it is impossible to learn all of it.

The first is that the background of the times is different, and the second is that Ming's overseas policy has always been to eliminate the local aristocrats, then acquire land, and carry out large-scale relocation of hungry people. Naturally, it is impossible to cooperate with the local aristocrats.

As for the local soldier system, even if Zhu Youjian is willing to this system, the five governors of the five army governors' mansion are not willing.

Moreover, the flaw of this system is that the development of the civil soldier system is uncontrollable, and many countries and dynasties that have used the civil soldier system have suffered backlash.

Either the number of native soldiers increased, and the native soldiers began to embrace themselves.

Either the soldiers relied on their military exploits to infiltrate into the upper echelons.

In addition to these, the civil soldier system has various drawbacks.

Taking a ten thousand step back, the local soldier system generally appears when the country's military strength is insufficient, and the current Ming Dynasty...

Not to mention the fifteen battalions of soldiers and horses that have not been withdrawn from Yingzhou, the [-] battalions of soldiers and horses that are being trained in the country alone occupy a lot of resources of Ming Dynasty.

In this case, instead of sending them to Tianzhu to increase income and reduce expenditure, they should stay in the country and add an additional expenditure to recruit local soldiers. Unless Zhu Youjian's brain is showing off, it is impossible for him to do so.

It's not that Ming Dynasty wants to completely take over the South Asian continent and rule directly. Da Ming only needs to conquer the lands promised by the feudal vassals, then enfeoff them, and finally help them gain a firm foothold.

If the vassals want to play the local army system, Zhu Youjian will definitely support it strongly, because once the local soldiers rise, they will inevitably pose a potential threat to the local vassal kings politically.

At this time, it is necessary for the feudal vassals to rely on Daming to use the deterrent power of Daming to deter the native generals in the country.

What's more, Zhu Youjian's attitude towards the natives, even the natives from the three overseas provinces, has always been to let them do the hardest, most tiring and dangerous work, instead of joining the army and politics.

Unless the Ming Dynasty assimilated them to a certain extent, if the huge alien population who did not yet have a cultural identity was squeezed into politics and the military, it would easily develop into ethnic conflicts and separatist forces.

Besides, due to natural disasters, Daming now needs to solve the employment problem of the common people, and the military salary of an ordinary soldier is enough to support a family, and the military salary of an overseas soldier can even support a dozen people alone.

Paying the local soldiers lower than the military pay of the Ming army will create ethnic conflicts and conflicts of interest. There is no need for Zhu Youjian to shoot himself in the foot.

For Huanglong's request for additional troops, what he has to do is very simple, that is, to advance the policy he discussed with Zhu Youxiao before.

Twenty battalions were recruited from the feudal vassals, and Guochao trained another twenty battalions by itself, for a total of forty battalions of troops, more than [-] soldiers and horses.

After the subsequent withdrawal of the Ming army, it is entirely possible to train soldiers for the feudal vassals in the country, and the soldiers move with their families.

This not only solves the problem of migration, but also solves the employment problem of immigrants and the security problem of the vassal state.

After that, the Ming army only needed to maintain a certain number of South Asian continental troops to control and support the feudal vassals well.

Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian said without turning his head:
"The [-] battalions of soldiers and horses trained by Guochao, and the [-] battalions of soldiers and horses trained by the feudal lords, how is the current progress?"

Zhu Youjian asked, and Wang Chengen said:

"The recruiting was handed over to the Shangzhi Governor's Mansion. Currently, the victims of the disaster in Nanzhili are being recruited for training. Twenty battalions have been recruited, and the soldiers have been training normally for a month."

"As for the twenty battalions of soldiers and horses of the feudal lords, according to your Highness's request, the number of troops will gradually decrease from north to south..."

"Qin, Zhou, Shu, Fu, Chu, Zhao, Jin and other northern seven vassals each received one battalion of soldiers, and the remaining thirteen battalions of soldiers were distributed to the southern vassal states and counties."

"Because the number of troops was only set on the 12th of last month, the soldiers of the various feudal lords have not yet been recruited. However, the total number of people who will be relocated overseas in the past three months is more than 45, and the number of men between 4 and [-] There are only more than [-] people, and it is impossible to make up twenty battalions."

"Besides, many men are unwilling to serve as soldiers. They say that if they are allowed to serve as soldiers, they will not move..."

Wang Chengen told about the recruitment of soldiers, especially the matter of immigrant males joining the army.

Zhu Youjian was not surprised after the hearing, because in recent years, people who moved overseas basically chose to move after listening to the policy of relocation and subdivision.

If you tell them all of a sudden and let them serve as soldiers, they will naturally not want to.

"Among the immigrants, how many people are willing to join the army?"

Zhu Youjian asked Wang Chengen, and Wang Chengen was ashamed when he heard it: "There are less than [-] immigrant men who have not yet migrated. As for Xiaoxiyang, the news sent before is [-]..."

"It's quite a lot..." Zhu Youjian looked sideways at the general map of Daming Kunyu in front of him after hearing the words, and then said:
"Immigrants who don't want to be soldiers are fine. Xiaoxiyang can make up 15 of the 3 males. Counting the [-] males of these immigrants who are willing to serve as soldiers, there are [-] people." , enough to form ten battalions.”

"As for the remaining ten battalions, let's select from the hungry people in Guangdong for the time being. This group of people does not need to be relocated. When more people are willing to join the army after relocation, they will withdraw to Daming with the army."

It is impossible for Zhu Youjian to force the strong men to serve as soldiers, which will deal a great blow to the morale of the army.

What he wanted were people who volunteered to serve as soldiers, because they were prepared in their hearts, and it was easier for them to accept the system of the Ming army. When facing a difficult battle situation, they could explode with stronger courage and combat effectiveness.

"The servants take orders..."

Wang Chengen bowed to Zhu Youjian's order, and Zhu Youjian continued to scan the map and asked:

"How is Lu Wenzhao doing in the southwest?"

"Return to Your Highness..." Li Ruolian organized his words, and then said:
"The commander led people to inspect the six provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, Jiaozhi, Guizhou, Guangxi, and Guangdong. Nearly 3000 people in the Fusi of Nanbei Township were eliminated, and they were held accountable and accused..."

"According to the "Daming Law" and "Jinyiwei Ethics", they and their families, a total of more than [-] people, will be exiled to Nanzhou..."

"How many people are there in Jinyiwei now?" Hearing Lu Wenzhao's performance, Zhu Youjian was satisfied in his heart even though his face was not showing off.

"There are a total of more than 11 Fusi in the North and South Towns, of which there are more than [-] Fusi in the North Town, and the rest are Fusi in the South Town."

Li Ruolian responded honestly, but Zhu Youjian frowned:

"Go back and ask Cui Yingyuan, there are nearly 7 people in Nanzhen Fusi, with so many people, can't even find out some corrupt officials?"

"The humble job takes orders!" Li Ruolian swallowed, sweating profusely.

It was time for him to be thankful that he was only in charge of side affairs. After all, compared with spying on civil servants and gentry, as well as all kinds of intricate domestic intelligence, frontier generals and enemy intelligence were not so convoluted.

"You go back."

"Resign from a humble position..."

Zhu Youjian issued an order to expel the guest without looking back, and Li Ruolian bowed back when seeing this, and then left the hall.

After he left, Wang Chengen also took the opportunity to say:
"Your Highness, Admiral Cao also questioned and punished nearly 3 people in the Imperial Horse Prison..."

Wang Chengen wanted to say something nice for Cao Huachun, but Zhu Youjian glanced at him after hearing it:

"Chengen, Huachun doesn't need you to speak good words for him. He needs good words, so he comes back to find Gu by himself."

"Yes... the servant overstepped..."

Zhu Youjian used "Gu" as his self-proclaimed name, and Wang Chengen also realized that he had said something wrong, so he quickly returned the gift and apologized.

"How about the fourth edition of the steam engine?" Glancing at him, Zhu Youjian continued to focus on the "General Map of Great Ming Kunyu" in front of him.

"Basically, we have entered the finishing stage. Now we just need to wait for the steam engine factory to manufacture the steam engine, and then test the failure rate of the steam engine."

Seeing that Zhu Youjian changed the subject, Wang Chengen quickly followed up with the explanation, and in order to make Zhu Youjian feel happier, he deliberately jumped out of some happy events in today's memoir and said:
"The Armament Academy also reported good news, saying that the weight of the tractor has been reduced from 150 jin to 140 jin, and the cost has also been reduced from more than [-] taels to [-] taels."

"The agricultural base of Yongping has also reported good news. The standard proportion of soil and chemical fertilizers can basically increase crop production by [-]% stably."

"In addition, the Department of Agriculture has done the math. If ships use steam engines to collect guano from islands, the current fertilizer production can be tripled, allowing more than 3000 million acres of arable land to be fully used with soil fertilizers."

"As for the establishment of factories in various places, this year Yumajian is expected to build 620 factories of different sizes and recruit 40 workers."

Wang Chengen knew very well that what His Royal Highness cared about was nothing more than food for the people, so he deliberately picked out some things about people's livelihood and industry to read out.

As he expected, Zhu Youjian let out a breath of foul air after hearing the news, and said with rare praise:
"Things are doing well. In addition, all Dr. Hanlin who are responsible for the research of steam engines, percussion guns, agricultural machinery and other subjects, make a list. Long live, I will confer on them as the first three grades of Jiayi doctors."

"Bi Maokang, Wang Zheng, Sun Yuanhua, Song Yingxing, and Song Yingchang were awarded the title of first-rank doctor Guanglu."

Zhu Youjian did not canonize Wang Zheng and the others as knights. It was not because he was stingy, but because he knew that Wang Zheng and others would not accept it.

Judging from the fact that he wanted to confer titles on Bi Maokang and others last time, but the five of them refused, it can be seen that even these scientific research talents who have invented and created various technologies think that they should not receive such treatment.

Zhu Youjian intends to change, but he can't reach the sky in one step, he can only do it slowly.

After Wang Chengen heard Zhu Youjian's words, he quickly bowed to express his understanding, and he also took the opportunity to say after getting up:

"By the way, Your Highness, Yan Siqi arrived in Tianjin early this morning, take a look..."

"According to the previous agreement, he can be conferred a title, but this title should be given as Uncle Hai Cheng." Zhu Youjian didn't know why, and suddenly changed his title.

Wang Chengen was a little curious, but he didn't ask, but asked: "Does Your Highness want to see him?"

"See him?" Zhu Youjian shook his head: "No need..."

"A person like him has a bad background. It is enough to grant him a title, give him a mansion, and give him a salary every year. If he is interviewed, I am afraid that he will be afraid in his heart."

Zhu Youjian knew that his reputation was not good among the gentry class and the aristocratic class. It can be said that his reputation now is completely comparable to Zhu Yuanzhang's reputation in his later years.

Yan Siqi only wanted to bless the three generations and squeeze into the circle of the power center in the capital, but he didn't want to take power, and he was even more afraid of seeing Zhu Youjian.

It's just that his identity as a former pirate is really sensitive. If he really made a mistake, Zhu Youjian can directly punish him by retelling the story.

Zhu Youjian was aware of Yan Siqi's little thoughts, so he understood that instead of meeting Yan Siqi, it would be better to arrange an errand for him in Qingshui.

"After conferring uncle, canonize him as the commander of Shuntian Mansion Army and Horse Division."

After explaining a sentence, Zhu Youjian sat back in his seat, and after Wang Chengen answered, he suddenly remembered something, stepped forward carefully and said:

"Your Highness, there is one more thing..."

"Let's talk." Zhu Youjian picked up a memorial and prepared to deal with it, and Wang Chengen also said upon seeing this:
"Sun Chuanting will return to Zhenwu County in about three days..."

"..." Zhu Youjian stopped what he was doing, and after a few seconds, he said in a low voice:
"Tell Wang An that, using his long live status, he will allocate 500 taels of gold, ten pairs of shark fins, and ten bear paws to Sun Chuanting. In addition, he will send people from the Imperial Hospital to Zhenwu County to organize a free clinic."

Zhu Youjian wanted to say something more, but he still didn't say anything after he opened his mouth:

"So be it……"

"The maidservant takes orders..." Seeing that Zhu Youjian had finished speaking, Wang Chengen slowly retreated after saluting, entrusting Zhu Youjian's series of instructions to someone to arrange.

He retreated, and in the huge shipping hall, apart from Zhu Youjian who was sitting and dealing with the memorials, there were only a few eunuchs who sorted out the huge bookshelf behind Zhu Youjian.

The sun slanted into the hall and surrounded Zhu Youjian.

It's just that the warm sunlight shone on him, making the surroundings even darker...

It's still about ten o'clock at night