I'm really not doing business

Chapter 456 To borrow or not to borrow, that is the question

In the vast, ownerless and chaotic ocean, pirates born for plunder have their own stage.

Because of the rampant pirates, almost all ships now carry a large number of weapons, including long and short soldiers, bows and arrows, muskets, and artillery. These are collectively called armed merchant ships. But even so, merchant ships and even the navies of various countries are powerless against the elusive pirates. Pirates rob money, goods, ships, and people. After one hit, they disappear into the vast sea, which makes it very difficult for all countries.

But until England issued a privateering license, pirates had a problem they had to solve, and that was selling stolen goods.

Pirates' maritime plundering behavior is obviously against the laws of various countries, so how to sell these stolen goods has become a big problem, so there are many stories of pirates hiding their wealth on the island.

Even the extremely liberal Free City's attitude towards pirates is not exactly welcoming.

Now, in order to support the independence of the Netherlands and to cope with maritime competition with Spain, England issued a privateering license.

Plunder free!
This gave the pirates a channel to sell their stolen goods. The pirates no longer had to worry about having nowhere to sell the goods they had robbed. They only needed to go to England and the stolen goods would become serious goods.

In fact, privateering licenses and pirates' robberies were the real first pot of gold in England and the earliest primitive accumulation.

Similarly, because of the privateering license, all legal merchant ships will completely turn into pirate ships after leaving the port. This license forces all merchant ships to rob each other. This is meaningless internal friction, but Everyone has to do this.

Wan Shihe, the imperial party, showed his stubbornness at this time. His Majesty's tone was already very stern, but Wan Shihe still did not compromise. He bowed his head and said: "Your Majesty, the ocean is the same as the grassland. They speak with their fists. How they behave in their own territory is beyond the reach of Ming Dynasty, but when they reach Ming Dynasty’s territory, they must follow Ming Dynasty’s rules.”

Permits for privateering eventually led to the generalization of piracy, threatening the security of the Ming Dynasty's maritime borders.

"Are we going to teach them morality, justice and etiquette when they are being plundered by privateers from the West?"

Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "You are right. If the Virgin Queen of England really hated pirates, how could she give them a legal status?"

"Your great and wise Majesty, your wisdom is as bright as the stars. I think your Majesty has seen through England's tricks. It seems that the privateering license has many restrictions. For example, first of all, it must be valid during the war; secondly, its validity It has to be reciprocal, that is, you are robbed of a merchant ship, and then you can get another one back, which is a mechanism similar to sitting back. "

"Uncle Zong, should we also divide an area, such as the west of the Strait of Malacca, the east of Mindanao, the south of the Yuanxu Islands, and the north of the Nagasaki Governor's Palace, where privateering is legal?" Zhu Yijun looked at Wan Shihe and asked.

For the Ming Dynasty, privateering licenses were indeed a policy that did far more harm than good, because the Ming Dynasty was a unified country. Although there was local competition, it was not at the point of life and death. The Ming Dynasty's two hundred years of reign, at least Everyone recognizes that they are from the Ming Dynasty.

"He wants to do something, but it depends on whether it can be done." Marcus bowed his head and said without too much evaluation. This is also the disadvantage of opening up territories through marriage. When he wants to do something, it is even more difficult.

Wan Shihe hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, this is absolutely impossible. Privately plundering armed merchant ships is equivalent to piracy. How can there be any reason to condone piracy? Only when the world is righteous can there be virtue; only when the world is virtuous can there be benevolence; only when the world has benevolence Only when there is justice can there be etiquette in the world."

"The current ocean is indeed disorderly, but it still retains some basic rules. Privateering licenses undoubtedly completely break these rules, which is extremely detrimental to the prosperity of maritime trade."

Zhu Yuanzhang's enthronement edict recognized the status of Zhengshuo in the Yuan Dynasty, but he did not follow the convention and showed kindness to the legacy of the previous dynasty. This made the local slaves very dissatisfied. Zhu Yuanzhang had a violent personality, but he did not kill anyone and instead exiled him.

The environments of Ming Dynasty and Taixi are completely different. The high moral disadvantage mentioned by Legas is indeed a disadvantage in the short-term conflict, but in the long term, it is the advantage of high morality.

Permits for privateering will increase internal friction and are completely unnecessary.

Zhu Yijun has been on the throne for ten years, and Yumen has been in charge of politics for nine years. Three hundred years ago, Henry III's commission was to obtain part of the proceeds from pirates, and then the court at sea would judge whether the attack was legal and valid. If it was valid, , then these trophies will be auctioned, at least there will be some rules.

"However, once the privateering of Taixi is widely allowed, the maritime trade competition between Ming and Taixi will be at a disadvantage." Zhu Yijun said with a solemn expression: "As the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, I should first consider the vital interests of Ming Dynasty, and the merchant ships of Taixi You can plunder Ming merchant ships, but Ming merchant ships cannot plunder Thai and Western merchant ships.”

"Your Majesty, who is wise, must have understood that this is nothing more than a fig leaf." Marcus knew His Majesty well. This diligent emperor was proficient in Latin, could understand the contents of the credential, and had permission for private plundering. Your Majesty is also well aware of the terrible impact of the evidence.

"From pirates handing over part of their profits to encouraging pirates to plunder, this is fundamentally different."

The local Bao slaves offended Emperor Taizu and were not beheaded. However, Anda Khan, the king of Shunyi conferred by the Ming Dynasty, wanted all centurions and above to be beheaded. This was indeed very cruel.

Zhu Yijun pondered for a moment, then said in a gentler tone: "What Uncle Zong said is reasonable, so we won't issue permission for private plundering."

There were many relatives of Felipe II in the Holy Roman Empire, and they would probably laugh at Felipe for being so embarrassed by a small country.

"I respectfully send you off to your Majesty." Zhang Juzheng led the ministers to bid farewell to the emperor.

It's strange today. Normally, the courtiers would leave the Wenhua Hall after farewell, but today the courtiers chose to stay. They sat down as usual, mainly because there were some matters that were not convenient to discuss in private or in front of His Majesty. The discussion required a public place, so after the emperor left, they all stayed.

The British troublemakers want to completely disrupt the entire ocean situation, take advantage of the opportunity to profit, and even rise.

After the Battle of Yuerhai, more than 50 Dibaonu, the second son of Emperor Tianyuan, and his concubines and princesses were captured by Lan Yu. Zhu Yuanzhang, the great emperor of Taizu, ordered you to give Dibaonu and the princess their daily necessities.

In the middle and late Jiajing period, the southeast was raging with war, and the Japanese invasion had been raging for more than 20 years. It was enough, and it was also scary. The court was afraid, the local famous families were afraid, and the people were even more afraid. Wherever the war was affected, the most seriously injured people were always the ones who were injured. They are people who do not have the ability to migrate or withstand stress.

The land protector slave complained that the imperial court did not show mercy to the deceased nobles of the previous dynasty. He was talking about the guest courtesy in the etiquette, the two kings and the three ke.

In broad daylight, in full view of everyone.

It has long been determined that the Ming Dynasty's laws do not protect European and American merchant ships. After all, within the framework of the Hua-Yi distinction, Fan-Yi are not even human beings.

Of course Felipe wanted to scold him. Just like during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, when the Japanese invasion was at its worst, the governor of Fujian suddenly thought of it and admitted that the Japanese invasion was legal. Going crazy.

"Your Majesty, the twenty years of Japanese invasion are a lesson."

The privateering license seems to have many restrictions, but these restrictions are like taking off your pants and farting, and they are unnecessary.

Later, the local slave said that Lan Yu had an affair with the concubine of Emperor Tianyuan, the emperor of the Yuan Dynasty, which caused the concubine to commit suicide. The slave complained that the Ming Dynasty did not show mercy to the deceased nobles of the previous dynasty. When Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, he was furious and did not kill the slave. Instead, he was exiled to Ryukyu.

Zhu Yijun asked curiously: "Isn't Felipe II going to do something? These people are blatantly breaking the rules. As the overlord of the West, if he doesn't do something, who will recognize his overlord status? Even those Ha The Busburg relatives would laugh at him."

And this also has a terrible impact, that is, after England issues a privateering license, the entire West must follow suit, otherwise it will fall behind others. Others can legally rob your merchant ships, and your merchant ships Being unable to legally rob other people's merchant ships puts you at a high moral disadvantage.

The current Virgin Queen of England directly issues privateering licenses to merchant ships, encouraging everyone to become pirates, and then go around to plunder.

After successive dynasties changed, they all granted titles to the descendants of the previous royal family, that is, the descendants of the first two generations were granted the title of Second Queen, and the descendants of the first three generations were granted the title of Sanke.

After Zhu Yijun finished meeting the envoys, he said, "That's it for today. I will go to the Beida camp to parade the troops and horses."

What Wan Shihe meant by this was to remind him that if the Ming Dynasty issued a privateering license, then the five major ocean-going trading houses of the Ming Dynasty would have to fight against each other, so why talk about opening up the sea? The Ming Dynasty sea area is full of pirates, and the long coastline, It is not wealth, but disaster. Then there will be another Japanese plague affecting the southeast coast.

"Your Majesty has decreed that all Ananda Khan's subordinates above the centurion level will be executed, including the sons of the Third Lady." Wang Chonggu spoke first, and this matter was actually very violent.

"In fact, I know that three hundred years ago, King Henry III of England first issued a warrant, allowing some pirates to hand over part of their loot in exchange for protection. The privateering license is a step further."

It is a complete transformation from low order to disorder.

If the division between north and south in the early Ming Dynasty had not been too serious, Zhu Yuanzhang would not have recognized the Yuan Dynasty as Zhengshuo. After all, the Han Dynasty had been dead for 100 years, the Qinling Mountains north of the Huaihe River had been lost for more than 280 years, and the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun had been lost for more than 450 years. At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang could only hold his nose and recognize Zhengshuo of the Yuan Dynasty.

There is another problem with Zhu Yijun's treatment, that is, the Ming Dynasty inherited the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty captured the Turkic Jieli Khan, but did not behead Jieli Khan.

Wang Chonggu mentioned this matter not to unite the courtiers to refute the holy will and ask His Majesty to withdraw the order. He just informed everyone that His Majesty has made this decision.

"It's not that the Ming Dynasty didn't have Huairou, the people of Rouyuan are useless, so they had no choice but to do it." Wan Shihe made amends for His Majesty. He neither said that the ancestors had established the law, nor did he propose any new ideas or innovations. The times were different, and he just followed the rules. The old routine cannot handle the problem properly.

In the 29th year of Jiajing, the barbarians invaded. At that time, the people affected by the war were still alive. Since they had been captured, how could we calm down the people's anger without killing them, and how could we achieve complete reconciliation? People in the grassland need to take care of their emotions, but don’t people in the Ming Dynasty need to take care of their emotions?
His Majesty obviously made a choice.

"Blood revenge is nothing more than blood revenge." Zhang Juzheng looked at Wang Chonggu and said calmly: "After beheading him in public, please trouble the three princes to go to the outskirts of the Shimiao Temple to pay tribute to Emperor Sejong."

"Good." Wan Shihe nodded in agreement.

Last time it was the Xindu Yang family, and this time it was Ada Khan. These were all enemies who disgraced the Taoist master.

Li Youzi, the censor of the right capital, said with a stern face: "Is your majesty a little too violent? This privateering license was made by the Panyi of Western Taipei. How did our Ming Dynasty do it? Your majesty gave it serious consideration..."

Everyone looked at Zhang Juzheng. In the eyes of the courtiers, His Majesty's temperament today came from Zhang Juzheng!

Zhang Juzheng rubbed his thumb on his index finger. There were too many scapegoats on him. It was the emperor's idea to unseat the palace, but Zhang Juzheng still bears the infamy. In the traditional Confucian culture, people are good-natured, and Mencius strongly agreed with it. this proposition.

Xunzi was expelled from Confucianism because Xunzi believed that human nature is evil, and the good ones are fake, that is, human nature is evil, and those good behaviors are all artificial corrections, under the influence of long-term education, public order and good customs, and strict constraints of the law Only then will you stop doing evil.

Human nature is good. This is the basis of all Confucian theories. Human nature is good. You only need to learn to discover the goodness of human nature. After cultivating virtue, the world will be unified. As a master of Confucianism, Xunzi fundamentally denied Confucianism, so he was expelled from Confucianism.

Human nature is inherently evil, so how can we discover the goodness in spirituality? How to cultivate virtue?

As the source of the theory of contradiction, Zhang Juzheng combined his Majesty's example to see the question of whether human nature is inherently good or inherently evil. He was surprised to find that human nature has good and evil, which are opposite and unified existences.

Then Zhang Juzheng immediately thought that the reason why people are human is that they have reason, use reason to suppress the evil in nature, and rationally use the good in nature. Only when people have reason can they have freedom.

"I don't think it's a bad thing." Zhang Juzheng stopped thinking and answered the question seriously: "The Ming Dynasty is undergoing great changes, and the world is also undergoing great changes. If necessary, private plundering is not impossible, and the Japanese pirates can They robbed our Ming Dynasty, but our Ming Dynasty cannot rob the Japanese country. What kind of reason is this?"

Wang Daokun immediately said: "The fire in the stove will go out without firewood, and the carriage will stop when the horses are exhausted! The new policy is gaining momentum, and when firewood and fodder are needed, private plundering is not a bad idea!"

"Now the Ming army is conquering Hetao and sweeping away the Hulu. It depends on the message. However, the court has no money to build roads. It only builds official roads and post roads, and the Chi Road needs to be opened. If so, why not private plunder? If Womagang can mine, Will my Ming Dynasty still be short of copper?"

Wang Daokun is a radical, even more radical than His Majesty, so he thinks there is no harm in privateering? In a time of great strife, one must resort to any means. The imperial court now wants to do too many things, and is extremely short of money. Even if the people are recruited, they must be given two liters of rice every day. The people are not asked to bring their own dry food when they are recruited.

Mountains of gold, silver, copper, and coal are of no value if they are not mined.

Zhu Yijun told Zhu Yili that radicals would always destroy themselves. Obviously, Wang Daokun's rhetoric put him in a desperate situation.

"When Tan Sima was here, everyone said that the Loop could not be defended even if it was taken down, so it was better to put it under military control. Now, everyone is talking about themselves. When they see coal, copper, gold and silver, they can't move. It’s so strange that everyone is shouting and shouting to build roads and roads.” Wang Chonggu looked at Wang Guangguang and asked, “Da Situ, we need money to build roads, but the court doesn’t have money. His Majesty said that we should ask the people. Borrow money, borrow this money or not?”

"To borrow or not to borrow, that's the question." Wang Guangguang was being careless. He still didn't want to allow the internal funds to borrow money from the private sector, which would really undermine the majesty of the court.

The most important thing is that interest must be paid.

The second instigator of the Ming Dynasty was none other than Great Situ Wang Guoguang himself.

"How about this? Let Qi Shuai use the prisoners to build bridges and roads?" Zeng Shengwu, the Minister of War, made a suggestion.

Wang Guoguang finally breathed a sigh of relief and coughed several times before waving his hands and saying, "Then let's borrow money."

When someone said to lift the roof, Wang Guoguang immediately agreed to open the window. The Minister of the Ministry of Industry wanted to plunder, and the Minister of the Ministry of War wanted to capture the strong men. It was better to compromise and borrow the money and pay some interest. It is better than causing civil unrest.

Wang Guoguang looked a little melancholy. It stands to reason that he, the Great Situ, deserves his name. The border troops of the Ming Dynasty were all paid in full. Although they paid in kind, they still received their military pay in real terms. The military pay is "food". Next, military pay was not money from the beginning, but food;

The emperor of the Ming Dynasty was able to receive 1.2 million gold and silver a year, and all the officials of the Ming Dynasty were able to receive sufficient salaries. At least those honest officials did not have to follow the current of corruption;
The Ming Dynasty had a surplus of national funds year after year, and the Ming Dynasty even had the energy to invest heavily in Kaihai.

It is no exaggeration to say that the financial minister managed the business well. The Ming Dynasty in the ninth year of Wanli was richer than most of the Ming Dynasty.

That's it, but when it comes to this matter, there is still a lack of money, and there is simply not enough money to spend. Wang Guoguang is a little confused for a while, how much money is enough to spend?

"Then let the Ministry of Household Affairs draw up a charter." Zhang Juzheng looked at Wang Guoguang and said with furrowed brows: "Silver waste and asset appreciation are not easy to deal with. It is not as simple as the green seedling method to pierce the silver dam. , but it has to be done even if it’s difficult. I think we can connect with Juntian Yong.”

"To be specific, it is the standard for measuring asset growth. In addition to the silver earned by workshops, there is also the number of people. The number of trained craftsmen must also be included in the examination. Promotions and transfers must be announced on a draft list. , fill in the register and reveal the names. The two indicators are limited according to different regions. The assessment of the same number of craftsmen can be combined into the work of equalizing land, which is the word "worker and peasant". "

The meaning of Zhang Juzheng's words is very clear. Workers and peasants are one, and they are all producers in essence. In the class, they are all poor coolies who support meat eaters. Silver, these two standards are the actual standards for passing the law.

This is the difference between Zhang Juzheng and Wang Daokun. Zhang Juzheng was not brave enough in his life. He always compromised. Wang Daokun wanted to convert all the silver that flowed into Ming Dynasty into fixed assets. But in reality, it can reach 70% in his lifetime. Zhang Juzheng felt that he could explain the conversion rate to his ancestors.

Zhang Juzheng felt that by that time, he would be worthy of Dao Master's favor, Emperor Longqing's trust, and His Majesty's trust.

"Yuan Fu is still awesome." Wang Daokun thought for a moment and found that Zhang Ju was the first assistant of this family.

Long-term practice has made Wang Daokun very clear about the talents of Ming officials. They can flexibly switch between false and true. In order to be promoted, it is easy to make false accounts. It is impossible for the court to directly send Tiqi to inspect everywhere. Officials will also cooperate closely with each other. Underneath the clusters of flowers, everything is false.

It is a false proposition that the intention is good but the execution is bad, because it is not true that the intention is good. Many problems can be avoided from the beginning. If the execution is bad, most of the time the intention is just like that.

This is the beauty of including the number of craftsmen in the exam.

The number of workers and peasants will be directly related to the quantity of goods. The quantity of goods and the number of imports and exports of several shipping companies in the Ming Dynasty are very clear. This limits the scale of false accounting. The increase in your assets is directly converted into the amount of silver. The growth in the number of craftsmen on the other end was almost zero. This number was not credible. Both ledgers were fraudulent, but the export numbers and import numbers did not match up, so the court had an entry point for tracing.

The bullshit goes to the sky, and three accounts expose the truth.

What if all three accounts are false? What the Ming court must prepare for is not to eliminate corruption, but to counter rebellion.

Wang Chonggu glanced at Zhang Juzheng and knew for sure that Zhang Juzheng was not an enemy. It would be better to just hang yourself than to engage in petty tricks under the eyes of Zhang Juzheng, who is fully supported by His Majesty.

Mainly because when he was a child, His Majesty supported Zhang Juzheng for the sake of his throne. When he grew up, His Majesty still supported Zhang Juzheng. Wang Chonggu's current loyalty to the emperor and the country was completely out of fear for the lives of his whole family, Zhang Juzheng, and the emperor. , of course there is also a little bit, just a little bit of the idea of ​​​​making the Ming Dynasty great again.

Zhu Yijun, who was hiding behind the screen and listening to the whole scene, called Mr. Yuan Fu directly. Sure enough, he was still so invincible!

He can rest assured and stop doing his job.

As for eavesdropping, can the eavesdropping of the Ming Emperor be called eavesdropping?
Zhu Yijun is a man of great perseverance. As long as Zhang Juzheng is still working hard to make the Ming Dynasty great again, Zhu Yijun will always support him.

Has the current Ming Dynasty achieved its goal of becoming great again? Not at all. During the Yongle period, the Ming Dynasty granted the title of king of the captives in Walahelin, Mobei, and actually controlled Nuergandusi. In the southeast direction, it completed the suppression of the Luchuan Dynasty, established the Three Propaganda and Six Comforts, and Wanghua Jiaozhi. He went south to the West six times and established the Xuanwei Department in Jiugang. The king of Japan was canonized by the Ming Dynasty, and real people from all over the world came to congratulate him.

Zhu Di spent his life expanding the Ming Dynasty to the limit of national power.

In the current Ming Dynasty, Liaodong is slowly developing. Wala Helin is not even willing to pay tribute to the Ming Dynasty. Of course, the Ming Dynasty cannot allow him to pay tribute. The Seven Guards outside Jiayuguan Pass have completely broken away from the control of the Ming Dynasty and become the independent Hami Kingdom. , the Three Proclamations and Six Welfares existed in name only, the Toungoo dynasty even dared to attack the Ming Dynasty, Jiaozhi was declared the chief minister, and now it is still the Annan Kingdom, and the Japanese Kingdom is even more dissatisfied with the kingship, and the Governor's Palace of Old Port is still at war with the Governor's Palace of Goa.

There is still a long way to go to revive the Ming Dynasty. At this time, the population and productivity of the Ming Dynasty are far greater than those during the Yongle period, and it can do even better.

Zhu Yijun hummed a little tune and went to Beida Camp. After the military parade, Zhu Yijun returned to Tonghe Palace and received the good news. Concubine Li and Concubine Liu finally found out that they were pregnant. In July of the ninth year of Wanli, they put aside their etiquette, justice and shame to serve the emperor together. Two transparent people finally got what they wanted.

Even if you are no longer favored in the future, it is still great to have a child under your knees.

Feng Bao, the Flower and Bird Messenger, bowed his head and said: "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Rites is urging the harem to accept concubines again. Your Majesty has not yet completed the nine concubines. The Queen Mother is urging the Ministry of Rites. It is really difficult for the Ministry of Rites to do so."

"Concubine Zhou De and Concubine Ran Shu are waiting nearby, so I won't accept it for now." Zhu Yijun still had the same attitude. There was no need to mention it again before the army returned in triumph. Seeing that Feng Bao wanted to talk, he immediately said: "The queen is going to give birth in the next two days. It would be bad if you get sulky and have fetal cramps because of the concubine thing."

Concubine Zhou De and Concubine Ran Shu have completed their postpartum recovery and are recovering very well.

Queen Wang and Wang Yaozhuo's second child has reached its due date, and some of the fetal positions are not correct. Zhu Yijun is quite nervous. Although the second child is safer than the first, it is still dangerous.

In the past few days, Zhu Yijun met with the chief medical officer of the hospital every day. First, he asked about Tan Lun's condition, and secondly, he asked Wang Yaozhuo about the risk of malposition of the fetus. When it came to protecting the baby and the baby, Zhu Yijun chose to keep the baby alive. If necessary, consider caesarean section.

Tan Lun's condition is relatively stable now, but the chief medical officer feels that Tan Lun may not survive the day of the army's triumphant return. Although Tan Lun is confused, he still has a feeling of support in his heart. Subconsciously, he still wants to wait until the army returns in triumph. .

"Queen Chitose's fetal movements have been slowing down in the past few days, and she will give birth in a few days." Feng Bao reported the news from Kunning Pavilion.

Zhu Yijun waited for three days. On the seventh day of July, the news that Wang Yaozhuo was about to give birth immediately reached the imperial study room of Tonghe Palace. After Zhu Yijun reviewed the memorial in his hand, he immediately rushed to Kunning Pavilion in the backyard of Tonghe Palace.

"Medical officer, do you need an operation?" Zhu Yijun asked Chen Shigong's opinion. Improper fetal position may lead to dystocia. Once the situation worsens, surgical delivery is required.

"Yesterday's medical consultation was probably unnecessary." Chen Shigong bowed his head and said, "If necessary, I can ask the female doctor to do it."

Men and women are not close to each other. The Ming Dynasty Jiecu Hospital has trained many female doctors. Among these female doctors, there is one who is particularly outstanding. She has performed seven caesarean sections. Technically and experience-wise, this is no obstacle.

As the delivery time extended, a layer of sweat broke out on Zhu Yijun's forehead. This was the second child. If there were no accidents, it should be faster than the first child. As time went by, the possibility of accidents continued to increase.

"Bao Da." Zhu Yijun said to Chen Shigong: "Get ready for surgery."

"Aow! Aow!" A loud cry suddenly came from the pavilion.

"Congratulations to your majesty, congratulations to your majesty. The queen has given birth to a princess at a thousand years old. She weighs seven pounds and four taels. Mother and daughter are safe." Po Wen hurriedly came out from inside to congratulate her.

"Okay, okay! Lots of rewards!" Zhu Yijun looked overjoyed when he heard this! Empress Dowager Li chose Wang Yaozhuo because she believed Wang Yaozhuo was good at giving birth. This was true. The pelvis was an innate advantage.

Concubine Zhou De and Concubine Ran Shu looked at each other, both showing relaxed expressions. Wang Yaozhuo was a very special existence in the harem, and was the main force in the Ming dynasty's harem competing for favor with the state.

(End of this chapter)