Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 464 Ding You’s New Deal
"Dang-dang-dang-dang..."

"Come out, come out!"

On the third day of March, with a burst of noise, many students who had been waiting for the results of the palace examination for three days finally saw the process of posting the imperial list.

When the words "Gold Medal List of Dingyou Academy in the Seventeenth Year of Yongle" appeared, everyone held their breath and looked down quietly...

[Jinshan and Lu Yu of Lu Song, first place in the first class, awarded Jinshi and the rank]

[Fujian Changle and Li Ma, first and second place, awarded Jinshi and the third place]

[Yunnan Longchuan and Jianghuai, first and third place, awarded Jinshi and the third place]

[Bohai Anton and Zhang Bohai, second and first place, given Jinshi background]

【Directly under Suzhou...】

"No way!"

"Is it a mistake?"

"That's right. How come the top pick and top pick are candidates from Luzon and Yunnan?"

"Have there been any candidates in Luzon this year?"

"Longchuan, Yunnan, maybe they are the group of people who were exiled at the beginning..."

When the gold medal list was posted, the onlookers immediately exploded. People couldn't believe that the top pick, second pick, and top pick were picked by Luzon, Fujian, and Yunnan, which are sparsely populated.

Among them, many people are still trying to convince themselves that although Fujian has a sparse population after several migrations, it has been in the top three for several years, and its appearance this year is no exception.

For example, although Yunnan is a barren land, there are many Jiangnan literati who were exiled in the Longchuan area in western Yunnan, so it is not surprising that they can get it.

But the problem is, how can Luzon, which has a population of only more than 200,000 people and can't even hold an exam all year round, get the first place as the number one scholar!
For a time, everyone felt dissatisfied.

As if he had anticipated the candidates' actions, Zhu Gaoxu specially asked someone to post Lu Yu's original imperial examination paper and posted it on the side.

[To His Majesty the Emperor: I have heard that when saints govern the world, it is not impossible not to follow the ancient way as the way. Today, the world has changed, so we should not follow the ancient way as the way. We should follow the new way, not...]

The eloquent 2,346-word answer sheet is in small regular script and neat, with not a single redundant dot of ink throughout. It is a pleasure to read without any discomfort.

The font looks regular, but actually it has a hidden edge. Not to mention the content of the answer sheet, this writing alone can be ranked in the top two, let alone the content.

Lu Yu's content mainly explains from many aspects such as military, economy, people's livelihood, the relationship between monarch and ministers, and the relationship between monarch and people.

If the answer sheet of more than 2,300 words was translated into vernacular, it would be enough to translate into tens of thousands of words.

For example, the military needs to open up territory, but it needs to open up effective territory, not ineffective territory. The use of national power must be prudent, and the country's strong strength should be combined with flexible balance-of-power policies to better realize the country's goals and interests.

The basis for a big country to be different from a small country is extreme national egoism, not romanticism.

Fighting for a cause that is not in line with one's own interests is disproportionate for a big country. It will also bring unbearable suffering to the people of the country and make the country isolated by vassals.

Economically, he encouraged the court to use overseas gold and silver for the common people, and in order to prevent powerful, wealthy households and officials from getting in the way, it was best to send officials to monitor the whereabouts of the money and grain and whether it was in the hands of the common people.

How to promote people's livelihood and how to improve people's lives? Lu Yu used various measures to benefit the people, such as building roads and dams, and formulated different economic cultivation for various states, prefectures and counties according to local conditions to increase people's income, and formulated workers' security policies and laws. Wait a minute...

From the perspective of later generations, Lu Yu's article seems to be quite satisfactory.

But looking at this era, the biggest highlight of Lu Yu's article is his hope to formulate a workers' protection policy. Before him, although all dynasties also paid attention to workers' rights and interests, they had never formulated a set of protection policies and policies. means of law.

Obviously, Lu Yu had seen the growth of the workers in the Ming Dynasty, and this was the main reason why he was elected No. 1 pick.

Facing Lu Yu's original paper, which was as exquisite as printing, many candidates who had been clamoring before shut up. Lu Yu, who was standing in the crowd, also glanced around, then hurriedly left with his head lowered.

Also leaving like him was Jiang Huai, who won the third overall.

They each returned to the post house, and then were called out by the Yamen with gongs, drums, and shengxiao. The officials explained to them the matters of entering the palace in a few days, and then left one after another after asking for a fortune.

At the same time, some officials and gentry who paid attention to them also extended olive branches to them.

Among them, even Zhu Gaoxu’s father Zhu Di...

"Don't waste your young talents. I think these young talents are all good. If they are chosen as the consort, they may not be happy."

In the Wuying Hall, Zhu Gaoxu persuaded Zhu Di who was sitting in his seat because Zhu Di wanted to find one of them to be his consort, and he set his sights on the number one scholar Lu Yu and the number two scholar Li Ma.

Facing Zhu Gaoxu's persuasion, Zhu Di murmured to himself: "This Li horse doesn't sound good. How can the dignified second place be named after an animal? Let's change his name to Li Qi."

"Dad!" Seeing that Zhu Di ignored him, Zhu Gaoxu persuaded:

"Besides, several sisters are already married. Even if you want to marry now, there is no one to choose!"

"That's right..." Zhu Di was suddenly awakened, and then he remembered his sister and daughter who had no time left.

After clicking his tongue a few times, Zhu Di said, "Forget it then."

"My slave, take your orders..." Wang Yan agreed decisively. At the same time, there were also eunuchs on duty outside the palace who came to deliver a message.

"Your Majesty, Prince Xuan of Longchuan has urgent news."

"Bring it here!" Upon hearing Wang Xuan's urgent report, Zhu Di thought something had changed in Luchuan.

It was just that the eunuch on duty hurriedly brought the urgent report. After Zhu Di opened it and took a look, he looked at Zhu Gaoxu strangely.

"I'm afraid you, Uncle Longchuan, have been waiting for you for a long time. The gold list has just been posted, and he can't wait to ask for someone."

"It's a shame he can think of Tanhua as the county magistrate."

Zhu Di was a little angry, but Zhu Gaoxu bowed after hearing this:

"The land in western Yunnan is very important. When I looked at Jianghuai's answer sheet, I thought he was talented. I wanted to put him in the top two, but there was really no one in the top two who was more innovative than him, so I could only put him in the top two. Listed as the third flower.”

"As my father said, Tanhua being the magistrate of the county is really unfair, so I want to merge Qianya, Longchuan, and Nandian into Longchuan Prefecture and make him the prefect of Longchuan."

Zhu Gaoxu also did not expect Jianghuai to be among the top three. You must know that the top pick, second place pick, and top pick are all those who entered the Imperial Academy. If one of them is demoted, it will inevitably make people think that the emperor does not like this person.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoxu also felt a little headache. Maybe even Wang Xuan never thought that Jianghuai could win the third overall.

"It's up to you to decide this matter. I still think he should be allowed to enter the Imperial Academy first, and then be devolved."

Zhu Di said this, and Zhu Gaoxu nodded in approval, and then bowed:

"In that case, I'll go to the Chunhe Hall first. Father, you can call the eldest brother and the third son to come and talk about old times."

"Go ahead, go ahead." Zhu Di waved his hand, and Zhu Gaoxu retreated upon seeing this.

Since he was about to ascend the throne at the end of the year, Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Gaosui did not return to the fiefdom. Instead, they rested in Beijing and waited for him to ascend the throne before returning to the fiefdom.

A few days later, Zhu Gaoxu summoned Lu Yu and others to the Imperial Academy, and then sent more than 300 Jinshi to other places because of the instability of the new policies in Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Huguang, Fujian and other places.

Of course, in order to show that the court did not look down upon them, Zhu Gaoxu also gave them the right to choose.

Among the two options of staying in Beijing as an official or choosing a locality, most Jinshi chose to stay in Beijing as an official, and only 76 Jinshi chose to choose a locality.

Among them, what surprised Zhu Gaoxu was that the number one scholar Lu Yu also chose Yunnan and chose Chefu, a place with a harsh environment.

At present, the Che Mansion has not yet been pacified, and there is even a lack of Han people. Even Zhu Gaoxu is confused.

Although the imperial court already has "anti-malarial fans", a place lacking Han people is destined to have difficulty in development, not to mention that the Dai people in Cheche are not easy to get along with in this era, and wars often occur.

For this reason, he specially summoned Lu Yu and Jiang Huai. However, because Li Qi chose Fujian as an official, Zhu Gaoxu did not summon him.

By mid-March, the weather has gradually warmed up.

Facing Lu Yu and Jiang Huai, Zhu Gaoxu in the Chunhe Hall sat on his seat and looked at the two nervous young men carefully.

The number one scholar Lu Yu was twenty-three years old, and Tanhua Jianghuai was twenty-one. Even at this age, the two of them were definitely not mature. Therefore, facing the two of them, Zhu Gaoxu took the initiative and said:

"Give me a seat and explain why you want to go to Longchuan and the car."

"Thank you, Your Highness!"

The two of them bowed respectfully in return, and then carefully sat down after the eunuch in the palace brought chairs.

From the moment they entered the palace, they had been secretly observing this person under the East Palace who was inferior to ten thousand people. To be honest, he was very different from the one in their impressions.

In the minds of Jiang Huai and Lu Yu, although Zhu Gaoxu had created a record of going south to capture the dragon, everyone thought he looked like a Confucian general.

But when I saw him today, his appearance, which was over six feet tall, really showed off the appearance of this His Highness.

Standing in front of him, Ping'an, Qu Neng and others who were the bravest in the Ming Dynasty could not help but look a bit weak, let alone literati like Jiang Huai and Lu Yu.

Fortunately for Jiang Huai, although he is the son of a serf, his parents were liberated relatively early, and he was not lacking in nutrition since he was a child, so his figure can reach 180 feet (approximately cm).

Compared with him, Lu Yu, who grew up in the almshouse since childhood, was a bit smaller, with a height of only five feet five (about 176cm).

This figure is naturally tall among ordinary people, but among officials who pay attention to appearance, it seems a bit ordinary.

But no matter what they are like, compared with Zhu Gaoxu, they all appear "small".

"Your Highness, I believe that the imperial court needs to manage Central South China well, and the management of Central South China mainly focuses on western Yunnan and southern Yunnan."

"There is an uncle from Longchuan in western Yunnan, so I want to go to the car." Lu Yu, as the number one scholar, was naturally the first to bow and speak.

However, in response to his words, Zhu Gaoxu frowned and said: "Although the car is a very important strategic and economic location for the imperial court, the local Han people have a weak foundation, and the war has not yet been settled."

"If you go to Yunnan now, I'm afraid you will need to stay in Kunming or Lin'an Prefecture for a year and a half before you can take up a post in the car."

"Even if he holds office, according to the court's news, there are only about a hundred Han households in the car. Compared with the Han people, the local native people have a population of tens to nearly one million. How do you think we will govern it?"

Zhu Gaoxu raised a question. You must know that the area under the jurisdiction of Cheche Mansion was twice as large as that of Xishuangbanna in later generations.

The local area basically has a tropical rainforest climate and the terrain is also very complex. If you want to manage this kind of place, you really have to spend a lot of money and effort.

"Just like the answer sheet, we can allocate fields in the car, plant crops suitable for the local area, develop local handicraft workshops, and attract immigrants."

Lu Yu finished his thoughts in a few words, but this was not all he really wanted to say.

His thoughts were clearly seen by Zhu Gaoxu.

After all, the car is very important for the Ming Dynasty to control Babaidadian and Laos Xuanweisi, so the court will definitely invest enough resources to develop the local area.

The iron ore reserves in the car are very high. Whether it is exported to Laos, Siam, Kampala and other countries, or used for railway construction in Yunnan, it can drive the economy in the car in disguise.

In order to develop the car, population migration is certain, and the current situation of fewer Han people and more native people will also be changed.

Lu Yu grasped these key points before he dared to choose to work in the car.

Faced with his little thoughts, Zhu Gaoxu didn't reveal it, he just nodded and turned his attention to Jiang Huai.

Feeling the gaze, Jiang Huai also explained what he was going to do.

"I think that governing Longchuan is similar to Lu Zhuangyuan's thoughts. Since Longchuan is the place where I was born, mulberry trees and sugar cane can be planted there to develop textile, sugar and wine products."

"There is no direct post road from Longchuan to Manmo, so we can only take a detour to Nandian and Ganya, and rely on Xijiang Town to enter Manmo. In this way, the distance is more than 400 miles."

"But if a post road is built directly to Manmo, the distance between the two can be reduced to less than a hundred miles."

"In this way, Longchuan can rely on the Dajinsha River of Manmo to enter the Little Western Ocean, and then sell goods to Tianzhu, Hezhong, Timur, Kunlun and other places."

"In addition, I heard about the railway. If the imperial court can support Longchuan in building a railway directly to Manmo, then Longchuan will also become a major tax county in Yunnan, which will be of great help to the imperial court in controlling the Three Propaganda and Six Comforts."

Jiang Huai's ambition is greater than that of Lu Yu, or Jiang Huai is not good at hiding his ideas. He completely trusts Zhu Gaoxu and expresses all his ideas.

Based on his past experience, Zhu Gaoxu does not believe that Jiang Huai is not good at hiding, nor does he think he is very ambitious.

The reason why he dared to propose the construction of a railway was probably because Wang Xuan was behind him.

"This good stuff..."

Thinking of Wang Xuan's honest and honest face, perhaps only Zhu Gaoxu and Yang Zhan knew how sinister this guy was.

"Your proposals are all reasonable, and the court will give them some support."

"But before that, you should temporarily return to the post house to have a good rest and wait for the imperial appointment in early April."

After Zhu Gaoxu finished speaking, even when he picked up the tea cup, the two of them knew that this was to expel guests, so they stood up and bowed: "I excuse myself..."

Under Zhu Gaoxu's cryptic gaze, the two slowly exited the Chunhe Hall.

After they left, Yi Shiha beside him said:

"Your Highness, there is probably the shadow of Wang Xuan behind Jiang Huai, but Lu Yu is very thoughtful, and I can't see clearly."

"Yes." Zhu Gaoxu responded: "These two are talented people. As long as they can be controlled well, they will be beneficial to the court."

"By the way, has anyone volunteered to be the chief envoy of Yunnan?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked Yi Shiha, and Yi Shiha nodded when he heard the words: "Guangxi Councilor Xu Shuomao recommended himself as the left chief envoy, but no one recommended himself as the right chief envoy."

"I remember him. Let's transfer him to Yunnan. In addition, it's time to promote Jian Yi in Sichuan." Zhu Gaoxu responded:
"Nanjing needed a left-behind minister, so Jian Yi was promoted to be the minister of household affairs in Nanjing and the minister of official affairs in Nanjing, responsible for the examination of merit and taxation in Jiangnan."

"In addition, Yang Shiqi, the right chief envoy of Sichuan Province who is free, will be assigned to take charge."

Zhu Gaoxu mentioned Yang Shiqi, a Jiangxi official who he deliberately let go but who had the leverage in his hands.

Since Jie Jin was killed and Hu Guang and others were suppressed, Yang Shiqi undoubtedly became one of the most powerful officials in Jiangxi and was promoted.

This situation is exactly what Zhu Gaoxu wants to see.

But before that, he still needs to support a few people who can deal with Yang Shiqi.

According to historical circumstances, Yang Shiqi lived to be eighty years old, but now he is only fifty-one.

Therefore, those who can deal with Yang Shiqi will naturally live longer than him, so as to ensure that Jiangxi will not raise its head again.

In Zhu Gaoxu's plan, the forty-year-old Sun Cheng is one, and the thirty-nine-year-old Wang Ji is another, and now...

Zhu Gaoxu looked in the direction where Lu Yu and Jiang Huai disappeared. Obviously these two people also have certain talents and can be relied on.

But the specific decision still depends on what kind of political achievements they can achieve in Yunnan.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoxu asked: "How is Wang Ji doing in Jiaozhi?"

"Go back to Your Highness..." Hearing Zhu Gaoxu's inquiry, Yi Shiha announced the good news:
"After Fu Rang led his troops into Yunnan to reform Lin'an Prefecture, Guangnan Prefecture, and Cheche, Le Li in the Truong Mountains gathered tens of thousands of Truong Son barbarians to attack Thanh Hoa."

"When Wang Ji heard the news, he immediately and the commander of Jiaozhi City, Ren Li, led 500 cavalry to the south of the mountain. They dispatched troops and horses to meet with the generals, gathered 5,000 soldiers and handed them over to Ren Li. Ren Li lived up to expectations and led 5,000 soldiers to defeat them. Li Li's troops killed tens of thousands and beheaded more than 16,000 people. Li Li fled in panic. "

"When Wang Ji saw this, he led more than ten guards to pursue him and shot Li Li with a horse rifle."

"According to the news from the West Factory, Li Li returned to Changshan seriously injured. Although he did not die in the end, he still suffered from the root cause of the disease and needs to rest for several years."

Speaking of Wang Ji's bravery, even a being like Yi Shiha who followed Zhu Gaoxu in the north and south could not help but admire him.

The Ming Dynasty had never seen a civil servant as brave as Wang Ji. Zhu Gaoxu was also very happy about this, but at the same time he was also very satisfied with Wang Ji's actions.

Civil servants were not allowed to lead troops. This was a rule set long ago. Although Wang Ji dispatched troops and horses, these arrangements were made after consultation with Ren Li and did not violate the rules.

In the Battle of Qinghua, Wang Ji had more military exploits than other civil servants. Although it was not enough to be knighted, Zhu Gaoxu could always find a way to knight him.

"Give an order to reward Renli and Wang Ji with a bronze mountain in Sumatra."

Zhu Gaoxu gave out the reward without hesitation, and Yi Shiha quickly bowed in response after hearing the words.

After doing all this, Zhu Gaoxu set his sights on the northwest and overseas.

"Have you found the coal mine in Hami?"

Zhu Gaoxu asked about the key points, and Yi Shiha nodded: "Ping'an sent sentries to search, and sure enough, they found the coal mine at the place marked by your highness, and the mining difficulty is not too difficult."

"It's just that Hami lacks manpower and may not be able to mine coal."

Yi Shiha expressed his worries, but Zhu Gaoxu said indifferently: "When the water pump arrives, Ping An can use the karez and water pump to irrigate Hami's fields."

"The amount of cultivated land in Hami is not said to increase tenfold, but it is not a problem to increase it several times."

"The local climate is dry and it is extremely convenient to store grain. According to Ping An's regulations, unprocessed grain can be stored for five years, which is a good thing."

"Where have the fifty water pumps arrived now?" Zhu Gaoxu asked about the transportation situation of the water pumps. Yishiha heard this and responded:
"The fifty water pumps set off after the Lantern Festival and have now arrived in Lanzhou. They will arrive in Hami in July at most."

"In addition, the news about the water pump also spread to Jiuyuan. Lin Su knew about the water pump and clamored for the court to give him a water pump, and he asked for a hundred of them."

Speaking of Lin Su, Yishiha couldn't help laughing, and Zhu Gaoxu also laughed after hearing it:

"This guy thinks that the water pump is easy to produce, but he really dares to speak."

"But judging from the situation in the Loop, if there is a pump to cooperate, it will indeed solve many problems."

During this period, the Hetao was still dominated by grasslands with sparse vegetation in the Gobi desert. A few arable areas relied on water conservancy facilities, and more places relied on machine-driven wells to pump groundwater. Moreover, the salinity of the arable land was extremely high and the land was very barren.

In some arable areas with low precipitation and high evaporation, too much water from the Yellow River makes the land easily salinized, making it difficult to develop.

Because of this, except for a few areas with rivers where a small amount of farmland can be reclaimed, crops cannot be grown at all in other places.

Even when Tumut settled in Hetao and built Bansheng City, the Mongolians still lived a semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral lifestyle in the Hetao, mainly based on herding.

However, in the Qing Dynasty, with the emergence of corn, potatoes and other crops, the Han people's development of this area began to get back on track.

Corn and potatoes had been brought back by Zheng He and Chen Xuan, so Lin Su had already planted potatoes and corn in the Wuyuan and Jiuyuan areas under Zhu Gaoxu's instruction.

However, for the locals, the area is still not suitable for farming as it is full of swamps and the ground is wet and cold.

Lin Su wanted a water pump. He probably wanted to build a canal, dig a well, and then use a water pump to extract groundwater, and improve the land by leaching and removing salt from the soil through irrigation, flood diversion, and other means.

I have to say that this is a good idea, so after a short period of thinking, Zhu Gaoxu also decided to support the Hetao area.

"The water pumps for this month and next month will be sent to Lin Su first, but I have agreed with him in advance that I want to see the farmland in the Hetao improved, otherwise he will not want the water pumps for next year."

"I will teach you this slave..."

Seeing Zhu Gaoxu say this, Yishi laughed and agreed, and then arranged for someone to prepare a water pump for Lin Su...

(End of this chapter)