Daming: I can’t kill such a greedy prince-in-law?

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard that Ouyang Lun attributed all the achievements to himself and Zhu Biao, he was immediately delighted.

He had been busy with military affairs for half his life, and he hated people who were too successful to be a threat to the ruler. Now he saw that Ouyang Lun was not only a shrewd man, but also knew how to restrain his edge and abide by the moral principles between the ruler and his subjects. It was like embroidering gold thread on silk - luxurious yet not dazzling.

"This wily guy finally understands the relationship between ruler and subject." Zhu Yuanzhang stroked the Hetian jade paperweight on the imperial desk with his fingertips and glanced at the gilded dragon pillar in the hall. He suddenly remembered that when he was ringing the bell in Huangjue Temple in his early years, the old monk in the temple once said, "When the water is full, it overflows; when the moon is full, it wanes." Now, Ouyang Lun's act of giving up his merits to others is in line with this harmonious way.

What made him even more gratified was that Ouyang Lun specifically mentioned that Zhu Biao was involved in the weaving school and the deliberation of commercial taxes, which was clearly an attempt to elevate the prestige of the crown prince in front of the ministers. The situation of father and son governing together was exactly the "peaceful atmosphere" that Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to see most in recent years.

Zhu Biao's eyes were slightly hot.

Since he inherited the throne, he was often secretly criticized by court officials for being "unable to control the situation" because of his kind-hearted character. Now that Ouyang Lun has linked the achievements of the new policy to him, it is tantamount to planting the seeds of "the new emperor is wise" in the hearts of civil and military officials.

He suddenly remembered that when his father was reviewing the memorial last night, he pointed to the entry of "Weaving School" and said, "Biao'er, the craftsmanship of this craftsman is the foundation of the country's prosperity." At this moment, he understood his father's deep meaning - it turns out that the art of an emperor has never been to be arbitrary, but to make capable ministers willing to serve the crown prince. Ouyang Lun's praise was not for Zhu Biao, but for the iron triangle of "king-father-crown-capable ministers."

All the civil and military officials in the court were stunned by Ouyang Lun's actions.

The armors of the generals clashed with each other, while the civil officials stroked their beards and pondered - who could have imagined that this prince consort who had nearly lost his head for smuggling tea and horses could now perform the political art of "giving credit to the wise" in the Golden Palace?

The most shocked person was the Minister of Rites Lu Chang. He had worked with Ouyang Lun for such a long time and knew very well that this man was ruthless and calculated all the wealth in the world. However, he did not expect that Ouyang Lun could also move freely in the field of power. With just a few words, he pleased the retired emperor, the emperor and all his colleagues at the same time. It was truly "a businessman with the ambition of a prime minister hidden in his blood."

Only Li Shanchang's fingers holding the crutch were trembling slightly.

This old minister of the founding of the country looked at Zhu Yuanzhang, who was smiling brightly in the palace, and listened to the ministers' praise for Ouyang Lun, and felt a bitter taste in his throat. Back then, when he followed Zhu Yuanzhang to fight, Ouyang Lun was just a young boy, but now he can handle the emperor's mind with ease.

What made him even more desperate was that Ouyang Lun seemed to be praising Zhu Biao, but in fact he was undermining the old balance of "old ministers-imperial power" - when the achievements of the new policies were all attributed to the retired emperor and the emperor, the right to speak of these founding heroes would be like a candle in autumn, and they could no longer illuminate the court.

The "sycophant" Li Shanchang's throat rolled and he swallowed the second half of the sentence "disrupting the government order" back into his stomach.

He looked at Zhu Yuanzhang's face which was flushed with joy, and suddenly remembered the bloody Hu Weiyong case during the Hongwu period - what the emperor needed was never the sharpness of his capable ministers, but their obedience.

Ouyang Lun's strategy of "serving the emperor with merit" may win the emperor's favor more than Li Shanchang's plan of "retiring after success".

Originally, Li Shanchang wanted to praise Ouyang Lun to death later, but now it seems that this method is not feasible.

As Li Shanchang held the gilded coiled dragon pillar, veins bulged on the back of his hand and his nails almost dug into his palm.

He stared at the light reflected by the Western gold pocket watch on Ouyang Lun's waist, and felt that the light spot was like a knife, cutting the power of the old ministers' group inch by inch. Countless political schemes flashed through his mind: Accuse him of forming a clique? But Ouyang Lun's calculations were all clearly recorded in the treasury account books; impeach him for corruption? Everyone in the court knew that he invested all the money he earned from cotton planting into the Nanyang trading station. After thinking about it, the only risky move left was "praising to death" - Hu Weiyong was praised to the top of the prime minister by Zhu Yuanzhang, and then crushed by his own hands.

"Your Highness is such a great talent." Li Shanchang suddenly coughed violently and stepped out of the class. His cane knocked heavily on the gold bricks. "When I was on the wall of Yingtian Prefecture, I watched Your Majesty review the troops. I never thought that I would be able to hear such a brilliant plan in the court now!" His cloudy eyes turned to Ouyang Lun, and a smile uglier than crying appeared on his face. "Thinking of the golden cotton of Luzon Island, I'm afraid it will make the cloth of our Ming Dynasty more precious than Persian carpets! Your Highness's hands can really count all the copper coins and weave the world!"

These words made the military officers in the hall look at each other in bewilderment - who didn't know that Li Shanchang and Ouyang Lun had always been at odds? But the old prime minister trembled as he bowed to Ouyang Lun, his sleeves slipping down to reveal the faded jade bracelet on his wrist, which was the "founding hero bracelet" bestowed by Zhu Yuanzhang himself.

"This old minister is confused!" Li Shanchang suddenly raised his voice, "I used to think that businessmen valued profit over righteousness, but now I understand that 'righteous businessmen' like the Prince Consort are the pillars of our Ming Dynasty! This kind of loyalty to the emperor and the country is truly unprecedented!" With each sentence he spoke, he took a half step forward until he stood shoulder to shoulder with Ouyang Lun, "Your Majesty, look, the Prince Consort even has the word 'rich and strong' hidden in the pattern of his dragon robe. This shows that his loyalty to Your Majesty is woven into the warp and weft!"

The civil and military officials in the court were so shocked that they held their breath, and then they burst into a tidal wave of agreement. The Minister of Revenue Guo Zi was the first to bow: "Prime Minister Li is right! Yesterday, I specially asked the embroiderer to calculate the pattern of the "bright yellow satin" of the prince consort, and it actually saves 30% of the material compared to the old dragon robe!" The Minister of War even gave a thumbs up: "The soldiers under my command are now clamoring to learn the "flying cotton" shorts of the prince consort, saying that they can run 20 miles more when wearing them!"

Zhu Biao looked at the happy scene in the palace, his eyes slightly curved. He knew that this was what his father often said, "The court is like a brocade, and the warp and weft must be balanced" - when old ministers like Li Shanchang began to praise political enemies, it meant that the new policy had won the hearts of the people. Zhu Yuanzhang twisted his beard and nodded frequently. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of the jade bracelet on Li Shanchang's wrist, and thought of the years when they had eaten coarse food together, and a soft feeling appeared in his heart.

"My dear ministers, please stop praising us!" Li Shanchang coughed twice at the right time, and his eyes swept across the Panlong caisson on the dome of the Taiji Hall. "This old minister suddenly remembered an important matter - Your Majesty, it's time for the first whistle of our Beijing-Ping Railway that runs across the north and south to sound?" These words were like a huge rock thrown into a deep pool. The military generals in the hall straightened their backs immediately, and the civil officials whispered to each other. Zhu Yuanzhang sat up straighter: "Yes! Ouyang Lun, I asked you about the locomotive last month, why haven't you made any progress?"

Ouyang Lun unhurriedly unfolded the sheepskin blueprint in his sleeve, which turned out to be a commercial map along the railway: "Your Majesty, the entire section of the railway has been laid, and we are just waiting for Your Majesty to appoint an auspicious day for the opening of the railway." His fingertips passed over the red dot on the blueprint, "Next, we will build a railway from Beijing to Guangzhou. This will be the second phase. By then, a 'brocade freight station' will be set up along the line. In the future, cloth from Jiangnan can be transported to Yingtian on the same day. After the kapok from Nanyang lands in Guangzhou, it can be delivered to the Suzhou weaving workshop in three days-"

"Wait a minute!" Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly slammed the table, "Can the train you mentioned really carry dozens of tons of cargo on the rails as you said?"

"How dare I deceive you?" Ouyang Lun pulled out a picture from the pocket watch. It showed the scene of craftsmen debugging a locomotive. "Your Majesty, please look. This 'Daming' locomotive uses a steam furnace improved from Persia. I specially asked the craftsmen to carve a dragon pattern on the furnace body. It runs three times faster than a war horse!"

Li Shanchang stared at the iron thing with black smoke in the photo, and suddenly remembered the Mongolian catapult he had seen when he was young. If this thing was used on the battlefield, it would be ten times more powerful than the catapult. But he was full of admiration: "Your Highness has put your "cleverness" to good use! Once the railway is built, the trade routes of our Ming Dynasty will be like blood vessels, and it will be difficult for the treasury not to be bulging!"

Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly stood up and walked to Ouyang Lun, staring at the winding railway line on the blueprint, as if he could see the Northern Expedition Army marching north along the rails. He suddenly turned to look at Zhu Biao and said, "Biao'er, how do you think we should organize this opening ceremony?"

Zhu Biao had already understood what he meant, and said loudly: "I think that Prime Minister Li Shanchang can preside over the opening ceremony. On the one hand, it will show that the old ministers and the new policies are coexisting, and on the other hand," he looked at Ouyang Lun with a smile, "it will also free up my brother-in-law to prepare for the Nanyang Cotton Expo next month."

When Li Shanchang heard his name, he was shocked all over, and then realized that Zhu Biao was giving the old ministers a way out.

He bowed deeply, his cane casting a long shadow on the ground: "I, your old minister, will do my best to make this railway your Majesty's 'dragon of enrichment'!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang squinted his eyes and looked at Ouyang Lun, saying with a smile: "You cunning guy, are you really willing to give the glory to old Li?" Ouyang Lun bowed calmly, and his sleeves brushed across the railway drawings spread out on the table. "Your Majesty is wise, I am busy with the account books of the Nanyang Trading Station every day, how can I compare with Lord Li who has outstanding prestige and can control the situation? The presence of old ministers in the opening ceremony will not only add color to the new policy, but also let the people see that the monarch and his subjects of the Ming Dynasty are of one mind." After speaking, he raised his hand to wipe his forehead, as if he was really sweating from exhaustion, which made several young officials in the hall couldn't help laughing.

Zhu Yuanzhang turned his head to look at Li Shanchang, and saw that the old minister's hunched back had straightened a little, and his cloudy eyes had a long-lost light. He sighed in his heart. Of the old guys who had followed him to conquer the world, only these few "old bones" were left in the court. This opening ceremony was really a good excuse to appease the nobles in Huaixi. "In that case, then it's settled!" He slapped the imperial desk heavily, shaking the paperweight so much that it slipped half an inch. "Li Shanchang, you must start preparing immediately, and make sure it is a grand event!"

Li Shanchang was so excited that his voice trembled. He knocked his cane on the golden brick floor three times: "I obey your order! We must make this opening ceremony more magnificent than the ceremony when we proclaimed ourselves emperor in Yingtian!" The Huaixi officials beside him were all delighted. Zhou Dexing, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, secretly pulled his colleague's sleeve and said in a low voice: "Finally, it's our turn to show our faces!"

Zhu Yuanzhang turned around and ordered the Ministry of Rites: "Send the message to the Imperial Observatory! Choose an auspicious day, don't miss the important event!" A moment later, the director of the Imperial Observatory walked in quickly with a compass in his hand. He put three fingers together and calculated for a moment, with sweat on his forehead: "Your Majesty, three days from now at 1:30 am, the sky will be shining with purple stars, and the earth's veins will be full of dragon energy. It is a very auspicious day!"

"Good!" Zhu Yuanzhang clapped his hands and laughed. The golden dragon on his dragon robe sparkled with his movements. "Pass on my decree: three days later, the Beijing-Pingcheng Railway will be opened to traffic! Officials and civilians in all prefectures along the route can watch the ceremony. I order the Ministry of Works to expedite the production of the Ten Thousand People Umbrella and the Merit Stele, so that everyone in the world knows that when our Ming Dynasty's train whistles, it's worth a million taels of gold!" The civil and military officials in the hall responded in unison. In the Taiji Hall, the sound of imperial decrees and the sound of bells and chimes intertwined, just like the prelude to the surging wave of the new policy.

After the court was dismissed, Li Shanchang, leaning on his cane, hurriedly gathered Lan Yu, Zhou Dexing and other Huaixi officials to the side hall. His palm, covered with age spots, slammed heavily on the sandalwood table, shaking the floating leaves in the teacup: "My fellow brothers, how long has it been since our Huaixi Party showed up in front of His Majesty? This road opening ceremony is a good opportunity for us to turn the tables!"

Lan Yu smiled and said, "Don't worry, old Prime Minister. When we followed Your Majesty to fight for Wuchang, we could even set up the ladders steadily, let alone hold a ceremony." Zhou Dexing patted his chest loudly, "Isn't it just laying out the red carpet and placing flower baskets? Let's get the people of Yingtian Prefecture to show their support. It will be ten times more lively than that sour scholar's poetry gathering!"

Li Shanchang frowned, his cloudy eyes rolled around, "If we're going to do it, we'll do it in style! We have to show His Majesty that without that sly guy named Ouyang, we Huaixi boys can still hold our own!" He lowered his voice, the tip of his cane scratching on the blue bricks, "But let me be frank - we'll save money wherever possible. We have to keep half of the 100,000 taels of special funds allocated by His Majesty. There will be many places for the court to spend money in the future."

Three days later, there were indeed huge crowds of people outside the Beijing Railway Station. The three-meter-high "Breaking Wave" colorful archway stood at the end of the railway track, and the red silk and gold foil fluttered in the morning breeze. People crowded around the temporary viewing platform, children rode on their fathers' shoulders and ate candied melons, and old women clutched new clothes made from rags, all wanting to see what the iron thing that was "three times faster than a horse" looked like.

At 3:30 pm, Zhu Yuanzhang, supported by Zhu Biao, climbed onto the viewing platform. He looked at the crowds below the stage and listened to the deafening sound of firecrackers, and the corners of his mouth could not help but rise - but this satisfaction was soon choked by the thick smoke.

"What's going on with this red felt?" He frowned as he looked at the moldy scarlet felt carpet at his feet. The color was much darker than the crimson of the new court robes.

Zhu Biao leaned over and pinched it, and found a layer of red powder on his fingertips - it was clearly a perfunctory application of low-quality dye.

Worse was yet to come. When Li Shanchang announced in a hoarse voice that "the opening ceremony had begun", the "auspicious unicorn" carried by eight men in a large sedan chair had just taken two steps when the gold foil on its body fell off, revealing the mottled bamboo frame inside. The crowd burst into laughter, and the horse pulling the carriage was so startled that it raised its front hooves and almost kicked over the flower basket beside it.

"Your Majesty, look! The train is coming!" Someone shouted. Everyone turned to look at the end of the track, only to see the "Da Ming" train coming crookedly, spewing black smoke, and the wheels rubbing against the rails made a harsh squeak. Zhu Yuanzhang's pupils shrank suddenly - the rails were actually undulating like waves under the rolling of the train, clearly because the foundation was not solid! (End of this chapter)