Ming Dynasty: He was ordered to give lectures in prison, but Lao Zhu eavesdropped and made people nu

Chapter 698 Post-War Reconstruction

At dawn, a group of cavalrymen slowly passed through the damaged city gate in the smoke that had not yet dissipated. Zhu Yuanzhang, the leader, pulled the reins, and the horses stopped between the broken walls, puffing white air.

"Your Majesty, it's dangerous here, please return to the palace as soon as possible." The commander of the personal guards, Fu Youde, advised in a low voice.

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand and dismounted. His boots made a harsh sound as they stepped on the rubble. The once bustling streets were now in ruins, with dark red bloodstains on several ruins. In the corner of the wall, a child of about six or seven years old was squatting beside his mother's body, trying to close her wide-open eyes with his dirty little hands.

The emperor dug his fingers deep into his palms.

"Pass on my order," he said in a hoarse but firm voice, "immediately allocate military rations and set up twelve porridge stalls in the city. Order the Imperial Hospital to send all medical officers to the streets to provide medical treatment to all the wounded, regardless of whether they are military or civilian."

"Yes, sir!" Fu Youde immediately ordered someone to write it down.

Turning the corner, a group of ragged people were searching for their belongings in the ruins. Seeing the dragon flag and ceremonial guard, they knelt down in panic, their foreheads touching the cold ground. Zhu Yuanzhang quickly stepped forward and helped up a white-haired old man.

"Please stand up, old man. I am late and I have made you suffer."

Tears welled up in the old man's cloudy eyes, his cracked lips trembled but he could not speak. Zhu Yuanzhang took off his mink coat and put it on the old man's shoulders, then turned to the accompanying officials and said sternly: "Within three days, I want to see that all the homeless have a place to shelter from the wind and rain! If you can't do that, you will all go live in these shabby houses!"

The officials were sweating profusely and nodded in agreement.

At noon, flags were flying in the square of the Imperial Palace. Under the plane trees that had escaped the flames of war, thousands of soldiers lined up in neat rows. Their armor was broken, but they stood straight like pine trees, with faces full of fatigue and pride after the victory. The square was crowded with people who came to watch the ceremony.

"The Emperor, by the Will of Heaven, proclaims—"

The voice of the Minister of Rites echoed in the square. Zhu Yuanzhang sat on the dragon throne, his eyes sweeping over every weather-beaten face. When he read the name of "General Chang Yuchun, the Conqueror of the Enemy", a general with a scarred face strode forward and knelt on one knee.

"I will pay my respects to your majesty!"

Zhu Yuanzhang personally stood up and pinned a gold medal on Chang Yuchun's chest: "My dear minister, you led the army to cut off the retreat of the Japanese pirates, and your contribution will be remembered for generations." He pressed his hand heavily on Chang Yuchun's shoulder, "I am very sorry about your brother's matter."

Chang Yuchun's eyes were filled with tears: "My brother said before he died that dying for the Ming Dynasty was a worthy death!"

Next was the navy commander Liao Yongzhong. This general who annihilated the Japanese fleet in the East China Sea had obvious inconvenience in his right leg when he walked - that was a mark left by the Japanese sword.

"My dear legs."

"Your Majesty, it's okay!" Liao Yongzhong grinned, "This is a souvenir from the Japanese pirates, just to remind me to beat them harder next time!"

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and filled the imperial cup for him with his own hands. When the list of fallen soldiers was read, the whole audience was solemn. The emperor walked down the steps and bowed deeply three times in front of the monument.

"Their parents are my parents, and their children are my children." Zhu Yuanzhang's voice spread throughout the audience, "For all soldiers who died in battle, the pension will be doubled; their sons can enter the Imperial Academy to study, and their daughters will be supported by the palace until they get married!"

The crowd burst into suppressed sobs. An old woman who had lost her only son fainted on the spot. Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the imperial physician to treat her immediately and announced that he would adopt her as his stepmother and take care of her for life.

As the sun sets, the lights in the Huagai Palace are bright. Zhu Yuanzhang changes out of his court robes and sits in front of his desk in plain clothes. On the table is a list of losses reported by the Ministry of Revenue: 6,400 houses burned down, 80,000 hectares of farmland harvested, and more than 100,000 refugees.
"Your Majesty, it's time to eat." The eunuch said cautiously.

"Put it aside for now." Zhu Yuanzhang picked up his pen and wrote on the memorial, "Send Liu Bowen, Xu Da, and Li Shanchang to the palace immediately."

In less than half an hour, three important officials hurriedly arrived. Zhu Yuanzhang pushed aside the meal in front of him and spread the map on the table. "Although the Japanese pirates have retreated, there is still a lot of work to be done. I want to complete three things in three years." He pointed his finger on the map, "First, rebuild the water conservancy in the south of the Yangtze River and dredge the canal; second, build 16 new cities along the coast to support each other; third, rebuild the navy and build 300 ocean-going warships."

Liu Bowen stroked his beard and pondered: "Your Majesty is a man of great talent and strategy, but the national treasury is not worth it."

"We still have 8 million taels of stolen silver from the Japanese pirates, which is enough to start the reconstruction." Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were sharp. "Also, I will issue an imperial decree to wealthy merchants in various places. Anyone who donates money for reconstruction will be granted a title or his descendants will be given an official position."

Xu Da added: "I suggest that we recruit Japanese captives to participate in labor, which will not only punish the vicious and stubborn, but also save people's energy."

"Approved!" Zhu Yuanzhang slammed the table, "But we need to set rules: daily labor cannot exceed six hours, the injured and sick must be treated, and they must not be abused."

Li Shanchang was surprised and asked, "Your Majesty, why should you be merciful to these jackals?"

"I don't pity the Japanese pirates." Zhu Yuanzhang sneered, "I want to let them know what the true magnanimity of the Celestial Empire is!"

Late at night, Empress Ma walked into the study room carrying ginseng soup. Zhu Yuanzhang was reviewing the reconstruction drawings submitted by the Ministry of Works, and the candlelight reflected the fine lines at the corners of his eyes.

"Zhongba, it's time to rest." Queen Ma called his real name softly.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked up and smiled tiredly: "Sister, do you think the design of this new city is good? The streets should be wide, and drainage ditches should be built underground so that it is not easy to catch fire in the event of war."

Queen Ma put the ginseng soup aside and reached out to smooth his frown: "The war has been won, what are you worried about?"

"It's easy to win a war, but it's hard to make sure the people never suffer from war again." Zhu Yuanzhang held her hand. "I plan to reform the imperial examination system and add practical subjects such as arithmetic and water conservancy. I also want to establish a naval school to train people who understand navigation."

Empress Ma's eyes suddenly turned red: "Do you still remember? When you were begging in Haozhou, you said that one day when you became emperor, you would make sure that everyone in the world had enough food to eat."

"I remember, of course I remember." Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the starry sky outside the window, "So I must manage this hard-earned peace well."

The next morning, the debate on how to deal with the Japanese was extremely heated. The generals led by Lan Yu advocated the complete destruction of the country: "The Japanese are ambitious and wicked. We should slaughter their royal family and destroy their ancestral temples to eliminate future troubles!"

The civil service group advocated a conciliatory approach: "We can imitate the old system of the Han and Tang dynasties and set up a Protectorate to supervise and make them pay tribute."

Zhu Yuanzhang listened to the opinions of all parties and turned his gaze to Liu Bowen, who had been silent the whole time: "What do you think, my dear minister?"

Liu Bowen stepped out and bowed: "I think that Japan can be divided into three parts: set up Ming garrisons in the north to control the key points; support a pro-Ming regime in the middle; and leave the southern island to the Japanese king to check and balance each other. At the same time, open up trade and spread Confucianism. After a hundred years, the Japanese will be assimilated."

There was an uproar in the hall. Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a long time and suddenly asked, "Where is the Japanese envoy?"

The Japanese envoy Ono Jiro, who was brought to the palace, knelt on the ground, trembling all over. Zhu Yuanzhang ordered people to give him a seat, but he saw that his legs were weak and he couldn't get up.

"Go back and tell your king," Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was as loud as a bell, "The Ming Dynasty can forgive, but it will not forget. If you want peace, you need to do three things: first, hand over all war criminals; second, pay 20 million taels of silver as compensation; third, the prince will be held hostage in Nanjing to learn Chinese etiquette."

Ono Jiro slammed his head to the ground and said, "I, your humble servant, will definitely convey your message!"

(End of this chapter)