I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 120 Li Zhi Meets a Wise Leader
Li Zhi looked at Zhu Yijun and felt a little nervous.

He knew that his ideas were heretical and not tolerated by celebrities and Confucian scholars, but he insisted on his own ideas and hoped to have the opportunity to put them into practice.

The most fundamental idea in Li Zhi's mind was to advocate reform and innovation. He hoped that the highest way would be inaction, the highest governance would be silent, the highest teaching would be wordless, and the highest governance would depend on people.

In his heart, God established the king for the people.

Li Zhi hated the hypocrites who defended Confucian ethics from the bottom of his heart, those moralists and hypocrites who talked about benevolence, righteousness and morality but were actually despicable in private.

He despised the Neo-Confucianists who talked about life and death, discussed profound things, ignored the concerns of the people, and regarded talking about financial management as a turbid behavior. In his view, those who did not talk about financial management could never govern the world.

He believed that only by managing finances well and taking care of people's livelihood could the country be enriched and strong.

In response to the orthodox Neo-Confucianists' proposition of "preserving the principles of Heaven and eliminating human desires", he had his own proposition, which is "wearing clothes and eating food are the principles of human ethics and physics."

However, most of these ideas are still hidden in Li Zhi's heart.

When he failed the examination, he knew that he would not go far in the imperial examinations, so he became an official, trying to perfect his ideas in practice and at the same time find a wise leader to realize his ambitions.

After more than ten years of wandering, he was suddenly selected by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and entered the Lifanyuan.

Li Zhi's heart suddenly became hot.

These days, he has been waiting for an opportunity.

The answer just now was also a test of Zhu Yijun.

"Mr. Zhuo Wu, what you said is absolutely right! It is exactly what I want!" Zhu Yijun said happily.

Li Zhi was shocked and could hardly express his excitement and joy.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, is he his wise leader?

Zhu Yijun continued: "My Great Ming's maritime merchants are well-connected all over the world, and we are rich and powerful. There is no one on the coast of the East China Sea who can rival my Great Ming!
If so, why not use the advantages of the Ming Dynasty to lure them with benefits, support a group of Japanese merchants, and then use them to control the Japanese vassal states.

If the grass you like is too weak, give it a hand, water it and add fertilizer to make it grow healthily!

But if there are one or two blades of grass that grow too strong and stick out, you should cut them carefully and let them rot in the ground and become waste for the next wave of grass. "

Everyone was shocked. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's words were so horrifying, and went against the principles of a sage's benevolent and virtuous governance.

Xiao Daheng couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, this doesn't conform to the principles of a saint, right?"

"I will only use the saintly principles on the good people of Ming. In my eyes, the dead Japanese pirates are the best Japanese pirates; the torn apart and constantly at war with Japan is the best Japan."

Zhu Yijun's blunt words shocked everyone even more.

Oh my God, what kind of good grandson did the emperor teach!

Li Zhi was very excited. He felt that he was quite unorthodox, but he never expected that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would go even further than he did.

A wise master, I have finally met a wise master!

"Mr. Wenchang," Zhu Yijun waved his hand, not wanting to dwell on this for too long, "The tone of the Japan talks has been set. Konoe Maehisa and Hosokawa Fujitaka should coax them, find some writers, hold a literary gathering, and let them continue to admire the culture of the Celestial Empire.

The sensible representatives of the feudal lords were invited to attend the literary gathering. Those who were not were taken directly to Tianjin Wei and deported together with the envoys after they returned to their country.

What the hell! Such a poor and arrogant Eastern Japanese monkey is not allowed in front of me!
Focus on talking to those business representatives.

Making money knows no borders! Just talk to those Japanese businessmen who value profit over loyalty, and hint to them that you can help them transfer their families to Ming, buy houses and land, become rich, or study and take exams.

Solve their worries, and they will work harder for the Ming Dynasty in the future!"

Zhu Yijun walked back and forth with his hands in his sleeves, but his words were like the bronze chimes of Emperor Jiajing, ringing in everyone's ears and hearts. "The Lifanyuan can use Japan as a pilot, and through economic and cultural means, support a group of local people who admire the Ming Dynasty and use them as internal support to create and intensify their internal conflicts. If there is no chaos, how can the Ming Dynasty's maritime merchants make money from the national crisis?
Japan, Annan, Burma, which one is not ambitious and always harbors the intention of rebellion? Even Korea, which is known as the most loyal dog of our Ming Dynasty, secretly colluded with Jianzhou Jurchen. What is the intention? Do you really think we don't know?

So these bastards, if they don't fight for three days, they will tear down the roof! As soon as they have enough food, they dare to bar their teeth at our Ming Dynasty! Now the Ming Dynasty navy controls the sea power, and sea merchants are everywhere. We don't use swords and guns, but money and pens.

Our Ming Dynasty is a country of etiquette and will never resort to war. We will use economic and cultural means to teach these ambitious people a lesson about the power of heaven! "

Everyone understood that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would not use a hard knife to kill people, but a soft knife instead.

A soft knife kills without being seen.

Japan, Annan and Myanmar are the most disrespectful to the Ming Dynasty, and they will surely become the three key countries for the Lifanyuan to implement the crown prince's new strategy.

The civil war continues, the people attack each other, rivers of blood flow, and there is no peace.

Thinking of this, everyone couldn't help but shudder.

The Crown Prince's mind and tactics are ruthless and vicious, and it seems that he has inherited the Emperor's true teachings. He is also very happy to use these methods on overseas vassal states.

Everyone present couldn't help but wonder, if the prince used such tricks on his subjects,
Everyone shuddered several times and dared not think about it any more.

Zhu Yijun stood in the middle and said to Xu Wei: "Let's settle the matter in the east. Let's talk about it slowly. This is a pot of porridge. We have to simmer it slowly.

Now let’s talk about Tumed in the north.

Mr. Wenchang, have you found out where the monk next to Bosihaer came from?"

"In reply to your Highness, the Eastern Depot and the Imperial Guards have been investigating for a few days and have initially found that he might be the nephew of the former Minister of War Ding Rukui."

"Ding Rukui? The Minister of War Ding Rukui who was executed by Yan Song during the Gengxu Rebellion?"

"Yes, Your Highness. The old monk of Renwang Temple recalled that there was a nephew of Minister Ding of the Ministry of War, less than 20 years old, who lived in the side courtyard of the temple, seeking a quiet place to study and prepare for the imperial examination. His age and appearance were similar to the monk next to Bosihaer.

Ding Rukui was imprisoned and executed, but the son and nephew disappeared. The East Factory and the Imperial Guard checked the Ministry of Rites and the Shuntian Prefecture's cabinet and found that Ding Rukui did have a son named Ding Wenxiang, with the courtesy name Sixian. He was born to a concubine, was very intelligent, and passed the Shandong provincial examination at the age of 18 and became a juren.

Xu Wei narrated the details.

"Ding Rukui brought her to the capital to prepare for the imperial examination, but she was not accepted by the principal wife, so he found a side courtyard in Renwang Temple and assigned several old servants to serve her.

After Ding Rukui was questioned, some people said that the old servant of the Ding family took Ding Wenxiang out of the capital and went to seek refuge with his old friends. The East Factory and the Jinyiwei sent people to Ding Rukui's hometown and his old friends to investigate, but no results were reported.

Zhu Yijun waved his hand, "That's enough!

The north cannot afford to slow down! Mr. Wenchang, we must ease the relationship with the Tumed tribe. If we defeat Xinai, we must give his father, Altan Khan, a sweet date to eat.”

The strategy of attacking the east and reconciling the west was a major secret. Among the people present, Zhu Yijun only told it to Xu Wei, so he just mentioned it implicitly.

Xu Wei nodded in understanding.

"Based on the information we have received from the Border Investigation Department, Altan Khan's most pressing request is to open a trading market and establish a trade fair to exchange cattle, sheep and horses for silk, grain, salt, tea and other goods from the Ming Dynasty.

You can promise him."

When these words were spoken, Zhao Zhenji and others were shocked.

The merchants of Shanxi and others had been begging for the opening of the border and the establishment of a trading market, even at the risk of breaking the law, which had caused the destruction of hundreds of wealthy merchant families. Now His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said that he would agree to Altan Khan's request to open the border for trade.

This. This is really hard to understand.

(End of this chapter)