Yongle Emperor's grandson: Zhu Yuanzhang with cheats, Zhu Di went crazy

Chapter 88 The Real Use of the Empty Imperial Edict (Please Subscribe)
It was almost dawn when Xia Yuanji returned to the thatched hut with a satisfied look on his face.

Zhu Zhanjun took a look and saw dozens of pieces of paper filled with densely written calculations and algorithms, which made the readers dizzy.

"Your Highness, Brother Zhu just said that you plan to promote high-yield crops one by one next year, right?"

Zhu Zhanjun looked at him in surprise. He didn't expect that the two of them had developed into such close brothers in such a short time.

But why did he feel that this name was a bit awkward? It seemed like it was taking advantage of him.

"I plan to gradually promote these three types of food next year."

Xia Yuanji shook his head and advised: "I suggest you think twice before acting."

Before Zhu Zhanjun could get confused, he explained, "After years of war, our Great Ming is now a seriously ill patient, and serious illness requires serious medicine. The three high-yield grains in your hand are the life-saving medicines."

"But there is another saying: strong medicine is as fierce as a tiger. Once the medicine is too strong, it is not saving people, it is harming people."

"Your Highness's idea is good, but you and Emperor Taizu Gao have not personally visited the people for a long time, and you don't know much about the current actual situation."

"Let me tell you this. If we promote the three high-yield crops collectively next year, it will not only fail to save the country, but will bring great disasters."

Zhu Zhanjun and Old Zhu looked at each other and motioned Xia Yuanji to continue.

"Minister Xia, drink some water first."

Queen Ma brought a bowl of water and placed it on the table in front of Xia Yuanji.

"Thank you, my lady. I am thirsty."

Old Xia picked up the bowl and drank it all in one gulp, then wiped his mouth and continued, "The reason why I said it would bring about a huge disaster is two-fold."

"First, the local powerful nobles don't want the common people to live well. Or rather, the vast majority of them don't want them to live well."

"Because once the people live well, whose land will they take? How will they expand the power of their own family?"

"Land is the foundation of the common people, and it is also the foundation of these aristocratic families and powerful gentry."

"Second, high-yield crops require more land. Do you know how much land the people still have? Can they afford to grow crops?"

Zhu Zhanjun and Lao Zhu were silent. They really didn't know.

It’s not that he hasn’t investigated, but with Zhu Zhanjun’s current strength, he can only investigate the situation around the capital.

It's not the modern era now, where you can drive anywhere in a day.

In this age when communication basically relies on shouting and travel basically relies on walking, let alone going to remote areas, it is difficult to even cross a province without some financial resources.

In addition, Zhu Zhanjun has been back for a short time, so even if he sent someone to investigate, it is hard to say whether they have arrived yet.

"Based on the reports from various ministries in the sixth year of Yongle, and the results of our Ministry of Revenue's investigation."

"In places like Shandong in the north, people were displaced due to the war in the Jingnan Campaign."

"These uncultivated lands were taken over by the wealthy and powerful families under various names."

"For example, if you want to flee with your family, and your family has no money, not even food, then those people will take the land into their hands under various pretexts."

"As long as these lands are in their hands, whether they are still yours after you come back will depend on the conscience of these people."

“But the question is, do these people have a conscience?”

Xia Yuanji asked a series of questions, leaving everyone present silent.

Old Xia looked at Old Zhu again, "Your Majesty, you may think that what I said is too absurd. After all, you and the current emperor are so strict in management, how could such a situation occur?"

Lao Zhu didn't say anything, but from his expression you could tell that's what he was thinking.

Old Xia gave a bitter laugh and explained to the others, "I have been to various places and have seen the situation there. The situation in some areas where family forces are entrenched is more serious than what I have said."

"Even if the village tyrants and rural landlords seize your land by force, you will have nowhere to go."

"The county magistrate won't take care of it. If you file a complaint with someone else, no one will respond. If you file a complaint with someone else, you can't even leave the county without a permit." "When I was the head of the Ministry of Revenue, I went to inspect the local area. A county magistrate said something when he was drunk, and I still remember it in my heart."

"From the county government to the village elders, we are all of one mind. What can a lowly person like you do to fight us? If you behave yourself as a tenant, we can still give you a life. If you don't behave yourself, there are still so many unsolved murders in the county government."

After waiting for a while to allow Zhu Zhanjun and others to digest the news, Xia Yuanji continued to preach.

"I say this to tell Your Highness the truth."

“The promotion of high-yield crops is actually a test.”

"You just ignored everything right from the start and promoted all three things so that the people could actually benefit from them."

"If, by any chance, those aristocratic families realize the threat these high-yield grains pose to them, they will try every possible means to prevent these seeds from falling into the hands of ordinary people."

"Don't doubt whether they have the ability. The imperial court needs to announce the policies through them."

“Everything the people heard was what they said. As for whether it was what they meant at the beginning, the people have no idea.”

"As long as they use their words to deceive people, the high-yield grain that can bring good fortune to the people will become a scourge that the people will resist."

After saying this, Xia Yuanji finally concluded: "In my humble opinion, we should find a more appropriate promotion method, rather than directly announcing it in the name of the court and promoting it to the whole country."

Zhu Zhanjun looked at Zhu Biao in confusion after hearing this, "Grandpa, didn't you tell Old Xia about our plan?"

Xia Yuanji was stunned for a moment and asked, "Do you already have a way to crack it?"

Zhu Biao patted his forehead and said, "I just talked about the production and promotion of grain, and forgot to talk about our plan."

Zhu Biao used the simplest words to express his idea of ​​using the military households as a system and slowly infiltrating and promoting it outward.

Xia Yuanji frowned, pondered for a moment and said, "I have to say this method is indeed very good, but there is a fatal problem."

"That is the attitude of the emperor and the local garrison officers."

"These local garrison officers are no less difficult to deal with than the landlords and tyrants. If one is not handled properly, the consequences will be no different."

"Don't worry about that." Zhu Zhanjun said with a smile: "Grandpa has given me the right to make decisions, and stated that as long as I am willing to join the Veteran Chamber of Commerce, I will not be controlled by the local guards."

Xia Yuanji still shook his head, "Your Highness, you are too naive. You think the power of the imperial court's orders in the local area is too great."

"As long as you are within their control, they have plenty of ways to kill you."

"According to my suggestion, select an area, select the military households that are willing to join the Veterans Chamber of Commerce, and manage them in a unified manner."

"In this way, when our strength reaches a certain level in the future, we can suppress them and carry out the next step of control."

Old Xia looked at Zhu Zhanjun who was deep in thought and advised: "Your Highness, you must remember one thing, eat as much as your stomach can hold. If you eat too much, not only will you not become strong, but you will die of bloating."

"Your plan is indeed good, but it is too ambitious. Even if His Majesty orders you to force yourself to eat, your bloated body will only hinder your progress and will not be of any help."

Zhu Zhanjun frowned and asked, "That's what Lao Xia meant. What do you think is good about it?"

Seeing that Zhu Zhanjun had listened, Old Xia smiled with satisfaction and looked at Old Zhu who was standing beside him in deep thought.

"Using Fengyang as the base, we will incorporate the entire Central Plains into the region, and based on the military households of the Veteran Chamber of Commerce, we will open up cultivation in the Central Plains."

"Besides that, this place is also a meeting point. Any resources your highness needs can be gathered from the surrounding areas."

"Besides, this place is not far from Jinling. With me in the court, Your Highness can keep track of everything at any time."

Zhu Zhanjun exchanged glances with Old Zhu Zhu Biao for a while, nodded slightly, and thought this suggestion was good.

But then he became a little worried: "Your idea is indeed good, but the Central Plains concerns the whole world, I am afraid that Grandpa Emperor and the court officials will not agree."

Xia Yuanji was not in the least bit anxious about this. He smiled and said, "Your Highness, have you forgotten the imperial edict in your hand?"

(End of this chapter)