Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1254 Calculation
Zhu Mincheng's memorial was not long. After inquiring about the well-being of his father and mother, it described the current development of the Song Kingdom and Xinjing. It was a lengthy document of over a thousand words. However, at the end, the tone suddenly shifted, and he began to complain to Zhu Shenzhui.

In his memorial, Zhu Mincheng detailed the current difficulties facing the Song Dynasty, particularly the rapid population growth caused by the large influx of immigrants in recent years and the discovery of gold mines. Although the Song Dynasty was making every effort to accommodate these immigrants, it was unable to address the overall situation, leading to numerous problems.

While discussing these issues, Zhu Mincheng expressed that as the King of Song, he was somewhat powerless to address them. The development of the Song Kingdom was simply too rapid, and the Song Royal Palace, as a vassal state, had limited manpower, causing headaches for everyone. Moreover, the imbalance between local agriculture and commerce caused by the gold mines also greatly worried Zhu Mincheng. Zhu Mincheng intended to adjust policies, encourage agriculture, and strengthen the management of gold mines to prevent the problems that the Song Kingdom might encounter during its rapid development from erupting in the future.

While elaborating on these points, Zhu Mincheng also raised a surprising point: he suggested that the central government of the Ming Dynasty should set up local governments in the New World, especially in the Song Kingdom, and send officials to assist the vassal state in its management. If prefectures and governments could be established in the Song Kingdom and officials could be stationed there, then Zhu Mincheng's burden would be greatly reduced.

After reading this passage, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but chuckle, and even subconsciously cursed, "You little bastard."

Zhu Mincheng knew his son Zhu Shenzhui better than anyone else. Compared to Crown Prince Zhu Minlan, Zhu Mincheng was equally intelligent, but his intelligence was more evident in other areas, unlike the Crown Prince who was more talented and ambitious in politics.

If it were just ordinary matters, or even matters of warfare, Zhu Mincheng would have some skill. Although he had never actually been on the battlefield, his grades at the military academy were quite good. Moreover, he and the Crown Prince were both personally trained by him over the years. Even in terms of martial arts, Zhu Mincheng was slightly better than the Crown Prince. From this point of view, he was quite remarkable.

Compared to the Crown Prince, perhaps due to his status, Zhu Mincheng was not as politically astute, nor did he think as deeply about issues. But now, the sudden submission of this memorial made Zhu Shenzhui immediately realize that someone must be behind it.

Zhu Mincheng's policy of extending his influence overseas has been in place for more than a year or two; it has now been a full three years. Furthermore, the discovery of gold mines and the influx of immigrants into the Song Kingdom are not recent phenomena; more than two years have passed since then. If Zhu Mincheng possessed such political acumen and foresight, he would have anticipated the potential consequences from the outset and taken appropriate measures. However, Zhu Mincheng has instead allowed the situation to continue unchecked for the past few years, maintaining the Song Kingdom's abnormally rapid development. Frankly, given Zhu Shenzhui's constant focus on the New World, he had already understood this problem long ago.

Zhu Shenzhui never reminded Zhu Mincheng, intending to see when Zhu Mincheng would realize the problem or see the root of the issue on his own. Having been granted an external post, Zhu Mincheng, as a prince, was effectively detached from the Ming Dynasty's homeland; his future path would depend on his own choices.

Moreover, although the development of the Song state had its flaws and shortcomings, its existence was relatively recent. Even if problems arose within such a short time, resolving them wouldn't be too difficult. More importantly, gold mining in the Song state was unlikely to encounter problems in the short term; the only difference would be slightly increased difficulty. However, given the reserves and current mining methods, there would be no issues for decades to come. Therefore, while the Song state had potential risks, these risks were not enough to erupt in the short term, a point Zhu Shenzhui was quite confident about.

If a fledgling eagle wants to spread its wings and soar through the sky, it ultimately has to rely on itself. Similarly, when a child grows up, the path they take in the future is also up to them.

Parents can't always be by their children's side to guide them on their steps. If Zhu Mincheng still doesn't realize this after several years, Zhu Shenzhui will naturally step in to remind him. However, if the problem hasn't reached an insurmountable level, Zhu Shenzhui won't give him any advance notice.

But unexpectedly, in just three years, Zhu Mincheng realized the situation and even submitted such a memorial. Although the memorial pointed out the problems of the Song state and expressed the intention to change them, the young man played a trick, actually using a feigned retreat to proactively request the court to establish prefectures in the New World, which made Zhu Shenzhui laugh and scold.

Upon seeing this suggestion, Zhu Shenzhui concluded that someone must have advised Zhu Mincheng, otherwise, given his son's temperament, he would not have understood so quickly, much less used such a method. As for who this person was, Zhu Shenzhui figured it out after careful consideration; it was probably Sun Chengzong's youngest son, Sun Hao, who was also Zhu Mincheng's chief secretary.

The reason is simple: after Sun Chengzong died, Sun Hao was observing mourning at home. Although Zhu Shenzhui agreed to appoint Sun Hao as the Chief Secretary of the Prince of Song's Palace due to Zhu Mincheng's strong request, Sun Hao was unable to accompany Zhu Mincheng to the New World because of his mourning period.

The three-year mourning period ended, and six months ago, Sun Hao left his hometown aboard a naval warship bound for the New World—a fact Zhu Shenzhui was aware of. Considering this timeline, plus the date this memorial was sent, the answer becomes obvious.

Thinking of this, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but secretly praise Sun Hao. He was indeed worthy of being Sun Chengzong's son. Although Sun Hao had not distinguished himself in the imperial examinations and had no other merits among the Sun family members except for his commendable reputation for filial piety, Sun Chengzong had even said in his memorial to the emperor before his death that the Sun family members were all mediocre talents. He only hoped that after his death, the emperor would treat the Sun family members well out of respect for him and grant them favors. As for other matters, he didn't need to worry about them. With their abilities, they could be good at being minor officials or holding honorary positions. It would be bad if they became high-ranking officials.

As the saying goes, no one knows a son better than his father. Zhu Shenzhui agreed with Sun Chengzong's attitude, and it was indeed the case. None of Sun Chengzong's sons were particularly promising. Apart from their decent character, they were all just average. If they were forced to be promoted or given important responsibilities, their abilities might actually harm them.

But Zhu Shenzhui never expected that Sun Hao, who had always been unremarkable, was different. Sun Hao had no reputation before, nor had he shown any talent, but ever since Zhu Mincheng went to Sun Chengzong's hometown on his behalf, for some reason his son had taken a liking to Sun Hao, and upon returning, insisted that he agree to leave the position of Chief Secretary of the Song Prince's Mansion to Sun Hao.

At the time, Zhu Shenzhui didn't think much of it, assuming it was just Zhu Mincheng's youthful impulsiveness and the two being compatible, so he agreed. However, he hadn't expected Sun Hao to understand the problems of the Song Dynasty so quickly after arriving in the New World, and even offer Zhu Mincheng advice in this way, producing such a memorial. This made Zhu Shenzhui sigh inwardly. "Like father, like son," Zhu Shenzhui thought, "it seems Sun Hao, like the old master, is a late bloomer. I misjudged him." He had never met Sun Hao, let alone had direct contact with him, but now he actually wanted to meet him.

Unfortunately, it's impossible to see Sun Hao again now. That guy has long since gone to the New World and become Zhu Mincheng's subordinate and confidant. Even though he is the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, he can't force someone out of his own son, can he? Zhu Shenzhui wouldn't do such a thing, nor would he deign to.

"Lu Jiude!"

"The slave is here!"

"Go and invite the Crown Prince over."

"yes……."

Crown Prince Zhu Minlan currently works in the Eastern Palace. To cultivate the Crown Prince and strengthen his power, Zhu Shenzhui made this arrangement: many ordinary government affairs, as long as the Crown Prince is in the palace, are generally reviewed by him first, and a preliminary plan is then presented before being passed on to the Emperor. If there are important matters in the Cabinet, Zhu Shenzhui will also summon the Crown Prince to discuss them together. Zhu Shenzhui naturally has a deeper purpose in doing this.

Before long, Crown Prince Zhu Minlan arrived.

"Father! You summoned your son?"

"Come, your second brother has sent a memorial. Take a look." Zhu Shenzhui didn't stand on ceremony with the Crown Prince, inviting him to sit down and casually tossing Zhu Mincheng's memorial to him.

Zhu Minlan took the memorial, sat down, opened it and read it carefully. After a while, she raised an eyebrow and burst out laughing.

"Second brother, this is a strategic retreat! Who came up with this idea? It seems like a good one, and it saves Father some trouble."

"Who else could it be but your good senior brother, Sun Hao, the youngest son of Master Sun?" Zhu Shenzhui said with a smile.

“Sun Hao…?” Zhu Minlan pondered for a moment. He knew this person, but like Zhu Shenzhui, he had never met him. However, he knew how his younger brother Zhu Mincheng knew him, and he also knew that Zhu Mincheng had suggested to their father that Sun Hao should serve as the chief secretary of the Song Prince’s Palace.

At that time, neither Zhu Shenzhui nor Zhu Minlan had any interest in Sun Hao. They thought that Sun Hao was just a senior brother in name to the two princes. Moreover, Zhu Mincheng was straightforward and usually valued loyalty. Perhaps because of Sun Chengzong, he wanted to help his senior brother, which is why he made this request.

Unexpectedly, Sun Hao possessed such abilities. Crown Prince Zhu Minlan was also aware of the situation in Song, and like Zhu Shenzhui, he hadn't reminded his younger brother, hoping Zhu Mincheng would figure it out himself and find a solution. He wouldn't intervene unless absolutely necessary, as enfeoffing a prince as a regional king was a major event, a crucial decision made by the Emperor. Although he was the heir apparent, he couldn't say much about such matters, lest misunderstandings arise and cause trouble.

With a sigh, Zhu Minlan felt a pang of regret. If he had known earlier that Sun Hao possessed such ability and insight, he might have intercepted Prince Song, Zhu Mincheng, first. Although the Eastern Palace had now established its foundation, with many officials including military generals and nobles, talent was still rare, especially someone like Sun Hao. Wouldn't it be better to have him at one's disposal? Unfortunately, it was too late to say any of this now.

(End of this chapter)