The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 87 How Americans Became Aristocrats

Zhu Jianxuan discussed with his father in the Qianqing Palace until the evening. After having dinner in the Qianqing Palace, he returned to the Kunning Palace to live.

According to past traditions, Zhu Jianxuan, as a prince, could have his own palace and live there after he turned ten.

But children who are favored by the emperor and empress can stay in the palace for a longer period of time.

Zhu Jianxuan still lives with his mother.

The next morning, after breakfast, Zhu Jianxuan went to his laboratory to work as usual.

However, not long after he arrived, he received a report from the eunuch that two American representatives, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, came to visit him.

Zhu Jianxuan knew that they should be curious about the Ming Dynasty’s final arrangement towards the United States.

Even if they can guess the approximate result, they still want to get the exact result from me.

Zhu Jianxuan directly asked the eunuch to take the two of them to his office where he usually wrote and drew.

When the two saw Zhu Jianxuan, they bowed very seriously:
"See His Highness King Wu."

Zhu Jianxuan smiled and waved his hand, then asked knowingly:
"You're welcome. What brings you here specially? "

Adams is quite familiar with Zhu Jianxuan, mainly because he has learned Ming Mandarin for three years and can now communicate directly and smoothly.

So Adams, on behalf of Franklin and other representatives who were not present, asked something that the top American leaders should be very curious about:

“Your Highness, the terms of the peace treaty have now been basically determined, and our American Kingdom is about to be established.

“So when and how should we announce the establishment of the kingdom?
“What specific parts should the kingdom include? How will Your Highness hold the coronation or ascension ceremony?

"And how should the government of the King of America be organized? And how should the kingdom's noble title system be constructed?
"Did the Ming court give you any suggestions or plans? Do you have your own ideas and plans?
"Is there anything we need to cooperate with? Or anything we need to prepare in advance?"

When Zhu Jianxuan listened to what Adams said, he felt that the two of them were a little impatient.

However, Zhu Jianxuan could indeed understand their feelings.

They were like the founding heroes of a newly established dynasty, eager to determine their position in the new country before the founding ceremony.

It would be best to obtain a status that publicly demonstrates one's achievements.

Today, in the East and the West, new ideas with capitalist characteristics, including the Enlightenment, have been brewing and spreading throughout the world.

But it was still a world controlled by traditional monarchs and aristocrats.

In this era, there is no country in the world that can be considered an industrial country.

After all, the Industrial Revolution had not officially begun.

The United States is of course also an agricultural country, not a country where industry and commerce are absolutely dominant, and agriculture is still the current economic pillar.

The proportion of the agricultural population in the United States is much larger than that in the United Kingdom.

Due to the enclosure movement in Britain, a large number of farmers lost their farmland and became mere workers.

However, the United States has a large amount of wasteland waiting to be developed, and American farmers will basically not lose their land passively.

At this time, the cultural atmosphere in many places in the United States was more conservative than that in the United Kingdom.

These elites in the United States, who came from common people, also grew up in this old world.

Like ordinary civilians in this world, they still have a natural yearning for the titles and identities of traditional aristocrats.

But historically, the newly independent American society had no aristocratic system and no aristocratic tradition at all.

I instinctively want to establish a monarchy and aristocracy system, but I have absolutely no way to do it.

So they gave up on themselves and built a purely civilian republic in accordance with the most radical enlightenment ideas that were popular recently.

Whether it is their instinctive desire to become aristocrats, or their choice of a civilian republic after failing to become aristocrats, it very intuitively shows the mutual influence between social existence and social consciousness.

Now, these people can obtain completely legal and formal aristocratic status through Zhu Jianxuan, the prince of the Ming Dynasty.

The natural reaction of most people is joyful anticipation and acceptance.

Zhu Jianxuan thought so in his heart, and explained casually outside:
“Regarding the structure of the American Kingdom’s government, the title system, and the coronation ceremony, the Ming Dynasty’s Ministry of Rites will provide a set of traditional Eastern plans.

"I have also tried to combine the advantages of the political structures and title systems of the East and the West, and at the same time combined them with the actual situation in the United States, to plan a set of improvement plans.

“It’s almost done now, and when we return to America, we can use it to build our kingdom.

“We can immediately start to set up the kingdom’s government and aristocracy system, but the news of the establishment of the kingdom should not be announced right away.

"It would be best to wait until the kings and parliaments of England, Spain, and France have ratified the peace treaty before making it public.

“The United States of America was defined as at least the original thirteen colonies plus the area south of the Great Lakes, east of the Mississippi River, and north of Florida.

"According to the original agreement, Long Island was established as a direct dominion of the king, New York and New Jersey were established as two autonomous territories, Massachusetts and other eleven free states, and the rest of the land within the United States was established as provinces of the kingdom.

“My father has authorized me to manage the rest of North America, but it will not be directly incorporated into the United States.

“The ownership still belongs to the Ming Emperor for the time being, and I will be in direct charge of it as the Ming King Wu.

“In the future, we will sort it out and distribute it step by step based on the actual local conditions and the needs of the Ming Empire and its subordinate kingdoms.

“It is possible that part or all of it will be included in the jurisdiction of the Ming Dynasty court and the territory of the Ming Wu Kingdom.

“It could be a territory directly governed by the King of Ming America, or a province of Ming America. It is also possible that a new American Free State will be established.

"But no matter what happens next, my subjects in America and Wu will be allowed to live freely and run legal businesses."

Most of the questions Adams raised were simply requests for reassurance.

Knowing that the Ming Dynasty's Ministry of Rites had already made arrangements and that the future king himself was also prepared, they felt much more at ease. They both understood the reason for the decision to immediately start preparing for the founding of the country but not to announce it to the public for the time being.

Although Britain, France and Spain are now exhausted, even if America openly invites the prince of the Ming Dynasty to be king, they should no longer be able to interfere directly.

But it is better not to cause unnecessary trouble now, lest their king deliberately delays or even refuses to approve the agreement, leaving room for wrangling in the future.

After the agreement is approved and America's independence is recognized internationally, how America decides its own destiny will have nothing to do with any of these other countries.

Anyway, preparing for the founding of a nation does take time, and there are still many specific things to discuss, so it’s okay to wait another year or two.

Both of them were somewhat surprised about the disposal of the North American land.

According to their understanding, Zhu Jianxuan became the Governor-General of North America of the Ming Empire, in charge of all Ming affairs in North America.

The two were also satisfied with the territorial scope of the United States.

But now the basic foundation that can be confirmed is as much as the promise made by the King of England, and other North American lands are also open to Americans.

It’s worth it anyway to work so hard until now.

However, it is certain that one will gain in status, as one can transform from a descendant of European commoners into a noble in the Shenzhou Empire system.

People who grow up in an Eastern cultural environment may be relatively introverted and reserved.

Europeans are relatively straightforward, and Adams himself is a commoner, so he asked a somewhat sensitive question:
"May I ask, Your Highness, what form of political and title system do you envision improving? Could you give us a brief introduction?"

Adams asked about politics and the title system, but what he was actually concerned about was obviously the title system.

Because Adams was from Massachusetts, the future free state of America.

The political system of the American Kingdom's court had nothing to do with him directly.

It is probably because Adams lived in Ming Dynasty for two years and studied Ming culture seriously for several years.

Only now did he think of bringing up other issues to cover up the issue he was most concerned about.

Zhu Jianxuan smiled and shook his head and said:

“I know everyone should be concerned about the noble title system, so I will briefly talk about this plan now.

“First of all, it’s about the rank of nobility. As a prince of the Ming Dynasty, I rule a country where the highest rank I can confer is that of a prince, but only princes can be given that title.

“The titles that commoners can obtain include the ten levels of duke, duke of a county, marquis of a county, earl of a county, earl of a state, son of a state, son of a county, baron of a county, gentry, and scholar.

“The origins of Ming dynasty titles are different from those of European titles, but their current status is very similar, and neither of them directly corresponds to the territory.

"On this basis, there are also distinctions between hereditary and non-hereditary titles, between those with fiefs and those without, and honorary titles conferred due to kinship, etc."

Zhu Jianxuan stopped talking here, and Adams subconsciously asked:

"Your Highness, how do you get a title? How are the criteria for being a noble determined?
"Do we have to win on the battlefield like the Ming Dynasty?"

Zhu Jianxuan casually explained:

“Of course it was in the past, but times have changed.

“So I said we should combine the advantages of the East and the West and take into account the specific conditions of America.

“My current idea is to divide the titles into four types based on their levels, corresponding to the four ways to obtain them.

“The first type is the Type A title.

"The most traditional standard is adopted, and it is awarded to military generals who have achieved major victories in battles to defend the country and capture cities.

"Like General Horatio Gates, who commanded the Continental Army and militia to the great victory of Saratoga.

"It reversed the situation of the war in North America and directly prompted Ming, France, and Spain to officially decide to join the war.

“This achievement deserves an earldom.

“The second type is the Type B title.

“In light of the development and changes in the current era, this award is given to those who have made significant contributions to the country outside the battlefield.

“If I were a normal person and I designed the bike in America, I’d get a baronetcy.

"If Mr. Franklin had figured out the basic principles of electricity and worked out accurate theorems, he would have been awarded an earldom.

"Mr. Adams gained the trust of the Ming Dynasty and pushed the Ming Dynasty to participate in the war, which ultimately led to the success of the War of Independence. He was also awarded the title of Earl.

“The third type is the Type C title.

"As a supplement to the two types of titles, it is given to those who fail to meet the above two standards but continue to make small but significant contributions.

“For example, officials and craftsmen who have worked in important positions for decades without major mistakes or corruption and have made great contributions.

“For example, there are great people who have been engaged in philanthropy for a long time, investing in or donating to free schools, orphanages, and nursing homes.

“For example, a factory owner who has been operating legally for a long time and has paid taxes in full and on time is an honest businessman whose tax amount is among the highest in the kingdom.

“The fourth type is the D-type title.

“I don’t meet the first three conditions, but I do have a significant social impact, and I really want to be awarded the title.

“For example, if a farmer owns a large amount of land, he can ask the kingdom officials to calculate the specific area of ​​the land, and then pay taxes directly to the king according to the area, and he can also obtain the corresponding title.

"In short, we should preserve traditions, encourage development, enrich our characteristics and let everyone take what they need."

(End of this chapter)