Ming Dynasty: Traveling through the harem, Zhu Yuanzhang was dumbfounded

Chapter 77 Muscular Cute Girl Mu Lingxi (Subscription Request)
"Wait a minute? You just said that the second brother hasn't made any serious mistakes yet, he just imprisoned Guanyin slave and collected money privately, right?"

Empress Ma grasped the key point and asked Zhu Yuanzhang for confirmation.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the other party nod.

“Well, luckily Yang Chen told us in time and did not let the second brother go down a path of no return.

If he really tortured and killed palace maids, he would have imposed cruel and irreparable punishments on men, women, young and old.

Then even if he is a prince, I will not allow you to forgive him.

He can still be saved now, but he must not be allowed to return to his fiefdom and do whatever he wants in the short term.

Wait until the person you assigned has conducted a thorough investigation and knows the whole story before making the final judgment on him.

By the way, have you asked anyone to bring back his concubine Deng and Guanyin Nu?
Deng was the daughter of Deng Yu, who died of illness in the tenth year of Hongwu. He was a meritorious official.

But the children actually did such a thing, Chongba, how do you think we should deal with it?"

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were filled with viciousness.

"Humph! This woman has bad intentions. Although she hasn't committed any serious crime, keeping her here will only bring disaster.

We as parents will take charge of the matter for the second son and drive this woman back to her own home.

It's just to give Deng Yu some face."

Now Zhu Yuanzhang has a good relationship with these brothers and they have not fallen out with each other.

Besides, Deng Yu made many contributions when he was alive.

He once followed Xu Da in the expedition to Gansu, defeated the Northern Yuan army, and persuaded the Tubo and U-Tsang tribes to surrender. He was ordered to conquer the remnants of Tubo, wipe out their hideouts, and chase them to Kunlun Mountain, where he beheaded countless people, captured more than 200,000 horses, cattle and sheep, and persuaded various countries to surrender.

Such an achievement was enough to keep his daughter alive.

This decision was also agreed by Queen Ma.

"Yes, this decision is also fine. After all, Deng Yu risked his life for the Ming Dynasty. If we are too cruel, it will easily chill the hearts of our brothers.

Oh, there is one important thing you haven't forgotten, right?"

"What's the matter?"

Zhu Yuanzhang's mind was full of question marks, and it was obvious that he had no idea what Empress Ma wanted to ask.

The other party's reaction made Queen Ma roll her eyes, and then she said angrily:
"Marriage! Didn't you say you wanted to arrange a marriage for Yang Chen and Mu Lingxi?

If you don't want to choose a princess for Yang Chen, then let Mu'er's daughter marry him. Mu'er has made great contributions and is our best adopted son.

Whether in terms of identity or status, letting his daughter marry Yang Chen will definitely let Yang Chen know that we value him very much."

After being reminded, Zhu Yuanzhang finally reacted and patted his thigh.

"Oh! Sister, look at my memory. I was planning to discuss this matter with Mu'er after the morning court this morning.

But I didn’t sleep well last night and forgot about it.”

This really can’t be blamed on Lao Zhu. Everyone was living in peace and harmony last night.

After leaving the harem, if he honestly went to look for someone to serve him.

Who knows, Yang Chen might meet his father-in-law today.

But who knew that Old Zhu would ask Yang Chen about the future of Queen Ma.

Then he saw the courage of Yang Chen, a guy who always mentioned the word death and was not afraid of death, which made Lao Zhu feel very difficult.

He has encountered so many things one after another that even though Old Zhu is already in his fifties, he has not gone completely crazy yet.

It's already a medical miracle.

"Remember to say later that the sooner this is done, the better.

By the way, after you left me last night, why didn't you go find another concubine?"

Empress Ma changed the subject and asked why Zhu Yuanzhang had actually left the harem last night.

Clearly not what she knew about him.

Faced with the question, how could Lao Zhu dare to tell the truth? He hesitated for a long time without responding.

Looking at this reaction, even though he didn't say anything, Queen Ma knew that the other party must have gone to find Yang Chen.

As for what they were talking about, she was not interested and did not ask.

With a sigh, Queen Ma's voice of reminder rang out.

“Remember to take some time to ask where all the military merits of the Ming Dynasty went.

This world was conquered by everyone together, but in the end, it was dominated by one force.

If we don’t figure out what they are up to, we won’t be able to guard against them.”

"Don't worry, sister. We know everything. We'll ask Yang Chen about it later.

I still have some things to take care of, so I'll leave first."

After Zhu Yuanzhang finished speaking, he left without hesitation.

He didn't dare to talk to Queen Ma for too long, if they stayed with her for a while longer.

I'm afraid the other party will know that I will die in the 15th year of Hongwu.

Speaking of which, it has been almost a whole day now, and Zhu Yuanzhang still feels as if he is in a dream.

In the fifteenth year of Hongwu, his sister was about to leave when she was just over fifty years old.

Her departure made Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly realize something.

Nothing is more important than your sister.

She is his white moonlight, his salvation, and the goal and concern he has lived for most of his life.

Walking on the palace road in the setting sun, Zhu Yuanzhang put his hands behind his back, and his shadow was cast diagonally on the cinnabar red city wall.

The next morning, accompanied by the crowing of cocks, the red sun began to emerge from the pale sky.

Many ministers serving in the capital began to evacuate the palace and return to their own places to work.

Mu Ying came to Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial study wearing a military officer's robe.

"Your Majesty! I am here!"

Now in his thirties, Mu Ying is a deputy general with many years of battlefield experience.

Just last year, Mu Ying was appointed General of the Western Expedition, and he, together with Lan Yu and others, led troops to conquer the Western Barbarians.

At the beginning, they won a victory in Tumen Gorge, then attacked Taozhou (now Lintan County, Gansu Province), and captured Achangshina, the leader of the 18 tribes of the Western Fan.

He also built a city on Donglong Mountain, captured the chief's three deputies, including Ying Cunzi, pacified the seven stations of Doganar, expanded the territory by thousands of miles, and captured 20,000 men and women and more than 200,000 livestock of various kinds.

With such experience, he is one of the best among many military generals in the Ming Dynasty.

In addition, he was Zhu Yuanzhang's adopted son when he was young. In the entire Ming Dynasty, except for those old hands, basically no one dared to disrespect him.

Compared with other "Huaixi nobles, arrogant and brave generals", Mu Ying is usually very low-key.

Be kind and know why you have earned your identity and status.

At the same time, he also respected Zhu Yuanzhang before Zhu Biao was born.

He received special attention from Zhu Yuanzhang and his wife, who truly treated this adopted son as their own son.

"Okay, okay, Mu'er is here, come and sit here."

Seeing Mu Ying coming, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately smiled happily.

Mu Ying himself was very surprised by this.

However, he was just a little confused and still obeyed the other party's orders and sat down on a chair closer to Zhu Yuanzhang.

"Mu'er, last time, the emperor asked you to mobilize troops in your capacity as the deputy governor and set off to the north to launch an expedition against Tuo Huochi. I wonder how the preparations are going?"

Upon hearing this, Mu Ying's face instantly became extremely embarrassed.

"In reply to your father, since you gave me this matter to arrange, I have hurried to various departments to start preparations.

I went to the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue and other relevant important places to notify them to prepare carriages and horses for marching and fighting, to recruit young people who were interested in joining the army, and to find out about the food and wages needed to sustain the next three months.

But the people from the Ministry of Revenue told me that the imperial treasury was insufficient to raise the wages and food for an army of 200,000.

I'm afraid it will endanger the Ming Dynasty and cause unrest in the country.

As a military general, I understand the principle of not engaging in excessive military spending. The Ming Dynasty finally had the chance to recuperate.

The people were just beginning to live a better life.

If the people's livelihood is ruined because of the Northern Expedition, it will be a great sin that I, as a son, cannot accept."

When Mu Ying left the palace, he was full of ambition and hesitation.

He thought that he could make great contributions to the Ming Dynasty and accomplish many feats.

However, when the people from the Ministry of Revenue told him that the court had no money, it was like a bucket of cold water poured down on him.

It gave him a headache.

Mu Ying is different from other generals. He is calm and composed and not so impulsive.

Understand that war is a matter of domino effect.

So after consulting senior colleagues like Xu Da, he thought about reporting this matter to Zhu Yuanzhang.

See what Zhu Yuanzhang thinks before applying.

After understanding the whole story, Zhu Yuanzhang looked a little worried.

There is some truth to the saying that a penny can make a hero fall.

"Okay, in that case, let's put the Northern Expedition on hold for now. When we have enough money, we will prepare troops for you.

When the time comes, let Tiande and a few old brothers lead you young people to the north to fight.

But even though we don't fight them, we can't let them go easily.

If Tuohuochi, Nairbuhua and other former subordinates of the Northern Yuan Dynasty invade our northern border again.

Then we don't mind letting them have a taste of the Ming Dynasty's artillery!"

"Father, you are so ambitious. I am willing to fight for you on the battlefield until my death!"

Mu Ying saw that Zhu Yuanzhang's aura was still exactly the same as when he was young.

That heroic and unparalleled image can still make Mu Ying feel mighty and powerful.

"Alright, alright, what's the point of talking about life or death? You're our adopted son and Biao'er's elder brother, so let's not mention these words that convey bad luck.

I came to you today because I have something good to tell you."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, looked into Mu Ying's eyes, his face full of peace, and spoke in a kind tone.

But for some reason, Mu Ying vaguely felt that there was some ulterior motive in these words.

"I wonder what good news has happened to your father? Why don't you tell me about it? Let me be happy too."

Seeing the other party nod, Zhu Yuanzhang did not hide anything and said directly:
"Haha! Mu'er, this is not our happy event, it's your happy event!"

"what?"

Mu Ying was clearly sitting, but he felt like he was going to fall. He looked at Zhu Yuanzhang in disbelief.

"Mu'er, how long has it been since we last saw our granddaughter, Mu Lingxi'er? I heard that many people have come to your house to propose marriage to this little girl, right?"

Realizing that his father was coming for his daughter, Mu Ying's mouth twitched.

He probably guessed that the other party wanted to marry his son to his daughter.

Similar things are common, and several predecessors such as Xu Da are examples.

As for the remaining few dukes, as long as their daughters were good-looking, they would all be married into the palace and become the prince's principal wife or concubine.

But he didn't expect that such a thing would happen to him so soon.

After clearing his throat, Mu Ying responded:
"Father, I brought Ling'er to pay you New Year's greetings during the Chinese New Year. Father must have forgotten about the marriage proposal."

Speaking of this, Mu Ying's expression suddenly became complicated.

After hesitating for a while, Mu Ying finally told the story.

"My daughter is now sixteen years old. To outsiders, she is graceful and elegant, with skin as white as jade, a rare fairy. Under the guidance of my wife, Ling'er is indeed worthy of the title of a talented lady in the boudoir, unparalleled in the world, but..."

"But what?"

Seeing Mu Ying pause again, Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly asked.

Since the girl was pretty and graceful, it meant that she was definitely good-looking. However, the hesitant look of his adopted son made Old Zhu quite curious.

"Oh! Father, let me tell you straight.

I originally wanted Ling'er to be a virgin, but she not only did very well with women, she was also quite good with men.

When Ling'er was eight years old, she picked up a long stick in the yard.

She kept shouting that she wanted to be a female general in the future. At that time, I didn't take it seriously and thought that since she wanted to have fun, she could do it.

Then I asked the captain to teach her, but I didn't expect that before she was thirteen years old, she could use a long stick to wield the Taizu Panlong Stick.

The captain who taught him even said that Ling'er was a genius, but it was a pity that he was not a man, otherwise he would definitely be a general.

I originally wanted to pass on my legacy to Muchun, but Linger was not convinced and thought that there was no reason why a girl couldn't be a general.

Then she took out her anger on her brother all day long. I felt guilty towards her, so naturally I didn't dare to say much.

For a long time, I didn’t dare to say anything to her at home.”

After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang finally understood that Mu Lingxi was a fierce woman.

He has great ambitions, and the key is that he is extremely talented.

It instantly reminded him of someone.

"Why does this girl look so similar to Qin Liangyu?"

"Ah? Father, what are you talking about? Who is Qin Liangyu?"

Mu Ying looked at Zhu Yuanzhang in confusion. Old Zhu glanced at him and explained with a frown:

"No, nothing. Since this granddaughter has such a heroic temperament, do you know what kind of person she likes?"

After thinking carefully, Mu Ying scratched his head and replied:

"Alas! Father, don't tell me, Ling'er did mention it. She said that if a man wants to marry her, he must be able to beat her.

However, so far, I have discovered that the sons of ministers in the court are all weak scholars.

Forget about beating her. With a long spear or a stick in her hands, she can beat up a large number of nobles."

Thinking back on these things, Mu Ying didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Although she is a girl, she has higher talents than men.

He was glad that he did not show the military books in the study to Mu Lingxi, otherwise Mu Lingxi might be stronger than his father, Marquis of Xiping.

However, even though he knew Mu Lingxi's personality, Zhu Yuanzhang did not show any disappointment.

Instead, there was a glimmer of cunning in his eyes.

"It's okay! Mu'er, let me tell you, we found a genius boy.

Although this little bastard doesn't speak very well, we think, and not only we think so, your mother also thinks that he will definitely shine in the future.

And we also plan to train him to be Biao'er's right-hand man. You know that Biao'er will definitely be the emperor in the future.

He will always be responsible for the future direction of the entire Ming Dynasty.

Whether it is civil or military, we will listen to his opinions.

By then, the person who will be the emperor in the world will be Biao'er, and he will be the absolute minister with the highest position among all the ministers.

More importantly, this guy is young, very young, and absolutely suitable for Ling'er."

Mu Ying, who was close to Zhu Yuanzhang, looked at him with a strange expression.

He knew his adoptive father's character very well.

He is very irritable. Anyone who can catch his eye is definitely a genius.

But based on what the other party had just said, Mu Ying felt that his adoptive father was quite contradictory towards the person he was talking about.

When I want to praise the other person's good qualities, the only thing I can find is his or her youth.

Mu Ying, with a frown on his face, hesitated for a long time before he gradually opened his mouth and asked:
"I don't know which brother the emperor is talking about?"

"Royal brother? He is not our son, nor is he your brother, and certainly not the son of someone above the current minister.

He has no official position at all now, and is lying in the East Palace, being served by others."

Hearing this, Mu Ying felt a little confused.

He was neither his own brother nor the son of a minister.

He doesn't even have an official position, so how can he just lie in the East Palace and be served?
If it really doesn't work out, Mu Ying won't say anything as long as he has the title of a scholar who has passed the imperial examination.

But he couldn't hang anything on his body. How could he not feel confused?

"Father, I really don't know what to say about this person."

Mu Ying couldn't speak clearly, he just felt a layer of haze gathering above his head.

He even took his own daughter with him on this trip.

As a father, it would be strange if Mu Ying were happy now.

Seeing that Mu Ying hadn't spoken for a long time, Zhu Yuanzhang was about to continue speaking when a voice calling suddenly came from outside the door.

"Your Majesty, the prince is outside the door asking for an audience?"

Swallowing the words in his throat, Zhu Yuanzhang raised his head with a joyful expression and said:

"Let the prince in!"

The attendant beside the screen bowed and left.

After a while, Zhu Biao came in from outside.

"Father! I have something important to report!"

Zhu Biao walked into the hall in a hurry. The first person he saw was his father, and then Mu Ying.

Zhu Biao was obviously a little surprised as to why Mu Ying appeared here.

"Brother! Why are you here if you are not going to the Governor's Office to deal with the Northern Expedition?"

Mu Ying, feeling depressed and unhappy, took a deep breath, sorted out his mentality, and then responded:

"Prince, I came here today to talk to His Majesty about this matter. However, the Ministry of Revenue said that the treasury has no money or grain, so the Northern Expedition cannot be rushed and needs to be put on hold for further discussion."

"Biao'er, just now we heard you say that you have something important to report. I wonder what it is?"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Biao, and he clearly saw good things in the other person.

Now Yang Chen’s affairs have been explained.

Given Mu Ying's respect for him, even though he is very unhappy now, he will definitely agree in the end.

As for Mu Lingxi, according to Zhu Yuanzhang's understanding, in his opinion, it is natural for women to listen to their elders in marriage.

Not to mention that he has the highest status in the Ming Dynasty. Even if the girl has a bad temper, she is not marrying his son anyway.

After all the commotion, just let Yang Chen solve it himself.

After Zhu Biao greeted Mu Ying, he looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and told him what he wanted to say.

"Your Majesty, do you remember what I said before about the salaries of the officials?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang frowned slightly and nodded in response:
"We know that you want to directly increase the salaries of all officials, but we won't allow you to do that. Do you have any idea of ​​a way to solve this problem?"

The other party mentioned this matter, which means that there must be involvement. After seeing Zhu Biao nodded.

Zhu Yuanzhang's expression suddenly showed some surprise.

"Oh! There is actually a way to solve this problem. Biaoer, tell me how to do it?"

After getting the affirmation, Zhu Biao took out a piece of rice paper from his body.

The steps he sorted out himself have been written above.

"Father, the reason why there are so many corruption cases among officials is that the salaries of most officials are too low, and they get promoted by taking imperial examinations and making meritorious contributions.

But his merits were not great enough, so we only rewarded him with a house and did not let him buy any land.

This meant that officials had to rely on their salaries to support their entire families, from their 80-year-old mothers to their infant children, as well as many female relatives and household servants.

Food, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea, etc. all require expenses.

This amount of money is simply not enough for those with lower official ranks.

In the Ming Dynasty, there are more than ten provincial governments, one hundred and forty prefectures, one hundred and ninety-three states, and one thousand one hundred and thirty-eight counties.

There were thousands of county magistrates alone, and even more other officials.

They all need to support a family, and the few stones of salary each month is not enough.

Therefore they had no choice but to resort to corruption.

These honest officials have had a very difficult life, we must consider them,

For this reason, I think we can formulate the first step of 'full attendance salary'!"

"Perfect attendance salary? What is this?"

After all this time, Zhu Yuanzhang naturally secretly investigated the lives of low-level officials.

He didn't trust Yang Chen or the officials, so he ordered his attendants to go.

After investigation and evidence collection, it was indeed found that some low-ranking officials were living a hard life.

Because of this, he did not refute what Zhu Biao said just now.

Mu Ying was caught in the middle and now he understood what was going on.

The last time Zhu Biao made this suggestion at the morning court, he still remembered that the father and son ended up having some unpleasantness.

I thought the prince was bewitched, but I didn't expect the other party to be serious.

And I have come up with so many ideas.

The piece of rice paper, which was half a person's height, was filled with the plans that Zhu Biao had sorted out himself.

"The so-called full attendance is the extra salary an official receives for completing his or her work tasks every month.

This salary is a recognition of his hard work this month.

For example, if a county magistrate completes his work every day for 30 days in a month, he can get this attendance bonus.

This way, an official's salary can be increased without increasing his original salary."

"Oh! I didn't expect there is such a method in this world!

Such an arrangement can increase the salaries of those officials who already work hard.

It won't lose our face, what a good idea!
Muer, what do you think? "

Mu Ying did not hesitate, nodded and responded affirmatively:
“In reply to your Majesty, I also think that your method is quite good, regardless of whether the officials are big or small.

As long as you complete your tasks every day of each month, you can receive extra attendance salary.

This amount of money may not be much, but it is a life-saving sum for those colleagues in lower positions. "

As a second-rank deputy governor, Mu Ying knew very well that if it were not for his special identity.

You have to own a lot of good land, otherwise you will have to live a tight life just relying on your salary.

"Biao'er, we see there is still some on your rice paper, please tell us more."

Zhu Yuanzhang discovered early on that there was a lot of information on the rice paper, and just one piece was so useful.

He was already looking forward to what would happen next.

Zhu Biao pointed to the words below the perfect attendance award.

"In addition to what I mentioned earlier, there is also a year-end bonus."

We are sorry for the late update. The update time will be fixed between 8 and 9 o'clock in the future.

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(End of this chapter)