Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 137: The country is prosperous, so let's beat the Northern Yuan Dynasty

In August of the fourteenth year of Hongwu, after the beginning of autumn, the weather did not cool down and remained hot.

But whether among the people or inside and outside the court, the atmosphere was very relaxed, and even in the city of Jinling, the population increased a lot.

Because the rice that was widely promoted in the south in June this year has been harvested, the court completed the statistics and taxation of summer grain in July.

According to statistics, the national average yield per mu was basically maintained at around 2-3 shi in the past, but this year it has doubled to an average of 4-5 shi per mu.

That means the yield per mu is about 800 kilograms.

For modern people, this yield is considered low. If you pick any rural area, you will find that the yield per mu is more than 1300 kilograms.

However, in ancient society, this was already an extremely exaggerated yield, equivalent to doubling the original yield per mu from 400 kilograms to 800 kilograms. It can be said to be an agricultural revolution.

But for Zhu Yunfeng, this output is still not high.

of course.

It was also within his expectations.

After all, in modern society, the average yield per mu is 1300 kilograms, and as much as 1600 kilograms, which is achieved with sufficient field management, pesticides and fertilizers.

But in ancient times.

There are great restrictions in this regard.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang established Diannongwei to promote field management technology throughout the country.

But it is not possible to teach all farmers in a short period of time. With the current speed of information dissemination, it would be good if we can teach one percent of the farmers.

Moreover, the supply of pesticides and fertilizers could not keep up. The increase in production depended entirely on high-yield seeds and Diannongwei's homemade farmyard manure mixed with a very small amount of chemical fertilizers. Without proper pesticides and fertilizers, productivity was naturally limited.

After the seeds degenerate after three or four generations, the yield will continue to decline. We will be thankful if we can maintain it at 500-600 kilograms in the future.

But at least this year's output has increased significantly, and there is more grain on the market. The speed at which grain prices are falling can be described as plummeting.

Oversupply will lead to what high school politics teaches.

And this is not just far exceeding market demand, but an oversupply that is growing exponentially.

In the early Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang used fish scale books to register land and discovered that the Ming Dynasty had about 8 million acres of land.

The output of these 8 million mu of land in the first quarter may be 20 billion shi, of which 15 billion shi are used for taxation and people's own consumption, and the remaining 5 million shi flow into the market.

However, this quarter, the direct output of 8 million mu of land was 40 billion shi. So even if the people are a little extravagant and consume 20 billion shi this year, there will still be 20 billion shi left flowing into the market.

Anyone with a little knowledge of economics knows that the sudden emergence of such huge production capacity is enough to destroy the entire grain seller's market.

Fortunately, high school students all understand this principle, and Zhu Yunfeng and the others naturally also know it, so they reminded Lao Zhu in advance to deal with it.

In the previous two months, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered all provincial governments to frantically purchase grain and store it locally for disaster relief. Only in this way could the price of rice be barely maintained.

But even so, the price of rice was almost cut in half.

Originally, one dan of rice was worth about six or seven qian of silver, or 600-700 coins.

But by August, the price of grain in Nanjing had already dropped to three coins, and it was almost impossible to maintain the price of 300 wen per stone.

For the common people, this can only be described as a mixed blessing.

The good thing is that I won’t be hungry anymore.

What we are worried about is the sharp depreciation of wealth.

After all, food was wealth in ancient society.

But overall, it is definitely a great thing for the Ming Dynasty court.

Who would complain about having too much food?

With grain in hand, we can mobilize civilians to build national projects and also issue many policies to benefit the people.

Even if we can't finish it, we can use it to raise pigs. We just happened to have a lot of breeding animals, and feeding livestock with old grain can greatly increase the production of meat, eggs and milk.

So Zhu Yuanzhang was very happy during this period.

Once he is happy, he will not find fault with his court officials, and they will not die, so they will naturally be happy.

The only one who was unhappy was Ji Hyuk.

"I told you long ago that you were unreliable, but you insisted on doing it all at once. Now you are asking for trouble."

In the imperial manor by the Qinhuai River, Ji He was fiddling with a newly purchased 1-watt thermal power generator set, while Zhu Yunfeng nagged him a few words.

Ji He had a bitter look on his face, and the fat on his face had disappeared a bit.

In the first half of this year, he has made three trips to Wu'an, each time staying for more than ten days, to solve problems at the power station there.

Thermal power generation is not as simple as hydroelectric power generation.

Although the equipment ordered by Zhu Yunfeng are simplified versions, their mechanical power is very small and they are simple and convenient to operate.

But no matter what, this is still a complex industrial machinery that requires very skilled technicians to control the entire process.

Problems have occurred frequently during this period, mainly with the pipelines. The pipelines are connected with flanges, and the incorrect installation position may have caused pipeline leakage.

The steel plant in Wuan called for help through the radio station, and Ji He had to rush over to deal with it.

If he couldn't handle it, he would have to take a video, run back to Nanjing, and then send it to Zhujiaping to ask the manufacturer about the situation.

The manufacturer directly said that they could send technical personnel to solve the problem, but he was helpless and finally had no choice but to buy another set and place it in Nanjing for research.

At least a group of skilled technical staff must be trained before they can be truly used in steelmaking. Otherwise, if some technical problems are not handled properly, a pipe may burst once in a while, and a boiler may explode once a year. Who can bear this?
Zhu Yunfeng had said before that the machine should be placed in Nanjing for trial operation first, and then sent to Wuan for steelmaking after it was confirmed that there were no problems.

But Ji He went to the county's thermal power plant and found some old masters to learn from for half a month. He felt that there was no problem and he could do it easily, so he didn't want to waste any more time.

The result is that you have to bear the consequences yourself.

"Okay, Xiao Ji is also anxious and wants to refine the steel as soon as possible."

Seeing Zhu Yunfeng talking about Ji He, Old Zhu tried to smooth things over, but he looked a little guilty.

In fact, he was the one who instigated Ji He behind the scenes.

Ji He had always wanted to attack Japan, and even brought over a few ship engines.

But it is definitely not possible to use a wooden boat to carry a ship engine. The Ming Dynasty does not have the ability to make and manufacture steel from modern times.

So the steel mill is imminent.

Only by smelting the steel, making it into steel plates, and welding it into a steel-clad ship can it be done even if the shape is ugly and the tonnage is small, as long as it can accommodate the ship's engine.

By then, we will have enough diesel and the ability to sail long distances, and we will march towards Japan in a mighty force. The power of our bolt-action rifles will be enough to destroy Japan.

Lao Zhu used this reason to lure Ji He, but problems occurred frequently and the technical situation could not be resolved.

"It should be okay this time."

Ji He clapped his hands, wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve and said, "Experience makes a good doctor. If there is a problem again, I will eat this boiler on the spot."

Zhu Yunfeng rolled his eyes at him and said, "You want to cheat me for food and drinks again, right?"

"Absolutely not!"

Ji He swore, "I promise I have figured out how to use this machine. If it doesn't work, I will weld it later."

"Whether it's a mule or a horse, just take it out and give it some practice." Zhu Di said from the side.

"I'll turn it on."

Ji Hyuk runs outside and asks someone to add coal to the conveyor belt.

The coal blocks enter the coal hopper through the conveyor belt and are then transferred from the coal hopper to the crusher.

The silos above the crushers in large thermal power stations are seven or eight meters high and can hold more than ten tons of coal at a time.

The silo for the crusher of the small thermal power generator set customized by Zhu Yunfeng is only about one meter high, and the overall size is equivalent to two sewing machines. It can hold less than one ton of coal at a time.

Coal blocks fall down from the silo above the crusher, fall into the feeder and crusher below, and are mixed into coal powder. They are then blown into the boiler furnace by the built-in blower to burn, boil the water in the boiler, and send the steam into the steam turbine to do work.

This process seems simple, but it is not complicated at all. It is essentially just boiling water. As long as all the machines are installed properly and there is no problem of pipe leakage, the process can be fully automated by pressing the switch.

But Ji He did not install the machine properly in Wu'an, which caused the pipeline to leak, which caused the problem. Therefore, installation is very critical and requires skilled workers to do this.

Obviously, Ji He worked very hard and did his homework to avenge his previous shame.

The machine was started by using the external power supply of the hydropower plant. Soon the boiler was boiled, and the steam entered the turbine through the pipe, and the turbine also made a roaring sound.

"nailed it."

Ji He used a small multifunctional ultrasonic detector to check every pipe. After confirming that there was no leakage, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "No problem this time."

"Chisang is awesome."

Seeing that he had actually done it, Zhu Yunfeng changed his expression and praised: "I knew you could do it."

Zhu Di asked curiously, "By the way, there is no electricity in Wuan, how do you keep the machines running?"

"This is simple. Coal is ground into coal powder to improve combustion efficiency, but coal can also be burned. Boil water first, let the steam do work, and then connect it to the power source after it successfully generates electricity."

"awesome."

"Why don't we build a steel mill in Nanjing first? Although there are no coal or iron mines here, water transportation is convenient, and any problems can be solved in time."

Ji Hyuk hesitated.

With his previous eagerness for quick success, he became much more cautious.

"Well, so be it."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, and then said: "It is a good opportunity to make an announcement now."

Zhu Yunfeng wondered, "What's the matter, ancestor?"

"I plan to go to Peking."

"Peking? Not Beijing?"

"It's the Ming Dynasty's Beiping!"

Zhu Yuanzhang emphasized: "Nahach has always been a big worry. Although I have dealt with the invasion of Yunnan and the Yuan people in the northwest, the northeast is still not peaceful and must be eliminated. There is also the Jianzhou Jurchen. I was worried that they would make peace with the Yuan people, so it was inconvenient to send troops to kill them. The methods you gave me take a long time and are slow to take effect. Now that the Ming Dynasty is strong in military force, we have enough ability to defeat the Northern Yuan Dynasty and there is no need to worry about them defecting to the Mongols. Now it is different. The northeast should also be incorporated into the territory of the Ming Dynasty."

"Yes, the Northeast, including Outer Northeast, has been our country's inseparable territory since ancient times!"

Zhu Yunfeng nodded and said, "But even if we take back the Northeast now, the resources cannot be used in a short period of time. Isn't it too hasty to send troops so early?"

"Not urgent."

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "The country is peaceful and tranquil, and I am relieved. I can go to war now. It is my lifelong wish to destroy the Northern Yuan Dynasty and conquer the desert."

Since the beginning of this year, when the Jinyiwei were spread across the country, the intelligence system has exerted its due power.

In just half a year, the Jinyiwei discovered more than 10,000 cases of local illegal and disorderly activities, involving more than 800 officials, more than 5,000 clerks, landlords, their slaves, thugs and more than 20,000 ordinary people.

Although the vast majority of cases involved landlords and powerful officials colluding with each other to use their power to bully the people, there were also cases of ordinary people bullying the weak.

In ancient society, clans were very powerful, and families with more males would easily bully families with fewer males.

For example, if one family has four or five adult males and another family has only orphans and widows, the latter become the vulnerable group and are easily bullied by the former.

Therefore, the problem of local people breaking the law is also not a small number, and may even be a large number.

Because this can only be uncovered by reporting to the authorities, many people are intimidated by the other party's power and dare not report to the authorities, resulting in the phenomenon that the people do not report and the officials do not investigate.

However, even so, under the severe crackdown by the Jinyiwei, local evil forces, the landlord class, and corrupt officials all suffered severe blows, and the problems of land annexation and local security improved a lot.

Moreover, these cases were handled jointly by local governments, the Jinyiwei, and the Inspectorate.

When it comes to a county, the provincial government, the provincial governor's office and the imperial court will jointly supervise the case, which greatly improves the authenticity and fairness of the case.

I dare not say that all these more than 10,000 cases were transparent and open and no good person was wrongly accused, but at least in the early Ming Dynasty, no one dared to fool Zhu Yuanzhang at will. Everyone was doing his best and did not dare to be negligent in the slightest.

After all, this is not the time when officials of the Ming Dynasty were unable to make ends meet and were forced to engage in corruption.

Wages were not paid in rice, whose value kept falling, but in silver dollars.

As the price of rice decreased, the purchasing power of the silver dollar became higher.

For officials, this is also a form of wealth appreciation. The salary is considered good, so there is naturally no need to risk losing their heads by engaging in corruption.

Seeing that the situation within the Ming Dynasty was just as Zhu Yunfeng had said, in just two years, it had become a place of thriving vitality and development, and thinking of his son's future fifth expedition to Mongolia, Old Zhu felt itchy in his heart.

There is only one thing he has to do now - that is to destroy the Northern Yuan Dynasty, conquer the Northeast, Mongolia, the Western Regions and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and achieve the goal of transforming the natives into officials and exercising actual control.

As for domestic development, Zhang Zibiao is already a mature prince, so let him take care of it.

"Since father has already made the decision, it means that he has considered it."

Zhu Biao said: "I support my father's idea."

"Ha ha ha ha."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Okay, Yunfeng."

"What's wrong, ancestor?"

"Get some more walkie-talkies this month. They'll be very useful during a war."

"Okay, I'll try my best."

Zhu Yunfeng smiled bitterly.

He has brought a lot of walkie-talkies.

But even if we don't count the millions of soldiers in the local garrisons, the Ming army alone has about 300,000 to 400,000 combat soldiers in the Beijing Camp.

Although these hundreds of thousands of soldiers from the Beijing Camp were unable to defeat Zhu Di during the Jingnan Period and had not defeated the Oirat Mongols during the Tumu Fortress Period, their numbers have remained the same.

Even if we only provide walkie-talkies to officers in the Beijing camp, there would be tens of thousands of them. How could we possibly meet their needs?

Don't think that tens of thousands are a small number. You should know that no one uses intercoms now. Generally, only cleaning staff, front desk clerks, and security guards in shopping malls, hotels, and residential areas still use them.

Or those self-driving tour teams.

Buying a few hundred units at one time is already a very large quantity. If you buy tens of thousands of units, wouldn't people become suspicious?

So we can only take it slow.

(End of this chapter)