Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 225 Discovered that Old Zhu was grinning from ear to ear!

Shencheng.

The morning sunlight shines on the surface of the Huangpu River, creating layers of shimmering water.

From the bell tower beside the river bank, clear bells rang.

It is said that the clock is a treasure developed by the Ming Manufacturing Bureau.

After the city of Shen was founded, a tall tower was built and a large clock was placed on top of the tower so that people in the city could see the time at any time.

Unlike the traditional twelve hours, the big clock divides the day into twenty-four hours.

Starting at six in the morning, the bell will ring every hour.

People in the entire city of Shanghai could hear what time it was.

If you look up, you can see the time and minute clearly through the pointers of different sizes. It is very quick and convenient.

Although there were various timekeeping devices in the past, most of the time people could only roughly estimate the time. Now it is very clear.

The clock tower has become a landmark building in Shanghai.

Everyone who comes to Shanghai for the first time will be attracted by the towering clock tower.

The clear time displayed above highlights the difference between this city and other cities in the Ming Dynasty.

Ship after ship kept docking, and workers were busy and sweating at the dock, unloading the cargo from the ships.

Old Zhu was sitting in a newly opened breakfast shop facing the dock. While eating breakfast, he counted the food that was transported down from the ship and said with a smile, "It looks like this. I'm afraid that a ship must have transported hundreds of thousands of kilograms of food."

At this time, there were no other customers in the breakfast shop except Lao Zhu and his group.

The dock workers have all gone to work.

The boss was also idle, and was slowly cleaning up the tables, chairs, and dishes. Upon hearing this, he said, "A shipload of 300,000 jin."

Old Zhu asked curiously, "How do you know so clearly?"

The owner of the breakfast shop wiped the table next to him with a rag and said with a smile: "These are all treasure ships built by the Ming Dynasty Manufacturing Bureau. There are certain regulations. Each ship can carry 300,000 kilograms of cargo. People working on the dock often talk about it in the shop, so I heard it too."

Old Zhu nodded slightly and said, "I heard that the food on these ships was all shipped from Japan?"

"That's right." The breakfast shop owner said, "Nowadays, the trade between Ming Dynasty and Japan is frequent. Recently, it is the autumn harvest season, and the court is currently importing a large amount of grain from Japan."

"There are more than ten grain transport ships like this docking every day, and several million kilograms of grain come in every day."

Old Zhu asked curiously, "I've never heard that Japan is rich in grain before. How come they have so much surplus grain to sell to the Ming Dynasty right now?"

The breakfast shop owner had already packed up. Seeing that the customer was still asking questions, he sat down and said, "Not only is Japan not rich in food, it is also short of food itself."

"The people there live a much harder life than those in the Ming Dynasty."

"No food to eat, no clothes to cover the body."

"Since the close trade between Ming and Japan, many Japanese women have come to Ming, hoping to find a man to marry in Ming so that they can have a full meal in the future."

Old Zhu was stunned for a moment. He had heard about this before. He then asked, "Why is Japan exporting so much grain to our Ming Dynasty?"

The breakfast shop owner poured a cup of herbal tea for Lao Zhu, filled a cup for himself as well, took a sip, and sneered, "Throughout the dynasties, the common people have not had enough food to eat and clothes to wear, but the high officials of the court and the wealthy merchants have been eating delicacies from land and sea and wearing silk and satin, haven't they?"

"It's the same in Japan!"

"The Japanese people are hungry, but the Japanese officials, daimyo, generals, and nobles will never lack food."

"They are willing to send food to our Ming Dynasty in exchange for things. Who would care about the lives of the people?"

"Even if hundreds of thousands or even millions of people died of starvation in Japan because of exporting food to the Ming Dynasty, they themselves would not starve."

Old Zhu slammed the table and stood up suddenly.

He has always hated corrupt officials who disregarded the lives of the people.

When he heard the description of the breakfast shop owner, he immediately became furious.

After I stood up, I suddenly realized.

That is Japan's business, not the Meiji era, so there is no need to be so emotional.

As soon as I thought of this, I felt itchy and sat down again.

The breakfast shop owner was startled by Lao Zhu's sudden action. He didn't understand why he suddenly attacked. He only felt a fierce murderous aura coming towards him at that moment, which frightened the breakfast shop owner so much that he almost lost his mind.

Fortunately, the other party regained his composure after a moment. Fang asked with lingering fear: "Why did the old man get angry just now?"

Old Zhu heaved a long sigh and said, "I am really angry because I can't hear such things anymore. How can those officials who don't care about the lives of the people still have the face to be so high and mighty and govern the country for the people? They should be skinned alive, cut into pieces, and sent to the eighteen levels of hell, where they will suffer all kinds of torture from now on and never be able to be reborn!"

The breakfast shop owner gave a thumbs up and said, "The old man is really a kind-hearted person. He hates evil and hates evil. He is admirable."

"But we each take care of our own business, and just worry about whether we can have enough food to eat in Daming."

"Let's not worry too much about other people's affairs."

"Besides, those Japanese are not kind people."

"In the beginning, their warriors came to the coast of our Ming Dynasty as pirates, burning, killing and looting our Ming people. I don't know how many crimes they committed. Now they deserve this retribution."

Old Zhu smiled and said, "What you said makes sense. Good and evil will be rewarded in the end. Thinking of the crimes the Japanese have committed, this is really their retribution."

He asked curiously, "But since Japan sells food to Ming, they must import something from Ming, right? Otherwise, what do those Japanese nobles want?"

The breakfast shop owner took a sip of tea and said with a smile: "The goods that Japan imports from our Ming Dynasty are mainly textiles and books."

"The textile technology of our Daming Manufacturing Bureau is superb, and the things it weaves are very popular among the Japanese nobles."

"However, the export of textiles is controlled by the imperial court. We are not allowed to export too much. We have to keep some for the people of Ming Dynasty to make clothes for them."

“The price is quite high.”

"There are also books published by the Ming Dynasty, which are sought after by countless Japanese people."

"The Da Ming Daily is also very popular in Japan."

"The Japanese language was learned from China, and they can also read the Ming Daily."

"They particularly like the 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' published in the Ming Daily, as well as the 'Legend of the Hongwu Emperor' and the legendary story about His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"I heard that in Japan, there are still many people who worship our Ming Dynasty's Hongwu Emperor and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince as gods."

The boss was very excited when he talked about these things. After taking a sip of tea, he said, "In fact, what Japan exported to the Ming Dynasty was not only food, but also silver, copperware, sulfur, etc."

"It's a lot when you count it up."

"We Ming Dynasty doesn't export many goods to Japan, but the prices are very high."

"However, most of those things should have been transported to Jinling City."

"It is the autumn harvest season recently, and only then are grains being transported to Daming by shiploads."

"Come to think of it, we in the Ming Dynasty are not short of food. I really don't know why we import so much food."

He shook his head and said, "Forget it. This is not something that a commoner like me should care about."

Old Zhu's mind moved slightly.

It seems that the "rebel grandson" has already realized the food problem hidden under the prosperous Ming Dynasty, which is why he is working so hard to transport grain from Japan to the Ming Dynasty.

Millions of kilograms of grain a day, that’s really a huge amount of money!
I just don't know how long this can last.

"We, the Ming Dynasty, can import so much grain in exchange for it with just a small amount of textiles and books?" Old Zhu was obviously confused by this.

Japan supplied many things to the Ming Dynasty, but the Ming Dynasty exported very few goods to Japan.

This trade is not balanced at all. How is it maintained?

The breakfast shop owner laughed, with a slightly strange look on his face.

He poured tea into Lao Zhu's cup again, and then filled his own cup. Fang said, "We in the Ming Dynasty also export something to Japan, and that is the new version of Ming Dynasty treasure notes!"

Lao Zhu's expression froze for a moment.

"The Ming Dynasty's treasure notes are the most favorite thing for the Japanese people."

"The Japanese are willing to exchange silver, copper, sulfur, and even grain for Ming treasure notes."

The breakfast shop owner smiled and said, "We in the Ming Dynasty don't need to export any goods to them. As long as we have the Ming Dynasty treasure notes printed by the court, we can buy whatever we want in Japan."

"In Japan, Ming Dynasty banknotes are hard currency, better than anything else."

"The imperial court is currently buying grain from Japan, so will the imperial court still lack Ming treasure notes?"

"So, you can buy as much food as you want from Japan."

During this period, Lao Zhu has been studying "economics" diligently, and gradually understood the principles and mechanisms behind the country's money printing.

Japan actually allowed the Ming Dynasty's treasure notes to become its own hard currency and allowed the Ming Dynasty's treasure notes to be used to purchase goods in Japan. Doesn't this mean that the lifeline of its national economy has been handed over to the control of the Ming Dynasty?
Our good grandson...oh, no, that 'rebellious grandson', really has some tricks up his sleeve!
I used to think that overseas areas were too far away, difficult to travel to, and inconvenient to rule.

It cannot bring any real benefits.

But now it seems that this is not the case at all.

If they defeat Japan in one battle, they can reap endless profits...

These foods alone were unimaginable before.

After leaving the breakfast shop, Lao Zhu returned to his residence.

As soon as he entered the restaurant, he saw a man in a postman's uniform waiting for him.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Zhu? Here is a letter for you." The postman took out a letter from the bag on his back and handed it over.

Old Zhu was stunned for a moment.

His eyes fell on the envelope and he saw that it was indeed addressed to "Mr. Zhu", and the address was exactly the restaurant where they were staying.

Looking down, he saw the sender column on the envelope, which clearly read "Editorial Department of Ming Dynasty Science Journal". Then he came to his senses, took the letter, and returned to the guest room.

He sat down at the table, tore open the letter and started reading.

As he watched, Lao Zhu's expression suddenly changed.

The more he looked, the more shocked he became, and even his breathing became heavy.

suddenly.

He slammed the table and said loudly: "Well said!"

Yoshigaki didn't know what was going on, so he quickly asked, "Your Majesty, what's good?"

Old Zhu ignored him and continued reading.

After a while, Lao Zhu slammed the table again, extremely excited.

"Every sentence is logical, every word is brilliant, and every sentence hits the mark. This person is truly a genius of all time."

……

After reading it, Lao Zhu was amazed: "I never thought that our Ming Dynasty Science journal would have such a talented person."

"Not only is he fully aware of the current situation and problems facing the Ming Dynasty, but the solutions in the letter are also like a revelation, which makes people's eyes light up."

"This kind of genius is rare in the world. Even if Zhu Sheng and Liu Bowen were reborn, they would not be as good as him."

At the beginning of the letter, the author first greeted him and said that he was greatly inspired by reading Mr. Zhu's manuscript. Then he put forward some of his own analysis and opinions.

The analysis is clear and insightful.

There are very profound and unique explanations on the economic operation of the Ming Dynasty, the role of banks, and the resulting finance, credit expansion, increased currency in circulation, rising and stabilizing prices, improved production efficiency and a series of impacts, etc.

Many of the statements in the letter were new to Lao Zhu, and he found them refreshing.

But if you think about it carefully, what he said makes a lot of sense and is completely consistent with the current situation of the Ming Dynasty that I have observed.

In addition, the letter contains a lot of logical reasoning and even mathematical calculations to prove his point of view, which also happens to make up for the shortcomings in Lao Zhu's previous submission.

In addition, in his letter, he also proposed specific solutions to the problems facing the Ming Dynasty.

When submitting his paper to the journal Science, Lao Zhu felt that after so much research, he should be the person who understood these principles best in the entire Ming Dynasty.

Now it seems that there is someone whose knowledge in this area is not inferior to mine, and even far exceeds mine.

Old Zhu's eyes fell on the signature at the end of the letter.

There was a line of words written there: "Student Zhu Sun pays homage to you."

"Zhu Sun?" Old Zhu muttered the name.

I never thought that such a visionary person would have the same surname as mine, "Zhu".

But he thought about all the relatives of the Zhu family again and again, but he couldn't think of anyone named "Zhu Sun".

There is no such name among the children of nobles and meritorious officials.

Lao Zhu has always had a good memory and rarely forgets the names of people he has heard of.

If it is a close or important person, it is even less likely to be forgotten.

There are many people with the surname Zhu in the world, not just him.

It seems that although this person's surname is Zhu, he has no relationship with our family.

"The court must make good use of this man. In the future, he can take on the responsibility of assisting the 'rebellious grandson' in governing the country."

Old Zhu praised sincerely.

It's a good thing that you have no impression of this person's name.

The lack of impression means that this person is neither a royal relative nor the son of a meritorious official.

These are the things that Mr. Zhu always avoids when employing people.

For example, he thought highly of Liu Bowen at the beginning and felt that Liu Bowen was really talented and that the world could not be governed without him.

But later, Zhu Yuanzhang discovered that Liu Bowen had become the leader of the Zhejiang East Group and had a significant influence in the court. Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to eradicate his power completely or even kill him to prevent him from threatening his position.

Being too smart and powerful will threaten the stability of imperial power.

Lao Zhu has a very clear understanding of this.

He prefers to employ smart people without any foundation.

They can make full use of their intelligence and talents without worrying about them threatening their rule.

This "Zhu Sun" is just an ordinary editor in the editorial department of Science journal. He has no prominent family background, but he is so smart. He must be reused!

Beside him, Yoshigaki was already stunned.

He remembered very clearly that the manuscript submitted by His Majesty the Emperor to the editorial department of Science journal had His Majesty's real name at the end.

How come after receiving the manuscript, Science journal did not report it to the court, nor realized that the writer was the current emperor, but replied to the letter as if it were an ordinary person?

He also called the current emperor "Mr. Zhu"...

What on earth is going on?
Yoshigaki was puzzled.

I thought about it for a long time but still couldn't figure it out.

I don’t know why His Majesty was so excited after reading the letter.

At this time, Lao Zhu was already shouting, "Quick, prepare the four treasures of the study for us, we need to write him a letter."

Since I sent out the last letter, and after some observation, Lao Zhu has gained new insights into economic operations.

After reading the letter from "Zhu Sun", I felt as if the fog had been cleared and I could see through it. I was able to draw inferences from one instance to another and many truths became clear to me.

Treating "Zhu Sun" is like seeing a "close friend in life".

Economics is a brand new science, and I'm afraid that in the entire Ming Dynasty, there are not many people studying this subject.

At this moment, Old Zhu had countless thoughts in his mind, and he must express them to this "grandson Zhu".

"Yes!" Yoshigaki responded quickly and hurriedly prepared pen and ink for His Majesty.

Old Zhu picked up the brush, dipped it in ink, and started writing quickly.

After writing it, he read it again carefully.

This time, the signature was no longer "Zhu Yuanzhang's name", but only the character "Zhu".

As for the signature on the last letter I sent...

I finished it in one stroke at the time and didn't pay much attention to it. I guess it will be the same now.

Otherwise, why would the other party call himself "Mr. Zhu"?

Old Zhu collected the letter, handed it to Yoshigaki, and said, "Send this letter to the editorial office of Science in Jinling."

"However, don't let the editorial department receive the letter this time. Just send it directly to someone named 'Zhu Sun'."

I heard that there are many editors in the editorial department of Science journal, and Lao Zhu was worried that the letter might not be sent to the same person.

Yoshigaki's expression was stunned.

Old Zhu said with a proud look on his face, "I have accidentally helped the Ming Dynasty discover another amazing genius. He is worthy of being put to good use, worthy of being put to good use!"

Yoshigaki said hurriedly: "A person who can receive such praise from your majesty must be a great talent. In this case, should we send a letter to the court to promote this person?"

Old Zhu shook his head and said, "There is no need to rush. Let's communicate with him first and then investigate carefully."

"When I return to Jinling at the end of the year, I will personally go to the editorial office of Science to meet this 'Zhu Sun'. By then, it won't be too late to promote him."

The scene of "Zhu Sun" being shocked when he saw him already appeared in his mind.

If that person knew that the person he was exchanging letters with was the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, he would surely be so shocked that his jaw would drop to the ground.

Also, the previous "rebellious grandson" was able to discover talents like Yao Guangxiao and Yang Shiqi.

Looking back at myself, since the people who originally followed me to build my empire have grown old or died, the people I promoted later are becoming less and less capable than before.

If there is no one in the court, wouldn't it seem that the emperor has no ability to judge people?

Then he would lose to "Ni Sun" again.

Now we finally have an extremely rare talent!

In this regard, he can still surpass that 'rebellious grandson'.

Let him know that grandpa is grandpa after all!

The more Old Zhu thought about it, the happier he became, and he almost couldn't close his mouth.

……

PS: Both chapters are posted together.

(End of this chapter)