The fierce grandson of the Ming Dynasty

Night falls.

Kunning Palace.

Empress Ma sat by the couch, needle and thread in her hand, skillfully sewing shoe soles.

Zhu Xiong Ying stood to the side, her little face full of confusion and bewilderment, and sighed, "Grandmother, please tell me, why does Grandfather disagree?"

He had previously described the solution in the Hall of Literary Glory.

That is, to make up for the shortage of miners by using Japanese pirates and prisoners!

On the one hand, it can increase mineral production, which can be applied to the national economy and people's livelihood...

On the other hand, it is sufficient to avoid wasting manpower and delaying agricultural work.

To everyone's surprise, Old Zhu shook his head repeatedly after hearing this, saying it was inappropriate!

These repeated setbacks left him quite frustrated.

Upon returning to the inner palace, he immediately sought out Empress Ma, who knew Zhu the most, to answer his questions!

Let's see where the problem lies.

Looking at his beloved grandson, he recalled what he had just heard.

Empress Ma stopped what she was doing, took her grandson's hand, and said with a smile, "Good child, don't be upset!"

"I know that from beginning to end, you've been thinking of relieving your grandfather's worries!"

"I know this sentiment, and your imperial grandfather knows it too!"

"He has his reasons, you're too young to understand them!"

Zhu Xiong Ying's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly said, "Please speak frankly, Grandmother!"

Bathed in candlelight, Empress Ma's smile remained unchanged as she said, "First of all, Xiong Ying, you must understand that your imperial grandfather never intended to open more mines!"

"Because there is no demand from either the court or the public for the time being! Take iron ore as an example, and starting from the sixth year of the Hongwu reign, thirteen iron smelting workshops were established, producing more than seven million catties of iron annually!"

"This year, I overheard your grandfather chatting casually, saying that the iron in the imperial treasury was piled up so high it was rusting. Because of this, several smelters were shut down at the beginning of the year!"

"And then there's the copper! In recent years, we've issued a lot of paper money, but copper coins are limited. The copper mines in Chizhou and Dexing alone are more than enough to mint Hongwu Tongbao coins, so there's no need for new mines! Not to mention gold and silver!"

"So, while your method appears to solve the problem of not disturbing the residents, it doesn't actually work..."

Empress Ma's words directly revealed the answer to the mystery.

Zhu Xiong Ying immediately realized where she had gone wrong.

He set his sights on the future and did not conduct any prior investigation or research!

Old Zhu, however, focused on the present and lacked a sense of crisis or the motivation to change everything!

The two people have different perspectives on the issue.

This meant that the mining project was doomed to fail before it even began!

They noticed that the eldest grandson's dark, large eyes were shining brightly as he listened intently.

Empress Ma patted her beloved grandson's little arm and continued, "As for the second matter, those Japanese pirates and prisoners you mentioned, forget about it! Even if your imperial grandfather wanted to mine, he would never use them!"

"Those who are not of our kind are sure to have different hearts. If these people were to gather together and possess iron tools for chiseling stones, and were to conspire together, it would be a catastrophic disaster!"

"But your imperial grandfather, in ruling the world, valued stability above all else; the best system was one that didn't make mistakes!"

This statement hit the nail on the head regarding Lao Zhu's deep-seated plan.

However, starting from that year, the Yellow Register and the system of assigning households to perform duties were implemented.

The people were divided into categories such as civilian households, military households, artisan households, and salt-making households, and these categories were inherited and could not be separated from. This bound everyone to their profession.

Zhu Xiong Ying proposed using the captured bandits for mining purposes, thereby expanding the labor force.

This is against the rules!

As expected, Empress Ma's next words confirmed all of this.

"This third matter concerns the mining regulations, which have been in place for decades without any problems. Skills such as smelting and forging are handled by hereditary artisans from the Ministry of Works. The personnel responsible for overseeing the operations are the military households of the garrisons..."

"Once this precedent is set, everything will fall into chaos!"

The reasons will be explained in detail.

Empress Ma's eyes gleamed with wisdom. She paused, picked up the shoe sole, and pointed, saying, "Good child, get to work!"

"Just like these shoe soles, it's not about having the densest stitches or the newest patterns; the key is a good fit and stability so you can walk a long way!"

"All of that you mentioned, in your grandmother's view, had good intentions, but it doesn't suit your imperial grandfather's tastes, nor does it fit the current path of the Ming Dynasty!"

"If you really want to get this done, you must please your imperial grandfather and make him feel it's necessary..."

Her grandson is kind, loving, intelligent, humble, studious, filial, and affectionate.

However, I've been thinking about many things too idealistically and too broadly!

We urgently need patient guidance to make up for our shortcomings!

After listening to what the Empress Dowager said.

Zhu Xiong Ying suddenly understood; she considered it a lesson learned.

And he put away the little bit of confidence that a time traveler should have.

Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.

But as Empress Ma said, to change Zhu's mind, we must do something practical!

He stood up, bowed, and said, "Grandson understands! Thank you for your guidance, Grandmother!"

Empress Ma, filled with loving kindness, helped her eldest grandson up and said, "My good child, it's good that you understand!"

"When your grandfather was your age, he was herding cattle for Liu De's family. He wasn't nearly as smart as you!"

"In my opinion, Your Majesty, your future achievements will surely surpass those of your grandfather!"

"Cough cough..."

A cough came from one side of the screen.

Immediately afterwards, Old Zhu's square face appeared in front of me.

Catching a glimpse of her husband, Empress Ma pulled her beloved grandson closer to her legs, her expression full of protectiveness. Raising an eyebrow, she coldly snorted, "Zhu Chongba, I'm saying that once Xiong Ying comes of age, will he achieve great things and go further than you?"

"Was that statement wrong?"

Zhu Yuanzhang entered the room, and Qian laughed, "How could our sister say anything wrong?"

"As for the eldest grandson, we've watched him grow up. At such a young age, he's already made great contributions. Isn't it only natural that he'll surpass us in the future?"

But then I heard the words of the two elders.

Zhu Xiong Ying, however, was under immense pressure.

This imperial grandmother thinks too highly of him!

As one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history, Zhu Yuanzhang's achievements are like a towering mountain!

Regardless of the historical figure Zhu Di, even if Biao'er's father successfully ascended the throne, how could he compare?

Unless he becomes the patriarch of Asia and the ruler of the Earth in the future, and achieves both literary and martial prowess, perhaps he can surpass the past!

Old Zhu is staying at Kunning Palace tonight, probably because he has something to say to his grandmother.

Immediately, Zhu Xiong Ying, being very perceptive, said, "Grandfather, Grandmother, please rest early. Your grandson will take his leave now!"

"Go!"

After his beloved grandson left, Old Zhu sat down.

Empress Ma's expression softened, and she began to show concern for the smallpox vaccine.

Now that we know its efficacy, the most important thing now is to promote it as soon as possible, so that more people don't lose their lives because of it!

Zhu Yuanzhang did not hide it.

He sent Prince Zhu Biao to the villages where smallpox had broken out, where he personally and verbally taught the people about vaccination and prevention, explaining it in detail.

He could see his wife's worry.

Actually, Old Zhu was also a little reluctant, but he could only calm himself down and say, "Our sister should understand that the standards are different!"

"He is the crown prince, destined to rule the world! And the common people believe what they see with their own eyes!"

"Only when Biao'er led a group of nobles to get vaccinated in public will they dare to believe it, and it's much more effective than our imperial edict..."