Ming Dynasty: Tanks blocked the door and you said to me, "Long live Ming Dynasty"

Seeing this, Zhu Youxiao smiled triumphantly.

He also gave a thumbs up to Wen Tiren and Wei Zhongxian.

I have to say, these two old guys are like two swords joining forces.

What was originally a job done by one person has now become a job done by four people.

Oh no, it's five!

All memorials would first be classified by Wei Zhongxian, and then sent to the desks of Zhu Youxiao, Zhu Youjian, Zhang Yan, and Wen Tihen according to their categories.

It is easier to work with more people, and if you encounter some complicated problems, there are people to discuss with.

But even so, after dealing with these memorials, it was already noon without me noticing.

Zhu Youxiao, Zhu Youjian and Wen Tiren were already familiar with handling memorials.

What should be reprimanded should be reprimanded, and what should be refuted should be refuted.

Some memorials like "Good morning, Your Majesty" and "Your Majesty, have you eaten?" were thrown directly into the trash can.

Only when something is truly important will we stop and think about it.

Zhu Youxiao would write his opinions on a memorial.

Wen Tiren and Zhu Youjian would come over and ask a few questions, and only start writing after obtaining consent.

But Zhang Yan is different.

It was the first time for her to be involved in such an event. She read every word on the memorial very carefully, fearing that she would fail to live up to the responsibility on her shoulders.

After staring at the memorial about the refugees for a while, she gritted her teeth and walked up to Zhu Youxiao with the memorial.

"Your Majesty, refugees from Shanxi and Shaanxi are pouring into Henan. I think we cannot just suppress and intercept them."

"We should give priority to providing relief and comfort to them, and try to find something for them to do."

"These are poor people who left their homes to survive. They should be allowed to see a way out so that they can settle down."

Zhu Youxiao put down what he was doing, looked up at Zhang Yan and smiled.

"You are the queen, the mother of the country."

"The people of the world are not only my people, but also your people."

"So, as long as you think the suggestion is reasonable, you can speak out boldly."

Zhang Yan bit her rosy lips and thought for a moment, then said uncertainly.

"Your Majesty, I think it would be better to recruit these refugees and have them build the river embankment while the Yellow River is still frozen."

"I have heard that the Yellow River ice floods have become more serious in recent years."

"Every year when the Yellow River thaws, a large amount of broken ice flows down the river from the upper reaches, crashing into the riverbanks. In serious cases, it can even block the river and cause dangerous situations."

"If we can take advantage of this opportunity to reinforce and raise the riverbank, it should be able to alleviate a lot of the pain."

"It would be even better if we could build some water diversion canals on both sides of the Yellow River. This would not only reduce the pressure on the Yellow River, but also provide conditions for irrigation for the people on both sides of the river."

"I have read many books and have seen many examples of using work as a substitute for relief, so I came up with this idea."

"I wonder if Your Majesty thinks this is feasible?"

After saying this, she looked into Zhu Youxiao's eyes expectantly.

After hearing this, Zhu Youxiao burst into laughter.

His laughter made Zhang Yan feel a little overwhelmed.

But Zhu Youjian and Wen Tiren stood up from behind the table one after another.

Wen Tiren was the first to bow.

"Your Majesty, this is a great act!"

"On behalf of the refugees from Shanxi and Shaanxi, as well as the people on both sides of the Yellow River, I thank you, Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youjian also echoed and said: "Your Majesty's method is the most reliable. It not only solves the urgent need of refugees, but also prepares for the rainy day and keeps the Yellow River calm. I admire you!"

Zhang Yan's face turned red when she heard this, but she still looked at Zhu Youxiao eagerly, wanting to hear what he had to say.

Zhu Youxiao smiled, closed the letter and put it back into Zhang Yan's hands.

"Look, Lao Wu and Wen Ge Lao have no objections, which means your idea is feasible."

"Just write it down boldly on the memorial and ask the Ministry of Works to send someone to assist Zhang Congyi."

After saying that, he thought for a moment and picked out another seal from the several seals on the table.

"You can put this seal on the documents you review, so that people below won't gossip about you."

The emperor has many seals.

But Zhu Youxiao had more seals than any other emperor!

The previous Tianqi learned carpentry for a period of time in order to renovate the three main halls, and even carved a large number of seals for himself.

Although some of them were destroyed after they were carved, many of them were preserved.

What he gave to Zhang Yan was one of his private seals.

Zhang Yan felt relieved and gained confidence after hearing what the three people said. After bowing to Zhu Youxiao, she returned to her seat with the memorial and seal.

Before I knew it, it was already noon.

Zhu Youxiao had the food delivered directly to the Qianqing Palace, leaving Zhang Yan and Zhu Youjian here to have a working lunch.

Of course, the premise is that squirrel mandarin fish, ginseng stewed chicken, steamed lamb, etc. can also be called working meals...

"Your Majesty, Song Yingxing is here!"

After hearing Wei Zhongxian's report, Zhu Youxiao put down the sheep's hoof in his hand and cleared his mouth with the best osmanthus wine.

"Let him in!"

Chapter 205: Laziness is the driving force behind technological progress

Song Yingxing, male, married, 41 years old, from Waxi Pailouli, Fengxin County, Jiangxi Province.

In the 43rd year of the Wanli reign, he and his elder brother Song Yingsheng took part in the provincial examination and ranked third and sixth in the province respectively, and were awarded the title of Juren.

However, in the imperial examination of the same year, both of them failed.

In the 47th year of the Wanli reign, Song Yingxing and his brother Song Yingsheng took part in the imperial examination again, but still failed.

Therefore, to this day, he still has the status of a juren.

When he was summoned into the palace, Zhu Youxiao had already gone south, so this was Song Yingxing's first time entering the palace.

Looking at the man in dragon robe behind the imperial desk, who was holding a memorial in one hand and using chopsticks to dig rice into his mouth with the other, Song Yingxing felt a little confused.

Is this the emperor?

By the way, can we wipe the rice grains off our face first?

"Student Song Yingxing pays respect to His Majesty!"

Zhu Youxiao looked up when he heard this.

Song Yingxing, who is already middle-aged, looks older than his peers.

His lips were chapped and his hair was a little messy.

Those hands were full of calluses and frostbite.

There was still mud on his shoes and the hem of his official robe.

If he takes off his official robe, he looks just like a farmer who has just returned from the fields.

This image deeply touched Zhu Youxiao's heart, and he pointed to the bowl of egg soup on his table that he had not yet drunk and said to Wei Zhongxian.

"Hurry up and give it to Song Aiqing to warm his body!"

"Send someone to get some hot water!"

"Yes!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian hurriedly handed over the egg soup and said to Song Yingxing with a smile.

"Lord Song, hurry up and drink it while it's hot. Don't let His Majesty down."

Song Yingxing didn't hesitate to take the bowl and drank it all in a few gulps.

He wiped the soup stains from his mouth and then bowed to express his gratitude.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward!"

Zhu Youxiao stepped forward and pushed him onto the chair where Wei Zhongxian had previously sat, then took two steps back and pretended to be angry.

"You are my right arm, how can you be so careless about yourself!"

"If you fall ill, where can I find another Song Yingxing?"

After hearing these words, Zhang Yan, Zhu Youjian and Wen Tihen were all stunned.

This little old man is just a juren, how could His Majesty call him a right-hand man?

what's the situation? !

Song Yingxing was also stunned, but then he stood up again in panic.

"Your Majesty, I am so humbled and unworthy of your kindness."

"Although the weather is cold now, people are staying at home because of this."

"Some sloping land and wasteland can be reclaimed at this time."

"When the weather gets warmer, we can plant sweet potatoes in the shortest possible time, thus avoiding competing with staple food for farming season."

"So, please forgive me, Your Majesty."

It is almost February now, but the temperature near the capital is still hovering around minus 10 to 20 degrees Celsius.

After listening to Song Yingxing's words, Zhu Youxiao could imagine the situation of those people working on the frozen and hard slopes with blunt hoes!

That's no different than chiseling stone!

The expression on his face relaxed a little, and after a while, he asked.

"Is the sweet potato promotion going smoothly?"

"You do this so personally, is it because you don't have enough subordinates?"

Song Yingxing smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Your Majesty, it is indeed not going well."

"For the local people, sweet potatoes are a new thing after all. They have never grown them, nor have they seen them before."

“So it takes a lot of time and effort to explain it to them.”

"But please rest assured, Your Majesty. This year, we are confident that we can grow 20,000 acres of sweet potatoes near the capital!"

"When the people have tasted the sweetness, the revenue will increase tenfold or a hundredfold next year!"

Zhu Youxiao nodded slightly when he heard this, but then he thought of another question.

“Are the potato seeds brought back from the south enough?”

"Are the methods of storage and seedling cultivation perfect?"

He is not afraid of planting less in the first year, he is only afraid of not planting enough!

In today's weather, if the potato seeds are not stored properly they will all be frozen, and then you won't even be able to grow a single seedling!

Fortunately, Song Yingxing's next answer dispelled his doubts.

The potato seeds were transported back from Guangxi, south of Nanjing, by water.

When on the ship, there is always a brazier in the cabin where the potato seeds are stored to ensure the temperature.

Since Nanjing switched to land transportation, the transportation of potato seeds has become much more troublesome.

First, in order to prevent them from freezing, the potato seeds were packed into wooden boxes.

In the box, the potato seeds are not only kept warm by straw and quilts, but also contain water bags filled with hot water.

In this way, not only can the potato seeds be protected from the impact of external temperature, but they can also be prevented from being bumped during transportation.