Jeju Island brought three horses as tribute, which can be regarded as a display of the achievements of horse breeding in recent years.
"Stand up and speak," Zhao Han said to the two officials, "What are your names?"
An official stood up and replied: "Reporting to your Majesty, my name is Wang Zhen, my native place is Luzhou, and my ancestors have been raising horses for generations. By the Wanli period, there were no horses to raise in Luzhou. Fortunately, your Majesty's kindness allowed me to go to Jezhou County.
He returned to his ancestral business and now serves as the deputy supervisor of the Jeju Horse Racing Supervisory Board."
Another official said: "Your Majesty, my name is Liang Gui. My ancestors are Mongolians. I moved to Jeju Island in the early Ming Dynasty. Now I am a Han Chinese and I have learned Chinese. I have a son Liang Zhen, who serves as a soldier under General Zhang. I am chasing him.
Duduo, the false king of the Qing Dynasty, was the man who led the cavalry into the mountains and got the body of the false king Duduo by luck."
Zhao Han nodded in approval: "You have been loyal to your duties and raised your horses well. You will all be promoted this time when you return."
The Datong Army has initially established a foothold in the Liaodong Peninsula. The land there is vast and sparsely populated, and there is more than enough land. Therefore, no one is willing to open up wasteland for farming in the mountains and meadows that are not conducive to irrigation. Jeju Island is too small after all, and it is necessary to find a new land.
Horse breeding land, and the Liaodong Peninsula is just right.
At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, there were many horse farms in Liaodong, but by the Hongzhi period, all of them had been occupied by Jiangmen.
Only the horse farms in the Liaodong Peninsula, especially those in Gaizhou and Fuzhou, were maintained until the Wanli period. Even a special "Horse City" was established and became the horse trading center of the entire Liaodong. Even the Jurchens brought their war horses for sale.
.
The supervisor of the Jeju Horse Racing Supervisor will soon be transferred to Liaodong to open up a new horse breeding base. The vacated positions will be promoted to the two people in front of him.
Wang Zhen pointed to a purebred Wari horse and said: "Your Majesty, this is a Tianzhu horse bred in Jeju Island. The horse is already two years old. It is tall and powerful and can be used in battle. Tianzhu horses over two years old can be used in battle.
Jeju Island has bred 847 horses, of which 102 stallions have been castrated into war horses."
Horses can go to war at the age of two, which is roughly their teenage years, and they are truly adults at the age of three.
The 102 gelded stallions should all be around three years old. If their appearance is not good enough for breeding, and their quality reaches the level of war horses, then all of them will be gelded and sent to the army for service.
Zhao Han walked around to the side of the war horse, stroked the horse's mane and said, "It is indeed mighty."
How could it not be powerful if it was specially selected to be dedicated to the emperor?
This horse is only two years old and has reached a height of 1.58 meters at the shoulder. Its fur is black and shiny, like jet black satin, except for a diamond-shaped white spot on its forehead.
It's a pity that the two ears are too cute. They are raised high and looking towards the middle to express their feelings, which instantly destroys the majestic image.
Wang Zhen pointed to another relatively short horse and said: "Your Majesty, this horse is also two years old. Its mother is a Hana horse and its father is a Tianzhu horse. They are also good horses that can go on the battlefield."
The Hana horse, a cross between the local horse of Jeju Island and the Mongolian horse, is now the mainstream war horse of the dragoons.
The Indian Marwari horse also has the blood of Indian native horses, Arabian horses and Turkmen horses.
In other words, the re-crossed horse in front of me has an extremely complex pedigree. The shoulder height is about 1.36 meters, and its appearance is more like a Mongolian horse, but it also has some characteristics of a Marwari horse.
Wang Zhen pointed to the last horse and said: "This is the offspring of Jeju local horse and Tianzhu horse. It can... be used by the prince to ride."
The real Jeju local horse is only about one meter tall at the shoulder, and the particularly majestic ones can reach over 1.15 meters.
Zhao Han could imagine the scene of mating. A Mawari horse with a shoulder height of more than 1.5 meters often rides on a Jeju native horse with a shoulder height of only 1 meter... It is simply ravaging.
"Is this thing specially designed for children to ride on?" Zhao Han asked.
Wang Zhen was a little embarrassed: "On a whim, I wanted to know what kind of mixed-race offspring would be produced by mating these two horses with huge differences in size. I bred more than ten horses in total, and the one in front of me is the most beautiful. Although it is still very short.
It is very tall, but its limbs are not as thick and short as the local horses of Jeju. There is another horse with a shoulder height of nearly four feet, which is taller than the dragoon's war horse, but its limbs are short and short and can only be used for pulling goods. And I tried it, and that horse
It’s very useful for pulling goods, has great strength, and has plenty of endurance.”
Is this a genetic mutation?
They are also the descendants of Jeju native horses and Mawari horses. One is only three feet tall, while the other is four feet tall. There is a difference of 30 centimeters.
In this regard, Zhao Han had to encourage: "It's good to try more. Since the four-foot-tall horse is easy to pull goods, let him continue to be bred with the Tianzhu horse. Let's see what the offspring can become, maybe we can do it.
Create a good horse specially used for towing artillery."
"I will do my best!" Wang Zhen was delighted when the emperor praised her.
It just doesn't sound right to you. Why are you going all out? It's not like I'm asking you to breed.
After another lecture and encouragement, the two horse breeders thanked them and left.
Zhao Han ordered someone to order a set of riding equipment, and called his eldest son over every few days: "Guan'er, this horse is yours. From today on, you will learn riding and shooting skills."
Zhao Kuanghuan was already seven years old and was suitable for riding a pony. He was delighted to see it and said, "Father, hasn't it grown up yet? Why is it so short?"
"A dwarf among horses can only grow so tall." Zhao Han explained.
A guard who knew how to ride began to serve as Zhao Kuanghuan's teacher. He first taught him how to get on and off the horse, and then led the prince for a slow walk. Although the height at the shoulder was only 1.1 meters, it was still a bit dangerous for a seven-year-old child.
Fortunately, this horse is very docile, or rather lazy, and will stop and be in a daze while riding.
This horse did not inherit his father's height, but he inherited his father's cute ears, which are also raised high and inward. The body is well proportioned, unlike ordinary ponies, whose legs are often thick and short. This horse
Although it is short, it looks a bit vigorous at first glance, like a smaller version of a divine horse.
A few days later, Zhao Kuanghuan was able to ride a horse and trot, and the teacher's bodyguard followed him the whole way, for fear that the prince would fall and fall somewhere.
Zhao Han also found time to practice riding skills and rode several laps with his son every day. It was definitely not enough to fight on horseback, but it was enough to escape on horseback. He had never ridden a horse in his entire life.
Time flies and it’s summer harvest time.
There are not many wheat growing areas around Nanjing. The main harvest of summer grain is rapeseed, which is harvested earlier than wheat. After harvesting the rapeseed, dry it and quickly press the oil. The freed land is irrigated with water to grow late rice. The residue left by the oil pressing can be used to fertilize the fields.
.
If early rice is planted, soybean meal is used to fertilize the fields. These are ancient "chemical fertilizers".
During the oil-pressing season, the city was filled with fragrance, and Zhao Han could smell it.
Zhao Han, who had developed some riding skills, was not satisfied with riding horses at home and wanted to take his family out hunting.
He called his concubines over and said happily: "The oil is fragrant and the wheat is about to be harvested. In such a festive season, let's go out for a walk together and go hunting in the Purple Mountain."
Fei Rulan said: "But we don't know how to ride horses. Why don't you go hunting? My sisters and I are going on a wild trip."
"Okay, okay," Fei Rumei was quite excited, "It's been a long time since I went to play in the wild. I usually have guards following me around the city."
Pan Qimei is also very positive: "When are you going out? I prepared food in advance, and recently I learned a kind of pastry."
Liu Rushi smiled and said: "Why don't you call Mrs. Tian too? She can ride and shoot and hunt."
Zhao Han finally remembered that there were Chongzhen's concubines and children here, so he said, "Call those children too."
Zhu Cixiang is fourteen years old and is currently in middle school. He actually got the top 20 in the final exam. He went to a good school with a lot of top students. It can only be said that the genes of the old Zhu family are good, because Zhu Yuyao is in a girls' school.
The results are also very good.
"Greetings to Your Majesty!" Zhu Cihong led his younger brothers and sisters to pay homage.
They used to call them Uncle Zhao Han, but after they became wiser, they changed their name to Your Majesty. It is possible that Concubine Tian taught them in private.
Zhao Han nodded in approval: "I haven't seen you for more than half a year. You have all grown up a lot. I heard that your academic performance is good. If you study hard, you can be an official in the future. Your father, since we have trusted each other for thousands of miles, I will not treat you badly.
.”
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The princes and princesses of the previous dynasty quickly thanked them.
Zhu Cihong was really sensible. Last year, a scholar quietly approached him, and without waiting for the other party to explain his intention, he shouted him down on the spot.
For the former prince to have the freedom he has today, Zhao Han was already very generous.
Everyone left the city in a carriage, but Zhao Kuanghuan insisted on riding a horse. The seven-year-old child was riding a pony through the streets, trembling with excitement, and making the guards nervous.
From the southeast of Nanjing's inner city, drive straight to Xiaolingwei.
It was originally a place where Zhu Yuanzhang raised horses and hunted. It was also used as a military training ground for Zhu Yuanzhang. The last family members were buried in that area.
Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma, and Zhu Biao were all members of the same family. The other concubines, princes, and daughters were much more distant emotionally. When Empress Ma died, Zhu Yuanzhang burst into tears, and when Zhu Biao died, he was equally grieved.
It was not until Zhao Han occupied Nanjing, Xiaolingwei, Xuanwu Lake and other areas that the ban was lifted to the people.
Nowadays, a large number of residential buildings and shops have been built around Xuanwu Lake, and there are boats and fishing boats everywhere on Xuanwu Lake. As for Xiaoling Guards, there has always been an area that belongs to the Datong Army's school grounds. After the regular divisions left Nanjing, the emperor's personal guards would take turns to practice at the school grounds.
, and it also operates as a horse farm.
Xiaolingwei's horse farm mainly collects southern war horses, which are fed and trained before being sent to the army for service.
"Kowtow to Your Majesty!"
Several eunuchs came and knelt down. They used to guard the tomb here. After Zhao Han ascended the throne, he expelled most of them, but there were still a few eunuchs left to visit the tombs of Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma, and Zhu Biao.
Zhao Han said: "Since you are here, let's go and say goodbye."
After another walk, we finally arrived at Xiaoling.
Zhao Han took his wife and children to offer incense to Zhu Yuanzhang, and muttered something: "Ming Taizu has a spirit in heaven, and the younger generation Zhao Han came to pay homage. Your legacy will be inherited by your descendants, and you will be able to smile like a child!"
After offering incense and paying homage, Zhao Han turned to Zhu Cihong, Zhu Yuluo and others and said, "These are your ancestors. Please come and offer a stick of incense."
Several old eunuchs, watching the orphans of the previous dynasty worshiping Zhu Yuanzhang there, huddled in the corner and quietly wiped away their tears.
I don’t know if they are crying for the Ming Dynasty, Chongzhen, or themselves.
(Two mistakes were made in the previous chapter. One was the miscalculation of the money, and the other was the age of Louis XIV. Both have been corrected. If you find errors in numbers in the future, please stop laughing. The physical education teacher will be very sad.)