Xia Yuanji's face was filled with pain. He had finally managed to get some money, but the emperor wanted to spend it lavishly. How could he bear it?
"Your Majesty, the treasury is rich, but there are many ways to use money, so we can't spend it like this!"
"I can't be poor." Zhu Di looked like a nouveau riche. "You are too short-sighted. Money is not saved, but earned. When the treasure ship goes to sea next year, the Ming Dynasty's treasury will become richer and richer."
"..." Xia Yuanji said bitterly: "Your Majesty, the floods in western Zhejiang have not been properly controlled. This will be a huge expense."
"I was just about to talk about this matter." Zhu Di said, "Go and make another trip to resolve this matter as soon as possible. Don't worry about money and food. I will fully support it."
Seeing that he still opposed the revision of books, Zhu Di changed the subject and said: "Do you have any good ideas for water control?"
"This..." Xia Yuanji frowned and pondered for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "I think we can dredge the lower reaches of the Wusong River and then connect it to Taihu Lake. Then, we can build a sluice based on the amount of land and open and close the sluice gates according to the seasons to allow floods to enter the sea.
Only in this way can we completely solve the flood problem and achieve long-term peace and stability."
After a pause, Xia Yuanji said again, "The best strategy is to focus on dredging and blockade as a supplement. The combination of the two is the best strategy!
However... this will require hundreds of thousands of people, and the money spent is quite staggering."
Zhu Di said, "Money and food are not a problem. The sooner we solve the flood problem, the sooner we relieve the people's distress and resume production."
He thought for a moment and said: "Go and make statistics. The people whose cultivated land has been flooded do not need to use corvee labor in lieu of taxes. As for the coolies who control the floods, we do not need soldiers this time. All the people who are suffering will be provided with work instead of relief!"
"Your Majesty!" Xia Yuanji was overjoyed, "Although this may seem like a lot of money, it actually benefits the country and the people..."
"Haha...Okay!" Zhu Di smiled and waved his hand, "Go ahead and resolve this matter as soon as possible to save the people from danger."
"I obey the order!" Xia Yuanji happily agreed, "I will do it now."
After leaving the main hall, he suddenly realized that this was the emperor's trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain. He couldn't help but smile bitterly and turned around.
…
After Xia Yuanji left, Zhu Di became in high spirits.
“What I want to write is a masterpiece, a book that will demonstrate the country’s prestige and benefit all generations;
The purpose is: a collection of classics and history, books of hundreds of schools of thought, astronomy, geographies, yin and yang, medical divination, monks' Taoism, and technical skills... compiled into one book!"
Barabara...
Li Qing looked at the appearance of the fourth child and suddenly thought of an inappropriate sentence: There is no room for leftover buns in the doghouse!
However, book repairing is a cultural inheritance that can affect the generations to come. From a long-term perspective, no matter how much money is spent, it is worth it.
A good emperor can be divided into a benevolent emperor and a sage emperor. A benevolent emperor benefits the present generation, while a sage emperor's merits last forever. Zhu Di is undoubtedly the latter.
Anyone who knows a little about history will know that "Yongle Dadian" is a masterpiece. Looking at the entire history of China, this book is definitely the number one, and there is no one that can even compare with it.
Although Li Qing knew that repairing this book would cost a lot of money, he was quite supportive of it.
The importance of culture to a nation and a country is self-evident.
When Zhu Di finished his impassioned speech, Li Qing cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I have this memorial."
"Aren't you, like Xia Yuanji, opposed to book repair?" Zhu Di asked suspiciously.
Li Qing shook his head: "Your Majesty is wise, and repairing books will benefit the generations to come. I agree with you with both hands.
However, simply revising books is not enough to reflect the emperor’s majestic talents and strategies.”
"Oh?" Zhu Di became interested, "Let's talk and listen."
"Your Majesty, I think that after the book is completed, officials can be allowed to read and copy it." Li Qing said, "If the book is completed and then shelved, the significance of the book revision will be greatly reduced."
Although there will definitely be people secretly making backup copies during the book revision process, the effect is far less effective than public support and dissemination.
Using officials as a medium to spread it to the people, and preserving this masterpiece in this way, is the best strategy.
"That makes sense." Zhu Di pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement, "However, the source must be clearly indicated on the transcript."
"Your Majesty!" Everyone flattered him.
Zhu Di smiled heartily, "Xie Jin, I will find you a helper. You and Yao Guangxiao will be responsible for the compilation together, and the book will be edited as soon as possible with high quality and quantity."
"Your Majesty..." Xie Jin said cautiously, "Your Majesty, I can handle this alone."
Zhu Di narrowed his eyes, then smiled and said: "Go and do your work. If you need anything, just ask."
"I obey." Everyone bowed and left, Xie Jin was a little disappointed.
After Xie Jin and others left, Zhu Di said calmly, "This man is so arrogant that he is just a cabinet member and walks in front of the minister. He is really arrogant and even though he has talent, he cannot be put to great use.
Gao Chi, you must not be too close to this person." Zhu Di taught: "You cannot give him a good look."
"My son, I've remembered it." Xiaopang nodded in agreement.
"Li Qing."
"I'm here."
"You have contributed a lot to this trip to Suzhou and Hangzhou. From now on, I will make you the crown prince and grand master." Zhu Di said, "How about it? Is it interesting to me?"
Li Qing was speechless. Lao Zhu had already granted him the title of Crown Prince and Grand Master, and he didn't want this first-rank title because it required more work.
"Your Majesty, why don't we just forget about it." Li Qing said with a smile, "It's better for me to be a lonely minister."
Zhu Di's face was straight: "The king's gift is undeniable!"
"...Thank you, Your Majesty." Li Qing nodded helplessly, and then asked: "Your Majesty, are the porcelain kilns and tea leaves ready?"
"Well, two porcelain kilns have been built, and Xia Yuanji has also implemented the tea business. From now on, tea will be exclusively owned by the imperial court, just like salt."
Zhu Di was in a good mood and laughed and cursed: "This man has good abilities and good character, but he's so damn stingy. Every time I spend money, it's like ripping out his flesh. Damn it, I didn't spend his money."
.”
Li Qing: "..."
I have to say that the fourth child is really good at spending money, he is simply a money shredder.
Zhu Di said happily: "The treasure ship will be built by the end of this year. Once the sea transportation starts, the national treasury will be filled."
"Congratulations to Your Majesty, Congratulations to Your Majesty." Li Qing said a few perfunctory words, feeling quite excited in his heart.
In less than two years, Ming Dynasty has overcome the sluggishness of Xiaozhu and gradually moved towards its peak. It is really a great blessing.
The three monarchs and ministers chatted for a while, and Xiaopang suggested: "Father, this time the Ming Dynasty's treasury has made such a huge profit, we should celebrate it, put on fine wine and food, and have a good meal."
Zhu Di readily agreed and ordered sumptuous dishes to be prepared.
………………
The days passed day by day, and Li Qing's life was very regular. He listened to music happily in the morning, went to the East Palace in the afternoon, and had fun in the evening. Sometimes he visited Cao Guogong and Liang Guogong's mansion, which was comfortable and fulfilling.
The compilation of Yongle Dadian is in full swing, and the number of people participating in the compilation has gradually increased from more than a hundred at the beginning to nearly a thousand, and is still increasing;
There are officials from the imperial court and well-educated people from the private sector, who are very busy buying books, sorting and summarizing them, finalizing them...
Seeing that the old monk was so busy that his feet did not touch the floor, Li Qing felt calm and felt much more comfortable in comparison.
On the other side, Longjiang Shipyard has also achieved significant results. Giant ships comparable to small aircraft carriers have been completed and launched for trial sea trials.
At the same time, the navy of the Ming Dynasty was also actively practicing.
Zhu Di was very assured of Sanbao and left all matters concerning going to sea to Sanbao.
He was promoted to Sanbao as an internal official, eunuch, to the fourth rank, and was given a surname. Zhu Di originally wanted to give him the national surname "Zhu", but considering that Sanbao was a eunuch, he changed it to "Zheng".
The giant wheel of history was rolling forward, and nothing could stop it. The Three Treasures suddenly changed from Ma He to Zheng He.
(ps: Sanbao’s real name is Ma He, and his nickname is Sanbao. He is also known as Sanbao. He believes in Buddhism. Yao Guangxiao accepted Zheng He as a disciple of Bodhisattva. His Dharma name is Fu Jixiang.)
In September, the small countries on the border came to worship one after another when they saw that the Ming Dynasty had stabilized and there would be no more changes.
Following North Korea, Siam, Ryukyu, and Japan (without symbols) came to pay tribute and established vassal relations with the Ming Dynasty.
Kings and princes must be canonized by the Ming Dynasty to have legal effect.
The Ming Dynasty's influence further expanded. As an emperor, Zhu Di was naturally happy and held a grand banquet to entertain envoys.
At the banquet, there were fine wines, delicacies, and delicacies, showing the splendor of the Ming Dynasty.
Some of these small countries have been dealing with the Han people since the Han and Tang Dynasties. They know that the Han people attach great importance to etiquette, so they have spent a lot of money on tribute items.
They also understand that it is not strange to be polite to many people.
During the banquet, the atmosphere was very warm. Princes, envoys and representatives came forward one after another to salute and toast. Zhu Di accepted everyone who came and was very cheerful.
After finishing the round of toasts, Zhu Di smiled at Li Qing and said, "Let's see, in a few years, the Ming vassal states will grow several times."
Li Qing looked pleased and nodded with a smile: "Your Majesty, the sea is about to open, but the sea is not smooth and Japanese pirates are very rampant at sea;
Of course, many of them were pirates from the Ming Dynasty. In fact, although Emperor Taizu banned the sea, private maritime trade was never interrupted. Without him, the benefits would be too great;
This also resulted in pirates and pirates running rampant at sea. Because smuggling by wealthy gentry was not allowed by the law, they could rob with peace of mind;
Now that the Ming Dynasty wants to open up sea trade, it is natural to clear the sea."
Zhu Di nodded, "I am also thinking about this matter, but the expenses of the imperial court are too great now. Although the Japanese pirates on the sea are generally well-armed, it is much more difficult to clear them than on land."
Li Qingdao: "I have a plan!"
"Do you have any plans?" Zhu Di put down his wine glass, "Let's talk about it."
Li Qing chuckled and said: "Leave the matter of clearing the Japanese to the King of Japan, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu."
"Well..." Zhu Di hesitated, "We have just established a vassal-vassal relationship, so this is not good!"
"Actually, there's nothing wrong with it." Li Qing said with a smile, "As long as the emperor can paint cakes well, he will naturally be happy to do it."
"Painting?" Zhu Di's eyes lit up, he was good at this, "Well, using barbarians to control barbarians is a good idea."
…
As the party drew to a close, envoys from various countries came forward to toast again one by one.
When he arrived as an envoy to Japan, Zhu Di began to express his art: "I want to open the sea, but Japanese pirates are rampant on the sea, which makes it very difficult for me to do it!"
The envoy was shocked and quickly explained: "Your Majesty, please calm down. I have heard about the pirates, but they have nothing to do with us!"
Zhu Di wondered: "I am willing to believe this, but I am afraid that I will accidentally hurt you when the time comes. After all, the generals and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty cannot distinguish between these things. What if..."
"Your Majesty, the Great Emperor, think twice!" The envoy misunderstood and said that the Ming Dynasty wanted to use the name of clearing the Japanese to send troops to attack them. He immediately said, "We are responsible for this, and we will clear it."
Zhu Di was surprised, he hadn't drawn the cake yet.
The envoy said humbly: "Why does the Ming Dynasty need to send troops for such a trivial matter as suppressing bandits? As a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, we have the responsibility and obligation to help the Ming Dynasty solve its problems."
He looked upright: "I hope His Majesty the Ming Emperor will give us a chance to make meritorious deeds!"
"Hmm... that's fine!" Zhu Di looked reluctant and nodded reluctantly: "It depends on your performance. If you fail to clear up the settlement, I will send troops again!"
After a pause, Huabian said: "If you do well enough, I will increase trade with you after the sea becomes clear. Gorgeous silks, exquisite porcelain, mellow tea... will all join the trade ranks;
Go back and tell Ashikaga Yoshimitsu that as long as he works hard and is obedient, I will not treat him badly."
"I obey the decree." The envoy nodded repeatedly, unable to conceal his joy, and said, "Your Majesty, the Ming Emperor, is so wise!"
Li Qing suppressed his laughter and thought to himself: "This big cake can be fed to Ashikaga Yoshi's mouth even after crossing the ocean."