It doesn't matter whether the giraffe is a unicorn or not. What's important is that Zhu Di said it is a unicorn.
In fact, the ministers don't know the truth. This thing is indeed similar to the description in ancient books, but they all know that Qilin will never look like this.
However, in the officialdom, everyone is a smart person, and no one will be serious about this matter.
In addition, no one has ever seen this big guy. Even if he really has that intention, he can't prove what it is.
For a time, the giraffe became the focus of the audience.
It is not afraid of animals either, and looks at everyone with a cute look, which is very endearing.
Zhu Di wanted to use this to achieve political goals. In order to be politically correct in going to sea, he immediately ordered a painter to paint for him and asked Xie Jin to attach a eulogy.
He was deeply aware that this was a great opportunity to promote his country's prestige and improve his dominance, so after the banquet, he had someone lead the unicorn around the capital.
Since ancient times, those who win the hearts and minds of the people win the world. Emperors have paid great attention to the people's sense of identity and belonging.
The Holy King comes out and auspiciousness descends!
The appearance of this unicorn can achieve this goal, and Zhu Di will not let it go.
The streets of the capital were deserted by thousands of people.
The people are simple but also ignorant. They have never seen a unicorn or anything like this. The emperor and officials all say it is a unicorn, so that’s what it is.
Even some people with a little knowledge did not dare to go against the imperial court. Some people even said that this thing was a unicorn and that they had seen it before in order to show off themselves.
Just like that, everyone recognized that this was Qilin.
When everyone's understanding is consistent, the nature of things doesn't matter.
Whether it is a giraffe or a unicorn, they are just names. The so-called auspiciousness is also given by people.
So, is there a problem with thinking of a giraffe as a unicorn?
No problem!
After thinking about this, Li Qing smiled with relief and went home to pick up a few girls to watch the fun.
"Wow, it's so big!" Wan Ling said in surprise, "Qilin is actually so big!"
Lianxiang Hongxiu's face was also full of surprise. They had never thought that there was such a tall animal in the world, but they were relieved when they thought it was a unicorn. As for mythical beasts, the more bizarre they are, the more common sense they are.
In this era when there are no high-rise buildings, the 'Kilin' stands out from the crowd. Even if there is a huge crowd, people can still see its appearance clearly.
The appearance of Qilin made everyone very happy, thinking that the auspiciousness would definitely bring them good luck.
Ever since, the unicorn has become a topic of conversation among the people in the capital after dinner. With the spread of rumors, the unicorn has spread from more than two feet high to five feet high.
The people spread it like this, and Zhu Di was willing to let them spread it like this. When the news spread to the capital, the height of Qilin was unimaginable.
…
Xia Yuanji was so busy that his feet never touched the ground, but he was busy happily and happily. The treasure ship brought back too much wealth this time.
In addition to a large amount of gold, silver, agate, jade and other treasures, there are also pepper, red sandalwood and many other precious and scarce items in the Ming Dynasty.
The land and water support the people. Things that were precious in the Ming Dynasty were not in overseas countries. In addition, more than half of the transactions were in the form of barter, and the harvest was quite rich.
The cabin of the treasure ship, which is tens of feet long and ten feet wide, is almost full. Foreigners don't care about this. What they care about is silk and porcelain from the Ming Dynasty...
Xia Yuanji's mouth almost reached behind his ears, he was about to send it off!
The common people are poor, but the wealthy gentry are extremely rich. As long as they have good things, they don't have to worry about no one buying them.
"Now the treasury has money." Xia Yuanji looked pleased and muttered, "Even if the emperor can spend more money, he won't be able to spend it all in one time."
But after all, he underestimated Zhu Di's ability to spend money. After learning about the gains from this trade, Zhu Di immediately began his journey of shredding money.
Expanding the weaving bureau and porcelain kilns, and strengthening the control of tea, in addition to a large amount of expenses, further reduced the money sources of the wealthy gentry.
The ministers objected fiercely, but their opposition was ineffective.
After a wave of money was spent, Zhu Di continued to arm the army, adding 2,000 cannons and 30,000 sets of armor. At the same time, he allocated 350,000 soldiers and half a year's military pay to prepare for the Northern Expedition.
The two consecutive policies seriously threatened the interests of civil servants, and the officials naturally opposed them in every possible way, but their opposition did not affect Zhu Di's determination, and they were unable to stop it.
Then, Zhu Di ordered the canal to be dredged, hoping to fully connect the north and south.
Now, Xia Yuanji couldn't sit still. It wasn't that the canal was not good, but that it was too expensive. With these policies, not only could he not save a penny of the money he earned from his voyages to the West, but he would have to repay it.
In this era, there were no excavators or transport trucks, so digging was done bit by bit manually, which was incredibly expensive.
"Your Majesty, think twice!" Xia Yuanji said with a bitter face, "The national treasury cannot afford to spend it like this. It is best to do one thing after another. When the treasury is rich in the future, it is best to implement it gradually!"
"Stop talking nonsense, what did I do that was not beneficial to the country and the people?" Zhu Di said angrily, "There is no money for this, and there is no money for that. Where did the Ming Dynasty's taxes and trade gains go."
Don't you have a good idea of where to go? You've almost spent the first two items... Xia Yuanji said with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, I really have no money!"
"I don't believe it!"
Xia Yuanji: "..."
Without waiting for the fierce opposition of the ministers, Zhu Di promulgated another policy.
——Build the capital in Peiping!
This time, a hornet's nest was stirred. The civil servants and even some military generals who had repeatedly tolerated it could no longer sit still. The civil servants immediately started to tear up, impeaching Zhu Di for abandoning the ancestral temple, abandoning the country and family...
The court was in chaos, and most of the officials were so angry that they almost pointed at Zhu Di and cursed him.
They dare to curse like this because they have the confidence that Emperor Taizu founded the country and established the capital in Jinling. Moving the capital means denying Emperor Taizu.
Moreover, Emperor Taizu was buried in Jinling, the founder of the country was buried in the south, and the successors were buried in the north. Who else would I scold you for such an unfilial act?
Of course, the real reason for the opposition of the officials was that their roots were in the south and they were unwilling to leave their hometown and go to Peiping.
Once you go to the north, you won't be able to use your status as an official to benefit your family and make money;
Furthermore, the climate in the south of the Yangtze River is pleasant, while Beiping is a bitterly cold place with sandstorms from time to time. Only a ghost would be happy to go there.
The stalemate lasted for a long time, and finally Zhu Di couldn't stand it anymore, so he beat two scolding officials to death and dismissed the court hastily.
…
Royal study room.
Li Qing, Dao Yan, and Zhu Di sat opposite each other. After the eunuch retired, Zhu Di briefly expressed his idea of moving the capital.
"Since ancient times, disasters in the Central Plains have all come from the north. Staying alone in the south of the Yangtze River is actually a low-level policy, and it is easy to breed corruption." Zhu Di said, "Born in sorrow and dying in peace and happiness, if the important capital of the capital is moved to the north, it will be a disaster for the emperor and the emperor.
All officials, including hundreds of officials, will stick by each other to the death to ensure long-term peace and order."
"Your Majesty is wise." The two of them cupped their hands.
"I don't want to listen to you two flattering me." Zhu Di said, "I want you to think of a way to deal with the officials."
The two of them looked at each other and were speechless. This time they had touched the hearts of the ministers. It was not something that could be done by simple tactics. Besides, those people were not fools either.
After a long silence, Dao Yan said, "Your Majesty, why don't you take the middle of the road and move the capital to Chang'an, or to Luoyang in the world?"
Zhu Di shook his head and refused: "I am not asking you to compromise. It is imperative for me to move the capital to Peking."
Dao Yan: "..."
Seeing that the two of them were silent, Zhu Di was a little annoyed, "You two are usually very bad-tempered, where have you been now?"
Li Qing smiled bitterly and said: "Your Majesty, this is a deadlock. No matter what method is used, they will not agree to it unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Forcible relocation!" Li Qing said, "With the power of the emperor and the power of the emperor, we forced the ministers to agree."
Dao Yan nodded slightly, "It is impossible to get the ministers to willingly agree to move the capital. If you want to move the capital, you can only use bad strategies."
Zhu Di said helplessly: "Is there really no other way?"
The two shook their heads.
"Okay!" Zhu Di sighed, "Come here, tell Commander Ji Gang to come over."
~
The Jin Yiwei were out in full force, loitering in front of the officials' houses all day long, not taking anyone, just hanging around, making the officials feel panicked.
Several days later, Zhu Di once again proposed moving the capital, but the officials still fiercely opposed it.
Zhu Di did not force it, but within a few days, several high-ranking officials were found guilty of serious corruption and bribery crimes and were guillotined.
A few days later, Zhu Di once again proposed moving the capital. The officials still opposed it, but most of them were no longer so fierce.
Zhu Di still didn't force himself and clicked a few more times.
This happened three or four times. When Zhu Di proposed the plan to move the capital again, the officials did not agree, but they did not dare to speak out against it, and they all remained silent.
Zhu Di used the excuse that "if you don't speak, you will acquiesce" and began to recruit top craftsmen to build Beiping City.
From the perspective of later generations of Li Qing, the decision to move the capital to the north was indeed a wise move.
Because this can separate the economic center and the militarization center, forming a political pattern of one south and one north.
Using the military to control the economy is far better than having me among you and you among me.
Solving the intertwined economic and military situation will be of great benefit to the country.
Since Zhu Di, Peiping has always been the capital of China. It is not without reason.
However, at this stage, the economy, population, and food in the north are far inferior to those in the south.
After the capital was moved to Peiping, officials, the royal family, and a large number of troops joined in, and the money and food in the north could not support it at all.
To solve this problem, the Grand Canal must be dug and opened to achieve the purpose of supporting the capital.
Therefore, the major project of opening the canal began.
This time, there were more than twice as many craftsmen as before to control the flood, a total of 300,000. The cost of money and food was extremely high. Coupled with the construction of the capital, the court's spending could no longer be described as flowing water. It was simply a waste of money.
Burn money.
I made a lot of money on my overseas voyages, but at this rate of spending, I couldn't last long.
As a result, Zhu Di ordered Sanbao to actively prepare for his next trip to sea.
In order to raise trade goods and allow the treasure ship to go to sea as soon as possible, Zhu Di further squeezed the wealthy gentry, and the relationship between the monarch and his subjects was almost broken.
Zhu Yuanzhang was ruthless, and Zhu Di was even ruthless.
Wen Chen thought that after getting rid of Lao Zhu, spring would come, but in the end he met such a bastard, and he even wanted to die.
As the saying goes, wherever there is oppression, there is resistance. The rich gentry did not dare to rebel, but Zhu Di could still do it if he was disgusted.
As a result, all kinds of disgusting things happened one after another for Zhu Di.