On New Year's Eve, firecrackers are heard all over the country.
The sky across the entire capital city was sparkling with colorful fireworks.
In order to prevent fire, the palace does not allow fireworks. Various red lanterns are hung under the eaves of the palace.
Emperor Su He and Queen Wang Wenjun held a state banquet in the palace, inviting officials of fifth rank and above, children of martyrs, elders of Lijia Village and other important groups to participate.
There are nine halls in total for state banquets. There are twenty-four large round tables in each hall, and twelve guests sit on each round table.
The main hall where Emperor Su He is located invites all important people.
The steaming hot pot has been placed in the middle of the table.
The soldiers of Qilin Guard kept bringing dishes prepared by the imperial chef to the round table.
Su He sat at the northernmost table. This table was Su He's wife and children.
He raised his wine glass and said to the officials: "On New Year's Eve, I will spend this festival with all my dear friends, and wish the country peace and prosperity next year."
All the officials stood up, holding wine glasses in both hands, and bowed in the direction of Emperor Su He.
They said in unison: "I wish His Majesty the dragon good health, and I wish the country peace and prosperity."
The officials picked up their glasses and drank the wine in one gulp.
The state banquet officially started. At every table, there were people of similar status sitting at each table. They spoke a common language and chatted quietly.
Su He picked up the wine glass, stood up and walked to the table next to him.
The people sitting at this table were all military nobles, including three princes of the Great China Dynasty.
"Brother Su Xiong, Da Zhuang, Qingmu. Next year you will set off to open up your own country overseas.
I wish you a safe journey, and I will be at the rear to give you enough support to make your founding of the country smooth."
These three princes were the first batch of people from the Great China Dynasty to go overseas and found their country.
Su He will try his best to make their founding of the country a success.
The friendship between them is worth what Su He does.
The success of these three people will also provide enough motivation for those who come after them.
Of course, brothers have to settle accounts openly.
If these three people want to purchase additional services, they need to pay corresponding prices.
Su He already knew the location chosen by Su Xiong, Li Dazhuang, and Li Qingmu to found the country.
Currently, the West Coast of America and South Africa are not very powerful. With the abilities of the three of them, they can gain a firm foothold there.
When Su Xiong, Li Dazhuang, Li Qingmu and others heard Emperor Su He's words, their previous worries all disappeared.
With the huge country of Dahua Dynasty supporting them from the rear, there is no chance that they will fail.
Su Xiong stood up and said: "I thank your Majesty for your generosity. I will definitely not lose the integrity of the Han people overseas."
Li Dazhuang said: "Your Majesty, America is rich in resources. After I succeed, I will exchange the resources with the country."
Li Qingmu smiled and said: "With your Majesty's words, I feel completely relieved.
It is not difficult to defeat South Africa, but if you want to hold it, you need a strong navy.
I must purchase several battleships to defend this place."
Su He looked at the table, envious of the three princes.
He said with a smile: "The troubles in the north have been solved, and the imperial court will not store swords and guns in the warehouse, and let the horses go to the south."
According to the corresponding plan, the imperial court will have at least two large-scale wars next year, and at least two people will have the opportunity to become kings."
Zhang Yuliang and other princes heard the promise from Emperor Su He.
They looked at each other, both full of vigilance.
Everyone here wants to go further.
The other princes are all competitors.
Su He encouraged them with a few words, and then walked to the table where the cabinet was located.
When Prime Minister Wang Zhongce saw the arrival of Emperor Su He, he stood up and took the civil servants to bow.
Su He knew these civil servants and was extremely envious of Su Xiong and the others.
The policy of overseas founding has never been implemented before.
Civil servants were just a little envious before.
Now that this policy has been implemented, their eyes are turning purple with envy.
Su Xiong and others have been recruiting troops these days, preparing to go overseas to expand their own country.
After these civil servants saw it, they wished they could replace him.
Su He looked at these civil servants and promised: "When the country is founded overseas, everyone will have a chance.
You are civil servants and are incapable of leading troops to fight and conquer your own country.
If you accumulate enough meritorious deeds, I will also select a relatively stable fiefdom and grant it to you."
Su He could predict that most of the fiefdoms obtained by civil servants were worthless things that others did not want.
Many of the fiefs he granted to civil servants were islands or peninsulas, which were under the protection of the Great China Dynasty.
Wang Zhongce and others smiled when they heard Su He's promise.
Su He raised his glass and drank it all in one gulp.
"My dear friends, next year will be a critical year.
We have already occupied all the traditional Chinese forces, especially the grassland areas that have just been brought under our rule.
Next year will be an important year for digesting these territories.
Whether these territories can be truly digested is related to the imperial court's century-old foundation.
Several major projects such as the Yellow River Project and the Railway Project will also achieve initial success next year.
We, the monarchs and ministers, work together to build this country."
Prime Minister Wang Zhongce raised his wine glass excitedly.
He first promised: "Your Majesty, please rest assured that I will definitely lead the cabinet to ensure that the important policies of the imperial court can be implemented stably."
Su He saw that the civil servants in the cabinet had a good attitude and left the table with a smile.
He continued to go to the table where the children of martyrs and other people were gathered, encouraging these people and letting them feel the warmth of the court.
Every invited guest ate dishes carefully prepared by the royal chef.
Qilinwei brought over a plate of dumplings, and the banquet came to an end.
Emperor Su He and Queen Wang Wenjun, together with the invited guests, ate the New Year's Eve dumplings together, and the state banquet officially ended.
Su He watched his sons' performance at the state banquet.
The third son Su Meng, this little guy, just covered his head and ate delicious dishes.
Su Meng has the most straightforward temperament and behaves very naively at ordinary times.
His mother Naren did not cultivate him specially, knowing that he would never be destined for the throne, and being an idle prince would be the best outcome.
The eldest son Su Shu and the second son Su Lei are very thoughtful.
The second son Su Lei was trying to please Su He even more today.
Su Lei's uncle Li Dazhuang is about to leave the country, and the little guy also has a certain sense of crisis.
Su He looked at the two sons and saw some clumsy performances, but he did not expose them.
The little guys haven't grown up yet, so just by looking at their current performance, it's completely impossible to tell everyone's ultimate abilities and personalities.
The courtiers have been urging Su He to establish a crown prince as soon as possible to stabilize the country.
Su He was not in a hurry. He must not make the crown prince easily. He must clearly see his son's ability and character.
Only if he is suitable to be an emperor can he be put on the throne.
The imperial court has changed the prince many times, which is something that shakes the foundation of the country.
The "Dahua Law" formulated by Su He also has relevant provisions. If the emperor dies unexpectedly and does not appoint a heir, the eldest son will succeed him.
When he saw that the time had come to midnight, he waved his hand and asked Eunuch Zhou Fangzhi to ring the gong.
Inform the guests that the state banquet has ended.
When the guests heard the sound of the gong, they bowed to the direction of Emperor Su He and left the palace in an orderly manner.
…………………………
As Li Dazhuang was about to leave the palace, he glanced at his sister Li Huixin and his nephew Su Lei.
He was a little reluctant to give up, but he went one step further for his family.
Li Dazhuang still chose to go overseas to found his country.
What he knows about Emperor Su He, the prince will not decide in a short time.
When the time comes, his nephew will receive a huge boost from the support of a powerful country.
Li Dazhuang walked out of the palace. Not far from the palace was the mansion of Prince Cao.
He returned home with the guards and saw his wife Liu Shujing holding the child, waiting for his return.
Liu Shujing plucked up the courage and said, "Husband, I also want to go to South America with you."
Li Dazhuang's eyes widened and he scolded: "Women with long hair and short knowledge, war is a man's business, why are you getting involved?
If you go out with me, what will happen to the child? What to do with the property of Prince Cao’s Mansion?
The child is still too young now, and it is easy for him to die young if he comes with us during the long journey.
They are left alone in the capital, and we are not worried about who will take care of them.
I will need a huge amount of money in the future, and without the property of Prince Cao's Mansion, if the fiefdom has no output, we will have wasted this opportunity."
After Liu Shujing listened to Li Dazhuang's statement, she remained silent and just cried silently on the side.
Li Dazhuang saw his wife crying and faced thousands of troops, but he could handle it calmly.
Faced with this scenario, he couldn't think of a better solution.
"Don't cry, I won't be able to leave for a while.
I must train at least five thousand combat-ready soldiers before I set off for South America.
Our country has not yet opened a route to the Americas.
After I train the soldiers, I will wait until the air route is opened before setting off."
When Liu Shujing heard the news, she asked curiously: "Husband, the route has not been opened yet, why did Your Majesty ask you to start preparing for the founding of the country?
Can we really open a route to the Americas?
I looked at the location on the map and saw that the distance traveled to America is farther than the trip from the capital to the South Seas."
Li Dazhuang simply explained: “One of the reasons His Majesty asked us to start preparations so early is to give us peace of mind.
Another reason is that it is relatively simple to open up routes.
The Spanish have already opened up the routes to America and Europe, and the node is Luzon.
This is also the reason why we put the training camp on Luzon Island.
Li Qingmu, the king of Liao, captured many Spanish sailors.
These sailors were familiar with routes from Luzon to the Americas and Europe.
These sailors will take us on ocean routes to save their lives and money.
The imperial court has organized navy and private caravans to open routes to America and Europe.
After New Year's Eve, these fleets will set off.
We three princes will also send our confidants to walk the route.
When the air route is opened, it will be time for us to set off overseas to establish our country."
When Liu Shujing heard what Li Dazhuang said, she stopped crying.
The husband can also stay with the mother and child for a while instead of leaving immediately.
Li Dazhuang grabbed his wife Liu Shujing's hand and said, "Go back to the house! It's too cold outside. Don't let you and your children get typhoid fever."
He sent his wife back to the room, but instead of staying in the room, he went to the wing.
His men were having New Year's Eve dinner in the wing.
When Li Dazhuang walked into the side room, the people who were drinking immediately stood up and saluted.
"Your Majesty, you are back."
"My lord, what are your orders?"
Li Dazhuang first looked at a strong man, retired military officer Kong Erniu.
During this time, he contacted his old subordinates and asked them if anyone wanted to conquer the world with him.
Big soldiers are easy to recruit. As long as you spend some silver coins, many people who have no food to eat will join the army.
Officers need a long time to train, and Li Dazhuang did not have this time, so he could only poach Dahua.
The court will make appropriate arrangements for retired mid-level officers.
Except for some officers who made mistakes and were fished out of exile by Li Dazhuang.
Only Kong Erniu, a fool, gave up his current glory and wealth and was willing to follow Li Dazhuang to conquer the world just to repay his kindness.
Li Dazhuang said: "Er Niu, I will leave the training of the army to you.
You have to train me an army that can fight in half a year.
We do not have a complete system in the military, and this army must still have a certain degree of combat effectiveness when supplies are cut off."
Kong Erniu said confidently: "My lord, please rest assured that the regular army recruit training only lasts for three months.
I will strengthen this army and strengthen its ability to fight with all its might.
I have also learned about the Indian tribes in the Americas, and the combat effectiveness of these tribes is too low.
Even if our army loses ammunition, this tribe cannot defeat them."
Li Dazhuang patted Kong Erniu's shoulder.
"As long as you have confidence, Erniu, I will leave the army in charge of you.
After I establish my country, I will let you be the general."
Li Dazhuang looked at a wealthy middle-aged man again. This was Huo Bai, the shopkeeper in charge of trade in the palace.
"Shopkeeper Huo, I need a huge amount of silver coins to build my country. With only my few factories, I can't even raise the money to build a ship.
I hope you will live up to my king’s expectations and raise the initial funds, at least ten million taels of silver coins.”
Li Dazhuang didn't care about doing business before.
As long as it can maintain the operation of the mansion, just like others, it doesn't matter if you buy a few properties.
Huo Bai puffed up his chest and promised: "Your Majesty, your Majesty is the Khan of Heaven, and it has become the consensus of all businessmen to go to the grassland for trade.
As a prince, you can obtain some goods that other people cannot obtain.
These commodities can be exchanged for countless commodities in the nomadic tribes.
The villain must live up to the prince's trust and raise enough money through trade with the nomadic tribes on the grassland."
Huo Bai knew very well that it was extremely difficult to raise a large amount of silver coins through legal means in a short period of time.
My prince is in a critical period, and some means of exploiting others cannot be used.
There are only two quick-result methods, setting up a factory or trading.
Setting up a factory now requires the cooperation of the entire chain, which requires a certain amount of connections, and their palace is not suitable.
The method suitable for the royal family is trade.
The grasslands have just been opened up, and the nomadic tribes have countless wealth but lack commodities from the Central Plains.
The royal palace's caravan can ensure the safety of trade on the grassland, and a large amount of silver coins can be earned from one trade trip.
When Li Dazhuang heard Shopkeeper Huo Bai's suggestion, he said happily: "Shopkeeper Huo, you can handle this matter. If it succeeds, you will be the Minister of Household Affairs in the new country."
Li Dazhuang hopes that Huo Bai can succeed, but he still has a way out, which is to beg his sister.
This time when he founded his country overseas, Li Dazhuang would do his best to build a strong and prosperous country.