The eunuch who announced the decree thanked Zhu Gui and left.
Soon only Zhu Gui, Xu Guogong and Xu Miaoqing were left in the meeting hall.
Xu Guogong was the first to ask: "On behalf of the king, doesn't the emperor only want one million taels? Why do you want to give one million and a half million taels? Won't this lead to suspicion?"
Zhu Gui shook his head and said: "I have already made it clear in my letter that the five hundred thousand taels were earned from doing business in Nanjing in the recent period. In this way, the emperor will not trouble me again because of this matter.
"
Xu Guogong thought about it for a while. Although he still didn't quite understand Zhu Gui's intentions, nothing he did during this period was understandable to him. Fortunately, there has been no trouble so far, and he is not good either.
What a random comment.
Xu Miaoqing, on the other hand, looked at the imperial edict and said: "A small seventh-grade official can make you happy like this. Also, with this, when can we return to Yunzhou?"
This is the problem with Xu Miaoqing's relationship. Although Xu Miaoqing grew up in Nanjing, she now regards Yunzhou Datong Prefecture as her own home.
Zhu Gui died and said: "As long as the matters here are taken care of, the rest can be left to the Datong Chamber of Commerce to manage itself. The biggest problem has been solved so far, and the rest are just minor problems."
Zhu Gui looked outside the door, and her mood suddenly became brighter.
"Small question, does the prince mean the three big families of Shi, Lin and Li?" Xu Guogong understood immediately.
Even though he is the Duke of Xu, he occasionally interacts with these three families, which shows the influence of these three families in Nanjing City.
Now that Zhu Gui had become an official appointed by the imperial court in charge of business, he naturally had interactions with them.
Zhu Gui said: "That's right, but it's not just these three families. They are just businessmen with some background at most. Now that the emperor is on my side, they will also see the situation clearly. What I am worried about is the queen mother.
My natal family is the Guo family."
"Guo family? Why shouldn't they be considered one of our own? How could they go against you?" Xu Miaoqing asked in confusion.
"Precisely because they regard me as one of their own, they cannot recognize their own identity. There is a saying in the shopping mall, 'Brothers settle accounts clearly.' In the face of interests, few people are willing to suffer losses."
Zhu Gui said calmly.
Xu Guogong looked at Zhu Gui in surprise. It was hard to believe that these obscure words were said by a boy who was only fourteen years old.
And half a year ago, he was still a young prince who only knew how to act recklessly.
It was hard for him to imagine what Zhu Gui had gone through during his six months in Yunzhou.
But no matter what, the temperament and character shown by Zhu Gui currently made him a little worried, but on the whole it was good.
Xu Miaoqing didn't notice the abnormality on her father's face, but kept staring at Zhu Gui, her eyes bright, and she kept nodding.
"Although what you said makes sense, they are Concubine Hui's family after all. If possible, you should have a good discussion with them."
Xu Miaoqing said with a pleased expression.
"It's natural. I'm not the kind of unreasonable person. By the way, it's rare for Duke Xu to come to the palace. I'll personally cook and prepare a table of food and wine this time."
Zhu Gui suddenly became interested and wanted to show off his skills in front of Duke Xu.
Xu Guogong originally wanted to refuse, but Xu Miaoqing hugged his arm.
"Dad, you don't know that the prince's cooking is very delicious, and he is no better than the royal chef. It's hard for him to cook, so don't refuse."
Xu Miaoqing said coquettishly.
Seeing that his daughter had said this, Duke Xu Guogong could only reluctantly stay.
The next time was when Xu Guogong and Xu Miaoqing were chatting in the living room, talking about what happened between her and Zhu Gui in Yunzhou.
Zhu Gui was busy in the kitchen.
The reason why he cooked and prepared this meal himself was not just a whim.
On the one hand, Zhu Gui wanted to study the daily necessities of Nanjing, the economic center of the Ming Dynasty.
Condiments are one of them.
Zhu Gui also studied it when he was in Datong Mansion, but he didn't pay much attention to it. After all, he had more important things to be busy with.
But things are different now. With the official position of Weaving in the Ministry of Commerce, Zhu Gui can completely let go of his hands and start researching things related to the livelihood of ordinary people. This can also make targeted adjustments to the product allocation of the Datong Chamber of Commerce.
Adjustment.
Although ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty had "firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar and tea" in their kitchens, things like Sichuan peppercorns, chili peppers, etc. were only introduced from the Western Regions in the late Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Gui recorded all these, then exchanged some from the system store, and also exchanged a copy of "Su Cuisine Recipe", and then selected several Nanjing specialties from it to cook.
And this operation also has another purpose, which is to prevent Xu Guogong from being too biased towards Yan Wang Zhu Di now and in the future.
Although it seems that Zhu Gui and Yan King Zhu Di can still get along relatively harmoniously because he behaves too non-threatening.
But Zhu Gui himself knew that in the future, after the Battle of Jingnan broke out, a fierce conflict would probably break out between him and Zhu Di.
Zhu Gui had no objection to Zhu Di becoming emperor. After all, he was a wise king and created the Yongle era.
But Zhu Di, like Zhu Yunwen, implemented the policy of reducing vassal status.
This will inevitably lead to conflict with the vassal king Zhu Gui.
As for what to do in the future, Zhu Gui has not thought about it yet.
Will he overthrow Zhu Yunqi first before Zhu Di and then replace him, or can he find a way to peacefully coexist with Zhu Di?
No matter how things develop in the future, Zhu Gui hopes that Xu Guogong, as his and Zhu Di's father-in-law, will not get into trouble.
Soon, Zhu Gui cooked a table full of local Nanjing specialties.
Among them, the salted duck, squirrel fish and anchovy shrimp are the most amazing.
Even Xu Miaoqing couldn't help but said: "Your Majesty, why haven't I seen you cooking these dishes before?"
Zhu Gui quickly explained: "These are Nanjing specialties, and the ingredients need to be freshly picked to ensure the freshness."
After hearing this, Duke Xu Guogong nodded and said, "Yes, Nanjing cuisine is characterized by the original umami taste of the ingredients. Come and try it."
With that said, Xu Guogong took the lead in picking up a piece of salted duck, put it in his mouth and started chewing it.
He first showed a puzzled look, then looked at Zhu Gui in surprise, nodded repeatedly and said: "Yes, this tastes more delicious than the one at the emperor's birthday banquet. Qing'er is right, the prince really has a talent for cooking.
"
"I'll have a taste too." When Xu Miaoqing heard what her father said, she thought he was being polite, so she also took a piece and ate it.