After hearing this, Lao Zhu leaned back on his chair and looked at Tang He with a bit of sympathy. He asked helplessly: "Don't you know what's going on on the other side? It's tens of thousands of miles away from the Ming Dynasty. Han Du almost died and was blessed by God before he could come back. Are they all willing to go?"
"Yes, they are all willing to go." Tang He replied with great certainty.
Now Lao Zhu was surprised. You must know that the conditions in Nanyang are much better than those on the opposite side. From Beijing to Nanyang, a round trip only takes about half a year, but what about going to the other side? Not for a year, I'm afraid I won't even think about it.
"Why?"
Tang He squinted his eyes and said with a relaxed expression: "Han Du said that the reason why he narrowly escaped death was because he took the southern sea route that required crossing the sea. He had no choice but to do so now, but now he doesn't have to. Wherever you go."
"Now you can take the sea route to the north. As long as you walk along the coast, there is basically no risk and you can reach the other side safely."
Lao Zhu naturally knew about this road to the north, but those nobles did not. That's why Han Du would explain it to the nobles, and Lao Zhu could understand.
"But it's tens of thousands of miles away after all. Are you really willing to leave your hometown?" Lao Zhu looked at Tang He with a dull look and asked with a hint, "I want to remind you first, what's going on over there?" It is completely different from Nanyang. It is a truly barbaric land. You can still see some normal people in Nanyang. But over there, they are all barbarians. Have you seen the one Han Du brought back, Zhai Yuan? No? I heard that at the beginning, he was wearing animal skins all over his body, and he didn’t even have any clothes. It was only in the Ming Dynasty that he gradually got used to wearing clothes."
"In Nanyang, there are still Western merchants who come to trade. As governor, you can more or less trade some things and receive some taxes. But there are no merchants there. Who can you trade with? To what?"
Tang He looked serious and said solemnly: "Sir, Nanyang was also a barbaric wilderness at the beginning, and Japanese pirates were rampant. Since I didn't back down at the beginning, I will certainly not back down now. There is indeed nothing to trade on the other side, but Han Du As I said, the products on the other side are extremely rich, even if nothing is exchanged, just transporting the special products on the other side back to the Ming Dynasty, the income will be extremely considerable."
Lao Zhu was dumbfounded, and then asked in surprise: "Are all those nobles willing to give up their seats as governors of Nanyang?"
"As the superior said, aren't the governors of Nanyang all appointed by the superior? I and they are just guarding for the superior. Of course, I also have selfish motives. If I can be a one-person governor, it will increase the income of the government. , I will be satisfied if you improve the lives of the people in the house." Tang He lowered his posture and held Lao Zhu up.
Sure enough, Tang He's move worked.
Lao Zhu laughed happily and was extremely satisfied with Tang He's answer. He patted his shoulder and said, "Don't go. Let the nephews and nephews in the house go. You are already old and it's time to enjoy peace and happiness." .Besides, I can’t live without you.”
As he said that, Lao Zhu raised his head and sighed: "Since the third brother left, there is one less person to talk to me. If you go there, then I really have no one to talk to."
"Okay, okay, I will listen to my superiors and won't go anywhere. I will stay here to guard my superiors." Tang He had never thought about going to America. Just now, the words came to his lips and he had to say them.
If the superior followed his will and insisted on letting him go, then even if Tang He was very likely to die on the way, he would have no choice but to go.
Now that he has been retained by his superiors, Tang He still feels warm in his heart.
"Then the superior agreed to my request?"
Lao Zhu smiled and nodded, and said: "Isn't it just to set up the Governor's Mansion over there? I agreed to this."
"Thank you, sir." Tang He quickly wanted to stand up tremblingly and solemnly thanked Lao Zhu.
But Lao Zhu really didn't want Tang He to have a hard time, so he stretched out his hand to hold his shoulders and said, "We old brothers don't need to worry about these red tapes."
"Hey, hey~" Tang He smiled and nodded, agreeing.
Lao Zhu was originally worried that the nobles would cling to the position of governor of Nanyang, which would lead to conflicts with civilian officials and lead to political instability. After all, every governor position represents a benefit, and it is a huge benefit. Not everyone can give up easily.
But Lao Zhu did not expect that Han Du would propose setting up a governor's palace opposite, and that the nobles would actually be willing to go. Lao Zhu was moved when he thought that your nobles were willing to leave Nanyang, a prosperous place that had already prospered, and go back to the barbaric wilderness without any conditions. They just requested to establish a governor's palace.
At the same time, I thought that the civil servants were not even willing to go to Nanyang. Even after Fang Xiaoru presented the memorial, there was a collective boycott by the civil servants.
Compared with the nobles who were willing to take the initiative to go to America to serve as governors, these civil servants seemed much more cowardly.
Now that his goal was achieved, Tang He stood up and resigned.
Lao Zhu did not keep him, he smiled and nodded and agreed, and also told Tang He to pay more attention to rest when he went back, and to go to the palace to talk to him when he had time.
...
After Han Du left Tang He's house, he found Fang Xiaoru with doubts.
"What's going on with you? Why do you suddenly want a civilian to serve as governor?"
Fang Xiaoru looked extremely calm when facing Han Du's question and said: "Since Nanyang needs governance, isn't it reasonable for civil servants to join Nanyang as governor?"
Han Du was immediately choked by Fang Xiaoru's words. He was not sure whether Fang Xiaoru knew whether he would receive a 10% reward for serving as governor. Han Du did not dare to reveal the news to him anymore, so he sighed and said: "Nanyang is the land of wealth for the emperor. If you report it so rashly, if the emperor thinks you have ulterior motives, you will be in trouble." Bad."
Regarding Han Du's warning, Fang Xiaoru looked disapproving and said: "I hope that the emperor can let civilian officials serve as governors to govern a place without giving up Nanyang. How could it have any impact? And civilian officials should govern a place. It’s suitable to compete with military generals, maybe it will make Nanyang more prosperous?”
Han Du was surprised for a moment when he saw Fang Xiaoru taking it for granted, and then said to him with a wry smile: "Nanyang is completely different from the Ming Dynasty, and the civil servants may not be able to guard it. You wouldn't think that, Didn't you have a thorough understanding of the situation in Nanyang when you looked around like a quick glance at the flowers?"
Fang Xiaoru did not rashly refute Han Du when he heard this. Instead, he frowned and thought deeply for a moment before asking, "What? What's wrong with Nanyang?"
Han Du had no choice but to explain: "Except for Luzon and Old Port, there are a few governor's offices in Nanyang. Because Ming people live there, they are relatively stable. But in other places, such as Java, there are basically no Ming people. Traces. In a place like this, the Governor’s Mansion completely relies on the use of force to suppress the resistance of the local natives.”
"Do you think that if a civil servant goes there, he can guard the Governor's Mansion?"
Although most civil servants say that mounting a horse can lead an army and dismounting a horse can bring peace to the people, they will only believe this after drinking a few glasses of wine.
Of course, there are people who are truly both civil and military. But there are really too few such people. Usually, civil and military officials can still distinguish themselves.
Although Han Du was a good hand at handling government affairs, he never said that he was also a good hand at leading troops in war. Even the naval battle that Han Du is best at relies on "caliber is justice and range is truth", coupled with some accumulated naval battle common sense, to bully others. When the two armies faced each other, Han Du always delegated command authority to his soldiers and did not dare to give blind orders himself.
It's no joke that one general's incompetence will kill the three armies.
Fang Xiaoru also knew that it was somewhat unrealistic to let civilian officials lead troops to suppress one party. Facing Han Du's words, he could not refute. He simply spread his hands towards Han Du and said helplessly: "But, now that I have already played, what else can I do?"
What else can be done? Let's serve it cold.
Now we can only see what Lao Zhu means, whether to put this matter aside, or whether he really wants to send a civilian official to Nanyang to serve as governor. If Lao Zhu really wanted to let civilians serve as governors, then Han Du had to suggest that Lao Zhu first let civilians serve in a few relatively stable places, step by step.
Or it could be to equip civilian officials with military generals, and return to the state of civilian officials governing and military generals fighting.
"If you must go to Nanyang to serve as governor, you should choose Jiugang or Luzon." Seeing Fang Xiaoru's attitude, Han Du knew that he could not persuade him, so he gave him a last word and left.
Jiugang has a local leader like Shi Jinqing, so there is no problem in terms of stability. As for Luzon, based on Lao Zhu's general attitude towards Luzon, Han Du was not sure whether Lao Zhu would let Fang Xiaoru serve as the governor of Luzon.
When Han Du returned to the house, an inexplicable feeling always lingered in his heart. I always felt that Fang Xiaoru's memorial was not as simple as he said.
Even if Fang Xiaoru saw the prosperity of Nanyang with his own eyes and wanted to serve as governor, there was no need for him to report it. He told himself the idea, couldn't he run it for him?
Although Han Du didn't think he was that great, he still had the ability to run a governor's position. After all, Nanyang was leveled by himself, and the governor himself suggested Lao Zhu to establish it. Lao Zhu had made so many benefits in Nanyang in the past few years, so he would still give himself this little favor.
Moreover, from Fang Xiaoru's point of view, no matter what, I was the first choice to help him become the governor. So, why did Fang Xiaoru sacrifice the near for the far, give up the easy for the difficult, and insist on submitting the memorial himself?
The more Han Du thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
"It can't be that... Fang Xiaoru knows that the governor will be rewarded with 10% of the tribute every year, right?" A thought came to mind, and the more Han Du thought about it, the more he felt that this was the case.
But there are two questions, that is, how did Fang Xiaoru know about the reward? Only Xungui and Lao Zhu knew about this matter, and neither Lao Zhu nor Xungui could tell Fang Xiaoru the news.
Xungui will not let the civil officials know this news and compete with them for the governor's seat.
Lao Zhu would not tell Fang Xiaoru, or even let people know how much benefit he made from Nanyang every year.
Who told Fang Xiaoru?
Another one is, since Fang Xiaoru knew about the governor's reward, why didn't he write it in the memorial or tell it directly in the court? If the civil servants knew about such a fortune starting from 100,000 yuan a year, they would not oppose Fang Xiaoru together at all. Instead, they would be eager to go to Nanyang to serve as governor.
It was impossible for Fang Xiaoru not to know about such an easy way to win over people's hearts, but he happened to not mention a single word about it in the court from beginning to end. I would rather be misunderstood and targeted by all civil servants than reveal anything.
What exactly does Fang Xiaoru want to do?
Suddenly, Han Du thought that there was another person who knew about the reward.
Zhu Biao!
When he thought of Zhu Biao, Han Du suddenly felt enlightened for some reason.
Although Han Du didn't know why Zhu Biao revealed this news to Fang Xiaoru, he did have the conditions to do so. Fang Xiaoru is now an official in the Prince's Mansion, serving as the Minister of the East Palace.
Although Han Du can't figure out the second question yet, Han Du can't wait to ask Zhu Biao.
Arriving at the East Palace, Han Du entered unobstructed. When I saw Zhu Biao, I found that he was making tea with his own hands.
Before Han Du could speak, Zhu Biao glanced at Han Du with a smile and said, "Here you come? Sit down."
Han Du followed Zhu Biao's instructions and sat on his left hand. He glanced at Zhu Biao suspiciously, took the tea, and asked doubtfully: "Your Highness knows that I will come?"
Zhu Biao nodded with a smile and said: "Calculating the time, it's almost time for you to come to Gu. But you are still a little bit beyond Gu's expectation. You came a little earlier than Gu expected."
Seeing Zhu Biao act like this, Han Du felt a little clearer in his heart. No longer beating around the bush, he asked directly: "Did His Highness tell Fang Xiaoru that there will be a 10% reward for serving as governor?"
"Of course." Zhu Biao agreed as a matter of course, and continued: "Not only that, even the performance he submitted was under Gu's instructions."
No wonder... Han Du suddenly understood the second question in his heart.
Originally, Han Du felt strange about Fang Xiaoru's various behaviors. Now it seems that it is not that Fang Xiaoru behaves strangely, but that he was simply instructed by Zhu Biao.
However, the doubts about Fang Xiaoru were gone, and new doubts arose in Han Du's heart. He looked at Zhu Biao very puzzled and asked: "What exactly does His Highness want to do?"
Zhu Biao smiled, did not go around in circles with Han Du, and said directly: "I won't hide it from you. I thought that since we were governing the party, maybe civilian officials would be better than military generals. Moreover, Xungui has been occupying the throne for the past few years. If the position of Nanyang Governor continues like this for a long time, there will be something wrong after all, right?"
"Of course it's not appropriate for your Excellency to hold the position of governor all the time." Han Du nodded sincerely, agreeing with Zhu Biao's view, and then continued: "However, does your highness think that the time is ripe for a civilian to serve as governor?"
Zhu Biao was stunned when he heard this, and said with a faint smile: "What? Do you think the time is not ripe yet?"
Han Du nodded solemnly. Seeing Zhu Biao's confusion, he explained: "Your Highness, there are indigenous people in Nanyang. The Ming Dynasty has just occupied Nanyang for a few years. The situation in many places is not stable and requires garrison to suppress it. If it is a civil servant As governor, I am a little worried that they may not be able to control the place where they live."
Zhu Biao knew very well the difference between governing one side and suppressing another, and also understood the strengths and weaknesses of civil officials and military generals.
Frowning, he asked: "But Fang Xiaoru said that Nanyang is very prosperous now. Although it is not as prosperous as the capital, it is no worse than other big cities in the Ming Dynasty."
Han Du smiled bitterly after hearing this, and explained with a sigh: "It is true that Nanyang has become prosperous now, but those are only the ports along the way from Daming to Old Port, or Luzon. What Fang Xiaoru saw at the beginning was only these places. These They are all places where Ming Dynasty merchants stayed, so they will naturally appear prosperous."
"Of course, I am not saying this to object to Your Highness's desire to have a civilian serve as governor. I just want to remind Your Highness that when a civilian serves as governor, it is best to choose these places. In other places...I am worried that civilians will not be able to guard it. "
Zhu Biao didn't expect that this would be the case, so he immediately fell silent. After thinking for a long time, he asked: "What is the situation in other governor's mansions?"
Han Du sighed heavily, stood up and explained: "How should I put it? Your Highness also knows how much wealth each governor's palace contributes to the inner treasury every year."
When Zhu Biao heard this, a strange color flashed in his eyes. He only learned about this in recent years. A governor's mansion sends millions of dollars of wealth into the inner treasury every year. Such a huge wealth shocked Zhu Biao for the first time. He had never expected that there would be such a huge wealth in a wild land in the eyes of the world.
At the same time, Zhu Biao couldn't help but be jealous of these wealth, after all, wealth is attractive. As a prince, Zhu Biao spent a lot of money. Otherwise, he would not have calmly accepted the 40% of the coal ore stock that Han Du gave him.
Han Du continued: "Think about it, Your Highness, the prosperous Governor's Palace can make up this money by relying on taxation and trade. But what about those Governor's Palaces that have no way to trade?"
Zhu Biao looked at Han Du hesitantly, his brows suddenly furrowed. He was reminded by Han Du that he also thought about this problem.
Seeing that Zhu Biao was obviously silent, Han Du had no choice but to continue: "Then we can only rely on local specialties. If there are mines, let the local aboriginals mine them. If there are valuable timbers, let the local aboriginals cut down the timber. But Your Highness, those Why should the indigenous people listen to us and do whatever we tell them to do?"
Without waiting for Zhu Biao's answer, Han Du sighed and said: "It is precisely because of the suppression by the Governor's Mansion that those natives will be obedient. But no matter what, will they always be convinced?"
Without Han Du's explanation, Zhu Biao could figure out that the natives would definitely not be convinced.
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