Chessboard, yes.
There are also grains of rice.
Zhu Di gave the order, and soon the eunuchs delivered the things.
The monarch and his ministers didn't waste any time. According to Li Hongbi's words, they worked together to place the rice grains.
"The first square is two, the second square is four, the third square is sixteen...the sixteenth square is two, three hundred and thirty-six..."
Zhu Di murmured while counting the rice grains carefully.
As a result, monk Daoyan was shocked when he heard this and looked at Zhu Di in disbelief.
"Your Majesty, what is the power of sixteen?"
"Two hundred and thirty-six!" Zhu Di replied without thinking.
"Ahem, Your Majesty, it's two hundred and fifty-six!"
As soon as these words came out, Zhu Di was dumbfounded.
Only now did he finally understand why Li Hongbi's expression was so strange before.
Damn it, it turns out I made a miscalculation!
"I don't have much exposure to arithmetic, so it is inevitable that I will make mistakes..."
Zhu Di's face turned red and he started to make excuses.
This is also true. There are very few people in the world who can learn to count.
Firstly, this thing is too difficult, and you may not be able to learn it if you learn it; secondly, it is useless even if you learn this thing, and the imperial examination will not test arithmetic!
Because of this, very few people learn to count.
It’s understandable that Zhu Di doesn’t understand!
Yao Guangxiao rolled his eyes angrily, and then stared at the rice grains on the chessboard.
Zhu Di was still counting carefully, lest there be one more or one less.
After a long while, Monk Daoyan sighed.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to show off anymore, this poor monk already understands."
"The great man said it right, this method of supporting the clan is not advisable!"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Di threw away the rice grains in his hand.
"Monk, tell me clearly, what is going on?"
Yao Guangxiao didn't waste any time. He pointed at the chessboard and said, "This is the Ming Dynasty." Then he picked up another rice grain and said with a wry smile: "And this is the clan!"
"The so-called placing rice on a chessboard is actually a simulation. The great master wanted to tell us in this way that once the imperial finances are used to support these clan members, it won't be long before the Ming Dynasty's finances will be dragged down by these clan members! "
As soon as these words came out, Zhu Di was shocked, and his expression gradually became serious.
"Monk, are your words a bit... unfounded?"
"There are only so many members of the clan, can't a Ming Dynasty not be able to support them?"
Seeing that Zhu Di still didn't understand, Yao Guangxiao stepped forward and dumped all the rice grains on the chessboard!
"Yes, there are not many clan members now!"
"But a hundred years from now, two hundred years from now, how many will they have?"
"The reason why that great man asked us to use square numbers is to tell us that the number of clan members will continue to grow at a terrifying rate like square numbers, until they eventually occupy the entire chessboard!"
"It's not doubling in one generation, it's doubling in one generation, and it's growing hundreds of times in several generations. The Ming Dynasty's finances will be overwhelmed within a hundred years!"
Zhu Di looked at the rice grains on the chessboard, and his heart suddenly felt shocked!
In fact, when he and Dao Yan discussed the policy of peacefully reducing the vassal, they did not consider the number of clan members.
Because the number of these vassal kings is not that large, there are only about twenty in total. Counting their descendants, how can it expand to a few hundred or thousands of people? The imperial court must still be Affordable!
Moreover, Emperor Taizu Gao had already made plans and formulated a detailed system for the salary and titles of members of the Ming Dynasty clan.
The title is downgraded every generation. The prince's sons, except for his legitimate son, become county kings. Then the county king is inherited by the eldest son. The remaining sons are all generals of the country, followed by generals of the country, generals of the country... all the way to the lieutenant of Fengguo. , it will no longer be raised later.
In other words, his father, Zhu Yuanzhang, had already solved the problem of calculating salary for him. Now Zhu Di only needs to follow the rules and slightly increase the salaries of clan members on the basis set by his father. Soothe the feudal kings and ask them to hand over their military power obediently and retire to become rich men.
However, it was not until this moment that Zhu Di finally understood how outrageous his idea was!
If what Li Hongbi said is true, the members of the Ming clan will increase exponentially, it will be a disaster for the Ming Dynasty!
"Monk, why is this growth rate so fast?"
Zhu Di was keenly aware of the problem and immediately questioned Dao Yan.
Yao Guangxiao sighed and gave an explanation.
"Because they have no pressure or any motivation. They are born with good clothing and good food, and they will always have good food and clothing for the rest of their lives. Moreover, they are not engaged in production and cannot participate in the industry of the four peoples. In this case, what else can these clan members do? ?”
"Eating, drinking, having fun, having wives and concubines, enjoying all the glory and wealth, that's all."
Yao Guangxiao's words were extremely polite. After all, these people were all members of the clan, descendants of the old Zhu family and descendants of Taizu Emperor Gao.
But how could Zhu Di not understand the underlying meaning behind his words.
In other words, if he really implements this policy of peacefully reducing vassals, Zhu Di can indeed defeat the kings without any bloodshed, but this will also create a huge hidden danger for the Ming Dynasty.
These vassal kings lost their military power and were not allowed to participate in the cause of the four peoples, so what else could they do?
He can only eat, drink, have fun and sleep with women, and be a useless person waiting to die!
In this way, one can imagine the growth rate of the number of clans!
Not to mention dozens of generations, by the time the reproduction reaches eight or nine generations, the number of members of the old Zhu family's clan will probably skyrocket to hundreds of thousands or even millions. Just these borers and rice bugs can ruin the Ming Dynasty's finances. Destroyed!
A picture emerged in Zhu Di's mind.
The clan members of Lao Zhu's family, all fat and big-eared, like pigs, are reaching out to ask for money and food from the court!
While the imperial treasury was empty, the Ming Dynasty suffered from successive years of disasters. People everywhere were displaced, and countless hungry people were displaced, crying for food...
No!
no!
Absolutely not!
Cold sweat broke out on Zhu Di's forehead.
Such a Ming Dynasty will eventually perish sooner or later!
"Monk, I understand."
"This hidden danger must be solved!"
"Otherwise we will lay the foundation for future generations!"
Yao Guangxiao frowned and nodded.
But he really couldn't think of any measures at the moment.
"Your Majesty, I wonder who the great master is?"
"There's no such thing as a great talent, it's just that little brat Li Hongbi!"
"What?" Yao Guangxiao was shocked, "Is all this Li Hongbi's handiwork?"
This was the first time Zhu Di saw Yao Guangxiao acting so glum.
"That's right, that's Li Hongbi, the only son of Li Jinglong!"
Monk Dao Yan was really shocked this time, with a strange light in his eyes.
"Li Hongbi, the eldest son of Cao Guogong?"
"It turns out there are such great talents in this world!"
"Interesting, really interesting, the poor monk can't wait!"
Yao Guangxiao looked at Zhu Di and immediately suggested: "Your Majesty, why don't you summon Li Hongbi to the palace to see him?"
Zhu Di frowned when he heard this and rejected the proposal.
"The Hongbi Proofreading Competition stole the show and overturned all the civil servants and gentry."
"If a tree is as beautiful as Lin Feng, it will be destroyed. I don't want him to be targeted by those courtiers!"
Yao Guangxiao smiled slightly when he heard this and changed his explanation.
"Your Majesty, I heard that Cao Guogong's mansion is very beautiful, and I have always wanted to go and have a look. Unfortunately, I don't have the chance."
Zhu Di also smiled when he heard this and said: "Would you rather hit the sun than choose a day? I also like to see the scenery."
The king and his ministers looked at each other and smiled, saying nothing.
