"What... what? Mr. Yan Ge and Mr. Xu Ge of the cabinet are recommending ministers to Your Majesty at the same time!"
After hearing what Jiajing said, Gu Yan couldn't hide the look of horror on his face.
"Well, that's right. I heard that you are smart and capable and very good at controlling your subordinates."
"Therefore, I intend to leave the task of leading the fleet to sail around the world to you."
"I wonder if Aiqing is willing to share my worries?"
After Jiajing finished speaking, he looked away from Gu Yan and said slowly.
Until this moment, Gu Yan had not reacted. He was still in a daze. Everything that happened in front of him was too dreamy for him.
Before this, he was still serving in the navy of the imperial court. How could he suddenly be valued by both the chief minister and the second minister of the cabinet and recommend him to the emperor?
Although Jiajing's tone was extremely calm, Gu Yan still heard a hint of irrefutable meaning in it.
"If you refuse verbally, you will definitely end up miserable!"
Gu Yan thought so, then he knelt down on the ground with a thump and said in a deep voice.
"Your Majesty, I would like to share your worries with you!"
"Well, not bad, not bad."
After hearing Gu Yan's answer, Jiajing nodded, and then glanced at Lu Fang aside.
The latter quickly signaled that he immediately came to the desk and brought the map Jiajing had drawn before to Gu Yan.
"Your Majesty, you are..."
Gu Yan looked at the map in front of him, his face full of confusion.
"This is the path you will take next."
"In addition, I want you to find two things. I have drawn the specific details on the back of this map."
Seeing this, Jiajing looked away from Gu Yan, and then explained slowly.
After Gu Yan heard this, he turned his attention to the map in front of him and saw that the markings on it were extremely detailed. When he turned the map over, he could still see the two things drawn on it.
"It says corn and sweet potatoes..."
After Gu Yan carefully browsed the contents on the map, he suppressed the horror in his heart and immediately plucked up the courage to ask.
"Your Majesty, you want me to follow this route and find the two things you marked on the map at this place after completing the circumnavigation, right?"
After listening to Gu Yan's question, Jiajing immediately nodded and responded.
"Well, that's right. In addition to completing the global voyage, your mission on this trip is to find these two crops for my Ming Dynasty!"
"In addition, during this process, you can also conduct trade. Except for the part of the profits that must be handed over to the court, you can keep the rest for yourself."
"Every time I go to a place, I will record the local customs, hydrological conditions, etc., which will be of great use in due course!"
"do you understand?"
After Jiajing finished speaking, his mouth suddenly felt dry, and he immediately picked up the teacup beside him and took a sip.
"I am willing to do my best for Your Majesty, even if I die!"
Seeing the emperor's order, Gu Yan's face was full of excitement, and he immediately chose to kneel on the ground and thank the emperor for his kindness.
Jiajing took in the expression on Gu Yan's face, then chuckled and continued to add.
"After the treasure ship is renovated, you can directly lead the fleet and set off!"
"If you need anything, just ask."
"If we can successfully bring the seeds of these two crops back to the Ming Dynasty, I will be very rewarded!"
Seeing that the emperor entrusted him with such an important errand, Gu Yan looked stern and immediately responded in a deep voice.
"The humble minister will surely live up to His Majesty's great trust!"
"Well, that's right, take this map down!"
"Go to the city to find some craftsmen and make some copies. I don't want anything to go wrong with this. Do you understand?"
Jiajing looked away from Gu Yan and then gave instructions.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey!"
After Gu Yan responded, he took the map drawn by the emperor himself from Lu Fang's hands with great respect.
After Gu Yan carefully put away the map, Jiajing waved his hand and said.
"Okay, that's all I have to tell you. Come on down!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
…
Before you know it, it's time to show up.
I saw Yan Song, Yan Shifan and his son, one behind the other, walking in the direction where their sedans were parked.
"Father, what do you mean by what you just said?"
"Your Majesty, would you like us to design a flag that can represent our Ming Dynasty?"
Seeing that there was no one around, Yan Shifan immediately lowered his voice and asked Yan Song.
"Well, not only that, His Majesty also stipulated that the design of the flag must include the themes of the sun and the moon."
"This matter will be discussed at the next cabinet meeting!"
Yan Song sighed helplessly and responded like this.
"Including both the sun and the month..."
Yan Shifan on the side seemed to have some understanding after listening to Yan Song's words. His brows were furrowed and his steps slowed down unknowingly.
When Yan Song saw this, he didn't say anything to disturb him. He just stopped and waited on the spot.
After a long time, Yan Shifan slapped his thigh suddenly, his eyes flashed with inexplicable light, and he said excitedly.
"Father, I already have some ideas about designing flags."
"When I get home later, the child will ask the painter to come and turn the idea in the child's mind into reality!"
Seeing how excited his son was, Yan Song just nodded slightly and then encouraged him.
"Forget it, since you already have some idea about this matter, then go ahead and do it."
"Thank you father!"
Yan Shifan heard this and immediately responded.
Afterwards, Yan Shifan took three steps and two steps at a time to keep up with his father Yan Song. The father and son quickly returned to Yan's mansion in their respective sedans.
…
On the other side, after being dismissed, Xu Jie also summoned everyone to Prince Yu's Mansion to discuss the next countermeasures.
In the study room, looking at the people involved in the dispute, King Yu Zhu Zaijing's face was full of worry. He wanted to step forward to stop the dispute, but felt unable to do so.
"Previously, Yan Song proposed in front of His Majesty that the new cannon that is about to be developed by the Arms Department should be installed on the treasure ship!"
"Yan Song, this old fox, must have bad intentions! If my guess is correct, he must want to pocket the silver used to renovate the treasure ship."
Xu Jie suddenly waved his sleeves and said coldly.
"But, Mr. Xu Ge, we currently don't have enough manpower!"
"Most of the people are busy sorting out the files in Fujian, and they really can't get around to dealing with this matter."
Gao Gong on the side saw this, his face was full of helplessness, and he immediately explained.
"Are we just going to watch helplessly as the Yan Party embezzles this money?"
Xu Jie didn't care about Gao Gong's explanation, but took a step forward and asked.
"Mr. Xu Ge, Mr. Gao Ge is right. We really don't have enough manpower right now and we simply can't keep tracking this matter."
Seeing this, Zhang Juzheng put down the tea cup in his hand and followed up with admonishment.
"Oh, forget it, I will personally follow up on this matter, so you can just leave it alone!"
"You just need to focus on solving the matters at hand."
After a long time, Xu Jie sighed helplessly and said slowly.
(End of chapter)
