"Oh, my father wants you to learn to show off your wealth with me..."
In Duanben Palace, Zhu Cihong looked at the edict of Emperor Chongzhen that his good brother Zhu Cijiong handed to him, and he was really dumbfounded.
Is this Chongzhen a wise king? Why do you do so many ridiculous things from time to time?
"Yes, this is my father's will!" Zhu Cijiong, a young man, said seriously to Zhu Cixiang, "Boss, bring me the money!"
"Get money?" Zhu Cixiang looked at his younger brother, "What do you want money for?"
"Show off your wealth!" Zhu Cijiong said seriously, "How can you show off your wealth if you don't have money?"
"Then how much do you want?" Zhu Cixiang looked at his brother dumbfounded.
Zhu Cijiong stretched out a finger: "One hundred... no, it's one thousand taels of silver! You must give me one thousand taels of silver today, or I will tell my father that you don't teach me to show off my wealth. .”
He also learned to complain... Zhu Cihong said to himself: Who are these people? Do you know what brotherhood is?
Zhu Cixi shook his head and said: "I can't give you money...because if I give you money, you won't learn to show off your wealth."
What's the meaning?
Zhu Cijiong looked at his brother blankly.
Zhu Cihong said: "Lao San, you and I were born in an emperor's family. If people like us want to show off our wealth, we should not know about money!"
"You don't know money?" Zhu Cijiong said in his heart: Just pick it and say such weird things... Who doesn't know money? Isn’t that a fool?
Seeing his brother's expression, Zhu Cixiang smiled and said: "The prince of the Ming Dynasty grew up in a deep palace since he was a child. He was served by people with fine clothes and food. He just said a word to get what he wanted. How could he know what money is? Even if he knew something, he would only learn from books. Those who look up from above will not really understand how rare money is.”
After hearing this, Zhu Cijiong became a little angry: "Boss, you have grown up in a deep palace since you were a child, and you are the one who has rich clothes, fine food, and everything you want... What good things do you want, your eleventh hairpin?" We will get it for you. We younger brothers are not so lucky. We only have ten taels of silver a month, and we are not willing to spend it! And when you reach ten years old, you have to live in the Tenth Prince's Mansion and practice literature and martial arts every day. From the rooster's crow to the ghost's crow, I cried every day when I first went there, and I cried for a month!"
Zhu Cixiang nodded and said with a smile: "It seems that my father is really good at teaching children. There must be a pillar among you!"
The rule of the Ming Dynasty in the past was to only train the prince, while raising other princes like pigs. But now Zhu Youjian is deliberately training a large group of his princes, and also allowing them to receive the best military education of this era. Considering the number of Zhu Youjian's sons, it is almost certain that the Ming Dynasty will produce several military princes in the future... If there is no fighting within the dynasty, it will not be easy for others to overthrow the Ming Dynasty.
"Boss, don't be too busy trying to flatter our father. You should give me a thousand taels of silver to spend first!" Zhu Cijiong will not let Zhu Cixiang change the subject in just a few words... We must fight today A dozen of Zhu Cixi's autumn winds.
Zhu Cixiang smiled bitterly and called out: "Ruyu."
Then I saw a delicate little lady moving lightly from the outside into the study room where the two brothers Zhu Cihong and Zhu Cijiong were. She gave a blessing ceremony to Zhu Cihong: "I respectfully wish you a thousand years of life and a happy life." Then she gave him a blessing. Zhu Cijiong saluted: "I have met His Highness Prince Ning."
Zhu Cijiong recognized this woman. Her name was Cao Ruyu, the daughter of the Cao family in Taigu, and one of Zhu Cixiang's twelve golden hairpins.
Zhu Cixiang gave instructions: "Prepare a thousand taels of salt industry bank notes for Prince Ning."
"I accept the order." Cao Ruyu agreed, and when he saw Zhu Cixiang waving to him, he quietly retreated.
Seeing Cao Ruyu leaving, Zhu Cixiang said to Zhu Cijiong: "Third brother, did you see that? If you want anything, just open your mouth and you'll have it, so don't worry about it, let alone show off deliberately. Even if you spend money like water, it's just a normal day. You want Holding the banknotes in hand every day and spending them everywhere will lead to failure."
"Oh..." Zhu Cijiong still didn't quite understand, "Brother, what do you think that bank note is?"
The banknotes from the Salt Industry Bank had just appeared not long ago. All the famous people in the southeast had seen them, but few people in Beijing had seen them.
"It's okay if you don't know!" Zhu Cixiang said with a smile, "Don't ask, don't think...you have to treat money like dung, this is the wealth of a king!"
"But I don't have any dirt!" Zhu Cijiong kept shaking his head, "I only have ten taels of silver a month..."
Zhu Cixiang said: "Don't worry, everything will be arranged for you... When the time comes, the salt industry guild will send its accountant to go to Japan with you, and you don't have to ask anything. Anything related to money, you won't know anything about it. That’s it.”
"I don't know what to do when I ask three questions?" Zhu Cijiong shook his head, "I have to take care of my money...and it's useless for you to ask the salt industry to send an accountant to follow me. I have no money!"
Zhu Cixiang smiled bitterly and said to himself: This brother's financial intelligence is not low... After all, he was a prince who was raised on ten taels of silver a month.
"There is no money to borrow!" Zhu Cixi patiently explained to his brother, "You don't have to worry, the accountant I assigned to you will take care of everything... You just need to sign in the account book to confirm. "
"Borrow?" Zhu Cijiong's eyes almost popped out of his head, "Boss, you are trying to trick me! You asked me to borrow it, but what should I pay back? As a prince, I have no salary, and I will not return my village. I don’t care!”
There are two kinds of titles that Zhu You was awarded, false and real. The false titles have a salary but no households and villas, while the actual titles have households and a villa but no salary. Moreover, Zhu Cijiong was young and did not really take over his village. His villages were all under the management of officials (officers) sent by Chongzhen. Therefore, Zhu Cijiong couldn't take money directly from the banker, and he was just a poor prince with nothing. But even if he took over Xunzhuang, he wouldn't have much money to spend. Because his Xunzhuang has been operating at a loss since its establishment.
Zhu Cixi smiled nonchalantly: "You will have money when you become the emperor. You can pay it back then."
"But why did I hear that the emperor's wife has no money..." Zhu Cijiong didn't believe his brother's lies and said, "All the money in Japan is in the hands of the Tokugawa shogunate. The emperor only has ten thousand koku a year." We can’t even make ends meet with rice.”
Zhu Cixiang laughed loudly and said: "Third brother, what are you in a hurry for? I lent you money to show off your wealth, and I wasn't worried about you not being able to pay it back. Why do you have to worry? If you really can't pay it back, I, as your brother, Can I still force you to death?"
Why not? Zhu Cijiong thought to himself: The most ruthless emperor's family! Is it rare for an elder brother to force his younger brother to death in a family like ours?
He thought so in his heart, but Zhu Cijiong didn't dare to say it out loud. The drama of brothers, friends and brothers still had to be staged!
"That's what you said," Zhu Cijiong said, "If you really can't pay it back, you can't force me."
"Don't worry," Zhu Cixiang said with a smile, "You and I are brothers from the same mother. I can't trick anyone but you!"
"Well, I'd like to thank you, big brother." Zhu Cijiong had no choice but to thank him.
Zhu Cixiang was very satisfied with his brother's attitude. He nodded and said, "Money is like dirt to you. You don't have to worry about running out of money. Big brother is there for everything. What you have to consider now is how to coax Emperor Xingzi into giving up. And You must also make all the samurai in Japan admire you and Emperor Koiko."
Zhu Cijiong was only a 14-year-old boy and didn't know much about the situation in Japan, but he still felt that Zhu Cixiong's words were a bit wrong, so he asked: "Brother, you said you want the samurai in Japan to admire me and Xingzi..." .What is this for?”
"This is what the father wants," Zhu Cihong said, "just do it, no need to ask...but this matter is not difficult for you, you just need to show others your bravery and spend money like water." . After you marry Emperor Xingzi, you will return to the fiefdom of North Korea to live a good life. Changes will occur in six or seven years, and then it will be time for you and Xingzi to show off your skills."
