After hearing the little prince's introduction, Prince Fu Zhu Changxun was struggling in his heart. He was not willing to leave the Ming Dynasty. If he left his fiefdom and came to the capital to ascend the throne as emperor, it would be fine.
But now his brother's son, Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Empire, is not dead yet. Although he has only one breath left, he is indeed still alive. To take a step back, even if he dies, it will be the young prince who succeeds to the throne, and the throne will not be his turn.
If you want to become an emperor, from the current point of view, there are only two ways to go, one is to raise an army and revolt, and the other is to go overseas to become king and hegemony.
If he took the former path, Zhu Changxun had money but no soldiers, and it would take at least one or two years from recruitment to training. With this time, the imperial court would have already mobilized a large army to encircle and suppress him.
For the current plan, there is only the last way to go. At least it will not risk being beheaded, and the court is probably beyond its reach.
The difficulty is that "Northland" is too cold and "Eastland" is too far away, and each has huge shortcomings. If "Northland" wasn't too cold and "Eastland" wasn't too far away, it would be perfect.
But in that case, these two pieces of land will inevitably become the target of competition among various vassal kings. The competition pressure will be too great, and in the end, I will not be able to gain much benefit.
Looking at the location of Kuwu Island on the map and comparing "Northland" and "Eastland", it seems that it is not far from the mainland of the Ming Dynasty, and the climate is acceptable, making it an ideal place to go.
The only drawback is that the area is too small, which is not in line with my ambitions. It would be great if Kuwu Island was as big as ten of them.
King Dai and King Jin were both juniors of King Fu, and they had signed a feudal transfer agreement with the young prince first. It was reasonable and well-founded. Zhu Changxun was not willing to openly seize the territory of the juniors in front of other feudal kings.
When a certain prince saw that the seven vassal kings coming from Henan were all thinking together, he continued: "The emperor's uncle and the emperor's uncle who are going to "Beidi" to join the vassal in Jifu can set off for the trip after the preparations are made in Jifu. It is estimated that in August It will be possible to arrive before that. The imperial court will borrow the Zheng family naval warships and merchant ships to continuously transport personnel, weapons and food to the Northland to ensure that the Northland vassal country can survive the severe winter safely. The emperor's uncle and the emperor's uncle who go to the 'Eastland' will have to The fleet cannot set sail until March next year, otherwise it will be a cold winter when it arrives in the east, and the fleet will not be able to support it. We can only wait until next spring to get twice the result with half the effort."
King Dai and King Jin are the first batch of vassal kings in the "Northland" of the vassal. Other vassal kings can only participate in the second batch if they sign up. Although Zheng Laofi has many ships, the transportation capacity is also limited, and he has to bear the burden of going to Nanyang to buy grain. , and the task of transporting Japanese troops to land.
When the fleet to Kuwu Island returns, it can load the second batch of vassal people and go to the land west of Kuwu Island. The area is so large that it can accommodate ten vassals without any problem. I am afraid that many vassal kings are afraid of the cold. From the bottom of my heart, I don’t want to settle there.
The situation in "Eastern Land" is completely different from that of "Northern Land". Since the journey is too far, a certain prince must ensure the best time to set sail. It is most appropriate to set sail at the end of March in the Eastern Calendar, which is the end of April in the Western Calendar.
In this way, when the fleet passes through the Bering Strait, it will be June when the sea conditions are the best, and it will be July when it reaches the northern coast of Canada. After arranging a place to stay, building a cabin, and getting some bison meat and salmon meat, it will be snowing. It's time.
If you don't make a detailed plan in advance, you will be blinded in the past, and you may even starve over time. It is purely embarrassing to beg the local aboriginal uncle for some food...
The fiefdom of King Chong Zhu Youfan is in Runing Mansion, which is located in the southern region of Henan and very close to the northern part of Huguang, so it is very hot in summer.
If he had the conditions to move to a feudal vassal, Zhu Youqi would never want to live in such a hot place again, and he would be satisfied if he found a cooler place.
Although the "Northland" is cold, it is better than having to avoid it in the summer. It is much better to be heated to death every time. Besides, the Northland also has summer, and it is not that cold when you are close to the sea.
Just a little bit of firewood in the winter will be enough, but the feudal king will not freeze to death. As long as he goes there early and builds the palace, it is acceptable to just build a brick house. It won't be too late to start building construction until next year.
Zhu Youqi is very pragmatic, because Henan is experiencing another severe drought this year, and the disasters are increasing. He feels terrified when he hears this. If there is a commotion, will the security guards besiege his Runing Mansion?
For example, Luoyang, where King Fu lived, and Kaifeng, where King Zhou lived, both had a high city and a deep pool, and were heavily protected by troops. Even if they were attacked by rogue bandits, they would not be able to defeat them for a while, but his Ruyang was completely different.
Zhu Youfan didn't want to be caught by the bandits, which would definitely end badly. The prince said that the court was willing to give him 50,000 taels of silver and 50,000 shi of rice, and he could still accept this condition for moving to the feudal state.
As long as there are no rogue bandits or Donglu, it is definitely a good place to go. Besides, there is also a huge gold mine in the "Northland". The family wealth that has been blocked by the court can be earned back through mining, both inside and outside. Not too bad.
Zhu Youfan saw that none of the other vassal kings had expressed their opinions yet, and just listened quietly to the young prince's introduction. Although he was interested in Beidi and wanted to sign up, as a junior, he would only be jealous if he spoke about it first. I had to endure it for the time being.
These guys are really good, they rely on their elders and show off their talents. They only listen but don't talk. A certain prince's mouth was a little dry when he said it. Unexpectedly, he seemed to be playing the piano to others.
"The general situation is like this. I wonder what your royal uncles and uncles think? If you are interested in vassaling the 'Beidi' and 'Eastland', you can register immediately. I can immediately put the registered princes on the agenda. Wait for Zheng Our fleet is ready and we can board the ship. Uncle Chongwang, can you take a fancy to one of these places?"
It doesn't matter if you all hold it in, then I'll take the initiative to ask. What if someone is too embarrassed to ask?
"...Your Highness, I have set my sights on the 'Northern Land'! I'm just worried that if the Donglu troops move northward, my vassal state will be weak and unable to resist, and may be destroyed!"
Even though he is the vassal king and the uncle of the current prince, Zhu Youfan still has to declare himself a minister in public, but when the young prince asks about his goal, he just tells the truth, or throws stones and asks for directions. Let's see. The reaction of the prince and everyone.
"Uncle, don't worry. Although the 'Northland' borders the Donglu controlled area, the surrounding areas are all Donglu hunters. The Lu chiefs have no troops stationed here. It is a taboo for military strategists to send troops five thousand miles away to attack our Ming Dynasty. Again. The "Northern Land" is so vast that it would be difficult for the captive chiefs to annex it for a while. As long as the emperor's uncle builds a capital close to the coast and has warships to protect it, everything will be safe. The vassal state of the emperor's uncle and the vassal state of the king of Jin. We are facing each other across the sea. If Chongguo is in trouble, Daiguo will naturally send troops to help."
A certain prince is not good at it. He can leave the wealthy Guan Nei without robbing him and travel five thousand miles to find King Chong who doesn't even have chicken feathers to have sex with him. Then he really has pine oil in his head.
Not to mention mobilizing the main force, even if we send a partial army, that is, the possibility of killing them with one banner is very slim. We have to walk five thousand miles before we can meet the enemy, and we have to find the enemy. This battle is almost not fought. It's possible to win.
"What His Highness said is absolutely true. Prince Chong and I are close relatives. If something happens to the vassal country, I will definitely not turn a blind eye!"
The acting king, Zhu Chuanhuang, understood what the young prince meant and hurriedly took over the conversation and continued. As long as the subsequent vassal kings would not compete with him for Kuwu Island, it would be fine, and he would make some perfunctory remarks, so that everyone would be relieved.
Zhu Chuanfan had nothing to do if his Chongguo was destroyed by the Donglu. Anyway, his country of Dai could not be invaded by the Donglu. If it was captured by the Donglu across the strait, it would be a disaster.
"Thank you! Thank you!"
Although it was a perfunctory remark, King Chong Zhu Youfan still wanted to be polite to the King of Dai Zhu Chuanzhen. Although his territory was large, it was further north than Kuwu Island. Warships and merchant ships sailing to Chongguo had to pass through Dai first. country.
Having established a good relationship with the King of Dai, if you really can't survive on the shore, you can still board a ship and escape to the King of Dai. But even Zhu Youfan didn't believe that Huang Taiji would come all the way to attack his vassal state, so this captive chief was really crazy. Soso
At this moment, King Zhou, who had been silent until now, spoke: "Your Highness, I am very old. I am afraid that I might get sick on the way to the 'Eastland' thousands of miles away, but I also want to join the 'Northland' to join the vassal state!"
Zhou Wang Zhu Gongzhen was already very old, and he did not want to wander to the far-off "Eastern Land". Although the "Northern Land" was colder, it was not too far away, and it was within his tolerance range.
The most important thing is that Zhou State has thirty-seven princes, which is the most in the world. If you don't go to the "Eastern Land", only the vast "Northern Land" can accommodate so many princes.
King Dai had nine princes, and King Hui had twelve princes. However, these two vassal kings together did not have as many princes as the king of Zhou. So many princes gave Zhou King Zhu Gongzhen a very headache.
The imperial court asked the vassal king to move the vassal, but the place was too far away, and Zhou King Zhu Gongzhen didn't want to go, for fear of dying on the way. For the current plan, the only way is to go to the "Northland" and become a feudal lord. This is the best way out at present.
"The imperial uncle made this decision very wisely. Although the 'Northland' is relatively cold, it is easy to accommodate the Zhou Kingdom and many princes. As long as we make some preparations in advance, we can board the ship in one month."
A certain prince welcomed the vassal king to settle in the North. It was more convenient for the Zheng family's merchant ships to transport goods and people, which was safer and much less time-consuming than crossing the Pacific Ocean.
Secondly, the greater the population in the north, the greater the restraint on Huangtaiji, thereby reducing the pressure within the pass. It would be better to attract a group of people to go there.
If one county king takes away a thousand people, the thirty-seven county princes will be 37,000 people. Adding the 3,000 people of King Zhou, the total will be 40,000 people. It is also possible to move 50,000 people.
As long as King Zhou is willing to go there, a certain prince can arrange for him to go there with King Chong's men and enjoy the treatment of the second batch of people who moved to the feudal state.
"Your Highness is so complimentary. I am just worried about this..."
Zhou Wang Zhu Gongzhen also took a fancy to the gold mine with copper reserves alone worth 400 million kilograms of silver. It was easy for him and his family to support it, but it was difficult to manage with thirty-seven princes under his knees.
At such a young age, Zhu Gongzhen asked the crown prince for money directly, but he couldn't save face, so he hesitated to speak, which was very embarrassing when he thought about it.
"Is the emperor's uncle worried about the gold mine? If the emperor's uncle decides to move to the 'Northland', the gold mine can be half of the gold mine with King Chong. I wonder what you two think?"
King Zhou was also an enlightened vassal king. In his previous life, Courier Brother Li led an army to besiege Kaifeng. King Zhou also took out a large amount of money so that the guard Chen Yongfu could encourage the soldiers to fight bravely, so that Kaifeng could turn the corner.
Otherwise, Brother Li, the courier, would not have opened the seal three times. The last time was when there was really no food in the city, and then the city was broken by the courier army. Otherwise, Brother Li would not have been able to defeat Kaifeng City even with an army of 100,000.
In comparison, King Fu's guy is really fat and stingy, otherwise Luoyang's city defense would be better than that of Kaifeng. As long as King Fu is willing to spend money and food to defeat Brother Li's express army, there is nothing Luoyang can do.
"I don't dare to share the gold mine equally with the King of Zhou, I only want 30%!"
Chong Wang Zhu Youfan was very good at being a good person at this time. He directly chose to give up another 20% of the gold mine income. If nothing else, with just human and financial resources, Zhou Wang could easily win.
Both countries have moved to the "Northern Land". If one day they turn against each other due to uneven distribution, the huge army of Zhou soldiers will be able to kill Chongguo's soldiers and horses.
It can be said that among the vassal kings in the world, because the King of Zhou has the most counties and princes under his knees, once the court allows the vassal king to support troops overseas to protect himself, the King of Zhou will have the most troops and horses among all the vassal kings.
Chongwang Zhu Youfan, who was also in the same vassal state in the "Northland" and only had a county prince in his hands, was determined not to compete with his elder who had many soldiers.
Thirty-seven princes...
Even just thinking about it can become a nightmare for all the surrounding lords!
"No! No! If it spreads out, outsiders will think that the king bullies the small, relying on the old and neglecting the old. It is better to divide it equally!"
We can discuss it privately and divide the gold mines, but in front of other vassal kings, Zhou Wang Zhu Gongzhen is embarrassed to accept the 20% profit in vain.
Furthermore, the prince only confiscated the property of the vassal prince. For the princes below, no other property was confiscated except the land deeds. Those princes can survive this year and next just by relying on gold and silver. .
If the feudal vassal moved to the "Northern Land", the only thing that was lacking was food. Everything else could be bought with gold and silver and shipped there by ship. Grain is a bulk commodity, and its export to the sea is controlled by the imperial court. If you buy in large quantities, you must apply first before you can get it.
"Absolutely not, let's just consider it as a birthday gift for the younger generation!"
Chong Wang Zhu Youfan decided to show weakness first to avoid being resented by his elder later. Although "Northland" was relatively close to the mainland of the Ming Dynasty, if the two vassal states went to war, the imperial court would probably not easily send troops to mediate.
There are other vassal kings stationed here, but luckily, if there is only one of them, they will really be no match for Zhou State, which has strong soldiers and horses.
Having said that, if there are other vassal kings, wouldn't some of the harvest from this gold mine have to be given away? This is something Chong Wang Zhu Youfan will definitely not be happy with.
Zhou Wang Zhu Gongzhen is exactly sixty years old this year and has not yet passed his birthday. The words of Chong Wang Zhu Youfan are considered to be sufficient and reasonable.
Moreover, the Zhou Kingdom is so powerful that if it only accounts for half of the gold mines, the country's princes will be dissatisfied sooner or later. They may take the initiative to stir up trouble a hundred years after the Zhou King. It would be better to settle it first.
No matter what, the income distribution ratio of the gold mine will definitely not be determined according to the number of princes in each country. In that case, Prince Chong Zhu Youfan, who only has two princes in his hands, will not get even 3% of the income.
King Zhou is the elder, and there are far more princes in his country than Chongguo, so there is nothing wrong with splitting the accounts like this.
Calculated based on the annual mining of gold and copper worth 300,000 taels of silver, 30% of the income can also pocket 90,000 taels. Excluding the salary paid to the miners, Chongwang Zhu Youfan can earn at least no less than 40,000 to 50,000 taels per year. income.
Use this money to pay for the expenses of the royal palace and the two brothers. It is enough to build a smaller palace. My family can live a decent life...
