The old emperor waved his hand gently and asked Zhu Jingyuan and Zhu Jianfeng, his uncle and nephew, to go back and sit down.
Then he looked at the ministers around him and asked a new question:
"How is the progress of other yamen's tasks? How is the plan to withdraw the feudal vassal? Where are the people from the Ministry of Revenue?"
If the old emperor took the initiative to ask about the progress of the work when he first came to the court, maybe someone else would take the initiative to report.
But now that there is Zhu Jianfeng's precedent, even the yamen that have made some progress do not dare to stand up and show their merits, and are ready to go back and think about it again.
At the very least, those who should theoretically consult Zhu Jingyuan must first consult Zhu Jingyuan.
Not only to avoid mistakes in the next report, but also slightly expecting Zhu Jingyuan to give truly useful suggestions.
Those who are just named have no chance to escape.
Wang Niansun, the Minister of Household Affairs, is sixty-one years old, but he looks younger. His beard and hair are only gray, and his legs and feet are relatively flexible.
Hearing His Majesty the Emperor's call, Wang Shangshu stood up with complicated emotions, carefully weighed his words and reported:
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue and relevant government agencies have not yet made a clear conclusion on the matter of withdrawing the vassal, and they need to continue to study and make a decision."
Lao Wang Shangshu tried to deceive others, but the old emperor persisted and continued to ask:
"Then there should be a general direction for the discussion, right? What kind of vassal state is easiest to abolish? The Ministry of Revenue should have screened and discussed it on its own, right?
"In order to appease the people of the vassal country, the imperial court should come up with examples of vassal withdrawal as soon as possible. Let's first find a few vassal countries that can quickly withdraw from the vassal state."
Wang Shangshu couldn't resist, so he could only start to explain the detailed ideas:
“Among the vassal states, the ones that are easiest to remove are the West Sea Kingdom (Sinai Peninsula) and the states along the southwest coast of the Persian Gulf.
"The country of Xihai has a vassal but no king, and the imperial court has never consecrated the Xihai vassal king. In fact, it is no different from the chief envoy.
“The area is at the crossroads of transportation between the east and the west, and the Ming Dynasty and the Western Yi have been fighting here for many years.
“The local indigenous people are relatively rare, and they have fled to neighboring countries due to the war. Now there are almost no survivors.
“The people within the vassal state may be imperial soldiers, consortium associates, or river workers, but they are all common people of the Ming Dynasty.
"The West Sea Canal is one of the most important projects set by Emperor Shizu. The laborers to build the river were not local natives or Tianzhu people, but people who migrated from the mainland of the Ming Dynasty.
“These people are both laborers and immigrants. They settled directly in the West Sea after the opening of the river. They continue to maintain and ensure the smooth flow of the canal, and they also take advantage of the benefits of the canal.
"Therefore, Xihai State can directly establish the Chief Envoy Department, and there should not be too complicated problems.
“The countries in the southwest of the Persian Gulf have states but no people. They are barren lands, with hundreds of miles of inland uninhabited. The only thing you can see is a desolate desert.
“Since the day the vassal was established, all successive vassal kings have repeatedly requested to withdraw or move the vassal, saying that they could directly leave the vassal and return to the capital at any time.
“However, the vassal state is sparsely populated. Although it is relatively easy to remove the vassal, it is quite difficult to establish a chief envoy and select officials.
"Even the people of the neighboring vassal states may not be willing to go there, let alone the local officials of the Ming Dynasty."
Mr. Wang Lao Shangshu stopped here and waited for the emperor to continue asking or make a decision directly.
Then Zhu Jingyuan stood up again very suddenly:
"Grandpa Emperor, Sun Chen, please lead the vassal kings of the southwest Persian Gulf from afar."
At this time, Mr. Wang was confused, the ministers around him were also confused, and the old emperor's eyes widened.
What's going on with this kid?
The Ming Dynasty has not had a vassal king for nearly a hundred years. The existing vassal states and vassal kings are basically the descendants of vassal kings canonized by Emperor Shizu.
Although vassal states were set up in places like Xihai where the occupation period was relatively short, it was only to avoid local treatment. In fact, no vassal kings were arranged. They were all managed by governors arranged by the court.
The point is, it was you who proposed the withdrawal of the vassal state, and now you want to become the vassal king yourself? Don't you find it contradictory?
Moreover, as Wang Shangshu said just now, the inland area of that place is a vast desert. You can’t see a single person even if you travel for hundreds of miles. The existing vassal kings have requested from time to time to withdraw from the vassal and return to the capital.
No one in the official position is willing to go, but you took the initiative to go there. Isn't this asking for exile? Are you out of your mind?
Of course Zhu Jingyuan's brain is not broken. He knows that there are treasures under that desert!
There are several vassal states there, including the entire Qatar and Bahrain, most of the United Arab Emirates, and the eastern oil-producing area of Saudi Arabia, where Saudi Arabia's largest oil field is located.
The oil reserves here are not only very large, but also of very good quality. The key is that the cost of extraction is very low, and it is also located along the coast, so the transportation cost is also extremely low.
This area, together with Kuwait in the north, is the best gold and oil producing area in the world.
This must have been specially ordered by the senior time traveler to occupy it.
Later generations and ordinary vassal kings have no idea what is down there, and they just want to run away when they look at the desert.
When Zhu Jingyuan heard Wang Shangshu talking about this, he thought about running into these deserts.
Because after the battle with his ninth uncle, Zhu Jingyuan sat back in his seat and quickly calmed down.
Then I was a little scared and a little regretful.
I was talking to the future emperor of the empire before. I shouldn't have been so tough at the time. What if he held a grudge?
When the old emperor was around, he could still protect himself even if he abdicated, but what happens after the old emperor dies?
Moreover, although the general direction of reform proposed by me has corresponding compromises in various aspects, reform will ultimately offend people.
He should be safe before the negotiation, but that might not be the case after the peace talks are over.
It would be prudent to take the initiative and run away. It is best to go abroad for negotiations. After the negotiations are over, you will not return to the country and go to the Persian Gulf to dig for oil.
He voluntarily exiled himself tens of thousands of miles to eat sand in the desert.
He, the emperor's uncle, and the person who went bankrupt because of him, should let him go, right?
The purpose of withdrawing vassals is to give imperial citizens rights to the vassal states, not to directly govern remote wastelands, so not all vassal states have to withdraw.
In an uninhabited place like the Persian Gulf, it makes no sense whether or not to withdraw the vassal right now, and no one will care.
At least until oil shows great value and oil extraction here shows huge advantages, no one will care.
After the oil industry here shows great advantages, he can just follow the trend and actively request the withdrawal of the vassal state, and he can also sell favors to the court and the emperor at that time.
Before this, if I had been a big dog owner here for 20 to 30 years, there shouldn't be any big problems.
At the same time, the old emperor looked at Zhu Jingyuan in a way that was different from that of the princes and ministers.
The thing that cared most about the old emperor was not the oil in the ground, but the safety issue that Zhu Jingyuan was also aware of.
Leading the king of a remote desert vassal country is equivalent to making a statement in advance that he will ask for exile after completing his work, so that people whose interests have been harmed will not remember him.
Of course the old emperor would not let Zhu Jingyuan eat sand, but after careful consideration, he decided to cooperate with him verbally.
Releasing this kind of news now can make him safer.
As for these vassal states in the desert, they can just turn around and withdraw. Anyway, no one cares about them at all, including the original vassal king.
"The decree is drawn up to withdraw the Xihai vassal state, establish the Xihai Chief Envoy Department, the Xihai Punishment and Inspection Department, the Xihai Capital Command Envoy Department, and establish the Xihai Governor and his various government agencies.
"A decree has been drawn up to withdraw the vassals in the southwest of the Persian Gulf. The vassal king will immediately return to the capital and establish a Dashi vassal state. Prince Jingyuan will lead the vassal king from afar and choose the opportunity to seize the vassal state."
After the two imperial edicts came down, all the princes and ministers were confused again. The emperor just agreed so directly?
After nearly a hundred years, the court once again conferred a new vassal king, and the established convention was broken like this?
Will any conventions continue to be broken in the future? Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
Zhu Jingyuan himself was equally surprised. He did not expect that the old emperor would not give any discount and sealed the entire land to him.
But Zhu Jingyuan didn't know yet that the old emperor was not prepared to let him go at all, and was just making a fool of himself.
Zhu Jianfeng, on the other hand, quickly cheered up after being shocked.
Zhu Jingyuan was planning to run away on his own. The key was that his father agreed directly!
Doesn't his father like him at all? Just continue to use his Tongyanwuji as a person who reforms and resists thunder?
At the same time, this could also be the real heir, the one who went through the thunder himself?
So, is he always the heir chosen and recognized by his father?
Was my worry and panic and anxiety really in vain?
