Xu Da put away the edict in a serious manner and asked:
"You've been communicating with Gao Chi for a month and haven't heard anything at all?"
Zhu Di couldn't help but smile bitterly. He couldn't hide his little trick from his father-in-law at all.
He simply stopped talking and said bluntly: "Although Gao Chi is smart, he is still young after all, and there is not much information he can find out."
"However, I heard from his words that my parents and eldest brother attach great importance to Chen Jingke."
"I also thought about whether it could be him, but how old is he? How did he gain my father's trust?"
Xu Da did not explain, but said: "There are always many people and things in this world that you can't understand."
"I thought I already had a high regard for Chen Jingke, but I didn't expect that he was even more powerful than I thought."
Zhu Di asked: "Can't you tell me what he did?"
"No." Xu Da decisively refused:
"Don't try to provoke Chen Jingke, you can't afford to offend him."
Zhu Di was a little surprised, but more dissatisfied:
"Don't be alarmist. Will my noble prince be afraid of him?"
"Can dad still kill me for him?"
Xu Da said: "That's not a big deal, but it can turn you into an ordinary prince."
Zhu Di was even more shocked. If the person who said this was not his father-in-law, he would definitely think that the other party was joking.
But precisely because it was his father-in-law who said this, he was even more shocked.
Why?
My father is the emperor, my mother is the queen, and my eldest brother is the prince.
I am the King of Sai, with over 10,000 personal guards, and I have the power to mobilize soldiers and horses in Peiping.
I am no match for a little companion?
If you provoke him, you might be demoted to an ordinary prince?
What ability does he have that can confuse my father into being like this?
Are you even ignoring your own son?
Speaking of which, he and Chen Jingke still have some connections.
After Princess Xu Miaoyun gave birth to her child, she has been using the healing methods formulated by Chen Jingke to regulate her body.
Zhu Gaochi was in the palace and had a good relationship with him.
Of course, Zhu Di did not dare to make friends with Chen Jingke.
Why do you, a vassal prince, want to befriend your grandson to accompany you to study in private?
But he paid a lot of attention to Chen Jingke.
Apart from anything else, this superb medical skill was enough to attract his attention.
Because of his familiarity, he also knew that Chen Jingke was more valued.
But I never expected that he would pay such attention to it.
Looking at his son-in-law who couldn't believe it, Xu Da felt the same way.
He had nothing to do in the past few days, and he was playing around with a military map, and then he accidentally discovered the layout of the imperial court.
Moving the capital, changing the course of the Yellow River, Baochao New Deal, military reform, military households building a new capital, adding sand to the place...
These policies, taken individually, are all beneficial to the country and the people.
What really shocked him was that these big moves were actually connected together, forming an interlocking overall situation.
These links promote each other and reduce the difficulty of other links.
For example, using military households to build a new capital not only saves civilian manpower, but also resettles military households, reduces the trouble of military reform, and also adds sand to the place.
The same goes for the new policy on Baobao. Now the promotion of new banknotes has reached a bottleneck.
One is that the number of new banknotes is small and insufficient; the other is that it is difficult to promote them in remote places.
Once a new city is built, these problems will be solved.
What’s more, a huge amount of money will be invested in repairs and updates.
Without raising taxes, the court would not be able to spend that much money.
The success of the Baochao New Deal has completely solved this problem.
He has been paying attention to the new banknote policy recently and knows that the emperor holds at least 40 million new banknotes in his hands.
More than 100 million strings will follow.
It was roughly equivalent to the imperial court building a new capital without spending a penny, and it also solved the problem of money shortage.
It would take him a long time to understand each of these things.
But now someone can actually set up such a big game.
The breadth of his vision, the height of his wisdom, and his courage have exceeded his imagination.
It can only be described as terrifying.
But now someone has done it, that young man, Chen Jingke.
He also once suspected that his judgment was wrong, so he could sort out the matter from beginning to end.
He also 'interrogated' his eldest son Xu Yungong and got more inside information, and then he realized that his guess was right.
At that time, he was even more shocked than Zhu Di is now.
Then I felt deeply grateful that I had formed a good relationship with Chen Jingke early on.
He said that Zhu Di could not afford to offend Chen Jingke, which was not nonsense.
If you think about it, you will know. Which one is more important to the court, such a great talent or the son of a feudal prince?
What should you do when the son of the feudal lord takes the initiative to provoke this great talent?
There is no doubt that the blind son will be hidden in the snow.
He believed that Zhu Yuanzhang would do the same.
Thinking of this, Xu Da patted Zhu Di on the shoulder and said:
"Be your vassal king well and don't worry about things other than military matters."
Zhu Di was a little confused and didn't understand why his father-in-law said this to him.
He was originally only interested in the military.
The biggest dream is to go deep into the grassland, follow the example of Huo Qubing, Dou Xian, and Li Jing, and become a wolf.
Xu Da smiled and said: "It doesn't matter if you don't understand. Just protect Peiping for the imperial court."
"As for Chen Jingke...if I guess correctly, he will soon become your brother-in-law."
"Ah?" Zhu Di was stunned again. The topic changed too quickly.
But this time he understood what his father-in-law meant. His father was going to win over Chen Jingke through marriage.
Even now, he doesn't completely believe Xu Da's words.
Mainly because it's too ridiculous.
Then let's use this incident to deduce the truth of what my father-in-law said.
If Chen Jingke really marries the princess, it will prove to a certain extent that what his father-in-law said is true.
From now on, I have to treat this mysterious grandson with caution.
Xu Da also knew that because of the military reform, people's hearts were a little unstable, and the longer it was delayed, the easier it would be for problems to arise.
He must return to Beijing as soon as possible to take charge.
So there was no delay, and after explaining the matter clearly, we took the boat south and returned to Yingtian.
The first thing after getting off the ship was not to go home, but to go to the palace to meet the saint.
Seeing his old friend, Zhu Yuanzhang said happily: "Tiande, you are finally willing to return to Beijing."
After Xu Da saluted, he replied: "I received the order from the superior, and I didn't dare to delay for a moment. I came back quickly."
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said: "We know that you can understand our thoughts. What do you think of this matter?"
Xu Da said affirmatively: "I also thought it should be changed, but I just don't know how the superiors are going to change it?"
Zhu Yuanzhang picked up a plan and handed it to him: "Here, see if this works."
Xu Da took it with both hands, turned it over and exclaimed when he saw the first page:
"Military merit system? This... Your Majesty, are you really going to adopt military merit system?"
Seeing him yelling, Zhu Yuanzhang felt comfortable and shocked.
What’s even more shocking is yet to come.
"Actually, we didn't think of this military system... Hehe, Tiande, guess who came up with the idea, I guarantee you won't be able to guess it either."
Xu Da immediately thought of Chen Jingke, but he did not say it out loud.
Instead, he pretended not to guess and said tentatively:
"Could it be the prince?"
Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and said, "No, no, no, it's not Biao'er. Guess again."
Xu Da thought for a while: "Could it be the Queen?"
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said: "Haha... I guessed it wrong, he is our good grandson."
"Ah?" Xu Da was surprised.
This time I wasn't pretending, I was really shocked.
He originally thought it was Chen Jingke, but he didn't expect it to be his grandson.
It's unbelievable.
He said nothing more, but lowered his head and carefully looked through the plan in his hand.
He was curious about what kind of plan Taisun had come up with.
Military merit and title plus military recruitment system.
No one knows better than him how practical this seemingly simple system is.
Continuing to look down, there are two types of honors and knights.
The honors are divided into nine levels: first-level public servant, second-level officer, third-level cavalry officer, fourth-level official, fifth-level official, sixth-level concubine chief, seventh-level captain, eighth-level military officer, and nine-pillar state.
One, two, and three are the lower three honors, which can be obtained by beheading.
Four, five, and six are the three middle honors, which can only be obtained by achieving great achievements such as ascending first, breaking the formation, killing generals, and capturing the flag.
Theoretically, it can also be obtained through beheading, but it requires killing hundreds of people.
Seven or eighty-nine are the top three honors. Ordinary soldiers no longer have the opportunity to obtain them. They can only be obtained by commanding the army to defeat the enemy.
Xu Da's feeling is that it is simple, but complete enough, taking all aspects into consideration.
Looking at the nobility, it is divided into five levels: duke, marquis, uncle, son and male.
The status of a knight is higher than that of a knight, and it cannot be awarded without great merit.
But it can be obtained at the same time as Xun.
Seeing this, Xu Da understood that this was a reference to the merit system of the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
But it's normal. The Tang Dynasty was closer to the Ming Dynasty and the relevant records were more detailed.
In fact, these are not important. What is important is that the imperial court is really going to adopt the military merit system.
Be patient and continue reading.
The honor is inherited by demotion. Once you reach the first level, you will not go down any further.
There are two types of nobility, one with Kaiguo and one without Kaiguo. To add Kaiguo is to be hereditary and to retire with the country.
If you don't add Kaiguo, you will need to be downgraded to a noble rank, but it will not be reduced to nothing.
The imperial court specially appointed a baronet: Captain Qingche.
Once you reach the rank of Captain of Light Vehicles, you will not be demoted again, but you can continue to pass it on.
Let’s look at the Lord’s specific treatment.
Jue is not much different from the previous one.
They were mainly Qingqi Captains, and had three privileges: not bowing to official posts, being exempted from corvee, and being qualified to serve as officials.
There are two main parts of Xun's treatment: land grant and special privileges.
Each level grants corresponding land.
Privileges are more of an honorary nature. For example, for a first-class civil servant, the privilege is not to bow to the official, and to be exempted from corvee.
The higher you go, the greater the privileges.
But neither a knight nor a knight has tax-free privileges.
After reading it, Xu Da had one thought: satisfied, so satisfied.
I don’t know how many times better than I imagined.
The emperor actually wanted to establish a military meritocracy, which was the last thing he expected.
Recruiting troops is simple and straightforward, and there is no need to worry about any future troubles.
Military meritocracy can stimulate the maximum combat effectiveness of the army.
The two complement each other and can be a national policy for a century.
Zhu Yuanzhang asked: "Tiande, how is this system?"
Xu Da said excitedly: "Okay, it's really good. The entire army will definitely support this method."
"My great-grandson is really smart. He can think of such a good method. He will be a wise king in the future."
Zhu Yuanzhang was satisfied and laughed: "Haha... Heaven's virtue has been praised. Children don't need to praise it."
Xu Da felt funny in his heart. When the superior mentioned his grandson, it was like he was a different person.
This doesn't mean you don't want me to praise you, it's because I don't praise you hard enough.
"Hey, what the superior said is wrong. Looking at the history, which monarch can have such knowledge as his grandson at the age of ten."
"No, only knowledge is not enough. You also need to have enough courage to dare to make suggestions on the military system."
"Higher position, if nothing else, just train future generations. We are convinced by you."
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled with a smile on his face: "That's right, my good grandson was taught by me step by step, how can he be bad at it?"
"With such an heir, we can rest assured and close our eyes a hundred years from now, right?"
When others hear something like closing their eyes, they will definitely say that your Majesty will live forever.
But Xu Da was not. He said gloomily:
"You can rest assured and close your eyes, but I haven't even seen my grandson yet."
"No, in the future I will have grandchildren, and you will have to teach me well if you are in charge."
"Otherwise, I can't close my eyes."
Zhu Yuanzhang was very proud and said: "Okay, when you have a grandson, we will also help you train him."
"Yungong will soon be crowned. What do you think about his marriage?"
Xu Da put down the plan in his hand and said: "There are still two years until the crown is crowned."
"Let him have a try first. When we get married and he has worries in his heart, it's better to pay attention now."
Zhu Yuanzhang knew that he had his own plan, so he did not try to persuade him, and just said:
"We really like the child Yungong, but it's a pity that the only marriageable princess is Fuqing, and she has been promised to Chen Jingke."
"Otherwise, we can get married again."
Even though he had already guessed it, Xu Da couldn't help being shocked when he heard Zhu Yuanzhang admit it personally:
"Higher, those things were really his idea?"
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said: "We knew you could guess it. How about it? Are you surprised?"
Xu Da nodded and said, "Yes, when I first guessed it, I thought I was crazy."
"I wrote several letters to my boss for interrogation before I was sure it was him."
"Today's young people are really terrible... When I see him, I really feel old."
Zhu Yuanzhang sighed: "Yes, you know our temper. We have always been dissatisfied with others."
"Even we have to admit that we are not as good as him in terms of system design."
"We couldn't understand many of his ideas even if he explained them to us."
Xu Da frowned and said seriously: "Higher, if you don't understand...you need to be careful and careful."
The old brother is still reliable, Zhu Yuanzhang thought in his heart, nodded and said:
"Don't worry, we have it in mind."
"Biao'er is better than us at this point. He can understand the most difficult economic method."
"Now, he is also in charge of this."
"And my dear grandson, despite his young age, he knows more than Biao'er."
After saying this, he suddenly said excitedly: "Let me tell you an interesting story, but don't reveal it to me."
Xu Da quickly came over: "Don't you believe my words? They are very strict."
Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled and said: "Our good grandson and Chen Jingke fooled Lan Yu..."
After hearing what happened, Xu Da couldn't help laughing: "Haha...Lanyu, Lanyu, I didn't expect you to be here today."
"I really want to see what his expression looks like when he knows the truth."
"But it's better not to let him know. As long as he can abide by his oath, restrain his temper and do good deeds, it will be a good thing."
The two muttered gossip for a while, and then talked about business again.
Looking at the military reform plan in his hand, Xu Da asked a question:
"I'm afraid the civil servants won't agree to this plan, right?"
(End of chapter)
