In the imperial study room, Yang Xuan was speechless as he listened to Zhu Di's words.
"With this idea of yours, you are just taking advantage of me."
"If I were from an overseas country, I would bring some worthless things as tribute."
"Anyway, Ming Dynasty is generous and wealthy. As long as you come to pay tribute, you can make a lot of money. Why not come?"
"Couldn't it be that they admire our Ming Dynasty culture and come to pay tribute?" Zhu Di said unconvinced.
"There are such countries and people, but after all, they are only a minority." Yang Xuan sat down on the chair next to him and said.
"Between countries, what is more important is interests."
"There is a saying that goes, there is no eternal friendship, only eternal interests."
"This principle is especially obvious between countries."
"Why do they admire the Ming Dynasty? Are they in awe of the Ming Dynasty?"
"The reason is because Ming Dynasty is powerful and has the ability to easily destroy their country."
Zhu Di was silent. In fact, he understood this truth.
"So, the so-called Heavenly Kingdom was created by us."
"Rather than someone else blowing it off."
"If someone is blindly immersed in the so-called heavenly kingdom and does not think about making progress, then how stupid such a person must be!"
When he said this, Yang Xuan looked at Zhu Di with a pointed look.
The latter looked embarrassed and did not dare to look at Yang Xuan.
"Then what do you want to do?"
"The tribute system was originally formulated by my father. If it were to change, I'm afraid there would be another quarrel in the court."
Zhu Di said with a headache.
Reopening the market and opening up the sea has already violated the ancestral system, and now the tribute system is being changed, I'm afraid it won't be that easy to handle!
Yang Xuan also knew that this matter was difficult to handle, but he had to do it.
"Otherwise, just tell the officials and the court will use the money saved to increase their salaries."
"As long as it's related to their own interests, I guess they won't refuse!"
Yang Xuan rolled his eyes, looked at Zhu Di and said.
"Hiss...don't tell me, this is indeed a good idea." Zhu Di's eyes also lit up.
Rather than being taken advantage of, it is better to use the money to increase the salaries of officials.
At the very least, they won't call themselves the bully.
Zhu Di's mind changed. In this way, it should not be difficult to change the tribute system.
"Then what gifts will we give in return?" Zhu Di asked again.
"One hundred sets of each of the Four Books and Five Classics."
"This is about civilizing the barbarians. Don't scholars like to educate the world the most?"
"If foreign envoys don't accept them, the scholars in the court alone will probably scold them to death!"
"After all, this is a sage's book!"
"You are so dirty!" Zhu Di glanced at Yang Xuan and understood his intention.
"Don't you want to?" Yang Xuan asked.
Immediately, the two looked at each other, both showing a proud smile.
This time, the scholars are really being plotted.
"Of course, if you feel bad, you can give me something worthless."
"Anyway, we can't suffer any loss."
"As for the tribute gifts from other countries in the future, we can look at their country's conditions and let them choose to pay tribute."
"By the way, where is the map here?"
"follow me!"
Later, Zhu Di took Yang Xuan to the corner behind the imperial study.
Immediately afterwards, Zhu Di pulled off a piece of silk hanging on the wall.
The map in front of us is very large, and Zhu Di summoned many people to do it.
It includes the countries surrounding the Ming Dynasty.
In this day and age, that's pretty detailed.
Yang Xuan walked to the map and pointed at Siam, Chenla, Champa and other Southeast Asian countries.
"You see, in these places, food is harvested three times a year, and they are not too far from the Ming Dynasty."
"If we let them exchange their tribute for food, we could have at least hundreds of thousands of dan of food every year."
"You know the strength of our Ming navy."
"If these grains are transported to Shuntian Mansion by sea, they will be stored as military rations."
"Then once there is a war or natural disaster in the north, we won't have to worry about mobilizing food from the south."
"After all, the loss of land transportation is more than half, and the speed is not fast."
"But shipping by sea can greatly reduce losses."
"As long as more than 50% of the food can be delivered safely, it will be worthwhile."
"Not to mention, these hundreds of thousands of stones of food are all for nothing."
Listening to Yang Xuan's words, Zhu Di was also a little moved.
Why did he waste time and money on dredging the canal? Isn't it because there was too much loss in transporting grain from the south to the north.
"In addition, we can also exchange tea, silk, porcelain, and iron pots with them." Yang Xuan added again.
Food problems have always existed in the Ming Dynasty. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the population has increased a lot.
Of course, food production has also increased, but this cannot keep the people of Ming Dynasty full.
If part of the Ming Dynasty's food problem can be solved through tribute and overseas purchases, Zhu Di thinks it can be done.
He has been the emperor for several years, and every year he transfers food from the south to subsidize the north.
But the loss on the road is a big problem!
As Yang Xuan said, use overseas food to solve part of the Ming Dynasty's food problem.
Then the food saved can be used to do more things.
First of all, dredging the canal and building water conservancy projects can speed up the progress.
"Look at these places again." Yang Xuan pointed to places such as Malacca, Sumatra, and Java on the map.
"Some of these places produce spices, and some are rich in rare woods such as agarwood. We can choose these as tribute!"
After listening to Yang Xuan's words, Zhu Di nodded slightly.
There are indeed a lot of good things overseas.
"Okay, let's do it like this!" Zhu Di said.
"But this matter still needs to be discussed with the envoys in advance." Zhu Di added.
"This is natural. A big country has its own demeanor. How can it be like a robber?"
Yang Xuan smiled.
Later, Zhu Di asked people to call Prince Zhu Gaochi and Minister of Rites Zheng Ci.
Let’s discuss the tribute system together.
The two of them were opposed to it at first, but gradually they were convinced.
Zhu Gaochi took a longer-term view and had an overall view. Since changing the tribute system would bring more benefits than harm to the Ming Dynasty, he had no reason to oppose it.
After all, he is the prince of Ming Dynasty.
After the discussion, Yang Xuan, Zhu Gaochi and Zheng Ci went to the Huitong Hall together.
The task of negotiating with envoys from various countries naturally fell on Zheng Ci, the Minister of Rites.
The latter gave full play to his eloquence and his tongue was like a lotus, convincing envoys from various countries and agreeing to the new tribute system.
Although there will not be many rewards from the Ming Dynasty in the future, many of the worthless things in their country are very valuable in the Ming Dynasty. At worst, they will bring more when paying tribute in the future.
In short, they cannot suffer a loss.
So, who suffers?
This question is worth pondering!
…
The court meeting the next day discussed the issue of the tribute system.
At first, the crowd was excited, but as Prince Zhu Gaochi expressed his support and Zhu Di came up with the trump card of raising his salary, the trend immediately changed.
After all, the money saved belongs to them.
Why object?
Who can have trouble with money?
Moreover, the return of gifts to saints and sages from various countries was unanimously supported by civil servants.
This is civilizing the barbarians!
What? Are you saying that sage books are not valuable?
You are so presumptuous that you dare to speak insultingly to the saints. You are already destined for death!
In this way, the change of the tribute system was extremely smooth.
Even Zhu Di didn't expect it.
I don’t know how Lao Zhu will react when he finds out that the system he set has been changed again.
It's a pity that he is no longer here.
…
In the following days, Zhu Di issued several imperial edicts.
Among them, the biggest impact is naturally the expansion of the navy and the construction of treasure ships.
Since it has been decided that Southeast Asian countries will use food as tribute, it is natural to have big ships to carry food!
In order to protect the safety of food transportation on the waterway, the navy naturally needs to be expanded.
As for Zheng He, he also shoulders the important task of exploring the oceans, so naturally he cannot be allowed to be the captain of the transportation team.
You know, the crops in the album Yang Xuan gave him have not been found yet.
What happened in the court did not affect Yang Xuan.
He is also very busy these days.
The weather has turned colder, and the seeds he planted earlier have only sprouted not long ago, and they will definitely not survive the cold winter.
So they organized some people to build a greenhouse and prepared to transplant all the germinated seeds into the greenhouse.
After finishing these things, Yang Xuan was ready to lie at home for two days.
Unexpectedly, at this time, Xia Yuanji came to ask for a meeting.
"I'm going to see Marquis Changping!"
Xia Yuanji bowed his hands.
"Less courtesy, less courtesy!" Yang Xuan said with a smile.
"I wonder why Shangshu Xia is here?"
After introducing Xia Yuanji into the living room and sitting down, Yang Xuan asked.
"His Majesty ordered his officials to go to Liujiagang to take charge of the auction of goods."
"Xiaguan has never done this before."
"I thought that since Lord Marquis knows this method, he should know how to do it specifically."
"That's why I came here to ask for advice."
Xia Yuanji said.
Also, this is the first time for Xia Yuanji to hold an auction. If the interests are not maximized, he may not be able to explain to Zhu Di.
"Then how about I go with you, and you can take a good look at it then."
"After all, saying it is one thing, doing it is another." Yang Xuan thought for a moment and said.
"That's great!" Xia Yuanji said in surprise.
"Okay, then I will ask your Majesty for an order." Yang Xuan said.
I just took this opportunity to take Anqing and Xiuhe out for a walk.
"I'm waiting for you, Lord Marquis!" Xia Yuanji said.
After seeing off Xia Yuanji, Yang Xuan turned around and returned to the backyard to discuss with An Qing about going to Liujiagang.
In this regard, Anqing can do nothing.
What's more, you can see the Ming Dynasty's ocean-going navy with your own eyes, why not?
The next day, Yang Xuan entered the palace and told Zhu Di about the matter.
On the third day, he and Xia Yuanji left the capital.
Accompanying him was a Jinyiwei Hundred Household Office transferred to him by Zhu Di.
The group took a boat down the river and arrived at Liujiagang a few days later.
The Ministry of Household officials stationed here have already arranged accommodation for them.
Someone would pack the luggage and so on, and Yang Xuan took An Qing aboard the treasure ship.
The huge treasure ship caused shock in Anqing.
This is a symbol of national strength.
Looking at all the countries in this era, only the Ming Dynasty could build such a huge treasure ship.
Xia Yuanji on the other side also met the big businessman who planned to participate in the auction.
It's been a long time since the news spread, and basically everything I wanted has come.
Yang Xuan and An Qing wandered around the treasure ship for a while and then returned to the room.
After taking the boat all the way, it’s time to take a rest.
After An Qing and Xiuhe were settled, Xia Yuanji came to the door again.
"Master Marquis, when will you meet those businessmen?"
"Tomorrow, please make arrangements!" Yang Xuan thought for a while and said.
It's better to finish this matter as soon as possible. Yang Xuan knew that Zhu Di wanted to see the money as soon as possible.
Having made up his mind to expand the navy, Zhu Di allocated a lot of money and felt sorry for him for a long time.
…
A night of silence.
Early the next morning, Yang Xuan went to meet those big businessmen after washing up.
They are all well-known wealthy businessmen in various places and have strong economic strength.
"Common people meet Marquis Changping!"
All the businessmen saluted.
In this era, the status of merchants was very low. There were scholars, peasants, industrialists, and merchants, and the classes were clearly defined.
"No gift."
Yang Xuan said lightly.
Then he sat on the main seat.
"I am very happy that you can come."
"In this auction, there are not only the remaining goods, but also those brought by envoys from various countries."
"So, you don't need to worry about insufficient goods."
Yang Xuan first gave everyone a reassurance.
After hearing this, the worries on everyone's faces were reduced a lot.
"After this auction, it will become a routine in the future."
"The goods brought back by the imperial fleet will be auctioned."
“The piecemeal sales model like before will no longer exist.”
Yang Xuan said again.
The merchants present either had not bought goods before or bought too little.
So after hearing Yang Xuan's words, even those with weak connections felt relieved.
After all, during direct sales before, some big businessmen obtained a lot of goods at low prices through personal connections.
This caused a lot of losses to the court.
The Jin Yiwei of the Hundred Household Office brought by Yang Xuan is also responsible for secretly investigating corruption.
"In addition, the imperial court is preparing to reopen the Shipping Department. In the future, the goods brought back by maritime merchants will also be auctioned under the supervision of the Shipping Department."
This news has not spread to the public yet.
Only some big businessmen with strong connections knew about it in advance.
And most of the people present only knew it now.
Sure enough, as soon as this remark came out, it caused a heated discussion.
Yang Xuan picked up the tea cup and tasted it quietly without interrupting them.
Xia Yuanji on the side felt a little anxious, wondering why Yang Xuan said this.
As soon as the shipping department opened, a large number of overseas goods poured into Ming Dynasty, which would inevitably reduce the price of originally high-priced goods.
If these people plan to buy bargains in the future, how can this auction continue?
As if aware of Xia Yuanji's thoughts, Yang Xuan gave him a reassuring look.
Based on his trust in Yang Xuan, the latter suppressed his desire to speak.
When everyone was done discussing, Yang Xuan put down the teacup in his hand and looked at them.
From their eyes, Yang Xuan could guess that some people were afraid that they would not participate in the auction.
I plan to wait until the price drops before buying it.
Of course, there are also many people whose eyes are full of enthusiasm, and they know that this auction is their opportunity.
After all, not everyone has a long-term vision.
Yang Xuan had to remind them about this.
Only when these people are involved can the court's interests be maximized.
…
