After drinking it all, Zhu Yun opened the empty glass and remained silent.
This glass of wine is bitter and chokes the throat, hot and burns the chest, and has an aftertaste that makes people sigh.
Although the vassal kings did not understand what Zhu Yunzhen meant or what he was thinking at this moment, they all followed up smartly and drank the third glass of wine one after another. Even Zhu Zhaohui and other children also drank tea instead of wine. , don’t fall behind others.
Zhu Yunwen put down his wine glass, looked at the many vassal kings with a serious face, and said without a smile: "You may be curious why I want to thank King Qi, because he told me with his own life that the Ming Dynasty wants long-term peace and stability, and wants the country to be peaceful and peaceful. , we must be ruthless and take away the guards and officials of all uncles."
Zhu Di, Zhu Zhen, Zhu Quan and other vassal kings were frightened and inexplicable. This kind of thing can only be done, not said. How can you reveal your dark thoughts that cannot be brought to the table?
Saying such words directly in front of all the vassal kings, doesn't it give others a handle and only increase criticism?
Zhu Yunwen looked at Zhu Di, then at Zhu Quan, his eyes fell on Zhu Su again, and said: "Yes, it is somewhat inappropriate to judge the emperor's confidants based on King Qi's actions. After all, you are all mine. My good uncle."
Zhu Di felt Zhu Yunwen's eyes looking over again and quickly lowered his head. Zhu Quan's hand holding the wine glass was trembling slightly at this moment. What did Zhu Yunwen mean? Did he know something?
Zhu Su's face was a little pale. The emperor just looked at him. Wasn't this a warning? I didn't want to rebel. I just robbed tens of thousands of acres of land and killed a few people. The things were done airtight and shouldn't be leaked. Besides, all the soil has been returned to the court, and the people have turned into bones. This matter should be over...
"but!"
Zhu Yunwen slammed the table and said majestically: "Everyone has read books and knows why the yellow robe was added to the body without my intention. Since I succeeded to the throne, first the King of Zhou rebelled, and then the King of Qi rebelled. In only two years, I Two imperial uncles are missing! If I can still live twenty years..."
Zhu Di and others' hearts trembled. They killed two vassal kings in two years. According to this rhythm, for twenty years, all the vassal kings must not go to accompany Taizu before you...
Zhu Yunwen stood up. The power of the superior made the vassal king dare not look directly at him: "Since I came to the throne, I have always treated them with kindness. What did they give me? It was conspiracy, betrayal, and rebellion! "
"I value family friendship, and I am not a narrow-minded person, but some people think that I am easy to bully! Do they really think that it is me who is being bullied? They are bullying the great ancestor, the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, and the 60 million people of the Ming Dynasty! I rule the world, and Taizu’s imperial order is orthodox. If any of you are dissatisfied, just say so! Today is a family banquet, there are no historians here, and there is no security bureau! Let’s talk openly and honestly between our uncles and nephews. I will kill the king of Zhou. , King Qi, is there anything wrong?"
The whole place was silent, and all the feudal kings did not dare to raise their heads. Even the powerful Zhu Di and the young and energetic Zhu Quan did not dare to say a word at this moment.
No one can save the sin of rebellion.
Even if Taizu is still alive, he will still send him to hell, even if it is his own son.
It is normal and reasonable for the emperor to deal with the rebellion against the feudal king. If you question the emperor, isn't that questioning Zhu Yunwen's throne?
Questioning the throne means questioning Taizu’s decision back then, right?
You must know that Taizu chose Zhu Yunwen as his successor. He was not decided the day before Taizu died. It was decided several years ago. The civil and military officials of the dynasty were well known to the world. What can be questioned?
In the final analysis, all rebellions and conspiracies are just ambitions and a desire for the supreme right in the world.
It was dead silent, even the sound of breathing was gone.
Suddenly, King Zhu Shangbing of Qin, who was only ten years old, shouted: "Well done, brother, the emperor. The teacher said, those who rebel will die, and those who disobey the emperor's orders will die."
The children all knew this simple truth, so the adults could no longer remain silent. They had no choice but to speak out and support Zhu Yunwen's decision. They believed that the deaths of King Zhou and King Qi were all caused by themselves and they deserved it.
Zhu Yunwen took advantage of the situation and sighed: "Since all the imperial uncles support me, you can understand my difficulties in taking back the guards of your uncles. Although it is against the Taizu's intention to reduce the vassal, in order to prevent your uncles from repeating the mistakes of King Qi, Xiao Qiang has no choice but to do this. I don’t want to not be able to see you uncles twenty years later..."
"..."
Zhu Zhen, Zhu Zhu, Zhu Su and other vassal kings were immediately blocked.
Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what do you want us to do?
Understand you, we are a bit unscrupulous. I don’t understand you, but you threatened to send us away in twenty years...
Conscience is really worthless compared to brain.
"Understood, we understand."
The feudal kings had to bow their heads.
People bow their heads under the eaves, but we bow our heads under the butcher's knife...
Zhu Yunwen looked at the attitudes of the vassal kings and was still very satisfied. This time it was decided to cut down the vassal, but none of the vassal kings made trouble. No matter they were in the desert or in Tianfu, they all ran back. Although I don't know if they made circles to greet me along the way, but at least their attitude was correct.
"Do you have any opinions about this matter? If anyone thinks that I have handled it improperly, the guards and officials can still be returned to you."
Zhu Yunwen looked at everyone.
Zhu Di, Zhu Quan and others were frightened. This was no longer a mere sight, but a flash of sword light.
Whoever has an opinion is not admitting his ambition to rebel? Even if we really get our guards and officials back today, it is estimated that the accusations have already begun to fall from the sky before we return to the fiefdom.
"Since no one has any objections, then this matter is settled. Come, for the sake of the country, the country, and the blessing of the common people, drink victory."
Zhu Yunwen smiled happily this time.
All the vassal kings smiled bitterly, but they had no choice but to let Zhu Yun drink a glass of wine and seal the guards and officials.
However, things did not end like that. Zhu Yunwen was not a person who did things poorly. These uncles gave him some face, that is, they did not yell loudly or go crazy with alcohol. Whether they saw the situation clearly or considered the future situation, They all cooperate with themselves.
In this case, you have to give them some face.
Zhu Yunwen changed the topic and said: "I will distribute the land of the emperor's uncles to the local people, and the guards will be incorporated into the local capital. After the official assessment, the outstanding ones will stay in the imperial court, and the unqualified ones will be sent home. These are all easy. However, it is really difficult to arrange your future life for the emperor's uncles. I have given you three points after careful consideration. Just listen to it."
"First, among the second generation vassal kings, if they are underage, such as King Lu, King Qin, King Jingjiang, etc., they are raised by the royal family. All expenses should be borne by the royal family, and their salary and education are the same as those of a prince (excluding etiquette)."
"Secondly, the imperial uncles and those of the second-generation vassal kings who have reached adulthood can follow the ancestral system and receive high salaries to take care of themselves in their old age. However, considering that the mansion has no official officials and guards, and other necessary expenses, and the court is facing difficulties, The annual salary of the feudal king will be reduced by one thousand stone per year from the initial ten thousand stone. After six years, it will reach four thousand stone per year and will not be reduced again."
"Thirdly, the emperor's uncles can change their careers and engage in business. For example, the kings of Liao, Min and Dai will no longer receive royal salary. They can earn one hundred thousand guan per year. They will leave countless wealth to their descendants and contribute business taxes to the court. Just right, I There is a list here, which can be said to be a sure-profit business within twenty years, but the number of places is limited, and there are not many good opportunities..."
Zhu Yunwen took out a document from his sleeve, waved his hand, put it on the table, looked at the vassal kings, and said: "After all, we are a family. If I take away your guards and officials, I will definitely I feel unwilling to do so. All I can do is to compensate in this way. Where to go and how to choose, I won’t say much."
Zhu Di immediately stood up and stepped forward to take away the document, but Zhu Yunwen reached out and held him down: "Uncle Yan Wang is responsible for the training of the three major battalions of the Beijing Army, so there is no need to engage in business."
Seeing this, Zhu Chun, the king of Shu, stepped forward with a smile and said: "I am a scholar of Shu. This is the first time I heard about a business that guarantees a profit without losing any money. I think I will learn a lot from it. I want to delve into my knowledge. Please give me your permission."
Chu King Zhu Zhen was speechless. You are a scholar, why do you think doing business is so upright? But since you can make a steady profit in the long term, there is nothing to worry about. Although it is possible to live on a dead wage, as a vassal king, if you only take a dead wage, you may not be able to enjoy a good life.
In the past two years, the kings of Liao and Min have already become prosperous. They are so generous that they can give the court ten thousand taels of silver with a wave of their hands. I heard that the flags hanging on the treasure ships now include, in addition to the flag of the Ming Dynasty, the flags of the Liao Wang and Min Wang. banner.
The acting king Zhu Gui later went into business, but now he drinks wine and eats meat in silence. This guy doesn't say anything, but looking at his dark face, you can tell that coal mining is making more money these days.
At present, the reduction of vassal status is a foregone conclusion, and it is no longer possible to take advantage of the high salary from the imperial court. There is no other way out except to switch to business. Since the emperor said that you can make a profit for twenty years without losing any money, then believe him once.
Zhu Zhen, Zhu Chun and others opened the documents and looked carefully. The top transaction was coal mine, followed by iron ore, aluminum ore, lead mine... Even oil was recorded in it. In addition to the main minerals, In addition, there are also weaving, grain and cloth, commerce and trade, etc.
Zhu Yunwen's meaning is very clear. The mining industry has not yet reached a large scale. The coal brought by King Zhu Gui and his family cannot cover the expenses of the entire capital. There is no problem of slow sales in other mineral sales. After all, the imperial court takes care of the whole situation. No matter how much they produce, , the court will always need it.
Regarding iron ore, Zhu Yunwen released it to the feudal king, but there were conditions attached. For example, the Security Bureau supervised and did not allow private manufacturing of weapons. But if he wanted to make some scissors that could cut cloth and a kitchen knife that could chop garlic, he still had to can be allowed.
In order to eliminate the resentment in the hearts of the vassal kings, and to prevent these people from causing trouble and passing on ideas of revenge to their children and grandchildren, Zhu Yunwen used state-level resources to resettle them, and used the logic of "state-owned enterprises" to keep the vassal kings in captivity. stand up.
Although it is most convenient and trouble-free to become a commoner, after all, these industries also need people to integrate them, right? Once the scale is established, talents are trained and a team is developed, when they make mistakes...these things still belong to the imperial court, don't they?
If they get rich honestly, the court can tolerate them. Without soldiers, they can't make any big waves.
This was a family banquet set by Zhu Yunwen. It was also a banquet to finalize the vassal reduction or to divide the interests. Except for King Zhu Di of Yan, King Ning Zhu Quan and the second generation of minors, all the other vassal kings, without exception, chose to change careers and engage in business.
As for Taizu not allowing business, no one thought about it anymore in the face of interests, butcher's knife, and the family's life.
This was the beginning of the Ming Dynasty's integration of dispersed resources and the further rise of official and business power. At the same time, the civil and commercial forces also burst out with powerful force.
Chang Baiye and Hou Qianqian entered the capital in a carriage, and following them were not only Shanxi merchants' clerks, but also three burly men, and their hands had already been worn into hard calluses. During their actions, Tigers and tigers are powerful.
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