A ship docked at the pier outside Tongjimen, and a fishy smell came out. The guys working for a living at the dock were a little depressed, but for nothing else, the dock was reserved by the imperial court and there was no work to do in the morning.
Teams of sergeants came running, carrying baskets of fish, shrimp, and meat. In order to make up for the losses of the guys, the officials went to unprecedented lengths
Although the "money" was not much, each worker was twenty cents, which was half a day's wages more than usual, which made everyone lively.
There were also those who wanted to fish in troubled waters, but in the end they couldn't even recognize five familiar people and were kicked out.
The imperial court hosted a banquet for naval sergeants and their families. This banquet was quite large, with 40,000 people in attendance. Even though only one or two of the family members came.
The Fengtian Temple Square was filled with long tables and benches. The etiquette officers guided the navy sergeants and family members to sit down. The group of family members were very restrained, even a little scared, and could not even sit still.
Chen Xingshan, the Minister of Rites, saw this scene and quickly expressed relief: "You are all the family members of meritorious soldiers. You are attending the banquet today to celebrate your achievements. You can eat and drink freely. The emperor has said that although you are in the palace today, you will not be held accountable. It's disrespectful." For large-scale celebrations, the Ministry of Rites has its own regulations. Tens of thousands of people are seated, and the arrangements are full but orderly.
The chamberlain and maids presented melons, fruits, and drinks. Chen Xingshan looked at the time and arranged for his chamberlain to invite Zhu Yunwen.
Zhu Yunwen would not be absent. He took Zhu Wenkui with him to Fengtiandian Square. Looking at the people crowding the square, he couldn't help but smile bitterly. It seemed that Nanjing Fengtiandian Square was still a bit small. Peking should design a large square. This will leave room for future military parades and banquets.
Although they were exempted from the ceremony, the navy officers and their families stood up one after another. Zhu Yunwen climbed to the high platform and shouted to the navy officers and their families: "There is nothing to say today. Just one sentence, eat and drink freely. Today you are the most distinguished guests in Fengtian Square!" Chen Xing Shan almost fainted. It’s such a grand event and you can say a few words. This is too casual...
"Come on, be happy!" Luo Guanying howled at the top of her lungs, jumped up and stood on the stool, tapping with two chopsticks in her hand.
Chen Xingshan's eyes widened, what are you doing? It's over. Zhu Neng also jumped up and cooperated with Luo Guanying, shouting: "Brothers, get up and be happy. The storm is our Trojan horse, the white shark is our prey, and the distance is our mission!" Zheng He's eyes were a little twitchy when he saw this. Red, this is the chant on the ship, an exciting cry for countless days and nights, a slogan to cheer up and let the crew move forward!
Recalling the scenes in the past, Zheng He couldn't help but stand up and shouted: "Come on, hang up the sails and ride the wind, ride the waves, look at the black clouds, let me conquer them..." Chen Xingshan looked at the mess In this scene, every naval officer has no sense of propriety or solemnity of a sergeant. It looks like a group of unruly pirates shouting here. Here, we are in the Fengtian Palace Square, which is the palace with the most stringent etiquette in the Ming Dynasty. …
"Your Majesty..." Chen Xingshan was very anxious. Zhu Yunwen waved his hand with a smile and looked at Zhu Wenkui. Zhu Wenkui walked to the long table, picked up a pair of chopsticks, banged them and shouted: "Look at the whirlpool, swallowing countless people. I still have a mission. I have to go against this fate." OK, let's set sail..." This is the song of Zheng He's navy on its long voyage.
Zhu Wenkui liked this unnamed song very much. When he saw the logbook, he cried several times. He learned it from Zheng He many times. Today's banquet was finally a blockbuster.
The navy officers looked at Zhu Wenkui who was participating, and completely let go. They stood up and shouted one by one. The original solemnity was suddenly washed away and replaced by the excitement of shouting.
Zheng He pounded the table, Zhu Neng knocked on the bowl, Luo Guanying waved chopsticks, Shen Wei stood on a stool and danced, and even Kuang Yu and Yu Zhen, who were both miraculous doctors, shook their heads and hummed.
"Brothers, kill the rice!" Wan Qinglin shouted at the top of his voice when he saw Guanglu Temple starting to arrange the food. Kill rice!
Just like annihilating enemies one by one, wiping out every difficulty and obstacle one by one! During the naval voyage, many living habits and terms were changed, and more emphasis was placed on boosting military morale and morale to adapt to the boring and long voyage.
The prince can ignore his status. After all, he is still young and it does not matter if he is rude. However, Zhu Yunwen is the emperor after all and cannot shout like Luo Guanying.
"Come on, be happy." I had no choice but to walk into the crowd, chat and laugh with the stunned family members, and then raise a glass to drink together.
Zhu Yunwen didn't know how many drinks he drank. He only remembered that when he got to the end, he couldn't stand still. He endured the discomfort and said to the sergeant's family: "The court will not forget your son and husband, and the world will not forget them either." , come, drink!" The chamberlain was very worried. Although the wine given to the emperor was not strong and the wine glass was shallow, there were more than 600 glasses in this circle. It was unbearable to drink so much water, let alone liquor!
Zhu Yunwen left drunk, and the scene became even more lively. Guanglu Temple took out peanuts, potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc., and put a little bit on the table. When one person tasted a few, the family members were even more moved. At least they knew that their men were here for these treasures that can survive countless lives. And sacrificed!
The grand banquet lasted from morning to evening. Almost all the good wine in the palace was emptied. The cooks at Guanglu Temple were completely exhausted. Countless ingredients were consumed. They had to purchase them quickly, otherwise the palace's ingredients would not last for two days. Day... After the banquet, the Ministry of War, the Navy Governor's Mansion, the Chinese Military Governor's Mansion, the Cabinet and the Ministry of Household Affairs began a big discussion on the reward issue, and the venue was the Navy Commander's Mansion.
Tie Xuan took Zhu Yunwen's instructions and memorial and said to Li Jian, Xu Huizu, Yang Shiqi and others: "According to the emperor's decree, Zheng He will be granted the title of Duke, Zhu Neng and Zhang Yu will be granted the title of Marquis, and Zhang Yu will be granted the title of Duke. The posthumous title will be drawn up by the Ministry of War. No. Shen Wei, Wan Qinglin, etc., were granted the title of earl. Do you have any other objections?" Li Jian took the memorial from Tie Xuan, examined it, and frowned: "Why was Luo Guanying's name crossed out?" Tie Xuan said bluntly: "This was not crossed out by the Ministry of War, but was crossed out by the Emperor himself." Li Jian stared at Tie Xuan, then looked at Xu Huizu, Yang Shiqi and others: "Luo Guanying's contribution cannot be ignored. His status in the navy is only Second to Zhang Yu and Zhu Neng, they led the fleet to the New World first, lit up the smoke column, and guided the navy to rendezvous. They made great contributions, how can they not be rewarded?" Yang Rong took a sip of tea and said: "The Emperor must be aware of Luo Guanying's contribution. The reason why his name was crossed out may be for other purposes." Chen Hui shook his head: "Even if it is for other purposes, the reward cannot be avoided. Luo Guanying's name is known to all the navy officers and men. , without his reward, the court is likely to have a reputation of unclear rewards and punishments, and mistreating heroes. Everyone in the world is watching. How can we give up the reward for other purposes? I think Luo Guanying's name must be on the reward list. ." Tie Xuan did not object: "In that case, let's add his name first. If the emperor crosses it out again, we will ask the reason again, and we will not chill people's hearts." Li Jian and Chen Hui nodded repeatedly, Your Majesty, you can't Because he is Luo Guanying's brother-in-law, you are doing this nonsense. Zhu Wenzheng did not give him a reward for his great contribution in protecting Hongdu. As a result, Zhu Wenzheng even had thoughts of rebellion. You must learn a lesson and not make the same mistake again.
Wuying Palace. Zhu Yunwen looked at Luo Guanying seriously and asked, "Have you decided?" Luo Guanying knelt down and kowtowed: "I am willing to use my merits in exchange for my uncle to leave the Songshan Mine and my brother Guanhua to be transferred back to Jurong from Jiaozhi." Zhu Yunwen sighed. In one breath: "You should know that they broke the law. If it weren't for Concubine Shu's sake, it would be a light crime for them to be beheaded! Now you are willing to give up your title and save Luo Hua from the mine. If Luo Guanhua returns to Jurong, I will No, I'm afraid it's unkind. But you have to think clearly. If you give up your title, you may not be able to be knighted in your life." Luo Guanying said calmly: "If you keep your title and your relatives suffer, I'm afraid you won't. I'm happy. Rather than asking for a title, it's better to ask for family ties. If my grandmother were still alive, she would definitely support Guanying's choice." Zhu Yunwen waved his hand: "Go back first." Luo Guanying saluted and left.
Zhu Yunwen looked at Huang Huai and asked, "What do you think?" Huang Huai sorted out a pile of documents and replied: "Luo Guanying made great contributions to this voyage. If he does not award a reward, it may damage the justice of the court. We might as well compromise and give him a reward. His title does not give him a title salary." Zhu Yunwen laughed, nodded and said: "You are a talented person, it is a bit of a waste to stay in Wuying Palace, go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs to take the merit examination, supervise officials, don't be afraid, don't You want to do something private." Huang Huai quickly knelt down to thank him.
Two days later, Zhu Yunwen approved the reward document, and the great reward began. Zheng He was granted the title of Duke of Zheng, rising to the pinnacle of human affairs.
Zhang Yu was granted the title of Marquis, posthumously granted the title of Zhongwu Gong, and his posthumous title of Zhongxian. Zhu Neng was granted the title of Marquis of Lan Hai, Luo Guanying was granted the title of Marquis of the First Climb, Shen Weifeng was granted the title of... and many rewards were given!
In the blink of an eye, the number of earls in the imperial court has surpassed that of the Hongwu period, and was more than that of the founding of the People's Republic of China... The Ministry of Revenue provided full support and took out four million banknotes in one go for rewards, as well as various material rewards. , official residence, food, cloth, spices, etc.
The grand occasion was a sensation, and officials congratulated and envied countless people. The imperial court's large reward for the navy led to people's longing for the sea, and some common people also began to take the initiative to gain access to navigation knowledge. In order to supplement reserve talents, the Navy Governor's Office joined forces with the Imperial College to create a naval college that was independent of the Imperial College. Specializes in navigation teaching.
After awarding the reward, the Ministry of Revenue and the Guozijian Agricultural College have selected a group of people, divided into ten groups, and each brought out a batch of sweet potatoes that were being nursed from the palace. Zhudi, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Jiangxi and other places.
The planting time of sweet potatoes is relatively not picky. The end of April and the beginning of May has little impact, and early planting is allowed.
Zhu Yunwen listed out the crop farming schedule and selected a group of people to take potatoes, corn, etc. to Shandong, Henan, Beizhili and other places to prepare for farming according to the farming season.
In order to ensure correct farming and ensure harvests, Zhu Yunwen specially wrote farming details and gave some of the seeds to the family members of Navy sergeants for farming, and arranged for a dedicated person to take care of them...
