"Brother, the Queen Mother didn't want us anymore, so she listened to my eldest nephew and brought us here to be some kind of shipyard supervisor. I've never heard of it. It's fine now. What do you think we should do? Well." Zhang Heling said regretfully.
Zhang Yanling had always relied on his sister and eldest brother to get along, and basically paid no attention to it. On that day, the Queen Mother, the Queen Mother Zhang, announced that the two of them were entering the palace. However, after entering the palace, they discovered that they were not going to Cining Palace, but to Cining Palace. This is the Hall of Cultivation of the Heart, and His Majesty summoned them.
After Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, they became even more arrogant in the capital. The imperial censor's memorial to impeach them had almost filled Zhu Houzhao's desk, but this was his uncle. As long as he didn't cause outrage, it would be hard to kill them. Bar.
The Empress Dowager Zhang couldn't get through anything. Besides, how could any nephew attack his own uncle first as soon as he came to power? Not to mention Prince Ning, he was not close to Zhu Houzhao, so he would just kill him. Who asked you? Rebellion is coming.
So he thought of a way to ask his two uncles to go to the southeast coast to work as shipyard supervisors to keep them away from the capital. Shipbuilding cannot be returned in a day or two. Moreover, Zhu Houzhao also specially ordered them to go along the South China Sea and the North Sea. If the shipyards are built at the front-line seaports, but they are not built well or corners are cut, and if the top and bottom work together to embezzle money, hehe, he will never want to return to the capital again.
Although the Queen Mother was reluctant to let go of these two brothers, she did not want them to continue to stay in the capital and end up with a bad end. This was also for their sake. When the two brothers started to cry and complain, the Queen Mother steadfastly ignored them. It was his own child who was the Holy Emperor, and his own brother on the other side. After the choice, Zhu Houzhao had the upper hand. He could not let the two uncles who were less successful than more likely to be ruined ruin the face of the royal family, so they came here to the southeast. In this land, the shipyard is exposed to wind and rain, and I sigh all day long. It is said that it is one's own fault.
Zhang Yanling didn't have any ideas to begin with, and the shipyard didn't need them. They were just supervising the construction. The real leader was Qi Jingtong. I don't know how your Majesty thought of this young general, and asked him to lead the Southeast Navy Admiral. How many promotions did he have? Level, a fifth-rank commander, promoted to a third-rank commander, and awarded the title of captain of the cavalry commander.
what is this? In the hundreds of years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, no one has been promoted like this. Even Qi Jingtong looked in disbelief when he received the imperial edict. Now he is not the General Qi who will be able to conquer the war. The Governor of the Fifth Army directly Orders for promotions and orders from the Ministry of War can be faked.
Qi Jingtong was grateful to His Majesty for his kindness, so he only wanted to serve him. After arriving here, he began to rectify military discipline, train the navy, and prepare for going to sea.
Zhang Yanling looked at Qi Jingtong waving the imperial flag on the sea in the distance. He was filled with envy and responded: "We are relatives of the emperor after all. His Majesty has to call us uncle no matter what. You see, they are commanding the army, but we are here to supervise them." Shipyard, brother, do you think we still have a chance to go back? Is His Majesty bothering us?"
"I don't think so. We didn't do anything to offend His Majesty?" He couldn't help but think that after Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, he invaded other people's fields, injured a farmer's family, and was impeached by the censor. What did he seem to understand?
Zhu Houzhao was not annoying them, but he really planned to give them a share of their contribution, and he was going to let them get the potatoes and corn back.
Qi Jingtong's mission is to train the navy, and then start cleaning up the banditry in the surrounding coastal waters, so that the surrounding countries will respect the Ming Dynasty again, restore tribute and vassal relations, gradually advance towards the deep sea, dominate the four seas, and first build an offshore guard The navy's coming out is the primary goal now.
The shipyard has supervised most of the construction, and below is the blessing ship. The skilled craftsmen of the Ministry of Industry are starting construction according to the drawings of the blessing ship. The keel has almost been built. The more people there are, the more powerful it is.
It is estimated that before the end of the year, the first Fu Ship and the first dock will appear again on the southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty.
Qin Tianjian.
"Lord Jianzheng, if you have any news, please report it. Last night, I watched the stars at night and found the image of the green dragon of Yinghuo Shou. The five elements were reversed, the luck was out of tune, and the green dragon was facing the east. Your Excellency, you must check it. Yinghuo Shou Qinglong, there must be a natural disaster, please make a decision, Mr. Jianzheng." A green-robed junior official said.
The ancients believed this the most. Yinghuo is a disaster star. Whenever a bad star appears in that direction, some people will use it to speculate on the disaster. Not to mention, if you count the history of the appearance of bad stars, there are examples every time. For example, Qin Shihuang It was the first witness, Yinghuo, who appeared. The following year, the emperor died and the world collapsed.
Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty saw Ying confused. During that year, droughts, floods, and earthquakes continued, and the people were in dire straits. Then war broke out all over the world.
During the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, stars appeared in Yinghuo, and the following year there was a severe drought and locust disaster. In the Song Dynasty and even in the reign of Emperor Taizu Hongwu, stars appeared in Yinghuo and the prince died. These are all related to Yinghuo. No wonder the ancients believed in it, so Yinghuo was so It was disliked by all dynasties and was called a disaster star and an evil star.
Now that I am so immortal, I am so confused that I did not appear on the sky, but I was still discovered by someone. The unusual phenomenon occurred. Since the phenomenon of guarding the blue dragon occurred, that is, it stayed in that place. Normally, it should move from west to east. It just stopped there, running smoothly and not moving away.
After the young eunuch found out, he quickly reported it to the superintendent. Every time he discovered the evil star, there would be disaster. This is true.
"Have you seen it clearly? Don't you dare to talk nonsense about this matter?" Jian Zheng was also shocked for a while. He was confused by Shou Qinglong. This has rarely happened in ancient times. This is really abnormal.
The young eunuch did not dare to be negligent and confirmed again; "I dare not make false claims, sir. Please go and confirm it yourself, Mr. Jianzheng."
"Let's go to the star observatory immediately." Jian Zheng said hurriedly.
The crowd rushed towards the observatory in a hurry. They spent several days and nights at the observatory observing Yinghuo's movements to confirm whether there were any mistakes. After all, the performance was a major event and could not be taken lightly.
A few days later, in the palace.
Zhu Houzhao took Liu Jin and Zhang Zhong to the craftsmen's room of the Royal Manufacturing Bureau again. Fortunately, the people in the palace were accustomed to it and felt very close to him. His Majesty was very friendly and had no airs. The emperor made them feel real, not aloof and like a god. They discovered that the emperor was also a human being of flesh and blood. He often discussed with them, which made them flattered and made them feel that it was worth dying for such an emperor.
"This area still needs improvement, and this area needs to be strengthened. Work hard and once it's built, I won't treat you badly." Zhu Houzhao pointed at the parts of the airship they were building, and promised.
In this era, the emperor's words are golden words, which immediately makes these craftsmen even more motivated. The ancestral graves are filled with green smoke. Not only can they see the emperor's face, but they can also occasionally chat with each other. This honor was something they could not do before. Who could have thought.
I remember when I was in the Ministry of Industry, these people from craftsmen's households were often deducted from their wages, scolded, or even worse, beaten. Whoever looked at them directly, their eyes became moist when they thought of this. Ming Dynasty has With such a holy emperor, the people are blessed.
Zhu Houzhao didn't know this. He was just accustomed to the thinking of his previous life. He kept a straight face at all times, pretending to be aloof and majestic. It was so meaningless. As long as you don't want to offend me, I can lower my posture in normal times. Being close to life, I am not a god, but also a human being.
He put his hands behind his back and looked at the airship that was about to be completed. He thought that when he appeared with this artifact, hehe, the officials would be frightened.
Just then I thought about how I could scare people, so I quickly dismissed my idea. Let's forget it. The safety performance has not been tested yet. If one of them is not good, wouldn't I? If I make a mistake, I will regret it forever. Well, I can't do it by myself. I have to Go up, let Liu Jin go up.
Zhu Houzhao looked at Liu Jin lightly and said to himself, Liu Jin, I can't bear to leave you, but I can't do such a dangerous thing, so you have to do it. If something happens, I will give you a generous burial.
Liu Jin shuddered inexplicably, and was a little frightened by Zhu Houzhao's look. He was inexplicably worried, and carefully said to please: "Your Majesty, do you have anything to tell me?"
"It's okay." Zhu Houzhao turned his head again, stopped looking at him, and continued to look at the airship.
Liu Jin breathed a sigh of relief. He had been really busy recently. He was busy discussing matters with the imperial merchants one by one. He served His Majesty in the palace during the day and visited the imperial merchants one by one at night. Before his death, Emperor Chenghua issued an order to relocate rich households. When entering the capital, there are imperial merchants among them, so there are especially many wealthy people in the capital, resulting in prices that are unmatched in other places. Every inch of land is precious.
Those royal merchants were very happy to see Liu Jin at first. This is the person around today. If he can get into this relationship, who else in the capital would be afraid of him? He would be willing to spend more money. Eunuch Liu is not easy. Those who leave the palace have no chance to have a relationship. Now that the opportunity is in front of them, they must seize it.
Liu Jin really came to ask for money, but it was in the name of business taxes, but he didn't dare to ask for money for himself. When they knew Liu Jin's purpose, they all backed down. What does the emperor mean by competing for profits with the people?
Who dares to come forward to give money to this kind of thing? To put it bluntly, it is related to the interests of all merchants and interested parties in the world. Even if it is the emperor, they dare to refuse. What's more, Liu Jin dare not say that it is the emperor's intention, but only revealed one intention. , asking them to consider on their own, and giving them a period of time, just one month, will naturally be beneficial to the followers. For example, if they need to establish overseas trade after opening the sea, they can take the lead and get the support of the court in advance. This is a benefit.
The temptation is quite big, but who dares to take it? On one side is the emperor, on the other side are all the interest groups in the world. Even if they are imperial merchants, once they offend everyone, will they still have a way to survive?
Zhu Houzhao asked Liu Jin to handle this matter, and he naturally had to do it well. He did not dare to neglect or threaten in the slightest. The factory, Jinyiwei, takes turns to cause trouble and asks you if you are afraid. Today they will seize a batch of your goods and tomorrow they will seize a store of yours.
I say I'll give you a month to think about it, but in fact, I just want to inform you that if you don't agree, the business will not be done.
Good things come hard. These imperial merchants were also tough and refused to say anything, which made Liu Jin wonder if his methods were too gentle.
Liu Jin's patience was finally worn out. One of the great imperial merchants named Xu was given a bad reputation. The goods sent to the palace were found to be fake, and the person was immediately taken down. This was a real blow to the ant's nest. Well, the Xu family is a famous surname in Jiangnan. It is a century-old family. Compared with the Xu family in the ruling family, it is only one title short of the two princes. Liu Jin can be considered to be able to choose.
The Xu family in the capital was furious. A letter was sent back to the Jiangnan family from the Xu family in the capital. This immediately attracted the hatred of the entire Jiangnan family and secretly contacted some famous people. The great Confucians denounced it.
However, it happened that someone in Qufu was jointly creating trouble in Beijing, so these people got involved together, and the team continued to expand. Yan Song played a big role in it. As the second place in Jinke, he was naturally the target of others' wooing. , if even he stood up, you can imagine what kind of blow it would be to the emperor, and what kind of uproar it would cause among the officials in the world.
Zhu Houzhao was wandering around the manufacturing bureau, looking here and giving directions. This big guy in front of him is his masterpiece. As long as it flies, haha, I will create new history.
At this time, a chamberlain from outside came to report: "Your Majesty, the Qin Tian Jian Jian Zheng and the Young Supervisor Zheng are asking to see the Emperor. He said that he has something important to report. Please give your Majesty's permission."
Zhu Houzhao turned around and said to himself doubtfully: "Qin Tianjian? What can happen to them? Forget it, let's meet them!"
"Yes, order them both to go to the Yangxin Hall to have an audience." Zhu Houzhao ordered.
"According to the order."
When Zhu Houzhao led Liu Jin and Zhang Zhong to the Yangxin Hall, he ordered: "Xuan."
"Xuan, Qin Tian Jian, the young eunuch is here to see you." Liu Jin ordered in a sharp voice.
"Wei Chen, Qin Tian Jian's supervisor, Shao Weiming." "Wei Chen, Qin Tian Jian's young eunuch, Li Tai."
"See you, Your Majesty. Long live my Emperor! Long live my Emperor." The two of them greeted each other first and shouted in unison.
Zhu Houzhao sat behind the imperial case and said calmly: "Pingshen."
"Thank you, my emperor, for your grace." The two said in unison again.
Although they are only in the fifth rank, they can still visit them at any time. This is a privilege, just like the Jingzhao Mansion. Although they are only in the fifth rank, they can also go to heaven to hear.
Supervisor Shao Weiming reported with some urgency, "Your Majesty, I have something to report. Last night, Young Prisoner Li Tai watched the stars at night and found that the evil star has been guarding the Qinglong for half a month. I read the historical records and found that there are differences in the stars. There must be a natural disaster or a man-made disaster, so don't be careless. The direction of the blue dragon is in the east. When I learned about it, I immediately led people to observe it personally. It has been three days, so I came here to report to Your Majesty and hope for His Majesty's judgment."
Seeing how frightened they all were, even Liu Jin changed her color when she heard that it was just a star moving normally in the sky. There was nothing to worry about. As a modern person, even though he has experienced more bizarre things, he still I won't believe these nonsense.
What is Yinghuo guarding Qinglong, the direction is in the east... Wait, what does Zhu Houzhao seem to have remembered? Cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
There are records saying that in September 1505 AD, the eighteenth year of Hongzhi, wasn't there an earthquake in Nanjing Prefecture that affected Qifu City? Qinglong was in the east. According to the direction, wasn't it in the east? Do you want to be so accurate? But now is not the time to talk about this. Natural disasters and man-made disasters can be prevented. What to do about natural disasters? Then the only way is to warn in advance and prepare for the aftermath.
With the current basic level of roads, waiting for the imperial decree to be issued, and waiting for the local government to issue an order to temporarily relocate, I am afraid it will be too late, and the people will not be willing to leave. What if there is trouble, who will end it, these are all problems. , using force will definitely be misunderstood by others. Hasn’t the natural disaster not happened yet? Why should we migrate?
If you don't warn, it's definitely not okay to watch millions of people displaced. Zhu Houzhao is not a cold-blooded person to begin with. Otherwise, he wouldn't have died trying to save people. Now is the time for him to make a decision. After just a little weighing in my mind, I made up my mind. I have so many concerns, and I can’t watch you die. Just scold me and impeach me.
"Summon the three elders Liu, Li and Xie to come to discuss matters."
"According to the order."
"Wei Chen resigns."
