In August of the 17th year of Xingqian, Dagu Port of the Ming Royal Navy, at this time of year, the Navy will welcome a group of young officers who have just taken office, and every June is the graduation season of the Royal Army and Navy Military Academy.

And the so-called "folding" is to make the enemy's chariots retreat. That is, the meaning of defeating the enemy and winning.

The Zhichong Mansion is similar to the military region of later generations, in fact, the establishment of the Jianli Zhichong Mansion is not only borrowed from the military district system of later generations, but it is more borrowed from the ancient military system. The local army and navy are mainly responsible for the defense of the areas under their jurisdiction, the command, supply, and preparation for departure of the subordinate units, the recruitment and training of soldiers, and the operation and supervision of administration.

Different from the army and a province, the navy is based on the port, from the north to the south of the Ming Dynasty, a total of Lushun, Haizhou, Hong Kong, Nantianmen four major provinces, but its ports are not limited to these four regions, just like Lushun Zhichongfu, which has Lushun, Dagu, Incheon, Zhenhai, Xiangguan, Vladivostok and other ports, but its main force is concentrated in Lushun.

In fact, the sea power of the Lushun town guard is the weakest of the Ming Navy, after all, this is the hinterland of the empire, there is no need to retain a strong naval fleet at all, even in Lushun, there are only a few 40-50 gun cruisers, and most of the other ports have only a few brigs, and there are only 10-14 10-pound guns on board - simple and weak to the point of pitiful, but even so, in North China, this is still an extremely powerful maritime force.

On this day, a carriage was parked on the side of the road outside the Dagu base, the carriage was a very ordinary four-wheeled carriage, it looked not very conspicuous at all, and a delicate girl in the carriage was looking at the lieutenant officer wearing a navy uniform beside her.

"Your Highness, the sea is high and the waves are fast, you must pay attention to safety, if the waves are strong, don't go to sea......"

The girl admonished the officer, and her delicate face was full of worry.

"Okay, don't worry, in two years, I will go home, and the family will be handed over to you for two years, right......"

As if remembering something, the young officer looked at the girl's lower abdomen and smiled.

"When my son is born, I will definitely go home."

The car door opened, and in the girl's reluctance, Zhu Hejia was already a little impatient to jump out of the car, breathing in the fresh air with a slight smell of sea smell blowing from the seaside, and observing all this curiously - he was about to serve here for two years.

In fact, he has been serving in the Zhichong Mansion of Beizhili for a year, but it is the Zhichong Mansion of the Army, as a lieutenant of the army, he even went out of Zhang Heng with the army to participate in the autumn exercises on the steppe, the roar of the guns shook the earth, and it was also shocking the Mongols who had been tamed - those Mongolian Tatars who had posed a threat to the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years have now been completely tamed, and it is not the fire guns and artillery that have tamed them, but sheep.

In the past 17 years, the cold weather makes wool, wool in the Ming Dynasty more and more popular with the people, although the Northeast, Shaanxi and other places provide a large amount of wool, but the Mongolian grassland is still the most important production area, wool to the grassland has brought a huge amount of wealth, the grassland a luxurious palace, those Mongolian princes indulge in a luxurious life, they can not do without the wool has brought wealth and a good life, willing to indulge in it.

Not as the crown prince who "guards the border for his father", Zhu Hejia is very clear that the wealth brought by wool is only secondary, Lamaism is another sharp weapon, and now Lamaism has become the only faith in Mongolia with the support of the Ming Dynasty, and the people at the bottom will pin their hopes on the ethereal afterlife, and the princes and nobles are all they have in exchange for happiness in the next life, and the monks do not work and do not pay taxes, so that young men aspire to become lamas, resulting in a sharp decline in population.

The pastoral areas that were designated to avoid grassland conflicts were another shackle. In short, in the past seventeen years, the father has used wool as bait to complete the taming of the steppe Tartars with several shackles, so that they are turning into sheep.

Of course, this also made Zhu Heyu a little disappointed, after all, he was still eager to leap on a horse and whip like his father...... But in the end, all this is only in his fantasy, there is no war in the north, and the people are the most peaceful.

And now, the sea has opened its arms to him.

This is a new expedition, in the royal family, he is the first to go to the sea, and Zhu Hejia, who is carrying his luggage here, is even more impatient.

Under the reluctant gaze of the crown princess, Zhu Hejia walked to the gate of the base, saluted, showed his certificate, and explained his intentions.

"I'm Lieutenant Zhu Yi of the Royal Navy, and I'm here to report on the order of the Navy Governor's Office!"

Everything is no different from the past, after the guards in front of the door checked the documents, Zhu Heyu walked into the base, and then he turned around and waved his hand at the crown princess who was standing by the carriage.

Just as the crown princess was reluctantly leaving the base to return, a telegram was photographed from Tianjin, and soon the telegram was sent to the palace.

"It's finally time to go to sea!"

When he put down the telegram, Zhu Mingzhong's tone was a little reluctant, although after the publication of the first "Nautical Astronomical Calendar" eight years ago, the captain of the Ming Navy was able to complete the longitude measurement with a copy of the "Nautical Astronomical Almanac" and a sextant, and then use the sextant to measure the latitude, so as to complete the accurate order at sea, but navigation is still full of various dangers, and shipwrecks still occur from time to time.

Therefore, when he received the telegram that his son had reported to the naval base, Zhu Mingzhong couldn't help but feel a little worried in his heart.

"Your Majesty, are you worried about His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"

Hearing His Majesty's long sigh, Ning Yunting looked at His Majesty and asked.

"Hmm."

Zhu Mingzhong nodded, and then said.

"After all, there are always a lot of risks at sea."

Although it is the Bohai Sea, although it is the navy.

"But let His Royal Highness the Crown Prince go to sea, isn't it also His Majesty's plan?"

Ning Yunting said with relief.

"Besides, when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was ten years old, he sailed to sea, and His Majesty also knew that entering the navy this time must be like a dragon entering the sea."

"Indeed, he, like me, loves the sea!"

Zhu Mingzhong said with a smile.

Perhaps, this is the benefit of going to the beach every year to escape the summer, and the children of the royal family love the sea, even the children of noble ministers.

In their view, the sea is not only the sea, but also the territory of the Ming Dynasty, the wealth of the Ming Dynasty, and the future. It's not like the traditional Chinese people, who think that the sea is just a piece of salt water.

Under the deliberate guidance of Ning Yunting, Zhu Mingzhong chatted with her about a lot of things, of course, there were some interesting stories about the children during the summer vacation this year, chatting and chatting, and naturally talked about the dance party before returning to the central capital at the end of the summer vacation. Court dancing has become an important part of lavish celebrations and certainly an important occasion for socializing, especially for unmarried men and women.

For the Xingqian Dynasty, which advocated intermarriage between nobles and nobles, the court ball was always the most popular entertainment for unmarried men and women.

"Yun Ting, at the dance that day, I'm afraid you are the most popular heroine......"

The reason for talking about the dance was because Zhu Mingzhong noticed that several dignitaries and high-ranking officials had sent invitations to Ning Yunting at the dance, and most of them were widowers. Its intention is naturally obvious, although the female official of Bingbi - although she is only a fifth-grade official, but as a person close to the emperor, her identity is prominent enough.

When I mentioned this, I inevitably felt a little delicious in my heart, and I haven't touched the cabbage for 16 years, is it so cheap for others?

Looking up at Ning Yunting and looking at that pretty face, Zhu Mingzhong couldn't help but feel a little distracted. At the age of thirty-two, she is still as slender and plump as a girl, and she looks really attractive.

Sixteen years!

Since she entered the palace, for sixteen years, Zhu Mingzhong has always reported an attitude that he can only watch from a distance and cannot be blasphemed, but for some reason, today he has an idea that he doesn't want to restrain himself anymore.

"Your Majesty,"

Feeling His Majesty's gaze, Ning Yunting's cheeks were slightly hot and she lowered her head slightly.

In the past ten years, she has become accustomed to His Majesty's gaze when he looks at her, from a young girl with a spring to a now...... She's used to it, just a glance, she's been watching it for seventeen years.

"The minister thinks ......"

Just as she came out to comfort His Majesty as before, His Majesty's hand was held, and then she felt a hot gaze.

Looking at Ning Yunting's pretty face, Zhu Mingzhong was silent for a moment, and then said.

"Yun Ting, I don't want to regret it!"

At the same time as he said this, Zhu Mingzhong's hand was forced, and he pulled her into his arms, and after a while, in the sound of the clothes loosening, in this imperial study, there were bursts of women's coquettish moans......

A few days later, there was a will in the palace, and the female official Ning Yunting entered the palace as a nobleman, although this was only a royal matter, but it still caused the outside world, not because in their opinion, Ning Guiren waited for sixteen years to get from a female official to a nobleman, but saw the vacancy of the female official of Bingbi, for a while, the undercurrent in the middle capital was surging, and everyone knew what the consciousness of the female official of Bingbi was.

Whether you can get the favor of the emperor, entering the palace as a concubine is secondary, and the most important thing is that it is the emperor's side, but as long as there are daughters and relatives in the palace as female officials, officials and gentry are all active, and they have tried to fight for this position for their relatives and daughters through various channels.

However, all this quickly stopped, for the next Bingbi female official, in fact, it is similar to the "Bingbi Eunuch", Zhu Mingzhong has already had a candidate, it should be said that Ning Yunting has recommended a suitable candidate. This is, of course, her power.

"Why did you choose her?"

In the imperial study, looking at the female official candidates given by Ning Yunting, Zhu Mingzhong couldn't help but be stunned.

"Because she's a waiter."

Ning Yunting said with a smile.

The so-called "selection of waiters" is to select the maids who are not named in the palace as the selection of waiters. These maids are different from female officials, who are palace maids and maids, and the maids are women who are waiting for the emperor's blessing. However, it is different from the old days when those waiters had to wait in the palace for a lifetime. According to the royal rules, the waiter is selected to enter the palace at the age of fourteen, and if there is no His Majesty after six years, the queen will reward him with money and goods to let him leave the palace, and then marry freely.

"In the palace, there are fifty-six people who are the same as her, saying that they are choosing servants, but in fact, what they do on weekdays is not much different from that of female officials, but there is more free time, this Li Xuanshou has been in the palace for five years, and she is beautiful and lovely, if Your Majesty sees her, she will definitely like her."

Ning Yunting's tone carried a hint of resentment, she had waited for sixteen years, from the year of cardamom to the current.

"Yun Ting, it seems that you are not choosing a female official for me, but a concubine for me!"

As he spoke, Zhu Mingzhong's left hand slapped towards her buttocks, feeling the plump elasticity.

"Your Majesty."

Although she had become a concubine from a female official, Her Majesty's actions still made Ning Yunting's pretty face slightly red.

"Do you know what is the biggest problem as your penny?"

"Huh?"

Frowning slightly, Zhu Mingzhong asked rhetorically.

"What is it?"

"That is, all foreign officials will want to make friends with concubines, hoping to learn His Majesty's thoughts from the concubines."

"Hmmm......"

Nodding slightly, Zhu Mingzhong said with a frown.

"Figure it out, this is a bad habit that has not changed in officialdom for thousands of years, you are my female official, there must be people who do everything possible to make friends and try to get my ideas."

Looking at Ning Yunting, Zhu Mingzhong asked jokingly.

"So, Yun Ting, you tell me, has anyone bribed you?"

"If the concubine says yes, will Your Majesty be very angry? And want to know who? ”

After staying by His Majesty's side for so many years, Ning Yunting could naturally hear the joke in His Majesty's tone.

"You don't need to know, officialdom is contemptible, it's not something that can be changed overnight, besides, officialdom also has favors, and if the water is clear, there is no water."

This kind of sigh is more of a kind of helplessness, perhaps through the investigation of the Investigation Bureau, it can be guaranteed that officials do not dare to be corrupt and bribe, and dare not sacrifice their own fortune and annuity for the sake of petty profits, but there are many hidden contempt, even as an emperor, he can only pretend to turn a blind eye.

"Your Majesty, the concubines never dare to accept the silver, and the concubines are not bad for money, and the Ning family is not bad for money. As for the ...... of favors"

Ning Yunting bowed her head slightly. The Ning family, who was the first to engage in the Nanyang rice trade, was indeed very rich, with a family fortune of no less than one million. "As for those favors, if Your Majesty is unwilling to give them, the concubines will not dare to give them."

Ning Yunting's answer was very clever, attributing everything to Zhu Mingzhong, and then she looked at Zhu Mingzhong and said.

"Therefore, the concubine hopes that Li Xuanzhi will take over, as His Majesty's side, Yuanshou is His Majesty's family."

Nodding slightly, Zhu Mingzhong agreed to her recommendation. Then he looked at her with a smile, and the hand was a little dishonest on her buttocks, and after a while, there was spring light in the imperial study......