Most of the emperor's public activities were symbolic. For example, at the "pro-farming" ceremony at the Xiannong altar every year, nothing was planted, but it was just a look; However, it symbolizes that the imperial court attaches great importance to agriculture and plays an advocate and role model for the hundreds of millions of officials and people in the world.

is like Zhu Gaochu who went to inspect the mint a few days ago, he mainly paid attention to the matter itself, but he also knew that officials would have more interpretations.

Now he summoned the nobles and important ministers of the court, and suddenly he was going to hunt in Xiaohong Mountain; A series of actions made the courtiers more aware of what the emperor wanted to do recently.

The Zhili area near Jinling is densely populated and has few decent hunting grounds; If the emperor likes to ride around and hunt, he probably prefers Beiping. The place where Jingshi can hunt, that is, Xiaohong Mountain, also followed Zhu Di when Zhu Gaoxu was still a vassal king.

Now the hunting ground of Xiaohongshan is a little smaller. Guy went to the Western Ocean and brought back a lot of animal and plant seeds that were not available in the Ming Dynasty, such as giraffes, black bears, zebras, etc., which were called "unicorns", and Zhu Gaoxu did not find them very unusual, nor did he keep them as court playthings. He then ordered a piece of land to be set aside in Xiaohongshan as a "Treasure Courtyard".

The temple is managed by the South Office of the Imperial Palace, and there is a zoo and a botanical garden, which are open to all government and private officials, but there is an entrance fee.

Zhu Gaoxu came to hunt today, and in addition to a group of civil and military guards, he also brought the eldest prince Zhan Yan with him. The child was very happy, Zhu Gaoxu gave him a small brown horse, also called Zhan Gully's companion eunuch Yellow Dog, and took Zhan Gully to the Treasure Courtyard to play, and then came to the hunting ground to rendezvous.

The guards set up a large tent on the grassland outside the mountain forest, surrounded by pennants like clouds, like a military camp. After all, the hunt itself is also in the nature of a military exercise.

There are fewer and fewer wild animals in Xiaohongshan, especially the larger ones, which are already very scarce. It is said that the officials in charge of this matter found that there was almost no hunting for them, so they hastily caught some animals and released them into the woods. Zhu Gaoxu didn't care, he didn't have much interest in hunting, it was almost like that.

Zhu Gaoxu simply dispatched men and horses, and ordered Ping'an to lead his troops and quickly outflank them from the flank to the rear of the mountain forest in front. Sheng Yong, Wang Bin, Wei Da, Wu Gao and others led the crowd to chase the prey from the left flank; Qiu Fu, Qu Neng, He Fu, Liu Ying and others outflanked from the right wing. Zhu Gaoxu personally led some noble ministers and led the brigade to encircle from the front.

Today's hunting is neither very trying, but also colorful, everyone just shoots some prey, and then has a picnic.

However, the generals were very interested in such activities, and hunting and shooting living creatures seemed to be fun in itself. The group set off on horseback and galloped towards the mountains and forests on the pastures, and soon the birds in the mountains and forests were frightened and disturbed.

Zhu Gaoxu was wearing armor and holding a bow and arrow, and then he also set off with a large group of men and horses towards the mountains and forests.

Not long after everyone entered the woods, Zhu Gaoxu noticed movement in the bushes. Jinyi Weibei Zhen Fu Du Erlang reacted very quickly, and immediately hugged his fists and said: "The minister is driven from the flank, and when the animal escapes from the forest, the saint can kill it!" ”

"Okay." Zhu Gaoxu simply responded.

Du Erlang led the two horsemen and slapped their horses, burrowing in from the left side of the bush, shouting while beating the branches. After a while, a goat ran out of the bushes!

After running a few steps, the goat walked slowly, bleating back. Everyone sighed for a while. The officers who were temporarily preparing for the hunt turned pale.

"I'm also temporary, I don't care whose livestock entered the market by mistake, and the mutton is roasted just right for wine!" Zhu Gaoxu glanced back at the trembling officials, and then slapped his horse away.

He stretched out his bow and arrow, and watched the goat run closer and closer. He hasn't been practicing much archery lately, but he's kept his stamina very well. The speed of the war horse far exceeded the sheep's evasion movements, and when it was closer, Zhu Gaoxu shot an arrow. Arrows with strong winds pierced the goat's body and nailed it to the ground.

There was a cacophony of cheers behind him.

The brocade guards stepped forward and carried the shot goat back, showing the civil and military officials in the brigade the strength of the arrows, and there was another wave of praise in the crowd. "The holy martial arts cover the world, and the crown is the best in the world".

Then everyone encountered more than a dozen ducks, and Zhu Gaoxu and several nobles stepped forward to release arrows continuously, galloping and shooting, very enjoyable.

Only the official in charge of recording at the embassy has been sullen and seems to be a little embarrassed. After all, writing words such as "the saint shoots a goat and a few ducks" is a bit unelegant.

Finally, an official suggested that the zoo's black bears be released into the forest. But Zhu Gaoxu refused, and he said in a joking tone: "Bear meat is not delicious." ”

A large group of men and horses rode around in this mountain forest for a long time, and finally harvested some deer, hares and other prey that they could handle, seeing that the sun was approaching midday, Zhu Gaoxu ordered to return to the camp, and let the people of the imperial kitchen cook the prey to reward the minister and the army.

The smell of venison and mutton, sprinkled with pepper and roasted, soon spread inside and outside the tent, and a jar of rice wine was also delivered. The generals were in a good mood, and while waiting for wine and meat, they were talking, and there was a commotion in the big tent.

The five big and three thick Ping'an voices are the loudest, "There is no galloping horse hunting on the grassland!" But there are so many things, and there are wild ducks everywhere. ”

"Hahaha......" everyone laughed.

Ping An shouted as he took out a handkerchief from his arms to wipe his sweat, and compared his thick arms with the lightly embroidered handkerchief in his hand, there was an inexplicable sense of comical.

At this moment, Xia Yuanji, the head of the household department, suddenly asked Ping'an: "Duke Eguo seems to be very tired?" ”

Ping An glanced at Xia Yuanji, "I just love to sweat." ”

When the two civil and military officials, who rarely interacted with each other, spoke, many officials were attracted and looked sideways. Zhu Gaoxu sat on the top seat, and also smiled and listened to the two of them gossiping.

Xia Yuanji said again: "Eguo Gong galloped all the way to the back of the mountain, and climbed the mountain to drive the prey back, your cheek was also scratched by a branch, and it was quite laborious to run around and shoot." ”

Ping An wondered: "I love to ride a horse and shoot, and I am happy!" ”

Xia Yuanji said quietly: "If you use these strengths, facing the loess and turning your back to the sky, who is willing?" ”

The noise gradually became quieter, and most people could already hear that Xia Yuanji had something to say. He continued: "The nomadic tribes, fishing and hunting tribes in the deep forests of the steppe have no fixed place to live and no fixed meal; But the officials in the frontier called them to work in the fields, but they were unwilling. As far as I can see, the world seems to be more fond of chasing prey and roaming on horseback. ”

Ping'an smiled: "Xia Butang has a bit of a point. There was no war, and I rode horses, archery, and played with weapons on my own estate, which was laborious and laborious, but I found it interesting. But your book is also a bit bad, and you will speak before the saint, why bother to play me as a monkey? ”

Originally, the scene in the account was more serious, and when people heard the words of peace, some of them blushed and almost didn't laugh out loud.

Xia Yuanji's face was embarrassed for a while, so he had to turn around and clasp his fists and say: "The saint educates the common people of the world, don't be lazy and evil, don't float people's hearts; The people live and work in peace and contentment, and work diligently to feed the billions of people of the Ming Dynasty. And the tribes that wander in the north can only survive without farming if they try to exploit and plunder our dynasty. The Holy One must not ignore it. ”

Zhu Gaoxu was silent for a while, glanced at Xia Yuanji, and said, "Xia Butang doesn't say the truth of a sage, but he can also say some truth. ”

Such a response made many officials show surprised expressions, and Xia Yuanji was also faintly relieved.

Zhu Gaoxu paused, looked at Xia Yuanji again, and said: "However, no matter how the decision is made in the imperial court, I also hope that people with different political views will not confront each other and tear down the stage, but will be vigilant to each other and make up for their shortcomings." ”

Xia Yuanji kowtowed and said, "Holy Wisdom! ”

Zhu Gaoxu said: "Get up." The barbecue meat is really fragrant, go and ask someone to cut it and bring it in, and distribute it to everyone. ”

"The slave obeys." The eunuch replied.

At this time, Zhan Yan waited in, and the child looked happy and ran over to Zhu Gaoxu. The yellow dog followed behind and bent down to remind, "Your Highness, don't forget to be polite for a few miles." ”

Zhan Yan kowtowed in front of the chair, and immediately got up and grabbed Zhu Gaoxu's knee and asked, "Father, can the Qilin breathe flames?" ”

Zhu Gaoxu said: "If it is so powerful, how can it be caught and locked there and become an ornamental object?" ”

Zhan Yan's face was suddenly a little disappointed.

Zhu Gaoxu turned his head and said, "Bring a chair over and let Zhan Yan sit next to me." ”

The eunuch immediately received the decree.

Zhu Gaoxu lowered his head and said to Zhan Yan again: "You are so good to sit down, listen to everyone more." The ministers here are all loyal ministers of our Ming Dynasty, and only by listening more and understanding your ideas can you make a sound and correct decision. You don't think that if someone objects, he is a bad person, and if it is good for us, it may not sound good. But you don't have to obey anyone, otherwise things won't be settled. ”

Zhan Yan thought for a while and said, "The minister there believes what his father said, and the Qilin will not breathe fire. ”

Hu Guang hugged his fists and said: "The saint has taught the prince a good lesson, and the country is very fortunate." ”

Hou Haidao, the left envoy of the Imperial Division: "His Royal Highness the Great Prince is alive and well, intelligent and humble, and has the dragon ritual of the saint. ”

Everyone echoed for a while. At this time, the eunuchs and guards brought in the barbecue, and the atmosphere in the big tent became warm and pleasant again.

Ping An shouted: "After lunch, His Royal Highness will ride a big horse. In this day, there are few people who can compete in front of the ministers when they are fighting on horseback. ”

Liu Sheng immediately said: "The way of the world has changed, in the future, there will be either firearms or cannons in the battle array, and the boss will not be of great use only by relying on bravery." ”

Ping'an glared and said: "You Liu Sheng, others praise you for being a Confucian general, you are going to start chanting poems!" ”

There was a burst of laughter in the big tent.

Ping'an grabbed Liu Sheng and didn't let go: "Marquis Anyuan can have a poem to entertain everyone." ”

Liu Sheng really couldn't say that it was safe, so he could only talk about it from the left, and he talked about it and punished himself with three cups instead.