Li Wei is watching.

It's not that he's diligent, forced. In order to rhyme, I like to quote some gorgeous and empty words and some cold allusions, and I don't read much, and sometimes I can't understand it.

When Father Zheng arrived, Li Wei asked casually, "Zheng Weng, what is the matter with you so late?" ”

It's not a teaching, from beginning to end, Li Wei is a high-profile person, I am the emperor, although you are a top family and my subjects, there is no need to be overly modest, that is not modesty, it is inferiority. Father Zheng asked, "Your Majesty, I heard from the nineteenth grandson of my family that Your Majesty said that the earth is round?" ”

"I didn't say ......" Li Wei suddenly paused, thinking of one thing, after all, at this time, the people believed in ghosts and gods, and it happened that there were many strange rumors about him among the people, so he changed his words and said: "Why do you stand higher and see farther?" ”

I drew another map, and the ground was round, to explain the problem.

"Then as Your Majesty said, when the earth is turning, and when it turns below, why don't people fall?"

This old man's curiosity is still quite heavy.

"You see, why throw things, always fall to the ground, and don't bounce into the air? It's because the earth has a gravitational pull. Li Wei paused again and said: "Is it round, your Zheng family has a fleet, which can be proven, but it is very far from the South China Sea to the American continent, and after passing those big islands, the islands are gradually fewer, and even if there are, the area is not large, and there is a lack of supply supplements." Moreover, the ocean is wide, the wind and waves are merciless, and according to the current technology, most of them cannot be reached.

Moreover, those two continents are several times the area of our Tang Dynasty, rich in products and fertile land, although many people are like the islands of the South China Sea, and the civilization is backward and easy to occupy. But it was too far away for our Tang Dynasty, on the contrary, from the Kingdom of the Franks, it was very close to reach this continent. Therefore, I have not publicized this matter, which is left to our descendants of the Tang Dynasty, when the population swelled dramatically, to find a way out. If it is publicized now, the European countries will be greedy, and they will have good seagoing skills to reach this strange and rich continent, which will not be owned by our people of the Tang Dynasty. So Zheng Weng, don't make a big deal out of my conversation tonight. “

This idea is also wrong, because the Maya people on the American continent today have a high degree of civilization and a large population, which is not comparable to the civilization of the South China Sea Islands. Even if you send a fleet and have the ability to arrive, if you don't communicate well, you will be more than lucky.

But Li Wei is not in a hurry, now even so many vast islands in the South China Sea, including Oceania, these maps have been open to themselves, but are there any people willing to live? If the area in front of the eye is large, how large is it including Oceania? The people were not interested, and the Americas were far away.

Besides, there are technical limitations, and there are things in South America that Li Wei is very interested in...... Some high-yield grains are Li Wei's most coveted crops, and with them, even the native of the Tang Dynasty can feed three or four billion people. But can it be reached?

"Where does Your Majesty come from?"

Li Wei was waiting for his question, but did not answer, and pointed to the sky.

Nonsense!

But Zheng's father was skeptical.

Li Wei said again: "If you don't believe it, there is another way, take a map from here, point to the location of the Bering Strait, and the strait will inevitably freeze in winter." Zheng Weng still remembered the act of Emperor Lin Denian to seal the Zen and led the chieftains of all tribes to Mount Tai. Among them, there is a part of the extreme north, called the ghost, its chief reported that it is 15,000 dry miles away from the capital, the north of the black water Hanju Shaohai, the sea is blocked on three sides, and the people live on the island, and they are depressed, and they make a living from fishing. He also said that the north did not know what to do. You see, the northern part of the country is a polar region, and there is a lack of sunlight all year round, and it is extremely cold, and it is difficult for people to survive. But you can go to the Ryugi in the summer, prepare thick warm clothes, and in the winter, with the help of sleds, go to this strait, and cross the strait to the American continent. I warn you that in the winter, there is not even sunlight to be seen here, it is dark and dark, and it is so cold that it turns into ice, and if you want to make a trip and return again, even if you are well prepared, you can return less than one in ten. ”

The Rogues are the natives of Kamchatka, not far from the North Pole and the Bering Strait.

Although the number of deaths will be large, it is feasible now, unlike navigation, Li Wei is not sure at all. Li Wei has not taken action, and even if North and South America find out, he has not contributed much to the country. Either it was miscellaneous grains, but these miscellaneous grains were in South America, and with the present companions, even if a few cadres were sent, without a guide, and some savage Indian races, I am afraid it would not be possible to reach South America.

Speaking out only to increase the persuasiveness of his own statement, he added: "Therefore, I have not said anything about today's events." ”

Zheng's father left suspiciously.

The next day, Li Wei walked around Xingyang.

This is a very old city, with the convenience of the Yellow River, close to Luoyang, and the commercial atmosphere is very prosperous, Li Wei also asked by the way. I found that most of the shops in the city were opened by the Zheng family. Of course, most of the things that are ashamed of words and profits are the outer disciples of the Zheng family, or concubines.

It soon got dark, and Zheng's father invited Li Wei to the room again.

This time, Li Wei was not in a hurry, looked at the shelf and said: "Zheng Weng, your family's collection is very rich, and some of them are not available in the imperial court. ”

A few years ago, it was expensive, and how much a family hid was also wealth.

Most families cherish their own brooms and refuse to publish these rare books and rare books, which is also the reason why many books disappeared after the war.

But Li Wei's words do not mean this, whether he can let out his nationality is also an attitude.

This attitude is also destined to be a pleasant conversation tonight.

Father Zheng hesitated for a moment and said, "If Your Majesty is interested, you can ask someone to come over and move to the Eastern Capital, but after copying, you must return it." ”

"That is, it is borrowed, and it will not be borrowed and not returned. This move is also due to the community, I will not borrow it in vain, if this matter is successful, I will summon more than a dozen disciples of your Zheng family to enter the Guozijian to study. ”

It doesn't matter if the Zheng family values it or not, this is another attitude, as long as you are willing to pay, I will be rewarded.

From then on, the talks began again, and Zheng's father sat down and said: "We have never been evil to the imperial court. ”

"Zheng Weng, this statement is wrong, it's not that it's not evil, it's that it's not qualified to talk about not being evil. Your big families have a rigorous style and a strong academic atmosphere, and there are many well-educated Confucians, so you should know the relationship between Confucian monarchs and ministers, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives. The country is the king, and your family is the minister, just like father and son. The father is not evil, how dare the son be unfilial. Even if the father is evil, can the son be unfilial? “

Father Zheng was speechless again.

But Li Wei took the initiative to soften his tone and said, "If you are a father, if you are a minister, if you are a son." I founded a country, with a vast area and a large population, which is equivalent to having dozens of sons in the family, and the father will have some preference, but I am different, and try to give everyone an equal chance. There will also be a preference to look at his talent, his filial piety, and his morality. ”

There are seven families with five surnames for talent and morality, but this "filial piety" is very problematic.

Why is Li Shimin also broad-minded, but as a courtier, the five surnames and seven families want to override the orthodox emperor, how can Li Shimin be comfortable?

The tone softened, still soft and hard, and said: "I know, my family has Hu blood, but so what's the matter, since the queen mother, my family has always taken the Han people as the queen mother, diluted from generation to generation, let me ask how much Hu blood there is in the end?" Besides, Dayu set Kyushu, how many people in Kyushu are the Central Plains people who are circling, but what about now? Could it be that you say that the overseas Chinese in Jiangnan Wangmu are not a Yiren? When your surnames didn't reach the peak of prosperity, why did you marry a daughter to the Wei royal family? Or ask again, among your surnames, since ancient times, there is really no Hu blood? ”

Usually this topic is not easy to discern, and it is not easy to talk about it. But behind closed doors, he and Zheng's father could speak out about this problem unscrupulously.

"Or that your family style is rigorous, which is a good thing, and it can also be said the other way around, this is called conservative, Yelang is arrogant! Our dynasty has a vast territory, not only the Central Plains people, but also many Hu people, but since Gaozu, the center of gravity has been biased towards the Central Plains people, and the Hu people are only restrained, and even some methods are very tyrannical. Can you say it clearly, the Hu people are not in my clan? So how does the state rule? Yes, my family has Hu blood, and the style is bold, including me, although I have been reading and receiving rites since childhood, but I have never been informal. This is a shame for your big families, but have you ever thought about how to be enterprising and tolerant without this kind of open style, and how to govern this huge empire? ”

Just to discern it, the following is what he wants to say: "You big families think that they are tall and noble, and they have to be above the common people.

I am very worried that the overseas Chinese in Jiangnan are already not prosperous. Once you annex too many resources, the state has no taxes to collect, and the people have no land to cultivate, no food to eat, and no clothes to wear, then once there are Chen Sheng and Zhang Jiao's disciples, my family will bear the brunt and disappear in the long river of history like Liu Cao Sima. But what about your big family? Will it also become the focus of those mobs? The Sui and Tang dynasties have changed, some famous families have disappeared or are weak, and if there is another riot, how many of your major families will be left? Don't tell you that some people in Xingyang moved to various parts of the Yangtze River, not to escape the war, but to have fun. This also has a tolerant heart, don't despise the civilians, so that the civilians will not hate you. Don't be arrogant to the court, and the court will tolerate you. ”

"Your Majesty, what do you want our Zheng family to do?" Father Zheng was forced by Li Wei, slightly uncomfortable, and asked in a hoarse voice.

"Next year's national imperial examination, there has been no imperial examination for several years, this imperial examination, a large number of jinshi will be admitted, I hope to see dozens of disciples of your family enter the examination room......" This is the condition, but also the opportunity, and said: "The annexation is not your major families, the landlords, magnates and meritorious children of the Shu clan all over the country, all the gate valves are annexing. But you are the best of five and seven families, and I want you to stop swallowing up the practice of usury and cutting down the people, and change the way. ”

"How?"

"Overseas, as I said, we will no longer open maritime business in the future. But for the sake of your big families, or it will be held again next year, but for the sake of your family, I will not let it go, after all, there will be many ministers who will impeach me. Therefore, I would like you to contact some other watchmen to give me a special opinion in the canonical commentary. Next year, we will make an exception and release it again, not only once, but also in terms of the number of weapons and the number of people who go to sea, and strive to give you more generous measures. Of course, for the sake of your family's reputation, your family doesn't have to come forward, and it's still the same as before, a bad reputation, let me carry it. ”

Father Zheng's face flushed.

"It's a request, but it's also for your sake. The richest areas in the country are undoubtedly Guanzhong and the lower reaches of the Yellow River, the Bianhe Grand Canal and the southeast of the Yangtze River, but it is also the area with the largest concentration of people in the country. Don't keep your eyes on this, I'm disgusted. Overseas, there is a lot of arable land waiting to be cultivated, and there is also a huge wealth brought by shipping. It's a win-win situation. “

"It's a big deal, and it's not up to me to decide."

"I'm not in a hurry, I can wait slowly, not this year, next year, not next year, the year after tomorrow. But I must give the poor a chance to survive, otherwise I am very worried about the development. ”

From yesterday to today's conversation, Li Wei has taken a very tough attitude. However, the requirements were not very high, and they did not ask the Zheng family to immediately go to the eastern capital to show their loyalty to the imperial court, in that case, these big families would not agree to save face.

Regarding face, Li Wei doesn't care very much, and what he cares about most is annexation.

Annexation was the biggest problem of the Tang Dynasty and led to many consequences. For example, there were no civilians in the imperial court who could levy taxes, resulting in uneven tax distribution and a large number of evasion households. There was no land to give, the government military system gradually collapsed, and the combat effectiveness declined.

The more stable the country is, the more faces there are, the more serious this phenomenon will be.

If there are five surnames and seven families will take the lead, they can set a good example.

Either there is another way, like the Song Dynasty, to relax commerce, but that way, it will be more controversial. In fact, it is already being done, and the emergence of the sea market is equivalent to encouraging commercial development, but it cannot be said explicitly. In fact, all the big families turned their attention to business, and the annexation was not the focus.

This requires five surnames and seven families to take the lead.

As for whether the previous sect would send disciples to enter the imperial examination in the capital, Li Wei didn't care very much.

Li Wei said this when he ascended the throne, but he couldn't figure out the attitude of these gate valves, and he had a lot of implications, so he didn't mention it after a while, of course, with the wisdom of these gate valves, he was also keenly aware that the new emperor was not satisfied with the wind of annexation, so the Zheng family invited Li Wei to come.

It's not easy to say if you don't meet, but when you meet, you can explain to each other, and Li Wei is also happy to go. In order to let the ancestor of the Zheng family agree, he has been high-profile since yesterday, and then he took it lightly, knew it with affection, and moved it with reason.

After Father Zheng finished speaking, he took a long sigh of relief, it was not easy to ask, but it was not very difficult, and he still said: "I am not very in favor of annexation, but the population is getting more and more, there is no land and no food, and the people in the family have always been at ease." “

"As I said yesterday, I'm looking for land and trying to find more arable land. In addition to increasing arable land in the Central Plains, it also increased yields and crops, and in addition to expanding land on the frontiers to encourage overseas expansion. Moreover, if your children make meritorious contributions in the imperial court and the fields increase, there will definitely be some fields in the future. But Zheng's father will not be moved, at this time, because of the historical limitations of a few dry years, to high-ranking officials and magnates, down to ordinary people, the desire for land is far beyond the comprehension of future generations. As Li Wei said, in that case, the people in the family will inevitably be divided and not grouped, and the influence of the family will inevitably decline. Therefore, Li Wei said: "In addition, the wealth brought by the sea market is not only the sea ships, but also the various commodities brought out by the sea ships, which are from the major domestic workshops. “

With all that said, Li Wei stood up and wanted to leave.

Father Zheng dragged him down at once, and said: "Your Majesty, the minister still has a word, the second son returned from the Cui family with his daughter a few days ago, and it was the ninth granddaughter of the minister. ”

The play meat is coming.

"This woman looks like the head of the Zheng family, and there is no marriage contract, she has read poetry since she was a child, and she understands female popularity, she is virtuous and gentle, and the minister quietly found His Majesty's eight characters and granddaughter to match, it is a good match......"

Don't bow your head, as soon as you bow your head, all kinds of cooperation in the future, this family business is very important to the Zheng family.

"You don't joke, the marriage I am most opposed. But if your Zheng family is more interested in the sea, I would like to take a good picture. ”

"Who is it?"

"You have seen this person, he came with me, it is the world-famous businessman Liang Jinzhu, he has a young son, good morality, he has studied many books since he was a child, and he has learned ......"

"Your Majesty, no, you are messing with the mandarin duck spectrum......" Father Zheng immediately said eagerly. To be continued