In the face of Emperor Longwu's inquiry, Zhu Shuren answered very sincerely, and did not engage in fake emptiness at all:

"The Central Plains is ruined, and the six northern provinces are restored, but they are only one or two years apart, and it will take at least three years to completely restore the vitality and let the people produce with peace of mind.

Therefore, within three years, it is impossible to pursue on a large scale deep into the grassland, white mountains and black waters. However, it can be done by harassing and Huairou at the same time, dividing and disintegrating a part of the enemy army, or attrition along the coast of eastern Liaodong.

Haoge's withdrawal from the gate this time also left a major hidden danger inside the Tartars. First, in order to be autocratic, he finally designed to kill Zilharang and beat him as a traitor to the Bumu Butai party.

At the same time, with the death of Bumu Butai, the Manchu and Mongolian system of one heart and one mind left by Huang Taiji has also been completely destroyed, and the power of Mongolian concubines in the Manchu harem has been devastated.

When Hauge retreated, he also betrayed the interests of many Mongols, and the military strength was delayed by our Ming Dynasty.

All of this has led to the hope that my Ming Dynasty will solve the grassland problem left over from the Northern Yuan Dynasty in the early Ming Dynasty in one fell swoop, and my generation will definitely not miss the unfinished business of this Taizu in this life.

After all, until the Huangtaiji period, Lin Dan Khan's son Ezhe surrendered to Huangtaiji, before that, Meng Yuan always maintained the title and appeal of "Genghis Khan's successor" and maintained the position of Great Khan.

Huang Taiji pressed Mongolia as a vassal and accepted Ezhe as a vassal, which was equivalent to helping our Ming Dynasty and knocking off the arrogant heads of the Mongols.

Since the current Mongols have become accustomed to submitting to people, the legal system since Genghis Khan has been completely severed, and when the Manchus are strong, they can submit to the Manchus, and when our Han people are strong, surrendering to the Han people is also surrendering, is there any difference?

Therefore, in the next few years, Mongolia should be supplemented by a warning of pain and deterrence, and a gentle deterrence. As for Jiannu, it is necessary to harass and weaken its vital forces along the coast of Liaodong in a real way. When the north is rebuilt and the time is ripe, it is better to consider the final blow to Jiannu. ”

Rao is Zhu Changshu has been shocked by the great joy of victory, and when he heard the new pie painted by his son-in-law, he couldn't help but be enthusiastic again.

Originally, in Zhu Changshu's view, if he could recover his homeland in Guannai, he had already explained to the first emperor and his ancestors. After all, Chongzhen was martyred in the fall of Beijing, and he took it back.

As for completely solving the threat of grassland and white mountains and black waters, Zhu Changshu originally didn't dare to think of it, it was a threat for nearly half a century since Wanli and the Apocalypse, and the ghost knows how much silver, how many lives, and how much time it will take to pile it up.

But when his son-in-law said this, he suddenly found that it seemed that now was really an excellent opportunity to completely solve the Mongolian problem - Mongolia had been beaten by the Manchu Tartars and was accustomed to being dependent on others, and no longer had the pride that it could not be a vassal to others.

At this juncture, in order to protect the core interests of the Manchus, Haoge betrayed and offended the Mongols many times, and they had a rift.

If Mongolia can be completely solved, even if it is not physically completely eliminated, but let them be vassals to the Ming Dynasty, this is definitely enough to surpass Taizu and become an ancestor! After all, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di failed to complete the feat of making Beiyuan a minister!

With such a big fruit in front of him, it seems completely reasonable to recover Liaodong a few years later, and then go north to Baishan and Heishui. The hearts of the people in the world and the morale of the heroes of a hundred battles can be maintained by this temporary goal inserted.

Zhu Changshu couldn't help but rub his hands for a while, and then asked nervously: "To implement such a plan, can you continue to accumulate heavy troops in northern Xinjiang?" Will the six northern provinces be able to save money and food for the next few years of recuperation? Will it be consumed by the army that used troops against the Mongols? If you don't have enough money or food, it doesn't hurt to wait a few more years. ”

Zhu Shuren had already made plans on the way back to Nanjing, and immediately explained: "The minister has already calculated, the 500,000 troops who had recovered Hebei before, and brought back 200,000 to the south to reduce the pressure on military food in northern Xinjiang."

The remaining 300,000 men will be deployed half inland, and the remaining half will be deployed on the northern coast. My Daming Cao Yun to the sea has now been completely realized.

In the past few years, it was only because the north had not recovered that the transportation was cut off. However, the scale of ships and capacity by sea is absolutely sufficient for a long time, and the military rations needed by sea can be transported over to the northern coast at any time this year.

The minister has already asked the household department to calculate, such a deployment is light enough, and the garrison can be stationed on the spot when there is no war, and from next year onwards, there is no need to rely on the fields of the six northern provinces to supply military rations, as long as it is supplied for one year this year, it can be saved in the future. ”

Zhu Changshu saw that his son-in-law was so confident, so he was happy to let go again, saying that everything could be handled by Zhu Shuren himself.

Zhu Changshu has thoroughly seen through it, and his son-in-law's ability is no longer limited to reversing the situation and solving the mess when the first emperor was martyred, but also to establish an outstanding martial arts that even Taizu Chengzu can't establish.

If you limit this kind of prestige and ability, it will be uncomfortable for yourself, so it is better to let go completely, enjoy the glory and wealth, and wait for the future emperor grandson to take over.

Zhu Changshu is cowardly by nature, and in recent years, he has gradually become cautious in life.

For example, when he usually spoils the harem concubines (he has not been favored by the original queen for many years, because he is already an old woman in her forties, about the same age as him), and when the palace maid serving next to him asks him to hint at whether to clean up, he will order the palace maid to take the concubine who has just accepted her grace to wash-

In the ancient court, whether the emperor wanted the concubine to keep the possibility of the dragon species, there were eunuchs or palace maids who could assist in the operation, although the contraceptive rate was not 100%, but it also had a certain effect.

Zhu Changshu has not allowed his wife and concubine to conceive for 20 years, and it is said that the success rate is almost equal to none if he does not take measures. But he saw that his daughter and son-in-law were so strong, and for his own safety, he didn't want to make more trouble, so he would rather step on the already 1 in 1,000 probability and add an insurance policy.

As long as he doesn't have a son, he's absolutely safe! You can be a rich man for a lifetime! Zhu Changshu has already figured out this truth by himself in his heart, and he doesn't need to be taught.

This can be regarded as the invisible benefit that Zhu Shuren specially chose a cowardly vassal king to support. If he had chosen King Fu, King Tang, and King Lu who were a little assertive, they might not be able to ensure that they could control it for a lifetime.

The puppet person, of course, is the more cowardly, the better, and the more he can get along with the king and the minister. As long as Zhu Changshu is cowardly for a lifetime, Zhu Shuren will definitely sincerely support his father-in-law in his old age.

……

After entrusting the plan to exterminate the Tartars for the next few years to his son-in-law, this family banquet was naturally a pleasure for the guests and hosts. In the end, Zhu Changshu had time to ask a little about the family arrangements - these questions were not for national politics, but purely for his daughter's personal happiness.

"Since Qing thinks that it will take many years of preparation to continue to drive out the Tartars, does Qing still need to sit in Beijing in person during these years of preparation? Or do you want to entrust it to Zhang Huangyan first? When there is a full-scale war again, the Qing will go north in person? ”

Of course, Zhu Shuren knew that Zhu Changshu was not worried about his dictatorship, because he was already autocratic, so this question was for Zhu Yuchan.

Zhu Shuren also said in his chest: "The northern land was initially decided, and the affairs were not extinguished, and it was also a little inappropriate for the governor to be in charge of the overall situation for a long time. The minister returned to the south this year to report on his work, and it didn't hurt to linger for a few months.

Next year, I still hope to go north in person, sit in charge of the overall situation of northern Xinjiang, and if there are major changes in the military situation, it will also be convenient to adapt to changes in time. Don't delay the fighter. However, the minister earnestly asks that he can take his family to the north, and ask His Majesty for permission. ”

His words made it clear that he was going to Beijing, but he would take Zhu Yuchan with him, and he would no longer be in the same state as before, and he could not bring his wife with him, and he could only bring a few female officials at most.

Zhu Changshu doesn't have to worry about his daughter being left out in the cold for a long time, as long as he can't see his daughter for a few years, or his daughter can only come back to Nanjing to visit relatives once a year at most.

Zhu Changshu thought about it, nodded, and said, "What about Yu'er's upbringing?" Wouldn't it be inappropriate not to have my birth mother by my side? ”

Zhu Yuchan is just a princess, and it doesn't hurt to marry her husband and go to Beijing with her husband, but her son has been legally passed away, and he is officially canonized as the emperor's grandson, so there is no reason to follow his biological mother to the north, so he can only live in the Chunhe Palace in the Forbidden City of Nanjing all the time, and it is not okay to move at all.

Zhu Shuren said in a consultative tone: "The emperor's grandson is four years old, and he has reached the age of literacy. The minister plans to let him gradually adapt this year, if he is too young to formally go to school, he can also choose an adoptive mother and raise him with his original cousin. It takes half a year to get used to it, and you can officially enter the school. ”

Zhu Changshu saw that his son-in-law thought of everything, so he stopped talking.

Zhu Yuchan on the side saw her husband's operation like this, and she roughly understood her husband's thoughts, as long as she could follow her to Beijing, and her son would not take it personally for the time being, Zhu Yuchan would also be able to accept it.

……

After the banquet was over and after returning to his mansion, Zhu Shuren found Fang Ziling, the side concubine of the King of Hubei, and entrusted him with the work of raising his children in the next few years after he went north to stay in the coming year.

The education of the emperor's grandson, of course, is also the top priority, involving the stable handover and long-term stability of the future country of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Shuren would not be polite to his concubine, and directly held Fang Ziling's hands, with a posture of chatting about business:

"Ziling, in the next few years, you may have to suffer a little again. Anyway, if you bring one son, you will also bring it, and if you bring two, you will also bring it. Lone asked for a will for you, and in the future, you can enter and leave the Spring and Palace without a call.

You can even bring Yu'er with you, Yu'er is four years old, he can also read and write, and he will officially find Hanlin to study for him next year. Those Hanlin must be talking about the study of literature and ink, and you can help teach some skills. ”

Fang Ziling's own son, who is only two years old now, is far from being able to read, but has learned to speak, and lets the maid help him play every day. However, in the future, it will be okay to be a playmate with my half-brother and raise them together.

Fang Ziling's child to Zhu Shusheng is surnamed Hui Shen, and the future plan is to inherit the Shen family's own family business.

If Zhu Yuchan can't give birth to a second son in the future, and Fang Ziling can still be born, then it is also possible to change Fang Ziling's eldest son back to the surname Zhu and inherit the prince of the Ewang Mansion.

And if Zhu Yuchan can still be born, there is no need to change Fang Ziling's son to Zhu, and Zhu Yuchan's second son can directly inherit the title of King of E.

After calculation, Zhu Shuren needs at least three sons, one to inherit the throne, one to inherit the title of the Ewang Mansion, one to inherit the family business of the Shen family, and also to inherit the marquis of Shen Tingyang-

Shen Tingyang has been the second assistant of the cabinet for many years, and he has also made a lot of contributions to the logistics of governing the country in the process of reunification.

In the future, if the Mongols are completely recovered and the Manchu Qing is destroyed, then maybe the title of important minister in the court will also be promoted - when Zhu Yuanzhang founded the country, a civil official like Li Shanchang could also be named a duke (Duke of Korea), not only a military general who personally led troops to fight a duke.

From this point of view, Zhu Shuren himself is not the emperor, and he is still very restrained in terms of the treatment of his children. Because if he becomes the emperor himself, then how many sons he gives birth to will be princes.

But he himself is not the emperor, and his eldest son will succeed him as the emperor's grandson and inherit the throne, so Zhu Shuren's other sons will not be able to directly have the prince in law. The only prince was earned by Zhu Shuren himself.

However, there are gains and losses in everything, and Zhu Shuren did this, so he could be an excellent example - with Zhu Shuren's great achievements, his descendants will have only one emperor at most, a prince and a duke. Then the future Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, are you embarrassed to seal a large number of princes and all your sons as hereditary princes?

Even if the emperor wants to crown all his sons as princes, Zhu Shuren can also place an additional ban as a training for the future ancestors, imitating the Qing Dynasty's method of "subtracting one class from the world".

Except for a very few special periods of time and relatives and nobles and great achievements of the "iron hat king" can be hereditary replacement, in the future, only relatives and nobles have no merit, after five or six generations, they will become the lowest-level marquis and uncle, and then there will be no royal titles.

In this way, the biggest threat to the long-term existence of the Ming Dynasty, the exponential expansion of the number of clan vassal kings, can be well solved. No matter how bad the system of the Qing Dynasty was in history, in terms of controlling the number and expenditure of the imperial family, there is a saying that Yiqing did indeed do better than Ming, or it can be said that it learned the lessons of Ming.

For this kind of good place, of course, Zhu Shuren must also skillfully try to learn from and absorb it.

Fang Ziling also understands Zhu Shuren's hard work, she is a woman with a pure heart and few desires, and being with Zhu Shuren is more for learning together, not for the joy of the pillow seat. So she quickly accepted this task, and starting next year, as a de facto concubine, she will help officially bring the imperial grandson, and this year she can get familiar with it first.

She is still working as a female official of the Academy of Sciences, and she does not have any prescribed tasks every day, just looking at the scientific observation data sent back by the observatory, the meteorological observatory, and the museum every day, which makes her intoxicated, and she has the pleasure of summarizing and summarizing the laws of nature.

In the future, if you want to educate your son, you can also give your child a little more literacy at the level of natural philosophy, which cannot be taught by traditional Hanlin.

Zhu Yuchan saw that Sister Ziling helped her take over the task of raising her son, and she will be separated from her husband in the next two years, one lives in Nanjing and the other lives in Beijing, Zhu Yuchan is also quite grateful.

So for the rest of this year, everyone is in Nanjing, and Zhu Yuchan will not compete with her for favor, and will generously let her husband take advantage of the days when she is still in Nanjing to accompany Sister Ziling more and compensate her. After going north next year, I won't see each other for at least two or three years.

Zhu Shuren's other concubines are also very well-behaved, they have no task of raising children, and they can follow Zhu Shuren to Beijing in the future, and they will not rob the side concubines in Nanjing.

……

Zhu Shuren had been away from Nanjing for nine months for the Northern Expedition, and when he came back this time, he naturally had a lot of things to deal with in the rear, and the sporadic wars in the north in the second half of the sixth year of Longwu all depended on the front-line generals and governors to adapt to the situation.

Some fleeting fighters do not need to ask Nanjing, Zhang Huangyan will directly make a decision if Beijing stays behind.

】

At the beginning, Zhang Huangyan did not make any big moves because the north had just been recovered, the situation was relatively dilapidated, and there was a shortage of food in the spring famine, and even Shanhaiguan was not in a hurry to recover.

However, as the time came to July and August in the sixth year of Longwu, four or five months had passed since the recovery of other areas in the Guannai.

Seeing that this year's summer grain in the north has been put into storage and the autumn grain is about to be harvested, Zhang Huangyan has savings, and has noticed that the Qing army is also a little moving, it seems that he wants to try to re-operate the old business and play some tricks of "grabbing a handful and running away after entering the customs".

The Qing army abandoned the Central Plains, but gave up the ruling mode of "being attacked by the Ming army and must be saved", and changed back to a flexible way of life of wandering and plundering. Robbery is still something that must be done every year, and it has to wait for the Han people to produce the harvest season, and if they don't rob, the Manchus will not be able to maintain the cost of their own rule.

Zhang Huangyan made a quick decision and decided to take the initiative to attack Shanhaiguan while the work before the autumn harvest, blocking the best solution for the Qing army's entry into the customs and robbery, and striving to consume the vitality of the Qing army's robbery troops in Shanhaiguan, completely waking up the Qing army, and letting them know that "the Tartars not only can't stand firm in the Central Plains, but they can't even come to grab a handful occasionally."

For the military cooperation between the sea route and the direction of North Korea, Zhang Huangyan secretly asked Zhu Shuren in advance and allocated resources, and as for the army operations in Hebei, Zhang Huangyan himself made the decision.

Zhu Shuren received Zhang Huangyan's invitation at the end of June, and he did not hesitate to let Zhang Mingzhen and Zheng Chenggong of the sea route, as well as Li Yu of North Korea, secretly prepare first according to Zhang Huangyan's request.

The Tartars still want to enter the customs, even if they just want to re-run and grab a handful, and rebuild the prestige of the reign of Haoge, who has been defeated repeatedly, Zhu Shuren has to let these people have no return.

Both sides thought that they were unaware of the fierce soldiers, and at the end of July of this year, the battle of detaining the customs finally rekindled a new round of war between the Ming and Qing dynasties.