"How was your harvest this time?"

In the big tent, the two sat opposite each other, eating and chatting.

Filled the old man with a bowl of soup and put it in front of him, Zhu Gaoyu replied casually.

"It's okay, it's not a loss."

The old man raised his eyelids and snorted lightly: "Don't pretend, I know you have made a lot of money this trip, and I don't want your money." ”

Zhu Gaoyu was stunned for a moment, and looked at the old man opposite with a suspicious expression.

The old man's character has always been a loss if he doesn't take advantage, but this time he didn't even ask for money, did the sun come out in the west?

"What kind of eyes are these, boy."

The old man, who was eating spinach, noticed Zhu Gaoyu's strange eyes, felt unhappy, raised his chopsticks and knocked on Zhu Gaoyu's head.

"Ouch!"

Zhu Gaoyu rubbed his head and muttered, "You just pretend, I just didn't make any money anyway." ”

When the old man heard this, he raised the chopsticks and wanted to knock them, Zhu Gaoyu hurriedly stepped back and avoided the old man's attack.

The old man snorted and knocked on the empty bowl, and Zhu Gaoyu hurriedly came over to serve him soup.

"I heard that your Wang Jin guy sent away, what did you let him do?"

Wu Shan had already reported the matter of exchanging boats for horses, but the old man did not say anything about it.

For Da Ming, it really doesn't matter what the ship is, if you want to make it, the imperial court will give an order, and a new batch of new ones will soon be made.

But this kind of sturdy horse is different, horses are not something you can raise with hard work, but need to be cultivated by environment and blood.

So many horses were brought back to the Ming Dynasty, not to mention how much the combat power of the army was increased, and the bloodline of the horses in the Central Plains was also of great help.

Exchanging ten warships for fifteen thousand warhorses, in the old man's opinion, this deal was very cost-effective, and if it was possible, he wanted to do it again.

"Oh, you said that!"

"I heard that there is a high-yield grain overseas, which can produce 10,000 catties per mu, so I asked him to take the fleet to find it."

"If we can find it, we will never starve to death in the future, and your Yongle prosperity will no longer be in vain."

Taking out an orange from the fruit bowl next to him, Zhu Gaoyu replied while peeling the skin.

"Oops!"

However, as soon as he finished speaking, he was knocked by the old man with chopsticks again.

"What is called vain, Lao Tzu's prosperous era is prosperous age."

Yongle Shengshi, who he thought he was proud of, was said by his son to be vain, which made the old man very unhappy.

Although this is true, how can there be a son who exposes Lao Tzu's shortness.

"Ah, yes, yes, yes!"

Looking at the old man's threatening eyes, Zhu Gaoyu nodded again and again, stuffed the peeled oranges into the old man's hands and said, "It's my son who said wrong, your Yongle prosperity is true." ”

"Humph!"

The old man snorted coldly, took the orange and stuffed it into his mouth, but as soon as he chewed it twice, his face immediately twisted together.

"Bill, is it sour?"

Zhu Gaoyu looked at the remaining half of the orange in his hand suspiciously.

The old man didn't speak, picked up half of the orange in Zhu Gaoyu's hand, and stuffed it directly into Zhu Gaoyu's mouth, and then the two of them had distorted expressions together.

After a long time, the two of them recovered.

The old man exhaled, said "comfortable", picked up the steamed bun next to him, and continued to eat.

"This is a war, don't bring these things in the future, let the people below see it, and it will be rumored that our masters are extremely luxurious."

mistakenly thought that these fruits and vegetables were specially brought to himself by the old man, and reminded Zhu Gaoyu that when he went out to fight in the future, he should not bring these things again.

Although as an emperor, he deserved to enjoy these things, but the old man was a self-disciplined man, and in the army, he had always led by example, and did not want his officers to follow such bad habits.

Once this habit is formed in the army, will the officers still be able to fight, and will the soldiers still work for their lives?

Zhu Gaoyu nodded, "There's not much, I'll send it over when I go back, and you can eat it yourself." ”

The old man let out a "hmm", stuffed the last mouthful of steamed buns into his mouth, clapped his hands and said, "Also, if you are uncertain in the future, don't risk the lives of soldiers." ”

"After all, the fact that there is high-yield grain overseas is a legend, and it is not worth risking the lives of thousands of soldiers for this."

In the old man's mind, the so-called high-yield grain in Zhu Gaoyu's mouth is completely a myth and legend.

For the sake of an unreliable myth and legend, it is completely irresponsible to take the lives of thousands of soldiers.

This kind of behavior is no different from looking for an elixir, and it is useless except for wasting national power.

"Dad, I know you don't believe in high-yield food, but I have to do it."

The old man, who was full of food and drink and squinted his eyes and pretended to sleep, slowly opened his eyes.

"Tell me."

The old man still knows a little about this little son, and he knows that he is not the kind of person who talks big.

He wanted to hear what was going on to make this kid so anxious to find high-yield food.

Raising his hand to let the eunuch next to him remove the leftovers, Zhu Gaoyu sat down next to the old man, helped him take off his boots and thumped his legs and said:

"You have been the emperor for so many years, you should know the situation of natural disasters in the past few years, right?"

The old man nodded silently.

At first, it was a little better, but in the past two years, there have been more and more natural disasters, either floods or droughts, and the winter is very cold, and the number of people freezing to death is increasing every year, which makes him very troubled.

Seeing the old man nodding, Zhu Gaoyu continued: "I have a lot of people from hundreds of families, and your old man also knows this. ”

"A few of them who are good at astronomy, based on their calculations and observations of celestial phenomena, have come to the conclusion that we are heading for an extremely cold period."

Seeing that the old man was frowning and didn't seem to understand, Zhu Gaoyu found an easy-to-understand explanation for him.

"That is, there are spring, summer, autumn and winter throughout the year, and the spring, summer, autumn and winter of the world span is very long, maybe hundreds or even thousands of years, and the next period of our Ming Dynasty is exactly in the time period of winter."

"According to them, the celestial phenomena will be very erratic during this period, and there may be a major drought in some places for several years, or a flood for a few years, and the earth dragon will turn over, etc., and all kinds of natural disasters will occur one after another."

"Our Daming situation, your old man knows in his heart, drought and flood for a year, it will be starving all over the place, and it will be easy to eat. If there is a drought for a few years, and the imperial court does not have enough food for disaster relief, what will happen, you must know very well in your old man's heart. ”

Hearing what Zhu Gaoyu said, the old man closed his eyes and imagined the scene at that time.

There was a major drought in a certain place, and the imperial court squeezed out some grain for disaster relief and alleviated it for a while, but not only was the disaster not resolved, but it was a major drought for several consecutive years.

The people had no rice grains to put in the pot, and everything that could be eaten in the whole world was eaten into their stomachs, and the hungry and helpless people finally chose to storm the rich yamen, and then chose to rebel under the suppression and persecution of the imperial court.

Not only did there be a drought here, but there were also floods in the surrounding provinces, and the earth dragon turned over.

Driven by the rebellion in this place, other people who had no way to live rose up one after another, choosing to overthrow the imperial court that had led them to rise.

Looking at the contemplative old man, Zhu Gaoyu didn't say anything more.

In fact, there are many more, which he did not say.

For example, in the case of land annexation, a large amount of land fell into the hands of the noble landlords, and the imperial court increased the grain and salary in order to suppress the rebellion.

However, these increased wages were avoided by the rich because they had a reason to spend money.

In order to collect enough money, the imperial court put everything on those who had land.

These landed households were forced to sell their land to pay taxes, and then became homeless people, because of hunger, they became thieves again.

In addition, there are also problems such as military households and arrears of soldiers' salaries.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoyu had to admire Chongzhen, he still had some ability to last so long in that harsh environment.

"Fourth, what is the environment of those places in the south?"

The old man, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly opened his mouth and asked about the environment and land situation in the south.

Zhu Gaoyu's heart moved, and he seemed to understand the old man's thoughts, so he didn't hide anything, and said bluntly: "Relatively speaking, it is much better than the land north of the Yangtze River." ”

"For example, Cochin, Champong, and Siam, these areas have a special environment, and if you cultivate them well, you can grow three crops a year."

"And the climate is pleasant, there is no severe cold, and there are rich industries of various fruits and fish."

"Based on my son's calculations, if the southwest region of Qiongzhou can be developed well, it will be no problem to feed 20,000 people."

The old man's slightly narrowed eyes opened suddenly, but before he could speak, Zhu Gaoyu continued: "In fact, the most ideal place is Tianzhu!" ”

"They are rich in all kinds of products in the south, and the pepper that is in demand is produced there, and there is a huge plain in the north, and the land is quite fertile, if it can be developed, I will not have a problem with food in the future."

"And they are all close to the sea, all kinds of seafood resources are abundant, and the annual seafood goods can also greatly fill the vacancy."

"All in all, if the entire southwest region of Qiongzhou is fully controlled, and then the Jiangnan region, which may be slightly weaker in the future, I will have no problem feeding a population of 40,000 to 60,000."

"Sixty thousand!"

Hearing this number, the old man's eyes were confused.

He couldn't imagine how powerful a country could be with such a large population.

After all, without strong strength and national strength, it is simply impossible to feed such a large number of people.

From the appearance of Yanhuang to the present, so many countries, so many dynasties, and several populations, more than 20,000,000.

Every time it reaches a certain peak, because of the unevenness of the land and the inadequacy of food, the country collapses and falls into chaos.

From ancient times to the present, all emperors know that the people are actually very well managed.

As long as the people are fed and given justice when they are wronged, the people will not rebel and will vigorously support the court.

However, for these two small problems, most of the imperial courts could not solve them.

There is a brief settlement, also known as a prosperous era.

Many people praise him as the emperor of the prosperous era, but the old man who can manage the entire empire, he knows it very well in his heart.

His own Yongle was still far away from the prosperous era.

In terms of fairness and justice to the people, the old man can still claim to be able to barely do it. can let the people of the world eat enough and no longer have the worry of hunger, which the old man thinks is far behind.

At the end of each year, the list of frozen and starving deaths reported by various places shocked him, but these lists are still the result of the following reductions and reductions.

If they were all reported truthfully, ordinary people would not dare to look at those numbers at all.

"Son, do you think we can create a prosperous world?"

The old man who has been thinking about it for a long time is now a little confused in his heart, he doesn't know if everything he has worked can wipe out his stains, and whether he can let future generations praise him when he mentions Emperor Yongle, good emperor!

"Yes!"

Noticing the old man's somewhat confused eyes, Zhu Gaoyu looked at the old man's eyes and nodded seriously.

"Dad, my son knows your wishes and difficulties, and my son will do everything to achieve your ideals."

"As the saying goes, a soldier who doesn't steam steamed buns and doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier, and in the same way, he doesn't want to be an emperor for the ages, not a good emperor."

"Since your old man has sat in this position, then we have to fight again, the position of the first emperor of the ages!"

"When future generations will mention me, I want him to say so."

"Zhu Gaoyu, oh.. I've heard of it, isn't it the fourth son of the eternal emperor Yongle the Great, this kid is good. ”

"Hahaha......"

Zhu Gaoyu's funny words made the old man laugh, he reached out and patted Zhu Gaoyu's head, and said with a smile: "Okay, not for anything else, just for the sake of future generations to praise you, Lao Tzu also has to fight." ”

"What day Khan Li Shimin, they all carry two shoulders and one head, they are all from rebellion, and no one has one more thing than others."

"He has famous ministers and famous generals, and my courtiers are not bad."

"He has a lot of sons, although Lao Tzu is less than him, but Lao Tzu's sons are one of the top ten of him."

The more he said that the pride and ambition in his heart became stronger, the old man stood up and pinched his waist and said: "The first emperor has made great achievements through the ages, I think I can't compare, compared with him Li Lao Er, I still have no problem." ”

Looking at the ambitious old man, a smile appeared on the corner of Zhu Gaoyu's mouth.

When the words came to an end, the old man didn't let Zhu Gaoyu go back, and asked people to lift the roof of the tent, and the two of them lay on the carpet, roasting the fire and eating fruits, looking at the starry sky in the sky, imagining the future, and chatting about future plans.

Until the middle of the night, Zhu Gaoyu, who had been riding a horse for several days, fell asleep in a drowsy.

chatting and chatting, there was no sound around him, but there was a burst of snoring, and the old man turned his head to look.

I saw Zhu Gaoyu holding a round pillow and falling asleep.

Looking at his sleeping son, the old man slowly sat up, and asked someone to bring a blanket and gently cover Zhu Gaoyu's body.

In the chat between the two, Zhu Gaoyu talked about the things he experienced during the time he went to sea.

The old man was not at all dissatisfied with his son's acceptance of Ceylon, one of the non-conscripted countries listed by his old son, without his permission, but was very happy.

This place in Ceylon, he knew from his son's account, was a very important place for the future.

And the white-eyed wolf also occupied areas such as Guri, where pepper is produced.

Daming controlled these places, and the pepper business in the future was completely in the hands of Daming.

With the opening of the sea trade, the Ming Dynasty, who mastered the pepper, coupled with the best-selling silk tea, the Western countries mentioned by Zhu Gaoyu, their money will slowly flow into the pockets of the Ming Dynasty.

At that time, the Ming will be the strongest and richest country in the world.

Once the strength has accumulated to a certain extent, the words that Zhu Gaoyu said in a groggy manner to conquer the world before falling asleep can officially begin.

"Conquer the world, become the lord of the world, and become the new emperor after Di Xin."

Thinking of that grand goal, the old man couldn't help but tremble with excitement in his heart.

If he really did all this, I am afraid that even the First Emperor, who has achieved great achievements through the ages, will not be able to compare with himself.

But after a moment of excitement, the old man fell silent again.

He is old, and even if there is a day, it is not something that can be done in ten years or decades.

Maybe when Da Ming conquered the world, he didn't know how many years he had been dead at that time.

Lying quietly beside his son, listening to his son's even snoring, looking at the stars in the sky.

In his heart, the old man compared his four sons.

Although the boss is obese and walks a little hard, he has a strong talent in government affairs, and he is benevolent, and he will become an emperor in the future, and he must be a benevolent monarch, but after all, his eyes are only on the present, but he has never turned to the future.

The second child is brave, but he is not enough in terms of strategy, maybe better than ordinary people, but in the real political arena, it is still much worse.

Even if the second child becomes the emperor, at most he is an open lord, and he will definitely not have any good evaluation in terms of governing the country and people's livelihood.

The third child has a cunning personality, it's okay for such a person to engage in intrigues and tricks, and there is no great achievement in being the emperor.

As for the fourth.

Turning his head to look at the side, the handsome face that was the same as when he was young, and the old man smiled at the corner of his mouth.

Zhu Gaoyu has wisdom, force, means, and far-sightedness, and every step of his planning not only benefits the present, but also has a great impact on the future.

Everything Zhu Gaoyu did in the West alone brought infinite benefits and benefits to the Ming Dynasty.

Even if he doesn't occupy other countries in the future, Da Mingguang can bring countless benefits to the imperial court by holding these important locations.

What's more, this kid knows how to combine grace and might, kill decisively when he should be severe, and treat everyone kind when he should be kind.

And it is very good to the people, just the Chamber of Commerce collects folk goods, which brings huge benefits to the people in the south of the Yangtze River.

When I came again, the old man heard that the money that a family of fried camellia used to earn was only enough to support the family.

After joining the Chamber of Commerce, with the skill of roasting tea and the tea picked in his own tea field, the income reached more than 100 taels in just one year.

This is just one of them, and there are many similar ones.

A person who can make the court earn money and let the people get benefits is probably the monarch that the people in the world want to have the most.

Thinking of this, the old man fell silent, and after a long time, he secretly made a decision in his heart.

The boss is not in good health, and if one day the boss is one step ahead of him, he will not make the wrong choice like his father.

As for making this choice, what trouble will be caused in the future, the old man believes that his fourth son will definitely have the ability to solve this problem in the future.

(End of chapter)