"Where's this idiot's brain!"

In September, as the "Zong Gui" was distributed by Zhu Gaoxu to various vassal palaces, the vassal kings everywhere couldn't help but scold Zhu Rong, the king of Qi, after figuring out the whole thing.

Originally, the vassal kings were very good, and the only thing that could manage them was the "Emperor Ming Zu Xun".

Now Zhu Rong is fooling around, and suddenly he has come up with a copy of "Zong Rules", but everyone who is related to the vassal king wants to see what Zhu Rong has in his head.

"Eh, and I'm guilty of it......"

In the palace of the Han Dynasty in Kunming, Zhu Gaochi, who was sitting in the former dormitory, looked at the "Sect Rules" in his hand, flipped it over in three or two, and looked at it roughly.

In general, the "Zong Gui" is much stricter than the "Emperor Ming Zu Xun".

"Emperor Ming Zu Xun" is at most a lot of rules, but the "Zong Gui" is a real "law" for vassal kings and clan relatives.

In the "Sect Rules", there are a total of eight articles and 32 volumes, including "Guarding the Ban", "Fighting Lawsuits", "Fraud", and "Miscellaneous Laws", with 606 articles.

Some of these things would not have been punished at all in the past, but now they are punished very severely, such as [Punishment of slaves and maids for personal use, twenty rods].

In the "Sect Rules", even the rod of cane punishment has a standard, using a large wooden board that is six feet long, about three inches wide, and weighs no more than three catties, and there is a stone nail raised by one inch on the side of the wooden board to beat the butt.

Sure, they're blunt, but they still hurt.

In order to prevent the feudal palaces from cutting corners, Zhu Gaochu specially sent a pair of torture rods, which are now placed in front of Zhu Gaochi.

Looking at the torture staff, Zhu Gaochi played with his heart: "Does this thing hurt when it hits the body?" ”

"Your Highness, naturally it hurts." Shi Yangcheng, the head of the Han Palace, opened his mouth to respond, but Zhu Gaochi took it in his hand and weighed it: "This doesn't hurt, I'll try it......"

As he spoke, Zhu Gaochi lay on the chair sent by his younger brother, so frightened that the people around him didn't know how to speak.

"Try it gently, I will eat pain, and I will not do it in the future."

Zhu Gaochi said lightly, but others didn't dare to start at all.

Looking at the appearance of others, Zhu Zhanji, who was standing aside and had finished reading the "Rules", took the torture rod in his hand: "Dad, I'll try it lightly." ”

"Well, tap, hold on." Zhu Gaochi is not worried, after all, Zhu Zhanji is only thirteen years old, how much strength can he have.

Seeing him say this, Zhu Zhanji also picked up the three-pound torture staff, and after lifting it, he used three points of force to beat it slightly.

"Eh!!"

Zhu Gaochi couldn't help but scream, so frightened that Zhu Zhanji hurriedly withdrew his torture staff, squatted down and looked at Zhu Gaochi: "Dad, are you okay?" ”

"I said, boss, how much strength do you have?"

Zhu Gaochi's face turned pale, and Zhu Zhanji also stumbled and said, "Three points, ......"

"Three points?" Zhu Gaochi hurriedly motioned to help himself up left and right, rubbed his buttocks and said:

"Three points of strength hurt so much, the seventh uncle is forty-seven years old, and he can't be beaten to death with a rod of thirty?"

"Does it really hurt that much?" Zhu Zhanji didn't believe it, after all, no one dared to bully him since he was a child.

"If you don't try it on your stomach, Dad will give you the strength."

Zhu Gaochi asked Zhu Zhanji rhetorically, but saw that Zhu Zhanji immediately shook his head like a rattle: "Excuse me." ”

When the two fathers and sons finished playing with treasure, they immediately picked up the "Zong Gui" and looked at it with a toothache.

On the whole, the meaning behind this "Zong Gui" is obvious, that is, the court is staring at the feudal domains, who dares to violate the ban, the plot is a torture rod, and the focus is to be degraded to the common people.

However, this attitude is also in line with Zhu Gaoxu's attitude towards the vassal kings.

If it was Zhu Di, he would be persuaded again and again, and he would not act until he did not listen to the advice, but Zhu Gaoxu did not have so much patience.

"The second child, this "Sect Rules" ......"

Modong, outside Hecheng (northern Qiqihar), looking at the "Zong Gui" in his hand, Zhu Di's expression was a little complicated.

"He's really not afraid of those uncles and brothers making trouble......"

He sighed, but reacted again, the guards of the feudal clans had already been cut by Zhu Gaoxu once, and now they add up to only 100,000 soldiers and horses, besides, they have no artillery or muskets, and if they really fight, these 100,000 soldiers and horses are estimated to be unable to defeat even the 160,000 standing troops of the four southwestern provinces.

"Leave him alone, anyway, I'll go back this time......"

As he spoke, he suddenly didn't know what to say, and his mouth was a little bitter.

Shaking his head, he said to a military attache in front of him: "Sai Hazhi, you don't need to report these things to me, after you return to Nanjing this time, you will go to the Chunhe Palace to serve." ”

"Your Majesty......" Hearing Zhu Di say this, Saihazhi, who was in his forties, hurriedly knelt down: "The minister is His Majesty's person." ”

"Your Majesty in the future will not be me." Zhu Di was a little melancholy, and Sai Hazhi was also very uncomfortable after hearing it.

In the eyes of most of them, it seems that after this northern expedition, the Yongle era will come to an end, but for Zhu Gaoxu himself, Yongle can still last for a few years.

In such an atmosphere, even the residences of the civilian officials of the Northern Expedition who gathered in Hecheng were inevitably a little depressed.

"Words! Word line! ”

"I'm here!"

In the small courtyard, Jin Youzi put down his pen when he heard someone call his name, and after drying the ink of the booklet, he closed the book and got up and walked to the courtyard gate.

The title of the book was written on the closed paper, no more, no less, exactly three words...... "Northern Expedition Record"

Walking out of the study, Jin Youzi's figure was exposed to the sunlight of Modong.

His figure was thin, his official robe was very wide, and he obviously suffered a lot on the way to the north.

When he walked to the door, he opened the courtyard door, and what he saw were Yang Rong, Hu Guang, Huang Huai and others.

"Everyone, isn't it that Your Majesty has something important?"

Although Jin Youzi is also a Jiangzuo official, he is not a big local family, so he actually does not have close contacts with everyone.

When Xie Jin and Yang Shiqi were there, because they were friends, he often gathered with Hu Guang and others, but after Xie Jin and Yang Shiqi were sent down, he didn't participate in the party much.

"Let's go in and talk."

Hu Guang and the others opened their mouths with a headache, and although Jin Youzi was puzzled, he also turned sideways and gave up some position.

When everyone walked in, some of the scribes accompanying Jin Youzi poured tea for them.

Several people sat in the main hall, and Jin Youzi and Hu Guang sat in the main seat.

After taking his seat, Hu Guang got straight to the point and said: "Recently, there are rumors that after His Majesty returns to the south, he will be ready to abdicate to the crown prince, have you ever heard His Majesty say it?" ”

Jin Youzi is skilled in arching and horses, so Zhu Di is closer to him, but he is not familiar with military affairs, so Zhu Di left him and other civilian officials in the camp several times.

Because of this, his record in the "Northern Expedition" is usually based on his own speculation based on the number of people Zhu Di set off, and for this reason, he was ridiculed by Zhu Di for not knowing the art of war and not knowing the number of his own army.

"Your Majesty didn't say it, but Your Majesty's demeanor, I'm afraid it's ......"

As soon as Jin Youzi spoke, everyone's hearts immediately hung up.

Yang Rong, who was sitting in the position, thought for a while, and then said: "Actually, there is no big problem with the East Palace's accession to the throne, that is, the East Palace is reckless, which is not good for the people to recuperate." ”

Yang Rong was very familiar with the important affairs of border defense, and in his opinion, it was enough to focus on defense for the Hu people and the Fan people in the north and west, and there was no need to mobilize troops to go to the cold land to fight them in a decisive battle.

As for the measures to expand the territory in the south, he quite supported Zhu Gaoxu, after all, Zhu Gaochu used troops in the south, and he could often recover the military costs, and after a few years of governance, he could make the local government increase taxes, which was a good thing.

If Zhu Gaoxu could withdraw his troops from the West and at the same time abolish the newly established Yan Ran Command Envoy, it would save at least one million guan for the imperial court.

"It's not as exaggerated as the reckless use of military force."

The middle-aged official sitting in a corner suddenly spoke, and everyone looked at him one after another, only to find that it was Yang Pu, a new university scholar from Huguang.

Yang Pu didn't feel any pressure when he saw everyone looking at him, but he just argued with reason: "Your Majesty and Your Highness, although they run the world and have many affairs, they have never rushed the construction period. ”

"His Royal Highness is heavy on military affairs, and the available soldiers have always been step-by-step, and every place, there are few rebellions, and Antai will be restored soon, where the land is recovered by the imperial court's soldiers and horses, no people criticize the imperial court, how can this not show the wisdom of His Royal Highness?"

"Besides, this matter is a matter of heaven, and we just need to do our duty."

According to the evidence, Yang Pu believes that after Zhu Gaoxu ascends the throne, there will be no major changes in the world, and he does not recommend that the ministers argue about this matter here.

In the face of his words, everyone pondered for a moment and said one after another: "Donggong is indeed good at managing money, but ......"

For a while, they couldn't say anything, after all, Zhu Gaoxu can fight and make money, and the rectification of the rule of officials is directly proportional to the degree of diligence, which is really impossible to pick out.

But the problem is that his new policy has indeed harmed the interests of many people, and all officials can only watch it in the West, and they have not received anything at all.

These various problems are piled together, and even if Zhu Gaoxu has no problems, they are trying to find out the problems.

After talking for a long time, they couldn't find anything wrong, and the Bohai faction and the New Deal faction under Zhu Gaochu were not easy to mess with, so they discussed for a long time, and they couldn't do anything except complain.

Jin Youzi sat in his seat and watched them complain for an hour, and then got up and said, "I still have something to go to see Your Majesty, please take care of yourself." ”

"We're gone, too."

Seeing this, Yang Rong and the others also got up one after another, and then left the small courtyard.

As they walked out of the courtyard, a gate opened in a courtyard not far from them, and the two sides looked at each other.

The difference is that the faces of the seven or eight people on their side are not very good-looking, and although there are also seven or eight people walking out of the courtyard not far from the oblique corner, they are all red and red-eared, and they are full of smiles.

The two sides glanced at each other, and Yang Rong and the others left.

"What are these birdmen discussing?"

Standing at the door, Li Lost couldn't help but tease, and the Richard people standing behind him laughed out loud, as for Wang Yi, he glanced at them, and then said:

"Don't say a word, I've been nervous lately, so I'm going to be careful, don't leave a handle on people, so as to delay His Highness's big things."

"Yes!" Li Shi and the others responded, obviously they were also discussing the issue of Zhu Di and Zhu Gaoxu just now.

However, they are very optimistic, and they all believe that it will not be long before their highness will ascend to the throne, and they will gradually replace the old ministers.

"You take them first, I have something to go to Your Majesty."

Meng Zhang looked at Wang Yi and Li Yi, and explained with a smile, Wang Yi also nodded clearly: "You are going back to Bohai, it is estimated that when His Royal Highness ascends the throne, you will be able to transfer to the capital." ”

"When you go back this time, you can investigate more and see who can replace you in the Bohai Sea."

"Good!" In response to Wang Yi's words, Meng Zhang turned around and left the alley and walked to the streets of Hecheng.

Hecheng, as Zhu Di's first northern expedition to destroy the Wuliangha Zhuwei, can lead to Zhaozhou, Jilin, Andong and other cities here is regarded as the first city of Daning in Modong.

Due to the existence of the Wenjiang River water transport, although it has only been built for nine years, it is already very prosperous.

The circumference of the city wall of Hecheng is five miles, there are more than 26,000 people in the city, and there are 12 market towns, more than 70 villages, and more than 67,000 people outside the city.

Hecheng city wall concrete mixed with river stone masonry and built, the main road in the city is four, all are five zhang wide, concrete plastered with cement, the rest of the auxiliary road eight, two zhang wide, 36 lanes, one zhang wide, there are more than 800 shops on the main road, auxiliary road, more than 7,000 dwellings, it can be seen that its prosperity.

At this moment, most of the people on the street are people who have migrated from Liaodong or have been exiled here.

Although they were relocated and exiled, after settling here, the environment was not as bad as they imagined, and it was just that the output per acre was less than that in the south.

The yield per mu here is lower than that of Jilin, Zhaozhou and other places, even if the rice seedlings are raised in the greenhouse, after sowing and harvesting, the yield is only six and a half buckets of real grain.

Therefore, if you want to feed a person here, you have to plant at least five acres of land.

Fortunately, although the grain production is small, every year Bohai will transport a large amount of grain to Modong through water transportation, and at the same time the grain price of Modong Sanwei is stable, the grain is purchased from Modong Sanwei at a high price and sent to Hailaerwei.

The liveliness here is no different from some of the cities in the north of Daming Pass, and even because of the abundant water sources, it was not long after the development of the city, and even some woods were left in the city here, and transformed into gardens for people to play.

Here, firewood is the least valuable thing.

Separated by a Nuwen River, west of the Nuwen River is the grassland, and to the east of the Nuwen River are swamps and woods.

Some people will continue north along the Nuwen River, and then cut down trees in the dense forests of the north, and transport the cut trees down the river to Hecheng for sale.

In Jiangnan, the price of 100 catties of river firewood is 33 Wen, but here it is only 10 Wen.

Every time they went on a northern expedition, the men would go to work as a man, because the wages of the men in the north were twenty wen a day.

When the battle was over, the restaurants on the main road and auxiliary roads were almost full, not only the people and auxiliary soldiers, but also a large number of Ming troops mixed in.

Because of this, every time the Northern Expedition army returned, Zhu Di would issue a three-day ban on alcohol in the cities along the way, so as not to get drunk and noisy.

Riding a horse and walking out of the city, the street was full of Ming soldiers wearing mandarin duck battle jackets, and when they saw Meng Zhang's more than ten cavalry, the soldiers would bury their heads and run wildly, like the students who saw the teacher on the street.

"Disperse too, go find some good food by yourself, and I'll just go out of the city alone."

Meng Zhang looked at the soldiers all over the street, all the street stalls and restaurants that were already full, threw a small bag of money from his arms, and ordered them to go to eat.

It's just that the hundred household officials who took the money smiled and said, "Grandpa, where is there a place here?" ”

"We'll leave someone to wait for a place first, and the rest will send you back and come back, I guess it's almost just enough to sit down and eat."

"Whatever you want, don't forget Prohibition." Meng Zhang shook the reins of the horse, and the hundred household officials also left one person to grab the position, and then escorted Meng Zhang out of the Changhe Gate of the South City of Hecheng with more than ten people.

Walking out of the city gate, the bustling scene was immediately gone, replaced by the dirt road where people walked out, and the military camp stretched in the distance.

On the way to the barracks, many soldiers who took leave to go to the city to eat could only stiffen their heads, wait for Meng Zhang and the others to leave, and then trot to the city to be happy.

For them, who have eaten dried vegetables for military rations for several months, being able to eat fresh ingredients now is the greatest reward for them.

Although Zhenyuwei and Hailaer City also have enough people to live, they are always not as lively and prosperous as Hecheng.

Riding his horse through the dirt road into the barracks, Meng Zhang dismissed his guards and came to the big tent to find Zhu Di.

At this time, Zhu Di had already eaten lunch, and when he saw Meng Zhang coming to find him, he asked, "There are no riots in the city, right?" ”

"Your Majesty, please rest assured that the prohibition of alcohol is strictly enforced, and no one dares to violate the ban." Meng Zhang responded, and at the same time said:

"The minister came here this time to ask Your Majesty, when will the Bohai soldiers and horses withdraw to the Bohai Sea?"

Seeing Meng Zhang's inquiry, Zhu Di also put down his hand and said indifferently: "You choose a day, the army will go south in five days, and you can leave early if you want." ”

"That's right!" Zhu Di seemed to think of something, and asked Meng Zhang: "In the land of the Bohai Sea, how many girls and real people have not been appeased?" ”

"Almost more than sixty percent have been appeased, and at most there are more than 100,000 people living in Beishan, but it is only a matter of time before they are appeased."

Meng Zhang said this, and Zhu Di also said actively: "There are no enemies and wars in the Bohai Sea, the main thing is to appease, and it is too condescending to leave you here." ”

"Just now the news came from the south, saying that Xining Marquis Song Shengxu has passed away, I thought about it, you are quite suitable to go to the northwest to sit in the town, the key is to see if you are willing."

"Minister......" Meng Zhang wanted to agree immediately, but after thinking about it, he still struggled:

"The ministers listen to the arrangements of Your Majesty and His Royal Highness!"

Although Zhu Di was mentioned, Meng Zhang vaguely still wanted to express that he wanted to listen to Zhu Gaoxu's arrangement, and Zhu Di was also used to it.

Bohai Zhu Gaochu to Zhu Gaochu is like the generals of Yanfu to themselves.

However, the generals of his Yan Mansion gradually died of old age, and veterans like Zhang Yu, Qiu Fu, and Meng Shan didn't know how many years they could live.

"Okay, I see, you can step down."

Zhu Di waved his hand to signal Meng Zhang to retreat, and Meng Zhang also left as he wished.

However, not long after Meng Zhang left, he saw a familiar figure walking towards him.

The person who came this time was his seventeenth brother Ning Wang Zhu Quan.

Although the thirty-three-year-old Zhu Quan participated in the Northern Expedition every time, he was either a pioneer or in charge of supply in logistics.

In this northern expedition, Zhu Quan did not go to the front line with Zhu Di, but was in charge of transporting supplies to Hailaer City in Hecheng.

Zhu Di summoned him to come, mainly to ask him about something.

"Your Majesty......"

Zhu Quan made a salute, and the whole person had dark skin because he lived in Daning all the year round, but fortunately, his body was still relatively healthy.

"Have you read the "Rules"?"

Zhu Di motioned for Zhu Quan to sit down, and at the same time asked him what he thought of the "Zong Gui".

Zhu Quan is not as tyrannical as those brothers and brothers, so he doesn't pay much attention to the "Sect Rules", and he doesn't feel harsh.

"People are bound by military law in the army, and there are laws in the people, and the children of the clan naturally have something to restrict, and the younger brothers don't think there is anything wrong with the "Sect Rules"."

After all, Zhu Quan stood on Zhu Gaoxu's side, and since he did not infringe on his own interests, he naturally had to say good things for Zhu Gaoxu.

"Before, the second child said that he would move you to Datong, what do you think?"

Zhu Di asked Zhu Quan, and Zhu Quan also knew what Zhu Di was thinking when he heard the words.

Now that Varat and Tatar have suffered heavy blows one after another, they will not be able to make any waves in seven or eight years.

In addition, due to the completion of the construction of Beijing, it is naturally imperative to move the capital, so in Daning City, he has become a threat to the existence of the capital, after all, Hongwu and Yongle did not build the Great Wall on a large scale, even if it is built, it is mostly rammed earth construction, and it is not solid.

Although there are only more than 5,000 guards in Zhu Quan's hands, he can do a lot of things in such a short distance.

Zhu Gaoxu moved Zhu Quan to Datong, mainly because there was a Yongguan between Datong and Beijing, and even if the Ning Domain rebelled in the future, it would not threaten Beijing.

However, compared with Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Di was more wary of the vassal king, and he was not worried that Ning Fan would threaten the capital, but that Ning Fan would bring craftsmen and bring firearms to the grassland.

Therefore, his inquiry was somewhat purposeful.

After Zhu Quan understood, he thought about it and said, "When the younger brother is now established, he can still go on the horse to fight." ”

"If you can, my brother wants to go to Guanzhong, or Longxi."

Zhu Quan took the initiative to mention the northwest, but Zhu Di was a little embarrassed when he heard it.

It is true that the northwest is prone to rebellion because of its ethnic composition, but the reason why the place is prone to rebellion is mainly due to the lack of resources.

Conflicts arose between ethnic groups over land resources, which led to rebellions.

Although Zhu Gaoxu moved hundreds of thousands of people to live in Henan, Shanxi, and Sichuan, and more than 100,000 Han people moved to Longxi to live, and moved the people of northern Shaanxi in the Yan'an area to Guanzhong, the scale of the local rebellion was not smaller than before.

Such a place with insufficient resources will naturally be very poor.

moved Zhu Quan, who had made contributions to Jingnan and the Northern Expedition, to the northwest, and Zhu Di really couldn't do this kind of thing.

"This thing...... I'd better make a decision after I go back to Nanjing, you lead the palace guards back to Daning tomorrow to rest and take care of your body more, I may not be able to come to the north to see you in the future. ”

Zhu Di explained to Zhu Quan, and did not forget to care about his body.

However, compared to him, Zhu Quan is more concerned about Zhu Di's body, after all, the first few brothers of their generation died in their thirties and forties, and the fifty-two-year-old Zhu Di is undoubtedly the longest-lived existence among the more than twenty brothers.

"The fourth brother should also pay more attention to the Holy Communion, and the younger brother will retire."

Zhu Quan called the fourth brother, which made Zhu Di even more embarrassed to move him to the northwest.

Touching his beard, he finally decided to give the pot to someone else's back.

"Second brother, it seems that you still have to do this matter of your seventeenth uncle......

(End of chapter)