Chapter 440: The Conservative Minister of War is a Bit Strange

In his early years, Wang Chonggu fought side by side with Yu Dayou, killing enemies and going out to sea many times to clear out Japanese pirates and outlaws.

The story of the Shanxi faction began with the need to guard against the northern barbarians' invasions, but as time passed, the Shanxi faction gradually changed from a faction born to solve problems into a collection of usurpers of the master, those who held the barbarians to respect themselves, those who slackened defense to favor the enemy, and those of special economic interests.

Wang Chonggu personally killed Japanese pirates and also personally killed northern barbarians. From Ministry of Justice Secretary, Prefect, Military Defense Deputy Envoy, Shaanxi Surveillance Commissioner, Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief, Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, and Vice Minister of War, to Viceroy of Xuan-Da and Shanxi military affairs, Wang Chonggu climbed to the highest point step by step relying on his own military merit.

Zhang Juzheng took the lead in retaining Wang Chonggu also because Wang Chonggu was now a minister of surrender, especially after Altan Khan was captured and brought to the capital, Wang Chonggu wanted to usurp, but he couldn't do it at all. He didn't have that strength, so Zhang Juzheng retained Wang Chonggu now.

If the threat of the northern barbarians still existed, if Wang Chonggu wanted to retreat, Zhang Juzheng would never retain him.

In the middle and late Jiajing period, the Ming Dynasty's military preparations were slack to an extremely exaggerated degree. A dozen Japanese pirates could break into Nanjing, and two northern barbarian cavalrymen could suppress the Ming Dynasty's ten-thousand-man camp.

On August 7th of the 19th year of Jiajing, the northern barbarians invaded from Ningwu Pass, looting Lanzhou, Jingyue, Lanxing, and other counties, killing and looting over ten thousand people, and stationed in the Ming Dynasty for more than ten days. On August 16th, they left from Ningwu Pass again. The Shanxi Vice Regional Commander Wei Qing had ten thousand troops. When the enemy came, he was afraid and didn't go out. When the enemy left, he quietly followed, only to encounter the northern barbarians' rearguard cavalry, totaling two people.

The enemy had only two people, Wei Qing led ten thousand troops, but didn't dare to move. These two northern barbarians broke through the Ming army formation as if walking on flat ground, while sitting on their horses and sneering at Wei Qing's cowardice.

And the Shanxi Regional Commander Ding Zhang died in battle at Shi Hu Ridge of Ningwu Pass.

(The picture shows the source of the two northern barbarian cavalrymen breaking through ten thousand people)

It was precisely because of the slack border preparations during the Jiajing period that Altan Khan had the courage to build Bansheng City near the Ming Dynasty. At the end of the Jiajing period, a group of anti-Japanese generals were promoted, and some ministers who advocated revitalizing martial arts were gradually promoted, which stabilized the situation. Li Chengliang recruited private soldiers, and the imperial court also turned a blind eye to his "raising bandits to respect himself," also because Li Chengliang could really beat the northern barbarians. Tuman Khan invaded Liaodong several times but didn't get any advantage in Li Chengliang's hands.

On the western front, there were generals like Ma Fang; near the capital, there were generals like Qi Jiguang; on the northeastern front, there were generals like Li Chengliang. Only then did the Ming Dynasty completely hold the battle line.

Therefore, Zhu Yijun wanted Zhang Juzheng to keep Wang Chonggu. He could indeed do things; he was a competent official.

Zhu Yijun was really not a very violent monarch, but his punishment of the Dongting Merchant Faction and Ningbo Merchant Faction in the Southern Yamen made even the more radical court officials wipe the sweat from their foreheads. The Ming Dynasty imposed punitive tariffs on Portugal until it was confirmed that Antonio had become king before canceling the punitive tariffs. This strategy of increasing taxes was aimed at enemy countries and foreign troubles, and had never been used on any collective within the Ming Dynasty.

When the whip was long and the reach was short, through punitive tariffs, reduce the profits gained by the enemy from maritime trade.

And this punitive tax increase on the Dongting Merchant Faction and Ningbo Merchant Faction was truly a ruthless poison that killed without a knife. It was not as painful as killing them with one knife. It was not only to punish the merchant faction as the main body, but the actual controllers behind the merchant faction, the famous families behind the two merchant factions, would also be taxed for a long time. This was the application of penetrating law enforcement.

Until their families completely fell apart and separated, it would not stop.

Under the Ming Dynasty's constant revitalization of martial arts, a visible big hand only needed one sentence to wipe out several famous families that had multiplied for generations.

"Is this punishment too heavy?" The conservative Zeng Shengwu bowed and said: "How about this: unify the tax extraction for the merchant ships under their names to 20%, and the seven famous families will not be allowed to take the imperial examination for five generations."

Zeng Shengwu's meaning was, no matter what, they were also Ming people. Reduce this 30% punitive tariff to 20%, and then the famous families behind these two merchant factions would not be allowed to take the imperial examination for five generations.

Zhu Yijun looked at Zeng Shengwu with full surprise. He was stunned for a moment. This guy, is he really a conservative? Are conservatives like this?

Thirty-seven degrees of body temperature—how could he say such cold words?

The relatively radical Ming Emperor only wanted money, but the conservative Zeng Shengwu's words came out—wouldn't the descendants of these famous families even have to change their surnames?! Not being allowed to take the imperial examination for five generations is going directly for the family genealogy!

The Pu family of Quanzhou was ordered by Zhu Yuanzhang not to take the imperial examination. The famous Pu family fell apart, and their descendants changed their names one after another, even losing their family genealogy.

"What the Minister of War said is very good. Punishing maritime taxes by 30% is for enemy countries, 20% is just right. Since they don't take the imperial court seriously and want to confront, then confront to the end. Not being allowed to take the imperial examination for five generations is already a favor." Wan Shihe immediately seconded. As the Minister of Rites in charge of the imperial examination power, Zeng Shengwu's punishment naturally required his agreement to be executed deeply.

Wan Shihe felt that Zeng Shengwu's method was better than the Emperor's. How can the Son of Heaven treat his subjects as enemies? That won't do.

A 30% tax increase is the treatment for enemy countries and foreign troubles. 20% is just right. Since they don't take the imperial court seriously and want to confront, then confront to the end.

Zhang Juzheng and Wang Chonggu looked at each other and didn't speak. They didn't speak because they

The court officials spoke one after another, and in the end, Ceng Shengwu's opinion was passed by the court discussion. When Zhu Yijun affixed the seal, he was very certain that Ceng Shengwu, this conservative, was truly a bit strange.

A Jinshi who has fought in wars tends to be a bit heavy-handed.

"There are censor officials memorializing that the expedition against Bansheng is unrighteous." Zhang Juzheng took out a memorial and said sternly, "Such absurd words should be restrained by the Censorate and the Six Offices. In the 29th year of Jiajing, Altan Khan invaded, killing 60,000 of our Great Ming's able-bodied men, women, and children, abducting 40,000, burning over 10,000 houses, and plundering no less than a million head of livestock in the capital region. The scourge of war spread, and 2.7 million people were anxious and terrified under the scourge of war. Bandits and rebels rose up together, and in three years, over 700,000 people in the capital region were either killed or abducted."

"Whether the censor officials scold me, Zhang Juzheng, for being arbitrary and self-willed, or scold me for blocking the path of speech, such fallacious words must not be remonstrated again, as they hinder the imperial hearing!"

In the invasion of the 29th year of Jiajing, the Northern Barbarians directly killed over 60,000 people and abducted 40,000. Under the spreading scourge of war, mountain bandits and rebels rose up together. In just three short years, over 700,000 people were killed or plundered by bandits and rebels.

What kind of blood feud is this?

After Altan Khan was captured, there were censor officials who favored 'soothing the distant people,' feeling that Altan Khan was Great Ming's Prince Shunyi and was about to die of old age, so there was no need to behead him and destroy his state; some censor officials believed that Great Ming tearing up the peace agreement was a great loss of national credibility, and that Altan Khan had no greater acts of rebellion, so he should not be attacked; other censor officials spoke from the perspective of a gentleman focusing on the fundamentals and benevolence, urging the sovereign to be benevolent and forgiving.

In the past, when we couldn't win, we had to 'soothe the distant people.' Now that we can win, we still have to 'soothe the distant people'—then what is the significance of strengthening the military?

"Whenever they submit this kind of memorial, even if they say that not killing Altan Khan is beneficial to Great Ming's civilizing and pacifying the various garrisons, it would be slightly acceptable. But among so many memorials, not a single one does so." Wang Chonggu has been the de facto Senior Grand Secretary during this period, and these memorials have all passed through his hands.

This group of base scholars who only know how to bark wildly cannot even find a decent reason!

It is simply an insult to refinement.

Great Ming attacked Bansheng and marched into the Ordos Loop. At this time, not killing Altan Khan is indeed beneficial to the civilizing of Suiyuan, this new province. But the base scholars seem to have their own agenda and are unwilling to mention the civilizing of Suiyuan.

The base scholars' agenda is that Great Ming should not recover the Ordos Loop.

Since the enthronement of Emperor Renzong, the extremely prevalent trend of 'actuarial calculation' in Great Ming has led many to deeply believe that the Ordos Loop, Daning Guard, Nurgan Regional Military Commission, Jiaozhi, Old Port, Lu Song, etc., are all places where the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

Once Zhang Juzheng says this, there will inevitably be a charge of blocking the path of speech among his future crimes.

"Bansheng has already been taken, and the various tribes of Northern Barbarians in the Ordos Loop have surrendered upon hearing the news. Now that it has been taken, are we to abandon it just because we say so? Wouldn't that be fighting in vain?" Ceng Shengwu reported on the recent battle results of the Great Ming Capital Battalion.

The Great Ming Capital Battalion entered the Ordos Loop from Guihua City. The Datong Guard troops were responsible for garrisoning Guihua. Ma Gui led three infantry battalions out of Dongsheng Guard, covering no more than 30 li a day. There were not many major battles; most were settled by sending out a proclamation. With one piece of paper, the Northern Barbarians chose not to advance westward, nor did they rise up to resist, but instead surrendered.

The die-hard Northern Barbarians who resisted Great Ming's civilizing had long since concentrated in Bansheng, so the resistance will of the various tribes in the Ordos Loop was extremely weak. The reason they didn't run was that the grassland people all knew that Qi Jiguang was truly the Imperial Army.

Qi Jiguang has been in the north for 14 years, and the Northern Barbarians all know his character. Compared to that rascal Li Chengliang, Qi Jiguang is a good man.

Qi Jiguang killed 5,000 desperate rebels and troublemakers outside Bansheng City, which did not harm his reputation at all, because those who took advantage of the chaos to make trouble were all people who deserved to die.

"Then we shall follow the Master's words." Zhu Yijun approved of Zhang Juzheng's approach. Nine years later, Zhang Juzheng finally did something a treacherous official should do: blocking the path of speech, using an extremely tough attitude to suppress the censor officials and not letting them talk nonsense about the recovery of the Ordos Loop.

The Ordos Loop in the past was indeed spending more than it earned, but now Great Ming has the Baoqi Bureau, and by taking out the methods of raising livestock in the Central Plains, one cannot say the Ordos Loop will be profitable, but achieving a balance of payments is completely doable. However, all arrangements need time to take effect.

Zhu Yijun was also extremely annoyed by these memorials.

Zhu Yijun took advantage of the gap while the court officials were not taking out memorials and said, "A few days ago, the Grand Minister of Rites dug up a memorial from the 22nd year of Jiajing, which was the Ministry of War's proposal on five matters for defending the capital. At that time, Zhai Luan, the Minister of War and Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, led the Ministry of War in submitting it. These five matters were: promoting a great general to lead the capital, summoning capable generals from Liaodong, Xuanfu, and Datong, selecting 3,000 soldiers per battalion for the camp, granting military generals slightly more authority, and discussing military strategy and provisions in court."

"Has the Master read this memorial?"

Zhu Yijun discovered that Zhang Juzheng had done four of these five things in the early years of Wanli, and even the number of soldiers in each battalion matched. The only thing he didn't do was promoting a great general. Zhang Juzheng could not do this; the most suitable candidate for Grand General was Qi Jiguang, and Qi Jiguang was a subordinate of Zhang Juzheng. With a young sovereign and a suspicious state, if Zhang Juzheng did this, it would not be regency, but usurpation.

Many things can only be done by the Emperor.

"Replying to Your Majesty, I have indeed read it. Zhai Sima said at the time that the old camps should be cleared out, and the capital camp only needed ten battalions of 30,000 men." Zhang Juzheng nodded and said. His new policies were not something he thought of on the spur of the moment; most were continuations of the Jiajing New Policies.

"Why wasn't this done back then?" Zhu Yijun asked suspiciously.

Zhang Juzheng pondered for a moment and said, "Revitalizing the elite troops of the capital camp has been repeated several times since the 20th year of Jiajing. In fact, the reason is very simple: no one would pay for it. It's not that there was no money, but that no one would pay."

The Daoist master needed money for his mysterious cultivation, the Yan Party needed money for their rampant corruption, and the pacification of Japanese pirates in the southeast needed money. The 'pure officials' led by Xu Jie simply said there was no money.

It wasn't that there was no money; it was that no one was willing to pay.

"No wonder." Zhu Yijun shook his head and said, "No wonder that since Altan's invasion, the border regions have been full of cover-ups, frequently reporting false military situations. The imperial court treats funerals as happy events, so the border regions can only respond in kind. Treating funerals as happy events—in the end, one cannot turn a funeral into a happy event."

During the middle and late Jiajing period, Hu Lu invasions were covered up whenever possible; if they couldn't be covered up, they would find ways to bribe and escape. The imperial court was unwilling to face it, and reports from border garrisons were also annoying.

"Treating funerals as happy events is not advisable, and treating happy events as funerals is naturally not advisable either. If rewards and punishments are not clear, the state will lose its great credibility. General Qi has meritorious service, and I intend to promote him to Duke of Fengguo after his triumphant return to manifest his illustrious achievements." Zhu Yijun revealed his true intentions.

His mention of Zhai Luan's memorial on the five matters for revitalizing the capital camp was not a spur-of-the-moment idea, but to confirm the matter of enfeoffing Qi Jiguang as a Duke. Zhang Juzheng had verbally agreed before seeing the doctor, and this was the start of the process.

"Your Majesty is sagacious." Since Zhang Juzheng had agreed before seeing the doctor, there was naturally no reason to go back on his word.

Zhu Yijun looked at Ceng Shengwu and asked, "What does the Ministry of War think?"

"Your subject thinks it is very good." Ceng Shengwu chose to agree.

The matter of Zhang Juzheng seeing the doctor was rumored very mysteriously in the capital, saying that Zhang Juzheng did not agree to enfeoff Qi Jiguang as a Duke, which led to the Emperor's great rage. The sound of the argument in the Imperial Study of Tonghe Palace that day reached Longchi. In his great rage, the Emperor used the excuse of seeing a doctor to dismiss Zhang Juzheng as Senior Grand Secretary.

However, since Zhang Juzheng saw the doctor, His Majesty went to visit every day for seven consecutive days until Zhang Juzheng recovered, so the rumor was self-defeating.

Since the Emperor and the Senior Grand Secretary had already discussed it, the Ministry of War had no reason to oppose it.

"What about the Ministry of Rites?" Zhu Yijun looked at Wan Shihe and asked.

"General Qi is the shield of the state, a minister without two hearts, unparalleled in the present age; it should be so." Wan Shihe chose to agree. His Majesty originally wanted to enfeoff him as Duke of Zhenguo, but Wan Shihe dissuaded the Emperor and changed the name to Duke of Fengguo.

It was not that Qi Jiguang's achievements did not deserve the words 'Zhenguo' (Protecting the State), but that Emperor Wuzong, Zhu Houzhao, after the Battle of Yingzhou, enfeoffed himself as 'Duke of Zhenguo' for his military merits. Zhu Houzhao had an alias called Zhu Shou, who was the Governor of Military Affairs, Great General of Martial Might, Regional Commander, Grand Preceptor, and Duke of Zhenguo.

Duke of Zhenguo, at this point, can be considered a special title that can only be enfeoffed to the Emperor, just like in the Great Tang, after Li Shimin, there were no more Commanders-in-Chief of the Heavenly Strategy.

The three words 'Duke of Fengguo' were among several titles Wan Shihe gave to His Majesty, and His Majesty chose them.

'Martial Minister of Manifesting Heaven, Revitalizing the State, and Promoting Sincerity, Specially Advanced Glorious Grand Master, Right Pillar of the State, Left Regional Military Commissioner of the Left Military Commission, Regional Commander of the Capital Camp, Great General of Conquering the Barbarians, Duke of Fengguo, Qi Jiguang' is the official title determined by the Ministry of Rites.

This is very important; this is a major matter of determining Qi Jiguang's status, and the Ministry of Rites did not have the slightest bit of negligence.

Meritorious title + loose official title + merit + official position + concurrent official position + title + person's name is considered the complete title for Qi Jiguang.

Since Zhang Fu was enfeoffed as Duke of Ying, the only time Great Ming enfeoffed a Duke was in the first year of Tianshun when Shi Heng was enfeoffed for the 'Duo Men' (Seizing the Gate) incident. That time, there wasn't even a formal official title expression; it was done hastily, and soon Shi Heng was liquidated by Emperor Yingzong.

Wan Shihe also finally determined the formal official title expression from the imperial edicts of enfeoffment during the Hongwu and Yongle years.

If the name is not correct, the words will not be smooth; if the words are not smooth, things will not be successful. Therefore, a gentleman's name must be correct.

The matter of Qi Jiguang's enfeoffment has basically been completely determined. It only awaits Qi Jiguang's triumphant return to hold the ceremony. Zhu Yijun ordered the Seal Office to produce the Duke's seal and attire and ordered the Ministry of Rites to prepare for the ceremony, which is considered to have completely finished the court discussion process.

After the court discussion passed, the censor officials of the Six Offices and the Censorate could still remonstrate and reject the imperial edict, but when it involved Qi Jiguang, the censor officials would only avoid talking about it.

Zhu Yijun, who was dozing off, suddenly became energetic because the court discussion officially began to discuss the matter of Zhu Yiliu's grand wedding. Zhu Yiliu was beaming; although he did not express his stance, he was truly happy. After the grand wedding, he could finally eat the beauties from all over the world.

"The Empress Dowager's decree for the Prince of Lu's grand wedding requires 3,869 taels of gold, over 8,700 red and blue gemstones, 100,000 taels of silver, and over 24,000 corals and pearls from the palace treasury. The phoenix crown and ceremonial robes and other items total over 【a certain amount of】 taels. Adding the crown, the Prince of Lu's mansion, etc., the total is over 900,000 taels of silver. Indeed, the national treasury is slightly sufficient, but your subject believes it should not be so extravagant." Zhang Juzheng took out the Great Ming Collected Statutes, which he had compiled as the editor-in-chief.

According to the Imperial Ming Ancestral Instructions, at the beginning of the Great Ming dynasty, for a Prince's grand wedding, the imperial gift was 50 taels of gold and 10 taels of pearls.

Zhang Juzheng had no other meaning. When His Majesty had his grand wedding, he used gilded vessels, but for the Prince of Lu, it was 3,869 taels of gold alone. Empress Dowager Li was still too indulgent toward the Prince of Lu and too harsh toward His Majesty. As a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, Zhang Juzheng, in assisting His Majesty, naturally had to speak about this matter.

"It is money from the palace, so there is no need for the outer court officials to discuss this matter." Feng Bao, as the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, naturally had to refute it.

Feng Bao was eloquent and could use Confucian classics to beat Confucian scholars. His ability to anger people was even more superb. He just refuted it, but in fact, he also lacked confidence. If they really did this, all the jewelry in the capital would be bought out!

"The inner treasury is full." Zhu Yijun said calmly. The royal family, holding 4 million silver coins, is just that wealthy. The reason Empress Dowager Li wanted to put on such a big scene had to do with her background. She fled to the capital with her father, then entered the Prince Yu's mansion as a palace maid, and climbed step by step to her current position as Empress Dowager.

Empress Dowager Li's own life was not extravagant. She gave her severity to Zhu Yijun and her indulgence to Zhu Yiliu. She was willing to put on a show to make her youngest son's life more comfortable, also for the sake of face.

Zhu Yijun thought about it and did not object; she didn't interfere in politics anyway.

"Your Majesty." Wang Guoguang said with a furrowed brow, "Your subject believes that frugality is appropriate. Your Majesty is looked up to by hundreds of millions, and the people take you as an example to follow. The Prince of Lu is Your Majesty's own brother; if he is so extravagant, how will the people of the world view His Highness the Prince of Lu?"

It is true that the money doesn't need to come from the national treasury, but if he is so extravagant, what will the Prince of Lu be scolded as?

"Prince of Lu, what is your opinion?" Zhu Yijun looked at his younger brother and asked for his opinion. After the grand wedding, he would be an adult, and he would have to start taking responsibility for his own life.

Zhu Yiliu's big eyes rolled, and he bowed and said, "It is appropriate to follow the established policy of the Collected Statutes."

The court officials all breathed a sigh of relief. Zhu Yiliu was worthy of being a Prince who grew up behind His Majesty, so sensible. In this way, the court officials didn't have to be scolded. The Emperor was licentious and extravagant, and the court officials had the responsibility of assisting and admonishing. If the grand wedding were really like that, I am afraid there would be public opinion unfavorable to the royal family.

Zhu Yiliu was so smart. Jewelry, coral, and these things couldn't be eaten or used, so what was the point of having them? He really didn't lack money.

Over the years, with all the rewards, his own little treasury had over 200,000 taels of silver, two-fifths of the late Emperor's imperial mausoleum.

For this grand wedding, the external display would be smaller, but the rewards from His Majesty's side would instead be more.

Money in the pocket is safe; only what can be kept in the pocket belongs to oneself.

"Then you can go tell Mother yourself." Zhu Yijun nodded, which was considered following the opinions of the court officials. As for persuading Empress Dowager Li, he would leave it to Zhu Yiliu to act spoiled.

Zhu Yijun looked at Feng Bao and said, "Grand Eunuch Feng, the great sailing ships arrived at the port this year, and 300 'Golden-Haired Barbarians' and 'Red-Haired Barbarians' have arrived. Shah Mahomet has presented more than 30 Persian beauties. Select 12 from among them and bestow them upon the Prince of Lu's mansion."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your great grace!" Zhu Yiliu was overjoyed when he heard this! He had indeed given up the display and gained more substance; his beauties from all over the world had expanded again.

"Look at your lack of ambition." Zhu Yijun waved his hand, signaling to continue the court discussion.

After the court discussion ended, Zhu Yijun kept Wan Shihe behind alone, mainly regarding the matter of the Western envoy Matteo Ricci. Matteo Ricci arrived a year earlier than in history. Logically speaking, he should be heading to India now to preach in the Diu Governor's Office, but he applied directly through the Holy See to preach in Great Ming.

Zhu Yijun had two reasons for being disgusted with Matteo Ricci, this Western missionary. The first was that he would inevitably preach, and Zhu Yijun did not like heretics. In the first year of Wanli, when Ruyar arrived in the capital, the Emperor directly forbade preaching, and Xu Wei in Nagasaki even wiped out the Japanese diocese.

The second was that Matteo Ricci was a person who "read every book in our country and asked seniors to annotate them." Matteo Ricci spent his whole life dedicated to translating Great Ming books and then transmitting them back to the West through the Jesuit order.

Great Ming now has special envoys to the West, such as Gao Qiyu, Xu Fan, Xu Jiugao, etc., who have brought back a large number of books, and Great Ming is busy translating Western documents.

"As for this Matteo Ricci, find a reason to send him back where he came from." Zhu Yijun pondered for a while and still chose to be conservative, rather than more openly letting Matteo Ricci translate all the achievements of the Great Ming Royal Academy of Sciences and send them back to the West. Zhu Yijun was really not that generous.

Envoys are public spies; this has been a duty since the existence of envoys.

"Since he is a missionary, why not let him stay in the capital and communicate with the Celestial Master Zhang Guoxiang of Mount Long Hu about the Daoist Canon?" Wan Shihe did not agree with His Majesty's approach. He reminded in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the special envoy to the West, Xu Fan, is also collecting Western documents. If we drive people away directly, I am afraid it will be difficult for Special Envoy Xu in the West."

Wan Shihe opposed His Majesty's idea of driving people away and proposed another solution. Matteo Ricci is a missionary, and Zhang Guoxiang is the Celestial Master of Long Hu; both are religious figures and must have a lot to talk about.

"It has to be the Grand Minister of Rites." Zhu Yijun said sincerely, "He is worthy of being a scholar."

Since envoys from the West always need to translate something, why not translate the Daoist Canon? It would be enough for Matteo Ricci to study for a lifetime.

Great Ming is opening the seas, so it is inevitable that it needs to communicate and trade with the West. Therefore, such exchanges should be controllable. Wan Shihe's method seemed more gentle, but it was more vicious, so much so that Zhu Yijun couldn't help but sigh that he was worthy of being a scholar.

In the afternoon, Zhu Yijun returned to Tonghe Palace after reviewing the troops from the Capital Battalion and summoned Chen Chengyi, the General Manager of the Tongxiang Copper Factory, to Tonghe Palace.

"The nine-year term is about to expire. For your meritorious service in dredging with red copper, I specially bestow upon you the status of a Jinshi from the special imperial examination. As a Jinshi, General Manager Chen, do you intend to return to the hinterland to take up a post, or remain in the border regions?" Zhu Yijun exchanged pleasantries with Chen Chengyi and asked about his personal plans.

Chen Chengyi is very capable.

"Your Majesty, the largest copper mountain in Lu Song is on Cebu Island. 10,000 catties of ore can produce 81 catties of red copper. Your subject intends to continue presiding over the copper factory in Lu Song." When Chen Chengyi went to Lu Song, it was for this status of a Jinshi from the special imperial examination. Now that he had obtained it, he didn't want to return to the hinterland.

The hinterland is really too competitive!

Moreover, Chen Chengyi has a big job to do. The best copper mountain in the entire Lu Song archipelago is in Cebu, which the Lu Song Governor's Office has already explored. When Chen Chengyi goes back this time, he will open this copper mountain. He even chose the name, calling it Tongxing Town. The copper mountains in the Lu Song islands all start with 'Tong' (Copper).

After communicating with Wang Daokun, the Minister of Works, Chen Chengyi discovered that copper really has great use for Great Ming and is a major matter concerning the success or failure of the new policies.

Great Ming silver is damming up and idling in prosperous areas, causing Great Ming to form an extremely obvious gap between rich and poor. If this continues for a long time, Great Ming will inevitably have big trouble, such as the Netherlands region, which has left the Spanish hegemon Philip II in a state of exhaustion and has now become an independent country.

Great Ming's Southern Yamen becoming an independent country is something Great Ming cannot accept at all.

"I have wronged you." Zhu Yijun knew very well that life in Lu Song was not easy; it was a place where one could only bare one's teeth at crocodiles. Chen Chengyi was not even in Manila but was heading to the Cebu archipelago.

Chen Chengyi himself was from Guangzhou and was used to the extreme heat. Moreover, he was actually not that hard-working. For example, he wouldn't tell His Majesty that he had 18 concubines in Lu Song, as well as two 'Red-Haired Barbarians.'

In the hinterland of Great Ming, one can only legally take concubines if one is over 40 and has no sons. Although many people in the private sector violate the ban, as an official, once someone points it out, it is a flaw in private morality and a stain.

Zhu Yijun didn't know, and even if he did, he wouldn't care. As long as he could handle his 18 concubines, even if Chen Chengyi had 88 concubines in Lu Song, Zhu Yijun would turn a blind eye. Compared to pioneering, Zhu Yijun wouldn't care about this little problem of private morality, as long as he could handle the official business well.

Moreover, this is conducive to Great Ming's civilizing of Lu Song and also conducive to Great Ming's rule in Lu Song.

"How is Princess Yingjia doing in Lu Song?" Zhu Yijun asked about the recent situation of Zhu Xuanchang. Zhu Yijun had never even seen this daughter, the adopted daughter of Zhou Dingzhi. As the descendant of Great Ming's Liaodong troops, he should ask about her no matter what.

"Replying to Your Majesty, Minister Yin treats the Princess as his own. Princess Yingjia is already pregnant. When the heir is born, she will return to the capital with her husband, Commandant Yin Zongxin, to visit Your Majesty." Chen Chengyi's curiosity was almost uncontrollable; he really wanted to ask about the relationship between Minister Yin Zhengmao and the royal family.

This non-blood-related Princess's marriage really makes people's imaginations run wild.

Yin Zhengmao did not treat the Princess poorly. After returning to Lu Song, Yin Zhengmao built a Princess's mansion for her covering an area of over 80 mu, which can be described as magnificent, even more luxurious than Yin Zhengmao's Governor's Office.

"What are the Grand Minister of Works and the Grand Minister of Revenue studying recently? It's very mysterious, and I am quite puzzled." Zhu Yijun asked about Wang Daokun and Wang Guoguang. Wang Daokun had been finding Wang Guoguang these past few days, seemingly studying some problem, and Zhu Yijun had not yet received a memorial.

"The two Ming officials are studying what silver actually is." Chen Chengyi said with a strange expression.

"Bai Yin is silver, a natural currency; what else could it be?" Zhu Yijun also asked with a puzzled look.

Chen Chengyi said more clearly, "The Ming officials are studying what silver means to Great Ming."

(End of chapter)