Daming: At the start of the showdown, Lao Zhu was stunned

Chapter 1079 Zhu Su Returns to Beijing
Of course, military power must be in the hands of the Ming people. Most of the generals of the eleven guards and three garrisons in Jiaozhou were selected from the meritorious soldiers in this battle, and a small number of guards and garrison generals were appointed from the meritorious generals of the rebel army left by Nguyen Viet or Le Loi.

The heads of prefectures and counties were all drawn from local officials of the Ming Dynasty. In recent years, the new imperial examination system of the Ming Dynasty had been effective, and many pragmatic officials with considerable talent and virtue had emerged. Except for the heads of prefectures who were mostly experienced officials, the county magistrates of prefectures and counties were mostly these new scholars.

This was Zhu Su's suggestion. What he feared most after the recovery of Annan was that, just like what happened in history after Emperor Yongle recovered Annan, a group of Ming officials would use this place as a gold-making place and impose heavy taxes and levies. After all this chaos, the people of Annan became resentful and completely alienated from the Ming Dynasty.

Although there were some slick people among the newly-appointed scholars, most of them had not yet experienced the polishing of officialdom. They were full of ambition and wanted to be officials to realize their ambitions. For them, Annan, a place where most of the nobles had been eliminated and the people were still somewhat on the sidelines about the administration of the Ming Dynasty, was the best match for them:
Firstly, the power of the aristocratic families here has collapsed, and there are few constraints on the administration of these new scholars, and no aristocratic family will try to corrupt these young officials; secondly, although they lack experience in administration, at least they will not dare to harm the people blatantly, and they have no backing to enable them to embezzle and pervert the law.

Whether the management is good or not is another matter, but at least the clean administration of officials is guaranteed.

What the people of Annan want now is the blue sky of the Ming Dynasty that has just been passed down to them, which would be clearer than that of the nobles.

After these officials from the Ming Dynasty arrived in Jiaozhou, Zhu Su gave them a collective speech, the content of which was nothing more than the need for honesty and incorruptibility. Jiaozhou had just been recovered, and the 3,129,500 households in Jiaozhou were all watching what the Ming Dynasty officials were doing.

If he is honest, the people will be loyal to him and Jiaozhou will be stable. If he is corrupt, the people will be alienated and lose their sense of belonging to China. Then the corrupt official is not just committing an ordinary crime of greed, but destroying the harmony and unity of the Chinese nation, and is a sinner of the entire China.

If they could govern Jiaozhou well, their achievements would be even greater than those of the soldiers who opened up new territories. As the first officials after the recovery of Annan, their achievements in stabilizing Jiaozhou will surely be recorded in history.

This speech made all the officials agree with it and their blood boiled. Not only did the newly-appointed scholars nod their heads, but the senior officials who came to serve as prefecture officials also agreed with Zhu Su's words.

In fact, in terms of governance, Zhu Su was also very relieved after seeing the list of newly-appointed Jinshi: the governor who came to Jiaozhou to preside over the overall situation was named Hu Yan, a Jinshi in the 20th year of Hongwu. In history, he had served as the Imperial College and the cabinet minister during the Yongle period. He was honest and upright, and always cared about the people; most of the other officials who came were also honest officials, who were the ones that Zhu had personally tested and kept on the white list. As for the newly-appointed Jinshi, they were even more dazzling, and there were many names that Zhu Su was familiar with.

Jin Youzi, the former Ronglu Doctor, Wuying Palace Grand Secretary, and Shaobao of the Yongle Dynasty, was a famous official of the Yongle, Hongxi, and Xuande Dynasties. He was a talented scholar of the generation and a minister of state in three dynasties. He had accompanied Emperor Yongle in several northern expeditions and was undoubtedly a key official of the Ming Dynasty. He had just passed the imperial examination last year and was sent here by Zhu Yuanzhang to be a county magistrate...

Hu Guang, the former chief minister of the Yongle Dynasty, Hanlin scholar and Zuo Chunfang Grand Secretary, was praised by Ming Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji: "During the Hongwu period, the scholars were Song Lian, Wu Chen, Zhu Shan, and Liu Sanwu. At the beginning of the Yongle period, there were Jie Jin and Hu Guang." He just passed the imperial examination last year and was sent here by Zhu to be a county magistrate...

Yang Rong, a former cabinet boss of the Yongle Dynasty, one of the famous "Three Yangs", a famous minister who established the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty, had just passed the imperial examination last year and was sent here by Zhu Yuanzhang to serve as a county magistrate...

Another former cabinet boss of the Yongle Dynasty, one of the famous "Three Yangs", was also a famous minister who established the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty. Yang Pu, who had just passed the imperial examination last year, was thrown over by Zhu Yuanzhang as a county magistrate...

"Such a luxurious lineup... It seems that Old Zhu has the same worries as me. He is afraid that Annan will be like the Yongle period in the previous life, because the officials did not govern well, and finally the cooked duck flew away..."

Zhu Su thought to himself. On Zhu's side, he had a list of ministers that he had compiled for him who would be used by the Ming Dynasty in the future. Although the people on this list might not necessarily become great talents, at least they left their names in history, which showed that they were more worthy of being cultivated than ordinary people.

Many of those who were assigned to govern Annan were on this list, which shows how much importance Zhu attached to governing Annan.

By the way, the first person on the list is Yu Qian, the Grand Protector of the Ming Dynasty. It's a pity that Yu Qian is not born yet, and I'm afraid that Zhu will never have the opportunity to use such a famous minister that he loves so much. As far as Zhu Su knows, Zhu Biao has secretly copied a copy of the list. In the future, Yu Qian may become Zhu Biao's right-hand man and continue to contribute to the growth of China.

Without the constraints of the nobles, the matter of taking back Jiaozhou was indeed much less troublesome. However, the power vacuum left by the nobles also caused many troubles when the Ming Dynasty took over Jiaozhou. The affairs of Jiaozhou were busy until the end of the year. It was not until the New Year was approaching and the affairs of Jiaozhou were stabilized that Zhu Su was free to leave Thang Long City and go to Wuqu Port to take a ship back to Yingtian.

He was the greatest contributor to the expansion of the Ming Dynasty. He had to go back for the end-of-year palace banquet. Zhu had already issued three imperial edicts urging him to return to Beijing. If he didn't return, the next thing he would receive would be Zhu's dragon boots or dragon belt.

On December 22, the 30th year of Hongwu, Zhu Su returned to Yingtian Prefecture after a long absence. Yingtian Prefecture seemed particularly lively as the New Year was approaching, because when Li Wenzhong, Lan Yu and others came back earlier, the court had already held a celebration ceremony, so when he, the King of Zhou, returned to Beijing, everything seemed much quieter.

Of course, there was a proper ceremony. As the grandson of the emperor, Zhu Xiongying personally went to the inn fifty miles outside Yingtian Prefecture with his support to welcome his fifth uncle, Prince Zhou Zhu Su, back to the city. Zhu Su and Zhu Xiongying were already half-teacher friends and had always been close friends. When they met, the uncle and nephew walked and chatted in the carriage all the way, which was quite pleasant.

"Have any major events happened in the capital in recent years?" Zhu Su asked.

"Nothing major has happened... Grandpa Emperor moved over 14,300 wealthy families to Beijing a few days ago to enrich the capital. There were several daimyo in Japan who rebelled, but it was not a big problem. They were just minor fights and were quickly pacified by the Ming Dynasty. There was someone in the Three Kingdoms of Korea who claimed to be the descendant of the orphan of the King of Goryeo. It is said that he wanted to take advantage of the tug-of-war between the Ming Dynasty and Annan. But the news between the north and the south was not smooth. After he started the rebellion, Annan had actually been conquered by the Ming Dynasty, and that person was defeated. Oh, and some time ago, the second and fourth uncles also returned to Beijing. When they talked about their deeds in their respective fiefdoms, I was really envious... Fifth uncle, when do you think I can go out of Beijing to take a look again?"

Thinking of his experiences as the governor of Daning, Zhu Xiongying's face showed nostalgia and longing.

Zhu Su just smiled and rubbed his head. In fact, the 30 years of Hongwu in history were not just about these little things. The 30 years of Hongwu in history were full of undercurrents, not only about the imperial power, but also about the administration of officials and politics...

The last major case during the Hongwu reign also occurred: the North-South List Case. However, in the current Ming Dynasty, due to the imperial examination system reform by Zhu Su and Zhu Biao, the North-South List Case also disappeared due to the butterfly effect.

In his later years, Zhu Yuanzhang was alone, but all these issues still drained his energy. The Hongwu era lasted only 31 years.

The reason why Zhu Su asked Zhu Xiongying was actually because what he was most worried about was Zhu's current physical condition.

Fortunately, Zhu Su was basically relieved the moment he entered the palace and saw Zhu Yuanzhang himself.

At this moment, Old Zhu was just like he was in his youth, wearing a pair of dragon boots and beating the buttocks of an eight or nine-year-old kid fiercely, shouting as he beat him: "I told you to leave the palace and bully the common people for me, do you dare? Do you dare?"

As vigorous as a dragon.

"Dad, Dad! I don't dare!" The child struggled hard, crying like a pig being slaughtered. When Old Zhu saw Zhu Su and Zhu Xiongying coming, he was stunned for a moment, and his hands lost some strength, so the child ran away. While running, he did not forget to pull up his pants, which looked quite funny.

"Uh..." Zhu Su was stunned for a long time. He didn't know whether he should pretend that he didn't see it and continue to meet with the state ceremony, or he should step forward and calm down the angry old Zhu.

On the other side, Old Zhu had already tried to put the dragon boots on his feet, but he didn't put them on, so he simply threw them aside and said angrily: "You bastard, you only know how to irritate me." After saying that, he glared at Zhu Su and said: "You are the same as you brothers when you were kids!"

Zhu Su, who was also shot, looked embarrassed. Zhu Xiongying had already gone to pick up the boots. Zhu Su took the boots and leaned over to put them on for Old Zhu. Then he said, "Dad, who is this kid? I have never seen him before."

"How could you not have seen him? You held him in your arms when you were in the palace in the early years. He was your twenty-fifth brother." said Old Zhu.

"Twenty-five..." Zhu Su's face turned red. To be honest, he could hardly remember his brothers after the tenth one. It was difficult to say the twenty-fifth brother. Zhu Su rolled his eyes and said, "You have given me too many brothers. Whose brother can be ranked twenty-five... You are in good health and still strong. I really admire you."

"You kid..." Zhu Su bowed in a strange manner and showed admiration. Old Zhu was about to take off his dragon boots again, but seeing Zhu Su's panicked and dodged look, he finally couldn't help laughing.

With this smile, the strangeness between the father and son after not seeing each other for many years disappeared, and it was as if they had never been separated.

"You're back just in time." Old Zhu asked Zhu Su to accompany him to take a walk in the Imperial Garden. There were many more flowers and trees in the Imperial Garden than before. In the early years when the Ming Dynasty was first established, this place was mostly farmland.

Every time you come to the Imperial Garden, you can see Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma cultivating the Imperial Garden as if it were farmland. Although there is farmland in the Imperial Garden now, it is only a small part.

Zhu had his own imperial farm, and he would take all the officials to farm every year, but it was more of a habit. He was already 69 years old, basically in his sixties. Even among ordinary people, no one would still work in the fields at this age.

"Although our Ming Dynasty has had some minor problems this year, it can still be said that the weather is good and the harvests are good. Thirty is an extreme number, and we have also recovered Annan. People in the market also regard the recovery of Annan as the true reunification of China."

"Therefore, we plan to hold this year's New Year's Eve banquet on a larger scale and with greater fanfare to demonstrate the great power of our Ming Dynasty. If you can't make it back, our banquet will lose some of its flavor. Only when you come back will the banquet be complete."

Old Zhu said. Zhu Su followed Old Zhu half a body behind, nodding as he walked. Looking up at Old Zhu's profile, he suddenly realized that although he tried his best to straighten his body, his back was still inevitably slightly bent.

He thought for a moment and said, "Old man, do you want to use this thirty-year banquet to sum up your life?"

Historically, Zhu lived to the 31st year of Hongwu. Once the festival was over, it was the 31st year of Hongwu.

Zhu Su didn't believe that Old Zhu had no idea. Perhaps he wanted to use this annual banquet to show off his martial arts skills and give his life's achievements a premature conclusion.

Old Zhu was stunned for a moment, then he laughed and scolded: "What are you thinking about, you rebellious son..."

But he still sighed softly, stared at the sky for a while, and said: "I have never asked for immortality in my life, but at this time, I still have some ideas."

"Daming, there are still many things to be done. But with your brother and you here, we feel relieved." Old Zhu patted Zhu Su's shoulder.

"Even if we die, we will be at ease."

Zhu Su trembled and said nothing. After a while, he raised his head and smiled, "Do you think this life is worth it?"

"Your son feels that his life is much more exciting than yours... You have worked hard all your life, but have you ever seen the sea? The Japanese island is east of our Ming Dynasty, and many of the buildings there are similar to those of the Tang Dynasty, but they are not. It is very interesting to visit."

"The grandeur of Samarkand is very different from that of Yingtian in the Ming Dynasty. The city is full of merchants, and many of the buildings are of exotic style, with golden domes that sparkle in the sun."

"The natives of Fengmingzhou use feathers as ornaments. The civilization they have established is similar to that of China tens of thousands of years ago. It is a unique style..."

"Father, you are more virtuous than the Three Sovereigns and more accomplished than the Five Emperors. Temujin, the founding Khan of the Yuan Dynasty, has seen countless wonders from east to west and from north to south."

"You are the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, but you have been confined to this small Jiangzuo land all your life. Now that you are only 60 years old, you have already had such thoughts... Do you hope that what you have seen and experienced in your life will be less than that of a barbarian like Temujin?"

(End of this chapter)