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

Chapter 852 The King Has Money
As soon as these words were spoken, all the leaders and chieftains were delighted.

Lianzhou is different from Northern Xinjiang. Although Northern Xinjiang is a place surrounded by wars and is infested with bandits and foreigners, there are many things in Northern Xinjiang that are difficult to produce in the Central Plains. For example, horses, furs, cattle and sheep are all specialties of Northern Xinjiang and are hard to find in the Central Plains. Moreover, there are woolen fabrics that have been very popular in recent years. This has made the originally poor Northern Xinjiang a sweet bun that can produce gold and silver for merchants. It is naturally profitable to open a market in Northern Xinjiang.

However, Lianzhou is a barren land with no special products. Hepu pearls are one of the treasures, but firstly, they are all collected by pearl divers, and the output is not high. Secondly, China is vast, and Hepu is not the only place that can produce pearls. It is even more difficult to open a market in Lianzhou. In addition, the roads are difficult to travel and the population is sparse, making it difficult to use it as a transit point.

Even if the market was opened, and the merchants from Southeast Asia were forced to come here to trade with the face of His Majesty the King of Zhou, it would not last long... But even if it was only prosperous for a period of time, it would be enough. After all, as long as the King of Zhou built the market, he would definitely build a series of facilities such as shipyards, warehouses, and docks. As long as enough wealth could be accumulated during this period of time, even if the market was depressed in the future, these chieftains could naturally use these remaining facilities to make profits from maritime trade.

"Okay! Of course! Since Your Highness has this intention, it will be a great merit for us, the people of Lianzhou!" Before others could react, the local official Ye Shangren hurriedly praised Zhu Su.

With a righteous look on his face, he said proudly: "Since Your Highness has such a heart, we, the people of Lianzhou, cannot be inferior to Your Highness."

"Thanks to our ancestors' diligence and thrift, our family is quite wealthy. Since Your Highness is so kind, how dare I not serve Your Highness? I am willing to donate a hundred acres of good farmland and a hundred hectares of forest land from my family to Your Highness for the construction of a port."

"Those fields are all on the left side of the Ximen River. They are convenient for water and land transportation and are convenient for travel... We will donate them all to the great cause of Lianzhou!" Ye Shangren said in a high-sounding manner.

After everyone was stunned, they cursed the Ye family for being shameless. What do you mean by dedicating all of their resources to the great cause of Lianzhou? Isn't it just that they are planning to take over all the ports and trading houses built by this prince?
As the saying goes, the one who is near the water gets the moon first. The place where his Ye family lives is indeed suitable for building a port. But the people living near that piece of land are all from the chieftain clan of his Ye family. It would be fine if this prince is still in Lianzhou, but if this powerful dragon leaves, then wouldn't the market actually only be controlled by his Ye family?

This person looked bright and cheerful on the surface, but he came up with such a shameless plan in an instant!

"Your Highness! No need for the Ye family to provide land! Our clan is willing to provide a thousand acres of river beach land for Your Highness to build the port!"

"Your Highness! Don't listen to him! Their land is all mudflats, how can they build a port? You should look at the land of my people..."

"Your Highness! You can use the land of my clan! There are thousands of young and strong men in my clan. If you build a port on my land, I will also take care of the labor!"

"Your Highness! What they say is not entirely true! Look at me..."

Shameless? So what? Which of these chieftains has not been passed down for a hundred years? Which of them doesn't know that real interests are far more important than face? Now that interests are at the top, they don't care about many things. The chieftains immediately rushed to ask Zhu Su to build a market in their jurisdiction.

This is not just ordinary benefit. A seaside market often includes a series of supporting facilities such as shipyards, docks, warehouses, etc. As long as the family has these facilities, they will have the opportunity to participate in maritime trade and expand the family. How can they not fight for it with all their might?

The chieftain families were all very shrewd. Although they had developed in the local area for thousands of years and had formed a relatively stable balance with their roots intertwined, they would not easily fight each other. But when faced with such great benefits, they would still fight for it.

Seeing the chieftains below quarreling in a mess, Zhu Su's mouth curled up slightly, which ordinary people could not see at all. When these chieftains had almost finished arguing, Zhu Su raised his hands, pressed them down, and said: "You are all loyal and upright ministers of the Ming Dynasty. Everyone is selfless and eager to donate land for the use of the country..."

"I am deeply moved, very moved... But, you all don't need to argue anymore."

"As for the location of the market, I have already made plans," said Zhu Su.

"This king has seen Lianzhou, which is known for its wonderful scenery. It is a place with beautiful mountains and clear waters. It is also a place with prosperous feng shui."

"Let's set up this market in Lianzhou City! There are always many merchants in Lianzhou City. It is just right to set up a market in Lianzhou, isn't it?" Zhu Su smiled casually.

"Lianzhou?" The chieftains were stunned again.

Chieftain Ye Shangren narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "Your Highness, please forgive me for my rudeness... Although Lianzhou also has the Ximen River flowing through it, it is separated by the city wall, and the city is narrow. If we want to make a trading place, this..."

"Hahaha, no problem. Separated by a city wall? Then build an outer city and expand the city wall by ten miles!" Zhu Su said proudly. He winked at Ye Shangren and said, "I have plenty of money."

"But, but..." A chieftain stepped out. "But, the population of Lianzhou City is not prosperous, and it may be difficult to maintain the operation of the market..."

"If there is not enough population, then we can attract villagers, relocate refugees, and hire craftsmen." Zhu Su said again. "It doesn't matter. I have people in the court."

"But... Lianzhou City is in ruins and is really unusable..."

"The city is in ruins? Then repair it! I have plenty of money!"

"Then... Lianzhou City is located in a low-lying area, and there may be a risk of flooding..."

"Hmm? There is such a thing? If a flood occurs in a prefecture, what will happen? We must repair the canal! I will do it! I have money!"

……

The chieftains raised dozens of objections, all of which were rejected by Zhu Su. The dragon that crossed the river was too powerful. With just one sentence, he had power and money, and he hit them without any chance to fight back. Yes, this boy was the son of the emperor, and he was also the god of wealth known to everyone in the Ming Dynasty. If a powerful and wealthy person was determined to do something, he would often be able to accomplish it, no matter how absurd it was.

What made them even more worried was that the prince seemed to have made up his mind to build the market in Lianzhou City, which was in a poor location, dilapidated and did not meet all the requirements. No matter how much they persuaded him, the prince remained as willful as ever and did not waver in his opinion.

This suddenly reminded them of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Hongwu. It is said that Emperor Hongwu chose Xuanwu Lake as the site of the Ming Dynasty's imperial city. All the skilled craftsmen in the world advised the emperor that this place was not suitable for building an imperial palace. However, Emperor Hongwu did not believe it and filled up Xuanwu Lake with great courage and built the magnificent Ming Dynasty Imperial Palace on it.

Now, His Royal Highness the Prince of Zhou is as stubborn as the Hongwu Emperor... He is determined to build his so-called maritime trade center in the city of Lianzhou.

(End of this chapter)