My father is Jiajing

Fine snow fell in the capital in the twelfth lunar month, and the third year of the Longqing reign came to a swift end.

Standing on the steps in front of the Hall of Diligent Governance, Zhu Zaiji looked at the frozen South Sea, which was covered with a layer of fine white snow, and couldn't help but feel emotional.

When he was Prince Yu, he never realized how fast time would pass.

I always felt that a year was a very long time, enough for him to slowly do many things.

But ever since he ascended the throne, Zhu Zaiji felt as if time was turning the pages of a book, and the pages were turned over in a flash. It felt like he had just become emperor yesterday, but in the blink of an eye, it was already the end of the third year of the Longqing reign.

Therefore, this feeling of time passing by in the blink of an eye truly made Zhu Zaiji sigh with the words of Confucius.

"Time flows on like a river, never ceasing day or night."

That's how time is; it slips away quietly from you without warning, and you can't get it back no matter how hard you try. You can only search through your mind for memories that once existed to prove that time has passed.

"Your Majesty, it's cold outside."

After seeing Zhu Zaiji standing there for a while, Meng Chong finally couldn't help but speak up and offer his concern.

Zhu Zaiji's gaze remained fixed on the frozen surface of Nanhai Lake, unmoved by Meng Chong's voice.

He continued to gaze at the frozen lake ahead, his heart filled with endless emotions.

Finally, after a while, Zhu Zaiji came to his senses.

He looked at Meng Chong, who was freezing outside with him, and couldn't help but smile.

Zhu Zaiji said, "Look how cold you are, your nose is all red. If you catch a cold, you'll suffer."

Meng Chong sniffed lightly, her nose red, and smiled憨厚ly, "This servant is not afraid of the cold."

Zhu Zaiji chuckled, "Alright, let's go see the Emperor Emeritus too."

Upon hearing Zhu Zaiji's words, Meng Chong immediately turned around and followed behind Zhu Zaiji.

The two arrived at the Wanshou Palace, where the Jiajing Emperor resided.

Zhu Zaiji had thought that the Jiajing Emperor was already sick and would only have a few days left, but he actually survived until winter.

This made Zhu Zaiji sigh that the Jiajing Emperor's life was truly tough!

Upon arriving at the Wanshou Palace, Zhu Zaiji took off his cloak and handed it to a eunuch beside him before heading into the study.

At this moment, the underfloor heating in the Wanshou Palace was burning brightly. The Jiajing Emperor was also reclining on a daybed, wearing reading glasses.

Li Fang stood respectfully before him, unfolding a huge map for the Jiajing Emperor.

When Zhu Zaiji walked in, Li Fang was about to turn around and bow, but Zhu Zaiji reached out and pressed down on him, silently stopping him and letting him continue to help the Jiajing Emperor unfold the map.

Zhu Zaiji walked over and took a look, only to find that the Jiajing Emperor was looking at the "Sanbao Eunuch's Nautical Chart" that had been accidentally found in a palace in the Forbidden City in Nanjing!
Although this painting is very old, it has been given new life after being remounted by the skilled paperhangers in the palace, so it is still worth viewing.

Emperor Jiajing also noticed Zhu Zaiji approaching. He didn't stand on ceremony with Zhu Zaiji and pointed directly at the land in the lower right corner of the "Sanbao Eunuch's Nautical Chart" in front of him, where there was only a rough outline. "San'er, can you help me see what's written down there?"

Zhu Zaiji leaned closer and took a look; there were two characters, “Nanming,” marked in tiny characters.

These two characters were not written randomly, but rather derived from the phrase "The Peng bird migrates to the Southern Ocean" in Zhuangzi's "Free and Easy Wandering".

Although the "Free and Easy Wandering" says "The Southern Ocean is the Heavenly Pool".

But no one knows what this "Heavenly Lake" is or how big it is.

Therefore, applying these two concepts to reality is not far-fetched.

Zhu Zaiji replied, "It is Nanming."

The Jiajing Emperor exclaimed in sudden realization, "No wonder it looked so familiar, it's Nanming. This picture still needs to be properly repaired by those paperhangers; the writing is so dark, how can I possibly read it?"

Zhu Zaiji chuckled, "Alright, I'll have someone re-edit the photos when I get back."

But actually, the two characters are still quite obvious; it's just that the paper color is a bit old, which makes them appear somewhat dull.

In addition, as the Jiajing Emperor grew older, his presbyopia worsened, so it was understandable that he could not see clearly.

The Jiajing Emperor studied the drawing for a while longer, then waved for Li Fang to put it away.

Zhu Zaiji also reached out to help the Jiajing Emperor, who was trying to get up, to sit up.

After sitting up, the Jiajing Emperor stretched his body and then turned to look at Zhu Zaiji beside him, saying, "Third son, why do you think Fourth son is so obsessed with that remote, uncivilized place?"

Zhu Zaiji couldn't help but laugh when he heard the Jiajing Emperor's words.

Zhu Zaiji said, "It's because I promised him years ago that he would establish a fiefdom in Nanming. Now Yu Dayou and the others have already taken control of the Xuanwei Strait (Strait of Malacca). If we just go one more step south, we can reach the 'Nanming' continent that was written on that nautical chart."

"So now, Brother Zhen is eager to get things settled as soon as possible, and then go to Nanming to establish a vassal state."

The Jiajing Emperor chuckled and shook his head slightly, saying, "You really dare to promise anything. Whether that place has an owner is another matter entirely, although everyone says it's a barren land."

"But who has actually seen it with their own eyes? If I remember correctly, the map of the Xuanwei Strait that Yu Dayou sent to the capital mentioned that there are wild men on the large island over Xuanwei South Island, which connects to the Xuanwei Strait."

"We are not afraid of these savages, but who knows if there are even more savages on the Southern Underworld Continent further south. If there are, we should really send Si'er there."

"At that time, the imperial court will have to expend countless manpower and resources to ensure his foothold in Nanming. Otherwise, if he is attacked by those local savages again, it will be no small matter."

"Moreover, the Southern Underworld is so far away that a round trip would take almost a year. If he were to leave, he might never be able to return to the Ming Dynasty in his entire life."

The Jiajing Emperor was deeply moved.

Moreover, as he gets older, he increasingly cherishes the feeling of family reunion with his children and grandchildren around him.

Although they never actually reunited many times, Emperor Jiajing felt that they were all by his side, which made him feel less empty and lonely.

Zhu Zaiji sighed, “Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. My brother Zhen wants to secure a lasting legacy for the Jingwang lineage, and I cannot selfishly stop him.”

"After all, the world is so big. Even though the Ming Dynasty has a vast territory, it still only occupies a small corner compared to this vast world."

"If Brother Zhen can establish himself in Nanming and build a lasting legacy for the Jingfan clan, then no matter what the future holds, this world will ultimately still belong to us!"

The Jiajing Emperor listened to Zhu Zaiji's words and nodded in deep agreement.

While Zhu Zaiji and the Jiajing Emperor were discussing the state of the world and the future, Zhu Zaizhen, far away in Nanjing, was also busy that night.

The secret chamber where Prince Jing of Nanjing was staying was brightly lit.

In a room about three zhang square, the most eye-catching feature is the exquisite model of the South Seas in the center. Ceylon Island is depicted as a jewel embedded in the Western Ocean (Indian Ocean), the Strait of Malacca is labeled "Xuanwei Strait," and in the blank space further south, a small red flag is planted.

Prince Jing, Zhu Zaizhen, held a thin stick and pointed at the red flag: "Yu Qiang and the others should be arriving soon, right?"

Lu Yi stroked his beard and nodded slightly, saying, "According to the schedule, if everything goes smoothly, Yu Qiang's fleet should have already arrived at the northern shore of the Southern Underworld Continent."

"However, Your Highness, I feel this matter has gone too smoothly. Why was His Majesty so accommodating to your request for the Southeast Asia mission? Even Yu Dayou didn't seem to be involved. Isn't that a bit..."

Zhu Zaizhen chuckled, tracing a dotted line on the sand table with a thin stick, and said confidently, "Of course, Your Majesty knows. But you must understand that for an emperor, the ambitions of the imperial clan are of two kinds—one that threatens imperial power, and the other that expands imperial power."

He walked to the bookshelf, took down a volume of the Book of Han, turned to the "Table of Princes and Kings," and handed it to Lu Yi. "Look," he said, "Emperor Wu of Han issued an edict to reduce the power of the princes, but encouraged the expansion into the Western Regions. Why? Because the former undermined the foundation, while the latter brought glory to the family."

Lu Yi suddenly realized, "Your Highness means that His Majesty views the South Seas as the Western Regions of the Han Dynasty?"

"Yes."

Zhu Zaizhen's eyes gleamed with ambition. "What my imperial brother desires is a Ming Dynasty where all nations pay tribute, while what I desire is a piece of land. As long as the Central Plains are not touched, he will be happy to see it happen."

Suddenly, the copper bell in the secret chamber rang softly. Zhu Zaizhen pressed the mechanism, and a travel-worn messenger strode in, kneeling on one knee: "Your Highness, urgent report from Shanghai Prefecture! Yu Qiang's fleet has arrived at the North Shore of Nanming. Commander Han has ordered me to return this item."

The messenger took out an oilcloth package from his pocket, and after opening it layer by layer, he found a peculiar stone—it was completely black, but it shimmered with golden spots.

"Gold mine?"

Lu Yi cried out in disbelief.

Zhu Zaizhen took the stone and examined it closely under the lamplight. Suddenly, he burst into laughter, "Good! Good! Order Han Dong to immediately set up camp and collect more ore samples. Also, tell Yu Qiang to send three more ships to transport craftsmen, farm tools, and rice seeds!"

After the messenger left, Zhu Zaizhen stroked the gold ore and muttered to himself, "Your Majesty, this time I will show you what it means to 'if Heaven bestows something and you don't take it, you will suffer the consequences.'"

On the northern shore of the Southern Underworld Continent, the sun blazed fiercely.

Han Dong, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, wiped his sweat and looked at the wooden fortress under construction.

Three hundred Ming soldiers and craftsmen have been working for half a month, and the simple dock, granary and camp are taking shape.

Further away, Yu Qiang and his sailors were bartering with a group of dark-skinned natives.

"My lord, another gold vein has been discovered!"

A foreman ran over excitedly, holding several pieces of gold ore that looked similar to the ones from before.

Han Dong carefully examined the ore and instructed, "Pack it up and send it back to Nanjing along with the spice samples collected the day before yesterday."

He gazed at the endless, unfamiliar jungle stretching inland. "This place is even more prosperous than Your Highness imagined."

Suddenly, a commotion arose from the shore. Han Dong rushed over, his hand on his sword, and saw Yu Qiang directing the sailors to move a stone tablet—a boundary marker specially made by the Prince Jing's Palace, inscribed with the six large characters "Great Ming Jing Prince's Everlasting Legacy".

"Commander Han, erect the monument today as planned."

Yu Qiang pointed to the high ground not far away, "It stands right there, visible for miles around."

Han Dong nodded, but asked with some concern, "Commander Yu, if we erect boundary markers now, won't that provoke the natives?"

"Don't worry, they think we're performing a ritual."

Yu Qiang grinned, revealing teeth stained black by betel nuts. "I had someone demonstrate the power of the musket to them, and now they worship us like gods."

Yu Qiang is now fully immersed in his current role. He has also revealed his identity from Yu Dayou and rejoined the ranks of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

As they were talking, a group of natives came carrying various fruits and game. The elder in the group was covered in seashell ornaments and kept kneeling and bowing to the Ming soldiers. Han Dong gestured for the interpreter to step forward.

"My lord, the chieftain says he is willing to exchange this land for our 'Thunderfire'."

Translate the lower channel.

Han Dong shook his head: "Tell them that we can't give them firearms, but we can give them silk and porcelain."

He took out a portrait from his bosom. "Also, have them bow to the portrait of Prince Jing."

As the sun sets, the boundary marker stands atop the hill, and the portrait of King Jing is enshrined in the center of the thatched hut by the local people.

Standing before the monument, Han Dong gazed at the gilded characters shimmering in the afterglow, and a surge of pride welled up within him—they were making history.

Time flies by, and the fourth year of the Longqing reign has passed, with early spring already gone and early summer arriving.

Spring was in full bloom in the back garden of Prince Jing of Nanjing, but Zhu Zaizhen had no interest in appreciating the flowers; all his thoughts were drawn to the imperial edict before him.

Zhu Zaizhen was thrilled as he looked at the imperial edict given to him by Zhu Zaiji.

Because this imperial edict only mentions one thing, and it only contains a few words.

But this one thing, this few words of imperial edict, moved Zhu Zaizhen to an extreme degree.

"My imperial brother has finally issued the decree!"

Zhu Zaizhen's voice trembled with excitement; he hadn't expected Zhu Zaiji's decree to arrive so quickly.

He had been anxiously wondering whether Zhu Zaiji would go back on his promise.

After all, back then, Nanming was nowhere to be seen.

However, with the dramatic changes in the situation over the years, not only is the situation at sea very favorable, but cities and fortresses have also been built on the northern and southern shores of Nanming. They are just waiting for the power of the Ming Dynasty to gradually extend there so that they can complete the partial occupation of Nanming.

Therefore, Zhu Zaizhen was very worried that Zhu Zaiji might go back on his promise at this time.

After all, Nanming has now discovered not only gold mines, but also countless high-quality iron mines.

Although there are many savages there, there are also many poisonous creatures such as snakes, insects, rats, and ants.

But what does that matter?

It's important to know that Nanjing was the same over a thousand years ago.

But so many years have passed, who can say that Nanjing is not prosperous?
There are some minor environmental problems in Nanming right now, which just means there aren't enough civilized people yet.

Once enough people, artisans, and craftsmen have migrated there during the Ming Dynasty, it won't take a thousand years. In just a few decades, they might be able to build a comfortable and livable paradise.

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