My father is Jiajing

Chapter 714 Air Force Guy

In the autumn of the sixth year of the Longqing reign.

Flags fluttered and dragon boats lined up side by side at the Tianjin Wei Wharf.

Emperor Longqing of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Zaiji, stood with his hands behind his back on the shore, watching the treasure ship that was about to carry his younger brother, Prince Jing, Zhu Zaizhen, to the Southern Ocean Continent.

The sea breeze, carrying a salty and damp scent, caressed his face and stirred the hem of his bright yellow dragon robe.

"Your Majesty, the time has come; it is time to depart."

Meng Chong, a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, bowed and reminded him.

Zhu Zaiji nodded slightly, but his gaze did not leave the ship.

Princess Jing was leaning against the gunwale, her eyes red as she looked back towards the capital.

Prince Jing, Zhu Zaizhen, standing beside her, remained calm, only glancing occasionally toward the palace—where his only concern lay with his heir, Zhu Yizhong.

However, he also knew very well that it was best for the heir to stay in the capital. After all, Zhu Yizhong was still too young, and he was the current emperor's own flesh and blood. With the emperor taking care of him, there would definitely be no problems.

Therefore, Zhu Zaizhen was very comfortable with his son staying in the capital.

"Meng Chong, how is the young master being settled?"

Zhu Zaiji asked in a low voice.

"Your Majesty, His Highness Prince Jing has moved into a side hall of the East Palace and is living and eating with His Highness the Crown Prince. The teachers of the East Palace have also begun their lessons."

Zhu Zaiji's lips curled up slightly.

Keeping Prince Jing's heir in the capital was a crucial step in his grand strategy.

As a time traveler, he knew all too well the consequences of leaving overseas fiefdoms uncontrolled.

The crown prince is the strongest noose around the necks of those ambitious feudal lords.

Moreover, he left behind his heir to serve as a warning to other vassal kings, so that if they wanted to relocate to other fiefdoms in the future, they would have to follow this procedure.

"Weigh anchor—"

A loud command came from the ship.

The enormous treasure ship slowly departed from the dock, while cannons fired a salute from the shore.

Zhu Zaiji raised his hand to signal, and the drumming and music stopped abruptly.

"Brother Jing!"

Zhu Zaiji suddenly shouted, his voice particularly clear in the sea breeze, "You are going to Nanmingzhou, where the mountains are high and the rivers are long. I bestow upon you the Nine Bestowments and grant you permission to establish your own government and military command. I hope you will expand the territory of my Great Ming Dynasty and not fail my expectations!"

On the ship, Prince Jing knelt and kowtowed: "Your subject will do his utmost to live up to the Emperor's grace!"

Zhu Zaiji nodded in satisfaction.

The Nine Bestowments, originally the highest honor bestowed by the emperor upon meritorious officials, have now become his best bait to lure vassal kings to go to sea.

As a time traveler, he knew very well what these princes, confined to their fiefdoms, craved most: real power!
The treasure ship sailed further and further away, eventually disappearing around the bend in the canal.

Zhu Zaiji turned around and said to the accompanying officials, "Return to the palace."

On the imperial carriage, Zhu Zaiji closed his eyes to rest.

Emperor Zhu Zaiji in history died after only six years on the throne, while he was still alive and kicking, with plenty of time to realize his grand ambitions.

Zhu Zaizhen left.

Zhu Zaiji also returned to the capital.

However, some people were moved at this time and began to take action.

The Hall of Diligent Governance in the Western Garden.

After seeing Prince Jing off, Zhu Zaiji enjoyed a few rare days of comfort.

"Your Majesty, the Chief Secretary of the Prince Zhou's residence requests an audience, saying he is representing the Prince Zhou to pay his respects to Your Majesty."

Meng Chong reported in a low voice.

A barely perceptible smile appeared on Zhu Zaiji's lips.

The fish are starting to bite.

"Tell him that I am tired today and will summon him another day."

Zhu Zaiji paused deliberately, "However, I can tell him that Prince Jing will have three guards in Nanmingzhou, and he can appoint and dismiss officials and collect taxes at his own discretion. He only needs to pay tribute to the court every year."

"The servant understands."

Meng Chong understood and withdrew.

Zhu Zaiji leisurely continued to lean back on the recliner in front of Nanhaizi, with a cup of freshly brewed tea beside him.

As a time traveler, Zhu Zaiji spent more than 20 years preparing and preparing. After ascending the throne, Zhu Zaiji vigorously reorganized the military and developed the navy. He conquered Japan and controlled Malacca. Now, the harvest season has finally arrived!

Now, as long as Prince Jing can play a better leading role in Nanmingzhou, those vassal kings who consume large amounts of the imperial court's stipends can be "invited" out of the Ming Dynasty one by one, and made to pay their own relocation expenses.

Zhu Zaiji drank tea for a while and fished for a bit. Although he came back empty-handed in the end, Zhu Zaiji's mood was not disturbed.

Instead, he continued to instruct the eunuchs beside him to keep digging holes in the South China Sea.

Then Zhu Zaiji got up and left to stretch his body on the other side.

Zhu Zaiji made a round and returned to the Hall of Diligent Governance.

He then looked at the world map spread out on the table. It was drawn based on some of his memories before he traveled through time, and he also consulted many other maps available in this era.

Moreover, to ensure the accuracy of these maps, Zhu Zaiji also ordered the Imperial Observatory to begin calculating latitude and longitude, and to take the central axis of the capital as one degree of the prime meridian.

After looking at the world map for a while, Zhu Zaiji forgot about fishing.

Without even raising his head, Zhu Zaiji instructed the eunuchs serving in the hall: "Summon the Grand Secretariat and the Military Affairs Office to an audience."

Upon hearing the Emperor's instructions, the eunuch in the palace immediately went to the Grand Secretariat and the Military Council to relay the decree.

Before long, the ministers from both groups arrived together.

Grand Secretary Gao Gong and Chief Grand Councilor Li Chunfang led the way, followed by their respective deputies and other cabinet and department members.

"Your Majesty, we pay our respects."

"No gift."

Zhu Zaiji gestured to Gao Gong and Li Chunfang to rise and dispense with formalities. He then gave a signal to the eunuchs serving in the hall to bring some chairs for Gao Gong, Li Chunfang, and the others to sit down.

After Gao Gong and Li Chunfang expressed their gratitude, Zhu Zaiji also sat on the throne behind him.

Zhu Zaiji looked at them and said, "Prince Jing has already set off for Nanmingzhou. Gentlemen, how do you think the other vassal kings will react?"

Li Chunfang replied first: "Your Majesty is wise. I have heard that the Prince of Zhou and the Prince of Chu have been frequently sending people to the capital to inquire recently, which shows that they are also considering moving their fiefdoms out."

Zhao Zhenji immediately added, "It wasn't just the Kings of Zhou and Chu. The Kings of Qin, Jin, and Shu also secretly contacted each other to inquire about matters related to overseas fiefdoms."

Zhu Zaiji chuckled and said, "That's more like it. If they were all without desires, then it would be my turn to reflect."

After Zhu Zaiji finished laughing, the cabinet members on Gao Gong's side clearly had some other ideas.

Gao Gong hesitated for a moment, but finally stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I think we should not rush into this matter."

"what happened?"

Zhu Zaiji smiled slightly and looked at Gao Gong, asking a question. Gao Gong took a deep breath and said, "Recently, there has been much criticism in the court, with people believing that granting the princes the Nine Bestowments and real power might cause future troubles. They worry that after a few generations, the princes of the outer regions will become arrogant and spoiled."

Zhu Zaiji chuckled again and looked at Li Chunfang, saying, "Mr. Li, please explain to Mr. Gao the principles of enfeoffment."

Li Chunfang rose and bowed, then looked at Gao Gong, and behind Gao Gong were Zhang Juzheng, Hai Rui and other cabinet members.

Li Chunfang walked to a world map hanging on a shelf inside the Zhu Zaiji Hall.

Li Chunfang said, "Your worries are unfounded, Grand Secretary Gao."

After saying that, Li Chunfang pointed to the world map behind him and said, "Look, everyone, this is the world we have discovered today! How big and how vast this world is! Although our Great Ming Dynasty has the whole world, compared with this world, it is only a small corner."

"If our Great Ming cannot take advantage of the situation and use the old system of enfeoffment from the Zhou Dynasty to enfeoff the various vassal states overseas to become a shield for the Great Ming, then these unclaimed territories will become colonies of others, and in turn, they will form a siege against our Great Ming."

"Then at that time, we will both be sinners!"

"Therefore, at this time, we should not worry too much about things that are not of our own making. Moreover, our Great Ming Dynasty is now in a position to lead the world in terms of military and economic strength."

"Even if the vassal states become powerful in the future, they will still have to rely on the help and weapons provided by the Ming Dynasty. Otherwise, it would be a pipe dream to think that they can catch up with the Ming Dynasty within a few generations with the land and people they have enfeoffed!"

"As the saying goes, it takes ten years to grow a tree, but a hundred years to cultivate a person. It is almost impossible for the outer vassal states to cultivate enough talents without a sufficient population base and a strong cultural foundation."

"Therefore, you all don't need to worry too much. You just need to follow the current global trend and promote the civilization, language, and writing of the Ming Dynasty to the whole world in a grand and sweeping manner. This is the most important thing!"

After hearing Li Chunfang's words, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Hai Rui, and other cabinet members couldn't help but look at each other in bewilderment.

Clearly, they hadn't considered this step.

However, this is not their fault. They are now in the cabinet, and naturally they are considering all the inherent benefits of prioritizing the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, it is understandable that there is a lack of vision.

After all, the world now is not like the world after Zhu Zaiji's transmigration, which has a world structure of one superpower and many strong powers. Therefore, in the subconscious of Gao Gong and others, the Ming Dynasty is invincible and cannot be allowed to create any hidden dangers for themselves.

However, sometimes, even if you don't eliminate these hidden dangers yourself, outsiders might still do so.

If the opportunity is missed and the Western powers gain the upper hand in the world, even if the Ming Dynasty regrets it deeply, it may not be able to reclaim much of the benefits.

Moreover, Li Chunfang's strategic thinking certainly didn't develop overnight.

These words must have been said by Zhu Zaiji.

However, when it was mentioned at the time, the audience was only the Grand Council, not the Cabinet.

Therefore, it is inevitable that Gao Gong and his colleagues have some cognitive deficiencies.

"Your Majesty possesses great talent and strategic vision, which we admire greatly."

Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Hai Rui, and other cabinet members rose and bowed to Zhu Zaiji.

Then Gao Gong carefully considered the wording, "However, if a vassal king is granted a fiefdom without any restrictions..."

"Therefore, I spared Prince Jing's heir."

Zhu Zaiji said meaningfully, and continued, "Every prince enfeoffed outside the capital must leave his heir or legitimate son in the capital. If they behave themselves, the heir will naturally be safe; if they harbor rebellious intentions..."

The words were not finished, but the meaning was clear.

Zhang Juzheng was secretly alarmed; the emperor's move was extremely cunning.

"Your Majesty is holy."

Gao Gong was genuinely impressed this time, saying, "In this way, the princes not only gained the benefit of real fiefdoms, but the court also had no worries about the future."

Zhu Zaiji nodded in satisfaction: "Not only that. I will not take a single penny from the national treasury to subsidize their voyages. If they want a real fiefdom, they will have to raise their own funds and recruit their own personnel! The court will only provide nautical charts and necessary protection."

Zhang Juzheng's eyes lit up: "Brilliant! In this way, the princes will spend their own resources to expand overseas, while the court will reap the benefits. Moreover, the territories they expand will still nominally belong to the Ming Dynasty."

"Exactly that."

Zhu Zaiji clapped his hands and laughed, "That's why I summoned you here today to spread the word—the number of overseas fiefdoms is limited, first come, first served. Especially those wealthy 'good places'."

Gao Gong immediately understood, "Your Majesty, we understand. The King of Zhou is incredibly wealthy, but the King of Chu is no less so."

"And the King of Shu."

Zhang Juzheng added, "Sichuan is rich in resources, and the Shu King's Palace has accumulated a considerable amount of wealth."

At this point, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, and the others recited the names of all the wealthy princes, as if listing dishes.

A sly glint flashed in Zhu Zaiji's eyes, and he smiled slightly, "Let them fight it out. I'll just sit back and reap the benefits."

In the Eastern Palace, Crown Prince Zhu Yizheng and Prince Jing's heir Zhu Yizhong were listening to a lecture together.

Shen Shixing, the tutor of the Crown Prince, was explaining the Analects, and the two children sat upright and listened attentively.

Suddenly, a eunuch's voice rang out from outside the palace: "The Emperor has arrived!"

Everyone immediately knelt to greet him. Zhu Zaiji strode in and waved for everyone to rise.

"You continue teaching; I'm just here to observe."

Zhu Zaiji sat down beside him, but his gaze remained fixed on Zhu Yizhong.

The child looks like his father, but even more like him, after all, he is his own flesh and blood.

Moreover, the child has a very calm and steady personality, which Zhu Zaiji is very satisfied with.

Since Prince Jing left the capital, Zhu Yizhong neither cried nor made a fuss, but diligently studied and practiced martial arts every day, showing exceptional maturity.

After class, Zhu Zaiji kept Zhu Yizhong behind.

"Zhong'er, do you miss your father?"

Zhu Zaiji asked kindly.

Zhu Yizhong respectfully replied, "Uncle, I do wish. But Father expanded the territory of the Ming Dynasty, and I am proud of him."

Zhu Zaiji nodded secretly. This child is well-educated and knows how to behave appropriately.

"The place your father went to is called Nanming Continent. It has vast lands and abundant mineral resources."

Zhu Zaiji took out a picture book, opened it and showed it to Zhu Yizhong, saying, "When you come of age and go there, you will see a prosperous and thriving Jingfan Kingdom."

Zhu Yizhong's eyes lit up, and he asked innocently, "Uncle Emperor, are there really endless grasslands and gold mines there?"

"not only that."

Zhu Zaiji laughed and said, "There are also rare and exotic animals that our Ming Dynasty has never seen before."

Zhu Zaiji then pointed to the kangaroos and koalas drawn in the picture book, saying, "These animals can only be found in Nanmingzhou."

Children are children after all, and Zhu Yizhong was completely captivated by these novel things.

"Then, Uncle, can I go to Nanmingzhou as soon as possible?"

Zhu Yizhong asked expectantly.

Zhu Zaiji patted his head: "Wait until you grow up and learn the skills before you go. I will send the best teachers to teach you navigation, military affairs, and governance, so that you can become a more outstanding prince than your father."

Seeing Zhu Yizhong's excited expression, Zhu Zaiji was secretly delighted. He was not only grooming a prince's heir, but also a crucial pawn for the Ming Dynasty to control its overseas territories in the future.

When these princes inherit their fiefdoms, they will be fully under the leadership of the central court—this is the ultimate goal of his overseas fiefdom strategy.

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Asking for a monthly ticket~~
(End of this chapter)