Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 130: Sea Routes, the History of Opium [Please Subscribe]

"In addition, some gentry and powerful people in the southeast also secretly colluded with pirates, either passing on information or secretly funding them, and often went out to sea for smuggling."

"Thus, although the imperial court repeatedly suppressed rebellions in the Zhoushan Islands and defeated pirates in the southeast, it was still unable to completely quell the maritime threat."

"Tang He accompanied Xu Da in the attack on Zhejiang and Fujian. He is considered the most familiar with the military and political affairs of the southeast among the officials in the court, and he also has our trust."

"If a major maritime threat arises again in the southeast, the person we'll most likely dispatch is Tang He. However, he still harbors a grudge over the accidental deaths of two of his most capable generals in that conflict."

"If the threat of pirates in the southeast persists, we might resort to a sea ban. And if you hadn't appeared, we wouldn't have known the importance of the ocean, and we might have resorted to a complete sea ban."

Speaking of which, the Ming Dynasty did not implement a strict and comprehensive maritime ban as it did later.

For example, in places like the Zhoushan Islands, because there were many islanders there, the Ming Dynasty continued the policies of the Song and Yuan Dynasties and set up counties to govern there.

Later, after the comprehensive sea ban was implemented, not only were people on the mainland prohibited from going out to sea privately, but even people on some islands were relocated to the land, which was equivalent to abandoning those islands.

Obviously, the Zhoushan Islands were later abandoned in this context.

At that time, Zhu Yuanzhang's attention turned to the inland, and his mind was focused on centralizing power and consolidating imperial power.

The country had limited money, food and supplies, and he did not know the importance of the ocean. He felt that governing the islands like Zhoushan was a thankless task and it would be better to give up.

But now with Liu Kuan, the Ming Dynasty's handling of the Zhoushan incident will naturally not be the same as in later history.

After listening to Zhu's explanation, Liu Kuan said, "If Your Majesty is worried that the people of Zhoushan are difficult to govern, you can relocate them to the coastal areas of Fujian and Guangdong, and then relocate a group of people from Fujian and Guangdong to the island."

"As long as we treat the relocated people well, establish garrisons, and use the navy to search for and suppress nearby pirates, we should be able to pacify the Zhejiang coast within two to three years."

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Although it is troublesome to relocate the people back and forth, since we know the importance of the Zhoushan Islands, this must be done."

Zhu Ying, who was standing by, heard this and couldn't help but bow and said, "Father, I am willing to join the navy as a general and help you eliminate the pirates!"

"You?" Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Ying. "You're so self-reliant on your bravery and strength, and so inconsiderate of your subordinates. I'm afraid they'll secretly chop off your head once you're at sea. It's best to train in the main hall for two years before you see what happens."

Zhu Ying felt a little dissatisfied and his face turned red. He wanted to say something, but Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him and he shut his mouth.

He didn't dare to get angry with Zhu Yuanzhang in the first place, and after learning from Zhu Chong's previous experience, he was even more afraid to do so now.

Zhu Yuanzhang then asked Liu Kuan, "Do you have anything else to say about the coastal situation?"

Liu Kuan thought for a moment and said, "If Your Majesty were to conquer Liaodong in the future, you could ship grain from the sea to save on the journey."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "The maritime grain route has existed since the time of Hu Yuan. In addition to relying on the canal for transportation, Dadu's grain is also obtained from the maritime grain route."

"At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, even when the Grand Canal was cut off by rebel forces, ships still brought grain from the southeast to the Yuan capital."

"But if you're transporting grain at sea and encounter a hurricane and huge waves, and a ship capsizes, a lot of food will be lost."

"We were originally hesitant about opening the maritime grain route, but since we need to vigorously develop the shipbuilding industry and build larger and stronger ships, we won't have to worry about ordinary offshore waves."

When Zhu Yuanzhang and Liu Kuan were talking about coastal affairs, Zhu Biao, Zhu Ying, Zhu Tan and others who could understand listened attentively.

Even people like Zhu Xiongying, Zhu Gui, Zhu Liang, and Zhu Zhi who were too young to understand what they heard were still impressed by the coastal affairs because of these words.

It can be imagined that in the future, when these princes and grandchildren deal with ocean affairs, they will inevitably have different insights due to what they have seen and heard in recent days.

After talking about the maritime grain route, a eunuch happened to appear outside the palace gate and came to convey Empress Ma's words, saying that the tables and chairs in the main hall had been rearranged and the food had been served.

Zhu Yuanzhang then took Liu Kuan and others back to the main hall and they took their seats.

Liu Kuan took the tablet computer from Zhu Huilan and placed it on the long table in front of Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma, supporting it with a bronze vessel similar to a tripod.

Turn up the volume to the maximum before playing the video.

At the same time, he secretly felt regretful in his heart - he didn't bring any speakers when he traveled through time. If he had speakers, everyone in the hall could enjoy a good auditory feast, which would be great.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma were quite surprised that the music also had a video.

The two did not mention sharing with others. Just like the elders of ordinary families, they sat closer to each other and looked at each other happily.

The video was first dark, and then dozens of lights shone down, revealing a stage of unknown size.

The sound of piano rang out, but it turned out to be a blurry figure playing in the center of the stage.

At the same time, some horizontal simple characters appeared on the right side of the video.

"The national music plays 'Water Dragon Song.'" Queen Ma read it out.

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Could it be that national music is the ritual music of later generations? Liu Kuan is very thoughtful."

Empress Ma said, "I wonder what the national music of later generations will be like."

"You'll know after listening."

The two of them didn't say anything more because the music had already started.

Everyone below stopped talking when they heard the sound and looked over eagerly, hoping to hear more closely.

Unfortunately, Lao Zhu pretended not to see it.

Zhu Yuanzhang actually didn't understand music and had no interest in it in his daily life. At this time, he relied entirely on his feelings and observed Empress Ma's expression.

When he saw Queen Ma nod, he felt that the old man in the video played the piano well.

After a while, three other people appeared on the stage, holding a flute, a pipa, and a erhu respectively.

As the ensemble began, even Zhu Yuanzhang, a music idiot, suddenly had his eyes light up. When he heard the climax, he couldn't help but praise, "Good! Beautiful!"

Queen Ma rolled her eyes at him and said, "Just listen quietly."

"Hehe." Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and picked up a braised pig's trotter to eat. The few young princes and princesses below, who were more interested in eating, smiled and started eating as well.

Most people were focused on the music coming from the imperial table. After they came back to their senses, they started to listen to the music while eating.

In this way, Liu Kuan and the Zhu family enjoyed six famous Chinese style pure music on the Internet on New Year's Eve, namely "Shuilongyin", "Jiuzhoutong", "Zuitaiping", "Xiangwangxing", "Pozhenyue" and "Mingyueyin".

After listening to it once, Zhu Yuanzhang saw that Empress Ma and several concubines who understood music were still not satisfied, so he called Liu Kuan and asked him to play it again.

Liu Kuan simply turned it into a loop.

After returning to his seat, Liu Kuan whispered to Zhu Huilan, "Did you bring your power bank?"

"My husband asked me to bring it, so I brought it." After saying this, Zhu Huilan took out a power bank from her arms.

Liu Kuan nodded. "After listening to music so repeatedly, I'm afraid the battery won't be enough to play a movie later. I'll just have a power bank with me."

He bought this power bank specifically for traveling. It not only has a foldable solar panel for charging outdoors, but also has a large storage capacity, so a full charge can last for a long time.

After more than half an hour, the banquet ended.

Queen Ma then waved her hand and asked Liu Kuan to go over and temporarily take the tablet computer.

He then ordered the palace servants to clean up the leftovers and rearrange the tables and chairs according to the movie viewing mode.

Old Zhu took advantage of this opportunity and pulled Liu Kuan to talk to him at the imperial desk.

"What's the name of the movie tonight? What's the story?"

Liu Kuan said, "Your Majesty, the movie is called Operation Mekong. It's a crime action film adapted from a real-life case."

"A crime action movie?"

Liu Kuan pondered and said, "It can be understood as a story about the army and government detectives working together to solve a case outside the country and hunt down the murderer."

"Of course, this is no ordinary case. It involves national honor and national dignity. The murderer is no ordinary murderer either. He is a drug lord with considerable influence in a small country."

Zhu Yuanzhang found that he couldn't understand the last word again, so he asked: "What is a drug lord?"

He had only heard of "salt smugglers" - his former opponents Zhang Shicheng and Fang Guozhen were both considered salt smugglers.

But this was the first time he had heard of the drug lord.

The reason why Liu Kuan chose "Operation Mekong" to broadcast was to tell Lao Zhu an unpopular piece of knowledge and to prevent the spread of something in China in advance.

He asked in return, "Does Your Majesty know about poppies?"

Old Zhu shook his head.

Liu Kuan asked again, "Your Majesty, have you ever heard of the Five Stones Powder?"

"I've heard of this. It's said that Wu Shi San, also known as Han Shi San, is a chronic poison concocted by alchemists in the late Han Dynasty."

"However, people at that time were unaware of its toxicity. Instead, they found pleasure in taking it because it made the whole body warm and excited, and thus many scholars in the Wei and Jin dynasties were addicted to it."

"It wasn't until the Sui and Tang dynasties that the Medicine Sage Sun Simiao declared it to be pure poison, and the Tang dynasty banned it through law, effectively ending the practice of consuming Wushisan."

At this point, Zhu Yuanzhang had already made some guesses. His expression became extremely serious and he asked, "Is the opium you are talking about similar to Wushisan?"

Liu Kuan said, "Your Majesty, your guess is correct—the opium poppy originated in southern Europe, India, and the countries south of Yunnan, but was introduced to China during the Tang Dynasty."

"This plant's flowers are gorgeous, so it was originally grown for ornamental purposes. During the Tang and Song dynasties, people discovered that its seeds were edible and had anesthetic and analgesic effects."

"So in the Song Dynasty, poppy seeds were introduced as medicine again, mostly for treating diseases such as diarrhea and dysentery."

"But as people delved deeper into the study and use of poppy seeds, they gradually discovered another effect of it - it can produce a feeling of intoxication and pleasure, and can be addictive."

"So, in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, around the Chenghua period, someone used poppy seeds to create a poison similar to Wu Shi San, opium."

"In the late Ming Dynasty, unscrupulous merchants even changed it to misleading names like Changle Gao and Fushou Gao, selling it to the rich and powerful, making them addicted, in order to make huge profits and even control the rich and powerful and officials."

"Later, it was rumored that Emperor Wanli was very likely a long-term user of this substance. During the Qing Dynasty, this substance became widespread a hundred years after the founding of the Qing Dynasty."

"Due to the Qing court's ineffective control, even powerful officials colluded with merchants and Westerners to sell this substance for profit. By the late Qing Dynasty, the number of people addicted to opium had reached over 20 million!"

"In coastal cities, six out of ten men are addicted to opium – not only are opium highly addictive and expensive, but it also accumulates toxins in the body, gradually destroying a person's spirit and composure, ultimately leaving them with a skeleton-like appearance."

"Those who attract opium addicts spend all their money, sell their children, and even their ancestors to buy opium. When the addiction strikes, they kneel down and beg for mercy for a mouthful of opium. They are worse than dogs."

At this point, Liu Kuan shook his head and took a breath before continuing, "After the founding of New China, they issued a strict ban on poppy cultivation and the spread of opium. They also deployed the military for years to combat it, and only then were opium finally banned."

"Unfortunately, with the development of technology, opium has been transformed into various more toxic and addictive poisons, disguised as such, and used by criminals to make huge profits. The term "drug lords" refers to these criminals who traffic in addictive poisons."

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, his expression was no longer just serious, but as if he was facing a formidable enemy like Chen Youliang.

He imagined the scene in later generations of the Qing Dynasty where 20 million people were addicted to opium and 70% of the men in coastal cities became puppets of this drug. He felt extremely horrified and unconsciously clenched his fists.

He only felt relieved when he heard that New China had banned this substance.

However, no one would have thought that due to technological development, opium would be made into a more toxic and addictive poison - it is as difficult to eradicate as a tarsalgia.

Then, he thought that the opium was most likely to have appeared in the early to middle Ming Dynasty, and he immediately became alert.

Therefore, when Liu Kuan finished speaking, he asked anxiously: "Then opium should not have appeared in the world yet? Should we just ban poppies?"

　Second update.

　　(I was too tired yesterday, so I only updated twice today)

　　Once again, I wish you all a happy National Day!
　　Good night~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)