Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 212: Children and grandchildren have their own blessings, Zhu Chong: What should I do? [Please subscribe]

Now the Ming Dynasty court was ruled by Zhu Yuanzhang, so Zhu Su was actually asking Zhu Yuanzhang for his decision.

Zhu Yuanzhang had already considered this matter and said, "Our initial idea is that for any prince who is determined to stay in the country in the future, the guards shall not exceed 3,000 people, and they will no longer hold military positions or be assigned military missions."

"Secondly, the title of a prince can only be passed down for three generations, and the title of a county prince can only be passed down for two generations. After that, the title will begin to decline with each generation, until eventually, the person will become a commoner, retaining only the title of a royal family member."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Su, Zhu Zi and others were not surprised.

When Zhu Di first brought up the idea of ​​establishing vassal states overseas, one of the reasons he gave was that with the Ming Dynasty's current policy of supporting its vassal states, the group of vassal states would become extremely large in one or two hundred years, and their salaries would become a huge burden on the court.

In addition, if every emperor had given his sons and brothers a lot of land and even the right to mine and collect miscellaneous taxes in the local area like Zhu Yuanzhang, then after one or two hundred years, the Ming Dynasty would have had a lot of land and other benefits divided up by the vassal kings.

Zhu Yuanzhang adopted the policy of reducing the titles of royal family members, apparently to solve this problem.

As for reducing the number of guards of the princes who remained in the country and preventing them from having access to military power, Zhu Su and others believed that Zhu Yuanzhang should have learned from history to prevent the princes from plotting rebellion.

Only Liu Kuan, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di knew that Zhu was taking the "latter events" as a lesson and did not want the "Jingnan" incident to happen again in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang paused, then continued, "In addition to being prohibited from serving in the military, your political and business activities will also be subject to certain restrictions."

"Politicians are not allowed to be heads of ministries or agencies, nor are they allowed to join the cabinet or the Grand Council, nor are they allowed to be heads of local governments."

"Businessmen shall enjoy neither tax exemptions nor bully others, nor shall they engage in illegal activities. Officials will subject the vassal states involved in business to strict supervision."

"Therefore, if you wish to remain in the Ming Dynasty, it would be best to delve into literature or engage in scientific research. Of course, if you are interested, you can also explore the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting..."

When Zhu Yuanzhang was talking about his arrangements for retaining the native vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty, Liu Kuan looked like he was "looking at his nose with his eyes, his mouth with his nose, and his heart with his mouth."

If he didn't do so, he was worried that he would show a strange expression and some careful princes would notice something.

Because the policies that Lao Zhu mentioned at this time were actually asked from his mouth.

It was a sunny afternoon last year. When he was "working" at the Science and Technology Bureau, he was called to Fengxian Hall by someone sent by Old Zhu.

Not only was Zhu Biao not there at the time, but even Li Gui had been sent out by Zhu Biao. Only Zhu Biao and he were left in the hall.

Because Zhu Yuanzhang promised to keep the matter strictly confidential, he made several suggestions on how to keep the vassal kings in the country, and even mentioned a few things about the vassal kings overseas.

That’s why Lao Zhu can say these words today.

As an insider, Liu Kuan couldn't help laughing when he saw Zhu pretending that these policies were his own ideas.

"...These are the arrangements we have made for the vassal kings who have decided to stay in the Ming mainland. If there are any inappropriate arrangements, we will make additional arrangements in the future. Do you have any objections?"

After Zhu Yuanzhang finished his long speech, Zhu Su and Zhu Zi, who had already made up their minds to stay in the Ming Dynasty, breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang's arrangement was much stricter than before, it was more relaxed than they expected - they were most afraid that Zhu Yuanzhang would deliberately frame them in order to force them to become vassals overseas.

It now seems that if they stay in the Ming Dynasty, they will lose their military power and be restricted in politics and business, but they can do anything else within the law.

If there is any dissatisfaction, it is that the title will be reduced after three generations.

Zhu Su thought that it didn't matter if his descendants became commoners, but if they ended up poor and helpless, they would probably curse him as the ancestor of the lineage.

Thinking of this, and looking at the pleading look of his eighth brother Zhu Zi next to him, Zhu Su decided to fight for it as well.

He pondered for a moment, then said, "Father, could you establish a safety net for the descendants of the princes who remain in the country? For example, even if the descendants of the royal family become commoners, they can still receive a certain amount of money and food from the court every year."

After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang was not angry, but his expression softened.

He recalled the secret conversation that day and some of the advice Liu Kuan had given him.

So he sighed and said, "Old Fifth, I understand your concern for future generations, but I really cannot agree to your request."

"We've had someone do the math. Even if every generation has princes going overseas to establish fiefdoms, there will still be quite a few princes remaining in the Ming Dynasty."

"The princes have wealth, power, and status, but they can't hold military posts. Military and business careers are also subject to certain restrictions. So some of them will undoubtedly keep having children. If this continues, the number of Ming imperial family members will likely exceed one million in three hundred years."

"If, in addition to the salaries paid to those members of the imperial clan with titles, the court also has to provide financial support for the rest of the commoners and members of the imperial clan, how much do you think the court has to spend each year?"

"Even if each member of the royal family and common people were given 100 strings of cash a year, that would be 100 million strings of cash a year for a million people!"

One hundred million guan a year? !
Many princes who had never calculated this before were shocked when they heard this.

It should be noted that the annual fiscal revenue of the Ming Dynasty was only 20 to 30 million shi of grain, equivalent to 50 to 60 million strings of cash.

That is to say, three hundred years later, even if each member of the royal family was given only one hundred strings of cash per year, the Ming court would have to spend in one year the fiscal revenue of two years today!

Although the Ming Dynasty's fiscal revenue may have been higher at that time, it was still an extremely huge expenditure, which would definitely become a huge burden on the court at that time, and even unbearable.

Zhu Su opened his mouth, wanting to suggest that the minimum amount of money and grain could be set at ten strings of cash per year, but in the end he didn't say it out loud.

In his opinion, one hundred strings of cash a year was a very small sum, just enough for the annual expenses of an "ordinary citizen" family.

If it is reduced to ten strings of cash, it will be of no use. The most important thing is that even if it is reduced to ten strings of cash, the Ming court will have to spend ten million strings of cash a year for this three hundred years later!
This was still a number that the court found difficult to accept.

Zhu Yuanzhang then said, "I used to be just like you. I also wanted to plan for my descendants so that they would never have to worry about poverty and hunger again."

"But then I figured it out—I'm lucky if I can manage the affairs of two or three generations. As for those beyond that, how can I manage them?"

"Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. If a child is incompetent, even if we give him a mountain of gold and silver, he will squander it all and become a beggar."

"On the other hand, if your children and grandchildren are capable and blessed, even if they were born as beggars, they may still be able to become rich and powerful on their own!"

After a pause, Zhu Yuanzhang continued, "However, if you really want to leave some protection for your descendants, I can give you some advice."

Zhu Su was originally thinking about Zhu Yuanzhang's previous words, but when he heard the latter, his eyes suddenly lit up and he bowed and said, "Your son respectfully listens to your father's instructions."

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Nowadays, our Ming Dynasty is quite supportive of industry and commerce. In addition, with the upcoming Great Navigation, in the next two to three hundred years, there will be a lot of opportunities to make money both at home and abroad."

"As vassal kings, you receive a large annual salary. You might as well save some money and invest some in industry and commerce, or invest in your brothers who want to establish vassal states overseas."

"You can refer to the railway transportation company that Liu Kuan is planning. You can take money and exchange it for shares from your brothers who have established vassal states overseas."

"This way, I don't have to go overseas, I can share in the overseas profits in the future, and I can also help my brothers. It can be said that I kill three birds with one stone."

"Of course, if you're interested, you can get involved in industry and commerce, opening factories or shops. That way, you can leave behind an inheritance. As long as your descendants don't squander their wealth, even if they become commoners, they'll still have enough to eat and wear."

After listening to Zhu Yuanzhang's talk, Zhu Su's eyes lit up and he felt that Zhu Yuanzhang's advice was very good.

Then he looked at Liu Kuan, and suddenly felt that Zhu Yuanzhang's suggestion was not what he expected, but seemed to come from Liu Kuan.

"It seems that even if I want to stay in the Ming Dynasty, I have to find opportunities to get in touch with this third brother-in-law and ask him about some ways to get rich and run a business."

"Those of you who want to stay in the country, do you have any other questions?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked.

Zhu Su, Zhu Zi and others all shook their heads.

Zhu Yuanzhang said again, "Well, while you are all here, let's do a survey first - those who have decided to become vassals overseas, please stand up and let us see."

Upon hearing the voice, Zhu Ying and Zhu Di stood up without hesitation, followed by Zhu Zhen, Zhu Gui and Zhu Tan.

Zhu Chun, Zhu Bai, and Zhu Gui seemed to be hesitating, but Zhu Ying and Zhu Zhi, who were only seven or eight years old, also stood up.

As for the younger Zhu Zan and Zhu Quan, they were too young, only five or six years old. They did not understand much of what Zhu Yuanzhang and his brothers had just said, so it was naturally difficult for them to make a decision.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "Who are you sure you want to stay in the Ming Dynasty? Raise your hands so we can see."

Zhu Su and Zhu Zi raised their hands one after another.

Zhu Yuanzhang then looked at Zhu Chun and Zhu Gui and asked, "Are you two hesitant?"

Zhu Chun said, "Your Majesty, I really can't make a decision right now. Can you wait until I'm sixteen?"

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "Of course you can—even if you choose to be a vassal overseas first and then gain military experience, if you find it's not suitable for you, you can change your mind later."

"On the other hand, if you didn't choose to prepare for overseas service at sixteen, and then changed your mind and wanted to go overseas in your twenties, you would still have time, but you would have already wasted many years."

"Let me put it this way, do you understand?"

The First King of Shu was also quite clever and immediately said, "Your Majesty, I understand. Your Majesty wishes me to gain as much military experience as possible when I turn sixteen."

"I understand." Zhu Yuanzhang nodded. "However, we won't force you to do this. So the choice you make will be up to you."

Then, he looked at Zhu Jian, Zhu Zhi, and the other four princes under ten years old and said, "You four are too young, so your statement this time won't count. Don't think too much about this matter after you leave. You must focus on studying. Remember that?"

At the end of his speech, Zhu Yuanzhang's expression became stern.

The four little princes all bowed like little adults and replied, "Your sons will remember this."

However, Liu Kuan noticed that Zhu Liang and Zhu Quan were pouting, obviously dissatisfied with Old Zhu's childishness - even though the people in front of them were just little kids.

Seeing that this "Overseas Enfeoffment Conference" was about to end, Zhu Chong, who had been invisible in the meeting, finally couldn't help it and said aloud: "Father, what should I do?"

Although Zhu Chong had performed well over the past year or two, Zhu Yuanzhang was still dissatisfied with him. Upon hearing this, he snorted coldly, "What should we do? You'd better honestly accept the punishment and atone for your sins. When your title of prince is restored, you can consider whether to go overseas."

Zhu Chong said, "Father, I don't need to think about it. I will definitely go overseas. I accept your punishment, but you must give me a deadline. When can I regain my title of prince?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was even more displeased when he heard this. "Didn't we say it before? When you perform to my satisfaction, your title of prince will be restored!"

Zhu Chong wanted to ask more, but Zhu Biao, fearing he would really anger Zhu Yuanzhang, quickly reminded him, "Second brother, just act nicely. Father can see it all."

　First update.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)