The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 709 The Crown Prince Takes Charge of Internal Affairs
Time flies, and May is here in the blink of an eye.

At this time, the capital city was warm and comfortable, and the Beiyang Fleet led by Yu Zigao had already returned to port.

Emperor Wanli also began preparing to relocate the common people who had been enslaved by princes and members of the imperial family.

Early that morning, around 7 a.m., he summoned a group of civil and military officials to the Grand Council Hall to discuss matters.

Once everyone had gathered, he pointed to the map and solemnly said, "This time we are relocating tens of millions of ordinary people, totaling more than forty million people."

If we calculate based on ten mu of land per person, that would amount to more than 400 million mu.

We have land, we have four billion mu of land, the key is where we should relocate these ordinary people to which will be beneficial to the development of the overseas military command.

This should be our last large-scale migration. After this migration, the population of the overseas military command will be basically stable, and then we can focus on full-scale development.

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded slowly.

This was indeed the last large-scale migration, because after the migration, the population of the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty was less than forty million, and no one else wanted to migrate out.

As for the specifics of the migration, no one spoke up.

Because they all knew that His Majesty must have his own ideas.

They were already used to listening to the Emperor, who was usually more thoughtful than they were; they just had to follow orders.

Sure enough, Wanli then pointed to the map and explained in detail: "When we relocate people, we must consider not only development but also demand."

As you can see, there are practically no people in the vast area north of the Nurgan Regional Military Commission now, and we still need to take over the Siberian Khanate occupied by the Russian Empire.

Our victory over the Khanate of Siberia is almost our last battle in expanding our territory. Just as a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit, we must go all out in this final battle to avoid any unexpected events.

The combined land and naval forces mobilized will likely exceed one million, while transporting grain by water will take more than 20,000 li.

In other words, if we choose to transport grain from the south of Nurgan Regional Military Commission, even the 1,800 unarmored and unarmored Weiyuan warships would not be enough to supply the grain needs of over a million men.

However, the transport capacity of the shuttle ships and flying dragon ships is nowhere near that of the Weiyuan warships. At that time, most of our shuttle ships and flying dragon ships will probably have to be transferred there to transport grain, which is a huge waste of transport capacity.

Therefore, we need to consider growing food there.

I have already ordered people to investigate this carefully. The only place in this area where grain can be grown is the area around Beihai.

Moreover, in order to facilitate the transportation of grain, we can only cultivate land north of the North Sea, along the banks of the Tonggus River, a tributary of the Yeni River, so that we can transport grain via the Yeni River.

If we take into account the food supply of ordinary people, we would have to relocate at least a million people to clear over a thousand acres of land just to barely feed a million people.

It's too troublesome to transport people across this area by naval ships; it's much more convenient to transport people by train.

Now our trains have reached Suyab, south of the North Sea. We can take people there first, open a mountain pass, and then use horse-drawn carriages to transport them directly.

"One yuan, and the transportation of these millions of people is entrusted to you."

Upon hearing this, Dong Yiyuan quickly cupped his hands and said, "This humble general obeys the order."

Wanli then pointed to the map and carefully instructed, "You should go and recruit the common people in the northern part of Shanxi, where there is no waterway."

The Beihai area is still under lockdown, and northern Shanxi is also experiencing a severe drought, leaving most people with no land to cultivate. You could gather the local people in this area at the railway stations along the railway line.

I'll send you a hundred trains. Once the lockdown in Beihai is lifted, bring people over there. Make sure to get everyone there this year, and build winter housing. Next year, we'll start clearing land and planting crops there.

Next year, I will send another 100,000 garrison troops there. You also need to build a railway there, so that it will be accessible by both land and water. This will not only make it easier to attack the Siberian Khanate, but also allow us to develop the Yeni River basin.”

Upon hearing this, Dong Yiyuan nodded repeatedly and said, "This subordinate understands."

Wanli then pointed to the map and explained in detail: "There are also the Eastern Ocean Commandery and the North American Western Commandery. At this time, the Japanese slaves make up the vast majority of these two commanderies."

This definitely won't work. We need to transfer some of the Japanese soldiers from these two military commands to the East Commandery in North America to mine coal.

At the same time, it is also necessary to relocate about one million households, approximately four to five million people, to the Eastern Pacific Commandery, the Western North American Commandery, and the Eastern North American Commandery to farm.

There's also the Southeast Regional Military Commission, which is almost entirely inhabited by the original inhabitants of the Three Xuan and Six Wei regions. We also need to relocate over a million households, approximately four to five million people, there.

The four military commanders are not in a hurry. The key issue now is the Nanyang Military Command and the vast islands to the south, all the way to Fangzhang Island. The arable land on those islands is at least two to three billion mu.

So far, we have only transferred less than three million people from two border towns, and the cultivated land is less than one-tenth of the total area.

Especially Fangzhang Island, with its vast land, sparse population, pleasant climate, and abundant mineral resources, we must develop it as soon as possible. I plan to relocate the remaining six million households and over twenty million people to the area south of Luzon for development. What do you think?

What opinions could we possibly have?

You have the final say, so we'll just listen to you.

Everyone nodded slowly, without offering any opinions.

Seeing this, Wanli simply asked, "Kemai, how many ships have you gathered under your command?"

Yu Zigao hurriedly explained in detail: "Your Majesty, I originally had 1,800 Weiyuan warships, 1,000 Flying Dragon ships, and 4,000 Flying Shuttle ships under my command, all of which were not equipped with armor or cannons."

In the past year, all six hundred Weiyuan warships and twelve hundred Feilong ships built by the Longjiangzhou Shipyard and Xinzhou Shipyard in Southern Zhili have been transferred to my command.

Wanli nodded slightly, then estimated, "This Weiyuan warship, which is not equipped with armor or cannons, can carry three thousand men, women, and children."

A single Flying Dragon ship could carry over a thousand people and its speed could match that of the Weiyuan warship and the Flying Shuttle.

The Weiyuan warship, equipped with armor and cannons, could also carry thousands of men, women, and children.

The shuttle boats have limited carrying capacity; for such a long distance, a single shuttle boat can only carry a maximum of fifty or sixty people, including men, women, and children.

Based on this calculation, your ships can carry at least two million people on a single trip.

Let's say two million, and use the remaining transport capacity to haul food and fresh water.

Yu Zigao nodded repeatedly and said, "This subordinate understands."

Wanli then pointed to the map and explained in detail: "First, transport the disaster victims who are more severely affected along the Yellow River. The first trip should transport about 1.8 million."

"I will accompany you on this trip to send Zhi'er to his fiefdom, and we'll also visit Fangzhang Island. You must also take 100,000 Shenwu Camp soldiers and their warhorses with you."

Yu Zigao nodded repeatedly and said, "This subordinate understands."

Wanli then instructed, "Bangping, you lead your 100,000 Shenwu Camp soldiers to accompany me to send Zhier off. We will set off once we have gathered enough people from Kemai's side."

Upon hearing this, Qin Bangping nodded repeatedly and said, "This subordinate understands."

Wanli thought for a moment, then pointed to the map and instructed, "Yu Ye, send your subordinates to these prefectures that are far from the banks of the Yellow River to organize the disaster victims to gather at the docks on both sides of the Yellow River."

Remember, start from the worst-affected areas and make sure they have enough food along the way.

Upon hearing this, Li Hualong nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, I understand."

Wanli thought about it carefully again before waving his hand and saying, "Alright, everyone go and make your preparations."

Everyone hurriedly bowed and took their leave.

After all the civil and military officials had left, Crown Prince Zhu Changxun cautiously asked, "Father, how long will you be gone this time?"

Emperor Wanli pondered, “The distance south of Luzon is too far; it would take our ships more than a month or even two months to make a round trip.”

This time, we are migrating a large number of people, and the Kemai fleet will need to make at least ten trips, which will take about ten to twenty months.

Father estimates that we'll probably be staying there for about two years this time.

what?
This time it will be about two years again!

Upon hearing this, Crown Prince Zhu Changxun said with a bitter face, "Father, are you going to leave your son to oversee the country again?"

Wanli nodded slightly and said, "You did a good job as regent. Even with such a great natural disaster, you didn't let a single victim go hungry."

Your father must help you develop and govern the overseas territories so that the Ming Dynasty will become stronger and stronger. Do you understand?

"You should focus on domestic affairs for the next few years, while your father takes care of foreign affairs. We'll discuss other matters once the overseas territories have been developed."

When will we have to go?
Upon hearing this, Crown Prince Zhu Changxun couldn't help but sigh slightly and said, "Father, when will I be able to go out for a stroll?"

Do you still want to play?
Wanli thought for a moment, then smiled slightly and said, "Then hurry up and give birth to a grandson. When the grandson grows up and can oversee the country, you can go out and travel with your father."

what?
Doesn't that mean we'll have to wait more than ten years?

(End of this chapter)