Zhu Yuanzhang, who commanded the wind and rain, lived a long and arduous life.

Fu Youwen did a quick calculation and realized that if the imperial court had allocated funds for disaster relief as normal, the amount would likely have been much greater than the losses incurred.

why?

The price was twenty coins in the market, but the imperial court offered it for fifteen coins, which the common people considered a great favor.

Fifteen coins—even the poorest family could buy a pound and use it sparingly to get through most of the winter!

This is truly a beneficial act for the people!

At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang changed his previous image and took special care of Tianyun Temple.

Fu Youwen had a vague guess: Could there be a member of the Zhu family at Tianyun Temple? Or perhaps a highly skilled person there?

He guessed that the old man had been advised by a master after dealing with matters such as commercial taxes, and perhaps... this master was in Tianyun Temple.

They're either members of the Zhu family or a highly skilled person who gave them guidance.

Only if there are these two possibilities will the old man give special attention to Tianyun Temple.

Fu Youwen regained his composure and said to Zhu Yuanzhang with heartfelt admiration, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Zhan Hui also understood and followed suit, saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"

The two spoke from the heart, without any pretense.

The old man truly treated the people as his own children. It was a blessing for the Ming Dynasty and the Han people to have such an emperor!

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Alright, let's have my eldest grandson go and talk to him."

Of course, there was one more thing Zhu Yuanzhang didn't mention: the national treasury was short of silver, and he couldn't come up with 60,000 taels all at once.

However, he could use his father's smokeless coal to make money first. The court would only need to subsidize five coins per pound and give the difference to Tianyun Temple.

This would perfectly solve the problem of insufficient funds in the national treasury!

Tsk tsk.

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled.

.

…….….….….….

The next day.

In the afternoon, Yingtian Street was bustling with passersby. After the snow stopped, the people exuded a strong sense of vitality.

The streets of Yingtianfu were bustling with people, with all sorts of merchants, laborers, monks, Taoists, and travelers moving about in the prosperous capital.

Gradually, the shouts of vendors, the quarrels of neighbors, the laughter of children, the neighing of cattle and camels, the galloping of horses and other sounds collided together, forming a vivid picture of life in the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

Yingtianfu was the capital of the Ming Dynasty and a trading center for various foreign countries. It was a very inclusive city and a capital city full of business opportunities.

Today, Yingtian Prefecture has an unusually large population, with people crowding the streets, creating a very dense and bustling scene.

Zhu Yuanzhang made a special trip out of the palace today, and even brought Zhu Xiong Ying with him, to the vicinity of Dinghuai Gate.

"Grandpa, I'm going to cultivate with my master. Why did you bring me here?"

Zhu Xiong Ying was somewhat dissatisfied.

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed angrily, "You brat, can't I even take up a little of your time?"

"Anyway... don't worry, we wouldn't dare compete with your master for your time. Just stay with us for a while, then you can go over. It won't take up too much of your time."

With Zhu Yuanzhang's words, Zhu Xiong Ying was finally relieved.

He wouldn't have been in such a rush before, but he's made some progress in his cultivation recently.

His master also said that he had made some progress and could faintly touch the barrier between mortals and immortals in the cultivation of immortality, reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm.

now.

Zhu Yuanzhang told Zhu Xiong Ying to stay where he was for a while, then went to the city gate and said a few words before walking over with his hands behind his back.

“Let’s go, you and I, to the city gate.”

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded and followed behind Zhu Yuan Zhang.

However, once Zhu Xiong Ying entered the city gate, he felt that something was strange about it.

The crowd here seemed tense and solemn.

Zhu Xiong Ying scratched his head, still not understanding why.

Before long, the old man turned to the stunned Zhu Xiong Ying and said, "What are you standing there for? Come in!"

There were special castles above the city gates, some of which served as command posts, while others were warehouses for storing weapons.

Zhu Xiong Ying followed the old man into the command post.

Inside, someone was already by the window, setting up tables, chairs, and tea.

The windows were made of wood, presumably to facilitate commanding battles and prevent bullets from entering.

Zhu Yuanzhang pushed open the wooden window, and below, more and more people approached Dinghuai Gate, densely packed together, their heads thronging together.

Every face of the people was beaming with smiles, and gradually, the place became bustling with noise.

At the city gate, soldiers were maintaining order.

The people spontaneously formed a long queue.

"Sir, when will it go on sale?"

"That's right! We came to line up as soon as we heard the news."

"Is the imperial court really selling smokeless coal for fifteen coins a pound?"

Zhu Xiong Ying listened to the discussion among the people below and glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang with some surprise.

"Grandpa, you only learned about smokeless coal yesterday. How come everyone knows about it so soon?"

Zhu Xiong Ying couldn't help but sigh. It had only been about a day since her grandfather learned about smokeless coal, but the general public already knew almost everything about it.

In other words, Zhu Yuanzhang did a lot of things that day.

The process involved informing the people that the imperial court was selling off anthracite coal at a low price, ordering the court to purchase the coal, and then arranging for soldiers to transport the anthracite coal from Woniu Mountain. All of this required a significant amount of manpower and resources to mobilize.

Zhu Yuanzhang achieved such high efficiency in just one day, how could Zhu Xiong Ying not be surprised?

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "This is a matter that will benefit all the people of the world, how can we not be cautious? All of this was arranged yesterday morning."

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded.

Just as I was about to say something more, I heard a soldier below announce, "The government's smokeless coal is now on sale!"

After he finished speaking, the soldier was about to clear his throat and continue with some official remarks when he heard a loud bang.

The crowd surged forward like a flood bursting its banks.

Caught off guard, several soldiers were nearly swept into the crowd.

The crowd surged to the city gate, countless people holding up gleaming silver and copper coins, shouting with ferocious expressions.

"I want it, I want ten pounds!"

"I want 100 jin!"

"Don't push, there's enough for everyone!"

“….”

The shouts below created a chaotic mess.

Zhu Xiong Ying looked downstairs and saw countless people, their faces bearing the most sincere smiles.

"it is good!"

"The imperial court is good!"

"Old Master Hongwu was so kind!"

"This stuff is good, it costs fifteen coins a pound. It's enough to get us through the winter."

“….”

Those who bought the smokeless coal were full of praise.

"Of course I have to say it! Hello, Grandpa Hongwu! But the person who produced this smokeless coal is also our great benefactor."

"Yes, my benefactor!"

"I just don't know who it is."

"Whoever it is, we are sincerely grateful to him. Our child was just born, and we were so worried that he would get sick from the cold. Thanks to this smokeless coal..."

“….”

Zhu Xiong Ying listened attentively.

These people used to not have the money to buy charcoal, but the advent of smokeless coal has allowed them to stay warm during the winter.

All of this is thanks to Master.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Xiong Ying as if nothing had happened, casually sipped his tea, and asked, "How does it feel?"

Zhu Xiong Ying blushed and hesitated for a long time before saying, "Grandpa, I feel a little ashamed."

Why feel ashamed?

Zhu Xiong Ying began, "Hearing them express their gratitude, well, let's just say they're grateful, but we still clearly made a lot of money off them..."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily: "Don't be ashamed. They'll complain about things that are given away for free. If you add a little money and sell them to them again, they'll remember your kindness."

"In any case, the gratitude these people have for us is genuine and heartfelt, and there is no mistake about it."

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded.

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "So many people live because of us, and also because of your master's smokeless coal. Doesn't that seem quite mysterious?"

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded heavily: "Yes! It's like... it's like we control all living beings and have to be responsible for their lives and deaths, but we also feel a lot of pressure for no reason."

Zhu Yuanzhang said earnestly, "Perhaps this is the meaning of governing the people. Their gratitude will give you a great sense of accomplishment."

"We've all come from a poor background..."

Zhu Xiong Ying smiled and said, "We can't let the people down, right?"

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily: "You little rascal, we haven't even said anything yet, and you've already picked up where we left off?"

Zhu Xiong Ying said, "Isn't this what you always teach me? I'm tired of hearing it."

"Listen to this, and carry it out!"

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded, then suddenly said solemnly to Zhu Yuan Zhang, "When I have this ability one day, I will certainly live up to your teachings. I promise!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, feeling gratified.

"Alright, there's one more thing. We've sent people to Shanxi, but it will take some time for them to arrive and begin mining. In the meantime, we hope that your master's anthracite coal will only be sold to the imperial court. You should tell your master and ask him what he thinks. Is that possible?"

Zhu Yuanzhang revealed his true purpose for today.

Zhu Xiong Ying paused for a moment, then her expression turned serious: "Grandpa, I promise to convey the message! Even if Master disagrees, I will try to persuade him. Master is easily swayed, so maybe I can convince him."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Good child, I'm entrusting this to you. But don't feel too much pressure. Your master has helped our Zhu family a lot. Whether he agrees or not doesn't matter. We have other ways to deal with this."

After staying for a while, Zhu Xiong Ying bid farewell to Zhu Yuan Zhang and headed to Tianyun Temple.

….….….….….…

Zhou family.

The baskets of smokeless coal were burning brightly inside the guardhouse, making it much warmer.

A group of Zhou family members leisurely drank tea and chatted casually.

"This smokeless coal is really good stuff."

"But can I not say it? Selling it so cheaply, it's definitely something that benefits the country and its people."

"I don't know who came up with this, but I heard that the old man had the imperial court buy up large quantities of anthracite from Southern Zhili, and now they're selling it off cheaply in the market."

"Tsk, no matter who came up with this, it's a benevolent act that benefits the people and brings good fortune to all!"

“….”

As the group was talking, a servant quietly came over and whispered something to Zhou Dexing and Zhou Ji.

Suddenly,

Both of them suddenly stood up, their eyes wide with disbelief.

"Master, what's wrong?"

"correct."

“….”

The Zhou family was startled.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Dexing took a deep breath and forced a smile, saying, "It's alright, you all stay here. I'm warm enough now, I'll go for a walk."

Zhou Dexing quickly went outside.

Seeing his hurried steps, the Zhou family all knew that something big must have happened.

But apart from Zhou Ji going out, none of the other members of the Zhou family dared to go and ask.

Come outside.

Zhou Ji's eyes were bloodshot: "Father, damn it! This is another good deed done by Tianyun Temple!!"

He was holding a piece of smokeless coal in his hand, and in a fit of rage, he crushed it to dust.

Zhou Dexing was also upset and said angrily, "We've already investigated Woniu Mountain, and there's nothing there."