First Prince of Ming Dynasty

In the summer of the eighth year of Hongwu, the Marquis of Jiangyin, who had gone out to sea, finally returned with his fleet. The emperor ordered civil and military officials from the coastal areas to meet him at sea, and Marquis Jinghai led the navy to guard him.

Marquis Jiangyin's trip has gone through many hardships. Due to natural disasters, man-made disasters, military difficulties, illnesses, etc., thousands of people have been lost, including himself, who once developed a high fever after being assassinated in a small country, and almost died in a foreign land.

Wu Liang, Marquis of Jiangyin, surrounded by a crowd of civil and military men, slowly stepped down from the deck, and when he stepped on the land, he finally couldn't help but burst into tears.

Slowly knelt down and picked up the sand, kowtowed first to the capital, and then to his ancestral grave, weeping uncontrollably.

On the fleet, flags were rustling, gongs and drums were ringing, lion dances were performed on the shore, and ocean-going soldiers were rejoicing and clamoring. Many took off their clothes and waved shirtless to echo, but most of them covered their faces and wept.

There are so many hardships, but now I want to tell others, but I am speechless in the end. In the end, I just murmured: "I'm back, I can go home."

………

"Xuan, the Marquis of Jiangyin will see you!"

Wu Liang, whose face was covered with wind and frost, and whose hair was a little gray on the temples, wore a new court uniform and a crown, and walked into the Fengtian Hall with jade kui in his hands.

Today's court meeting was almost specially set up for Wu Liang alone, and the Wu Ying Hall had already started to arrange a banquet. When his report was over, the banquet would begin, which showed the joy of the Holy Majesty.

"Wu Liang, Marquis of Jiangyin, my minister, was ordered to go overseas for more than two years. He passed through 48 countries including Champa, Java, Chenla, Old Port, Siam, and Guli. All countries must follow the law and order, do not violate the law, do not bully the few, do not bully the weak, if there is dissatisfaction, then show off your force to frighten them, so no one dares to disobey any order!"

"To make the barbarian countries afraid of prestige and morality, so they awarded the Chinese Zhengshuo, promoted culture and education, and served the voice of the emperor, and it was connected to the outside world. The sea lanes were thus cleared, and the people depended on it for their livelihoods. Order them to prepare products for trade!"

"Returning today, seeing the return of orders, sincerely receiving the protection of the emperor, and the care of the prince, I was able to accomplish things smoothly. A man who works hard is far away, and a gentleman does not take it. He does not run out of soldiers and people, and the civilization of etiquette and music is brilliant in foreign lands. , so that under the bright sky, there is nothing that is not free from virtue, it is not my emperor's heaven and earth!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was delighted with the dragon's heart, and Zhu Biaoli held an imperial edict in Danbi and declared: "The virtuous and handsome man helped the salty and strengthened his wings. He was ordered to drive the sea into the Western Ocean, enfeoffed the kingdoms of the barbarians, and made tribute to the Southwest Sea Road. The merits of his writings are a testament to your loyalty and respect. I am very happy... All the affairs of the Western countries are entrusted to you, but your confidant, wisdom, and old age are old people, so that you can bear the weight of my entrustment, so you should be careful."

"Wu Liangte, the Marquis of Jiangyin, was granted the title of Doctor Jin Guanglu, Shangzhu Kingdom, and the commander of the Central Army of the Metropolitan Government, in charge of ocean affairs. He was promoted to the Duke of Haiguo, and he was given five thousand stones for food. The doctor, the acquaintance with the affairs of the governor's office, Zhu Guo, and another reward...

"My minister bows down to thank you for your grace, long live my emperor!" Hai Guogong Wu Liang thanked him with red eyes.

Afterwards, the envoys from the forty-eight countries came to see them in strange costumes. Some of them were blond, blue-eyed, red-haired, blue-eyed, or as black as charcoal. Many civil and military officials saw foreigners for the first time.

All the envoys held tribute offerings, including frankincense, dried blood, aloe vera, myrrh, rest, storax oil, beetse, figs, lettuce, pumpkin, loofah, watermelon, bitter melon, melon, pistachio nuts, walnuts, and sunflowers. , corn, tomato, sesame, potato, peanut and other crops, as well as spices such as sumac and pepper, and green materials such as sumac and green.

There are more rare jewels, such as rubies, sapphires, emeralds, aventurines, pearls, crystals and turquoises, large cat's eye stones, rare treasures such as elegant aunts of various colors, red coral trees, etc.

Outside the Wuying Hall, there are caged rhinos, six-legged turtles, zebras, yellow and black tigers, camels, black bears, black apes, white deer, lions, leopards and other animals that are not suitable for entering the hall.

There are 1,327 kinds of these things alone, and it took 234 ships to bring them back. The ones presented to the court are only small and portable.

All the ministers whispered in praise: "Today I know that the universe is vast and the world is boundless, and the world is full of wonders."

"The spiritual thing hidden in the mountains and the sea, the treasure of the deep sand and the land".

"That's right, gold, silver and jewelry are all that matters. Those crops and livestock may be beneficial to people's livelihood."

"The princes of the four barbarians hold their treasures and present their treasures, and look at each other. On the day of the banquet, there will be a day of dancing, and there will be a sigh in the court. The hall of translation is full of emperors, and it is magnificent! "

There is also a censor who said: "Although Xuanwei's prestige in foreign lands and popularization in Nanyang is unprecedented in previous generations, it is not too much to bully barbarians and desecrate the national system with the respect of the Celestial Dynasty. ..."

The emperor waved his hand to stop after listening halfway, and the censor also knew that this was not a good time for persuasion, so he sighed.

"Give a banquet to the Hall of Martial Heroes!"

"My emperor is holy!"

The civil and military officials and the ignorant foreign envoys were invited to the Wuying Hall, while the emperor and the prince moved to the Huagai Hall to change clothes. On the way, the emperor ordered: "Put the tribute carefully into the warehouse."

Zhu Biao persuaded: "Father, Beijing has not been lively for a long time, why not put these rare treasures outside the palace gate, let the people watch and have fun with the people."

"Haha, that's fine, just do what the prince says."

"No." The eunuchs following behind promised and went to make arrangements.

Zhu Biao couldn't stop smiling at this moment. In fact, almost all the crops he wanted were obtained. Although they still needed to be carefully cultivated, improved and selected, they were finally available.

And placing these treasures outside the palace is to let the people know that there are so many rare treasures overseas, and they can be rich if you get them.

After changing clothes, outside the Hall of Martial Arts, many civil and military officials gathered to watch. The Minister of the Ministry of Officials sighed and said: "The rare treasures of different places, such as lions, rhinos, celestial horses, divine deer, white elephants, and turkeys, are all salty and rich. , the emperor takes pleasure in it!"

Zhu Yuanzhang also looked around with great interest, pointing to a certain animal from time to time to ask questions, and some officials who went to sea with Wu Liang were responsible for answering and explaining its habits.

Seeing that there was finally a tall cage covered with a colored cloth, Zhu Yuanzhang asked, "Why, can't you see the light inside?"

The official said excitedly: "Your Majesty, there is nothing more precious than this. This is a tribute from the king of Malin Kingdom. It is called Jilin, and it varies from god to god."

The Minister of Rites asked in amazement: "Kirin! Is it a blessing and auspicious beast of fortune and auspiciousness?"

After finishing speaking, he was about to kneel down to congratulate Lao Zhu. Zhu Biao had already guessed what it was and hurriedly stopped him. The rest of the officials who wanted to congratulate him all stopped when they saw this.

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't quite believe what he said, but he just ordered people to lift the colored cloth, and a beast was revealed, which made everyone frown. miraculous.

But there are always officials who like to write essays saying: "Writing is brilliant, red clouds and purple mist, toes do not touch things, you must choose the soil when you travel, relax and slow, move according to the rules, listen to its harmony, the sound is in harmony with Zhong Lu, benevolent and beasts , once encountered in ancient times, according to its spirit, ascended to the palace of heaven."

"This beast comes from the owl of the southwest and the margin of the sea. It is also called Qilin, and it is the auspiciousness of the country!"

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't respond, and he was a little entangled in his heart. No matter whether this thing is a real auspicious animal or not, it can always appease the hearts of the people.

Zhu Biao tugged his father's sleeve slightly, shook his head slightly when he looked sideways, and then looked at Guo Chong, Li Jin and others on the outermost side.

Guo Chong reacted the fastest and was the most knowledgeable, and immediately said: "According to the "Rui Ying Tu", the unicorn has a sheep's head, a wolf's hooves, a round top, five colors on its body, and a height of one foot and two feet. The godless aura, I'm afraid it's not a unicorn."

Some officials retorted: "The tangerines grown in Huainan are oranges, and those born in Huaibei are trifoliate oranges. Although the unicorn is a mythical beast, it wanders in barbarian lands and has no Chinese seedlings to support it. Naturally, it is different from ordinary races."

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't bother to listen to their quarrel, and it happened that this "unicorn" pulled a lump, so he said disgustedly: "This beast looks like a deer, but with a long neck, it can be called a giraffe. How can it come out of the barbarians overseas?" Auspicious animal.

"The Holy One clearly judges that the Lin Ke is tied to it. It is different from dogs and sheep. This is definitely not my Chinese mythical beast."

"Lin is a sign of the spirit. It is chanted in poems, written in the Spring and Autumn Period, and mixed in biographies of hundreds of schools. Even women and children know it as auspicious."

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