Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

"Your Majesty, no!"

Xia Yuanji, the Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, who was wearing a silk robe and a jade belt tied around his waist, resolutely stepped out and spoke generously.

"The country has been through war and the people's livelihood has been in ruins. It is the time to make a living with the people. Disaster relief, reconstruction, and accommodation of refugees all cost money. The thirteen chief envoys of the Ming Dynasty had an annual income of only 15 million dan. Now, Your Majesty has allocated one million stones to reward the vassals, but the Ministry of Revenue does not have the money!"

Xia Yuanji held his head high, ready to face Zhu Di Longyan's rage.

But something was beyond his expectation. Zhu Di's expression was very calm. He was not angry because of his blunt remonstrance, nor was he the kind of calm that concealed murderous intent.

"Xia Shangshu is loyal to the country and gives him a Qilin suit and ten silver coins in Ba Si Ba text."

Xia Yuanji was the first to go through the thunder, and many civil servants saw that the emperor was not angry, so they all complained.

Among them are nothing more than the rhetoric that the national finances are tight and the ancestral laws cannot be abolished.

After Zhu Di listened patiently, he motioned for the ministers to sit down and said: "I know Xia Shangshu's concerns, but this matter has to change Taizu's old system. As for why, you may wish to take a look."

Later, the eunuch spread a huge checkerboard-shaped carpet on the open space during the banquet.

The palace maids in elegant clothes held boxes of chess pieces and placed them on the carpet in an orderly manner.

When a chess piece was placed on the first square, the officials did not take it seriously.

As more and more chess pieces were placed, some smart people finally realized why Zhu Di said these words.

First came Xia Yuanji, the Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, who was best at magic and numbers, then Yang Rong, Yang Shiqi, and Xie Jin.

The ministers began to whisper among themselves, and those who understood suddenly realized, while those who did not understood scratched their heads and tried their best to inquire.

Zhu Di gave a slight signal, and "Prime Minister in Black" Dao Yan stood up to explain to the ministers.

"If the old Taizu system is not changed, the Ming Dynasty clan will have hundreds of thousands or millions of people in the ninth generation. By then, the country will have to spend more than one million dan!"

All the ministers were silent and shocked!

The vassals are even more worried about the possibility that their descendants will end up in a miserable situation of having no food and clothing because the national finances cannot afford it and they themselves have no ability to make a living.

Zhu Di looked at these shocked ministers with satisfaction.

Thinking back to the beginning, he was equally shocked by Jiang Xinghuo.

Thirty years in Hedong and thirty years in Hexi. It’s your turn.

Zhu Di's eyes fell on Xia Yuanji, the Minister of Household Affairs. Xia Yuanji suddenly felt that the emperor seemed to be waiting for him. Objection?

Xia Yuanji bit the bullet and said, "Your Majesty has your reasons, but after all, this is something that will happen in the future, and the country cannot afford this money now."

Zhu Di seemed to be waiting for his words.

Hearing this, Zhu Di smiled slightly.

"I know that the country is in difficulty, but the second child also proposed an idea that can improve the country's financial predicament. I also think it is feasible. You may wish to listen to it again."

When they heard that Emperor Yongle planned to lift the sea ban, and that the emperor, the clan, and nobles would jointly finance the voyage to the West for overseas trade, the vassals and nobles and military ministers present immediately became excited.

Qiu Fu, a veteran of the Yan Army and the leader of the military generals, who was in his sixties, stood up and took the lead in supporting.

"Qiu Fu, Duke of Chenqi, is willing to donate 20,000 stones!"

Cao Guogong Li Jinglong's status was awkward, and he was not far behind at this time. This handsome middle-aged man shocked the whole audience when he made a move.

"My minister Cao Guogong Li Jinglong is willing to donate twenty-five thousand taels of silver!"

Even the eldest prince Zhu Gaochi, who had been listening silently, couldn't help but clicked his tongue when he heard this.

One tael of silver can buy two stones of rice. Duke Cao Guo is really rich.

"My younger brother, King Zhou Zhu, is willing to offer thirty thousand taels of silver!"

In almost as little time as a cup of tea, the clan nobles present gathered together more than two million dan to start up the maritime trade.

Crowdfunding for overseas voyages is a yes.

"Xia Shangshu, what do you think? The Ministry of Revenue first distributes this year's 'year-end reward package' to me. This money is considered to be borrowed from the Ministry of Revenue on behalf of the clan. Within three years, I will be able to completely solve the country's financial difficulties!"

With Xia Yuanji's consent, Zhu Di achieved all his goals.

He forced the vassals to return the three guards and horses, reestablished the clan support system, promised "year-end reward packages", and raised funds to start the voyage to the West.

Zhu Di looked at the scene in front of him, and then recalled what Jiang Xinghuo said. It was not bad at all.

Zhu Di was deeply impressed again.

Jiang Xinghuo is a genius in the world!

The Mid-Autumn Festival banquet can be described as a feast for the host and guest.

The drunken eldest prince Zhu Gaochi was carried into a carriage by several personal eunuchs and sent back to the palace.

Back at the palace, Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Xie Jin, the three talents who accompanied Zhu Di to Nanjing, became supporters of the eldest prince Zhu Gaochi, and were elected to the Wenyuan Pavilion, were already waiting in the inner hall.

Zhu Gaochi washed his face and sat in the main seat, his eyes clear and not drunk at all.

And just when Yang Shiqi was about to close the door with his own hands, a small figure suddenly rushed in.

"Son, let's go to your mother's concubine."

Zhu Gaochi looked at the panting Zhu Zhanji and ordered kindly.

"My son has something important to report! Ugh."

Xie Jin looked at the child in front of him and wanted to laugh. What could the emperor's eldest grandson have to do? Didn't he eat enough cakes at the banquet?

Yang Rong suddenly frowned when he recalled the scene at the banquet where the emperor's eldest grandson had been immersed in the rice and eating cakes in the queen's arms.

"Father, my son heard that his third uncle told Grandpa Huang personally that his second uncle was in prison and eating mooncakes with 'Jiang Xinghuo'."

"Grandpa Huang also asked how 'Jiang Xinghuo' was doing and whether he had eaten mooncakes."

Everyone looked confused, no one knew who Jiang Xinghuo was.

Zhu Gaochi took a deep look at his young son, struggled to move his fat body, and even bent down and stroked his son's head.

"You have been eating cakes in Grandma Huang's arms just now. Do you want to hear more news for your father?"

"Son, father hopes that you will not get involved in these things, okay?"

"Ugh," Zhu Zhanji retched, but said firmly, "How can the eggs be intact when the nest is overturned?"

As soon as these words came out, Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Xie Jin couldn't help but stand in awe.

Zhu Gaochi took his son out with his own hands, handed him to the maid, and then returned to the inner hall.

Jie Jin also talked about what he saw and heard at Datianjie Temple yesterday. Not only did he talk about the sequelae of the vassal reduction proposed by Zhu Di and his euphemistic advice, when he said that when he left Datianjie Temple, he saw Ji Gang leaving the prison. When the direction came in a hurry, everyone fell silent.

"Your Highness, the second prince will never be so wise. I thought it was Master Daoyan who said it through the mouth of the second prince."

"This memorial was not the second prince's idea at all!"

"Fortunately, His Highness did not speak. Otherwise, I am afraid that His Highness's prestige will be hit once this plan comes out."

Zhu Gaochi smiled bitterly, rubbed his fat face and said helplessly.

"It seems that the second son did get some advice from an expert in the prison. You may not know that, in addition to how to reduce the vassal, my father also left two questions for me. These two questions are probably the same as those left by the expert in the prison. Down."

After listening to the two questions left by Jiang Xinghuo, Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Xie Jin fell into deep thought at the same time.

Yang Rong, who had been silent for a long time, sighed.

"To be able to raise this kind of question and seem to have already come to a conclusion, this person named 'Jiang Xinghuo' is probably already a scholar of heaven!"