Chapter 316: Being a co-owner is not that easy

Author: Silent

Chapter 316: Being a co-owner is not that easy

Zhu Youtang celebrated the most meaningful Longevity Festival since he ascended the throne.

Not to mention coming from all over the world, even Huo Si, who was once the arrogant man on the grassland and competed with the little Tatar prince Batu Meng for supremacy, bowed his head and submitted. At the same time, he also received the patrols Wei Ning Hai from Zhang Zhou and Wang Shouren. News about worshiping heaven in Weininghai.

So much so that there began to be a saying around the capital that Zhu Youtang was the most accomplished king in martial arts after Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong of the Ming Dynasty.

If it weren't for the fact that Zhu Youtang couldn't be allowed to surpass the two emperors who had great military prowess in the founding of the country, some people might just say that Zhu Youtang was comparable to the Qin Emperor and the Han Dynasty. This is considered to be relatively restrained.

Of course, Zhu Youtang's desire to be the leader of the world must come at a price.

Those vassal states that came to Beijing to congratulate were all seeking benefits from the Ming Dynasty, especially those from the Fire Sieve... In addition to the more than 10,000 captives who requested the Ming Dynasty to be captured, the Fire Sieve also had nearly 100,000 cattle and sheep. In addition to returning them all, he also proposed to build a city in the Hetao with the Ming Dynasty, and from now on the land of the Hetao would be awarded to him, as well as a large number of silks, tea, ironware, etc.

In fact, he also wanted Ming's artillery technology... Of course, he also knew that he could not gain Ming's complete trust now.

I kept this request in my stomach for now.

Regarding this matter, Zhu Youtang was quite calm.

You have already pretended, even if you want to give some benefits to those vassal countries, there is no need to bleed a lot, just give them some meaning.

Finally, Tang Yin went to the fire sieve to convey the Ming Dynasty's meaning: "...the land of the Hetao was given to you by the Holy Spirit as a temporary shelter because of the plight of your Mongolian tribe with nowhere to graze. The land must belong to the Ming Dynasty. , the city must be built by the people of your tribe themselves, and the city must be built with three tributes in three years."

"If your tribe is invaded, the Ming Dynasty will judge the situation and decide whether to send troops to help. When the Ming Dynasty encounters border invaders, you must also send troops in time. Otherwise, it will be regarded as betrayal. The next time the Ming Dynasty sends troops, your tribe will be completely destroyed. "

"As for your captive tribesmen, part of them will be given back every year in the next five years. They will be given to the old and weak first, and they will be raised by you to fulfill your filial piety, and then the women and children will be given. As for the cattle, horses, camels, sheep, etc., that will all be given to you. It’s a spoil of war from the Ming Dynasty, except for a small part that will be given to you, don’t even think about the rest!”

Huo Si originally thought that he could go back in glory after getting a lot of rewards from Daming.

After listening to Tang Yin's words, he realized that the Ming Dynasty couldn't even call it borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha. It was simply robbing us of things and giving us a little to show the grace and power of the Ming Dynasty.

Compared to the people, animals and property that I took back...how many were plundered?

If you can't give it back to me, then why should I disgrace myself and come to Ming Dynasty to be a submissive citizen? I can just fight with you Ming Dynasty?

Tang Yin finally expressed his sympathy for Huo Si's experience. He said: "The Holy One has been extremely kind to you, but after all, he did not let you move to Guannan. He still gave you enough land and pasture, and promised to send troops as appropriate to protect your safety. , This is a great favor from the Emperor. Go back early after accepting it."

Just say that our Ming Dynasty did not tie them down or kill you all. It is necessary to keep some hostages.

If you want to rebel again... it's up to you.

But next time you may not have to bear the burden of Wang Boan or Zhu Zhijie. If Zhang Banxian comes to you personally, I will ask you if you are afraid of the fire sieve?

…

…

Huo Si received the necessary rewards from Daming and returned to the northwest.

As for the North Korean side, they also got what they wanted, which was to confer the eldest son of Lord Yanshan as the crown prince. This is equivalent to saying that the son of Lord Yanshan has been recognized by the Ming Dynasty. Of course, so far, Li's position as king has also been recognized.

The Ming Dynasty recognized him, and even North Korea regarded him as the master of the Ming Dynasty.

North Korea also had another important purpose, which was to cooperate with Li's "Western Expedition".

In May of the twelfth year of Hongzhi, the Jianzhou Jurchens invaded North Korea and kidnapped a large number of people. Li followed the advice of the hardline minister Li Kejun and decided to personally conquer the Jianzhou Jurchens, with Cheng Jun as the capital marshal and Li Kejun as the deputy marshal. The troops also began

The preparations were due to drought in the territory and the decline in national strength, so the expedition was postponed until the thirteenth year of Hongzhi.

And in the first month of the thirteenth year of Hongzhi, Li ordered the cancellation of the Western Expedition.

Later, the Korean monarchs and ministers discussed building the Great Wall on Ping'an Road to protect against Jurchens, but failed due to various difficulties.

This time Jin Shoutong came to the Ming Dynasty as an envoy to win the legal support of the Ming Dynasty for North Korea's western expedition. After all, Jianzhou Jurchen was also a vassal of the Ming Dynasty in name.

In this regard, Daming's opinion is... don't ask.

This was also the Ming Dynasty's consistent approach to treating the northern Diyi in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. It was not about favoring anyone, but when the two sides did not help each other, it was best to watch your dogs bite dogs and both sides would suffer. Unless there was an invasion by foreign enemies, such as during the Wanli period, the two Ming Dynasties

He sent troops to North Korea in the name of the suzerain country for the first time and helped North Korea defeat the Japanese invading troops twice. This is all a story later.

…

…

August has arrived in the blink of an eye.

Zhang Zhou lived a happy life in the northwest. Basically, the Ming Dynasty's frontier troops were able to complete daily patrols within a hundred miles north of the border pass.

It didn't even reach 100 miles, but now it can reach 200 to 400 to 500 miles.

The Tatar interior seemed to have calmed down for a while.

Dayan Khan once tried to submit a petition asking for continued tribute and trade with the Ming Dynasty, but Zhu Youtang clearly refused.

As for Zhang Zhou's mining in the northwest, the progress is also very fast. In addition to the coal mines in Shanxi that have begun production, the iron mines north of Zhangjiakou Fort have also begun to be mined. In addition to farming, all the northwest areas of the Ming Dynasty are focused on production and smelting.

From the capital of the Ming Dynasty to Xishan, to Zhangjiakou in the Xuanfu, and then to Datong, Shanxi... an industrial chain was formed along the way.

However, Zhang Zhou was still dissatisfied with the quality of the northwest iron mines. He had already informed Zhu Youtang that he was preparing to open up a new iron mine around Tangshan in later generations, which is now around Yongping Prefecture in Beizhili.

And in the capital.

Zhu Youtang seems to be in poor health recently...

I didn't go to court for several days.

It's not that he was really sick, but that he gradually began to slack off in court affairs. Sometimes he would not go to court if he felt slightly unwell. This was also Zhu Youtang's lazy mentality in the middle and late periods of his reign. Historically,

He started around the 14th year of Hongzhi and often did not attend court meetings.

But because Zhang Zhou was here, he felt as if he didn't need to do everything himself, which was why he had this mentality.

The ministers felt that this was because of an awesome "birthday party" that made the emperor's heart empty. The emperor of the Ming Dynasty thought that he was the Mingjun and the holy master, and was the inevitable result of flattering him too much.

…

…

But it was at this time that a "preface" from the north made Zhu Youtang regain his composure. However, because he told outsiders that he was sick, he did not hold a court meeting. He just took advantage of noon to ask a few people from the court to The important ministers went to the Qianqing Palace together and held an inner court meeting in the Qianqing Palace.

The ministers who were summoned included, in addition to the three cabinet ministers, six ministers, the censor of Zuodu, and Wang Hao, a Hanlin scholar in charge of the academy.

Wu Xun summoned no one. Obviously, this matter involved decision-making.

The four eunuchs, the Superintendent of Ceremonies, are all here.

After several ministers arrived, after a brief greeting, Zhu Youtang had someone give them a seat, and at the same time distributed a "memorial" transcribed in multiple copies to each attending minister.

After the minister saw it, he realized that the situation was a bit unusual.

"Ahem." Zhu Youtang coughed twice, setting the tone for this inner court meeting. "The three guards of Duoyan, said to be the little Tatar prince Batu Mengke, led 200,000 troops to the north of Jiliao to annex They. So they petitioned the country to send troops. Ahem."

The emperor still looked very weak.

Whether he was really ill or not, the ministers present did not care. Anyway, the emperor was in good spirits and spoke with great energy.

Li Dongyang said: "This is a good thing, it is because the effect of the fire sifting tower appears."

Several people present were surprised.

At this time, the emperor's heart has become empty. You, Li Dongyang, are actually helping to flatter the emperor? Or are you planning to take a big breath and say something depressing after you say the words of praise, and pour a basin of cold water on the emperor's head?

Unexpectedly... Li Dongyang finished what he said without saying anything else.

This made the ministers present even more incredible.

According to their thinking, the current attitude of the cabinet should be... Your Majesty, this is the consequence of the fire filtering into the capital. Look, those grassland tribes have taken the Ming Dynasty as their scapegoat! Let the Ming Dynasty send troops if there is any trouble!

"Yes." Zhu Youtang was very satisfied with Li Dongyang's statement. He nodded and said, "Dear ministers, do you think the Ming Dynasty should send troops at this time?"

The ministers present were embarrassed.

This kind of problem...

Last year, when Zhang Zhou was not in the government, the emperor probably didn't need to ask. Of course, the Duoyan and other tribes at that time would not have come shamelessly to ask the Ming Dynasty to send troops... Because it was agreed that your grassland tribes would kill each other, and our Ming Dynasty would not be affected. What's up?

It's best if you die together and Ming Dynasty sends troops to help you clean up the mess.

but now……

The ministers present felt that the emperor was addicted to thinking that he was the leader of the world. It was clear that the affairs of Duoyan and the three guards had nothing to do with the Ming Dynasty, but the emperor actually bothered to discuss whether to send troops?

Xie Qian asked: "Your Majesty, I wonder if anyone in the northwest is aware of this matter? Is there any intention to send troops from the northwest?"

Everyone couldn't help but ponder Xie Qian's words.

This means... is it a hint to let Zhang Zhou take the initiative to send troops to the grassland again? Last time, he took advantage of the Dayan tribe and Huoshai's gang to raid Huoshai's lair. This time, Zhang Zhou will not be asked to raid the Dayan tribe. Home nest?

Zhu Youtang looked calm and said: "I know what you mean by Xie Qing's family. Although Bingkuan has not been consulted on this matter, he mentioned to me earlier that the tribesmen of the little Tartar prince are mostly in the mountains. To the north, the whereabouts are uncertain, and even if there is a annexation of the Shangge tribe on the grassland in the future, the tribal population will definitely be brought within fifty or sixty miles of the former soldiers."

"If you want to harass it from later on, I'm afraid it will be difficult to find the previous opportunity!"

The emperor is very rational.

If you know how to sneak attack, you only need to do it once. If you want to do it again, you will have to treat the Tatars as fools.

We all know that you Ming Dynasty has a magic stick who can do calculations and even know where our tribe's men and horses are. We can be found wherever we hide, so we might as well go with the whole family when we go to war in the future.

Don't feel burdened either.
To be continued...