"Is Da Yang here?"
Talu, the prince of the Southern Kingdom of Mount Ryukyu, looked forward and spoke fluent Mandarin in the Central Plains.
Ships, there are ships everywhere, hundreds of ships, thousands of ships, entering the port, leaving the port, the magnificent, the mighty, the number is unclear, and it is impossible to see.
There is also the towering fort in the distance, towering into the clouds, stretching endlessly, making people feel awe-inspiring for no reason.
"What is this?" The official of Honglu Temple, who was standing beside him, said proudly: "The three major ports in the south are much larger than here. I heard that there are no more than 3,000 foreign merchant ships entering the port every day."
This is the truth.
In the fifteenth year of Ningwu's reign, after the imperial court opened up the sea trade, the days were like a dream, one day at a time.
He was still young at the time, but he still vaguely remembered the scene when the imperial decree was issued. No matter if he was an official or a businessman, even the farmers who were shaving food in the fields gritted their teeth and collected money, it was like a beating. Like chicken blood, waving the banknotes poured into the household.
The old lucky boat costing 5,000 taels of silver and the new lucky boat costing 8,000 taels of silver were said to have sold 8,000 ships in the same month.
The money of foreigners is so easy to earn, and the silver of the white flowers flows into the purses of the merchants like water.
It is this tax payment that is so painful, it's 30 out of 10.
In this way, the merchants rushed to the sea, and the peasants poured into the factories.
Who would have thought that in just over 20 years, the peasants who were oppressed at that time could hardly breathe the land tax and Ding tax, and they would all be gone. In order to keep the farmers who cultivated the land, the imperial court initiated subsidies to the farmers, each one cent of silver every year.
Then, in order to build ships, all the trees that could make keels in China were cut down, and the shipyard began to buy wood from the West (generally referring to Southeast Asia and Europe).
There are so many woods on the western side. They are big and thick. What kind of camphor wood, beech wood, red sandalwood, golden nanmu, huanghuali... Ship by ship to the country.
When the Forbidden City was renovated back then, the wood used was all brought back from the West. I heard that the sixty giant pillars in Huangji Hall are made of whole golden nanmu, so thick that two people can barely hold them together.
Then, the pirates came, robbed a few caravans, and killed thousands of people. When the news came out, the government and the opposition shook. In order to ensure the safety of merchant ships, the emperor sent sailors to exterminate the pirates, but he also occupied no-man’s land near the Western shipping routes, or spent huge sums of money to purchase land from neighboring countries, and built more than ten military ports. to ensure the safety of ships.
Just thinking about it, it was their turn to enter the port.
Stepping on the flat ground, the officials of Honglu Temple could not stop their mouths.
"This is a cement road, and the sidewalk next to it is paved with red bricks. These are all good things developed by the Firearms Bureau. They are cheap and durable. My family uses them to build a house..."
Looking at the spacious driveway in front of him, he couldn't help but wonder on his face, and he said, "I heard that the official roads in Dayang are all paved concrete roads?"
"But more than that, the court is now organizing people to build roads. I heard that cement roads are to be laid in every village."
As they were talking, a group of carriages appeared directly in front of them. From time to time, someone walked over, took out a handful of money and gave it to the driver, and then got on the carriage.
Looking at Lu Mei's line of sight, the official of Honglu Temple explained: "It was a public carriage convoy. A few years ago, the imperial court sent troops to clean up the north again, and they hit some Lake Baikal, and they got tens of thousands of dollars. A good horse. Then our emperor encircled dozens of imperial villages all over the country, dedicated to raising horses and cattle. The raised cattle were distributed to farmers, and the raised horses were used to form a public carriage team. The convoy has a fixed route, and if you pay ten big coins, you can take a horse-drawn carriage to go around the city."
"Did you see, that's Ningwu Bank, our emperor's ticket number. I heard that in two years, the imperial court will abolish copper coins and issue treasure banknotes. That's okay, how much copper coins are, but it's not good to go out without copper coins. …”
Every time he looked in the direction he was pointing, the four-story high-rise building that caught his eye, ignoring the calm and atmospheric plaque in the book, the meticulous guards, the endless crowd... His eyes fell tightly on the glass on the wall. window.
That's glass. It sells five taels of gold per piece of glass in the Ryukyu country.
"That's a porridge shed. It was built by the yamen in the early years. Later, it was taken over by the wealthy businessmen in the city, and they made thick porridge once a day."
"It was a public toilet. The last time it was a copper plate. There were special cleaners who were responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of the toilet. The people who were responsible for collecting the money were the local elderly widows. It was considered that the yamen found a way for them."
"There's an industrial park over there..."
From the moment he set foot on the land of Dayang, he was either in shock or was constantly shocked. Never had a moment made him feel that his vision was so shallow.
Until the official of Honglu Temple said: "This is the capital."
Every time he opened the curtains, the towering city walls shone under the sunlight. At this moment, the shock in his heart all turned into admiration for the culture of the Central Plains.
On the seventh day of the eighth lunar month, on the fiftieth birthday of Emperor Ningwu, he hosted a banquet for civil and military officials and foreign envoys in the Hall of Huangji.
…
"The southern country of Ryukyu Mountain presents ten catties of shark fins, a bucket of top-grade pearls, ten pairs of night pearls, and a box of snail shells..."
Ryukyu Mountain South Country
Is that the little brother who had been honestly in front of the Central Plains Dynasty, and was later destroyed by Japan and relocated to Okinawa Prefecture
Meng Zezhi was thoughtful.
Whenever Talu goes out of class to pay homage, he says, "Every time the junior minister, the prince of Shannan, Talu meets His Majesty the Emperor of Shangguo, long live, long live, long live."
"Your Highness is at peace." Meng Zezhi said, "In the past, your country sent envoys to the DPRK, why did your Highness come in person this time?"
"Reporting to His Majesty the Emperor of Shangguo, this small minister has two purposes, one is to congratulate His Majesty's birthday, and the other is that the father of the small minister, King Shannan, was killed three months ago. This minister is the new King of Shannan."
He Lu is always suffering.
A hundred years ago, the originally unified Ryukyu Kingdom was divided into three countries: Shannan, Zhongshan, and Shanbei. Among them, Zhongshan was the strongest and Shannan was the weakest.
Over the years, with the help of the Japanese state, the Zhongshan state has become more and more tyrannical, with the intention of annexing Shannan and Shanbei.
The previous King of Shannan was killed by Zhongshan, and he was desperate, so he could only hope that Dayangchao would pull him for the sake of his docility.
"It turns out that the prince is condolences." Meng Zezhi thought, this is an opportunity to intervene in the domestic affairs of Ryukyu and Japan.
"Thank you, His Majesty the Emperor of Shangguo." Talu asked cautiously, "Then, about the canonization?"
"I agree." After all, this is the first vassal state that has taken the initiative to request the canonization of the imperial court since the founding of the Dayang Dynasty, which is of great significance.
He stretched out his hand to stop Wang Guangzhi from reading out the imperial decree and said, "I like the gift of the prince very much. I will give Shannan Guo 500 taels of gold, 5,000 taels of silver, and 500 pieces of brocade..."
With such a generous gift, Ta Lu was overjoyed: "Thank you, His Majesty the Emperor of Shangguo."
The envoys of the other vassal states on the side were envious. Since Dayang opened up maritime trade and canceled the trade of exploration and cooperation, they have rarely been able to take advantage of Dayang.
(In the Kanhe trade, after the tributary mission arrived in Dayang, the imperial court not only provided carriages, horses, vegetables, gold, etc., but also allocated rations on the way back to the country. And the tribute brought by the mission, the imperial court often multiplied tenfold or even several Ten times the reward. The goods they bring will also be purchased at a premium of two to three times. Not only that, but they can also purchase goods from Dayang and sell them back to China, and at least five to six times the profit. So in the past, to Dayang tribute is the most profitable thing.)
"The Governor of Yunnan Province, Si Jing, offered 37 to 50 catties of Wenshan, 50 catties of Longling Hetou Dendrobium, 50 catties of Zhaotong Tianma... 50 catties of Xuanwei ham..."
"Huguang governor Si Jing offered 50 catties of Anhua dark tea, 50 catties of dried whitebait, and 50 altars of stone flowers..."
After appreciating the birthday gifts presented by people from all over the world, Meng Zezhi couldn't help but say, "There should be no one in this world to scold me for being a dwarf anymore!"
The ministers looked at each other in dismay, and Lu Zengxiang, who was already in his old age, came out of the class and said, "The ministers and others lost their way back then. Fortunately, it is not too late now."
All the ministers immediately shouted: "Chen, please long live the Jinwuwei commander Lu Li as the queen."
They all accepted their fate, and it was regarded as fulfilling the wishes of Emperor Ningwu, and it was considered that they had all their loyalty. In fact, Lu Li is not bad. After all, he has been conscientious and conscientious for so many years, and has never made a mistake.
With a bang, the excited Lu Li accidentally knocked over the wine glass beside him.
They are all fifty years old, so don't bother...
Hearing the movement, Meng Zezhi had to swallow the words that had already reached his lips. He smiled and said, "Okay."
In this way, Meng Zezhi completed the third wedding with his lover.
Lu Li that night was extraordinarily enthusiastic. Meng Zezhi hummed while thinking, those who practice martial arts are good, they don't look old, let alone say, they are so old, and their butt is still so upturned.
Then, Tao An, Xiao Shi, Lu Zengxiang... all left one by one.
As for Zhao Lingwu, he died of illness as early as the seventh year of Ning Wu. Death is great, and Meng Zezhi buried him. In any case, it cannot be denied that he once made great contributions to this country.
Only Zhao Yijing and Xing Xiaoya lingered and tortured each other.
In the 32nd year of Ningwu, Meng Zezhi summoned the second son of King An (the original line of King Fu, the king of the first character was the prince of the Dayang Dynasty, and the king of the second character was the king of the county), the grandson of the king of Hui, and the son of the king of Changyuan (the former king of Rui). Pulse) into the six-part view of politics.
"Prince Hui's performance is good, but his temperament, put it nicely, is called quick success and quick profit, and put it badly, called unscrupulous, reminds me of the king of Tang back then."
Meng Zezhi looked at the record presented by Zhi Jinwei: "The methods of the second son of Prince Cheng'an are too gentle, but he can be a successful emperor."
But what he wants is not just a standing emperor, otherwise how can he be worthy of the foundation he has laid hard.
"It's the Prince of Changwon, who is sharp-edged, and does one errand better than the other."
It's a pity that he was used as a stepping stone without knowing it.
"Gu Muqing, the eldest daughter of the king of Changyuan," Meng Zezhi said.
Gu Muqing knelt on the ground, barely maintaining her composure: "Yes."
"These days, are you the one who is giving advice to the Prince of Changwon behind your back?"
"Yes." Gu Muqing said through gritted teeth.
"You're so brave." Meng Zezhi said coldly, with a wave of his wrist, a book fell in front of Gu Muqing.
The book was handed over by the Prince of Changyuan, but the first line from right to left reads: The servant girl Gu Muqing greets Long Live.
It should be said that Gu Muqing had no last resort, or that the Prince of Changwon was too stupid to actually copy the book she prepared without changing it, and then sent it to the imperial case.
"The courtier is convicted." Gu Muqing calmed down instead.
She was just not reconciled.
Gu Muqing's biological mother, Mrs. Liu, was the maid next to Mrs. Qu, the princess of Changyuan. After Mrs. Qu was pregnant, she gave Mrs. Liu to the King of Changyuan as a concubine in order to keep her pet.
Two years later, Mrs. Liu died of dystocia, leaving behind a daughter, Gu Muqing. In order to show her virtue and virtue, Mrs. Qu was also thinking about the master-servant relationship with Mrs. Liu, so she took Gu Muqing by her side to raise her.
Gu Muqing has been smart since she was a child, no matter what she learns, she can understand everything, and then she sets off the prince of Changyuan, who is one year older than her, to nothing.
Gradually, she found that Qu's attitude towards her had changed, she no longer allowed her to contact books, and she was always punished for copying Buddhist scriptures by catching mistakes, and even her food and clothing expenses were reduced again and again.
With the nanny's prompting, Gu Muqing learned to hide clumsiness, which lasted ten years.
Ten years later, she was given to her nephew by the Qu family.
That man is a goddamn eunuch and needs a wife to cover him.
She didn't even have the qualifications to resist.
She didn't hate the Qu family, she only hated this unfair world.
She was betting that this Emperor Ning Wu, who dared to encourage women to work in factories, abolished the chastity archway, and allowed widows to remarry, paid more attention to the ability of the successor, not the gender.
"But, I like it very much." Meng Zezhi said lightly, he was not afraid that the people below would not fight, but that the people below were too stupid.
Gu Muqing's tense nerves loosened, she knew that she had won the bet.
"It's not that I can't give you a chance."
Gu Muqing took a deep breath.
Meng Zezhi said lightly, "As long as you can defeat Prince Hui and Prince Cheng'an, I will do what you want."
Gu Muqing clenched his hands into fists.
In the thirty-fifth year of Ning Wu, the second son of King Cheng An was rejected by Emperor Ning Wu for accepting bribes from the Korean state and indulging in extorting and extorting officials from his subordinates.
In the thirty-sixth year of Ningwu, King Hui of Sun rebelled and was defeated and died.
In the same year, Emperor Ningwu made Gu Muqing, the eldest daughter of the King of Changyuan, as the crown princess.
In the winter of the 40th year of Ningwu, Lu Li died of illness and was given the posthumous title of Empress Suzhuang.
In the same year, Gu Muqing, the concubine of Emperor Ningwu's Zen crown.
In the first year of Jianwu, Emperor Ningwu Long Yubintian, posthumously named Emperor Kangwuwen, added the temple name Xingzong, and was buried with Empress Suzhuang in An Mausoleum.