Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 448 Disagree?
The cost of a matchlock gun is roughly between three taels and four cents and four taels, while the cost of a set of thin cloth armor is around three taels and two cents.

Obviously, this is huge profit.

Even though Zhu Cilang deliberately lowered the price of cloth armor because of Japan's poor treatment of the foot soldiers, the profit was still enough to make people staggering.

This is certainly not Zhu Cilang's exorbitant request.

If the manufacture of these equipments only required gold and silver, then Japan, with its vast mineral resources, would be able to keep the price low. However, there are many tools and materials behind each artifact, and this tiny country can only produce some crude imitations even if it tries its best, and most of them have to be purchased from overseas.

At this point, the situation becomes clear.

The distance from Europe is more than ten thousand miles, and the price has soared to the sky when it was transported all the way there. Moreover, that place has been in war for many years, so the new and high-quality ones are kept for their own use.

Therefore, when Oda Nobunaga encountered the lost merchant ship, the Portuguese unscrupulous merchant sold the old matchlock gun at a sky-high price of fifty taels of gold. In comparison, Zhu Cilang's twenty taels of silver was truly a conscience price.

But then again, the four islands are just small countries after all, and with the financial resources of the Tokugawa shogunate, the limit they could afford was only 10,000 or 20,000 bento boxes.

Even if we think more optimistically, if each foot soldier is equipped with cloth armor produced in the Ming Dynasty, the total cost is actually only 600,000 taels. How could the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty be so short-sighted?

"Have the people from the Weaving Bureau arrived?"

After putting the agreement sent by Zhang Pengyi back on the table, Zhu Cilang asked a question to the person beside him, and then made a thorough report. After getting the emperor's permission, he glanced at the door of the warm room.

This expedition was successful. With the previous experience of Satsuma Domain as a lesson, the Edo Shogunate was almost like a weak little girl.

Not only did the Ming Dynasty obtain 500,000 taels of silver in war reparations, but it also sold those firearms and armor that were about to be obsolete at a good price. If one takes into account that "the shortfall can be replaced with sulfur at a discount", Zhu Cilang almost killed four birds with one stone.

But then again, if the Ming Dynasty really took advantage of the situation, given the nature of the Japanese, how could there not be trouble?

Strengthening the shogunate's armaments and taking back the power of maritime trade, and if we add the reduction of feudal fiefdoms in an unknown period of time, then Tokugawa Iemitsu must have benefited greatly from this incident, otherwise it would not have been so easy to send troops this time.

Of course, compared with the Edo Shogunate, the Ming Dynasty naturally had both face and substance.

When the urgent report was brought into the city this morning, although the people of Yingtian seemed a little numb, the teahouses and taverns everywhere were still talking about the rebellion with great relish.

It's just that the court officials and the people all focused on money and reputation, but in Zhu Cilang's view, these things were just incidental, and his real plan lay in other things.

Due to the prosperity of overseas trade, the Ming Dynasty formed a related industrial chain for a series of goods such as cotton cloth and porcelain. However, due to the trade protection policy of New Spain, the textile industry, which had the longest industrial chain and employed the largest number of people, suffered a severe blow.

If we follow the current logic of the Ming Dynasty, if the textile industry cannot continue, the people will just go back to growing crops.

However, at this time, the Ming Dynasty's system had gradually adapted to commercial trade after Zhang Juzheng's reforms. Encountering such an invisible war would directly lead to deflation and a sharp drop in vitality.

As a soul from the modern era, Zhu Cilang naturally knew what this situation meant.

Even though the small court in Yingtian could still barely maintain itself after plundering everywhere, the sense of urgency in his heart did not diminish in the slightest.

As a result, the neighbor with a population of tens of millions came into the sight of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

"Zhao Deyu, the eunuch in charge of the Jiangnan Weaving Bureau and the Zhejiang Maritime Customs, pays respect to Your Majesty!
May our emperor be invincible in every battle!
Long live! Long live! Long live!"

What a mess.

Taking a look at the slightly plump middle-aged man kneeling at the door, Zhu Cilang immediately classified him as a cunning person. However, he was not yet to the point of judging a person to death with just one glance. After moving his body, he replied indifferently.

"Get up."

"Your Majesty, you are a deity sent down by the heavens. A handicapped person like me has insufficient yang energy. When I come before you, my legs become weak and I cannot even stand up. Let me answer you on my knees."

Indeed, cunning.

Zhu Cilang frowned slightly but said nothing. After recalling the man's resume, he thought that this was how it should be.

Zhao Deyu entered the palace during the Tianqi period, and later on, through some unknown means, he got the job of chief eunuch.

To be able to hold such a lucrative job for so many years, the man must have some ability, but the fawning and flattery seemed too much, and he still felt a little annoyed in his heart.

"The Ministry of Industry has made some new looms. Find a few skilled craftsmen to take a look. In addition, I plan to follow the example of the Haimao Group and change the Weaving Bureau into a Light Industry Group. You, the chief eunuch, should submit a proposal first."

Damn!
Zhao Deyu's heart sank when he heard these words.

Although he had been in Suzhou for a long time and had never served the emperor, as the emperor's servant, he was always paying attention to Zhu Cilang's movements.

The maritime trade group was established only half a year ago, but after a few trips to sea, it was able to let outsiders see the ins and outs of it.

In this institution, the power of the imperial court was greatly reduced. Apart from having the power to veto major matters, the personnel sent by the court rarely interfered in routine business operations.

At this time, His Majesty actually wanted to make the Weaving Bureau look like that.
"Your Majesty is wise!" Before he finished speaking, Zhao Deyu bowed heavily on the ground. When he raised his head from the ground, he bravely looked into the warm room: "I have also heard of the Haimao Group. They went overseas twice, not only did they make a lot of profits for the merchants holding shares, but they also added a huge amount of tax revenue to our Ming Customs. It is truly a good deed that benefits the country and the people!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but show some smile on his face, and his previous annoyance seemed to be less.

This maritime trade group could be considered his masterpiece. Not only did it allow the money hoarded by the wealthy to flow again, it also enabled the court to collect commercial taxes without any hassle.

Although the merchant ships belonging to the group had only made one or two trips to Southeast Asia at this time, the customs duties collected from Du Chen had already reached a huge amount of four or five hundred thousand. If overseas trade were to return to the level during the Longqing period, the tax revenue would certainly rise several levels further.

Those country bumpkins probably never even thought of such an inconspicuous method in the past.

Thinking of this, the smile on Zhu Cilang's face became even brighter, and when he saw the figure lying on the ground again, he didn't seem so annoyed anymore.

"Since you know the benefits, then do it with all your heart. But you don't need to rush. Economic matters like this affect the entire system. You should first finalize the new loom and then talk about it after you have sorted out all the situations."

"Holy Lord! Your Highness is truly a gift from Heaven out of compassion for the people!"

After a burst of extremely exaggerated cheers, the smile that was about to appear on Zhu Cilang's face disappeared, and then he frowned and looked at the flatterer, but before he could say anything, the other party's voice came again.

"The sage once said: Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish. I just thought Your Majesty would directly implement this beneficial move, but after hearing the words 'sort out all the circumstances first', I realized that Your Majesty's policies are in line with the sages and wise men!"

It seems that this flatterer is not completely useless.

After labeling Zhao Deyu again in his mind, Zhu Cilang turned his attention back to the notebook on the desk. Then Zhou Quan gently touched the slightly plump figure lying on the ground, and Zhao Deyu quietly left the warm room.

The so-called flattery cannot be worn even if it is worn a thousand times.

Even though Zhu Cilang knew that Zhao Deyu was not an easy person to deal with, after hearing those flattering words that were very much to his liking, he couldn't help but change his opinion of this man.

There was nothing that could be done about it. People would never listen to anything unpleasant, and what's more, these words were exactly what he was thinking. As the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, how could he not feel a little pleased?

No wonder the emperor turned a blind eye to the flatterers around him in his later years.

After secretly alerting himself, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but have such thoughts.

He was stunned for a while afterwards, and only when he realized that he might not be immune to the same fate did he perk up again.

"Is the Tartar envoy still in Yingtian?"

"In reply to Your Majesty, Wang Zhengzhi was still active earlier, and he has been staying in the guesthouse since your triumphant return."

"Don't learn that nonsense."

Zhou Quan was stunned for a moment, but he had grown up in the palace and was not slow to react. After only half a breath, he bowed and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Okay, call him over."

Seeing that Zhou Quan seemed a little nervous when he retreated, Zhu Cilang didn't bother about the address anymore.

After all, it was the change in his expression that made Zhou Quan learn to address Zhao Deyu. Moreover, these little things could make the people around him more alert, which didn't seem to be a bad thing when he thought about it carefully.

Thinking of this, he turned his attention to the question books in front of him, picked one and began to read it carefully.

This was handed over by He Tengjiao. It did not involve anything else. He just stated in detail the importance of Xiangyang and asked for permission to send troops. It was obvious that he could not stand the loneliness anymore.

This is not surprising. Since the recognition of the Yingtian regime, major wars have occurred around Hunan.

It seems that Fan Yiheng and Wan Yuanji, who directly participated in the battle, need not be said much. With their military merits, it is only a matter of time before they enter the cabinet and become prime ministers. It seems that Qu Shisi and Gu Yuanjing, who only provided logistical supplies, also became closer and closer to Zhu Cilang through the war.

In comparison, He Tengjiao just wandered around the city of Wuchang, and as the Governor of Huguang, he naturally felt a sense of urgency.

After figuring this out, Zhu Cilang was ready to put the notebook down first, but when he put it aside, he felt something was wrong, so he put it in front of him again and started writing.

"Xiangfan and Lianghuai are the gateways to the Yangtze River. I will not ignore them. You can first investigate the enemy situation and then march north when the time is right."

After writing this paragraph, he put the question book on another pile, then took out another one, flipped through it and started writing on it.

As time went by, the number of unapproved petitions gradually decreased. After about a cup of tea, Zhou Quan reappeared in the warm room, and Zhu Cilang found a figure in a Taoist robe with cloud patterns waiting outside the hall.

"That's Wang Zhengzhi?"

"Yes."

"Tell him to come in."

"Your Majesty has ordered Wang Zhengzhi to come to the audience~~!"

As soon as the shout was uttered, Zhu Cilang saw Wang Zhengzhi enter the hall, and then he heard a voice of greeting, and the man bowed at the door of the warm room.

"Meet Wang Zhengzhi"

"Didn't Mr. Wang shave his head?"

According to Zhu Cilang's original plan, summoning Wang Zhengzhi was just a formality, and there was no intention to humiliate him.

After all, the current Ming Dynasty is no longer what it used to be. Not to mention expelling the Tartars, even extending its influence overseas is just a matter of thought.

At this point, he might punish all those shameless officials after regaining the capital in order to set a standard, but he had no other thoughts about individual punishments.

But plans cannot keep up with changes. When Wang Zhengzhi stepped into the warm room, he suddenly felt disgusted. Seeing that the other party deliberately downplayed his identity, he couldn't help but say this sarcastically.

"Your Majesty, my emperor did not force any of our ministers to shave their heads."

"Oh, tell me, what are you doing here?"

When the words came out, Wang Zhengzhi felt relieved.

Don't be fooled by his calm expression, but he was already worried inside. After Emperor Minghuang's sarcasm, he thought that this time he would not have a good ending.

Although it is said that when two countries are at war they do not kill envoys, this depends on the circumstances.

After all, at this time the Ming Dynasty was winning one victory after another, while the Qing Dynasty, which seemed to be conquering the world a year ago, had become a clay Buddha crossing the river.

If the Emperor really wanted to execute this surrendered minister, the Qing Dynasty would be unable to do anything except grumble a few words, so he had better take care of his own life.

Fortunately, the Emperor Ming had no intention of pursuing the matter.

Thinking of this, Wang Zhengzhi couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and then he raised Dorgon's request.

Although Ajige died in the earlier battle of Ganzhou, Shang Kexi led a large number of troops to escape to Ji'an.

Of course, this escape could not escape the clutches of the Ming army. After more than ten days of siege, the troops in the city had run out of ammunition and food and had to give up resistance.

This time, Wang Zhengzhi came to discuss the issue of dividing the river and governing separately, and secondly, he wanted the Ming Dynasty to release the captured generals.

But then again, there is no need to mention the fact that Hauge divided the country across the river after his defeat, but among the captured generals there were not only the best of the younger generation in each family, but also pillars of the army like Shang Kexi.

If he could exchange these people back, it would be considered a great achievement.

The thought in his mind did not delay Wang Zhengzhi's speech. In just seven or eight breaths, he had made his purpose clear.

"If Your Majesty can release the captured generals, our Qing Dynasty will withdraw from Lianghuai."

According to his thinking, the Qing Dynasty was ready for bloodshed this time, and he had revealed this to the ministers in Yingtian. After knowing this, the Ming Emperor would not give up such a vast land for those dozens of people.

But who would have thought that as soon as he finished speaking, the voice of the Emperor Ming came over.

"Go back."

(End of this chapter)