I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 192: The Dispute over the Era Name
"Puff——" Zhu Houxuan couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of tea when he heard the reign title.
Zhu Houzhao looked at Zhu Houxun in confusion, not understanding why he had such a big reaction.

"Do you have to react so strongly? Don't you think this reign title is very appropriate for the present?" Zhu Houzhao said with a burning gaze, "If we develop the salt industry to the extent you said, and everyone in the world can afford salt, and good salt, then wouldn't that be Xianfeng? This reign title is very appropriate to describe our achievements in the salt industry."

Zhu Houxuan was completely plunged into chaos. This is exactly what the words mean if you look at the literal meaning. If you ignore the literal meaning and look at the implied meaning, "咸" means public, harmonious, and shared, which implies accepting talents from all directions; "丰" means abundant and fruitful, which implies peace and prosperity in the country and a good harvest.

To be fair, the meaning of this reign title is not bad, but Zhu Houxuan, who has the memory of later generations, cannot look directly at this reign title.
Zhu Houzhao on the other side had already let himself go and started to think divergently, "The more I think about this reign title, the more appropriate it seems. If our plan in the salt industry is successful, should I change the reign title to 'Xianfeng'?"

Zhu Houzhao's powerful imagination immediately pulled Zhu Houxun out of the chaos. Zhu Houxun quickly stopped him and said, "Isn't Zhengde good enough? Why change it? Besides, Taizu has already established the system. Each emperor of this dynasty can only have one reign title. This reign title cannot be changed randomly!"

"At first I felt that Zhengde was pretty good, but now both the court and the people are implicitly saying that I am not virtuous enough. The reign title Zhengde has a more didactic meaning, which makes me quite unhappy." Zhu Houzhao muttered.

Zhu Houxuan opened his mouth wide. He was really shocked by Zhu Houzhao's train of thought, but to be honest, what Zhu Houzhao said was indeed true.

The word Zhengde comes from "Book of Documents·Instructions of Yu the Great", which means upright moral conduct and pure ethics. "Zheng" is completely an adjective.

However, to be fair, Zhu Houzhao's actions in the ten years after he ascended the throne could really be described as lacking in virtue. Then, when the reign title Zhengde was used for Zhu Houzhao, it implied that Zhu Houzhao needed to "correct his virtues". "Zhengde" became a verb. No wonder Zhu Houzhao began to dislike this reign title.

"It would have been great if I had chosen 'Xianfeng' as the reign title!" Zhu Houzhao sighed.

Zhu Houxuan didn't dare to say a word and complained in his heart: What's good about the unlucky reign title of Xianfeng!
"But everything depends on human efforts. If the salt industry plan is successful, I can use this achievement to forcibly change the reign title to Xianfeng. Maybe I can succeed." Zhu Houzhao said, touching his chin.

Zhu Houxuan broke into a cold sweat after hearing this, and hurriedly stopped him, saying, "My brother, you can't change the reign title!"

"Then can you tell me why it can't be changed?" Zhu Houzhao was a little unhappy.

"If Your Majesty abandons the Zhengde reign and changes it to Xianfeng, it would be like a soldier deserting the battlefield." Zhu Houxuan knew Zhu Houzhao too well and knew what Zhu Houzhao cared about.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Zhu Houzhao's expression became much more serious.

"And if the salt industry plan is successful, who in the world will dare to say that my brother is lacking in virtue? Even if there are still people who dare to say so, we will make one achievement after another to shut these people up. This is the choice a soldier should make," Zhu Houxuan continued.

Zhu Houzhao nodded silently, and after a while he said, "Brother, you are right. I can't escape from the battlefield."

Zhu Houxuan couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, but he stopped Zhu Houzhao.

"You're right. I will achieve one achievement after another and make those who once laughed at me recognize me again!" Zhu Houzhao's heart was suddenly filled with pride.

Zhu Houxun was looking at Zhu Houzhao with a smile on his face.

Zhu Houzhao had now completely moved on from the issue of the reign title. He held Zhu Houchun's hand and said, "Brother, your salt industry plan is very good and timely. Just tell me what reward you want and I will agree to it." To be honest, how to reward Zhu Houchun was also a rather troublesome matter. Zhu Houchun's title had already reached the top and could not be promoted any further. Moreover, he was now a business tycoon. Rewarding him with land, houses, or money would undoubtedly be an insult to him.

Zhu Houxuan also realized this, but he didn't care about any reward. "Brother, this is too formal. Why do I need any reward for doing things for you? Besides, this salt industry plan has just started, and there is still a long way to go before success."

Zhu Houzhao thought about it and realized that it was true. He stopped talking about the reward and looked at Zhu Houxuan and continued, "You have planned the salt industry a long time ago, but you are so tight-lipped that you only told me now. Do you have any other plans similar to the salt industry? Tell me quickly so that I can be prepared."

"Brother, you are wrongly accusing me. If I don't make some achievements in the salt industry first, you won't believe in my plan! And I only have one plan like the salt industry." Zhu Houxuan said hurriedly.

"You've passed the test this time," said Zhu Houzhao.

"However, there is an industry similar to the salt industry, and we have corresponding plans, but we have encountered some obstacles." Zhu Houxuan said calmly.

"What industry?" Zhu Houzhao's curiosity was aroused.

"Sugar industry!"

"Sugar industry!" Zhu Houzhao said somewhat disappointedly. The status of the sugar industry is completely incomparable to that of the salt industry.

"If the sugar industry is well developed, the profits will be huge!" Zhu Houxuan continued.

"That's true. What obstacles did you encounter, brother?" Zhu Houzhao asked after thinking for a while.

"The sugar industry requires the planting of sugarcane, but planting sugarcane on a large scale in cultivated land in Jiangnan will definitely lead to impeachment by officials. Later, it was discovered that Dongfan Island is particularly suitable for growing sugarcane, but I can't find enough manpower to go there for reclamation." Zhu Houxuan patiently guided Zhu Houzhao's thinking.

"Can't you find enough people to cultivate the land?" Zhu Houzhao's eyes turned and he had an idea. "Aren't there many refugees in various parts of the Ming Dynasty now? Can't you recruit them to cultivate the land?"

Zhu Houxuan suppressed his inner joy and pretended to be embarrassed and said, "But the court has a decree that the people are not allowed to go to sea privately!"

"Why are you getting confused? The Ming Royal Group is not recruiting refugees to go to sea privately. You should do it boldly. There are many refugees in the world now. It is a good thing to transport some of them to Dongfan Island for reclamation. It can be regarded as a meritorious deed," Zhu Houzhao said indifferently.

Dongfan Island is Taiwan Island. Zhu Houzhao also knew this place. In his eyes, this matter was really just a trivial matter.

"Then let's do as my brother says," Zhu Houxuan smiled.

(End of this chapter)