Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 561 The arrogant Michele, and her face turned pale!

"Ah!" The girl was clearly not expected Zhu Gaochi to be so sudden and bold, and subconsciously tried to pull her hand back.

However, she didn't use much force, so she couldn't break free from his grasp.

The girl stopped struggling and let Zhu Gaochi hold her tightly.

"You're so beautiful!" Zhu Gaochi gazed into the girl's clear and deep blue eyes and whispered.

At this moment, Zhu Gaochi's desire was growing stronger and stronger, and he could no longer bear it.

He thought to himself that this place was just like a brothel, and he didn't need to be too concerned about etiquette when facing "brothel women".

As for his parents, they were talking to the Doge of Venice, and with so many people around, they wouldn't notice him for the time being.

So, in full view of everyone, Zhu Gaochi suddenly leaned down and kissed Daisy on the cheek.

The next moment, the once noisy and bustling banquet hall became completely silent, and all the laughter and music stopped abruptly.

All eyes turned to Zhu Gaochi and Daisy.

Immediately afterwards, the silence was broken, and a wave of applause suddenly erupted, echoing throughout the entire hall.

Zhu Gaochi was at a loss, feeling the soft touch of Daisy in his hand, his face full of confusion.

Daisy was blushing deeply, but she instinctively gripped Zhu Gaochi's hand even tighter, as if seeking comfort and protection.

"Unbelievable! Our noble Miss Daisy has actually been won over by a prince of the Ming Dynasty!" A nobleman exclaimed in the banquet hall, his tone full of disbelief.

"She is the most dazzling jewel of Venice. I wonder how many suitors will be heartbroken and weeping today." More people began to whisper among themselves, discussing this sudden "romantic" episode.

"The prince of the Ming Dynasty, paired with our duke's daughter, is simply a match made in heaven! They are so well-matched!" Some people said this, their words full of praise and flattery.

Older nobles, having experienced more of the world and generally having wives, knew that a beautiful young woman like Daisy was beyond their reach; they could only admire her from afar. Therefore, they were able to remain composed in such situations.

However, the younger generation reacted differently.

The young women looked at Daisy with eyes full of envy, jealousy, and hatred.

She already possessed the noblest birth and the most beautiful face, and now she even won the admiration and love of the Ming Dynasty prince. How could she have all the good things in the world by herself?

How hateful!

As for the young men, their resentment was even deeper!

"Damn Ming prince!" they roared inwardly. "We thought that with his noble status, he would be a self-disciplined, noble, and proud person. How could he have fallen for Daisy so quickly?"

"They've only just met!"

The young nobles of Venice were incredulous that Miss Daisy, who had always looked down on men, had not resisted, had not shaken off his hand, and had not slapped him.

Is this how they're going to steal away Miss Daisy, the most beautiful girl in Venice?

"Damn it! These despicable Ming people, they shouldn't have come to Venice!" Jealousy and anger intertwined, almost causing many young noblemen to lose their minds.

However, Zhu Gaochi, who was at the center of this storm, remained completely unaware of it.

In his view, all he had done was kiss a "prostitute."

Although she looked very "pure," in this kind of setting, "pure" was probably just a facade.

You don't need to look at me with such strange eyes, do you?

Zhu Gaochi was filled with doubt, completely unaware of the huge turmoil his unintentional actions had caused.

Not far away, Governor Michele and his wife were sitting around a table with Zhu Di and his wife, having a friendly conversation.

"I have heard that the distant Ming Dynasty in the East possesses the most magnificent palaces and the most prosperous cities in the world."

"I wonder how your hometown city differs from our Venice, and how they are respectively?"

Although Doge Michele admired the Ming Dynasty, as the supreme ruler of Venice, he inevitably harbored a degree of uncontrollable pride deep down.

In his view, Venice is undoubtedly the most beautiful and prosperous city in the world, and an undisputed center of commerce and wealth, with no other city able to compare with it.

He was certain that while the Ming Dynasty in the East might have a larger territory and a larger population, no single city could compare to the magnificent water city of Venice in terms of its prosperity.

“Venice is indeed a very prosperous and amazing city,” Zhu Di replied with a smile, his voice full of appreciation. “The architectural style here is unique, with tall buildings everywhere, which is significantly different from the traditional architecture of my Great Ming Dynasty.”

"However, in recent years, many new architectural styles have emerged in the Ming Dynasty."

“Those were all designed and ordered to be built by His Majesty the Emperor himself.”

As he spoke of this, a hint of inexplicable confusion flashed in Zhu Di's eyes.

After witnessing firsthand the many stone-built skyscrapers in Venice, he felt that the modern buildings designed and constructed by Zhu Yunwen bore a striking resemblance to the European-style buildings before him.

However, unlike the Venetian architecture that generally uses stone, Zhu Yuntang's house was designed with reinforced concrete as the main material.

On the other hand, in terms of decorative style, the architecture of Venice appears more luxurious and complicated. Although it is dazzling at first glance, it also reveals a slightly vulgar nouveau riche atmosphere.

In stark contrast, the houses designed and built by Zhu Yunwen are more understated and reserved, containing a deeper cultural flavor and heritage.

Moreover, although the banquet halls and other large public spaces in Venice are already impressively large, they still pale in comparison to the magnificent palaces that Zhu Yunwen personally designed and built.

However, Zhu Di always had a nagging feeling that Zhu Yunwen might have drawn inspiration from European architectural styles and then cleverly integrated them with traditional Chinese architectural styles to create a new and more perfect architectural form.

But logically speaking, Zhu Yunwen had never set foot in the West and should not have known about the situation here, which is quite puzzling.

Moreover, apart from building towering buildings instead of traditional dwellings and cleverly using reinforced concrete to construct large-span palaces, Zhu Yunwen's overall design clearly exhibits a purer traditional Chinese style in all other aspects.

It is fundamentally different from the European architecture we see before us, which lacks a deep cultural foundation and only pursues extravagance.

These thoughts flashed through Zhu Di's mind, but he quickly returned to the topic at hand, continuing, "The palaces of the Ming Dynasty are taller and more magnificent than those of Venice." "Take your banquet hall as an example," Zhu Di said, using a vivid analogy, "Our Emperor personally designed the palace, which is far larger than your banquet hall, and it doesn't even have a single supporting pillar in the center!"

"This is impossible!" Madame Michelle, who had been listening quietly, exclaimed in shock. "With such a huge span, wouldn't it collapse without the support of pillars?"

Governor Michele was also full of doubt and disbelief, finding Zhu Di's description unbelievable.

Zhu Di smiled calmly and said, "Our Emperor has invented a magical material called 'cement.' This substance is made primarily of limestone, mixed with other unique materials, and then fired."

"When building a house, this material is combined with a unique steel frame to create a unique structure called 'reinforced concrete'."

"In this way, even with a huge spatial span, the building can still stand tall and will never collapse."

Michele seemed to understand something and sincerely admired, "Using limestone to make building materials? This technique was also widely used in ancient Rome more than a thousand years ago, but over time, the quality of the materials gradually declined, and the related technology was lost."

"I never imagined that His Majesty the Emperor of your country would be able to manufacture such a thing, and even innovatively incorporate steel. This is truly remarkable!"

While Michele verbally acknowledged the advanced and extraordinary skills of the Ming Dynasty, he did not forget to boast about the glorious history of ancient Roman civilization a thousand years ago.

This may be because his self-esteem was hurt and he could not bear it for a while, so he could only seek a little comfort and pride from the distant past.

Even though that long history has no direct connection to Venice itself.

But at least, that was a glorious chapter in the West's history!
Zhu Di was a man of great experience and insight into human nature.

He could immediately understand Michele's subtle psychological state at that moment.

At that moment, Zhu Di stopped dwelling on this trivial matter, smiled calmly, and said, "Given the size of Venice, I think its population is at most a few hundred thousand."

"And the population of Nanjing, the capital of my Great Ming Dynasty, is at least ten times that of Venice. Even the provincial capitals of many provinces have populations far exceeding those of Venice."

“Nanjing’s population is ten times that of Venice?!” Michele exclaimed in astonishment, his eyes wide with disbelief. “We in Venice have at least 100,000 people. In the whole of Europe, we can be considered a super city, only slightly smaller than Paris, the capital of the Vacva dynasty.”

"Does your Nanjing really have a population of one million?"

He then added, "That's impossible!"

"With such a large population, what do they eat?"

"The daily food consumption alone would be an unimaginable number."

"And how do you guarantee such a massive transportation and supply operation?"

Zhu Di glanced at him, and seeing Michele's exaggerated expression, he couldn't help but feel a bit contemptuous.

Barbarians are barbarians after all; they have never seen the real world.

The city of Jinling had a population of over a million, which was a matter of course in the eyes of the Ming people, so why make such a fuss?

"Yes, Jinling City does indeed have a population of over one million." Zhu Di's lips curled into a faint smile, his tone calm yet tinged with pride: "And that's based on previous data."

"Since His Majesty the current emperor ascended the throne, he has been implementing a series of reforms and innovations. The city of Jinling has expanded considerably compared to before, and its population has also increased dramatically."

"The city of Jinling now probably has at least two or three million people."

After Zhu Yunwen ascended the throne, he built countless factories outside Nanjing.

As these factories flourished, so did the population.

The number of factories was so large and their scale so enormous that the originally sparsely populated suburbs now far exceeded the population within the walls of Nanjing.

Zhu Di said that Nanjing had two to three million people, which naturally included the workers and residents of these emerging industrial areas.

Although most of the factories are not located within the traditional city walls of Jinling, the city gates are no longer tightly closed at night, and the city walls are no longer used for war defense.

In many places, city walls were even demolished to avoid obstructing traffic between the city and the outside. Today, Nanjing is a new type of city without external city walls, with its inner and outer walls integrated.

Including the newly built-up area is a matter of course.

Moreover, Venice, this water city, has no enclosing walls, and its city boundaries have long been blurred.

This comparison is fair to both sides.

Seeing that Michele still looked shocked, Zhu Di couldn't help but laugh and said, "If Your Grace doesn't believe me, you can send someone to the Ming Dynasty to find out for yourself, or you can come here yourself."

"Our Great Ming Dynasty has always been warm and hospitable, and we will certainly extend the warmest welcome to Your Excellency the Duke."

Michele laughed heartily: "Your Highness, since you've said so, how could I not believe you?"

"The Ming Dynasty was truly a magical and great country."

"Such a huge city, with so many people, how prosperous it must be?"

"I can't wait to set off and see it for myself!"

As he spoke, he raised his wine glass and said, "Come, let me toast the Prince of the Great Ming and His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Ming. May we become the best of friends, and may the friendship between Venice and the Great Ming last forever!"

Zhu Di and his wife Xu Miaoyun both raised their wine cups and drank together.

Amidst the clinking of glasses, the group looked at each other and laughed heartily, creating a harmonious and warm atmosphere.

Just as they were chatting and laughing and the banquet atmosphere reached its peak, the originally noisy banquet hall suddenly fell silent inexplicably, as if time had frozen at that moment.

Zhu Di and Michele were both curious and noticed that everyone around them was looking at the center of the banquet hall, so they also looked over there.

Subsequently, Zhu Di witnessed Zhu Gaochi kissing Daisy.

The faces of the Michele couple standing next to them instantly turned from rosy to ashen, becoming extremely ugly.

……

(End of this chapter)