Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 572 The Legend of the Zhu Family! Zhu Yunwen's Inquiry!
Countless legends about the Zhu family circulate among the people.

Their gold coins and paper money were piled up like mountains, and their wealth far exceeded that of any king in any country.

Their industries extend throughout Europe and permeate the daily lives of many people.

Zhu Di and his son Zhu Gaochi were not complacent because of this; on the contrary, they were filled with a strong sense of crisis and urgency.

Despite their wealth multiplying several times in just one year, their assets are all high-quality industries that can continuously generate wealth.

But this is Europe, not the Ming Dynasty.

The reason why companies such as Daming Bank, Daming Department Store, and Daming Daily could wield such power and influence in the Ming Dynasty and were untouchable was because their founders were the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and they had the Ming court as their backing.

But in Europe, there is no such guarantee.

Although Europe is a commercial society, wealth without sufficient military protection is like a three-year-old child carrying gold through a bustling market—extremely dangerous and likely to attract countless covetous eyes at any moment.

In response, Zhu Di and his son adopted a three-pronged approach.

First, Zhu Gaochi formally married Daisy, thus consolidating his position by marrying the daughter of the Doge of Venice.

However, relying solely on Venice's support is far from enough.

Their business empire extends far beyond Venice.

Ultimately, Venice was merely a commercial city-state and did not have the capacity to send troops on expeditions to any of the principalities in Europe.

For businesses operating in other countries, relying solely on Venice's protection is far from sufficient.

The second method was to cleverly "use the Ming Dynasty's name to intimidate others and raise its banner."

Through propaganda, they repeatedly emphasized to the elites of various European countries that they had an incomparably powerful motherland, the Great Ming Dynasty, behind them.

If anyone dares to target their assets, it would be tantamount to making an enemy of the Ming Dynasty. They should carefully consider the consequences before taking any action.

To further enhance its deterrent effect, Zhu Di also invited nobles from various European countries to watch the impressive scene of his warships conducting artillery drills.

This move indeed had a powerful deterrent effect. After witnessing the formidable firepower of the Ming warships, the nobles of various countries dared not make any rash moves.

However, this also made the already scarce stockpile of artillery shells even scarcer.

They have already started playing the "empty city strategy".

In reality, the remaining shells were no longer enough to sustain any more wars.

Although Zhu Gaochi had once been in charge of the Ming Dynasty's Manufacturing Bureau and had some knowledge of gunpowder manufacturing.

However, the gunpowder technology in the late Ming Dynasty had become extremely complex.

Even Zhu Gaochi could hardly produce cannonballs at the same level as the Ming Dynasty's military factories.

Bullets are even more difficult to obtain.

The manufacturing process for bullets in this era is more demanding than that for ordinary artillery shells.

The third option is to spend a huge sum of money to build and train a massive mercenary group.

In less than a year, the number of mercenaries under the Zhu family's command reached tens of thousands.

Of course, this was not a concentrated army, but rather a force dispersed among various bank branches and shopping malls to protect the safety of goods and money.

They need to conduct business and transport goods, so they need armed escorts.

Many banks and shopping malls also need "protection".

Nevertheless, Zhu Di and his son Zhu Gaochi soon felt immense pressure.

As their business grew larger and penetrated deeper into the heart of Europe, the ruling classes of those countries could no longer sit idly by.

They could not tolerate their country's economic lifeline being controlled by a business tycoon from the East.

As a result, they began to harass the Zhu family's business under the guise of legislation or official inspections.

Some local aristocratic merchants also began to try to squeeze them out and seize their businesses.

With their vast wealth and their control of banks, Zhu Di and his son were able to wield considerable influence within the European international financial system, allowing them to navigate complex relationships with rulers of various countries.

They even dare to openly challenge some restless countries, using their strong financial resources to intimidate them and make many countries hesitant to act.

In the eyes of the people of Europe, the Zhu family, father and son, as the "richest family in the world," were more powerful than the kings of various countries.

However, both Zhu Di and Zhu Gaochi were well aware that this situation of "controlling the country with wealth" could not continue.

If this continues, their vast business empire, built on innovative business models, will eventually shrink back under the combined pressure of European countries, until it completely collapses.

Although a multinational corporation may be able to wield considerable influence, it is still difficult to compete with local "powerful forces" with official backing, or even with the government itself, when it comes to domestic countries.

It is ultimately too difficult to control the regimes of various countries solely through wealth.

Not to mention, they were outsiders.

Even though they are popular with the public, they struggle to gain the trust of the local ruling class.

Of course, if Zhu Di and Zhu Gaochi had not pursued complete control over Europe, they would have been very successful by now.

As business tycoons, they have completely established themselves.

Even if they retreat, their wealth and influence in Europe are probably still unmatched by any other family.

But their ambitions are clearly far more than that.

After all, Europe is their "fiefdom," and controlling it is their goal.

Just when Zhu Di and Zhu Gaochi felt overwhelmed by crises and faced numerous difficulties, a major turning point appeared.

A fleet from the Ming Dynasty arrived in Europe in a grand procession.

……

Ming dynasty.

Zhu Yunwen stood on the Yellow River embankment.

Looking around, he immediately noticed something unusual.

In his previous life, he had also traveled by car across the Yellow River and witnessed its true face.

In Zhu Yunwen's memory, the Yellow River's channel, which was actually flowing with water on ordinary days, was not wide at all; on the contrary, it was very narrow and looked like a "small river".

After all, the Yellow River often dried up in later years, so the river channel was not wide and the flow was not large when it was flowing normally. But large areas of open "river beaches" remained on both sides of the Yellow River.

Although farmers cultivate these mudflats, it is absolutely forbidden to build permanent houses on them, because during the flood season, these areas will be submerged by the river, and the Yellow River will turn from a "small river" into a vast "ocean"!
If these "river beaches" are also considered part of the Yellow River, then the width of the Yellow River in later generations would be extremely astonishing.

The span from the south bank dike to the north bank dike even far exceeds the width of the Yangtze River's riverbed in most places.

This is the result of centuries of river management efforts in later generations, through the continuous relocation of the Yellow River dikes.

On the one hand, secondary dikes are built to "constrain the water and flush away the sand," enhancing the Yellow River's scouring capacity and reducing siltation. On the other hand, "remote dikes for flood control" are used to expand the width of the main dike, reserving space for flood discharge during the flood season.

Only by employing a two-pronged approach could the unruly Yellow River be finally tamed.

These valuable experiences were gradually accumulated over hundreds of years of exploration by later generations.

In this day and age, people have not yet mastered such a comprehensive water management strategy, and have only adopted the method of "constraining water to flush away sand".

The reason is not that people are truly unaware, but rather that implementing "remote dike flood control" requires the requisition of a large amount of land.

The plan is to "return the land to the river," turning large tracts of fertile farmland into riverbank land.

Many houses also need to be demolished.

This means that a large number of people will have to be relocated.

However, as the birthplace of Chinese civilization, the Central Plains region has developed for thousands of years, resulting in a large population and insufficient arable land. How could they bear to turn their precious farmland into "riverbank land"?

Even though people know that this is the fundamental solution to controlling the Yellow River, they are still unwilling!

For a feudal dynasty that relied on agriculture, the court lacked sufficient funds and food to compensate farmers who had lost their land, and would naturally face strong resistance from residents along the Yellow River who owned land, making it difficult to implement the policy.

For ordinary people on both sides of the strait, they would rather the Yellow River breach its banks every three to five years, causing them to suffer the risk of losing their homes and families year after year, than lose their land.

In this way, at least before the Yellow River breached its banks, they and their families could still survive by farming. Even if they eventually drowned, they would at least have lived a few more years.

But if they lose their land, they will immediately be unable to survive!

Zhu Yunwen personally went down the levee and conducted a detailed survey.

As expected, just as Chen Guanlan reported, the five-foot-deep reinforced concrete retaining wall that should have been built on the inner side of the dike was nowhere to be found.

The audacity of these corrupt officials in Henan has reached an appalling level, and killing them is absolutely justified.

On the embankment, Zhu Yunwen met Chen Zheng, the newly appointed prefect of Guide Prefecture.

When he came to pay homage to the emperor, he was still wearing a set of coarse linen clothes covered in mud.

According to the accompanying officials, Chen Zheng was just on the dike, working with the craftsmen to build it.

Zhu Yunwen's brows furrowed with obvious displeasure as he said in a deep voice, "You are the prefect of Guide Prefecture, and you should be shouldering the important responsibility of coordinating and directing disaster relief efforts, not running to the dike to act as a 'craftsman' repairing the dike."

“There are so many skilled craftsmen in the world, we don’t need another one like you.”

"The imperial court granted you the official position and salary of prefect so that you could govern a region and protect the people, not so that you could become a craftsman in this muddy place."

"What? Did you know I was coming to inspect the city, and are you putting on a show of your hands-on approach?"

"But by showing off like this, have you forgotten what your job is all about?"

Upon hearing the emperor's stern reprimand, Chen Zheng was struck dumb, kowtowing repeatedly and replying in fear and trepidation, "Your Majesty's reprimand is absolutely right. This humble subject should not have acted that way."

"However, the problems in Henan's officialdom have been long-standing, with corrupt officials running rampant."

“Since I took office as the prefect of Guide, I have been hampered by the provincial government offices above and by the clerks at all levels below who outwardly comply but inwardly defy me, making it difficult to implement my orders.”

“Your humble servant has tried to crack down on those corrupt officials, but they are all protected by higher-level officials. According to the court’s ‘combined vertical and horizontal’ management system, your humble servant has no way to start.”

“Your humble servant was originally a river management craftsman who served in the river management office for many years. I am grateful to the court for not abandoning me and for appointing me as the prefect of Guide in times of crisis. I should do my best to direct disaster relief and speak up for the people.”

"But I am incompetent and am constrained by officials above and below me. I cannot issue orders or carry them out."

"With no other choice, I, your humble servant, have no choice but to personally come to this riverbank as a river repair craftsman, in my capacity as the Prefect."

"This move was made out of necessity, and also to show our determination to those corrupt officials who abuse their power."

"Your humble servant is wholeheartedly devoted to flood relief and disaster mitigation, and to controlling the Yellow River; I will never collude with them!"

"Since His Majesty personally visited Henan and carried out a swift and decisive overhaul of the Henan officialdom, bringing a large number of corrupt officials, led by Zheng Hongjian and Zhao Qingzhi, to justice, the Henan officialdom has been completely transformed."

"However, it takes more than one cold day for ice to freeze three feet deep."

"Although the officials at the top have been removed, it will take time for the lower-level clerks to gradually turn things around."

"Of course, without the 'protective umbrella' of those corrupt officials, these clerks have long been terrified. Now that I am working here myself, they can only work hard as well."

"But how could they bear such suffering?"

"Your Majesty's intention is precisely to take this opportunity to temper the character of these clerks, to make them suffer a bit, so as to completely reverse the atmosphere in Guide Prefecture and ensure that Your Majesty's anti-corruption efforts in Henan can truly be implemented."

"At the same time, we can also examine their abilities and select some useful talents who can be reformed and shoulder important responsibilities."

"Only in this way can we govern Guide Prefecture with ease and unity of purpose."

"After all, although I am the prefect, I still have to rely on the officials and clerks below me to handle the specific administrative affairs."

"Therefore, I originally intended to stay here for another day or two to personally handle the tasks, while also assigning specific tasks to the officials below."

“If Your Majesty does not come, I will return to the yamen within three days to handle affairs. At that time, I will be able to examine their performance during this period and select capable people to help me govern Guide Prefecture.”

"I did not expect Your Majesty to arrive so quickly, which has caused me to be negligent in receiving you. I am filled with fear and trepidation."

"Although I am the prefect, I can only protect myself in the infighting of officialdom and lie low for the time being. I am unable to realize my ambitions, so I have come up with this inferior strategy to work as a craftsman on this dike in order to plan for the future."

"This is due to my incompetence, and I have failed the court's high expectations. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

Zhu Yunwen listened quietly to him finish speaking, then waved his hand and said, "Get up."

Chen Zheng slightly raised his head from the ground, stole a glance at His Majesty the Emperor, and then slowly got up from the ground, still bent over, head bowed, not daring to breathe.

"The officialdom in Henan has been turned into a mess by people like Zheng Hongjian and Zhao Qingzhi."

“I know that you are ultimately just a prefect, with higher officials above you, and your colleagues and subordinates are all corrupt officials. You are all alone and cannot make a difference. I do not blame you.”

"Since you claim to have a background in river management and have worked in the river administration department for many years, tell me how you plan to manage the Yellow River?"

……

(End of this chapter)