Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 598 A Golden Age! The news shocked Old Zhu!

With the first warlord setting an example and signing a treaty, other warlords followed suit.

In their view, such a treaty was an absolute goldmine.

By merely giving up some unexplored mineral deposits, leasing a small amount of land, and making insignificant concessions such as allowing the Ming Dynasty to open banks and publish newspapers, one could gain the protection of the Ming Dynasty's garrison, as well as assistance in training the army and cultivating talent. More importantly, one could also obtain a large amount of Ming Dynasty currency, acquiring the capital to establish an independent nation and become a hegemon.

Who wouldn't love such a "wonderful" treaty?

Soon, various warlords rushed to sign contracts with the Ming Dynasty, offering even more generous terms, such as exempting Ming goods from import taxes and even exempting Ming merchants from all taxes when doing business within their territory.

In their view, their country was so far away from the Ming Dynasty that no Ming people had ever come here before, and no Ming merchants would come here in the future.

Furthermore, given their relatively underdeveloped state, the total commercial taxes within their jurisdiction are not substantial, so they are naturally happy to do a favor in this regard.

As for future developments, who can predict or see that far ahead?

Soon, all the various forces within the Golden Horde signed "Treaties of Friendship and Mutual Assistance" with the Ming Dynasty.

……

Not only the various warlords, but eventually, even the Great Khan of the Golden Horde, Qichiq, recognized the situation and signed a treaty with the Ming Dynasty.

Of course, he did not represent the entire Golden Horde, but rather the only regions still under the actual control of the Golden Horde court.

After the treaty was signed, he would no longer be the Great Khan of the entire Golden Horde, but the monarch of a new independent state.

After all this was completed, Old Zhu summoned all parties and signed a joint agreement.

The joint treaty declared that the Great Khan of the Golden Horde had formally abdicated, and the former Golden Horde officially became more than a dozen different countries.

In reality, these places are like this; they are different countries with completely different cultures.

However, the steppe cavalry conquered this place with their superior military force, blood, and fire.

The various regions and ethnic groups were forcibly brought under the rule of the Golden Horde.

Just as the Yuan Dynasty never assimilated the Han Chinese during its rule in the Central Plains, the Golden Horde never assimilated the various regions and ethnic groups under its jurisdiction.

Even without the arrival of the Ming army, it was only a matter of time before these regions seceded and the Golden Horde collapsed completely.

That's exactly how history unfolded.

Old Zhu's decision to have them sign the treaty merely accelerated the process.

At the same time, it also enabled a peaceful transition of power in this area.

Otherwise, if development continues along the original path, this place will fall into decades, or even centuries, of war, and countless people will die in the flames of war.

The fighting was so fierce that rivers of blood flowed, and the population was reduced to only one or two tenths of what it is today, before finally forming more than a dozen different countries.

Now, it's all over.

The powerful intervention of the Ming Dynasty ensured a smooth transfer of power, saving the lives of hundreds of millions of people from devastation, and bringing peace to the region.

Once again, Zhu Yuanzhang pacified the vast territory without bloodshed.

The message was quickly transmitted back to the Ming Dynasty via telegram.

In an instant, the people of the Ming Dynasty were in an uproar.

In recent years, the Ming Dynasty's national strength has been rising steadily. It has pacified Siam and Pegu in the south, the grasslands and the three Jurchen tribes in the north, not to mention Japan and Goryeo in the east.

Gradually, people became accustomed to the Ming army going from one victory to another.

This is how Zhu Yuanzhang led his army on the western expedition.

The Western Regions were already very far from the Central Plains.

The Turan Empire was even further away, thousands of miles away.

As for the regions formerly under the rule of the Golden Horde, only a few scholars could occasionally glean some information from traveling merchants or find vague records in certain books.

For ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty who lived their lives in peace and quiet, that place was too far away.

So distant that it has almost no connection to their lives.

However, with the implementation of new policies and opening up to the outside world, many ideas have undergone tremendous changes.

The continuous influx of overseas resources into the Ming Dynasty also changed the lives of the people.

The common people naturally wouldn't feel that it was none of their business.

Although the Ming Dynasty has not yet seen any benefits from pacifying Beshbaliq and the Turan Empire, and land transportation is far more difficult than sea transportation, this does not prevent the people from beginning to dream of a bright future.

In their eyes, these places, like Oceania, must provide the Ming Dynasty with abundant mineral resources and wealth in the future, making their lives increasingly prosperous.

The people were talking a lot.

"The Supreme Emperor pacified more than ten countries in one go and signed peace treaties with them. That's too powerful."

"Of course! Who is the Supreme Emperor? He is the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty!"

"The Supreme Emperor is indeed powerful, but the reason he was able to pacify so many countries so smoothly is because of the Ming Dynasty's illustrious reputation and its powerful firearms and cannons. The Ming Dynasty's current illustrious reputation is all thanks to His Majesty, and His Majesty also invented firearms and cannons. In the end, it was His Majesty who made these countries submit."

"That's true, His Majesty is a wise ruler unlike any other in history!"

"Uh, you guys are saying that since the Ming Dynasty has signed alliances with these nine countries, does that mean we can go to these countries to do business and trade?"

"That's for sure. Didn't you read the treaty published in the newspaper? Many countries not only exempted Ming Dynasty goods from import tariffs, but even Ming Dynasty merchants who went there to do business were exempt from tariffs."

"So, if you want to get rich, you can just go there to do business, instead of risking going out to sea?"

"That's right, there has been a Silk Road since ancient times, which leads westward from the Western Regions."

"The sea is dangerous, but you can get there by boat. Do you think the road from the Western Regions to the west is easy? It's a vast expanse of yellow sand, desolate and teeming with bandits. It's not that easy."

"I believe you that it's all yellow sand and desolate, but as for the bandits, forget it. Our Great Ming is prosperous now, what blind thief would dare to rob the goods of our merchants?"

"Haha, that's true. Thieves all know who they can steal from and who they can't. They might dare to rob other merchants, but they wouldn't dare to rob merchants from the Ming Dynasty."

"Speaking of which, in the past, we didn't even need to go to the Western Regions. Within the Ming Dynasty, wherever we were a little far from our hometowns and towns, there were always bandits and thieves. But now they seem to have disappeared."

"The Ministry of Justice's Anti-Theft Division has been suppressing bandits and thieves every year. They've been wiped out long ago. Besides, nowadays everyone has enough to eat and drink, so why would anyone want to be a bandit?"

"Alas, especially when the Yuan dynasty was destroyed, the world was in chaos. Even staying at home would result in being robbed. Looking back now, it seems like it was just yesterday. But the world is truly at peace now!"

……

The people chatted freely, and when they talked about the strength and prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, everyone proudly puffed out their chests.

The term "chaotic world" seemed very distant to the people of the Ming Dynasty.

Although the Ming Dynasty is still in a state of war, with its armies fighting every day.

But that only happened to a very small number of the new army soldiers.

For the vast majority of ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty, this was a time of peace and prosperity.

War was something extremely distant for them.

……

At the Ming army camps on the border of the Turan Empire, the alliance was concluded and the treaty officially came into effect. Emperor Zhu personally escorted the rulers of the newly established states away.

As they were about to part, the ruler of a new country said to Zhu, "Is the Supreme Emperor leading the Ming army all the way west to Europe? However, I have heard that a prince of the Ming Dynasty has already led a fleet there."

Old Zhu was extremely surprised and immediately asked what had happened.

The king said, "I don't know the specifics, I only heard scattered news from merchants who traveled far away."

"It is said that a prince from the Ming Dynasty in the East landed in Venice, Europe."

"The prince's son also married the daughter of the Duke of Venice and signed a series of treaties with Venice."

"Since then, that prince from the Ming Dynasty has settled in Europe and has continued to expand his family's influence, making his business extremely large."

"I heard that not long afterward, that prince became the richest man in all of Europe."

"Their wealth was so great that it would take thousands of cartloads to transport all their treasures."

"Gold is worth less than dirt in their house."

"Their wealth puts even the kings of Europe to shame."

"Legends and stories about this Ming prince circulate throughout Europe."

Old Zhu hurriedly asked, "Is the news true? Do you know what that Ming prince's name is?"

The king who was speaking shook his head and said, "The Golden Horde and the European countries in the west have always been in a state of hostility. Our cavalry once conquered there, but later stopped their westward expedition."

"But the enmity between us has already been established."

Therefore, we have had very little contact with each other all along.

"These messages were sent back by merchants who had traveled far away."

"But very few merchants dare to do business there."

"Such messages are often erroneous."

"I can't guarantee whether the news about the Ming prince in Europe is accurate."

Old Zhu was immediately disappointed, but thinking about it, it was normal.

For the Ming Dynasty, the Golden Horde was already the westernmost country.

But for the European nations, the Golden Horde remained in the far east.

Moreover, in this era, even two neighboring countries, once they become enemies and cut off normal trade and exchanges, would never be familiar with each other.

Just like the Ming Dynasty in the past, which was a neighbor of the steppe empire, but the people within the Ming Dynasty were often completely unaware of many things that happened in the steppe empire.

Neighboring countries like Korea go without saying.

If it weren't for Zhu Yunwen's expedition to Japan, which pacified the three Jurchen tribes and led Goryeo to pay tribute and sign a treaty with the Ming Dynasty, the relationship between the two sides would have become incredibly close. In the past, if Goryeo had changed dynasties, the Ming Dynasty might not have known for several years.

The relationship between the former Golden Horde and the European countries was far worse than that between the Ming Dynasty and Goryeo.

How much information can they actually exchange with each other?

"Oh, I remember now," the king suddenly said, "The name of the Ming prince is 'Zhu Di', isn't it?"

"Yes, that should be the name."

He was talking non-stop, completely unaware that Old Zhu, standing to the side, was stunned, frozen in place, as if struck by lightning.

Zhu Di?

Our fourth son, Zhu Di?

Is he still alive?

In Europe, he even became the richest person in Europe?

This news was a huge shock to Lao Zhu.

Zhu Yuanzhang (the Zhu family) always fully supported Zhu Yunwen's implementation of new policies.

In particular, he witnessed firsthand how the lives of the people of the Ming Dynasty were getting better and better, with no worries about food and clothing; and how the Ming army swept across the world, invincible in every way.

For someone who once begged for food, nothing is more important than ensuring that everyone in the world has enough to eat.

For an ambitious emperor, nothing is more important than his empire dominating the world and awe-inspiring all directions.

Zhu Yunwen achieved this through new policies and scientific development.

Today, the Ming Dynasty possesses a national strength that was unimaginable in the past.

Otherwise, Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't have led his army on this long westward expedition.

If it were still the old Ming Dynasty, without advanced firearms and cannons, the army needed for the expedition would not be ten or twenty thousand men, but hundreds of thousands.

The Ming Dynasty's national strength absolutely could not afford it.

Being able to pacify the Western Regions was practically the limit.

The Ming Dynasty's current strength stems from its new policies.

Of course, Lao Zhu supports the new policy.

However, there was one thing that Lao Zhu was always very conflicted about, even very distressed about.

That would mean sending all members of the Ming Dynasty's royal family to sea.

Although Zhu also agreed with this national policy.

Let our children and grandchildren, like the feudal lords of the Zhou Dynasty thousands of years ago, go overseas to explore new frontiers.

But this was a necessary sacrifice for the long-term benefit of the Ming Dynasty.

In Old Zhu's heart, he always felt reluctant and unwilling to part with his children and grandchildren.

It's worth noting that Old Zhu has always doted on his children and grandchildren.

Even if they commit heinous crimes, they are reluctant to punish them severely.

In this respect, Zhu Yuanzhang was completely incomparable to those heartless emperors who could "kill three sons in a day".

He was a monarch who valued loyalty and righteousness above all else.

An old man who values ​​his children and grandchildren above all else.

The thought of his children and grandchildren going out to sea, facing treacherous waves and unpredictable crises, struggling to survive in the wilderness, made Old Zhu's heart ache.

The eunuchs who served him all knew that the news the emperor feared most was that a giant ship had been capsized by a storm at sea, or that a fleet had been completely destroyed.

Upon hearing such news, the Supreme Emperor would remain sullen for several days.

If the people around him make the slightest mistake, he will fly into a rage.

……

(End of this chapter)