My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 346 Taking advantage of Emperor Chongzhen's birthday, the peasant army came to play the victim!

In this way, all sorts of tributes filled three large ships, weighing tens of tons!

After everything was prepared, that morning, after bidding farewell to everyone, Zheng Zhilong gave an order, and more than a dozen warships slowly sailed away from the port, heading towards the Ming Dynasty.

Although it is the dead of winter with howling north winds and swirling snowflakes, the sea is not frozen over because it is constantly flowing.

Moreover, Zheng Zhilong's ships were mostly large, sturdy, and deep-draft, so they were not afraid of any wind or waves.

The waves crashed against the ship's hull, making a tremendous noise, but the warship, like a sturdy fortress, steadily sailed forward.

After sailing at sea for ten days, Zheng Zhilong finally arrived at Tianjin Port.

At this time, there were less than ten days left until Emperor Chongzhen's birthday celebration.

Meanwhile, the scene shifts to the capital city.

At this time, the streets and alleys of the capital were decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and a festive atmosphere permeated the city.

Firstly, it was because Emperor Chongzhen's birthday was just a few days away, and secondly, it was because the Spring Festival was right after Emperor Chongzhen's birthday, and the Spring Festival was undoubtedly the best day of the year.

Therefore, the entire capital city has been incredibly lively recently.

Nearby princes also flocked to the capital, bringing generous gifts to celebrate Emperor Chongzhen's birthday.

Those vassal kings who couldn't come sent carefully prepared gifts to express their respect and blessings to the emperor.

In addition, congratulatory messages from most officials and gifts from military officers were also delivered one after another.

Overall, the capital was filled with a joyous atmosphere.

To demonstrate his benevolence, with Zhu Cilang's consent, Chongzhen specially took 200,000 taels of silver from the imperial treasury and converted it into copper coins to distribute to ordinary people and soldiers in the capital.

Of course, there are explanations for this; in ancient times, it was called "longevity silver" or "reward copper coins".

It was a reward money that the emperor distributed to the people, officials, soldiers, etc., to demonstrate his "great imperial grace".

Although in the end each person may not receive much money, the point of this kind of thing is just to have a festive atmosphere.

With this move, Chongzhen won back the hearts of the people once again!
Of course, these matters were none of the concern of Crown Prince Zhu Cilang.

After all, the Ming Dynasty had a history of more than two hundred years and had a mature and complete set of procedures and systems. Even though the Ministry of Rites had not organized such a grand birthday celebration for a long time, it was still easy to handle this task by consulting the relevant documents.

However, Zhu Cilang has not allowed himself to be idle recently.

He assembled a group of skilled craftsmen and prepared to research a highly forward-looking technology: greenhouse technology!
That's right, Zhu Cilang planned to build greenhouses in the Ming Dynasty!
Recently, Zhu Cilang has been carefully studying a large number of detailed reports on the weather in various regions.

Although he knew that the Little Ice Age was cold, he still underestimated its impact.

According to reports from various regions, winters in the north have been long and cold in recent years, lasting for about five months, and in severe cases, they may even last for more than half a year.

Although the climate in the south is relatively mild, winter still lasts for four months.

This means that for the next few months, the land will be covered in ice and snow, and no food can be grown in the fields.

Based on this calculation, the south can grow about two crops a year, while the north can only grow one.

As a result, the food shortage remains like a huge black hole that is difficult to fill.

Even though Zhu Cilang had made up his mind to vigorously promote the two high-yield crops, sweet potatoes and potatoes, next spring, he still had some worries.

After all, the people had long been accustomed to growing traditional grains, and they would certainly have some complaints about the imperial court's forced requirement to grow potatoes and sweet potatoes.

Furthermore, reports from officials across the country indicate that the public does indeed have a strong sense of resistance to this.

It might not be so easy to popularize sweet potatoes and potatoes by then.

Furthermore, given the current preservation methods and the differences in temperature across regions, sweet potatoes and potatoes may not be able to be stored for more than three months.

Therefore, food shortages remain a harsh reality, and even though large quantities of food can still be imported from overseas, the food crisis cannot be resolved.

Therefore, greenhouse technology has become the most suitable method to solve the food problem at present.

Using greenhouse technology is like putting a warm coat on the land, allowing crops to be grown all year round.

In places with suitable climates, it's probably possible to grow crops three times a year.

In this way, grain production will increase significantly, and the food crisis will be greatly alleviated.

However, to Zhu Cilang's surprise, greenhouses had already taken shape by this time in the Ming Dynasty.

However, it wasn't originally used for growing food; it was used by flower growers to grow flowers.

For example, the Ming Dynasty book "A Brief Account of the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" records in detail that flower growers in Beijing and other places would use cellars, heated brick beds, and paper windows to cultivate beautiful flowers, such as peonies and herbaceous peonies, or grow some vegetables during the cold winter.

This planting method is called 'Hall Flower' or 'Smoked Flower'.

The specific method involves burning horse manure to generate heat and raise the temperature, then covering it with translucent oil paper to create a simple heat-insulating and light-transmitting environment.

This technology is the traditional Chinese greenhouse.

As for why this method is used to grow flowers instead of crops, the reason is actually quite simple.

After all, in ancient times, the value of growing flowers far exceeded that of growing grain.

Because those who can afford to grow this flower are mostly wealthy families, and they never lack food.

Zhu Cilang intended to start by developing and improving this traditional flower-growing technique, and then apply it to grain cultivation.

He had actually considered developing plastic or glass greenhouses, but after careful consideration, he had no choice but to give up.

The research on plastic greenhouses was simply too difficult, and the technological level of the Ming Dynasty at that time did not meet the requirements for its development.

As for glass greenhouses, that's even more out of the question. Although he knew in his heart that the cost of glass was actually not high, the cost of manufacturing glass suitable for greenhouses would be ridiculously high.

Moreover, glass is fragile and inconvenient to transport, especially since he wanted to popularize greenhouse technology throughout the country.

Besides, he was hoping to make a fortune using glass, a rare material.

Therefore, this traditional, unsophisticated method is currently the only option.

Firstly, it's inexpensive, and secondly, the technology is simple.

Of course, these craftsmen did not disappoint Zhu Cilang's expectations.

They first dug down about one meter into the ground, and then evenly spread a layer of straw and wood ash on the excavated ground. Straw and wood ash have good heat retention properties, which can prevent the ground from freezing to a certain extent and provide basic temperature protection for the subsequent planting environment.

Next, hemp paper or silk cloth that has been thoroughly soaked in tung oil and fish oil is carefully made into a material with good light transmission properties.

When constructing the main body of the greenhouse, thick walls are built around it using mud bricks or rammed earth. This thick wall structure can effectively absorb and store heat during the day and release it slowly at night, thus playing a role in heat storage and insulation.

The greenhouse's supporting structure uses a bamboo and wood frame. Bamboo and wood are lightweight yet have sufficient strength to meet the greenhouse's basic load-bearing requirements.

Subsequently, flexible rattan is used to wrap and bind the bamboo and wood frame to ensure a tight connection between the various components and enhance the overall stability of the structure.

Regarding temperature control inside the greenhouse, honeycomb briquettes are mainly used as the heat source.

Honeycomb briquettes have a long burning time and release heat stably, providing continuous warmth to greenhouses.

Of course, traditional fuels such as wood can also be used as alternatives, and should be used flexibly according to the actual situation.

With such meticulous design and construction, the entire greenhouse already possessed the typical appearance and functional characteristics of later greenhouses.

This greenhouse covers an area of ​​about one acre and is located within the East Palace.

This was something Zhu Cilang specifically requested, because he wanted to constantly observe whether the greenhouse was up to standard.

Therefore, he would take time every day to come to the greenhouse and carefully check the growth of the crops inside.

If the experiment is successful, it can be rolled out across the country next year, benefiting more people.

Just as Zhu Cilang was busily working on the greenhouses, a team from Shaanxi slowly approached from outside the capital.

On either side of the procession were soldiers in neat armor with solemn expressions, while the person in the middle was none other than Luo Rucai, who had surrendered to the imperial court.

That's right, Luo Rucai has finally arrived in Beijing!
Because Zhu Cilang had previously instructed that peasant army leaders like Luo Rucai must be sent to the capital after surrendering, and given that it was currently Emperor Chongzhen's birthday, Sun Chuanting sent Luo Rucai to the capital as a special "gift".

After all, the peasant army leader's voluntary surrender to the imperial court was a great joy for the court.

Therefore, Luo Rucai's title of "congratulatory gift" was indeed well-deserved.

At this moment, Luo Rucai was riding a black steed, looking at the three tall and majestic cities in the distance.

The first thing he saw were two new cities, the same two new cities that Zhu Cilang had ordered to be built.

Although these two new cities cannot compare to the majestic and towering capital city that has stood the test of time, they are still quite spectacular, with sturdy city walls and towering gates that far surpass those of ordinary cities.

In addition, there is a hot air balloon in each of the four corners of these two new cities. The hot air balloons hang high between heaven and earth, swaying gently in the wind, and look amazing from a distance.

Luo Rucai had never seen such a magical object before. His eyes widened in curiosity and astonishment.

He then looked at the military officer beside him and respectfully asked:
"May I ask, sir, what is this thing? And why can it fly up into the sky?"

The military officer glanced at the hot air balloon, a smile appearing on his face, and then said:
"This is a hot air balloon, which allows us to observe the surroundings from the air. It can be considered a secret weapon of our Great Ming Dynasty."

"If the enemy gets close, the soldiers on board can spot them from ten miles away and then inform the entire army of the enemy's movements."

Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai felt a chill run down his spine. He hadn't expected the imperial court to have developed something so powerful.

However, he quickly came to terms with it. Thinking about it, it made sense. The imperial court could even develop powerful firearms like flintlock guns, so what was this little thing?

"woooooo"

Suddenly, at that moment, a cry came from inside the sedan chair behind Luo Rucai, followed by a woman's somewhat flustered voice:

"Stop crying, stop crying, why are you crying again? Didn't you just eat something?"

Then came the sound of a woman patting the child.

After a short while, the crying gradually stopped, and it seemed that the child had either fallen asleep or been soothed.

Before setting off, Sun Chuanting asked Luo Rucai who he needed to bring with him to Beijing.

According to Sun Chuanting's estimation, Luo Rucai might take a few personal guards with him on the journey. After all, it's a long journey, and having a few personal guards by his side would provide some support.

The results of it?
Luo Rucai did not bring his personal guards. Instead, he brought a dozen or so ordinary peasant soldiers, or rather, peasants, to Beijing.

Among them were two women who had lost their husbands and were raising children, three ordinary male farmers, an elderly man in his sixties or seventies, and the rest were children aged ten to thirteen or fourteen.

These people all have one thing in common: their families were destroyed and their lives were ruined.

She either lost her husband, her children, or her parents.

And most of them starved to death!

When Sun Chuanting saw these people, he was somewhat bewildered, because he did not know what Luo Rucai was doing bringing them to Beijing.

But Luo Rucai did not explain at the time, and Sun Chuanting let him be.

Because he knew that Luo Rucai had already surrendered to the imperial court and should not cause any more trouble.

Luo Rucai did indeed have his own plans.

Although he surrendered to the imperial court and even received a corresponding official position, he was still filled with worries about the future.

After all, the emperor's mind is unpredictable, and it would be too easy for him to kill someone, especially someone like him.

Therefore, he had to show the emperor just how miserable these peasant soldiers were and why they had rebelled.

He hoped that this would evoke the emperor's sympathy.

That way, he will be safer.

To put it simply, Luo Rucai brought these people here to play the victim.

At that time, these people whose families had been destroyed would kneel directly before Emperor Chongzhen, and tearfully say that their families had all starved to death, and they had no choice but to follow Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng in rebellion in order to survive.

Then he would kowtow several times to beg the emperor for forgiveness.

If you were the emperor, what would you do?
Of course I forgave them!

In this way, Luo Rucai could also be exonerated. As long as Chongzhen forgave them in front of everyone, no one would dare to cause trouble for Luo Rucai for the rebellion.

Even Emperor Chongzhen himself couldn't do it!
After all, as an emperor, a reputation for loving his people like his own children is still very important.

Of course, it could have been even worse: bring those peasant soldiers, missing limbs and bones, to the capital and make them kneel before the emperor and cry!
Just thinking about this scene is a bit creepy!
(End of this chapter)