Ming Dynasty: The Jingnan Rebellion has just been successful, and Zhu Yuanzhang has been resurrected

Historically, although the Yuan Dynasty's expedition to Japan failed, which diminished their ambition to conquer overseas, the Yuan Dynasty's development along the coast did not stagnate.

Historical records clearly show that even when the Yuan Dynasty was on its last legs, coastal trade remained very prosperous. Zhu Yuanzhang remembered this and regarded maritime trade as an important factor in the Yuan Dynasty's demise.

The ancient social hierarchy of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants was ranked last. One of the biggest factors contributing to this was that merchants were driven by profit; if the profit was large enough, there was nothing they wouldn't dare to do.

In some respects, this is not wrong. Historically, the Ming Dynasty fell because Shanxi merchants sold the Ming's resources to the area outside the Great Wall, thereby making huge profits.

Zhu Yuanzhang believed that the demise of the Yuan Dynasty was related to trade. Therefore, after establishing the Ming Dynasty, he implemented a policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, effectively pinning trade down so that it would never recover.

Of course, Zhu Yuanzhang's measures also proved one thing from another perspective: individual ability is extremely helpless in the face of the great tide of history. In the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, merchants were incredibly active.

Of course, it wasn't just the policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce that caused problems. In fact, upon closer examination, many of Zhu Yuanzhang's policies ultimately had the opposite effect, which is truly regrettable.

Judging from the prosperity of coastal trade during the Yuan Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang's ban on maritime trade may have been partly due to his fear that a resurgence of maritime trade would threaten the foundation of the Ming Dynasty's rule.

After all, in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind, the demise of the Yuan Dynasty was closely related to the prosperous trade along the coast.

In reality, was the fall of the Yuan Dynasty truly related to coastal trade? Certainly. Historical records clearly show that when the Yuan Dynasty was in dire straits, some soldiers were still amassing wealth along the coast, completely ignoring the Yuan court's plight.

However, to say that coastal trade caused the downfall of the Yuan Dynasty would be to disregard the facts. The main reason for the Yuan Dynasty's demise was that they never considered themselves as the rulers of the Central Plains. From beginning to end, they regarded themselves as bandits, which is why they wreaked havoc on the Central Plains.

Of course, this is related to the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty.

The Yuan Dynasty was established by the Golden Family. However, one of the biggest problems was that Kublai Khan, who founded the Yuan Dynasty, was not a direct descendant of the Golden Family. This led to a major issue: the grasslands were occupied by the direct line, while Kublai Khan's line, which was originally just a small mountain village, occupied the Central Plains.

In this bizarre environment, Liu Jiye emerged. Under the cultural influence of the Central Plains, Kublai Khan's initial southward campaign to capture the dragon gradually transformed into a northward campaign to seal the wolf's lair. This process involved his successful southward campaign to capture the dragon, and he became the dragon of the Central Plains.

However, although Kublai Khan became the dragon of the Central Plains, his status on the grasslands was not as high as that of the direct descendants of the Golden Family. After all, he was just a general who led troops south.

Wherever there are people, there is a world of intrigue and conflict, let alone the highest power in the world!

Kublai Khan's interests clashed with those of the direct descendants of the Golden Family of the steppes. As the emperor of the Central Plains, Kublai Khan naturally refused to obey the orders of the direct descendants of the Golden Family.

A conflict has occurred!
The result was that Kublai Khan won, and then countless members of the Golden Family followed him south and occupied the Central Plains.

On the surface, everything seemed fine, but the underlying conflict remained unresolved: how should the Golden Family conduct themselves after moving south? Should they integrate into the Central Plains or remain aloof and superior?

Kublai Khan hoped to integrate into the Central Plains, so he promulgated various measures. However, all his ideas were met with disdain by the rest of the Golden Family.

As the rulers of the Central Plains, they only think about plundering instead of how to govern properly. This may not seem like a problem for the time being, but it is definitely not a long-term solution. Turmoil is only a matter of time.

However, while Kublai Khan was alive, he managed to suppress everything, but once he died, things collapsed. In particular, some Mongol nobles misled Kublai Khan's successor, which directly destroyed the situation that Kublai Khan had painstakingly created.

From then on, the demise of the Yuan Dynasty began its countdown. A group of rulers, instead of thinking about how to govern properly, only thought about how to exploit people to the maximum extent. It would be strange if things didn't go wrong.

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. Although the people of the Central Plains are willing to fight, when they can't survive, who cares about anything else!

"We dare not!" Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin, and the others bowed and knelt.

While they didn't quite believe Zhu Yunwen's claim that there was a vast amount of wealth on the sea, they didn't dare to openly question him.

Zhu Yunwen observed the expressions of Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin, and the others, and understood their thoughts perfectly. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Our Great Ming needs a naval fleet. Once the fleet is fully formed, a single voyage across the ocean will prove whether I am lying."

The Ming Dynasty was established by Zhu Yuanzhang after he defeated Chen Youliang. As a result, the Ming Dynasty's shipbuilding technology was very advanced. However, in recent years, Zhu Yuanzhang has shifted the focus of the court to the grasslands and has neglected shipbuilding. Fortunately, the time gap is not too long and the foundation is strong enough, so building a navy is not too difficult now.

Historically, Zhu Di was able to build a nearly invincible Ming fleet, and Zhu Yunwen is now working on building a fleet even earlier, so the problem is not that big at all.

Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin, and the others looked at each other, completely puzzled. They couldn't understand where Zhu Yunwen had gotten the information that there was a great deal of wealth at sea.

"Alas, it seems His Majesty is determined to build ships. I wonder if this is a blessing or a curse!"

"During the Yuan Dynasty, there were expeditions to attack Japan, but both times they encountered huge storms and returned in disastrous defeat without even seeing the Japanese. Your Majesty is now going to go on an expedition, I'm afraid you're going to repeat the same mistakes as the expedition against Japan."

"Who on earth dares to bewitch His Majesty? Now that things have come to this, what should we do?"

"."

None of them were too keen on the idea of ​​sailing, but seeing Zhu Yunwen's determined expression, they were all at a loss for what to do.

After a moment of silence, Xia Yuanji looked up at Zhu Yunwen and said, "Your Majesty, during the Yuan Dynasty, we once sent troops to attack Japan by sea, but they suffered heavy losses due to the huge storms at sea."

For people at that time, the sea represented terror, and they were unwilling to try it, especially given the precedent set by the Yuan Dynasty.

People tend to instinctively avoid the unknown.

“I know that, but many things involve risks that must be taken. You have no idea what kind of wealth the ocean holds,” Zhu Yunwen said softly.

After saying this, he felt a pang of regret. Fortunately, the Yuan Dynasty hadn't succeeded in attacking Japan; otherwise, if they had tasted the benefits, things would have been much worse. The Silk Road had made the Han Dynasty powerful for many years; if the Yuan Dynasty had seized control of the seas, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

A tiny Spain and a tiny England, by seizing the opportunities of the Age of Exploration, transformed themselves into terrifying monsters. Although the Yuan Dynasty had various shortcomings, its strength was truly terrifying.

With their terrifying combat power and the benefits brought by seafaring, no one knows what changes will ultimately occur.

"Your Majesty, why don't we wait until after we've finished fighting Annam before considering the sea voyage?" Yao Guangxiao suggested after a moment's thought.

Fighting on two fronts is a very serious problem.

In particular, both directions are causing some anxiety. Annam is a quagmire, and navigation is full of unknowns. If anything goes wrong in either direction, the currently thriving Ming Dynasty will face a huge crisis.

"Yes, Your Majesty, why don't we wait until the Annam issue is resolved before considering the sea voyage?"

"Your Majesty, the seas may hold immense wealth, but seafaring is far too risky. What if something goes wrong?"

"Your Majesty, please think twice!"

"."

Everyone chimed in with their own words, all implying that Zhu Yunwen should think things through carefully and not impulsively embark on a voyage.

Zhu Yunwen's expression calmed down, and he looked at Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin and the others, saying indifferently, "I have already made my decision on this matter."

Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin, and the others felt a pang of bitterness upon hearing this. From the moment Zhu Yunwen spoke, they knew that it was highly unlikely they could change his mind, but in the end, they still wanted to give it a try.

As it turned out, their initial idea was correct; they simply couldn't change Zhu Yunwen's mind.

"Sigh," the group sighed in unison, as if they had planned it together.

Zhu Yunwen has many virtues and a great personal charm, but sometimes he really gives them a headache and leaves them helpless.

"Alright, alright, trust me this once. If we fail this time, I will never mention seafaring again, how about that?" Zhu Yunwen looked at Xia Yuanji, Xie Jin and the others and softened his tone appropriately.

Of course, he also clearly understood that in this case, he would have to ensure the smooth sailing of this voyage, and to do that, he might have to use some of the items he had checked in from the system.

"If we fail, will we stop sailing?" Hearing Zhu Yunwen's words, everyone felt a little better.

Although they were all reluctant, Zhu Yunwen had already said so, so what could they do?

The situation truly reached a stalemate until the very end, and they still had to compromise. After all, Zhu Yunwen was the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and his prestige in the Ming Dynasty was incredibly high.

The arm can't twist the thigh, and besides, this is only this once, so even if there are losses, they are within a controllable range. Part of the reason they opposed it before was that they were afraid Zhu Yunwen would be blinded and send people out to sea again and again.

"Your Majesty, who do you intend to send out to sea? How many troops?" Xie Jin asked.

Upon hearing Xie Jin's words, Zhu Yunwen's face broke into a smile again. Xie Jin was a member of the cabinet, and his question was undoubtedly a silent compromise.

Although a tougher stance might persuade the cabinet to agree to the voyage, he was unwilling to escalate the situation further if a more appropriate solution could be found.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly said, "The number of troops going to sea is still undecided, but it shouldn't be too many, probably a few thousand. After all, it's their first voyage. As for the commander, you all know this person, Ma Sanbao, who is by my side."

"Huh? Ma Sanbao?" Everyone was dumbfounded when they heard Zhu Yunwen's words.

When they heard Zhu Yunwen say the first few words, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Several thousand people was not too many; their bottom line was 20,000.

However, when they heard Zhu Yunwen mention the choice of the main general, they were all completely dumbfounded. Ma Sanbao? ???

What the hell is this!
Although they knew that Ma Sanbao was the chief eunuch by Zhu Yunwen's side and had accompanied Zhu Yunwen within the high walls of Fengyang for three years, they still couldn't act so recklessly!
"Your Majesty, please think twice!"

"Your Majesty, I know that you and Ma Sanbao have a deep relationship, but sailing at sea is inherently very dangerous, and it is absolutely not something to be taken lightly!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, Ma Sanbao is merely a eunuch. How can he possibly become a commander-in-chief? I urge Your Majesty to reconsider this matter!"

"."

After everyone realized what was happening, they all bent down and knelt down, each of them determined not to let Zhu Yunwen act so recklessly.

Sending Ma Sanbao to lead the fleet out to sea is no different from throwing away money. Although Ma Sanbao is the chief eunuch by Zhu Yunwen's side and is very favored, they will never agree to this!
"Alright, you can all get up now!" Zhu Yunwen waved his hand, his expression very calm. He was already mentally prepared for Xia Yuanji and Xie Jin's strong reaction.

He was well aware that the cabinet members had all achieved considerable success in history and possessed genuine abilities, rather than being sycophants. Ma Sanbao, a eunuch, was now leading a fleet out to sea. If they agreed to this, he would feel somewhat uncomfortable.

"Your Majesty." Xia Yuanji raised his head and looked at Zhu Yunwen.

Zhu Yunwen waved his hand, interrupting Xia Yuanji, and said, "I know your concerns. How about this, find some time for you to test Sanbao and see how capable he is? What do you say?" (End of Chapter)