Ming Dynasty: The Crocodile King of Han Prince Zhu Gaoxu's Family

Chapter 229 Zhu Zhanhe: Third Brother, how big is Yunnan?

"Does Your Highness have a suitable candidate?" Xia Yuanji asked Zhu Zhanhe slyly, offering his opinion.

After all, Xia Yuanji knew that Yunnan was short of manpower, but as a subject, he could only select the commander from among those given by his lord, not make the selection on his behalf. Therefore, this was something Xia Yuanji was instructing his son-in-law, Zhu Zhanhe, on.

“There are a few candidates. First, my father-in-law’s brother-in-law; second, several brothers of suitable age from the Mu family; or we could select directly from the army, or temporarily use people sent by the imperial court.” Zhu Zhanhe was also very conflicted; he currently had no available manpower! He was short-handed!

"Which one does Your Highness prefer?" After roughly understanding Zhu Zhanhe's thoughts, Xia Yuanji continued to guide Zhu Zhanhe's thinking, letting Zhu Zhanhe make his own decision.

"Actually, I currently prefer to use people from the imperial court first. After all, they are familiar with the business and have rich experience."

Moreover, even if we were to appoint our own people to positions now, they would be even less able to gain the respect of the troops, which would be a major problem, as they are unfamiliar with fleet tactics and operations.

Therefore, I plan to send a few people to the ship to learn first. After all, although the people from the imperial court are given to us, they are not our own people. Although we can bring their families over, it is still better to be careful.

On the other hand, the officials sent by the imperial court have been at sea for many years and are not young anymore. It is time for us to cultivate the next generation.

Moreover, although the ships sent by the imperial court are old, they can still be used for many more years.

"Once the imperial court sends the second batch of new ships, we'll have two fleets, and we'll need even more manpower." Zhu Zhanhe revealed his true thoughts; he wanted to cultivate his own ocean-going naval talent.

"So it seems Your Highness is preparing to vigorously develop naval power?" Hearing his son-in-law's words, Xia Yuanji not only learned of his son-in-law's true intentions, but also discovered the importance his son-in-law attached to the navy.

"My father-in-law is right. In my vision, the navy will definitely be on par with the army in the future. Even in the shipbuilding industry, we must continue to strive for excellence!"
After all, the world is so vast, and my younger brothers are growing up. When the time comes, my Zhu family will have descendants for generations to come, and we will need enough land to sustain them.

As the older brother and elder, I have a responsibility to them! In response to his father-in-law's question, Zhu Zhanhe turned around without hesitation, pointed to the hanging geomantic map, and told his father-in-law Xia Yuanji that he wanted to use his excellent ocean-going fleet to develop enough land to leave to his children and grandchildren.

Zhu Zhanhe also wanted to promote and develop ocean-going technology so that future generations of the Zhu family could find and explore lands for survival on their own!

After all, the world is so vast, with so many undeveloped areas, enough for future generations of the Zhu family to explore and survive.

At that time, the descendants of the Zhu family will no longer need to fight amongst themselves for the throne, leading to fratricide and bloodshed. Those with the ability can lead their own people, conquer enough land, and establish themselves as kings!

Upon hearing Zhu Zhanhe's words, not only Xia Yuanji, but even Zhu Zhanhe's third brother, Zhu Zhan'an, standing behind him, was stunned. Zhu Zhan'an was no longer young, and naturally understood the meaning behind his elder brother's words. In just an instant, Zhu Zhan'an felt a burning sensation in his heart, and his chest felt his blood surging.

"Your Highness has a magnanimous heart!" Looking at Zhu Zhanhe standing beneath the Qiankun Feng Shui Map, Xia Yuanji couldn't help but praise him. At this moment, Xia Yuanji truly felt the formidable nature of his son-in-law. In Xia Yuanji's eyes, Zhu Zhanhe, with his blend of calm and madness, was capable of becoming another supreme ruler comparable to, or even surpassing, the Taizu Emperor!
"In that case, Your Highness, let all those you have your eye on serve as deputy envoys on the old ships. Consider it a chance for them to gain experience," Xia Yuanji added immediately, now that he knew Zhu Zhanhe's true intentions. After all, if the navy really does need as many talents as anticipated in the future, then this arrangement is the most important thing for future development.

"Alright, let them all go then." Zhu Zhanhe originally thought that his father-in-law, Xia Yuanji, would oppose ocean-going voyages, but he did not expect Xia Yuanji to be so supportive of the matter.

Little did he know that Xia Yuanji, as the former Minister of Revenue, was well aware of the immense profits from ocean voyages. Yunnan was in dire need of funds at the moment, with so many soldiers to support. An ocean-going fleet could solve the problems of money and provisions, train a group of highly qualified naval personnel, and build up a large pool of future talent for Yunnan. It was a win-win situation, so why wouldn't he do it?

"Your Highness, you should take advantage of the Emperor's period of mourning to spend more time with the Crown Princess."

"After all, once the mourning period is over, we'll really be getting busy." Xia Yuanji thoughtfully reminded Zhu Zhanhe to treat his pregnant wife well. He had noticed recently that the Han prince was so busy he didn't even have time to eat with his wife! This made him, as a father, grumble a bit on behalf of his daughter.

"Father-in-law, you are absolutely right. I will certainly obey." Zhu Zhanhe knew that he had been busy familiarizing himself with various materials about Yunnan recently, so he had neglected his wife somewhat. Therefore, he accepted his father-in-law's verbal complaint with great embarrassment.

"Then I shall take my leave." After finishing his personal matters with just a few simple words, Xia Yuanji naturally reverted to his role as a subordinate official and announced his departure to Zhu Zhanhe.

After all, Zhu Zhanhe had delegated much of the power in Yunnan to his father-in-law, which meant that Xia Yuanji was responsible for handling many matters within the Yunnan fiefdom. For example, Xia Yuanji was currently continuing to speak with local officials one by one to understand the local people's livelihood situation, so he was truly very busy!
The reason Xia Yuanji was so desperate was that, firstly, things had come to this point, and the Xia family was already deeply bound to the Han Prince's Mansion, especially after his daughter became pregnant, making the bond even more unbreakable;
On the other hand, Xia Yuanji was optimistic about Zhu Zhanhe's future. In other words, Xia Yuanji was working hard for his daughter's unborn grandson to ensure that the grandson would be the eldest grandson of the royal family. As for whether the identity of the eldest grandson of the royal family would change in the future, Xia Yuanji was still looking forward to it.

"Father-in-law, please take care." Seeing his father-in-law about to leave, Zhu Zhanhe tagged along for a couple of steps. After Xia Yuanji left, Zhu Zhanhe turned back. As he turned, he saw his third brother, Zhu Zhanyi, standing in front of the geomantic map, staring at it with burning eyes.

"Third brother!" Zhu Zhanhe called out softly to his third brother, instantly bringing him back to his senses.

"Big brother!" Zhu Zhanhe's sudden call startled the third brother, Zhu Zhanhan. He quickly turned around and looked at his eldest brother with a restrained expression.

"Third brother, come here, point out to your elder brother where Yunnan is on this map." Zhu Zhanhe could easily guess that his words had aroused his younger brother's ulterior motives. But he didn't say anything more, and went straight to the map, asking his third brother to point out the location of Yunnan.

"Brother, Yunnan is here." Although he felt a little reserved and guilty, Zhu Zhanyi obediently came to the Qiankun Fengyu Map and pointed out the location of Yunnan on the map.

“Yes, Third Brother, this is Yunnan. On this Qiankun Feng Shui Map, Yunnan is only the size of a fingertip.” Seeing his Third Brother point out the location of Yunnan on the Qiankun Feng Shui Map, Zhu Zhanhe also placed his finger on the location representing Yunnan on the map.

Zhu Zhanhe demonstrated to his third brother through his actions that Yunnan was only the size of a fingertip on this geomantic map.

Compared to that enormous geomantic map, this tiny Yunnan is so insignificant!

(End of this chapter)