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

Chapter 298 Zhu Zhanhe, Busy with Everything
"Hasn't the second batch of scholars sent by the Prince of Liangguang and my father already arrived? During this general election, find a few who are proficient in commerce. Establish local officials within the caravans and form business delegations in various regions."

"Also, grant some local caravan members the right to submit secret reports." After listening to his father-in-law's words, Zhu Zhanhe directly applied the modern business model, establishing his own small caravan in each place, selecting a local leader, and then having these local leaders establish a high-level decision-making group. Finally, the decision-making group was managed by the Prince's Palace, and the secret report system was applied to form a stable pyramid structure.

"Yes!" Xia Yuanji's eyes narrowed slightly at his son-in-law's arrangement. He realized that his son-in-law always seemed to solve crucial problems unexpectedly!

"The commercial tax is still being drafted, but it is expected to be around one-thirtieth. The land tax in Annam is also tentatively set at around one-fifteenth. We are also collecting information on crops grown in various regions," Xia Yuanji reported on the land and commercial taxes, and also mentioned the collection of crops grown in various regions.

"Let's issue this tax standard to Annam first and see how it goes. We can adjust it gradually later." Zhu Zhanhe wasn't going to do a one-off deal. Annam was in turmoil, so it was a good opportunity to test the effect. If it wasn't suitable, we could change it later. As for the matter of crops in various regions that Xia Yuanji mentioned, Zhu Zhanhe pretended not to hear it and left it entirely to his father-in-law to decide.

"Yes!

Regarding the selection of officials for various departments, the Prince and the scholars from Guangdong and Guangxi have sent no fewer than five hundred candidates. I would like to first supplement the ranks of officials in various departments, and then arrange for others. Xia Yuanji also found that the current framework in Yunnan was still too rudimentary, and the work was extremely tiring, so he suggested supplementing the ranks with more officials.

"The Cabinet and relevant ministries should draft a plan for this matter. I'll review it, and if there are no issues, I'll approve it." Annam is not short of officials now, so Zhu Zhanhe won't have another round of officials choosing their territories. Moreover, there are vacancies for officials throughout Annam, so it's a good opportunity to fill them and prevent the formation of their own factions!
"Yes!" Xia Yuanji finished speaking and then withdrew.

"Your Highness, regarding the establishment of the Military Academy, the selection of military cadets, and the site selection for the academy..." Seeing that Xia Yuanji had finished speaking, Mu Sheng also stepped forward, not to be outdone, and began to report on the work.

"Your Highness, regarding the Ministry of War's plan to establish workshops," Zhang Dazhu, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, stepped forward after Mu Sheng to report on the latest progress of the Ministry's work.

"Your Highness, the assessment of the Crown Prince is tentatively set; as for the establishment of the Annam Academy," Song Zhegui, the Vice Minister of Rites, stepped forward, not to be outdone.

"Your Highness, regarding the rule of law in Yunnan and the laws governing the expansion of Annam, we have recently dealt with cases in Yunnan." Finally, Chai Lan, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, stepped forward without hesitation.

And so, Zhu Zhanhe was once again harassed by his officials. By the time the work report was finished, it was already noon. Zhu Zhanhe didn't even offer them lunch, and told them to leave quickly. Zhu Zhanhe himself hurried towards the backyard; after all, his pregnant wife was waiting for him!

However, before Zhu Zhanhe could take a few steps, Liu Erniu, oblivious to the danger, surrounded him.

"General Liu, His Highness the Crown Prince hasn't had lunch yet." Seeing Liu Erniu blocking their way again, Xiao Xizi quickly stepped forward to stop him. After all, if the Crown Prince's mealtime was delayed again, he, the chief steward, would be reprimanded by the Crown Princess again! Although he had been scolded by the Crown Princess for this more than once or twice, Xiao Xizi also had ideals; he couldn't be scolded every day!

"Your Highness, an urgent message from the Embroidered Uniform Guard!" But Xiao Xizi's obstruction was completely ineffective. Liu Erniu went directly to Zhu Zhanhe, knelt on the ground, and held up a secret letter. Seeing this, Xiao Xizi knew that the matter was urgent, so he changed his original obstruction to taking the letter, gently opening the seal, and handing it to Zhu Zhanhe.

"Your Highness!" Xiao Xizi knew the importance and urgency of the matter, so he quickly opened the letter and respectfully handed it to Zhu Zhanhe. "Let's talk in the study." Zhu Zhanhe took the letter from Xiao Xizi, examined it carefully, frowned, and went straight to the study.

"Xiao Xizi, go tell the Crown Princess to have her meal first and not to wait for me." After walking a few steps, Zhu Zhanhe stopped again, turned his head and said to Xiao Xizi.

"Yes." Xiao Xizi felt a headache coming on when the Crown Prince told her to go to the study. Now, hearing that the Crown Prince wanted her to ask the Crown Princess for leave, she couldn't help but look miserable, her frustration overflowing. She had no choice but to reluctantly walk towards the palace.

"Eunuch Xi, I'm sorry." Liu Erniu followed Zhu Zhanhe toward the study, and when he passed by Xiao Xizi, he made a point of nodding and apologizing. But Xiao Xizi just rolled his eyes at him helplessly and ignored him, walking dejectedly toward the inner palace.

"Xiao Xizi, it's you again! Where is His Highness?!" Before Xiao Xizi could even enter the palace gate, he was stopped by Xiao Zhi, who had her hands on her hips.

"Sister Xiaozhi, listen to me, His Highness the Crown Prince originally..." Looking at Xiaozhi, who was frowning and unhappy, Xiaoxizi had a headache. After all, Xiaozhi was difficult to deal with but at least she was easy to talk to. But what was he going to do about the Crown Prince's wife who was pregnant inside?

"Hmph! Go explain to the Crown Princess yourself," Xiao Zhi said, seeing Xiao Xizi's ingratiating smile. She knew the Crown Prince was busy again, too busy to even eat, so her face fell, and she muttered angrily to Xiao Xizi. Xiao Xizi could only continue to smile and follow her inside.
While Xiao Xizi was feeling unwell, Zhu Zhanhe was sitting upright in his study, deep in thought.

"Erniu, since Third Uncle wrote that he and Father are likely to fail, let's squeeze every last drop of value out of them now!"
"Take this letter to my third uncle and father, and in their name summon all talented individuals willing to come to Yunnan, including scholars, craftsmen, commoners, and everyone else. Anyone willing to come to Yunnan, have them all sent!" Zhu Zhanhe pondered for a moment, looking at the letter from his third uncle, Zhu Gaosui, before making his decision. His third uncle thought to himself, "The Prince of Han is arrogant with his army. He thinks he's already reached Jinan and is ignoring all advice, indulging in pleasure, believing he can settle things in one battle!"
However, Zhu Zhanhe's third uncle, a former member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, noticed something unusual. The various regional princes were clearly showing signs of something amiss with them. Therefore, his third uncle believed that their uprising was likely to fail and sent a letter specifically to prepare him and protect his wife and daughters, whom he had entrusted to him. This was also a reminder to Zhu Zhanhe to be wary of a surprise attack by the imperial army.

“Your Highness, His Majesty has been leading the expedition to Jinan for quite some time now. If what Prince Zhao said in his letter is true, I'm afraid there isn't enough time.” Liu Erniu knew what the young prince was thinking, but if what Prince Zhao said was true, he was afraid there wasn't enough time.

"Is it too late?" After Liu Erniu's reminder, Zhu Zhanhe realized that it had been about ten days since his third uncle wrote the letter. Even if he wrote back now, it would still take about ten days. Considering that they had issued the imperial edict and gathered manpower, it was indeed too late.

"Since there's no time, let's put it another way."

He wrote to his third uncle and father, instructing them to distribute the collected supplies to the local people. If the army was truly defeated, he instructed their trusted men to transport the supplies to Yunnan! Knowing he could no longer continue exploiting the region, Zhu Zhanhe decided to seize every opportunity to profit. After all, any gain was a profit!

"Yes!" Liu Erniu replied respectfully.

"At the same time, tell my father and third uncle that Annam is about to be conquered, and tell them not to do anything foolish!"
In particular, he asked his third uncle to persuade the prince not to act impulsively and do something rash.
"Forget it, I'll write this letter myself." As Zhu Zhanhe spoke, he frowned and then decided to write the letter himself.

(End of this chapter)