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

Chapter 350 Zhu Zhanhe teaches his younger brother
"Thank you, Your Highness~" Upon hearing their lord say they could get up, the generals obediently rose one by one. However, not a single one of them actually went to get a chair and sit down at the dining table. Instead, they all stared at each other, eagerly watching Zhu Zhanhe eat.

"Don't you want to sit?"

Then just stand there.

"The food will be here soon, so you can eat standing up~" Zhu Zhanhe said with a displeased expression as he ate his meal, looking at the many generals who were standing still and not moving.

"Thank you for the reward, Brother!" Hearing the prince speak like this, everyone looked at each other, no one daring to move. Zhu Zhanhe continued eating his meal, ignoring them completely. Finally, under the expectant gazes of everyone, Zhu Zhanqi stepped forward with a grin, cupped his hands in greeting to Zhu Zhanhe, and respectfully found a place to sit down at the table.

"Thank you for the reward, Your Highness!" As Zhu Zhanqi sat down, the generals exchanged glances before finding suitable spots at the long dining table and sitting down respectfully.

Just as the generals sat down at the table, Xiao Xizi led a group of eunuchs in, each carrying a dish of food. Soon, the long table was filled with all sorts of sumptuous dishes.

Looking at the table laden with food, the generals couldn't help but swallow hard. After all, it was almost evening, and this was their first meal of the day. Anyone who said they weren't hungry would be lying!

"Let's eat, everyone. We can chat as we eat." Seeing that everyone had their food laid out in front of them, Zhu Zhanhe raised his chopsticks, indicating that everyone could start eating.

"Thank you, Your Highness~" Although they didn't know what their lord was up to, everyone still ate cautiously with their bowls and chopsticks in hand. After eating for a while, seeing that the lord really wasn't angry, everyone's eating manners gradually became more unrestrained. Zhu Zhanhe didn't stop them, but instead smiled.

At the edge of the dining table, Mu Bin and Mu Lin, the brothers from the Mu family, were holding bowls, staring blankly at the two young maids serving the prince his meal. However, they quickly recovered, exchanged a knowing glance, and then began to eat with great enthusiasm, their eyes brimming with joy.

Of course, no one else noticed any of this. Because at that moment, everyone's eyes were on Zhu Zhanhe.

"Zhanqi, do you know why your elder brother didn't comment on the military's achievements at today's court assembly?" Zhu Zhanhe asked his second brother, Zhu Zhanqi, sitting beside him, while eating heartily.

"Big brother~" Upon hearing his older brother speak to him, Zhu Zhanqi quickly swallowed the food in his mouth, put down his chopsticks, and looked at his older brother with some panic. Because he didn't know what his older brother meant by saying this.

"It's okay, don't be nervous, just think of it as a casual chat."

"Say whatever you want, I promise I won't be angry." Seeing his younger brother looking a little nervous, Zhu Zhanhe put some food in his bowl and gently comforted him. Faced with his older brother's offer, Zhu Zhanqi quickly got up and took the food from his bowl.

"Brother, is there something we did wrong?" Zhu Zhanqi asked his elder brother respectfully, holding his bowl. To be honest, Zhu Zhanqi still didn't understand why his elder brother was dissatisfied with the military's performance. Could it be that his elder brother was unhappy with the slow progress in occupying Annam?
When Zhu Zhanhe asked his second brother his first question, all the generals present perked up their ears. Clearly, they also wanted to know what their lord was dissatisfied with about them. And judging from the current situation, the lord obviously wasn't going to punish them, but rather to use words to influence them. Therefore, everyone listened very attentively.

After all, it's a good thing that the prince is willing to teach everyone. We can't wait until the prince punishes everyone before we start to change, can we? That would be too late!

"Your Highness, Prefect Yao Guan requests an audience." Just as everyone was straining their ears to hear what their lord had to say, Xiao Xizi suddenly stepped in and respectfully reported to Zhu Zhanhe.

"Well, there's someone here to freeload a meal."

"Little Xizi, add another stool and another bowl~" Hearing that someone else was coming, Zhu Zhanhe was not surprised, but he paused in his tone when speaking to his younger brother. After all, Zhu Zhanhe himself knew that there were quite a few things waiting to be dealt with in Annam, and he was not sure when or what trouble these officials would cause for him to deal with.

"Yes~" When the prince told him to add a stool and a bowl, Xiao Xizi knew that someone was to be brought in. So, Xiao Xizi respectfully went out to lead the person in.

"Your subject, Yao Guan, greets Your Highness." Upon entering, Yao Guan first saw a group of military officers eating with restraint. However, this did not affect Yao Guan's attitude; he respectfully kowtowed and greeted Zhu Zhanhe.

"Prefect Yao has arrived at the perfect time. Let's have a meal together."

"As for me, I happen to have something to discuss with these roughnecks. You, being here, can serve as my judge," Zhu Zhanhe warmly invited Yao Guan to join him for dinner. "Thank you for your generosity, Your Highness!" Although he didn't know what the prince wanted to say to the group of military officers, since the prince had invited him to eat, Yao Guan had no choice but to approach. Seeing that Eunuch Xiao Xizi had placed a chair for him next to the prince, Yao Guan could only sit down awkwardly.

"Alright, let's continue."

Zhanqi, sit down, your elder brother will ask you another question.

"Do you know how many family members my Prince of Han's mansion has?" After Yao Guan sat down, Zhu Zhanhe looked at his still somewhat bewildered second brother, Zhu Zhanqi, and gently shook his head, asking softly while eating his meal.

"Brother, our family only has about thirty people, right? Seventeen brothers and sisters, plus the concubines in each courtyard, that's about thirty people." Although he didn't know why his elder brother was asking him this question, Zhu Zhanqi still sat down with his bowl and chopsticks and replied to his elder brother with a serious expression.

"good.

"So, if we include the servants of the Prince's Mansion, how many people are there in our Prince Han's Mansion?" Zhu Zhanhe was very satisfied with his younger brother's attitude, gave him a light compliment, and continued to ask.

"Including the servants of the Prince's mansion? I really haven't counted them."

"But there should be four or five hundred people, right?" Zhu Zhanqi replied somewhat uncertainly.

"How many people are there in Dali City, Yunnan?" Zhu Zhanhe continued to ask his younger brother.

"I really don't know~."

However, I guess there should be 300,000 people, right? Zhu Zhanqi replied somewhat uncertainly.

"The Prince's mansion has four or five hundred people, which is quite a large number."

"Dali City has 300,000 people, which is even more." After hearing his younger brother's reply, Zhu Zhanhe did not comment on whether his brother's data was correct or not. He simply put down his chopsticks and said softly.

"Zhanqi, it's not that I have any objections to the military's actions in this battle."

The elder brother simply felt that the military's casualties this time were rather high. Zhu Zhanhe didn't reprimand any of the generals; instead, he earnestly instructed his younger brother. He wanted to use this method to bring clarity to the military as well.

Upon hearing Zhu Zhanhe's words, all the generals' eyes lit up. They immediately understood that their prince was unhappy about the large number of soldiers who had died or been maimed in battle!

Zhu Zhanqi nodded silently in response. After all, now they finally understood why they were angry, and they could correct their behavior in the future.

"Zhanqi, when my army and navy set out from Yunnan, we originally had 110,000 soldiers."

However, after the battle of Annam, more than 20,000 men were lost, which is basically 20% of the total; this was even with the assistance of Annamite auxiliary troops.

The auxiliary troops recruited locally in Annam suffered losses as high as 50%.
Zhanqi, you must remember, those are all living, breathing people;
Now that we have occupied Annam, these Annamese people will become the subjects and garrison of my Han Prince's Palace.

"They are the wealth of my royal family. Therefore, we should minimize casualties as much as possible." Looking at his younger brother's still puzzled expression, Zhu Zhanhe gently instructed him.

(End of this chapter)