Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 211 Zhu Yuanzhang broke his defenses.
In April, the peach blossoms of the mountain temple begin to bloom.

Not only does spring arrive late in the high mountains, but it also arrives late in places closer to the north.

From Dadu to Shangdu, then from Shangdu to Yingchang, then to Karakorum, and then to the north of Jinshan... This route of escape is the bloody history of the Yuan Dynasty's rapid decline and defeat.

By fleeing Dadu, they had already lost the Central Plains and many other places in the north.

They thought that everything would be fine once they arrived in Shangdu, but little did they expect that Zhu Yuanzhang was an unreasonable man.

They took advantage of the situation and even sent troops to relentlessly pursue them, trying to wipe them out completely, ultimately causing them to lose even their capital!

In the Battle of Yingchang, even his crown prince was captured by Li Wenzhong.

Their Yuan dynasty's power collapsed rapidly in this process, a heartbreaking, frightening, and frustrating thought.

Ayushiridara, the current emperor of the Northern Yuan, gazed at the green grassland outside his royal tent and fell into deep thought.

The scenes he had experienced over the past few years kept flashing through his mind.

The more I think about it, the angrier and more upset I become.

In particular, he recalled the scenes of the Yuan Dynasty's prosperity in his memory.

These nobles of the Yuan Dynasty were high above others, and they could freely draw upon the wealth of the entire world.

Countless Han Chinese were enslaved and served as servants, living well under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty and being supported by them.

Those were such wonderful times.

All they need to do is enjoy an endless supply of delicious food, fine wine, beautiful clothes, and countless beautiful women.

Mongolians, people from the Western Regions, Koreans, and even the humble Han Chinese... all sorts of people, inexhaustible resources, as many as you want, to be played with at will.

Whether they were Han Chinese, Semu people, or Koreans, they all knelt at their feet.

They thought this kind of life could continue indefinitely, and they took it all for granted.

But who could have imagined that those damned Han people would be so disobedient, daring to rise up in rebellion!

The Yuan Dynasty itself didn't treat them badly; all they did was starve to death.
So what if we suffered some disasters?
Just bear with it and it will pass, right?
Besides, the world is so big, and there are so many people. In which year is there no disaster? In which year does no one starve to death?

There are so many Han Chinese, even if some die in a disaster, it doesn't matter, they won't all die anyway.

But these Han people were not honest and insisted on rebelling.

What's most disheartening is that their mighty Yuan Dynasty, a force as majestic as an eagle, was actually overthrown by these lowly Han people!

Especially Zhu Yuanzhang, a beggar and cowherd, the most humble Han Chinese, the lowest of the four classes, who actually managed to become emperor!
Not only did he become emperor, but he also harbored such deep hatred for the Yuan Dynasty, relentlessly pursuing and refusing to let go.

Driving them out of Zhongdu wasn't enough; they wanted to exterminate them completely.

If it weren't for the fact that a few years ago, Grand Tutor Kökö Temür, together with others, displayed great power and severely defeated Xu Da, who led his troops to invade, causing Xu Da to suffer heavy losses, Li Wenzhong on the eastern route would also have suffered heavy losses, thus crushing Zhu Yuanzhang's fierce offensive.

Their Great Yuan Dynasty might even lose its last glimmer of hope to Zhu Yuanzhang, that beggar.

Fortunately, Grand Tutor Kökö Temür was a man of great talent and ambition, and loyal to the royal family.

Forced into this predicament, many who were previously at odds with each other abandoned their struggles and began to unite against a common enemy. They fought with all their might and won the battle, making Zhu Yuanzhang no longer dare to underestimate his Great Yuan.

Ayushiridara was extremely excited after defeating Xu Da, who was said to have never suffered a defeat, and thwarting Zhu Yuanzhang's attack.

He felt that the Yuan Dynasty was about to be revived.

He wanted to emulate Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty and revive the Yuan Dynasty!

Kill Zhu Yuanzhang, that traitor and beggar.

But then, a series of setbacks followed.

Xu Da was stationed in Beiping, at the forefront of the defense. He made numerous arrangements and even built the Great Wall, making the defense impenetrable.

They wanted to move south, but they couldn't break through the defenses.

Even more critically, Grand Tutor Kökö Temür also died of illness last year.

He lost an arm as a result, and lost such an important minister in the court.

Fortunately, they reacted quickly and concealed the news, preventing Zhu Yuanzhang from finding out immediately.

Otherwise, I'm afraid we would have faced a major battle last year.

With Grand Tutor Kökö Temür recently deceased, the people's hearts were unsettled, and the steppes were in turmoil. It would be truly difficult to resist the attack of the pseudo-Ming dynasty.

Fortunately, the most difficult time has passed.

They originally thought that after gradually adapting to the death of Kökö Temür, they could continue to do more, recover their strength, and then compete with Zhu Yuanzhang for the throne.

But Zhu Yuanzhang turned out to be so despicable and shameless!
In a complete departure from its previous approach of relentlessly pursuing and suppressing the grasslands, it has actually begun to engage in trade with the grasslands!
At first, he didn't have any particular feelings about it, thinking that it was good to let some goods from the south flow into the grasslands.

Even their royal court could obtain some exquisite items as a result.

But after a short time, he changed his mind.

The goods sold by these rebels are so exquisite and of such high quality!
Most importantly, it's cheap!

Upon entering the grasslands, it was welcomed by many tribes.

This resulted in many of the goods produced in his royal court going unsold.

Especially those tribes in the south, near the pseudo-Ming territory, completely abandoned the goods produced by the royal court.

They all started using Ming Dynasty materials.

As a result, the most obvious phenomenon is that their royal court's income is decreasing rapidly.

In the past, whenever the temperature rose on the grassland, the ice and snow melted, the grassland turned green, and a warm wind blew, one could see herds of cattle, sheep, and horses leisurely grazing on the green grass.

The sheepdog watches over the flock from the edge of the field, and when eagles occasionally circle in the blue sky, his mood becomes particularly good.

Spring is a season full of hope. The arrival of spring means that all things begin to grow, indicating that they have survived another winter.

It can then develop rapidly again.

But even now, looking at all this, he still felt terrible, his heart heavy.

There was an overwhelming surge of anger, along with a sense of powerlessness.

"Your Majesty, a strict order must be issued, forbidding any tribe from engaging in any transactions with the false Ming!"
This cannot be allowed to continue.

If this continues, the people on the grasslands will fall apart.

The royal court will face a shortage of daily necessities.

A man with a full beard spoke up. This man was named Hara Zhang, an important minister of the Northern Yuan.

He was also a confidant of Ayushiridara, the current emperor of the Northern Yuan Dynasty.

This person is the son of Tuotuo.

Tuotuo was the prime minister of Emperor Shun of the Yuan Dynasty, who died a few years ago.

When Ayushiridara was young, he was fostered in Toghto's family according to custom.

Halazhang, who was about the same age as him, became his childhood playmate.

Harajang was also behind, which confirmed his ability, talent, and loyalty.

At any time, any form of rule requires financial and material support.

As a royal court, if it wants to maintain its dignity, it must have money and resources.

Only in this way can the army and ministers be supported.

Only then could they follow the royal court and have a relatively decent life.

Only by uniting people's hearts can we rely on them to rule the grasslands.

Besides regular taxation, another important way they acquired their wealth was through trade.

The grasslands lacked everything, but fortunately, when they retreated from Dadu, they had the foresight to take a large number of Han Chinese artisans with them.

These Han Chinese artisans were extremely valuable, and despite repeated defeats, they were never abandoned.

With the help of these Han Chinese artisans, they were able to produce pots and pans, a small number of sickles, and other tools and items on the grasslands.

Although limited by the conditions on the grasslands and the availability of materials, the tools they made were far less exquisite than those they had made in the Central Plains.

But at the very least, it can produce the corresponding items.

These items could meet daily needs. Some of the items made by these Han Chinese artisans were used by the Northern Yuan royal court itself, while others were used to reward meritorious officials and tribes.

The remaining inferior goods were used to purchase goods from various tribes on the grasslands.

The goods are of poor quality, the prices are high, but the income is considerable.

In the past, they never worried that the goods they produced would not be able to sell.

Because they were the only family capable of producing it on the grassland.

Those numerous tribes had no other choice but to buy from them.

Even at a high cost, we have no choice but to do it.

That is why their royal court was able to continue and retain as much dignity as possible.

But now, Zhu Yuanzhang, this beggar, has suddenly changed his previous attitude of strictly guarding against the grasslands and wanting to exterminate them, and has actually started trading with the grasslands!
This is absolutely intolerable to them, and utterly despicable!

"If an order is given, will those people obey it?"
Money blinds the eye; the things made by pseudo-intellectuals are good, cheap, sturdy, and easy to use.

Even if an order is given, many tribes will surely secretly carry out their own transactions with the Ming people.

I've heard that some tribes have started doing business for the pseudo-Ming dynasty.

They obtained a considerable quantity of goods from the Ming dynasty and then resold them to other tribes on the grasslands.

"These people deserve to die!"

How despicable! As a tribe from the grasslands, how could they be so spineless in the face of the false Ming dynasty!
They were tempted by such petty gains and did this!
We must issue a strict order to prohibit it; they have no choice but to obey!

After the order was issued, anyone who continued to buy counterfeit Ming goods was to be executed!
Those who dared to buy large quantities of counterfeit Ming goods and then resell them to other tribes were attacked and their entire tribe was destroyed, and all their goods were confiscated.

Anyone who dares to disobey orders will be killed!
Let's see who dares to be so rude and disobey orders!

Hara Zhang's voice was laced with a chilling tone, reflecting his deep resentment towards the numerous herders and tribes at the grassroots level.

The utensils produced by the royal court are just a bit expensive and a bit inferior, aren't they?
But these were all produced by the royal court!
These tribes have absolutely no loyalty; they're attracted by the petty gains from the fake Ming Dynasty. It's outrageous!
“Strict orders and killings alone may not be enough to stop it. In fact, they may cause many tribes to become dissatisfied with us and hostile, and they may even side with the false Ming.”

The Northern Yuan emperor, Ayushiridara, sighed and spoke.

There was no joy whatsoever from the idea given by Hara Zhang.

Instead, my heart felt even heavier.

"Perhaps, we could also issue another order: those tribes that have purchased goods from the Ming Dynasty must purchase the same amount of goods produced by our royal court every year as in previous years."

If you don't want to buy, that's fine, but you must hand over cattle, sheep, or other items of equal value.

If they refuse, then the royal army will personally collect them and cut off their heads!

The one who spoke was Koko Temur.

This person became the new Grand Tutor of the Central Secretariat of the Northern Yuan after the death of Kökö Temür, also known as Wang Baobao.

In terms of talent, prestige, and ability, he was no match for Kökö Temür.

However, among the remaining officials in the North Garden, he was already considered quite good and presentable.

"I think it would be better to lead a large army to conquer all the places where the Ming Dynasty has opened up trade routes."

They snatched all those goods!
Every time the Ming Dynasty opened a raid, we would attack and plunder it!
Let's do this a few more times and see if he dares to do it again!

Another burly man spoke, his voice booming.

This man is none other than Manzi, the current Grand Commandant of the Northern Yuan.

He trained with the Ming army on several occasions.

"Let's forget about that. I think that the pseudo-Ming Society has a big plan to open up trade and do this kind of thing. They want to make us want to attack them."

Xu Da, the Han slave, was quite capable in military affairs, and Zhu Yuanzhang, the beggar, was equally cunning.

We can't fall for their tricks.

Ayushiridara called for a halt, rejecting the barbarian's proposal.

After hearing the emperor's words, Grand Commandant Manzi did not continue to insist on his view.

Much of what he just said was said in anger.

He also understood that it was simply impossible to do so.

If they actually did that, they would likely fall into the Ming army's trap, just as their emperor had said, and die a terrible death.

Furthermore, if they truly possessed such great capabilities that they could attack the Ming army with impunity, why would they have retreated again and again, ending up in this predicament?
For a moment, none of them spoke. Ayushiridara looked up at the distance, at the cattle, sheep and horses, lost in thought.
After a while, he looked away, as if he had made up his mind.

He said, “Then we must strictly prohibit anyone or any tribe on the grasslands from engaging in trade with the Ming Dynasty, or from purchasing any goods or anything from the Ming Dynasty!”
Disobeying orders is a grave offense!

Anyone who disobeys orders and still wants to buy will be ordered to purchase the same quantity of goods from the royal court as in previous years.

Those who are unwilling to buy will have to pay with cattle, sheep, horses, or other items of equal value.

If someone refuses to pay but still wants to buy things from the Ming Dynasty, they will be punished for treason!
"Behead them, and their entire tribe must be exterminated!"

After combining the orders from Koko Temur and Harajang, Ayushiridara couldn't help but sigh.

With the issuance and implementation of his order, the grasslands will inevitably become restless, and there will certainly be people and tribes who will disregard the order and continue to trade with the Ming Dynasty.

They were to send troops to carry out orders to uphold the dignity of the royal court and maintain order on the grasslands.

This will inevitably cause unrest among the people on the grasslands, and will also lead to internal strife and significant losses for them.

However, if left unchecked and allowed to trade with the Ming Dynasty, the harm to them would be even greater.

It's only been a few months, and it's already turned out like this.

If left unchecked, and another year or two passes, the goods manufactured by their royal court and others may not be able to sell a single one.

Much of the money and resources that should have belonged to their royal court were taken away by the despicable Ming people.

Having lost a large amount of money and resources, their royal court will face even greater difficulties.

In the process of trading with the Ming dynasty, many nomadic tribes would inevitably be attracted to and bribed by the Ming people, becoming traitors on the grasslands.

In this way, their royal court will rapidly decline within a few years.

At that point, there would be no room for resistance; the only path left would be to wait for death.

The people of the Ming Dynasty were too cunning!

Zhu Yuanzhang, that beggar, was even more despicable; how could he be so shameless!
This is a sinister, openly calculated scheme. His malicious intentions are obvious, yet there's no way to counter them; one can only passively confront him.

No matter what they choose, they will pay a heavy price here; there is no way to have the best of both worlds.

Who could be so ruthless as to offer such a scheme to Zhu Yuanzhang, a beggar?
The Ming dynasty is truly terrifying; there are so many intelligent people among the Han Chinese!
Ayushiridara did not believe that this was Zhu Yuanzhang's own idea; Zhu Yuanzhang could not have come up with such a brilliant method.

It must have been done by a clever person among the Han Chinese.

It is very likely that it was Liu Bowen, who was very famous among the Han people!

After the order was given, Harazhang, Kokotemur, and others left to carry it out.

As he watched them leave, Ayushiridara's heart grew even heavier.

Faced with the increasingly powerful Ming dynasty, can he truly revive the dynasty? Can he truly defeat the Ming dynasty and restore the glory of the Yuan dynasty?

"Send some people to Goryeo to make Goryeo submit to us and continue to accept our protection!"

After a moment of silence, Ayushiridara spoke again and gave the order.

Since the tribes on the grasslands had lost a lot of money to the Ming Dynasty through their schemes and tricks, he had to find a way to make up for it as much as possible.

If internal resources can't keep up, then we need to look to external sources. If the Ming Dynasty is too strong to absorb, then we'll absorb resources from Goryeo...

……

In the Secretariat, Hu Weiyong saw a memorial to the throne and his face lit up with joy.

Good! Good! The important memorial has finally arrived!

This time, we can use this memorial to give Zhu Biao, and even Zhu Yuanzhang, a real headache in terms of how to solve their problems!

With such wonderful feelings in his heart, he quickly led his men toward the Wenhua Hall to see Zhu Biao...

(End of this chapter)