Parallel Ming Dynasty: The more he compared, the more devastated Zhu Yuanzhang became.

"What extraordinary talent and strategic vision Emperor Qin Shi Huang, who founded the Qin Dynasty, possessed!"

"The achievements of governance alone: ​​standardized writing, standardized cart tracks, unified weights and measures throughout the world, and completed the great unification of the cultural foundation of the Chinese nation!"

Judging solely from his martial prowess: King Qin swept across the six kingdoms, his ambition for the world was truly magnificent! He wielded his sword to settle the winds and clouds, and all the feudal lords came to the west.

They marched north to defeat the Xiongnu, and south to pacify the barbarian Yue, sweeping away the six kingdoms in one fell swoop and completing the unification of the Chinese territory!

"Such earth-shattering achievements can only be attributed to Qin Shi Huang, Ying Zheng, throughout history!"

"Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, achieved accomplishments no less than those of his predecessors!"

"We strongly advocated suppressing all other schools of thought, establishing Confucianism as the sole state ideology, and achieving the unification of the core ideology of the Chinese nation!"

He dedicated his life to upholding the principle that the Han and Xiongnu should not coexist, and drove the Xiongnu cavalry to the northern deserts!

This truly embodies the principle that "those who offend the mighty Han, though far away, shall be punished!"

"Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, was revered as the Heavenly Khan by all. He single-handedly created the prosperous Zhenguan era, established the Three Departments and Six Ministries system, and vigorously promoted the imperial examination system, attracting all the heroes and talents in the land!"

"Throughout the Tang Dynasty, the territory it expanded was unprecedented, and at its peak, the land area reached more than 1.27 billion hectares!"

The sun and moon shine brightly, the Milky Way stretches across the heavens; the mighty Tang Dynasty, with all nations paying tribute!

"The palace gates open to the heavens, and officials from all nations bow before the emperor—this describes the glorious Tang Dynasty!"

"Although Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, established a national policy of promoting civil officials and suppressing military officials, he lacked some of the iron-blooded spirit of the past."

At the height of the Song Dynasty, the total annual revenue of the national treasury reached 116.13 million strings of cash!

In terms of wealth, it surpassed all dynasties!

"Qin Shi Huang, Ying Zheng, was truly a man of great talent and strategy!"

"Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, displayed both civil and military prowess!"

"Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, was a man of both literary and military prowess!"

"Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, was arguably the wealthiest man in history!"

Zhu Duo spoke eloquently and fluently, which made Zhu Yuanzhang and others stand up straight and listen attentively.

"But what about my Great Ming? Your Majesty, you rose from humble beginnings, using a broken bowl to establish the Ming Dynasty. While this is certainly legendary, it is ultimately a case of the times creating heroes."

As the Yuan Dynasty was crumbling, even without Zhu Yuanzhang, there would have been Zhang Yuanzhang or Li Yuanzhang.

"Zhu Duo, how dare you! Do you intend to rebel? How dare you address the Emperor by his name?! Moreover, the Emperor is your imperial grandfather. To commit such an act of insubordination, believe me, your uncle, I will have your head chopped off right here and now!"

King Zhu Shuang of Qin immediately slammed his fist on the table and stood up, glaring angrily at the other man.

The other princes also had fierce expressions, looking like they wanted to devour people.

Only Zhu Yunwen's face unconsciously revealed a hint of wild joy, but he quickly suppressed it and glared angrily at Zhu Duo.

It's hard to say whether they were mostly acting or genuinely expressing their feelings, since Zhu Duo was calling out their father's name.

It is truly impolite to address one's father by his given name in front of one's children.

Not to mention that Zhu Duo was Zhu Yuanzhang's grandson.

"All of you, sit down!"

Zhu Yuanzhang roared in fury, but it seemed to have no effect.

"Father, your unfilial son Zhu Duo has no respect for the laws and regulations." "If I don't teach him a lesson, I won't be able to live with myself!"

Zhu Yuanzhang's gaze remained cold. "Since you want to teach them a lesson, Sanhu!"

"Your subordinate is here!"

"Drag the Second Prince away and give him twenty strokes of the cane!"

"Yes, sir!"

Without a single word of pleading or the slightest hesitation, Sanhu readily accepted the order.

Zhu Shuang was instantly dumbfounded.

He couldn't understand why he had to be punished. It was Zhu Duo who was rude and disrupted the proper order, and he wanted to teach Zhu Duo a lesson on behalf of his father, to let him know what respect for elders and juniors meant.

"Father—"

"Still not satisfied? Ten more strokes!"

Zhu Yuanzhang did not give Zhu Shuang any chance to refute.

Zhu Shuang was now truly on the verge of tears.

But he dared not say another word and could only follow Sanhu out.

As he turned around, Zhu Shuang glared fiercely at Zhu Duo.

"Another twenty strokes!"

Zhu Yuanzhang saw the vicious look in her eyes and spoke again.

Zhu Shuang was really about to cry now.

Zhu Duo didn't utter a single word throughout, but he knew in his heart that Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't really punish Zhu Shuang severely; he was just displeased and wanted to teach Zhu Shuang a lesson.

In total, he received fifty strokes of the cane.

Let alone fifty strokes, if someone really wanted to kill him, even the strongest man would be dead after ten strokes.

In TV dramas, people are shown being beaten with eighty or one hundred strokes of the cane. But if it were a real beating, twenty strokes would have left the victim as mushy as minced meat.

Even if the three tigers were only loyal to Zhu Yuanzhang, they would still try to figure out his intentions.

Even if he were to kill a prince, he would never dare to actually kill him.

Of course, if Zhu Yuanzhang really wanted to execute a prince, he would have been ruthless enough to do so.

To put it bluntly, Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude at this moment was simply to get rid of Zhu Shuang.

After Zhu Shuang left, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Duo and said, "Continue speaking, we're still listening."

"His talent and strategy are no match for the Great Qin Empire!"

In terms of civil administration and military prowess, we cannot compare with the Han Empire! In terms of attracting heroes, we cannot compare with the Tang Empire! In terms of annual revenue, we cannot compare with the Song Empire!

Compared to previous dynasties, the Ming Dynasty seemed to have nothing particularly outstanding about it.

Compared to previous dynasties, the Ming Dynasty seemed to have nothing particularly outstanding about it.

"I dare not say how much history will write about you in the future, but when future generations remember their ancestors, they will certainly not specifically mention you and the Ming Dynasty."

Even if mentioned, you and the Ming Dynasty would only be used as a backdrop to highlight other emperors.

"If we want to be on equal footing with them, the Ming Dynasty needs a great achievement, a great achievement that will shake the world."

"Expanding territories!"

"Those territories far overseas will surely be incorporated into the map of our China!"

"May the sun never set, no matter where the lands of our Chinese civilization extend, no matter where the territory of our Ming Dynasty reaches!"

"So, this is why you founded the Peace Technology Research and Development Academy?"

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed softly.

He was well aware of the remarkable capabilities of the Peace Technology Research and Development Academy.

The imperial court even had in-depth cooperation with the Peace Technology Research and Development Academy, ordering a large amount of military equipment and supplies from it.

This is why Zhu Yuanzhang now attaches great importance to the Peace Technology Research and Development Academy.

But now he understands completely.

The Peace Trading Company belongs to Zhu Duo, and everything at the Peace Technology Research and Development Institute belongs to Zhu Duo.

And Zhu Duo was his own grandson. If he said that Zhu Duo had no ambition whatsoever, he himself would not believe it.

But now he clearly understands that Zhu Duo's ambition was never the throne, but something far greater than the throne.

It means the world will be unified!

It is a time when all nations of the world come to pay homage!

Compared to Zhu Duo's vision, my own perspective was far too short-sighted.

"Ha, you have such grand ambitions."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Duo and smiled with satisfaction.

The grander Zhu Duo's ambitions were, the more gratified he felt.

Zhu Yuanzhang was never afraid of his descendants being ambitious; what he feared was that they would lose their ambition and just be mediocre, guarding the small territory of the Ming Dynasty.

"Even if you were to rebel right now and seize the throne from me, I would be overjoyed."

Zhu Yuanzhang's words startled Zhu Yunwen so much that he almost jumped up from his seat.

But he feared that Zhu Yuanzhang would become increasingly displeased with him, and like he had just dragged Zhu Shuang away and flogged him, he might also be driven out.

Therefore, even though Zhu Yunwen was inwardly turbulent, he could only pretend to be nonchalant.

-

The video feed switched again.

Although the losses in Xuzhou have been minimized, the impact of the floods has not diminished at all.

Because the floods destroyed countless fertile fields, turning large areas of land into wasteland, even if they can be gradually reclaimed and improved, the problem of food shortage remains extremely serious.

Zhu Duo, however, drew several strangely shaped pictures and ordered his men to search for them everywhere.

Furthermore, Zhu Duo instructed his men to focus on purchasing from overseas merchants, demanding that they buy the goods regardless of the cost, and in the largest quantities the better.

As soon as these images appeared, people in the live chat immediately recognized what they were.

{The New World: It's potatoes and corn! And chili peppers!}

{New World: So these items were also sent by His Highness Zhu Duo to find.}

{New World: These are all truly excellent products! They have extremely high yields, can be harvested twice a year, and taste exceptionally good.}

{Original World: Is this stuff really that productive? Can it compare to wheat? Can it compare to rice?}

{Original World: And, two harvests a year? Really?}

No wonder the people of the original world couldn't believe it—two harvests a year, huge yield, and superb taste.

Can these advantages really be concentrated in a single crop?

Isn't that exaggerating too much?

{New World: Why would I lie to you? It's true! Corn can be ground into flour, and corn stalks can even be used as firewood. In fact, corn could completely replace wheat.}

{New World: A complete replacement of wheat is impossible, because corn becomes monotonous easily, unlike wheat which is more satisfying. Besides, didn't the Peace Trading Company already say that corn can be a supplementary food, but the staple food should still be wheat or rice?}

{New World: I think potatoes are more amazing. Because potatoes can not only be used as a staple food, but also as a vegetable; they can be simply stir-fried.}

{New World: Yes, yes, yes! Potatoes can be mashed and steamed, or cut into strips and stir-fried. Add some chili peppers, and even the food of royalty couldn't compare!}

{New World: Chili peppers! I love chili peppers the most! I add some to every stir-fry; they taste so much better than Sichuan peppercorns!}

{New World: Moreover, crush the chilies, add salt and seasonings, drizzle with a spoonful of rendered lard, and you can eat it with your staple food without any other dishes!}

New World: And didn't Peace Trading Company just launch a hot sauce? The name seems to be Lao Gan Ba ​​(Old Godfather). I don't know why it has such a strange name, but the taste is absolutely divine!

Waaaaah, I can't resist anymore! I'm going to go eat two spoonfuls of Lao Gan Ma chili sauce right now!

As people in the new world watched the barrage of comments posted by netizens, everyone in the original world looked completely bewildered.

But they couldn't get a word in edgewise and could only watch helplessly.

But as they watched, they found themselves unconsciously drooling.

-

The scene resumes.

With a hefty reward offered, Zhu Duo quickly collected a large number of seeds.

The vast majority of them were brought from foreign lands by overseas merchants.

Moreover, Zhu Duo also specifically sought out many foreign merchants and made an agreement with them, asking them to bring more seeds of their native crops when they came to China next time.

Of course, in return, Zhu Duo not only gave them a lot of money, but also gifted them a lot of seeds of crops native to the Ming Dynasty.

Perhaps no one could have imagined that world trade, spanning the ocean, would quietly and officially begin here.

After obtaining these seeds, Zhu Duo sought out many skilled farmers and taught them how to cultivate and plant them.

Moreover, according to Zhu Duo's calculations, within two years, enough high-quality seeds could be cultivated to supply the people throughout the Ming Dynasty.

Amidst the barrage of comments, a particularly eye-catching anonymous comment suddenly appeared.

{New World: It's just some food crops, isn't it? Why are you making such a fuss like they're rare treasures?}

This comment, which stood out from the other bullet comments and was specially marked, instantly sparked a collective outcry from viewers in both worlds.

{New World: Who do you think you are?! How dare you slander this life-saving food?! You're really eating from the bowl and then cursing the cook!}

{Original World: What good is it if you think it's nothing? I can't even afford a full meal, and you're just standing here talking without any understanding of my situation!}

The reason why the people of the new world were so furious about this comment was that they would never allow anyone to slander Zhu Duo. Moreover, these high-yield grains had truly saved countless people, so how could they tolerate such malicious mistreatment by others?

The reason why the people of the original world were so furious was that they couldn't even get a single bite of this kind of food, yet some people complained that it wasn't good enough.

Besides, what's wrong with making a fuss? Food is the most important thing for people. If ordinary people don't even care about having enough to eat, what else can they value? The throne, of course?

The person who started this comment—Zhu Yunwen—was startled.

Why do his comments have special annotations?

Fortunately, the anonymity function was enabled; otherwise, if Zhu Yuanzhang had seen these words, would he have had any chance of survival?

Shortly after that comment disappeared, another new comment appeared, igniting an uproar in the entire comment section.

{Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the New World: Who just posted that comment? Don't let me find out your identity if you dare say such a thing, or I'll exterminate your entire family!}

Zhu Yuanzhang's comment was particularly eye-catching, just like the special effects that the top-ranked VIP in a live stream would use when they entered.

The moment Zhu Yunwen saw this comment, his face drained of all color.

He originally just couldn't stand the constant praise for Zhu Duo and casually made a grumbling to annoy people, never expecting that Zhu Yuanzhang would personally step in to criticize him.

Zhu Yunwen glanced down at Zhu Yuanzhang furtively, secretly relieved that he had chosen anonymity, otherwise he would surely be dead today.

He still can't figure out why his comments have special markings.

Zhu Duo, who was sitting next to him, was also a little surprised. He hadn't expected that Zhu Yunwen's comments would have a special icon.

It must be related to the sender's identity.

Zhu Duo quickly understood the crux of the matter.

However, as the owner of this system, he knew perfectly well that the anonymous comment just now was posted by Zhu Yunwen.

Although this broken system is not very reliable, it is still bound to his own system, so he can at least enjoy some exclusive little privileges.

But Zhu Duo had no intention of exposing Zhu Yunwen.

After all, Old Zhu just clearly stated that he would exterminate the entire family.

If you really think about it, wouldn't he himself be implicated as well?

However, after being frightened by Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Yunwen probably wouldn't dare to have such wicked thoughts again.

{New World: Welcome, Your Majesty!}

{New World: Your Majesty, we pay our respects!}

{…}