The Ming Dynasty: A Modern Return, Building an Overseas Empire

Chapter 111 The Suffocating Pressure from the Ming Dynasty (Please Subscribe)

Inside the courtyard, in the small pavilion.

Zhu Gaoxu lay on the chair, rocking back and forth leisurely and lazily, looking so comfortable.

"This is life! In the end, isn't the goal to just lie down and relax?"

Zhu Gaoxu was filled with emotion and extremely satisfied with this moment.

Only by experiencing those painful busy times can one truly appreciate how precious rare moments of leisure are.

However, less than half a quarter of an hour later, a maidservant hurriedly came to Zhu Gaoxu's side.

"Your Highness, someone from the front hall says they have something to discuss with you."

Zhu Gaoxu glanced at it from the side, then stood up helplessly.

I stretched out my arms and shook my neck from side to side. A snapping sound came out, making me feel refreshed.

Lying flat might be nice, but Zhu Gaoxu is no longer fortunate enough to experience it.

Arriving at the main hall in front of the palace, Zhu Gaoxu looked at his attendants, noting that the palace still had no name.

"From now on, this hall will be named Sizheng, the one on the left will be named Shangwu, the one behind will be named Dezheng, and the one in the middle in front will be named Yingtian."

The Hall of Thought and Governance is the main hall where ministers discuss and handle affairs.

This was also Zhu Gaoxu's way of reminding himself and his descendants that when they reached this position, they should be responsible for ideological and political work.

The Shangwu Hall was where Zhu Gaoxu handled military affairs and discussed military matters.

Zhu Gaochi wanted to remind himself and his descendants to always keep military affairs in mind and to develop military strength.

The Hall of Virtuous Governance was where Zhu Gaoxu handled official business and studied.

Yingtian Hall was the main hall used for holding court and receiving foreign envoys, and it was also the largest hall.

After speaking, Zhu Gaoxu went straight into the Sizheng Hall.

"Greetings, Your Highness."

Zhu Gaoxu helped Zhu Huan, who was bowing, to his seat above him.

There are no steps inside the Sizheng Hall, and the chairs above are very close to those below.

"Have a seat. All that I told you about yesterday, is it done so quickly?"

Zhu Gaoxu was somewhat surprised. He knew that Zhu Huan must have come for something, but the important matters had already been dealt with yesterday, so it was only possible that he had come to reply to yesterday's questions.

Zhu Huan listened with a bitter and helpless expression.

"Your Highness, we worked on it all night yesterday, but we still couldn't finish it."

There is another matter today, which the Queen has not yet decided upon; we can only wait for the Prince to return to handle it.

Meeting Zhu Gaoxu's puzzled yet curious gaze, Zhu Huan continued, "The Shimazu clan, who control Hyuga, Osumi, and other places, have arrived."

They claim to be descendants of the Qin Dynasty's Weizong clan, and now want to restore their Han surname and change it to Sun.

The visitor was Yoshihisa Shimazu, the head of the Shimazu clan, who had changed his name to Sun Yoshihisa. They wanted to follow the prince, and the Shimazu clan would follow up in all three regions they controlled: Hyuga, Ōsumi, and Satsuma, learning Chinese and Chinese characters and obeying the prince's orders.

This matter is of great importance, and I dare not make a decision on my own.

Zhu Gaoxu listened quietly, but his expression gradually darkened.

After listening, he slammed his hand heavily on the desk.

"Shimazu shall be punished!"

"To dare claim to be a descendant of the First Emperor of Qin is utter nonsense!"

"Moreover, the intentions of the Shimazu clan are even more despicable!"

Is this surrender? You still want to obey my orders and cooperate in the three regions? Do I need their cooperation?

They are using the guise of surrender to maintain their rule over the three regions, merely borrowing my name!

Zhu Gaoxu's murderous aura continued to emanate, and his killing intent towards the Shimazu clan continued to surge.

Using the name of the First Emperor to swindle and deceive, no one had ever been able to deal with these people before, and he wouldn't tolerate it.

In fact, Zhu Gaoxu didn't know whether it was true or false, but he wouldn't believe it.

The so-called origin is merely Shimazu's one-sided account; what can prove it?

Emperor Qin Shi Huang did indeed send Xu Fu to sea to find the elixir of life. If the Shimazu clan merely claimed to be descendants of the Qin Dynasty, their credibility would be even higher.

And that wasn't all; Shimazu's plan almost made him laugh in anger.

Is this surrender?

They were simply afraid he would send troops to attack them, so they wanted to surrender to him in order to secure their rule over those three places.

They're really treating him like a fool!

Zhu Gaochi was still hesitant about whether to expand his fiefdom at this time.

This place has been under development for more than half a year, and the progress in various aspects such as land reclamation is quite good, but other infrastructure construction is still needed.

He has not expanded his fiefdom for two reasons: firstly, his army is already somewhat insufficient; secondly, if he were to expand his fiefdom and have more slaves to work, the consumption of food and supplies would be much greater.

But now, after a trip to Southeast Asia to gather resources, the next step is to start developing commerce once the silver mines at Iwami Silver Mine are mined, as well as the Hanjing Plain and the Central Plain of Luzon in Luzon, and then reclaim the Cagayan Plain in northern Luzon.

The grain supply in his fiefdom can at least be guaranteed to a certain extent.

Developing these things requires a large amount of labor and a huge number of people.

As long as people are willing to be put in, even millions at once, the development of these plains can be accelerated rapidly.

Zhu Gaoxu was also constantly thinking about whether to take advantage of this opportunity to start the second round of expansion in Japan, in addition to taking over the western Hyuga region, he also wanted to conquer the Nobi Plain.

This would increase the workforce by at least three million.

Japan's population is now relatively concentrated, and its numbers are quite large.

If these additional laborers are dispersed to the two plains of Luzon, specifically the Plain of Noi, these places can become granaries within ten years, solving the problem of food shortage.

The problem is, does he have enough to support such a huge expenditure?

With the development of commerce, people can buy grain from outside. With silver and this thing, there's no worry about not being able to buy it outside.

And at worst, I can just lead a large army out and wander around. With a large army around, if I can't buy it, can't I at least snatch it?

For the sake of food, I might as well abandon all my banners and become a pirate captain for once.

As for the iron ore and other resources needed, Luzon has them.

Although the quality of iron ore in Luzon is not particularly good, it is at least acceptable, and the quantity is large.

If all else fails, there's always Australia, which has even higher-quality iron ore resources.

In addition, with the gold, silver, and copper mines in northern Luzon, there will be no shortage of funds after commercial development.

But at that time, a larger army was needed to ensure the safety of both places.

Especially the pressure from the Ming Dynasty.

The Ming Dynasty was indeed too lazy to even glance at such barren lands.

But if there were large amounts of iron ore, as well as gold, silver, and copper ore, the Ming army would come running because of the smell.

Especially after the plains were developed, the numerous fertile farmlands, combined with Luzon's climate, theoretically allow for three harvests a year, or at least two. Who could resist such a temptation?

I'm not interested in development, but what if I could just take what's already there?

Zhu Gaoxu was certain that even if Zhu Di were his biological father, he would have found a way to turn Luzon into a provincial administration commission of the Ming Dynasty, directly under the control of the imperial court.

Zhu Di was the emperor, and his father was secondary; moreover, he was not the crown prince.

Although the area still belonged to the Han people and the Ming Dynasty, was he really going to work for Zhu Di for nothing?

Zhu Di certainly wouldn't touch Japan, but the other places outside were rich in resources. If he developed them, the Ming Dynasty would definitely come out and reap the benefits.

Zhu Gaochi kept pondering whether to first destroy the Shimazu clan, or to take advantage of the destruction of the Shimazu clan to launch a military campaign and begin further expansion in order to better develop Luzon.

The absolute focus of this step is whether the initial food and material consumption can be resolved, and whether, in the face of pressure from the Ming Dynasty, we can protect the Luzon region we have developed, or even more areas.

Zhu Gaoxu has no intention of considering the Americas at all; that place is simply too far away.

The fleet passed through here, and who knows how many people died along the way? The round trip would take too long, so that place could only become an enclave.

It will take at least twenty years for the population here to grow fully and for a certain foundation to be established before we can begin exploring the Americas.

In Zhu Gaochi's eyes, those places in Southeast Asia were all important granaries and resource-rich areas for him to develop his fiefdoms, and later, when he went to the Americas, which could support his long-term development.

It's not just the Americas; there are many other places with abundant resources that are currently unusable but will certainly be usable after a century of development. These are also places he is considering including in his domain.

Having parents is never as good as having something of your own.

Now only he can see those things. If he doesn't take those places now, even if his descendants establish ancestral precepts, Zhu Gaoxu dares not say that they will be able to do so.

Zhu Gaoxu took a deep breath, and for a moment he hesitated on this important choice.

The pressure from the Ming Dynasty was immense, suffocating.

With his current strength, trying to protect his food in front of the Ming Dynasty is truly like a mayfly trying to shake a tree.