Sky Curtain: My Great Qin must have an aircraft carrier!

"If we didn't understand, how could we have driven those Mongol barbarians back to the grasslands? What do you know about the maritime ban?!"

Zhu Yuanzhang paced back and forth in the hall, his anger burning ever brighter.

When the Ming Dynasty was first established, the remnants of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty were eyeing the country covetously, and Japanese pirates constantly raided the coast.

With internal and external troubles intertwined, should we not allow them to collude with us from within and without?

Zhu Yuanzhang was an emperor, not a god!

The first thing to consider is whether the country can be stabilized.

Banning the seas was the best option at the time, so how did it become our fault?

Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang's anger, Empress Ma handed him a bowl of hot tea.

"Zhongba, why are you angry with the younger generation? They are not you, how would they know your difficulties?"

Zhu Yuanzhang took the hot tea, drank it all in one gulp, and let out a long sigh.

"We're just angry that we've been unfairly blamed. If the Ming Dynasty were at peace, would we be stopping them from going?"

"The problem lies in your ancestral teachings."

Empress Ma rolled her eyes at Zhu Yuanzhang, took back the empty teacup, and said, "The situation our children will face in the future will definitely be different from ours."

"Isn't it too much to ask them to use current rules to govern things hundreds of years from now?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless and could only sit back in his chair, sulking.

That's undeniable; if we really followed the ancestral rules, he'd still be a cowherd.

Zhu Yuanzhang struggled with the decision for a long time, but finally gave up and said, "Fine, fine, this stupid rule will not be included in the ancestral precepts."

"But as long as we are in power, the maritime ban will continue, and the Ming Dynasty will not be at peace for a day."

"After we leave, you can figure it out yourself. We can't control that much."

Just as Zhu Yuanzhang was feeling down, a huge fleet appeared in the sky.

The Ming Dynasty flag fluttered in the wind aboard the treasure ship as it sailed into the depths of the ocean.

Did Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean result in a profit or a loss?

"Zheng He?"

Zhu Yuanzhang felt the name sounded familiar, and after a moment's thought, he remembered.

As Tianmu mentioned before, was it the fourth brother who became the person in charge of navigation?

The thought of his fourth son reignited Zhu Yuanzhang's anger, which had just subsided.

The blame for the maritime ban had just been cleared, and this usurper has run into trouble again.

"Fine!" he thought, having nowhere to vent his anger. He immediately shouted towards the outside of the hall, "Mao Xiang! Go and drag the fourth brother over here!"

Before long, Mao Xiang led the trembling Zhu Di into the palace.

As soon as Zhu Di entered the room, his legs started to cramp, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud.

Ever since Tianmu exposed his true colors, he has been living in constant fear, walking as if he wants to hug the wall.

As it turns out, he managed to dodge the first day of the month but couldn't dodge the fifteenth; he still got caught!

Zhu Yuanzhang picked up the prepared jujube wood club, weighed it in his hand, and gave a forced smile:

"Emperor Yongle, what are you trembling about? Are you afraid of this old man who's half-buried in the ground?"

The address of Emperor Chengzu sent Zhu Di's soul flying, and he repeatedly begged for mercy, saying, "Your subject is merely the Prince of Yan, how dare I overstep my bounds?"

"The Ming Dynasty had only one Emperor Chengzu, and that was you, sir!"

Zhu Di was now on the verge of tears.

He didn't understand why he became emperor, but the problem was that Zhu Yuanzhang wasn't dead yet!

Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent, his gaze lingering on Zhu Di.

The sound of the jujube wood stick striking the palm was particularly jarring in the quiet hall.

With each ringing sound, Zhu Di's shoulders twitched.

Seeing the atmosphere growing increasingly tense, Zhu Biao quickly stepped forward and grabbed Zhu Yuanzhang's arm.

"Alright, Dad, stop scaring the fourth son."

"Tianmu also said that the fourth brother did a good job, and he brought honor to the Ming Dynasty."

"What kind of face does he have? You're not the emperor; there are second and third emperors above you. It's not his turn!"

Zhu Yuanzhang glared, but ultimately didn't swing the stick.

After learning that Zhu Biao might have died of illness, he had the imperial physicians look after him every day, fearing that something might go wrong.

If Zhu Biao successfully ascends the throne, Zhu Di becoming a Grand General would be a good use of his talents.

Even if we take a step back and assume the worst, at least there's a safety net, right?

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at Zhu Di, his voice growing increasingly serious: "Fourth son, remember this."

"As long as your elder brother is alive, you are a vassal king of the Ming Dynasty. If you..."

Zhu Yuanzhang paused for a moment, but didn't say the word.

"In short, if you dare to disappoint us, we'll send you to meet the King of Hell, not just the Koreans."

Zhu Di prostrated himself on the ground, his heart finally settling down. "Your subject will humbly obey Your Majesty's teachings!"

-

On the celestial canvas, Zheng He's treasure fleet continued its voyage at sea, creating a truly magnificent scene.

Most people are familiar with Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean.

This large-scale ocean voyage, organized by the imperial court during the Yongle and Xuande periods, can be considered a pinnacle of Chinese maritime history.

Its scale and distance were unparalleled in the world at that time.

In the prevailing perception, it seems like they just went out for a couple of rounds to promote national prestige.

From an economic perspective, was this large-scale voyage a profitable or loss-making endeavor?

"Is this even a question? Of course, it's about making money. Why would I keep going if I were losing money?"

Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di) was speechless. He had fought wars for half his life, but his brain hadn't been damaged.

If it were truly a losing proposition, would they have continued their voyages to the West?

Building treasure ships is free? And the rewards along the way are free?

If he's not making money, what's in it for him?

Based on existing data, Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean not only did not result in losses, but were actually very profitable, earning him a fortune.

But here's the interesting part: if the project itself was profitable, why was it halted?

The answer is simple: the project is profitable, but some people are losing money on it.

To understand Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean, we must examine the economic issues during the Yongle era.

In the thirty-fifth year of the Yongle reign, or rather, the Hongwu reign, Zhu Di legitimately seized the throne.

At this time, the Ming Dynasty was militarily strong and vigorous, but a minor problem arose with its paper money.

At this point in the story, the comments section was flooded with messages.

(This is not a minor issue)

(It is legal, but not compliant)

(This is so legal, it's all too legal.)

(Detail: In the thirty-fifth year of the Hongwu reign, Zhu Yuanzhang conducted official business at the cemetery and then passed the throne to him.)

Upon seeing the comments, Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di) immediately became furious.

I don't know!

Why do later generations still discuss the Fengtian Rebellion? No matter what, it is only natural for one to raise an army to protect oneself!

Why are you fixated on such a trivial matter as the reign title?

Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di) now truly regrets it, and the more he thinks about it, the more he feels that changing the reign title was a terrible mistake.

If he had known that future generations would be so nitpicky, he would never have changed this damned reign title!

Zhu Gaochi, however, perked up and immediately began to analyze the benefits of the Western trade.

The Imperial Treasury definitely made a profit, bringing back at least a million taels of silver each time.

Since the voyages to the West were conducted through official channels, it's obvious who lost out.

Zhu Gaochi's eyes flickered slightly as he began to consider how to deal with them.

First, we must understand that paper money already existed in the Song Dynasty, and it was not invented suddenly by Zhu Yuanzhang.

When Zhu Yuanzhang learned about paper money, he must have been astonished, wondering how such a wonderful thing could exist in the world.

Can you really use a few words printed on a piece of paper as money?

"ah???"

When the people of the Song Dynasty heard this, their faces were filled with disbelief.

"The reason why paper money was usable was because it had a silk backing, not because the paper itself was valuable!"

"He doesn't really think that just because he printed a piece of paper, the people will accept it, does he?"

"Pah! What's the difference between this and robbery! Paper is just paper; it's too stiff even to wipe your butt, let alone be used as money!"

People from all dynasties discussed this extensively, finding it completely incomprehensible that someone would use something printed on paper as money.

However, the emperors and ministers before the Song Dynasty were all immediately impressed.

Using paper instead of copper coins?

That sounds good; it's much more convenient than heavy metal.

But why can paper be used as money?

If we were to promote it, what problems would that cause?