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

Why was it so difficult for people in ancient times to travel? One reason was the household registration system.

Any act of migrating, fleeing, or leaving one's place of household registration without authorization is a serious crime.

Later, when you arrived in the Ming Dynasty, you had to go through a series of procedures. First, you had to get approval from the local village head, then go to the county government to get a certificate recording your reasons and purpose for traveling, and then you would get a travel permit.

You need a travel permit to leave the house, and you'll need to get a stamp and signature wherever you go after that.

Sorry, you're missing a stamp, or we'll arrest you as a homeless person!

"This is a system we designed. The Ming Dynasty was able to stabilize quickly after its founding thanks to these slips of paper."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately hummed with smug satisfaction.

If we're talking about his proudest design, the aisle markers are definitely one of them; even the canopy is impeccable.

We must keep all the people firmly rooted to the land, so that no one can run away.

In this way, anyone who wanted to run away and rebel would have no way to cause trouble.

With the travel permit in place, the Ming Dynasty's rule is as stable as Mount Tai.

Zhu Biao couldn't help but chuckle at Old Zhu's eager-for-praise look.

"Father's decree is indeed a good way to govern the country."

"Compared to the Qin and Han dynasties, travel permits could leave traces, so if thieves caused trouble, they could be caught by following the clues."

Zhu Yuanzhang was pleased to hear this and was about to pick up his teacup to moisten his throat when he heard Zhu Biao change the subject.

"However, the government is notoriously slow in handling matters. If the people have urgent business, they have to go to the village head first."

"I'm afraid the person will be dead before the travel permit is even stamped with the official seal."

"..."

Zhu Yuanzhang's lips twitched, and he stroked his chin, lost in thought.

When it comes to the speed at which government officials handle matters, Old Zhu certainly has a deep understanding of it.

Even if he held a knife to his throat, it would still take several days for official documents to be delivered, let alone cross-departmental matters.

When pressed, they still make excuses, saying things like "the procedure is like this" or "the process hasn't been completed yet."

If the people were left to handle it themselves, they would probably suffocate from the stress.

But can this system be changed?

If restrictions are loosened, the refugees cannot be controlled; if restrictions are tightened, it becomes even more difficult for ordinary people to go out.

As Tianmu also said, killing people won't solve the systemic problems; we still need to patch them up.

As for how to optimize it...

"Let's think about this again."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, putting the issue aside for the time being.

Some people might say, "I've already completed all the formalities, so I can finally set off with peace of mind, right?"

Wrong, wrong, the real danger has only just begun.

First, there's the natural environment. Although there were official roads in ancient times, they were nowhere near as extensive as the modern road network.

It takes less than half a day to get out of the city, but you have to cross mountains and valleys, and you also have to be wary of snakes, insects and rodents.

Moreover, in ancient times there were things even more dangerous than bandits, namely the common cold.

In modern times it would be a minor illness, but in ancient times it could be fatal.

The long journey, the unfamiliar environment, and the poor medical conditions caused many important figures to perish on the road.

For example, the Song Dynasty poet Su Shi contracted an illness while traveling and eventually died in Changzhou.

"I... am dead?"

Su Shi, who was drinking, suddenly heard his own name mentioned, along with the date of his death, and his mind went blank.

He had just received the imperial pardon and was planning which restaurant to go to for a meal after returning to the capital when he suddenly died.

Su Shi reached out to touch the sky, but only managed to grab a wisp of river breeze.

His friends around him all changed their expressions and looked at him nervously.

"Brother Zizhan!"

"Mr. Dongpo!"

After a brief moment of bewilderment, Su Shi suddenly burst into laughter, "Hahahaha! So what if I die? What is there to fear!"

He downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, displaying a heroic spirit.

Life is like a journey, and I am but a traveler. Whether I die sooner or later, I am destined to come here.

"Now that we know he died in Changzhou, next time we travel, we should drink less cold water and maybe we can earn a few more years of money."

Su Shi's carefree spirit inspired everyone.

The sorrow of parting was swept away, leaving only hearty laughter and the clinking of wine glasses.

However, this carefree attitude could not reach Zhu Yuanzhang's heart.

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard the words "contracted disease" and "died of illness," his heart clenched suddenly.

The sky had repeatedly hinted that its eldest son would pass away before it.

The burden of the Ming Dynasty rests largely on the shoulders of its leader.

If anything happens to the eldest brother, then we'll have to leave it to the fourth brother!

Although Emperor Yongle was not bad, Zhu Yuanzhang just couldn't tolerate Emperor Chengzu of Ming, no matter what!

Zhu Biao was extremely intelligent and immediately noticed Old Zhu's gaze.

A gentle smile appeared on his face as he said softly, "Father, rest assured, I am training with the Imperial Guards every day now."

"Don't believe everything you hear and scare yourself unnecessarily."

Hearing Zhu Biao's powerful words, Zhu Yuanzhang finally felt relieved.

However, he still grabbed Zhu Biao's hand and said in a deep voice, "You kid, as long as you know how to take care of yourself, that's good."

"Come sit down and continue watching the sky."

Zhu Biao stepped forward and sat down beside Zhu Yuanzhang.

If someone keeps arguing, I'll just stick to eating and staying at reputable places; that should be safe, right?

Not at all.

The opening line, "Even innocent people like drivers, boatmen, innkeepers, and spies should be killed," is not without merit.

It refers to the five professions in ancient times: coachman, boatman, innkeeper, porter, and broker.

Why should these five types of people be killed even if they are innocent?

These five trades happened to be the key to every step of the ancient people's travel.

Today, we'll use the well-known classic "Water Margin" to dissect the dark side of these five professions one by one.

First, let's talk about coachmen. In ancient times, coachmen traveled long distances and were very familiar with the terrain and checkpoints along the way.

If they harbored evil intentions, they could easily collude with bandits along the way to commit murder and robbery.

Upon hearing this, the people under the sky looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Wait a minute, how did we become familiar with each other?"

"Water Margin? What's that? A story newly made up by a storyteller?"

"Never heard of it. Is it about things that happen by the water?"

Not only ordinary people, but even emperors of various dynasties were completely bewildered.

The novel *Water Margin* was written at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. Not to mention the Qin, Han, Tang, and Song Dynasties, most ordinary people in the early Ming Dynasty had never read it.

In one corner, Shi Nai'an stood up straight, his eyes shining as he stared at the sky.

"Familiar to everyone? People of later generations have read my books?"

Shi Nai'an was stunned for a long time, then suddenly burst into laughter.

"It's my book! It's my book!"

He devoted half his life to organizing, compiling, and recreating the stories of the Liangshan heroes that circulated among the common people, which resulted in the novel "Water Margin".

However, after it was written down, few people responded, and it was only circulated among a few friends.

He never dreamed that "Water Margin" would be passed down to later generations and even mentioned by Tianmu!

Congratulations, elder brother! Congratulations, elder brother!

Luo Guanzhong offered his congratulations, but inwardly he felt a pang of jealousy.

If Brother Nai'an's "Water Margin" can be passed down to later generations, then what about my "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"?

Surely future generations can't be blind and forget about this book, right?

Luo Guanzhong rubbed his hands anxiously, secretly praying that Tianmu would quickly mention the Three Kingdoms.

Let's talk about the boatmen next.

In the Water Margin, there are two heroes on the Xunyang River: the elder brother is Zhang Heng, nicknamed "Boat Fire," and the younger brother is Zhang Shun, nicknamed "White Stripe in the Waves."

At the time, Song Jiang didn't know Zhang Heng and unwittingly boarded the pirate ship.

Once the boat reached the middle of the river and there was no one around, Zhang Heng began to sing.

The old man grew up by the river, and he was not afraid of lawsuits or the heavens.

Last night, Hua Guang came to rob me, and before leaving, he stole a gold brick!

"Good heavens, we've run into river bandits!"

The peddler swallowed hard, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

The old farmer next to him looked completely bewildered. "The boatman's song actually rhymes quite well. Is there some kind of taboo surrounding it?"

"Isn't it just bragging that he's not afraid of officials or heaven? Many drunkards will recite a few lines like that."

The peddler sighed, "Do you know who Huaguang is? He's the Huaguang Emperor, the one we often talk about as Lord Ma."

"Even a ruthless character like Lord Ma who came to ride on my ship had his magic treasure, the gold brick, taken away by me."

So, the translation of this song is—

The peddler looked around at everyone's faces and said, "I'm about to start robbing you. Would you like some sliced ​​noodles or wontons?"

After hearing this explanation, the people all gasped, feeling a chill run down their spines.

Robbery is robbery, why the hell did you have to recite a poem?

The key is that it's all slang. If you can't understand it, you won't even know how you died.

"What is 'ban dao mian'? And what is wonton?" one of the children, who didn't understand, looked up and asked.

As the adults stood there, their faces stiff, unsure how to explain, a faint voice echoed from the sky.

Song Jiang's mood at that time could be described as utterly disheartened.

Before he could react, Zhang Heng chuckled and asked the famous line: "Would you like some sliced ​​noodles or wontons?"