Da Ming: The system granted me immortality; I clock in every day.

Zhu Zhanji frowned slightly. He was well aware of the difficulties of marching through the desert, but his fighting spirit was hard to quell.

"Should we just let Tuohuan grow stronger on the grasslands? If I don't show my strength, I'm afraid they'll think the Ming Dynasty is easy to bully."

A gentle smile appeared on Gu Yannian's lips, and his deep eyes revealed a worldly wisdom that had seen through everything.

"To subdue the enemy without fighting is the highest form of skill. If Your Majesty wishes to display your power, why must you mobilize a large army to travel far to the northern deserts?"

Gu Yannian walked to the map of the territory and pointed his finger at the towns of Xuanfu and Datong.

"Your Majesty has a plan called the Grand Military Review. When the autumn is high and the horses are fat next year, Your Majesty can issue an edict to gather the elite troops of the three major battalions of the capital garrison, together with the elite cavalry and firearms battalions of the nine border towns, totaling 100,000 troops, and assemble them at the Grand Parade Ground outside Xuanfu City."

"His Majesty personally donned his armor and inspected the three armies in his imperial carriage."

Zhu Zhanji was taken aback: "A military parade? It's just a drill before battle; how can it intimidate the barbarians?"

Gu Yannian replied confidently, "Ordinary drills are naturally useless. But these 100,000 troops are all equipped with the latest firearms manufactured under the supervision of Yu Qian. At that time, ten thousand guns will fire simultaneously, and cannons will roar, the sound of which will reverberate for miles around."

"Your Majesty may issue an edict to specially invite the envoys and chieftains of the Oirat, Tatar, and various vassal states of the Western Regions to gather in Xuanfu to witness the ceremony."

Gu Yannian raised his voice slightly, revealing an imposing aura that commanded respect without anger.

"Let them see with their own eyes how magnificent the Ming army is and how sharp its firearms are! That kind of earth-shattering display is enough to terrify and break the hearts of those barbarians on horseback."

"Having witnessed such military might, would they still dare to harbor even the slightest thought of heading south to graze their horses?"

Zhu Zhanji's eyes widened as he listened, and a grand scene of 100,000 troops arrayed beyond the Great Wall, with cannons roaring in unison, appeared in his mind.

This kind of open strategy of flaunting military power without fighting not only greatly satisfies his imperial prestige, but also completely breaks down the enemy's defenses psychologically.

More importantly, the army only assembles and conducts exercises at the border, saving the long logistical transfer process.

The cost was less than one-tenth of what it would have cost to personally lead the expedition.

"Great! What a magnificent military parade!"

Zhu Zhanji slammed his hand on the imperial desk, his face flushed.

"Prime Minister Gu's plan is exactly what I wanted! It not only demonstrates the might of our Great Ming Dynasty, but also saves the imperial treasury money. It's truly ingenious!"

Zhu Zhanji looked at Gu Yannian with increasing respect.

This chief minister was not only an expert in managing money, but also a strategist who deeply understood people's hearts and the general trend of the times.

"Since Your Majesty has granted your permission, I will now draft the procedures for troop deployment and the preparation of provisions."

Gu Yannian bowed slightly and gave a proper salute.

With the overall situation settled, the carriage of the Xuande era, driven by Gu Yannian, smoothly entered a completely new track.

As the chill of early winter gradually receded, the New Year's bells rang over the capital.

The first year of the Xuande reign officially began.

In preparation for the grand military review in Xuanfu in the autumn, the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue operated at high speed like precise gears.

With Gu Yannian in charge of the cabinet, the buck-passing and shirking between departments disappeared.

No matter what kind of military equipment the Ministry of War needed, as long as the accounts were clear, the Ministry of Revenue's allocation of funds would flow smoothly like water.

On this day, the sky was clear and the breeze was gentle.

Linghu An, the chief eunuch of the inner court, accompanied by two junior eunuchs, carrying several heavy mahogany boxes, arrived at the office of Grand Secretary Gu Yannian.

"Prime Minister Gu, this is a batch of new coins that the Silver Workshop has just minted. His Majesty ordered me to bring them here for you to inspect."

Linghu An respectfully opened the box.

Inside the box, neatly stacked were rows of gleaming silver coins.

These are not the irregularly shaped broken silver ingots of the past, but silver dollars of uniform size, round and flat.

The obverse is inscribed with the four characters "Xuande Tongbao", while the reverse is engraved with exquisite sea and cliff patterns, and the edges are marked with fine serrations for anti-counterfeiting.

This is a currency reform that Gu Yannian proposed two years ago.

With the massive influx of silver from overseas, standardizing the design and purity of currency became of paramount importance for stabilizing the Ming Dynasty's economy.

Now, this batch of silver dollars has finally been successfully minted.

Gu Yannian picked up a silver coin, held it between two fingers, blew on it gently, and then placed it to his ear.

"Buzz".

A clear, long metallic hum echoed in the duty room, its lingering sound lingering long afterward.

"It's of excellent quality and the weight is just right."

Gu Yannian put the silver coins back into the box with satisfaction and looked at Linghu An.

"Reporting to His Majesty on my behalf, this currency can circulate throughout the land. It should first be piloted in the capital and several major commercial ports in Jiangnan. Local government offices should be strictly ordered to treat anyone who privately mints or cuts these new silver coins as a treason."

Linghu An quickly agreed.

With such standardized silver coins, merchants were spared the trouble of weighing and measuring the purity of the coins.

The trade routes of the Ming Dynasty will surely become even more prosperous.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye it is already the early autumn of the first year of Xuande.

In the north, the autumn sky is clear and crisp, with not a cloud in sight.

On the parade ground outside Xuanfu City, banners covered the sky and blocked out the sun.

A hundred thousand troops gathered here.

The cavalry of the Three Thousand Battalion were dressed in fine clothes and rode spirited horses, the musketeers of the Divine Machine Battalion were lined up like a forest, and the infantry of the Five Armies Battalion were like an impregnable wall.

Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, wearing golden chainmail and riding a pure white Akhal-Teke horse, slowly rode out of the city gate, surrounded by a group of military generals.

Gu Yannian, dressed in a purple python robe—a special honor bestowed upon him by the new emperor—accompanied the emperor in a blue-topped carriage.

A spacious viewing platform was specially built on the high ground of the Great Parade Ground.

At this time, the viewing platform was filled with envoys and chieftains from the Oirat, Tatar, Doyan Three Guards, and various Western Regions countries.

Arbu, as an envoy of the Oirat Mongols, was prominently among them.

He looked down at the vast Ming army formations stretching across the mountains, and cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.

As Zhu Zhanji ascended the reviewing stand, the long, drawn-out sound of bugles pierced the sky.

"Victory! Victory!"

One hundred thousand soldiers shouted in unison, their voices like thunder, shaking even the distant Yinshan Mountains.

Immediately afterwards, the drill officially began.

The Shenji Battalion's square formation advanced forward with perfectly synchronized steps.

At a command, tens of thousands of new-style muskets were divided into three sections and fired in turn.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The deafening gunfire rang out in unison, and the spitting flames and thick smoke instantly enveloped the field ahead.

The wooden stakes used as targets a hundred paces away were shattered in an instant.

But that's not the most shocking part.

As the command flag on the high platform waved, the hundred Hongyi cannons deployed on both flanks revealed their ferocious appearance.

These cannons were all heavy weapons meticulously crafted by the Ministry of Works with a huge sum of money allocated by the Ministry of Revenue.

"fire!"

The deafening roar was like the sky collapsing and the earth splitting open.

The shell streaked across the sky and slammed into the distant hillside.

Flames shot into the sky, and earth and rocks crumbled.

The earth-shattering power left the foreign envoys on the viewing platform pale and their legs weak.

Arubao slumped in his chair, his face ashen.

He originally thought that the Oirat cavalry was invincible, but in the face of such firearms that could tear the earth apart, even the bravest cavalry could only be reduced to dust.

His last shred of hope vanished completely amidst the raging gunfire.

The exercise concluded, and the might of the Ming army intimidated the surrounding barbarians.

That evening, Zhu Zhanji hosted a banquet for his officials and envoys from various countries at the imperial palace in Xuanfu.

At the banquet, the foreign envoys were all trembling with fear, and when they raised their cups to toast, they used the most humble words possible, without the slightest hint of arrogance.

They all expressed their willingness to submit to the Ming Dynasty for generations, to pay tribute every year, and to come to court every year.

Zhu Zhanji sat in the main seat, watching this scene, feeling extremely pleased.

He not only deterred foreign enemies, but also made his fame spread far and wide.

He picked up his wine glass, walked down the golden steps, and went straight to Gu Yannian's seat.

"Prime Minister Gu, today's grand occasion is entirely due to your planning back then."

Zhu Zhanji's eyes were full of admiration, and he lowered his voice.

"This cup of wine is for you."

Gu Yannian stood up, holding the cup with both hands, his expression still calm and gentle.

"Your Majesty's divine might is boundless, and all under heaven submit to you; this is a blessing for the Great Ming Dynasty. Your humble servant has merely fulfilled his duty."

The two tilted their heads back and drank it all.

The lavish banquet ended, and the bustling camp gradually returned to tranquility.

Gu Yannian walked out of the palace alone, strolling under the moonlight of the border region.

The wind from beyond the Great Wall carried a chilling edge, but it could not dispel the clarity in his heart.

In this time and space, the Ming Dynasty stood proudly between heaven and earth with an extremely powerful and prosperous posture.

It possessed a full national treasury and newly minted silver coins, and was equipped with powerful firearms and an intimidating military might.

His seemingly insignificant flapping of wings has already stirred up a storm that sweeps across the world.

He looked up at the bright, cold moon, a relaxed smile playing on his lips.

The grand picture of a prosperous era has already been unfolded, and he is quite comfortable in his position as Grand Secretary.

As the grand drama of the mortal world grew more and more exciting, he settled comfortably in his high position, becoming a most leisurely spectator.