The colder the weather gets, the thicker the falling snow in the Forbidden City becomes.
The snow is a bit heavy this year, and the celebrations this year are particularly intense. The Forbidden City started to be decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations a few days ago, and the palace residents wore brocades and colorful silks to welcome the new year.
The palace needs to add new people.
According to the Holy Edict, Zhang Ronger, the daughter of Zhejiang Chief Secretary Zhang Shan, is the imperial concubine and will be married into the palace on the 22nd day of the twelfth lunar month, which happens to be the Xiaonian day.
This year, there are many happy events in the Forbidden City. There are also many happy events in Ming Dynasty.
From the Jingren Hall of the East Palace where Zhu Yunxi is located, to the study attic on the second floor, the courtyard next to Zhongcui Palace has been completed. The window lattice and pillars have been painted with new paint, and the covers have been replaced with new glazed tiles.
After Zhang Ronger enters the palace, she will live here. Although it cannot be compared with Zhao Ning'er's residence, Kunning Palace, its status in the Forbidden City is also very important.
However, at this time, Zhu Yunxi did not enjoy the beautiful scenery outside the window. Instead, he sat behind the imperial case and looked at the memorial in his hand with a solemn expression.
Tie Xuan, a leftist political advisor in Fuzhou, reported that since the Ming Dynasty Customs collected customs duties, taxes have been several times higher than in the past. Moreover, merchants have become more and more frequent, and even people with blond hair and blue eyes from thousands of miles away come to Hua Tian Dynasty to trade.
However, the maritime ban of the imperial court was still in place, and foreign merchants and merchants of the imperial court could only do business in the ports specified by the imperial court. At the same time, it was strictly forbidden to sail sails into the sea.
But the wealthy merchants in the coastal areas all have fleets sailing on the sea. When the people around them see the benefits of sea trade, many people go to sea in private groups. There are thousands of villagers from Guangdong, Fujian and other places on the offshore islands.
Settlement.
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Sea ban is really a headache!
According to the old man’s simple values, anyone who doesn’t farm well at home is a loser!
The old man's sea ban does not prohibit others from coming to trade, nor does it prohibit his own people from doing business with outsiders. But it prohibits his own people from abandoning their fields, running to do business, running to be sailors, and prohibiting ordinary people from going to sea.
The original purpose of the Ming Dynasty's sea ban was to fear population loss!
But now that it has been almost thirty years since the founding of the country, national conditions are very different from country to country, and once coastal commerce flourishes, commerce will definitely replace primitive agriculture.
Moreover, although it was explicitly forbidden to go into the sea privately, the officials at various trading ports did not actually investigate the matter in detail. They also turned a blind eye to the actions of big local merchants in organizing fleets.
"How to convince the old man?"
Zhu Yunxi put down the memorial, closed his eyes and began to think.
In fact, throughout the Ming Dynasty, despite Zheng He's heroic voyages to the West, sea bans were always in place. Starting from the Ming Dynasty, officials came to power, the nautical charts were sealed and even the shipbuilding blueprints were destroyed, and the country was stuck in its own way.
But this sea ban is contradictory. On the one hand, people are not allowed to go to sea, but on the other hand, people all over the world are trading with the Ming Dynasty, and silver is pouring in crazily.
On the other hand, due to the maritime ban, naval warships were turned into decorations, and Japanese pirates entrenched in the outer sea were rampant. In the later period, the Dutch lived in Wanwan and the Portuguese lived in Macau.
(The merchants and officials of the Ming Dynasty were very smart. The Portuguese in Macau were basically intermediaries between the Ming Dynasty and the outside world in maritime trade. However, the geographical location of Wanwan Bay was too important. It was occupied by the Netherlands for thirty years, which also reflected the Ming Dynasty.
In the last years, the country declined.)
Although those two places seem barren now, no matter how barren they are, they are still places of the Ming Dynasty.
“If we don’t lift the sea ban, how can we talk about going to the ocean?”
“How can we forge ahead without going far across the ocean?”
Thinking of this, Zhu Yunxi shook his head, opened his eyes, and began to write a reply in the last blank space of Tie Xuan's memorial.
"For the maritime ban, please wait. Now is not the time."
"You are in Fujian. Please clarify a few things for me. How many large merchants are there in Fujian? How many fleets do they have? How many sailors are there? What is their scale?"
"Even, how many trees did the people of the Ming Dynasty who settled on the islands in the outer sea have? How many boats did they have, and how did they make a living?"
"Everything in the world must be profitable. Only by opening up the sea ban, only focusing on profit can stop Tiantian Youyou's mouth!"
After finishing writing, I dried the ink. This memorial was not put into the yellow silk box that was meant to be shown to the old man. Instead, it was put into another box separately, which contained the secrets of Zhu Yunxi's dealings with his confidants.
Then, he reached for the tea bowl on the table, picked it up and saw that the tea inside was empty.
"Where are the people!" Zhu Yunxi opened another memorial and said, "Here comes tea!"
After the words fell, Wang Shai did not appear immediately. Instead, the voice came from downstairs, deliberately suppressing the words.
"What's wrong?" Zhu Yunxi asked displeasedly.
Wang Shai quickly came up the stairs, knelt down and said, "Your Highness, Miss Miaoyun is here!"
Zhu Yunxi smiled, "Oh, let her come in!"
A moment later, Miao Yun held a silver pot with carved patterns, knelt at Zhu Yunxi's feet, and slowly filled the tea bowl with water.
"Your Highness, forgive me!" Miaoyun put down the silver pot and kowtowed, "I came here without being summoned!"
Zhu Yunxi was always more tolerant towards his first woman and spoke more gently.
"It's not a crime, get up and answer!" As he said that, Zhu Yunxi looked at Miaoyun. He didn't get close to her much these days, and she seemed to be more...mellow.
Wearing a girdle palace dress with a red collar embroidered with colorful threads, the red collar and white skin complement each other, making her white and rosy, and she is extremely beautiful.
There is a faint scent of rouge on her body, which is refreshing.
"I've been neglecting you these days!" Zhu Yunxi took the other person's hand, rubbed it, and said with a bad smile, "But do you want to be alone?"
Miao Yun bit her teeth lightly and knelt at Zhu Yunxi's feet. One hand was held by him and one hand was placed on Zhu Yunxi's knee. She boldly raised her head, her eyes showing both shyness and enthusiasm.
She is already at the age when flowers are in full bloom, and her every move and smile is beautiful. Naturally, this kind of charm cannot be matched by others.
Suddenly, Zhu Yunxi felt a little hot.
"How the hell are you going to deal with government affairs?"
"Hey, it's not good to have too many wives!"
Thinking in his mind, he put her hands on the crook of his legs, touched her forehead, and said with a smile, "Why don't you say anything? What are you doing looking at me like this? Look again, look again, I'll be there
Eat you up!”
"Ha!" Miao Yun smiled, because the peonies were blooming, and then buried her head, her voice was a bit sad, "Your Highness, have you forgotten this old servant?"
"Fool, what are you talking about!" Zhu Yunxu felt a little sorry for her. He touched her hair and said softly, "I've been too busy these days and I've neglected you!"
The beauty on her lap hummed softly, and in an instant red clouds covered her fair neck, and she said like a mosquito, "Your Highness, do you still remember the promise you made to your slave?"
Zhu Yunxi's fingers were gradually pointing downwards, and he paused after hearing the words.
"I've had so many things happen to me that I really don't remember much! Just remind me that if I can handle it, I'll do it for you immediately!"
Miao Yun immediately raised her head, her shy eyes full of anger, with tears hanging from the corners of her eyes, "I know this, Your Highness has forgotten it!"
"Don't cry!" Zhu Yunxi tapped her nose with his finger and said with a smile, "It doesn't matter if I forget, but I keep my word. If you say it, I will do it for you right away!"
Miaoyun didn't dare to look at him and whispered, "You said before that you would give this slave a dragon seed!"
"That's it!" Zhu Yunxi suddenly realized it, and then laughed, "This matter can be done now!"
"Oh no, it's broad daylight!"
“It’s better to choose a day than to hit it!”
Under the attic of the study room, Wang Shai stood silently waving his fly whisk while someone from the palace prepared towels, hot water and other things needed afterwards.
The floorboards upstairs shook slightly, making an inaudible sound.
Even Lao Wang and others, who had long since eliminated the root of their troubles, still felt a little excited.
At this time, another eunuch in charge of the East Palace outside the palace, Pu Wuyong, walked in quickly.
"Brother Wang, please inform me that Zhang Shan, the Chief Secretary of Zhejiang Province, is seeking an audience with His Highness!"
Wang Shai quickly made a silence gesture, put his finger on his head, and whispered, "Keep it down!" Then he said again, "Let him wait, His Highness is busy... Wait.
Wait, are you talking about Zhang Shan?"
Pu Wuyong nodded, then heard a slight sound upstairs and understood immediately.
"Hiss!" Wang Shai pulled Pu Wuyong out of the palace and complained, "He will pick a time when he arrives. If he doesn't come early, he won't come late. Come here now."
"After all, he is the father of the future concubine, we don't dare to neglect him!" Pu Wuyong also whispered, "How about we go to the Za family and say something casually and let him continue to wait!"
"Of course I'm waiting." Wang Shai whispered, "His Royal Highness is in high spirits, who dares to disturb you?"
This chapter has been completed!