In the Longjiang Shipyard, beside the shipbuilding platform where countless craftsmen were busy in full swing, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the craftsmen in front of him, led by Zhang Ergong, with a rosy complexion.
"Zhang Ergong, don't forget your ten-year agreement with me."
Zhang Ergong was frightened and bowed, clasping his hands: "I will never forget this!"
"Hahahaha..." The emperor let out a burst of hearty laughter, walked up to Zhang Ergong, raised his hand and patted him on the shoulder, and said in a voice that only Zhang Ergong could hear: "I am old. , but I still have a prince and a grandson. Just do your work. If the Ming Dynasty has a fleet that is invincible on the ocean as you said, I will also guarantee you a prince."
After finishing speaking, Zhu Yuanzhang turned back to look at Zhu Yunxi, the grandson of the Ming Emperor who was personally appointed by him, who was standing with a smile on his face.
Zhu Yunxi understood, stepped forward, bowed and nodded: "Grandpa."
Zhu Yuanzhang still said in a voice that could only be heard by the three people present: "When the second steam warship starts to be built, Jin Zhang Ergong will be the Minister of the Ministry of Industry. This is the promise made to him by my grandfather."
There is not much time left for the current Minister of Industry, Wang Jun!
At most, by the turn of spring and summer next year, when the first steam warship returns from the Jiaozhi Road to Yingtian, it will be officially finalized and construction of the second one will begin.
Zhu Yunxi thought for a moment, glanced at Zhang Ergong, who had not yet reacted, and said, "My grandson knows, and will discuss this matter with the cabinet at that time."
After finishing speaking, Zhu Yunxi raised his foot and lightly kicked Zhang Ergong's calf.
Only then did Zhang Ergong react, and he immediately bowed down and said, "I thank you."
Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hands with a smile: "On the river just now, I was looking at the fleet escorting the Japanese workers back, and I remembered that Ren Hengtai told me that Yingzhou should be divided into several channels. What I meant was that the main island of Yingzhou should be divided into two. Set up two roads. The two big islands in the south will be combined into one, and the North Sea side will be set up as one. At that time, the court will send a few more mature and prudent officials to govern. "
Zhu Yunxi understood this, and glanced at Zhang Ergong beside him, and said softly: "Cao Guogong is doing a very good job in Yingzhou now, and the pacification of the place is also progressing rapidly. I think next year the court will be able to build four more roads for the Ming Dynasty in Yingzhou. Since the senior official is respected in the government, Sun Er believes that Wang Jun, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, should be the first to recommend him."
"Then let him."
Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled lightly, and then looked sideways at Zhang Ergong: "Whether you are a minister or a minister, you should be loyal to your duties. The Ministry of Works is where you work. Just do good work for the court."
Zhang Ergong was a little scared.
His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Grand Sun, it seems that in just a few words, Wang Jun, who is now the Minister of Works, will go to Yingzhou to serve as the chief envoy in the coming year, and it seems that he will be promoted to another level.
Zhang Ergong said nervously: "I don't know how to be a minister."
"Hahahahaha..."
Zhu Yuanzhang burst into laughter immediately, and then said: "I'll approve things that you think should be done, and don't approve things that you shouldn't do. If you don't understand something, just scold me."
How can one still be a minister like this?
Zhang Ergong was a little confused, but Zhu Yunxi on the side had a smile on his face.
When it comes to selecting talents, in the end, my own old man is better.
"I'm gone, I've been out for a long time, my Sheng'er and Poria Girl should miss me."
When Zhu Yuanzhang saw that the matter was settled, he waved his hands and left happily.
"I will respectfully send you off to Your Majesty."
…
"I respectfully welcome His Royal Highness the Imperial Grandson."
"Students respectfully welcome His Royal Highness the Emperor."
In front of the martial arts lecture hall, the military generals from the DPRK and China who were being taught, as well as many martial arts students who had not had classes at the moment, gathered here and saluted the grandson who came down from the carriage.
Zhu Yunxi looked very calm. He had been to this martial arts hall too many times. It could be said that every plant and tree in the martial arts hall had grown up under his gaze.
However, if it had not been for the eunuchs from the palace who came to inform us in advance today, the Martial Arts Hall would not have mobilized so many troops to greet him.
"Let's all come in. It's just to convey a decree and see how our Ming army is doing in the future."
Zhu Yunxi was very casual, his eyes passing through the crowd several times.
Then there was some surprise in his eyes. Cao Zhen, the Marquis of Jingchuan, who did not want to go back to Beijing and wait for the Beijing army's turn to finish, and then continued to lead the army to leave Beijing, was also here.
Cao Zhen noticed his grandson's attention, raised his head and smiled innocently.
Dongguan Bo He Rong, who recently presided over the academic course of the Wutang Hall, stepped forward with clasped fists: "I'm waiting for your order."
After saying that, He Rong took the lead and got down on one knee with his fists clasped.
This is the rule for warriors to obey orders.
After He Rong, the court was full of meritorious deeds, military generals, and warriors all knelt on the ground with their fists clasped.
Zhu Yunxi glanced at the eunuch who was carrying the imperial edict and accompanying him out of the palace.
The eunuch immediately stepped forward and said: "My family is happy. The emperor is young and immature. To ensure smooth operation, I have decided to change the martial arts school to teach martial arts students and organize them into a young army to protect the emperor's heirs."
The emperor's will is as clear and straightforward as ever.
However, the overall meaning is simple and clear, that is, from now on, all martial arts students who are studying in the martial arts hall and have not graduated will be organized into a cub army, nominally to protect the royal heirs.
There is no official rank or specific division of powers, it is just a name.
Zhu Yunxi clasped his hands together and looked down at everyone: "Everyone, get up."
The old man himself did not know about this decree in advance. He organized military students into a young army to protect the emperor's heirs. But the reason was that the emperor was young and immature.
So in essence, this is a decree to strengthen the royal control and influence over the martial arts hall.
From the ordinary martial arts students in the martial arts hall, they became the personal soldiers of the royal family. In the future, these martial arts students will return to the army after graduating from the martial arts hall, and their identities will naturally be different.
Dongguan Bo He Rong stood up and came to Zhu Yunxi's side: "Your Majesty's grace, everyone in the martial arts hall should bear in mind the five things and never forget your Majesty's grace."
Zhu Yunxi waved his hand: "You are just a young soldier. If you are not on duty, you will not be given an official position. When I knew about it before, I thought Grandpa Huang was a little too stingy."
He Rong shook his head repeatedly and looked at the martial arts students who had transformed from an ordinary Ming army into an army of the emperor's heirs. He said solemnly: "After today, all the martial arts students in the martial arts hall will be royal soldiers. Such an honor.
It is truly a blessing for us warriors."
The martial arts students who have no schoolwork here are also happy.
So what if the emperor was directly involved in the military and bodyguards? The emperor was personally involved in the army, but having tens of thousands of people directly under the direct control of the army and guards was not so precious.
But the Young Army is different, only the martial arts students from the Jiangwu Hall are, and according to the decree, once the martial arts students graduate from the Jiangwu Hall, they will automatically leave the identity of the Young Army.
In terms of numbers, a few hundred martial arts students in the martial arts hall are rarer than the hundreds of thousands of military guards.
Zhu Yunxi smiled and said nothing. The martial arts students gained a glorious identity, and the royal family gained a more loyal group. This was a happy event for everyone.
Seeing that the edict had been read out, Cao Zhen, Marquis of Jingchuan, tiptoed up to him and said with a playful smile: "His Royal Highness comes to give lectures in the martial arts hall from time to time, but he makes the gentlemen and students in the Imperial College feel wronged."
This guy has always been so messy.
Zhu Yunxi just glanced at this guy: "Jingchuan Marquis hasn't led his army to leave the capital yet?"
Cao Zhen's face immediately showed helplessness, and he said dissatisfiedly: "The work in the Governor's Office is too time-consuming. If we ministers come back with their troops and horses, won't they give me a new army and horses?"
It's better to take the people back early.
They were good at saying that the governor's office had been re-established, that the affairs were complicated, that the Beijing army needed to be reorganized, and that the guards had to take turns. They also swore that they were carefully selecting soldiers who were good at fighting for the ministers.
Your Majesty, how pitiful the world is, our Ming Dynasty now has no other need to fight except the nine-border, eastward, and southward expeditions. The ministers are just taking the soldiers and horses of the Beijing army out of the capital for a stroll."
Cao Zhen was here madly complaining about the efficiency of the governor's office.
He Rong on the side could not help laughing: "Marquis Cao only dared to say this in front of His Highness. If the Duke of Wei hears it, I'm afraid that Marquis Cao will have to suffer a meal."
Zhu Yunxi also smiled lightly.
After the cabinet meeting that day, Xu Yungong scolded Cao Zhen for being a bastard, but it spread among the nobles.
But at the end of that day, Cao Zhen was brutally beaten by everyone.
It seems that the Jiaofang Division had received the news in advance at that time, and actually started to raise prices. Cooperating with everyone, it made the Marquis feel distressed for a long time.
But the results are still very satisfactory. At least the governor's office has been busy recently and is speeding up the reorganization and deployment of troops so that Cao Zhen can lead the army to leave Beijing as soon as possible.
He Rong signaled the martial arts students around him to disperse.
Then he asked the grandson softly: "Your Highness, do you want to take a walk in the martial arts hall today?"
Zhu Yunxi nodded and said, "What classes are you taking now?"
He Rong thought about it carefully and replied: "Now there are military training classes, cavalry army charging class, and artillery class."
Zhu Yunxi raised his eyebrows: "Who is in the artillery class today?"
"The martial arts hall asked the craftsman sent by Zhang Shilang of the Ministry of Industry to talk about artillery theory and the detailed operation of various artillery in the army."
The Martial Arts Hall actually invited craftsmen from the Ministry of Works to teach, which was something Zhu Yunxi didn't know about beforehand.
He couldn't help but glance at He Rong with satisfaction.
This group of meritorious military generals who were regarded as reckless men still had some brains, and they were able to find a way to find civil servants to teach military students.
He immediately said: "Go over there and take a look. Don't disturb the lectures inside."
He Rong understood that his grandson was going to listen outside the classroom.
He immediately asked the unimportant people around him to leave, and he, Cao Zhen, and several other veterans in Beijing who had been hosting the martial arts hall for a long time, accompanied the emperor's grandson to the artillery classroom.
In an instant, everyone was outside the artillery class.
Zhu Yunxi was walking at the front, and before he reached the back of the classroom, he heard the excitement of teaching coming from the classroom.
"Today's artillery theory and various artillery operation methods are only summarized. Later lessons will explain them in detail."
"And here, I would like to share a few words of encouragement with you."
The voices in the classroom paused for a moment.
Then, there was a loud question.
"Artillery! What is artillery?"
After another brief pause, the martial arts students in the classroom whispered quietly, and some people gave answers loudly.
"It's used to kill people."
"Artillery can be used to siege cities and capture territory."
"Can defend against foreign invasion."
However, the craftsman who came to teach today did not seem to be satisfied with the answers given by these martial students.
"No, no, no!" The craftsman shook his head repeatedly and said in a deep voice: "What you said all makes sense, but it is not the greatest truth. What is artillery?"
The craftsman asked again, but this time no martial artist spoke up.
There was silence in the entire classroom, everyone was waiting for the craftsman who was not a warrior to give an answer that would satisfy everyone.
"Artillery! It's used to measure the area of our Ming Dynasty!"
"When you walk out of this martial arts hall and arrive at the frontier formation, as far as the artillery under your command can shoot, the territory of the Ming Dynasty will be as far as it goes!"
"The Ming Dynasty will become more powerful because of you! Because of the cannons you lit!"
hiss……
Outside the classroom, although everyone remained quiet, everyone seemed to be able to hear the surprise and surprise in the hearts of the people around them.
Zhu Yunxi narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at the craftsman in the classroom who had stood up from the podium.
Cao Zhen blinked fiercely and looked inside through the window outside the classroom, trying to see what the craftsman who was teaching looked like.
In that case, can a craftsman say it?
He is not even a civil servant!
He Rong hesitated a little and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, this is also the first time that the martial arts hall has invited craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry to teach. I don't know in advance what they will talk about."
Civil servants are afraid of resorting to force, and so are military generals.
Zhu Yunxi smiled and shook his head: "Do you think what he said makes sense?"
"..." He Rong became more and more entangled. He thought about it and decided to follow his heart: "Wei Chen thinks it makes sense."
Zhu Yunxi looked at Marquis Jingchuan behind him.
Cao Zhen nodded: "I also think it makes sense."
He then looked at the generals giving lectures in the martial arts hall.
All the generals nodded in agreement.
Zhu Yunxi smiled: "What is this person's name?"
"Ai Qianjin."
Zhu Yunxi's eyelids suddenly moved, and just as he was about to speak, Tian Mai hurried over from the front.
He was about to speak, but Zhu Yunxi raised his hand to stop him.
At this time, Zhu Yunxi looked at He Rong again: "Take a copy of Mr. Ai's lessons today and send them to Taisun's Mansion. In the future, all the lessons he teaches will be copied and sent to Taisun's Mansion."
That man actually fell into Taisun's eyes!
He Rong immediately reacted: "Wei Chen accepts the order. When I turn around, Wei Chen will invite Mr. Zhang to drink a few more drinks and leave Mr. Ai in the martial arts hall."
Zhu Yunxi glanced at He Rong lightly and did not comment.
Instead, he put his hands behind his back, gave Tian Mai a look, and the two of them walked out.
Everyone who was left outside the classroom saw Tian Mai coming and knew that his grandson must have other important matters, so they did not follow him.
Cao Zhen was a little confused: "What's going on?"
He Rong turned back to look at Lord Cao, and hummed twice: "Yesterday I went to the Governor's Mansion, and they said that the affairs of Lord Cao would be settled in the next two days. Lord Cao had better go back early.
Ying, please don’t linger in my martial arts lecture hall.”
Cao Zhen's eyes widened, but in the end he could only wave his sleeves angrily.
Zhu Yunxi, who was about to walk out of the martial arts hall, walked forward and asked in a low voice: "What happened?"
Tian Mai followed behind, lowered his head and whispered back: "The foreigner is back, the foreigner named Fan Chong."
Tian Mai's tone was a little strange, which made Zhu Yunxi quite curious.
Looking back at Tian Mai, whose expression also became a little strange, Zhu Yunxi became even more curious.