This place has been Zhu Yunwen's vassal state for several months.
When he first came here, Zhu Yunwen was deeply shocked by the dilapidation here.
In his mind, Wuli can be regarded as one of the big cities in Champa City. It is certainly far behind the capital, but it should be similar to some big counties in the south of the Yangtze River.
However, when he got here, he realized that it was completely different from what he had imagined.
Except for the mottled city walls, the inside feels like a village, not even comparable to some of the wealthy villages of the Ming Dynasty.
There are one hundred thousand residents in the city, not to mention the old, weak, sick and disabled. King Cha of Champa also wanted to play some dirty tricks at first and drag away the young and strong.
Later, when the Ming Dynasty Navy was stationed in Champa City, they no longer dared to have such thoughts.
When Zhu Yunwen arrived in Champa, Cha also went to greet him personally.
When he saw Commander Jin of the Ming Navy acting respectfully in front of the King of Wu, he knew that his choice was right.
Along with King Wu Zhu Yunwen came fifty thousand elite soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, which was even more grand.
There were rumors before that the relationship between King Wu and the great grandson of Ming Dynasty was not on good terms, but it seemed that they were all rumors.
Therefore, Wuli actually still has a lot of property now.
But in Zhu Yunwen's eyes, this is no different from a refugee camp.
There are only more than 100,000 residents in total, and almost all of them are in ragged clothes and have sallow complexions.
Of course, the original Champa nobles had moved away long ago.
They did not want to live under the rule of King Wu of the Ming Dynasty, and cultural differences were a big problem.
How can one hundred thousand residents support fifty thousand elite soldiers? This is simply impossible.
Regardless of whether it is Zhu Yunwen, Lu, or the ministers who followed, the greatest blessing is that the support of the 50,000 elite soldiers is all borne by the grandson.
They had some bad thoughts at first, but now they realized that the grandson really loved this younger brother.
Otherwise, when he arrives at Wuli, it will be the day Zhu Yunwen goes bankrupt.
This is equivalent to the taxes collected by Zhu Yunwen, which only need to support himself and others, as well as the salaries of officials.
There are more than 100,000 residents, which is enough.
Under Lu's auspices, the first step in Wucheng was to start construction reforms, demolishing everywhere, and re-planning the entire city.
Firstly, it can better control Wuli, and secondly, it can also enhance Zhu Yunwen's prestige.
Not only did the young men in Wuli City need to be recruited for labor, but it also required 20,000 Ming soldiers to work together.
The army can build camps outside the city, but the officials' houses and the Wu Palace are indispensable.
Such a major transformation obviously cannot be completed in one or two years. It is estimated that it will take two or three years to be fully implemented.
But it will be completed before the end of the year.
"Your Majesty, where are you going with your people? Regarding the construction of the east part of the city, I would like to have a good discussion with the Prince."
"These people in the city now, they"
When Zhu Yunwen was preparing to leave the house with his guards, he happened to meet Huang Zicheng.
Upon seeing this, Huang Zicheng hurriedly came up to tell the story.
But before he could speak, he was interrupted by Zhu Yunwen.
"Okay, you can talk to the Queen Mother about these things. I am going to the port now."
"Gong Cao Guo will be arriving in the next two days, and I have to go to the port to greet him."
Zhu Yunwen interrupted impatiently.
Huang Zicheng wanted to say something more, but Zhu Yunwen didn't want to pay attention to him anymore. He called the guards to get on the carriage and leave.
In the end, Huang Zicheng could only sigh helplessly on the spot.
It's not that anything has changed since he came here. Huang Zicheng has indeed been given a lot of power and is truly the head of the hundred officials.
But Zhu Yunwen's performance made Huang Zicheng very uncomfortable.
Most of the officials were full of energy and worked overtime every day to handle a large number of matters. Zhu Yunwen was also very diligent at the beginning.
But soon I became tired of the boring construction project, and my mind began to be elsewhere.
The person who replaced him was Zhu Yunwen's biological mother, the current Queen Mother Lu.
Empress Lu began to interfere in political affairs, which made many officials dissatisfied. After all, His Majesty once personally stipulated that the harem was not allowed to interfere in politics. Now Empress Lu has obviously violated this iron law.
Zhu Yunwen didn't take it seriously. This was his biological mother, so how could it affect him? She would only help him deal with some busy affairs.
When the officials made a report to persuade them not to give Empress Lu any more power, they were reprimanded by Zhu Yunwen.
After this, Lu's power naturally became stronger and stronger.
In addition to Huang Zicheng, there is another person in the court in Wucheng who can compete with Huang Zicheng, and that is Empress Lu's father, Lu Ben.
Lu Ben was previously the minister of Taichang Temple, one of the five Ming temples, and a third-rank official.
In terms of status, he is much higher than Huang Zicheng.
Huang Zicheng is currently the Minister of Personnel in the vassal state, which has the greatest power, but Lu Ben is the money bag of the Ministry of Husbandry.
Nowadays, there are only two or three big cats in the domain, and the Minister of Civil Affairs has no place to perform at all. On the contrary, the Ministry of Revenue has more work.
Currently, Wucheng is roughly divided into two factions.
There was the King of Wu faction headed by Huang Zicheng, and the Queen Mother faction headed by Lu Ben.
Of course there are no problems on the surface, but secretly they are competing.
It just so happens that Zhu Yunwen now listens to Lu's advice on many things.
Huang Zicheng felt for a time that Lu must have done some trick behind the scenes.
The only good thing is that the Lu family has no military power. These elite soldiers from the Ming Dynasty, according to Taisun's instructions, will only listen to the orders of Wu King Zhu Yunwen.
Three days later.
Zhu Yunwen rushed to Quy Nhon City, the port of Champa, with three thousand elite soldiers as escort.
Wucheng is still more than 200 miles away from the sea, so Zhu Yunwen had to leave early after getting the news.
At this time, Li Jinglong's fleet had also arrived at the port.
This is even more spectacular than the previous Daming Navy.
Jin Kaishan only has twenty or thirty treasure ships here, while Li Jinglong has two hundred treasure ships here.
It's so overwhelming that when you get close to the port, it's like a city moving on the sea.
The Ming Dynasty Navy originally stationed in Champa City had already made Cha Cha feel very worried. Now that eight hundred ships have arrived, Cha can only tremble.
Not to mention that in Wuli, oh no, there are still 50,000 Ming elite soldiers in Wucheng now.
When these forces are added together, the occupation of the city will easily change its appearance.
At this time, Zhanwang Chaye was already facing the situation with a humble attitude.
"Cousin, cousin!
!”
Zhu Yunwen shouted excitedly. This feeling of meeting an old friend in a foreign land made him no longer care about his manners as the King of Wu.
Li Jinglong also walked over quickly and gave Zhu Yunwen a warm hug.
It's just that although it's winter now, the weather here in Champa is very hot, so we separated after a simple hug.
"Cousin, you are cheating." Li Jinglong joked with a smile.
Zhu Yunwen was a little speechless. He didn't expect to say this when we met. He immediately said: "Who here can't be black? Cousin, just wait. When you return, I'm afraid you will be darker than me."
Li Jinglong said confidently, "That's not necessarily the case. During these days from the sea, almost all the officers and soldiers in the army have become darker. I have no influence at all."
Zhu Yunwen took a closer look and saw that it was really like this, and he was even more speechless.
"Okay, I won't tease you anymore. When I came here this time, my grandson brought a lot of new gadgets from the capital, as well as a new style of rouge and gouache for Empress Lu. I'll have these brought here."
Zhu Yunwen's eyes lit up: "Brother, did you bring gifts for my mother and me?"
Li Jinglong said: "This is what the grandson personally told me."
Zhu Yunwen felt a hint of warmth in his heart, and some of the original gaps completely disappeared.
Zhu Yunwen originally came to Wuli City to become a feudal vassal, and Zhu Yunwen was somewhat complaining. He did not expect that his vassal would be so dilapidated. He thought it was enjoyment at first, but in the end he was completely suffering. He felt no different from being exiled.
Now it seems that the eldest brother obviously does not know the specific situation here and does not deliberately want to trick himself.
And choosing Wuli, in the final analysis, it was the choice of myself and my mother.
It can only be said that after seeing the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, the disparity between these small countries is too great.
Zhu Yunwen and Li Jinglong were chatting. Next to them, King Zhan Chaye, Navy Commander Jin Kaishan, and Yue Xunhou Yu Tongyuan could only wait.
One is the vassal king of the Ming Dynasty, and the other is the Duke of the Ming Dynasty.
Their identities clearly disqualify them from interfering.
Of course, Li Jinglong would not neglect others too much. After briefly reminiscing with Zhu Yunwen, he greeted Zhan Wang Chaye and attended the dinner prepared by him.
The Ming Dynasty Ocean Fleet will stay here for about five days.
One is to replenish the living supplies on the ship, and the other is that a market will be held here and the goods carried will be dumped.
Because the supply volume is large, the price is naturally much cheaper than before. This is a very good opportunity for the nobles and rich people who occupy the city.
At the banquet, Zhanwangcha also arranged singing and dancing to add to the fun, but everyone present didn't take it seriously.
Jin Kaishan naturally had to report the situation to his boss.
Zhu Yunwen was drinking and reminiscing with Li Jinglong, talking about his days in the capital.
Tea, who was ignored by no one, had to apologize awkwardly, for fear of offending everyone in the Ming Dynasty.
"It's a pity. I'm in a hurry this time. I have to leave in five days without any delay. Otherwise, I can still visit my aunt."
Li Jinglong sighed and said.
Champa is too close to the Ming Dynasty, especially in recent years, commercial activities have been very frequent, so that a large number of Han people have settled in various cities in Champa.
From a political perspective, the Ming Dynasty had enough deterrence against Champa. Economically, the specialties of Champa were no longer considered rare items.
So Li Jinglong stopped for a short time and had to start again following the monsoon.
Although Li Jinglong took the lead in the voyage of the ocean fleet, eunuchs compiled navigation logs for all the passages.
After returning home, it will be handed over to His Majesty and Grandson for review.
Moreover, Li Jinglong, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion and the Commander-in-Chief of the Ocean Fleet, would have brought a gift to Wu King Zhu Yunzhen if it had not been for his grandson's order.
Contacting the feudal king privately is suspected of having an affair.
When Zhou King Zhu Ju left his fiefdom for Fengyang, there was a possibility of meeting his father-in-law Song Guogong Feng Sheng, which led to him being exiled to Annan, and the confinement in the capital is still vivid in his mind.
Li Jinglong can't afford this relationship, he just needs to fulfill his grandson's instructions honestly.
There was a bit of regret in Zhu Yunwen's eyes: "I also thought that my cousin could stay for a while longer, so that he could help me visit Wucheng and make some suggestions."
"Since Grandpa Huang has arrangements, we can only wait until my cousin returns to see you again."
Speaking of this, Zhu Yunwen said happily, "My cousin is going to so many countries, so be sure to bring me some novelties to check out."
Li Jinglong smiled and said: "It goes without saying, of course I will bring it with me. How can I forget my cousin."
"My cousin is used to it here. How is Wucheng developing now?"
Zhu Yunwen was holding a lot of things in his heart, but when his cousin Li Jinglong said this, he immediately vented his bitterness.
This is overseas, so there is no chance of a royal guard or anything like that. Of course, you can speak more casually.
Zhu Yunwen complained about the dilapidation of Wucheng and that it still requires a lot of manpower and material resources to carry out renovation. He said that the renovation should be completed by the time his cousin returns.
Because they had grown up together since childhood, they also talked about the 50,000 elite soldiers.
The fact that 50,000 elite soldiers were supported by the grandson was considered a secret and was not announced to the public. Zhu Yunwen didn't pay much attention when he told it.
"The food and pay for these 50,000 elite soldiers are all provided by the grandson?"
Li Jinglong didn't know about this, but he was shocked when he heard Zhu Yunwen talk about it.
Because in my impression, the relationship between Taisun and Zhu Yunwen cannot be said to be bad, but it cannot be said to be good either.
In terms of birth, even though Mrs. Lu helped her become the step-brother and crown princess, from the perspective of the grandson, there is no difference between her and the concubine. The grandson is the legitimate grandson.
In addition, the grandson's position was originally assigned to Zhu Yunzhen by His Majesty, but was snatched away by Zhu Ying's appearance.
It's equivalent to a natural contradiction.
Unexpectedly, Taisun was willing to help support 50,000 elite soldiers.
"It can't be said that they are fully supported. After all, these soldiers still have a lot of land after they are stationed in the camp, and they themselves will produce their own crops like the guards."
"If the production is insufficient, we will report it and purchase it from Annan, Champa, or transport it from Daming Dynasty for supplies."
Zhu Yunwen's tone was a little dull, and he no longer had the initial excitement to help his elder brother.
I even vaguely felt that it was natural in my heart that I had given up the position of grandson and did not fight for it. Now I am only supported by 50,000 elite soldiers, so what does it mean?
People always change, especially after leaving the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yunwen is now considered the leader of a country.
Fifty thousand elite soldiers have a great influence on the surrounding areas of Wuli. Coupled with the name of the Ming Dynasty vassal king, Zhu Yunwen can be said to be running sideways in the entire Champa Kingdom.
Being held up by others every day is completely different from being in the capital of the Ming Dynasty. It is inevitable to be a little more arrogant.
Li Jinglong frowned slightly, and he was keenly aware of Zhu Yunwen's change.
It's hard to say anything.
Previously I thought Lu was suspected of wielding power, but now I think it seems pretty good.