Before setting off, Zhu Di summoned Zhu Muchen into the palace.
Everyone just thought that Zhu Di was looking for him to talk about the Xiaoliuqiu battleship, but they didn't know that he was asking him to talk about Beidi.
In the palace, Zhu Di walked in front, and Zhu Muchen followed half a body behind him. He quietly listened to the emperor describing the blueprint of his imagination.
Zhu Di looked up at the blue sky and breathed a sigh of relief, "It would be great if we, the Ming Dynasty, could regain the lost territory of the Yuan Dynasty."
I think this was one of Zhu Di's Northern Expeditions, and he was unwilling to give up until the roots were eradicated. It turned out that this was the crux of the matter.
Of course Zhu Muchen knew how big the territory of the Yuan Dynasty was, and how many emperors' lifelong dream was to defend the territory of the Yuan Dynasty, but that was not an easy task.
"The Northern Territory has not been unified until now. If the Jurchens are not destroyed, I will have trouble sleeping and eating.
But now that the national treasury is empty, it is really difficult to support the long-distance campaign. Only by setting up camps in Oara and Tatar can the hidden dangers be eliminated."
"Yes, Your Majesty, in addition to setting up camp, we also need to engage in animal husbandry. The Northland is mostly livestock-based, but if we can grow grains and cooperate with livestock, it will solve the food problem to a great extent."
Zhu Muchen could always tell the truth in one sentence that Zhu Di ignored.
People with ambitious goals and long-term vision will inevitably neglect small things. For example, Zhu Di was only thinking about how to expand his territory and ignored the issue of food production.
But Zhu Muchen knew in his heart that only when the people had enough to eat and drink, could the country fight with peace of mind, otherwise it would only end up with internal and external troubles.
"The King of Chu hit the mark." Zhu Di turned back to look at Zhu Muchen, the admiration in his eyes clearly visible.
"Your Majesty is exaggerating. I just learned from the experience of the Northern Expedition. If our army runs out of food at that time, the consequences will be disastrous." Zhu Muchen is a little scared when he thinks about it now.
"As for the Northland, don't worry about it for the time being. Let those two areas recuperate and see the attitude of the Jurchen tribe before making a decision.
The multiple Northern Expeditions indeed consumed too much manpower and material resources, and our army also needs to be reorganized." Zhu Di was finally willing to slow down his attack on the North.
"Your Majesty, I have a heartfelt request." Seeing that the time was right, Zhu Muchen spoke.
"Tell me and listen." Zhu Di was in a good mood.
"I want to build an arsenal in Xiaoliuqiu to make cannons and artillery shells. We will not only build one warship.
Later, there will be warships of different sizes, and the required weapons must also be matched, and I..."
"King Chu," Zhu Di said earnestly, "Since you are responsible for Xiaoliuqiu's affairs, I will leave all the matters to you. If you need anything, just go to the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of Works to ask for it."
Employ people without doubt and do not trust people with doubts. This is Zhu Di's emperor's way.
The moment Zhu Muchen responded, the admiration for Zhu Di in his heart grew even more.
"You went to Xiaoliuqiu this time to do your best for the Ming Dynasty. Don't worry in Nanjing. I will watch over you and won't let anything happen to your family."
Zhu Di seemed to know what Zhu Muchen was worried about, so he pointed it out to him directly.
"My lord, thank you so much, Your Majesty." Zhu Muchen said gratefully.
It was too late to see the sky, so Zhu Di did not keep Zhu Muchen in the palace and specially arranged for someone to take him out of the palace.
Facing the moonlight, Zhu Muchen was in the carriage, drawing drawings by light.
…
On Xiaoliuqiu, Zheng He was already waiting at the port with a group of officials. He had never expected that Chu King Zhu Muchen would personally come to observe the construction progress.
But that's fine. He himself felt that the construction speed was too slow, but he couldn't find the problem. If Zhu Muchen came in person, the problem would definitely be solved.
Looking at the traces of ships that could be seen on the distant sea, Zheng He felt a surge in his heart. He quickly straightened up and then turned around to signal to the ministers behind him to take care of themselves.
As the ship approached, Zheng He took the lead to greet him. When he saw Zhu Muchen for the first time, he immediately clasped his fists and bowed his body, saying respectfully: "I, Zheng He, have met the King of Chu."
"Master Zheng, you don't need to be polite. I haven't seen you for a long time. Master Zheng is even more charming."
When Chu King Zhu Muchen was exchanging greetings, many ministers behind Zheng He also knelt down to say hello. After Zhu Muchen greeted them with simple greetings, he and Yu Qian were invited by Zheng He into the inn that had been arranged in advance.
As soon as he entered the door, Zheng He asked straight to the point: "Is the King of Chu coming here this time because of the slow progress in casting warships?"
King Chu nodded, and when he sat down, Yu Qian had already poured him a cup of tea. He said unhurriedly: "According to previous assumptions, the manufacturing progress at this time is indeed a lot slower. What do you think, Mr. Zheng?"
Mention it?"
Zheng He frowned and shook his head, and explained solemnly: "To be honest, I have been supervising the construction according to the drawings given by the King of Chu, but the speed has always been unable to increase. Whether it is the manufacturing or assembly of the objects, everything is slower than expected.
It was much slower and I couldn't find the problem, so I reported the situation immediately."
Zhu Muchen nodded, not blaming, but said as if he expected: "It seems that I misjudged the current manufacturing process, which led to the slow manufacturing progress. However, I am not in a hurry about this matter. I have already
With a rough solution in mind, I came with Mr. Yu this time because I actually have another thing I want to tell Mr. Zheng."
"I don't know what caused the King of Chu to come in person. King Chu, please give me your orders. As long as Zheng He can do it, I will definitely not refuse."
"Master Zheng, don't be nervous. This can be a good thing or a bad thing. Master Zheng can take a look at this drawing first."
While Chu King Zhu Muchen was talking, Yu Qian had already placed the blueprint of the battleship on the table in front of Zheng He. Zheng He opened the blueprint with doubts and looked at it carefully.
But for a moment, Zheng He was shocked by the drawings in front of him. He had never thought that battleships could still look like this. If they were built according to the drawings, once they were built, even the battleships he was building now would
Neither of them will be the same enemy.
"King Chu, this...is this?"
"Master Zheng, this will be the focus of your next work. If this ship is completed, it will surely sweep across the four seas and be invincible. It will completely establish the hegemony of the Ming Dynasty on the sea."
Listening to the words of Chu King Zhu Muchen, Zheng He's excited hands trembled a little, and he continued to carefully weigh the battleship on the drawing.
"This battleship is huge in shape and will inevitably require a lot of consumables. Once completed, it may indeed become a sea monster with no disadvantages. However, the process is complicated and will definitely require a lot of time and energy. Previous battleships have already prevented me from completing it on time.
, I’m afraid I may not be able to complete this battleship even if I spend my whole life.”
There was nothing Zheng He could do about this. After all, such a large project was indeed difficult to complete under today's industrial standards.
"But please rest assured, King Chu. I will do my best and put all my efforts on the battleship. I promise that in my lifetime, I will make Ming Dynasty the overlord of the sea."
Chu King Zhu Muchen shook his head and said calmly: "No, Mr. Zheng, the Ming Dynasty cannot give you that long time. It only has a few years at most. This warship needs to be launched into the water, and then the surrounding sea area can be completely captured in one fell swoop.
On the other side of the ocean, there are countless continents waiting for us to explore.”
Zheng He was obviously frightened by Zhu Muchen's words, and even his face became a little embarrassed.
"King Chu, I know the importance of waiting for time, but it is obviously unrealistic to think of completing the production of this battleship within a few years. The complexity and size of this battleship are unprecedented before. Not only are we faced with the material
There are shortages in technology and technical experience.”
Zhu Muchen didn't wait for him to finish speaking, then raised his hand to signal that he didn't need to continue.
"Master Zheng, don't worry. I came here in person this time because I took these issues into consideration. Otherwise, if I find someone to bring the drawings directly, wouldn't I be able to trap Master Zheng here for the rest of his life? Master Zheng Xiong Taowei
Well, wouldn’t it be a pity to spend a lifetime building a ship?”
Zheng He was speechless for a moment and didn't know what words to use to express his current thoughts. At that moment, he did feel a little disappointed. Although he was shocked by the appearance of this battleship, he didn't want to live like this for the rest of his life.
Trapped in one place, just to build a ship, even if the ship is of great significance.
Chu King Zhu Muchen smiled and continued: "In the next time, I would like to ask Mr. Zheng to find a classroom for me and prepare some things for me. I will teach you some new casting techniques. When everyone is ready, I will teach you some new casting techniques."
After learning how to do it, I believe that it is not particularly difficult to build such a warship."
"Don't worry, King Chu. I will prepare everything King Chu needs as soon as possible."
"When the time comes, I have to ask Mr. Zheng to follow me throughout the process and learn all the craftsmanship. This way, when supervising the construction, it will be easier to find out whether there are any problems."
"This is natural. I will definitely fulfill my mission and devote myself to Ming Dynasty's maritime cause, even if I die."
Zhu Muchen still believes in Zheng He. After all, he is a person who can leave a strong mark in the history books. No one is a simple figure.
Moreover, regarding the innovation of technology, Zhu Muchen actually just wanted to do experiments on Xiaoliuqiu first. Under normal circumstances, the industrial revolution would be accompanied by the progress of the social system. He was also worried that if the technology was advanced to a certain point, what would happen?
It will not affect the current nature of society.
Although he doesn't mind changing history, revolution always requires bloodshed and sacrifice. If the country's situation, which he finally stabilized with great difficulty, falls into war again, then the gains will outweigh the losses.
Therefore, he must find a balance between industry and social systems to allow for stable technological progress without causing social unrest. This is not an easy task. Now, using Xiaoliuqiu as the experimental subject,
