As the capital of the Ming Dynasty, Beijing is naturally extremely prosperous.
The current Emperor Hongzhi is also a wise king. He has always been considerate of the people and has always been light on corvee and low on taxes.
This period can be regarded as the most beautiful period of the Ming Dynasty.
As the capital city, Beijing originally had a population of one million. Now, due to the rise of briquettes and the flourishing cement factories, there are a large number of cement factories in all directions outside the capital.
The cement factory is a labor-intensive industry. Especially in this era when there are not all kinds of machinery in later generations, a cement factory requires a lot of manpower.
The establishment of the cement plant can also spawn the development of many other industries. The number of people working outside the capital alone has now exceeded 500,000, and is about to catch up with the population living in the capital.
On the bustling streets of the capital city, there is a huge flow of people, busy traffic, small stalls, vendors, restaurants, teahouses, casinos, brothels, all walks of life are very busy, and all kinds of hawking sounds are noisy and ear-piercing.
"Come and see, come and see, a big whale has been transported from Tianjin, it is as big as a house."
I don’t know who started the news. In the streets and alleys of the capital, more and more people are discussing the whale. Some people are running fast to tell their relatives and friends about the news.
Invite some people to watch the fun together.
Naturally, the old and young men in Beijing are very unfamiliar with whales, even though the matter of whales has been spread from Tianjin to Beijing.
Some businessmen and restaurants even purchased some whale meat from Tianjin, allowing the wealthy people in the capital to taste the taste of Kunpeng in the sea in advance.
"Big whale?"
"A whale the size of a house?"
"Is it true that there is such a big fish in the world?"
Now that I heard that a whale as big as a house was about to be transported to the capital, everyone who knew the news was skeptical at first. Everyone has seen all kinds of sea fish. There are already fixed sea fish stalls here in the capital, specializing in sea fish.
Selling a variety of seafood shipped from Tianjin.
Big fish in this sea are naturally not uncommon for everyone. In order to attract customers, some restaurants will even buy some big fish and put them in front of their stores to attract customers and make their business more popular.
Everyone has seen these hundreds or thousands of catties of sea fish, and many people have even tasted the deliciousness of various seafood.
But no one has heard of a fish as big as a house, let alone seen it.
"Of course it's true. Didn't I just come back from Tianjin? I saw it on the road, so I hurried back and told everyone to go and have a look."
"Let's go, let's go and have a look together. It is said that this whale is the Kunpeng in the sea. This whale is full of treasures and has many incredible and powerful effects."
The person responsible for delivering the message naturally replied with confidence and vividly told about the whales he had seen. Of course, there must be some people among them who had never seen it and were just listening to others talk about it.
These three people have become tigers, and the big whale has not yet entered the capital. Various legends about the big whale have already begun to spread throughout the entire capital.
Legend has it that this whale is the Kunpeng in the sea, a mythical beast. The skin of this mythical beast can make people sleep more soundly. If it is made into a cushion, it can make people fly ninety thousand miles like a Kunpeng, whether it is doing business or doing business.
No matter if you are an official, you must have such a whale skin mat to have a prosperous official career and a lot of money.
Some people say that the meat of this whale has the effect of nourishing yin and yang, making women more beautiful and men more powerful, domineering and virile.
There is even a more legendary and miraculous saying.
It is said that this whale's treasure can bring all the father-in-laws in the palace back to life. As for ordinary people, just eating a little bit can make them powerful and gallop on the battlefield.
Some people say that the bones of this whale are sacred bones, whether they are used to make things to ward off evil spirits, to make fortune-telling things, or to make daily necessities, etc.
It can have many miraculous effects.
In short, there are many different theories, many of which are miraculous and seem to be true. Some people who do good things don't even know what whales are, so they all talk about them in a garish manner, talking about many things about whales.
As the news about whales entering Beijing spread more and more widely, young and old men with nothing to do in the entire capital began to rush out of the capital, so that all the gates leading to the capital suddenly became extremely crowded.
Get lively.
There are so many people who want to see whales.
One is that whales are huge and are the largest animals known now.
Another thing is that there are various legends about whales all over the capital, which makes everyone very curious about this whale and want to see what it is.
In the palace at the heart of the capital, Emperor Hongzhi was reviewing memorials. The Ming Dynasty was so big that all kinds of things happened every day.
Today there is a rebellion of chieftains in the southwest, tomorrow there is a flood or drought in a certain place, and the day after tomorrow there is a serious banditry in a certain place... In short, Emperor Hongzhi spent most of his time every day reviewing memorials.
Emperor Hongzhi was carefully reviewing the memorials, and a huge Xiao Jing was serving him wholeheartedly, grinding ink for Emperor Hongzhi, serving ginseng tea, giving Emperor Hongzhi a proper rest, etc.
As a eunuch, he must look at everyone's face. The only thing he needs to do is to serve his master well. After gaining the emperor's trust, nothing will be a problem.
At this time, a little Huangmen hurriedly came over and said a few words in Xiao Jing's ear. It was obvious that some news had arrived and Xiao Jing needed to tell Emperor Hongzhi.
"His Royal Highness went to the sea to hunt whales?"
"You're still transporting whales to the capital now?"
After Xiao Jing heard what Xiao Huangmen said, he couldn't help but widen his eyes.
Prince Zhu Houzhao has always been restless. He naturally knew this, but he never imagined that Zhu Houzhao would dare to hunt whales in the sea. If something happened, how many people would die.
Of course, what makes Xiao Jing even more incredible is that Zhu Houzhao can actually catch whales, and even transport the legendary whales to the capital.
Xiao Jing shook his head slightly, as long as His Highness the Crown Prince is fine, otherwise something big will really happen. As for this whale or not, even if it is a divine creature in the sea, how can it compare with Zhu Houzhao's safety?
Soon, he came to Emperor Hongzhi's side and waited patiently for Emperor Hongzhi to finish reviewing a memorial before telling Emperor Hongzhi the news.
"What?"
"The prince went out to sea to hunt whales?"
Emperor Hongzhi had just heard the beginning, and immediately put down what he was doing, and then said angrily: "It's just nonsense. He was asked to go to Tianjin to learn from Liu Jin, but he dared to go to the sea
Go whale hunting."
"If something happens, how should I explain it to my ancestors?"
"Let's go to Tianjin immediately."
Without the slightest hesitation, Emperor Hongzhi immediately decided to go to Tianjin and prepare to go to sea to retrieve Zhu Houzhao himself. Whether as a father or as the king of the Ming Dynasty, he paid the most attention to Zhu Houzhao's safety.
"Your Majesty, please don't worry. His Royal Highness has returned safely. Now he has transported the whales he caught to the capital and will enter the capital soon."
Xiao Jing naturally didn't dare to hide anything, so he quickly went back and told everything.
"He caught a whale?"
Emperor Hongzhi was slightly startled. In his opinion, Zhu Houzhao was still a child, and going out to sea to hunt whales was just a joke. This whale was the Kunpeng in the sea. Emperor Hongzhi had already seen many things about whales.
After reading a special memorial, I knew that this whale was huge.
Catching a whale is definitely not an easy task, and it is simply not something that a kid like Zhu Houzhao can do.
But who knew that Zhu Houzhao actually caught a whale and transported the whale to the capital.
"Yes, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has caught a whale, and has already brought the whale to the capital with his people. He will enter the city soon."
"Your Majesty, how about we go see what this whale looks like?"
Xiao Jing nodded and said, after thinking about it he also suggested.
"Okay, let's take a rest and come back to see it in the evening."
Emperor Hongzhi breathed a heavy sigh of relief, as long as Zhu Houzhao was fine, then he looked at a pile of memorials, thought about it and said.
With Emperor Hongzhi's words, Xiao Jing naturally made arrangements quickly, changed into ordinary people's clothes, took some personal guards and hurried out of the palace.
It's just that Emperor Hongzhi and his party were blocked on the street before they left Beijing. There were too many people leaving the city in front of them, and more people were pouring out from alleys and alleys.
Walking towards the outside of the city.
Now almost everyone in the capital knows that a big whale is about to enter the city. This whale is as big as a house and weighs more than 100,000 kilograms. It is a divine creature in the sea, a Kunpeng.
As long as they had nothing to do, or people who had nothing important to do, almost all of them were walking towards the outside of the city, wanting to see if this whale was as huge as the legend said.
People love to join in the fun, especially in this ancient world where information is limited. Something new is enough to arouse everyone's curiosity. A few squatting on the ground looking at ants can attract a group of people to watch, let alone this huge one.
Big whale.
The streets in the capital were empty of people. Even during the triennial imperial examination and when the top scholar was paraded through the streets, it had never been so lively. Some vendors heard the news and even picked up their own stalls and walked out.
While joining in the fun, you might be able to do business. What's more, there are no people in the capital now, and you can't do business if you stay here. It's better to go out together.
"what happened?"
"Why is this road blocked?"
Hongzhi looked at the crowded road ahead and couldn't help but ask Xiao Jing.
"Sir, everyone is very curious about the whale in the sea that has entered Beijing. Now they are all rushing outside the capital to see what this whale looks like."
Xiao Jing asked someone to inquire about it, and he quickly replied.
"That's true. Although I have read the memorial about this whale, I really need to see it in person to know whether it is really what the memorial says."
When Emperor Hongzhi heard this, he smiled and nodded.
"Your Majesty, do you want me to clear a way?"
Xiao Jing looked at the crowded crowd in front, thought for a while and asked.
"No need, just wait. Besides, the whale won't be able to leave for a while. We have plenty of time."
Emperor Hongzhi waved his hand and said, and then waited very patiently.
After waiting for half an hour, Emperor Hongzhi, Xiao Jing and his party finally walked out of Dongzhimen. Dongzhimen is the end point of the Beijing-Tianjin cement road. There is a huge open space at the entrance of Xizhimen. When the cement road was built, it was also used.
This huge open space was then hardened with cement.
Therefore, this huge open space has gradually become an extremely important point in the direction from the capital to Tianjin. Basically, the carriages coming and going gather here.
This has also become an important distribution center outside the capital. Many people will agree to meet here when they come to the capital. There are also many vendors who take a fancy to the huge flow of people here, so they come here to do business and buy and sell.
At this time, the place has already been crowded with people. At a glance, there are people everywhere, shoulder to shoulder, crowded together, and even some of the surrounding big trees are covered with people. Further away, there is a cement road leading to Tianjin.
There are also huge crowds of people on both sides, forming two huge human walls that extend to the end of the field of vision.
There were so many people, it seemed like people from the entire capital had gathered here. There were vendors selling snacks, snacks, candied haws, children's toys, and all kinds of small business people.
He kept shouting, and business was surprisingly good.
“There are so many people!”
Emperor Hongzhi looked at the crowds of people in front of him and couldn't help but say that this was the first time for him as an emperor to see so many people gathered together. Looking at this bustling scene, his whole mood suddenly improved.
a lot of.
"Yes, it's really lively, even if the crowds are empty, that's all."
Xiao Jing smiled, nodded and replied.
At this moment, some people started cheering and jumping on the concrete road.
"Coming~coming~"
"What a big whale, what a big whale~"
People who have seen the big whale in front are constantly exclaiming, which makes the people behind who have not seen the whale even more restless, and some people can't help but keep moving forward, wanting to see what this big whale is in advance.
