Yang Zhicong knelt down and saluted, making a gesture with his hands in front of his chest.
"Qing Jiapingsheng!" Zhu Qizhen nodded and said, "I summoned you here today to ask if there are any large-scale non-governmental organizations in the capital?"
Yang Zhicong stared at Zhu Qizhen's lips closely. When he finished speaking, he came forward, picked up the pen on the imperial desk and wrote two words——
Bailian.
Seeing these two words, Zhu Qizhen frowned and asked, "Hasn't the White Lotus Sect been wiped out by Emperor Taizu Gao?"
Yang Zhicong shook his head gently and wrote a few more words: Resurrection.
Zhu Qizhen's face was gloomy. After a while, he asked again: "Do you know about the two recent murders and robberies in stores?"
Yang Zhicong took up his pen and wrote down one word: three.
"Three incidents?" Zhu Qizhen asked, "Isn't it just two incidents?"
Yang Zhicong continued to write: Half a month ago, Tongfu Warehouse.
Half a month ago, Zhu Qizhen was still eating sand in the desert, and he really didn’t know about Tongfu Warehouse.
After thinking for a moment, he asked again: "Do you know Song Guxi, the number one in Tingyu Pavilion?"
Yang Zhicong nodded first, and then shook his head.
Zhu Qizhen understood clearly that Yang Zhicong meant that he knew this person, but did not know the special identity behind him.
"There is something wrong with this person. I have already asked Jin Yiwei to investigate. However, I am worried that it will alert others. You can investigate in secret. If you find anything, report it to me at any time!"
…………
The next day, Zhu Qizhen still slept until he woke up naturally. He was drinking porridge when Huaien came to convey that King Tan asked to see him.
"Ask him to wait in the imperial study room!"
Poor Zhu Qiyu had to get up at three o'clock in the morning every day. He had just finished his morning service and didn't even take a bite of food before he went to the imperial study room to wait obediently.
I was bored waiting, so I looked around and found a lot of drawings scattered on the table.
He picked up one of them curiously, looked at it a few times, and suddenly looked strange.
Do you dare to think that the emperor is studying this thing without going to court?
Besides, what is this? Why does it look like a stove for boiling water...
"My brother has been waiting for a long time!"
Hearing the voice behind him, Zhu Qiyu quickly put down the drawings, turned around and saluted.
"My brother has met the emperor!"
"No courtesy!" Zhu Qizhen waved his hand, and then said, "There are no outsiders here, sit down and talk!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Zhu Qiyu sat on the chair carefully and said: "My brother is here because I have a few things to report to the emperor face to face."
Zhu Qizhen nodded and said: "What's the matter?"
Zhu Qiyu took out a piece of paper and said: "This is the details of the rewards for the soldiers on this expedition. It is a charter drawn up by the Ministry of War and the Cabinet. Please take a look at it, brother."
After Zhu Qizhen took over, he looked carefully from the beginning. Kuang Ye, Minister of the Ministry of War, was added to the crown prince and Taishi; Chen Ying, Marquis of Taining, was awarded the title of Ronglu doctor; ; Pingxiang Bo Chen Huai, Prince Shaobao; Imperial Guard Commander Fan Zhong, Jinjue Zhongwu Bo; Luo Tong, a doctor in the Ministry of War, was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of War...
"Did Yu Qian draft this charter?"
Zhu Qiyu was a little surprised and asked: "Brother Huang already knew this?"
"That's not true!" Zhu Qizhen shook his head and said, "Yu Qian has a characteristic in his work, which is that he is absolutely fair. Everyone's rewards are impartial and well-founded, but..."
Zhu Qizhen hesitated for a moment, then turned the page and read it again, and asked: "Why is there no British public among them?"
"As for the reward for the British Duke, Yu Qian and the cabinet can't make up their minds, and I don't dare to make the decision without authorization. The emperor brother needs to make his own decision."
"Just reward what you deserve, what's the problem?"
"Brother Imperial!" Zhu Qiyu said with a tangled expression, "The British Duke is now the Grand Master, Guanglu Doctor, Zuozhuguo, Yilian, and the minister of great merit, and there is no reward for him."
Zhu Qizhen understood that for a meritorious service of Zhang Fu's level, the only reward would be to be crowned king.
"How about naming a king with a different surname?"
Zhu Qiyu trembled all over and said: "Brother, please be careful. Our dynasty has an ancestral system and people with different surnames cannot be crowned kings unless..."
Unless he was seeking a posthumous title after his death, the British Duke was still alive and well. It was unlucky to say this, so he swallowed it back.
"Then what do you think we should do?"
"My brother has no idea, so the emperor can only make the decision."
Zhu Qizhen thought for a while and asked: "When the prince of Zhongshan County returned from the Northern Expedition, how did Emperor Taizu Gao reward him?"
Zhang Fu's current situation is very similar to that of Xu Da. Before Xu Da went on the expedition, he had already been promoted to Taifu, Zhongshu You Prime Minister, participated in the army and state affairs and was Prince Shaofu, and was granted the title of Duke of Wei.
The Northern Expedition conquered the capital of the Yuan Dynasty and drove the remnant Yuan forces back to Mobei, once again achieving extraordinary feats. This time, Zhu Yuanzhang was stumped because there was no reward left.
Zhu Qiyu replied: "I don't know, brother."
Zhu Qizhen thought about it for a long time, then slapped the table and said, "Why don't you just make me a king?"
"Ah?" Zhu Qiyu suddenly became nervous and persuaded, "This goes against the ancestral system. Brother Huang...have you thought about it clearly?"
"Are you worried that those Qingliu people will come out and make noise?"
Zhu Qiyu nodded and said: "Brother Huang, this move will definitely cause shock in the court."
"Let them talk about it. How can they wipe out someone's merits even if they say something outrageous?" Zhu Qi Zhenman looked indifferent and continued, "The British military has made great achievements and should be rewarded. If anyone is dissatisfied, let him Go and make some meritorious deeds for me to see!"
Zhu Qiyu asked again: "What kind of king does the emperor plan to confer on the British Duke?"
"My brother thought..." Zhu Qizhen suddenly smiled and asked, "How is the Prince of Jiaozhi County?"
Zhu Qiyu was stunned. What do you mean? Didn't Jiaozhi give up long ago?
After Emperor Taizong conquered Annan, he established the Chief Envoy Office of Jiaozhi. However, civil strife continued. During the Xuanzong period, the fathers of these two men, adhering to Emperor Renzong's policy of recuperating, simply abandoned Jiaozhi and conferred Chen Hao as King of Annan. From then on, , Annan became a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty again.
At this point, this new province returned to the Ming Dynasty for only twenty-one years before it was separated again.
Zhu Qizhen thought for a while and said: "The late emperor canonized Chen Hao as King of Annan, but he did not say that he would abolish the Chief Envoy of Cochin. Do you think so?"
"This..."
Zhu Qiyu was confused. Does this still require a separate edict?
We have already been canonized as kings, don’t you understand enough...
Zhu Qizhen asked again: "When Emperor Taizong changed Annan to Jiaozhi, was that okay?"
Zhu Qiyu nodded and said: "No problem!"
"That's it!"
Zhu Qizhen's eyes shone brightly and he continued: "The late emperor canonized Chen Hao as the King of Annan. It was actually just a title, just like Emperor Taizu canonized the dukes, such as Wei Guogong, Han Guogong, Zheng Guogong, Cao Guogong, Song Guogong...etc. , the Kingdom of Wei, Korea, Kingdom of Zheng, and Kingdom of Song are all the names of the vassal states during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. They are just names. It does not mean that the Duke of Wei can restore the Kingdom of Wei, and the Duke of Korea can restore Korea, don't you think? ”
For some reason, Zhu Qiyu felt that it made sense and couldn't help but nodded.
"So, the same is true for King Annan. Giving him a title does not mean that he can restore the previous dynasty, right?"
"It seems...that's the truth!" Zhu Qiyu frowned and said, "But our army has already withdrawn to the Central Plains and lost control of Jiaozhi."
"This will be easier to handle!" Zhu Qizhen smiled and said, "After the army withdraws, we can drive over again!"
Zhu Qiyu thought for a while and said: "Brother Emperor, I don't know what I'm doing. It's better to discuss it with the cabinet."
"Just convey my message intact, and if there are any problems with the cabinet, come directly to me!"
"Just do as the imperial brother says, and I will take my leave!"
After Zhu Qiyu made up his mind, he turned around and left. As soon as he reached the door, he turned back and took out a drawing.
"By the way, Brother Emperor, these are the construction drawings of the Martyrs' Shrine submitted by the Ministry of Industry. Please take a look at them!"
Zhu Qizhen only glanced at it and said: "There are too many problems. I have to correct them myself. You go first!"