OBS Chapter 394 Zhu Biao has gone astray!
Chapter 394 Zhu Biao has gone astray!
Yang Shaofeng was truly desperate this time.
It was just a moment of kindness; I thought I'd take my brother-in-law in for a while longer so he wouldn't get beaten up when he returned to the capital.
Yang Shaofeng could even swear to God that he had no intention of swindling more benefits from Zhu Biao.
If there is even the slightest falsehood, may every short and ugly Japanese man be pierced by a thousand arrows and die a horrible death!
But who could have imagined that Zhu Biao, who was perfectly fine the night before, would start writing articles early the next morning and then start bombarding me with questions the afternoon afterward?
Are there any crops that can be grown on grasslands?
Are there any things that are worthless on the grasslands but can be sold in the Central Plains?
What is something that is essential on the grasslands but not lacking in the Central Plains?
Is it possible to make the people on the grasslands extremely dependent on the Jiangnan region, while also making the people of the Central Plains and Jiangnan region dependent on the grasslands?
If all the above problems have solutions, is there another possibility that the practice of "replacing native chieftains with imperial officials" could also be implemented on the grasslands?
If the "reform of local chieftains and the return of officials to central authority" can be implemented on the grasslands, does that mean that other places like the Tusi (chieftains) and Xuanweisi (military governors) can also do the same?
Or think about it even further.
After the existing provinces of the Ming Dynasty are all reorganized into provincial administration commissions, could the jurisdictions of each provincial administration commission be redivided to make them interdependent?
In short, Zhu Biao was like a curious child, asking all sorts of random questions.
So much so that Yang Shaofeng wished he could send Zhu Biao back to the capital immediately.
"Your Highness may write down all these questions."
Yang Shaofeng rubbed his forehead, his face full of despair, and said, "The border market is about to open, and I can't worry about that for the time being."
"Besides, His Majesty has already paid salaries to the Duke of Han and the Earl of Chengyi, so these are the kinds of problems that should be their headaches."
Zhu Biao thought Yang Shaofeng's words made sense.
However, Zhu Biao did not want to wait until he returned to the capital to go to see Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen.
After pondering for a moment, Zhu Biao simply held up one finger and said, "One jin of small dragon balls."
Yang Shaofeng sighed and said, "Your Highness, this is not about money."
Zhu Biao was slightly taken aback, and suddenly remembered a theory that Yang Shaofeng had once told him.
When someone says that something isn't about money, it often turns out to be about money in the end.
So, is it because the price offered by Gu Kai was too low?
Then Zhu Biao started raising the price: "Add one hundred cows."
Yang Shaofeng shook his head slightly and sighed again, saying, "Your Highness, there are too many messy things at the border market. I have to go there now, and I really don't have time."
See, they've changed it to "no time" and stopped mentioning money.
Then, Zhu Biao thought of another theory that Yang Shaofeng had once mentioned.
Koreans have always been stingy when it comes to getting things done; they want to bribe people but are reluctant to actually spend the money.
But Zhu Biao was also suffering inside.
Is it that I don't want to ask for a higher price?
No, I also want to be generous, I want to just ask for a thousand or ten thousand cattle and horses.
The problem is, in all of the more than a thousand prefectures and counties of the Ming Dynasty, which place doesn't need cattle and horses?
As the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, I can show some favoritism, but I cannot be too biased.
Besides, why did I flee the capital this time?
Because he was too generous last time, he directly asked his cousin Li Wenzhong to allocate 1,500 head of cattle and horses to Dengzhou Prefecture.
Zhu Biao gritted his teeth and offered the maximum price he could afford: "Five hundred oxen! Plus a thousand nags! And a thousand more households from all over Jiangnan to move to Dengzhou!"
Before Yang Shaofeng could refuse, Zhu Biao added, "This is already the highest price I can offer. Even so, I would appreciate it if my cousin could write another letter and ask him to find a way to cover the shortfall of 1,500 head of cattle and horses. If you still don't agree, brother-in-law, I'm going to Ningyang County!"
Ok?
Going to Ningyang County?
What the hell!
Zhu Biao, you Crown Prince with thick eyebrows and big eyes, have actually started to abandon martial ethics!
As for Zhu Biao's suggestion to write a letter to Li Wenzhong, asking him to find a way to make up for the shortfall of 1,500 head of cattle and horses, Yang Shaofeng didn't take it too seriously.
Li Wenzhong was a ruthless fighter who could take on 200,000 men with only 2,000. Zhao Yun, who charged in and out of Changban Slope seven times in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and could completely wipe out someone's household registration in a fit of rage, was based on Li Wenzhong.
Yes, Mr. Luo Guanzhong once served under Zhang Shicheng and was beaten by Li Wenzhong.
Therefore, a mere 1,500 cattle and horses are nothing to Li Wenzhong; he can easily replenish them by robbing anywhere.
Yang Shaofeng chuckled and immediately ordered the maid, "Quickly, brew His Highness a pot of tea."
While the maid was making tea, Yang Shaofeng looked at Zhu Biao and said, "Your Highness's questions just now actually have ready-made answers."
"Grasslands are suitable for grazing cattle and sheep and mining, but should not have suitable crops for cultivation."
“Other chieftains and pacification commissioners can do the same.”
"As for the territories of the various provincial administrations, they should of course be redivided so that they are intertwined and interdependent, and then the provincial administrations can form a situation where they depend on each other and no one can do without the other."
"As for the further problems that arise from this..."
Yang Shaofeng said with a smile, "Your Highness would be better off going to see Marquis Chengyi."
Zhu Biao was a little confused.
These are the questions that I raised first.
My brother-in-law seems to be answering me with the questions I raised.
So, this time I lost another pound of Xiaolongtuan, five hundred cattle and a thousand nags, as well as three thousand households in Jiangnan, and I also owe my cousin a favor.
I'm so sorry!
Based on the principle that asking more questions would reduce the loss, Zhu Biao decided to ask a few more questions.
"Attacks on the Hu Yuan, construction of cities, and the replacement of native chieftains with centrally appointed officials can only stabilize the grasslands. But how can we make the grassland people recognize themselves as citizens of the Ming Dynasty?"
"After defeating the Hu Yuan, should we attack Jiaozhi or the Western Regions?"
"Or perhaps we should attack Japan first?"
"How should Dali be dealt with?"
"If the grasslands become stable in the future, will the people of the Ming Dynasty no longer lack cattle and horses?"
"If the people of the Ming Dynasty no longer lack cattle and horses, the efficiency of farming will increase, and the harvest will be greater. Should the next step for the Ming Dynasty be to prioritize education and moral cultivation?"
"..."
Yang Shaofeng stared blankly at Zhu Biao, who kept asking questions, feeling a sense of frustration, as if he had shot himself in the foot.
Zhu Biao has gone astray!
The once gentle and refined Crown Prince Zhu Biao has actually gone astray, following the example of that old scoundrel Zhu Chongba and those two old scoundrels Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen!
Helplessly, Yang Shaofeng rubbed his forehead and sighed, "Your Highness, shouldn't these matters be the concern of the Duke of Han and the Earl of Chengyi?"
Zhu Biao shook his head stubbornly.
“My brother-in-law is right, but not entirely right.”
"These are certainly issues that the Duke of Han and the Earl of Chengyi need to consider, but as the Crown Prince, shouldn't I also consider these matters?"
As the saying goes, "Listen to both sides and you will be enlightened; listen to only one side and you will be misled."
"I will certainly consult the Duke of Han and the Earl of Chengyi in the future, but for now, I need my brother-in-law's help to resolve my doubts."