"We'll reorganize the military guards and garrisons, and we'll start increasing the number of troops," Zhu Yunying continued. "All of this is for the development of Liaodong and Lingnan. If we lay a good foundation, the Ming Dynasty that this little brat will inherit will be a stable one. I, the Crown Prince, am just an average person."

Old Zhu remained silent for a moment, watching his great-grandson happily kicking the water with his short legs. Old Zhu knew that this kid was of average appearance.

Therefore, there are some things that really need to be handled well by Old Zhu and Young Zhu. Otherwise, there's no way to expect Young Zhu to build a better empire all at once. The general expectation for this young man is simply that he be a ruler who maintains the status quo, and that's enough.

“Our desire to conquer Liaodong is partly due to concerns about border troubles,” Zhu Yunying said to his father. “The Northern Expedition that Grandfather planned will keep those Tartars at bay for at least 30 to 50 years. But we are anxious about the Jurchens.”

Old Zhu frowned slightly. Throughout history, the enemies of all dynasties have basically come from the north. In the past, it was the Xiongnu, or the Turks who had some connection with the Xiongnu. Otherwise, it was the Mongols later on.

As for the Liao Dynasty established by the Khitans and the Jin Dynasty established by the Jurchens, they seemed to be merely fleeting phenomena. However, Zhu Yunying understood that they were not truly fleeting phenomena, and this was something that had to be taken seriously.

There are still three major Jurchen tribes: Jianzhou Jurchen, Haixi Jurchen, and Donghai Jurchen. They mainly live in Liaodong, in the area of ​​Nurgan Commandery. These three tribes now seem to live a life of eating raw meat and riding deer.

However, these individuals are indeed extremely fierce, given their harsh living conditions.

Han civilization and Confucian civilization share a powerful characteristic: inclusiveness. The Han civilization, with its remarkable capacity for assimilation, has the audacity to transform people into part of Chinese civilization given time and subtle influence.

"We plan to relocate some of the military households who have settled in the fields to Liaodong, which is currently very harsh and cold. We will reduce their corvée labor and taxes for ten years, and we will allocate land to each household and each person. We will also send a batch of cattle and horses that we previously seized from the Tartars after training them." Zhu Yunying looked at Old Zhu and said confidently, "Even if it's harsh and cold, we can still have some chance to survive."

Old Zhu smiled and nodded, saying, "Our imperial court has been supporting them for ten years, letting them help us tame the harsh and cold land of Liaodong!"

"Ten years won't do, it'll probably take even longer. But we can afford it. If we spend ten or twenty years, our descendants can enjoy a hundred years of peace." Zhu Yunying looked at his grandfather and said nonchalantly, "Grandfather, we should do more work because we are capable. If we suffer a little, our children and grandchildren can enjoy a good life in the future."

Old Zhu was very happy. His grandson was just like him; he didn't care about suffering a little. As long as his descendants could enjoy a comfortable life, and as long as his children could have a stable and secure country, that was more important than anything else!

“We know very well that there won’t be much fighting in the next few years. We’ll relocate the military households who are farming there. Besides, some of the veterans have contributed a lot to our Ming Dynasty, so we should take care of them.” Zhu Yunying said with a smile, and continued, “We’ll give them a piece of land over there so they can enjoy a better life.”

Old Zhu remained noncommittal, saying that going to Liaodong might not necessarily be a happy thing. If one really wanted to enjoy life, being settled in the Jiangzhe region and given a piece of land would be the true way to enjoy life.

However, Emperor Zhu wouldn't say that Zhu Yunying was wrong to do this. After all, his grandson was the emperor, and he naturally had to be ruthless when necessary.

Zhu Yunying was well aware that it wasn't that rulers were heartless; sometimes it was indeed necessary to sacrifice the interests of certain groups. The ultimate goal was the long-term stability of the Ming Dynasty, and sometimes being a little ruthless was the only option.

Perhaps the military households that went to Liaodong now would complain, but Zhu Yunying really had no other choice.

Some things can only be done by Zhu Yunying now, and some things require him to show even greater courage to do them. There are obstacles, but the things that must be done must be done. The coming period will likely be filled with debates in the court.

Alternatively, it might be necessary to assert the emperor's authority and use forceful measures to suppress dissenting voices!

The things that must be done still must be done; that is the emperor's duty!