It was Zhu Yunying's duty to personally plow the fields, as he was the emperor and needed to encourage agriculture. For an agrarian civilization, spring plowing and autumn harvest were of paramount importance, concerning the stability of the dynasty.

Although it's only February, many things already need to be prepared in advance.

For Zhu Yunying, the work involved more than just superficial actions; he had many other tasks to complete.

"I personally plowed the fields two days ago, and it is my duty to encourage agriculture and sericulture," Zhu Yunying, seated high on the dragon throne, said to his ministers. "Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, although some prefectures have encountered disasters, overall, our Ming Dynasty has enjoyed favorable weather and abundant harvests."

This is indeed true; the Yellow River changing its course and diverting to the Huai River to flow into the sea did have an impact. However, for Zhu Yunying, these were things he was somewhat powerless to help; he truly had the will but not the means.

Indeed, Zhu Yunying did arrange for people to build water conservancy projects and dredge canals, etc. However, let alone the current level of productivity, even if some natural disasters occur hundreds of years later, humanity will only be able to look on with envy.

From the Song Dynasty onwards, the Yellow River had already demonstrated considerable destructive power, causing severe flooding. By the time of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yunwen (Emperor Zhu Yunying) must have been devastated. Zhu Yunwen was, after all, the Prince of Xu, even if it was only a nominal title without a permanent fief, but Xuzhou and its surrounding areas were among the regions most severely affected by the Yellow River's course changes.

The entire court began to sing praises, as if the favorable weather and abundant harvests were brought about by Old Zhu and Young Zhu.

Zhu Yunying was already numb to such flattery. "But now, our Great Ming cannot slack off. The prefectures and counties should do their best to fulfill their duties, and the military garrisons and agricultural settlements in various places should not be neglected."

No one objected to Zhu Yunying's statement. Those in high positions naturally needed to pay close attention to national policies. And the local officials, naturally, needed to govern their respective areas, bring benefits to the people, and ensure the smooth implementation of government orders.

After the morning court session ended, Zhu Yunying summoned the heads of the Five Military Commissions, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Revenue to the Wuying Hall.

Sitting on the dragon throne, Zhu Yunying looked at his senior officials and slowly said, "Now our Great Ming Dynasty has some resources. Although it is not as prosperous as the Reign of Zhenguan or the Kaiyuan Era, it is not bad."

Of course, this is only one aspect of what Zhu Yunying was referring to, such as Du Fu's saying, "Rice flows like oil, millet is white as snow, and both public and private granaries are full."

There was no shortage of praise and flattery, but Joo Yun-young seemed quite unfazed by it.

Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang (Liu Bang) worked diligently to govern the country, and the Ming Dynasty was rapidly becoming prosperous and powerful. For the time being, the people could be said to be living in peace and contentment, and the Ming Dynasty's period of recuperation and development had been quite effective. Furthermore, Zhu Yunying (Liu Bang's successor) did not engage in reckless actions after ascending the throne, and the Ming Dynasty continued to develop steadily.

Zhu Yunying smiled and said, “The Ming Dynasty is growing stronger every day, which is naturally a good thing. However, as you all know, the previous dynasty was plagued by turmoil and years of war, and the people suffered greatly. It is true that the world is at peace now, but our Ming Dynasty is still weak. We must not be complacent. This is not yet the golden age.”

These high-ranking officials naturally expressed their willingness to heed Zhu Yunying's advice. However, the vast majority agreed with Zhu Yunying's assessment that while the Ming Dynasty was indeed much wealthier and stronger, it had not yet reached the level of a golden age.

Just a brief mention will suffice; Zhu Yunying also needs to consider some truly important matters right now.

Looking at Xu Huizu, Fu Youde, Lan Yu, and the others, Zhu Yunying said, "In recent years, the nation has not seen many wars. However, you are the pillars of the nation, and you must not slacken your efforts. Weapons must not be stored away and horses let graze freely!"

Xu Huizu and the others naturally obeyed orders. In truth, as military officers, they still hoped for some battles. Only in this way could they be ennobled and promoted, and only in this way could their value be demonstrated. If there were no battles, their importance would decline, and their status in the court would be affected to some extent.

As for the fact that there has never been a war, it is only a matter of time before the military equipment falls into disrepair; this has been the case for almost every dynasty.

Zhu Yunying looked at Lan Yu and said, "Don't worry about not having any battles to fight. We're holding back now so we can strike hard next time. We haven't dealt with those Tartars in the northwest yet. I reckon those chieftains in the southwest are also somewhat unruly. We can't wage a major war right now, but you still have battles to fight."

The territory of the Ming Dynasty is indeed relatively peaceful at present. At most, there are only mountain bandits and outlaws, who are unlikely to pose any real threat. If someone were to rebel on a whim, or if some religious groups were to incite their followers to cause trouble, the Ming Dynasty could easily suppress them.

There's nothing to worry about within the country, but that doesn't mean there aren't many issues in the surrounding areas.

Leaving aside the situation in Japan, there are two garrisons stationed there, including guards for the silver mines. The most important thing is that Zhu Di has established his kingdom there. Even if he covets the silver mines, he doesn't dare to cause trouble for the old Zhu and the young Zhu. He is only thinking about quickly governing his vassal state and winning over the hearts of the people.

However, in Goryeo, Zhu Yunying was not content with merely occupying a port in Busan and leaving behind a garrison. Yi Seong-gye had already usurped the throne and was now happily ruling Goryeo.

That region was something Zhu Yunying absolutely had to reclaim. The former Four Commanderies of Han, and even those not part of them, all needed to be taken back. Aside from the possibility of later appointing princes, the main purpose was to consolidate it and strengthen control over Japan.

As for the southwest, there were local chieftains (Tusi) since the Tang Dynasty, and they became more formally recognized during the Yuan Dynasty. These people were nominally subjects, but it was common for them to obey orders but not proclamations. These Tusi were essentially local emperors. Historically, there were instances of Tusi rebellions, and it was common for these local emperors to be alienated from the central government.

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