Chapter 153 Bei Yuan goes south
After a long time, Old Zhu's breathing gradually calmed down. Looking at the prince kneeling there with a sad expression on his face, he suddenly felt sorry for him.
"Alright, get up. I'm not stupid. Even though what the second brother said was unpleasant to hear, to be fair, he's right."
At this point, Old Zhu's expression seemed somewhat bleak and lonely. Zhu Biao felt sorry for him and was about to comfort him, but Old Zhu asked him again.
"Does the Crown Prince also think that we should paint that boy's portrait? What did that boy say to you that made you come to me without hesitation and tell me all this?"
"Father, have you agreed to paint a portrait for me?" Zhu Biao was overjoyed when he heard what Old Zhu said.
"This room is full of them, take whatever you want." Old Zhu waved his hand, "Which brat is this? Alas, I'm in the middle of the situation and can't see clearly."
"We only have a pair of eyes. The world is so big, and there are so many corrupt officials. How can we see everything with just our two eyes?"
"There are so many state affairs at the moment. It's not worth wasting our time on those guys who deserve to be killed. If the second brother wants our portrait to be used for banknotes, then let him do it."
"Thank you, father!" Upon hearing this, Crown Prince Zhu Biao kowtowed quickly, stood up and looked around, then immediately picked out a self-portrait of Zhu and took it down with his own hands.
"You haven't told me yet, what did that brat, the second brother, talk to you about that made you speak for him like this?" At this time, Old Zhu was particularly concerned about the conversation between Zhu Chong and Zhu Biao.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, I have talked about many things with my second brother..." Zhu Biao put away the scroll and told Old Zhu about the conversation between himself and Zhu Chong.
As Old Zhu listened, his eyes began to widen. He didn't expect that his two sons would talk about these things together!
The rise and fall of dynasties can be traced, and the people's well-being can also be traced. How is this possible?
But Old Zhu was also a well-read person. After thinking carefully about the history books he had read, Old Zhu was surprised to find that what Zhu Chong said seemed to be right again.
When Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty, he used the official system of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, but the military system of the previous dynasty. He picked up the good things from other places. Anyway, as long as he thought it was good for the Ming Dynasty, he would just use it.
In Zhu Yuanzhang's heart, he certainly hoped that the Ming Dynasty could last forever. Even though he knew in his heart that his descendants would have their own blessings and that it was impossible for the country to last forever, he would be satisfied if it could last for hundreds of years like the prosperous Tang Dynasty.
But now Zhu Biao said that Zhu Chong believed that there were big problems with the Ming Dynasty, and the origin of the problems was something that Zhu Biao thought was unimportant, which suddenly aroused Zhu Biao's curiosity.
"Father, I share your thoughts. I believe the biggest reason for the rise and fall of any dynasty is the incompetence of the emperor and the corruption of the officials."
"But my second brother doesn't think so. He believes the rise and fall of any dynasty has nothing to do with the emperor and officials. He believes the biggest problem lies in the land."
"Why is it related to land?" Old Zhu looked puzzled. He was becoming increasingly confused about his second son.
So Zhu Biao told Zhu Chong about land annexation and the connection between population growth and land.
After hearing this, Old Zhu actually sat down on the ground, frowning tightly. He looked like an old monk in meditation and remained silent for a long time.
Although he had been emperor for so many years, Zhu Yuanzhang had never thought about the future of the Ming Dynasty from the perspective that Zhu Chong mentioned.
Zhu Biao's retelling of Zhu Chong's remarks suddenly made Zhu see things clearly.
Although Lao Zhu did not quite agree with some of Zhu Chong's arguments, overall, Lao Zhu only needed to think about it for a moment and was sure that what Zhu Chong said was correct.
Why was the previous dynasty destroyed by himself? Wasn’t it because he led the Red Turban Army in rebellion?
Who were the Red Turban Army made up of? Weren't they just ordinary people who had lost their land and had no food to eat?
Why is it that in the early years of any dynasty, the people were able to live and work in peace and contentment, with ample food and clothing? Even for a long period of time, there was a scene of prosperity. But why, hundreds of years later, at the end of the dynasty, did the people rise up in rebellion?
Old Zhu frowned. According to Zhu Chong, the reason was that the population increased and land annexation occurred, causing the people to lose their arable land. They could not have enough food and clothing, and had to bear taxes and corvee labor that they could not afford!
But is this really the case? Lao Zhu doesn't believe it.
"Father, what my second brother said is worth pondering. What do you think..."
The prince put away the portrait and saw that Old Zhu was in deep thought. He couldn't help but ask him what he was thinking.
But unexpectedly, Old Zhu didn't wait for Zhu Biao to finish his words and interrupted him directly with a wave of his hand, "Okay, let's not talk about this today."
"Now that you have the portrait, we won't keep you here any longer. Please go down."
After hearing what Old Zhu said, Zhu Biao knew that he was afraid that he would not be able to ask the question today, so he could only agree and leave.
After Zhu Biao left, Old Zhu stood up and returned to his dragon throne, where he sat for an hour.
Mao Xiang, who was waiting in the dark, saw Lao Zhu like this for the first time. He couldn't help but ask tentatively while changing Lao Zhu's tea, "Your Majesty, it's almost evening, you..."
"Don't arrange your people to keep an eye on the Crown Prince, especially when the Second Brother is there. Remember that!"
Old Zhu suddenly said something that scared Mao Xiang, and he quickly knelt down and agreed.
"Mao Xiang, what kind of person is our second son? Tell me what you think. I'll pardon you!"
Hearing Lao Zhu's question, Mao Xiang certainly didn't dare to say anything nonsense, let alone tell the truth. Even though Lao Zhu had pardoned him, Mao Xiang knew that such words could only be heard and not taken seriously!
"Your Majesty, I feel that His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin has made great progress recently. It seems that Your Majesty is good at selecting and appointing people to positions and making use of them!"
"Your mouth!" Old Zhu pointed at Mao Xiang and laughed. "You call him talented? He's just good at chopping wood, okay. As long as he doesn't cause us any trouble, we'll be lucky!"
While Old Zhu was chatting and laughing with Mao Xiang, the eunuch outside the palace gate suddenly reported loudly.
"Your Majesty, Minister of War Shan Anren, Minister of Revenue Shen Liben, Minister of Works Qin Kui, and Duke of Wei Xu Da request an audience."
When Lao Zhu heard that these people came to see him at the same time, his face suddenly changed. It seemed that something big had happened.
After a few people came in, Xu Da, the Duke of Wei, presented a military report. Soon after, Mao Xiang also received the intelligence and presented it to Zhu Yuanzhang.
After Lao Zhu carefully read the two pieces of intelligence, his face instantly darkened and he slammed the table.
"Those barbarians in the north are disobeying again. Military reports indicate that the Mongols are gathering and preparing to march south. Everyone, what should we do?"
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