Zhu Youxiao led Zhang Yuer into the warm room, and Li Chengcheng hurriedly came forward to greet them.
"It's you!" Zhang Yuer still remembered the palace maid who sold goods in the royal shop. She smiled and nodded, then looked away to look for the cat she hadn't seen for a long time.
Li Chengcheng stepped forward to support Zhang Yuer and led her to a corner of the warm room where the cat tree and cat nest were.
Zhang Yuer saw at a glance that Xiaobai was lying lazily in the nest, with several fur balls leaning on it, sleeping or nuzzling.
When Ye Hei saw a stranger, he arched his body and looked at him vigilantly.
Zhang Yu'er smiled so much that her eyes curved into crescents, but she didn't make any loud noise. She sat down on the chair brought by the palace servants and looked at him intently.
"Meow!" Ye Hei made a dissatisfied sound, as if he was very unhappy that a stranger looked at his wife and children like that.
"Haha, you don't recognize me." Zhang Yu'er stretched out her hand and nodded, smiling: "I was the first one to meet you at Concubine Liang's place when I was holding Xiaobai in my arms."
Xiaobai turned his head lazily. Although it took a long time, he still recognized the poop shoveler and made a gentle call, as if to say hello.
"Xiaobai is amazing!" Zhang Yuer looked at Xiaobai with envy and fondness, praising her, "She gave birth to six children in one go!"
"Meow!" Xiaobai called out, as if he could understand.
Ye Hei sensed intimacy from Xiaobai's call, and his vigilant expression relaxed.
Zhang Yuer looked at the little fur balls one by one, unable to hide her fondness, and the smile on her face became even happier and warmer.
"Your Majesty, this is their ranking." Li Chengcheng presented a piece of paper to Zhang Yuer.
Oh, Zhang Yuer was stunned for a moment, took it and looked at it, it turned out to be a ranking of the little fur balls according to their characteristics and birth order, with the eldest, second, etc.
"You are really careful." Zhang Yuer looked at Li Chengcheng and praised him, then searched among the little fur balls according to the features on the paper, laughing happily from time to time.
A little fur ball closed its eyes and crawled to the edge of the nest.
"Put it back quickly." Zhang Yuer pointed, afraid that it would fall to the ground, even though the cat's bed was not high at all.
Li Chengcheng hurriedly carried the little guy back to his mother. Zhang Yuer glanced at the paper and giggled, "You are the youngest and the most dishonest."
Zhu Youxiao just watched from the side and then went into the inner room of the warm room, but he could still hear the sounds outside clearly.
Zhang Yuer's love came from the heart, and Zhu Youxiao actually had little resistance to the cute little fur ball.
Listening to his wife's cheerful laughter, Zhu Youxiao was also infected and thought with a smile: After she gives birth to the child, if she is willing to raise one, I will just adopt one.
There were several memorials on the desk. Zhu Youxiao picked up one and started reading it.
Hu Yingtai, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, had a long career. He had served as the Censor of the Military Affairs Department, the Deputy Envoy of the Jiangxi Provincial Surveillance Office, and the Minister of the Imperial Household. He also served as the governor of Yingtian and made great contributions to the improvement of discipline.
During his tenure as Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, Hu Yingtai did a good job and ensured peace in the southern part of the Ming Dynasty.
This memorial was Hu Yingtai's response to the emperor's inquiries, firstly regarding the plans and progress of Hainan Island's development, and secondly regarding the situation in Annan and Champa.
Zhu Youxiao not only questioned Hu Yingtai, but also collected intelligence from sea merchants traveling to Southeast Asia, and ordered the Pacification Office to send the Jinyiwei to spy.
Starting from conquering the maritime merchants and purchasing grain from the Southeast Asian countries, Zhu Youxiao turned his attention to those small countries.
Champa is famous for its Champa rice, which was introduced from Songcheng. It can be said that it saved countless lives and supported the population growth of the Chinese people.
Historically, Annan was known for its rebelliousness and capriciousness.
In the fifth year of Yongle, because Annan attacked the Ming vassal state, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty sent Zhu Neng and Zhang Fu to attack the Vietnamese Ho Dynasty and destroy it in one fell swoop.
In the 16th year of Yongle, the Vietnamese Le Loi rebelled against the Ming Dynasty and established the Later Le Dynasty ten years later, officially breaking away from the rule of the Ming Dynasty.
Now, the Later Le Dynasty only exists in name, and Annan has formed a situation of confrontation between the Nguyen in the south and the Zheng in the north.
The powerful Zheng in the north and the slightly weaker Nguyen in the south frequently invaded and expanded southwards, engaging in frequent wars with Champa, which struggled to hold on and had little ability to fight back.
Zhu Youxiao was not ready to launch a large-scale military operation for the time being, as the cost of fighting on multiple fronts was not something the Ming Dynasty could currently withstand.
However, after combining information from all sides and Zhu Youxiao's later perspective, he found that the Mekong Delta is still an undeveloped and desolate place.
In the future, that place would become one of the world's most famous rice producing areas. For Zhu Youxiao, who needed to store grain in preparation for famine, simplicity was a godsend.
If you don’t take what God has given you, you are committing a sin!
Since it was a wasteland, whoever occupied it would own it. With the newly built navy, the southern army, and even armed immigrants, they could occupy that fertile and rich land.
As long as there were enough laborers to develop rice cultivation there, the Ming Dynasty would have a stable and high-yield grain base, and would be more confident in surviving the famine of the Little Ice Age.
The investment cost is not high, and almost no force is needed. The main investment is the initial investment in resettling immigrants.
Zhu Youxiao was thinking about how to add another piece of territory and another naval base to the Ming Dynasty. This place, which seemed insignificant to others, became the first step for Zhu Youxiao to start his expansion.
Picking up the pen, Zhu Youxiao wrote a reply to Hu Yingtai.
From a geographical point of view, Guangdong and Guangxi will play an important role in this operation. However, from the perspective of their grain revenue, they are still not enough to support it.
But if the immigrants were replaced with an army, they could not only fight but also cultivate wasteland, saving a lot of money and food. Based on the Champa rice harvest, it only takes one year to be self-sufficient, and the next year, there will be a surplus to export.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
