Whether it is for Annan or for Goryeo.

Zhu Ying didn't take Yao Guangxiao and Liu Sheng too seriously.

One is a big shot in history, which has been witnessed by everyone. Zhu Ying also knows how powerful Yao Guangxiao is. Even if he is in a desperate situation, he has his own way to survive.

If he is in charge of such a large army but still cannot conquer Goryeo, he is not the right person.

On the Annan side, Liu Sheng had learned the essence of his previous life thoroughly. When it came to being treacherous, even Zhu Ying himself felt that he was inferior to him.

Some people are born with it.

Moreover, he had an army of 50,000 following him, and he was promised the position of King of Annan to motivate him.

Because of his old age and hidden injuries, he is infertile and has no offspring.

This has led to Liu Sheng's only pursuit now, which is to leave his own mark in the long river of history.

On the streets of the capital.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Ying walked slowly.

Within a radius of 300 meters, there were all kinds of Jinyiwei, both visible and hidden.

It’s just that the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and the future emperor are leaving the palace together. If anything goes wrong, the entire Jinyiwei will be turned into a sea of ​​blood and corpses.

Almost everyone was on edge.

Staring from all angles without blind spots.

"It's not so serious when we leave the palace alone, but with our eldest grandson, it's completely different."

"This is still in the capital. If we were to go to a certain place, I'm afraid there would be more government officials than civilians."

"We both fought hard and survived, so there is nothing to worry about."

Zhu Yuanzhang said with some emotion.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who had lived from the bottom of society for many years, could tell at a glance that 70% of the people on this seemingly bustling street were played by the Embroidered Uniform Guards.

Suddenly I felt it was meaningless.

"Grandpa is a skilled martial artist, but as the saying goes, two fists cannot beat four hands. If something goes wrong, who would dare to take the responsibility? Look how nervous Jiang Lin is. He has been sweating profusely after leaving the palace for less than half an hour."

Zhu Ying looked at Jiang Li who was following behind him, then looked at the howling cold wind, and said speechlessly.

Now Jiang Li really put all his energy into it and didn't even dare to blink.

After walking for a while, Zhu Yuanzhang suggested going to the former teahouse and sitting down.

As soon as he finished speaking, the people around him changed rapidly.

When we arrived at the teahouse, we didn't need to think too much because all the lively guests here were Jinyiwei.

"It's quite realistic."

After passing through the bustling lobby, the two went up to the private room on the second floor.

This second floor has never been open to the public since Zhu Ying moved into the palace.

White and soft steamed buns, spicy soup, green onion, lean meat and sweet potato porridge, and roujiamo.

After wolfing down the food, Zhu Yuanzhang patted his big belly with satisfaction.

"I always feel that the food here tastes better than the food in the palace."

Zhu Yuanzhang said, smacking his lips.

Zhu Ying finished the porridge in one gulp, and then said with a smile: "If Grandpa likes it, let these cooks go to the palace to make it."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand and said, "Forget it, it's probably still the same, but I have gained a little weight recently. I feel that the palace has more and more dishes these days."

Zhu Ying's team of chefs are not just those who know how to cook a few dishes, but they are all chefs who truly enjoy studying flavors.

It brings together cuisines from all over the world, and every ten days, it takes its turn to serve fresh flavors.

When I’m not doing anything else on weekdays, I’m experimenting with new dishes.

After chatting casually for a while, the grandfather and grandson finally got to the topic of today.

"How is the eldest grandson's plan in Shaanxi going? Has he gained anything?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked casually.

For the rebels in Shaanxi, although it is now windy and snowy and the ground is frozen, it is not suitable for marching.

But a small number of elite scouts are naturally not afraid of the severe cold.

Only by knowing both yourself and your enemy can you win every battle. After Zhu Ying entered the palace and got involved in government affairs, he had been increasing his efforts in collecting and investigating intelligence.

The original Jinyiwei had extensive influence in the capital, but it was more meaningful to set up bases in local areas.

The biggest factor here is the constraint of money.

The capital alone costs millions of imperial treasury notes every year. If the local areas were to be strengthened, the expenditure would be too heavy for the imperial treasury to bear.

It is different now. The treasury is abundant and the team of Jinyiwei is constantly expanding.

The radiation has begun to gradually increase towards the surrounding areas of the capital.

These things may seem insignificant on a daily basis, but when accumulated over a few months, the effects are very obvious.

"The rebels in Shaanxi are just a makeshift group after all. They are a mess both in terms of military and domestic affairs. This winter, Shaanxi is not having a good time. The food reserves at home are almost exhausted."

"Even if the imperial court does not send out troops after winter, they can only come out and rob houses to have a hope of survival."

"According to the scouts' report, farming in the rebel territory has been largely destroyed. My grandson believes that we must suppress the rebels in Shaanxi before the spring plowing so that we can start the spring plowing and harvest the summer grain."

Zhu Ying thought carefully and said.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded. He had thought about the situation in Shaanxi many times in his mind.

In fact, it is not difficult to eliminate the rebels. Whether in terms of armaments or personnel quality, the rebels are no match for us.

Most of these rebels are civilians, and most of them are forced to do so and have no control over themselves.

There is no such thing as military morale.

The only core team with some combat power was the original group of loyal followers.

But they didn't know anything about leading troops in battle, and it was already very good for them to defend the pass.

"Shaanxi is easy to defend but difficult to attack. It's not difficult to take it down, but it will be extremely difficult before the spring plowing season."

"Even if we draw troops from the surrounding areas, I'm afraid this battle will not be won in more than a month. In war, we must not rush for success or gain. If we rush for success, we will fall into the enemy's trap and suffer heavy losses."

"Grandson, tell me if you have any ideas to break through quickly."

Zhu Yuanzhang asked after thinking for a while.

Zhu Ying had already made plans, and immediately replied: "My grandson knows that most of these people did not voluntarily become bandits, let alone rebel, and they still made such a fuss."

"Most people are actually more anxious than us, and they may not be able to sleep well."

"After thinking it over, if the people can have food to eat and land to farm, they will naturally not be willing to follow the bandits. Therefore, my grandson decided that the best way is to win over the people's hearts."

Zhu Yuanzhang then asked: "How to conquer the heart?"

The word "conquer the heart" seems simple, but it is as difficult as climbing to the sky to actually do it.

Zhu Ying said confidently: "Use benefits to lure them, use food to confuse them, and use troops to suppress them."

"At present, my grandson has discovered that although the Shaanxi rebels are guarding the local area, they are closely connected with the various chambers of commerce. Behind this, the sales of gold and silver and the disposal of goods are all handled by the various chambers of commerce."

"The lower class people can barely get two meals a day, while the upper class rebels indulge in wine and meat. There have been signs of dissatisfaction for a long time, but it is only temporarily suppressed."

Zhu Yuanzhang asked, "Grandson, your Qunying Chamber of Commerce is known to the world. How could those rebels possibly get through your Chamber of Commerce?"

Zhu Ying smiled slightly and said, "There is no rush. My grandson has arranged more than ten chambers of commerce with the same name to secretly control them. They are just in time for use now."

Zhu Ying knew very well that his Qunying Chamber of Commerce had flourished in various places, had the support of the government, and was extremely domineering in all aspects.

This will certainly cause a lot of dissatisfaction, but there is nothing that can be done about it.

Although profits are constantly expanding, the collection of some secret intelligence has become very difficult. The first to be affected are all the contacts of chambers of commerce in various places, which no longer communicate with the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce.

The current Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce is more like a separate government office.

Zhu Ying had anticipated such a situation, but things like using an alias did not require instruction.

As long as you have money, it is extremely easy to set up more than ten new companies in the Ming Dynasty where information dissemination is so slow.

Currently, the Chamber of Commerce only reports to the upper level, and all other activities are carried out independently without any interaction with the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce.

He is solely responsible for the affairs of the counties.

As of now, there are about hundreds of such aliases, large and small.

It's no use suspecting this company or that company.

There are seven or eight of them in the rebel territory of Shaanxi.

The most interesting thing is that these rebels robbed everything, but did not harm the Chamber of Commerce at all.

As for the Chamber of Commerce, as long as there are enough gifts, there will be no obstacles in passing.

The scouts going to Shaanxi would just fly under the banner of a certain chamber of commerce and could enter with open arms. They only had to pay some money at the pass and would be allowed to pass without even a search.

Some things are outrageous, even outsiders can do the same by spending a little more money.

The most interesting thing is that although the rebels in Shaanxi have declared themselves emperors, the currency in circulation in their territory is still the Ming Dynasty's treasure notes.

If Zhu Ying had not felt that the devaluation of the Baochao due to the Shaanxi rebels was unnecessary, he could have directly manipulated the Chamber of Commerce to cause economic collapse in the Shaanxi rebels' territory.

Let them know what dimensionality reduction attack means.

What does it feel like to have a hundred strings of banknotes but still not be able to buy a bushel of rice?

Zhu Ying laughed and said, "It seems that the eldest grandson has already won over many of the rebel leaders in this regard."

Zhu Ying smiled and said, "Grandpa is wise. Apart from the few leaders, there are about a dozen people below who are willing to work with the Chamber of Commerce. Among them, about 50% of the rebel generals have already reached cooperation with the rest of the Chamber of Commerce of my grandson."

"At present, the specific situation of the rebels in Shaanxi is as clear as a sieve."

At this point, Zhu Ying laughed and said, "The files from Shaanxi have detailed records of the food, clothing and expenses of the rebel leader Tian Jiucheng, his accomplices Gao Fuxing, Wang Jingangnu, He Miaoshun and others."

"It's clear who he met, what he talked about, and the military deployment every day."

Zhu Ying knew that there were no rules for rebellion these days, but he did not expect that an infiltration could be so thorough.

At present, many people have infiltrated the circle of confidants of these rebel leaders.

If we wait another half year, I'm afraid there won't be any need for a large army to suppress the rebellion. We can just control the people below, capture all the leaders, and send them directly to the capital for trial.

However, these rebels are quite powerful. If they are not dealt with quickly, it will deal a heavy blow to the dignity of the Ming Dynasty.

Moreover, their long-term planning is not as good as that of Goryeo and Annan.

After listening to this, Zhu Yuanzhang sighed and said, "As the ancient books say, knowing yourself and knowing your enemy will lead to victory in every battle. In this regard, you, my great grandson, have really achieved perfection."

"With this kind of internal and external cooperation, who can withstand it? When we were fighting at that time, although there were discrepancies in intelligence, the difference is far more than a thousand miles compared to what Da Sun has now."

"The Jinyiwei, which we use to monitor all officials, has been promoted to this level under the leadership of our eldest grandson."

"If we hadn't encountered such stupid and corrupt people like Chen Youliang and Zhang Shicheng, we would have had no chance of winning against our eldest grandson."

Zhu Ying smiled and replied, "Grandpa, what you said is not true. Without grandpa and grandma, where would my father come from? Without my father, how could I exist?"

"My grandson is what he is now, it must be due to grandpa. Grandpa went through the same thing in the past."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed when he heard this and said, "So, our experiences are indeed very similar. However, if we really compare them, there are still some differences. I didn't have the ability of my eldest grandson back then, and without the help of many brothers, I wouldn't be here today."

"The eldest grandson has established such a large business group on his own, and has also achieved great success in the distant Western Regions."

Zhu Ying shook his head and said, "Grandpa is too modest. I can't compare with you. When you were here, it was the chaotic time at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. People were worse than dogs."

"I inherited the credit of my grandfather. Although there was some chaos in the Western Region, it was generally peaceful."

"Speaking of which, I was actually taking advantage of my grandfather."

Zhu Yuanzhang was surprised when he heard this and said, "Oh, what do you mean?"

Zhu Ying smiled and said, "When I first established my power, I was alone in the Western Regions, so I relied on my surname and lied that I was related to the Ming Dynasty royal family."

"Grandpa has never been to the Western Regions, but his reputation in the Western Regions is well-known. When it comes to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, who would not submit to him?"

"It was by virtue of this imaginary relationship that my grandson got such a great advantage and was protected when he was young. People were afraid of him and did not dare to kill him, fearing that it would lead to the extermination of the whole family."

Zhu Yuanzhang burst into laughter when he heard this.

"When the fake is made to appear real, the real becomes fake; when the real is made to appear fake, the fake becomes real. This move of the eldest grandson was indeed very beautiful. I just don't know what those people are thinking now. I'm afraid that the eldest grandson himself didn't expect that he would now wear the tiger skin that he had once pulled up."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ying also started laughing.

The boasts I made in the past have come true. This wonderful experience is really very comfortable.

Whenever I think of it, the corners of my mouth would slightly turn up.

Zhu Yuanzhang was in a very good mood today, which was naturally related to the significant reduction in government affairs.

Because of the severe winter, there were not many documents submitted. Even if there was something serious, every official would know to report good news and not bad news because the New Year was approaching.

No matter what happens, we have to wait until the Wan Zhengdan Festival to discuss it. According to the Han Chinese tradition, at the end of the year, all other matters should be put aside and it is time to be happy.

"My eldest grandson, do you know that yesterday afternoon, Princess Yan entered the palace and came to pay her respects to us."

Zhu Yuanzhang took the initiative to mention this matter.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ying understood that the old man's next words were closely related to Prince of Yan Zhu Di.

As expected, the old man didn't beat around the bush and said bluntly: "Liaodong, Nurgan, if nothing else, the best candidate for commander-in-chief is the fourth brother."

"The fourth brother has been in Peking for twelve years. Apart from your father, no one can match him in governing the local area. He has had many dealings with the Mongols and other tribes, and has fought many battles for many years, but has rarely been defeated."

"Now Yihua has entered the palace and has been chatting with Concubine Ning for quite some time. Grandson can probably guess what they are thinking."

"Nothing is trivial at the border. An incompetent general can kill all the troops. The choice of commander is extremely important."

"The influence of this black soil concerns the foundation of the Ming Dynasty, and it is a long-term matter. Looking at the government and the people, your fourth uncle is the best candidate."

"We cannot stop conquering Japan, but we must also do so in Liaodong. If we close the borders to other countries, Liaodong will have to choose someone else."

"I wonder what my eldest grandson thinks about this."

In fact, when it came to guarding Liaodong, Nurgan, and reclaiming the black soil, Zhu Yuanzhang wanted the royal descendants to be responsible rather than handing it over to a general.

However, the delicate relationship between the fourth child and the eldest grandson is difficult to describe.

In this regard, Zhu Yuanzhang still wanted to see what his eldest grandson thought and take his eldest grandson's opinion as the main consideration.