"Champa? It's a pretty good place, Yunwen. Have you made up your mind?"

In Kunning Palace, Zhu Ying said with a smile.

Zhu Yunwen didn't expect that his elder brother would be so easy to talk to. It seemed that his mother's worries were really unnecessary.

Then he said affirmatively: "Brother, I have made up my mind. I will go to Champa to establish a vassal state."

Zhu Ying nodded, and after thinking for a while, he said, "Now our Ming Dynasty has 50,000 elite soldiers stationed in Annan, and the relationship with the Annan royal family is also good."

"But Champa has always had a good relationship with our Ming Dynasty. It's not the right time for you to go there now."

"Don't worry, I will arrange it for you. However, the journey is quite far, so I estimate it will take about two years."

"You can have some good training during this time. It's not like the Ming Dynasty there. There will be chaos and war, not peace."

"Tomorrow, pack your luggage and go to the military academy that I just opened. Learn some fighting skills so that you won't be bullied."

Zhu Ying really had no intention of suppressing Zhu Yunwen.

After all, the two are not in the same league at all, whether in terms of status or other aspects.

Zhu Ying had no good things to say about his overseas fiefdom. If Zhu Yunwen went alone, he would probably die without knowing how.

The reason for agreeing is nothing more than Lu's.

The location of Champa is very critical, especially in terms of shipping routes.

The Champa Kingdom is located in the south of the Great Sea, south of Zhenla, west of Jiaozhi, and northeast of the sea. One can sail southwest from Wuhumen in Changle County, Fujian, and reach the country in about ten days with a favorable wind.

A hundred miles northeast of the country, there is a seaport called Xinzhou Port. A stone tower is erected on the shore as a landmark, and ships dock here.

A hundred miles southwest is the royal city, which is Champa.

Zheng He made seven voyages to the West, and Champa was the first overseas stop each time. From the perspective of geographical location and sea routes, the central and southern coastal areas of Annan have always been the first stop and a must-pass place on the sea route from China to Southeast Asia.

As early as the Han Dynasty, "Book of Han Geography" recorded the sea transportation routes from China to Southeast Asia.

Starting from the Leizhou Peninsula by boat, heading south along the Annan coastline, passing through Xiapuji and Siam, reaching the Strait of Malacca, and then heading north to Ceylon, a Maritime Silk Road had been initially established in the Han Dynasty.

Once when Zhu Ying was in the Western Regions and looked at Annan from afar, he also included Champa.

The troops stationed in Annan also briefed their eldest disciple Liu Sheng on the affairs of Champa.

From the very beginning, Zhu Ying had no intention of letting Champa go. After taking Annan, Champa would undoubtedly be the next step.

Now Zhu Yunwen came to ask for the title of Champa, which was in line with Zhu Ying's wishes.

I didn't expect that Lu had such a sharp vision and immediately fell in love with this good place.

Champa does not seem to be wealthy at present, but after Zhu Ying's Maritime Silk Road is opened, it will be considered a place that will take off in the wind.

Besides, Champa itself has many high-quality specialties.

Precious goods such as ebony, galangal incense, Guanyin bamboo, and agarwood are all top-quality specialties from Champa.

For example, there is an old saying about ebony: A half-cubic-meter block of ebony at home is better than a box of treasure.

Galan incense is one of the finest grades of agarwood. Since ancient times, there is a saying that a piece of Champa agarwood is worth ten thousand pieces of gold.

Agarwood, also known as wisteria incense, takes decades to produce fragrance, and is worth its weight in gold.

Originally, Zhu Ying of Champa planned to arrange Zhu Yunhun to go, but unfortunately Zhu Yunhun did not have good military talent, or it could be said that he was not interested in it at all.

Giving it to him would make things more likely to go wrong.

We cannot attack Champa directly. If we do so without any justification, it will destroy the reputation of the Celestial Empire.

The past of the Lu family is very suitable.

Now, Mrs. Lu behaves very well in the palace, but through some details, Zhu Ying has already noticed this "stepmother".

After the death of her biological mother, she was able to gain the favor and love of Crown Prince Zhu Biao, and also the approval of the old man to become his stepwife. This is not something that ordinary people can do.

Because her family background is not prominent.

The idea that the emperors of the Ming Dynasty married ordinary women to prevent the harem from interfering in politics started in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Now that the old man is still alive, he basically arranges for women to be well-matched and from prominent families.

Every prince, grandson, and even princess and granddaughter-in-law of the emperor started out as a well-known and wealthy noble family.

The most important thing is that Lu has a good understanding of the overall situation and knows how to make choices.

After becoming the Crown Princess, she withdrew from the government and focused on taking care of her husband and children. Even after Zhu Yunwen succeeded to the throne, she never expressed her intention to interfere in politics.

Of course, she was not omnipotent, at least she definitely did not understand military affairs, otherwise it would have been impossible for her to allow Prince Yan to seize the throne in the later period.

In Zhu Ying's opinion, such a Lu family is the best candidate to go to Champa.

Zhu Ying didn't think that the king and ministers of Champa could defeat Lu.

After listening to his elder brother's arrangement, Zhu Yunwen had no other thoughts and said honestly, "Okay, I will listen to you, elder brother."

After Zhu Yunwen's affairs were arranged, Zhu Ying began to plan the factory.

For the current Ming Dynasty, factories are something that must be developed immediately.

Because after this year, there will gradually be enough food for the people to eat, and at least there will be no large-scale starvation.

This is how the sweet potato boom was described.

And when there is a possibility that labor force will be idle, it must not be wasted.

Promoting the industrial base is the best way.

Developing a country through industry is not a joke, but something that can actually be done.

Especially things like paper mills, printing houses, and cement plants are currently the most lacking.

There is no way that the Chamber of Commerce can prosper just by relying on its own strength.

State-owned enterprises are only a basic guarantee. Sometimes they would rather incur losses, but their priority is social benefits rather than economic benefits.

Letting a hundred flowers bloom is a virtuous cycle.

Opening a hotel and running it privately is the inevitable path to take.

Now the time is ripe. After notifying the old man, Zhu Ying published the news of opening up to private enterprises directly in the Beijing Gazette.

Suddenly, the situation in the capital city, which had not yet calmed down, began to rise again.

In recent times, for the common people in the capital, it feels like the world changes every few days.

Some people come back from being away for less than a month and find that they can no longer keep up with the pace of the times.

It was like a sudden concentrated explosion, and new things emerged rapidly.

This is the result that Zhu Ying has accumulated in just half a year.

This time, the hotels were opened privately, and the common people were watching the fun, but the ones who were really interested were the traveling merchants.

The slogan of developing the country through industry has been put up, and it seems that businessmen who set up factories to run businesses have an extra layer of honor and are no longer so low in social status.

Many businessmen smelled strong business opportunities and began to explore them.

A large number of businessmen suddenly appeared in the streets, restaurants and teahouses, all talking about this matter.

It really seemed like they appeared suddenly. People who were interested discovered that there were so many merchants doing business in the capital.

"Brother Zhang, have you read the latest court newspaper?"

"I read it every day. Whenever there is the latest one, I will send my servants to buy it. It's only a few cents, not even enough to buy a cup of tea. I can always see the new developments of our Ming Dynasty, so I won't miss anything."

"In the latest issue of the court newspaper, there is an idea about developing the country through industry. Don't you think it's tempting, Brother Zhang? In my humble opinion, this must be a new direction, not to mention the support from the court."

"Hey, Brother Li, you don't know that I had this idea as early as when the official newspaper came out. At that time, I just wanted to set up a factory, but now that the money was in place, I didn't know what to do."

"Brother Zhang, to be honest, my mother's family has some connections in the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce. It is said that this cement formula is intended to be distributed to the public, and no money will be charged, only 20% of the shares."

"If such a good thing really happens, if I can open a cement factory, I will make a fortune, and I can also get on the big ship of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce. Brother Li, don't lie to me about such a good thing. Why are you looking for me? It doesn't matter who you look for."

"Brother Zhang, to be honest, I originally thought of several candidates, but after much deliberation, I still think Brother Zhang is the most reliable. For a cooperation like this, we must find someone with such high moral character as Brother Zhang to make it last long."

"Oh, Brother Li, why do you think I have a noble character?"

"Brother Zhang, please don't hide it from me. Brother Li helped a lot when His Royal Highness the Crown Prince built the school. The place in the south of the city originally belonged to Brother Zhang, and then the school was built. I know that Brother Zhang didn't take a penny."

"Don't mention this matter. If this is the case, I am relieved. I hope we can also start a good business. For the country and the people."

"Okay, then it's for the country and the people."

The way businessmen in today's world are somewhat different from those in later generations, and there is no such thing as contracts.

They all manage their own reputations, and mentioning the contract to them would be considered as looking down on them.

When looking for partners to cooperate with, I prefer to work with people with high moral character, at least I don’t have to worry about being stabbed in the back.

Cement must be opened.

But for now, giving it for free is definitely not an option. Following Zhu Ying's instructions, the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce announced that if they wanted the cement formula, they would have to offer 20% of the shares.

There are certain restrictions on the number of places. At present, it is open to regions across the country. While donating two levels of shares, there is also a local protection strategy.

For example, in a certain county town, only one cement factory is allowed to appear in ten years.

It sounds like it is restricting the development of cement plants, but it is not.

This has mobilized everyone's enthusiasm to set up cement plants on a larger scale, and it has also made many people who set up factories feel at ease without having to worry about vicious competition.

The ten-year protection period will also allow many factory owners to taste the initial benefits.

Then choosing a location is a crucial factor.

Zhu Ying did not hide it, and everyone could see that the benefits of cement were not just limited to building roads.

Including building houses, it is also very useful.

After the construction of Zhengyang Avenue was completed, small high-rise buildings on both sides also began to be built.

It was initially planned to be only three stories high, after all, the total height must not exceed Chengtian Gate.

Even the height of these three floors is considered a very remarkable thing in the eyes of people today.

The neatly arranged houses are painted white on the outside and have mahogany pillars and some decorative window panes.

After the roof was repaired, it matched the eaves and did not look out of place.

Now that the shops are not open yet, a large number of merchants have already begun to inquire about the prices.

At present, the houses on both sides of Zhengyang Avenue are only rented and not sold.

In addition to cement plants, paper mills and printing plants are also important.

Because it involves costs, especially the cost of ink, whether it is a paper mill or a printing plant.

Zhu Ying's main purpose is to provide support. Not only does he not charge any fees, but all the knowledge, including the production methods of ink, is provided free of charge.

The reason for doing so is not only related to the official gazette, but also involves the key to popularizing education.

Paper is the carrier of words.

If you want the education industry to flourish, the production of paper is essential.

The purpose of support is to allow this industry to flourish thoroughly and form healthy competition and large-scale competition.

Only when more people open paper mills and printing factories will prices fall sharply.

So naturally the more we do, the better. Even if someone has the intention but doesn't know how to do it, the Qunying Chamber of Commerce can provide experienced personnel to help.

Of course, the travel expenses, food and drink expenses of the aid workers are all borne by the merchants.

When these things began to be publicized in the official newspaper, the Ping'an Teahouse of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce was no longer sufficient.

There was no other choice but to quickly and temporarily renovate more than 20 shops near Zhengyang Square.

Used as a reception.

At the same time, a large number of people were recruited to receive simple training, including some introductions on various aspects, which were all printed into books.

Even so, there is a constant stream of people asking questions from morning till night every day.

In order to better develop papermaking and printing.

Some small workshop costs were also announced in the documents.

This is to increase the intensity of competition, and also to allow many ordinary people who have some spare money to participate.

At the same time, Zhu Ying immediately summoned officials from the six ministries, especially the Ministry of Revenue, to begin formulating a minimum employment protection system.

This system is definitely not going to be very good.

Things like vacations were not guaranteed, and from the perspective of later generations, it was a complete exploitation of labor, and it seemed that the businessmen were helping the exploitation.

In fact, under the current social conditions, it is already very good if a worker, especially a long-term worker, can earn enough money to support his family members stably.

It can be said that this is an absolutely conscientious merchant.

The high wage system is totally incompatible with the current national conditions of the Ming Dynasty.

Even with these basic guarantees, many businessmen felt that the court was still a bit harsh.

Because the most crucial point is that all workers cannot have a labor contract.

In other words, once you enter the place, your indenture will be invalidated. Not only will you not be protected by the government, but you will also be investigated.

Zhu Ying had already predicted that many unscrupulous businessmen would purchase slaves in large quantities at low prices and use them as workers.

But there is also a loophole.

Those who are protected by the government are only those who have Ming Dynasty household registration.

In other words, if you do not have a household registration in the Ming Dynasty, you will not be protected.