Ye Yueqing's pregnancy can be said to have set the entire palace into motion under Zhu Yuanzhang's decree.

Zhu Yuanzhang, in particular, looked radiant, as if he had ushered in his second spring.

This is the child of his eldest grandson, and also his great-grandson.

Thinking that his great-grandson would be born in October, Zhu Yuanzhang became extremely energetic no matter what he did.

As for the other people in the palace, there is no need to say more.

Concubine Ning has moved directly to Kunning Palace and is taken care of day and night.

In the back hall of Kunning Palace, there are imperial doctors who are proficient in medicine and take turns on duty.

Including the midwife, everyone is already waiting in Kunning Palace.

There were hundreds of other palace maids and eunuchs, who were ready to obey orders at any time within the twelve hours.

Kunning Palace also became lively because of this.

"I'm going to be an uncle too."

Zhu Yunhuan, who lived in Kunning Palace with him, said to his sister with a smile.

The two children were naturally very happy that their eldest sister-in-law was pregnant.

Zhu Mingyue also raised her head and said, "You are the uncle, and I am the aunt. I just don't know whether my sister-in-law is pregnant with a boy or a girl."

Hearing this, Zhu Yunhuan was startled and said quickly: "Sister, don't mention this matter again in the future."

"If word gets to Grandpa Emperor, I'm not sure what kind of reprimand I'll get."

Obviously, Zhu Yunhu knew much more about this aspect than his sister. After all, although it was about studying, there was still a big difference in the direction of training the emperor's grandson and granddaughter.

Zhu Mingyue also quickly realized that this was a taboo in the palace, especially from her eldest brother's side.

So he kept silent about it.

"How about, let's go visit my sister-in-law." Zhu Mingyue looked towards the main hall, where there were guards guarding it. Obviously, ordinary people could not enter without permission.

Of course, this definitely does not include the two children.

Of course Zhu Yunhuan also wanted to go, so he naturally agreed.

Inside the house, Ye Yueqing felt very uncomfortable, but had no choice but to accept it.

Although Concubine Ning's company and care were always there for Ye Yueqing, it also made her feel a little restrained.

Upon hearing the news that the two children were coming, Ye Yueqing's face relaxed a lot.

When Concubine Ning saw this, she knew that she couldn't deal with it all at once, so she smiled, found an excuse, and walked out.

Let the two kids keep the Crown Princess company to entertain her.

…

At the post station, all this talk of galloping horses is nonsense.

Zhu Ying led three thousand imperial cavalrymen, but there was no room for them to maneuver in the post station which was only three meters wide.

Zhu Ying had naturally experienced this principle before, so he used cement to build a wide road.

The concrete ground from north to south was just Zhu Ying’s first step.

With the privatization of cement factories, the entire Ming Dynasty was destined to officially usher in the era of "big construction" across the country.

The purpose of Zhu Ying's inspection was actually very different from Zhu Yuanzhang's idea.

In Zhu Yuanzhang's opinion, sending his eldest grandson to inspect the country was naturally a means of promoting the royal majesty.

But for Zhu Ying, there are more things he wants to do.

But of course there is no such thing as disguise.

In Zhu Ying's opinion, the incognito visit did not have much significance.

In today's world, it seems that the country is peaceful, but in fact, the evil forces are entrenched in the countryside.

This is especially true for clans.

Therefore, Zhu Ying’s first stop was not any big city, nor a trip directly to the south of the Yangtze River. Instead, he wanted to visit those small county towns that few people paid attention to.

Dantu County.

This is a small county town under the jurisdiction of Zhenjiang Prefecture in Nanzhili. It is not far from the capital, less than two hundred miles away.

Zhu Ying arrived in less than two days.

Compared with its neighboring Danyang County, Jintan County and Dantu County, it does not seem to be that prosperous because of its relatively backward location.

Zhu Ying chose this place as a breakthrough point.

There is a proverb popular among the people: If you die unjustly, you will not see the officials; if you die unjustly, you will not file a complaint.

The prefect who wiped out the entire family, the county magistrate who ruined the family.

It is obvious that Zhu Ying’s current purpose is very simple, which is to come for the people at the bottom of society.

At the same time, he needed to have a deeper understanding of how powerful local officials were in this day and age.

Dantu County is close to Nanjing and is right next to the royal family. It serves as a good reference for Zhu Ying's subsequent ideas.

Starting from his career in the Western Regions and now being the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, strictly speaking, Zhu Ying has never really lived among the people of the Ming Dynasty.

As time went by, the laws of the Ming Dynasty were revised and gradually improved, especially in terms of the composition of power of local officials, or in other words, to avoid the situation where one official dominated the power.

You must have enough understanding to complete it.

It is said that without investigation, there is no sufficient right to speak.

Whether the formulation of certain laws can really safeguard the rights of the people can only be understood after personal investigation.

Otherwise, it would be extremely embarrassing if a situation like "Why not eat meat porridge" occurs.

It is difficult to say whether some things from the previous life can be applied to the current social environment of the Ming Dynasty.

The advanced ideas of the times may bring not only their own rights and interests to the people of the Ming Dynasty today, but more likely disasters.

Zhu Ying actually also thought about whether it was worth it for the people of the Ming Dynasty to do so.

In other words, maintaining superficial stability is enough.

Because with the beginning of large-scale industrial development, in Zhu Ying's mind, in no more than three to five years, as cement roads were continuously built and completed, the Ming Dynasty would usher in a rapid development.

Under this kind of development, should we pay special attention to whether today's people can adapt to it?

Before, this problem had troubled Zhu Ying for a long time.

After all, he is looking at this issue from the most prominent position.

Until one day, when he was leaving the palace, he went to the school he had run in the capital.

The children there, who used to be beggars, can now sit in the school and listen to the teacher’s lectures.

It was at this time that Zhu Ying realized it.

No matter which dynasty, the people are the real cornerstone of the country.

The height of a country depends on the state of its people.

If the roots are rotten, how can the tree continue to thrive?

I am afraid that by that time, what will emerge is a further solidification of classes, and the people will see no way out.

After thinking it through, I came up with the purpose of this inspection.

In front of Dantu County, it was naturally impossible for Zhu Ying to bring so many people into the city.

And here, the caravan of the Heroes Chamber of Commerce had already been waiting.

When Zhang Bo saw the Ti riders coming, he quickly got off his car to greet them.

Seeing Zhu Ying dismounting and walking towards him, he hesitated for a moment before bowing and saying, "Master."

"Uncle Zhang, long time no see."

Seeing Uncle Zhang, Zhu Ying also had a lot of sighs in his heart.

Since entering the palace, Zhu Ying seldom left the palace, and even when he did, he was always busy with other matters.

And Zhang Bo also has a lot of things to deal with.

Uncle Zhang, who had always been by his side, seemed to have suddenly disappeared, although he could always find out news about him.

The word "boss" brought Zhu Ying's memory back to the past year, when he traveled all over the country.

Perhaps what I have experienced in five years has far exceeded what an ordinary person experiences in a lifetime.

"Uncle Zhang, it looks like we'll be together for quite some time during this inspection."

Zhu Ying said with a smile.

In fact, as far as the capital is concerned, Zhang Bo still has a lot of things to do, but both Zhu Ying and Zhang Bo himself prefer to work together.

"Don't worry, Boss. Things in the capital have stabilized for now. Even if I'm not here, there won't be any major chaos."

Zhang Bo said considerately.

Zhu Ying asked with a smile: "Where is that rascal Zhang San? Why didn't he come with us this time?"

When Uncle Zhang heard this, he smiled and called out to the people behind him.

Among the more than ten people in the caravan, Zhang San came out wearing a bamboo hat.

"Boss."

It wasn't just Zhang San, but the dozen or so familiar faces that made Zhu Ying laugh.

"Let's go into the city."

"Yes, Boss."

…

Although Dantu County was not wealthy, it was not a lower-class county either. Instead, it was an upper-class county with 109 village governors.

The so-called Libao is the Libao system set up by Zhu Yuanzhang.

To put it simply, in every village, there are people appointed by the government as officials. Although they do not hold any official position, they have power equivalent to that of a village chief.

Of course, it was impossible for Zhu Ying to spend several months traveling to all the 109 villages.

So going to the county town is the best way.

Places like Dantu County naturally have a base of the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce, so Zhu Ying's investigations seem much easier.

He would not be like some inspecting censors or emperors who were on incognito visits, running around like a headless fly.

After entering the county town, the first thing Zhu Ying did was to ask the Chamber of Commerce here to report all the situations in Dantu County.

Apparently, the Dantu County Chamber of Commerce had never expected Zhu Ying to come in person. They just heard that a big shot from the Chamber of Commerce from the capital had come.

"Uncle Zhang, take a look at these documents. They show that the county is well governed and the people live and work in peace and contentment. It's really ridiculous."

"Could it be that those pale and skinny people I saw on the streets were just my illusion?"

After reading the document, Zhu Ying was so angry that he laughed.

Zhang Bo took the document but did not read it carefully. Instead, he said, "Boss, calm down. The shopkeepers of these chambers of commerce are not as good as our own people. We have no choice but to recruit them from outside."

"I'm afraid their minds are still more focused on following the county magistrate. Who knows, the county magistrate may already know that we are investigating him."

Zhu Ying nodded.

He agreed with what Zhang Bo said.

Because some of the things in the documents are too official.

This kind of official beauty is usually submitted to the imperial court.

In fact, in a county town, it is unlikely that there would be any dirty things happening.

Even in the capital a few months ago, it would have been impossible to reach such a situation.

Then there is only one possibility, the Chamber of Commerce here is no longer under the control of the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce.

…

How much power does a local magistrate have?

Liu Bingyuan can tell you clearly that he is the king of Dantu County.

What Zhu Yuanzhang paid most attention to was the punishment of corrupt officials. Under Zhu Yuanzhang, no matter whether they were court ministers or local ninth-rank officials, they were all executed without exception.

However, even in such a serious environment, there are still people committing crimes everywhere, as if they can’t stop killing.

It can be said that one wave has not yet subsided when another wave comes.

Counties with tax grain of more than 60,000 dan and less than 100,000 dan are upper counties, and are of the seventh rank.

Liu Bingyuan only had the title of a scholar and had never even taken part in the palace examination. The reason why he was able to obtain a seventh-rank official position and serve as a county magistrate was only because his surname was Liu and he was recommended.

Recommendation is the easiest and the most difficult.

As long as you have connections, it will be easy. The difficulty lies in mastering the technique of reincarnation.

Obviously Liu Bingyuan's reincarnation technique is quite good.

And his family, the Liu family.

That is, he lives in Liujia Village near Dantu County.

People should never forget their roots. Now that Liu Bingyuan is taking care of Liujiaxiang, his influence has naturally permeated into every aspect of Dantu County.

Including the person in charge of the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce’s base here, his surname is also Liu.

Liu Bingyuan was a smart man, otherwise, with so many people in the Liu family, he would not have been recommended to be the county magistrate.

On the surface, many things are done very respectably, and it is difficult to find anything during inspections.

In a world where relatives are expected to protect one's relatives, how could Liu Bingyuan bend the law for the Liu family and remain unnoticed?

There is a word among the people, called "Yu Si".

It refers to prisoners who died in prison due to torture, hunger, cold or disease.

Liu Bingyuan quickly realized the operating space inside.

When the Liu family had a conflict with others, they filed a lawsuit and the two sides testified against each other in the lobby.

Liu Bingyuan just found a random excuse and locked both the plaintiff and the defendant in the cell.

It was naturally impossible for Liu's family to actually move in, but his opponents, whether plaintiffs or defendants, were treated completely differently.

It is really too easy to kill him.

All you need to do is deprive him of food and drink, not allow anyone to visit him, and then say hello to the cell boss or something.

Three shifts of yamen runners took turns to "serve" him, and within a few days, he would be killed.

Since the plaintiff or the defendant is already dead, there is naturally no need to continue this lawsuit.

In this case, even case records are not needed.

Over time, no common people would dare to go against the Liu family.

In the magistrate's office, Liu Bingyuan, who had received the news, sneered and said, "He is just a businessman. What can he do even if he is from the Qunying Chamber of Commerce?"

"I am an official appointed by the court, and the Chamber of Commerce has no power of supervision, so how can they do anything to me?"

"But the Heroes Chamber of Commerce is somewhat special. Maybe they have other ways. Tell the clan leader to be careful these days and don't cause any trouble."

"If someone reports this to the capital, it will be extremely troublesome to deal with."