The train wind of the Ming Dynasty has already started blowing.

Under the influence of imperial power, it almost entered into rapid construction.

There was no complicated process. Once Zhu Ying issued an order, all affairs of the government in all places had to be handled around this matter.

Anyone who dares to delay or affect the progress of the project along the planned route would be considered disobeying the imperial order and would be subject to death at the very least, or even execution of the entire family.

In today's era, imperial power is so overbearing.

Not to mention that during the Hongwu period, official power was completely suppressed by imperial power.

Zhu Ying is a hands-off boss who controls the general direction and leaves the rest to his subordinates. As long as there are no directional mistakes, some minor problems will not cause too much impact.

Whether it is a steam locomotive or a steam ironclad ship, a large amount of coal is needed to keep it running.

Therefore, the mining of coal has become the most important thing for the Ming Dynasty.

The demand for iron ore is also not small.

In today's maritime trade, the purchase price of iron ore and coal is constantly soaring.

This is a market change and Zhu Ying has no way to change it.

After all, there is little iron ore in the Ming Dynasty.

At this time, Zhu Ying turned his attention to Japan.

Due to its special geographical location and backward mining technology, Japan has large deposits of many types of minerals.

Even the Kyushu Island region controlled by the four feudal lords has made them lucrative.

However, since it involves the vassal kings, Zhu Ying naturally has to discuss it with the old man.

It would be better if the old man showed up.

After hearing what his eldest grandson said, Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly and said, "The Ming Dynasty is seriously short of iron now. These bastards even took the ore they dug out from the sea and sold it to us at a high price."

"Is this what a vassal king of the Ming Dynasty should do? He is even trying to dig into his own family's walls."

"We will send Jinyiwei to supervise them and let them know what they can and cannot do."

"If they think that they have become local emperors after going overseas and have lost the Ming Dynasty in their hearts, then why do we need them to guard the country? Are they here to specifically oppose us?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was very angry with you.

These are all his own sons. When they are in front of him, they are all very obedient and well-behaved.

Now when I run out, I don’t even know my own last name.

It would have been fine if they were assigned craftsmen to mine minerals and evade taxes, but they secretly transported the mined minerals out to sea and then sold them to the court as maritime merchants to make a huge profit from the difference, which made Zhu Yuanzhang particularly unhappy.

In Lao Zhu's opinion, these rebellious sons were just stealing his family's money.

Why are you so keen on money and food? Rebellion!

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang asked his eldest grandson, "Last time we looked at the intelligence from Japan, these rebellious sons have accumulated a lot of private soldiers there? In total, there are more than 100,000 people?"

Zhu Ying didn't expect the old man to be so angry.

It sounds like the intention is to strip the power of the four overseas princes.

So he helped to say, "It should be that Japan has put a lot of pressure on us. I heard that some time ago, the Japanese general Ashikaga Yoshimitsu seemed to have planned to ambush Fourth Uncle, but the conspiracy was cracked by Third Uncle."

"Relying solely on personal soldiers will not be able to suppress Japan, and it will also be detrimental to the layout of our Ming Dynasty in Japan."

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly: "How powerful can a small country like Japan be? If it weren't for finding a place for these rebellious sons to settle down, how could they have the chance to become vassal kings?"

"Now everyone feels that they have grown stronger. If they were not still thinking of playing tricks like nurturing the enemy to protect themselves."

"If it weren't for you, my great grandson, who spoiled them, we would have taken back all their fiefdoms and made them stay in the capital."

Zhu Ying wanted to laugh.

The old man has already found a way out for himself.

The mouth is not ordinary hard.

No matter what, they are all his sons after all, and Lao Zhu still hopes that they can all develop well.

"After Grandfather's decree was passed on, the uncles naturally knew what to do."

"I looked at the intelligence sent back last time, and it is still very beneficial to our Ming Dynasty. It is said that the descendants of the former Southern Song army were found there."

Zhu Yuanzhang was a little surprised: "Oh, there is such a thing, it can be verified whether it is true or false."

Zhu Ying said: "It's probably true. These Southern Song troops should be the ones who once followed Kublai Khan. They didn't have a good life in Japan and were reduced to slaves."

"The reason why Third Uncle was able to uncover Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's conspiracy was because of the descendants of the Southern Song Dynasty."

Zhu Yuanzhang thought for a moment and said, "Since they are descendants of the Southern Song Dynasty, they are also people of the Central Plains. They have suffered a hundred years over there, so they should be treated well."

When Zhu Yuanzhang captured Wuzhou, which is Jinhua in later generations, he wrote the couplet "The mountains and rivers dominate the Chinese land, and the sun and the moon reopen the Song Dynasty."

The meaning is the same as the anti-Qing and restoration of Ming in later generations.

Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang had some special feelings for these descendants of the Southern Song Dynasty.

Zhu Ying said, "Don't worry, Grandpa. The uncles know that they helped these Southern Song descendants escape slavery. Now they are officials in charge of the Japanese people in various places. It can be said that they have finally gotten their reward after all the hardship."

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "That's more appropriate. When the time comes, send a message to allow them to return to the Ming Dynasty. It can be regarded as a return to their ancestral home."

Zhu Ying replied, "I'll follow Grandpa's instructions."

No matter how arrogant the four feudal lords of Kyushu Island in Japan were, they could not resist an edict from Zhu Yuanzhang.

The meaning of this decree is very clear. If you don't behave yourself and transport the minerals to Ming Dynasty, then you'd better be careful about where you are.

If I really get demoted, there's really nothing I can do but come back to the capital city obediently.

This is the majesty of Zhu Yuanzhang.

If it were Zhu Ying, such an effect would naturally not be possible.

Maybe they will even join forces with Japan to resist the Ming Dynasty.

Being an overseas vassal has its advantages and disadvantages.

This is similar to the vassal states in the Spring and Autumn Period. If the Ming Dynasty cannot maintain suppression, the possibility of backlash is very high.

That’s all for later.

After solving the problem of Japan, Zhu Ying still wants to obtain resources from more places.

There are also many mineral deposits in the island countries of Southeast Asia.

At the same time.

On the coast of Brunei.

An old man stood on the beach, looking at the sea in the distance, with longing in his eyes.

His name is Huang Yuanshou, also known as Huang Senping.

The local natives called him Raja, which means King.

The Ming soldiers who followed him called him the general.

In the eighth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty, he was first appointed garrison commander of Heqing.

Due to Tengchong's important geographical location, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Huang Senping to garrison there with heavy troops and built a stone city, calling it "the first city at the extreme border."

Because Huang Senping was brave and good at fighting and made many outstanding achievements, he was later promoted to the general of Tengchong Guard in Yongchang, Yunnan.

Later, due to the war, Huang Senping led his entire family and thousands of neighbors through southwestern Myanmar to escape the chaos and sail south to Borneo.

They landed at the mouth of a large river in East Kalimantan, and when they were exhausted, they suffered a boat accident and some broke their arms.

The foreign people who migrated here later called this river the China Batangan River, commonly known as the Broken Hand River.

At that time, the area to the north of the Broken Hand River was the weakened Brunei Kingdom, which was controlled by Indonesia to the south and was often required to pay tribute to it. To the east, it was often invaded by the Sulu Sultanate to the south.

The newly enthroned Brunei Sultan Mahmud Shah asked Huang Senping for help.

Mahmosha married his daughter to Huang Senping and gave Huang Senping the title of Manaragana, which means a king with the same status as me.

Mahmosha also let his younger brother Ahmed marry Huang Senping's sister Huang Yuanli, and gave her the title of princess from the Central Plains.

With the help of Huang Senping, the Sulu invasion was contained and the Brunei Kingdom avoided the fate of destruction.

Although he had gained great power in Southeast Asia and his status was equivalent to that of a king, his heart was always with the Ming Dynasty.

With the development of maritime trade, many Ming Dynasty merchants have appeared in Brunei, which makes Huang Senping miss his hometown even more.

Historically, Huang Senping returned to the Ming Dynasty in the sixth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty. However, due to his advanced age, he could not endure the bumpy ride and eventually died of illness on the way. It can be said that he returned to his roots.

"Brother, are you missing home again?"

Not long after, a woman came over. It was Huang Senping's sister Huang Yuanli.

Huang Senping turned around and noticed the large patch of white hair on his sister's head. He sighed, "Twenty years have passed in a flash. I have spent most of my life in Brunei."

"I haven't worshipped my ancestors for a long time. I don't know what the situation is now and whether all the members of the tribe are doing well."

"When you came here, you were only in your twenties, and now you are almost fifty years old."

"Are we going to stay here forever and be buried in a foreign land?"

They are from Quanzhou, Fujian. Twenty-two years have passed since the tenth year of Hongwu.

Huang Yuanli was silent after hearing this.

He is different from his brother. For her, her children and husband are here, and this is her home.

Besides, she was ten years younger than her brother and had left Quanzhou when she was old enough to understand things.

"If you want to go back, maybe you should send an envoy first. I left to seek refuge, and I don't know if the court will blame me."

"If the court punishes me, wouldn't my brother become a criminal?"

"Maybe I can absolve myself of this guilt by asking for an audience with His Majesty as the King of Brunei."

Huang Yuanli spoke up.

According to the laws of the imperial court, they were actually guilty of fleeing for refuge.

Huang Senping heard this and said, "I am already a remnant of my body. Even if the court punishes me, what can I do? I only hope that I can return to my ancestral land and worship my ancestors."

"If I don't go back, wouldn't I become a sinner of the Huang family?"

"Even if I die like this, I won't be able to close my eyes."

Huang Yuanli knew her brother's pain and said, "Follow my sister's suggestion. Send an envoy first."

"Sultan's health has been deteriorating over the past two years, and Brunei cannot do without his brother."

Huang Senping knew that the current situation in Brunei was complicated. He sighed and said, "That's the only way."