Three urgent reports were sent from Tianjin to Beiping, bringing good news.
The Iwami Silver Mine has finally produced silver. Although the mine had been found and the ore had been mined, there had been almost no smelting. But this time was different. Although less than 10,000 taels of silver had been smelted, the first batch of silver had already been stored.
This made Zhu Xiong Ying very satisfied and proud, based on reports from Mao Xiang of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Commander Si Changsen, and General Feng Sheng. Although it was possible that the three were in cahoots, such a possibility was not very high.
Zhu Xiong Ying laughed heartily, calculating with considerable pride, "This letter was sent out a month ago. According to them, they can mine 30,000 taels this month, which can raise 50,000 taels of silver to send back."
This won't do; 50,000 taels of silver is really nothing. Although this is just the beginning of mining, and the silver output will increase in the future, Zhu Xiong Ying felt that this was far from enough. They needed more miners and more troops.
Zhu Xiong Ying also believed that Yingtian Prefecture would definitely receive the information in a few days.
"What's wrong with me? All I do every day is write imperial edicts." Zhu Xiong Ying shook his head and said with emotion, "It's time for my uncles to step up their game. I need to find ways for you to make money, and you don't need so much military power anymore."
This refers to princes like Zhu Shuang, the Prince of Qin, and Zhu Gang, the Prince of Jin. They didn't need to hold too much military power. Since they wanted to make money, they should use some of their troops to share the burden in Goryeo and Japan.
Zhu Xiong Ying, who was writing the imperial edict, was quite pleased with himself. "People die for wealth, birds die for food. Now that we know that the silver production over there is huge, my uncles will definitely be eager to send troops to garrison it so they can get a share. Apart from a very few pedantic scholars who will grumble, the rest of the court will urge us to send more troops to garrison it!"
Profitability is the most important thing, and this will become an important source of revenue for the Ming Dynasty.
The banks could consider gradually conserving the dwindling copper resources. A silver standard—Zhu Xiong Ying felt this was something worth considering, even though he knew that without sufficient production capacity, silver was just a metal. But that didn't stop him from hoping for more silver to be stored in the national treasury.
Xu Miaoqing walked gracefully into the study and said, "Your Highness, it's time for dinner."
Zhu Xiong Ying raised his head and said to Xu Miao Qing, "That's too formal. We're already married. Qing'er, you should change how you address me."
Xu Miaoqing blushed slightly and whispered, "Husband."
It's not that Xu Miaoqing is overly cautious; the main reason is that in her upbringing, a woman's duty is to obey her husband after marriage. Moreover, as the Crown Prince's consort, referring to herself as "your humble servant" is not a form of humility. She is not only a wife, but also a subject…
Moreover, seeing the imperial edicts Zhu Xiong Ying had placed on his desk filled Xu Miao Qing with dread. The more she learned about Zhu Xiong Ying, the more convinced she became that he would surely ascend to the throne. She had previously thought it was all an exaggeration to hear of the Crown Prince's favor or the rumors circulating that the Ming Dynasty had three suns.
However, after marrying into the royal family, Xu Miaoqing felt that those statements were still too conservative. There were truly three people in the Ming Dynasty who could draft imperial edicts. The Ming Dynasty had three masters—this was not a joke, it was a fact!
Wang Chengen naturally knew what to do. He knew exactly where to send these imperial edicts and who should deliver them. Moreover, he needed to find Song Zhong immediately. Once these edicts were sent out, they would definitely need to be registered in Yingtian Prefecture so that His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Crown Prince would know. He couldn't afford any mistakes.
While eating, Zhu Xiong Ying casually asked, "Qing'er, are you getting used to things here?"
Xu Miaoqing put down her chopsticks and immediately replied, "It's alright, although it's somewhat different from the Jiangnan region, Your Majesty..."
“There aren’t so many rules. Our Zhu family is just an ordinary family. I haven’t forgotten our roots, and you shouldn’t either,” Zhu Xiong Ying said to Xu Miao Qing with a smile. “There are no such rules in front of me, and you don’t need to be like this in front of Grandfather Huang.”
Xu Miaoqing smiled wryly. Zhu Xiong Ying could disregard the rules because the Emperor and the Crown Prince allowed it. Especially His Majesty the Emperor, as the Crown Prince's grandson, Zhu Xiong Ying could be completely unrestrained by the rules. But others couldn't be treated the same way. In front of others, Old Zhu was very strict about the rules, not even for the Crown Prince's wife.
Zhu Xiong Ying seemed oblivious, saying, "When my grandmother was alive, we would talk while we ate, just like ordinary people. There was no need to care about things like not talking while eating or sleeping. My grandfather didn't like those things either."
Xu Miaoqing remained even more silent; accompanying Lao Zhu for meals put immense pressure on her. But Zhu Xiong Ying seemed oblivious, chatting and laughing with Lao Zhu naturally, without any regard for etiquette.
Xu Miaoqing was also quite happy and secretly pleased. The Crown Prince treated her very well and was approachable, which was the best thing ever. It seemed that some of the things she had worried about before marrying into the royal family would not happen.
"My lord, yesterday Xi'er sent someone to tell you that Sister Yu'er's eldest son is about to have his birthday." Xu Miaoqing glanced at Zhu Xiong Ying and mustered her courage to say in a low voice, "I have presumptuously sent over the jade pendant that you usually wear."
Zhu Xiong Ying laughed heartily and said to Xu Miao Qing, "Remember these days from now on, I can't remember these things. Don't send any more jade pendants to Sister Yu'er, she knows that although I wear jade, I don't really like or care about it."
Xu Miaoqing grew bolder and offered some rebuttals, "Husband, what you said is a bit wrong. Sister Yu'er naturally knows your temperament. But the jade pendant was a gift for others to see. What you like is your private property, and what Sister Yu'er likes is naturally good. It's just that others don't know about it, which makes Sister Yu'er look less respectable."
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