That's exactly the case. Winning back the hearts of the people is definitely not a simple matter; it's not something that can be done just by talking about it.
Zhu Yunying continued, "Furthermore, although they have admired China since the Han and Tang dynasties, they are still a foreign race. Even if they seem to have a continuous Confucian tradition, they are not of the same origin as us. Fourth Uncle and Sixth Uncle are busy conquering cities and establishing their foundations. Gao Chi and Meng Wan are also busy governing the people."
To be honest, the challenges ahead for both the Yan King's lineage and the Chu King's lineage are undoubtedly extremely difficult.
In the first ten or twenty years after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, many subjects and even officials still longed for their 'homeland'. Even in the present-day north, many Han people still do not have much of a sense of identity with the Han people.
The Yuan Dynasty ruled over the land of China for nearly a century, and the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun had been outside Han Chinese control for hundreds of years. Therefore, this was not a matter of one or two generations; cultural genes, lifestyles, and self-perceptions had long been subtly influenced and were very difficult to change.
This is why both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu De explicitly forbade the wearing of Mongol Yuan clothing under the Ming Dynasty's rule, and why they separated many Mongol tribes. Without such seemingly forceful measures, it would be difficult to change the minds of some people, and their opinions might continue to subtly influence their children and those around them.
It might take two or three generations for the lineage of the King of Yan and the King of Chu to win over the hearts of the people and establish a relatively stable rule.
However, after two or three generations, they might become estranged from the Ming Dynasty. By then, the descendants of Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Mengwan would have basically grown up in Japan, and the Ming Dynasty would merely be their suzerain state.
Sometimes, they might even recall their past as members of the Ming imperial family. But perhaps at that time, they were only thinking about the oppression of the Ming Dynasty, or wanting to grow stronger and be less oppressed or exploited by the Ming.
Zhu Yunying looked at Old Zhu and said, "No one can predict what will happen a hundred years from now. We can only say that our children and grandchildren have their own blessings. If they are successful, we will naturally be happy. If they are unworthy, we won't know then, and neither will our grandfather. By then, we will all be lying on Purple Mountain."
Old Zhu thought about it and realized that this made sense. Although he once really liked to establish ancestral rules so that his children and grandchildren could be good emperors by simply following them, after all these years, he also knew that his "plans for ten thousand generations" were simply not effective.
Putting aside other matters, the Ming Dynasty had only been established for thirty years, yet so much had changed. Some of the "strategies for ten thousand generations" of the past now seemed like jokes. If things had really gone that way, the silver mines in Japan certainly wouldn't have been under Ming control, and much of the spices and jewels from Southeast Asia wouldn't have been able to come in.
Even though he sometimes felt resentful, Old Zhu could only accept that those things had happened. He might even secretly rejoice, as his grand plan for the future seemed to have been of little use. However, it was more important that his children and grandchildren were successful and governed the country well.
Zhu Yunying said with a smile, "I have read a lot of history books. Almost every dynasty has had border troubles. To be honest, our Han people's land has been destroyed by the surrounding foreign tribes quite a few times. Although I have made the imperial family establish a country outside the Ming Dynasty, who knows, one day these small vassal states might destroy our Ming Dynasty's legitimate lineage."
Old Zhu was displeased and said, "What nonsense are you spouting! Our Great Ming Dynasty will last for ten thousand years!"
Zhu Yunying smiled and continued, "We're thinking about some things. In the end, it's all our Zhu family's bloodline, and we shouldn't let others benefit from it. Also, with these vassal states protecting us, it will be difficult for other foreign tribes to rise up."
Zhu Yunying said with a smile, "Let's not talk about anything else. Japan and Korea are both deeply rooted in Confucian culture. Even though Korea still uses Chinese characters, it's a bit easier to govern. Ryukyu is actually the same as Korea. Although it's just an island nation and not exactly rich and powerful, it can still be divided up."
Old Zhu remained silent. In truth, he barely considered Japan acceptable, and he didn't think Korea was too bad either. But he genuinely looked down on Ryukyu.
Zhu Yunying continued, "Annam, which borders our Ming Dynasty to the south, is actually quite similar. There's a lot of Han Chinese culture there. If we're really talking about it, our next target might just be Annam."
Historically, the Annam Kingdom was once destroyed by Zhu Di. Then, the great-grandson of the Ming Dynasty felt that governing Annam was too costly and not in the interests of the Ming Dynasty, so he abandoned it, causing the Ming Dynasty to lose the opportunity to further rule the Indochina Peninsula.
Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunying with satisfaction and said, "Don't forget that in the northwest, Lan Yu is eagerly waiting for you to use your troops."
It was only right to manage the Western Regions, since the Yuan Dynasty still controlled parts of those areas. Although the Mongol tribes appeared to have been driven out, they couldn't be said to have been completely wiped out. At most, places like Liaodong and the Mongolian Plateau were temporarily safe, but the situation was different in the Northwest.
The Oirat Mongols are someone we'll have to deal with sooner or later. It's not that we're worried about some powerful figure emerging, but rather that we can't let them grow too strong.
"This grandson is shrewd. He treats the Southeast Asian regions just like his fourth and sixth uncles," Zhu Yunying said with a smile. "Give them some family property and let the imperial clan fight for it themselves. I think Grandfather knows that many members of the imperial clan are envious of the fourth and sixth uncles' plans to establish a new dynasty. While we are fighting against Goryeo, many of my uncles openly and secretly want to go over there."
Old Zhu immediately retorted irritably, "If you ask me, of all your imperial uncles, only the first six are somewhat capable. When we were fighting Goryeo, none of them dared to volunteer or contribute their family wealth. Now that we've almost conquered it, they're all thinking about founding a new kingdom, only interested in getting something for themselves!"
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