Daming: Brother, there is no future for monks, let's rebel

Zhu Biao frowned: "Is there such a thing? Why are the taxes different?"

An official nearby explained, "Your Highness, the soil in Wujia Village is relatively poor and the farmland produces limited yields, so the taxes are calculated based on the actual harvest and are indeed slightly lower than those in the surrounding villages."

Zhu Biao nodded: "This is the court's sympathy for the people. If they have any objections, I will personally answer them."

Then he said to the young man, "Go and inform those villagers that I will personally visit them tomorrow and have a detailed discussion with them."

The young man excitedly agreed: "Yes, Your Highness!"

Zhu Biao sighed and said to his followers: "These problems may seem trivial, but they affect the people's hearts. If they are not resolved quickly, I am afraid they will cause greater conflicts."

The attendant whispered, "Your Highness is kind-hearted. The people will surely be grateful for your kindness."

As night fell, Zhu Biao and his party stayed in the village. The villagers spontaneously prepared a sumptuous dinner for them, and Zhu Biao sat with the people, toasting and chatting happily.

"Your Highness, since you care about the people like this, our Ming Dynasty will definitely get better and better!" an old farmer said sincerely.

Zhu Biao raised a glass of wine and clinked it with him: "The future of the Ming Dynasty depends not only on me, but on each and every one of you. As long as the people are willing to work hard, the court will definitely protect you!"

Zhu Biao and his party had just walked a few miles when they heard the sound of hurried horse hooves in the distance. A cavalryman came over at full speed, dismounted, clasped his fists and saluted: "Your Highness, there are villagers gathering near the intersection ahead. It seems that they are due to a dispute over land, and they are very emotional. There may be a conflict."

Liu Tingsong frowned and said, "Your Highness, I'm afraid there is a reason for this. We need to hurry there as soon as possible."

Zhu Biao nodded and said in a deep voice: "Let's go and take a look." Then he jumped on his horse and rode quickly with everyone.

Soon, they arrived at the intersection and saw a dozen villagers gathered at the edge of a field, arguing passionately.

An elderly farmer pointed at another man and shouted angrily: "What are the people in your village saying? This field is yours? It is clearly wasteland that has been reclaimed by several generations of us!"

Another young villager was not to be outdone: "You just randomly marked out a piece of land and said it was yours. The court has long said that the current land deeds shall be the basis for counting the land. Where are the land deeds? Take them out!"

Zhu Biao dismounted, walked forward and said loudly: "Be quiet!"

Hearing the voice, everyone turned their heads and saw that it was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. They were speechless and knelt down to salute: "Greetings, Your Highness!"

Zhu Biao raised his hand to signal everyone to stand up. He glanced at the fields in front of him and asked, "I heard what you said just now. Since the dispute is about the ownership of the fields, we need to find out clearly. Liu Tingsong!"

Liu Tingsong took a step forward, bowed and said, "Your Highness, I am here."

Zhu Biao pointed to the fields in front of him and said, "Go get the land books of the two villages and check them carefully to find the answer."

Liu Tingsong nodded immediately, turned around and told the accompanying scholar: "Go get the land registers of the two villages and bring them here!"

Everyone waited for a while, and soon the scholar hurried back with the land register. Liu Tingsong opened the register and carefully compared the records. He looked up with a slightly complicated expression: "Your Highness, the land registers of the two villages do not clearly record the ownership of this land, but judging from the distribution of the surrounding fields, it is indeed closer to the West Village."

When the old farmer from East Village heard this, he became anxious: "Your Highness, this land was cultivated by my family with great effort. Even if it is not written in the book, we can't give it away for nothing!"

Zhu Biao frowned and thought for a moment, then walked to the edge of the field and bent down to check the condition of the land. He pointed to several stone tablets on the ridge and asked, "What are these stone tablets?"

An attendant replied: "Your Highness, these stone tablets were erected many years ago, but because no one maintains them, the writing is blurred and difficult to read."

Zhu Biao's eyes lit up slightly, and then he turned to the villagers of the two villages: "In this case, I suggest that we stop arguing for the time being. First, ask experienced craftsmen to repair the stone tablet and see if they can find any clues. If the stone tablet cannot be identified, then the elders of the two villages will negotiate with the officials to decide. Is this a feasible approach?"

The old farmer from East Village and the young villagers from West Village looked at each other. Although they were still a little dissatisfied, they all nodded and agreed: "Your Highness has made such an arrangement, and we have nothing to say."

Zhu Biao nodded and said, "Very good. What I hope to see is that the two villages live in harmony, rather than fighting over a piece of land. Remember, only unity can make everyone's life better."

Everyone knelt down and kowtowed in thanks: "Your Highness is so kind, we are so grateful!"

Just as everyone was about to leave, Zhu Biao's eyes were attracted by a patch of weeds beside the field. He stepped forward and parted the weeds, and found a bluestone tablet half buried in the soil, with words faintly engraved on it.

"Come quickly and clean this stone tablet!" Zhu Biao ordered his followers to come forward.

After cleaning, the writing on the stone tablet was revealed. It was engraved with the four characters "Guantianjie" and marked the specific boundary. This discovery made the villagers of the two villages at the scene speechless and whispered.

After careful identification, Liu Tingsong said, "Your Highness, this field is indeed a government field. It may have been reclaimed privately because it had fallen into disrepair."

Zhu Biao stood up, his eyes dignified: "In this case, this piece of land should belong to the government. The two villages should not fight over it anymore, but I can make the decision to divide the land between the two villages to take turns to cultivate it, and the profits will belong to the people. How do you think?"

The old farmer from Dongcun nodded repeatedly: "Your Highness is wise, this arrangement is the best!"

The young people in Nishimura were also full of gratitude: "Your Highness can help us solve our problems, we are extremely grateful!"

After the land dispute was resolved, Zhu Biao looked at the villagers who were gradually dispersing and breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned to Liu Tingsong, with a hint of relief in his tone: "Tingsong, I see your talent. You handled this matter well today, but you also saw that the disputes among the people are far more complicated than we imagined."

Liu Tingsong bowed his head and said, "Your Highness is right. I will work harder in the future and strive to live up to your trust."

Zhu Biao nodded and said, "Remember, governing a place requires not only wisdom, but also patience and sincerity. Only in this way can the people truly trust us."

Liu Tingsong bowed deeply: "I will remember your highness's teachings!"

Zhu Han stood beside Zhu Biao, looking at the villagers who were gradually dispersing, his brows slightly relaxed. He patted Zhu Biao on the shoulder and said in a low and gentle voice: "Biao'er, although today's matter seems to have been resolved, it reveals a deeper problem."

Zhu Biao turned to look at Zhu Han, asking for advice: "Uncle Emperor, what do you mean?" Zhu Han's eyes were deep, and his tone was meaningful: "The disputes between the people and the conflicts between the gentry and the people all come from one word - 'profit'. You solved the dispute over the ownership of the land today, but what about the future? Similar things will happen again. How to find a balance between the people and the local dignitaries is what you really need to think about."

Zhu Biao pondered for a moment, his tone revealing a bit of helplessness: "Uncle Huang is right, but I always feel that no matter how hard I try, it is always difficult to satisfy everyone."

Zhu Han smiled lightly, with a hint of encouragement in his tone: "Biao'er, governing a country is never about pleasing everyone, but about ensuring the overall stability. Your performance today is enough to make this king happy. As long as you have the people in your heart, you don't have to worry about the details."

Zhu Biao nodded, with a firm look in his eyes: "Thank you for your advice, uncle. I will keep it in mind."

At night, in the palace in the southern suburbs, Zhu Han stood in the courtyard, looking at the bright moonlight in the sky, with a thoughtful expression. At this time, a light footsteps came, and he turned around and saw that it was Zhu Biao.

"Biaoer, why don't you rest so late?" Zhu Han smiled slightly, with a hint of concern in his tone.

Zhu Biao stepped forward, bowed and said, "Uncle, I still have many doubts in my mind, so I came here to ask you for advice."

Zhu Han waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be so polite: "Just say whatever you want to say."

Zhu Biao pondered for a moment, with a bit of confusion in his tone: "Uncle, today I have interacted with the people. Although the conflict has been resolved on the surface, I found that many people are dissatisfied with the court. They are not disrespectful, but they are confused about the future. I want to know, how can we make the people truly convinced of the court?"

Zhu Han looked at Zhu Biao with a hint of approval in his eyes: "Biao'er, you are aware of this, which means you are already thinking about how to become a true crown prince. This is a good thing. As for how to make the people sincerely convinced, the key is not to show favor, but to let them see hope."

Zhu Biao frowned slightly: "Hope?"

Zhu Han nodded, his tone revealing some profound meaning: "That's right. What do the people hope for? To live and work in peace and contentment, for their children and grandchildren to have food to eat and education to attend, and for the future to be better than the present. What you have to do is to make them believe that you can create such a future for them."

Zhu Biao seemed to understand something, and said, "Thank you, uncle, for your guidance. I understand."

The next morning, Zhu Han and his followers were patrolling the village when they stumbled upon a small temple outside the village where many villagers were burning incense and praying. He stopped, stared at Liu Tingsong, and said with a smile, "It seems that the people here have a deep faith in the gods."

Liu Tingsong nodded and agreed, "Your Highness is right. As far as I know, this temple was built spontaneously by the local villagers, and the incense has been burning for decades."

Zhu Han seemed to be thinking about something, then turned around and asked, "Biao'er, what do you think about this?"

Zhu Biao looked at the temple that was full of incense and said in a deep voice: "Uncle, the people believe in gods because they hope to gain inner peace with the protection of gods. In fact, if the court can truly sympathize with the people, why should it let the people rely on these illusory things?"

Zhu Han smiled when he heard this: "Biao'er, your idea is good. But remember, faith is part of the human heart. The court's duty is to bring real stability to the people, not to interfere with their inner sustenance."

Zhu Biao nodded: "Uncle, you are right. I will remember this."

As they were about to move on, a village woman suddenly ran out of the temple, stumbled and knelt in front of Zhu Han, and cried, "Sir, please save my son! He is dying!"

Zhu Han frowned and quickly helped her up: "Don't worry, tell me slowly, what happened?"

The village woman choked up and said, "My son suddenly had a high fever last night. The village doctor said that medicine is ineffective and we can only leave it to fate. Please have mercy on me, sir, and save my son!"

Zhu Han pondered for a moment, then turned to the guard beside him and said, "Go find the nearest doctor and bring him to this woman's house."

The guard immediately responded and left. Not long after, a middle-aged doctor hurried over. After examining the boy's condition, he said to Zhu Han: "Sir, although this disease is serious, it is not incurable. It just requires some special medicinal herbs, which are not commonly found nearby."

Zhu Han turned to Zhu Biao and said, "Biao'er, these herbs should not be difficult to find. Send someone to search for them immediately and make sure they are delivered as soon as possible."

Zhu Biao nodded: "I'll do it right away!"

The medicine was delivered, and the boy's fever gradually subsided after taking the medicine, and his condition improved. The village woman was so grateful that she knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly: "Thank you for saving my life!"

Zhu Han helped her up and said softly, "I have only done my little bit. The one who should be thanked is this doctor."

The doctor waved his hand quickly and said, "Your Highness is too modest. If you hadn't sent someone to find the medicine in time, the child would probably have been difficult to recover."

Zhu Han smiled lightly and said nothing more.

That night, Zhu Han stood in the courtyard, looking at the night sky and thinking for a long time.

Zhu Biao and Zhu Han were talking in a low voice in the courtyard when they heard footsteps behind them. Turning around, they saw Liu Tingsong and a hurried scholar coming over. The scholar knelt down and saluted, saying in an urgent tone, "Your Highness, there is a problem in a village in the east of the county!"

Zhu Biao frowned slightly: "What happened?"

The scholar quickly replied, "This morning, several cows suddenly went mad and rushed into the fields, trampling and destroying a lot of crops. The villagers found out that the cows belonged to a wealthy family in a neighboring village, so the villagers of the two villages clashed and almost came to blows."

Zhu Biao said in a deep voice: "The cow suddenly went crazy? This is unusual. Biao'er, let's go there immediately."

When we arrived at the village, it was already dark. The villagers of the two villages were gathered around a field, with their swords drawn. On one side were the angry farmers, and on the other side were the wealthy families in fancy clothes and their followers.

"Your cows destroyed our harvest for this season. How are you going to settle this account?" an elderly farmer asked angrily, waving his hoe.

The wealthy man snorted coldly, not caring at all: "The cow is just an animal, and it is not my intention to make it mad and crash into the fields. Besides, how much can your few acres of land be worth? Is it necessary to make a fuss?"

"What do you mean by worth a lot?" The farmer's face turned red with anger. "That's the food ration for our whole family! You rich people don't know our hardship at all!"

Seeing that the argument between the two sides was getting more intense, Zhu Biao waved his hand and shouted in a deep voice: "Shut up!"

This sound was like thunder, and everyone suddenly fell silent, turning to look at Zhu Biao. Zhu Biao stepped into the crowd, his eyes swept over everyone, and said in a low voice: "I am here, no more noise is allowed. No matter who is responsible, I will definitely find out and give everyone justice."

When the wealthy man saw Zhu Biao, his face changed slightly and he quickly stepped forward to salute: "Your Highness, I just learned about this matter and was preparing to come here to compensate for the loss." (End of this chapter)