My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 15 Zhu Di's Contributions
In the end, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Lou Ying away on the grounds that the time was not yet ripe.

If Lou Ying wants to take the immortal as his master, he must obtain the immortal's consent.

However, the immortal seems to have a good impression of Lou Ying, so this should not be difficult.

Lou Ying also rushed to the Imperial Medical Service with the handwritten letter and the "Barefoot Doctor's Manual".

Lou Ying had a lot of time to do because he not only had to study the "Barefoot Doctor Manual" thoroughly, but also had to print and distribute it as soon as possible.

Thinking that after the "Barefoot Doctor's Manual" is popularized in the future, the doctors of the Ming Dynasty and the people of the world will all remember the kindness of Zhu.

Zhu Yuanzhang burst into laughter.

He didn't know what the immortal would say in the letter about the Ming Dynasty after Zhu Di became emperor. He was nervous, yet more expectant.

I might as well find a quiet couch in Kunning Palace to sit down and carefully study the letter from the immortal.

"After Zhu Di became emperor, he would naturally continue to reduce the power of the vassal states. After all, he could become emperor through rebellion, and other vassal states would follow suit."

Although he had already guessed it in his mind, Zhu Yuanzhang still felt deeply moved after confirming that Zhu Di would reduce the power of the princes.

Could it be that his policy of enfeoffment of princes was wrong after all?

"However, Zhu Di's method of reducing the power of the princes was much smarter than Zhu Yunwen's.

He used the power of the new emperor to treat the vassal kings with both kindness and force.

The first was to restore the titles of the princes that had been demoted by Zhu Yunwen, and to give preferential treatment to some of the princes, such as increasing their salaries, awarding them official positions, etc., to show his favor.

The second is to reduce the number of the princes' guards from the original three guards to one guard, thereby gradually weakening the princes' military power.

The third is to take back the military command of border defense from the hands of the princes and give it to the dusi garrisons and border generals and military officials to directly control the local military forces.

Fourth, he adjusted the fiefs of some vassal kings. For example, he moved Prince Gu Zhu Gui to Changsha. In this way, he maintained control over the vassal kings while weakening their strength.

Through these measures, Zhu Di maintained a certain degree of control over the princes while avoiding direct conflict and resistance, effectively achieving the goal of reducing the power of the princes.

The fourth kid did a pretty good job!
This move not only prevented fratricide among brothers, but also further strengthened the royal family's control over the vassal kings, which made Zhu Yuanzhang very pleased.

It seems that he did nothing wrong in enfeoffing the princes, and according to Zhu Di's approach, the Zhu family's descendants could prosper for generations.

"Compared with Zhu Di's effective reduction of the feudal lords, his imperial governance is even more remarkable."

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes lit up. He didn't expect that Zhu Di could also receive such high praise from the immortal!
"Let me put it this way. Zhu Di, based on your foundation, continued your civil and military achievements and laid a solid foundation for the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty."

The more Zhu Yuanzhang watched, the more curious he became, and he couldn't wait to know how Zhu Di did it.

"In general, Zhu Di did six things that went down in history during his reign, namely rewarding farming, encouraging industry and commerce, the Yongle Canon, moving the capital to Beiping, five expeditions to the northern desert, and seven voyages to the West."

Hey, this kid Zhu Di can even get praise from the immortals that will go down in history!
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded as he read it. Farming is the foundation of the country, and rewarding farming is what every qualified emperor should do. Although he dislikes businessmen, industry and commerce are closely related to the lives of the people, so there is nothing wrong with encouraging industry and commerce.

But what is this Yongle Encyclopedia?
Yongle should be the reign title after Zhu Di became emperor. Could the Yongle Encyclopedia be a celebration after he became emperor?
It's just a small celebration. How can we deserve to be recorded in history?
Also, Zhu Di moved the capital to Beiping? Why?
The Five Expeditions to Mobei were five attacks on the remnant Yuan Dynasty during Zhu Di's reign, and it seems that he fought well.

As for the seven voyages to the West, what happened?

Zhu Yuanzhang of the West naturally knew about this, but he had no interest in that barbaric land. Since the maritime ban, apart from occasionally receiving tribute from overseas countries, he was too lazy to pay attention to them.

But why did the seven voyages to the West go down in history?
Is there a deeper meaning behind this?

Zhu Yuanzhang continued reading with curiosity and anticipation.

"Rewarding farming and encouraging industry and commerce, farming is the foundation of a country, and industry and commerce are important conditions for ensuring national development and the prosperity of people's lives. During Zhu Di's reign, agriculture and industry and commerce have been rapidly developed.

The Yongle Encyclopedia was an unprecedented encyclopedia that he ordered to be compiled after he became emperor. The book covers astronomy, geography, ancient times and the Yongle period, and integrates history, classics, yin and yang, medicine, divination, monks, and skills. It can be said to be the culmination of Chinese cultural classics!
The Yongle Encyclopedia has left a valuable cultural heritage for future generations of Chinese people, and has also let them know how glorious their ancestors once were! "

It turns out that the Yongle Encyclopedia was actually a compiled book?
Zhu Yuanzhang was amazed and was eager to try. If his son could compile the Yongle Encyclopedia and leave his name in history, why couldn't he, as a father, do the same?
Hey, we can’t let Zhu Di steal the limelight!
We, Zhu, also ordered scholars all over the world to compile a book, um, it’s called the Hongwu Encyclopedia!

"As for the relocation of the capital to Beiping, Zhu Di had two considerations. On the one hand, the old imperial capital of Yingtianfu was too powerful for the conservatives to exercise their power to reform the court, which resulted in the government's orders not being implemented.

On the other hand, the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty constantly harassed the northern border of the Ming Dynasty. In order to consolidate the border defense, Zhu Di decided to move the capital to Beiping so that he could more directly control the northern region. At the same time, moving the capital to Beiping would help to summon troops for battle, saving a lot of distance and allowing the army to reach the front line faster.

The emperor is guarding the country's border. Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but give a thumbs up to his fourth son.

"After you, Old Zhu, overthrew the Yuan Dynasty and established the Ming Dynasty, the Yuan court moved to the northern desert and was later annexed by the Oirat.

In order to eliminate the threat posed by the Oirat to the Ming border, Zhu Di launched five expeditions to the northern desert, severely damaging the Oirat and bringing decades of peace to the Ming border.

Very good, very good. Zhu Yuanzhang was very pleased. After driving the Mongols to the north, he suspended the Northern Expedition in view of the fact that it was the early days of the founding of the Ming Dynasty and the need for recuperation.

However, the remnant Yuan Dynasty has always been a thorn in Zhu Yuanzhang's side. He did not expect that the remnant Yuan Dynasty would be annexed by the Oirat Mongols. Zhu Di, this kid, knew how to inflict a heavy blow to the Oirat Mongols. He had good vision and methods, and he had the style of his father!

"But the above are just Zhu Di's routine operations, and the most praised by later generations is his seven voyages to the West!"

Rewarding farming, developing industry and commerce, compiling the Yongle Encyclopedia, and launching five expeditions to the northern desert, such achievements have been recognized by emperors throughout the dynasties as long as they can accomplish one of them. Unexpectedly, such great achievements are just "routine" in the eyes of the immortals!

It seems that traveling to the West seven times is not as easy as I thought!
I want to see how that kid Zhu Di does.
"Zhu Di ordered people to build treasure ships and sent eunuch Zheng He to form the Ming treasure fleet. They set out from Yingtianfu and visited Western countries seven times, even to India and Daqin, and as far as Africa, with a total voyage of more than 600,000 miles!

This voyage is unprecedented and is the greatest feat in China's maritime history!
The seven voyages to the West not only brought great geographical discoveries to the Ming Dynasty, but also brought back a large number of products, enriching China's species. At the same time, they spread the grace of the Celestial Empire to Western countries, established tributary relations, and gradually spread the influence of the Ming Dynasty and even China to the West!
This feat further expanded China's influence and brought Ming's prestige to its peak!"

Seven voyages to the West, covering a distance of more than 600,000 miles, brought the prestige of the Ming Dynasty to its peak!
Even though Zhu Yuanzhang had no interest in overseas countries, he implemented a maritime ban due to repeated attacks by Japanese pirates along the coast, and also ordered that "no ship is allowed to go to sea."

But seeing this, my heart can’t help but be overwhelmed!
The great Ming Emperor’s grace spread far and wide to the West, and all overseas countries came to pay tribute!
What a great feat this is, but I didn’t expect that guy Zhu Di could accomplish it!

During the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, all nations came to pay tribute, but it was probably just like this!
The errors pointed out by the book friends have been corrected. Please vote and collect
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(End of this chapter)