Bright Spring

Early the next morning, Zhu Gaoxu walked out of the imperial concubine's palace, bid farewell to Miao Jin, who became more and more dependent on him, and went to the early court.

Later, when Yumen was listening to the government, some ministers mentioned the Tatars' request for peace.

Regardless of whether it is a person who advocates peace talks or someone who opposes it, the reasons given have no practical reference value.On the surface, everyone talked about righteousness, right and wrong, and singled out all kinds of bad deeds of the Tatars' previous treachery; no matter whether the Ming court forgives or punishes them, they are all standing in the place of justice.Perhaps this is the reason why the ministers put forward their political opinions.

As for weighing the pros and cons, it is not easy to argue wildly in a place like Fengtianmen.It wasn't until Zhu Gaoxu retreated to Rouyi Palace and summoned the important court officials in the cabinet that people had different opinions.

Qi Tai, Minister of the Ministry of War, said: "I think that the Tatars asked for peace because the Oirats moved eastward. The Oirat envoys said that they helped the Ming Dynasty attack Arutai, but the court never made such a request."

Gao Xianning echoed from the back: "Mahamu from Wala only attacked the guards in Hexi last year, obviously he did not surrender to the imperial court."

Qi Tai glanced sideways, nodded, and cupped his hands to Zhu Gaoxu again, saying: "Therefore, Arutai does not want to continue to be threatened by the Ming army in Liaodong, and intends to leave room for a roundabout retreat in the east. Once Alutai loses, it is still You can retreat to the east of Harawin Mountain, and you will not be destroyed."

He paused for a while, and then said: "The Inwara people are ready to move. If the main force of the Tatars is destroyed at this time, it will not be a good thing for Ming. The minister advocates agreeing to the Tatars to seek peace, so that Arutai can resist Mahamu's attack with peace of mind. attack."

It just so happened that Zhu Gaoxu had the same idea.According to his wish, the best situation is, of course, that the two forces of Mahamu and Alutai will fall together, leaving the north in a state of disunity; but it is obviously impossible at present.The best thing to do is to take the next best thing, and Alutai and Mahamu restrain each other, which has become a better situation.Otherwise, once a certain force annexes all the ministries and unifies the grassland, the only place to be harassed next is probably the long northern defense line of Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Gaoxu immediately turned his head and asked Hu Wei, "What request does the Tatar envoy have?"

Hu Mei said: "Yesterday, the officials from the Ministry of Rites met with the envoy. The Tatars generally wanted to restore the territory before the Battle of Liaodong, and let Duoyan, the main force of Wuliangha, the second guard of Taining, and the Horqin cavalry return to Liaodong. They also invited The imperial court subsidizes things such as ironware, armor, weapons, and rice.”

There was a burst of discussion below, and some ministers scolded Alutai a few words.

Zhu Gaoxu said: "Alutai seems to have thought of Qi Butang's abacus, otherwise how could he have so much face?"

Qi Tai shook his head, showing a wry smile: "What the Holy Majesty said is absolutely true. Alutai is not only unfaithful, but also cunning and wise."

Zhu Gaoxu thought, emigrating to Liaodong is not something that can be done in a year or two, and it is impossible to digest the vast land there immediately, so the Mongolian tribes can only be allowed to live in the herds.He then said to Hu Wei: "When you discuss with the envoys later, tell them that there are no iron supplies. The Horqin people can return to the north of Liaodong, but they can only be stationed in the north of the Duoyanwei tribe; the Horqin tribe is forbidden to run between the two guards. Go. I think that Alutai is not weak, and without our support, it can still fight against the Oirats."

Although the Wuliangha people of Duoyanwei and Tainingwei have just fought against the Ming army this year, they may not surrender to Ming due to changes in the situation; reducing the threat of the Horqin people to the Wuliangha tribe can be gradually reduced. win over.As for the two ends of the Wuliangha people, the snake and the mouse, they wavered repeatedly, and Zhu Gaoxu was too lazy to care about it.

Hu Mei bowed and said: "The minister receives the decree."

At this time Zhu Gaoxu glanced at the eunuch Wang Gui.Wang Gui bent down and bowed, then walked out from the side.

After a while, the eunuchs Wang Jinghong, Hou Xian, and the junior official Ma Huan kowtowed outside the hall, and when they came in, they made big salutes.All the ministers looked sideways.

Zhu Gaoxu told them to flatten, and said directly: "At the beginning of Wude, the officers and soldiers went to the west. You have been the farthest to the north of Mecca, the holy place of Islam. The country at the end of the Red Sea is called Egypt. What is the situation now?"

Wang Jinghong stepped aside gently and let Ma Huan speak.Ma Huan is the liaison officer of the Ministry of Rites. Because he is proficient in multiple languages, he is there on almost every voyage and has a lot of insights.

Ma Huanbai said: "My lord, the ministers and others have not set foot here yet, and have only heard of some things near Mejia. The forces in charge of the local power are slave warlords, called Mamluk."

When Zhu Gaoxu heard this word, he suddenly realized that the name was very familiar.

Ma Huan continued: "It is said that earlier a Turkic came to Egypt, established a kingdom, plundered and bought many slaves, and those slaves were called Mamluks. Later, Mamluks overthrew the Turks and took charge of the kingdom by themselves. Local. These people are warriors in charge of the country, and they seem to be violent and aggressive by nature, and the officials and others don't know the details yet."

Zhu Gaoxu nodded, pondered for a moment, and said: "The navy is currently well-equipped and brave and good at fighting, but they don't know anything about the climate, landforms and scenery of Egypt, and they don't know about Mamluk. The ancients said that if you know yourself and the enemy, you can win a hundred battles. We don't have to act rashly."

Xia Yuanji, Minister of the Household Department, seemed to have something to say, but unexpectedly Qi Tai stood up first and persuaded: "The last time I sailed to the West, the fleet went back and forth for nearly two years, and the fastest voyage took more than a year. This place is thousands of miles away, my lord. Do you intend to do it?"

After Qi Tai said everything, Xia Yuanji and the others stopped talking.

Zhu Gaoxu said: "I am not interested in occupying distant lands, but it is a new national policy to extend trade and sea trade with more places. Egypt may become an important sea traffic route, a pass, even more critical than the Strait of Malacca. You can draw it slowly."

He also said: "This time the voyage to the West, the fleet can arrive in Egypt along the route of Wudechu. First, we will trade with Mamluks with silk, porcelain, and spices, and give some gifts to make friends. Just like we deal with other places. The approach is to focus on harmony, and then win over the local people to trade and gain a deeper understanding of this place. Other things will be discussed later.”

Qi Tai stopped dissuading, and the other ministers remained silent for a while.

Voyages to the Western Seas has become a major policy since Taizong's reign, and it is obviously not a casual proposition to change the court's major policies.Zhu Gaoxu just said that the voyage to the West was just a major event that has been accomplished. He did not decide to go on an expedition, so the ministers would not be able to object for a while.

After discussing briefly for a while, everyone left one after another.

The Tatar envoy stayed in the capital for several days, and finally reached a peace agreement with Daming.Zhu Gaoxu also decided to canonize Asari as a concubine Shun as soon as possible, and let the Tatar envoys watch the ceremony.

In the early autumn, the fleet sailing to the west has gathered in Liujiagang near Taicang.

Zhu Gaoxu still appointed Wang Jinghong, an experienced eunuch, as the envoy and Hou Xian as the deputy envoy. He also had many officers and generals, and more than [-] navy officers and soldiers, who shipped a large amount of silk, porcelain, and coins.After the fleet arrives at Longyamen Port, they will also transport a batch of pepper there, and then go to the western countries to do business.

There were fewer people than usual.Zhu Gaoxu believes that the navy has more than 1 people, which is enough to deal with defensive warfare at sea and ports, and the reduction of personnel is also to reduce military expenditures.However, the largest voyage to the West was during the Taizong period. At that time, the imperial court probably had a reason to show off its force and wealth, and organized an extremely large fleet with a terrifying momentum; Zhu Gaoxu is not very interested in it now.

Zhu Gaoxu led his minister Xungui to Longjiang Temple, ready to practice for Wang Jinghong and others.

Wang Jinghong and others all set off from Longjiang Port on the capital's side.There are only three treasure ships in Longjiang Port, and the rest are all in Liujia Port.In fact, because the number of merchant ships on the inland river has increased rapidly in recent years, all the ports near the capital are extremely busy. If a large number of warships come here, the merchant ships must be cleared first.

Everyone came early, the sky was just getting bright.The two eunuchs Wang Jinghong and Hou Xian came to a fasting room to face the saint, beside Qi Tai and a few others.

There was a sea chart on the wooden case, and Zhu Gaoxu slightly modified the shape based on his own memory and feeling.He pointed to the picture and said, "I've looked up what I've seen and heard from my previous voyages to the West, and I've changed some places, but it's still not necessarily accurate. Take this picture with you and continue to repair it along the way."

Wang Jinghong stepped forward and said, "Your maidservant takes the order."

In addition to maps of various places in the Western Ocean, there are also some places that the fleet has never been to.It is estimated that Wang Jinghong and others are also a little confused. Where did the emperor get the picture?However, these great eunuchs generally don't ask questions about things that the emperor didn't say.

Pointing to the location of Egypt, Zhu Gaoxu said: "Go northward by land to the coast, and there is Europe. There are many countries, large tracts of fertile land, and countless people. The Mongol army visited those places back then. The Silk Road in the Sui and Tang Dynasties , the goods can reach Europe as far as the farthest. Westerners are obsessed with silk, porcelain and spices, and the goods transported to Europe will definitely get huge benefits. If this road is opened up in the future, we can open up sea trade routes from closer places. "

Wang Jinghong and Hou Xian bowed and said: "Slaves and servants who dare not disappoint the emperor must do their best and do their jobs well."

The monarch and his ministers talked for a while, and the sky outside the window was gradually brightening.A group of people walked out of the fasting room and walked outside the temple.Surrounded by guards of honor and the army, Zhu Gaoxu sent Wang Jinghong and others to Longjiang Port, and gave them wine to practice.

Wang Jinghong and others kowtowed again and again, bid farewell to the emperor, and boarded the treasure ship at the pier.

Before the sun came out, there was some mist on the river, and the giant sails on the treasure ships were rising one after another, making them even more spectacular in the hazy fog, as if towering tall buildings, mysterious and shocking.

There are still many boats looming on the white river.The noise of people in the early morning and the ringing of bells from far and near float in the port.In such an atmosphere, Zhu Gaoxu stood on the river bank for a long time, watching the three big ships gradually go away.

He couldn't see the vast scene of the fleet on the sea, but he could imagine the gesture of sailing in the open sea, and the journey would start again.In the future, the big event of voyages to the West has been re-given a new meaning.

Chapter 987 Spring

Time flies, time flies.

"Woo..." A long and distant siren sound woke Zhu Gaoxu up.When he opened his eyes, he saw a young woman sitting opposite, she immediately showed a gentle smile.Her face was smooth and fair, full of youthful vitality, and she looked very young.

Then Zhu Gaoxu saw his withered and wrinkled hands again, and only then did he come to his senses, it turned out that he was already very old.He almost forgot about this when he woke up. Recently, he has become more and more confused, often in a trance, and often has pain in his chest.

He tried to get up from the chair, but it was very difficult.The woman on the opposite side stood up and said kindly, "My lord, slow down, this servant will help you." She named her Xiao He and Zhu Gaoxu.

Zhu Gaoxu finally regained consciousness and remembered that he was in a carriage going to the train station.

It is now the 56th year of Wude (1465 AD), Zhu Gaoxu is already 82 years old, and half a century has just passed since he ruled Ming Dynasty.

Probably because he was in good health and lived longer than many people. He had six sons, two of whom died of old age or illness.The eldest son, Zhanhe, also failed to outlive Zhu Gaoxu, and became the crown prince all his life; but Zhu Gaoxu made Zhanhe's eldest son, Zhu Qihong, the crown prince.Zhu Qihong is also middle-aged, 43 years old this year.

And the concubines who were first conferred by Wu De, as well as the queen Guo Wei, all went away before Zhu Gaoxu, and were buried in the emperor's mausoleum that had been repaired, waiting for him to reunite there.

Those people Zhu Gaoxu knew when he was young, almost died of old age.But when he was confused, he only remembered those people in the past, but it was easy to forget the people around him.So whenever he wakes up, he will inevitably feel a little melancholy.

People often like to remember when they are old, even if he is the emperor.