Chapter One: Kaifeng
Kaifeng City is the ancient capital of seven dynasties, but which seven dynasties Zhu Yinglong can't remember clearly. The Northern Zhou and later Northern Song of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period both had their capitals in Kaifeng, also known as: Daliang, Bianjing. Now it's Kaifeng Prefecture of the Ming Dynasty, one of the eight prefectures of Henan.
The city wall of Kaifeng is shaped like a reclining cow on the ground, with the west gate being the head of the cow and the other four gates being the legs. Therefore, it is also called the Reclining Cow City. In the early Qing dynasty, an anonymous writer's "Like a Dream Record" had such vivid descriptions: The city was named after the reclining cow because the city leaned against the great river, with earth belonging to the cow, and earth being able to overcome water. The western city gate faced each other, like the head of the cow, directly swallowing the king's energy from the rivers. The rest were three or four layers of gates, turning and twisting without facing the feet of the cow. The winding walls were like a reclining town, with different shapes. Only stillness can control movement. The five city gates of the city wall also have their own characteristics: An yuan men, Ren he men each have three layers of asymmetrical city gates; Li jing men, Nan xiang men, Da liang men each have two layers of city gates. On the city bricks around the city wall, there are thousands of words, just enough to surround the city, emitting a strong cultural atmosphere. Just thinking that such a famous city is the location of one's own fiefdom, Zhu Yinglong was moved beyond words.
"Brother Xian, you are from Kaifeng, can you tell me how many prefectures and counties there are in Kaifeng Prefecture?" Zhu Yinglong was a man of later generations, but the difference between ancient and modern times was too great, and he wasn't a historian, so he didn't know how many prefectures and counties Kaifeng had now.
When mentioning his hometown, Shi Kefa was suddenly spirited and explained with a smile: "I beg to report to Your Highness, Kaifeng Prefecture was once renamed Beijing during the Taizu period, but it was abolished later. Now it governs four states and thirty counties."
Zhu Yinglong was just about to ask which four provinces and thirty counties, when Wang Chengen suddenly walked over from the front, stepped forward and interrupted: "Your Highness, the Governor of Henan Province, along with a group of officials, is waiting outside the city to welcome Your Highness."
"What kind of people are there?" Zhu Yinglong's heart moved, and he asked.
"Bu Zhengshi Cui Chengxiu, Governor of Kaifeng Prefecture Chen Jiu Chou, Chen Daren..." Wang Chengen recited one by one.
"Chui Chengxiu?" Zhu Yinglong muttered to himself, wasn't he serving as the Vice Minister of Works in the capital? How did he end up coming to Henan to serve as the Provincial Governor? And then there was Chen Jiuchou, who was a trusted aide of Wei Guangwei, the leader of the eunuchs. What was his purpose in coming to Kaifeng to serve as the Prefect? Was it to monitor him? Or was it to take advantage of his departure from the capital to plot against him? Zhu Yinglong's mind quickly flashed with various thoughts, and at the same time, he recalled Wei Zhongxian's "benevolent" farewell wishes when he left the capital. It turned out that he had been prepared for his arrival in Kaifeng all along. His original plan to tour the city of Kaifeng was also cancelled.
"Your Highness?" Wang Chengen saw Zhu Yinglong's expression was off and softly called out.
"Oh, let's go and take a look." Zhu Yinglong realized he had just spaced out and quickly covered it up with a smile.
"His subordinate, Henan Governor Cui Chengxiu, together with the civil and military officials of Kaifeng Prefecture, respectfully welcomes Your Highness!" Then, behind him, a large group of officials from Kaifeng all knelt down, one by one introducing themselves. What Zhu Yinglong was most concerned about were Cui Chengxiu and Chen Jiushao, these two men. One was the highest-ranking official in the province, and the other was the parent official of his own fiefdom. Both were trusted followers of Wei Zhongxian. Cui Chengxiu looked pale and clean-shaven, with a few sparse whiskers at the corner of his mouth, giving the impression that he was not reliable. Chen Jiushao, on the other hand, looked like a monkey, with a pointed mouth and chin, and eyes that kept darting back and forth, clearly a man skilled in observing others' words and expressions. Could anyone who relied on Wei Zhongxian be a good person? This is going to be trouble for him in Kaifeng!
"Get up, all of you!" Zhu Yinglong responded indifferently, intentionally closing his eyes and not looking at them, creating an impression that he looked down on them, making them underestimate themselves a bit, which would make things easier for him.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Cui Chengxiu stood up and bowed his head.
"Has Lord Choi made any arrangements for this king's palace?" Zhu Yinglong asked indifferently.
"The humble official has received the imperial edict and has already selected a residence for Your Highness, which is the former mansion of a deceased grand councilor of our dynasty. It is quite spacious, but it has been neglected for many years. The humble official is currently having it renovated, but due to the urgency of the matter, it will likely take some time before it can be occupied. If Your Highness does not mind, you may temporarily reside in the humble official's office at the Ministry of Revenue for a few days."
Does the Governor's Office have a secret? Zhu Yinglong is not so foolish, wouldn't he let Cui Chengxiu know everything? He said: "It's still not convenient for Lord Cui, the Governor's Office is where you work, and I am just an idle prince, it's not suitable to live there. Your intention, Lord Cui, I understand."
"Your Highness..." Cui Chengxiu wanted to continue persuading, but was interrupted by Zhu Yinglong, "Lord Cui doesn't need to say any more, please lead the way ahead, I want to take a look at what my royal mansion looks like!"
Chui Chengxiu opened his mouth and immediately closed it again, then stepped aside to make way: "Your Highness, please!"
A large group of people went to the north gate of Kaifeng City, An Yuan Men. The new Xin Wang Fu was located on the shore of Longting Lake. Cui Chengxiu did not show off to him, the house was very old and had many worn-out places. Dozens of craftsmen were repairing it, and some parts had been repaired. Zhu Yinglong immediately decided to move into the new Xin Wang Fu directly. However, arranging a place for the thousand soldiers of the Shenji Camp became a problem. They were now his private soldiers, originally also living in the palace together, but the palace was still under repair, and there were not enough rooms and space temporarily. Kaifeng was once designated as the capital city, and there were many abandoned military camps outside the city. Zhu Yinglong asked Cui Chengxiu to find a slightly better military camp for them to move in first, which did not make things difficult for Cui Chengxiu.
It's easy to arrange everything, it's already late at night, after walking for over a month, the current time is already mid-September, according to the later generations' solar calendar, it should be at least October now, and the weather has become very cold. In ancient times, it was not like today, once the weather turned cold, it became extremely cold. Since this is a new place, things are not quite complete, so for the next few days, we will have to endure some hardships.
After Shi Kefa entered the city, Zhu Yinglong sent him back home first to pick up his family members. Zhu Yinglong gave him a humble official position, from the ninth rank, which was considered an official, although with not much salary, it was enough to support his family.
Money was spent like flowing water, and Zhu Yinglong felt heartbroken because he didn't spend a single penny more than his planned budget. The cheap brother's resettlement fee was given to Zhou Tingning, one cent at a time, with each cent's use clearly annotated, not allowing him to spend money recklessly. From then on, Zhu Yinglong earned the title of "Miserly King", being so greedy for wealth at such a young age, and it would only get worse in the future.
Half a month passed quickly, and the renovation of the mansion, purchasing necessary items for the mansion, left Zhu Yinglong with nearly 10,000 taels of silver. All of it was handed over to Shen Xi to purchase a large piece of unowned land in Zhuxiantown, south of Kaifeng City, approximately 100 hectares in size. According to Zhu Yinglong's plan on his way to Kaifeng, he would build "Yinglong Villa", temporarily referred to as "Danyuan". This was because no matter what happened in the future, the name Zhu Yujian would always follow him, unless he changed his name and hid his identity. The reason for not calling it "Yinglong Villa" for now was that his original name was a bit too presumptuous, as only emperors could be called the True Dragon Son of Heaven. If he were to use this name, it would easily attract attention and might even lead to him being accused of treason. Therefore, it couldn't be named like that for now, but once he ascended to the throne, even calling it "Tianzi Villa" wouldn't be a problem.
According to Zhu Yinglong's intention, the land was first enclosed, and the water and land wharf of Zhuxiantown went straight down to the Huai River and reached Yangzhou, with convenient transportation. Zhu Yinglong chose the location of Yinglong Villa in Zhuxiantown for this consideration, and also asked Shi Kefa to recruit dozens of reliable craftsmen to teach them the methods of firing red bricks and cement that would be used in later generations. Because Zhu Yinglong had a brick kiln next to his home when he was young, he often went there to play, and the craftsmanship of firing red bricks could be written with his eyes closed. The construction of the mountain villa used these red bricks and cement, combined with steel bars made using modern smelting methods, and Zhu Yinglong was determined to build his Yinglong Villa into a solid fortress.
Those one thousand soldiers of the Divine Machine Battalion all put down their firearms and threw themselves into the fervent construction, busily working according to Zhu Yinglong's "Yinglong Villa" plan. Most of these one thousand officers and men were squeezed out by the Divine Machine Battalion, dissatisfied with their superiors, having merits but not being promoted, and a few were evil-doers. However, they were handled by Zhu Yinglong with lightning-fast methods, and only then did he gather these lazy soldiers to make them obedient. He boldly appointed Xiong Tingxi as the Wangfu General, now renamed Xiong Ba, after many days of quiet nursing and personal transformation by Zhu Yinglong. Even ghosts wouldn't recognize that the current Xiong Ba was the "Treasonous Minister" Xiong Tingxi who had caused a stir in the past few days.
Things should come one at a time, and meals should be eaten mouthful by mouthful. Zhu Yinglong realized that if he didn't have any income, his ambitions would not be achieved, and he might even starve to death first. When Xiong Tingyi's family arrived, Zhu Yinglong immediately found Xiong Zhaoqun and asked him to set up a glass workshop right away. He already considered him as his future brother-in-law. Secret matters were best handled by family members, so he carefully taught him the techniques and formulas, and all the workers were from the Xiong family. Zhu Yinglong had no intention of mass-producing yet; he couldn't wait to ascend to the throne and then copy those idiots' homes. He wanted to use glass to first take out the silver from the eunuchs and corrupt officials, as these things were unaffordable for ordinary people, but the greedy officials who colluded with the eunuchs could afford them. Therefore, he started small-scale production, strictly controlling quality, striving for perfection, producing only one or a few glass products per day, each with a unique shape. With scarcity comes value, and silver would keep flowing into his pockets, allowing him to smelt steel, manufacture new firearms, and build a modernized army.
What delighted Zhu Yinglong was that Tian Shuying had a great talent for glass design, and could be described as a talented young artist. Zhu Yinglong simply handed over the design power of glass craftsmanship to her, and the little girl was very careful and liked this work. With Zhu Yinglong's occasional guidance and inspiration, a series of products, from various shapes of glass decorations to decorative items, daily necessities, all appeared in front of Zhu Yinglong under her clever hands. Excited Zhu Yinglong hugged Tian Shuying tightly and kissed her fiercely, making the beautiful little girl blush bright red, sweet to the bone, with bright eyes wanting to look at Zhu Yinglong but not daring to, extremely enticing.
Zhu Yinglong now understands why Zhu Youjian was so fond of Tian Fei. This girl is not only gentle, but also clever and beautiful. What man wouldn't like such a woman? Of course, Zhu Yinglong also knows that he can't neglect Zhou and Ye, the two women. He has to balance this situation, treating them equally. Ye Liangyi is innocent and lively, with all her emotions visible on her face. Zhou Yuning is elegant and refined, with the air of being the first lady of Zhu Yinglong's harem, which is also something he intentionally cultivated. Whether or not he becomes emperor, Zhou Yuning will always be his legitimate wife. Not only must she have the heart of a great matriarch, but also her authority. He doesn't want any rivalry for favor to arise in his harem in the future.
As soon as Zhu Yinglong arrived in Kaifeng, he bought land. Cui Chengxiu didn't make any trouble, just coldly observing from the side. However, he did send many beautiful maids to the new Wangfu. Zhu Yinglong's Wangfu was short-staffed, so they accepted all of them without hesitation. Naturally, they carefully isolated the maids that Cui Chengxiu had brought from the capital, as they were most likely spies sent by the eunuch party. Even if Zhu Yinglong didn't accept these people, the Wangfu still needed to recruit new staff. Rather than carefully selecting them at a later time, it was better to just take these ones now. Cui Chengxiu may be a scoundrel, but his ability to select people was stronger than that of Zhu Yinglong's subordinates.
Kaifeng Prefect Chen Jiuchou personally delivered the deed to the thousand mu of good land granted by Emperor Tianqi to Zhu Yinglong, fawning all over him. It's likely that he was just doing it for show, but the other party didn't make things difficult for him, so Zhu Yinglong put his mind at ease a little. These two are probably here to get ahead and will be promoted to Beijing in a year or two, according to later generations' way of speaking, they're accumulating political capital. The other half is that this might just be one of their goals, but there's something deeper going on that can't be known, and even if he arrives at his fiefdom, he won't be able to rest easy, he'll have to be constantly on guard.
In the late Ming Dynasty, there were many outstanding military strategists. Among the official figures of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yinglong admired three and a half people. Xiong Tingbi was one, Yuan Chonghuan was another, and Hong Chengchou could only be counted as half because he later surrendered to the Qing Dynasty. The other half was among the Qing officials, and there was also Sun Chengzong, who was also a talented person with both literary and military skills. According to Zhu Yinglong's memory, he had been dismissed from office and returned to his hometown this year. This was a great opportunity, and such a person could not be missed. If he were in office, he would have no way out, but if he were out of office, he would not be polite. First, invite him to Kaifeng and then talk about it.
However, Zhu Yinglong was worried, as there was no one available to do this task around him. Zhou Huanan had taken the list of addresses he provided and gone to Jiangnan, and it would take some time before he could return. The only person who hadn't been utilized was Li Niang, the young mistress who had recovered from her knife wound and had nothing to do with her energy all day. But entrusting such an important task to her made Zhu Yinglong somewhat uneasy. Nevertheless, as the saying goes, "a jade that is not carved will not become a useful vessel." In the end, Zhu Yinglong still dispatched fifty soldiers from the Divine Machinery Battalion to disguise themselves as ordinary civilians and accompany her on this mission, which could also be considered her first task since surrendering to him, and it was only right to test her.
