What now? Now it's time for cherry blossom viewing and small talk.

Gao pragmatic is like an incompetent tour guide, taking Princess Yongning to see his only Western-style courtyard in the Ming Dynasty.

The reason why he is incompetent is because he doesn't know many flowers in the garden garden, and he still needs the maids and gardeners around him to introduce me to Princess Yongning.

The courtyard of the white jade building is very interesting, the main body is divided into two gardens before and after, the middle is the irregular main building of the white jade building, and the flower garden is not only in the front and rear courtyards, but even around the main building are embellished. Only in front of the main building is a very wide square - this is also the habit of European-style palaces.

Due to the large courtyard, Gao Shishi only took Princess Yongning to visit the vestibule garden, especially to introduce her to the flower beds of several scents used in Jinghua soap, including jasmine, laurel, orchid, magnolia, mint, honeysuckle, etc., and then came to a few trees.

"These trees are called oak trees, also called oak trees, and the foreigners from Europa prefer to call them oak trees. I personally took care of these trees and let them plant them here. Mr. Enzo Greco, the designer of the White Jade Building, argued with me about this, and he insisted that the trees, even if they were to be planted, should not be planted in this place, saying that they would seriously damage the overall beauty of the courtyard...... Or something, anyway, he was very unhappy. ”

Princess Yongning looked at it curiously, looked around again, and nodded: "I also think that this Mr. En has a point, these trees are a little abrupt here." ”

"Hahaha, he can't be called Mr. En, the correct name is Mr. Greco, because Greco is his last name, and Enzo is his first name."

Princess Yongning was stunned and said, "I only heard that there is a compound surname, but I don't know that there is a three-character surname...... And why does his first name come after his last name? ”

Gao pragmatic smiled: "Europa is different from our habits, most of them are first in the first and last in the surname, as far as I know, it seems that only one kingdom called Hungary is in the same order as us, it is said that it is because the main ethnic group of this Hungarian kingdom is the descendants of the Huns in the past." After the Huns were defeated by the Han Dynasty, some of them moved all the way west and ended up in Europa, bringing this name custom with them.

As for compound surnames or something, in fact, Greco is just a pronunciation of the word, which in their language should mean 'Greek'. Greece is a part of Europa, east of his native Italy – perhaps his ancestors were Greeks. ”

Princess Yongning's eyes showed a look of admiration: "Gao Gongzi is really a pedantic celestial, and he even knows so clearly about Europa thousands of miles away. ”

Gao pragmatic smiled stiffly, and said with a dry smile: "Miss Zhu praised it falsely, but in fact, her knowledge is also very shallow......

"A humble gentleman, humble and self-shepherding." Princess Yongning's face flushed: "Gao Gongzi is really a model of Shilin. ”

"Uh...... Haha, no matter how much Miss Zhu praises, she doesn't know how to deal with herself. Gao pragmatic hurriedly changed the topic: "Doesn't the girl want to know why these trees are planted here?" ”

"Why? Oh, let me guess......" Princess Yongning said and really thought about it, paused slightly, and her beautiful eyes turned: "Is it because of the silkworm?" ”

In fact, although oak and oak are theoretically the same species as oak trees, there are actually many specific varieties, and there are dozens of common ones alone. In China, it is generally referred to as the Mongolian oak, but it doesn't matter, its leaves can indeed be used to raise silkworms - that is, the quercus silkworms that Liaodong is now vigorously developing under the auspices of Gao Shishi.

Although the silkworm and the mulberry silkworm in the south of the Yangtze River are both lepidoptera and silkworm moths, the two silkworms are still very different.

Silkworms were originally naturally stocked in the wild and are one of the important varieties of wild silkworms. Its body skin is green and gray, and the color of the cocoons is pale yellow. The size of the silkworm is larger than that of the silkworm, and because it can be raised in the wild, its resistance and vitality are better than that of the silkworm.

As for the silk fiber, it is slightly thicker than the mulberry silk, and the elasticity is better than the mulberry silkworm, because only the tussah silk is hollow. If it is made into a quilt, then the fluffiness and warmth are slightly better than that of mulberry silk.

Both of these are silk, so the tussah silk is also very silky and snug and full of elasticity. In addition, the advantages of tussah silk are not only this, such as its toughness, acid resistance, alkali resistance and other indicators are also better than mulberry silk.

Of course, mulberry silk also has the advantages of mulberry silk, the most intuitive of which is gloss and delicacy. In terms of color, mulberry silk is mostly elegant milky white, while tussah silk is slightly yellowish. At the same time, because mulberry silk is thinner, the texture will be a little better to the touch.

Because the general people's habit of looking at "silk" is "high-grade fabric", the development of silkworms in eastern Liaodong has to be defined as a more popular product with a grade slightly lower than that of silkworms. However, mass is not necessarily a bad thing, because mass means that the wider the audience, the total sales can theoretically be larger.

All in all, from a long-term point of view, he hopes that mulberry silkworms and silkworms will complement each other and join hands to dominate the world's high-end textile market.

Princess Yongning was able to think of the silk from the oak tree at once, and it seemed that she really listened to Gao Shishi's words that day. Gao Pragmatic was also very happy, and said with a smile: "Miss Zhu has already guessed half of it. ”

"Is there another half? Then I really don't know. Princess Yongning was not disappointed, on the contrary, she smiled at Yan Yan, it seems that even if she only guessed half of it, she was very happy.

Gao pragmatic said: "The other half is shipbuilding." ”

"Shipbuilding? Are the ships of Jinghua Maritime Trade made of this kind of oak wood? ”

"Hmm...... It's not all oak, but it does require a lot of oak, especially in some parts of the boat, and oak can be said to be the best choice. Gao Shishi explained: "Oak wood, which is 100 to 120 years old, can be said to be the best wood for making ships, and these oak timber must be left in a dry and ventilated environment for 14 years after harvesting before it can be used to build warships."

The reason why oak trees that are more than 100 years old is that oak wood of this age has better strength and hardness, while oak trees that are more than 120 years old are more prone to decay and hollowness, and are not suitable for building warships. The reason why these felled oak timbers are air-dried for another 14 years is to ensure that the wood does not crack, does not deform, and has dimensional stability. ”

"I see." Princess Yongning was surprised: "But I remember that the Jinghua Sea Trade is less than fourteen years old, how did you build your fleet?" ”

"It is precisely because of the fact that in less than 14 years, only a few ships in Jinghua Maritime Trade's fleet have been built according to the standards of warships, and their main purpose is to protect against large groups of pirate attacks." Gao pragmatic began to talk nonsense with his eyes open.

"As for other ships, their hull strength is not up to the standard of warships, just the foundation of ordinary civilian ships, although they are still equipped with artillery because they want to guard against pirates, but the number of guns they can carry is far lower than the level of warships, and Jinghua's armed transport ships are like this."

"And you planted these trees here for?" Princess Yongning asked curiously.

"To remind myself, I still have a few years to start bursting ships."

"Ship-blasting?"

"Oh, it's a big ship."

"Build a warship?" Princess Yongning asked in surprise, "Are there still many powerful pirates in the South Seas?" ”

Gao Shishi laughed: "It can be regarded as a country, some countries seem to be a country, but they are actually no different from pirates. To do business with them, they will not be honest if they do not have a strong fleet. What kind of forced buying and selling, wanton price reduction, etc., it can be regarded as polite, even if it is a direct robbery, they dare to do it. ”

"Oh......" Princess Yongning nodded, and suddenly asked, "It's hard to find a tree that is more than a hundred years old, right?" ”

Gao pragmatic said: "Fortunately, this tree is quite widely distributed in our Daming, but I don't want to cut down too much inland, so the large oak trees that have been cut down and stored and dried generally come from the deep mountains and old forests further north of Liaodong, and there are also some in Guangxi and Annan." At the same time, there are also some excellent woods such as teak, which are also stored in Annan, Guangxi, including Myanmar and other places.

Miss Zhu said that if I can force Burma this time, I don't plan to get involved in the jade business that everyone is looking for, and the next target is more timber. The teak business, in particular, is bound to win. ”

Princess Yongning smiled: "Gao Gongzi seems to have a soft spot for sea trade." ”

Gao Pragmatic also smiled, and said pointedly: "It seems that this is the case, maybe it is really 'ambition in the four seas'." ”

Princess Yongning smiled and smiled, suddenly her face froze, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Master Gao, when you talk about this, you suddenly remembered something." ”

Seeing her expression, Gao Shishi was slightly surprised, and asked, "Oh, I don't know what's going on?" ”

"Once the imperial brother said that he leaked his mouth, which roughly means that someone has slandered in front of him, saying that Gao Gongzi, you have thousands of sails under you, and you control Baiyue, once you ...... Once I have bad intentions, I am afraid that my Ming Dynasty is in danger of hanging upside down. ”

Gao pragmatic said quietly: "The country is upside down? Interesting...... Just rely on that thousand sails? Could these thousands of sails be able to go ashore? The emperor is wise and wise, and he will not be affected by this kind of slander. ”

Seeing him like this, Princess Yongning seemed to be a little anxious, and said, "Brother Huang doesn't believe it, but if you talk like this, if you talk too much...... It's inevitable that something is not good, but Gao Gongzi still shouldn't be careless. ”

Gao pragmatically smiled bitterly: "Carelessness or carelessness, in fact, it doesn't make much sense, the future development of Jinghua is mainly on the sea, I can't just because someone is talking nonsense in front of the emperor, don't do this deal?" ”

Princess Yongning opened her mouth, but she didn't know what to say.

Gao pragmatic continued: "Miss Zhu doesn't know something, and she is actually willing to focus on the development of maritime trade. ”

"Oh?" Princess Yongning was slightly stunned.

Gao pragmatic explained: "After nearly two hundred years of reproduction, the people of the Ming Dynasty have far exceeded the time when Taizu founded the country, and now the land of the Ming Dynasty has been overwhelmed, and there are more and more landless people among the people......

At the same time, the noble relatives and high-ranking officials, including my Gao family, owned more and more land. In other words, the land is becoming more and more concentrated, the rich will always be rich, and the poor will always be poor, and if this continues, sooner or later it will be a bad thing for the imperial court.

That's why I thought of blazing a new trail to bring more people to get rich without relying on the fields for food. Once these people who hold a lot of land find that they can make more money at sea, perhaps they will sell their fields and join the sea trade, so that the crisis of the Ming Dynasty may be eliminated. Miss Zhu, I can't tell the world about this thought now, but I still hope you can understand it. ”

Princess Yongning was in awe when she heard this, happy and nervous, and hurriedly said: "Gao Gongzi is really talented, open-minded and courageous, there is no second person in the world who can reach it, Yao Yuan can be regarded as a real insight today." ”

Gao pragmatic waved his hand again and again, humbling.

Princess Yongning seemed to remember something, thought for a while, and said tentatively: "Since the matter of sea trade has to be continued, and slander may not be avoidable, Yao Yuan has an idea that I don't know whether to talk about or not." ”

In fact, at this point in the conversation, there is no difference between calling "Miss Zhu" or "Princess Yongning", but Gao Pragmatic still deliberately maintained the previous title, and said: "Miss Zhu has a good plan to teach me, and I should listen to it." ”

"In front of Gao Gongzi, how dare Yao Yuan think that she has any good plan, but a fool has a thousand thoughts, or there is a gain." Princess Yongning's face was slightly red, and she said shyly: "Although I don't know who the slanderer is, the root of this slander is nothing more than that the fleet in the hands of Gao Gongzi is too large, but it is not known by the imperial court and the imperial brother...... Yao Yuan means that if Gao Gongzi doesn't mind, he can actually ask the imperial brother to see if he is willing to invest one or two in this fleet and occupy some shares just like those nobles who hold shares in the Beiyang Maritime Trade Alliance. ”

Before Gao Shishi could answer, Princess Yongning had already hurriedly continued: "But don't misunderstand Master Gao, Yao Yuan didn't mean to let the imperial brother spy on you, but once you become a shareholder, you will naturally know that this fleet is just trading outside......"

"Miss Zhu is too worried, I know that you mean well." Gao pragmatically smiled: "Actually, I have always had such thoughts, and even hinted at the emperor." It's just that the emperor is worried that if he does this, those officials may be noisy again, so he has not been able to make up his mind so far. ”

"Yes......" Princess Yongning was suddenly a little disappointed.

Gao pragmatic said: "But Miss Zhu came here to remind me that there may be a workaround." ”

Princess Yongning's eyes lit up and asked, "How to be flexible?" ”

Gao pragmatic said: "This method is not difficult to say: Miss Zhu, you will replace the emperor and take a stake in Jinghua Haimao." ”

"Huh?" Princess Yongning was taken aback: "How can I? ”

"Why not?" Gao pragmatically smiled and said, "Miss Zhu, if you think about it carefully, aren't you the best agent?" ”

There are some things that are inconvenient to say explicitly, but Gao Pragmatic knows that Princess Yongning must be able to figure it out: she is the emperor's sister, nominally a "married woman" but in fact her husband's family has been completely wiped out, so the only person she can rely on is the emperor himself. By her secretly taking the place of the emperor to take a stake in Jinghua Haimao, not only can the emperor rest assured, but even if the outside world finds out about it, the emperor can also say that he doesn't know, so as to avoid being directly drowned by the saliva of the official.

As for the officials, if they have to be punished, the emperor can also use the excuse of protecting his sister to force them - "brothers, friends, brothers, brothers" is the ethics and morality advocated by Confucianism, and if the younger brother is like this, the younger sister can of course push it out. What's more, Princess Yongning's wedding cup can become a plus here: my sister is already so pitiful, you still don't let it go, how can your conscience be safe?

In this way, the pressure on the emperor will be less, and Princess Yongning herself will not be fine, and by the way, his pragmatic troubles have also been solved, killing three birds with one stone, it is perfect.

However, Princess Yongning is not as addicted to conspiracy as Gao Pragmatic, and it will take some time for her to understand the truth, so Gao Pragmatic said: "Miss Zhu, it's almost noon, and the sun is a little poisonous, why don't we go to Baiyulou to rest, and then you think about it slowly?" ”

"Oh, good, good." Princess Yongning nodded, and suddenly her mind exploded, and the words "Let's go to the White Jade Tower to rest" echoed in her mind several times in a row.

Gao Shishi had already turned around to lead the way in front, but she just subconsciously touched the sachet on her waist, holding it nervously, and her jade teeth bit her lips lightly, as if the eldest girl was about to get on the sedan chair.

Oh, she actually went to the sedan chair once, but that time she was not nervous at all, far less than at this moment......

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PS: I tried my best to write the female characters that appeared as less vase, I don't know how they actually performed? At present, there are three women who are more inked, and I personally think that the difference in personality can still be seen. Of course, Liu Xin's performance opportunities are not enough now, this is the plot has not yet arrived...... Because in terms of setting, her thinking is more "modern", and she is a little disgusted with talking about marriage in her teens, so the plot section for her should be later. [The above number of words does not affect the billing]