After the end of the Imperial Gate, the ministers almost all left the Mukden Gate. Several officials on duty in the Hanlin Academy did not leave for the time being. In addition, the three important ministers that Zhu Gaoxu had met that day did not leave the imperial gate, and they seemed to have something else to do.

Zhu Gaoxu saw it in his eyes, but still got up and left his seat. He walked out of a gate on the north side, and then turned his head to Wang Gui, the eunuch beside him, and said, "Go and call Qi Tai and the other three to meet at the East Corner Gate." ”

Wang Gui answered, then turned around and walked back to the royal gate.

After the emperor went to court, if he wanted to find a place to discuss with his confidants, only the corner gates on both sides of Fengtianmen were relatively close.

At that time, Emperor Jianwen summoned Huang Zicheng and others to discuss the cutting of the domain, which is said to be at the East Corner Gate, and the reason is estimated to be because it is close to the Imperial Gate. However, there are two gates on the east and west sides of Fengtianmen, and Zhu Gaoxu always chooses the east corner gate, because there is a precedent for Jianwen. The "Battle of Jingjing", which led to the replacement of the throne, seemed to make Zhu Gaoxu vaguely feel vigilant, reminding him that he still had to fully consider the consequences when doing things.

He stood on the pavilion, looking at the large area of the palace and waiting.

Then the three men came upstairs. After the monarch and ministers saw the salute, Hu Hu took the lead in speaking: "Yongle Chuguan army conquered Annan, and after the war, some Annan scholars went to the imperial city to petition, asking Emperor Taizong to include Annan into the Ming Dynasty. As far as the minister knows, behind this matter is Zhang Fu, the Marquis of Xincheng. At that time, many civil servants in the court dissuaded Emperor Taizong, but because Zhang Fu and others made a noise, the court later decided to add a political envoy to Jiaozhi. ”

Zhu Gaoxu listened patiently.

Hu Hu paused for a while, and said in a deep voice: "At this time, if you let Qian Xili's family members wear Qian Xili's clothes and crowns, and go to the thousand-step corridor to cry; The officials and scholars of the Governor's Office and the Pedestrian Division petitioned...... The momentum of the conquest of Japan was very different from before. Before Qian Xili's exam, he studied in Guozijian and had many acquaintances. ”

Zhu Gaoxu was slightly surprised, and immediately looked at Hu Hu. Hu Hu also closed his mouth and bent his waist down with a serious face.

This originally bright and bright thing suddenly shrouded in a layer of conspiracy in this attic. However, after being reminded by Hu Hui, an old civil official, Zhu Gaoxu also believes that public opinion seems to be changeable.

Hu Hu didn't hear Zhu Gaoxu's response, so he stopped talking with interest.

At this time, Gao Xianning's voice said: "Shengshang Mingjian, there are many officials in the court who want to meet the Shengshang, but they are afraid of being despised by their colleagues. After Qian Xili's family made trouble, he asked Japan to hold a second court meeting; At that time, Qi Butang, Hu Butang, and ministers proposed to conquer Japan, and Hou Hai, the left envoy of the Imperial Guard, Qian Xun, the right envoy, and Pei Youzhen, the squire of the military department, would also advocate the use of troops, and many officials must have seconded the proposal this time. ”

When Zhu Gaoxu heard this, his heart gradually became a little excited, and he found that his new policy seemed to have the recognition and support of some civil officials.

After all, according to the traditional concept, the motive for opening up territory should be to occupy and "kingize" the land that can be cultivated. The opening up of the land of Japan is obviously not quite in line with this idea; Because compared with Japan, which was barren and mountainous, and the road was far away, the best direction for the imperial court to expand arable land was Liaodong. Therefore, Qi Tai, Hu Hu and others supported the war against Japan, which shows that they are likely to be willing to support Zhu Gaoxu's new policy.

Zhu Gaoxu paced two steps, and soon replied quietly: "I asked who was guarding the Hongwu Gate in the afternoon, and I had to say hello to the Shangfeng of the military commander guarding the gate." ”

The three of them bowed together and said, "Holy Wisdom." ”

Zhu Gaoxu's mood gradually improved, so he said a few more words: "When the imperial court gets more silver, I will decree that the whole country will implement a silver management system, and stipulate in the form of law that private individuals are not allowed to collect silver ingots, and the weight of silver jewelry must also be limited. All silver ore mined from the Japanese and Ming envoys should be used for coinage. I don't know if Xia Yuanji has any objections to this. ”

Gao Xianning immediately said: "Xia Butang will not object to coinage, because there are no worse coins than treasure money and iron money. ”

Zhu Gaoxu: "......"

Zhu Gaoxu thought about it and felt that it made sense, with the depreciation rate of the Ming Dynasty's treasure banknotes, the loss of credit, and various currency problems, the country's economy should have collapsed a long time ago. However, the self-sufficient agricultural economy and the system of taxation in kind made the economy of the Ming Dynasty have the characteristics of being inviolable, as long as there is no large-scale disaster, the imperial court can operate well.

All kinds of serious economic problems can't be carried, but it's just a national policy of coinage, and the household department should feel that it doesn't matter much.

At this time, Qi Tai said: "In this expedition to Japan, the imperial court should learn the lessons of the Yuan army. After the Yuan army landed that year, the main battle could not be said to be defeated. The problem of the Yuan army was that the progress was too slow, it was impossible to feed the war with war, and there was no complete grain route prepared in advance, so that the lack of grain was difficult to sustain for a long time; After that, the Yuan army had to retreat to the sea, and encountered a strong wind, which led to a crushing defeat. ”

Zhu Gaoxu said: "Qi Butang is reasonable. ”

Qi Tai said again: "It is impossible to talk about surprise attacks. The minister advocated that the grain should be prepared before the troops were dispatched, and that the Korean state should be ordered to set up a warehouse in Pusan to prepare the military rations within a time limit. Officers and soldiers should also ship more gunpowder, artillery shells and other military supplies to Busan first.

Before the army landed, troops were sent to occupy Iki Island; Then, warehouses were built on Tsushima Island and Iki Island to transport grain and grass from the nearest place when the front-line officers and soldiers were short of food. The area near Hakata Port in Chikuzen Province is still the preferred place to land and attack, and this place is the closest sea route to the town of Pusan, the Korean State, so that the food route of the army can be safe. ”

Qi Tai paused for a moment, and then said: "No matter where the battlefield is, the two countries will eventually fight; The official army still had to defeat the main Japanese army before they could occupy Iwami Province. If we send troops to attack, we can choose a favorable battlefield. The minister thinks that Chikuzen Province is the best place. ”

Zhu Gaoxu quickly agreed: "According to the current situation, it is indeed necessary to use force to solve the problem. The main battle is the most efficient way of warfare, and the time is also the shortest. Let's prepare for the war first, so that the Japanese Muromachi Hall can confirm the news of the war and have time to mobilize people. Then let's gather it together and annihilate it. ”

He thought for a while, and then muttered: "Zhou Quan Wanliang and others used a large number of firearms on Tsushima Island, can the Japanese army understand the equipment and tactical situation of the Ming officers and soldiers?" ”

Qi Tai said: "Whether the Muromachi Hall attaches importance to these specific situations, it is difficult for the ministers to guess, but there must be someone in Japan who knows." At that time, the official army did not have many warships, and it was impossible to besiege Tsushima Island, so they only gathered troops to clear out the Japanese ships in the former port and the defenders of the Zong clan. Some Japanese ships

It is also inevitable to escape from Hougang or the shallow grass bend in the west to the mainland. ”

Zhu Gaoxu said thoughtfully: "The military department still needs to convene more civil and military personnel to discuss and formulate various response tactics for the front-line commanders to refer to. ”

Qi Tai clenched his fists and said, "The Holy Lord doesn't have to worry too much. After the army gathers, how to array, how to attack and defend, and how to fight are all affected by many old habits, no matter which country wants to change within a year and a half, it is impossible; Temporary changes will cause confusion among the military orders of all parts of the army. The minister concluded that the Japanese army would not have new tricks. ”

"Qi Butang has a point, but with more preparation, it is better than using the lives of soldiers to try and make mistakes, and the cost is smaller." Zhu Gaoxu said, "This battle can only be won, not defeated!" ”

The three ministers immediately bowed down and said, "The ministers will do their best to plan and live up to the trust of the Holy Lord." ”

The monarch and ministers discussed secretly for a while, and several ministers took their leave and left. Zhu Gaoxu did not go downstairs immediately, and continued to stay until the end, he stood alone in front of the window and thought for a long time.

The situation is gradually opening up, and everything will soon enter the track of no return. Zhu Gaoxu found that he was not entangled at all, it was a completely wise decision, and he felt that everything was very smooth.

Regardless of whether Japan did anything wrong or not, Zhu Gaoxu believed that this war could not be avoided, and he would always find a nominal army; Unless the Muromachi den surrenders directly, he pays tribute, accepts the garrison, and cedes the Iwami silver mines.

If judged by benevolence and morality, this war seems to be an unjust war. However, when Zhu Gaoxu thought about it from another angle, he felt a different way.

In some critical periods, as long as Japan has a slight advantage, it will try to suppress and destroy the suzerain, and no one cares whether it is unjust or not; This is because Japan is surrounded by a big country, and there are powerful powers on its side, and it is obvious that they are threatened. It is in their national interests to attack and weaken the national policy of the suzerain.

On the contrary, the monarchs and ministers of the Ming Dynasty should also realize that there is an independent civilization that is completely uncontrolled around it, which is a hidden danger in itself. In the long run, it must be controlled to prevent the unexpected.

Emperors of all dynasties generally did not consider a country to be in danger. That's because thousands of years have passed since the last technological revolution (agriculture), and people have completely forgotten what great changes have taken place in the world. Nor can anyone realize the cruel reality that in the period of technological revolution, it is possible to rely on the first-mover advantage to make a small profit.

Of course, Zhu Gaoxu can easily "recall" that the next technological revolution is facing the direction of the sea. At that time when navigation adapted to the technological stage, the sea power countries had an advantage, rather than the amount of arable land.

Therefore, when the dynasty was on the rise and the Ming Dynasty had an absolute advantage, it must not be soft-hearted and self-paralyzed. The rise and fall of civilization, like the cycle of spring and autumn, always has a period of weakness; If you don't be aggressive when you are strong, the world will inevitably be punished by natural selection.

Zhu Gaoxu was in the attic, thinking and looking north. Behind a glazed tile palace, a group of weak and beautiful women live in the harem. But where he stood, the magnificent three halls seemed to be proclaiming the power of heaven and earth. Regarding the major events that came from here, Zhu Gaoxu did not regret or waver at this time.

。 Writing Chinese Network M.