Chapter 152: Two Types of Realms, What is National Fortune?

Zhu Yuanzhang was a man who attached paramount importance to supreme authority. Zhang Yi was one of the key promoters of introducing mathematics into the imperial examinations, yet he immediately turned around to profit from this nationwide trend. This made Zhu Yuanzhang feel somewhat uncomfortable.

As the person who understood the Emperor best, Zhu Biao intentionally brought the matter up first, hoping to find a way to clear Zhang Yi of any blame. However, he had not expected that Zhu Yuanzhang would proactively express that he did not mind at all. Clearly, in the Emperor's heart, Zhang Yi held a rather unique position.

Zhu Yuanzhang produced a pencil:
"Do you still remember what Zhang Yi said when I bought out the patent for the pencil from him? When I first acquired this pencil, I never imagined it could possess such immense promotional value! Yet, after Zhang Yi pushed forward the examination system and engaged in that discourse with Liu Bowen, the pencil actually transformed into an exceptionally best-selling commodity. Gao Xianxian once reported a matter to me: last month, counting the orders from the Imperial Academy and various other places, the pencil workshop I casually established generated a profit of five hundred taels for me! Moreover, this is merely the beginning; the pencil faintly shows a trend of massive sales..."

"Even if it sells in huge quantities, it should hardly be enough to astonish Your Majesty!"
"True, such a paltry sum is hardly worth my attention, but the things that child produces always give me the sensation that he is playing a game of go... The pencil is merely a single chess piece, yet as the game progresses, it evolves into a part of reform. I always feel that no matter how absurd and mischievous his actions appear at the moment, they invariably lead to some unusual consequences! Therefore, this time I do not wish to interfere with him in the slightest; I will simply watch! Who knows, amidst all his mischief, he might just open up yet another new horizon for me..."

So this was the Emperor's underlying intention. Zhu Biao smiled faintly. To be able to make the pragmatic and skeptical Emperor believe in such mystical intuition, this younger brother from the Zhang family was truly formidable.

"Let's go. It has been a long time since we last saw that child; let us pay him a visit today!"
"Indeed, this son also wishes to have a chat with younger brother Zhang!"

The father and son duo acted without delay. Zhu Yuanzhang issued instructions regarding his departure from the palace, and arrangements were swiftly made. Before long, their carriage left the palace and proceeded through the bustling commercial district.

"Get off the carriage!"
Halfway through their journey, the Emperor instructed Zhu Biao to disembark. Wearing a puzzled expression, Zhu Biao followed the Emperor into a wine tavern. On the second floor, the father and son found a table by the window, surrounded by hidden guards. In the distance, a storyteller was speaking, though Zhu Biao could not catch the specifics of the narrative; he could only faintly discern that it seemed to be about the reigning Emperor!

"This wine tavern was established by me... Look at the drapery shop opposite us; that is also our family's property. And that distant place—you have visited the pencil workshop before... In the future, you should try to manage these enterprises. You are still young, and although you have been by my side and absorbed much through sight and sound, you remain somewhat naive when handling affairs of state. While I trust your character, I cannot entirely trust your capability! Therefore, your primary task for the next few years remains studying under Song Lian and the others, as well as learning... However, since we are fated to know that boy from the Zhang family, I originally set up these businesses merely as a pastime and to provide a cover for the imperial secret agents. But upon reflection, these ventures are uniquely suited to tempering a person! Hence, I am handing them over to you to play with; it does not matter if you ruin them! Whatever lessons you manage to glean from this will at least not辜负 my painstaking efforts."

Hearing this, Zhu Biao stood up and bowed in respect.

"Although you have accompanied me through hardships, you have never truly experienced the sufferings of the common people. Now that you have left the palace, occasionally use your own eyes to observe this marketplace! Over the years, there have always been voices within the court urging me to abolish the secret investigative agency, and you too have considered this institution an unjust measure! I want you to understand that the world viewed from a sovereign's perspective and the world viewed from the perspective of an ordinary commoner are two entirely different realms! I will say no more; if you think more and observe more, you will naturally understand!"
"Understood, Father!"

Zhu Biao's eyes grew slightly red once more, though he managed to restrain himself. Zhu Yuanzhang added a final injunction:
"However, letting you observe the marketplace is not meant for you to indulge in it. After all, you are the crown prince of the Empire, and you are different from others! This realm of the Great Ming is far from peaceful! Within this very marketplace, there is no telling how many people actually harbor loyalties toward the northern regime. Winning over the hearts of the people is a slow, grinding process that can only be altered bit by bit through time! If these people were ever to discover your true identity, it would become exceedingly dangerous!"

Having said that, Zhu Yuanzhang stood up and turned to walk downstairs. Zhu Biao followed closely behind him, and as they descended, he finally heard the storyteller's tale clearly. The protagonist of the story was none other than the reigning Hongwu Emperor...

"I also wish to test whether rumors and legends can be used to manipulate human hearts..."
The concept of mass communication had never truly been erased from the Emperor's mind. Zhu Biao nodded silently, following cautiously.

"Your younger brother Zhang should have finished his visit to the Kong family residence by now. It is the perfect time to go find him!"
As the Emperor spoke and stepped outside, a donkey cart happened to pass by the entrance of the tavern. Zhang Yi lifted the curtain, locking eyes directly with Old Zhu.

"Yellow... Un-cle..."

The moment he caught sight of Zhu Yuanzhang, he froze for a split second, and then shouted at the top of his lungs in a voice that turned the heads of everyone on the street. Old Zhu instantly became the center of attention, feeling somewhat awkward. Yet, a smile crept onto the corner of his lips, revealing genuine delight.

The joy Zhang Yi felt upon seeing him was entirely from the heart. Such sincere emotion was something Zhu Yuanzhang had seen less and less of ever since ascending the throne! Before the boy's donkey cart had even come to a complete halt, he leaped straight out of the vehicle.

Zhu Yuanzhang's smile immediately vanished as he assumed an expression of exasperated fury:
"You reckless dead child, how could you pull such a dangerous stunt? If anything were to happen to you, how could I ever face your father?"

As Zhang Yi landed on his feet, he merely offered an abashed grin in the face of Old Zhu's scolding. Having lived two lives, he could clearly discern the genuine concern hidden beneath those harsh words.

"Uncle, why didn't you let me know you were returning to Yingtian so that I could properly host you?"
With a cold face, Zhu Yuanzhang retorted sarcastically:
"I wouldn't dare trouble you, Great Daoist Master Zhang. I hadn't even re-entered Yingtian Prefecture when I already heard of your great name; you've certainly been living quite a high-flying life recently! Because of a single word from you and a family letter from this boy, I had to trot off to the north like a summoned dog... Unlike you, living your days in total leisure and freedom!"

Zhang Yi refused to fall into Zhu Yuanzhang's trap. He replied:
"If Uncle Yellow envies me, you are welcome to come to my Daoist temple, and I will personally guide you in your spiritual cultivation... Didn't you go to the north for the sake of Brother Yellow's future? How can you pin that blame on me?"

Knowing that he would gain no advantage in a verbal sparring match with this fellow, Old Zhu remained silent. At that moment, Zhu Biao stepped in to smooth things over:
"Father just returned and was actually preparing to go look for you... Who would have thought we'd bump into you right as we stepped outside!"

Zhang Yi looked up and glanced at the building:
"Is this place also your property...?"
"That's right. In the future, should you encounter temporary financial difficulties, you can come here to draw some silver. Let's go; it's been a long time since we visited the temple!"

Unwilling to converse at length with Zhang Yi on the open street, Zhu Yuanzhang pulled him toward the carriage. Before long, the entourage arrived at the gates of the Qingxin Temple, and Old Zhu dismounted. Surveying the courtyard walls, where old and new mortar intertwined, the temple appeared all the more dilapidated.

"Little Deng, what is the story behind this courtyard wall?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked a question to which he already knew the answer. Hearing the inquiry, Deng Zhongxiu quickly replied:
"Master Yellow, a while ago the temple was targeted by thieves. Following my junior brother's instructions, this humble Daoist hired someone to heighten the walls!"

Zhu Yuanzhang remarked:
"The Qingxin Temple is located in a remote area, and public security here is indeed subpar. Zhang Yi, you and Little Deng must exercise caution! Especially the two of you; if you flash your wealth, you are bound to attract the attention of scoundrels. If they were merely petty thieves, it would be one thing, but running into hardened bandits would make things rather troublesome!"

Zhang Yi nodded. For once, he refrained from giving a snappy retort on this matter. The ancient era was vastly different from future generations; murder and robbery were very real occurrences. Especially in the present era, when the realm had not yet fully stabilized. Although Jiangnan had recovered several years of peace under Zhu Yuanzhang's administration, among the common people, public sentiment remained unsettled.

To say nothing of the north, the south likewise harbored factions nostalgic for the previous dynasty. Such sentiments existed among the officials in the court just as they did among the common folk below. The reasons for this were numerous, stemming not only from human inertia and habit but also tied to Old Zhu's offenses against the Jiangnan landlord class. Though these individuals did not wield weapons, they controlled public opinion. The subtle, pervasive influence of this propaganda was astonishing!

All in all, Zhang Yi would not have found it strange if a large number of hidden rebels were lurking among the populace at this moment. During the Hongwu reign, civil unrest and uprisings emerged endlessly. This state of affairs could only gradually dissipate with the passage of time...

"This junior has also been pondering this problem, which is why I had the courtyard walls heightened and instructed Senior Brother Deng to practice martial arts and weapon handling to add an extra layer of protection... Furthermore, valuable items are best no longer kept in the temple; such things easily draw covetous eyes!"

"Practicing martial arts?" Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled. "Instead of learning the Thunder Method of your Celestial Masters' Mansion, why are you studying martial arts?"

Knowing that Old Zhu was joking with him, Zhang Yi could not help rolling his eyes. If only he actually knew the Thunder Method! But the problem was that he didn't. No, wait—if he really wanted to learn the "Thunder Method," he probably could; it was just that the technique was far too dangerous, and one careless mistake would blow the entire Daoist temple to smithereens.

"If you are going to do that, you might as well write to Mount Longhu and summon a few more junior and senior brothers down the mountain. With a livelier atmosphere in the temple, naturally no thieves will dare to harbor greedy thoughts!"
"Forget it. Aside from Senior Brother Deng, very few people on the mountain hold any goodwill toward me; I would rather enjoy my freedom!"

Conversing as they walked, Zhang Yi and Old Zhu entered the backyard. Suddenly, he recalled another matter:
"By the way, Uncle Yellow, when I saw you at the pleasure house last time, one of your servants made a move, and his martial arts skills were extraordinary! If you have any martial experts on hand, I would like to pay to have him come and teach Senior Brother Deng. I only regret that I am too young to practice martial arts myself..."

"No matter how formidable martial prowess may be, it is at best the skill to contend with ten men. Even if our Great Ming's foremost fierce general, Chang Yuchun, were to come here, he could not withstand a hundred opponents... If you wish to learn, I can find someone for you later, but do not waste too much of your focus on it; just remain vigilant!"

Having spent years fighting on the battlefields, Old Zhu held individual martial prowess in low regard. He was a self-made man whose own martial arts were mediocre, yet hadn't he still brought fierce generals like Chang Yuchun, Xu Da, and Zhu Liangzu under his command? The art of warfare was the true skill capable of contending with ten thousand men.

This was the Emperor's habitual mindset, and Zhang Yi vaguely sensed an aura of ambition unbefitting a mere merchant emanating from Uncle Yellow. Thinking no further of it, he nodded in agreement.

Rather than lingering on this topic, Zhang Yi asked:
"Did you old gentlemen travel to Jining?"
"Mmm, and I am preparing to make a trip to Kaifeng soon... I heard from certain sources that His Majesty intends to make Kaifeng the capital..."

At this declaration, even Zhu Biao was startled. When Zhang Yi had previously discussed the relocation of the capital, Zhu Yuanzhang had clearly accepted his arguments. Why was the Emperor bringing up Bianliang (Kaifeng) again? Was he pulling the leg of the younger brother from the Zhang family, or did he genuinely intend to go?

"So the Emperor hasn't been there yet?"
Calculating the dates, Zhang Yi realized that May had long since passed. According to the original trajectory of history, Zhu Yuanzhang should have already visited Kaifeng once. The butterfly effect of history had ultimately altered the progression of many events.

Zhang Yi felt a contemplative stir, though he was not particularly surprised. In the early years of his reign, Zhu Yuanzhang had indeed given little thought to moving the capital far to the north. Dissatisfied with his current capital of Yingtian, he nevertheless lacked any immediate plan to shift the seat of government out of the Huai River and Yangtze regions. The capital of the Song dynasty remained the ideal location in Old Zhu's mind. It was precisely for this reason that Old Zhu later designated Kaifeng as the Northern Capital and Yingtian as the Southern Capital.

Yet it was only after making the journey himself and personally experiencing the "impoverished livelihood of the people" and the "arduousness of water and land transportation" that he reluctantly abandoned the idea. As for his later musings about Chang'an, that would not happen until decades later.

"Uncle has no need to waste too much time in Kaifeng; the Emperor will not establish the capital there... Whether it be Chang'an or Kaifeng, they are no longer the cities they were a century ago. Under alien rule, the people's livelihood in the north has withered. Setting aside the excessive evils perpetrated by the Mongols, which crippled the northern economy, there is also the shift in national fortune—those places that were once suited to serve as capitals have long since lost their vital energy! Do not follow the Emperor on such a wild goose chase. It is his affair if he wishes to go and plan to establish a capital in those places, but since the mandate no longer favors them, he will sooner or later change his mind!"

Hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang was far from pleased. Just as Zhang Yi had stated, he had indeed been continuously contemplating the issue of the capital's location. To him, the city of Nanjing had always been merely an expedient measure. He wished to establish the capital further north, and Kaifeng was a preferred choice, but setting Kaifeng aside for the moment—why drag Chang'an into the mix as well? Chang'an was the capital of the flourishing Tang dynasty, a memory that the Han Chinese could never avoid when recalling their glorious past.

Setting aside political significance and practical considerations, Kaifeng and Chang'an also held a certain romantic nostalgia in Old Zhu's heart. Kaifeng was the capital of the Northern Song, and placing the capital there symbolized him, Zhu Yuanzhang, restoring the state of affairs prior to the Mongols' destruction of the Han Chinese dynasty. Chang'an, meanwhile, evoked the bygone glory of the Han people.

"What do you mean by 'lost its vital energy'?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked coldly.
Without skipping a beat, Zhang Yi replied:
"The so-called vital energy—let us dispense with the abstruse theories of destiny. Vital energy is nothing more than weather, precipitation, temperature, and other such factors. That is not an unreasonable way to put it, is it?"

Father and son were momentarily stunned. If Zhang Yi had started babbling about immortals and deities, the Emperor would likely have remained half-skeptical. Yet what Zhang Yi was discussing actually sounded somewhat logical.

"Elaborate..."
"First of all, let us make an assumption: if we were His Majesty the Emperor, and we needed to select a location as the capital, what conditions would be required first?"

Lowering his head in thought for a moment, Zhu Yuanzhang replied:
"First, the location of the capital must possess strategic natural defenses and be sufficiently secure... Secondly, the economy cannot be too poor; the agricultural foundation in the vicinity of the capital must be solid, and water transportation must be developed! Otherwise—"

Before Zhu Yuanzhang could finish, Zhang Yi chuckled. Realizing it himself, Zhu Yuanzhang understood that Chang'an lacked the necessary conditions for water transportation. Yet refusing to be outdone, he thought that even without it, the Great Tang during its golden age had not required such infrastructure and had still managed to become the most powerful capital in the world.

Understanding Old Zhu's doubt, Zhang Yi explained:
"Let me explain to Uncle why that is: because the north during the High Tang was fundamentally different from the north of the present day! Uncle has traveled far and wide; if you were to compare the differences between the north and the south, what is your greatest sensation?"

"The north is... cold..."
"Precisely! Why is the nation's granary currently in the south while northern production is withered? Aside from the destruction wrought by the Mongols, a huge part of the reason is tied to climate! The south enjoys a warm climate, making both cultivation and animal husbandry far superior to the north. The concentration of our Great Ming's economic center in the south is actually brought about by this vital energy! But what is vital energy? In my view, it is environmental changes driven by a series of climatic factors such as temperature and precipitation!

Take Chang'an, for example. The Chang'an of the Tang dynasty was by no means a cold place; at that time, the climate was humid and hot, with abundant rainfall. For instance, Bai Juyi's poetic lines—'The feet steam in the sultry earth's vapor, the back scorches in the blazing heavenly light'—clearly indicate that the Chang'an city of the Tang dynasty was entirely different from the north we see today. If it were cold back then, would Imperial Concubine Yang have needed to visit the Huaqing Pool to escape the summer heat? Would the Emperor have needed to distribute ice to his officials annually as a reward? Commoners sleeping on straw mats while emperors slept on ivory mats—all these historical records demonstrate that Chang'an in the Tang dynasty was a scorching place.

Because it was hot and rainy, the vicinity of Chang'an boasted lush vegetation and flourishing agriculture! Indeed, not just around Chang'an, but even further north, it bore no resemblance to its current state! There was warmth and there was rainfall. The Chang'an of that era was simply the Jiangnan of today! Therefore, the Chang'an of that period could serve as the capital of our flourishing Tang!

Yet all of this began to change around the time of the An Lushan Rebellion! The *New Book of Tang* records that the garrison farms along the borders were abandoned, and crops froze to death. The Yellow River basin was no longer suitable for rice cultivation! It was also from this point onward that the Tang dynasty transitioned from its zenith to decline, its national power waning!

Thus, the decline of the Tang, while certainly catalyzed by the human disaster of An Lushan, was fundamentally caused by a shift in natural numbers and the exhaustion of national fortune! Under such circumstances, even if Emperor Taizhou were reborn, he would be powerless to reverse the tide.

And now, centuries have passed since the fall of the Tang! How could the Great Ming withstand natural forces that even the glorious Tang could not endure? The Chang'an of the Tang era was a capital to which all nations paid homage, but if Chang'an were to serve as the capital today, it would be a fiery pit! In such a bitter, cold, and transportation-constrained wasteland, where would you expect the Emperor to conjure up grain to feed those starving commoners?

Therefore, I advise Uncle not to meddle blindly in the Emperor's affairs; he is merely suffering from the disadvantage of having traveled little and seen less. The moment he actually runs out to inspect the provinces in person, I guarantee he will never gamble with the nation's destiny! If you wish to capitalize on northern policy benefits, settling down in Shandong or other cities along the canal is the superior strategy... My suggestion to you, if you do not wish to stray too far from home, is to go to Jining... If you want a one-step solution, simply wait until the Dadu is captured and seize the initiative! I dare guarantee you that unless the Emperor abandons the idea of moving the capital altogether, if he truly intends to make a move, he cannot bypass Dadu!"

Zhu Yuanzhang temporarily put aside the question of Dadu, still hooked on the concept of natural numbers that Zhang Yi had expounded.
"So, the so-called national fortune is nothing more than climate change?"

(Note: The author wishes everyone a happy holiday! Up to this chapter, the author has updated 290,000 words this month, with an average of over 10,000 words updated daily. As a part-time author, given my hard work in updating, please reward me with some monthly votes!)