Chapter 254 Zhu Yuanzhang does not want to bear the stigma of warmongering, and the King of Jin wants to use the Yixing case to rectify the temples
However, what Zhu Yuanzhang did not expect was that the person who first questioned this basic national policy was Zhu Gang, the vassal king he respected the most.

“Since the end of the Yuan Dynasty, there have been constant wars and various natural disasters, which have caused the people to be displaced and the fields to become barren.

All dynasties have been established based on agriculture. The most urgent task of the Ming Dynasty now is to recuperate and restore and develop agricultural production.

If we launch a war against Japan, which is far away in the East, it will be nothing but militarism!"

Looking at Zhu Yuanzhang's earnest words, Zhu Gang still insisted on his own ideas.

"If we don't fight this battle, then our next generation will have to fight it.

Killing the envoys is a slap in the face of the Ming Dynasty. If we don’t take countermeasures to punish them, it will inevitably lead to horrific disasters in the future!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang took a book called "Book of Han" from the bookshelf behind him, which mainly records the history of the Western Han Dynasty.

"The regent Li Shanchang once said that reading history can make one wise.

For example, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, he launched many large-scale military operations in order to expand territory and consolidate his rule.

Including the northern expedition against the Huns, the development of the Western Regions, the conquest of Korea, the southern pacification of the Minyue, and the conquest of the southwest.

Although these military actions enhanced the influence of the Han Dynasty to a certain extent, they also brought huge burdens and losses to the people and the national treasury.

The derogatory idiom "warmongering" was first used in the "Records of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty". We don't want to have the same reputation as Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in the future!"

Zhu Yuanzhang gazed at Zhu Gang deeply, his eyes revealing an indescribable complex emotion, which eventually turned into a heavy sigh.

He adjusted his tone slightly and continued, "It is true that what you said is not groundless, but this war is by no means a joke.

It is like a tightly interwoven net, any slight change may trigger a chain reaction and affect the overall situation.

Therefore, for such a major matter, we must act with caution and think carefully in order to formulate the most appropriate strategy."

Zhu Gang nodded solemnly and responded, "Father, in my opinion, the first thing to do now is to send an envoy to Japan.

Question them face to face and ask them why they dared to kill our Ming Dynasty envoys?

If Prince Huailiang of the Southern Dynasty could show a sincere attitude of admitting his guilt.

At the same time, if he is willing to make corresponding compensation, then perhaps we can give him a lighter sentence at our discretion.

If this person is stubborn and unrepentant, he will refuse to admit his mistakes.

Then we must not tolerate evil and must punish them severely!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly to show his approval of Zhu Gang's words.

"I know very well that the viewpoint you put forward is indeed reasonable and feasible.

But as the king of a country, the problem facing me is far more than just winning or losing a war.

The imperial court also needed to comprehensively consider various factors and weigh the pros and cons.

And then accurately grasp the future development direction of the Ming Dynasty.

Because every decision we make is related to the rise and fall, honor and disgrace of our country, as well as the well-being and safety of millions of our people.

So you and Dad must be extremely careful and never act rashly!"

Zhu Gang finally realized at this time that Zhu Yuanzhang must have noticed something.

No matter what he said now, he couldn't change his father's mind for the time being.

So Zhu Gang simply took a step back to advance, but he still secretly hoped that his father could discover Japan's evil ambitions in time.

"This is the Clinical Experiment Report on Vaccination of Smallpox that I asked someone to summarize. Based on the comparative studies during this period, we have drawn some conclusions. First of all, the better the physical fitness of a person, the less adverse reactions they will have after vaccination.

In addition, dietary choices after smallpox vaccination will also have a significant impact on the severity of adverse reactions.

As for the specific prevention and control effect, we need to find a smallpox patient and conduct infectiousness tests to determine it. "

Zhu Yuanzhang took the "Clinical Experimental Report on Cowpox Vaccination" and flipped through it. "After all, Lu Feng is a third-rank Jinyiwei commander. He always handles official business in the local area, which will give people the impression that he is wasting his talent.

If the Yixing case is almost done, let him respond to Tianfu's request."

After a short silence, Zhu Gang smiled and said, "I will go back and ask. If the relevant prisoners have been detained, I will definitely let Lu Feng return to Yingtian overnight."

In fact, the real difficulty of the "Yixing Case" is Zhao Zhenshengnu, a famous bully and rich man in Chongde County.

This man made his fortune by reselling illegal salt and was well connected with both the black and white worlds.

In addition, Zhao Zhenshengnu's family has a lot of gangsters and thugs, and he is the absolute "local tyrant" in Chongde County.

Lu Feng led the Jinyiwei to the house to ask for the person, but Zhao Zhenshengnu secretly sent Pan Fu to a temple in Qiancheng Township.

Since the capital of the Ming Dynasty was in the south and Zhu Yuanzhang had been a monk, Buddhist temples flourished across the country in recent years.

However, while the temples owned large amounts of land and wealth, the monks also enjoyed privileges such as tax exemption and exemption from military service, which created a sharp conflict with the Ming Dynasty's finances.

The most important thing is that monks do not participate in production activities.

This will undoubtedly lead to a reduction in the Ming Dynasty's labor force. If this continues, it will inevitably affect the country's economic development.

But Buddhism is, after all, the mainstream belief among the people and has been integrated into the lives of ordinary people.

Not insisting on the religious policy of continuing to worship Buddha is also going against the people.

Fortunately, Zhao Zhenshengnu was smart this time and used the tiger's skin as a banner, which gave Zhu Gang and the temple a great opportunity to snatch labor.

In history, the temple that harbored Pan Fu not only colluded with the private salt dealer Zhao Zhenshengnu, but also openly resisted the yamen runners who went to arrest the criminal.

Zhu Gang had originally intended to take advantage of the favorable conditions of the Qiancheng Township temple to conduct an all-round overhaul of the Buddhist industry in the Ming Dynasty.

Now Zhu Yuanzhang proposed that Lu Feng return to Yingtian overnight, which was exactly what Zhu Gang wanted.

"I never thought that Lu Feng, the commander of the Jinyiwei, had just been transferred to Yingtian Prefecture when such a serious incident happened in Jiaxing Prefecture!"

Looking at the urgent official document sent by Shang Hao, the doctor of the Ministry of Justice, Zhu Biao, the Crown Prince Regent, couldn't help but frown.

Li Shanchang, the Duke of Han who was in charge of assisting the Crown Prince in regulating the country, took the urgent document and read it carefully.

“I have heard that Liu Guan, the prefect of Jiaxing Prefecture, was not only good at collecting taxes during his tenure, but he also never used harsh laws.

When hearing cases on a regular basis, Liu Guan is also able to see the truth.

In addition to handling government affairs, he also urged students to read and even taught them personally.

I think it must be the collusion between Liang Jing, the magistrate of Chongde County, and Zhao Zhenshengnu, officials and businessmen, that led to such a serious incident! "

Zhu Biao said solemnly: "Mr. Shang said in the official document, 'The Jinyiwei and Chongde County officials went to the temple to ask for someone, but more than 200 murderous monks jumped out.

The officers were surrounded and beaten on the spot, and many of them died.

If the problem lies with County Magistrate Liang Jing, is he bold enough to openly confront the Imperial Guards?"

(End of this chapter)