Zhu Yunhuan does have a lot of things to do, but fortunately, there is nothing particularly urgent at the moment, so everything is in order.

Zhu Wenyao stood up shakily, carefully stretched out his hands to keep his balance. But the next moment he sat down on the ground, still not learning to walk.

But this is already a great improvement. Now I don’t need anyone’s help and I can stand up on my own.

Zhu Wenyao climbed up with a babyish smile. He was a little timid and afraid of falling. It was also because the people around him were too protective of him. No one would be willing or dare to let this little baby fall and get hurt.

"You look a little fatter!" Zhu Yunxun looked at his fat son carefully and said with a smile, "Grandfather, how much does Wen Yao weigh now?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said angrily, "No, our Wen Yao is not fat. You don't understand these things. Children will become thinner when they grow up."

The baby fat is real, Zhu Wenyao is chubby and very cute now. But this is also related to how much Zhu likes his great-grandson. Even if it is hard to hold him for a long time, he just sighs that he is too old.

"I've ordered adjustments to be made to the troops in Kaiping and Daning, and Liaodong needs some changes as well." Zhu Yunhuan said his thoughts, "Some of the garrisons are not loyal, so I've ordered them to deal with them."

Old Zhu thought for a moment and said, "It's appropriate to do this. In the early years, we had no choice because those places were too big and it was difficult to encircle and suppress them with heavy troops. Now that there is no war, it's better to clean up those places."

This was also Zhu Yuanzhang's concern. Although he drove away the Yuan court, there were still many Yuan forces in the south of the desert and in Liaodong. Many Mongols chose to surrender to the Ming Dynasty when the situation was not going well.

But at that time, it was difficult for the Ming Dynasty to completely control those areas, so some garrisons were set up, and those tribal leaders would also waver between the Ming Dynasty and Mongolia.

Now that the time is ripe, these garrisons must make up their minds, or just serve honestly as officials of the Ming Dynasty.

Or they could just surrender to the Tartars, but once they were wiped out by the Ming army, don't even think about surrendering and then rebelling, or rebelling and then surrendering again, because there wouldn't be such a good thing.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "My fourth uncle, fifth uncle, and seventh uncle are generous and have each taken out their troops. This makes me feel that Liaodong, Daning and other places are no longer short of troops and can be defended."

Zhu Yunhuan rolled his eyes at Zhu Yunhuan's words of taking advantage of the situation. "Your uncles are really generous. If you really want to mobilize troops, they will have to give them to you. Let your fourth uncle go to Kaiping and divide the pasture."

Zhu Yunhuan had no objection to this. Apart from anything else, Zhu Di still had considerable military capabilities, and it would save him a lot of trouble if he went to command the southern part of the desert.

For example, issues such as the northwest border are now basically handled by Jin Wang Zhu Gang. He has done a very good job, and his ability and prestige are enough to convince other vassal kings or soldiers.

After all, the two most capable and militarily powerful vassal kings in the Ming Dynasty are the King of Jin and the King of Yan, so they can be asked to do more things.

As for worrying about them becoming bigger and stronger, there is no need to worry. Whether it is the King of Jin or the King of Yan, they are the vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty. Let them do things when there is work, and return to their vassal states to enjoy wealth and honor when there is nothing to do.

Military power: these princes have no chance to obtain real military power, and it is difficult for them to command their own troops.

Zhu Yunhuan was not polite either, and said, "It's time to take back the military power. It's true that the three guards of the vassal kings are the troops of the imperial court, but after a long time, people will inevitably think too much."

Zhu Yuanzhang did not refute this. He naturally understood the logic. There was no other way to set up the three guards for the vassal kings. At that time, there was a need to take back the military power from the nobles, and the vassal kings were one of the best choices.

Now there is no need to worry about the power in the hands of the nobles, and there will not be too much war in the Ming Dynasty. The existence of the three guards of the vassal kings will indeed be a bit conspicuous, and some people with ulterior motives may make trouble because of it.

"Now that we have gradually taken back the guard posts from our uncles, we can arrange for them to be relocated to other places." Zhu Yunxun said with a smile, "Second uncle and third uncle will probably complain."

Old Zhu said indifferently, "Whether they grumble or complain, they can only accept it. They are vassal kings, not the emperor of the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Yunhuan thought so too. "In fact, over the years, only the first few uncles had the Three Guards of the Prince. The other uncles didn't have so many soldiers and horses."

This is not necessarily Zhu Yunhuan's "merit", but the princes who were enfeoffed in the early years did have three guards. However, the situation stabilized later, and some of the princes lived in relatively stable places, so there was no need to give them three guards.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "I plan to assign a thousand-household unit to Uncle Wu. Although there are guards from the palace, I am worried that there are not enough people. One thousand-household unit should be enough."

Old Zhu smiled and said, "In a place like Kaifeng, the yamen runners are enough. If there is a real riot, not to mention a thousand households, even a guard station would not be enough. You just need to govern the country well, that's all."

"It's better to have it than not, and this way I can feel at ease." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "But I have to make it clear to my uncles that these are imperial troops, not their private soldiers."

Old Zhu could naturally understand Zhu Yunhuan's meaning. In addition to being worried that some princes would use the Thousand Households to do evil, he was also worried that some princes would use the Thousand Households to place people in his position.

Therefore, the thousand-household guard of the prince was only to protect the prince's safety. It did not mean that they would completely obey the prince's orders. There was a big difference here.

Zhu Wenyao grabbed Zhu Yunxun's clothes, twisted his chubby face and pointed at the palace gate, "Ah!"

Zhu Yunhuan took a look and understood, "Want to go out and play again? It's already so late, why are you still thinking about going out and playing?"

"Ah!" Zhu Wenyao was unhappy, and his tone was a little higher, "Ah!"

Zhu Yunhuan was defeated, and his fat son was looking outside eagerly, just thinking about going out to play. He was a little fat boy who liked to be lively.

On the other hand, it is rare to see such a loving father and filial son. The fat kid used to be indifferent to Zhu Yunhuan. Even though he is so proactive now because he needs help from talents, this is also a rare opportunity.

Zhu Yunhuan immediately picked up the little fat kid and said, "Grandfather, I'm going to take Wen Yao out for a walk. It's rare for this kid to invite me out to play!"

Old Zhu also stood up with a smile, his hands behind his back, "Let's go, it's a good time to go to the back garden to take a look, it's been a while since I last went there."

Since moving to the West Palace, Old Zhu basically never goes to the back garden. Even though the six East Palaces are empty now, Old Zhu himself does not go there, nor does he allow his concubines to go to the back garden.

Zhu Wenyao is happy. It is obvious that as long as he can go out and play, this child will be very happy and active. Even if the scenes in front of him are familiar, he will still be happy.

"Grandfather, let's raise some fish here." Zhu Yunhuan looked at the artificial lake and said, "If they are fatter, it will look auspicious. Then we can take Wen Yao to feed the fish and go fishing. It will be so pleasant." Old Zhu thought this was a good suggestion and said, "That's a good idea. We'll have someone arrange it later. You don't have to worry about this. Just focus on the important matters of the court."

"Let Miao Jin do it. There is still some money left in the treasury." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "If you really come, you will be reluctant to spend money."

Lao Zhu did not refute. In his opinion, it was not worth spending too much money on some scenery or toys. It was such a waste and he would feel extremely sad if he spent the money.

The little great-grandson wanted to feed the fish, so of course he couldn't be vague, but it wasn't worth spending too much money to raise some fish, etc. The future crown prince of the Ming Dynasty couldn't be too playful.

Old Zhu asked, "There are a lot of places that need to spend money in the past two years. Do you think the court can take care of it?"

Zhu Yunhuan said confidently, "I can definitely take care of it. I have accumulated wealth for thirty years, and now it is enough for me to do something."

Hearing Zhu Yunhuan say this, Zhu Yunhuan was also quite pleased. Although there was some exaggeration, Zhu Yunhuan had laid a solid foundation for the Ming Dynasty in the past 30 years, and the national strength had also recovered a lot.

If it were in the early years of the founding of the country, Zhu Yuanzhang really would not have the confidence to dredge the Grand Canal. After all, there was a shortage of money and food at that time, and there were indeed a lot of things to deal with inside and outside.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "I will definitely start making some arrangements. I will start preparing the fleet at the beginning of the year, and then it will be time to go out to sea."

Old Zhu smiled and said, "We really need to see about this. Although we brought back a lot of good things before, we still need to see if they can last long."

Regarding maritime trade, Lao Zhu's attitude is still relatively conservative. He is not overly optimistic about it and feels it is necessary to observe carefully.

Although they had brought back a lot of good things before, Lao Zhu had also inquired carefully. That was not normal trade at all, and many of them were just the Ming army fighting against some rebellious people.

If we can bring back good things in the future instead of having troops escorting us everywhere, that would be a long-term income and a real way to make money for the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yunxun also laughed and said, "I have thought about this in my mind. In the future, we must not rely on the army to open the way all the time. We must be ruthless when necessary."

Old Zhu didn't object. After all, since they were outside the Ming Dynasty, they were no longer the citizens of the Ming Dynasty, so there was no need to be overly kind to them.

Lao Zhu himself is a pragmatist, and having enough benefits is the most important thing to him.

Zhu Yunhuan also continued, "We can't blame the navy entirely. Some of them are pirates. Others are barbarians who are uncivilized and dare to rob our fleet. They should be taught a lesson."

Old Zhu sighed and said, "That's the truth. We are just afraid that if the sea is really opened, some people will have more thoughts. Seeing too many things from the outside world, people's hearts will be difficult to stabilize."

Zhu Yunhuan was speechless for a moment regarding Zhu Yuanzhang's concerns. Perhaps what Zhu Yuanzhang said made sense.

If one does not understand the outside world, if one does not know some of the situations outside, some people may just continue to live their entire lives according to the lifestyle of their ancestors and not want to make any changes.

But once you know that there are some unexpected things outside, your original mindset of keeping to yourself may change, and you may not just simply consider remaining unchanged.

However, Zhu Yunhuan would definitely not give up because of fear. Although opening the sea would definitely bring some risks or instability, that was acceptable.

It is difficult to have the best of both worlds and be perfect in anything. As long as the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, it naturally means that it is worth doing. It is just that simple.

Xu Miaojin came over with a food box and said, "Grandfather, it's time for Wen Yao to eat some fruits."

Zhu Wenyao, who was still in Zhu Yunhuan's arms, suddenly became happy. He danced with joy, kicked his short legs, and shook his little hands, looking like he couldn't wait.

Old Zhu was also very happy, "Well, let's see what delicious food Wen Yao eats!"

There is a reason why Zhu Wenyao is so chubby. He has not been weaned yet, but he occasionally eats some complementary food. Now he has little teeth and can eat some fruits and so on.

Old Zhu was peeling the orange with a smile, but Zhu Wenyao couldn't wait any longer. His mouth was drooling, and as soon as Old Zhu raised his hand, the child grabbed Old Zhu's big hand and refused to let go, stuffing the orange into his mouth.

Zhu Yunhuan was amused. "This kid is a little protective of his food. I find it funny to see him like this. It makes me feel better when I see him like this."

Old Zhu also thinks so, "Watching our Wen Yao eat can improve our appetite. Our child is a good eater and is not picky about food. We are just afraid of not getting enough to eat."

There is definitely nothing wrong with saying this. It doesn't mean that all children from wealthy families are picky eaters.

Zhu Yunhuan pointed to the artificial lake in front of him and said to Xu Miaojin, "Go back and ask someone what kind of fish are suitable to raise here. They should be pleasing to the eye and make noise when you feed them."

Xu Miaojin smiled and said, "It's not difficult. I thought about it some time ago, but I was afraid that my grandfather would find it troublesome, so I stopped."

Old Zhu said cheerfully, "You don't need to worry about me. I am older than you and two generations older than you. You don't like the things I like. Now you are the boss of the palace, so you don't need to worry about me."

That being said, neither Zhu Yunhuan nor Xu Miaojin would take Zhu's words seriously, nor could they really do what Zhu said.

They believed that what Lao Zhu said was sincere, but when facing Lao Zhu, how could they really ignore his feelings?

The only person who can do all these now is probably the little fat boy Zhu Wenyao.

He is very unhappy now. He slaps Lao Zhu's big hand angrily and yells at Lao Zhu in a fierce manner. It is obvious that he still wants to eat a little more and he hasn't eaten enough!

Old Zhu obviously wasn't angry either, and continued to feed Zhu Wenyao happily. This is the joy of raising a child. (End of this chapter)