Raising chickens and pigs and digging for wild vegetables, the county magistrate's promotion wa

Chapter 50 Our Biao'er has made something of himself!

Faced with Emperor Zhu Chongba's question, Zhu Biao felt a bit like laughing and crying at the same time: "No, I've never even met that Magistrate Yang, so how would I know what's so good about him?"

After speaking, Zhu Biao added cautiously, "However, judging from his actions in Ningyang County, he seems to be greedy for fame, profit, and food. I wonder if this Magistrate Yang is also fond of women."

Zhu Chongba smiled and said "Oh," then asked, "Tell me in detail."

Zhu Biao looked annoyed and couldn't help but complain, "These are all things you taught me, and now you're using them to test me. Don't you find it annoying?"

After finishing his rant, Zhu Biao continued, "The reason he is said to be fond of fame is because he always thinks of the people—such officials are either bookworms or just fond of fame, and this Magistrate Yang is clearly not a bookworm who is bookworms, so he is naturally just looking for a good reputation."

"Of course, it is also possible that he is a good official who loves the people like his own children. We need to observe this carefully and not rush to make a judgment."

"The reason he was considered greedy is because he not only set up chicken farms, pig farms, and livestock farms in Ningyang County, but also produced lighters. Moreover, this Magistrate Yang also sold fodder and lighters to the army, making a considerable profit in the process."

"As for his gluttony," Zhu Biao waved a memorial in his hand, "Didn't Limpy Wu tell Uncle Chang that when Magistrate Yang first started the chicken farm, he mentioned cooking methods like braised, boiled, and salt-baked? If he wasn't a good eater, why would he be thinking about how to cook chickens as soon as he started raising them?"

Emperor Zhu Chongba smiled and nodded again, then asked, "So tell me, Xu Da and Chang Heitan both submitted memorials to recommend him for merit, how should I, as the emperor, reward him?"

Zhu Biao couldn't help but retort, "Are you thinking of rewarding him, or are you thinking of winning over the hearts of the people of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun?"

Before Emperor Zhu Chongba could answer, Zhu Biao continued, "If you ask me, Your Majesty, you don't need to reward him with anything valuable. Just give him a few silver ingots, a few books, and issue an imperial edict to the people of Ningyang County, urging them to cultivate the land properly and telling them that if a drought were to occur, the court would definitely allocate grain for relief. That would be enough."

Emperor Zhu Chongba laughed heartily twice: "Alright, we'll do it your way. Go back and draft an edict for us, then get it stamped."

After forcibly conscripting Crown Prince Zhu Biao into hard labor, Emperor Zhu Chongba rushed to Kunning Palace, completely disregarding whether Zhu Biao was willing to do the work.

Upon arriving at Kunning Palace, Emperor Zhu Chongba exclaimed loudly, "Sister! Sister! Let me tell you, our Biao'er has really made something of himself today!"

Empress Ma greeted her with a smile and asked, "How exactly do you mean by 'promising'?"

Emperor Zhu Chongba first recounted the situation, then said with a smile, "Our Biao'er has grown up and can now share the burdens of his father. Don't you think he's accomplished?"

Empress Ma couldn't help but roll her eyes, and then snorted coldly, "Yes, your son is quite successful, but you, as the emperor, only think about your son's success and don't think about the situation in the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun?"

Emperor Zhu Chongba was slightly taken aback and asked, "What's going on?"

Empress Ma said, "According to what you just said, Ningyang County only has about five hundred households and a population of about two thousand. Is this only the case in Ningyang County, or is it the case throughout Shandong? If it is the case throughout Shandong, what about the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun?"

When Empress Ma asked him this question, the once enthusiastic Emperor Zhu Chongba immediately wilted, feeling as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water on a cold winter's day.

After a long silence, Emperor Zhu Chongba sighed softly and said, "It's the same all over the north. Shandong is like this, and so are the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun. These plague-ridden Tartars!"

After cursing the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Chongba continued, "Actually, there are some things we haven't told Biao'er yet."

Before Empress Ma could ask, Emperor Zhu Chongba slowly began to speak: "What's giving us a headache right now is that the north is sparsely populated and the land is barren. It will be difficult to recover in a short time. Otherwise, we wouldn't have told Xu Da and Chang Heitan to distribute the captured cattle and horses to the people in various places last time."

"But the sparse population and barren land in the north are only superficial problems that are 'the root of the problem'. Anyone can see that. Secondly, the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun have been ravaged by war for four hundred years. Now the north and south are separated. The northerners do not consider the southerners as their own people, and the southerners do not consider the northerners as their own people either. This is the real problem that is 'the root of the problem'. It is already very rare that Biao'er can see this level."

"Another issue is the excessive prevalence of literary culture in the South. After all, when you advised me to study, you said that while one can conquer the world on horseback, one cannot govern it. If one does not study, one will only be fooled by those scholars. Now, your words have come true. In the future, Southerners will dominate the court. These people do not treat Northerners as their own, so they will naturally not care about the Northern regions. In this way, how can we win the sincere allegiance of the people in the Northern regions? In my opinion, this is a 'disease in the stomach and intestines,' which cannot be treated with acupuncture and moxibustion."

Empress Ma nodded, and while gently waving her fan at Emperor Zhu Chongba so that he could feel a slight breeze, she asked, "Since you said the ailment is in the skin, the muscles, and the stomach, then it seems there is also a bone marrow ailment?"

"The illness..." Emperor Zhu Chongba hesitated for a while before finally saying in a low voice, "None of the three illnesses we just mentioned can be cured in a short time. As Bian Que said, if left untreated, they will worsen and eventually become a bone marrow disease."

Empress Ma frowned slightly, but still smiled and comforted Emperor Zhu Chongba: "Duke Cai Huan was reluctant to seek medical treatment, which is why Bian Que said that if left untreated, the disease would only worsen. Now that you know where the disease is, be patient and treat it. If it can't be cured in one year, then two, three, five, or ten years. You are still young, and there are many talented people in the court. How can you let it become a bone marrow disease?"

After thinking for a moment, Empress Ma simply put down the fan in her hand, stood up and said, "Wait here, I'll go make you a bowl of noodles and get you two cloves of garlic."

Emperor Zhu Chongba burst into laughter and looked at Empress Ma, saying, "Yes, yes, my sister knows us best. With a bowl of noodles and two cloves of garlic from my sister, all our worries disappear!"

After Empress Ma left, Emperor Zhu Chongba chuckled a few times and muttered under his breath, "My sister is right. Cai Huan Gong is reluctant to seek medical treatment, but I, Zhu Chongba, cannot be like him. I must be patient and treat him—this Magistrate Yang is indeed a good medicine!"