Jiming Temple.
Zhu Di felt better, and he played chess with the prime minister in black, Yao Guangxiao, with great interest.
However, Emperor Yongle was well-equipped in both civil and martial arts, but he was an out-and-out bad chess player.
Facing the prime minister in black who was as smart as a demon, he played the game so well that he had no power to fight back.
Zhu Laosi was twisting a white piece, but he didn’t make a move for a long time.
‘Monk, it’s really getting colder today!’
Yao Guangxiao knew that the emperor was stalling for time, but since he was the emperor, he could only follow his words and answer, ‘Is the emperor worried about the Northern Expedition？’
‘Well, the weather is cold, and Wala won’t be peaceful.’ Zhu Di raised his eyebrows and said in a deep voice, ‘Lao Er once said that the further north you go, the colder it gets. It’s already so cold in Ming Dynasty, but you can imagine And you know how cold those barbarians will be.’
‘The weather is very cold and winter is coming. Countless cattle and sheep have frozen to death. These barbarians have to go south to rob and thresh the valleys.’
In recent days, reports have been coming from the border towns from time to time. The Wala army has stationed in the Luqu River, peeking into the Central Plains, and harassing the border.
Zhu Di was very worried about this. If it weren’t for this damn weather, he would have led his army on the Northern Expedition at this moment.
Having been a monarch and minister for so many years, Yao Guangxiao naturally understands Zhu Di’s temperament.
Zhu Di went on a personal expedition and sent his troops to the Northern Expedition to prove himself to the world.
He is the destined emperor, the sage and wise king who created the prosperous Ming Dynasty!
But what shocked him was that the emperor began to express his love and praise for the King of Han from some unknown time.
This is not good news for Daming.
Because, the Ming Dynasty not only had a prince, but also a grandson!
‘Your Majesty, may I allow you to meet His Highness the King of Han？’
Zhu Di’s pupils shrank suddenly, he glanced at the monk meaningfully, and then Bai Zi dropped.
‘Well, it’s better to choose a day than to hit the sun. The briquettes that the second brother made seem to be on sale today.’
‘Monk, you must be tired of sleeping in this temple every day. Why don’t you come with me to have a look？’
Yao Guangxiao smiled slightly and responded, ‘The emperor loves the people like a son. If the briquettes are really as cheap as the King of Han said, then the common people can have a warm winter. The poor monk also wants to see it.’
‘Well, let’s go and have a look.’
Zhu Di’s heart trembled, knowing that the monk was not just here to see the briquettes, but also to see his second child.
A strange thought suddenly came to his mind.
If the second child really has the appearance of an emperor, what should we do？
…
Qianqing Palace, Nuange.
Zhu Gaoxu listened boredly to the discussions of the giants and stared at the air in a daze.
When will this boring day of supervising and governing the country come to an end!
Zhu Di established a cabinet and six ministers. These state affairs were left to them to handle, and basically no trouble would occur.
So he, the Prince of Han who oversees the country, is actually just signing and sealing.
When his eyes touched the burning coal stove, Zhu Gaoxu suddenly became interested and suggested, ‘Little old men, today is the day when briquettes are put on sale. Do you want to go and take a look together？’
Xia Yuanji and others were stunned for a moment, then became energetic.
They have truly realized how cheap and practical this briquette is.
But ordinary people don’t know that in their impression, burning coal for heating will kill people.
If briquettes cannot be sold, it will not benefit the people of the world, and it cannot be regarded as a benevolent government.
Xia Yuanji was even more moved. After all, his household department had taken a stake in this briquette project, and he was still waiting to get the money!
‘Ahem, I think His Highness the King of Han’s proposal is a good one. Whether this briquette can be accepted by the people is related to people’s livelihood issues. Now that all major matters have been discussed, I should go and take a look in person.’
‘I second the proposal.’
‘Let’s go together.’
Not surprisingly, all the giants agreed to Zhu Gaoxu’s proposal.
After all, if this briquette project is handled well, it will be a benevolent and good deed by the court to benefit the people, and it will also be the political achievement of these important ministers.
To put it ten thousand steps back, even if it is not handled properly and all the money and resources invested by the Ministry of Revenue are wasted, it is still the responsibility of Prince Han to supervise the country.
Huang Huai and others also had an excuse to report to the emperor.
…
Nanshi.
The most prosperous and lively market in the capital, with cars, horses and people flowing through it.
At this moment, many ordinary people gathered in front of the Daming Coal Store, and they were all watching the shop assistants selling this new type of briquettes to Da Ming.
Qiu Guangde, the owner of the coal store, had a big belly and held up a small loudspeaker in his hand. He said loudly, ‘Fellow folks, don’t miss it when you are passing by!’
‘The King of Han was grateful for the severe cold in winter, so he specially developed this cheap briquette, which only costs two cents each!’
Hearing his voice, the people immediately exploded.
Two cents each？
Isn’t this too cheap？
Qiu Guangde’s voice was very loud. After he shouted at the top of his lungs, more people came to watch, and soon the coal store was surrounded by three floors inside and three floors outside.
However, the onlookers just listened and watched, but no one came forward to buy.
After all, this is coal, and burning coal for heating will kill people!
Someone soon questioned, ‘Will burning coal for heating kill people？’
‘Yes, isn’t this coal poisonous？’
‘That’s right, burning coal for heating will really kill you!’
Questions came out one after another, causing the people to shake their heads one after another and become more worried.
At this moment, Zhu Gaoxu, Xia Yuanji and others had rushed to the coal store and couldn’t help but frowned when they saw this scene.
‘Your Highness the King of Han, the people still have worries in their hearts! As a result, this briquette…’
Xia Yuanji said worriedly, looking a little anxious.
Zhu Gaoxu smiled and shook his head, ‘Why are you so anxious？ Keep reading.’
Hearing a series of questioning voices, Qiu Guangde remained calm and hurriedly explained, ‘In the past, people burned coal for heating without proper ventilation. There is poisonous gas in the coal, and people who inhale it will certainly die.’
‘But this briquette is completely different. We have gone through a complicated process to remove the poisonous gas inside, so it not only has less black smoke when burned, but is also non-toxic and harmless, and can be used with confidence.’
‘Look, everyone, there is not much black smoke. I have been standing next to this coal stove for so long. Have I ever felt any symptoms of discomfort？’
When the people watching saw this, they were suddenly surprised.
Qiu Guangde looked like they were moving, and tried to persuade them while the iron was hot, ‘You don’t have to stay so far away, you can come up and feel the scorching heat wave, and you can also smell it and see if you feel any discomfort!’
As soon as he finished speaking, some curious people came forward. First they put their hands to test the scorching heat wave, then leaned down and smelled it. They said in surprise, ‘Hey, it’s really like this. In the past, there was something like this when burning coal.’ The smell makes you dizzy when you smell it, but this one is not at all, and it’s such an amazing heat wave!”
When the people around heard this, they immediately came forward one by one, feeling the benefits of briquettes, and couldn’t help but marvel at it for a while.
‘Shopkeeper, you just said that this briquette is only two cents a piece. Is that true？’
Qiu Guangde immediately patted his chest and assured, ‘Of course it’s true. This was developed by King Han. It’s not for profit, but for the benefit of the people, so we set the ultra-low price of two cents.’
‘A load of charcoal on the market now costs 600 yuan. It can only be used for heating and cannot be used for a few days.’
‘But our briquettes are not only non-toxic and resistant to burning, but also have great heat. They can not only be used for heating, but can also be used to boil water for cooking…’
‘Bicomb coal is high-quality, low-cost, and has many uses. It only costs two cents, so what are you waiting for？’
Everyone nodded after hearing this, and then started to rush to buy it.
Qiu Guangde was smiling from ear to ear while greeting the guests and ordering the waiters to pack.
The sales site of honeycomb briquettes suddenly became extremely popular!