Of course, the main reason was that he simply couldn't imagine a scene with a bunch of women in the inner palace; never mind a bunch, he could hardly accept even one.
Wait.. this doesn't seem quite normal for him.
Zhu Ci thought about his situation during puberty in his previous life, then remembered that during his puberty in his previous life, he was locked in school studying every day, treating boys and girls exactly the same, never gave such things a second thought.
After entering university.. it was all monk temples and daily training; that bit of energy had long been exhausted, so how could he have thought about such things?
So it seemed as though he had never considered that there was something wrong with his views on marriage.
Is this a sign that he's destined to be single for the rest of his life?
Zhu Ci himself didn't care, but facing Zhu Ci's reminder, he said, "Don't worry, I will make money, when the time comes, I will leave them money. As for the future, that will depend on them; am I supposed to earn all the money for them too?"
He is already responsible for conquering the world and making money; to demand anything else is a bit outrageous.
Zhu Ci could only say cautiously, "The idea is good, but perhaps it is not very easy to execute."
The expenses required to maintain the operation of the imperial court are unimaginably vast; without the support of national tax revenue, it would be truly difficult to imagine how to manage them.
Zhu Ci waved his hand. "Give it a try."
In fact, according to Zhu Ci's ideas, he could simply have the massive population of the imperial family take charge of these matters; if they could make money, they would have money, if they couldn't..
However, these were merely his temporary thoughts; the downsizing of the palace institutions would have to be explored gradually.
The only certainty was the suppression of eunuch institutions, many of which could be managed by ordinary people. He planned to place all eunuchs into the Internal Procuratorate, the Imperial Manufactory, the Palace Service Bureau, while placing ordinary people in other departments, such as the Imperial Stud, the Divine Palace Bureau, the Seal Bureau.
The institutions managed by these agencies were all inclined toward the outer court, responsible for things such as raising horses, sweeping and cleaning the Imperial Ancestral Temple and various other temples, managing incense and lamps, preparing sacrificial offerings, the construction of palaces and tombs, as well as the procurement and manufacturing of imperial furniture and artifacts.
Zhu Ci discussed these matters here with Zhu Ci, for some reason, it always gave him the feeling of a little brat being in charge.
Thinking about it carefully, it seemed like there wasn't much of a problem.
He and Zhu Ci's combined age was only thirty-one, they had no other elders above them, so they were truly just young masters running the show.
After Zhu Ci had established a general framework, he said, "Let's settle on this for now and make adjustments later."
In truth, he did not want to spend his energy on these matters, but if he did not finish handling these various affairs around him, any incident would directly affect his state of mind and also affect Great Ming.
The Great Ming is actually still very fragile.
Zhu Ci looked at Zhu Ci and asked, "I'm afraid there aren't that many people in the palace who are capable right now. How do you intend to choose?"
Zhu Ci waved his hand. "An examination!"
“Huh?”
What do you mean 'what'? If there are imperial examinations in the outer court, there can be examinations within the palace as well.
In fact, the Great Ming Dynasty also produced many formidable eunuchs, but those people were formidable not because of their status as eunuchs; rather, if they were not eunuchs, perhaps their achievements would have been even greater.
“Female officials too?”
Female officials too!
Zhu Ci said nothing, thinking to himself that the daughters of officials would have even more opportunities in the future; they could be sent here to serve as female officials first, then seek positions within the harem.
If they truly cannot become imperial concubines, being able to become the Emperor's confidants is not an unacceptable outcome.
For a moment, Zhu Ci wondered if his younger cousin already knew about the private schemes those officials were plotting.
He hesitated for a moment and asked, "Your Majesty.. do you already have a preferred candidate for Empress?"
Zhu Ci was shocked: "What? What Empress?"
Zhu Ci said, "His Majesty is already fifteen years old this New Year; it is time to consider choosing an Empress."
Zhu Ci fell silent for a long while. What was going on? He hadn't even been pressured to marry before he transmigrated, but after transmigrating, he was actually being pressured to marry?
Zhu Ci thought he was also worried about this matter and sighed, saying, "It's a pity there are no particularly suitable candidates in the imperial court right now. If the Grand Secretary had a daughter, it would be different."
Zhu Ci immediately replied with three words: "That won't do!"
Zhu Ci was startled by his decisive attitude.
He had originally thought that his younger cousin valued Fu deeply, one could even say they were perfectly in sync as monarch and subject, but seeing the Emperor's younger cousin's attitude now.. could there be something he didn't know?
Zhu Ci met his slightly surprised gaze and explained, "Even if he has a daughter, she would be at most ten or so years old this year; that would be too beastly."
Zhu Ci always felt the answer shouldn't be that simple, but he still said with an air of indifference, "He can marry her first; it's not like he has to consummate the marriage immediately."
Zhu Ci..
Is this even a matter of consummating a marriage? This is the destruction of a young man's and a young woman's body and mind.
Forget it, I can't make myself understood by illiterate people like you.
Zhu Ci waved his hand. "This assumption doesn't hold; he isn't even married."
Not only was he unmarried, but he didn't even have a concubine.
Zhu Ci thought of this and suddenly felt a bit curious. Fu was already twenty-five years old this year, would be twenty-six after the New Year. Even if he couldn't find a woman of equal social standing because of his strange appearance, someone would surely be willing to marry him as a low-status wife.
Zhu Ci said casually, "Then Your Majesty can act as a matchmaker for him."
Zhu Ci frowned, "It's not like I have nothing better to do."
With so many things to do all day long, he also had to go pay respects at the Imperial Ancestral Temple later. Once the Winter Solstice passed, the New Year would follow immediately after.
Shouldn't some bonuses or something be distributed to everyone by the end of the year?
They had a fairly smooth year overall, so even if someone caused him some trouble, it wasn't a big deal.
Even if it were just a startup where partners had differing opinions, let alone an entire country this large.
With so many things to do, he was clearly bored if he had to go meddling in whether his subordinates were married or having children.
Zhu Ci only said it in passing, seeing that the Emperor was about to attend to other matters, he left.
As soon as he left the Qianqing Palace, he saw Fu walking toward him, wearing sunglasses.
It was a cloudy day today. Fu was not wearing a wide-brimmed hat, the wide sleeves of his first-rank official robes made his posture appear even more upright as he walked, while the crimson of the official attire made his skin look even fairer.
Aside from this Grand Secretary's extraordinary appearance, even Zhu Ci had to admit that Fu was exceptionally handsome; whether he was still or in motion, he was a sight to behold.
No civil or military official in the entire court could compare to him; combined with his knowledge of economics, his ability to make money, even his ability to coordinate logistics for the various officials, even Zhu Ci would be biased toward him.
While Zhu Ci was lost in thought, Fu walked up to him and bowed with his hands clasped: "Greetings, Prince of Ning."
Zhu Ci came back to his senses and gave a slight nod in acknowledgment. "Grand Secretary Fu."
After the two exchanged greetings, they passed each other. As Fu listened to the receding footsteps of His Highness the Prince of Ning, he felt a flicker of doubt; the Prince's gaze just now had seemed somewhat strange.
When Fu entered the Qianqing Palace, he happened to see the Little Emperor standing in front of that Green Jade Wurtz Tree.
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: No way, I'm already the Emperor, why am I still being pressured to marry? And even being pressured to marry alongside the Grand Secretary? Meow sitting by the Green Jade Wurtz Tree, sulking. jpg
Next update at 12:00 PM~
Chapter 137
Before Fu could even say anything, the Little Emperor spoke up, "There are no outsiders here; there is no need for such formalities, my dear minister."
Fu did not stand on ceremony; he raised his hand to take off his eyeglasses, tucked them into his sleeve, stood in place with his hands clasped in front of him.
Zhu Ci suddenly said with emotion, "When I first saw the Green Jade Wurtz Tree, I thought to myself that the Marquis of Huating must be a nouveau riche."
Fu curled the corners of his lips, his light blue eyes filled with amusement. "Your Majesty is not wrong."
The Fu Family was originally just an ordinary wealthy household, it only grew bit by bit after Fu took over.
He had expanded his business in such a short time that it could support an emperor's coronation; calling him a nouveau riche wouldn't seem out of place.
Zhu Ci asked, "What happened to that Green Jade Wurtz Tree?"
Fu was somewhat surprised. "Your Majesty noticed?"
Back then, when he heard that Zhu Ci was still in the Eastern Palace, he liked that Green Jade Wurtz Tree very much, even moving it into his study to admire every day.
Upon his return this time, he originally proposed holding another grand coronation ceremony, but it was rejected by the Little Emperor.
The reason was that it would cost too much; currently, the court's funds were tight, so it was not appropriate to engage in such extravagant spending.
So Fu simply found another piece of fine jade and sought out a craftsman to re-carve the Green Jade Wurtz Tree.
He could tell that the Little Emperor felt somewhat resistant to the Imperial Palace, likely because his days in the palace were not easy.
Since he had to come back, he might as well be happy.
Zhu Ci touched the leaves of the Green Jade Wurtz Tree, turned back to his seat, sat down, said, "It's different; the leaves of that Green Jade Wurtz Tree are a darker color and more translucent."
After he finished speaking, he pointed to Fu's position and said, "Prepare a seat for the Grand Secretary. In the future, you do not need to wait for my command; the Grand Secretary may come and take a seat directly."
Wu Xia immediately responded, "Yes."
Fu sat down and said, "Your Majesty is observant; the original one was destroyed by the Late Emperor."
Zhu Ci couldn't help but ask, "Destroyed?"
He would have preferred Zhu Yousong to just take the Green Jade Wurtz Tree away; how could it have been destroyed?
This thing's raw materials are not only incredibly valuable, but its craftsmanship is also exquisite; how could it be destroyed just like this?
Fu Cheng said softly, "The Late Emperor surely did not want such treasures to fall into the hands of the Tartars."
Zhu Ci let out a cold laugh. "He took quite a lot of things with him when he fled."
Zhu Yousong really is.. someone who never does anything good.
Even if this Green Jade Wurtz Tree were any more precious, what could it be compared to his vast fortune?
One could only say that even back then, this昏君 already found his possession of this Green Jade Wurtz Tree an eyesore.
Fu lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, watch your words."
This was the Qianqing Palace; there were palace maids nearby and guards outside. Even if they were all Zhu Ci's trusted confidants, it would still be bad if they heard him, it would be very troublesome if a label of filial impiety were passed down because of it.
Zhu Ci pursed his lips; he was already being very restrained, otherwise he would have wanted nothing more than to open the coffin and whip the corpse of Zhu Yousong.
That Green Jade Wurtz Tree was actually much better than this one, not because of the craftsmanship, but because of the raw material.
Fine materials are hard to come by; even if Fu were incredibly wealthy, he might not be able to purchase them.