In the thirty-fourth year of Tianshun's reign, Queen Zhou fell ill and died.
After her death, Xiang Nan gave her the posthumous title of "Queen Xiaosu, Zhenshun, Kangyi, Guanglie, Futianchengsheng" and ordered the Ministry of Rites to bury her in a grand ceremony.
After the death of Queen Zhou, Xiang Nan appointed Qiu Moyan as the queen, and then legitimately appointed her legitimate son Zhu Jianji as the prince.
After Qiu Moyan became the queen, her son naturally had the status of legitimate son.
As a result, the ministers could no longer object and had no choice but to acquiesce to the matter.
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In the same year, Xiang Nan ordered the Ming army to go to Annan and conquer Southeast Asia.
Previously, the reason why troops were not sent to attack was mainly because the climate in Southeast Asia was humid and hot, and miasma was widespread. It was easy for the Ming army to spread diseases, resulting in non-combat attrition.
During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, there were four expeditions to Bagan. As a result, the Qing army was defeated three times because of unsuitable water and soil. Even Qianlong's most valued minister, Fu Heng, fell ill and died during the expedition to Bagan.
But now there is no need to be afraid of the Ming army.
Firstly, Xiang Nan invented antibiotics, artemisinin and other medicines, which have very good curative effects on miasma in Southeast Asia; secondly, the Nanyang Navy now has ten large ships, which not only have strong firepower, but also have the ability to project troops. Also very strong.
Annan happened to be a coastal country, so when the Nanhai Navy sent troops, they were unable to stop it.
Sent ships to block the attack, but it was not enough for the Nanhai Navy to cram into the enemy's teeth. A few cannonballs were all shattered. If we don't send ships to stop them, we will have to wait for the army to land and fight, which is equivalent to being in a dilemma.
So Annan was finally conquered by the Ming army, and Siam, Laos, Bagan, Malacca, Luzon, Johor, etc. were also annexed by the Ming Dynasty and brought under the rule of the Ming Dynasty.
The reason why Xiang Nan took action in Southeast Asia was mainly to expand his territory and settle more people.
After so many years of development, the population of the Ming Dynasty has increased significantly. In particular, the policy of “sharing a small family into an entire family” has made people no longer afraid of having children.
Before this, people, whether rich or poor, had to pay Ding tax, which was also the "head tax".
And the Ding tax was very high. In the early Ming Dynasty, every male over fifteen years old and under sixty years old had to pay a tax of one hundred and thirty cents per person.
This is an unbearable burden for the people. Therefore, many people were even willing to sell themselves into slavery and surrender their fields to civil servants, Jinshi, and landlords in order to avoid land taxes and other taxes.
Therefore, in the early years of the Ming Dynasty, the population was still more than 60 million. By the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the population did not increase but shrank to more than 50 million.
But in fact, according to historical data analysis, the number of people in the Ming Dynasty should have exceeded 100 million at that time. Half of the people turned themselves into slaves in order to avoid the excessive taxes imposed by the court.
Xiang Nan promoted the "dividing a man into an acre" and abolished the poll tax. He also promoted "the gentry working as errands and paying grain as one", and abolished the gentry's tax-free privileges.
So now, the population of the Ming Dynasty has increased to 130 million. Such a large population cannot be supported by China's land alone. After all, there are no high-yielding crops such as potatoes, corn, and sweet potatoes. Therefore, it has become inevitable to expand the territory.
The climate in Southeast Asia is humid, and crops can be harvested twice or three times a year. As long as we cultivate well, food production will be guaranteed.
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In the thirty-fifth year of Tianshun's reign, Xiang Nan left Prince Zhu Jianji to supervise the country, and then personally led the Donghai Navy to sea.
The fleet went north along the coastline of Japan, directly to the Kamchatka Peninsula, and then headed east along the Aleutian Islands to Alaska in North America.
Then walked south along the Alaska coastline, passing through the Alexander Islands, Queen Charlotte Islands, etc., arriving in the Gulf of California, and finally landed in what is now Mexico, where they obtained seeds of corn, peppers, tobacco, and sunflowers.
The fleet then arrived in the Caribbean, where sweet potatoes, cassava and cocoa were found on the islands. Following the fleet's departure, potatoes, peanuts and tomatoes were found on the Peruvian plateau. In addition, unique animals such as alpacas, llamas, bison, and llamas were also caught on board by Xiang Nan.
The fleet continued to sail across the Pacific, arrived in New Zealand, and then headed west to Australia. Then from Australia along the Solomon Islands to Java, and finally returned to the capital in the 36th year of Tianshun.
Subsequently, Xiang Nan planted the seeds he had worked so hard to get in the imperial village.
Corn, peppers, tobacco, potatoes, peanuts, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, cocoa, sunflowers... Not only did they choose the best farmers to take care of them, they also used the best fertilizers, and they really got a bumper harvest next year.
Xiang Nan kept part of the harvest for sowing, and rewarded the rest of the harvest to officials and people, ordering them to vigorously promote it.
Corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes are all high-yielding crops. Chili peppers and tomatoes are very good seasonings and vegetables. Peanuts and sunflowers can extract oil, and their oil yield is higher than soybeans, rapeseed, and camellia seeds.
Moreover, peanuts and sunflowers taste excellent when eaten raw or cooked, and they have an excellent effect on improving people's diet. Cocoa and tobacco are refreshing. Although tobacco has addictive and carcinogenic effects, it is a good tax collection tool.
In addition to obtaining these high-yielding and economically beneficial crops, the greatest significance of Xiang Nan's fleet voyage was to open the eyes of the people of the Ming Dynasty to see the world.
Let them know that there is actually a larger landmass overseas waiting to be conquered. Let them never be satisfied and never stop exploring. At that time, more people will be inspired to have a fearless spirit and go on adventures in those overseas places.
China has had no shortage of adventurers since ancient times. Zhang Qian of the Han Dynasty, Faxian of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty, Zheng He of the Ming Dynasty...
They were determined to die before setting out on the road, but they still embarked on the journey fearlessly. Their actions not only connected China with foreign countries, but also promoted cultural and economic exchanges, which are enough to shine through the ages and pass down their names to generations.
Therefore, Xiang Nan believes that even if he leaves one day, there will still be descendants from China who will follow his footsteps to America. At that time, China's technology and military strength will be enough to overwhelm the Mayans and Aztecs in the Americas and conquer those two continents.
As a result, China will have two more large territories, enough to support more people. By then, there will be no more hunger, no more cold, and everyone will be able to live a good life.
In fact, there are people who are more active than Xiang Nan imagined.
Not long after Xiang Nan led his fleet back to the capital, businessmen were already on the road and sailing to the New World. Businessmen from places like Kamchatka, Alaska, Canada, and the United States have gone there.
Because they heard that the continent was not only huge in area, but also extremely rich in products. The most important point is that it is still a no-man’s land. Who doesn’t want to be the first to do so?