My father, Zhu Di, was granted a second life by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Chapter 102 The Old Emperor's Three Lines of Defense

Zhu Gaoxi ate his snacks slowly, waiting for the old emperor to continue his conversation.

It may be of great importance, but he was completely unprepared. He had been dealing with too many trivial matters these days and couldn't calm down to think things through, so he could only improvise.

"Ye Boju, the instructor of Pingyao, said that our enfeoffment is too extravagant. Xi'er, what do you think?" the old emperor asked leisurely.

He needs to personally assess some key issues before he can feel at ease.

Zhu Gaoxi slowly answered, "The empire has just been established, and the imperial family's foundation is unstable. It is imperative to implement enfeoffment; otherwise, how can the weak imperial family control the various powerful figures?"

"Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, came from a commoner background. In the early Han Dynasty, if the power of the Liu clan princes was weak, why would meritorious officials and generals who knew Gaozu's background submit to the Liu emperor?"

"Furthermore, the remnants of the Northern Yuan forces are lingering in the northern desert, which must be guarded against, and a large number of troops must be deployed along the Great Wall in the north."

"The capital is located in the south of the Yangtze River, which is too far from the front line of the northern expedition. It is inconvenient to command and dispatch troops. It is necessary to send a general who is good at fighting to guard the border and grant him the authority to act as he sees fit."

"Ye Boju was worried that after several generations of princes, they would become too powerful to control. The fundamental reason for the princes' power was their military command. Without military power, the princes would not be a threat."

"Military power is not given to the princes, but only to the generals."

"The problem is, if the feudal lords can't be trusted, are the military generals reliable?"

"With such a large army at their disposal, who can guarantee that a second Sima Yi won't emerge?"

"The strategy of checking and balancing the border generals may be effective in the short term, but in the long run, some generals will inevitably stand out, their power will expand, and they will become a threat, difficult to control."

"The imperial court's military deployment was superficial, with its strength concentrated outside the capital. Generals, wielding considerable power and armed with weapons, harbored murderous intent and were eager to seize the throne. The An Lushan Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty is the best example of this."

"Moreover, with the emperor far away, some military generals relentlessly exploited the lower-ranking soldiers for personal gain, embezzled salaries, and treated them like serfs. When the enemy attacked, they fled for their lives without a second thought."

"With foreign enemies eyeing us covetously and ready to launch a counterattack at any moment, the imperial power was relatively weak and could not rely entirely on military generals, so the system of enfeoffment was implemented."

"To ensure border security and avoid the emergence of powerful ministers like Sima Yi, the only option is to enfeoff princes to control the border defenses, resist foreign invasions, and protect the frontier."

"There is no foolproof solution; we can only make dynamic and timely decisions."

Zhu Gaoxi spoke at length, and the old emperor listened with frequent nods and a satisfied expression.

Power is given by everyone, earned through bloody battles fought by vassal kings and military generals, and accumulated through daily recuperation and careful management. It is truly commendable that the eldest grandson understands the art of checks and balances.

Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish; even the slightest adjustment requires utmost care, patience, and caution. A slight misstep and the whole thing will be ruined.

The old emperor took a small sip of tea with a sense of satisfaction.

After a short rest, the old emperor asked the next question: "After ascending the throne, the grandson of the crown prince implemented a policy of weakening the power of the princes, which led to his loss of the throne. What was his mistake?"

Zhu Gaoxi racked his brains, searching through his memories of history from his previous life, and answered calmly, "My grandson once told my grandfather that if a vassal king rebelled, then 'we should try to win him over with virtue and control him with propriety. If that doesn't work, then we should reduce his fiefdom; if that still doesn't work, then we should depose him; if that still doesn't work, then we should raise an army to punish him.'"

"However, the grandson ascended the throne in the intercalary fifth month, and in the seventh month he sent Li Jinglong with troops to arrest the fifth uncle."

"He understood all the reasons, yet he chose to draw his sword directly."

"They completely forgot their previous promises, skipped the initial steps, and went straight to arresting people. Their eagerness is simply unbelievable."

"Perhaps, in his view, having great power means he can do whatever he wants, without needing to reason with the vassal kings, completely forgetting that all the vassal kings are his own flesh and blood."

"The Crown Prince's elder brother forcibly reduced the power of the princes, disrupting the grandfather's overall defensive strategy."

"What is our plan?" the old emperor asked, his interest piqued.

Zhu Gaoxi took two sips of hot milk to moisten his throat and continued, "The nine great fortresses along the Great Wall are strategically located, controlling dangerous passes and key points. They fortify their camps and stand in close proximity to each other, uniting to defend against enemies, checking and balancing each other, and supporting one another."

"The King of Qin is in Xi'an, the King of Jin is in Taiyuan, the King of Yan is in Beiping, the King of Dai is in Datong, the King of Su is in Ganzhou, the King of Liao is in Guangning, the King of Ning is in Daning, the King of Gu is in Xuanfu, and the King of Qing is in Ningxia. They lead troops to guard strategic border locations, directly facing border troubles, defending against foreign invasions, and keeping out the threats from the northern nomadic tribes and the northeastern fishing and hunting tribes. This is the first line of defense."

"The role of the nine border kings was not only to actively resist, but more importantly, to take the initiative to attack. They established military settlements on the inner front and grazed horses on the outer front, advancing step by step, cultivating land and pushing forward steadily. They adopted a variety of methods such as pacification and marriage alliances to gradually expand their actual control, like boiling a frog in warm water, and gradually annexing the Mongol tribes."

"When the crown prince comes of age, father and son will take turns traveling to and from the border. When the father goes out, the son will guard the country; when the son goes out, the father will guard the country, commanding the troops and training them to defend the border."

"The second line of defense was the Yellow River defense line, with the Zhou king in Kaifeng, the Qi king in Lu, and the Lu king in Yanzhou."

"These two lines of defense in the north are mutually controlled and balanced by the various vassal states, which helps the imperial court to strengthen its control over the border regions."

"When foreign enemies invade, even if the first line of defense is lost, there is still a second line of defense as a buffer, which can buy time for the court to mobilize troops and supplies and organize a counterattack."

"In order for the enemy to gain a foothold in the large area north of the second line of defense, they will have to divide their troops to guard the area and eliminate any potential threats. Once the enemy troops are dispersed, it will be difficult for them to concentrate their forces to move south again."

"The King of Chu in Wuchang, the King of Shu in Chengdu, and the King of Xiang in Jingzhou formed the third line of defense, relying on the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, and were distributed in the southwest and Hubei-Hunan region to guard against enemies from the west."

The old emperor nodded approvingly and had a palace maid bring him a bowl of fresh meat wontons. "Are you hungry? Eat something first, and we'll talk later."

Concentrating on thinking about a problem consumes energy very quickly, and Zhu Gaoxi's stomach was growling loudly with hunger.

Zhu Gaoxi wolfed down his food, emptying his bowl quickly, but still felt unsatisfied, so he took some dates and walnuts and stuffed them into his mouth.

"We won't go back tonight; we'll stay here with Grandpa for the night."

The old emperor's tone was not one of discussion, but rather an announcement, leaving Zhu Gaoxi with no room for rebuttal and only the option to accept.

It doesn't matter where we sleep, we never care about where we sit.

The assessment was not over yet. Perhaps the old emperor was worried that his brother was helping him cheat, Zhu Gaoxi secretly wondered.

The old emperor, worried about tiring his beloved grandson, stopped asking questions and instead led him to the flower garden at the back.

Wow, this is truly a sea of ​​flowers, all in vibrant colors, blooming in profusion.

Zhu Gaoxi was instantly stunned. He never expected the old emperor to have such a poetic and artistic side. It was truly impressive.

"Grandpa, may I pick one?"

Zhu Gaoxi mustered his courage and asked, knowing he dared not touch the things belonging to the old emperor's beloved.

"Pick it," the old emperor smiled wistfully, as if lost in fond memories of the past.