The Grand Canal, from the time when Yang Guang dug this canal to the present, this river has always become a major artery for north-south communication. Both the Tang and Song dynasties benefited from this canal. Especially in the Song dynasty, Kaifeng became the prosperous Tokyo Bianliang, mainly because the waterways at that time could directly transport southern grain and goods to Kaifeng City.

During the Ming Dynasty, this Grand Canal still played an important role. After years of war in the north, the fields were deserted and the people withered. But the northern border had to be stationed again, and a large amount of food was needed, so this canal was particularly important. When Lao Zhu was in power, he had cleared this canal several times to ensure that the food from the south could be transported smoothly to the north.

When Li Jie walked on the canal before, he took a grain transport boat. He abandoned the boat and landed because he encountered danger. However, now the danger has been lifted, and Li Jie and the others have abandoned their horses and boarded the boat again. After all, it is much more convenient and quicker to take the water route than by land.

Li Jie stood at the bow of the boat and looked at the not-so-wide canal. The canal was not all made of manual excavation, but was formed by connecting several natural humanitarian roads. Because of limited manpower, it will appear a bit narrow in some manually excavated river sections, such as the section where Li Jie and the others are now in.

Moreover, after the canal is excavated, everything will not be fine, but will require years of maintenance. Otherwise, some river sections will be silted due to disrepair. For example, Li Jie once went to Kaifeng, which was able to connect with the canal before, but now many river channels have been blocked.

"Cache transportation? It's time to become a historical term!" Li Jie looked at the congested river surface of the ships and finally couldn't help but whisper.

The so-called canal transport refers to a transportation method in which the imperial court used waterways to transport grain to designated locations. During the Ming Dynasty, the most important thing about canal transport was the Grand Canal under Li Jie's feet. There was even a special canal governor of the canal and the prime minister for the entire canal transport.

However, the situation has changed now. For example, where Li Jie saw it, although there were ships everywhere and the entire canal seemed prosperous, if you carefully distinguish it, you will find that most of these ships were merchant ships, transporters or cargo.

As for the grain ships specially used to transport grain under the banner of the imperial court, they are rare. The reason for this situation is mainly because the north has reduced the demand for the south. After all, with the promotion of high-yield crops such as corn and potatoes, the north has barely been self-sufficient.

Of course, there are some commercial exchanges between the north and the south, such as the north demanding rice from the south, while the south requires flour from the north, but this demand is relatively small, and grain transportation like this is gradually replaced by sea transportation. After all, the narrow canal cannot travel too large ships, and the transportation is limited at one time, while sea ships do not have these restrictions at all, and the freight is even cheaper.

The above reasons have led to the decline of canal transport. Of course, the decline of canal transport is not a bad thing. For example, the congestion but busy area in front of us is full of merchant ships that are pulling people and cargo. You should know that in the past, in order to make way for grain ships for grain ships, merchant ships were not allowed to pass through many sections of the river. Now, there are fewer grain ships, which makes the entire canal commerce more prosperous.

"What are you thinking? You are so fascinated. You didn't agree after calling you a few times?" At this moment, Lan Yu suddenly walked to Li Jie and asked. He also boarded the ship with Li Jie. After all, he is old and the immediate bumps are also a burden for him.

"It's nothing, I'm just thinking about the canal transportation. General, you haven't rested yet?" Li Jie replied with a smile. It's getting late now. Lan Yu was quite tired because she was in a hurry to travel. She has been resting early these days.

"The cabin is so big that it can't even stretch its hands and feet. I feel like my bones are almost rusted when I stay so alone, so I'll go out for a walk." Lan Yu held the boat's side with her hands and looked at the scenery on the canal.

"There is nothing to do about this. After all, the canal is so big and the river water is not too deep, so you can only walk on this kind of small boat for inland rivers. In comparison, there are many sea boats on the sea route." Li Jie also replied casually.

The room he and Lan Yu lived in was already the largest room on the boat. The other rooms were smaller, some even could only accommodate one bed, and there was a crowd of two people. As for the accommodation of ordinary crew members, the conditions were even worse, so running a boat has always been a very hard job.

"When you mention the sea boat, I think of one thing." Lan Yu suddenly slapped his head. He should have told Li Jie a long time ago, but he was old and forgot some things when he threw them away, and he would only occasionally think of them afterwards.

"What's the matter?" Li Jie asked curiously.

"In fact, it is related to martial arts. Some time ago, the King of Yan wrote to His Majesty, saying that he wanted to imitate martial arts and build a martial arts specializing in cultivating naval generals. However, he had no experience in this area, so he wanted to ask martial arts to send some people to help. His Majesty was undecided, so he summoned Feng Sheng and I to inquire." Lan Yu replied.

"This is a good thing. What is Your Majesty hesitating?" Li Jie was shocked when he heard this, and immediately said happily.

With Li Jie's efforts, the Ming Dynasty finally turned its attention to the sea. Zhu Di, Zhu Chuang and others went out to sea one after another. In addition, the Ming Dynasty began to pay attention to maritime trade, which made the Ming Dynasty's interests in the ocean become heavier and heavier. To protect these interests, corresponding force must be used, so the cultivation of naval generals and sailing talents should be put on the agenda.

"Martial arts are the most important weapon of the country. Now the generals in the army have been replaced by students from martial arts one after another, so the court attaches more and more importance to martial arts. After all, the King of Yan is a vassal king abroad. If he also masters martial arts, the ministers in the court are worried that the King of Yan's strength will become stronger and even threaten the court." Lan Yu also replied with a serious expression at this time.

Li Jie also felt a little nervous when he heard this. The situation he was most worried about finally happened. When Zhu Yunyu first ascended the throne, he considered the matter of reducing the vassal states. Although he was dissuaded by Li Jie, it can be seen from this incident that Zhu Yunyu had already developed fear of Zhu Di and other vassal kings. The reason why he did not take action now was mainly because the timing was wrong.

Li Jie was actually not opposed to the reduction of the vassals, but he hoped to remove only the power of the vassal kings in the Ming Dynasty. For Zhu Di and other vassal kings abroad, the Ming Dynasty not only could not weaken their power, but also had to support them so that they could have more power to attack overseas territories.
Chapter completed!