Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 585: Three hundred Chapters on some issues in Lingnan_2

The people of Lingnan, naturally, were very willing. After all, who would complain about having more grain or having a full belly?

Seeing the emperor’s decree, Zhao Yao no longer had to worry about promoting the cultivation of Annan Country’s rice.

The grain issue in Lingnan was resolved, but the problem of fruits there remained unsolved.

It was said that there were many fruits in Lingnan, and they were very delicious. These were fruits that had never been seen in the capital. Upon hearing this, Zhao Yao was extremely tempted, but unfortunately, he couldn’t taste them.

Lingnan was too far from the capital. If fruit was transported from Lingnan to the capital, it would spoil on the way. If it were expedited using an eight-hundred-mile rush, the fruit would arrive fresh, but it would exhaust the officials delivering them. Besides, the cost would be too high, making it impractical.

Zhao Yao initially thought of growing Lingnan’s fruits in the capital or Jiangnan, but none succeeded. This led him to completely give up on transplanting Lingnan’s fruits elsewhere.

The variety of fruits in Lingnan was extensive, with many overlapping with those from Annan Country, Funan, and Johor. Therefore, selling Lingnan’s fruits to these countries was not feasible. However, Lady Liang came up with an idea for Zhao Yao: turning the fruits into preserved fruit and selling them to the capital or the Western Regions.

Zhao Yao thought this idea was good. If the fruits were processed into preserved or candied fruit, they would be easier to preserve and less likely to spoil. So, he instructed the people in Lingnan to teach the locals how to make preserved and candied fruits.

In fact, Zhao Yao also thought of another good thing, which was canned fruits. In the world of dreams Zhao Yao envisioned, there were not only various delicious canned fruits but also a variety of canned meats. Unfortunately, the Great Zhou did not have the technology to prevent fruits and meats from spoiling.

He planned to ponder over how to make canned fruits and meats when he went to Lingnan.

Although Lingnan’s fruits couldn’t be transported to the capital for sale, the medicinal herbs from there could indeed be sent to the capital or other places for sale.

The Liang family had already sent people to Lingnan for business. They not only transported Lingnan’s medicinal herbs, grain, and dried fruits for sale in various places but also brought local fabrics and embroidery to sell.

Lingnan’s fabrics and embroidery might not be as exquisite as those in the capital or Jiangnan, but they had a unique charm. People from other places, who had never seen such distinctive embroidery from Lingnan, found it very novel and liked it a lot.

Moreover, the spices of Lingnan were very abundant. They were very popular in the capital and Jiangnan, and also very fashionable in the Western Regions.

The Liang family conducted business discreetly in Lingnan, not only earning a good deal of money but also boosting business there.

Liang Run even personally made a trip to Lingnan and then returned to tell Zhao Yao that Lingnan was a good place with so many treasures. Going to Lingnan for business was truly like finding a treasure trove.

Because of this, the Liang family sent a group of people to settle and do business in Lingnan.

Before the Liang family went to Lingnan, no one was doing substantial business there. Business in Lingnan was mostly among small vendors. It wasn’t that they couldn’t do big business, but that they weren’t allowed to. They were all people with criminal records, and had no right to engage in large-scale commerce. Moreover, they were restricted from leaving Lingnan for life. Should they escape Lingnan privately, it would be a serious crime, possibly even leading to execution.

The restriction on leaving Lingnan for its residents was a longstanding rule, not a decree by the Great Zhou. This law had existed in the previous dynasty, the dynasty before that, and even earlier. When the late emperor established the laws of the Great Zhou, most were adopted from the previous dynasty’s laws, including those regarding Lingnan, which were preserved unchanged.

Apart from not being able to leave Lingnan, they also couldn’t hold official positions. Of course, in special circumstances, they could be allowed to hold office, but only within Lingnan, not elsewhere. Also, they would be treated as criminals for life because they were descendants of criminals.

Throughout history, those exiled to Lingnan were guilty of serious crimes. Even if their descendants were innocent, they would still be labeled as criminals.

Zhao Yao felt that this was too unfair to the people of Lingnan. What did it have to do with them if their ancestors committed crimes? Why should they also be treated as criminals?

"When I get there, I’m definitely going to change the laws in Lingnan." Zhao Yao finished a piece of melon, picked up another piece, and quickly bit into it.

A prince had the power to change anything in their fief, including the laws.