The next day at court, the Ministry of War submitted a memorandum proposing the construction of new ships and the expansion of the Navy, an idea the Emperor had expressed interest in long ago, which everyone knew could not be stopped.
Naturally, they had no desire to stop it either, as noble families controlled merchants, and the profits from maritime trade in recent years had been too vast, having even caught the Emperor's attention after he purchased grain once.
Most were supportive, as a stronger Navy would ensure the safety of our dynasty's commercial ships. Of course, there were also opponents, citing the exhaustion of the people and the depletion of wealth, claiming things were already fine as they were, and so forth.
Zhou Shuren kept his head down, thinking to himself that the silver from the Ministry of Revenue's statement of accounts had just been presented to the Emperor; the Emperor's actions were indeed swift.
