I'm really not doing business

Chapter 657: Firewood Carrier and Safety in Production

Legazpi was extremely disappointed with the development of Spain. Although a large amount of silver poured in, the Ming Dynasty used it to build large-scale projects, while Felipe II built the magnificent El Escorial Monastery.

This monastery has fifteen cloisters, sixteen courtyards, eighty-eight fountains, eighty-six staircases, one thousand two hundred huge wooden doors, and nine towers. There is a huge altar in the monastery's church, which is decorated with countless gems plundered from the New World. The entire monastery is covered with exquisite statues and small wool carpets. In addition, it also supports more than 1500 priests.

When Felipe proudly told Legazpi about the grandeur of the monastery, Legazpi did not ask any questions, nor did he ask Felipe bluntly what the point of all this was.

Don't talk about what has been done, don't advise against what has happened, and don't blame the past. This may be the greatest sorrow in politics. There is no need to dwell too much on the past facts. What is important is the present.

What was difficult for Legazpi to accept was that the monastery was about a hundred miles away from Madrid.

This means that ministers of state and nobles need to use various means to travel to this monastery a hundred miles away to meet the king. What is the difference between this and Emperor Jiajing hiding in the Western Garden and refusing to meet with his ministers?

Legazpi hoped that Felipe could meet more ministers of state and nobles, but Felipe just smiled and did not respond.

Felipe was a king, the Spider King, which meant he had many legs and many webs, and he was in charge of everything. The conflicts between the king and the nobles were also extremely fierce. Felipe built this monastery for safety.

The historical experience of the Ming Dynasty is that large-scale construction projects are a sign of national demise. This experience is actually not suitable for the West because the national conditions of Western countries are completely different from those of the Ming Dynasty, and the civilians in the West are much more obedient than those in the Ming Dynasty.

The English royal family has condoned the Parliament, nobles, members of parliament and gentlemen in carrying out the enclosure movement for more than two hundred years. The streets of London are full of beggars, but the British royal family is still very stable.

The Northern Yuan Dynasty court was somewhat similar to the English royal family. It condoned the annexation of the Jiangnan gentry. In just less than a hundred years, the Northern Yuan Dynasty court was driven back to the grasslands and became barbarians.

"Angel Li, why should we care about politics?" Galileo looked at the line between the sea and the sky, and asked the question that had been bothering him for a long time under the blowing of the sea breeze.

Li Yashi smiled and said, "Because you don't care about politics, but politics cares about you everywhere. Food, clothing, housing, transportation, and every aspect of life are affecting you. Your research on medicine at the University of Pisa, exploring the mysteries of the human body, your curiosity about astronomy, exploring the mysteries of the heavens and the earth, have affected the authority of the Holy See. They strictly prohibited your research and ordered you to drop out of school. In the end, you can only come to His Highness Felipe to beg for a meal."

“It’s politics, too.”

Legazpi answered the question by saying that if a man could remain unaffected by politics, he would be either a god or a beast.

There is a lot of wisdom in the distant East. At this time, the Ming Emperor Zhu Yijun was preparing to go to the Xishan Coal Bureau to attend the official factory celebration on December 25. Because the emperor had agreed to attend such folk celebrations for the first time in a long time, the Ministry of Rites intervened very deeply to prevent any usurpation of authority or impoliteness.

"Have you brought all the rewards?" Zhu Yijun asked his court secretary Feng Bao whether he had brought enough silver, because there would definitely be a reward process. This was also the reason why the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty seldom attended folk celebrations. It would be a huge waste to give more than 100,000 silver coins to hundreds of arts for a reward. But in this celebration, all the performing artists were craftsmen, so there would be no problem.

"I brought 200,000 silver coins as ordered by Your Majesty," Feng Bao replied.

"Is the girl ready?" Zhu Yijun asked again whether the Queen and the eldest prince Zhu Changzhi were ready.

Feng Bao smiled and said, "Everything is ready."

Among the sacrificial ceremonies of the Ming Dynasty, the most grand one was the suburban sacrifice, which was when the emperor went to the Western Hills Mausoleum to personally pay homage to his ancestors' tombs. During the suburban sacrifice, he had to be accompanied by the empress. The empress was the main wife, not a concubine, so Wang Yaozhuo also had to attend the celebration of the tenth anniversary of the official factory.

Originally, Empress Dowager Li should have gone as well, but Empress Dowager Li and Empress Dowager Chen refused as they were busy taking care of the children, so they let Your Majesty and the Queen take the eldest son with them.

"According to the date, Legas should have returned to Spain. It's okay for Felipe to be embarrassed for a while, but if Legas dies after traveling thousands of miles back home, who will still love Spain?" Zhu Yijun talked about Legas. He had always been thinking about Legas.

Legazpi was a man who deeply loved his homeland. When such a person dies, someone in Spain will definitely say, you love Spain, but does Spain love you?

Without this guy's noise, Zhu Yijun's ears were indeed a lot quieter, but he always felt that something was missing, a perspective from an outsider to look at the Ming Dynasty. Every missing perspective was an obstacle for the emperor to see the essence of the problem clearly.

"Legaz should not die." Feng Bao said optimistically: "According to the reports of Western merchants, Felipe is a dictator. How can a dictator allow the Church to interfere all day long? If Felipe can't even save Legazpi, he doesn't want to be the king of the British Empire. He might as well go back to herding sheep."

"That's true. While there is still some time before departure, bring the remaining memorials." Zhu Yijun sat on the dragon throne. There were still quarters of an hour before departure, and the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty took the opportunity to review two memorials.

This is all his job and he cannot avoid it. If he is lazy now, he will have to work overtime at night. No one will pass the test on him, not even Zhang Juzheng. But the emperor will pass the test on himself, and the Ming Dynasty and the Spring and Autumn History books will pass the test on him.

When evaluating a politician, there is no need to focus on his personal morality, because politicians influence the majority of people. The standard for evaluating politicians' performance is just two words: merit.

Without any achievements, he would be at most just Renzong, which means he accomplished nothing.

"Ah, did the southern scholars win?" Zhu Yijun first saw the memorial from the Ministry of Works. The southern scholars won with a completely overwhelming advantage on the issue of whether to build the canal.

Should the canal from Hangzhou to Ningbo be built? Will it be useful after it is built? Most northern scholars thought it was useless, while southern scholars directly scolded northern scholars for being a bunch of landlubbers who had never seen canal transportation, so they thought it was useless!
The debate started in early November and finally reached a very interesting conclusion, which explained many phenomena in the Ming Dynasty. The conclusion was: before the emergence of the Chidao, the river channel was the only effective way to transport bulk commodities, and the losses caused by other modes of transportation were far greater than the value of the transported goods.

This conclusion explains why the Ming Dynasty promoted Wen and Wu, and why it abandoned the lands of Daning Wei, Yingchang, Kaiping Wei, and Hetao. It also explains why the Ming Dynasty had repeatedly discussed reopening the Western Regions, from the Hongwu period to the Jiajing period, but still did not do it, because the cost of war was too high, and the cost of transporting grain would increase exponentially with the increase in distance.

"It seems that great thinking is useful." Zhu Yijun approved the memorial of the Ministry of Works.

Even though the southern scholars won the argument, and won with an overwhelming advantage, the scholars from the north and south were unanimous in their opinion on the construction of the Ningbo-Hangzhou Canal: it should not be built.

The reason why it cannot be built is that it is expensive, it means borrowing money, it means spending money before it is earned, it is a large-scale construction project, and it is a sign of the country's destruction, even if this canal is built, it will benefit all people.

The Ming Dynasty was an extremely conservative dynasty. From the fact that Shen Shixing built the International City in Songjiang Prefecture and other customs offices followed suit, it can be seen that the Ming Dynasty was never open or inclusive.

Zhu Yijun picked up another memorial. The reform of Shanxi Governor Zhou Liangyin to streamline and abolish bloated local government offices in Shanxi failed. Zhou Liangyin encountered many setbacks. Without the support of Wang Chonggu, Zhou Liangyin conducted a pilot project, which ended in failure.

The government did streamline the system, but the office also malfunctioned. After going through so much trouble and exhausting everyone, they ended up back at the starting point, where they had to re-establish the streamlined organization and recruit back the laid-off people.

Zhu Yijun personally went to the Quanjin Guild Hall to invite Wang Chonggu, who had just been assassinated, to return to the court. No matter what the circumstances, Wang Chonggu did not support Zhou Liangyin. The failure of the current pilot project proves the sharpness of Wang Chonggu's vision.

"Give it a try. If it doesn't work, try it next time." Zhu Yijun did not approve Zhou Liangyin's petition for apology, but gave an encouraging reply.

Whether Zhou Liangyin succeeded or not in his attempt to streamline the local government offices is not important. What is important is that he made a start. The bloated and rigid local government offices are a problem that needs to be solved by all means. If it fails this time, he can try another method next time. He cannot just cover his eyes, ears and mouth and pretend that this problem does not exist.

As long as you get started, it's a good thing, proving that this is not an untouchable topic.

Marquis Yu Zhao, who was loyal to the emperor and patriotic, submitted another memorial. It was a New Year's greeting, mainly reporting on this year's political achievements. The content was relatively brief because Marquis Yu Zhao was going back to Beijing with Li Chengliang to take up his post.

Li Chengliang requested to return to Beijing on the grounds of old age, hoping that the court would replace him with someone to guard Liaodong. This petition, which voluntarily requested to return to the hinterland, triggered discussions among court officials. In the end, the court agreed to oppose the request and to discuss the matter in detail after Li Chengliang returned to Beijing.

Zhu Yijun took advantage of the opportunity to approve several memorials, then got on the imperial carriage and headed towards the Xishan Coal Bureau.

The streets are becoming wider, from narrow alleys to wide open roads, from being crowded with two horse-drawn carriages to being wide roads with twelve lanes, which has indeed made transportation much more convenient.

There were many military heroes in the capital who followed Emperor Chengzu Wen and obtained the Zhengyan Banner. However, when faced with Wang Xiyuan, these military heroes finally agreed to demolish their old houses to make room for the road to the Ming capital.

These military heroes also made trouble, submitted memorials to the emperor and ran to the emperor to complain, but the military heroes who no longer commanded the troops were doomed to fail in their competition with the civil officials in power. The houses could have been demolished and rebuilt at a lower cost, but the Ming emperor still made a generous move and built a number of mansions for the military heroes in the northern city of Beidaying, which was considered a preferential treatment.

Seeing that the commotion had been resolved outside the house, the military heroes stopped making trouble. After all, before the Wanli period, the salaries of all officials had to be converted into banknotes, and the salaries of military heroes also had to be converted into banknotes. Since Your Majesty implemented the actual salary, the military heroes finally received their full salary after 170 years.

Your Majesty is a simple person. During the first negotiation, you offered the most generous conditions. That's enough. We should stop while we are ahead. If you continue to make trouble, you will lose your house, but losing your title would be a disaster.

The Ming Dynasty was very fair in owing wages. It owed wages to soldiers on the border, salaries to officials in the court, and salaries to relatives with military honors. In many cases, even the emperor's annual salary of one million taels of gold and silver was owed.

It’s just that only the officials in the court can seek compensation from the people because they are in power.

"Is Xizhimen going to be demolished next spring?" Zhu Yijun looked at the Xizhimen gate in some surprise. Wang Xiyuan reported to the emperor that the city gate should be demolished, and Zhu Yijun approved it. But he did not expect Wang Xiyuan to do it so quickly. He had already cleared the area and there were no civilians left. Except for the emperor's carriage, other vehicles could not pass through Xizhimen and had to take a detour. Holes were started to be dug out at the site, and scaffolding was ready to be erected.

"Yes." Feng Bao bowed his head and said, "Is the demolition of the city gate something that needs to be discussed?"

Wang Xiyuan was too bold. Without the city gate, how insecure would he feel? What if the barbarians attacked again from the south? Wouldn't this mean he could just enter the city? The court officials also followed suit, and the court actually agreed with Wang Xiyuan's approach.

"If it's gone, it's gone." Zhu Yijun's carriage slowly passed through Xizhimen and he answered with a smile.

According to Wang Xiyuan, he would demolish all the nine gates and city walls of the capital during his nine-year term. It must be said that this idea was very bold, and Wang Xiyuan's bold idea was supported by Qi Jiguang. In Qi Jiguang's view, the scale of the Ming Dynasty capital was expanding, and the city walls were no longer suitable for city defense. The endless houses outside the city were the city defense.

In big cities like the capital, Songjiang Prefecture, Nan Ya, Hangzhou Prefecture, and Guangzhou Prefecture, future city defense battles will definitely be street fighting.

So, this bold idea is becoming a reality.

Zhu Yijun's carriage finally arrived at the gate of Xishan Coal Bureau. When Zhu Yijun got off the car and was about to walk in, he suddenly stopped and turned to the side. The assistant ministers, court officials, and court officials behind him had to turn with him. Zhu Yijun stood in front of a group of statues. This statue was a full-bronze statue of a dark-skinned kiln worker, bare-chested, sitting cross-legged on the ground, squinting his eyes, looking into the distance, like a monkey, a human, and more like a Buddha. The kiln worker was a little thin and shriveled, like a monkey, but his dark cheeks and thin but solid body were like a human, with a somewhat vicissitudes of life and calm temperament, like a sitting Buddha.

The name of this statue is "The Firewood Carrier".

The Ming Emperor stood quietly in front of the statue and asked blankly, "Who made this statue?"

"Wang Qian." An agent from a government factory replied quickly.

"Master Wang, do you have a talent for sculpture?" Zhu Yijun was extremely shocked by the statue. It was indeed a work of art. The strength and hard work of the kiln workers were displayed vividly.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Wang Qian ran over breathlessly. His Majesty suddenly turned, catching the officials who were receiving him at the official factory off guard.

"Well, did you make this?" Zhu Yijun asked, pointing at the statue.

"I did it. I don't have any talent. The kiln dweller's name was Xu Qi. It was his last time down the well. After he came up, he sat there in a daze. I liked it, so I drew it." Wang Qian said hesitantly, "At that time, Xu Qi was scolding my father, Wang Chonggu."

Wang Chonggu looked at his biological son in great surprise, took a look and confirmed that he was his son!

This rebellious son made a statue of the kiln dwellers who cursed him and placed it at the gate of the government-run factory? And he even said it in front of the emperor?!

The Seven-Star Ring-Handed Sword is already thirsty!

"My father stipulated that the kiln dwellers could only work in the mine for a maximum of five years. After that, they were not allowed to go down the mine. They could only work above the mine. They could earn sixteen silver coins a year underground, but only nine silver coins a year above the mine. So after Xu Qi went up the mine, he sat there and later cursed my father." Wang Qian explained the reason.

The maximum time for underground work is five years, because if you continue working underground, you will not be able to bear it. The dangers underground and the damage to the body, if you continue working underground, you will be taking human life lightly. Wang Chonggu did it for the good of the craftsmen, but the craftsmen felt that Wang Chonggu was meddling in other people's business and that he had lost seven silver coins a year for nothing!
"After Xu Qi saw the statue, he scolded me." Wang Qian said helplessly, "Xu Qi felt that he was placed at the gate for everyone who entered and left the factory to see. He was very dissatisfied."

"Oh, it's normal to have a few complaints." Zhu Yijun understood the reason and smiled particularly brightly. He liked this statue and these vivid stories. He looked at the statue and nodded repeatedly and said, "This statue is very good. It will be better if it is placed at the gate."

"What's the name of that statue over there?" Zhu Yijun walked to another group of statues with the gait of a dragon and a tiger.

The other statue is of a family of four, with relatively sturdy men. A half-grown child is sitting on the father's shoulders, grabbing his hair mischievously. The father is holding a child with one hand who is carrying a cross-body bag containing books and a slingshot. The mother on the other side is carrying a lunch box, looking angry and seems to be nagging about something. The whole picture is extremely heartwarming.

"Is it called "Going Home"? " Zhu Yijun asked, looking at the statue. Whether it was the components of the statue or the warm state it revealed, Zhu Yijun felt that this was a family of four going home.

"It's called... 'Safe Production', and it was also written by me." Wang Qian said with an evasive look.

Zhu Yijun was stunned and asked in confusion: "Uh? Explain it."

"If you don't produce according to safety regulations and something happens underground, others will spend your pension, sleep with your wife, and beat your children." Wang Qian was already sweating profusely. The purpose of setting up this statue was to encourage safe production.

You can't tell it just by looking at the statue, but when you look at the slogans that can be seen everywhere in the factory, you will understand the significance of this statue.

"You can lie to me and say it's called "Going Home." Zhu Yijun still had a smile on his face. He liked the two statues at the gate very much. They were both very good and reflected the lives of poor laborers.

The twelfth year of the Wanli Reform was not in vain after all.

"Wouldn't that be deceiving the emperor?" Wang Qian asked in a low voice, "Why don't you change your name and go home?"

"No, it's called safe production. This has a good meaning, really good." Zhu Yijun looked at Wang Qian and said with certainty: "Very good, let's join the government factory."

Wang Chonggu was scolded for not allowing people who had worked in the kiln for five years to work there anymore. Wang Qian was also scolded for setting up the statue. Wang Qian's statue "Safe Production" was also scolded a lot. But it doesn't matter. At least Wang Chonggu and Wang Qian treat craftsmen as human beings and are willing to consider their safety, life and health.

They treated the craftsmen as human beings, and the craftsmen treated them as masters.

No matter how harshly Xu Qi cursed, he was actually grateful to Wang Chonggu in his heart.

This is what makes Zhu Yijun most gratified. As long as Wang Chonggu always keeps this idea in mind, Zhu Yijun will ensure that Wang Chonggu has a good end and his name will be recorded in history.

Zhu Yijun laughed when he entered the official factory, because Wang Chonggu had also been made into a statue, and it was a part of it.

There is a god in the steam engine, called Beiji Xuanling Dangmo Nanji Chiyan Guangli Hongsheng Tianzun, also known as the God of Water and Fire. He is the god of the steam engine and controls the power of water and fire. Every time a new iron horse workshop is set up, sacrifices must be offered to the God of Water and Fire.

The prototypes of this god of water and fire are Prince De Zhu Zaiyu and his second assistant Prince Chonggu. One was responsible for the research and development of the steam engine, and the other was responsible for the implementation of the steam engine. Many parts of the steam engine were produced by the Xishan Coal Bureau.

When Zhu Yijun saw the statue, he laughed.

Wang Chonggu also held his forehead with his hand. He disagreed, but in the end, the statue of the God of Water and Fire was still erected in the official factory.

Once he arrived at Beidaying, Xishan Coal Bureau and Quanchu Guild Hall, Zhu Yijun would take off the thick disguise of his imperial majesty and be filled with smiles. This was the source of power for the revival of the empire.

"Wang Ci Fu used to make fun of me, saying that I was the god of the Great Light Church. It turns out that the Great Light Church does not have a god position at all. I am the embodiment of wisdom. Haha, now Wang Ci Fu is a god." Zhu Yijun said with a smile, tilting his head to Wang Chonggu.

"Alas, I am so ashamed, so ashamed." Wang Chonggu let out a breath. He did not allow it to be built, but his rebellious son built it and placed it in the government factory. By the time Wang Chonggu saw it, it was already a done deal. When Wang Chonggu saw it, he wished he could chop his rebellious son to pieces on the spot!
What Wang Qian said was particularly irritating. As he ran, Wang Qian said: The craftsmen in the government factory all think the design is good. Why do you, Wang Ci Fu, object? The government factory is not your private property, Wang Chonggu!

The Ming Dynasty was a secular country, and Wang Ci Fu was a minister, not a god. It was somewhat ominous to be associated with gods and ghosts.

"When the time comes, if production doesn't go smoothly, I'm afraid someone will blow up Wang Ci Fu's statue." Zhang Juzheng teased with a smile.

Wang Chonggu immediately said, "Don't laugh at me, Yuan Fu. You made that Taiyue box, which greatly reduced the possibility of the grain ship capsizing. Hey, you also have a statue at the Songjiangfu dock. I will be blown up, and you won't be much better."

Li Chengliang blew up the Dragon King Temple in Northeast China because the Dragon King refused to make it snow.

"Hahaha!" Zhu Yijun laughed, and the official factory was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

After Zhu Yijun entered the official factory, everything was cleaned spotlessly, decorated with lights and colorful decorations, and full of joy. December 25th was also the day when the official factory took a New Year holiday, and would not resume work until the sixth day of the Lunar New Year the following year.

It is a custom to do a thorough cleaning during the Chinese New Year. Before the Chinese New Year, people are always willing to clean the house inside and out to welcome the New Year. It is obvious that the craftsmen are willing to treat the site as their home.

"Feng Banban, give out the money." Zhu Yijun waved his hand and asked Feng Bao to take people to distribute the reward money. This was the New Year's money. During the New Year, one had to buy new clothes and cook New Year's Eve dinner. Zhu Yijun didn't give much. A craftsman only got one silver coin for the New Year.

"This year, the government-run factory plans to produce more than 43 billion catties of coke, coal, honeycomb coal, etc., an increase of 5000% over last year; 21 million catties of pig iron, an increase of 620% over last year; 22 million catties of crude steel, an increase of 140% over last year; and a profit of million silver coins. All of this is due to the efforts of the craftsmen and the good coordination of Wang Ci Fu." Zhu Yijun affirmed the achievements of the government-run factory as he walked.

Including the Lanzhou Woolen Woolen Factory, the total output of Ming Dynasty woolen woolen last year once again broke a new record, reaching a terrifying scale of 110 million pieces. At the same time, it also fell into a bottleneck in incoming materials. There were only so many people and so little space on the grassland, and even if all the sheep were raised, they would not be enough for the Ming Dynasty official factory. Therefore, the expansion of the scale of the official woolen woolen factory was restricted by wool raw materials, but it still maintained an extremely high growth rate of 10% year-on-year.

"The Ming Dynasty should thank Wang Ci Fu. If the affairs of the official factory were handed over to others, it might be possible to accomplish it, but it would never be so successful." Zhu Yijun praised Wang Chonggu sincerely.

"It's my job." Wang Chonggu hurriedly bowed his head and said very humbly.

Wang Chonggu's family was the second richest in the Ming Dynasty. During the Wanli Restoration, he took a huge share of the cake, so he needed to do something. Otherwise, don't blame the Ming Emperor for slaughtering his family's fat sheep for the New Year.

For the grand celebration of the tenth anniversary of the official factory, Wang Qian took out 250,000 silver coins. This 250,000 silver coins were the income and share from Wang Qian's holding and trading of Suiyuan Chidao tickets. Long-term holding does not mean no trading at all. Wang Qian made a few profits in the trading house and raised enough money for the tenth anniversary of the official factory.

There are always some unruly people who want to short the tickets of Suiyuan Chidao. Every time Wang Qian blocks them, he will make a lot of money. This is sending money into his pocket, and he, Wang Qian, can't stop it, right? The reason for shorting is very simple, just to make the ticket price drop, and then buy a large amount.

"The Monkey King Sun Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang weighs 13500 kilograms. Last year's steel production of Xishan Coal Bureau alone was enough to produce 4200 Ruyi Jingu Bangs." Zhu Yijun knew that the Ming Dynasty's officials had no idea about steel production, so he used a mythological story to illustrate the scale of Xishan Coal Bureau's steel production last year.

One Monkey King has caused chaos in the Heavenly Palace. If 4200 Monkey Kings go to the Heavenly Palace together, I am afraid that the Jade Emperor’s dragon throne will be smashed by him.

The celebration and performance of the official factory began at dusk.

"The fireworks are so far away?!" Zhu Yijun said in a daze as he looked at the opening fireworks.

The official factory’s fireworks were two miles away from the viewing platform. After you saw the fireworks, you had to wait a while before you could hear the sound.

"It's better to keep gunpowder away." Wang Qian said with certainty. If the fireworks fell near His Majesty, it would be a huge sin.

(End of this chapter)