plumnovel Chapter 043 Wei Zhongxian really dared to do it.
Chapter 043 Wei Zhongxian really dared to do it.
Chapter 043
"Your Majesty! This..."
Chen Wanyan felt overwhelmed. He was a junior scholar who had been appointed as a student of the Imperial Academy. What kind of situation was it for him to become the headmaster of a school in a thousand-household garrison?
"alright."
Zhu Youxiao waved his hand: "This matter is settled. Minister Chen has rendered meritorious service by presenting the weapon, and he is concerned about national affairs. His work in establishing schools is also a way of relieving my burden. There is no need to discuss this matter further."
With a single sentence from Zhu Youxiao, Chen Wanyan, a scholar-in-waiting, was appointed as the headmaster of Shahe Academy to continue tutoring Prince Xin.
Chen Wanyan's face was extremely ugly. He was not a genius. He only passed the county-level imperial examination at the age of twenty-eight and the provincial-level imperial examination at the age of forty-nine. He was reluctant to resign from his official post because he had finally obtained an official position.
Knowing that further words would be of no use, Chen Wanyan could only bow and take his leave, giving Chen Ying a fierce glare before he departed.
"Scholar Chen, our Shahe region is impoverished, so your salary will still be paid by the Hanlin Academy..."
Chen Wanyan was so angry that his teeth were grinding. If it weren't for Chen Ying's tall stature, he would have really wanted to fight Chen Ying right now.
Wei Zhongxian then stepped forward with a smile and said to Zhu Youxiao, "Your Majesty is wise. Commander Chen is not only skilled in manufacturing weapons to strengthen the army, but also able to guide Prince Xin in his studies. He is truly a rare talent. Commander Chen, this matter of the cannons and swords must be expedited. Liaodong is waiting to use them. I will have the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works allocate the necessary iron materials and labor costs as soon as possible."
Chen Ying bowed and replied, "Your subject will certainly do his utmost and dare not fail Your Majesty and the Grand Eunuch's trust."
"Alright, Boying, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Come and have something with me!"
"yes!"
When Wei Zhongxian heard that they were going to eat, he knew that Zhu Youxiao would definitely want to make that seafood hot pot, so he quickly gave Wang Tiqian a wink.
Wei Zhongxian also suffered. Unlike young people with strong stomachs, he would vomit violently after having a seafood feast with the Tianqi Emperor, and it would take him three to five days to recover.
Neither Wang Tiqian nor Wei Zhongxian could stand the taste of seafood, but Zhu Youxiao loved seafood and would eat it every few days.
Wang Tiqian quickly went over to make arrangements. Chen Ying didn't feel anything. It's just a matter of personal preference. Some people like to eat durian, but Chen Ying just can't stand the smell. He can't stand it, let alone eat it. He even feels like vomiting just from the smell.
The problem is that Chen Ying likes to eat stinky tofu, which has the same peculiar smell. He can even eat a whole basin of it at once. When a big pot of seafood is served, the eunuchs around him mourn for Chen Ying.
Seeing Chen Ying's unchanging expression, which instead revealed an enjoyment, Lu Jiucheng mentally gave Chen Ying a thumbs up: "No wonder Chen Ying is favored by the Emperor; with that iron stomach, you can't argue with that!"
"Bo Ying, since you enjoy seafood so much, I'll send you a whole cartload before you leave. You can take it back and enjoy it at your leisure!"
"Your Majesty, I thank you for your generous gift!"
After eating and drinking his fill in the palace, Chen Ying left the Qianqing Palace with the seafood bestowed upon him by the Tianqi Emperor. It was nearly dusk by then.
Chen Ying not only dined with Emperor Tianqi, but also accompanied him in carpentry work. Of course, Emperor Tianqi was now very interested in the woodworking machinery provided by Chen Ying, and even offered suggestions for improvement.
It must be admitted that if Emperor Tianqi had not become emperor, he could have lived a very good life based on his skills.
"Lord Chiju!"
"Take these things back to Shahe and let the brothers have a taste!"
Seafood, which Wei Zhongxian avoided at all costs, was definitely a delicacy in the eyes of the military households. During the Ming Dynasty, seafood preservation technology was not advanced, and Emperor Tianqi could only eat seafood freely in winter. It was not easy to eat seafood in summer.
However, as news spread that Chen Wanyan had been exiled to Shahe Academy, Chen Ying's fame instantly soared, though it was certainly not a good one.
Although the Ming Dynasty had the system of garrison schools, the problem was how poor the garrisons were. Every single garrison in the country was worse off than Guide Garrison. Even though Guide Garrison was poor, it was still located in Guide Prefecture, which was a rich area of the North China Plain.
As long as the Yellow River doesn't flood and cause disaster, the military households in Guidewei won't starve to death in large numbers. But it's different in other places. They are much poorer. Many military households can't even afford to eat, let alone run a school. How can they run a school?
These days, running a school is much more expensive than raising an army. More importantly, Shahe Academy is not a private school or a privately run school, but a school specifically for enrolling the children of military households.
In particular, when they learned that Shahe Academy did not charge tuition, the officials in the court were envious. To be fair, in the Ming Dynasty, there were not many families like the Hou family of Guide Guard Prefecture, where two members of the family had passed the imperial examination and three generations of father, son and grandson had served as officials.
The Ming Dynasty abolished the hereditary system, and the imperial examination was the main, and even the only, way for children from poor families to enter officialdom. Therefore, cases of children from humble backgrounds achieving success did exist, but they were few and far between. More often, it was like Hou Xun's father, Hou Zhipu, and his brother Hou Zhigong, who both became Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations), and Hou Xun and Hou Ke, who served as officials in the same court.
This was mainly because official families could provide their children with high-quality private schools, renowned teachers, and abundant book collections, giving them an advantage in early selection processes such as the preliminary examinations and provincial examinations.
Official families could pave the way for their children through networks of protégés and former associates, even gaining favor during the imperial examinations and the selection process by the Ministry of Personnel. The path to the imperial examinations was long and extremely costly, and while official families could afford the long-term financial investment, children from poor families often found it difficult to persevere due to the pressures of making a living.
In the Ming Dynasty, less than one-third of the officials came from humble backgrounds. When these officials learned that Chen Ying was establishing a school, they immediately became anxious, as this threatened the interests of the gentry class.
The officials of the Ming Dynasty mobilized their protégés and former subordinates to verbally and in writing attack Chen Ying, digging up all sorts of old and trivial matters, and completely vilifying Chen Ying and the Shahe Garrison Command!
In short, if you don't shut down this outrageous Shahe Academy, I'm not done with you!
Chen Ying didn't even need to bother with these guys; he was currently busy planning the expansion of Shahe Academy.
Chen Ying also knew that running a school would cost a lot of money. He was currently under considerable pressure to feed six or seven thousand people. He planned to build Shahe Academy, just like schools in later generations, to promote all-round development in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics and labor. The new school covered an area of more than 240 acres and consisted of classrooms, dormitories, canteens and playgrounds. It would not be put into use until autumn, but this did not prevent him from making preparations in advance.
The key issue is still money.
Thanks to the hard work of the craftsmen who worked overtime, the delivery of 20,000 triangular bayonets had already been completed. Despite the interference of Wei Zhongxian and the subsequent delays, 90% of the funds allocated by the Ministry of War had finally arrived.
Chen Ying didn't delve into it further. He knew this was the rule, and that getting most of it was already considered a special favor from Eunuch Wei.
The real highlight was the 20,000 suits of plate armor that Wei Zhongxian ordered under the guise of changing the uniforms of the Imperial Horse Administration and the Warriors Battalion. These suits looked impressive and were made of thick materials, but their actual cost was not high. He quoted a price of ten taels of silver, but the actual cost was only six taels and four mace. This alone brought in a gross profit of more than 52,000 taels of silver. With the bayonet order added, the accounts showed a surplus of more than 70,000 taels of silver.
Chen Ying naturally did not pocket all the silver, nor did he use it for the construction of the Shahe Police Station. Instead, he gave 40,000 taels of silver, which was the majority of the profits, to Wei Zhongxian.
Despite being illiterate, Wei Zhongxian could roughly estimate how much silver Chen Ying could earn, even without obtaining the exact figure.
After being remelted, the 40,000 taels of silver ingots, gleaming with silver light, were delivered to Wei Zhongxian's residence, where Wei Zhongxian received him in the inner hall.
"Commander Chen, you've handled the task efficiently."
Wei Zhongxian slowly began, "Grand Secretary Sun sent word back that the bayonet was easy to use, the musketeers were much bolder, and they gained some advantage in sporadic engagements. His Majesty was very pleased to hear this."
"It's all thanks to your patronage, Your Majesty, and your great fortune."
Chen Ying bowed respectfully, but not servilely. He waved for his attendants to carry in twenty wooden crates, which landed with a dull thud.
"Sir, thanks to your assistance, the settlement of the payments for the plate armor and guns went very smoothly this time. This is a token of our respect to the Imperial Seal Registry, a mere forty thousand taels; we hope you will accept it with a smile!"
He opened several of the chests, and in an instant, neatly stacked, gleaming silver ingots were revealed under the candlelight, their silvery light almost blinding the eyes of the eunuch beside him.
This is not mixed silver, but rather snowflake silver of excellent purity, fifty taels ingot.
Even though Wei Zhongxian was used to seeing mountains of gold and seas of silver, his eyelids twitched involuntarily.
He usually received silver notes, unlike Chen Ying who directly had the silver recast and delivered it to his residence openly and honestly.
Wei Zhongxian already knew that Chen Ying had only actually received 90% of the payment, which was unavoidable. It was customary for subordinates to receive kickbacks for their work, and Wei Zhongxian couldn't block everyone's path to wealth.
He estimated that the gross profit from Chen Boying's two orders would be slightly over 50,000 taels of silver. But the problem was that he actually gave him 40,000 taels of silver. Seeing how sensible Chen Boying was, he was very happy.
Of course, he also understood that Chen Boying's ambitions were certainly not small.
Wei Zhongxian feigned anger and said, "Boying... what do you mean by this? The job is done and that's it. I'm just following the rules."
"Your Excellency is wise, the task is finished, but I... am even more panicked."
"Oh? What's the panic?"
"My lord, the Shahe Thousand-Household Garrison has now gathered over six thousand artisans and refugees. The daily expenses for food and supplies for the people and horses are enormous. The production of military equipment will eventually run out, and His Majesty and the court cannot afford to procure such large quantities every year. If there is no work, these thousands of people will starve to death, and they will rebel within three months. As the garrison commander, I have the responsibility to protect the land and ensure the safety of the people. I must take precautions."
"Bo Ying, don't worry. With me here, how could I let you go hungry?"
Wei Zhongxian laughed and said, "General Sun requested cannons for the defense of the city. Didn't you say you could cast cannons? Once General Sun's request is approved, I'll hand this guy over to you!"
Without comparison, there is no harm. In the past, the Bureau of Military Affairs did give Wei Zhongxian benefits, but the benefits were not much, only a few thousand taels of silver. Unlike Chen Boying, who sent 40,000 taels of silver in less than three months. If he also got some cannon orders, Wei Zhongxian would be so rich that he would be overwhelmed with money.
"I've heard that your father-in-law has a good relationship with the garrison commander of Dongjiang Town?"
"You want to do business in Dongjiang Town?"
Wei Zhongxian curled his lip and said, "Mao Wenlong is a penniless wretch; he has no money at all..."
Among the twelve major crimes for which Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong was currying favor with the eunuch faction and forming cliques for personal gain. This crime was not really unjust for Mao Wenlong, as Wang Zaijin, Wang Huazhen, and others who promoted Mao Wenlong all had good relationships with Wei Zhongxian.
"Father-in-law, although Marshal Mao didn't have money, North Korea did!"
Chen Ying was someone who had done his homework. He had been considering using this opportunity to his advantage, but the problem was that the iron he had was supplied by the imperial court, whether forging armor or bayonets. The quantity was limited. It was easy for him to conceal some of the iron, but the quantity was restricted and could not be too outrageous.
More importantly, the Ming Dynasty's arms trade was short-lived because the court was short of money. At most, it would spend a few hundred thousand taels of silver, and after deducting most of the expenses and bribes, it wouldn't save much.
Chen Ying took out a map he carried with him and spread it on the table. He then pointed directly at the Yalu River on the map with a pen: "Please look, Your Excellency, this is Yuanbao Island. This island is less than 600 paces from Uiju in North Korea..."
"and then?"
Chen Yingdao said, "There is a huge iron mine in Musan, Uiju, North Korea. Your Excellency can have Marshal Mao unite with North Korea to mine the ore in Musan, and then use rafts to float down the Chishui River into the Yalu River. From there, they can be transported downstream to Yuanbao Island, loaded onto ships, and then transported via Tianjin, along the Grand Canal to Tongzhou, and finally to our Shahe Thousand-Household Garrison. At the same time, there is also a large amount of coal in Hyesan, North Korea, which can be transported to Shahe using the same method!"
"Marshal Mao's forces are incomplete with armor and lack weapons. He can negotiate with North Korea to have them mine iron ore and coal, and send people to transport the goods!"
Chen Ying lowered his voice and said, "I've heard that a set of armor from our Ming Dynasty costs over a hundred taels of silver to transport to Korea. Why don't we have them transport iron ore and coal instead? I can smelt the iron ore into iron, forge it into armor, and have Commander Mao transport it to Korea. This would not only solve part of the Dongjiang Army's funding shortage but also earn us a lot of silver!"
Chen Ying's intention was not simply to make money, but to help the Dongjiang Army. Mao Wenlong's tragedy was one of the greatest losses for the Ming Dynasty. With the Dongjiang Army around, the Jurchens never dared to launch a full-scale attack on the Ming Dynasty until Mao Wenlong was killed. Only then did they dare to send out their entire forces.
Of course, the root cause of Mao Wenlong's execution was his lack of funds. Initially, in May of the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, Lushun fell to the Japanese. Wu Zhiwang, Mao Wenlong's superior and then governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou, wanted Mao Wenlong to send troops to retake Lushun. However, Mao Wenlong had neither money nor food, and simply could not afford a war of attrition involving a siege.
He refused to carry out Wu Zhiwang's orders, which angered Wu Zhiwang. He then seized the supplies of the Dongjiang Army in an attempt to force Mao Wenlong to back down. However, Mao Wenlong believed that Wu Zhiwang was just a pedantic official who did not understand military affairs at all. The two sides began to accuse each other. In December of the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, Wu Zhiwang sent people to check the troop registers of the Dongjiang Army and found that apart from more than 36,000 men, the rest of the Dongjiang Army were just Liaodong civilians filling in.
This was actually a miscarriage of justice for Mao Wenlong. From May onwards, the Dongjiang Army had not received any provisions from the Dengzhou-Laizhou governor's office. Not only were the soldiers emaciated, but tens of thousands had starved to death. Besides the main fighting force, even many second-line troops had died of starvation.
It just so happened that in the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, Yuan Chonghuan's main force was defending Ningyuan, and he also wanted Mao Wenlong to send troops to cooperate. Mao Wenlong naturally disagreed. He hadn't been given a single grain of grain, yet he wanted his father to send troops. He didn't care who it was. As a result, he offended the petty Yuan Chonghuan.
When Yuan Chonghuan became the military governor, he could not command the Guan Ning Army or the Dongjiang Army. The generals of the Guan Ning Army, such as Zhu Mei, He Conggang, Zhao Shuaijiao, and Zu Dashou, had followed Yuan Chonghuan to defend Ningyuan and were considered comrades-in-arms who had fought side by side. So what was Mao Wenlong? Thus, Yuan Chonghuan used Mao Wenlong as a chicken to scare the monkey.
Wei Zhongxian fell silent, but the rhythm of his fingers tapping on the armrest quickened.
He understood. Chen Boying didn't want new official orders; he wanted to leverage Wei Zhongxian's power to open up a huge avenue for wealth.
A suit of armor sold in Korea for over a hundred taels of silver. Korea couldn't produce armor as fine as that of the Ming Dynasty, but the Korean king also wanted to arm his army. The key point was that Ming Dynasty armor and equipment were hard currency in that era.
Not only the Jurchens liked it, but the Mongols and the Japanese also liked it. This was actually a huge business opportunity. In Chen Ying's eyes, armor was outdated, and firearms were the future.
Moreover, Chen Ying made it clear that he only wanted Eunuch Wei's protection. This matter was not very risky, but the potential benefits were considerable, and it would also allow him to further bind Chen Ying, the head of the artisan households who could generate wealth, to his side.
Even better, if this succeeds, the Dongjiang Army can improve its combat effectiveness. Mao Wenlong's entire family of more than 130 people was killed in the first and third years of the Tianqi reign. He has a deep-seated hatred for the Jurchens. As long as Mao Wenlong has the strength, he can turn the Jurchens upside down.
If the Liaodong affair is resolved peacefully, it will be a commendable achievement for the Emperor.
After a moment's thought, Wei Zhongxian finally showed a genuine smile: "Commander Chen, your dedication to public service and relieving the court's worries is commendable. The matter you are concerned about is not worth mentioning."
Chen Yingxin was delighted. Wei Zhongxian was quite something; he really dared to do anything that was profitable.