Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 47 A petty person's heart is devoted to a craftsman's life.
More than twenty miles outside Chaoyang Gate, in an unnamed village, it seems that the Imperial Guards and the soldiers of the Beijing Garrison are at war!
Wei Zhongxian and Lu Xiangshan stared at each other, seemingly locked in a fierce battle, neither willing to give way.

Lu Xiang-sheng didn't really know how to say it.

He realized it was a misunderstanding, but he hadn't caused it.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue was also a little embarrassed.

He thought for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Jiandou, let Wei Zhongxian come over and talk to you."

This means they don't want to reveal their identity.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiang-sheng immediately said loudly, "Eunuch Wei, this is a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. May we speak in private?"

Can you let me pass by?
Does this mean I should go downstairs and talk to you?
Wei Zhongxian said, somewhat displeased, "Lord Lu, could we speak in private?"

I!
No.

His Majesty does not want to go to your place.

Lu Xiang-sheng thought for a moment and then said simply, "Eunuch Wei, I am here to convey His Majesty's oral decree."

This isn't exactly a lie; His Majesty just whispered in his ear that he should relay an imperial edict.

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian immediately stood up, strode down from the stage, and greeted him with a beaming smile, "Lord Lu, you should have said so earlier! What are His Majesty's orders?"

Although this fellow is a villain, he knows the importance of loyalty to the emperor, because if he is not loyal to the emperor, he will lose everything.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then whispered, "Zhongxian, I'm just here to take a look. Don't make a sound."

Oh, His Majesty is here too!

I didn't realize you were wearing armor and a helmet!

Wei Zhongxian glanced around furtively, then whispered, "Your Majesty, please forgive me, this servant truly did not know you were here."

I didn't tell you, so of course you wouldn't know.

Zhu Jue shook his head slightly and said, "It's alright, ignorance is no excuse. However, it's a bit much for you to have the Embroidered Uniform Guard arrest him like this."

How do you say this?

Wei Zhongxian thought for a moment before carefully explaining, "Your Majesty, the reason I did this was firstly to get things done quickly. If we had made them come over on their own, this matter would definitely not be finished in three days. Secondly, it was to give them a warning. If you don't act tough with these local bullies, they will drag their feet and even ask for exorbitant prices."

Oh, so you weren't bullying them after all.

How should I put it, your methods?

Zhu Jue glanced at the village heads and hamlet leaders who were as honest as quails and couldn't help but nod in approval.

Wei Zhongxian's methods were truly remarkable.

It seems this guy is quite meticulous in his work; he's considered all these details.

He thought about it carefully, then nodded slightly and said, "Hmm, the idea is good, and the execution is also very good. You go ahead with your work, I'll go and take a look at other places."

It's almost noon.

Wei Zhongxian looked up at the sky and said cautiously, "Your Majesty, why don't you stay for a meal? I've ordered some ingredients to be brought from the palace, and the cook has also come."

No need for that.

I want to see what the artisans eat. The food in the palace is the same every day, there's nothing interesting to see.

Zhu Jue shook his head slightly, then waved his hand and said, "You all eat, I won't eat, let's go."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuji and Huang Degong immediately turned their horses around, led everyone out of the village, back onto the main road, and headed straight for the newly built ironworks.

This route passed through the area where Wei Zhongxian had seized land. The common people and garrison soldiers were terrified of Wei Zhongxian and acted swiftly. The rice and wheat in the fields had long been harvested, and countless people were carrying their families and belongings northwards.

This caused them to be stuck, and it took them almost 45 minutes to get to the area where the steel plant was under construction.

Zhu Jue raised his hand to signal everyone to stop and take a closer look, and they were all filled with shock.

There are not just a few people here; tens of thousands of artisans and their families make up at least forty or fifty thousand people, and the area spans thousands of acres, so there are people everywhere.

Some were wielding hoes to dig foundations, some were making bricks with clay, some were carrying various building materials, some were repairing the huge circle, and some were cooking in the outer shantytown area, and so on.

At this point, the steel plant was only in its initial stages; the tallest of the huge circles on the ground was less than a person's height.

If it were built to a height of three zhang (approximately 10 meters), it would resemble a giant chimney. In later generations, there were similar chimneys, but those were chimneys for thermal power plants—real chimneys. What was being built here was a blast furnace for steelmaking.

Seeing the workers sweating profusely on the construction site, Zhu Jue didn't disturb them. He led his group directly to the cooking area in the outer shantytown.

The large pots and earthen stoves here are arranged in rows, as are the large square tables common in the countryside, just like a banquet. However, the artisan families are not preparing a banquet; they are making ordinary food, such as steamed buns, porridge, and egg drop soup.

As they were leading their horses and looking around, Yuan You, who was in charge of managing the artisans, arrived after hearing the news.

Yuan You had intended to greet Lu Xiang Sheng, but upon seeing the people beside Lu Xiang Sheng, he was taken aback. After a careful examination, he whispered, "Your Majesty, are you traveling incognito?"

This time it was a genuine incognito visit.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly and said, "Yes, don't make a fuss."

Okay.

Yuan You nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, I understand."

It was almost noon, and the artisan's family had started serving the dishes. Countless women and children were carrying bowls of food to the table.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue tossed the reins to Wang Chengen, walked up to a table full of large and small basins, and frowned slightly.

This large table looks quite lavish, but it consists of only a large bowl of steamed buns, a large bowl of porridge, a large bowl of egg drop soup, a small bowl of pickled vegetables, a small bowl of fermented bean curd, and a small bowl of tofu with scallions.

He looked up at the other tables and then asked, "Father-in-law, why is there no meat at all? How will the craftsmen have the strength to work if they eat this?"

This is already considered top-notch.

Yuan You quickly explained, "Your Majesty, eggs are considered meat. Most artisan households don't even have this many dishes per meal. They're lucky if they get one or two, and they rarely get a full meal."

We provide plenty of food, and if it's not enough, we can have more. The craftsmen eat with all their might, and they work like their lives depend on it.

Eggs are considered meat!
Zhu Jue couldn't help but ask, "What about chicken, duck, fish, beef, and mutton? Aren't these common ingredients in rural areas? Why aren't any of them here?"

How do you say this?

Yuan You thought for a moment before cautiously saying, "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold, are you referring to records from the Renxuan era, the early Jiajing era, or the early Wanli era?"

When I was a child, I happened to live during the early Wanli period. It was a truly prosperous and flourishing time. Many people raised chickens, ducks, pigs, and even cattle and sheep. During festivals, the table was indeed full of chicken, duck, fish, and meat.

However, things are different now. Nowadays, ordinary people can't even feed themselves, so where would they get the extra grain to raise chickens, ducks, or pigs? Being able to raise a few hens to lay eggs is considered quite good.

As for fish, almost all the fish in the river have been caught, so the price of river fish has risen to more than 20 yuan per catty. There are plenty of fish in the sea, but we are not allowed to go out to sea to catch them.

"Your Majesty, I have no other choice but to send people to buy eggs and tofu everywhere. Although these are not as effective as meat, they still provide strength."

That's true. Eggs and tofu do contain protein, but not as much as meat, and they don't taste as good.

He had just seen it too; the craftsmen were working incredibly hard, as if they were afraid that if they didn't work hard enough, they wouldn't have any work to do.

However, the food available to ordinary people is really bad right now, and he has to think of a solution.

There's no time to raise pigs and chickens now; he doesn't even have enough food to feed them.

Fish in the sea can be caught.

The Ming Dynasty's maritime ban was truly baffling.

Could a maritime ban really eradicate Japanese pirates?
joke!

Only when the Ming Dynasty becomes strong can the Japanese pirates be eradicated. The weaker the Ming Dynasty is, the more the Japanese pirates will bully it!

Zhu Jue thought about it carefully, and then decisively said, "Ruoyu, go back and draft an imperial edict to lift the fishing ban, so that all fishermen along the coast can go out to sea to fish."

This imperial edict needs to go through the cabinet. Will the cabinet approve it?
Liu Ruoyu was taken aback for a moment before nodding repeatedly and saying, "This servant understands."

Zhu Jue then instructed, "Father-in-law, buy more fish in the future, so that at least the artisans can have some fish to eat. As for the price, you don't need to worry about it. Don't try to save me any money."

Yuan You nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, I understand."

At this time, the craftsmen finished their work and came to eat. Almost all of them quickly washed their hands, then sat down around, picked up a steamed bun, broke it open, added some pickled vegetables, fermented bean curd, scallions mixed with tofu, and wolfed it down before picking up a bowl to scoop soup, porridge, or egg drop soup.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Jue couldn't help but feel hungry.

He imitated the craftsmen, picked up a steamed bun, broke it open, put some pickled vegetables and scallions mixed with tofu inside, and then put it back together and took a big slurp.

I must say, it tastes pretty good this way.

He nodded slightly, then instructed, "Father-in-law, find us about twenty tables so we can all eat together."

Upon hearing this, Yuan You immediately went to make the arrangements.

(End of this chapter)