Chapter 57: The Eunuch Talents of the Ming Dynasty
Chapter 57: The Eunuch Talents of the Ming Dynasty
After finishing the lesson with Gao Gong, Zhu Zaigui cordially saw Gao Gong off from the palace.
Just after Gao Gong left, Meng Chong carefully walked up to Zhu Zaigui and reported carefully about Liu Yishou's affairs.
Regarding this matter that has been settled, Zhu Zaiqi simply hummed and said, "Have you gone to the Ministry of Industry?"
Meng Chong was obviously stunned when he heard this question, "I haven't had time to go yet."
Zhu Zaigui said, "Why don't you go quickly? Don't you know that time is money? Do you really think that Yiran Tang can conquer the world with just one trick? You must remember that people are fickle. You must keep giving them new feelings so that they will remain unchanged forever. Go to the Ministry of Industry and get the blueprint of Shunyi's industrial park."
Meng Chong nodded quickly, "Yes, I'll go right away."
Now the construction of the industrial park in Shunyi is Zhu Zaigui’s top priority.
As long as the framework of this industrial park can be established, Prince Yu's Mansion will no longer be a Prince Yu Mansion that depends on others.
Depends on the funding from the palace and the Ministry of Revenue to make ends meet every day. It seems comfortable, but in fact it depends on others' moods.
Once someone is unhappy and blocks your supply for half a year or a year, you can prepare to cry.
So in order to prevent the danger of his purse from falling on others, Zhu Zaigui had to be self-sufficient and make more money at the same time.
Two days later, the blueprint of the Shunyi Industrial Park that Meng Chong asked the Ministry of Industry to help design was finally completed.
Meng Chong happily brought the roll of drawings to find Zhu Zaigui to report the good news.
"Your Majesty, the blueprint is ready."
Meng Chong was extremely surprised and found Zhu Zaigui to report the good news.
At this moment, Zhu Zaigui was also practicing "Xiantian Gong" in the yard. He seemed to be relaxed and at ease, and he also had a somewhat ethereal temperament.
But that’s all.
Because Zhu Zaigui knew that he was not cultivating immortality but exercising, he did not have any great illusions about the practice of Xiantian Gong. It was enough for him to be able to keep fit and healthy.
Zhu Zaigui stopped his movements and looked at Meng Chong who came over with the blueprints. "Are you done?"
Meng Chong replied, "It's done, my lord. Please come and watch."
Zhu Zaiqi hummed, "Spread it out and take a look."
Meng Chong immediately spread out the drawings on the stone table in the yard.
Zhu Zaigui took the towel handed to him by the eunuch and wiped his hands, then threw it away and looked at the drawings spread out by Meng Chong.
Zhu Zaigui asked, "How much silver did it cost?"
Meng Chong looked up at Zhu Zaigui blankly, not understanding.
Zhu Zaigui patiently asked, "How much did it cost to have this blueprint drawn?"
Meng Chong said "Oh" twice, "It didn't cost any money. I gave a bottle of Yiran candy to the person who drew the blueprint."
Zhu Zaiqi looked up at Meng Chong and smiled, "You are quite capable. Not bad, but you still have to pay for this kind of thing in the future. This is a rule that cannot be violated."
Meng Chong quickly replied: "Yes, yes, I will remember it."
Zhu Zaigui then asked: "If we build according to this blueprint, how long will it take to complete the first phase of construction?"
The first phase that Zhu Zaigui mentioned is the work workshop and part of the living area.
Only after having these areas can construction start at the same time, so Zhu Zaigui attached great importance to this issue.
Meng Chong replied, "Your Highness, the people from the Ministry of Works said that as long as there are enough materials and craftsmen, the first phase of the project can be completed in half a year." Zhu Zaigui frowned when he heard that it would take half a year.
You have to know that today's buildings are not the steel and concrete buildings of later generations. Today's buildings are still mainly brick and wood structures. With this kind of structure, as long as the brick and stone foundation below is laid firmly, the wooden structure above can be completed quickly.
Moreover, Zhu Zaigui did not need their fancy decorations with carved railings and painted buildings. What Zhu Zaigui wanted was solidity and durability, and nothing else mattered.
So Zhu Zaigui said, "Half a year is too long. I can't wait any longer. Why don't you go and ask if the construction can be accelerated? If there are not enough people, then hire more people. If there is not enough money, then pay more. Anyway, we can't wait half a year. Do they know how precious my time is? They actually said it would take half a year? It's really unreasonable!"
Hearing Zhu Zaigui's words, Meng Chong quickly responded. He had no doubts about Zhu Zaigui's orders.
Since the prince said half a year would be a long time, then half a year is definitely not enough.
Must be fast!
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will communicate with the people in the Ministry of Works and complete the task as quickly as possible."
Meng Chong patted his chest and assured Zhu Zaigui.
Zhu Zaigui also glanced back at Meng Chong, "You can hurry up and speed up, but don't cut corners. As I said before, if you don't have enough money, pay them; if you don't have enough people, hire more people. In short, everything is for speed, as fast as possible. Do you understand?"
Meng Chong said loudly: "Understood!"
Zhu Zaiqi waved his hand, "Go ahead and do it if you understand. Don't just stand here like an idiot."
Meng Chong quickly put away the drawings on the stone table, bowed to Zhu Zaigui again, and then hurried to the Ministry of Works.
Although the Ministry of Works is very busy now, they still have many idle people available, otherwise Zhu Zaigui would not have allowed Meng Chong to order them around.
Moreover, Zhu Zaigui did not treat them unfairly, giving them all the benefits they deserved, and giving them enough face.
Therefore, after receiving this "business" from Zhu Zaigui, the Ministry of Works did not delay at all and just did what it had to do.
While this was going on, Huang Jin was also helping Zhu Zaigui to find talents.
After all, Huang Jin had the huge benefit of "receiving" one-third of Zhu Zaigui's profits.
After he had "taken" such a huge benefit, it was only natural for him to give benefits to Zhu Zaigui.
So Huang Jin picked out three clever young eunuchs from the inner study and recommended them to Zhu Zaigui.
The names of these three young eunuchs were Teng Xiang, Chen Hong, and Li Fang.
Teng Xiang may not be as famous as Chen Hong and Li Fang in history.
However, his ability should not be underestimated. In the original history, he had been the commander of Shanglinyuan Haizi, the commander of Xizhifang, and also managed Sanqianying and Sanqianshaoying. To be able to do the eunuch work to this extent, he must have real ability, otherwise he would not have been able to stand out among the tens of thousands of eunuchs in the Forbidden City.
You have to know that the competition among eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty was even more brutal than that in the Hanlin Academy.
As long as one passes the imperial examination and becomes a Jinshi, one has the opportunity to enter the Hanlin Academy, and once he succeeds, he can become a seventh-rank official.
However, even if a eunuch had entered the inner study, it was not certain that he could break out and become a minor manager of a department or office in the Forbidden City.
This shows that the professional competition pressure for eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty was much more brutal than that for Jinshi.
Of course, it is precisely because of the cruelty of the competition that the eunuchs of the Ming Dynasty also produced many talented people. In addition to Wang Zhen, Liu Jin, Wei Zhongxian and the like, there were also many good eunuchs who were loyal to the country, fearless of life and death, and devoted their lives to the country.
At this point, one has to admire the eunuch education system of the Ming Dynasty, which is simply the Ming Dynasty X-school!
(End of this chapter)