The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 593: The Reconstruction of the Imperial Palace
The Ming Dynasty Palace has not been rebuilt for a long time.

The most recent one seems to date back to the Jiajing period several decades ago.

The newest building in the imperial palace is the Cining Palace, which was built in the 15th year of Jiajing's reign.

Since then, it seems that only the Wanshou Palace was renovated, and the imperial palace has not been moved much.

The reason why Wanli did not build large-scale buildings in the imperial palace was mainly because he did not want to waste money.

Any move in the palace would cost millions of taels. Unless it was necessary, he really didn't want to waste that money.

However, the Jinwu Guards are now going to enter the palace to guard, and this will become a permanent position in the future. With so many people guarding the palace, it is natural to build guard houses for them.

After he decided on the location for building the guard house, he sent someone to convey the imperial decree to summon Yongnian Earl Wang Wei back to Beijing to preside over the reconstruction of the imperial palace.

This is actually a bit against the rules, or it is against the bad rules set by the civil servants.

The civil servants were fighting for any power and any benefit. Rebuilding the imperial palace would easily bring in millions of taels of profit, and the civil servants had already grabbed it long ago.

These guys even made their own rules, which stipulated that the reconstruction of the imperial palace had to be presided over by the Minister of Works or the Vice Minister of Works, and that dukes, nobles, and royal relatives could only serve as deputies.

Wanli naturally didn't care about the bad rules set by the civil officials, so he asked Yongnian Earl Wang Wei to preside over the reconstruction of the imperial palace.

When Yongnian Earl Wang Wei received the news, he rushed over immediately.

At about 3:00 p.m. that day, when the sun was shining brightly in the sky, Wanli came to the steps in front of the Huangji Palace again.

However, this time he did not hold little Zhu Changxun.

The little guy is in his grandfather's arms.

Yongnianbo Wang Wei rarely saw his daughter and grandson a few times a year. People of common origin tend to have a tendency to show affection towards grandchildren, so he naturally doted on his grandson.

The reason why Wanli asked Wang Wei, the Earl of Yongnian, to preside over the reconstruction of the imperial palace was actually to let him spend more time with Queen Wang and little Zhu Changxun.

Of course, the main reason is that Yongnian Earl Wang Wei is good at this.

After seeing Yongnianbo Wang Wei and Xiao Zhu Changxun being intimate enough, he pointed to the open space under the steps on both sides of Huangji Hall and said, "Father-in-law, I plan to build four guardhouses for the Jinwu Guards around Huangji Hall.

Each of these duty rooms should be able to accommodate at least 30 people, and it would be best if the four walls could be opened up to allow them to enter and exit conveniently.

You also have to consider their daily life, including eating, drinking, defecating and urinating.

The Jinwu Guards are not just on duty for a few years; they will be the core of protecting the royal family in the future.

The number of Jinwu Guards will only increase and not decrease. Even if someone goes back to inherit the title of a duke or noble, other duke or noble princes and eldest sons will be immediately selected to supplement them.

They are all descendants of generals with outstanding military achievements, so we can't let them live in such a poor condition. You should consider this carefully."

This means that it can’t be built as an ordinary duty station?

So, what will it look like?
Yongnian Earl Wang Wei thought for a moment, then asked cautiously, "Your Majesty, I'm so bold as to say that you've only mentioned the requirements for the interior. What would you like the exterior to look like? Do you have any requirements?"

This requirement naturally exists.

Wanli looked at the Huangji Hall behind him, then at the steps and square in front of him, and then said proudly: "The Ming Dynasty is about to enter a peaceful and prosperous era.

The Huangji Hall can be said to be a symbol of peace and prosperity. No matter whether it is civil and military officials or envoys from vassal states, the most intuitive experience of the peace and prosperity of the Ming Dynasty is the Huangji Hall.

The four duty rooms of the Jinwu Guard are equivalent to the ancillary buildings of the Huangji Palace. You have to consider the overall effect in terms of appearance.

As for the specific appearance, it’s naturally as grand and majestic as possible.”

You're not being specific enough.

Yongnian Earl Wang Wei thought about it carefully, then asked, "Your Majesty, do you have any requirements for specific materials, such as doors and windows?"

How does this show its grandeur?
Wanli pondered for a while, then said decisively: "It is best to use the best golden nanmu wood for doors and windows, the kind that shines with golden light.

In addition, all the hollow areas of doors and windows are filled with special glass, the kind with golden dots.

The doors and windows of the Huangji Hall were also replaced.

We can’t use purple-red tones as the main color as before, as that would look too monotonous and would only show solemnity but not the grandeur of a prosperous age.

The purple-red main color combined with the golden doors and windows creates a grand and majestic atmosphere."

How much will this cost?

Yongnianbo Wang Wei nodded slightly, then asked, "Your Majesty, do you have any other requests?"

Any other requirements?
Wanli looked at the bronze cranes on both sides and came up with another idea.

He pointed at the bronze crane and said, "Father-in-law, please give us more bronze sculptures like this. You can put up a bronze sculpture of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, and Black Tortoise outside the guard rooms of the Four Jinwu Guards.

As for the screen wall outside, you can use a stone dragon wall and carve more dragons on it."

How much do you want to spend?
Yongnian Earl Wang Wei made a careful estimate and then said cautiously, "Your Majesty, what you are talking about will probably cost four or five million taels.

I dare to ask, does it really cost so much to build guardhouses for the Jinwu Guards?

I have money now, and I don’t spend it recklessly.

Wanli shook his head slightly and said, "Father-in-law, I told you that this is not only the duty room of the Jinwu Guards, it is also an auxiliary building of the Huangji Palace.

The Huangji Hall is the face of the Ming Dynasty. It doesn't matter if you spend a little more money for this face.

How about this, you start with 10 million taels, as much as possible, no less, and if it’s not enough, go ask Xier for it. "Oh my God, 10 million taels?
This is just to lay the foundation!

Upon hearing this, Yongnian Earl Wang Wei slowly nodded and said, "I understand."

Oh, and there’s also the issue of construction period.

Wanli pondered, "Father-in-law, I don't have much time. You'd better complete the renovation before April next year. Is that a problem?"

There is enough money, what else can be the problem?

Yongnian Earl Wang Wei thought about it carefully before saying cautiously, "Your Majesty, if you want to finish the project within six months, you'll probably have to recruit thousands of craftsmen."

This is a small thing.

Upon hearing this, Wanli nodded without hesitation and said, "You can recruit as many craftsmen as you want. I only care about the grandeur and the completion of the project on time."

Then we have to hurry.

Upon hearing this, Yongnian Earl Wang Wei nodded repeatedly and said, "Okay, Your Majesty, I will recruit the craftsmen and start work tomorrow."

There are so many craftsmen near the capital at this time, especially in the Summer Resort, there are more than 100,000 households.

Yongnian Earl Wang Wei was in charge of the craftsmen, and he recruited them very quickly.

The next morning, at about 1 a.m., when it was just daybreak and the gates of the imperial city and the palace had just opened, thousands of craftsmen flocked to the area around the Huangji Hall and started working.

The people recruited by Yongnianbo Wang Wei were all experienced craftsmen, and their movements were extremely skillful.

The walls on both sides of the Huangji Palace were quickly demolished by them, and the foundation was also dug out at a speed visible to the naked eye.

There was also the golden nanmu wood stored in the inner storehouse, which was quickly moved here and neatly placed in the corridors around the Huangji Hall, and they began to process it.

At about 3:00 p.m., when Wanli ran over holding little Zhu Changxun, the foundations around the place had already been dug, and they had even started filling it with bricks and stone slabs.

At this rate, will it take half a year?

Seeing this, Wanli couldn't help but ask Yongnianbo Wang Wei who came to meet him, "Father-in-law, I'm afraid you can finish the foundation in one day, but will it take another half a year to build above it?"

This is not how progress is calculated.

Yongnian Earl Wang Wei explained in detail: "Your Majesty, this reconstruction of the imperial palace is not like building houses and courtyards like ordinary people.

If a private household is building a house or courtyard, the time spent laying the foundation will account for at least 10% of the overall progress.

The reconstruction of the palace is different. The duty room is only a part of it, and they are all bungalows. The foundation is a small problem and will not take much time at all.

We also had bricks from demolishing the wall, and we could also buy ready-made bluestone slabs, so laying the foundation was really quick.

It’s different here. Just the doors and windows require months of meticulous carving.

By the way, Your Majesty, this golden nanmu is too difficult to saw, and manual sawing is too slow.

I want to order someone to bring a steam saw over here. There should be a boiler room nearby. I'd like to borrow some steam."

This sawing machine is in the palace.

What steam are you borrowing?

Wanli thought about it and simply waved his hand and said, "Father-in-law, please follow me."

Uh, I'm busy right now. The boiler room is fine. I don't need to go over there.

When Yongnian Earl Wang Wei saw Wanli turn around and leave after he finished speaking, he had no choice but to follow him.

Soon, they arrived at the side hall of Ciqing Palace.

At this moment, Song Yingxing was busy working at a running steam loom.

They had just put it together in a rush, and some parts were not suitable for mass production. He had to find a way to make it suitable for mass production.

When Yongnian Earl Wang Wei saw the steam loom in operation, his eyes lit up.

Something so difficult to develop has actually been developed!
No wonder His Majesty didn't let him and Old Zhao do it. This little guy Song Yingxing is simply a genius.

He was in a daze when Wanli pointed at the steam saw beside him and said, "Father-in-law, do you think this saw is suitable for use?"

Oh, there is a boiler here, and there are also many processing machine tools.

Upon hearing this, Yongnian Earl Wang Wei walked over to the pile of machine tools and took a look. He couldn't help but exclaimed in surprise, "Your Majesty, these machine tools are all suitable. With these machine tools, the progress will definitely be much faster."

However, he quickly came to his senses and said with a look of embarrassment, "Your Majesty, this is the main hall of Ciqing Palace. If we ask them to bring in wood for processing, I'm afraid the whole place will be covered in sawdust.

Moreover, if you are not careful, you may even scrape off the paint on the doors and pillars, as well as the powder coating on the walls.”

What is this.

Wanli said without hesitation: "It doesn't matter. Xun'er is not in a hurry to move in anyway. When Xun'er moves in, you can bring people to renovate it."

Oh, it needs to be renovated, right?

That's no problem.

(End of this chapter)