My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 153 Imperial Mansion
[Use 100 prestige points to force the passage of the memorial]

With the establishment of the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture and the implementation of an auditing system, the Ming Dynasty's engineering projects became increasingly transparent.

The Society for Research in Chinese Architecture promoted the development of mathematics, and a number of new mathematical tools emerged.

To solve practical problems, the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture introduced and translated some foreign mathematics books, achieving considerable development.

However, due to its limited dissemination, mathematics became a toy for the upper class.

[Ming Dynasty +3]

[Remaining Prestige Points: 410]

Indeed, research at this level is not enough to change society as a whole.

Many emperors in the Qing Dynasty were also mathematics enthusiasts, but this could not change the backward and feudal nature of the dynasty.

However, one must take things one step at a time. With the potential of the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture, Su Ze can guide it gradually.

Then, by giving mathematics a practical framework and combining this with Gao Gong's actions of spreading practical knowledge, these seeds can be gradually sown out.

Every discipline exists to solve real-world problems.

As more places require mathematics, mathematics will naturally be valued, and the Academy of Educational Sciences can gradually transform from a temporary tutoring institution into a professional educational institution like a university.

Bringing the Imperial Observatory into the picture was also a way to gradually lift the blockade on astronomy.

The exploration of the mysterious sky above can be considered a major axis of modern scientific development.

Nothing is more captivating than the mysteries of the heavens.

Astronomy is not just about satisfying people's curiosity. Studying astronomy is also about studying the Earth. The greatest role of astronomy is in navigation.

If you want to sail far out to sea, you can't rely on a compass alone.

It requires the corresponding celestial positioning and navigation technology, as well as a captain who can determine the direction at sea.

These are all areas where the development of astronomy is necessary.

In Su Ze's view, mathematics, astronomy, navigation, and maritime technology form a continuous technology tree, and the royal family's monopoly on astronomy must be broken.

The Society for Research in Chinese Architecture was just the first step; Su Ze had already prepared the next plan.

What we need to do now is to first establish the framework of the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture, and then find an opportunity to implement the next step of the plan.

However, Su Ze has another thing to do now—getting married.

With only ten days until the wedding, Su Ze has been taking half a day off each day to go back and handle the wedding arrangements.

Thanks to the help of friends like Shen Shixing and Shen Yiguan, and with Xu Wei, who had been married twice, handling various matters, Su Ze finally managed to get through the busy period.

However, when the imperial eunuch and officials from the Imperial Household Department arrived at the History Bureau, they read out the emperor's edict.

In addition to establishing the Society for Research in Architecture in the Six Ministries, the emperor issued an edict to grant Su Ze a wedding residence and also granted him permission to marry. The Society for Research in Architecture could be established after his marriage, but he had to attend a meeting of the Nine Ministers before the wedding.

As for the content of the Nine Ministers' joint discussion, it would have to wait for the Office of Transmission to copy Qi Jiguang's memorial before it was issued. The officials and eunuchs who delivered the decree did not know the details, only that it was related to the war in the Northwest.

After receiving the imperial edict, Su Ze gave the eunuch who delivered the edict and the official of the Imperial Household Department a silver coin each. After seeing them off, Su Ze's face was full of happy troubles.

It must be said that Emperor Longqing was a pretty good boss.

He is willing to delegate authority, reward his subordinates, understand the importance of things, and is considerate of others.

But being granted a residence at this time still gave Su Ze a bit of a headache.

Seeing Su Ze's bewildered expression, Luo Wanhua couldn't help but ask Shen Yiguan:
"Brother Jianwu, His Majesty has bestowed such a great favor upon you by granting you this residence, why is Brother Zilin still acting this way?"

Shen Yiguan explained:

“It is certainly a joyous occasion to bestow a residence upon you, but the timing is too tight. Your Majesty’s wedding day is approaching, and if the wedding is to be held in the new residence now that His Majesty has bestowed the residence upon you, then the wedding must be held in the new residence.”

"The few houses in the capital that can be granted are basically confiscated government properties, and they all need to be repaired before people can live in them."

"With such a tight schedule, this is not something that can be solved by spending money."

"I see," Luo Wanhua nodded repeatedly. It turned out that Su Ze's headache wasn't about the emperor bestowing a residence, but about the timing of the bestowal.

Su Ze originally wanted to get married in the small courtyard he rented.

These days, it's normal for young officials in the capital to rent apartments to get married.

With officials' salaries so high and housing prices in the capital so expensive, it's unrealistic to expect everyone to own their own home.

Zhao Zhenji's family was a scholarly and official family, so they naturally understood the difficulties faced by young officials and readily agreed.

With Su Ze's abilities, why would he worry about not having a place to stay?
No one in the Zhao family cared about this matter at all.

However, the emperor's good intentions added another necessary task to his already hectic wedding.

Who renovated their house ten days before their wedding?!
However, the emperor's bestowal of residences was always a good intention, and these residences were all close to the imperial city, locations that money could not buy later.

In later generations, it would definitely be considered a luxury mansion in the first ring road.

With this in mind, Su Ze took Shen Yiguan and Luo Wanhua to the Ministry of Works.

After being caught by Lei Li last time, Su Ze really didn't want to deal with those civil engineering guys from the Ministry of Works.

However, there was no other way. These confiscated official properties were all registered under the Ministry of Works, and their daily maintenance was also managed by the Ministry of Works. If you wanted to choose a good house, you had to go to the Ministry of Works.

Compared to the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Ministry of War that Su Ze had visited, the Ministry of Works was an extremely large government office.

Although the Ministry of Works was the last of the Six Ministries, its authority was extremely vast.

The Ministry of Works was in charge of engineering construction, equipment manufacturing, water conservancy and transportation, land reclamation and mining, and had four subordinate offices.

The Construction and Maintenance Bureau was in charge of the construction of palaces, mausoleums, and government offices.

The Yuheng Division managed mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes, and supervised the manufacture of military equipment. The famous Wanggong Factory in the capital was managed by this division.

The Water Conservancy Bureau was responsible for water management and water transport. The Yangtze River, the Yellow River, the Grand Canal, and all water conservancy projects in the country were under the management of this bureau.

The Tuntian Division managed 900,000 hectares of government-owned farmland and military settlements nationwide, and also operated government-run workshops.

Su Ze and his two companions got lost after entering the Ministry of Works. Just as Su Ze was about to ask someone for directions, he heard a shout behind him:

"Su Hanlin!"

Su Ze turned around and saw Fu Shun, the strong and capable head of the Ministry of Works who had been forced to copy texts by Lei Li last time, running enthusiastically towards him.

Su Ze's expression changed slightly. Fu Shun's enthusiasm, coupled with his appearance, gave Su Ze a bad feeling, and he quickly stepped aside.

"Master Fu!"

Fu Shun was so excited that he realized he had been a bit rude, so he quickly bowed and said, "My apologies, Hanlin Su, what brings you to our Ministry of Works? Could it be that you've remembered some ancient architecture again?"

Su Ze rubbed his forehead. Wasn't what he'd said enough for your archaeological work? You want more?
Shen Yiguan explained his purpose to Fu Shun, and Fu Shun's eyes immediately lit up as he said:
"Is that all? No problem! I happen to be the head of the Construction Department. Please follow me!"

Su Ze never expected that he would actually know the official in charge.

That makes sense when you think about it. The Ministry of Works officials who need to use the "Yingzao Fashi" (Building Standards) are none other than the Construction and Maintenance Department.
When he arrived at Fu Shun's public housing, he found a large booklet among a pile of files at the back of the house.

"Su Hanlin, these are all confiscated official properties!"

Su Ze flipped through it and found that the booklet was quite thick. It seemed that being an official in the Ming Dynasty was a risky business.

Su Ze glanced at it, feeling dizzy, and said to Fu Shun:

"Master Fu, could you please recommend one?"

Fu Shun scratched his head and said, "I'm just a rough man, I can't really tell good from bad. Oh, right! Everyone, wait a minute!"

Fu Shun rushed out of the office and soon dragged Wan Jing in.

Wan Jing was pulled over by Fu Shun without explanation, and he quickly bowed to Su Ze upon seeing him.

After understanding Su Ze's purpose, Wan Shun thought for a moment and said:
"Since this residence is bestowed by His Majesty, we will not consider those residences outside the east of the city."

The east was considered the most prestigious area, while the west was the richest. The residences of the capital's high-ranking officials and nobles were all located in the eastern part of the city.

Wan Jing flipped through it and finally said:
"Su Hanlin, what do you think of this one?"

Su Ze and the other two took it and saw that it was the residence of the disgraced official Zhao Wenhua?

Zhao Wenhua?
Fu Shun also came over to take a look and said:
"This house is superb! I've had it renovated before; it's very luxurious and extremely well-maintained!"

Su Ze felt the name sounded familiar, so Wan Jingze began to introduce it:

"This is the residence of Zhao Wenhua, a former Minister of Works and a criminal official during the reign of Emperor Shizong."

Su Ze then realized why the name sounded familiar—it was Zhao Wenhua!

Zhao Wenhua is a core member of Yan's party!
Wan Jing continued:

"This residence is located in Chengqingfang in the east of the city, covering an area of ​​thirty acres. It has five courtyards, with east and west wings and a back garden."

"The most wonderful thing about this house is its back garden. Back then, Zhao Wenhua was in charge of the construction of the outer city of the capital. He falsely reported the cost of materials and labor, transported 600 Taihu stones from Jiangnan, and privately hired master craftsmen from the Ministry of Works to excavate his private residence. He also diverted water from Yuquan Mountain to excavate an artificial lake, which was called 'Little Yingzhou'."

Shen Yiguan and Luo Wanhua were both dumbfounded.

When they first entered officialdom, they lacked imagination about the corrupt officials of the Jiajing era. How could Zhao Wenhua, the Minister of Works, have built his residence like this?
Su Ze said quickly:

"Isn't this appropriate?"

Wan Jingze said:
"His Majesty has decreed that a residence be granted; what's wrong with that?"

Shen Yiguan asked timidly:

"How much did this house actually cost?"

Wan Jing said:

"Contemporary estimates put the cost at 200,000 taels of silver, and that was just for materials."

Shen Yiguan almost exclaimed in surprise; this figure was already astronomical.

Luo Wanhua asked again:

"Has this house always been empty?"

Wan Jing said:

"Logically speaking, such an official residence should be sold, but this residence is a bit special."

Su Ze asked, "What's so special about it?"

Wan Jing said, "Zhao Wenhua overstepped the regulations by using a hipped roof hall with beams and pillars made of Phoebe zhennan wood. Later, when his property was confiscated, Emperor Shizong was furious and ordered the Phoebe zhennan wood beams and pillars to be dismantled and transported to rebuild the Imperial Ancestral Temple."

"When Zhao Wenhua was the governor of Zhejiang and Zhili, he withheld 80,000 taels of military funds intended for the anti-Japanese war and used them to cast gold bricks to pave the floor. As a result, the floor bricks in the main house are no longer there."

Even Su Ze was dumbfounded. Zhao Wenhua, you really dare to be greedy!
Thinking of the reconstruction costs, Su Ze quickly said, "Master Wan, I'd better choose another one!"

Wan Jing, however, said:
"Hold on, Hanlin Su!"

“Since this residence was bestowed by His Majesty, the cost of its repairs will be covered by our Ministry of Works. This is within Brother Fu’s area of ​​expertise.”

Fu Shun looked at Su Ze with a grin and asked, "Su Hanlin, how long until your wedding?"

Su Ze honestly replied:
"Ten days left."

Fu Shun did some calculations and said:

"Apart from the main hall and the main room, the rest of the house only needs simple repairs. Seven days! It will be completely renovated in seven days!"

Su Ze said quickly:

"I think I'll choose another one."

Wan Jing and Fu Shun said in unison:
"no!"

Fu Shun said viciously:
"Is Su Hanlin worried that my skills are not up to par and that I will miss the auspicious occasion? Don't worry, I can finish it in seven days. If I can't finish it, I, Fu Shun, will resign!"

Wan Jing also said:
"If we don't handle this matter properly, Minister Lei will surely punish us severely. Minister Su has done such a great favor for our Ministry of Works, and it's just a house!"

Wan Jing continued:

"We will report this to Minister Lei immediately, so that Hanlin Su can see the new architectural methods we have learned!"

And so, Su Ze was given a luxury mansion without even realizing it. When he returned home from the Ministry of Works, he found that there were already visitors at his house.

Xu Wei was talking to this person in the small courtyard.

This man was in his forties, dressed in ordinary clothes, but he was burly and the scars on his eyebrows and feet revealed a murderous aura.

Xu Wei quickly introduced:
"Sir, this is Wu Weizhong, a lieutenant under General Qi Jiguang. He has come to pay his respects on General Qi's orders."

Wu Weizhong?
Su Ze looked at the middle-aged man and remembered that he was a fierce general under Qi Jiguang.

Wu Weizhong was from Jinhua, Zhejiang. He was incorporated into the army when Qi Jiguang recruited miners from Jinhua. He was promoted for his meritorious service in the war against Japanese pirates.

Historically, during the Korean War in the Wanli era, Wu Weizhong was wounded in the left side by a bullet in the Battle of Pyongyang, and he was the first to breach the city despite his injury!

Su Ze immediately said enthusiastically:
"Quickly, bring tea! No, Mr. Qing Teng, go to the alley entrance and fetch some wine and dishes!"

Wu Weizhong looked at Su Ze cautiously. Before he left, Qi Jiguang had repeatedly told him to be careful in his duties in the capital and not to act rashly.

After arriving in the capital, Wu Weizhong was very cautious. There was no way around it; the status of military officers in the Ming Dynasty was not high to begin with, and the capital was full of high-ranking officials and nobles. A deputy general like him could easily take on several people.

Wu Weizhong first took the visiting card from Governor-General Wang Chonggu and went to Gao Gong's residence to pay his respects to Gao Gong.

Out of respect for Wang Chonggu, Gao Gong met with Wu Weizhong, but remained noncommittal about what he said.

Wu Weizhong then went to visit Huo Ji, the Minister of War, but Huo Ji did not express his opinion and was not very enthusiastic towards him.

Wu Weizhong was even more uneasy when he came to Su Ze's residence today, because before he came, Qi Jiguang had instructed him that if Grand Secretary Gao did not give his full support, the success of the matter would depend on this Hanlin scholar Su.

The Hanlin Academy is a prestigious and respectable institution, let alone a rising star like Su Ze.

Unexpectedly, Su Ze treated him very kindly and did not look down on his status as a military officer.

Before Wu Weizhong could even speak, Su Ze started asking him all sorts of questions.

From anti-Japanese pirate tactics to Qi Jiguang's Mandarin Duck Formation.

Su Ze then inquired about the performance of the arquebus and asked Wu Weizhong about its usage in the Ming army.

Wu Weizhong also came from the grassroots level, and Qi Jiguang's troops paid particular attention to the use of firearms. Therefore, Su Ze learned a lot about the specific details of the Ming army's use of firearms from Wu Weizhong.

Su Ze drank and chatted with Wu Weizhong. It wasn't until it was getting dark that Wu Weizhong remembered his mission.

He intervened and said to Su Ze:

"Scholar Su, this humble general has come to the capital on the orders of General Qi, and is seeking your support for General Qi's memorial regarding the capture of the lambs and the search for the straits!"

(End of this chapter)