Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 29 Intrigue and Backstabbing: Treacherous Officials in Power
Wei Zhongxian actually personally led men to imprison Zhou Yingqiu, the Minister of Personnel, and have him confiscated for his ill-gotten gains!
Neither the Donglin Party nor the Qi-Chu-Zhe Party expected this move.

Zhou Yingqiu was not only Wei Zhongxian's godson, but he also had a very good relationship with Duke Ningguo, Wei Liangqing.

More importantly, Zhou Yingqiu was one of the most prominent figures in the eunuch faction.

Wei Zhongxian's core subordinates were the Five Tigers, the Five Leopards, and the Ten Dogs.

Now, Tian Ergeng, the leader of the Five Tigers, has been dismissed and investigated, and Cui Chengxiu, the leader of the Five Tigers, has been forced to return to his hometown to observe mourning for his parents. Wei Zhongxian has even personally imprisoned Zhou Yingqiu, the leader of the Ten Dogs!
Is this guy out of his mind?
You're getting better.

The saying goes, "Strike while the sick is at it!"
The Donglin Party and the Qi-Chu-Zhe Party didn't care what was wrong with Wei Zhongxian's mind; they only cared about seizing the position of Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Since the Minister of Personnel has been imprisoned, the position of Minister can no longer be nominated by the Minister of Personnel; any senior official in the court can nominate one.

The next morning, a large number of memorials recommending the Minister of Personnel arrived.

The position of Heavenly Official is truly coveted; the Donglin Party and the Qi-Chu-Zhe Party are practically fighting tooth and nail for it.

People like Wen Tiren, Zhou Yanru, and Min Hongxue were all nominated, along with countless others such as Fang Zhuangli, Wang Yongguang, and Li Changgeng.

Some people, even Liu Ruoyu, couldn't tell whether they belonged to the Donglin Party or the Qi-Chu-Zhe Party.

Zhu Jue looked at the pile of memorials recommending candidates, too lazy to think about it, and simply waved his hand and said, "Order the cabinet to organize a court discussion."

Since there's only one position for Minister of Personnel, it's a good opportunity for the Donglin Party and the Qi-Chu-Zhe Party to fight each other to the death.

He hadn't even finished processing this memorial when a voice suddenly announced from outside, "Bi Maokang and Bi Maoliang request an audience."

Sure enough, as soon as Xu Guangqi arrived, the others followed quickly.

Zhu Jue replied without hesitation, "Send it."

Upon hearing this, Wang Zheng instinctively reached out to put the parts on the table into the cabinet.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue repeatedly raised his hand and said, "Liangfu, no need to trouble yourself, we're all on the same side."

Oh, these two brothers are on our side.

Upon hearing this, Wang Zheng immediately got back to work.

Soon, the brothers Bi Maokang and Bi Maoliang strode in, cupped their hands and bowed, saying, "Your humble servants pay their respects to Your Majesty."

Zhu Jue took a closer look and was speechless.

The capable people in the Ming Dynasty are all getting old. Bi Maokang is probably about the same age as Wang Zheng, and Bi Maoliang is probably about the same age as Xu Guangqi!
The Wanli, Taichang, and Tianqi emperors wasted far too much of these people's time.

Even heroes grow old with the passage of time.

There's no other way; the Ming Dynasty only has a handful of talented people left, and they all have to be used, no matter how old they are.

He sighed inwardly for a moment, then asked, "Lord Meng, I heard you've figured out how to make a flintlock gun?"

I have already presented the blueprints to the late emperor, but unfortunately he did not order the construction of the building.

Are you preparing to build a flintlock musket?

Bi Maokang nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, in the fourth year of the Tianqi reign, I presented you with blueprints for flintlock muskets."

Emperor Tianqi didn't know how to appreciate goods, but I do.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue decisively replied, "I will now summon the artisans to help you with the trial production. How long will it take to complete the sample?"

This is it.

Bi Maokang estimated, "Your humble servant dares not speak presumptuously; it will probably take at least a month to produce a trial sample."

Does it really take this long to make a musket these days?
Zhu Jue thought for a moment and then asked, "After the flintlock gun is successfully tested, I plan to produce 10,000 guns per month. How many artisans do you think we need to recruit?"

what?
Tens of thousands produced per month!

Bi Maokang paused for a moment, then said cautiously, “Your Majesty, producing 10,000 pieces a month is probably very difficult. It’s not just a matter of recruiting artisans; we also need the facilities and equipment. Last year, the Wanggong Factory exploded, and almost all the equipment used to make firearms and cannons was destroyed. Now, the court can’t even make gunpowder, let alone firearms.”

The Wanggongchang explosion was most likely the work of an inside agent.

Nurhaci died from a relapse of his cannon wound, and then Wanggongchang was bombed. There's no such coincidence in the world!
The Jurchens wanted to prevent the Ming Dynasty from even being able to manufacture gunpowder.

Nowadays, manufacturing muskets and cannons truly requires starting from scratch. Zhu Jue thought about it carefully, then solemnly said, "You don't need to worry about the site; I will arrange it for you."

You don't need to worry about the machinery. Liangfu is currently developing a steam engine. Once the steam engine is developed, drilling, grinding, cutting, and other machines will be manufactured one after another. They will definitely be more useful than the simple machinery we had before.

"Just tell me how many artisans are needed to produce 10,000 muskets a month. We can't wait any longer. The Jurchens have almost taken over the Chahar tribe; they'll probably be attacking us in two years at most."

Are the Jurchens coming to attack?

Upon hearing this, Bi Maokang cautiously said, "Your Majesty, muskets are probably ineffective against the Jurchen cavalry, because most of the Jurchen cavalry are clad in iron armor and are extremely fast. After one volley, before the second round of ammunition can be reloaded, the Jurchens will be charging at us."

If the Jurchen cavalry were to charge into the musketeer formation, they would be as easy as cutting melons and vegetables. Therefore, when I presented the flintlock musket blueprints, I also presented the armored chariot blueprints.

"In my humble opinion, our infantry can only withstand the charge of the Jurchen cavalry by relying on armored chariots, and only then can our muskets achieve their intended killing effect."

Wu Gang car?
Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue pondered and said, "The problems of ammunition loading and lethality can be solved. We can preload the ammunition into bullets and change it to breech loading. We can also make the bullets into a pointed cone shape to enhance their penetrating power."

As for the armored chariot you mentioned, we can also build it at the same time. Tell me what kind of chariot it would look like first.”

Rear-loading?

The bullets are made into a pointed cone shape!

Upon hearing this, Bi Maokang's eyes lit up, and he began to ponder it with great interest, completely forgetting that he was in an audience with the emperor.

This is often the case with people who are obsessed with a certain field; they can easily become completely absorbed in it.

Upon seeing this, Bi Maoliang quickly and secretly tugged at his younger brother's sleeve.

Bi Maokang then explained as if waking from a dream: "The Wugang chariot has existed since the Han Dynasty, and after more than a thousand years of improvement, it has become the nemesis of cavalry."

Its chariot was over two zhang long and about one zhang fourteen or fifteen zhang wide. The chariot was protected with cowhide, and long spears were fixed at the front to form a dense barbed wire fence. Inside, firing ports were provided for musketeers and crossbowmen. The sides were equipped with interlocking devices, allowing multiple chariots to be linked together to form a fortified barrier, sufficient to withstand a cavalry charge.

This is really good.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jue slowly nodded and said, "Yes, the Wugang chariot sample and the flintlock musket sample can be made at the same time. The factory is under construction. You can choose one first. Just tell Ruoyu how many craftsmen you need and what materials you need."

Are we starting to build a prototype now?

Upon hearing this, Bi Maokang, quite intrigued, cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Your humble servant obeys the decree."

Wanli nodded slightly and then asked, "Shigao, do you know anything about doing business?"

How do you say this?

Bi Maoliang thought for a moment, then carefully said, "Your Majesty, Huizhou Prefecture was originally full of merchants, and many of my relatives and friends are also in business. Therefore, I have some knowledge of this matter."

That's a humble way of putting it.

This means you know how to do business.

However, the inner court's businesses haven't even opened yet.

Zhu Jue thought about it carefully, and then solemnly said, "Then you should first discuss with Ruoyu which places under the jurisdiction of the inner court are related to doing business. From now on, all places under the inner court that are related to doing business will be under your jurisdiction, such as the imperial shops, official kilns, textile manufacturing offices, and the supervisory offices, etc."

Ah!
Aren't these all over-regulated?

While they were discussing how to build muskets and chariots and make money in business, the important officials of the court were also scheming and fighting fiercely for the position of the highest official in the Wenhua Hall.

So, who exactly obtained this position of Heavenly Official?

The winner was none other than Zhou Yanru, who had just been promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites!
When Zhu Jue saw the results of the court debate, he couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

Zhou Yanru, that treacherous minister, is indeed quite capable.

This guy even served as Grand Secretary twice in history.

At this time, Feng Quan was still in the court and was the second-in-command of the cabinet, so it was not surprising that this fellow could win.

He couldn't be bothered with the corrupt officials in power in the outer court; they would be purged eventually anyway. He'd just let them bring their cronies first.

(End of this chapter)