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Chapter 638: Encouraging Progress
To the north of Daping is a spacious five-bay main hall. Although it had to follow the palace's regulations of green tiles and red pillars, it lacked flying eaves, brackets, gold paint, and painted decorations. The roof also lacked ridge beasts, making it very simple and practical in the magnificent palace.

Hanging in the main hall is a blue plaque with gold characters, inscribed with the words "Libentang" written by Emperor Zhengde himself.

The name is very particular. Firstly, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices is still an institution that assists the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince is the foundation of the country, and the name Liben means to assist and correct the Crown Prince.

Secondly, these two characters come from the famous saying in the Analects, "The superior man attends to the fundamentals; when the fundamentals are established, the Way will arise," which is the core concept of Confucian governance. Emperor Zhengde's choice of such a grand name reflects his earnest expectations for the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to "govern the fundamentals of state affairs."

Liben Hall was the main hall of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, specifically set up for holding general assemblies, reading imperial edicts, and handling important official business. Inside, there were only desks and chairs, and a couplet written by Su Lu hung on the wall:

"Establish a foundation for good governance, ensuring sufficient food and clothing for the people; only then will the people's hearts be at peace."

Abundant wealth strengthens the nation; secure granaries ensure a prosperous and enduring dynasty.

Furthermore, there are no superfluous furnishings; the space is bright and clean.

On the east and west sides of the large open space are symmetrically extended green-tiled corridors, with independent public houses of various locations and groups arranged in a row under the corridors on both sides. All of them follow the rule of one bright and two dark rooms, so that each door and household does not interfere with each other.

Passing through the passageways on both sides of the main hall and entering the second gate, one arrives at the inner office area for the prefectural magistrate and the heads of various departments, which is separated from the outer office by a screen door and contains a gatehouse and a dispatch room.

The inner courtyard houses the secret service and archives, each with its own entrance and courtyard. The buildings are entirely constructed of brick and stone with arched vaults, without a single wooden beam to prevent fire. The doors are all made of copper and iron, and the windows are fitted with tight iron bars. There are also dedicated guards to prevent theft, fire, and water leakage.

Further back is the logistics support area of ​​the entire government office, separated from the office area by a moon gate.

The east side of the courtyard housed a kitchen and an adjacent large dining hall, both well-organized and capable of accommodating 500 people at a time. The west side contained the staff quarters for officials on duty, providing rest for those working overtime or on shifts in the evenings.

In addition, there is a large area of ​​vacant land for secondary expansion. Zhang Gonggong has put in a lot of effort and considered everything carefully.

~~
Su Lu arrived at his official residence. This residence was a separate compound with three courtyards. The first courtyard was the main hall, where an old plaque reading "Donggui Hall" hung, along with a couplet he had inscribed himself:
'Dongbi Wenguang, always cherishing a loyal heart to repay the emperor's favor;'
Gui Tang was a stern and upright official, always wielding his pen to help the common people.

Behind Donggui Hall, the main room was his signing room, the east room was the office of his secretaries, and the west room was the supervisory office responsible for overseeing various departments.

The third courtyard contained a bedroom for him to stay overnight, and the confidential archives even had a small kitchen specifically for him to prepare simple hot soups and meals when he worked late into the night. One can only marvel once again at how meticulous Eunuch Zhang was…

After briefly reviewing the work logs from this period in the signing room and gaining a general understanding of the progress of each department, Su Lu returned to Dongguitang.

Inside the hall, all the heads of the various departments had arrived.

After taking his seat, Su Lu got straight to the point, ordering everyone to report on the progress of their tasks over the past two weeks.

After a year of development, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices has undergone a complete transformation, and has successively added and integrated eight core departments.

In addition to the original Registrar's Office, there were also the Banking Department, the Imperial Shops Department, and the Imperial Estates Department—all three departments were responsible for the affairs of the Imperial Assets Commission.

Like the Grand General's Office, the Imperial Family Commission did not have a separate office. Instead, its administrative offices were nested and integrated within the Zhan Shi Fu (Imperial Household Department), similar to a single organization with two sets of names in later times.

The General Affairs Bureau, which was in charge of the affairs of the Grand General's Mansion under the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, was headed by Lin Zhihong.

In addition, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices also housed the Water Conservancy Engineering Office, the Maritime Transport Preparation Office, and the Royal Academy.

In addition to the eight major departments, there are also the Bureau of Secrecy and the Bureau of Investigation. However, these two departments are mysterious and low-key, and even officials within the government rarely know the identities of their heads, so they naturally do not attend such routine meetings.

Those present today to report are Zhu Zi and the other seven principal officials.

The first to report was Su Man, the governor of the Banking Authority. He sat upright at his desk and reported loudly:
"The water conservancy mint has officially started production, currently producing about 10,000 silver coins per day. Once the minting process is completely stable, the production capacity can be further increased. We aim to reach the initial target of 50,000 coins per day within six months."

Su Lu nodded slightly. "Well done. How many silver dollars do you have now?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, the current treasury reserves are approximately 300,000 silver dollars. The plan is to increase this to one million silver dollars before officially releasing it into the market," Su Man replied.

“We can’t wait until then.” Su Lu shook his head and instructed, “All of these 300,000 yuan should be set aside for future use. I have already promised the Grand Secretary that I will speak to the Emperor that the salaries of officials in the capital will be paid in silver dollars from now on.”

"That's wonderful!" The officials present beamed with joy. They were also officials in the capital, and no one could stand receiving half of their monthly salary in paper money.

"How much of a burden is this?" Su Man frowned slightly, quickly and methodically calculating:
"All civil and military officials in the capital, including the military officers of the capital garrison, have a monthly stipend of 250,000 shi of rice, totaling about 3 million shi per year."

"The current situation is difficult. Officials of the fourth rank and above receive 30% of their salary in kind and 70% in cash, while officials of the fifth rank and below receive 40% in kind and 60% in cash. In total, 65% of their salary is paid in cash in cash. We should change this to silver dollars."

After a pause, he stated his conclusion: "Each shi (a unit of dry measure) is equivalent to half a silver dollar. Based on this calculation, the monthly amount of silver dollars paid to the officials would be around 80,000 dollars, totaling about one million dollars per year."

"Yes, that's about what I calculated." Su Lu nodded. The salaries of Ming Dynasty officials were indeed unparalleled throughout history.

“Eighty thousand yuan a month isn’t too much of a burden. Just think of it as enough to buy silver dollars without any problems!” He paused for a moment, then said seriously, “If we want the people to accept silver dollars, we must first make sure that the officials have silver dollars in their hands. Only when their own salaries are in silver dollars will the officials truly accept silver dollars, and naturally, there will be no opposition. This is more effective than issuing a hundred orders.”

He then instructed Zhu Zihe beside him, "Make arrangements so we can go to the mint this afternoon."

"Okay." Zhu Zihe nodded and made a note in Su Lu's schedule.

~~
Next was Xia Bangmo, the director of the Imperial Stores Administration, who cleared his throat and reported: "We have completed the renovation of all the Imperial Stores, and shops in various places are gradually resuming business, with operations generally running smoothly."

Su Lu attached great importance to business, so he reported the situation of his eight subordinate groups one by one.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad. Brother Shunyu has the air of Tao Zhugong; I trust you to get things done." Su Lu listened attentively, first praising him a couple of times, then asking, "Are there any difficulties?"

"Of course there are difficulties, but we're a royal business; there are few difficulties we can't overcome." Xia Bangmo smiled smugly; doing business with the royal family couldn't be easier. He then sighed and said:

"But there is one problem, which is also the biggest difficulty at present - a large number of cunning and corrupt old people were laid off before, and now shops everywhere are short of manpower. Female workers are generally used as male workers, and male workers are used as animals. They are all complaining. If this goes on for a long time, there will definitely be problems."

Su Lu frowned slightly: "Didn't I already tell you to select a group of clever young men from the Imperial Grace Academy and send them to enrich the Imperial Store?"

"Reporting to the Prefect, I have selected 1,000 young men under the age of 16 who have a basic understanding of writing, but according to the old rules, they must first serve as apprentices for three years and cannot be put to immediate use."

"What old rules? It's just an excuse for masters to take advantage of their disciples!" Su Lu raised an eyebrow, his face full of disgust.

"The imperial shop doesn't have many skilled trades. If you really teach them diligently, they can be trained to stand behind the counter and manage the business in a month or two! Pass down my message: all the masters who take on apprentices must train them to be proficient within a specified time! If business is delayed, the master will be held accountable first. In short, if you don't change your methods, you'll be replaced. In a year of great disaster, there are plenty of people who want to earn this imperial job!"

Xia Bangmo quickly replied, "I understand. I will give the instructions today."

"In short, a new government office, a new look! The Imperial Store is no exception; all outdated rules that hinder growth and expansion must be swept into the latrine!" Su Lu said this to Xia Bangmo, but also to everyone else:

“I can’t control what happens outside the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, but within this government office, we must liberate our thinking and prioritize practical results! So there’s no need for a second round of this morning’s collective welcome.”

"clear."

"Yes, sir!" The crowd hurriedly and respectfully accepted the order, knowing that their flattery had backfired.

When the Prefectural Magistrate first mentioned it, everyone thought he was just being polite...

But this is the second time this has been brought up, so it seems she really doesn't like it.

~~
Next was Lu Ying, the magistrate of the Imperial Estates Administration. He looked tired and had dark circles under his eyes, but his voice couldn't hide his excitement, "Reporting to the Prefect, spring planting was the top priority for the past two weeks. We subordinates and others did our best, and with the assistance of the entire administration, we finally managed to procure all the seeds, oxen, and farming tools. Now, spring planting on all the imperial estates has been completed!"

"Good, good, you've worked hard, I'll give you credit!" Su Lu said with a smile, "I've been counting down the days at home, afraid that we won't be able to finish the spring planting by Qingming Festival."

Normally, winter wheat is the main crop grown on the North China Plain. It is sown after the autumn harvest of the previous year, taking advantage of the soil moisture. After overwintering, the wheat can be harvested in April or May; then millet, sorghum, beans, and other autumn grains are planted.

Only with three harvests every two years can ordinary people make a living.

Last autumn and winter were plagued by drought, leaving the land parched and cracked, killing all the winter wheat planted the previous year. This year's summer harvest is hopeless; the only option is to replant spring wheat and hope for a good autumn harvest…

The *Essentials of Agriculture and Sericulture* clearly states: "If spring wheat is sown after the Qingming Festival, the ears will be small and the grains shriveled, resulting in a greatly reduced harvest."

According to Su Lu's understanding, spring wheat sown after Qingming Festival has insufficient growing time. When the temperature rises in summer, it will sprout ears prematurely, and the grains will not have enough time to fill out, resulting in empty husks when harvested.

Therefore, the farming season cannot be missed even for a moment.

He then asked with concern, "Can the irrigation keep up?"

"We've just finished sowing, so we only need to maintain soil moisture and won't need much water. The peak water usage period will be when the seedlings emerge," Lu Ying replied.

"Is the supporting irrigation canal completed?" Su Lu had just asked when he slapped his forehead and laughed, "I almost forgot, I'm the director of the water conservancy department."

The people in the room chuckled softly, and the tense atmosphere eased slightly.

Shi Tianzhu, deputy director of the Water Conservancy Department, quickly replied: "Reporting to the Prefect, the branch lines in various places have been basically completed. Most of the laborers have returned to their villages for spring planting, and now only about 10,000 people are left to do the final finishing touches."

Su Lu then instructed, "Don't let these laborers disperse yet, as we'll probably need to dig a few more irrigation canals later."

(End of this chapter)