prosperous age

Chapter 449 Chapter 448 Firework Stand

"I heard that the captives have been relying on it for a long time. Every side is well-prepared. If the thieves know a little bit of fear, they can use firearms all over the castles to defend them. They still stick to it and don't fight. I hope to offer God's blessing."

In the Ministry of War, Yang Bo watched the note sent by Emperor Jiajing from the palace, and was silently thinking about it.

Yang Bo didn't think about why Emperor Jiajing thought of firearms. He also knew that all the castles used firearms to defend them. But he had stayed in Xuanda, but he knew that the firearms used by the Ming army are still very sharp, especially the frontiers. Especially useful in fort defense.

When using firearms, you don't have to worry about the fatigue of the archers. The arrows are weak and weak, and you can continue to fight as long as you have enough medicine stones.

At the beginning, I also tried to get a batch of firearms for Xuanda and Jizhen, but it took a lot of effort to talk to the Ministry of Mobilization and the Ministry of Industry. Although the firearms I got were many, they were still just a drop in the ocean after distribution, not enough at all. use.

He didn't know the details until he was stationed in the Ministry of War in the capital.

One is that the imperial court has no money to manufacture firearms on a large scale, and the other is the situation I encountered before, and I need to use money to exchange firearms from the Ministry of Industry.

It's funny to say that the imperial court has to give money to people for things that are made with money allocated from the tense imperial court expenditure.

However, this is the rule set by the civil official group. The military pay sent by the Ministry of War, the money has not been out of the capital, the Ministry of War has been directly deducted when the handover is made, and he will also benefit from it. You say What does he do?
Although the note given by Emperor Jiajing is relatively conservative, it is also a safe approach at present.

As long as the border fort maintains a defensive posture, it will be difficult for the Tartars to gain anything from border looting.

With the border fort still in place, the Tartars did not dare to take a detour and go deep into the interior. After all, the back road was still in the hands of the Ming army.

Thinking about the weather in these years, Yang Bo certainly didn't think it was the right time to use troops. Now that the Tartars are raging in Yansui and other places, the soldiers are very aggressive. Instead of sending troops to fight, it is better to defend the city as His Majesty said.

Come to think of it, the Bianzhen army general thought so too.

Thinking of this, Yang Bo picked up a pen and began to write memorials on the rice paper on the case.

"My lord is right, this year the captives' schemes are abnormal in the west. They will be divided into Xuanyun to lure our soldiers in the west of Jidian, and those in the east will be divided into Liao and right, so as to spy on our slack in the east of Jidian, and they will covet Jidian and want to go deep. Plan, Yang Mengchen ordered martial law at home and abroad, and the captives then invaded Xuanda from the west. It is too cold outside the Great Wall to do anything, and I would like to pass it on to the frontier ministers like an oracle."

Emperor Jiajing wanted to guard against the invasion of the Tartars, no matter what, it was consistent with the plan of the Ministry of War. At this time, it is natural to take the emperor's dragon fart a little bit.

After that, it is natural to say that His Majesty is wise, and firearms are powerful for the defense of the fort.

However, what Yang Bo wanted was not a little firearms, but a detailed description of the current distribution of firearms in the nine sides.

The important towns on the Nine Borders are said to be important towns, but they are still prioritized. The most important town is naturally Ji Town, followed by Xuanfu and Datong. From east to west, their status gradually declines, and so does the distribution of firearms.

Yang Bo naturally wanted His Majesty to order a batch of firearms for Jiubian, and it would be even better if the quantity could be confirmed.

Yang Bo knows how to calculate, and Yan Shifan naturally understands this. Yan Song's memorials are written by him. Naturally, financial constraints are used to explain the matter. All were transferred to the Ministry of War, but the amount was naturally very small.

When the two memorials returned to Emperor Jiajing, Yang Bo's memorial was naturally pertinent and made him happy, while Yan Song's memorial could only make him frown.

Of course, Emperor Jiajing was not as clear about the court's financial problems as Gao Yao, but he also knew that he would not have too much money, otherwise he would not often delay the salary of the Beijing officials.

However, Gao Yao's management of the money bag made him feel at ease. At least the annual military salary, the household department will make a plan early, and the other expenses will be moved around.

He couldn't delay the payment of soldiers, and if it was delayed, there would be a mutiny, which really gave him a headache.

As for the others, you can procrastinate as long as you can.

Now that Yan Song's memorials are called poor, Emperor Jiajing naturally believed that the imperial court did not have any extra money to allocate to the Ministry of Industry to make firearms.

After thinking about it for a while, Emperor Jiajing still wrote at the end of the memorandum: "However, the Ministry of Industry will give more firearms to Jizhen."

Yes, Jizhen is the most important of the nine borders. Emperor Jiajing can feel safe only with the army of Jizhen on his side. Since there are not enough firearms, it is natural to stick to Jizhen.

Naturally, Wei Guangde and King Yu did not understand the struggle between Xiyuan, the cabinet, and the Ministry of War. Although they were curious about why the court suddenly valued firearms, the hidden competition between the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Industry was even more unclear. .

Even if the Metropolitan Procuratorate reported at this time, Yang Bo, Minister of the Ministry of War, had completed his three-year examinations in his tenure, and he commented that he was incompetent and competent in his duties.

Perhaps Yuan Wei couldn't sit still because of the recent uproar in the Ministry of War.

Soon, Qin Tianjian issued a grand calendar under the supervision of the Ministry of Rites, and the emperor ordered it to be awarded to all the officials.

The Ministry of Rites has played the records of the provincial examinations of this year, and the records of the township examinations have been circulated. I would like to play the emperor's imperial reading.

On that day, Shouguang Pavilion was completed, and Yuan Wei, Minister of Rites, played a congratulations.

This Shouguang Pavilion was built by the Ministry of Industry, and supervised by the inner court. Yuan Wei, Minister of the Ministry of Rites, took the lead in congratulating him. The purpose was naturally to please Emperor Jiajing. It is quite controversial to build the Temple of Sun and the Temple of Moon on the basis of the original Temple of Heaven and the Temple of Earth in Beijing.

Just in the last month, not only the Shouguang Pavilion was completed, but also the Qingxi Palace was completed. Emperor Jiajing rewarded the supervising eunuch Yuan Heng and other officials of the Ministry of Industry.

Now that Minister of the Ministry of Rites took the lead in expressing his congratulations, Yuan Wei's reputation in the court plummeted even more.

Regarding this matter, King Yu just shook his head in the palace. As a son, he naturally dared not say "no" to what his father wanted to build, but he also looked down on Yuan Wei.

The incomprehension and belittling of colleagues did not affect Yuan Wei's enterprising spirit.

In the Jiawu period of November in the 40th year of Jiajing, a decree came from Xiyuan.

"Edict to add Prince Shaobao, Minister of Rites, Yuan Wei, Prince Taibao, and change to Minister of the Ministry of Households and a bachelor of the Wuying Hall to enter the cabinet as a code of affairs."

Yuan Wei joined the cabinet.

While all the officials were astonished, Yuan Wei submitted his resignation, but Shangyou's imperial edict refused.

Wei Guangde was not surprised that Yuan Wei entered the cabinet, after all, Chen Ju had already vaccinated him.

However, Wei Guangde was still amazed at Yuan Wei's accuracy in judging the situation.

Wei Guangde knew that Yuan Wei might enter the cabinet within this year, but Chen Ju heard it from Gao Zhong.

Who is Gao Zhong, the person next to Huang Jin around Emperor Jiajing, and even this judgment may have been analyzed by Gao Zhong and Huang Jin together.

But what about Yuan Wei?
The Ministry of Rites had been dormant before, but suddenly there was an operation, and then Yuan Wei joined the cabinet.

"Yuan Shangshu, no, Mr. Yuan Ge really is"

When the news reached Prince Yu's Mansion, Wei Guangde just sighed.

"The Minister of Rites is free again."

King Yu's focus was obviously not on Yuan Wei's ability to seize the opportunity, but on seeing the vacant position of Minister of Rites.

Yuan Wei entered the cabinet with the official position of Minister of the Ministry of Households and a scholar of Wuyingdian University. The title of Minister of the Ministry of Households is an empty title and does not affect Gao Yao who is in charge of the affairs of the Ministry. It is true that the position of Minister of the Ministry of Rites is vacant.

Obviously, King Yu thought of his Master Gao again.

Wei Guangde naturally knew that Gao Gong was useless, but Chen Ju had mentioned who the emperor was most likely to promote in recent years, and there were no names of the people in Prince Yu's residence at all.

Moreover, Emperor Jiajing was starting to take back his rights, so how could it be possible for everyone in Prince Yu's Mansion to get involved in high positions.

After all, the only ones who can ascend to the highest stage of power in the Ming Dynasty can only be those who have been flattering all the time. Even if you change your position and fully support the emperor now, you will only leave the impression of double-faced and sloppy.

The people in the room naturally understood King Yu's meaning, but they didn't speak, and the atmosphere was cold for a while.

But King Yu didn't seem to realize it, he might have thought it was very difficult for everyone.

In any case, Gao Gong's current position is only the right servant, which is indeed too low to compare with the two left servants of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Officials.

Moreover, Yu Wang also realized that Li Chunfang and Yan Na seemed to be more competitive than Gao Gong, otherwise the series of promotions at the beginning could not have been without Gao Gong's name.

Although, the left and right servants are actually third-rank, but there is a difference in the seat ranking.

When Yuan Wei entered the cabinet, Emperor Jiajing did not allow the cabinet and the Ministry of Officials to recommend a new candidate for the Ministry of Rites. Naturally, the official of the Ministry of Rites now falls to Li Chunfang, and Gao Gong has also become the de facto second in command of the Ministry of Rites.

There was no discussion in Prince Yu's mansion. Although King Yu was a little disappointed, he knew his status, and it was impossible for him to enter the palace.

King Yu didn't invite Gao Gong to Prince Yu's mansion today, because the boss entered the cabinet, the officials of the Ministry of Rites would naturally go to celebrate, and King Yu was not interested in hosting a banquet today, and Wei Guangde left the Prince Yu's mansion early to go home.

He still has to go to Yuan Wei's place. He is old anyway, and he still needs to give some gifts. Thinking about Yuan Wei who was in the Imperial Academy back then, Wei Guangde felt a little overwhelmed.

Yuan Wei's flirtatious skills are absolutely formidable. As for the ability to handle government affairs, Wei Guangde has not yet seen it, and the foundation is too shallow, so Wei Guangde is not very optimistic about it.

However, no matter what, Yuan Wei should be able to gather some people around him quickly.

Think about it, Wei Guangde is still envious of Zhang Juzheng. If he succeeds Xu Jie in the future, wouldn't Xu Jie's accumulated DPRK-China relations and connections be his?
How can it be so troublesome to others, and slowly gather strength.

Wei Guangde thought of himself again, no wonder the Ming Dynasty often had troubles with township parties and so on.

Just talking about myself, if people like Yuan Wei are promoted in the future, the Rockets will be promoted, and the foundation will be unstable. Then the only reliable people around me will be those Jiangxi Scholars, unless they are in the Ministry of Rites or the Ministry of Officials, or other Working in a high position for several years has accumulated a group of helpers.

As for people like Ma Fang, Dong Yiyuan, and Yu Dayou, it was only by chance that they took advantage of him and voted for him.

The group of colleagues when I was in the Imperial Academy can only be colleagues, at most they talk a lot, but if they really think it is useful, it would be a bit ridiculous.

Even if Wei Guangde is familiar with Jinshi from Jiangxi, only a few people such as Lao Kan and Zhang Ke are reliable, and the rest can only be because of the relationship with fellow villagers, which is deeper than other colleagues. .

The fellow from the same township, in the same year, really achieved Taoism and ascended to heaven alone.

Wei Guangde sighed silently in his heart.

The capital city at night is of course forbidden at night. Although the common people can be controlled but the officials cannot be controlled, there is one place that even the officials dare not trespass.

That place, of course, is the Forbidden City and the surrounding royal gardens.

At this time, the Forbidden City is like a giant beast crouching in the dark, with only occasional lights shining, which are the palace guards led by eunuchs who watch the night.

All the gates and courtyards inside and outside the palace were locked, and the huge palace was divided into palaces and courtyards. Under such circumstances, the palace people naturally went back to their houses early to rest and wait for the dawn.

Xiyuan and Yongshou Palace are still brightly lit at this time.

Perhaps it was another important government affairs completed, Emperor Jiajing was in high spirits today, and summoned Concubine Shang to attend her bed.

Concubine Shang, of course, is the Shang Palace who was accidentally favored by Emperor Jiajing when he laughed because he dozed off.

Perhaps it was because the youthful vigor of Concubine Shang invisibly infected Emperor Jiajing. Whenever he was with Concubine Shang, Emperor Jiajing felt that he seemed to become younger and more energetic.

For more than a year, Emperor Jiajing often summoned Concubine Shang to Yongshou Palace.

"Your Majesty, I heard that this year's fireworks have been sent to the palace, why don't you bring some to set them off. I haven't seen fireworks for a long time."

Maybe it's because Yongshou Palace has come more often. Concubine Shang is too familiar with this place, and there is no novelty, but she especially likes the fireworks that are set off every year.

While playing games with Emperor Jiajing, he suddenly mentioned that he wanted to watch a fireworks show.

For Concubine Shang, she had only seen fireworks such as firecrackers and gophers in the folks before, and she didn't see the gorgeous fireworks show until she was elected to the palace, which naturally left a deep impression on her.

Fireworks and firecrackers "come from the same school", both benefited from the invention of gunpowder.

The earliest fireworks should have appeared in the Song Dynasty. It is recorded in the book "Qi Dong Ye Yu" by Zhou Mi, a scholar of the Song Dynasty: "Since burning fireworks in the court, there are so-called ground mice."

The "mouse" here is one of the earliest fireworks products with clear records, and the word "firework" also appeared here.

Gophers, of course, are the kind of fireworks that spin when lit and spray flames at the same time. Sometimes they spin in place, and sometimes they scurry around irregularly.

In the Ming Dynasty, many types of fireworks were also developed. As recorded in the "Wan Shu Miscellaneous Notes" of the Ming Dynasty, at that time, there were various types of fireworks including gophers, flower tubes, and three-level waves. More than 100 kinds.

And at the annual Aoshan Lantern Festival, a large-scale "firework stand" that integrates a variety of fireworks is released, which is similar to the fireworks performances of later generations.

If we say that in the Northern Song Dynasty, fireworks were only for the enjoyment of the court nobles, then in the Southern Song Dynasty, fireworks were already "flying into the homes of ordinary people".

Every neighborhood in the market has shops specializing in the production and sale of firecrackers and fireworks, which have become popular among the court and the folk.

However, the production of fireworks is naturally the most exquisite in the capital, and the most skilled fireworks in the capital are still in the palace. As the saying goes, "the production of fireworks and firecrackers, the capital is extremely skillful."

Emperor Jiajing himself also liked to watch fireworks, and when he heard that his concubine wanted to watch, he had no objection.

Soon, several large fireworks stands were carried into Yongshou Palace.

"My lord, isn't this too narrow?"

Huang Jin frowned when he saw the fireworks stand brought in by the servant, and couldn't help but whispered to Emperor Jiajing.

(End of this chapter)