The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 32 "Trade Fair"

The Ming Emperor Zhu Zhonglin was very satisfied with his youngest son's achievements and also with his eldest son's attitude.

Looking at the two brothers who were so friendly and respectful to each other, the 59-year-old emperor smiled very happily.

After laughing, the emperor started the next topic in a concluding way:
“Okay, then the overall development direction of Australia in the future has been determined.

"Xuan'er's royal city is located in the east, in this valley with a good environment, and it will be gradually expanded to both sides with this as the center.

"Then, including the specific site selection requirements for the royal city, the surrounding basic supporting facilities and even how the factory should be configured.

"Xuan'er, do you have any special ideas? Tell me so that I and your elder brother can give you some advice."

Zhu Jianxuan thought for a moment and said:
“I have seen the plan prepared by my royal brother. Although the location of the palace has not yet been determined, the development process has been completed.

“They are all designed by professional craftsmen, and there is nothing wrong with them. Now that the palace has been selected, we just need to follow the process and carry out the work step by step.

“But as for the royal city itself, I do have some ideas.

"Does our vassal state's royal city and palace have to be built in a similar way to the Forbidden City?

“Can we build it directly in the form of a folk garden?”

The layout of the Forbidden City is very square. There are no trees at all in the palace, and the distances between buildings are very far.

It is not comfortable to live in on a daily basis. It is far inferior to the palaces outside the city, nor as good as the Jiangnan gardens owned by wealthy families.

Therefore, many willful emperors did not like living in the Forbidden City.

Jiajing was used to living in the Western Garden, while Qianlong liked to live in the Old Summer Palace.

Workaholics like Zhu Yuanzhang and Yongzheng preferred to live directly in the Forbidden City.

This may be because the six ministries are located outside the gate of the Forbidden City, and it is most convenient for the emperor to summon these ministers to a meeting.

If you live in a palace outside the city and want to see a minister from a certain department, it will take a long time for the eunuch to go out and summon him.

Even Emperor Yongzheng built a special Hall of Mental Cultivation, where he lived and worked in a courtyard so that he did not have to run around in the entire Forbidden City.

So Zhu Jianxuan thought that he might as well build a Jiangnan garden instead of building an old-fashioned formal palace.

When the old emperor heard this question, he suddenly felt that he finally had the opportunity to educate his children:

“The first royal palace of a vassal state should naturally be built according to a standard model.

"Because the palace is not only the home of you, the vassal king, but also the political center of the vassal state and the symbol of the royal family.

"Each vassal state had an official palace that was solemn and formal enough to hold formal court meetings and various ceremonial activities.

"If you feel uncomfortable living in this kind of palace, then you can slowly save money and build a more comfortable palace."

Zhu Jianxuan knew that the main hall of the Forbidden City in the Ming Dynasty actually had a symbolic meaning similar to that of European churches.

It is also the natural venue for various official ceremonial celebrations.

In the past, Zhu Jianxuan was just not sure whether the palaces of the local princes must also use a similar design.

Judging from my father’s attitude now, there is no room for negotiation.

Finally, he murmured helplessly:
"I just don't want to waste money or resources. Building a large palace in the early days of the country is really a waste."

The old emperor was immediately delighted:

“You’re actually afraid of wasting money. You have so many inventions and patents that can generate money just by leaving them unused.

"Come to think of it, haven't you made a lot of new inventions in the past two years?

"If we promote it more and authorize more, it will bring in a lot of money."

After hearing what the old emperor said, the prince suggested:
"Father, I think the exhibition you organized last spring had a very good publicity effect.

"Soon afterward, many businessmen came to buy Brother Xuan's patents.

"How about you do it again?"

The emperor was a little stunned when he heard this, and was a little confused about the name of the exhibition.

But after a second of reaction, I understood what the prince meant by the exhibition.

Last year, he called all the royal family members, officials, and nobles to visit Zhu Jianxuan's laboratory.

My main purpose at that time was to finalize the reward for Zhu Jianxuan.

The subsequent commercial publicity effect was a pleasant surprise.

Many of the results demonstrated at the event last spring have now entered production and are beginning to play a huge role and have a huge impact.

The first batch of new steel factories invested by the imperial court and the royal family have begun production.

The cost of fuel for iron-making blast furnaces has dropped dramatically. In the past, it took one ton of coal to produce one ton of pig iron, but now it can produce three tons.

The speed of steelmaking has grown explosively.

In the past, the crucible and steel-frying technology could only process dozens of kilograms of molten iron at a time.

Today, the output of steel produced in converters is measured directly in tons.

The current daily steel output can exceed the monthly output in the past.

Blacksmith workshops are becoming large-scale steel factories.

Special-purpose machine tools driven by steam engines have also begun to be used in various military factories.

The speed at which the military manufactured guns and bored cannons increased dramatically.

The emperor wanted to spend money on preparing a guard corps for the King of Wu, but most of the money was offset by the technological upgrades of the military factory.

The overall fiscal pressure has also been diluted.

At the same time, the Longjiang Shipyard, an official factory of the imperial court, had recently completed the experiment of transforming a steam sailing ship.

Following Zhu Jianxuan's suggestion, a more conservative approach was adopted.

Paddle wheels are installed on both sides of the middle part of the hull, mainly for passing through the calm zone or headwind zone.

Normally, sailing is still the main power source.
The steam factory specially established by the imperial merchants completed the preliminary experiments of steam locomotives and prepared to build an experimental railway from Nanjing to Hangzhou.

In addition to these official industries, the last event also had a very good publicity effect among the general public.

Many people among the public also seized the business opportunity and started making money.

Mainly the reciprocating steam engine and vulcanized rubber, which quickly created two entirely new industries.

Even if the steam engine is simply used to pump water, it is much easier to use than the original steam engine and its efficiency is an order of magnitude higher.

If you simply buy a mine and use it, you can save money directly.

More manufacturers directly purchased the license and began manufacturing and selling according to Zhu Jianxuan’s drawings.

The same is true for vulcanized rubber, which has quickly spread to a wide range of industries.

Especially its application on wheels has been popularized most rapidly.

There is also the "Feng Liu Ruyi Bag" which is not suitable to be discussed publicly, which is the condom in Zhu Jianxuan's previous life.

It has also begun to become an essential tool in certain places.

Zhu Jianxuan, an inventor with a large number of super patents, has quickly become a small wealthy man.

The craftsmen in Zhu Jianxuan's laboratory also received extra dividends, which they thought were quite considerable, in accordance with Zhu Jianxuan's plan.

In addition, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wu was indeed "wise" and had helped the ministers avoid the turmoil in the court caused by the dethronement of the eldest son and the enthronement of the youngest son, so they were all happy to flatter him.

The royal family and manufacturers who benefited from it were more willing to flatter him.

Now Zhu Jianxuan's reputation within the private industrial and commercial communities is rapidly rising.

The emperor thought about it for a moment, then nodded slowly and said:
“I think we can do it a little bit more. Even if these people themselves didn’t make money, most of their fellow countrymen and clansmen did.

“As long as I don’t make any additional requests this year, they should be happy to look for new business opportunities.

"Boss, go discuss with Xuan'er how to organize it. I'll call people over once you've made the plan."

The prince immediately nodded and agreed:

"My son, I obey."

After listening to the discussion between his father and elder brother, Zhu Jianxuan suddenly realized that this kind of activity was just a "trade fair".

Find a large venue and let developers and manufacturers display their products, and let dealers browse and discuss cooperation.

In my previous life, I often saw similar activities, but most of the time I just wandered around and basically never participated directly.

Now he has become the protagonist of this event, and it is the highest-level trade fair in the Ming Dynasty organized directly by the emperor.

However, what he exhibited was indeed the world's top invention, and even an invention that could influence the world.

Not to mention holding a low-level trade fair, even an exclusive press conference would be enough.

This kind of activity can indeed accelerate the speed of technology application and even increase the overall production productivity of Ming Dynasty handicraft industry.

If the industrial revolution spreads fast enough, it may even help resolve social conflicts.

Of course Zhu Jianxuan would not refuse such a thing.

(End of this chapter)