The Red Mansion

Chapter 104 Jiang Nian Offers Suggestions for the Official Warehouse
It is already the beginning of June, and the summer is getting stronger. The scorching heat is steaming and the earth is scorching.

Since Jiang Nian was awarded the rank of third-class guard, he followed the order of Emperor Taishun and took Qu Tai as his teacher, studying Confucian classics, history books, legal codes, and current affairs.

As a cabinet scholar, Qu Tai had to be on duty in the cabinet and had official duties to attend to. However, he would arrange homework for Jiang Nian and take out half an hour every afternoon from the beginning of the evening to the fourth quarter of the evening to carefully teach Jiang Nian.

Today is no exception.

At four o'clock in the evening, Jiang Nian finished his lessons with Qu Tai, bid farewell to the Qu family, and boarded the carriage driven by the coachman Dong Liang. However, today he did not return directly to the eastern suburbs, but instead had Dong Liang drive the carriage to the Rongguo Mansion in the west city.

When Jiang Nian arrived at Rongguo Mansion, the sun was setting. The sky was filled with sunset glow, and the golden red afterglow enveloped Rongguo Mansion. Two large stone lions squatted on the left and right sides of the gate of Rongguo Mansion. Their bodies were covered with sunset glow, as if they were plated with red gold.

The gatekeeper did not dare to neglect Jiang Nian. When he learned that Jiang Nian was looking for Jia Zheng, he hurried inside to report.

This time, Jiang Nian was led to Mengpo Zhai in the inner house.

Jia Zheng set up two study rooms in Rongguo Mansion, one is the outer study room and the other is the inner study room. Mengpo Zhai is the inner study room.

The sunset shines through the window lattice into the room of Mengpo Zhai, creating a mottled and colorful scene.

After greeting Jia Zheng, Jiang Nian got down to business, saying, "I'm sorry to bother you today, Second Master, because I have something to discuss with you."

Jia Zheng nodded slightly and asked, "What do you want to discuss?"

He thought that what Jiang Nian wanted to discuss with him was most likely about the marriage between Jiang Nian and Yuanchun.

However, Jiang Nian responded solemnly: "It involves the government warehouse."

Jia Zheng felt a surge of dismay upon hearing this. While the government warehouse was his official business and professional responsibility, he had always disliked discussing such matters privately. A few days earlier, upon Jiang Nian's arrival at the Rongguo Mansion, he had inquired about the warehouse in detail, his questions so in-depth that he struggled to answer. Furthermore, it was almost nightfall, and Jiang Nian had suddenly arrived and brought up the matter again, which inevitably made him feel annoyed.

Jia Zheng deliberately kept his composure and asked calmly, "Is there something you still don't understand? Do you want to ask more about the government warehouse?"

Jiang Nian smiled faintly and said, "Thanks to the Second Master's guidance and detailed description of the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse and the Shenjing City Warehouse, I benefited a lot. However, I dare to think that both warehouses can be improved, and I have a plan to improve them."

Even though Jia Zheng has always been prudent and thinks highly of his future son-in-law Jiang Nian, he subconsciously frowned when he heard Jiang Nian's words.

Oh, you're only fifteen years old, and you've never been involved in government warehouse affairs, yet you're so brazen as to say you have a plan to improve the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse and the Shenjing City Warehouse? Are you so youthful and arrogant? Are you so ignorant of your own limitations?
Jiang Nian didn't wait for Jia Zheng to question him, and said calmly, "The grain loss rate in the Tongzhou grain transport warehouse is as high as 30%. If we follow my plan to improve it, we may be able to reduce it to less than 15%, and extend the life of the warehouse. The grain loss rate in the Shenjing city warehouse is as high as 25%. If we follow my plan to improve it, we may be able to reduce it to less than 10%, and also extend the life of the warehouse."

Upon hearing this, Jia Zheng could no longer suppress his displeasure. His brows furrowed, and his tone intensified: "How could such a good idea exist? Even if there were one, how could you possibly devise one? Nian'er, although you are exceptionally talented, you must not become arrogant and conceited, and make unfounded statements!"

Jiang Nian's expression remained unchanged. He calmly took out a stack of papers and handed them to Jia Zheng, saying, "This is the plan I've put together to improve the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse and the Shenjing City Warehouse. Please review it, Second Master."

Jia Zheng hesitated for a moment, but finally took the plan and read it carefully.

At first, his expression was indifferent, but as he looked carefully at each line, a look of surprise gradually appeared between his brows.

Jia Zheng had been engaged in the management of government warehouses for ten years. In addition, the plan proposed by Jiang Nian this time was clear and well-organized, and Jia Zheng was surprised after reading it carefully.

After reading it, Jia Zheng looked up at Jiang Nian. His tone no longer contained the previous rebuke, but instead a hint of admiration. "This plan is thorough and detailed. If we can improve the Tongzhou grain transport warehouse and the Shenjing city warehouse based on it, even if it can't achieve the effect you mentioned, it can at least reduce the grain loss in the two warehouses. Nian'er, is this plan really yours?"

Jiang Nian smiled slightly and said, "That's exactly what I was thinking about. I hope the Second Master can correct me."

……

……

When Jiang Nian offered suggestions for the official warehouse this time, he did not choose to present the plan directly to Prince Zhongyi, who was in charge of the Ministry of Works. Instead, he chose to hand the plan over to Jia Zheng, who then found the Minister of Works, Yu Xianfu, who then presented the plan to Prince Zhongyi and even to Emperor Taishun.

Not long ago, Jiang Nian had directly approached Prince Zhongyi to offer advice on clearing the deficit. If he were to approach Prince Zhongyi again now to offer advice on the government warehouse, it would seem too frequent. He wanted to try and offer advice to Emperor Taishun through an indirect channel.

The proposal submitted by Jia Zheng may also help him get promoted.

The reason Jiang Nian wanted to help Jia Zheng get promoted wasn't to support the hopeless Rongguo Mansion, but to make Jia Zheng owe him a favor so that he could use Jia Zheng to control the Rongguo Mansion...

In addition, Jiang Nian is going to marry Yuanchun next year. Although he is not a warm-hearted man, he also wants to give his wife a special betrothal gift. Helping Jia Zheng get promoted is this special betrothal gift.

Jia Zheng has already introduced the Minister of Works Yu Xianfu to Jiang Nian in detail.

Jia Zheng explained that Yu Xianfu, now sixty-two years old, held a long career in government, renowned for his integrity, diligence, and practical work, particularly excelling in engineering and river management. As early as the sixtieth year of the Jingning reign, Yu Xianfu had served as Vice Minister of Works, overseeing national engineering and water conservancy affairs.

Through Jia Zheng's suggestion, will anyone covet Jiang Nian's plan to improve the official warehouse?
This possibility is very small. On the surface, Jiang Nian is very close to the Thirteenth Prince. He is a third-class guard appointed by Emperor Taishun at the age of fifteen, and is also the one who was married to the Rongguo Mansion by the Empress Dowager.

Moreover, Jiang Nian had countless plans to achieve meritorious service. For example, just in the Ministry of Works, he had several plans to achieve meritorious service.

The power of combining the rich knowledge of the past life with the extraordinary memory of this life is astonishing...

His previous suggestion to check the deficit and this time to improve the government warehouse are just one part of his plan. In the future, he will continue to use his strategies to achieve merit and help himself rise step by step.

……

……

The next morning, Jia Zheng presented Jiang Nian's improvement plan for the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse and the Shenjing City Warehouse to the Minister of Works Yu Xianfu.

After Yu Xianfu carefully read the plan, he believed that this plan could achieve the effect that Jiang Nian expected, so he naturally took it seriously.

That morning, Yu Xianfu gathered several experts in the design and construction of government warehouses to discuss the matter in detail. In the afternoon, when Prince Zhongyi came to inspect the Ministry of Works, Yu Xianfu presented the plan to Prince Zhongyi.

The next morning, when Prince Zhongyi met with Emperor Taishun at the Danning Residence in Changchun Garden, he presented the plan to the emperor and said with a smile, "I have a plan for improving the Tongzhou grain transport warehouse and the Shenjing city warehouse. Your Majesty, please review it."

Emperor Taishun asked, "Who came up with this plan?"

Prince Zhongyi, however, kept the secret a secret and said with a smile, "Your Majesty, please take a look at it first. After you have finished reading it, I will explain it to you in detail."

There were only a handful of people who dared to speak to Emperor Taishun like this, and Prince Zhongyi was one of them.

Emperor Taishun couldn't help but smile. "Is there something special about this matter? Why are you keeping me in suspense?"

After saying that, he took the plan and read it carefully...

The plan mainly consists of two parts. The first part is to improve the Tongzhou grain transport warehouse, and the second part is to improve the warehouse in Shenjing City.

Tongzhou Canal Warehouse is located on the banks of the North Grand Canal. The groundwater level is high (less than 2 meters from the ground surface), the humidity is very high in summer, and the river freezes in winter, causing condensation and dew.

In view of this, Jiang Nian made the following improvements to the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse:
Overhead system: Adopting "three-in-one earth mound + oak wood flooring." The three-in-one earth mound is made of three-in-one earth (lime: sand: clay = 1:2:4) embedded with canal pebbles; the oak wood flooring is coated with tung oil + alum solution.

Ventilation system: Utilizing a "reed mat roll + lime mortar reinforcement" system. The inner layer is reed mats soaked in tung oil and rolled into a cylinder, with seams sewn with horsetail rope. The outer layer is lime mortar (mixed with glutinous rice juice), with bamboo strips added every three feet. Each granary is equipped with six sets of north-south air ducts, utilizing canal airflow to create negative pressure ventilation.

Moisture-proof system: The bottom layer is made of lime (quicklime hydration layer), which hardens quickly to prevent moisture; the middle layer is made of copper mesh with charcoal ash (charcoal ash: lime = 3:1), which is fire-proof and rodent-proof and absorbs moisture; the surface layer is oak flooring + ironwood edge protection, which is wear-resistant.

The warehouse in Shenjing City is different from the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse.

The warehouse in Shenjing City is located on a high ground in the urban area, with a deep groundwater level (3-5 meters). However, winter heating causes a large temperature difference between the inside and outside of the warehouse, which easily produces condensation water.

Overhead system: "rammed earth base + blue brick surface layer" is used. The rammed earth base is made of clay, crushed clam shells and lime, and the surface layer is made of blue bricks with mud and polished bricks laid in parallel joints, with mortar filling the joints.

Ventilation system: Adopts "mother-child ceramic pipe straight air duct". The main pipe is a 10cm diameter straight ceramic pipe, and the branch pipe is a 5cm diameter ceramic pipe, which is inserted obliquely into the main pipe to form turbulent flow and reduce speed. The main pipe inlet is filtered with copper wire mesh.

Moisture-proof system: The bottom layer is made of coarse clam shells mixed with rammed earth, which absorbs moisture and has alkaline antibacterial properties; the middle layer is made of double-layer reed mats sandwiched with charcoal ash to absorb condensed water; the surface layer is made of vertically laid blue bricks with grouting to resist pressure and prevent seepage.

Jiang Nian was very thoughtful when designing this plan, and he also took into account the availability of materials. The materials listed in the plan were all adapted to local conditions and were designed to save costs.

In addition, Jiang Nian also proposed the "grain inspection box" strategy in the plan, that is, to place a fir grain inspection box (lined with tin foil and with an observation hole on the box lid) in the improved warehouse and the old warehouse, with each box storing a thousand grains of rice, sealed with wax, and then compared with samples.

This method can intuitively feel the effect of the improvement.

Emperor Taishun was not very familiar with the design of official granaries, and many details in the plan made him feel a little obscure. However, there was one thing that made him look forward to it, and that was the improvement effect predicted in the plan!

He looked up at Prince Zhongyi and asked, "If we follow this plan, can the grain loss rate at the Tongzhou Canal Transport Warehouse really be reduced from 30% to less than 15%? Can the grain loss rate at the Shenjing City Warehouse really be reduced from 25% to less than 10%? And can the lifespan of both warehouses be extended?"

Prince Zhongyi smiled faintly and replied, "I have already discussed this plan in detail with several experts in the design and construction of government granaries. They all agree that if this improvement is implemented, it will significantly reduce stored grain losses. However, whether it can achieve the predicted effect remains to be seen after the improvements are made."

Emperor Taishun raised his eyebrows slightly, a look of joy flashing in his eyes, and asked again, "Who came up with this improvement plan?"

Prince Zhongyi, still smiling, replied, "This plan was presented to me by Jia Zheng, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Works and Civil Service."

Emperor Taishun frowned slightly and asked in surprise, "Jia Zheng of Rongguo Mansion? He actually has such a strategy?"

Prince Zhongyi's smile deepened as he slowly said, "Actually, this plan was not devised by Jia Zheng, but was devised by someone else, who asked Jia Zheng to present it to him."

Emperor Taishun couldn't help but snort and said in feigned anger, "Don't keep me in suspense any longer. Who did this?"

Prince Zhongyi then put away his smile, his expression solemn, and sighed: "Brother Yi!"

Emperor Taishun's eyes suddenly widened, and he asked in surprise, "Yi'er?"

Prince Zhongyi nodded slightly, a smile on his lips again, and said, "Fourth Brother, do you not believe that this improvement plan was proposed by Brother Yi?"

Emperor Taishun frowned deeply, pondered for a moment, and said, "Yier is exceptionally gifted and incomparable to ordinary people. His participation in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination and his proposal to investigate the financial deficit have both demonstrated his intelligence. However, if you claim that the plan to improve the Tongzhou grain transport warehouse and the Shenjing city warehouse was also Yier's idea, I find it difficult to believe it."

Prince Zhongyi said, "I found it hard to believe when I first heard it, but I have inquired with Jia Zheng. Although Jia Zheng's talents are mediocre, he has a righteous character and never lies. He said that this plan was indeed given to him by Yi Ge'er, so it must be true. Jia Zheng also said that a few days ago, because of the Empress Dowager's arranged marriage, the Rongguo Mansion sent an invitation to Yi Ge'er. At that time, Yi Ge'er asked Jia Zheng in detail about the official warehouse, and carefully studied the design of the Tongzhou Canal Warehouse and the Shenjing City Warehouse."

Emperor Taishun still had doubts between his brows, and said: "Even so, it cannot be said that this improvement plan was planned by Yi'er."

Prince Zhongyi said, "This time, I specifically asked Qu Tai, suspecting he might be secretly helping Yi Ge'er. However, Qu Tai frankly admitted that he wasn't an expert in designing the official warehouse and hadn't offered any assistance. Without Qu Tai's help, who else could have come up with this plan? Therefore, I suspect that this improvement plan may have been personally devised by Yi Ge'er. This boy is incredibly talented, truly beyond the reach of ordinary people."

Emperor Taishun paused briefly and asked, "Last time, Yi'er proposed to investigate the financial deficit, and the memorial was handed directly to you to present to me. Why didn't you present it directly to me this time, but instead asked Jia Zheng to submit it?"

Prince Zhongyi smiled faintly and replied calmly, "Ms. Jia is Jia Zheng's legitimate daughter. Now that the Empress Dowager has arranged their marriage, Jia Zheng will become Yi'er's father-in-law. Yi'er's actions may be intended to benefit Jia Zheng and gain merit. If my prediction is correct, Yi'er is not only exceptionally talented, but also possesses strategic thinking in the ways of an official."

Emperor Taishun nodded and said, "I will immediately send someone to summon Yi'er to Changchun Garden to question him in person and make him answer to resolve my doubts!"

Prince Zhongyi had anticipated Emperor Taishun's move and was not surprised. He remained calm and sighed inwardly, "Fourth Brother is really going to summon Yi Ge'er, a commoner prince, again! How many times has Yi Ge'er been summoned by Fourth Brother? I can't even remember!"

Emperor Taishun was accustomed to sending Ren Pijiang to summon Jiang Nian, so he ordered the eunuch to summon the imperial guard Ren Pijiang, and ordered Ren Pijiang to quickly go to the eastern suburbs of Shenjing City to summon Jiang Nian...

(End of this chapter)