The first wind and rain drifted away

The northwest corner of the imperial city, six or seven miles away from the imperial palace, is the location of the Ministry of Works.

There are several small alleys around it, rows of dilapidated houses huddled together, and this is where the craftsmen of the War Bureau live.

Towards the end of the evening, a row of carriages suddenly came, loaded with food, cloth and other daily necessities, and a group of captains in brocade clothes were either on horseback or on foot to escort them.

The convoy came to a stop in the open area in front of the alley, and dozens of knife-wielding guards scattered, vigilantly watching the surrounding situation.

The curtain of the dragon chariot in the middle was opened, Gao Shiming took the lead in getting down from the carriage, took out a brocade stool and set it up, and Emperor Chongzhen, who was wearing an imperial robe, got out of the car.

"Long live the emperor, long live, long live!"

Bi Maoliang, who was acting in charge of the War Bureau, led some of the representatives of craftsmen who had been preparing for a long time, and about three or four hundred people knelt down to greet Emperor Chongzhen.

"All stand up and speak."

Today is to win a wave of people's hearts, Emperor Chongzhen showed the most kind smile, gently waved the wide cuffs of the dragon robe, and said gently.

"Emperor Xie!" Bi Maoliang led the way to get up, and behind him were the craftsmen who cowered and looked at each other and stood up.

It's strange, it's unheard of, how can the emperor have time to care about the lives of these small people?

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it.

Bi Maokang, the secretary of the Ministry of Works, stepped forward with a happy face, arched his hand towards the position of Emperor Chongzhen, and then pointed to the broken tile house where the craftsmen lived in front of him and said loudly:

"Ladies and gentlemen, great joy, great joy!

The emperor is merciful, and feels that your life is not easy, and the clothes are not good, and the residence is bad, so he specially allocated 100,000 taels of silver from the inner treasury to build a new house for everyone by the Ministry of Industry.

Each craftsman in the War Bureau, regardless of the age of the official position, has one set per person.

At the same time, the emperor remembered that you may not have a place to live in the near future, and specially distributed five taels of silver to each person to settle down.

And distributed three buckets of rice, five catties of white flour, three catties of pork, and one piece of cotton cloth to improve life. ”

In the cold wind, after Bi Maokang finished speaking, the scene was quiet, and the craftsmen were stunned.

What's going on?

It's a pie in the world!

"Long live the emperor, long live, long live! The emperor's grace is vast, sympathetic to the small people, and the Son of Heaven is merciful! ”

After a few moments, the craftsmen gradually began to whisper to each other, standing behind and asking others in whispers that they didn't hear clearly.

When Da Ming understood what Bi Maokang, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, said, a huge noise suddenly sounded, and everyone was cheering and jumping.

Those who pinch their thighs, those who look up to the sky and shout, those who can't make a sound and burst into tears, all kinds of postures.

Some of the knowledgeable people suddenly knelt down and kowtowed to thank him, and then all the craftsmen knelt on the ground, kowtowed vigorously, shouted long live, and the sound of crying and laughter resounded throughout the audience.

Bi Maokang, Bi Maoliang and others looked at all this, and they were also full of emotion in their hearts.

For more than 200 years in the Ming Dynasty, no emperor has been able to treat lowly craftsmen so favorably, and it is conceivable that the firearms of the Ming Dynasty will develop rapidly in the future.

If the emperor is like this for a long time, and those who win the hearts of the people win the world, everything can be done.

It's good to be rich!

Emperor Chongzhen was also very emotional when he saw the excited reaction of the craftsmen.

Such a wealthy Ming Dynasty died of insufficient food, it really shouldn't be!

It really fulfills the old saying, those who swim well die in the water, and those who are good at fighting die in soldiers.

It's just that Da Ming died passively.

These damn Ming elites are really a disaster for the country and the people!

In front, Bi Maokang asked everyone to get up, and then continued: "Fellow craftsmen, this official is old and decaying, but thanks to the Son of Heaven, he is in charge of the Ministry of Industry.

The emperor is very loving, and the official is not talented, but he vows to let the military bureau regain its former glory.

In the past, the treacherous people of the Ministry of Industry deducted and exploited Er's and other profits, but now the emperor has eradicated them with an iron fist.

In the future, all the money will be distributed in a timely manner on a monthly basis, supervised by Jinyiwei, to ensure that the full amount is distributed to everyone, and the phenomenon of deduction is eliminated.

You must exert all your strength to make the best armor of swords, guns, firearms, and armor, and hand them over to the officers and soldiers who are fighting bloodily in front of you.

For every point of good weaponry, the soldiers in front will kill and wound one more thief.

Only in this way can we repay the emperor's kindness and trust in us.

But this official also said in advance, at this time when the world is worried about internal and external troubles, it is the time for us to serve the country.

If someone is like the past, cheating, cheating, shoddy, making substandard firearms to deceive them, and harming the front-line soldiers, he will not blame the official for being unkind. ”

Bi Maokang's words were not only for the craftsman, but also for Emperor Chongzhen.

He was showing his loyalty and stating his attitude.

Otherwise, in front of a group of craftsmen, he would not need to spend so much time talking about the book of the Ministry of Works.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, Bi Shangshu, the old man has been born in a craftsman family for generations, and he can't say how clever his craftsmanship is, but as long as the imperial court can ensure that the raw materials are sufficient, the best firearms will be made."

Li Mingrong is an old craftsman in the war bureau, and he swears on behalf of all craftsmen at this time.

There is nothing wrong with what he said, it is difficult for a clever woman to cook without rice, and the reason why the firearms of the War Bureau in the past were shoddy and indiscriminate, in addition to deducting the labor money of the craftsman, also had a lot to do with the raw materials.

As soon as his words fell, other craftsmen echoed him, saying that his craftsmanship was fine, and the reason for the defective products was that there was a problem with the original materials.

There are even some young people who have newborn calves who say that the Ministry of Industry did not use the best Fujian iron, but used iron from other places to make cannons, and there was naturally a danger of exploding.

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, Bi Maokang had already taken the rhythm, and now it was time for him, the biggest boss of the Ming Dynasty, to say a few words.

Emperor Chongzhen stepped forward and stood still, and asked Bi Maokang about the topic of professionalism, why iron from other places could not be used, but iron produced in Fujian should be used.

"Your Majesty, you must use Fujian iron to make guns, he is irritable and cannot be used. Iron smelting, charcoal fire is the top, carbon is expensive in the north, and coal fire has to be used instead, so there are often many explosions.

But because of this, Fujian iron is expensive, and other places are cheap. ”

Bi Maokang deserves to be a firearms professional and said the reason.

Emperor Chongzhen nodded slowly, and he understood after reading the book.

This is certainly true when examined with the effects of metallurgical science and technology in later generations.

Due to the high sulfur content of coal, the iron tempered by coal fire also has a high sulfur content and a brittle texture, so it will show frequent explosions.

Charcoal fire prevents this shortcoming, so the tempered steel is not in danger of exploding.

It is no wonder that Qi Shaobao suppressed the Japanese in Fujian back then, and used Fujian iron to produce firearms by himself, and this is the reason.

It's easy to find out the problem, how big is it?

Emperor Chongzhen slowly glanced at these Ming scientists, and then said sonorously but concisely: "Craftsmen, you have worked hard.

I have already known everyone's problems.

In the future, the imperial court will always pay attention to the affairs of the War Bureau, and I will also send Dongchang to settle in, so you can respond to any questions at any time.

I will deal with it as soon as possible.

As long as you produce qualified firearms, I guarantee that you will get rich first, and you will have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of your life.

If anyone can improve the effectiveness of firearms, or even invent something new, I will allow your children and grandchildren to leave the craftsman status and participate in the imperial examinations. ”

This was said very clearly, and the craftsmen understood it.

First, the emperor attaches importance to the military situation, which also means that he attaches importance to them.

Second, there is hope for their offspring.

They were very impressed.

Suddenly, all the craftsmen present knelt down and thanked the emperor.

It can be said that letting their descendants break away from the craftsman's status and allow the imperial examination is more attractive than the silver of white flowers.

After all, everyone wants their children and grandchildren to have a promising future and a great future, rather than being arranged at birth and destined to be unproductive.

Emperor Chongzhen shook his head imperceptibly, and sighed in his heart while ordering them to get up, these military talents are really easy to satisfy.

To be honest, he deliberately controlled the rhythm and didn't completely dismiss them.

One is to do it step by step, so as not to reward too much, and then there will be no reward. The second is to squeeze their potential and promote the development of the military industry.

But just like that, they are still grateful to Dade, so guilty.

After showing off, there was nothing to do with him after that, and he barely said a few words of encouragement, and then turned around and went back to the palace.

Emperor Chongzhen doesn't know how to produce firearms, nor does he know how to make steel and iron, so he can't talk to them about his family's shortcomings, right?

It's useless to talk about this, and there is no TV set, which can be broadcast nationwide to show that he is close to the people?

However, Bi Maokang, the secretary of the Ministry of Works, stayed behind and told the management methods and craftsmen that had been discussed with Emperor Chongzhen.

In fact, there is nothing new, nothing more than clear rewards and punishments.

In the future, all firearms manufacturers will be subject to strict quality inspections, and a qualified firearm will be produced with a name engraved on it.

If there is a problem in the future, punishment will be given, etc.

There are also more rewards for more work, extra rewards and so on, these are all common problems.

The craftsmen said that they would work hard to repay the emperor's grace.

After finishing speaking, it was a happy moment, and the eunuchs in the palace and Bi Shangshu worked together to distribute the living materials left by Emperor Chongzhen to every household.

The small alley near the military war bureau was almost boiling, and the children ran out one by one, drilling up and down, as if it was a New Year.

The mothers-in-law of the craftsman also bloomed with happy smiles, thanked Bi Shangshu and the eunuchs in the palace again and again, thanked the emperor for his grace and so on.

For thousands of years, the Chinese people have been the easiest group to satisfy because of their low requirements.

This is especially true for craftsmen from one of the bottoms.