As soon as Wang Ji left the capital, the Empress Dowager Zhang died.
This book didn't make any waves. Zhu Houzhao and Zhang had a cold relationship, and Zhu Zaiyu didn't like to see the imperial grandmother.
But just after Zhang was buried, Zhu Zaiyi suddenly issued an order to demolish the Dashan Hall next to Renshou Palace and build a palace specifically for his biological mother, Gu.
It is very strange that Wang Yuan promulgated reform decrees every year, and no one in the civil or military officials of the dynasty objected. The young emperor only demolished the palace and rebuilt it. The courtiers immediately responded fiercely, with one-third of the ministers approving, one-third of the ministers admonishing, and the rest
The ones below were laughing, eating melon seeds and watching the show.
What is the Dashan Palace used for?
Also known as Dashan Temple!
There are 169 gold and silver Buddha statues enshrined inside, as well as 13,000 kilograms of Buddha's tooth and bone relics.
Historically, Emperor Jiajing believed in Taoism, so how could he allow a Buddhist temple to be next to his palace? So he demolished the Renshou Palace and the Dashan Palace, burned all the Buddha bones and relics, and melted down the gold and silver Buddha statues to improve finances and build the Cining Palace.
As the exclusive residence of the Queen Mother.
Jiajing succeeded in accomplishing three things with one stone. Firstly, it was in line with his wishes. Secondly, he obtained a lot of gold and silver. Thirdly, he completely erased the existence of the previous dynasty. This was because Zhengde's mother, the Empress Dowager Zhang, had been occupying the Great Good Hall.
After Jiajing succeeded to the throne, he worshiped Buddha here all the year round. The demolition of the Dashan Hall was to say goodbye to the Zhengde Dynasty.
As for Zhu Zaijun, his father believed in everything and nothing, his mother didn’t have a good impression of Buddhism, and several of his teachers didn’t have a good impression of Buddhism either.
Growing up in this kind of environment, Zhu Zaiyi always felt that the Dashan Palace was an eyesore, and he couldn't wait to demolish it as soon as the imperial grandmother died.
By the way, let's see how the officials react.
"It's a bit interesting." Zhu Zaiyu couldn't help but have a playful smile on his face as he read through the memorials of the ministers.
The officials who opposed the demolition of the Great Good Hall were led by Ci Fu Mao Ji. The reason was that the Great Good Hall had been built for a hundred years. Emperors and concubines of all dynasties had worshiped Buddha and prayed for Zuo in the Ming Dynasty here. The demolition of this hall might bring about unknown things.
The officials who supported the demolition of the Great Good Hall were led by Fang Xianfu, the left minister of the Ministry of War, and Huo Tao, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites. Both of them were spiritual scholars and had demolished temples when they were local officials. This time they took the opportunity to reduce Buddhism to nothing and requested that it be demolished.
Illegal temples built privately across the country.
As for the disciples of the Physics School, no one came to discuss the matter, and they had no opinion on whether to demolish the Great Good Hall or not.
The memorial of Xia Yan, minister of Honglu Temple, left a deep impression on Zhu Zaiyi. Xia Yan said that the Ming Dynasty ruled the world with filial piety. Instead of paying respect to the Buddha, it is better to pay respect to the biological mother. Since the Forbidden City was built, there has not been a dedicated palace for the Queen Mother. Your Majesty
Today, the demolition of the Buddhist hall and the construction of the Queen Mother's Palace is a manifestation of the utmost love and filial piety (Note: Renshou Palace is not a dedicated palace for the Queen Mother, but was originally just a walking palace for the emperor).
Zhu Zaiyi did not give any instructions on these memorials, and even the accompanying eunuchs did not know what the emperor thought.
However, Xia Yan was remembered by the emperor, and he needed the imperial party to rule in the future!
This does not mean that Zhu Zaiyi wants to overthrow Wang Yuan's old forces. Rather, he wants to introduce a force to slowly balance the factions in the court, so that the emperor can calmly gather power.
In August of the seventh year of Shaofeng's reign, the Great Good Hall in the Forbidden City was demolished, and the Cining Palace, the Queen Mother's special hall, was built on its site.
In the Dashan Hall, all the 169 gold and silver Buddha statues were melted down to finance the construction of the Cining Palace. Thirteen thousand kilograms of Buddha tooth and bone relics were distributed to various temples across the country for worship, and illegal structures across the country were ordered to be demolished.
Buddhist temple and Taoist temple.
Temples without a license issued by the court are illegal temples, accounting for more than 90% of the country's temples.
Most of these illegal temples and temples have the shadow of local powerful people. Under the guise of religion, the gentry and powerful right people support monks and Taoists in building Buddhist temples and Taoist temples. Firstly, they can gain reputation, and secondly, they can take advantage of the opportunity to make money. Enterprising local officials often destroy temples.
Demolish the temple.
After Zhu Zaiyi issued an imperial edict, hundreds of thousands of monks and Taoists were forced to return to the secular world - it was not considered a return to the secular world. They did not pay ultimatums and were not monks recognized by the court.
At the same time, Zhu Zaiyi sent Jinyiwei spies across the country and asked the spies to do nothing but record the number of temples demolished in each province. He had no other intention, he just wanted to know how many officials would follow the emperor's orders once they left the capital.
Be honest and obedient.
The teacher said that whether the emperor has authority depends entirely on whether the decree reaches the local area.
In June of this year, Zhu Zaiyi turned 21 and became more and more concerned about his own power. He simply wanted to make his own decisions when his children grew up. He had endured it for seven years and was considered very patient. This time, various
These operations are all tentative actions, and they have no intention of falling out with Wang Yuan.
…
Wang Ji took a train to Tianjin and then took a boat to Tianjin Cotton Factory Town. There was only one book boy, Zhou Fei, by his side.
Zhou Fei is two years older than Wang Ji. He is the fourth son of the great housekeeper Zhou Chong. He is good at writing, arithmetic, and is skilled in bow and horse.
The master and servant came to Mianchang Town, where Wang Yuan first set up a factory. At this time, a prosperous town had been formed, with the factory area as the center, radiating out a large area of life, production and business, and its prosperity was no less than that of Shandong
Wang Ji coughed repeatedly and stared at the black chimneys and said: "Although this place is prosperous, it is not suitable for human habitation. The choking smell of coal smoke can be smelled from miles away."
Zhou Fei smiled and said: "The sand and dust in Beijing are much more uncomfortable than this. I heard people say that you can encounter anything on the sea. The young master will suffer a lot. Otherwise, let's go back to Beijing now."
"I don't dare to go back." Wang Ji shook his head and sighed.
Zhou Fei couldn't stop laughing, knowing what the young master was afraid of.
The two came to the factory dock and found a steward in the warehouse. They handed over a letter of introduction and said: "Sir, we are looking for a job as a sailor. Please help arrange it."
The steward curiously looked at the letter of introduction. The letter said that Wang Ji was the son of a powerful man in Beijing. He was a bad boy, uneducated and unskilled. His parents threw him on a ship on the sea to sharpen his will. The specific ships were arranged, and the worry factory was there.
We will contact you at the same time. As for other things, you are not allowed to ask any more questions.
The steward looked at Wang Ji's thin skin and tender flesh, feeling both contempt and envy in his heart, and immediately said: "If you two want to be sailors, you have to change your clothes. How can there be sailors wearing silk and silk?"
Wang Ji said: "We brought clothes."
Zhou Fei opened his luggage and took out two sets of clothes made of ordinary fabrics.
The steward shook his head repeatedly: "It's still too good to wear, and it's not resistant to wear and tear. There is a store not far to the east that sells "coolie cloth" ready-made clothes. You should go and buy a few sets first."
So, the master and the servant went to buy clothes, and the store was full of shorts and shorts.
"Is this coolie cloth?" Wang Ji asked.
Zhou Fei said: "Master, I have seen people wearing it in Beijing. Some of the city builders wore coolie cloth."
Coolie cloth, to put it bluntly, is canvas. The shorts made of this canvas are similar to jeans and denim clothes in later generations.
Canvas has been introduced to China since at least the Yuan Dynasty, but it has never been very popular.
Until a few years ago, Jiangnan cloth merchants were innovative and used short-staple cotton to make canvas clothes and sold them to coolies. Because they were wear-resistant and washable, they were very popular among dock porters and quickly became popular among the lower class people. They also won a lot of popularity.
It is also called "coolie cloth" and "coolie shirt".
Jiangnan became a "coolie cloth" weaving base, and even the coolie cloth from Tianjin was shipped from the south for sale.
Of course, the Tianjin factory will not make coolie cloth, because it is a waste of natural resources. Shandong cotton is of high quality and can weave better cotton cloth. On the contrary, inferior cotton from Jiangnan and Huguang is suitable for making cheap coolie cloth for mass production. Coolie cloth is also considered as Jiangnan.
Cotton opens up new markets.
The master and servant quickly changed into "denim outfits."
But Wang Ji is so handsome that even if he wears a cheap coolie shirt, he doesn't look like a coolie at all.
The warehouse manager shook his head repeatedly and said to Wang Ji: "Master, why don't you get some cigarette ashes and put it on your face?"
Wang Ji followed the good advice and said: "It's time to work."
There was a lot of soot in the factory chimney, so I quickly got a handful and casually wiped it on Wang Ji's face a few times.
The warehouse manager sighed: "Young man is naturally beautiful... so handsome that even soot can hardly hide it."
After staying in Cotton Factory Town for a few days, the cargo ship arranged by Wang Yuan finally arrived, and the master and servant were successfully recruited as sailors. They took the cargo ship to Tianjin Harbor, boarded a sea ship named "Breaking Waves", and went first
I met the chief mate on the ship and was handed over to a steward in charge of the deck.
The first mate quietly ran to the captain and asked, "What are the backgrounds of these two people?"
The captain's name was An Changgui, a second-year student of Hangzhou Technology and Business College. He smiled and said: "The son of a great master was a playboy, so he was sent to the sea for training."
The first mate was surprised and said: "The master's son? Isn't there a living ancestor on our ship?"
An Changgui said: "The Taifu's letter said that as long as the young master's life is saved, we can do whatever we want with the rest. Also, you know the young master's identity and I know it, and we must not leak it."
The first mate said depressedly: "How can being a sailor be safe? If there is a heavy rain or big waves, the sailors will have to risk their lives. If this gentleman is not allowed to go on the deck every time he encounters danger, what will the other sailors think? Sir?
Can you hide your identity?"
An Changgui said helplessly: "The Taifu also said in the letter that if the young master really dies in the belly of a fish, he will not hold us responsible."
The first mate rolled his eyes and said, "If something unexpected happens to you, sir, why does the master need to say anything? Those senior brothers in the trading company will have to kill us."
The maritime caravan established by Wang Yuan was initially a joint venture with Zhu Houzhao and always used the name of the Ming Dynasty royal family. Later, it gradually redeemed the royal family's shares and no longer had anything to do with the emperor. The major shareholder was Wang Yuan, and the other shareholders were disciples of the physics school.
Up to now, even the captain and first mate of this ship were promoted from graduates of Hangzhou Technology and Business College and Tianjin Technology and Business College. In terms of relationship, they are all Wang Yuan's apprentices and grandsons.
Wang Jima, the son of the ancestor, can walk sideways on the sea based on this relationship.
Not to mention the worries of the captain and first mate, the master and servant were taken to see the deck steward.
The steward's first reaction was to question: "You are a rich man in trouble? Can you survive?"
Wang Ji nodded and said: "My family is in decline, so I can only make a living at sea, and I ask my elder brother to take care of me. They are all men. If others can do the job, I will definitely be able to do it too."
The steward could only say: "Okay, you go do odd jobs first, and then learn to wash the deck."
Yes, Wang Ji and Zhou Fei are not even qualified to wash the deck, so they can only do odd jobs for the sailors who wash the deck.
Wang Ji soon became extremely surprised. It turned out that washing the deck was not just scrubbing with cloth, but also using sand and gravel as big as bricks to rub on the deck. The force must be controlled well, otherwise the deck would be easily worn out. Damn it.