Chapter 194: The Wanggong Factory

Affairs across the court were proceeding in an orderly fashion, which let Zhu Youxiao breathe a sigh of relief.

For Zhu Youxiao, this was already the best possible outcome, proving that his earlier efforts had not been in vain — these ministers at least had ability.

Especially the several Grand Secretaries he had personally selected; they truly handled matters splendidly. Though they had not been in office long, they had already sorted everything out, which was a rare and valuable capability.

This also proved that Zhu Youxiao's judgment was sound. Still, one matter before him was giving him a headache. Because his ministers worked so effectively, progress was coming along too quickly.

Take Minister of Rites Shen Tingyun, for instance. Earlier, Zhu Youxiao had told him to go rest — partly because Shen Tingyun genuinely needed it, having been far too busy these days; and partly because Zhu Youxiao hoped Shen Tingyun would slow his pace a little, as his progress was simply too fast.

Watching Shen Tingyun appear before him once again, Zhu Youxiao felt his head ache. Shen Tingyun worked with far too much zeal, and the key problem was that he got things done too quickly.

Zhu Youxiao did not want him to move so fast at all, because some matters still required further handling — yet he could hardly say that to Shen Tingyun.

The man was working with genuine dedication; one could not dampen his enthusiasm.

"Beloved Minister Shen, I have reviewed everything you have proposed. But I feel that your pace might be a bit quick, don't you think? At this rate, things may feel rushed, and it would be a pity if anything were left imperfect." Zhu Youxiao smiled gently, his face betraying no other thought.

Whether he truly failed to grasp Zhu Youxiao's meaning or was simply playing dumb, Shen Tingyun hurriedly bowed and said with utmost sincerity: "Rest assured, Your Majesty. Your servant has prepared everything thoroughly, with every aspect accounted for. If anything is amiss, it can be corrected on the spot."

Zhu Youxiao let out a helpless sigh. From Shen Tingyun's manner, he could tell there was no stopping him now.

In truth, Zhu Youxiao had wanted to focus his energy on the Imperial Household Department first, but since Shen Tingyun had already raised the matter, he might as well let him proceed as proposed.

So Zhu Youxiao nodded and said with a gentle expression: "Then go ahead and handle it, Beloved Minister. But do remember to rest."

Shen Tingyun straightened his back, then bowed respectfully once more: "Rest assured, Your Majesty. Your servant will see the matter settled as quickly as possible."

Clearly, his words had gone unheard again. Zhu Youxiao said with some resignation: "Very well then, Beloved Minister, go attend to your duties."

With that, Zhu Youxiao waved his hand, signaling Shen Tingyun to withdraw.

"Your servant takes his leave." Shen Tingyun acknowledged, retreated a few steps, then turned and walked out.

Watching Shen Tingyun's retreating figure, Zhu Youxiao sighed helplessly — dealing with such a minister was rather exhausting.

Turning to look at Chen Hong, Zhu Youxiao said: "Go to the Ministry of Works and pass the word — tell them to speed up their progress."

"Yes, Your Majesty. This servant will go at once." Chen Hong replied deferentially.

According to Shen Tingyun's arrangements, the examinations were about to begin. In fact, the site selection for the Academy had only just been completed.

The Academy building was not even finished, yet Shen Tingyun was already preparing to hold the examinations. This round of testing would certainly not be large in scale, since it was to be conducted on a voluntary registration basis.

It was not that many would be unwilling to attend, but rather that word would not travel that far.

Information did not spread so readily in this era; many people would likely miss this examination. After all, when traveling to the capital for the imperial examinations, some had to set out as much as a year in advance.

So this round of Academy enrollment would inevitably be small, with most selectees coming from the vicinity of Beijing.

Then why was Shen Tingyun in such a hurry?

Zhu Youxiao could guess part of the reason. Because in the third year of Tianqi there would be an imperial examination, and Shen Tingyun was clearly preparing to make a brilliant showing at it. That was why he was so impatient, carrying a sense of "time waits for no one," afraid that his Academy might be toppled at any moment.

Still, Zhu Youxiao could hardly say anything, even though he knew in his heart that such a thing was impossible.

Of course, there was another aspect as well — he did not hold much hope for the students of Shen Tingyun's Academy.

Because the rules of the imperial examinations were fixed, and what they tested was the eight-legged essay. Even with great scholars like Shen Tingyun instructing them, the Academy's students could not necessarily achieve much.

Since the Academy's students had to study many other subjects besides the eight-legged essay, they needed a new path of advancement. The Imperial Household Department was, in fact, what Zhu Youxiao had prepared for these Academy students — it was their channel upward.

After leaving the Academy, they would enter the Imperial Household Department; after several years there, they would transfer directly into officialdom. In this way, these Academy students' advancement through the bureaucracy would be very rapid, conveniently bypassing the blockade of the imperial examinations — killing two birds with one stone.

Among them, another group would go out to establish new Academies, serving as seeds.

Rising to his feet, Zhu Youxiao sighed.

He truly disliked this feeling of being rushed, as though his rhythm had been disrupted. But there was no helping it — his ministers below were impatient sorts, always pushing too hard.

Just as Zhu Youxiao was about to take a rest, someone walked in from outside.

Zhu Youxiao glanced over — it was Fang Zhenghua, the eunuch who attended to him.

There is one place where a eunuch's standing within the palace is made very clear: whether he is qualified to take his turn in rotation attending the Emperor.

When he had that qualification, his status naturally rose.

To show how much he valued Fang Zhenghua, Zhu Youxiao had included him in the rotation. Now that Chen Hong had gone out, it was only natural for Fang Zhenghua to come in and attend him.

Glancing at Fang Zhenghua, Zhu Youxiao said with a rather displeased expression: "What is it now?"

Seeing Zhu Youxiao's face and hearing the tone of his voice, Fang Zhenghua grew afraid, unsure whether he ought to speak.

But after thinking it over, Fang Zhenghua steeled himself and said: "Your Majesty, Grand Secretary Xu of the Grand Secretariat has arrived."

Zhu Youxiao's face immediately twisted into a wry smile.

No sooner had Shen Tingyun left than Xu Guangqi arrived — there was no end to this.

"Fine, let him in." Zhu Youxiao waved his hand.

His mood was already thoroughly ruined, so he might as well let them say everything they had to say; keeping it bottled up inside would only be more uncomfortable.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Soon, Xu Guangqi walked in from outside.

Seeing Xu Guangqi's travel-worn appearance, Zhu Youxiao knew he had business.

The most telling point was that Xu Guangqi's condition meant he must have come straight from the Hundred Crafts Institute — meaning the matter was connected to that side.

For Xu Guangqi to rush over in such a hurry, it could not be anything trivial.

"Beloved Minister, sit and have some tea." Zhu Youxiao said to Xu Guangqi, then instructed Fang Zhenghua at his side: "Grant him a seat, and serve Beloved Minister Xu a cup of tea."

"Your servant thanks Your Majesty." Xu Guangqi said.

Only after Xu Guangqi had sat down and taken a sip of tea did Zhu Youxiao ask: "Beloved Minister, you have come in such haste — is something urgent afoot? Or has something happened?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, nothing has happened. But your servant does indeed have a matter to raise." Xu Guangqi nodded and continued: "Your servant has come this time to request an office from Your Majesty, and hopes that Your Majesty will grant it."

Hearing this, Zhu Youxiao felt his head throb.

Request an office?

Were offices so easily granted?

Judging by Xu Guangqi's tone, this office was certainly no ordinary one.

So Zhu Youxiao asked cautiously, "May I ask which office you wish to have, my dear minister?"

"Your Majesty, it is the Wanggong Factory." Xu Guangqi's tone was firm, his expression grave.

At the mention of the name Wanggong Factory, Zhu Youxiao felt his head buzz.

Wanggong Factory didn't sound like much, but it was not an ordinary place, nor an ordinary office. And more critically, this Wanggong Factory belonged to the Ministry of Works.

"May I ask which office you wish to place Wanggong Factory under?" Zhu Youxiao probed.

In fact, Zhu Youxiao had already guessed — no one would want Wanggong Factory except the Hundred Crafts Workshop.

Bi Maokang dared not ask for Wanggong Factory himself, and the reason was actually quite simple: his standing was insufficient, and he had no way to broach the subject.

Wanggong Factory had been established very early, dating back to the Yongle era.

When it was first established, although Wanggong Factory was subordinate to the Ministry of Works, it was nominally counted as part of the palace, because there was a supervising eunuch stationed inside Wanggong Factory.

Wanggong Factory could produce a large quantity of gunpowder every day, and the amount of gunpowder stored there year-round was also very large, and it was exclusively for the use of the Capital Camps.

After all these years of development, Wanggong Factory was long since no longer what it had once been.

Because of the decline of the Capital Camps, the other supporting industries naturally declined as well, and overall authority had fallen completely into the hands of the Ministry of Works.

Touching Wanggong Factory was not as simple a matter as it appeared on the surface. Because once you touched Wanggong Factory, you would have to touch the Bureau of Military Equipment.

Although every region had its own Bureau of Military Equipment, they ordinarily only forged things like swords and blades; all firearm manufacturing was done at the Bureau of Military Equipment in the capital.

Once he touched Wanggong Factory, he would inevitably have to weaken the Bureau of Military Equipment, and that would drag in a power struggle.

Power was something that no one who held it in their hands was willing to let go of.

But looking at Xu Guangqi, Zhu Youxiao didn't know what to say. He certainly couldn't utter words of refusal, and he couldn't even bring himself to ask Xu Guangqi to wait.

Xu Guangqi could not be unaware of what he was really doing by raising this matter — everyone knew his relationship with the Hundred Crafts Institute.

Now Xu Guangqi had even taken Wanggong Factory for the Hundred Crafts Institute. Many people would not think Xu Guangqi was acting for the country and the public good, but would think he was seizing power.

One had to know that Xu Guangqi was now Second Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat. He could not be unaware of the consequences of doing this, yet he still did it.

Xu Guangqi was not doing this for himself.

In fact, Zhu Youxiao also knew that giving Wanggong Factory to the Hundred Crafts Institute was more appropriate.

From an official standpoint, the Hundred Crafts Institute handled research while Wanggong Factory handled manufacturing; placing them under one roof would be more conducive to management, and also more conducive to research and development and manufacturing — similar to a factory subordinate to a research institute in later generations.

From a personal standpoint, Zhu Youxiao wanted to take Wanggong Factory back. To put it plainly, it was about reclaiming authority.

But doing so was truly rather difficult, and the key issue was that there were too many matters right now. There were the affairs of the Imperial Household Department, the affairs of the Academy, and now the matter of Wanggong Factory had arrived as well — and all of them were so urgent.

"I have taken note of this matter." Zhu Youxiao nodded and said.