Chapter 538: Wonder: The Zheng Ya Bell and Drum Tower

Wang Qian had grown up and had a career he excelled at. He knew what could be done and what could not. Although he bore the name of a playboy, he had never done anything out of line. For example, Wang Qian had never killed anyone, nor had he shielded the wicked or indulged in illegal acts, nor had he solicited bribes from the Crown Prince. All of this made Wang Chonggu feel very at ease.

As for this book, "Analysis of Valuable Certificates," Wang Chonggu had really read it carefully from beginning to end. Wang Qian's observation of the entire trading house's investment was very detailed, and his summary was extremely in place. Moreover, Wang Qian practiced what he preached; he had achieved all four secrets involved.

If a person can achieve unity of knowledge and action, they can basically settle themselves well.

Wang Chonggu had nothing to worry about and began to actively raise funds to build the glazed pagoda.

Empress Dowager Li, facing the value measurement method, still firmly disagreed. She didn't care about any value measurement; she knew that if she really agreed, her name would inevitably be on the pillar of shame in history. Large-scale construction was not a good term, especially when describing a specific person.

In the end, the Northern Capital Glazed Pagoda was named the Zheng Ya Bell and Drum Tower.

The entire architectural style of the glazed pagoda did not change; it was still modeled after the Great Bao'en Temple Glazed Pagoda in the Southern Capital, but simple modifications were made. A huge clock face was hung at the top. The clock face had twelve double-hours, and each double-hour was divided into two hours, and each hour was divided into sixty minutes, and each minute into sixty seconds.

It circulated endlessly.

One double-hour equals two hours, which is the division method of the Song Dynasty astronomer Su Song. Every hour, the night watchman on the Bell and Drum Tower would strike the clock hanging on the drum tower to tell everyone that the hour had arrived.

The entire clock face was designed by the Great Ming Imperial Institute of Science. On the basis of the hour hand, a minute hand and a second hand were added, with sixty as the carry.

The reason for choosing sixty as the carry, rather than the traditional hundred-carry of days, ke, minutes, and seconds in Great Ming astronomy, was because calculation was inconvenient. 60 is the least common multiple, which can facilitate calculation. One-third of an hour is twenty minutes, and the sundial is circular, which also involves the equal division of a circle.

Actually, these are all regulations in mathematics. Mathematics is a precise definition.

The reason for the sixty-carry is mainly culture.

Since ancient times, the Central Plains have had the ten Heavenly Stems and twelve Earthly Branches, and the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are cyclically combined, totaling sixty from Jiazi to Guihai.

The Great Ming's years, months, days, and hours are all based on sixty as a cycle. For example, the imperial examination in the eleventh year of Wanli was: the Golden List of the Guiwei Ke Palace Examination, for example, it was on the Jichou day of the second month, and Yu Youding was determined as the chief examiner.

The Great Ming's years, months, days, and hours are based on sixty as a cycle, so are the Great Ming's hours also based on sixty as a cycle?

The hours are also based on a sixty-cycle. The "hou" in "shihou" is actually sixty hours per hou. Sixty hours is exactly five twelve-hour periods, exactly five days, so it is also called one hou every five days.

Years, months, days, and hours are all based on a sixty-cycle, so the time units below the hour, minutes and seconds, are all based on sixty as a cycle. This is where the reason lies.

The design of the Zheng Ya Bell and Drum Tower's large clock posed no difficulty for the Imperial Institute of Science, because it was a time unit, cycling every sixty times. Isn't that a matter of course?

The sketch passed the court discussion on the seventh day of the third month, and then specific design began. At the same time, the site selection was also determined, right outside the Donghua Gate.

Originally, outside the Donghua Gate was the Ten Princes' Mansion, which was the residence of the Great Ming princes who had not yet been enfeoffed and remained in the capital. But because the Great Ming's main lineage was not flourishing, and even led to the incident of a collateral branch entering the main lineage, the Ten Princes' Mansion had been in disrepair for a long time.

Moreover, after the Ten Princes' City was built, the Ten Princes' Mansion had no significance and became the site for the Zheng Ya Bell and Drum Tower.

Originally, a bell and drum tower over thirty-three zhang high could see through the entire Imperial Palace, which was very unfavorable to the Emperor. No matter what, it shouldn't have been chosen here, but because the Emperor didn't live in the Imperial Palace, this site was very suitable.

The Imperial Palace is only an Imperial Palace because the Emperor lives in it. The current Huangji Hall and Wenhua Hall can at most be considered the Great Ming Emperor's office yamen.

The Ministry of Rites chose an auspicious day, and construction began.

The Emperor's life is always boring and fulfilling. The Great Ming Emperor is very busy every day, and everyone in the capital is accustomed to the Emperor's diligence and activity, until the third day of the fourth month, the day of the Great Court Meeting, when the Great Ming Emperor suddenly issued an edict to stop the Great Court Meeting and postpone it.

The reason is very simple: the Great Ming Emperor, who had been listening to government at the imperial gate for more than ten years, was ill and had developed a high fever.

It had already entered the early summer of the fourth month. In this season, it had already begun to get hot. The Emperor, as usual, went to the Beijing Garrison to review the troops. On the way back to the city, a strong cold air from the northwest suddenly arrived, and the weather suddenly became cold.

For more than ten years, the diligent Emperor finally fell ill. This illness lasted for... one day.

When the Great Physician of the Jieku Institute hurried into the palace, the Emperor had already broken the fever, and all symptoms of the cold had faded. If the Great Physicians had come any later, the Emperor would have been completely well.

Thanks to long-term martial arts practice, the Emperor, with a strong body, recovered his health in just one day.

In order not to let the court officials worry, Zhu Yijun convened a Great Court Meeting on the fifth day of the fourth month. When the officials saw the Great Ming Emperor appear again on the throne of the Huangji Hall, all doubts vanished.

"A strong physique is how important for the Great Ming Emperor." Zhu Yijun looked at the memorials piled on the table and sighed, "Just a slight cold, and there are so many memorials of inquiry, wishing they could fill the entire Imperial Study!"

These memorials filled with loyalty, with all kinds of sycophantic vocabulary emerging one after another, Zhu Yijun had to flip through them.

To approve everything that should be approved was what Zhu Yijun had promised Zhang Juzheng, so he naturally had to do it.

Zhu Yijun picked up a seal on the table with three characters on it, meaning his body was quite good. For the memorials of inquiry, Zhu Yijun specially carved a seal, and when he encountered them, he would just stamp them. Even a donkey at a mill must learn to find ways to save effort.

"How are the sales of 'The Four Secrets of Wang Qian's Rise to Wealth'?" Zhu Yijun asked with a smile while stamping.

"It is truly popular in the capital! It has even begun to be distributed to various places. I have to say, this name is truly well chosen!" Feng Bao gave a thumbs up to His Majesty's sudden inspiration. It was truly great!

"Should we change the name of the Contradiction Theory?" Feng Bao thought by analogy, thinking about whether this method could be used for the promotion of the Contradiction Theory.

"Nonsense." Zhu Yijun sneered and said, "Why don't you go to the brothels and talk politics to those fairies? Isn't that playing the lute to a cow?"

Publications and collections like the serious political Contradiction Theory are completely unsuitable for such dissemination, because it is serious in itself. Turning politics into entertainment is in itself a very dangerous act. If not handled well, it will be...

Political activity is a process of group decision-making; while entertainment is to attract people's attention, making people feel pleasure and happiness.

The evil consequence of completely turning politics into entertainment is that in the process of political activity group decision-making, in order to attract people's attention, it is completely oriented towards attention and topics, constantly throwing out various unfulfillable promises, absurd arguments, baseless conspiracy theories, and extremely short-sighted or daydreaming goals, and it is often filled with groundless lies and deception.

Political entertainment will lack facts and only have lies.

Because all the content of entertainment revolves around attention and topics. Once political activity develops into this trend, all group decision-making will proceed contrary to facts.

The Great Ming has similar phenomena, manifested as the Great Ming censors impeaching for the sake of impeaching.

Tan Lun coughed at the Sun Altar, and they wanted to impeach the Minister of War. The whole process was full of lies and deception. If Tan Lun hadn't directly pointed out that the list of Beijing Garrison generals submitted by Zhang and Wang Chonggu was the key to the struggle, could the young Emperor sitting on the stage really see through the twists and turns?

"This memorial from the Ministry of Personnel is not a memorial of inquiry." Zhu Yijun's hand was already raised to stamp, only to see it was not a memorial of inquiry, but a memorial from the Minister of Personnel, Liang Menglong, discussing the drawbacks of the Evaluation Method.

"Isn't Liang Menglong Zhang Juzheng's student? Liang Menglong actually accuses Zhang Juzheng's Evaluation Method of having drawbacks! Is this going to rebel against heaven?" Zhu Yijun was extremely surprised. This Liang Menglong's courage was truly not ordinary!

Feng Bao thought for a moment and said, "Is it possible that the Master instructed it?"

He had the same thought when he saw the memorial, but when he received it from the Ceremonial Secretariat to the Imperial Presence, Feng Bao was convinced that Zhang Juzheng knew about this memorial, and it might even have been completed under Zhang Juzheng's guidance.

"Tsk tsk, substance." Zhu Yijun discovered the memorial written by Liang Menglong, which pointed directly to the core problem of the Evaluation Method, which was the officialdom ecology under the high pressure of the Evaluation Method.

This is the self-correction of the Zhang Party. No system is perfect. Zhang Juzheng told the Emperor this very early on, and the high pressure of the Evaluation Method brought many benefits to the Great Ming officialdom, but the drawbacks were just as many.

The Evaluation Method destroyed the Great Ming's original teacher-disciple system and brought a relatively fair competition platform to the Great Ming officials, instead of having to be a slave to the teacher to get a possible promotion opportunity.

The Evaluation Method is the Great Ming officials' method of abolishing the slave status, which greatly stimulated the vitality of the officialdom. At the same time, cruel competition began.

Under high pressure, the various yamen at all levels of the Great Ming formed different small groups. The struggle between these small groups was particularly cruel; it was truly a life-and-death struggle. The capable rising and the mediocre falling became the basic rule of the officialdom.

If it were just struggle, that would be fine. Wherever there are people, there is a world; struggle and contradiction are everywhere.

But now, the members of these small groups have begun to share power. This is a phenomenon Zhang Juzheng never expected, and it soon became widespread.

The pressure of the Evaluation Method is very great. Once a certain thing cannot be done within the limited time, one will immediately receive a low rating, and if one accumulates three "low-lows," one may face the disaster of imprisonment. And to get a promotion, one needs at least a "high" or even "high-high" rating.

They are all Jinshi who rolled out of thousands of troops and horses; who isn't a dragon or phoenix among people!

Roll.

In order to roll over their opponents, the small groups began to facilitate each other, meaning "you give me convenience, I give you convenience." In this way, everyone is convenient, and they can quickly complete the court's evaluation, greatly improving the efficiency of handling affairs. Of course, it also brought huge administrative problems of unclear power and responsibility.

Glory and loss are shared. A case is often a group case, involving a wide range of people.

That is to say, the Great Ming's own strips and blocks are rapidly and tightly uniting under the high pressure of the Evaluation Method. This is actually not good news for the court. If this continues, the localities will form substantial small courts, or even go further, which is becoming a feudal vassal state.

Because Liang Menglong observed that these small groups began to facilitate each other, no longer limited to the interior of the small groups. They often formed small groups with the Prefect or Provincial Administration Commissioner, Assistant Administration Commissioner, and Surveillance Commissioner as the core, sharing power.

In this way, it seems that administrative efficiency has greatly improved, but the localities have a trend of forming a joint force. The various Provincial Governors may even be bypassed, or simply, under coercion, become a whole with the locality for the sake of the "high-high" rating of the evaluation.

The strips of the strips and blocks, under the unity of the blocks, began to fail. The Great Ming's administrative power would rapidly lose under the unity of the blocks, just like the rapid transition from the Kaiyuan Prosperity to the Tianbao Chaos. This is a situation Zhang Juzheng absolutely does not want to see.

"This is a very, very big trouble," Zhu Yijun said sincerely.

On this memorial of Liang Menglong, there was a floating note from Zhang Juzheng himself. According to Zhang Juzheng, the phenomenon indeed exists, and the problem is very severe and needs to be solved immediately. Once this mutual convenience between local small groups becomes an unwritten rule, it will be as harmful as the teacher-disciple system, creating centrifugal force.

If it develops for a while longer, disobedience will become a widespread phenomenon.

Liang Menglong and Zhang Juzheng, these two master and student, discussed for a long time and really found a way.

This method is of course not to abolish the Evaluation Method—the Evaluation Method is an important decree for the restoration of the Great Ming's administrative power—nor is it to carry out high-pressure changes, such as the "guaman lianzuo" (vine-like collective punishment) where glory and loss are shared. This kind of high pressure will only make the localities more united, accelerate the unity of the localities, and confront the court.

The method given by Liang Menglong and Zhang Juzheng is the short-term appointment method.

To be precise, the three commissioners of a place cannot stay in one place for more than six years, because once it exceeds six years, very stable personnel relationships will be formed, which is very convenient for forming cliques. But if the term is too short, power will be completely controlled by local clerks. Based on practical experience, the time of six to nine years was determined.

When it reaches nine years, even if it is a major event, one should be promoted or transferred and cannot be reappointed.

This is to avoid the formation of deep-rooted small groups with the three commissioners as the core. A new emperor has a new court; the court is like this, and the localities are also like this. This kind of forced head-changing method is to force the localities to undergo metabolism. The flow of personnel will limit the mutual convenience between these small groups, and the harm will be much smaller.

The Great Ming's strips will not fail.

Zhu Yijun remembered Luo Yao, the former Sichuan Provincial Governor in the Yang family case of Xindu. Luo Yao was a native of Huguang and the core of the Zhang Party. When he arrived in Sichuan, facing the Sichuan locality that was almost like an iron plate, the weak-willed Luo Yao chose to surrender, embezzled 360,000 taels of silver, and finally became notorious, having his official status and merit stripped by the Emperor.

The problem summarized by Liang Menglong is objective, and the method is extremely effective. The only ones who can bypass the Provincial Governor are the three commissioners.

"The Cabinet knows about the next chapter. Tomorrow, this matter will be discussed in court. The Ceremonial Secretariat should make an extra copy of the memorial and place it before my desk," Zhu Yijun gave extra instructions. This memorial must be placed before his eyes to remind himself at all times that contradictions succeed each other to release all truths. New contradictions will appear after one is solved. No decree can be pushed forward and then one can sit back and relax, enjoying the fruits of others' labor.

The "cheap scholars" always follow the laws of the three generations, hoping for a law that will remain unchanged for ten thousand generations, but in fact, it does not exist.

The Evaluation Method also needs repairs to continue to exert force.

"I obey the decree."

Zhang Juzheng's repairs to the Evaluation Method quickly passed the court discussion, and the Ministry of Personnel immediately began action, launching promotions or transfers for local officials who had served for more than ten years. This round of rapid personnel adjustments showed that the Ministry of Personnel was clearly prepared. Zhang Juzheng was not unaware of the drawbacks of the Evaluation Method.

There is no disaster of party prohibition in the court, and Zhang Juzheng has more energy to put into official governance and institutional improvement.

On the seventh day of the fourth month of the eleventh year of Wanli, a carriage set off from the Tongzhou Water Horse Station. On the carriage was the Great Ming Guangdong Provincial Governor Wang Jiaping. He also brought two people, Wan Wenqing and Wu Weizhong. These two were initially supervisors of the Guangzhou Maritime Trade Office. Because of consecutive "high-high" ratings, they had already become prefects. This promotion speed was already very fast.

Wan Wenqing and Wu Weizhong's biggest hobby was visiting brothels. The purpose of their leaving the capital was to visit brothels in Guangzhou.

Wang Jiaping used all his strength to stop the two from visiting brothels. Now they could only drool.

"The capital is truly changing with each passing day. When we left, the houses outside the Zhaoyang Gate were still very far from Tongzhou, but now they are all connected," Wan Wenqing looked out the window and said with great emotion.

Things are different, people have changed, and the seas have turned into mulberry fields. The great changes in the capital region made the two feel touched by the scene. When they left back then, although it couldn't be called dilapidated, it was far from as prosperous as it is now.

"After I enter the capital, I want to visit an old friend at the Jieku Institute. You two should not go," Wang Jiaping looked at the two disciples and said very firmly.

Wu Weizhong frowned and said, "Fan Yingqi? Teacher, you pretend to be confused in Guangzhou Prefecture every day. When you arrive in the capital, you can also pretend to be confused once. Fan Yingqi's problem is not small. Getting involved with him is not good for you, Teacher. He is locked in the Jieku Institute. If you go to see him, how will His Majesty look at you?"

"Teacher, pretend to be confused once, just this once."

Wang Jiaping sighed and said, "Yes, it is him. I was actually hesitating on the way to the capital. After hesitating again and again, I still have to go. Not going will cause more trouble."

"Not going will cause more trouble?" Wan Wenqing frowned. This made him somewhat confused.

"He and I are good friends. Whether I go or not, it is a problem. Of the two evils, choose the lesser. Because if I don't go, it means I am unfaithful and unrighteous. Those moral guardians in the court will attack me with words. I am not afraid of them, but if I don't go, it means I have a problem. This is the hardest pass to get through," Wang Jiaping sighed. This Fan Yingqi was not self-disciplined and implicated him.

Wang Jiaping looked at the two disciples' confused expressions and sighed, "I know you don't understand. If I don't go, it means I am afraid. Afraid of what? Afraid of being implicated, which means I have a ghost in my heart. Even if I have a clear conscience, it will become a problem. So I must go."

"Going might lead to implication; not going will inevitably lead to implication."

The most annoying thing about the Great Ming's censorate officials is their "mind-reading." If you don't dare to visit an old friend, it means you are afraid of getting burned, that you have a ghost in your heart, that you have a problem. As for what the problem is, once you fall, it will naturally be exposed! The thinking of the censorate officials can make such leaps only in this layer.

Wan Wenqing pondered again and again and said, "Before going, let's find the party leader first and let him make the decision."

"Wang Chonggu is gradually abandoning the Jin Party. Although most Jin people haven't noticed it, I have seen it," Wang Jiaping spread his hands. Regarding Wang Chonggu's change, he was helpless and could only watch as Wang Chonggu abandoned the Jin Party.

The Jin Party is about to fall apart. After Wang Chonggu dies, there will be no one to carry the flag, and the Jin Party will collapse, just like the Yan Party and Xu Party back then. They will all defect to his gate, but becoming a monk halfway, which temple dares to accept them?

Wang Yie, because he was Xu Jie's student, spent ten full years in the position of Shun Tian Prefecture Assistant without getting a promotion. If it weren't for His Majesty's insistence, Wang Yie would have continued to waste away in the position of Shun Tian Prefecture Assistant.

Wan Wenqing and Wu Weizhong looked at each other. They didn't feel anything because they really didn't have much addiction to being an official. They just wanted to find a place to escape Wang Jiaping's control so they could continue to be carefree. Continuing to be an official was to give an account to their families and their past selves. Doing their jobs well was to be loyal to the master; one should plan for the government while in that position.

Promotions and such were not particularly important to them.

"You two have no ambition! The Jin Party is about to break up, and you are both indifferent!" Wang Jiaping said with a face full of anger at their lack of improvement. These two disciples were good in every way and very capable, but they had no ambition and liked to visit brothels. Visiting brothels was a lack of self-discipline in life and would be scolded by the "pure" scholars.

Wang Jiaping arrived in the capital and stayed at the Huitong Hall Station, then went to the All-Jin Guild Hall. He didn't see Wang Chonggu. The Assistant Grand Secretary and Minister of Justice was not in the Wenyuan Pavilion, nor in the Ministry of Justice yamen, but at the Xishan Coal Bureau.

Wang Jiaping didn't go to the Xishan Coal Bureau but went straight to the Jieku Institute. After checking his tooth tablet, led by the secret agents, Wang Jiaping walked into the Jieku Institute.

"Why is it so chilly?" Wang Jiaping shivered for no reason. He frowned and looked around. There was nothing strange, but there was a cold feeling. This was clearly psychological. The Jieku Institute was clean and had no dirty things.

This human hell was also the first time Wang Jiaping had walked in.

"You've come." A calm voice suddenly sounded behind Wang Jiaping.

"Ah!" Wang Jiaping was startled. Looking at Chen Shigong behind him, his heart, which had jumped to his throat, fell back. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said, "Scaring people will scare them to death. Why is there no sound when you walk?"

"Provincial Governor Wang is joking. Don't I have sound when I walk?" Chen Shigong said with a smile. "Listen, isn't this the sound of footsteps?"

"Let's go."

A layer of goosebumps rose on Wang Jiaping's body. It was very strange. There was clearly no sound of footsteps just now, but now there was. Wang Jiaping was very sure he hadn't heard it just now.

Was something covering his ears?

"This is..." Wang Jiaping passed an open room and looked inside. It was filled with various objects wrapped in pine resin. He was somewhat curious.

Ordinary people wouldn't come to the Jieku Institute. What was inside, outsiders didn't know. It wasn't that the Jieku Institute closed its doors to guests, but there were too many strange stories surrounding the Jieku Institute. There were too many stories, which covered this place with a mysterious veil, so no one was willing to come.

"These are all Zhang Siwei." Chen Shigong looked at those specimens and said.

"Ah? Ah, this is Zhang Siwei." Wang Jiaping hurried two steps. He walked very fast, without a trace of lingering, as if he wanted to forget what had just happened.

But the more he wanted to forget, the more he couldn't. The memory became deeper and deeper, to the point where he could never forget it.

Those specimens, piece by piece, block by block, sealed in pine resin, were all Zhang Siwei.

Wang Jiaping knew Zhang Siwei and had had conflicts with him. When he really saw those specimens with his own eyes, Wang Jiaping's heart still accelerated a few beats.

Finally, finally, Wang Jiaping saw Fan Yingqi. Fan Yingqi was much thinner than before. He used to be slightly wealthy, but now he was emaciated, skin and bones. His two eye sockets were deeply sunken, dim and lusterless, and he looked somewhat listless. The spirit of "who else but me" that used to be in his eyes had disappeared, replaced by a kind of turbidity.

"You've come?" Fan Yingqi saw Wang Jiaping and smiled, revealing two yellow teeth. This was from smoking opium balls, stained yellow by the tar inside.

Wang Jiaping sat on a chair, looked at Fan Yingqi sitting on the edge of the bed, and asked, "What happened to you?"

"I am different from them. They were thrown in to be dissected; I was thrown in to quit opium. It's different. His Majesty did not forbid me from leaving. After quitting successfully some time ago, His Majesty allowed me to go home," Fan Yingqi muttered to himself. "I am different from them."

Wang Jiaping really didn't know that Fan Yingqi had already succeeded and had been approved by His Majesty to go home. Fan Yingqi mainly had a crooked wisdom tooth that caused toothache. In the Jieku Institute, the Great Physicians pulled out his wisdom tooth. After no longer needing painkillers, Fan Yingqi also became ruthless with himself and quit opium.

Wang Jiaping asked suspiciously, "Then why are you still here?"

"Look at me, this neither-human-nor-ghost appearance. Isn't it very suitable for this neither-alive-nor-dead place?" Fan Yingqi shook his head and said, "I won't go out. What else can I do if I go out? I used to be a young talent of the Jin Party, high-spirited. And now? Just a withered bone in a grave."

"You don't understand. I am a coward who finds living more painful than dying, yet lacks the courage to die. On the contrary, this place is quite good."

"I am preparing to study medicine and become a doctor at the Jieku Institute to find something to do for myself."

A person is the sum of social relations, and Fan Yingqi intended to use the walls of the Jieku Institute to isolate his social relations. In this way, he wouldn't have to face the pointing fingers outside, the abuse, the sneers, the disdain, although everything was his own fault. ===== CHAPTER 539 =====