Chapter 942

On the first day of the sixth month of the JingTai first year, government offices across Great Ming gradually received the Emperor's edict.

Tools serve the people, benefiting them and boosting the economy; now, the State Tutor, for the sake of ten thousand people and to promote progress in tools, has allocated one hundred thousand taels of silver. Whether they are Great Ming subjects, foreigners, scholars, farmers, merchants, artisans, or slaves, anyone who makes an invention may report it to local tool workshops, county offices, or Daoist Discipline Offices. As long as the invention is verified as valid, the minimum reward is twenty taels of silver, the maximum one hundred.

The edict also listed examples: waterwheels have existed since ancient times, but Hu Wei of the Ministry of Works improved them by harnessing both wind and water power; each received twenty taels of silver, totaling forty.

It further cited an elderly farmer in the imperial estate who modified a single wooden piece on his plow, enabling it to dig two inches deeper into the soil, earning him twenty taels of silver.

Anyone with a similar invention, once verified, shall receive a silver reward.

The edict was copied and posted on notice boards at every government office, and alongside the edict sent to the regions came a single phrase from the State Tutor.

"This humble Daoist cultivates merit, and the greatest sin is breaking one's word; thus, whoever undermines my merit, I shall curse them for life."

The Provincial Administration Commissioners, Prefects, and County Magistrates who received this message silently copied the edict word-for-word and posted it on notice boards; some, to curry favor with Pan Yun, plastered it on both walls outside the city gates and summoned village heads to loudly promote it.

And they declared: "This is not like before—this is the State Tutor paying out of her own pocket; she seeks merit and will keep her promise."

So there is no need to worry that you will give something and receive no reward.

Pan Yun already enjoyed great fame among the people, especially in the Jiangnan region; after last year's northern campaign, she was revered as a deity by the military and in the north; after becoming State Tutor, her reputation soared further—today, the people of the realm may doubt the Emperor and the imperial court's promises, but they will surely believe Pan Yun.

Pan Yun seems unafraid of overshadowing the sovereign; this time, she directly took charge of the matter and loudly leveraged the imperial court's channels for promotion.

The Grand Secretariat permitted this because Pan Yun said one thing: "When technology rises, industry flourishes; with maritime trade gradually growing, commerce across the realm can thrive. Yet our Great Ming suffers from a severe silver shortage; copper coins are impractical for transport, and paper currency is inevitable. But after the Baochao affair, the imperial family and court have lost all credibility in finance. Paper currency must never be fully controlled by private money houses. To develop court-issued paper currency, we must restore credibility."

Yu Qian had long known her; they had discussed this very topic during the Jiangxi famine relief. He stirred slightly and said: "When this succeeds, will you yield this achievement to the court?"

"Yield it to the court? How many would believe?" Pan Yun looked at Zhu Qiyu.

The Grand Secretaries followed his gaze, their eyes flickering with sudden light: "That is indeed a method—but doing only this is not enough."

"Indeed not enough," Pan Yun said. "He who wins the people's hearts wins the realm. The rest of the measures to win the people's hearts are your duties, my lords. I love tools and am skilled only in tools."

"To win the people's hearts, one must cleanse officialdom, fight corruption," Yu Qian said gravely. "What the people ask for is nothing but fairness."

The ministers all responded in agreement; Zhu Qiyu struck the gavel, and they set to work.

True enough, because of Pan Yun's reputation, as soon as the notice spread, people began straining their minds, wondering what invention they might present.

And the next notices would not stop at this one.

Soon, another edict arrived at every region.

Starting from the first day of the sixth month of the JingTai first year, the court will no longer add new names to the artisan registry; thus, scholars, merchants, and commoners who make inventions will not be enrolled as artisans.

The existing artisan registry remains unchanged.

The edict strictly stipulated that slaves who invent tools shall retain at least half the profits; their masters may not seize their earnings.

As soon as the edict was issued, more people across the realm submitted inventions; outside every county office, the crowds grew as bustling as a marketplace.

Most places lacked tool workshops, so county offices relied on their engineering bureaus and officials to verify inventions; thus, local offices invited Daoist Priests and skilled artisans to serve as judges.

Many genuine inventions were indeed screened out.

By the time Pan Yun helped Sun Yuanzhen locate a suitable site for Jiangang harbor and drew the harbor construction plans with the painter he hired, 168 inventions had been reported to the Ministry of Works; even at the minimum reward of twenty taels each, that already amounted to over three thousand taels.

The account supposedly holding one hundred thousand taels of silver actually held only ten thousand.

Pan Yun was frantic; after confirming the harbor construction plans were sound, she planned to leave that very night.

Sun Yuanzhen hurriedly stopped her: "State Tutor, why such haste? I have prepared a private banquet tonight and invited Master Yu to celebrate."

Master Yu was the man who had drawn the plans with Pan Yun; he excelled in detailed brushwork, selling one painting for a hundred taels of silver—but in truth, his greatest talent was architecture.

Many gardens in Jiangnan were designed by him.

Those who build architecture are essentially half Daoist Priests; their feng shui skills are impeccable, and Pan Yun got along especially well with him.

His senior disciple was Kuai Xiang, currently a Director of the Ministry of Works, who had helped design and construct the Chengtian Gate—later known as Tiananmen—and the Three Great Palaces of the Forbidden City.

They both studied under Cai Sicheng of Changshu.

Had she not been short on silver, she would have gladly spent more time with this new friend—but now she was short on silver.

Her credibility was teetering; she absolutely would not allow her boasts to collapse so quickly, so she refused: "I have matters to attend to. When I return, Master Sun, you may invite me again."

Sun Yuanzhen: "State Tutor, your affairs are weighty. Once you leave, who knows when you'll return? Please grant this official the chance to host you."

Pan Yun looked torn, then frowned: "Then just pay me the value of this meal as silver—I'll count it as if I ate it."

Sun Yuanzhen paused, then recalled rumors from Jingcheng; he burst into laughter, waved to his secretary, and called out cheerfully: "State Tutor has traveled tirelessly for Zhejiang, and especially exhausted herself selecting Haigang—truly hard work!"

The secretary brought forward a tray.

Sun Yuanzhen lifted one corner slightly—inside were golden bars, gleaming yellow.

He pushed them toward Pan Yun and smiled: "A small token of appreciation—please accept it, State Tutor."

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow and took them without hesitation.

Seeing her accept, Sun Yuanzhen sighed in relief and no longer insisted she stay for dinner; he personally escorted her to the gate.

Pan Yun turned and flew to Hangzhou, handing the tray of gold to the Hangzhou Tool Workshop staff: "Send two-thirds of this to the Ministry of Works in Nanjing. Tell them: for inventions simple enough to verify immediately, pay them on the spot."

Everyone at the Hangzhou Tool Workshop were Daoist Priests—all graduates of the Long Hushan Academy.

Seeing Pan Yun hand over so much gold without blinking, they gasped: "State Tutor, you're so rich."

Daoist Priests, when indirect, are truly indirect; when blunt, they are truly blunt—they asked outright: "State Tutor, may we know your method of earning silver? We too are desperate to escape poverty."

Pan Yun replied calmly: "Go abroad and mine unclaimed gold and silver mines."

Everyone: …

Pan Yun looked at them encouragingly: "There are many opportunities overseas. Senior brothers and sisters, work hard. Once you break through the First Marquis realm and gain the ability to fly with objects, even if you find no unclaimed gold or silver mines, you can still legally earn vast sums."

One senior brother mused: "What if it's not legal?"

Pan Yun: "I hear the Daoist Registry is tightening control over all monks and Daoists. Because of me, many Daoists have recently taken to the world, and with them, many monks and nuns have left their seclusion—even recluses. To prevent these people from fighting and harming the people, or swindling them for wealth, the Daoist Registry is consulting with the Celestial Master's Office, the Monk Registry, and the State Protection Temple on stronger regulations."

Pan Yun showed her teeth: "You go ahead. If this falls on my lap, I won't hold back."

The other shuddered and declared solemnly: "I am an outstanding graduate of the Long Hushan Academy—how could I sacrifice great righteousness for petty gain? State Tutor, rest assured: not only will I not do such a thing, I will watch over my junior brothers and sisters and never allow anyone near me to do so."

Pan Yun nodded in satisfaction, patted his shoulder, and encouraged: "I knew I didn't misjudge you, Senior Brother. I leave this to you—every submitted item must be strictly reviewed; not one overlooked, but no reward given lightly."

Li Xiangdao said solemnly: "I understand—State Tutor's silver isn't blown in by the wind."

Pan Yun's money really wasn't blown in by a strong wind — it was blown back by a typhoon.

The Directorate of Astronomy predicted that starting from the twenty-first of the sixth month, a typhoon might make landfall in the Zhejiang and Southern Zhili region.

Pan Yun observed the heavens at night, calculated for a long while, then circled two places — one of which was Ningbo.

Because Jiangnan had already suffered a strong wind last year, Sun Yuanzhen, upon receiving the news this year, began preparations early.

And the reason Pan Yun was in such a hurry to go out was also because today was already the fifth of the sixth month, and there was still no news of the silver-transport ship from the Wa country.

She decided to go over and see for herself.

Pan Yun set out that very evening and arrived at Onsen Jintinggang by the afternoon of the sixth day of the sixth month.

She leaned over the rim of the pot and looked down, and saw the port bustling with activity, everyone busy moving cargo.

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow slightly.

Pan Xiao Hei said: "You really timed it well — you've caught them just as they're about to set off."

Pan Yun swept her gaze over the ships moored inside and outside Haigang, thoughtful: "Why are so many ships gathered here?"

Onsen Jintinggang is only a small port; by rights it shouldn't have so many sea vessels.

Pan Yun flew over, found a concealed spot to land, changed into a different set of clothes, put on a veiled hat, strapped her sword to her back, and only then walked out.

This getup is the most common attire of Great Ming's jianghu heroines in the Wa country — veiled hat, narrow sleeves, neat and pretty, sword held in hand or on the back — and the rōnin of the Wa country would give them a wide berth the moment they saw it.

Because of this, lately the women of the Wa country have also begun imitating the dress of Ming dynasty heroines, with Tang style shifting toward Ming style.

They've even started imitating the way of walking; as long as one walks well, no one can tell whether they are Wa or Han women, and the rōnin will keep their distance — not a bad way to protect oneself.

The moment Pan Yun walked into the town, the vendors and shopkeepers on both sides warmly beckoned to her, passersby smiled at her as well — everyone looked friendly.

Pan Yun could also tell that their friendliness came from the heart, because the smiles on their faces were genuine.

She walked straight to the edge of the port, swept her gaze once, and quickly found the person she was looking for.

Miao He sat on a stool with a small, stern face, clicking away on an abacus; beside her stood a Wa man in a short shirt and shorts, bowing and speaking in the Wa language: "We can finish moving everything on time."

Miao He replied unhappily in the Wa language: "That's exactly what you said yesterday, and because of your delay, we couldn't set sail on time today."

The Wa man bowed and apologized: "Yesterday a lot of ships suddenly arrived, there weren't enough hands, I'm very sorry, so I called in a lot more people overnight — you see, they're all working hard today, please continue to use them, otherwise they'll have come for nothing."

Miao He was a little angry, but her gaze swept over the people standing behind him — all in short shirts and shorts, some without even a short shirt, only shorts, barefoot, their feet still caked with mud — they must have rushed over from the villages overnight.

She was soft-hearted after all; she snorted, but still nodded and let them go move the cargo.

Pan Yun let out a laugh.

Miao He heard that familiar laugh, jerked her head up, and saw a figure standing gracefully outside the thatched shed — even though the veiled hat hid her face, she still leapt up at once, face alight with excitement.

Pan Yun raised a finger to her lips with a shush; Miao He suppressed her excitement and asked with a prim little face: "Who are you, and what business brings you here?"

Pan Yun smiled: "Passing through your precious town, begging for a bowl of water."

Miao He immediately ordered someone to pour water.

Subordinate: ……There's clearly water on the table.

Still, he picked up the teapot and went down, then came back up with another pot of boiled water.

Miao He pulled her down to sit beside her, glanced around, and asked in a low voice: "Little Martial Aunt, where's Pan Xiaohei?"

"Everyone in the Wa country knows a black cat follows at my side, so I told it to hide."

Miao He was puzzled: "Why hide your identity?"

Pan Yun: "I'm now the National Preceptor, and with an official identity, it's not convenient to come and go in the Wa country so casually. By the way, where are Wang Cong and the others?"

Miao He: "Senior Martial Brother and the others went off to fight."

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow: "Fight?"

"Yes, the Ōuchi clan is trying to seize another Haigang, and the fighting started the day before yesterday. Senior Martial Brother took people over to provide support."

Pan Yun murmured: "No wonder there are so many sea vessels here."

"Yes, they all came over from that side, and there are several Joseon sea vessels too," Miao He said. "You have no idea — the Masuda family is overjoyed, they almost wish the fighting would never end."

Pan Yun asked with a smile: "With the war raging in the Wa country before, how was it here?"

"There were a few groups that attacked Ōmori Township, but the Masuda family didn't take part. Although they didn't send any men, they sold us a lot of information. Commander Tao said the man has a good sense of his own limits — even though he suspects there really is a silver mine in Ōmori Township, he's certain our Great Ming will win."

"Since Great Ming will win, he can't possibly snatch the silver mountain from us — better to focus on developing the port and maritime trade."

Pan Yun smiled and nodded: "Commander Tao is right. Masuda Nobuta has always been a clever man, very pragmatic."

She liked working with pragmatic people.

Pan Yun finished the tea that had gone cold and asked: "Has the fighting ended now?"

Miao He shook her head: "I don't know, no news has come back, but I think it should be over by now — Senior Martial Brother gathered a lot of Wu Lin knights to go over."