Inside the Palace of Heavenly Purity.
After listening to Chongzhen's speculation, Song Yingxing felt like a talented horse meeting a good master.
Why did he refuse to take office after being summoned many times?
Before resigning from office, Song Yingxing served as the magistrate of Bozhou, holding the fifth rank.
In theory, a fifth-rank official position is not low.
but...
This is the Ming Dynasty!
The fifth-rank prefect in the Ming Dynasty was also called the pseudo fifth-rank prefect.
He did the work of a fifth-rank official and shouldered the responsibilities of a fifth-rank official, but his salary was the same as that of a seventh-rank county magistrate, which was ten dan per month (except in Zhili prefectures).
To put it nicely, it is the fifth rank, to put it bluntly, it is worse than the seventh rank.
After all, the expenses of a seventh-rank official are much lower than those of a fifth-rank official...
In addition, Song Yingxing was an honest official who was unwilling to engage in corruption, so his official career was very poor.
A seventh-rank official has the expenses of a fifth-rank official, and he is already sixty years old.
All these complicated factors combined made him see no hope.
What if I get reinstated?
Can I be promoted from a fifth-rank prefect to a fourth-rank prefect?
Obviously not!
The fourth-rank civil officials of the Ming Dynasty included the Censor-in-Chief, the Junior Secretary of the Imperial Household, and the Secretary of the Ministry of Rites.
These official positions have one thing in common: Beijing officials!
The capital was the center of power, and all officials were trying their best to get in.
Firstly, he had no money to build relationships, and secondly, he had no connections. It was simply a fantasy for him to be promoted from a pseudo fifth-rank local official to a fourth-rank Beijing official!
With no hope of promotion and low salary, one can imagine Song Yingxing's mentality.
So when Chongzhen said the four words "no hope", he felt like he had met a close friend.
"Your Majesty, I, a humble commoner..." Song Yingxing was so excited that he was speechless.
Chongzhen smiled slightly and said, "You don't have to say anything."
Song Yingxing realized his mistake later and stood up from the stool to salute Chongzhen.
After the ceremony, Song Yingxing asked in a pragmatic manner: "Your Majesty said in the letter that the book "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" written by me has many mistakes and deceived many people. Please explain it to your Majesty."
Looking at Song Yingxing's serious expression, Chongzhen knew that he had to give him some strength, otherwise he would not be able to convince him.
"Listen carefully," Chongzhen paused, "The first mistake is in the first volume of the first part of The Exploitation of the Works of Nature, Naili. It records that wheat in the north is sown in autumn and harvested in early summer of the following year. In the south, the time difference between sowing and harvesting is shorter. Wheat flowers in the south bloom at night, while wheat flowers in the north bloom during the day, which is also a difference."
"May I ask what Your Majesty has done wrong?" Song Yingxing looked dissatisfied.
"Whether it's wheat from the south or north of the Yangtze River, according to the report from officials at the Beijing Research Institute, wheat usually blooms in the morning, and rarely blooms in the afternoon, early morning, or at night."
"Also," Chongzhen paused again, giving Song Yingxing time to react, "In the second chapter of The Exploitation of the Works of Nature, titled "Hardware," it says that wherever there is an iron field... after it is cultivated, the land will grow day by day, and its use will be endless."
What Song Yingxing meant was that after the iron ore is mined, as long as the land is recultivated, new iron ore will appear in the land, and it will be inexhaustible.
This is obviously a very illogical mistake.
Chongzhen continued, "I ordered people to recultivate the iron field according to your method, but no new iron ore grew in the land, so this statement is also wrong."
Song Yingxing's forehead began to sweat.
The Ming emperor before him did not use power to deny him, but refuted him with the conclusions drawn from practice.
It is well-reasoned and convincing.
"May I ask if Your Majesty has made any other mistakes?" Song Yingxing asked with his head down.
Chongzhen coughed lightly and said, "Yes, for example, a corpse rots with a fine pearl in its mouth; jade reflects the moon, and life is born with brilliant light. These are all wrong."
Song Yingxing began to sweat on his back.
He did not expect that the Ming Emperor in front of him was so familiar with his books.
"I will modify it immediately!"
"No hurry. You don't think I asked you to revise the book, do you?" Chongzhen stared at Song Yingxing's old face with calm eyes.
Song Yingxing replied excitedly: "Your Majesty, please make it clear!"
What Chongzhen meant was that he wanted to make use of him.
Since he is being promoted, it must be higher than the previous pseudo fifth-rank official position.
What grade will it be?
Chongzhen stood up and walked in front of Song Yingxing.
Song Yingxing didn't dare to sit there any longer, so he stood up and lowered his head, waiting for his new mission.
"You know the Manufacturing Bureau and the Research Institute, right?" Chongzhen suddenly asked.
"As I know, the Manufacturing Bureau and the Research Institute are subordinate to the Ministry of Industry. These two offices have gathered skilled craftsmen and talents from all walks of life. They can be said to be the country's powerful tools."
"Then do you know who are the officials in charge of these two yamen?"
"I don't know..." Song Yingxing replied in a low voice.
After he resigned, he no longer paid attention to the affairs of the court, and he didn't care who was in charge of the new government office.
"It has always been vacant!" Chongzhen kept his eyes fixed on Song Yingxing while speaking: "Do you know why it is vacant? Because there is no suitable official."
"It is not easy to be a good executive of the Manufacturing Bureau and the Research Institute. First of all, he must be knowledgeable, otherwise he will be deceived by the people below him."
"Secondly, he must have authority, otherwise he won't be able to convince the public."
"Looking at the entire Ming Dynasty, you are the only one who is both knowledgeable and authoritative."
Song Yingxing burst into tears.
After sixty years of life, he finally got recognition from others.
What is commendable is that the person who recognized him was the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty!
"Common people..." Song Yingxing wiped his tears and was about to kneel down.
Chongzhen reached out his hand and helped him up: "From this moment on, you are no longer a commoner, but the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Industry, in charge of the Manufacturing Bureau and the Research Institute!"
"I bow to thank Your Majesty, long live the emperor..." Song Yingxing broke free from Chongzhen's support, knelt on the ground and kowtowed heavily.
Chongzhen waited for him to kowtow before getting down to business.
"Minister Song, the Manufacturing Bureau and the Research Institute have two things to do next."
"Your Majesty, please speak. I am all ears."
Chongzhen said with a serious face: "Popularize the contents of the first volume of The Exploitation of the Works of Nature to the people, promote and teach the contents of the second volume to the craftsmen, and complete the contents of the third volume in detail and keep it confidential."
The first volume of "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" mainly records the cultivation and primary processing of crops, as well as the textile dyeing of silkworms and cotton.
The purpose of popularizing the upper volume among the people was to increase crop production.
The middle volume of "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" records the firing of bricks and tiles, ceramics, the making of wooden carts and ships, iron casting, mining, oil pressing, papermaking, etc.
The purpose of promoting and teaching craftsmen is to increase their efficiency.
The content of the second volume of "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature" mainly involves mining, smelting, weapons manufacturing, pigment making, and koji making.
Although this part is extensive, it is not detailed.
Later generations are unable to apply what they have learned.
In addition, it contained court secrets such as weapons manufacturing, so Chongzhen asked Song Yingxing to complete the content in this regard and keep it confidential.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
