【Chapter 291】Barrel with Zhu Hengzhi

(0291)

Zhu Guozhen was busy with all kinds of things and was persistent in the Ministry of Rites. Historical records often turned out to be so tired that he vomited blood. It is estimated that the main force who received Sawanna was Sun Juxiang. In fact, Sun Juxiang's real official position was Shaoqing, but the Guanglu Temple Minister had been absent for a total of twenty years, and Shaoqing became a noble. In the late Wanli period, such things emerged one after another. It was really common for the Minister of the Secretariat to be a minister and Shaoqing to be a noble job. He took a very small wage and did a lot of things. Emperor Wanli felt that this reduced the expenses!

In fact, according to the rules, Sun Juxiang did not care about this matter. Guanglu Temple was responsible for the state banquet, and the Honglu Temple Minister was responsible for receiving foreign guests. However, there was no one in the Honglu Temple Minister. Even the two young ministers were vacant. They had been vacant for many years and had not been replenished. There was no way, so they had to let the Guanglu Temple Minister take the lead. Who said Guanglu Temple and Honglu Temple were ***? These were the serious consequences of Emperor Wanli's negligence.

After reading Sa Wanna's letter, Xu Xingxia couldn't help feeling a little disappointed and asked with some anticipation: "There are no other letters from the capital?"

Wang Qinian shook his head and said, "No more, this one."

It is impossible to say that Xu Xingxia is not disappointed at all. Of course, what he expected was not Sa Wanna's letter, but another person's. However, this disappointment did not last long in Xu Xingxia's heart. As if he had been hurt by some vague damage, Xu Xingxia's heart seemed to be stirred up.

Why do real men have no wives? When I become awesome in the future, I will specifically capture the beauties in the world as their wives. What princesses, queens, princesses, and queens, as long as they like, they will be captured. If I am not satisfied, I will issue a talent show order to have a global beauty election...

Wang Qinian's voice suddenly came: "By the way, Xu Qianhu, how is the matter with that woodworking drawing? You haven't replied to me yet!"

Xu Xingxia then remembered that Zhu Hengzhi's letter to her was not specifically greeting him. He could read other meanings from her letters, which was completely his own imagination. As for whether Miss Ah Zhu herself had such an idea, it is unknown. Her literal meaning was just asking for a challenging carpentry drawing for her younger brother.

Zhu Hengzhi's younger brother... Well, let's call him Zhu Youxiao for the time being... If you guessed correctly, he should be Zhu Youxiao... I guess he was spoiled by Zhu Hengzhi. Zhu Changluo's life was always very tragic and he was in danger. As a father, he couldn't protect himself, so he naturally had no mind and energy to take care of his children. Under the shadow of Concubine Zheng, it would be good that he could protect himself.

It is estimated that Zhu Changluo's children's growth was like a sheep. He couldn't control what they were willing to learn, what they wanted to learn, and what they learned in the end. His children had no special teachers before. Otherwise, how could Zhu Youxiao fall in love with the tricks of carpenters? As long as there was a little sign, he would have been strangled by the teachers. As for Zhu Hengzhi himself, being able to follow Tang Chenniu's nose was fundamentally due to the environment. If someone else had been able to enter and exit Ciqing Palace freely? I didn't even think about it!

The problem of carpentry drawings, Liu Guangliang's road has been cut off, and it is not feasible to get the drawings from other people in the craftsman's workshop. What Zhu Youxiao needs is challenging drawings, and ordinary carpentry drawings cannot be submitted at all. What Xu Xingxia wants to cheat is to make a decision from the four hundred years of knowledge in later generations.

Xu Xingxia had a drawing in his hand. This was drawn by him during this period. He was not good at drawing and did not know how to brush, so he could only use an original quill. It was quite difficult to draw such a simple schematic. This drawing is Jenny spinning machine. Well, in a sense, Jenny spinning machine is not a pure woodworking drawing. It is a machine drawing. However, Xu Xingxia thinks that if you hand over this drawing, Zhu Youxiao will definitely be interested.

If you have the drawings, it will probably arouse Zhu Youxiao's interest. It should not be difficult to submit the drawings. However, if you hand over this drawing, Xu Xingxia's losses will be great. This is the fundamental reason why he has not responded for a long time. He can't sell his own interests in order to please Zhu Hengzhi! Things that are not good cannot be done, this is a basic principle. Although Zhu Hengzhi is indeed very attractive.

At that time, the textile industry mainly used the foot-pedal weaving machine invented by Huang Daopa. As for spinning, it was still primitive handmade. Spinning and weaving were two different concepts. However, the relationship between the two was still very close. The main function of the spinning machine was to process cotton thread. Cotton had to be processed into cotton yarn to be used for weaving. At that time, the spinning efficiency was very low, the yield of cotton thread was very low, and the cost was relatively high, so it was difficult to promote on a large scale. Without cheap and good-quality cotton thread, there would naturally be no sufficient quantity of cheap and good-quality cotton cloth.

The textile industry in the southeast half of the Ming Dynasty was very developed, and there was always a saying that "there are endless Songjiang cloths and the Weitang yarns that cannot be collected". However, most of the cloths here are linen, and only a small part are cotton cloth. The main fabric worn by the Ming people at that time was also linen. It seems that the various military uniforms of the White Clothing Army are made of linen.

Line cloth and cotton have their own advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of linen are low cost, toughness and durability, and the color and style are pretty good, sweat-absorbing and breathable. The disadvantage is that it is too hard and uncomfortable to wear. Why are wealthy families at that time all favored silk and satin? This is why silk and satin are much more comfortable to wear. In addition, the warmth performance of linen is also relatively poor, and it is more uncomfortable to wear in winter. Even if you wear multiple layers, it doesn’t feel too warm.

Cotton cloth makes up for the shortcomings of linen to a large extent. The softness of cotton cloth is very good, not much different from silk and satin. The warmth performance of cotton cloth is also much better. In winter, wearing clothes made of cotton cloth is much warmer than linen. From over-linen to cotton cloth is a major progress in society and an inevitable result of historical development. If there is no deviation in history, probably after the completion of the British Industrial Revolution, cotton cloth will gradually be promoted to the whole world, eventually replacing linen and becoming the main fabric for ordinary people.

Unfortunately, at that time, due to the low spinning efficiency, the low yield and high cost of cotton cloth were not popularized. If Jenny spinning machine appeared, it would undoubtedly greatly reduce the cost of cotton cloth and increase the output of cotton cloth, which would be a great progress for the entire textile industry at that time. It would be a bit unwilling to throw such a technology out of nothing! In the eyes of people who know the goods, this technology is worth at least hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.

After thinking for a while, Xu Xingxia said slowly: "I do have a few good woodworking drawings here. People with strong woodworking talents must be made."

Wang Qinian said: "Don't worry. You don't need to worry about that person's carpentry talent. As long as your drawings can be made, he can definitely do it."

Of course, Xu Xingxia would not doubt Zhu Youxiao's talent in carpentry. All he cares about is whether his interests have been infringed. He said seriously: "My drawings cannot be given in vain."

Wang Qinian looked at him sideways and said disapprovingly: "What conditions do you want?"

Xu Xingxia said word by word: "I need Miss Azhu to ensure that the drawings cannot be sold after they are made. She must keep the secret. She must also make sure that her younger brother can keep the secret. I want her to send the real thing back to me in a complete manner."

According to his estimate, Emperor Tianqi's love of carpentry was a purely natural hobby, and he should not be interested in using Jenny spinning machine to seek benefits. He is the prince of the prince. In the future, the emperor cannot compete with the people for profit, right? He probably is not short of money. As long as he tinkers with the real thing, Xu Xingxia would use his hand to complete the transformation from drawings to substantial tools. This is very important.

It should be noted that Xu Xingxia did not have a deep understanding of Jenny spinning machine. If he converted his understanding to the drawings, there would definitely be a deviation in the middle. If he changed to ordinary craftsmen, he might not be able to figure it out. Only Zhu Youxiao had such conditions. Even if he couldn't figure it out himself, the master craftsmen around him could help figure it out. As long as Zhu Hengzhi agreed and sent it back to herself after the actual thing was made, it would be fine. Strictly speaking, he still completed a great project with the hands of the future emperor.

If Zhu Hengzhi can't do this and accidentally leaks the secret, there is nothing she can do. She just owe her a huge favor. As for how to repay this favor in the future, she has to consider it carefully... You can't easily say sorry for such a valuable thing, just try to get away with it, right?

As long as you receive the physical goods, you will immediately convene major merchants in Jiangnan to auction at a high price, and then make a lot of money first. If this is not possible, you can only find a trustworthy merchant and promote Jenny spinning machines to produce cotton cloth. With its scale and cost advantages, it will defeat other textile merchants and eventually form a monopoly market.

The textile industry in the Ming Dynasty was mainly concentrated in the southeastern half, especially in Suzhou. It is said that there were tens of thousands of looms in Suzhou alone. Xu Xingxia didn’t know whether the famous Suzhou Weaving Bureau was established. If it had been established, the emergence of Jenny spinning machines and hydro-looms would inevitably lead to cotton cloths entering thousands of households.

... Speaking of which, the popularity of cotton cloth is indeed a great thing! With the advent of the Little Ice Age, the drought is becoming more and more serious. Many areas in Shaanxi, Gansu, and Shanxi cannot grow rice and wheat. However, in most of the above areas, it is still OK to grow cotton. Hami, *** and other places can also plant large amounts of cotton, temporarily replacing grain crops with cash crops. This can also effectively reduce your burden.

"It is imperative to promote cotton planting!" Xu Xingxia made up her mind secretly.

After making up his mind, Xu Xingxia bargained with Wang Qinian. Before Zhu Hengzhi promised to keep it a secret, he would never hand over the drawings. In fact, this is also a mysterious skill. If you give it out at once, maybe Zhu Youxiao would not cherish it. Zhuge Liang also knows how to sell it with high prices, so how could he not understand it? Even if you are the emperor in the future, for the time being, you have to listen to me. You have to satisfy me so that the drawings can be given to you!

"This..." Wang Qinian was very embarrassed, and at the same time he couldn't figure it out. Xu Xingxia knew what Miss Azhu's identity was, and even knew what Miss Azhu's younger brother was, she still dared to make such a request. If it were someone else, it would be too late to finish it, so how could he dare to bargain? He was just a small thousand-household household, and before the word "Dai" was erased, he dared to bargain with the Tian family. This guy really cannot be measured by common sense.

As a hundred households of the Jinyiwei, and have been undercover in the prairie for twenty years, Wang Qinian is certainly not a fool. His ability to observe words and expressions has long been perfect. He can be 99% sure that Xu Xingxia is definitely interested in Zhu Hengzhi. If he is not careful, he will be self-indulgent. He will know that he always asks letters from the capital. However, it is such a guy who can't suffer any loss at all when facing Zhu Hengzhi's request. With Wang Qinian's experience, it's really unimaginable what Xu Xingxia is trying to make.

In fact, Wang Qinian was completely out of his mind. Xu Xingxia had no idea at all. He just used the thinking of later generations to look at the relationship between him and Zhu Hengzhi. Yes, he did have a little meaning to Zhu Hengzhi. This cannot be denied. However, it is one thing to be interesting, and bargaining is another thing. He can't just obey Zhu Hengzhi and try to please her in every way, right? By the way, he is really not such a person. When in love, both parties have equal status and no one owe anyone.

If Zhu Hengzhi felt that she had to obey her and please her in every way, otherwise she would retaliate against herself and look at people in the cracks of the door. Such a woman would have given up her mind earlier. It was not worth it! She could not give up her principles for her face or her identity. I have not yet reached the point of being kneeling to a woman!

Xu Xingxia said slowly: "Old Wang, don't worry, you are just passing the message for me, and you don't have your responsibility. I will naturally take it down if there is any big thing."

Wang Qinian thought to himself that too. What's the matter? Miss Azhu is targeting you, not me, what's the matter with me? I'm just a messenger, and I'll pass on whatever you say. It's best to make the Tian family angry and deal with you severely. Even he felt that Xu Xingxia has indeed been a bit too arrogant recently and needs to be cleaned up.

"Okay!" Wang Qinian thought for a while and agreed.
Chapter completed!