When Zhu Zhongliang heard Zhu Jingyuan admit it directly, he just wanted to create a spectacle, and his eyes widened instinctively.
Zhu Zhongliang almost stood up.
But this rather exciting reaction was not completed, so he returned to his normal sitting position and asked with interest:
“So far, the maximum height of the Forbidden City of the Ming Dynasty is the upper limit of the height of civil buildings.
“If you build the main hall to a height of 200 meters, are you going to allow private citizens to build buildings that are slightly lower but still nearly 200 meters high?
"If this kind of building appears in the city, land prices and house prices in the core area will skyrocket...
"This is contrary to the views of our ancestors and your own daily life."
There is a correlation between the height of city buildings and land prices.
Limiting the height and number of floors of buildings also limits the maximum volume of commercial buildings on the same land area.
The maximum capacity is limited, the number of clerks it can accommodate is limited, and the number of businesses it can accommodate is also limited.
This limits the profit ceiling for commercial buildings on the same area of land.
Profit caps will in turn limit land prices and above-ground house prices.
The Fengtian Hall in the Forbidden City of Shuntian Prefecture should have been about fifty meters high when it was first built in Yongle.
However, after the reconstruction in the Jiajing year, the height was only 35 meters.
Therefore, the highest civilian buildings in the Ming Dynasty were more than thirty meters tall, and the highest could only reach ten floors. In fact, they usually only had eight floors.
Most ordinary private buildings do not exceed six floors.
If Zhu Jingyuan directly raised the new palace to 200 meters without imposing any clear restrictions, the public would probably follow suit and build tall buildings of nearly 200 meters.
After the emergence of such 50-60-story commercial buildings, the prices of these buildings and surrounding land and housing prices will skyrocket.
Without targeted controls, land and housing prices in the city center may skyrocket dozens of times.
So Zhu Zhongliang would ask this question.
After hearing this, Zhu Jingyuan said directly:
“Private buildings must have height restrictions.
“And the unspoken rule of using Fengtian Temple as the upper limit must be turned into a clearly marked normal management rule.
“The height of the ceremonial main hall, which symbolizes the authority of the imperial court, cannot be used as the upper limit of the height of private buildings.
“Instead, the height of the central court’s new office building should be used as the upper limit for private commercial buildings.
“If the height of the highest point of the main hall of the imperial court is 160 meters, then the height of the central imperial office building will be set at 80 meters.
“At the same time, it is stipulated that the height of any form of private building, including religious buildings, shall not exceed 80 meters.
“We need to double the absolute gap so that the imperial palace will stand out visually.
“At the same time, the height limit must also be graded. Only the urban areas of the north and south of Beijing can build 80-meter residential buildings, and special approval is required.
“The height limit for buildings in provincial capitals is sixty meters, the height limit for buildings in prefectural towns is forty meters, and the height limit for buildings in county towns is thirty meters.
“The highest building below the county seat is 25 meters, and it must not exceed six floors.
“You don’t need to pay too much attention to the height of the palace where the royal family lives. If it is too high, it will be uncomfortable to live in.
“However, we can encircle Laoshan in Jiangbei into the palace wall and build a small royal palace on the top of the mountain.
“It is only used as a symbol of status, and there is no need to consider the actual living effect too much.”
After hearing these plans, Zhu Zhongliang finally nodded slowly:
“This plan is okay. Slightly relaxing the height of private buildings in some big cities can promote urban development.
“But you can’t just open up to the cap right from the start.
“Lower limits should be set first, with higher heights gradually opening up as the city grows.
“Let the economic development of local urban areas maintain a relatively smooth trend.
“Also, the height of one hundred and sixty meters is a bit conservative.
"I heard that the Lucians have already built a 160-meter-tall building, and they may build a 200-meter-tall one in the future.
"So, if you want to build a symbolic building, the height should start at least two hundred meters."
Zhu Jingyuan was a little surprised when he heard that. You were surprised just now that I wanted to do a spectacle, but now you feel that my goal is not high enough...
Zhu Jingyuan knew that after the construction technology matured, the height of skyscrapers could be updated very quickly.
The Empire State Building of the United States has maintained its No. 1 ranking in the world for forty years.
There was also the impact of the world war.
After the new hall is built, it cannot be demolished and rebuilt at will. Sooner or later, it will be surpassed by others.
Two hundred meters is considered high now, but in the future it may not be considered high. Things of four hundred meters or even six hundred meters will continue to be built.
Unless there are no foreigners in the world, everyone will follow Ming's order and not build taller buildings.
At the same time, those who set new heights for skyscrapers are basically office buildings.
This is different from the goal of preparing it as a ceremonial building.
Their buildings can make money, but not only do their own halls not make money, they also cost a lot of money to maintain.
It's like a church.
There is a Sagrada Familia church in Spain. It took more than a hundred years to complete from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st century.
When Zhu Jingyuan didn't know how to express his feelings, Zhu Zhongliang reached out and added a few words:
"In the past, if you wanted to build a taller building, it would have been a big deal.
“But now the public opinion...mostly supports and even expects it.
"It's because the height of the main hall of the imperial court is the upper limit of the height of private buildings. There is such an unspoken rule.
"If you only plan a new hall of two hundred meters, and don't mention limiting the height of private buildings at the same time, then most of the businessmen and nobles who have ideas in the private sector will be happy to hear that.
“Moreover, the impact of this incident itself will certainly offset or cover up the impact of other reforms.
“We can introduce private building height restrictions at the same time as the new hall is completed.
“Based on public opinion among the people and reaction from bureaucrats, the predetermined height limit for private buildings will be gradually relaxed.
"As long as you don't be impatient and don't force yourself, you should be able to do it normally.
"As for the matter of returning to Yingtian Mansion, you can go to Yingtian Mansion in the name of the southern tour, but you won't go back after you arrive.
“The follow-up is to slowly transfer the actual administrative center.
“There’s definitely going to be some tug and pull, but nothing that can’t be worked out.
"So your father and I won't care about it. You can do it by yourself when the time comes. It's also a good exercise.
"If we really can't handle it then, it won't be too late to ask your father for help..."
Zhu Jingyuan listened to Zhu Zhongliang's analysis, and after thinking about it for a while, he felt it made sense:
"Grandpa is still experienced..."
As soon as Zhu Jingyuan finished speaking, Zhu Zhongliang spoke again:
"By the way, there is also the matter of academic qualifications.
"From the Chongzhen Dynasty to the Renwu Dynasty, our Ming Dynasty has already practiced a calendar.
"Shizu continued to refine the Chongzhen Almanac on the basis of the Chongzhen Almanac written by Master Wei Miao.
“The key is to establish rules for regular calendar revision, adjustment and elimination of errors.
“So far, although some errors have accumulated, they are being continuously corrected as planned.
"Unless the calendar you envision... is too subversive of tradition, there is no need to specifically mention the calendar.
"According to my understanding of you kid, your calendar cannot be tinkering with the traditional form.
"So how are you going to fix it?"
Zhu Jingyuan nodded directly and said:
“My thoughts… may indeed be slightly subversive.
“Our current calendar is actually a lunisolar calendar, and we must take into account the accuracy of both the lunar calendar and the solar calendar.
“This is just like our Forbidden City, which is both the home of the royal family and the symbol of the imperial court.
“The result of taking care of both sides is that neither side does well.
“Although the current almanac is very accurate, it is still quite complicated to use on a daily basis.
"Not being a professional scholar, let alone how many years have passed since the Qin and Han dynasties, they can't even say how many years have passed since Emperor Taizu Gao ascended the throne.
“It’s difficult for ordinary people to figure out when there is a leap month and when there is an adjustment month.
“The times of the twenty-four solar terms also move back and forth on the calendar, rather than being fixed on certain days.
"If the common people want to know about festivals and solar terms, they can only check the imperial calendar.
“In classical times this could enhance the authority of the court, but it is no longer needed.
“My idea is to separate the lunisolar calendar and use the solar calendar and the lunar calendar at the same time, but calculate and proofread them separately.
“Since the solar calendar is a solar calendar, the year is the core of the calendar.
"At the same time, the month is no longer used as the next-level calculation node. Anyway, the month of the solar calendar does not match the moon phase at all.
"We directly divide the 365 days of the solar calendar into thirty-six 'decades'.
“One tenth day has ten days, and ninety days is ninety days, which is basically a quarter.
"So every ninety-year period was set aside as a mandatory seasonal holiday for the imperial court.
“This public holiday can be placed on four days close to the beginning of spring, the beginning of summer, the beginning of autumn, and the beginning of winter to distinguish the four seasons.
“This day is simply called Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, all listed separately.
“The solar calendar begins with the day of spring.
“In these four days, we do not use precise astronomical alignment of the four solar terms, because they cannot be completely fixed.
"Instead, it is placed on the closest fixed day, so that it coincides with the four solar terms of Beginning of Spring, Beginning of Summer, Beginning of Autumn, and Beginning of Winter in most years. The rest are only staggered by one or two days, except for the special astronomy and calendar related Except for researchers, these four days can generally be regarded as fixed events of the four solar terms, which is convenient for ordinary people to use in daily calculations.
"We can regard these four days as one ten-day period and insert the serial number into the thirty-six ten-day period.
"The position in the imperial calendar can also occupy a separate space of ten days.
“For example, the day of spring is the first day of the tenth day, then the first day and the second day of the second tenth day, until the tenth day of the tenth day.
"Then summer is the eleventh day, autumn is the twenty-first day, winter is the thirty-first day, and they are arranged in order.
"On New Year's Eve before the Chinese New Year, if we list a single day, this day is called New Year's Eve, and it can be marked as the 41st day on the imperial calendar.
"In this way, the three hundred and sixty days of thirty-six ten days, plus four seasonal days and one New Year's Eve, are exactly three hundred and sixty-five days.
“There’s a day between every two seasons and an extra day between every two years.
“Then a leap year is set up every four years, with an extra day between two leap years, and a leap year has 366 days in the whole year.
"Every one hundred and twenty-eight years, this year that was supposed to be a leap year will not be a leap year.
"Every 86,400 years, this non-leap year will leap again.
“This leap year plan is configured based on the latest observation and accounting results of Qintianjian.
“Compared with the Western calendar’s plan of leap years every four years, no leap years, and leaps every four hundred years, it is more accurate and simpler.
"The error of eighty-six thousand four hundred years is equivalent to their error of four hundred years.
"In such a long time of 80,000 years, we can simply ignore events that are one day apart.
“Then, all year, ten-day and day serial numbers will no longer use the cycle of heavenly stems and earthly branches.
“It is marked directly with specific numbers to facilitate ordinary people’s explanation and calculation.
"The chronology can start from the year when Emperor Qin conquered Liuhe and unified the world again.
"This date is the most important historical event in the history of China, and it is also accurate to the day.
“Use this year as the first year of the imperial calendar, or the first year of the Gregorian calendar, or the first year of the Christian era.
"The years before this year are called the number of years before the emperor, or the number of years BC, similar to the division method of the Western calendar.
"It's just that the first year of our Imperial Calendar and the first year of the AD can really be accurate to the year and day.
"The birthday of Jesus in the Western calendar is actually far-fetched...
"Converting this, this year is the year 2036 in the Emperor's Calendar, or 2036 in the Gregorian Calendar.
“At the same time, the history teaching method was revised based on the Gregorian calendar, and major historical events were marked with numerical numbers in the Gregorian calendar.
“It is convenient for students to intuitively understand the length of certain eras and feel the number of years between certain two events.
"From now on, the official business of the imperial court and the production date of products in factories will be marked on such and such a day in such and such a year.
“As for the lunar calendar, the month is the core of the calendar.
"Usually, we use a plan of a thirty-day big month followed by a twenty-nine-day small month, and keep rolling forward in a cycle.
“Regularly increase the month to make up for the error.
“For example, every sixty-four months a big month is added, and every three thousand and seventy-two months the big month is not added again.
"If this cycle continues, the next additional correction should be 180,000 months later, and it can also be ignored.
"The specific ratio that can be as stable and fixed as possible is left to Qin Tianjian to calculate and determine.
“The last is the New Year, and the first day after the solar New Year is the lunar New Year.
"If there are thirteen first days of the lunar calendar in a solar calendar year, then the year will be thirteen months.
“Otherwise the year would be twelve months.
“All months and dates are also numbered using numbers and are no longer marked using the heavenly stems and earthly branches.
“Because there are no months in the solar calendar, whenever the month is mentioned, it must be referring to the lunar calendar.
“The calendar also uses numbers from the imperial calendar or the Gregorian calendar.
“Relevant yamen of the imperial court can continue to publish the imperial calendar on time, but at the same time, they also announce this rough arrangement rule.
"Let common people who are literate and able to do simple calculations by themselves."
After hearing this, Zhu Zhongliang pondered for a while, and then slowly understood Zhu Jingyuan's true purpose:
"So, you are not simply adjusting the calendar, but completely overthrowing it...
“The key is, you even have to change the official time and the time of the first day.
"You have to use the solar calendar to determine the official year. This solar calendar no longer uses months...
“This is something that has never happened in the nineteen hundred years since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.
"The Western Yi mainly uses the solar calendar, but it also divides it into months.
"Compared with moving the capital or building a building, you are truly braving the world's disapproval!
“Even if the ministers in the court are willing to cooperate, it may not be able to be truly promoted and implemented among the people!
"The impact of this incident is too far-reaching..."
Zhu Jingyuan also knew that this matter had a great impact.
Changing the time of New Year's Day is a tradition in the Chinese tradition that transcends the dynastic cycle.
In the original history, since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty promulgated the "Taichu Calendar" and changed the year from October in the Qin Dynasty to the first month, until the Revolution of 1911, the New Year in China was called New Year's Day or New Year's Day, and it has always been the lunar calendar. On the first day of the first lunar month, there has been no substantial change.
When Sun Yat-sen decided to switch to the Western calendar, he tried to change New Year's Day from the first day of the first lunar month of the traditional lunar calendar to the first day of the first month of the Western calendar.
But due to various reasons, the name was finally changed.
The Western New Year is called New Year's Day, and the Lunar New Year is called Spring Festival.
The Chinese people actually still use the traditional Lunar New Year as the official New Year.
Now Zhu Jingyuan wants to change the New Year to the beginning of spring.
The key is to use the solar calendar as the main calendar to record the year, and no longer rely on the first month of the lunar calendar.
Zhu Jingyuan looked at Zhu Zhongliang's reaction and continued to ask for advice:
“I was actually prepared to not be able to completely change.
“So the official affairs of the court and the production plans of factories, including newspapers and radio broadcasts, were required to be based on the solar calendar.
“At the same time, the lunar calendar continues to be retained to succeed the folk customary months, but the two calendars are separated.
“With the development of technology, with the development of science and technology, with the deepening of industrialization.
"As the share of public affairs in ordinary life continues to increase, the Gregorian calendar should gradually occupy a dominant position."
Zhu Zhongliang nodded slowly after hearing this, and then shook his head slowly:
"There is some truth in what you said, and you seem to be mentally prepared for it, but what are you trying to do?"
(End of chapter)
