After making an agreement with Sun Shiwan, Zhu Wenkui and others left the scene, leaving behind a group of excited audiences.
However, even the retainers felt that the bet he made with others was not reliable.
After arriving home, everyone began to have doubts.
"Master, let's let the words out in front of so many people. If we can't turn back, we'll be in trouble." Captain Jashka said worriedly: "Our Prince Wu Mansion relies on face to make a living. If we don't If you lose face, what should you do..."
"That's what you said." Heroine Jeanna quickly smoothed things over: "It's not that serious."
"No, I was in Bohemia and saw what happened in the palace." Captain Jessica insisted: "Some nobles lost their territories or were unable to support themselves, so they went to the king to seek refuge. These people are actually relying on face to make a living, so they all owe a lot of debt. It’s not that they don’t want to live a good life, it’s because if they don’t keep their face, they will only be in worse shape.”
"That's it..." Heroine Jeanna found that it seemed to be the case, so she had to scratch her head and responded.
"Haven't you seen the daily interactions of the aristocracy? In fact, all countries are not much different. Although the sects and national forms in Rome are different, the upper class is actually still the same." Captain Jessica said. Talking, seems quite experienced.
"I, I know too! I just didn't think about it just now." Although he just mentioned it casually, the heroine Jeanna immediately defended: "I am also a noble, but I am not very familiar with the king's court."
"Huh? Isn't your family also the village chief?" Zhu Wenkui was a little surprised.
Princess Ma next to her looked like she was hesitating to speak, so little Jeanne simply turned her head away from him.
"Village, the village chief can be considered a noble." Heroine Jeana blushed and explained: "That's how it is here."
"Oh, it doesn't matter." Captain Jessica didn't care: "My family only has half a village, which is much poorer than Xian. But when I went to the palace to hang out, for the sake of appearance, I also said that I was a minor noble. Anyway, As long as you have some ability, people will turn a blind eye and won't expose it."
"That's right." Zhu Wenkui agreed: "And to be honest, whether you have talent or whether you can succeed has nothing to do with your origin. In terms of origin, my great-grandfather is not as good as you guys, but there is no one better than Ming Dynasty in the world. A powerful political power? A great responsibility sent from heaven will not look at this."
Everyone agreed with this and nodded.
"We don't need to rush this time. I know the technical issues well." In this regard, Zhu Wenkui is indeed not too nervous: "I don't think the principle of jacquard bunching is too difficult. You should be able to do it once you try it. I can figure out the situation. I will make a model later to see if this is the case."
"Then shall I carry some more wood?" Captain Jessica asked.
"Wen Kui, can't you do something serious?" Princess Ma couldn't help but said: "You say you have a lot to do at work, but you find something to do for yourself every day. Today I will work for your brother Kang, and tomorrow you will be angry with those Yuan people. You have to toss wood. If this continues, it's hard to say whether you can do anything. Everyone knows that you are not doing your job every day..."
"Mr. Yang." She turned to Jessica and said: "We hired you because we hope that you can assist the prince, not only to build a career, but at least to do something. Therefore, if he has any unreasonable demands, Don’t let him spoil you either. To be a minister, you need to be able to give advice.”
"Madam is right." Jessica nodded quickly.
Of course, this is not the first time that Princess Ma has said such words. Everyone knows that it is useless and has become a routine. In fact, there is really nothing they can do in this situation.
Employers' affairs are more troublesome than the last. Moreover, when the two sides argue, they themselves cannot tell who they should listen to.
Captain Jessica has been targeted in this way more than once. And the reason why he is regarded as the "Crown Prince's confidant" is actually simpler - he has been in the palace for a while and has more experience than Jeanne, Old Ivan and others.
In his experience, Bohemia and even the entire Holy Roman Empire had never heard of sons listening to their mothers in major palaces. In other words, even listening to my father is considered very filial.
In addition, since he came here, Zhu Wenkui has been personally arranging various things for him, so he naturally believes that compared to the "King Wu" who lives outside like a mercenary manager, this is the one who The one who really takes care of things. In this way, although he himself did not realize it, others felt that he was a die-hard supporter of Zhu Wenkui.
However, compared to others, little Jeanne was very interested in that machine. She soon pestered Zhu Wenkui and asked him how he planned to make it.
"I have a lot of business, but this kind of thing won't take too long." Zhu Wenkui said quickly: "This thing is easy to talk about. I just draw the drawings and find a few carpenters to do it."
"Is it that simple?" Seeing his sudden change of words, little Jeanne didn't quite believe it.
Zhu Wenkui himself didn't even believe it. However, he had to make a statement, saying that he still focused on business and these things were just for fun in his spare time. So, he added: "You don't understand the design thing. If there is any situation, I will discuss it with Guo Kang later and we will solve it."
Little Jeanne had no choice but to stop asking.
Probably knowing that the group's persuasion was useless, Princess Ma also sighed and took little Jeanne back to the house. The other two people followed Zhu Wenkui to the corner of the yard.
"Boss, look, we are almost running out of wood." Captain Jessica immediately pointed to an almost empty shed next to him and said with familiarity: "Last time I made a car for Mr. Guo, I used up more than half of it. We only have these two pieces of hardwood left in our hands. Are we going to buy them from the Russian again?"
"The wood last time was hard, but too heavy." Zhu Wenkui shook his head: "This time the machine does not have such high requirements for the quality of the wood. If the dead weight is too heavy, it will affect the flexibility of the operation and reduce the quality of the wood." Efficiency. I think just use ordinary wood."
"Then I'd better go to them and buy something lighter and cheaper." Captain Jessica completely understood what he meant and nodded immediately: "I heard that their boss is that Ross named Alexander. The leader. From amber to slaves, this man has resold everything. Let’s buy some gray goods from there, and we can save a lot of money.”
"Gray?" Zhu Wenkui asked curiously.
"It was brought by ship." Jashka said: "They cut down the trees over there, bundle them into small boats, and transport them down the river. This simple fleet can go as far as Crimea. Then, In order to save costs, this kind of small boat was tied directly to the back of the cargo ship, and slaves were used as oarsmen to row along the coastline and sell them along the way.”
"When the goods on the boat are sold out, the boat is dismantled and the wood is sold. When it enters the port, this kind of wood is not considered a separate cargo ship, nor is it a specialized cargo. It is a clever tax avoidance method, so it is also very cheap. If the quality of the wood we need is not high, we can just buy this kind."
"You know how to do business?" Jeanne Heroine was a little surprised.
"As a mercenary captain, you have to know these things." Captain Jessica took it for granted: "Participating in the war is only one part of the job. How to deal with various profiteers may be the most important. After all, the entire team needs You spend your own money to support it.”
"If the leader is only prepared to take free money, that's okay. If you really want to improve the combat effectiveness of your team, you have to consider how to obtain more weapons and supplies under a fixed amount. I sometimes feel that this is Main mission." He talked about his past mercenary experience.
"The military level in Europe is so bad." Zhu Wenkui shook his head and sighed: "This thing really tortures everyone who wants to do something serious equally..."
"No wonder, Tuohuan Taiji and I were bragging, saying that once the things at hand are finished, we would help the Kang brothers to go out, attack the main force of the Alemanni in the first battle, and beat up Sigismund. ." He remembered what happened before and showed a clear expression: "No wonder it's arranged like this. Is it easier to fight on their side?"
"The main force of fighting Shinra in the first battle?" Heroine Jeanna questioned: "That shouldn't be under his own command. It's probably just for gold plating."
"Actually... it's not that difficult." Captain Jashka thought about it: "I met Sigismund at the Prague palace. To be honest, his military level... is better than nothing. Mr. Guo is a little bit wary. Mind you, it’s really not that difficult to beat him.”
"Don't underestimate the enemy." Heroine Jeanne reminded: "I have been fighting for at least half my life. After all, I have learned a lot."
"No, no, no." Captain Jessica shook his head repeatedly: "You have to know that being able to learn from past victories and sum up lessons from failures are very advanced abilities, and most people can't do them well. of."
"And Sigismund is also this kind of person. He has been fighting for so many years, but I haven't seen any improvement in his commanding ability. Instead, his improvement is all in politics - this guy is getting more and more cunning. "
"As for the battlefield, let alone smart people like Mr. Guo, I can do anything." He said firmly: "Sigismund is really not an opponent worthy of special attention."
"Why are you starting to brag too?" Heroine Jeanne clearly didn't believe it.
"I'm telling the truth. That's what Sigismund is like." Captain Jessica was unwilling to give in.
"Pull him down, you should win the battle first. Are you going to challenge the Shinra Emperor?" Heroine Jeanna revealed mercilessly.
"It wasn't that I lost the battle, or that I was with the wrong team..." Captain Jessica was a little embarrassed, and he hesitated to defend: "I just found the wrong employer, which is quite normal. The matter with the mercenary group is not considered a defeat. …”
"Okay, okay." Zhu Wenkui quickly stopped them: "Time is tight. I really have a lot of things to do these days. You guys can help me make these preliminary preparations first, and then look at the next step."
They walked as they talked, and soon came to a corner of the yard.
There is a small house here with blue tiles. There is a cross painted on the slightly crude wooden door, which looks like a simple small church common in villages and towns. But there were no other decorations of the God-worshiping religion on the roof and surroundings. Instead, there was a flagpole with a sun and moon flag hanging on it.
Zhu Wenkui opened the door, led the two of them in, and started packing their things.
In the middle of the house, there is a tall shelf with a portrait of Zhu Yuanzhang hanging in the middle. Next to it are the ancestors of the Zhu family, namely Zhu Yuanzhang's great ancestor Zhu Bailiu, great-grandfather Zhu Sijiu, grandfather Zhu Chuyi, and Huang Kao Zhu. May 4th, and the tablets of the late empresses.
On the small table in front of the shelf, there are crosses, rosary beads, incense burners and other sacrificial items, and candlesticks are placed on both sides. In front of the small table, there are several stands made of wooden strips, with several small iron pots supported on them.
In front of the bracket, along the wall, there are several tall wooden shelves and cabinets. Zhu Wenkui walked to a shelf, picked up an account book on it with ease, and compared it with the two of them.
This house is nominally the family temple of "Prince Wu's Mansion". But in fact, due to the limited space, it serves as an ancestral temple, a church and a storage room for valuables.
Theoretically, Zhu Wenkui is also a God-worshipper. After he started to run his own household here, he also joined the God-Worship Cult.
Guo Kang told him before that it was not necessary. But Zhu Wenkui believes that everyone here is a believer, and if he doesn't believe it, he will probably appear out of place, and it will be inconvenient to do things in the future. Therefore, he asked Dalai Lama Wang to do the baptism for him, and also gave him the Christian name "Constantine Zhu" to use it in dealing with Europeans.
After that, Zhu Wenkui took the opportunity to go to the church to complain about his poverty, asking for various sponsorships every now and then.
According to him, he came all the way from the East and joined the church, so he had to take care of him. Otherwise, let alone those businessmen who traveled long distances, would not think much about it. Other believers may also feel that the church is too stingy and not generous enough to new guests. Over time, believers will also become alienated.
The gold and silverware in the house now, including the gilt crosses, silver-plated incense burners and candlesticks, were all obtained from the church during his time on the grounds that Prince Wu’s Mansion also wanted to build a temple to help promote the doctrine. Got it from here. Although they are all incompatible with each other, which makes the atmosphere of the ancestral temple here a bit strange, at least they have some sacrificial vessels that they can use, and they will not be forced to use wood-carved objects like before.
When little Jeanne first came here, Zhu Wenkui even took her to the Empress Temple in the name of Little Jeanne every day on the grounds that her sister was more religious and wanted to eat fasting meals, and tried to try to Save money on food.
Later, Princess Ma recovered a little and began to take care of some housework. She was very speechless about this and asked him not to go to the temple to beg for food all day long, and he stopped this behavior.
Of course, Zhu Wenkui's long-term persistence in begging is not useless. At least during that time, Prince Wu's Mansion was indeed a little more affluent, and even the family temple became more formal.
The portrait of Zhu Yuanzhang in the temple was taken away by Zhu Yunwen when he fled. It is also the only original Ming Dynasty artifact. The other tablets and the wooden shelves on which they were placed were made by the two of them by sawing the wood themselves when Qi Tai was teaching Zhu Wenkui here.
Although it does not conform to the etiquette and regulations, according to Qi Tai, this is called "having the right to have the scriptures". It is understandable that the conditions are limited, so it is understandable to make concessions. Since then, it has been used like this.
Of course, perhaps the bigger reason is that the entire design of King Wu's family temple is completely inconsistent with the etiquette regulations of the Ming Dynasty. Anyway, the general direction is already wrong, so why should we pay attention to these details...
The rules formulated by Zhu Yuanzhang himself required the princes and kings to set up two buildings, the Zuo Zongmiao and the You Sheji. Wu Fan is now a "wandering prince" with no territory at all, so Sheji Temple saves money. Naturally, the five ancestral temples requested by the princes could not be built together. Even the next-level "one temple with five rooms" could not be built. Everyone had to crowd into the same room, and the front half of the room had to be used as storage. room.
The most important thing is that according to Zhu Yuanzhang's request, the vassal state can only sacrifice its first monarch, not the emperor. But because Zhu Yunwen was still claiming his inheritance rights, he still imitated the Ancestral Temple and included all his ancestors.
If this were in the Central Plains, there would probably be another big case. Fortunately, the mountains here are literally high and the emperor is far away, so no one would care...
Unlike his father, Zhu Wenkui no longer has such ambitions. He felt that neither his father nor his father were that good at it, and even if they were capable, what could they do? Is it really possible to take people back and kill them again? Instead of worrying about these things, it would be better to have one less thing to hold you back. It's just that Zhu Yunwen's team is very persistent in this, so he has been making do with it.
According to Qi Tai, the regulations of the imperial court during the reign of Taizu were due to a requirement in the Book of Rites that "branch children should not be sacrificed." In other words, Zhou Rites required that small sects could not sacrifice ancestors of large sects. But the problem is that according to the records of the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Zheng began to offer sacrifices to King Li of Zhou, and the State of Song even directly offered sacrifices to Emperor Yi of the Shang Dynasty. Even the state of Lu, which regarded itself as a model of Zhou etiquette, had a privilege starting from King Wen instead of Duke Zhou.
On the one hand, the Zhou people's own rituals often did not conform to the Zhou rites; on the other hand, the Zhou rites were constantly changing, and the completed Zhou rites in later generations were rearranged by Han Confucians after the burning of books. Since there are so many versions, there are naturally different and even opposite explanations. The merits and demerits are difficult to comment on.
Although this sacrificial rule was indeed set by Zhu Yuanzhang himself, and it may have been done intentionally to control the power of the vassal king, when the great Confucians wanted to interpret the scriptures, they could completely draw other conclusions.
Everyone is embarrassed to directly say that Taizu did not understand the scriptures and was uneducated, but like this, there is no problem in accusing the Ministry of Rites of misinterpreting Zhou rites and misleading the king. Therefore, Zhu Wenkui was very suspicious that these etiquette systems may not have a normative effect - the great Confucian scholars could find any reason to make trouble for them.
Therefore, for this place, he just had to make do with the attitude of maintaining the status quo.
Not far away, Zhu Yuanzhang in the painting looked over the cross, as if he was still looking at everyone. However, Zhu Wenkui had long ignored the strange arrangement here. After flipping through the books, he quickly came to the conclusion: "I have to ask for some money again!"
"What should we do?" Jeanne asked.
"Not only do we have no money left, we are already in debt!" Zhu Wenkui announced: "But just relax, everyone. Miss Jeanna, you came late. You probably don't know that the palace often cannot make ends meet, so it won't be a problem."
"As for the wood, I'll ask Mr. Yang to prepare it." He told Captain Jashka: "You can decide for yourself which one is suitable. By the way - this month's expenses are too high, so I'll record them in the account first. I should be able to apply for some money from the Roman government this time and make up for it after I get it."
"Can I be reimbursed this time?" Captain Jessica was overjoyed.
"What they mean is to challenge the technical level of the entire Hercynian. If we can make it, it will not only make the Romans look good, but also bring great practical benefits. Not to mention anything else, this fake machine also has production methods , they will definitely be willing to buy it." Zhu Wenkui analyzed: "As long as you say this, they will definitely increase their money."
"That's right." Captain Jessica suddenly realized: "Young master is really smart, this is a good idea. I will bargain with them then, and scare them by saying that I am working for the government, which will be much more convenient."
"Then if we can't do it, wouldn't it be troublesome?" Heroine Jeanna pointed out.
"What are you afraid of? If you really can't do it, just make an agreement with the businessman and buy it." Captain Jessica was confident: "Whether it's betting or lottery, they are just business methods. Businessman, since he does so many things , you will definitely have to sell something in the end.”
"On the other hand, as long as we help persuade, introduce the advantages of this thing, and push the Roman officials to buy it, they will not deliberately make it look bad for us. I estimate that instead, they will take the initiative to help us smooth things over, so that we can make peace and make money. .”
"I will talk to Brother Kang today. If we can make it, of course it will be better; if he has no idea, then this machine is indeed worth buying, and he will be happy to build one for research." Zhu Wenkui nodded: "Before, when he was making the water cylinder, he encountered a bottleneck and asked me to borrow money and materials. Now I ask him to borrow it, and he won't object."
"It's true that such a friend is reliable." Jeanne said with emotion: "Then our financial problems this month should be much better."
"After all, you still have to pay it back to others. And even if you get the funds this time, it's just a one-time income, not a long-term solution." Captain Jashka poured cold water on it in time: "The expenses of the palace are getting bigger and bigger, and we have to pay for other expenses. On the other hand, we should also increase revenue and reduce expenditure."
"The biggest expense this month is to participate in the various preparations for their triumphal ceremony." Zhu Wenkui said skillfully, obviously thinking a lot about it on weekdays: "The attire of the mother-in-law, the princess, and my sister, the three of them are directly beyond the ordinary. All expenses for this quarter were covered. Hey, no wonder Brother Kang said every day that life should be kept simple..."
"There's nothing we can do about it. In the aristocratic circle, clothes are the most basic thing. Many people are indeed facing the pressure of bankruptcy and insist on constantly changing and buying new clothes." Captain Jessica was not too surprised: "Besides, I bought all this, so I can’t sell it again.”
"It doesn't seem impossible..." Zhu Wenkui made a calculation: "I can't control the clothes of mother and princess, but I don't know if anyone else has the clothes of my sister. I have been helping to take care of her in the past few years. .Now that we are at a critical juncture, such a sensible child like her will definitely be considerate."
"But according to what I said just now, it's not that important." Heroine Jeanna pointed out: "And isn't this the prince who made the bet with Yuan Ren yourself?"
"We see that the people of the Yuan Dynasty are still showing off their power, how can we sit back and do nothing?" Zhu Wenkui looked at the portrait of Taizu, had an idea, and said righteously: "My sister is also a member of the clan, so of course she has this obligation."
"In this case, Mr. Yang, you go tell her, and then find a businessman to see if you can sell it at a high price." He finally decided: "You know many businessmen, and someone should be willing to take it. In this way, let's go there Then there will be money to build the machine.”
"It's okay for me to find a businessman, but I'm not suitable for the little princess." Captain Jashka said immediately: "I'm just a mercenary leader, I can't do such delicate things, and it's not good to have too much contact with women. Let’s let someone more suitable go.”
"Okay, Miss Jeanna, I'll leave it to you." Zhu Wenkui nodded.
"Huh? Me?" Heroine Jean has not yet reacted. She also wanted to refuse, but Zhu Wenkui and Captain Jessica—as well as Zhu Yuanzhang in the painting, all stared at her. This environment was indeed quite stressful. She felt guilty for a moment and had to say, "I'm just trying. If it doesn't work, don't blame me."
"That's enough, that's enough." Zhu Wenkui nodded repeatedly: "But don't rush to go now. In a few days, the ceremony will be completely over, and there will be no need for those clothes."
"Today..." He thought for a while: "Oh, yes, where did Brother Kang go today?"
"Why don't you go find him first? Tell him about my situation and see if he can come to discuss it." Zhu Wenkui thought for a moment and ordered: "He should know a lot about this. If he can Having the plan finalized will also facilitate subsequent planning, and maybe it can save a lot of unnecessary expenses.”
"That's no problem." Heroine Jeanne nodded, stood up and walked out: "I guess it's just those places. I'll go to the cathedral first to have a look."
However, as soon as she opened the door, a figure suddenly jumped down from the roof. The heroine Jeanne ducked to the side like a reflex, and threw out a few nails with her hand. The other party also turned around and dodged with the same agility, and with a few muffled sounds, the iron nails were pierced into the tree outside the house.
Captain Jessica also reacted, stood up, pulled Zhu Wenkui aside, dragged him two steps behind the stage, and hid.
But at this time, a girl's cry came from outside: "It's me! Stop fighting!"
"Why is it this guy again..." The heroine Jeanna looked quite helpless.
"Who is it?" Zhu Wenkui got up in a somewhat embarrassed manner and stuck his head out from behind Zhu Yuanzhang: "Do you know him?"
"This is also an acquaintance of Mr. Guo." Heroine Jeanne obviously didn't want to introduce too much, and shouted outside: "Okay, come on! I just want to go find your brother!"
A moment later, Meltem, wearing a linen burqa, ran in from the door. The heroine Jeana smiled bitterly and nodded at her, then put back the remaining long iron nails in her hand.
"Hey, I asked you why the nails that I drove before were missing a few nails each time. They are here!" Zhu Wenkui was sharp-eyed this time and immediately discovered something wrong: "These are all made by a machine specially customized for me. Yes. If you want it, don’t take these..."
"Don't worry about this!" Meltem looked a little anxious and said loudly: "Can any of you help find someone? The more, the better."
"What happened today?" Captain Jessica muttered, and then said: "I know you are anxious, but you try to explain it clearly. What happened?"
"I'm going to help my brother!" Meltem said.
"Ah?" Zhu Wenkui and others looked at each other.
There are too many things going on during this time, sorry. After moving in the next few days, I should be able to recover.
(End of chapter)
