Kunning Palace.
Ma Enhui looked at Zhu Yunwen walking towards him, feeling a heavy feeling of worry on her face. She stepped forward and saluted and asked, "Your Majesty, what troubles have you encountered?"
Zhu Yunwen nodded, sat down, and picked up a cup of herbal tea: "Queen, there is a plague in Fujian. I need to stop the medical gauze."
Ma Enhui was surprised at first, and then confused.
I am surprised that an epidemic has occurred in the local area, but I am confused as to what the relationship between the epidemic and medical gauze is. Why should medical gauze be stopped when an epidemic occurs?
The Ministry of War is pressing hard at the moment. After all, the campaign to conquer the West has consumed more than 50,000 boxes of medical gauze. Half of the inventory in the capital has been consumed. The inventory in the northwest has almost bottomed out and needs to be replenished.
Although Zhu Yunwen has made up his mind to set up a new medical gauze weaving factory in Xijiang Province, using the rich oil and cotton resources there to supply medical gauze to the World Health Center, this will take time, less than two years. Time, it is unrealistic to want to supply the guards and the capital in large quantities.
Two years, the Ministry of War cannot wait that long.
Ma Enhui said worriedly: "The epidemic cannot be allowed to spread. Once it spreads, it will affect more places. The emperor should also arrange countermeasures as soon as possible to protect the people."
Zhu Yunwen finished the tea and put down the tea bowl: "I have appointed Yu Xin as the governor of Fujian, and at the same time, I have dispatched 700 medical officers to Fujian. There is still a shortage of one important material, and we need female workers to make medical gauze."
Ma Enhui understood, and just arranged for the maid to summon the female worker, but Zhu Yunwen waved her hand to stop her: "I will go with the queen."
With the expansion of the scale of medical gauze and wool weaving, the weaving inside the palace has been moved outside the palace. Zhu Yunwen and Ma Enhui visited the medical gauze workshop in person, which surprised everyone.
Ma Enhui summoned twenty of the best female workers, and Zhu Yunwen drew a drawing and said seriously: "I need you to create an object of this form. This object is called a mask, which can prevent sand and dust from being inhaled into the nose and mouth."
Looking at the drawings, Ma Enhui's eyes were full of longing, and she rolled her eyes at Zhu Yunwen. Why didn't such a good thing come out earlier? Isn't the Western Region very windy and sandy?
I heard that there is also a mountain pass where sand is always blowing, and the sergeants standing guard can only wear masks. Get it out, whether it is sold to a businessman or to the Ministry of War, it will be a fortune...
Zhu Yunwen explained in detail, hoping that the female workers could improve the medical gauze, fold it into three or six layers, and try the effect after cutting it.
Seeing the female workers rushing to make the goods, Zhu Yunwen felt a little confused.
In this era, there is no way to produce non-woven fabrics. It is possible to use textile fabrics such as medical gauze to make masks to prevent sand and dust. How effective is it in preventing epidemics?
This disaster happened quite quickly. According to the information available, some people coughed extremely violently, indicating that airborne transmission is possible. Once medical officers come into close contact with patients, they are likely to be infected through airborne transmission, and the losses will be considerable.
No matter whether the mask is useful or not, even if it is only 1% effective, Zhu Yunwen must get it out!
The medical gauze was formed into a basic mask by increasing the density and processing it with a curtain cage. It was easy to embed the iron wire into it and hang the ears. After several attempts, Zhu Yunwen decided on the plan of stacking four layers, suspended the medical gauze, and switched to mass production. Face mask.
The masks are small and light, and a small wooden box can hold 500 of them. After completing the preparation of 3,000 masks, Zhu Yunwen ordered the sergeants of the Security Bureau to rush to Fujian.
The speed of a small number of cavalry, coupled with the concrete road, is faster than traveling by boat, but it is inevitable that you still need to cross mountains and ridges to cross Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
The imperial court attaches great importance to the epidemic in Fujian. Everyone knows that once the epidemic spreads, it will be a huge disaster and countless people will die, regardless of high or low, regardless of status!
Before Yu Xin arrived in Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi and Guangdong had obtained permission to mobilize guardsmen, strictly block the roads, prevent Fujian people from leaving, and conduct in-depth investigations into the countryside. If an epidemic was discovered, they would blockade for ten miles and Call the medical officer to handle the matter.
Zhu Yunwen stared at the map, looking deeply in the direction of Fujian. His eyes moved from Fujian to the sea, and then to Da Liuqiu Island.
After receiving reports from the Security Bureau and spies, Da Liuqiu Island was in chaos at this time. King Wuning of Zhongshan was cruel internally and domineering externally. Shannan Kingdom was ready to take action and even sent a fleet to attack Zhongshan Kingdom, but was beaten by King Zhongshan's fleet. The entire army was wiped out, causing Shannan Kingdom to dare not act rashly.
Wang Yingzu of Shannan Kingdom once studied in the Imperial Academy and had a close relationship with the Ming Dynasty. He once sent an envoy to ask Zhu Yunwen to send a navy to rescue the suffering people of Zhongshan Kingdom, but Zhu Yunwen was reject.
The reason for rejection is also valid: Ming Dynasty cannot easily interfere in the affairs between vassal countries.
Do it or not, let alone talk about it, but your attitude must be shown, so as to tell the countries in Southeast Asia that although the Ming Dynasty is powerful, it has no intention of embezzling you or interfering in your internal affairs, so as to avoid the emergence of anti-Ming in Southeast Asia.
The real reason why Zhu Yunwen rejected Wang Yingzu was that the reasons given by Wang Yingzu were not sufficient. It was impossible for the Ming Dynasty to attack the Zhongshan Kingdom because of the brutality of King Zhongshan. If this example is established, next time it will be able to use various excuses to directly intervene militarily in any vassal state. , then who can feel safe at all?
Wang Yingzu didn't understand. Zhu Yunwen had been waiting for him for a year, but he still hadn't found a reason why Ming could not refuse to send troops. In this case, he needed to put some pressure on them.
As for Xiaoliuqiu Island, it is gradually under control.
In March this year, Zhu Yunwen issued an inconspicuous document, which was to restore the Penghu Village Inspection Department. This document is inconspicuous among the numerous government documents.
After all, what was abolished is just restored, nothing to make a fuss about.
But this move was Zhu Yunwen's first step in planning to control Xiaoliuqiu Island.
Speaking of the Penghu Village Inspection Department, we have to mention Yuan Ting. In the 18th year of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty, the Yuan Dynasty set up the Penghu Village Inspection Department in Penghu, which was under the jurisdiction of Tong'an, Fujian.
It is worth mentioning that Penghu was included in the Chinese territory before Shanshuiwan Bay, and the earliest time in history was 403 years. Before Emperor Yuan Shun moved because of Lao Zhu, a guy named Chen Xinhui became the inspector of the Penghu Village Inspection Department. This was the first Han inspection officer.
After Lao Zhu founded the country, Lao Zhu once wanted to develop navigation and seek maritime profits. However, due to poor management and rampant smuggling, there were also many pirates and Japanese pirates. Lao Zhu closed down all the shipping companies one after another, and in Hongwu 14th A maritime ban was implemented in 2006.
If the sea is no longer needed, why should the Penghu Village Inspection Department from outside the sea come? Salaries are not easy to pay, so in the seventeenth year of Hongwu, the Penghu Village Inspection Department was abolished.
It has been twenty-one years since the Penghu Village Inspection Department was abolished in the 17th year of Hongwu to the 7th year of Jianwen!
Zhu Yuanzhang closed the Shipping Department, and Zhu Yunwen reopened it.
Zhu Yuanzhang closed the sea, and Zhu Yunwen reopened it.
Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the Penghu Village Inspection Department, and it was reasonable and logical for Zhu Yunwen to reopen it.
After all, it was the territory of the Ming Dynasty. It was just because the family had something to do some time ago that they didn't come to manage it, but it didn't mean that it was cut off. It belonged to the Ming Dynasty, so it had to be taken back.
Zhu Yunwen took back the Penghu Village Inspection Department and took control of the Penghu Islands, laying the foundation for entering Xiaoliuqiu Island.
The Penghu Village Inspection Department is not a small inspection department. The navy was ordered to station on Penghu Island and build it into a large navy stronghold. The permanent force has reached 3,000 and there are 20 large ships.
This is a health center set up under the guise of the Inspection Department. Fortunately, there is food and abundant fishery in the local area, so there is no need to worry about food and supplies are easy, and the navy is happy to stay there.
At this time, there were basically no indigenous people in Penghu. They were all immigrants from Fujian, Guangdong and other places. However, Xiaoliuqiu Island is still in the aboriginal era.
It's hard to say what race the indigenous people there are, whether they are descendants of Baiyue or original Malays. Zhu Yunwen has not dug the graves in the bay, nor has he inspected them. It's hard to distinguish between human skulls. But they are basically divided into two major indigenous tribes. One is the Pingpu tribe, which mainly lives in plain areas, such as the west and east, and the other is the Gaoshan tribe. As the name suggests, they live in the mountains and mainly hunt.
Zhu Yunwen didn't want to know whether there was a person named Yamei or Yamei Die among the Pingpu people, and he didn't care about the Daoka, Maka, and other small tribes among the Gaoshan people. He just wanted to know what it would take for the Ming Dynasty to completely occupy this land. At what cost.
At this moment, a group of pirates should have entered the interior of Xiaoliuqiu Island to explore the situation. I don’t know how they will communicate with the natives who cannot understand the language. Will they use gestures or the knife in their hands?
Zhu Yunwen didn't know whether his order would bring catastrophic death to the indigenous people there, but there was no way. The Ming Dynasty needed that island as an unsinkable treasure ship to control the North and South Channels.
"Your Majesty, Gu Pu, the dean of the Imperial Military Academy, would like to see you."
The chamberlain came forward to report.
Zhu Yunwen withdrew his eyes from the map and entered the palace. After saluting, he asked: "The Military Academy should be cooperating with the reform of the military system and the art of war. You came to see me at this time, but what difficulties did you encounter?"
Gu Pu said solemnly: "The reform of the military system and the art of war are advancing steadily, and the Military Academy has also engraved new teaching materials accordingly. I came to see you because I want to beg the emperor to grant permission for the Military Academy to rent part of the small training ground, and at the same time allow Supervisors at the Military Academy can come into contact with and master firearms, and the Military Academy cannot just talk about weapons on paper."
Zhu Yunwen stared at Gu Pu. The biggest problem currently existing in the Military Academy is that it is about armies on paper. In other words, it is too theoretical and too poor in practice, or it is too ambitious but short-handed.
However, medical school introduces practical practice, just go to the doctor. Agricultural colleges introduce practical operations, just go farming. But the Military Academy introduces practical operations. How does this work? A group of supervisors have a fight and are taken to the mountains for field training? Operate a firecracker or a divine machine gun?
Fireguns have really entered the military academy, just in case there is a safety incident. It's okay to say that the fire gun is fine, but if you want to actually operate the divine machine gun in the Imperial College, it's not suitable. One shell of this thing can be fired directly outside the Imperial College...
It is a feasible plan to connect the Military Academy with the Beijing Army Primary School.
