The Prosperous Era of Longwan

"What is this little jar filled with? Why is it so exquisite?"

In the Qianqing Palace in the Forbidden City, Longqing Emperor Zhu Zaijing was sitting on the throne, swaying from side to side, carefully looking at a small blue and white porcelain jar placed on the imperial desk.

How small is the porcelain jar?

It's less than the size of a palm, but it's made in the shape of a jar. It's no wonder Emperor Longqing didn't know what this thing was used for.

After observing carefully for a long time and looking at the servile Chen Hong in front of him, Emperor Longqing reached out and took the small porcelain jar into his hand and shook it gently. It seemed that there was something in it.

Opening the lid of the small jar, a scent that I have never smelled wafted out from the mouth of the jar.

Emperor Longqing glanced at Chen Hong and saw that he didn't move at all. He knew that the smell was harmless, so he put the porcelain jar under his nose and sniffed it gently.

"What's in it? Why does it have such a weird fragrance?"

Emperor Longqing put the lid back on, but held the small porcelain jar in his hand and did not put it back.

When it was almost done, Chen Hong licked his face and said with a smile: "Reporting to the emperor, this thing is called Shi Nahu, and it came as tribute from Yuegang, Fujian."

"Senahus? What is this?"

Emperor Longqing wondered.

"According to the news from the eunuch guarding Yuegang, this thing is carried by those red-haired ghosts. When you want it, pour out a little and smell it with your nose. It makes people feel relaxed and happy, and it can also refresh the mind. "

Chen Hongxuan said with a smile.

"Yuegang? It belongs to the Yi people."

Emperor Longqing knew that this thing was an imported product, but this jar did not look like it was made by Yi people.

"Your Majesty, this jar does not belong to the Yi people, but was made by me, the Ming Dynasty."

Chen Hong smiled again and said, "It's just custom-made by the Yi people. The guard thought it was strange when they poured the tobacco powder into the jar and sealed it, so he asked for some to try, but it was very novel.

According to the Nayi people, other flavors can be adjusted according to the user's preference, such as adding musk, tobacco, mint, and ambergris. "

"What does this smell like?"

Emperor Longqing heard that the fragrance could be adjusted, but when he thought about it, he realized that it was nothing more than putting the things he liked in it.

He had also seen it through the opened mouth of the jar just now. The porcelain jar was filled with some powder, and he understood what was going on.

"It's just the smell of tobacco, nothing else is mixed in."

As the two asked and answered, Emperor Longqing finally figured out what the contents of this small porcelain jar were for.

If Wei Guangde were here, although he might not know what this thing is at first glance, as long as he demonstrates its use, he should be able to guess it at once. Isn't this the snuff bottle of later generations?

It's just that at this time, snuff bottles were not made of various precious materials like Qianlong's time. They were only made of China's most classic material, porcelain.

Chinese snuff bottles, as exquisite handicrafts, are made of porcelain, copper, ivory, jade, agate, amber and other materials. They use blue and white, multicolored, porcelain carving, nesting, skillful work, interior painting and other techniques, absorbing the influence of various craftsmanship at home and abroad. Due to its advantages, it is regarded as a precious cultural relic by those who appreciate it, and enjoys a high reputation both at home and abroad.

In the world, China is known as the "Hometown of Smoking Bottles", among which snuff bottles are known as "miniature works of art that integrate a variety of craftsmanship" due to their exquisite and excellent production technology.

A snuff bottle is a container for holding snuff. Snuff is a kind of tobacco product. It was originally a Western product. It was introduced to China from European traders during the Longqing period of the Ming Dynasty. After processing and transformation, it became a powdered medicinal material. After sniffing it, it not only has the effect of improving eyesight and avoiding epidemics. Smoking snuff has become even more popular among all walks of life, and it has quickly integrated into Chinese artistic styles. Various types of snuff bottles with unique ingenuity have been developed, which shined in the aesthetics and craftsmanship of the Qing Dynasty and became the representative of Qing Dynasty art. One of the important signs.

If this thing appears, I guess Wei Guangde will also be willing to try it.

After all, in later generations, although snus was also sold, people's habit of using snuff was almost extinct.

As for why it is no longer used, there are of course many reasons. For example, because it is inhaled directly into the body through the nasal cavity, it will cause irritation and damage to the mucous membrane of the nasal cavity. Therefore, when snuff is taken in many movies and TV dramas, the user will often sneeze afterwards. .

For people whose bodies are not so sensitive, they need to clean their nasal cavity.

Well, just cleaning it out with a cotton swab in the nose is actually more difficult for many people.

Later studies also believed that snuff smoking would increase the risk of nasopharyngeal cancer, sinus cancer and other cancers. Although cigarettes as alternatives are also harmful to the body, they are easy to use and cheaper, so they naturally replaced snuff. status.

If you have seen it before, you won’t be interested, but because you haven’t tried it, you will be even more interested.

However, although snuff has been introduced into the country, it is only spread around Yuegang, Fujian, and the Imperial Palace in Beijing is the only one.

Of course Wei Guangde didn't know, because at this time he was still watching the parade in the camp on the outskirts of Beijing.

Chen Hong was the imperial eunuch, and he felt that the things he received as tribute from his subordinates were novel. After trying them, he thought they were okay, so he sent them to Emperor Longqing like a treasure.

"You ask someone to prepare a batch of various flavors, and I'll take a look at it. In addition to the harem, forget it."

Emperor Longqing originally thought about whether the good things should also be enjoyed by the harem, but after thinking that this thing was used by the Yi people, it was uncertain whether it was good or not, and whether it would cause any harm, so he gave up the idea.

Although Emperor Longqing had never met the Yi people, he had read the report and heard it. People who heard it mentioned that the hair of these people in the Western Fan was very different from that of the Ming Dynasty. In addition to the similar tan color, some people also had red and yellow hair. , the appearance characteristics are very different.

He was worried that if the barbarian things were used too much, the people in the harem would become like that.

"Old slave obeys the order. When I get back, I will ask the craftsman to prepare it carefully."

Chen Hong replied with a smile.

"The Beijing camp should be practicing now."

Emperor Longqing suddenly said something nonsense again, which made Chen Hong's heart move.

"Your Majesty, would you like me to send someone from the palace over?"

When Chen Hong said this, he couldn't help but take two steps forward and said: "Your Majesty, I think it is best to send someone from the palace to the capital camp every year to inspect the matter, so as to prevent the ministers from deceiving Your Majesty.

The people in the palace, Lao Nu, dare to pat their chests and guarantee that they are all facing the emperor. They will report everything they see when they come back in detail, and there will never be any lies. "

Emperor Longqing glanced at Chen Hong and just smiled.

He knew the purpose of Chen Hong's words, and he actually knew it, but the reason for Wei Guangde's last memorial was also very good. Every three years the emperor inspected the capital, so naturally there was no need for eunuchs to keep an eye on it.

You can see it with your own eyes, don’t you still believe it?

He was actually looking forward to the Grand Parade in a month's time and what kind of appearance the Beijing camp would give him.

He knew exactly what kind of depravity the troops defending the capital had become, and he was looking forward to what answers Wei Guangde, Tan Lun and Qi Jiguang could give him.

So before that, he would not think about it again.

The eunuch wanted to seize power, and he knew why, but right now he didn't think it was necessary.

He would only consider letting them do it if he wanted to.

"How is the selection of palace maids going in Shuntian Mansion?"

Emperor Longqing did not answer this question, but turned to other topics.

"I heard that it has been roughly decided, and the beautiful girls will arrive in Beijing one after another in a few days."

Chen Hong still said with a flattering smile: "The cabinet and the Ministry of Rites are still not doing their job well. Things that should have been done last year have been delayed until now.

I remember when we talked about it last year, Mr. Xu Ge also said that he would instruct the Ministry of Rites to make preparations and proceed as soon as the time is right.

After the cabinet minister Gao Ge left, Mr. Xu Ge left again. Now the cabinet affairs are becoming more and more procrastinated. "

"Li Chunfang has a soft temper, and Chen Yifu is similar. He has no sense of responsibility. That is to say, Zhang Shuda and Wei Shandai can still come up with ideas and make decisions."

Emperor Longqing was silent for a moment and then said, "Yin Zhengfu can do things, but he is a little impulsive and lacks the ability to adapt to changes."

"If Mr. Gao Ge is still in the cabinet, he should be able to reconcile the yin and yang so that the cabinet will not act like this."

Chen Hong glanced at Emperor Longqing secretly, but saw that his face was expressionless, so he made up his mind to talk about this for now.

Haste makes waste, this is a waste of time. If you want to provoke the emperor to recall Gao Gong, you may have the opposite effect.

After serving Emperor Longqing for so long, Chen Hong could see that Emperor Longqing was not a proactive monarch.

There is no need to stand if you can lie down. If the government can be delayed, then let the current group of people continue to do it. If it can't be done anymore, consider changing a group of people.

It seems that the current emperor is quite satisfied with the five people in the cabinet and has no plans to recruit new people.

You have to wait, wait until something big happens in the court and the cabinet is hesitant, and then mention Gao Gong's name in front of the emperor. That might have better results.

"Go to the Supervisor of Ceremonies to urge you and ask why today's memorial has not been delivered yet."

At this moment, Emperor Longqing suddenly gave instructions.

"Old slave, I will go to the ceremonial supervisor now and have a look. I will resign."

Chen Hong resigned with a good sense of current affairs, and exited the Qianqing Palace to go to the Supervisor of Ceremonies. However, Emperor Longqing stood up, walked to the door of the main hall, and looked at his retreating figure.

Of course he heard Chen Hong's little thoughts.

High arch.

This name has not been mentioned in front of him for almost two years.

But when he thought of that serious figure, Emperor Longqing naturally didn't want to think about it.

It was really too much pressure for him to be arched in front of him.

He knew that Gao Gong was good to him, but sometimes he found it difficult to accept Gao Gong's character.

Therefore, after Xu Jie left, Emperor Longqing did not immediately consider recalling Gao Gong, because the current government was running smoothly, and there was no need to recall him since nothing happened.

Another reason for not recalling him is that the forces in the court are currently fairly balanced and can ensure the stability of the imperial power.

The current cabinet is nominally Li Chunfang, but in fact it is a small circle of Chen Yiqin, Yin Shizhen, and Wei Guangde who are in charge.

So far, he has not seen that this small circle will threaten the imperial power, so there is no need to recall Gao Gong to suppress it.

What's more, if they want to prosper in the court, they must have the emperor's endorsement and support.

"Forget it, summon Chen Yiqin and Wei Guangde tomorrow and ask them in detail what the Beijing camp is like now, but don't let me down."

Emperor Longqing was thinking to himself, and when he walked back to the throne, he saw the small porcelain jar on the imperial desk, and unconsciously took it into his hand to play with it again.

"Ah sneeze."

Emperor Longqing wrinkled his nose. He just thought of the usage of Sinahu mentioned by Chen Hong, so he tried it. He poured out a little powder and inhaled it through his nose, and then sneezed twice in a row.

Fortunately, Chen Hong didn't try it before when he was in front of him, otherwise he would have lost his majesty.

He thought so, but Emperor Longqing also felt that Chen Hong's words were refreshing, and he felt very good at this moment.

Chen Yiqin, Wei Guangde and others had already returned to the city in a sedan chair, but Cheng Guo Gong Zhu Xizhong did not accompany him, saying that he wanted to discuss some matters with Qi Jiguang.

Wei Guangde roughly guessed in his mind that it was the order in which the military formations were to be reviewed. Since Yang Bo had proposed it, he naturally had to change it. The parade could not end in an anticlimactic manner.

It should be said that the Beijing camp was trained well by Qi Jiguang, but the other military formations were not as good. They still had to think of ways to improve their viewing pleasure.

It doesn't matter whether it is applicable or not. What is important is that the emperor is happy with it, the ministers are satisfied, and the envoys from the surrounding vassal states have to be sufficiently frightened, so that the purpose of the review can be achieved.

Wei Guangde estimated that Qi Jiguang would come to his house to ask for advice at night, but Wei Guangde didn't really have much to do.

After all, military parades are just like that. To put it bluntly, military parades in later generations are the infantry formations being inspected in order, and then the equipment formations. What everyone pays attention to is what new equipment is unveiled, and then it is gone.

In the Ming Dynasty, there were no tanks, artillery, or powerful weapons such as kickers, so we had to think of ways to do it during military formation drills.

How to make it more grand?

Wei Guangde was sitting in the sedan chair, thinking about this problem.

Thinking about future generations, Wei Guangde suddenly felt something in his heart. He thought of some methods, but he always felt that they were unreliable.

What do people look at in military parades in later generations? Of course they look at the big guy, the most important weapon of the country. Wei Guangde started to think crooked ways again.

Make bigger and longer cannons to scare people. I remember when I read a novel, I learned that the Japanese called bird cannons cannons and small cannons called national collapse.

The largest cannon of the Shenji Battalion is the large general cannon, but from Wei Guangde's perspective, it is still too small. As for the large number of Franco cannons, even the large Franco cannons are only about the same size.

What was the name of the most famous cannon in the late Ming Dynasty?

Red cannon or red barbarian cannon?

Let the Ministry of Works hurry up and get ten of them, and just follow the Shenji Battalion as they pass under the Grand Parade. As for firing the cannons, His Majesty asked and said that these cannons are powerful for dozens of miles, and one cannon wastes a lot of money. It is still under development and is not very safe, so it will not be displayed at the grand parade.

Wei Guangde had a plan in mind and was determined.

Letting the Ministry of Industry develop Hongyi cannons can be regarded as setting up a project for them.

The wealth should not flow to outsiders. After all, Zhu Heng is a fellow countryman, so it is best to give benefits to his own people.

Moreover, in Wei Guangde's impression, the late Ming Dynasty seemed to mainly manufacture Hongyi cannons by himself, which shows that this cannon-casting technology is not difficult.

With a small head, a big butt, and a long body, this is the image of Hongyi Cannon in Wei Guangde's impression.

"Go to the Ministry of Works."

After knocking the small gong hanging in the sedan chair, Wei Guangde gave instructions to the outside.