Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 411 Scientific Disaster Preparedness
The first person the emperor summoned the day after returning to Beijing was an official from the Ministry of Official Property. He asked him about coal mine exploration and mining, which left all the civil officials in the court somewhat confused.

Ye Xianggao and other ministers looked at the eight-character red-ink instruction "That's all, focus on government affairs", and thought in their hearts how important coal mine exploration and mining were.

Is it better than summoning the ministers to inquire about the progress of major affairs in the government offices this year? Or is it to remind them that the emperor himself is pragmatically paying attention to specific government affairs?
Of course, even if it is just a reminder, this matter must be very important.

The second thing he did was to summon people from the Hanlin Academy, the Academy of Academic Research, the Imperial Observatory, and the Imperial Household Department under the eunuch system.

Although all the ministers had arrived this time, they just sat there and waited, listening to the emperor's questions and arrangements for them.

When the ministers presented their reports on their work, he was unexpectedly ranked third.

Now most of them were listening on the sidelines and feeling strange.

"So, it has been trial-produced? How is it being used?"

The first person to reply was Zhu Dong, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department. His original surname was Zhu, but the palace had long established a rule that eunuchs with the surname Zhu had to change their surnames to other surnames. Therefore, Ma Sanbao was only given the surname Zheng, and Zhu Dong also changed his name to Zhu Dong.

After Zhu Changluo ascended the throne, this rule was abolished, but Chu Dong had already gotten used to the new name and did not change it back.

He originally worked in the Armory, and now he was in charge of the Imperial Household Department, naturally because he had some management skills and had experience and interest in organizing sophisticated business production.

Today, the Imperial Household Department is gradually changing its functions.

Originally, there were many "workshops" serving the royal family. All the bureaus except the laundry bureau in the Eight Bureaus were of this nature. The Baochao Bureau also made coarse and fine straw paper used by the palace, and the Imperial Household Bureau made various furniture and ornaments.

Now it has been decided that a lot of things will be purchased from outside, but for safety reasons, some will still be retained in the inner palace.

In general, the original twelve bureaus, four departments and eight bureaus have now been reduced to twelve bureaus. The Bell and Drum Department was merged into the Sili Bureau, the Xinxin Department was transferred to the Neiguan Bureau, the Huntang Department was transferred to the Jingong Bureau, and the Baochao Department was transferred to the Zhidian Bureau. Among the eight bureaus, the Hat Bureau, Needlework Bureau, Internal Weaving and Dyeing Bureau, and Washing Clothes Bureau were all transferred to the Shangyi Bureau, while the Wine, Vinegar and Noodle Bureau and Siyuan Bureau were transferred to the Shangshan Bureau, while the Silver Works Bureau and the Armory Bureau were managed by the Yuyong Bureau.

The reduction of the inner court offices was naturally a good policy. Zhu Changluo could only arrange some people to the Zongminghao, Changminghao and other places first, and then gradually reduce the number of eunuchs.

Now Chu Dong replied, "Before the Lord Jia accompanied the Emperor on his southern tour, we had consulted the Minister Wang and other Lords many times. Your Majesty said to seal the mercury in glass and mark it with scales. In October, we had already made a trial thermometer. We handed it over to the Imperial Observatory and the Institute of Research for trial use for more than a month, but I was afraid it was unusable, so I did not report it to Your Majesty."

Then came Wu Yue, the director of the Imperial Observatory. He was quite nervous, but also excited: "I have tried this thermometer and found changes every morning, evening, noon and midnight. According to your majesty's order, we will test it all year round, and it will also be convenient for the Institute of Research and the Imperial Household Department to make further improvements. Since your majesty asked, I can report: It works well! It is much better than that soup bottle thermos or wine cup!"

"But I am not sure that I can achieve the accuracy required to become the temperature standard that Your Majesty mentioned." Wang Zheng continued, "I remembered this matter on the way back to the capital, and asked about it after returning to the capital yesterday. Your Majesty said that the terrain is different, the density of the invisible air is different, and the temperature of the three-phase change of all things is also different. I am afraid that more measurements are needed before this set of standards can be established."

Ye Xianggao and others became more confused as they listened.

It sounds like the plan to develop more new standards for weights and measures was decided at the end of last year?
Some of them are already being made. During the Southern Tour to Guangzhou, the newly made calendar, clock, measuring bucket, long ruler, weight and other items were brought to the Maritime Trade Fair.

What temperature standard are we talking about now?
Zhu Changluo nodded and said, "Then take one to the Qianqing Palace. There is no rush for the temperature standard. Since it is available, continue to measure it. Call the Hanlin Academy today. There is something that needs you to do together for a long time."

As he spoke, he looked at Fan Chunjing, who was now in charge of the Imperial Academy. "I want you to assign a group of people, at least one tutor or lecturer, with at least two scholars, to do one thing. They must look through the official histories, local chronicles, and folk registers of all dynasties, and find out the records of climate and disasters from all dynasties, and sort them by year and month."

Fan Chunjing was stunned for a moment, then said, "I obey your order."

"This is of course a very labor-intensive task, and it will probably take a long time." Zhu Changluo said, "Just be bold in recommending me. If I succeed in this, it will be a great achievement, and it will definitely not hinder my future promotion. You just have to be persistent and willing to put in the hard work."

After hearing this, Fan Chunjing said without thinking: "Then I can recommend two people first. One is Yang Lian, Yang Wenru from Yingshan. He ranked seventh in the second place in the list of classics, history, humanities and civility in the seventh year of Taichang. He was first appointed as the head of the Ministry of Rites in the past, and then he was transferred to the Ministry of Rites and Law as a tutor. This year, Your Majesty went on a southern tour, and Yang Lian was repeatedly recommended as a lecturer to the Crown Prince. He is very knowledgeable."

Zhu Changluo nodded: "What about the other person?"

"This year's new Jinshi, ranked 19th in the second place in the list of classics, history, humanities, and civility, Huang Zunsu and Huang Zhenchang from Yuyao. Because his wife was pregnant, he did not take up the post, and was later appointed as a Shujishi. In August, he had a son, and then the whole family moved to the capital. In November, he took up his post in the court, but he has no assignments."

"Choose one more scholar, and summon these three people now."

Zhu Changluo then said to Chu Dong, "Galileo is back too. You can discuss with Dean Wang and the officials of the Institute of Research and Development to make more thermometers first. Then, together with the Ministry of Culture and Education, send one to the branches of the Imperial College in various provinces and have someone take care of it, record it, and report it to the capital."

Ye Xianggao and others saw that the emperor was very serious and could only continue to suppress their doubts for the time being.

Fan Chunjing thought about it again and recommended another person, so Liu Ruoyu quickly arranged for someone to go to the Hanlin Academy to call that person over.

The Hanlin Academy is not far away, so go and summon the people. The emperor continued speaking.

What is done is very detailed arrangements and requirements.

For example, the accuracy of the thermometers produced by the Imperial Household Supervision must be tested first. For another example, if any thermometers are damaged, the accuracy of the new thermometers must be as close as possible to the previous batch.

Hearing what the emperor said, this major project would probably last more than ten years. Taking ten years as a unit, all the ministers were secretly shocked.

The Empress Dowager has caught a cold, but what happened to Your Majesty?
Zhu Changluo asked them to listen first, just to warm up.

Preparations were started to establish more accurate and easier to use measurement standards, which of course involved temperature.

With the gradual establishment of the Ming Dynasty's "scientific research system", the previous "Hundred Schools of Thought" have become more and more accepting of the emperor's point of view that experiments must be conducted with more controlled variables.

In this case, it is easier to lay the foundation. As the work on new measurement standards progresses, many concepts such as time, temperature, weight, density, air pressure, volume, etc. are taking shape.

When it comes to temperature, during the communication at that time, Zhu Changluo learned that a thermometer had already been made before Galileo came.

After listening to his explanation, it is of course more primitive.

He made an open glass tube and blew a glass bubble at the other end. When measuring, he first heated the glass tube and then inserted the thinner open end into the water. He used the principle that air expands when heated and contracts when cooled. Since the air in the glass tube becomes thinner after being heated, a water column will naturally rise when it is inserted into the water.

But Galileo himself said that this method was not useful. Although he drew some scales himself, he said that he drew them randomly. After playing with it for a while, he did not get any effective results.

After Zhu Changluo heard what he said, he understood why. He was not measuring temperature, but air pressure.

But no one has yet understood the concept of air pressure.

But the thing Galileo was working on was not airtight and was greatly affected by fluctuations in air pressure and temperature.

Zhu Changluo then implemented the "knowledge infusion" and made three important instructions before the southern tour: First, the thermometer should be sealed and as air-free as possible. Second, the sealed substance inside should be replaced with mercury. Third, the scale should be based on water, with zero for freezing and one hundred for boiling.

The Institute of Scientific Research and the Imperial Household Department are both located in Beijing, and the air pressure is constantly changing, so the scale drawn in this way is of course still not accurate, but we can take it step by step. How to measure air pressure is another topic.

The firing of glass has been going on, and more techniques are being explored. As for mercury, the Taoist masters in the Institute of Research are very good at it and there is no shortage of it.

Anyway, Zhu Changluo only pointed out the direction, and let them explore and trial-produce the rest.

Facts have proved that there were many skilled craftsmen in the Ming Dynasty. With a clear direction, material and salary guarantees, and everyone knowing that the emperor attached great importance to these matters, it took more than half a year to actually complete the work.

Galileo didn't come to the Huangji Palace today, but he had already taken his new toys to play with.

China has also made achievements in this area. Galileo's work is similar to what has been done in history here, and neither is very accurate. In ancient times, there was an ice bottle, which was filled with water, and the ice and melting were used to predict winter and spring.

Regarding the law of cold and heat, "the qi of yin and yang is cold in winter and hot in summer. When they combine, they become rain, when they disperse, they become wind, when they gather, they become fog, when they condense, they become frost and snow, when they stand, they become dew, and when they freeze, they become hail. This is the constant of heaven and earth." This also roughly explains the relationship between the three-phase changes of water and temperature.

The soup bottle thermometer was recorded in Sun Simiao's "Qian Jin Yi Fang", which also estimates the temperature by observing the volume change of water or other liquids. The wine cup is one of them. The liquid used is just wine, and the temperature is estimated by the volume change caused by the evaporation of alcohol.

These tools are certainly far inferior to the new thermometer that has appeared in the Ming Dynasty.

When Yang Lian, Huang Zunsu and another scholar-official arrived, a thermometer that was to be placed in the Qianqing Palace was also taken out, and the ministers stood up to examine it curiously.

"It's warm inside the hall. You can move outside and observe later. The mercury column will then go down."

Zhu Changluo expressed satisfaction. Although the inner core was definitely not a vacuum, he had tried his best.

The melting point when firing glass is different from the boiling point when mercury changes from liquid to gas. The craftsmen blew a certain amount of mercury in gaseous state into the glass as full as possible, then sealed the glass tube and cooled it down, so that the mercury returned to liquid state and obtained an approximate vacuum. This certainly took a lot of effort.

I'm afraid he was poisoned by mercury.

The thermometer in front of us is very thick, but it can be used. Just now, when it was brought in from outside the hall, because there is a charcoal basin inside the hall, the temperature is much higher than outside the hall, and everyone can see with their naked eyes that the mercury column in it is expanding upwards.

Zhu Changluo then let Yang Lian and the other two come up.

He was familiar with Yang Lian, but he had no deep impression of Huang Zunsu and the other person. But since they were asked to do something that was laborious and would delay their progress, they should be encouraged. Summoning them to come to the emperor to give instructions in person was a sign of the emperor's favor. Otherwise, he could have just arranged it directly.

So when the emperor kindly asked Huang Zunsu about the double happiness, Huang Zunsu was indeed quite excited.

"I am ashamed. I rushed to Beijing for the examination and only then learned from a letter from home that my wife had become pregnant after I left home. After passing the examination, I missed my wife and children, so I returned home first. I waited until my son was born in August, and after the confinement period, I arranged to return to Beijing."

"Good. Now that we have both happiness and have settled down, it's time to get down to work." Zhu Changluo asked with a smile, "What's the child's name? Can he adapt to the northern climate? This winter is quite cold, so you need to take good care of him."

This was just a casual expression of concern on his part, but unexpectedly he heard a familiar name from Huang Zunsu.

"Before my wife gave birth, a unicorn appeared in her dream, so she gave me her nickname Lin'er. I am a descendant of Huang Luzhi. Although I am not talented, my wife had a strange dream before my son was born, so I had high expectations. My son should have the character Zong in the middle of his generation. I hope he can inherit the talent and achievements of my ancestor and stand tall and proud, so I named him Zongxi. My wife and I are both in good health now, and I thank your majesty for your concern!"

"Huang...Zongxi?"

Zhu Changluo was stunned, not knowing whether it was the right one. Literati were particular about naming. He said he was a descendant of Huang Tingjian, but there was no need to investigate whether it was true or not. But the name Xi does have the meaning of inheritance. Moreover, after Fuxi and Wang Xi, this word was originally very stylish, containing both artistic atmosphere and the momentum of being upright, wise and courageous.

"What a good name." Zhu Changluo paused for a moment before praising with a smile, "That's good. Just do this thing carefully. Although it is tedious and laborious, if you can accomplish it, it will be a great merit for the country and the people!"

"I will work hard to live up to your majesty's trust!"

Huang Zunsu was very excited. To be honest, if His Majesty did not think that the clean stream was a good path, how could he be the Shujishi? Nowadays, the mainstream is to take up a real job, starting from a basic position in the central government or a local official, so that promotion is faster.

He had no choice. He had been more affectionate with his wife before leaving home to take the imperial examination last year, and he actually passed. Of course, he passed both the imperial examination and the imperial examination, which was indeed a double blessing. But he was worried about his family, so he had to give up the best opportunity to be appointed, and finally got a position as a Shujishi, which is not valued nowadays.

I thought I didn't know how long it would take, but now the emperor has personally arranged a major project. Although I don't know how long this major project will take, isn't this a matter of course for the emperor?
Fate is strange. Huang Zunsu was not going to pass the exam this year, but he passed it six years later and was later killed by Wei Zhongxian.

His son was indeed Huang Zongxi, but as soon as he was born, he moved to the capital.

After Zhu Changluo had finished explaining this matter, the eight ministers reported on their work.

Ye Xianggao was not vague either. Today's foreplay had been sufficient, and he was not a fool.

"Forgive me for being slow-witted. Your Majesty, please enlighten me. Disaster preparedness and relief are naturally meritorious deeds. However, natural disasters are inevitable and unpredictable. Moreover, given the vast territory of the Ming Dynasty, disasters are reported in various places every year. I have been listening for a long time. Your Majesty is very concerned about this matter. Could it be that the Imperial Observatory reported some unusual phenomenon?"

People don't talk much about celestial warnings nowadays, but they do wonder how seriously the emperor took this matter.

The three people from the Hanlin Academy were certainly excited just now, but after returning, they will be caught up in this huge project that is unknown how trivial it is.

The emperor's request was almost to compile a "History of Famines in China".

Writing history is such a huge project.

"Let's talk about this year first. We'll talk about this matter in next year's plan."

(End of this chapter)