Chapter 65: Opening a Factory

Three months later, the Eastern Depot delivered Li Tong to him. Upon receiving Li Tong, Li Dan was completely reassured about the forces backing Zhang Qianfang, and became extremely warm toward him. Zhang Qianfang, remembering that the Emperor had said Li Dan should be the first among those he wished him to befriend, naturally did his utmost to cultivate their relationship. Before long, the two of them appeared as if they had been friends for years.

One day, Li Dan asked, “Brother Zhang, do you have any connections for bringing coinage from the Ming Dynasty? If we exchange these coins for copper, we could make a five- or sixfold profit.” Hearing this, Zhang Qianfang reported it to his contact at the Eastern Depot, which soon drew the attention of Wei Zhongxian. As it happened, there was a surplus of copper coins at the moment, and he proposed an idea accordingly.

Following Zhu Youxiao’s instructions, Wei Zhongxian had all the copper coins recovered by the bank transported from Tianjin and Nanjing to Quanzhou, to be handed over to Zhang Qianfang for shipment to Japan.

With such a large quantity of copper coins at his disposal, Zhang Qianfang consulted with Yang Tiansheng, using Yang’s ships to transport the money. Yang was stationed in Japan to handle the import of copper coins, while Zhang oversaw maritime transport. Together, they had more than thirty ships, and no one dared to rob them at sea, so operations went smoothly. However, copper soon became scarce. Zhu Youxiao instructed them not to rush the delivery of coins to Japan, to avoid driving down the price. Additionally, since copper was insufficient in Japan, they could also use silver or even sulfur. Japan happened to have abundant silver and sulfur reserves; thus, large amounts of silver flowed into the mint and the bank, while the sulfur went to the arsenal.

Because of his contributions in opening up maritime transport, though the Emperor could not openly promote him, Zhang Qianfang was rewarded. The Emperor appointed Zhang Siyou as Assistant Instructor at the Imperial Academy (eighth rank), and a year later, promoted him to Dean of the Academy (sixth rank). His rise through the ranks was meteoric, but as the Dean was not a high position in the eyes of court ministers, it caused little stir.

West of Beijing, a great river winds down—the famous Lugou River, also known as the "Unstable River." Spanning it is the renowned Lugou Bridge, a vital passage for travelers from the southern provinces entering the capital and an important gateway to Beijing.

Fifteen li upstream from Lugou Bridge stands the recently prominent mint and arsenal. Tall walls and patrolling soldiers mark the area as strictly off-limits. Opposite, slightly downstream, lies a vast open space bustling with activity.

The Chief Eunuch of the Inner Palace, Shi Yuanya, was escorting a blond-haired, blue-eyed missionary around the area. Each time the missionary made a comment, Shi had a young eunuch record it. The Emperor planned to establish a glassworks here, and the missionary, being knowledgeable in glassmaking, had come to survey the site.

By midday, the construction plan was nearly finalized. Shi Yuanya ordered the young eunuchs to treat the missionary well, then left to report to Wei Zhongxian.

Wei Zhongxian was in a foul mood. He had sent people to Yanshen Town in Shandong to recruit veteran glassmakers, but no one was willing to come. He longed to have the Eastern Depot confiscate their property, but he could do nothing, for they had committed no crime. After hearing Shi’s report, he gritted his teeth and said, “I don’t believe this stubbornness. The Emperor has already explained the principles to us, and the Inner Palace has some glassmakers, not to mention help from the missionary. It’s only a matter of making more attempts. Pass down my order: whoever can make quality glass quickly will be handsomely rewarded. Isn’t it said that generous rewards breed courage? I’ll use good, cheap glass to put them out of business. Old Shi, go to the Imperial Gardens Bureau and find the eunuchs who kept experimental records. Their methods will surely help us establish a process. This time, I won’t trouble the Emperor. I want to handle it myself, so he’ll know that I, Wei Zhongxian, am not only loyal but also capable, worthy of my name.”

Zhu Youxiao wanted to produce glass mirrors. The craft of mirror-making was then held by the Venetians, but Zhu Youxiao, having learned about the silver-mirror reaction in high school, knew how to make mirrors better than those in the West. Yet he only understood the theory, not the practical steps. The Inner Palace could make glass, but only in small quantities and with poor quality. Wei Zhongxian heard that the best glass workshops were in Yanshen Town, Shandong, and wanted to buy technology or recruit craftsmen, but was flatly refused.

Helpless, Supervisor Wei had to rely on himself: he ordered Shi Yuanya to oversee the rapid construction of the glassworks, and began group experiments in the Inner Palace to find a fast, high-quality method for producing flat glass. He offered a reward of four hundred silver coins to the first group to find the best method, and had the Emperor’s “silver-mirror reaction” tested as well. These experiments, however, were conducted under the strict supervision of the Eastern Depot, with a standing order that any leak of secrets would result in execution of the entire family.

Another trusted aide, Li Zhen, led experiments on cement. Zhu Youxiao only knew that limestone needed to be ground to a fine powder and mixed with a certain amount of clay, then combined with water and stirred into a slurry, followed by heating and drying. The dried material was broken into pieces and fired in a lime kiln, then cooled and ground into cement. But he had no knowledge of the proper clay ratio or the firing time and temperature. Thus, only experimentation could determine the best formula and firing process.

In truth, once the principles were known and enough experiments conducted, the right method would be found. By the time the glassworks, under the missionary’s guidance, was completed, the flat glass process had been essentially perfected, and the silver-mirror reaction yielded excellent results. Zhu Youxiao looked at the crude mirror with a look of disdain, while Wei Zhongxian was in awe, seeing it as a divine object. Having tried it himself, he was startled when he first saw his own clear reflection, thinking for a moment there was another person in the mirror.

Yet Zhu Youxiao knew that, regardless, this mirror was worlds apart from bronze mirrors. So he commanded, “Supervisor, you must guard the secret of this mirror-making method for at least ten years. In all the world, only we are to produce such mirrors. I want to gather all their silver into my own hands through mirrors. With silver, I can do many things. A great Ming will be born in my hands, and you, Supervisor, shall be my closest aide and witness. I came, I saw, I conquered—Caesar’s words might as well have been written for me.”

Wei Zhongxian, though knowing nothing of Caesar, was moved by being called the Emperor’s closest aide. The Emperor did not see him as a mere servant, but as a helper—how could he not devote his utmost to serve as the Emperor’s vanguard?

At once, he knelt and declared, “For Your Majesty, I shall exhaust myself unto death, and never rest until my last breath.”