Chapter Forty-Nine: The Minting Machine Arrives

To quell the southwestern rebellion as swiftly as possible, the Emperor issued an edict: Zhu Xieyuan, the Governor of Sichuan, was granted the honorary title of Minister of War and given authority over military affairs in Guizhou, Yunnan, and Guangxi, along with the Imperial Sword, thus commanding the suppression of the southwestern unrest. Qin Liangyu was appointed as Assistant Commander-in-Chief and General-in-Chief, and was ennobled as Lady Qin. Ma Xianglin was made Commissioner of Pacification, Qin Minping was named Deputy General, while Qin Yiming and Qin Gongming were appointed as Assistant Generals.

Zhu Youjiao instructed the eunuch delivering the imperial edict to give a pocket watch and a telescope to Lu Qin, along with a verbal message: his rank would be decided upon his return to the capital—he was to serve as a deputy general for the time being.

At long last, the coin press had arrived. Xu Guangqi reported this good news to the Emperor, which delighted Zhu Youjiao immensely. Not only was the Ministry of Revenue running low on funds, but his private treasury was also becoming strained. The Armory was a money sink, as was the press office. He had already ordered a temporary halt to the restoration of the Three Great Halls just to ease the financial burden. It was almost absurd for an emperor to be short on money.

Along with the coin press, the lathes Zhu Youjiao had previously mentioned also arrived, though they were not yet called by that name—they were referred to as grinding machines or boring machines, all suitable for mechanical processing. Zhu Youjiao sent for Sun Yuanhua, and together with Xu Guangqi, they made their way to the mint.

Li Zizao received them at the entrance of the mint. Zhu Youjiao waved off formalities, and the party entered. Inside, two missionaries assisting Li Zizao were operating the machines with craftsmen who had come with the coin press. Upon seeing the Emperor, they all saluted.

“No need for ceremony. Show me how it operates,” Zhu Youjiao said impatiently. The two missionaries spoke a few words to the craftsmen, who began the demonstration while the missionaries explained.

The craftsman first used a machine to press silver into thin sheets, then placed them into the coin press. A large hammer, powered by beasts, came down to strike; below was a steel mold with a central round hole. A perfect silver coin dropped out from underneath, and the craftsman presented it to the Emperor.

Zhu Youjiao inspected it carefully—the edge was smooth, but the coin bore no markings, as the dies were not yet finished. “Excellent, excellent,” he said happily. “How is the die-making coming along, Li?”

“We have prepared several designs, but we await Your Majesty’s decision before proceeding with a final choice,” Li Zizao replied, presenting the designs they had readied.

Zhu Youjiao leafed through them, pointing to one featuring a lotus, “This one is very good, but I want to make some changes. Have someone bring the revised drawing tomorrow. By the way, how shall we determine the size of the silver coins?”

“The mint proposes two options: coins weighing half a tael or one tael of silver. We await Your Majesty’s judgment.”

“Bring me one of each,” Zhu Youjiao said, testing the coins in his hand. The half-tael felt a bit too light, the one-tael slightly heavy. He handed both to Xu Guangqi and the newly arrived Sun Yuanhua to try as well.

Xu Guangqi weighed the silver in his hand. “Your Majesty, I think half a tael is a little light, one tael a bit heavy—could we not settle for something in between?”

Li Zizao immediately objected, “I believe, Sire, it must be either one tael or half a tael. If we make it seven and a half qian, it will be difficult for people to calculate.” He cared little that Xu Guangqi was his superior and friend; he opposed the idea without hesitation.

Both arguments made sense to Zhu Youjiao. While he thought that seven and a half qian would not be hard to count, after a moment’s reflection, he decided to follow Li Zizao’s professional advice. After all, it was wise to listen to the experts—although Xu Guangqi was also an expert in his own right, this was not his specialty.

“Very well, let us follow Li’s suggestion—half a tael. Should it be eighty percent silver or seventy percent?” He referred to the coin’s silver content.

“For the initial issue, eighty percent is best. Seventy percent is too low; that can be considered in the future, or even sixty percent. As for copper coins, we plan to use sixty percent copper and can reduce that over time. For the gold coins Your Majesty mentioned previously, we will use nine parts gold to one part silver.”

“Excellent. Sun, examine the machinery and see which can be used for weapons manufacturing. Give priority to the Armory, especially for armor. I believe if we use a single sheet of iron for armor, it will be more effective against arrows than current scale armor. Experiment along these lines. And boring gun barrels should be easier with machinery, correct?”

Sun Yuanhua accepted the assignment and went to examine the machines. He soon returned in high spirits, exclaiming, “Congratulations, Your Majesty! These machines will not only speed up the production of gun barrels and improve their standardization compared to handcrafting, but they can also be used for casting cannons. However, the missionaries said that animal power is not ideal; water power would be best.”

“Very well. Work with the Ministry of Works to find a site with ample water supply and set up the machines there. In future, weapons manufacturing will have its own bureau within the Ministry. We’ll gradually transfer these responsibilities from the Armory. No, wait—better yet, have the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works collaborate to establish a new bureau—the Armaments Bureau. Draw craftsmen from both the palace Armory and the Ministry of Works’ Arsenal. You are to lead it directly under me. For administration, select managers from the two ministries, and Xu, transfer a few skilled accountants from the Ministry of Revenue. Regulations will follow those of the Armory. The Gunpowder Bureau will also relocate. Choose a site somewhat distant from the capital—these are dangerous operations and should not disturb the populace.” He recalled that the infamous Wang Gongchang explosion had occurred at the Armory’s gunpowder depot. Even if it was not necessarily caused by gunpowder, it was best to prevent disaster before it happened.

Xu Guangqi then pointed out that such a large-scale relocation would require significant funds. Although the restoration of the Three Great Halls had been halted, future expenditures would still require thrift. Rebuilding the Arsenal after the move would cost a fortune, regardless of its purpose.

Money—always money. What a troublesome thing! Zhu Youjiao was also planning to establish a new school after the Arsenal’s relocation—a costly endeavor as well. Where could he find the necessary funds?

Confiscate the property of Li Sancai? That would be hard to justify. The new coins and copper currency, once the press was operational, would eventually generate some profit, but it would be a slow process. Perhaps he could come up with some inventions to make money? Glass, perhaps? He remembered learning about glassmaking in high school chemistry, and the telescope contained transparent glass, which meant it was within current technical capabilities. Mirrors, too? He had learned that in high school as well—it wasn’t complicated. Delighted with his own chemistry knowledge, Zhu Youjiao wondered if cement could also be manufactured, which could not only be profitable but used for building roads and such.