Chapter 103
Elder Gu could not be bothered with Xie Chengze anymore. He took off his shoes and climbed onto the heated brick bed, feeling here and there. Then he lifted the bedding to examine the surface carefully, sniffed for odors, and tested the temperature.
“The bedding cannot go directly on the surface. It would be best to put down a tightly woven mat of split bamboo strips as a barrier. Also, the surface farther from the firebox is only lukewarm. Hmm… Try stacking honeycomb-shaped stones at the far end to direct the heat of the smoke upward. For now, make the stack about a handspan high.”
After pointing out the problems with the heated brick bed, Elder Gu put his shoes on and climbed down. He felt the chimney pipe, considered it for a while, then said, “Add a damper inside the chimney pipe to keep too much smoke from escaping in winter and cooling the bed too quickly. Also, watch for blockages. Heavy snow is especially likely to seal the opening in winter…”
“Yes.” The clerk beside him held a brush and recorded each problem Elder Gu identified.
Once Elder Gu finished, Xie Chengze promptly showered him with flattery. “You truly are the leading light of the Ministry of Works, Elder Gu. It is your presence that gives this ministry its soul!”
“Stop flattering me!” Elder Gu moved aside in distaste and said irritably, “If Your Highness has no business here, please leave at once!”
“There’s no rush, no rush.” Xie Chengze stayed close behind Elder Gu and ventured, “Elder Gu, since you’re so skilled, I wonder whether you have any apprentices?”
“Hmph!” Elder Gu turned his head away without answering.
“Several people are learning under Elder Gu, but he hasn’t taken an apprentice yet,” an official said with a smile. “That is why he’s so interested in the craftsman who drew the heated brick bed. He said the fellow has great talent and wanted to take him as an apprentice!”
Elder Gu glared at the official. “Hold your tongue! Who said I wanted an apprentice? I think that fellow is nothing special. If he truly had ability, why hasn’t he come to work at our Ministry of Works? Probably just some country bumpkin who happened to have a flash of inspiration and draw that design!”
“Ah, Elder Gu, you just won’t admit it.” The official shook his head with a sigh, then asked Xie Chengze, “Your Highness, do you know who that craftsman is?”
“Well, now…” Xie Chengze rubbed his chin. Catching Elder Gu secretly pricking up his ears out of the corner of his eye, he deliberately put on airs. “I hear this person is extraordinarily handsome and overflowing with talent. Whenever he goes out in the street, admirers are sure to fill his carriage with fruit, so you can imagine how his looks and talent captivate everyone. Though he took up construction without formal training, he has youth on his side and a boundless future ahead of him. What’s more, he’s gentle-tempered, handles people and social occasions smoothly without putting a foot wrong, and his family’s wealth rivals that of a nation – ahem. As for construction, it is merely a pastime for his idle hours. His ambitions lie elsewhere.”
The officials nodded in sudden understanding. “So that is how it is.”
“But which family’s young master could it be? There is only one merchant family in Jian’an whose wealth rivals a nation’s.”
“Could it be that Young Master Jiang? That can’t be right. I’ve never heard of him having any expertise in construction. His ability to find gold, on the other hand, is quite remarkable…”
The Ministry of Works officials whispered and discussed it among themselves. Just as they were about to press Xie Chengze for the craftsman’s identity, a heavy knock sounded at the main gates outside, followed by a long, familiar summons. “Is Gu Yun, Manufacturing Supervisor of the Ministry of Works, here?”
“That sounds like Eunuch Zhao.”
“Quick, quick! Go open the gates.”
Two gate attendants ran swiftly to the entrance, opened the ministry’s gates, and welcomed Eunuch Zhao inside. Elder Gu stepped out of the crowd and said in a deep voice, “This old official is here. What is the reason for this urgent summons, Eunuch Zhao?”
“His Majesty asks how work on the heated brick bed is progressing.” Eunuch Zhao gave his horsetail whisk a little flick. Suddenly glimpsing a flash of scarlet that vanished almost instantly, he rose on tiptoe to look and asked in puzzlement, “Eh? Is the Second Prince here as well?”
Squatting on the ground with his hands over his head, Xie Chengze: … How did the old man have such sharp eyes?!
“His Highness is indeed here. We were just about to ask him who the craftsman who invented the heated brick bed is,” an official said with a smile.
“Oh, you’ve certainly asked the right person.” Eunuch Zhao flicked his whisk and said with a beaming smile, “The craftsman who thought of the heated brick bed is none other than -”
“Eunuch Zhao!” Xie Chengze hastily interrupted. Scrambling out, he clapped a hand over Eunuch Zhao’s mouth. “Tell us what you came here for first!”
Eunuch Zhao looked at Xie Chengze in confusion. He could see that Xie Chengze was deliberately concealing his role, but could not understand why. If the heated brick beds were widely adopted, at least the people in the north would not freeze to death in their homes during the snow disaster. With such a great achievement to his credit, why was the Second Prince keeping it hidden?
Could it be that because His Majesty had not specifically told the Ministry of Works about it, the Second Prince had misunderstood, thinking His Majesty did not want him to acquire a good reputation, and therefore refused to say anything?
Ah, His Highness was far too obedient.
The child who never cried or made a fuss would get no sweet cakes.
Eunuch Zhao felt great sympathy for him, but did not bring it up again. Under everyone’s disappointed gazes, he cleared his throat. “Elder Gu, His Majesty has sent me to inquire: has the heated brick bed been built?”
“Fortunately, this old official has fulfilled his charge and completed its construction,” Gu Yun answered confidently. “Only a few minor flaws remain, and I have already prepared solutions. They will be readily resolved in the next few days.”
“Excellent, excellent. In that case, Elder Gu, please…” Eunuch Zhao’s eyes suddenly shifted, and he changed what he was going to say. “And all you officials as well, come to the Golden Throne Hall together to receive His Majesty’s instructions.”
The officials exchanged looks, then bowed. “Yes.”
This great mass of people from the Ministry of Works set off in a bustle toward the Golden Throne Hall. Naturally, conversation turned to the pealing of the Celestial Bell that morning, and they asked, “Eunuch Zhao, what celestial pronouncement was delivered this time?”
A celestial pronouncement always heralded blessings from Heaven or calamity. The longtime palace officials inevitably recalled that the Imperial Observatory’s last pronouncement had been an auspicious omen, declaring the Second Prince some sort of lucky star sent down by Heaven. Though in all twenty years since, they had never seen what “good fortune” the Second Prince had brought them.
“A snow disaster,” Eunuch Zhao answered with a sigh. “A great snow disaster seldom seen in a century, covering the entire northern territory. Even the capital may be affected.”
“A great snow disaster? Such a calamity is terribly difficult to control!” Concern appeared on the officials’ faces. Yet as they thought of the heated brick bed, they all breathed sighs of relief. “Then this heated brick bed was completed at just the right time! Once we put it into use, it will surely help us get through the bitter winter!”
“Rather than saying the heated brick bed was completed in time, we should say the drawing arrived in time.”
“Indeed! It arrived neither sooner nor later, but just before the celestial pronouncement. Surely a deity protects our Jian’an Dynasty and cannot bear to let the people of Jian’an suffer such hardship!”
“Yes, yes, exactly! Heaven truly has mercy and protects Jian’an!”
The officials spoke joyfully, entirely unaware that Eunuch Zhao, leading them ahead, was secretly rolling his eyes.
What divine protection? What mercy from Heaven? It was clearly the Second Prince who had racked his brains to devise the heated brick bed!
…
Inside the Golden Throne Hall, Eunuch Zhao’s congratulatory voice arrived before he did. “Wonderful news, Your Majesty! The heated brick bed has been developed!”
Emperor Jian rose from the dragon throne in delight, his face radiant. “Excellent! Now the people will suffer a little less during the bitter winter!”
A heated brick bed?
What was that?
The assembled civil and military officials looked toward the doors in puzzlement. Eunuch Zhao entered at the head of the Ministry of Works officials, his head high and chest out.
Seeing so many people enter, Emperor Jian looked at Eunuch Zhao in confusion, his gaze asking: Hadn’t he instructed that if the heated brick bed was completed, Elder Gu alone was to be summoned? Why had Eunuch Zhao brought so many people?
Eunuch Zhao hurried to Emperor Jian’s side in quick little steps, bent down, and whispered a few words into his ear. A moment later, Emperor Jian’s gaze settled on Xie Chengze, who was following at the rear of the crowd and furtively trying to slip back to his place before the throne. A knowing, teasing smile appeared on his face.
Xie Chengze, who happened to glimpse that inexplicable smile: ?