Chen Xi sent the account book to Hui Niang and left in a hurry.

When he returned to the government office, Chen Xi called Yunliu and ordered the expansion of the city.

The Ming Dynasty capital has not yet built an outer city, but Chenxi is ready to expand again on the original scale of the new city.

The newly expanded places are located in Baoshan Institute and Wusong Institute, which are linked to the Huangpu River and the Yangtze River waterways. Chenxi is preparing to build a city here, build a prism and fortress, and at the same time, large ports and shipyards are built in the city. Steel plants, chemical plants and machinery plants will be concentrated in the future.

However, because it is a brand new plan, people need to conduct on-site geological surveys, but there are almost no talents in this area. Chen Xi can only do it himself and is very busy.

Zheng Qian, Tang Yin and Su Tong left one after another, which had a certain impact on Chen Xi and was facing a dilemma of no one available at hand.

Since last winter, Chen Xi has successively selected scholars from Jiangnan to become officials in Xincheng.

In just two months, Chen Xi formed a team of 80 staff members. These people are now receiving pre-job training. In addition, the craftsmen who were originally trained by Shen Xi and are currently conducting scientific and technological research, the lack of management talents is being made up for.

However, Chen Xi did not have time to teach in person, and Yun Liu was mainly responsible for the teaching, and Ma Jiu, Zhu Hong and others provided assistance.

The textbook was written by Shen Xi himself. The first thing he learned was mathematics, involving the application of Arabic numerals, four-character operations, equations, graph calculations and statistical tables. After passing the math assessment, these staff members learned simple physics and chemistry knowledge, and then awarded relevant work according to the categories they are good at.

Previously, Chen Xi had rated craftsmen. Different levels correspond to different social statuses, forming a huge salary gap. At the same time, a complete set of promotion mechanisms can be formulated. Both skills and scientific research results can be improved. However, if you spend a long time, those who have regressed their skills will face the punishment of downgrade.

With the upgrade system, the motivation of craftsmen to do things has increased significantly.

Engineers are the best among the city's craftsmen, divided into three levels. There are 550 junior engineers, basically all with one skill, 80 senior engineers, and have made breakthroughs in scientific research and achieved certain research results. For example, the twelve craftsmen in the steam unit are all senior engineers, with more than 100 junior engineers and more than 400 senior technicians under them, engaged in the improvement of steam engines.

As for the chief engineer, there is only Chen Xi at present.

Yunliu asked: "Sir, the first twenty people who were trained have graduated. Many of them have worked as officials and merchants as accountants. They have good math foundation and learn very quickly, so they can get a teacher after a little training."

Chen Xi nodded and said, "This group of people is temporarily arranged to work in various factories. They are affiliated with the newly established Industrial Bureau and manage major factories and enterprises, and are only responsible to me. I will grant relevant positions based on their performance. The factory director is initially designated as a department-level cadre, similar to the seventh-rank official of the court, the workshop director is a section-level cadre, an eighth-rank official, similar to the county magistrate and county magistrate... Let's not look at past qualifications, the capable will be promoted, and the mediocre will be demoted."

Yun Liu nodded: "I understand the humble vocation."

Chen Xi said again: "These people have just accepted the job, so there is no need to have high standards and high requirements for them for the time being. As long as the factory is ensured to operate normally, some craftsmen will not be allowed to rely on their skills and act recklessly... The technical talents of each factory need to be strictly managed. They receive generous rewards and naturally they must bear the corresponding confidentiality obligations."

Yunliu asked in confusion: "Adults are worried that these technical talents will be bribed and won over?"

"You can't underestimate people's greed!"

Chen Xi expressed his serious expression and said seriously: "The thousand-mile dike is destroyed by ant hole. Many things need to be prevented from getting worse. In addition, what the city needs temporarily is management talents, so the aide class will be born. The next step is to start with education and culture, find a large number of teachers, open schools in the city, and allow ordinary people to attend school for free, read and read, and learn science and culture."

Yun Liu was very surprised: "Sir, if all the children of the people can study for free, then wouldn't the city increase a lot of expenses every year?"

Chen Xi smiled and said, "This investment is worth it! I don't ask these kids to take the imperial examination, at least they have to ensure that there are successors in major factories in the city. It is difficult to go through the imperial examination, but if you have a good skill, it will be much easier to make money to support your family. After students graduate from school, they can work in the factory, and we can continuously obtain high-quality workers."

Yun Liu thought for a while and nodded, "If you treat these students as apprentices, it is worth it..."

Chen Xidao: "It's not an apprentice, it's really that they can learn scientific and cultural knowledge systematically... Many children need help to do their work when they get older. It's better to let them receive education from an early age. Their future achievements will definitely be higher than their parents..."

"I understand."

Yun Liu made it clear this time, unlike before, she was purely polite, and she was full of admiration for Chen Xi.

Even Chen Xi had thought about the future talent supply and put it into practice, making Yunliu realize Chen Xi's determination to operate the city for a long time, rather than just building it and leaving it alone.

Chen Xi picked up a manuscript and handed it to Yunliu: "If you ask someone to copy it back, you can post it out. After the beginning of spring, all children can sign up for school. The school building has been built. In principle, they should be admitted nearby. They do not have to pay the teacher to repair it. The government will hire the teacher and pay the salary. The school will provide a free lunch at noon. All children under the age of twelve must be admitted, regardless of gender."

Yunliu said: "Sir, I'm afraid that no one will receive your kindness... Many families have migrated from afar. They can just eat a full meal, so how can they let their children who can help their family work to study?"

Chen Xi nodded: "It must be a lot of difficulties at the beginning. If it really doesn't work, use some compulsory means. If you think of making a living in Xincheng, you have to act according to the rules I set."

...

...

Chen Xi did not delay in opening a school.

After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, all the school buildings were repaired and the enrollment work was carried out in an orderly manner... Although this time it was not a compulsory compulsory education, it also stipulated that all workers who make a living in the new city would send their children to the school.

For most families, this kind of school run by the government has a strong attraction to them.

Just like Shen Mingjun and his wife were expecting Chenxi to study, ordinary people were very supportive of their children's study, but they often couldn't cope with this expense. Studying in this era is a luxury, and ordinary people had to let their children become apprentices early or simply do farm work.

Xincheng is not an agricultural city. Although there is land around it and tenants are beginning to appear, most of them are still workers. They moved to Xincheng as an investment in the future. Now that children can enter schools for free, most families still want to send their children to schools.

So much so that when counting the number of students, Chen Xi found that the actual number of applicants was much higher than the estimate, and had to temporarily increase the school building to meet the needs.

This means that the number of teachers will also increase. Although Chen Xi was prepared for a long time, he still had to recruit personnel from the surrounding prefectures and counties.

"Sir, there is no need to open so many schools. Now the number of applicants has exceeded 10,000. If you allow it to develop, it may be possible that the last 20,000 to 30,000 people may be."

Zhu Hong was arranged by Yunliu to be responsible for the establishment of the school, but he was not a scholar, had no experience, and was exhausted, so he came to Chen Xi to complain.

Chen Xidao: "What, even Yikuan, do you have to question my decision?"

Zhu Hong smiled bitterly: "Sir, is this an obvious thing... If we invest huge amounts of money to open a school, it is equivalent to giving people money in vain."

As a loyal slave of the Shen family, Zhu Hong did not support Chen Xi's way of cultivating talents at any cost. There were people who opened "Yi School" in the Ming Dynasty, but like Chen Xi, who satisfied the admission of children in a city, recruited them regardless of their origin, which was no different from throwing money into the river.

Chen Xidao: "How much money is spent? What is more important than shipbuilding is to cultivate talents. If you have talents, you have everything... Hi, you don't understand these things if you tell you. Do what I told you. If you want to learn, you can also study in the school. The next step I will promote is a literacy class specifically for adults."

Zhu Hong widened his eyes when he heard this: "Sir, do you want us to study too?"

Chen Xi said carelessly: "There is no harm in studying. There are few people doing farm work in Xincheng, and basically all workers are workers. Letting their children study for free is a benefit for them. Even they have to learn cultural knowledge themselves. It is difficult for people who don’t know a single word to do a good job."

Zhu Hong thought for a while and asked, "What's the matter?"

Chen Xidao: "People who know literacy are more likely to accept new things, have a broader horizon, and will be more mature and steady in dealing with people. The knowledge in the book is not to strengthen their bodies, but to arm their minds. In short, it is best for people in this city to be able to read and write the most basic, so that they can be qualified to inherit the career of their parents."

...

...

Chen Xi acted completely in Xincheng according to his own theory.

Unlike Chen Xi's past resistance in doing things, he basically encountered no obstacles this time.

The mountains are high and the emperor is far away. No one in the court cares. The new city looks prosperous, but in fact it is more like a city forgotten by the world. The people here are basically farmers who cannot survive in the local area... Who would leave their hometowns and migrate elsewhere?

Shen Xi's status is very different from before. It was too late for the people of the Nanjing court to curry favor with him, let alone cause trouble for him.

People who have had a relationship with Chen Xi or who don’t like Chen Xi will not object to it at this time, because they hope to expel Chen Xi from the capital. As for what Chen Xi does in other places, it doesn’t matter. In the eyes of these people, it is important to maintain harmony in the capital and officialdom.

Of course, this situation is only temporary. Chen Xi understands that if a year or two and others think he is not threatening, they will make a fuss about what he is doing now, say some of his kindness as a rebellious act, and use Confucian terms to criticize it.

Whoever holds the power of the court, the right to speak is in his hands. He can say that a thing that benefits the country and the people is a disaster for the country and the people. In short, justice and evil are just a control of public opinion. Chen Xi is very clear about this and will not let himself do nothing in Xincheng. Even if he is in Jiangnan, he will have an impact on the political situation of the Ming Dynasty.

After Chen Xi met Zhang Yong, the memorial recommended Zhang Yong to return to the capital was delivered to Zhu Houzhao within a few days.

The memorial was complicated and the writing was relatively obscure. Chen Xi mainly proposed to Zhu Houzhao that the meritorious personnel who ping Haijie and quelled the rebellion of Ningwang. He specifically mentioned Zhang Yong's merits and suggested that Zhu Houzhao summon Zhang Yong back to Beijing and stay by his side to serve his life.

But such a memorial cannot satisfy Zhang Yuan.

After receiving the memorial, Zhang Yuan deliberately refused to report to Zhu Houzhao, but he did not dare to hide it. So when Zhu Houzhao was tired and sleepy for a day, he mentioned that Shen Xi submitted a memorial to ask for rewards for the meritorious soldiers, which was very meaningful to report Chen Xi's usurpation... After all, the war to quell the rebellion of King Ning was led by Zhu Houzhao, and it was Zhu Houzhao's responsibility to reward the soldiers under his command for their merits and had little to do with Chen Xi. This could easily arouse Zhu Houzhao's dissatisfaction.

Zhu Houzhao was indeed trapped, and threw it aside without even reading the memorial, and fell asleep.

As time went by, Zhu Houzhao was still stuck in Huai'an Prefecture City. People around him also mentioned the rewards on merits many times. Zhu Houzhao suddenly remembered Chen Xi's memorial.

Zhu Houzhao is such a person. When Chen Xi made a comment, he felt annoyed. After all, Chen Xi was his teacher, and he would feel that his dignity could not be controlled by others.

But if he hadn't seen Chen Xi's memorial for a long time, he felt uneasy. Chen Xi taught him to be prepared for danger in times of peace. Zhu Houzhao was always afraid that people would think of his throne. Since he ascended the throne, King Anhua, Liu Jin and King Ning had rebelled three times, and even experienced the rebellion of Tatars, Central Plains and Japanese pirates. Zhu Houzhao was always wary of someone's rebellion.

On the day of the Lantern Festival, Zhu Houzhao watched the lanterns in Huai'an Prefecture. After returning to the journey, the first thing he did was to call Zhang Yuan and mention to Zhang Yuan about the matter of Chenxi's report.

Zhang Yuan originally thought that Zhu Houzhao would rest after coming back for a day when he was tired, but who would have thought that he would be summoned to face the saint without any mental preparation. When he found that Tang Yin was also beside the emperor, he felt that the problem was not right.

Zhu Houzhao asked, "What did the previous memorial in Shangshu Chen say specifically?"

Zhu Houzhao looked as usual. After Zhang Yuan glanced at him, he replied tremblingly: "Reply to Your Majesty's words, Duke Chen asked Your Majesty to ask for rewards for his soldiers."

Zhu Houzhao frowned: "It's just a matter of asking for rewards on merit?"

Zhang Yuan hesitated and said, "There are still some trivial matters, such as removing the combat readiness state in various parts of Jiangnan so that the soldiers can remove their armor and return to their fields, and... Your Majesty, the old slave cannot remember so much content. Why should I take the copy of Duke Chen's memorial and hand it over to His Majesty for his reading?"

Zhu Houzhao said angrily: "If I need to do anything myself, what do you want you to do? That's right? I know that there is no major event in Jiangnan now, and I didn't approve the matter of Shangshu Chen's request to start a war with Folang Jiren before, and I felt a little nervous. The most important thing now is to appease the people. My idea is to send more imperial envoys to the local area, especially in areas that have just experienced wars and disasters."

"this……"

Zhang Yuan couldn't help but look at Tang Yin next to him, wondering whether this incident came from the other party's suggestion. After a while, he said cautiously: "Your Majesty, the local government in Jiangxi is now providing relief to the affected people, so your Majesty does not need to worry about you."

Zhu Houzhao sighed, "Shouldn't I do something practical for the people? Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you that I will prepare to reform the official system in the capital. I have recently received some memorials from old ministers to resign. After returning to the capital, I will replace the Shangshu, Minister, Zhengqing, and Shaoqing with a group. The old ones will come down and replace the new ones."

Zhang Yuan thought to himself: "Your Majesty wants to replace young officials, but he is dissatisfied with the old ministers, but he doesn't mention the personnel of the cabinet. Could it be that this new and old change has nothing to do with the cabinet? Or is it just a shocking moment?"

Zhu Houzhao said again: "Are there some old guys in the Silijian who should step down?"

Zhang Yuan was tense and quickly replied: "Your Majesty is clear, Eunuch Gao's side..."

"Not only Eunuch Gao, you seem to be not young anymore."

Zhu Houzhao narrowed his eyes and said, "My idea is that in the future, the eunuch in charge of the seal of the Sili Supervisor should not always be one person, but two people, just like the eunuch who is on the pen is assigned by multiple people. If you have any questions, you can discuss it carefully. Or just take turns to see whoever has the ability can be a longer time."

Zhang Yuan burst into tears after hearing this and thought to himself: "Did my eldest nephew secretly make a complaint to Your Majesty again and complain to him? Or maybe it was the one who did it in front of him!"

"His Majesty……"

Zhang Yuan quickly defended, not wanting Zhu Houzhao to deprive him of his position.

Zhu Houzhao waved his hand: "I know you are reluctant. Now it's just an idea and has not settled down. Since Eunuch Gao is old, let him retreat. The vacancy of eunuch Bingbi can be found to be a capable person. It's better to be younger and have a motivation to do things. It's good to have a small twist, but he usually has to serve me..."

Xiao Tiaozi next to him quickly said, "Your Majesty, I am not capable enough, I am afraid I will not be able to do it."
Chapter completed!