Chapter 6: BMW
Yang You did not know that his unintentional actions would cause such a big stir among the officials of Daxing, and even if he knew, he wouldn't care.
Because of taking power and changing the fate of the puppet emperor was his purpose all along. In order to avoid repeating past mistakes, he must take this step.
After passing the early morning, Ping Honggui sent a good news, and in just five days, the first four-wheeled carriage had been installed.
After getting the drawings last time, Ping Hong returned to the Ministry of Works and immediately gathered the only few skilled craftsmen together to collectively overcome difficulties. With ready-made drawings as a basis, the first four-wheeled carriage was made in just five days.
Yang Youxing arrived at the Imperial Chariot Works with Ping Hong, who had just returned as the Vice Minister of Works.
Many officials were quietly paying attention to Yang You's actions and soon received the news that Yang You had arrived at the Ministry of Works.
It was a shock, no one had expected that the Crown Prince's actions would be so swift and silent, quietly bringing the Minister of Works under his command.
The Ministry of Works has always been at the bottom of the imperial court, and Ping Hong's days in Daxing were not easy either. However, the form of seizing the throne is still unclear, how did he rush in with a confused mind!
The queen of the king's mother, who is in a higher position and has a greater chance of succession. After all, Yang You is only a thirteen-year-old child, and among the three brothers of the crown prince, he is the weakest. Is it also too hasty to bet on him now?
Many ministers were confused and did not know what Ping Hong was thinking in his heart.
Ping Honggui never thought of these, and he was still immersed in the joy of the successful four-wheeled carriage. He had solved a problem that had puzzled people for hundreds of years, and the world's first four-wheeled carriage was born under his hands.
Pay respects to King Dae-wang.
In front of the Imperial Stables, over a hundred craftsmen appeared at the gate and upon seeing Yang You, they bowed their heads in greeting.
The Imperial Chariot Works was a place where vehicles were specially produced for the royal family, and the horses and carriages of the imperial family had always been made by the Imperial Stables. This time, the task of making the four-wheeled carriage was also undertaken by the Imperial Chariot Works.
However, with the eastward migration of the capital, the once brilliant Imperial Chariot Works gradually lost its former splendor. After Luoyang's Imperial Chariot Works took away a large number of skilled craftsmen, it quickly declined.
It didn't take two years to be merged with the Daxing Gongbu, and now the Yu Chejian is barely surviving under the protection of the Gongbu. In the past two years, it has only received one task, which was the carriage for Yang You's trip to Luoyang, a truly miserable situation.
The most unfortunate thing was that the carriage they had built with all their might for the Crown Prince ended up having a malfunction, causing the Crown Prince to fall seriously ill, and everyone's heart was filled with anxiety.
Fortunately, there is such an opportunity to redeem oneself. The Minister of Works has brought the request for a carriage from the Crown Prince, and he wants to build a carriage that the Crown Prince will like, so he will spare no effort.
This concerns the future fate of Yu Che Jian, creating a satisfactory carriage for the king, winning this comeback battle, and perhaps being able to restore the glory of Da Xing Yu Che Jian is not certain.
All craftsmen worked overtime and finally completed it in the shortest time. They immediately notified Prince Dai to come over.
No need to thank me.
Yang Youxu raised his right hand.
Although Yu Che Jian is an official place and relatively safe.
But Dong Yue, the leader of the guards who had been following and protecting Yang You all along, did not let his guard down and re-examined everything before allowing Yang You to enter.
Dong Yue was over thirty years old, with a strong back and waist, in the prime of his life. He was extremely cautious about Yang You's safety.
The imperial carriage supervisor didn't think much of it either. In the past when the imperial carriage supervisor was glorious, every time the emperor came, the lineup was much grander than this.
It's been a long time since I've encountered such a majestic carriage escort. Not only did he not complain, but he even became somewhat excited.
Under Ping Honggui's leadership, Yang You entered the Yu Che Jian and arrived at a flat empty space.
Please look, Your Highness.
In the middle of the empty space stood a brand new four-wheeled carriage, next to which were four pure white horses, all of which had already been harnessed and were ready to be driven at any moment.
Yang You walked up close and gently touched this brand new carriage, the first thing he had ever made that was out of place in this world.
Although the two-wheeled carriage was mainstream in the Sui Dynasty, Yang You from later generations knew that the four-wheeled carriage was the way to go, because its four points of contact with the ground could reduce the load on the horse by half, making it more durable.
The horse's load is lighter, and naturally the weight, speed and distance will all increase.
"Not bad, not bad, I didn't expect you guys to make it so quickly." Yang You praised.
The Deputy King is ashamed of the officials, if it weren't for the Deputy King's unique creativity, our Ministry of Works and Imperial Chariot Department would not be able to think of such a perfect carriage even if we racked our brains.
Enough of this nonsense! Four-wheeled carriages already existed in the Qin Dynasty. This is not My King's idea.
Ping Honggui was not embarrassed even when he was pointed out, and with a smile, he continued to introduce the carriage to Yang You.
Your Highness, please take a look. This is the shock-absorbing device you requested. However, the spring-like object Your Highness drew was too intricate and the Ministry of Works has not been able to make it yet. We had no choice but to use this clumsy method instead.
Yang You bent down to look at the seismic isolator made of iron sheet with spring principle, nodded and said it was good enough, as for the spring, it could be made later.
Ping Hong returned to see Yang You without getting angry, let out a sigh of relief, and continued to work on the braking system for Yang You.
Brake devices are the simplest in principle but the most difficult to manufacture among all objects.
The drawings of the four-wheeled carriage had been collected by Yu Ma Jian long ago, and the idea for the shock-absorbing device came from the Qin Dynasty's four-wheeled carriage.
It took nearly five days to complete, the biggest difficulty was in the brakes, fortunately, it was finally overcome, using a manual brake method.
Yang You felt a bit ashamed, not having thought that his casual instructions, which seemed easy to him, would cause such great difficulties for these craftsmen.
What surprised Yang You most was that these craftsmen had perfectly solved the difficult problem of steering a four-wheeled carriage.
Yang Yu originally painted a handle in the shape of a bicycle, and the clever Sui Dynasty scientists installed a driver's seat on the carriage shaft. Under the driver's feet were two pedals connected to the front axle, allowing the driver to easily control the direction of the horse-drawn vehicle with the help of his foot strength.
Yang You circled around the four-wheeled carriage and nodded in satisfaction.
To put it bluntly, this is the most advanced carriage of our time.
Yang You personally sat up and went forward, Dong Yue led four fine horses to be harnessed, the four fine horses had been impatient for a long time.
Drive
Dong Yue shouted in a low voice, and the four fine horses slowly started, beginning to run around the empty field.
The ride is very smooth, shock absorption measures are good, and there is almost no shaking like a two-wheeled carriage.
Yang You sat in the carriage, feeling its speed, this was already the tenth lap, and the horse's pace had not slowed down at all.
Exhale
Dong Yue slowed down the horse carriage and pulled down the hand brake on his left side. The horse carriage came to a steady stop in its original position.
Not bad, all craftsmen who participated in making this four-wheeled horse cart will be rewarded.
Yang You jumped down from the horse carriage and said happily.
Thank you, Your Highness.
The craftsmen were overjoyed, as their wages were also meager. As a substitute for the king's generosity, the reward would never be small.
"Thanks for your hard work, Ping Shilang."
"The old minister dare not take credit" is a humble and modest way of Ping Honggui's return.
"This carriage is very much liked by the king, I wonder how much it costs?" Yang You asked.
Ping Hong returned with a foolish expression, according to his understanding, the royal family's craftsmanship was never calculated by cost. This workmanship, this wood material, are all top-notch, and its value is really hard to estimate.
The eyes indicated an old craftsman coming forward. This was the master craftsman of the Imperial Chariot Department, Xie Ji. The four-wheeled carriage was made under his supervision.
I report to Your Highness, this horse carriage is made of the finest materials, and the value of the wood alone exceeds 50 guan.
Yang You estimated that fifty taels of silver was no small sum in this era.
What if it were mass-produced using some precious but common materials?
If mass-produced using some common precious woods, the cost can be controlled within ten yuan, and the output can reach 10 vehicles per day.
Xie Ji was somewhat perplexed and didn't know why the king would ask such questions, because royal craftsmanship had always been extravagant, wanting the most expensive, not the best.
"First, let's build a royal carriage for the emperor and try to deliver it to Jiangdu as soon as possible." Yang You thought for a moment before saying, "Then we'll build ten more top-of-the-line horse-drawn carriages."
"Yes, I humbly obey the command of His Highness the Crown Prince."
Ping Hong's face showed a pleased expression, but in his heart he was bleeding profusely. These eleven horse carriages had directly emptied the Ministry of Works."
"This king knows that the Ministry of Works is currently underfunded, but it won't be long before the Ministry of Works becomes the richest department." Yang You sold a pass.
Ping Honggui listened with a confused expression, but Xie Ji looked at the four-wheeled carriage with a thoughtful gaze.
"What Your Highness means is that we are allowed to manufacture four-wheeled horse carriages for profit?" Xie Ji ventured.
"Not bad"
Receiving a positive response, Xie was so excited that her eyes were brimming with tears.
"Thank you, Your Highness, for giving our Ministry of Works a way out." Ping Honggui also reacted and choked with sobs.
The Ministry of Works has been impoverished because it has never received government orders. Now that we have the secret weapon of four-wheeled carts, with the craftsmanship of the Ministry of Works, we will not fail.
"How much does this four-wheeled carriage sell for?" Xie Ji asked.
"Thirty taels." Yang You's words were unyielding and would not rest until he had his way.
"Thirty guan?" Xie Ji and Ping Honggui exclaimed in unison.
A four-wheeled carriage made of precious wood costs ten taels, and one carriage can make a profit of twenty taels. After deducting labor costs and tribute to the imperial court, at least ten taels will be left in the Ministry of Works' pocket.
One day is ten vehicles, that's one hundred strings, a month is three thousand strings. With this income alone, the Ministry of Works can live a very comfortable life, enough to make all departments jealous. At that time, their arch-nemesis, the Ministry of Works in Luoyang, will definitely reach out.
"But in order to keep this golden egg-laying hen safe, I can only rely on one person, and that is His Highness the Crown Prince." thought Hei Hiro.
He knew this was a chance to make a comeback, and from then on he would be branded as the substitute king, but what's wrong with that? From his two encounters, the Substitute King was the only one who could ascend to the throne, so why not give it a try.
But this four-wheeled carriage can only be used in the city, and once it leaves the city, it is not as flexible as a two-wheeled carriage. Would anyone spend 30 taels to buy one? Xie Ji was also very tempted, but he still raised his professional concerns.
Why doesn't anyone buy? This four-wheeled carriage is comfortable, safe, more comfortable than riding a horse, faster than taking a sedan chair, and it's our exclusive business. Do you think there will be buyers?
Yang Youle said with relish, the carriage that made him excited, how could it be that no one likes it. A good car in any era is an irresistible temptation for men.
Thirty taels may be a staggering figure for ordinary people, but for the officials and wealthy merchants of Daxing City, thirty taels are just a drop in the bucket.
"And I've already given it a name. From now on, let's call it the 'Bao Ma' four-wheeled horse carriage." Yang You waved his hand and said.
This is a great opportunity to curry favor with officials, Ping Honggui added in his heart, and as an old official, he saw at a glance that this four-wheeled carriage had another huge market.
