The structure of the flush toilet is very simple. In the 16th century, the Englishman John Harrington invented the flush toilet. In 1775, a London clockmaker named Alexander Cumming improved Harrington's design and invented
He invented a valve device, developed a flush toilet, and obtained a patent for the first time.
As a city owner of Tianjing New City, Yang Peng thought about many plans and finally figured out the structure of the flush toilet. For Yang Peng, it was very simple to draw the structural diagram of the flush toilet.
The water tank switch of the toilet is very simple. With the design drawing drawn by Yang Peng, you can basically find a qualified coppersmith to make it. Although there is no plastic in this era, the use of copper can replace plastic.
The ceramic bucket body of the toilet is not difficult to build. In this era, the Song Dynasty has been able to make all kinds of exquisite porcelain, and firing the toilet bucket body is also a piece of cake. Yang Peng found Cai Huaishui, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, and handed him the design drawings.
Let him find a few reliable porcelain makers to make the barrel body.
There were local porcelain makers in Cangzhou, and it only took Cai Huaishui seven days to find someone to make three barrels. Yang Peng dug a hole in the glass workshop and mixed the burned toilet barrels with the copper made by the coppersmith.
The quality control mechanism was assembled and placed on the pit, and the first flush toilet in the Song Dynasty was born. Yang Peng threw a few wads of waste paper into the toilet, and when he pressed the button, the wads of paper were flushed into the puddle under the toilet.
inside.
Although there was no running water in this era, well water was easy to obtain. Every ten villas in Tianjing New City had a well dug. Before using the toilet, the user needs to carry a bucket of water and pour it into the ceramic bucket on the top of the toilet. Because using
Manual water filling does not require the float ball in the toilet tank. This float ball is the most complex part of the entire toilet technology. Not producing a float ball can save a lot of costs.
For flush toilets, the fixation of the toilet is very important. The pipes must be aligned and fixed. The cement produced by Yang Peng comes in handy at this time. Just use cement to fix the toilet barrel in the toilet.
, there is no problem that the barrel body moves and cannot be used.
After this new type of toilet is mass-produced, it will be sold to the people of Tianjing New City first. Yang Peng also arranged for personnel to go to the palace to install the new type of toilet. Yang Tong, Zhao Jinxi, and Ye Qi Hanyu looked at the installation team strangely.
, another group of people went to the mansions of Ye Qian Guanyin and Zhao Lihua to install new toilets.
There are septic tanks dug under the villas in Tianjing New City, and there is no need to modify the sewers to install flush toilets. Yang Peng gave preferential prices to the people of Tianjing New Town: as long as you buy the flush toilet with the waist card of a Tianjing New Town resident, the price is as low as
Two taels. This price also includes installation fees and cement material costs. As long as you pay two taels of silver and make an appointment, the construction team will come to install flush toilets for residents.
This is basically the cost price. Yang Peng hopes to use flush toilets to improve the sanitary conditions of Tianjing New City, and does not expect this new thing to make much money for himself. In fact, for the residents of Tianjing New City, installing toilets can not only
It eliminates the stench from the toilet and allows the people to have an extra small room. In the past, the Fanjiazhuang villa designed by Yang Peng had a dedicated bathhouse. Now that the toilet is equipped with a flush toilet, the toilet is no longer dirty.
It stinks. People can create a bathing space in the toilet, and the vacant bathhouse can be used as a small room.
Spending two taels of silver can not only improve the sanitary conditions, but also free up a small room, which is a very cost-effective deal. The original bathroom can be used to store sundries and can also be used as a children's bedroom.
After Yang Peng installed the toilet for Huan Lide, the Huan family immediately got rid of the stench of the toilet and had an extra room. People in Sanheng Street where the Huan family is located visited the Huan family's new toilet and immediately spread the benefits.
Out. People in Tianjing New City rushed to the toilet store in Fanjiazhuang to pay and make reservations. Within a few days, almost all the people in Tianjing New City registered to buy.
The situation in residential buildings in other places in Cangzhou is different. Most of the residential buildings in Cangzhou do not have septic tanks. To install a flush toilet, one needs to temporarily dig a septic tank, which is a huge amount of work. Without seven or eighty taels of civil engineering wages, the flush toilet cannot be installed.
Therefore, in Cangzhou Acropolis and other prefectures and counties, flush toilets have not yet become popular.
But Yang Peng believes that with the example set by the people of Tianjing New City, the people of the Ming Dynasty who like to follow the trend of new things, especially the wealthy people among them, will gradually install flush toilets.
Yang Peng is no longer prepared to keep this kind of toilet secret. It is too easy to imitate. Unless the entire Song Dynasty has a patent system to protect Yang Peng's intellectual property rights, Yang Peng will not be able to stop the imitators. And Yang Peng is now the King of Yan.
The magnanimity is no better than before. Yang Peng hoped that craftsmen from other places would learn this new type of toilet as soon as possible. He hoped that the people of the Song Dynasty would all use this type of flush toilet to improve their living and sanitary conditions.
Zhao Heng, an official of the Song Dynasty, stood in the newly built "bathroom" in the Palace of Qianqing. He looked at the toilet that Yang Peng paid tribute to and was amazed. The bathroom in the Palace of Qianqing was very large and impressive. Yang Peng sent him to Cangzhou a few days ago.
The craftsmen dug a septic tank behind the Qianqing Palace. After the septic tank was dug, the craftsmen sealed it with cement, leaving only a chimney made of white marble slabs for exhaust. In the Qianqing Palace, the craftsmen built it with cement.
Wall and install a flush toilet to create a toilet.
According to Yang Peng, this toilet with a flush toilet is clean and hygienic, so it should be called a "bathroom". Zhao Heng guessed that this meant washing hands after taking out the toilet, so he called the toilet a "bathroom".
There were originally no toilets in the Qianqing Palace. The toilets used by officials were called "official rooms" and were kept by special eunuchs. When necessary, they were transferred to the "official rooms" and were not usually placed in the palace. Compared with Yang Peng's toilet, the toilet originally used
The "official room" seems unhygienic and inconvenient.
Zhao Heng looked at the bathroom in the Qianqing Palace with joy and said with a smile: "I won't have to use the embarrassing 'official room' anymore." Zhao Heng found a piece of waste paper, crumpled it into a ball and threw it into the toilet.
As soon as he pressed the button on the toilet sink, he saw well water pouring from the sink into the toilet, wrapping the paper and flushing it away.
Zhao Heng smiled and said: "Okay, it really works! With a bathroom like this, I don't need anyone else to take care of my private matters, and the embarrassment in it is gone. It's really a good thing."
Wang Jin blinked and asked: "Your Majesty, how did King Yan invent so many new things? Where did he learn it? Even if Lu Ban comes back, I'm afraid he won't be able to match the skillful craftsmen of King Yan." Zhao Heng said, stroking his beard.
: "I don't know why King Yan can invent so many new things. But I know that King Yan is loyal. A good thing like a flush toilet is clean and hygienic. Yang Peng was the first to think of installing it for me. His loyalty can be seen.
"
Wang Jin cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Shengming." Zhao Heng stroked his beard and said, "Ask King Yan's craftsmen not to leave. I won't be polite to King Yan anymore. Let him decorate the palaces of the prince, princess, queen mother and princess."
Use the restroom. There are two princesses who need to install restrooms!"
In Heshan Township, Ningyang County, Shandong Province, dark clouds rolled in the sky. People in Heshan Township looked at the dark clouds in the sky one by one, hoping that these dark clouds would bring some rain to Heshan Township.
There has been no rain in Ningyang County for three months. Without rain, the crops cannot survive. Merely carrying water from rivers and wells for irrigation cannot save the crops. The rice in the field has dried up and turned yellow due to lack of water.
If it doesn't rain within a few months, there will be no harvest this year.
If there is no harvest, there will be no food to eat next year, so we have to flee famine. In the sixth year of Xianping, there was a severe drought in Shandong. At that time, several counties in Shandong were so hungry that the population was greatly reduced, and some people even exchanged their children for cannibalism. I didn’t expect that it would be difficult to survive.
Just two years after that severe drought, Ningyang County is experiencing another severe drought.
This drought lasted for three months and lasted for three months. How many people will starve to death in Ningyang County this time? Liu Jiangui, a farmer from Heshan Township, looked at the dark clouds in the sky helplessly and was so nervous that he could not speak. Now Liu Jiangui is actually very tired.
He spent the whole night carrying water to irrigate his fields last night, carrying water from the Dawen River to irrigate his own fields.
The Dawen River is also almost dry. There is only a little flowing water in the middle of the river bed, which looks like a small stream. It is not easy to climb from the river embankment to the bottom of the river bed to carry water. Liu Jiangui fell while walking yesterday.
When he fell down, he scraped against the ground and had a big cut on his arm.
However, even such hard work may only alleviate the gradual drying up of the rice. The Dawen River is three miles away from his field, and he can only carry two buckets of water at a time. After going back and forth twenty times, he barely managed to get more than ten acres of water.
The rice is poured with a shallow layer of water. If you want to obtain a subsistence harvest, this kind of irrigation is far from enough.
Liu Jiangui didn't dare to rest during the day. After sleeping for an hour, he got up again and prepared to fetch water. Liu Jiangui's crops were still close to the Dawen River, and he could get water with more effort. What was the situation like in the fields far away from the river?
?
There were a few men in the village who liked to go to the town to listen to the "Dali Temple Bulletin". Liu Jiangui heard them say that there was a severe drought in the whole of Shandong. The crops in many places had all withered. Not only was there a drought, there was also a locust plague in Qingzhou and Laizhou.
The locusts were so swarming that they didn't even spare the dry crops.
Liu Jiangui looked helplessly at the dark clouds in the sky, secretly thinking that only if God sent rain could he save the people of Shandong. Suddenly, the second son of the Huang family next door ran over, ran to the door of Liu Jiangui's yard and shouted: "Liu Jiangui,
Go to the Dragon King Temple quickly. Mr. He has put out sacrifices to pray for rain!"
Master He asked for rain? Liu Jiangui was overjoyed when he heard this. He dropped the pole and ran to the Dragon King Temple by the river. When he got there, Liu Jiangui found that hundreds of people had gathered outside the Dragon King Temple. They were all dressed in ragged clothes.
The farmers knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the statue in the Dragon King Temple.
He Yuanwai, the largest landowner in Heshan Township, placed a pig's head, chicken and duck sacrifices on the sacred table of the Dragon King Temple, and was offering incense to the Dragon King.
Liu Jiangui also walked in and knelt behind the villagers. He Yuanwai burned incense and shouted loudly: "Yang Peng, the king of Yan, brought trouble to Shandong and manipulated public opinion, angered God, and finally caused a severe drought. However, we and other people are all innocent."
, definitely not a member of Li’s bandits. I also ask the Dragon King to take pity on the people of Heshan Township and show his spiritual power to send auspicious rain so that our people in Heshan Township will not suffer from famine in the coming year.”
Liu Jiangui was stunned when he heard what He Yuanwai said, and secretly wondered what the relationship between the severe drought and the King of Yan was. He Yuanwai hated Yang Peng to the core and blamed the drought on the King of Yan. However, the people were eager to pray for rain at this time, so they asked for help.
He Yuanwai respected Qian Qiuyu very much, and no one came out to refute He Yuanwai. He Yuanwai chanted for a while in front of the sacred case, knelt down and kowtowed, and inserted three sticks of incense into the incense burner.
As soon as He Yuanwai put on the incense, there was a roar of thunder outside the temple.
Is it thundering? Is it going to rain? The people in the temple became excited and looked at He Yuanwai in front of the divine case. He Yuanwai had a clever idea and knelt down in front of the divine case and shouted loudly: "The Dragon King has a spirit! If the Dragon King is angry,
Thief Li, you can bring disaster to Tianjing New City. I, the people of Shandong, are definitely not party members of King Yan Yang Peng. I hope that the Dragon King will send down the rain to save our people."
After He Yuanwai said this, he kept kowtowing to the statue of the Dragon King. The people kneeling inside and outside the Dragon King Temple also followed He Yuanwai and kowtowed vigorously to the statue. As if they were very disappointed with He Yuanwai's words, the rolling thunder suddenly stopped.
No matter how devoutly everyone knelt, the thunder never sounded again. Liu Jiangui raised his head and looked at the sky, only to see that the dark clouds were getting lighter and lighter, and gradually split. A beam of desperate sunlight pierced the scattered dark clouds.
, fell to the dry earth.
Liu Jiangui felt greatly depressed and fell helplessly on the ground. There was no harvest this year and he would starve to death next year. The "Dali Temple Bulletin" said that Henan was also experiencing a severe drought this year and the harvest in South Zhili was not good. Even if he went out to escape famine,
I'm afraid it's a narrow escape, and I might die in a foreign country.
That beam of sunshine broke the illusions of many people. The people looked at the sky in despair, and they were speechless. After a while, some people hugged each other and started crying.
Liu Jiangui sighed and was about to get up when he suddenly saw a panicked young man running from a distance. "It's not good! The Dawen River has stopped flowing! The Dawen River has dried up!"
It was over. Liu Jiangui felt as if someone had punched him in the chest, and he could not react for a long time. He only felt that it was difficult to breathe, and suddenly his vision went black and he fainted.
"There was a severe drought in Shandong in March, and the bare land was thousands of miles away. All the people's crops have dried up, and next year's rations may have been wiped out. The locusts covered the sky in Qingzhou, Dengzhou and Laizhou, leaving no grass behind..."
At this time, all Yang Peng's important subordinates were seated. Yang Peng nodded towards Ye Qi Hanyu, who stood up and said: "The official sent an imperial edict yesterday, saying that there was a severe drought in Shandong, and we, Tianjing New City, were asked to contribute funds for disaster relief. This matter
It’s very important, let’s discuss how we should respond!”
Everyone was a little surprised when they heard this. Everyone knows about the severe drought in Shandong. Shandong has been dry for three months. Except for a light rain in Dengzhou and Laizhou, it can be said that there has not been a drop of rain in other parts of Shandong in the past three months.
.Officials in Tianjing New City have long known about Shandong's plight from the Dali Temple communiqué. They know that all crops in Shandong have been dried up this year.
This year's crops are over, and farmers will have nothing to eat next year. Of course, disaster relief is needed. But this disaster relief should obviously be done by the court. How can the officials leave the burden to Tianjing New City?
Huang Guang, Yang Peng's Minister of Household Affairs, is now Yang Peng's general manager of military supplies. He is in charge of the manufacturing of various weapons and military supplies. He is also a prominent official in Tianjing New City. He knocked the dry cigarette on the tea table on the right
Knocked, knocked the ash into the ceramic jar, and said loudly: "The officials collect taxes in Shandong, but we don't collect taxes in Shandong! We in Tianjing New City hold the "Dali Temple Announcement" in Shandong and station the troops for a penny.
No money was made! Tianjing New City provided the money, and we couldn’t make ends meet. No matter how you calculate, it’s not our Tianjing New City’s turn to do this disaster relief!”
Cai Huaishui, Yang Peng's Minister of Industry, said: "I think this is the truth!" Cai Huaishui is now the general manager of Yang Peng's civilian supplies factory, with tens of thousands of people under his command. Over the years, he has grown a goatee and behaves quite dignified. At this time,
He stroked his beard and said: "Your Majesty, this cannot be done. There are more than 10 million hungry people in Shandong, and this is a bottomless pit. How much money does it cost to maintain a porridge shed for a year? I'm afraid 20 million taels is not enough! How can we have so much money?
?”
Everyone nodded when they heard Cai Huaishui's words. Zhan Jinguo and Zhang Xiang looked at each other, stood up and said, "King Yan, this is impossible. Not to mention that buying a thousand kilo of rice at the market price for disaster relief costs two dollars."
With more than ten million taels of silver, where can we buy so much food for disaster relief? If we buy ten million taels of food within a year, we will probably drive the national food price to the sky. Even if we have money, we will not be able to buy it.
"
Zhan Jinguo said loudly: "Your Majesty, the government has thrown this burden to us, we can't accept it!" Yang Peng looked at Zhan Jinguo and said calmly: "There is no need to worry about the problem of disaster relief food. I, the prince, will
There is a way to solve it." After hearing Yang Peng's words, everyone was stunned. Relieving the hungry people in Shandong requires at least 10 million dan of food, but King Yan said it lightly.
How did King Yan raise this thousand stones of food? However, Yang Peng's methods over the years were really unpredictable, and everyone had a blind trust in Yang Peng. As long as King Yan said it could be done, it must be done. Everyone
So we ignored the issue of food sources and started discussing the benefits of disaster relief.
Cai Huaishui took a puff of dry cigarette and said: "King Yan, the officials want us to provide disaster relief. Even if we can get food, we can't do it in vain. If ten million dan of food is dropped, it will make a loud noise! We have to collect taxes in Shandong!
"
Zhang Xiang said loudly: "Cai Shangshu said it well. The government asked us to provide disaster relief. We must collect commercial taxes and equalize land taxes in Shandong, just like Tianjing New City! This way we can recover the disaster relief expenses." Han Bing said: "
Your Majesty, although the civil servants in Shandong are obedient on the surface, they are still dissatisfied with us in their hearts. I think we can take this opportunity to ask the officials for the appointment power of the Xuanwei envoy in Shandong. From now on, the prince will decide who will be the envoy of Xuanwei in Shandong.
, those local officials naturally became dissatisfied."
After hearing Han Bing's words, everyone fell silent. The request to appoint Shandong Xuanwei envoy seemed a bit too big. If the officials agreed to Yang Peng, they would completely divide the territory and turn Shandong into Yang Peng's independent kingdom.
No matter how you look at it, this request is impossible. Han Bing looked at the silent crowd and said: "They are asking for prices all over the place and they are bargaining on the spot. The government has made such a ridiculous request for us to provide disaster relief. Of course we have to respond to him."
A few difficult conditions."
Everyone felt relieved and nodded in agreement. Zhang Xiang thought for a while and said: "Also, our troops are illegally stationed in Shandong, and the courts are not recognized by the court. Now that the officials ask us to provide disaster relief, we must ask the officials to do so."
We appointed my eldest brother as the military commander of Shandong! This way we can legitimately control the military and judicial affairs of Shandong."
Everyone's eyes lit up when they heard this and they all agreed. The generals and bureaucrats discussed for a while and talked a lot. Yang Peng nodded and finally concluded: "Okay, we will agree to the official's request for disaster relief."
.However, we put forward four requirements: the title of Shandong Admiral, commercial taxes, land taxes, and our appointment of Shandong Xuanwei envoy."
"If the government agrees to our four conditions, we will ensure that no one in Shandong will starve to death." Xie Liangyou said: "Disaster relief requires at least 10 million shi of grain. Such large-scale purchases of grain will definitely increase grain prices in various places.
Calculated, it is impossible to save Shandong province without thirty million taels of silver. If we want to rely on commercial taxes to recover the capital, it will take more than ten years."
Everyone fell silent when they heard this. Now Yang Peng only had more than 10 million taels of silver in his bank account. He could not raise 30 million taels of silver to buy food for disaster relief. In everyone's hearts, this
Disaster relief is an impossible task, and I don't know what Yang Peng is planning to do.
Yang Peng said lightly: "I think this disaster relief, as long as we think of some ways to do it, it won't cost much money. Those gentry and landlords have a lot of money but are unwilling to provide disaster relief. Let's think of a way to make them bleed!"
Everyone looked at Yang Peng, but they didn't know how Yang Peng planned to make the gentry bleed. Yang Peng smiled and said: "But first, we must prepare the food for disaster relief. Cui Changwu, come with me. We will write a formal order to Hsinchu."
Zheng Hui."
"The amount of ten million shi is too huge. In order not to cause large fluctuations in the supply and demand of grain prices in various places, King Yan plans to purchase grain in batches in various places and use fleets to transport it. In North Zhili, he bought 2 million shi. In South Zhili, he bought 2 million shi.
Li bought four million stones. In Zhejiang, he bought two million stones, and in Fujian and Guangdong, he bought one million stones each."
Finally, the "Dali Temple Announcement" once again emphasized the importance of sincere cooperation, emphasizing that as long as the gentry in the world did not drive up the price of rice, the King of Yan would be able to successfully relieve Shandong.
After Zhang Keli read the Dali Temple announcement, he snorted coldly and slapped the newspaper on the tea table. He looked at his eldest son and asked: "It seems that Yang Peng really wants to buy 10 million stones of grain for disaster relief." Zhang Keli's
The eldest son nodded and said: "Father, this is not wrong. If he doesn't buy food, what will he do for disaster relief? For this disaster relief, the officials have given Yang Peng the official position of Shandong Military and Horse Supervisor, and also allowed Yang Peng to work in Shandong in the future.
Collecting business taxes. Yang Peng's reply to the officials has been made public. Yang Peng was very happy with the official position and tax rights given by the officials, and was determined to spend money on disaster relief, saying that 'no one in Shandong will starve to death'!"
"Yang Peng is using the disaster relief this time to actually control Shandong Province. This time the officials and Yang Peng are purely making a deal. If Yang Peng cannot successfully purchase enough grain to feed the drought-stricken Shandong, the officials will definitely give it to him.
If the official title is taken back, Yang Peng will definitely not be allowed to levy commercial taxes."
"So Yang Peng is going all out this time and will definitely buy food with all his strength. Father, if you look at the wording in the "Dali Temple Announcement", he is almost begging the gentry in the world. He also knows that if the gentry in the world do not cooperate, he will lose more than 30 million taels.
Silver cannot buy ten million stones of grain."
Zhang Keli's eldest son paused and then said: "Father, the population of South Zhili is more than 20 million, and the surplus grain in the market of South Zhili is only a few million dan. Yang Peng came to buy 4 million dan at once, almost
How can it be so easy to buy Kongnan Zhili?"
"As long as we work a little bit, we can drive the price of food to the sky. Not only will Yang Peng be forced to hand over all his money, but he will also be unable to get enough food for disaster relief. When the time comes, he will spend all his money and be imprisoned.
Wouldn’t it be a good thing if we take back our official positions and tax rights?”
Zhang Keli thought for a while and said: "This seems to be the case. But I always feel that there is something strange... Yang Peng is not stupid. He buys grain in such a big way. Isn't he afraid that the gentry in the world will raise the price of grain and make things difficult for him?
."
Zhang Keli's eldest son smiled and said: "Father, Yang Peng is really out of his mind this time. He thought that he was doing a good deed by paying for disaster relief, and everyone in the world would cooperate with him. But he didn't know that the world's scholars and gentry
I hate him to the core, even if I get a bad name, I will bring Yang Peng down."
What happened after all? Let’s look at the breakdown next time.