Chapter 75 The illiterate emperor was good at carpentry

Xizong's father, Guangzong, was not loved by his father, Emperor Shenzong, when he was the prince.Because Shenzong didn't want to make him a prince, he didn't let him go out to study for a long time, making the future emperor almost illiterate.But Guangzong was in fear and had no time to care about his son's studies, so Zhu Youxiao turned out to be illiterate.When Guangzong ascended the throne, the ministers advised him to quickly find a teacher for the prince to study, but he said that he was not in a hurry, let's talk about it in two days.As a result, within a few days, he died, and the illiterate Zhu Youxiao became the emperor.

However, although the emperor was illiterate, he had a well-known craft, that is, carpentry. To say that the emperor is really talented in this.At that time, the beds made by the craftsmen were extremely heavy, and it took more than a dozen people to move them.The emperor figured it out by himself, designed the pattern himself, sawed the wood and peg boards, and immediately made a new bed.This bed is extremely exquisite, with various patterns engraved on the bed frame, and the bed board can be folded, making it easy to move and carry.As soon as the emperor's new design came out, even the old craftsmen were amazed.He also likes to make all kinds of small toys with wood.He has carved many lifelike little wooden figures, with facial features and limbs, all equipped, men, women, old and young, with different expressions.He can still do the work of a painter, so he painted these wooden figures with five-color paint, which made the colorful paintings look like life.He sent the inner eunuch to sell it on the market, and the people in the city bought it at a high price, which made the emperor very excited and full of confidence, and he did it even more happily.

The emperor kept improving carpentry work, and there were even more exquisite "works".He once built a small palace in the courtyard, imitating the style of the Qianqing Palace, no more than three or four feet high, with subtle twists and turns and exquisite workmanship.He also made an agarwood rockery, among which the pool, terrace and forest pavilions are all well-equipped and meticulously carved, which can be called a must.He not only made models, but also used this talent in the construction of real palaces. From the fifth year of Tianqi (1625) to the seventh year of Tianqi (1627), the imperial court carried out a large-scale reconstruction project on the Zhongji Hall, Huangji Hall and Jianji Hall.From erecting pillars, erecting beams to inserting swords and hanging plaques, the emperor visited the site in person throughout the project and put forward many opinions on the construction of the palace.His engraving skills are not bad either. He once made ten lamp screens, on which were engraved the picture of "Shanque Zhengmei", which is delicate and lifelike.He can also engrave seals. He once made gold seals weighing three hundred taels each for the nanny Hakka and her "counter food" Wei Zhongxian. Take care of the loyal and virtuous seal of the officials of the Yuan Dynasty."It seems that he really can't do without these two people all the time, they have a deep affection for each other, and he thinks about them even when he makes something.

The little emperor, who cannot do without his nanny, of course likes to play very much.But many of his games are very childish.For example, he once hung a silver bell on the main hall, and then let the maids run around in the hall with their heads covered. If anyone came across the bell, he would give the bell to her, and hang another one to play with.He also likes to play hide-and-seek, and often hides for the court ladies to find him.He also likes flowers, and he often carries a lot of flowers and plants in his sleeves, and he can smell the fragrance from a long distance.Therefore, even though he was hidden, the maids had already figured out where he was from the fragrance.But in order not to disappoint him, he deliberately pretended to search for a long time before finding it, which made the little emperor very happy.In winter, the pond in the West Garden of the Palace Garden froze, and the ice was very hard.The emperor asked a group of eunuchs to play ice games with him.He personally designed a small drag bed, which was small and exquisite, and could only seat one person. He painted it with red paint, installed a canopy, and used red silk as a rail around it, and there were small hooks for hanging ropes at the front and back.The emperor sat on the drag bed and asked the eunuchs to pull the rope. Some of them used the rope to pull, some guided in front of the bed, and some pushed behind the bed. Together, the drag bed moved extremely fast, and it took a while to go back and forth. For several miles, the emperor had a great time.

Later, he also applied his exquisite craftsmanship to various games.He once designed an elaborate fountain.Fill water with a large copper tank, drill holes in the bottom of the tank and set up organs.As soon as the mechanism was turned on, the water sprayed out.First it poured like a waterfall, then scattered like flying snow, and finally embraced a high stream of water, which went straight up like a jade pillar.At this time, many gold-plated wooden balls hidden in the bottom of the tank also rolled out, hugged the top of the water column, circled up and down, and did not fall for a long time.The emperor often appreciates it with his concubines, and applauds when he reaches the subtleties.

He also designed exquisite "water puppets".In fact, it is a puppet show in which artists directly manipulate puppets to perform stories on the water.At that time, these puppets had been carved very exquisitely and meticulously, and the performances were also very complicated, but the emperor still wanted to keep improving and improve them.He personally carved two-foot-high colored painted wooden figures of men and women, with different expressions, all with only arms but no legs. A mechanism was placed at the bottom of the wooden figure, supported by a three-foot-long bamboo board.With the "actor", it is necessary to design the "stage".He chiseled and nailed a large log into a square wooden pool, each one foot long and one foot wide, filled it with water to seventy percent full, and put fish, shrimp, and crabs in the water to let them swim around.Put in water plants and make them float on the water.Then put a stool under the wooden pool to support it, and surround it with yarn to form a screen, which becomes a stage for water puppets.

Then the performance began. Artists floated the wooden figurines on the water with bamboo pieces according to the plot, and let them perform various performances. The emperor watched with relish and applauded non-stop.According to records, the repertoires often performed in the palace at that time included "Dongfang Shuo Stealing Peach", "Sanbao Eunuch's Voyage to the West", "Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea", "Sun Walker Raising Trouble in the Dragon Palace", etc. Listening to the titles, you can know that they are all "lively plays". The costumes are novel, the performances are ingenious, and they are vivid; sometimes monsters are exposed, and sometimes gods and ghosts appear indiscriminately, just in line with the appetite of the little emperor, and he is even more mesmerized.

Not only this kind of "water puppet" show, but the little emperor is also very interested in real theatrical performances.His interest came from his interest in military affairs.He was good at martial arts by nature, and under Wei Zhongxian's instigation, he set up an internal drill in the palace, and selected young eunuchs to form troops and play war games.And they played decently, and the scale became bigger and bigger. Later, tens of thousands of "warriors" were assembled, all wearing armor and bright costumes. They practiced endlessly all day long. .The emperor himself even went into battle on horseback, as the commander-in-chief of the "big army", looking forward to flying, triumphant.Seeing that the emperor turned the good palace into a big training ground, the ministers all thought it was ridiculous, and they all asked the emperor to end the internal exercises.But the emperor was having a good time, so he refused to listen to them.

However, if you are so noisy, you can't go to the battlefield after all, so it's just like acting.So the emperor was very excited when he saw the drama about fighting, and eagerly hoped to play a role in it.The emperor is very professional and meticulous in acting.He once rehearsed a play.One of them is "Visiting Pu on a Snowy Night", in which Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin visited Prime Minister Zhao Pu on a snowy night to discuss how to unify the country.Since it is called "Snowy Night", it can be seen that it is winter, and the characters in the play must wear winter clothes.But it was early summer when the emperor was filming, and the weather was extremely hot.But the little emperor had to act like it, so he braved the scorching heat, put on a thick cloak, and put on a cotton hat, and persisted in the performance even though he was sweating profusely.

"Long live" is here to play with full concentration, regardless of national affairs.But he doesn't need to worry about it, because there is a "nine thousand years old" who has already taken care of it for him.