Under Xu Baoer's supervision, about an hour later, the old craftsman held a tray. On the mahogany tray, there was a layer of silk and satin. On the silk and satin, there were ten gold pens arranged side by side.
It's a real gold pen.
The entire pen barrel and cap are made of gold and silver. He Xi took one, which was heavy on his hand and weighed about one or two hundred grams. Although the gold was not pure, the value was beyond He Xi’s estimation. He Xi had not seen him. I have never had such a big piece of gold before. Not to mention, there are ten of them at once.
He Xi felt a little distracted for a moment.
Although he had been living in the Qianqing Palace during this period of time, in the core area of the Ming Dynasty, He Xi didn't feel much about it. Without him, Zhu Yuanzhang's life was simple. Zhu Yuanzhang's Qianqing Palace was just a bigger house. The food we ate was just plain food. At most, it was just four dishes and one soup. It was no better than the work meals of later generations.
That’s not to say that the imperial chefs are not good. The Ming Dynasty has just founded the country. No one dares to fool Zhu Yuanzhang. The imperial chefs of the Ming Dynasty are okay. But they lack many condiments from later generations. Even eating it on He Xi felt mediocre.
He Xi did not feel the power and wealth of the Ming Dynasty at all. He even had the illusion that it was still in modern times.
But today, He Xi suddenly realized where he was. Ten gold pens, even if they were not pure gold, would have taken He Xi several years of hard work to earn in later generations. But now he opened his mouth and it was here. In his hands.
It is true that modern technology cannot be compared with that of later generations, but it does not mean that the enjoyment of the top dignitaries of the Ming Dynasty is really the same as that of ordinary people of later generations.
At this moment, something changed in He Xi's heart. But this change was not clear for a while.
"Sir, let's try the pen first." Xu Bao'er said with an apologetic smile.
He Xi said: "Okay."
Then he picked up a gold pen, sucked up the ink, and started writing. As expected, the gold pen tip was soft and wear-resistant, and He Xi wrote easily. He Xi said, "Not bad."
The old craftsman immediately said: "Sir, this is because of the ink. Everyone inhales the ink. If they don't write, they must be cleaned immediately. Therefore, prepare ten sticks. Let Mr. He spare them."
He Xi was overwhelmed by this luxury and didn't know how to deal with it. He looked at the golden pen and picked it up carefully, saying: "Okay, thank you very much." He thought to himself: "This is gold."
He had never thought about using gold as a pen in his life.
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Although the craftsmen of the Silver Making Bureau are almost at the highest level of the craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty, the fountain pens they produce, no, they should be called gold pens now, still have problems of one kind or another. Ink plugging, ink leakage, etc. are endless.
Only at this moment did He Xi know why he had to make ten pens at once.
Because if something goes wrong, it can be rotated, and there are even several specialized craftsmen waiting to repair He Xi's pen.
Facts have proved that the benefits of power are unimaginable. In this way, although the craftsmanship is insufficient and there are various problems, but with the accumulation of a large number of resources, He Xi has not encountered any problems in using the pen. After all, there are problems, only It needs to be given to the guards outside. Just take another one and use it.
And after so many days of running-in, this gold pen is getting better and better. And He Xi doesn’t know how many pens Yin Zuo Bureau made for him and how much gold and silver he used. Anyway, this gold pen is becoming more and more comfortable to use. .It is said that even the ink is specially developed.
He Xi didn't even dare to calculate how much manpower and material resources were spent.
Just about half a month ago, He Xi finally used more than 200,000 words to write down the six hundred years of history, the origin, development, and role of science and technology. All the important figures were written down. However, He Xi also left one thought.
, six hundred years of history, it was written until the fall of the Qing Dynasty. As for the rest, it was not written.
Yes. Regarding democracy, republic, and communism, He Xi didn't know what to say to Zhu Yuanzhang. He was worried that if these words of having no king and no father were told to the most authoritarian emperor, his life would be ruined.
You can only leave it blank and delay for a moment or two.
With such a workload, before he knew it, the calluses on He Xi's fingers grew again when he was studying.
Fortunately, it's finally finished.
On this day, He Xi waited for Zhu Yuanzhang to finish reviewing the memorials in the morning, and then presented the two books.
Without saying a word, Zhu Yuanzhang pushed away the things in his hands and read them carefully. He Xi could only stand aside and wait. He Xi, who was a little bored, accidentally turned his eyes to the bookcase. He suddenly saw a glimmer of golden light and looked at it intently.
But a gold pen was found.
It's exactly the same style as what He Xi saw.
He Xi secretly thought: "I didn't expect that Zhu Yuanzhang would also use this."
"Is this the pen you commonly use?" Suddenly a voice came. It was Zhu Yuanzhang, but he found that Zhu Yuanzhang did not look carefully, but just browsed through it roughly. In Zhu Yuanzhang's view, there are many things here that need to be figured out.
of.
It seems that it is too easy to obtain knowledge in later generations. As a result, many people in later generations have completely different reading habits from those in ancient times. Many ancient people can only read dozens or hundreds of books in a lifetime. Therefore, they read every book deeply and carefully. Even
It is normal to be able to recite any book you have read.
The same was true of Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude towards He Xi's two pamphlets.
On the one hand, he wanted to learn from these things about future generations and reflect on his current policies. On the other hand, Zhu Yuanzhang also reflected and wanted to prove one thing, that is, whether He Xi was talking nonsense. To be honest, if it weren't for Zhu Yuanzhang
He saw with his own eyes that day that He Xi fell from the void portal. He could not imagine that such a ridiculous thing would happen.
Coupled with Zhu Yuanzhang's originally suspicious temperament, it is really impossible for him to completely believe such a bizarre thing.
Therefore, he wanted to find flaws in He Xi's manuscript.
He was not in a hurry to read this book today. He just flipped through it hastily and saw He Xi's eyes falling on the gold pen.
He Xi said: "It is often said that it is commonly used, but in the past ten or twenty years, fewer and fewer people use fountain pens. They all use ballpoint pens and gel pens."
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Fountain pen? Where is this pen made of steel?"
He Xi said: "This is actually a pen invented by Westerners. In ancient times, that is, now, Westerners all used quill pens. They plucked the feathers of birds, punched holes in them, and then dipped them in ink to write. Later, with the development of technology,
Someone just invented the fountain pen. It should be made of steel. I don’t know the details. However, I brought a gel pen, and Your Majesty has seen it. Most of them were using gel pens before I came here."
"And because of workmanship issues, this pen often has problems. However, later generations of pens don't have so many problems. A pen can be used for many years."
Zhu Yuanzhang picked up the gold pen and wrote a few words on the paper in front of him.
Even though Zhu Yuanzhang had never learned hard-pen calligraphy, he had practiced calligraphy for a long time. He said that his calligraphy was good enough to meet people. Although it was not that good, he thought it was better than that of calligraphy enthusiasts in later generations.
Better than many. After all, one is a hobby and the other a work skill.
Anyone who is good at writing calligraphy with a brush is generally good at writing with a hard brush. After all, Chinese characters are the same. People who write with a brush have a deeper understanding of the structure of glyphs and other aspects than those who write with a hard brush.
Zhu Yuanzhang was like this.
The writing is hard and profound. Not bad at all.
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "This is a good deal, but it has too many flaws. It has to be made of gold. The world is determined and all industries are waiting for prosperity. Extravagance and waste are not tolerated. This is especially true for you in the palace. Don't you know that King Chu has such a slim waist?"
, I will starve to death in the palace. From now on, you can only use this money privately, so you better practice your calligraphy. You can't keep doing this."
"Yes." He Xi said. He thought to himself: "It seems that I must work hard on calligraphy."
At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to be He Xi's elder. There was some warmth in his words, and he said: "However, this matter is not urgent. Some time ago, you contributed a lot to your advice. Now you have contributed a lot to your book. I can't help but reward it. I don't know.
, I will reward you with something. Today, you can ask for it yourself. Whatever you want, just ask."
"What do I want?" He Xi was stunned.
Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Yes, what do you want?"
Zhu Yuanzhang also had a profound meaning when he asked this. As time went by, although Zhu Yuanzhang was unwilling, he could not but believe that the person in front of him might really come from later generations. If the history he said before is evidence
One, and now the fountain pen, or gold pen, is also one of the evidences.
Every move He Xi made in the bank was reported to Zhu Yuanzhang.
Zhu Yuanzhang judged from He Xi's actions that He Xi only knew the structure of the pen and how to make it. He Xi didn't know. But although this thing had various problems, it was still made.
.
Zhu Yuanzhang was considered well-informed. He had never seen this kind of pen before. He even sent Jin Yiwei to arrest a few maritime merchants or people with ties to the West. He had never seen this kind of pen.
It should be noted that during the Yuan Dynasty, there were many contacts with the West. Otherwise, there would be no Marco Polo Travels. Now, although there is great chaos, there are still many foreigners stranded in China. Since I have never seen them.
Zhu Yuanzhang also had to admit the reality, which He Xi learned from the future.
Based on this premise, Zhu Yuanzhang had to think about how to arrange He Xi.
Faced with the various benefits brought by He Xi, Zhu Yuanzhang decided to keep He Xi in his hands. This was also one of the reasons for giving He Xi a false identity. But this was not enough. Zhu Yuanzhang has understood people's hearts very well over the years. I know.
It's hard to win people's hearts, but it's even harder to win people's hearts.
If he wanted He Xi to do things for him sincerely, he still had to do a lot of things.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang is Zhu Yuanzhang after all. It is not that he has never done this before. Now it is even easier to win the heart of a little kid. However, to win people's hearts first, you must first know what this person wants.
.
This is why Zhu Yuanzhang did not directly reward him, but asked He Xi.