Han Laoliu is a craftsman registered with the Ministry of Industry, also known as a craftsman. His ancestors have been building and regulating rivers for the imperial court for generations.
If the officials at the top are kind, their life will be easier, but if the people at the top are mean, their life will be worse than that of an ox or a horse, and they will have no chance to get rid of their current status and find another career.
With the yoke of being a craftsman on his body, not only he himself will have to live like this for the rest of his life, but his descendants will also have to live like this for the rest of their lives.
Every time he thought of Jiang Ji's identity, he hated it extremely. Why should he be born into such a family?
There are several books handed down from his ancestors, and he can read a few words by studying with his father. Although not many, he can barely read some simple articles.
From this, he inferred that his ancestors should have been scholars, but the more this happened, the more he couldn't figure out why his ancestors wanted to be craftsmen.
What he envied most was Mei Laoshi, Tian Dachun and their family. Once he met a noble person and escaped from the sea of suffering, he also dreamed of meeting such a noble person one day.
Although we know that hope is slim, people always have to learn to enjoy hardships, right? It is better to give yourself an unrealistic hope than to live in despair all the time.
Because of this incident, he also developed a habit of collecting all information about Zixiaoguan. What if the other side needs talents like him?
When the time comes, be brave and don't recommend yourself, and you might just jump out.
Zi Xiaoguan founded Wangyue Tan, and distributed the first few issues free of charge. He would pick up a copy of each issue.
Firstly, it is to understand the trends of Zixiao Temple, and secondly, the subsequent knowledge of investigating objects is indeed very useful.
He hoped that his sons could learn these things well. Even if they could not leave the craftsmanship in the future and mastered more skills, Shangguan would not dare to bully them too harshly.
People who are capable will be looked upon highly by others.
Later, Mochizuki started charging money. Although the price was not expensive, it was not something he could afford, which disappointed him.
But there is always a way, and his Shangguan also likes Moon Talk and buys every issue. After some praise and criticism, the Shangguan will keep the ones he likes and remove the ones he doesn't like and throw them away.
So every few days when Wangyue was talking about the sale, he would keep an eye on Shangguan and pick up the things he had thrown away, including the Object Collection part.
This situation continued for a long time, until one day he saw an announcement on it:
Zixiaoguan is planning to open a study class on the study of the study of objects. Those who like the study of objects can write down their best and deepest understanding of the study of objects and send them to Zixiaoguan.
If you pass the review, you will be invited to join the research class.
Regardless of status, as long as you pass the review and you are willing, Zixiaoguan will find a way to find you.
At that moment, he was so happy that he couldn't express it in words. After work in the afternoon, he hurriedly ran home and found his son Han Xiaogou.
"Xiaogou, look what this is, your chance to escape is here."
Han Xiaogou was very tired after working hard for a day, but he still had strong energy and said: "What chance of escape?"
Han Laoliu waved the paper in his hand and said: "Zixiao is looking for people who know how to investigate things. Just write an article and send it to them. If you pass the review, I can take you away regardless of your status."
Han Xiaogou said in frustration: "We don't know anything about studying things. Dad, please stop thinking so much. You've been tired for a long day and take a rest."
Han Laoliu said angrily: "Have a rest? Why don't you have some ideals? You don't know how hard it is to be a craftsman? You have worked hard yourself, do you want your son to work hard too?"
"Can't you be ambitious enough to get rid of your craftsmanship and let your son be a good man?"
Han Xiaogou was not encouraged, but muttered: "Aren't you also a craftsman, and you still talk about me?"
Han Laoliu immediately became angry and said: "Labour and management are incompetent and cannot help you deregister. But even if I meet my ancestors under Jiuquan, I can tell them with no shame that I worked hard."
"What about you? You don't dare to do it if you have the chance. Do you have the face to face your son? Do you have the face to face your ancestors after you die? If I were twenty years younger, would I still need you?"
Seeing his angry and incoherent father, Han Xiaogou was startled. He originally thought that his father was just joking, but he didn't expect that he was serious.
Looking back carefully at my father's words, there is no doubt that he has no outstanding achievements, but he has indeed been working hard.
Work hard to learn various skills and gain a firm foothold among the craftsmen. Don't flatter the superiors with dignity, so that their family's life will be better than that of most craftsmen.
Since Zixiaoguan founded Wangyuetan, they have been collecting knowledge related to investigating objects. Some of them they can understand, some they cannot.
He will look for every opportunity to seek advice from people who understand, and will never give up even if he is despised and driven away.
It is true that he failed to help his family change their destiny, but he did not owe anyone anything. As he said just now, even after going to Jiuquan, he could stand up and face his ancestors.
But what about myself? I just do nothing, accept my fate and lie down.
The more he thought about it, the more ashamed he became, and said, "Yeah, I was wrong. I'm going to write it, and I'm going to write it now."
Han Laoliu took a deep breath and sarcastically said: "What the hell are you writing? Do you know what to write? Just write."
Han Xiaogou was a little confused after being scolded, and said: "Isn't it the experience of writing about objects?"
Han Laoliu said: "This is the experience of studying things, but do you know how to study things? There are so many people who want to go to Zixiao Temple to study things. Why do you argue with others?"
Han Xiaogou thought about it and said a little frustrated: "What should we do?"
Han Laoliu said with hatred: "Write what you are best at, think about what you are best at?"
Han Xiaogou said: "What I am best at is repairing rivers, and I learned it from you, but what's the use of this thing?"
Han Laoliu said: "It's not you who have the final say whether it's useful or not, it's the nobles who have the final say. We, the two of us, will work harder to write down all the river management techniques handed down from our ancestors, and then send them to Zixiaoguan."
Han Xiaogou said doubtfully: "Is this okay?"
Han Laoliu said: "Of course those in the past are not good. Didn't you say that after reading Wang Yue's study of studying things, people have become much more knowledgeable, and the technology of river repair has improved greatly."
"Just write these things down. This is related to the investigation of things. What if someone takes a fancy to it?"
Han Xiaogou hesitated for a while, but finally couldn't resist his father and started to write.
The father and son spent nearly ten days turning the river management skills passed down from generation to generation into an article of more than 10,000 words.
Fearing that Chen Jingke would ignore this article, he even attached a letter, explaining his family's situation and his (Han Xiaogou's) love for studying things.
I even mentioned it once when I went to pick up Shangguan's discarded Wang Yuetan article, but I just placed the matter on Han Xiaogou.
After sending the letter, the father and son began to wait anxiously.
…
Quanzhou is home to a large number of merchants, and there are countless wealthy people. But when it comes to being the richest, the Zhao family definitely has a place.
Zhao Youchang is the eldest grandson of the Zhao family. He has been clever since he was a child and can learn everything at once. His family has high hopes for him.
His grandfather Zhao Guangzhi even took him with him to train him personally, but it was because of this that things went wrong.
This child traveled all over the world and actually became interested in climate and geography.
For example, when others see "Oranges growing in the south, they become oranges, and oranges growing in the north, they become tangerines." What they think of is the impact of the environment on people. What they think of is why oranges turn into tangerines when they reach the north?
What factors caused it? Climate? Hydrological environment?
Later, I came into contact with Mochizuki Tan, and I was immediately astonished when I saw the knowledge of studying things mentioned above. I hugged the book and never let go. Because of this, I delayed my studies and even stopped learning to do business.
Zhao Guangzhi felt regretful. He tried many methods to change his idea, but none of them were of any use.
Later, they simply ignored him and treated him as if he had raised a useless person. Anyway, their family had no shortage of heirs.
So Zhao Youchang completely let himself go, using his family's power to collect various related books, study geography and climate conditions, and even went there for on-site inspections.
But the more he learned, the more doubts he had in his mind. He asked many people for advice, but no one could give him answers.
But he knew that there was at least one person who could answer these questions, and that was Chen Jingke and Chen Zhenren of Zixiaoguan.
From then on, he had another goal, and went to Zixiao Temple to ask Master Chen for advice in person.
However, he did not set out. Firstly, he was too far away and it was inconvenient to go there. Secondly, why should someone teach him knowledge if he was not a relative or an old friend?
Until the new issue of Mochizuki Tan arrived, he saw this recruitment announcement. No longer willing to wait any longer, he decided to go to the capital.
As for the need to write articles for examinations and the like, he simply ignored it. He planned to go directly to become a disciple, and if he was not accepted, he would stay at Zixiaoguan.
With a desperate mentality, he found his own acquaintance, Zhao Youzhi, and told him his plan.
He was ready to run away from home if Aweng disagreed.
Unexpectedly, after hearing his idea, Zhao Guangzhi did not object immediately, but showed a very strange expression and said:
"You said you want to go to Chang'an Zixiao Temple to learn from Master Chen Jingke?"
Zhao Youchang said as if he were dead: "Yes, if you..."
Zhao Guangzhi interrupted him and said: "How sure are you that you can pass the assessment?"
Zhao Youchang said with determination: "I have no intention of taking the assessment. If Master Chen doesn't want me, I will stay in Zixiaoguan until he wants me."
Zhao Guangzhi said happily: "Okay, he is indeed my grandson, and he must have such a shameless attitude. Go ahead, I support you, and I will give you as much money as you need."
"Ah?" Zhao Youchang was surprised and said, "Don't you object?"
Zhao Guangzhi said: "I don't agree with what kind of tewu you want to learn. But if you want to go to Zixiao Temple to learn tewu, I agree."
Zhao Youchang asked doubtfully: "Why?"
Zhao Guangzhi smiled and said: "Because that's the Zixiao Temple. Moreover, I was infected with insect disease and it was Master Sun who cured me. He is my savior. You can repay my kindness by going there."
Only then did Zhao Youchang remember that last year Aweng went to the capital to do business and met Chen Zhenren by chance while having dinner at Tiantianju.
It seems that Chen Zhenren made a bet with a scholar from Jiangnan and wrote the poem "Jia Sheng" on the spot.
By another coincidence, Aweng was diagnosed with a parasitic disease by Master Sun, and he was prescribed medicine to save his life.
Zhao Youchang was even happier when he said that the two families had a close relationship.
"Don't worry, Aweng. When I go to Zixiao Temple, I will definitely honor Master Sun."
Zhao Youchang said: "Go and say goodbye to your parents. I will take you to Chang'an tomorrow."
…
Wangyuetan was the most influential journal at that time, and the news that Zixiaoguan was going to open a Gewu research class spread throughout the country in a short period of time.
However, in fact, Chen Jingke knew very well that this thing would not have much effect.
The readership of Mochizuki Tan is mainly the scholar class living in cities, and it cannot reach the vast rural areas.
The current scholars basically hold the idea that being an official is the only right path, and very few are willing to join other industries.
But this announcement of his is not for those readers. After so many issues of Wang Yue Tan, he can always gather some people who are interested in studying things. This announcement is actually for them.
If he thought about it, it would be no problem to recruit a hundred or ten people.
These hundred or ten people are the seeds, and the science category will be established from them in a few years.
In fact, the situation was far more optimistic than he imagined. Just three days after the publication of the journal, people started to come over, all from Chang'an and its surroundings.
Chen Jingke was very excited and hurriedly received them and personally asked about some knowledge of objects.
Then I discovered that these people had little understanding of the study of things, and that they came to Zixiaoguan only as a stepping stone to becoming famous and becoming an official.
He was very disappointed and politely persuaded these people to leave.
After several interviews in succession, he failed to pass the exam, and he no longer had the interest. He told Zhike that he would not meet anyone who has no experience in studying things.
If you are here to submit an article, just leave the article back and wait for notification.
Then he discovered that there were too many people submitting articles, and he received thousands of them in a few days. They were basically poems and policy articles, and very few were related to the investigation of things.
In desperation, he handed over the review work to Yihe and others, leaving them to take care of the poems and strategies themselves, and left the articles on objects to him.
Yihe and others really like this job. After all, they are engaged in writing work themselves, and they are really good at reviewing manuscripts.
If you see an excellent article, you can save it for the next issue of Mochizuki Talk.
Chen Jingke himself is not idle either. The research class on studying objects is not as simple as just talking about it. It requires all kinds of experimental tools.
What measuring cups, beakers, glass rods, alcohol lamps, thermometers, etc.
The container is relatively simple and can be easily made by craftsmen in the glass workshop. The thermometer can only be experimented over and over again.
After hundreds of experiments, qualified thermometers, alcohol and mercury, were successfully produced. The mercury thermometer can be directly applied to the medical field, which is a huge progress.
There is also a scale. He did not come up with the unit of 'gram', but used the money that the Chinese are more accustomed to. A weight varies from how many dollars it weighs.
As for textbooks, there is no need to worry. He and Lu Cai have already written some elementary textbooks before, which are enough for beginners.
In this busy time, July entered, and Sun Simiao, who had been in seclusion for nearly five months, finally walked out of the closed compound.
