Chapter 433 The old emperor is getting more and more forgetful of things
The city of Guangzhou is prosperous, but the city is full of mourners.
Nowadays, in a place far away from the capital, the news between Guangzhou and the capital is transmitted very quickly. This is due to the Beijing-Changsha section of the Beijing-Guangzhou Direct Road which took eight years to build, and then the Changsha section which took less than four years to build.
to Guangzhou section.
Wearing the king's python robe, Louis was naturally conspicuous at the dock in Guangzhou City, and then someone brought him a piece of white linen.
"Your envoy is wearing the python robe given to you by the emperor. Now that the empress and the phoenix are visiting heaven, your envoy should express his condolences."
"What?" Louis was shocked when he heard the news of the queen's death.
But Louis, who had spent several months in Ming Dynasty, already knew how to do as the locals do, let alone having a heavy responsibility this time?
He also tied a white cloth to express his condolences.
The death of the queen is a mourning for the country. The entire Ming Dynasty will change with the sun and the moon. In twenty-seven days, the Ming Dynasty will be nothing but pure.
But the entire Ming Dynasty was still functioning, but there was a lot of silence on Louis' journey north.
This time we were not taking a boat, but the straight road wound through the mountains of Lingnan. When the horses pulled the carriage uphill, Louis was always worried about what would happen if the horses ran out of power.
But it is obvious that there are many horses in the Ming Dynasty. Every twenty or thirty miles, there must be a station where you can rest, go to the toilet, and change horses.
Passengers take the straight route and goods take the water route. This is a special arrangement for the section from Changsha to Guangzhou.
The straight road in this section is not as wide and flat as the section to the north.
However, even so, the fact that the rails could extend such a long distance was beyond Louis' understanding.
How much steel can Ming Dynasty produce in a year?
The seasons change, and disasters cannot be avoided. Loss, maintenance... Louis can't imagine how many people and materials are behind it to ensure the operation of this straight line.
"It is a railway bureau that was separated from the Tongyi Bureau and was responsible for it alone." The chief who accompanied him to Beijing shook his head.
If there is more, he won't be able to talk.
After years of losses, the emperor also intended to rebuild the railway from Beijing to Xuancheng, Datong, and Guihua City.
It is even more difficult to cross so many mountains and passes. It is snowy in the north, and it is not easy to use in winter. It is not known how much patrolling, maintenance and expenditure will be in the future.
But with these direct channels, the imperial court's control over local areas has indeed become stronger. Among other things, the president of the Railway Bureau can attend military affairs meetings.
Louis' journey this time no longer passed through the canal. On the other side of the canal, Huai'an Prefecture was the seat of the Prime Minister's Hedao Yamen, and Tang Shu had been the governor of the river for almost eight years.
Today, the core river sections to be managed in the middle and lower reaches of the Huanghuai River floods are all located in Huaiyang Province. The provincial government is in Yangzhou, but Huai'an is more prosperous as a Caohe River shipping terminal.
In the Shouzhou area of Fengyang Prefecture, there are huge lime fields, quarries, and coal mining fields.
The cement, strips and gravel fired here are all transported by cargo ships from the upper reaches of the Huaihe River to Huai'an. From there, it is traced up to Suqian and Xuzhou in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, and down to Andong after the Huanghuai River merges.
.
Tang Shu is here now.
People from the Polytechnic Institute came here to investigate and chose this place. Not far from Fengyang City, this place is the land of Longxing. The great changes in the mountains and soil here once aroused a lot of discussion.
However, the emperor's determination to make some contribution to the Huanghuai floods in this dynasty never wavered. Liu Tianhe was in the center and Tang Shu was in the local area. They have not moved for many years, which is proof.
The Huainan area has a vague tendency to develop into another heavy industry park, which is another clear evidence.
Everything here is for river management.
But almost eight years have passed, and Liu Tianhe is already sixty-two years old. I wonder if he can continue to stay in the State Palace this time.
"Zhang Guogong, the Queen has passed away, and we are mourning, but we still can't be disrespectful here." Tang Shu said worriedly, "After summer, although the inner embankment cannot be repaired, the outer embankment is okay. After autumn, we rush for work.
It’s the right time to use materials, so we must prepare them in the past few months.”
"Don't worry, Mr. Tang, I understand the importance."
The person sent by the Huangming Assets Bureau to Huainan to coordinate the work between the factories and the Premier Hedao Yamen was none other than Zhang Rong, the son of the late British Duke Zhang Lun.
When he was young, he tinkered with bicycles in the capital, frequently appeared in gambling venues, and was thrown into the Jinke Fertilizer Factory by the emperor, where he had many dealings with farmers.
Zhang Lun worked hard for many years, and with a little hard work, Zhang Rong was not demoted but directly attacked the Duke of Cheng. After handing over the responsibility of the Huangming Assets Bureau to Zhu Feng, Duke of Cheng, he spent the last few years dragging his old age around.
Chu and Zhang Rong started by sending fertilizers.
It was during that period that Zhang Rong realized how difficult it was to be a farmer.
What he had access to were farmers employed by wealthy families who could afford to buy fertilizer from the Jinke Fertilizer Factory at that time.
When the British Duke passed away and he ascended the throne, he was arranged by the emperor to move here.
Even if the floods in the Huanghuai River cannot be cured, as long as some achievements are made, how many livelihoods of the farmers on both sides of the Huanghuai River can be saved?
Zhang Rong, who was no longer young, became much calmer, and instead introduced the information he knew to Tang Shu.
"I received a letter. After the Beijing-Guangzhou Straight Road is completed, it has not yet been decided whether the Xuanda Straight Road will be built. But the cement plants in the Beijing Heavy Industry Park cannot stop. After the imperial city was renovated, Guangzhou and Ningbo shipped timber from overseas.
The businessmen who have returned are also looking for new sales."
Tang Shu looked at him and asked in a deep voice: "What do you think Duke Zhang Guogong said?"
"Tang Zonghe is here." Zhang Rong looked solemn, "Tang Zonghe, I won't be delayed here during this period. But I can take advantage of this year's major national policy meeting to make an effort to let the Hedao Yamen do more money allocation.
Prince Consort Yu helped me talk."
Tang Shu did not accept this statement for a while.
Over the years, the Premier Hedao Yamen has become the third largest gold-eating beast outside the Beijing-Guangzhou Expressway.
To regulate the river, we need to expand the river channel and build embankments. What seems to be stones that hit the water are actually white coins.
It is measured in units of tens of millions of taels of silver, but now after so many years, it is still not completed.
Want more?
It is true that the treasury was not as difficult as the period around the Jiajing decade, but the Ming Dynasty was so big that there were too many places to spend money.
"Let's save this summer's flood first!" Tang Shu said solemnly, "Last autumn's Shushui Embankment only built a foundation. When the water rises, it will submerge below the river surface. If there is a major flood this year, the river water will be blocked by those several foundations.
, I still don’t know if something will go wrong. If something goes wrong, let alone spending more money, I will still have to apologize."
"...It's really not easy for Mr. Tang."
"It's not easy for Liu Guolao." Tang Shu looked north, "It would be great if Liu Guolao could work for another three years..."
Zhang Rong's heart moved, and after being silent for a while, he said: "Then I will contribute to this matter."
Tang Shu was stunned for a moment, then solemnly saluted him: "Thank you!"
He concentrated on river management and had few official contacts.
Even though Huaiyang is a province of its own, river management no longer involves other provinces. But every time when the project is urgent in autumn and winter, he still has to go to various prefectures and counties along the way. What he does is always offensive: hiring workers for the project
In order to seize the extra labor left after the busy farming season, building embankments will take up some fields...
There is no time for socializing before and after the Spring Festival.
After all, Zhang Rong is the Duke of the country, and the relatives behind the Huangming Assets Bureau are also a force that cannot be underestimated.
If they can support Liu Tianhe to work for another three years, then Tang Shu will have a lot of peace of mind.
At the moment, Tang Shu really has no energy to do this. River management has reached a critical stage, and from last year to this year, there has been a vague discussion among the people: This year is the Gengzi Year, the beginning of the Jiazi. According to folklore, such years are often plagued by disasters.
What a disaster.
Now, the death of the queen has intensified the worries of the people. This is a bad sign.
In case there is a major flood this year, you must be prepared in advance.
The sediments in the Huanghuai River have accumulated for many years, and previous projects have focused on the construction of the outer embankment and the widening of the downstream river. Starting last year, the emperor also participated. Liu Tianhe and Tang Shu decided to attack the sand in Shushui and began to build the Shushui embankment.
.
To do the opposite, to narrow the river channel, make the water flow faster, and wash away the sediment that may still accumulate in the future, it is necessary to build embankments in the river channel that may still pass through when the water flow is large.
Although with the help of cement, it is difficult to complete the project in just one autumn and winter water level embankment time.
The next two to three years will be the most critical.
Liu Tianhe and Tang Shu have been controlling the river for more than fifteen years, and it's time to achieve results.
Things like this have been going on for many years but have not yielded results. The same thing happens in Beijing.
That's a new way to use boiled water after boiling it.
Is it difficult to make a steam engine?
The emperor has indeed pointed out the direction, and the original experimental equipment has been continued and improved.
When Weng Wanda returned from Nanyang by Fengzhou and took a new ship for the first time, he heard that the emperor had been conducting research on boiling water for a long time.
From the twelfth year of Jiajing to the present nineteenth year of Jiajing, practical steam engines have still not been fully built.
There are just too many difficulties.
It is still necessary to use stable and durable steel under high strength and high temperature, the casting and sealing of round tubes, the crankshaft and gears that rotate and transmit power, the control called air pressure, and the risk of explosion as much as possible...
But the biggest problem is actually: when you use so much coal to boil water, you will eventually have to release more than half of it to ensure that there is no danger of exploding. In this way, you only have so much energy to burn so much coal, so it’s worth it.
?
The undercurrent in the court had been calmed for the time being, and even if the new emperor was established again, it would not be this year. In a bad mood, Zhu Houcong simply spent more time on these matters that needed to be considered in depth.
In the Polytechnic Institute in the southwest corner of the Forbidden City, there is an office for the steam engine project.
This is where theoretical design research is conducted, and the real experimental equipment is over there in the Heavy Industry Park.
Now the design actually needs to be improved and optimized again before it can become practical.
Arriving at the Polytechnic Institute, Zhu Houcong looked at the people standing in front of him with emotion in his heart.
A thing that clearly knows its function and has a very clear theoretical principle, but in terms of engineering, I want to make a practical product. With my own attention and resource security, I still haven't taken the final step after so many years.
At that time, I always thought it was a problem with rubber or sealing, but Alfonso had already found rubber brought from South America in Europe, but it couldn't be used at first.
In the environment of a steam engine, there is high heat. This stuff becomes soft when heated and must be processed.
Later, this problem was solved by Tao Zhongwen. God knows how he tried using sulfuric acid and raw rubber together. The final product was heat-resistant and more elastic.
This was only the year before last, and we are still experimenting with more uses for rubber.
As far as the steam engine project is concerned, Tao Zhongwen also participated.
Welding was also used in this era. But now with the application of welding and rubber, the sealing in the pipes in the machine is better, and the steam is more abundant. What needs to be released, but more is wasted.
"Your Majesty..." The county magistrate Zheng Kui, a major engineer in the project, is no longer what he used to be. He speaks in professional terms, "Dr. Shen has already found a way according to the order, and I have also made the barometer and installed it. Now it is estimated that every time
Eighty percent of the heat from the first fever has been released! I have been thinking about this problem for almost a year, but I still can't find a good way."
The prototype and principles have been implemented, but it cannot be just a fake.
Zheng Kui lowered his head in shame.
Over the years, Baojin Bureau has individually cast all kinds of odd-shaped parts for them, and the various factories in the Heavy Industry Park will respond whenever they have needs.
For no other reason, it is a key project that the emperor personally pays attention to.
But it’s already been ten years. Not to mention the wasted money, how many more decades can one’s life last? Doesn’t the imperial court have any objections to the emperor’s constant spending of money on projects like steam engines?
What about His Majesty himself? He is probably close to being disappointed.
"The boiler, cylinder, piston, connecting rod, crankshaft, valve, and barometer have all been solved. The only remaining problem should be this." Zhu Houcong replied, as firm as ever, "It can be used today, but it's just not worth it.
Adding coal and water at any time is very cautious and has many restrictions. It is extremely difficult to determine the shape for use on vehicles and ships in the future. Let’s sort out this problem again. If it doesn’t work, I will find more people to brainstorm.”
At this time, Tao Zhongwen hesitated.
"What did you think of?"
Tao Zhenren still wears Taoist priest uniforms, and he has never changed this.
But now Tao Zhenren has become a master of science under the emperor's long-term "influence". After years of refining alchemy and burning so many strange things, Tao Zhongwen has compiled too many lists of different substances called elements by the emperor, and also
There are various three-state attributes that they exhibit individually or mixedly.
He was able to discover that rubber vulcanization is different, not because he already knows the molecular formula, but because he has burned enough things, and there will always be some vague inspiration.
Anyway, it was the emperor who paid for it and tried it by burning it.
Now when the emperor asked a question, he only said: "The trouble now is that a lot of steam has to be released to prevent the machine from getting too hot and eventually exploding. I have burned an unknown number of things, and there is naturally a lot of water. This steam,
That is, water vapor. As long as it cools down, it becomes water again. I wonder if there is a way not to release so much air and let it cool down again in the machine. In this way, there is no need to add water frequently. "
"As soon as the machine started running, it was extremely hot inside and out. How could there be any room for coldness?" Zheng Kui recalled their experimental environment and shook his head.
Zhu Houcong was stunned for a moment.
More than twenty years have passed, and his knowledge of that time has become increasingly vague.
Alfonso has sent many books from Portugal in the past few years, but they are all from this era.
Tao Zhongwen mentioned turning water vapor back into water, and three words came to Zhu Houcong's mind: condenser.
But how to make this thing? What is the principle?
"What can you do?" Zhu Houcong asked Tao Zhongwen, "You have burned a lot of things. Are there any things that absorb heat? If you let them touch, the steam will absorb the heat and it may cool down."
"I have to give it a try." Tao Zhongwen said truthfully, and then revealed the reason for his hesitation, "I can think of this today because I talked about the difficulties of steam engines when I was imparting my many years of experience to Prince Rui, and Prince Rui said this."
Zheng Kui and others immediately took a secret look at the emperor's expression.
"Zai Yan?" Zhu Houcong was stunned again, "Did he think of it?"
Zhu Zaiyan, who was adopted into Zhu Houzhao's name, is now twenty-one years old. Last year, his mother also passed away, and he is now preparing for next year's joint examination. Zhu Houcong once promised him that if he passed the Jinshi examination, he would be
Let his biological father and mother, who had participated in the Huguang rebellion, come out of the high walls of Fengyang.
In fact, it is no longer a big deal. Zhu Houcong's position is now very stable, so he could have just forgiven him.
But since there was an agreement, Zhu Houcong waited with peace of mind. Anyway, the vassal kings all lived in the capital, and now Zhu Houcong had arranged for the treatment of those people in Fengyang's high walls to be improved.
But Zhu Zaiyan was obviously still very cautious. After he reached the age of fifteen, he took the initiative to become interested in physics and chemistry, as if to tell the emperor the path he wanted to take in the future and that he would not have any other thoughts.
think.
He was quite talented and was determined to develop and study in this direction. Zhu Houcong admired him very much and arranged for Tao Zhongwen to give him tutoring lessons.
Now that Zhu Zaiyan could use his brain on the issue of steam engines, Zhu Houcong was a little surprised, but then he couldn't help but suddenly realized.
After Sun Ming became seriously ill, he probably had a premonition that there would be chaos surrounding the crown prince.
At this time, focusing on projects like steam engines made both the government and the public think that what he wanted to be in the future was just a great craftsman, so he was low-key and safe.
"Okay, if Zai Yan can make a contribution to this matter, that would be great." Zhu Houcong nodded, "You should also take him to participate in the project. It is better to be bold and try. I believe that after this
After one pass, the steam engine will really take shape and become practical."
This should be the last level, right?
Zhu Houcong did not clearly remember that Watt improved the steam engine by designing an independent condenser based on the Newcomen steam engine at that time, which greatly improved the efficiency of the steam engine.
There's no way around it. Zhu Houcong was just an accountant in his previous life. He could point out the direction, give support, and give encouragement. That's the limit.
These epoch-making things still require specific people to continue to practice, ponder, and improve.
The Ming Dynasty has developed for twenty years under the leadership of Zhu Houcong. Now is the moment when a new generation of young people have just grown up from the official learning of the three principles of heaven, matter and man.
Even so, in the imperial examinations, the mainstream ones are still the practical dialectical theories representing human theory. The only ones that are more closely related to physics are the compulsory arithmetic, simple calendar and geography, and an "Encyclopedia" jointly compiled by many departments.
Common sense in the Canon.
These common senses were only included in next year's exam syllabus last year, in the first edition.
But King Rui's involvement in this kind of scientific research may represent a new generation of young people who are ready to exert their efforts.
Zhu Houcong felt very relieved and looking forward to this.
A sufficiently representative thing needs to appear, and a group of people need to appear, and the emperor needs to fully encourage and commend it, and then arouse new enthusiasm and create a new atmosphere.
Zhu Houcong returned to the palace from the Polytechnic Institute. Zheng Kui and the others could only be deeply moved that the emperor was still patient and hopeful.
Have you ever seen an emperor who lets them cause trouble to his money, and one trouble lasts for ten years?
This year there is another longevity ceremony. The queen died and the emperor was not happy.
Zheng Kui and others very much hope to succeed this year. The thing that the emperor has been waiting for for so long is finally made. It should be something that makes him happy, right?
People who think like this include Yan Song.
After twenty years of imperial rule, various kingdoms came to court again. Yan Song, who had once again made up his mind, could only devote his time and energy to completing the emperor's great cause of using culture to attract the hearts of the people of the vassal.
A lot of books will be printed this year and will be sold to them then!
In addition, after many years of preparation, it is time to fully implement the compatibility, visa and other systems between the Ming Dynasty and foreign vassals to attract foreign talents.
All of this is the highlight of this year's Longevity Ceremony.
Zhu Houcong returned to the palace and remembered another thing because of King Rui's choice.
It’s been a long time since I’ve thought about Lao Qin, and it’s been a long time since I’ve remembered that Lao Qin once said that there was a scientific genius in the Ming Dynasty clan.
Who is here? I forgot...
The emperor is forgetting things more and more.
A good memory is not as good as a bad pen, so Huang Jin took out a large locked box, and Zhu Houcong quietly started to read through it.
In the imperial study, the emperor, who has been sitting on the throne for twenty years, still seems to have so many things to do as he has for the past twenty years.
And in the palace that had just experienced a turmoil, Huang Jin, who had accompanied the emperor for so many years, quietly looked at His Majesty who was frowning slightly as he read through the books, only feeling that he seemed even more lonely at this moment.
After a while, the emperor whispered softly: "Found it..."
Then he raised his voice and said, "Huang Jin, please send someone to the clan mansion to ask if there is any vassal that has a heir named Zaiyu."
"Zaiyu?" Huang Jin confirmed.
Zhu Houconn wrote two words with his pen and asked him to read them.
After Huang Jin read it, he went out first. When he came back, he saw many books spread out on the imperial desk, some compiled by the Polytechnic Institute and Huangming University, and some sent by Alfonso from Portugal.
Western books.
"...Your Majesty, please take a rest."
Zhu Houcong only said softly: "The tea is a little cold."
Huang Jin had no choice but to make hot tea again.
In the end, Zhu Houcong failed to find inspiration from these things, and the next thing pulled him back from this specific "scientific research work."
"Your Majesty, Sun Yuan, the right political advisor of Shaanxi Province, has arrived."
Over the years, the emperor has to devote more energy to these things.