"Fang Aiqing, starting from today, your Qin Tianjian and Si Tianjian need to report the celestial phenomena and your department's predictions to the palace every day until the celestial phenomena of a solar eclipse appear,"
"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey your order,"
It can be seen from the eyes of the ministers in the palace that compared to last time, almost everyone is no longer skeptical. Although they do not believe in the theory of the late emperor's dream, is there any other better explanation?
A few days later, all kinds of newspapers in Lin'an City also published this news. Many tabloids also opened columns on the theory of solar eclipse, allowing people to participate in prize-winning guesses. Suddenly, "there is an eclipse in the sun" became a popular saying. It was the main topic for all the people in Lin'an City after dinner. Many professors and experts who studied astronomy from Lin'an University and the Royal Academy of Sciences also went to Sitianjian to observe the movement of celestial bodies in order to obtain first-hand information.
"Brother, it seems that people have a high degree of trust in the solar eclipse phenomenon you mentioned. Judging from the statistics of various newspapers and the handicap of casinos, more than 70% of the people believe that it will definitely happen this month. Solar eclipse and celestial phenomenon," Fang Ling said with a smile after reading a newspaper.
"This is a good thing. It shows that the people of our court trust the young master," Yuan Ji took the newspaper from Fang Ling's hand and smiled after reading it.
"Well, in the past two months, the people's favor towards the imperial court and local officials has gradually increased. When the Chengwei Escort went to various places, most of the news they heard along the way was positive. According to my second uncle, this This is the first time in his 20 years as a escort."
I nodded and said with a smile on my face: "If the officials are clean, the water will be clean. This is the main prerequisite for the rejuvenation of our court. With this kind of credibility, the court can improve the cohesion and centripetal force of the people. Just like this year's recruitment, it has just passed." For more than two months, the number of applicants has exceeded the number of soldiers recruited. Young people from all over the country have responded to the court's call, hoping to go into battle to kill the enemy, defend their homes and country, and regain the mountains and rivers."
Yuan Ji praised: "Yes, sir, it has been nearly twenty years since I left the Valley of the Kings. In these twenty years, this is the first time that I have seen my people so enthusiastically sign up to join the army. It is not easy. "
"Today's situation is indeed not easy. To establish the credibility of the court and government agencies at all levels is difficult to say, but easy to say,"
"Brother, what does this mean? I don't think there is anything difficult about it,"
Yuan Ji said: "Miss Ling'er, this is exactly what the young master is capable of. How many emperors in the past dynasties have been able to do it?"
Fang Lingdao: "Yes, brother, tell me how you did it,"
"Well, it's very simple to say, that is, change must be from top to bottom. Take punishing corruption and rectifying the government's agenda. First of all, I have a firm attitude. Secondly, it starts with the important ministers in the government and goes to all provinces and departments. From the road system envoys to the state capital and county government officials, think about it, the first-grade officials dare not be corrupt, and the second-grade officials dare to continue to accept bribes. The Zhizhi envoys and appeasement envoys in various places have become clean, and those magistrates "Will the county magistrate still follow the principle of integrity? Another point is that heavy punishment is used in troubled times. The cost of crime is high. Who dares to risk their lives?"
Fang Lingdao: "Brother, I heard Chairman Pu say that what he admires the most is the one-size-fits-all approach you adopted. In the past, when wise rulers punished corruption, they often went to the root of the matter. Instead, they made the corrupt officials fight to the death and end up fighting." They formed an alliance, so that those emperors had to compromise in the end, otherwise the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty would be able to kill them. But my method was adapted to the times and was actually the best way to govern the country."
Yuan Ji praised again: "Yes, the master never makes mistakes in his actions, and his subordinates admire him very much."
I smiled and couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction in my heart: "Okay, let's get ready to eat. It's time for Quan Yi to come back. Xiaosi, go and call President Pu, Xiao Tian, and Miss Lin Ying."
As time went by, it soon arrived in late May. However, the solar eclipse never appeared. The people of Lin'an City and the ministers in the court seemed to be a little impatient. According to me, the solar eclipse and the It is related to the upcoming war between Song and Mongolia. If the celestial phenomena do not change by the end of this month, doesn't it mean that the Song Dynasty will be defeated by the Mongols?
In the last few days of May, the data shown in the casino handicap has turned, and many people have begun to buy in the opposite direction. Even the close officials around me, such as Wen Tianxiang, Lu Xiufu and others, seem nervous. After all, my bet has caused It's a bit big, and it is connected with the fate of the country.
On the 31st, the last day of May, it was almost the same time as the last solar eclipse. It was also approaching noon (11 o'clock), and the bright sky suddenly dimmed without warning. However, this time it did not It was not a total solar eclipse, but a partial solar eclipse, which was much shorter. It only lasted about three minutes, and the sky gradually returned to its original state.
This day was the day of rest, and when the solar eclipse occurred, the whole city of Lin'an was in a state of excitement.
"I am victorious,"
"Heaven has sent a sign, and our government will surely win."
"Long live the Emperor, long live the Song Dynasty,"
Under the organized instigation of Longya members, the people of Lin'an City spontaneously took to the streets and gathered at the original location of Dongkangfang. In the current Lin'an Square, many shops even actively contributed firecrackers. Soon , the crackling sound of firecrackers resounded over the square. The atmosphere at the scene was so warm and the people's emotions were so high. This was definitely the first time since Lin'an City welcomed the Song Dynasty royal family.
At the same time, on Longhu Mountain, thousands of miles away from Lin'an.
Zhang Tianshi held a piece of Imperial Song newspaper in his hand and said with a slight smile: "Daofa, do you think His Majesty the Emperor is a warlock who is proficient in celestial phenomena like us?"
"Probably not," Daofu Master also had a smile on his face and shook his head. "As far as I know, the emperor is definitely not a warlock."
"What about the people around the emperor?"
"Yuan Ji beside the emperor is a martial artist. Although Gongsun Xiaochen is a warlock, he went with the army on the eastern expedition. Moreover, he does not have such skills. As for the others, they are also martial artists and heavenly masters. You must know that the emperor predicts this When the next celestial phenomenon changed, it was still on the first day of this month. Even you and me, or Gongsun Ang, the master of the martial arts hall in the Valley of the Kings, could not do it. The leader, haha, he is worthy of being the leader chosen by the guardian. Your Majesty, a man of God,”
Zhang Tianshi nodded and praised: "Yes, the spiritual power of the leader is indeed superior to that of the sorcerers like us. Daofa, you are absolutely right to ask Wen Zhang to follow His Majesty. Maybe there will be a great general in our Dragon and Tiger Sect in the future. ,"
The Taoist master laughed and said, "I will definitely do it."
In the afternoon of the same day, the Government Affairs Council held a special briefing on the eclipse of the sun. President Wen Tianxiang attended the meeting on behalf of the court and gave a long speech entitled "A vision from the sky, the Song Dynasty will surely win". After that, Lin'an All the newspaper offices in the city were working overtime to publish a special supplement on June 1 to celebrate the announcement from heaven.
It is said that those who obey the heavens will prosper, and those who go against the heavens will perish. Since this is the will of heaven, how could the Song Dynasty not be victorious?
After this solar eclipse, my prestige was once again raised to a new height, an unprecedented new height. The ministers of the DPRK, the people of Lin'an, and the soldiers of the major military regions were also full of confidence in the upcoming battle between Song and Mongolia. .
This is God's will, God's will. If God's will is like this, who would doubt it.
On the afternoon of June 2nd, Quan Jue, Shen Yiqiu and Lu Xiufu came to the palace again, and with them were several staff members of the Academy of Sciences.
Half an hour later, the last military sand table, the Xiangfan Military Region sand table, was installed in the Funing Hall. Together with the Sichuan Military Region sand table and the Jianghuai (Luzhou and Yangzhou) Military Region sand table that had been installed a few days ago, there were three large sand tables in total. Completed.
"Mr. Shen, Quan Jue, these three sand tables are well done and I am very satisfied."
"Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty,"
Quanjue continued: "Your Majesty, I have something I need to ask your Majesty for instructions."
"Quanjue, what's the matter?"
"Your Majesty, in order to cooperate with the development of new weapons, the Academy of Sciences plans to set up a department, which will be composed of firearms experts, cold weapon experts, etc. of our country. This department is the top secret of our country, so I plan to move the location of this department to Separate it from the Royal Academy of Sciences and ask Your Majesty to advise where it is safest to place it."
"Quanjue, then let's put it in the Firearms Supervisor. I will send fifty more imperial guards to the Gunpowder Supervisor. There will be a total of one hundred imperial guards, plus the Gunpowder Supervisor's own 200 bodyguards, plus the Firearms Supervisor. There are a thousand Royal Forest Army officers stationed at the nearby arsenal, so safety should not be a problem, and it is also easy to conduct experiments there,"
Quanjue said: "Your Majesty, this is very good."
"Mr. Shen, is there any progress on Yun Bofei's breech-loading gun?"
"Back to Your Majesty, no. Recently, Yun Bofei, Wanyan Tianlei and Zhao Yuncong have spent most of their energy on the supervision of throwing bombs, artillery and muskets. The tasks are very heavy, and others cannot stop them alone for the time being. On the one hand, the research work has lagged behind. The Weapons Research Institute established by Quanjue this time also hopes to recruit more talents,"
"Well, the lack of quality can only be made up for by quantity. It would be great if there were more weapons talents,"
Shen Yiqiu said: "Your Majesty, it is indeed a good way to use quantity to make up for the defects of quality. According to Yun Bofei, the intensive use of projectiles can cause huge damage. For this reason, they have also specially developed a cluster projectile. The damage caused by bullets is comparable to that of artillery,"
I knew that what Shen Yiqiu said was that the cluster bombs were similar to the explosive packs of later generations, so I nodded and praised: "Very good,"
Lu Xiufu said: "Your Majesty, it's good, but the cost of making firearms is too huge, as if they are just eating money. The officials from the Ministry of Revenue come to talk to me almost every day,"
I chuckled and said: "There is nothing we can do about this. I have made predictions. Not to mention that the imperial court's finances will be tight because of this, even the savings of Shifeng Trading Bank in the past two years will be exhausted. Fortunately, with the funds of Pu's Trading Company, I can barely cope with it,”