Zhang Dai's family has a rich collection of books and such a family atmosphere, so he is well-versed in classics and history. He has dabbled in astronomy and geography. Although he has no fame or fame, he has the ambition to write. He wrote continuously throughout his life and left many writings.
, the most famous ones are "Tao An's Dreams" and "Night Sailing" which these people have read.
In addition to being rich in knowledge, he is also a dandy who is good at enjoying himself. He said in his article: He was a dandy when he was young, and he loved prosperity very much. He loved monasteries, beautiful maids, prostitutes, fresh clothes, good food, good horses, and so on.
Lanterns, fireworks, pear orchards, publicity, antiques, flowers and birds, tea and oranges, books and poems. It can be said that the luxurious and hedonistic habits of the dandy are combined with the decadent and cynical style of the celebrities and literati in the late Ming Dynasty.
There is.
Such a figure has little value in the eyes of the Senate, but he is an important figure to the Foreign Intelligence Service.
Zhang Dai was not only a literati with rich writings, profound knowledge, and good enjoyment, but he was also a member of the Fushe who had a strong influence on the political situation in the late Ming Dynasty. Although he was not a person who was keen on politics, he participated in many activities of the Fushe.
Of course he was friends with many of the key members of Fushe. Zhao Yingong thought to himself that such a person would be very popular wherever he went.
The Jiangnan area is the basic base of Fushe, and the local power is extremely strong. Fushe not only controls the "public opinion" of Jiangnan Shilin, but also controls the governance of local officials in Jiangnan to a certain extent. Many local officials themselves are Fushe or
People from Donglin.
If Zhao Yingong wanted to launch activities in the Jiangnan area, it was crucial to obtain the support or acquiescence of Fushe.
Zhang Dai is a "dandy with profound cultural attainments". Obviously, Lingao's "splendid and ingenious skills" can impress him faster. Zhao Yingong's eager eyes immediately focused on the building in front of him.
"Where is it going ahead?" he asked, "Why is Xianggong Zhang's boat going so fast?"
Cai Shi said, "I tell you, the dragon boat race is about to start. Everyone is rushing to see it."
Dragon boat races in other places are mostly held on the fifth day of May every year, while the dragon boat races in West Lake in Hangzhou have been held twice a year since the Song Dynasty. Except for one on Dragon Boat Festival, the other one is on the eighth day of February, which is said to be a sacrifice.
Wu Zixu’s is also said to be because of Zhang Zhenjun’s birthday in Cishan.
The second dragon boat race in West Lake starts on the first day of May and ends on the tenth day of May. Scholars, farmers, businessmen and merchants from outside the city, as well as those who are not able to open the pot at home, all come to watch the excitement.
The boatman listened to the guest's instructions and hurriedly rowed his pole and rowed toward the pavilion in the middle of the lake where the dragon boat was.
On the lake side of Huxinting Pavilion, many large and small boats have gathered. In addition to various types of boat cruises, there are also "big boats" specially used for ordinary people to watch games and have fun. The various boats are almost touching each other end to end.
The scene was very lively.
Zhao Yingong was still looking for Zhang Dai's boat. At this moment, the sound of drums and cymbals was heard. Five dragon boats surged through the waves and appeared on the lake. These dragon boats were all equipped with finely carved
The heads and tails of the dragons were raised one by one, with distinctive scales. Each boat was four to five feet long. Different from the canoe-like dragon boats that the elders saw in another time and space, these dragon boats were much larger.
The cabin has two floors. In the front is a dragon-headed prince dressed as a child and a swing frame. On the frame, a child rolls back and forth and performs various movements. Next to it is a weapons rack with eighteen kinds of martial arts, swords, guns, swords and halberds.
Flags of various colors. There are high and low five-color umbrellas in the middle, and a centipede flag at the end. Drum music is displayed on the lower floor, with gongs and drums beating continuously. Twenty strong men, tied tightly and powerfully, sit in two rows on both sides of the narrow and long cabin. Each
Everyone holds a big oar in their hands, which rises and falls in time with the gongs and drums of the boat, rowing the boat like a runaway horse or an arrow off the string. The eight or nine-year-old child on the swing is in the dragon boat.
While advancing at high speed, they constantly made various thrilling gestures, which made onlookers marvel and couldn't help but sweat for them.
It is said to be a "dragon boat race", but in fact it does not have a formal starting point and end point like the old times. Sometimes you chase each other, and sometimes the dragon boats move forward end to end. Some idle people throw money and playthings into
In the water, the sailors on the dragon boat jumped down and dived into the water to fish it out. The sailor who fished out quickly and had the most graceful and elegant posture when entering the water often caused a burst of applause. Of course, more money toys were thrown out.
.
On the cruise ship, there were playing, singing, and playing ten times. It was like blooming flowers and brocade, and fire cooking oil. Even the elders who were accustomed to seeing grand scenes were moved by such a prosperous scene.
If we just look at this situation, there are no signs that the Ming Dynasty is about to collapse! It is simply an unprecedented "prosperous age".
Zhao Yingong was sighing when suddenly a wet head appeared on the water, holding a long yellow object in his hand. A bright light was reflected in the sun. The elders on the terrace were all surprised. This was
The reflection of glass can be tense:
"Old Zhao! What is that?"
Zhao Yingong didn't say anything, and immediately told Cai Shi: Get that thing.
Cai Shi immediately went to the bow of the ship to greet him, said a few words, and ran back panting:
"Master! He insists on a penny and a copper pipe that he doesn't know what to use - it's just a rip-off.
Zhao Yingong cut off his words sternly: "Give it to him, bring the things!"
Cai Shi quickly took it again, and after a while, he brought the "copper pipe" over. Zhao Yingong snatched it, put it in his hand and pulled it, then put it to his eyes and looked at it: Yes, this is a single tube.
telescope.
The finely crafted brass double-section barrel and the hand-polished glass lens all indicate that this is a Dutch-made telescope that was invented not long ago in this time and space. Even in Europe, this thing is quite rare. The Foreign Intelligence Service knows
Tang Yunwen had one, and a few officials and wealthy people in Guangdong also had one. Except for the generals of the Ming Dynasty, most people used it as a rare Western toy.
I didn’t expect that there is such a telescope in Hangzhou! Of course, there is a Catholic church in Hangzhou, and it is possible for missionaries to use such "wonderful and cunning" objects as gifts to local gentry officials to gain favor. Just like Matteo Ricci.
The same thing is done in Guangdong and Beijing.
Xu Xu took it and looked at it: "The magnification is not big, only 1 to 2 times at most."
"This is a Galileo-style telescope." Zhou Dongtian said, "It is a gadget with a very simple structure."
The Galilean telescope was the earliest telescope. It had a simple principle and was easy to manufacture. However, its magnification was extremely limited and there were a series of problems such as distortion. Later, it was mainly used as a children's telescope and a theater telescope.
But in this time and space, this thing is a very useful military weapon. Who on earth owns such an extremely rare Western item? Why would he throw it into the water?
This kind of rare Western goods cannot simply be calculated in terms of money. When Zhao Yingong went to Guangzhou for an "internship", he saw Dutch telescopes imported from Europe. The price was 30 to 40 taels of silver. The telescopes were only regarded by people at the time as
It's just a "toy". The market demand is very small. Because the demand is small, unlike glassware, Western cloth, spices, ivory and the like, which often arrive, it often takes a year or two to import ten or twenty of them.
It is extremely rare. The owner will never throw it into the West Lake for fun.
Zhou Dongtian checked it again and again and said: "It seems that it has been left in the lake for a while, not just now."
The tube body is already filled with water, and there are still some traces of silt and water plants. It is obviously not caused by being at the bottom of the lake for a while. It was probably dropped a few days ago and was accidentally picked up by the sailors on the dragon boat today.
Zhou Dongtian suddenly asked: "Old Zhao, what are you looking at? It seems to be words."
Zhao Yingong took it and looked at it carefully. The fonts were very finely engraved on the barrel. If you don't look carefully at the light, you can hardly see them.
"Dragon Sleeping Fool's Self-Actuator".
The fonts are all in small seal script. If Zhao Yingong hadn't practiced calligraphy hard in the training class, these characters would have been written in heaven. He thought for a while, "Long Mian Fool" should be someone's nickname. From the specially engraved words on the cylinder
Looking up, we can see that he cherishes this telescope very much. He definitely didn't throw it into the lake for fun, he probably fell into it by mistake.
Zhao Yingong smiled and said: "It's a pity that I don't know who this Longmian Fool is. But I can deduce the general appearance of this person."
Xu Xu and Zhou Dongtian both laughed: "I didn't expect you to be a great detective. I'd like to hear the details."
Zhao Yingong inferred: This person is a Confucian scholar from a well-off family - people from ordinary families will not spend a lot of money to buy such rare things that have no practical use. He does not have certain cultural literacy and cannot carve small seals on a telescope: This person is very interested in new things.
He has a strong interest in things, otherwise he would not buy an unpopular foreign product. The telescope was lost at the bottom of the lake, indicating that he had been to the West Lake a few days ago to watch the Dragon Boat Festival. He should have something to do with the Catholic Church in Hangzhou or the Confucian scholars.
It is possible that the telescope was obtained from them.
"Finally, I estimate that he is not very old, probably a young man."
"This is not necessarily true. Although people who like new things are mainly young people, Sun Yuanhua and Xu Guangqi were middle-aged when they came into contact with Catholicism and Western science. I don't see them clinging to the past." Xu Xu said.
Zhao Yingong said: "I think young people will be more willing to show off the novelty gadgets in their hands. You see, the people hanging around with iPhones are all teenagers. People over thirty will not hold it all day long even if they buy an iPhone.
It’s in my hand. So I feel that this person’s age is at most thirty.”