Getting up in the morning and washing up, Goritsyn ran to the dining room.

"Sir, I have prepared the equipment for the experiment you are going to do today." Golitsyn said.

"Come and eat," Pascal laughed, "I forgot to tell you that I don't have a job today." If you wish, you can accompany me to the riverside to see the steamship trials. ”

"Steamship?" Golitsyn didn't understand.

Pascal explained: "There is a steam engine in China, which is forbidden for gentiles to study, but it is still possible to watch it from a distance. In the southwest of the suburbs of Nanjing, there are many chimneys emitting black smoke, that is, the smoke emitted by steam engines. ”

Golitsyn still didn't understand, and couldn't help asking: "Is that Eastern witchcraft?" ”

Pascal laughed, "You can understand it that way. ”

When Pascal went out, he not only asked Golitsyn to follow, but also brought the servants of the household with him.

All the way to the Yangtze River, where thousands of people have gathered.

Suddenly, the imperial city guards opened the way, and Zhao Han appeared with the royal family. However, instead of going out of the city, he climbed the northern city wall and stood on the towering tower and waited.

Xu Zhengming, who is responsible for the research and development of the steam engine, is by Zhao Han's side at the moment.

He had already improved the steam engine again, changing the single cylinder to a double cylinder, which greatly improved the efficiency of the machine. The steam ship used a double-cylinder steam engine for this trial voyage, and the inventor was Xu Zhengming's son and apprentice.

"Your Majesty, you're ready." Xu Zhengming said.

Zhao Han nodded and said, "Then let's try the voyage." ”

Xu Zhengming raised the flag in his hand, and his son and apprentice received the news and immediately ordered the steamship to set sail.

"Woo woo~~~"

The twin-cylinder steam engine had already been warmed up, and the steam struck the whistle, making a loud screeching sound, and the ship's chimney emitted even thicker black smoke.

Oars were installed on both sides of the hull, and this thing was ready-made, and paddle boats appeared in the Song Dynasty. In the past, the pedals were pedaled by manpower, but now they are driven by a steam engine and slowly drive forward in the Yangtze River.

Zhao Han looked at the clairvoyant mirror for two minutes and asked, "Can it be faster?" ”

"The boiler has to burn for a while before it can reach the fastest speed." Xu Zhengming explained.

Zhao Han didn't urge again, but turned around and asked the concubines: "How is this thing?" ”

"Walking too slowly." Fei Rulan said.

Fei Rumei said: "The smoke is too big. ”

Liu said with a smile: "It would be nice if it could improve faster." ”

Zhu Yujiao asked: "Isn't this really pedaled with feet?" ”

“……”

After the concubines finished speaking, Zhao Han asked Zhao Kuanghuan: "What does the prince think?" ”

Zhao Kuanghuan replied: "In the current state, it seems that there is not much use, and the machine must be continuously improved." ”

The steamship in front of me is about as fast as a human walk. If a man runs on the shore, he leaves the steamer behind in a minute, and the cruising range is less than 200 miles, and the coal burns out and has to be refueled on the shore.

The scientific value is great, but the practical value is nothing.

The royal family was not very satisfied with the steamship, but Golitsyn, who was standing on the shore, looked at the monster in the river with dumbfoundedness.

"Witchcraft...... It's really witchcraft, witchcraft from the devil! Golitsyn kept muttering.

Pascal laughed and said, "It's natural science, a different kind of witchcraft. I'm using my research on air pressure to help Qin Tianjian improve the steam engine, and maybe the steam engine will run faster in the future. ”

As the steamship drifted away, the people on the shore cheered, some of them mixed with ridicule.

As for the joke, of course, it's the slow speed of a turtle.

According to the original historical trajectory, more than 20 years later, the French put forward the idea of steamships. But no one paid attention to it, and the steam engine was not efficient, so it could not support this idea into practice.

More than 100 years later, a French man built a steamer, and during the trial, it blew up with people and ships. Another American man built a steamboat, which was destroyed in a storm and killed. Then the Americans built a steamboat and sailed in the inland river, but they were stopped by the river transport operator and dragged the boat to the shore and impounded.

Until Fulton appeared, Napoleon first supported him in building ships, but due to the unstable center of gravity, he was blown over by the wind and waves during the trial. Then he pledged allegiance to the British, but was ignored by the British. With the money he earned from England, Fulton returned to the United States to work on his own, and the steamship finally made a successful sea trial.

"Your Majesty, the minister must lead his apprentices to continue to improve." Xu Zhengming was afraid that the emperor would be unhappy.

Zhao Han smiled and said, "Don't worry, take your time, you have done a good job." ”

"Thank you for your understanding." Xu Zhengming breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, feeling that this emperor was too good.

Zhao Han said suddenly: "Have you ever thought that if you encounter a strong wind and waves, and lift the hull out, the oars on both sides of the hull will be out of the water." Even if the hull of the ship does not leave the water, under the wind and waves, one side is high and the other side is low, and the higher side of the oars will also spin. ”

Xu Zhengming was stunned when he heard it, this was a question he hadn't thought about.

Zhao Han continued to prompt: "Didn't you ever build a flying machine? The kind of device that resembles a bamboo dragonfly can be used for steamships. I call it a propeller, and by placing the propeller under the water at the stern of the ship, you can push the steamer along. ”

"Your Majesty is wise!" Xu Zhengming sincerely admired.

Technological progress is not all smooth sailing.

Zhao Han, who is not a half-asser, can only give some kind of advice, and leave the specific operation to the professionals.

Even the steam engine in the factory has gone through a lot of hardships, blowing up more than 20 boilers in ten years, killing and injuring more than 30 boiler workers. The bloody lesson led to the advent of the safety valve, and now the steam boiler finally does not explode at every turn.

Zhao Han said: "While improving the steam ship, the steam car must also be made. ”

"It's already being made." Xu Zhengming said.

Regarding the track, there was something in the Qin Dynasty, and the remains of the wooden track of the Qin Dynasty were found in Nanyang, which was several kilometers long. The shape is similar to that of the train tracks, and the wood has been treated with anti-corrosion, and it has not been seriously rotted after more than 2,000 years.

According to the situation in the mountainous area of Nanyang, it is speculated that it should be used by the Qin Dynasty to transport ore.

I don't know what the reason is, the mines after the Qin Dynasty no longer use rail transportation. Until the late Ming Dynasty, in Europe, mine tracks appeared again, and they were not as good as the Qin Dynasty.

When Zhao Han was still in Jiangxi, the mines under his jurisdiction successively used wooden rails, and the power was of course mules, bad horses and cattle.

Now the steam engine has been widely used in steel smelting, and the output of steel has not only increased, but the price has also continued to fall. This led to the laying of railroad tracks, and the development of steam locomotives should be put on the agenda.

When the train was invented, it had to be put into use in the north first.

In the Kawasaki area of the southern mountains, the railroad tracks are not easy to lay, and the rivers are crisscrossed, so it is more convenient to take a boat than a train.

The route of the first railroad track, Zhao Han has thought about it. From the Xishan Coal Mine in Beijing to Tianjin, the Beijing Coal Mine can be loaded and shipped south in Tianjin.

With the experience of the first railway, the second railway was built longer and could be built from Beijing to Shanhaiguan.

The third railway was longer, from Shanhaiguan to Shenyang.

The fourth railway, which is under construction in Guanzhong, Chencang-Xi'an-Huayin.

The fifth railway, Tianshui-Lanzhou-Wuwei-Zhangye-Jiuquan, was built all the way to outside the Jiayu Pass, strengthening the connection between the interior and the Western Regions.

These five railways are planned to be completed in 40 years, and I don't know if Zhao Han can live that long.

Isn't there an over-importation of American silver?

Throwing silver on the railroad would not only alleviate inflation, but also absorb surplus labor from the north.

Anyway, Zhao Han built several railways that were not connected to each other, all of which were relatively flat sections. When the technology advances in the future, later generations will extend and connect, and even build the railway to the grassland area.

Zhao Han returned to the palace with his wife and children, but there was a Mongolian prince by the river, looking at the steamship and being silent for a long time.

The Mongol prince, Ayuqi, lived in the Dzungar tribe as a child, and his grandfather was the Great Khan of Dzungar. Then he went to Tibet with his grandfather to worship the Buddha, and then under the leadership of his grandfather, he crossed the entire Kazakh steppe and came to live on the lower reaches of the Volga River and the Caspian coast.

More than a year ago, Ayuqi took 500 people and passed through the Kazakh Khanate, planning to return to Tibet to visit a teacher (a certain unspeakable lama), and by the way, take some monks to the Caspian Sea to preach.

When he arrived in Qinghai, he found that Qinghai-Tibet had changed.

So he asked his deputy to go to Tibet, and he brought people to Nanjing, claiming that the Turk Special Department had come to ask for the seal.

The Han land is really rich, and the Han people are really powerful!

Ah Yuqi watched the street scene all the way, followed the officials of Honglu Temple to Zhongshan Temple to stay, and was finally received by Emperor Zhao a few days later.

"You're actually a Warat?" Of course, Zhao Han knew about "The Legend of the Heroes of Donggui", but he was still surprised that a group of Mongols actually ran to the Caspian Sea to graze.

The protagonist of the Legend of the Heroes of Donggui is Ayuqi's grandson.

Ayuqi said: "Yes, Your Majesty the Emperor, we are the Turghut tribe of the Warat Mongols. ”

Zhao Han asked again: "Do you really live in the lower reaches of the Volga River?" ”

Ayuqi corrected: "Your Majesty, the Volga River is the name of the Russians, and we Mongolians call it the Ezil River. ”

"What's the situation over there?" Zhao Han said curiously.

"The Russians were strong in the middle and upper reaches, and they also built castles in the lower reaches. We fought with the Russians for a long time, the Russians were weak in the field, but the castle was very difficult to deal with. Some Cossacks, accomplices of the Russians. There were also some Cossacks, our allies, who fought the Russians with us. ”

The Cossacks, who were enemies of the Turks, operated mainly in the Volga valley.

The Cossacks, allied with the Turks, operated mainly in the Don valley.

Ayuqi continued: "On my way to Nanjing, I heard that His Majesty was also at war with Russia. The roots of the Mongols are in China, and the Mongols are willing to be the vanguard of Your Majesty and fight the Mongols in the Ezil River! ”

This was said so funny that Zhao Han almost laughed.

From Jiayuguan to the Volga River, there is a distance of 108,000 miles, and everything they say is nonsense, and their obedience to the Chinese emperor is purely a scene.

Of course, Zhao Han was still very happy to be able to disgust Tsarist Russia, and decided to give Ayuqi a thousand muskets.

After all, Ayuqi's grandson led his troops back to the east in history, and half of the 170,000 dead were on the road.

I would rather die half than return to China and refuse to accept the rule of Tsarist Russia, which shows how fierce the oppression of Tsarist Russia is.

(There is only one change.) ）