Therefore, when he heard Wan Xing say this, he was moved by his ideas and blueprints for the steam revolution, the more he thought about it, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that it made sense, Zhu Houxuan was also overjoyed, and he nodded again and again with great excitement.

"Haha, yes, yes, You'an, what you said is really true, all of this, if there is a steam engine and a steam revolution, it is really possible!"

"Not to mention anything else, just with this steam train, it can greatly benefit the people of my Ming Dynasty, facilitate their lives, not only used in civil transportation, connecting all places, speeding up disaster relief, etc., the imperial court can also be used to dispatch troops and send information, which is more convenient than the canal, it is really a wonderful way."

Saying that, with great surprise, he looked at the pile of small wooden blocks placed on the ground, and Zhu Houxi was busy asking again.

"By the way, Uncle Wan, why is this steam train placed on the shelf made of these small wooden blocks, is there any explanation?"

Hearing Zhu Houxi ask the most critical question, he first glanced at Wan Xing, and then, with a slightly bitter smile, saw that Wan Chengdao was also a little helpless.

"Back to the prince, this is not a wooden shelf, but a track."

"Track?"

"That's right, this can also be said to be the only drawback of this steam train, because if it runs on flat ground, its speed is slow, and the transportation efficiency is not high, it must be on this special track, in order to gallop, unimpeded, and can also consign a large number of goods, thousands of miles a day."

"So if you really want to promote this steam train, you must erect this kind of track in advance to make it run smoothly, so I said that I want to invent it, which is a bit time-consuming and labor-intensive, and very costly."

Hearing Wan Chengdao say this, saying the biggest problems and shortcomings of this steam train, Zhu Houxi's complexion also changed slightly, and his fanatical mood finally calmed down a little, and his expression became a little ugly.

"Yes, I see, but in this case, it will be a little troublesome, because if you want to set up such a track, I'm afraid it's not so easy, you have to open mountains and build bridges in water, it's not something that can be done in a short time, I'm afraid it will take many years."

"It costs I don't know how much money to spend, and I don't know how many people to requisition, I heard that my Ming Dynasty is now empty in the treasury, I'm afraid I can't draw so much money at all."

nodded, looked at Zhu Houxi's somewhat troubled face, and the extremely fanatical mood about the steam revolution that Wan Xing had depicted before, as if a basin of cold water had been poured on it in an instant, began to gradually cool down, and let Wan Xing be quite helpless.

But he also knew that what Zhu Houxuan said was the truth, in this era, it was indeed extremely difficult to build a railway and lay railroad tracks, and he didn't know how much manpower and material resources would be spent, and he would not be infamous as a tyrant because of this.

Just like Emperor Yang of Sui who built the Grand Canal back then, he may have made great achievements, but he is tired in the present era, and it is really not so good to make up his mind to be a sinner who may be abused by the people.

But since we are lucky to be in this era, we must make some changes, and to promote the Ming Dynasty, which is already moving towards the germination of capitalism, to truly leap into the era of the industrial revolution, is the biggest change and the greatest contribution that we can make by luck.

He believes that once this is really done, it will definitely benefit all the people, and the merit will be in the future, so it's a big deal to slow down, don't be so hasty, and I believe that there won't be too many people who will abuse you, on the contrary, they won't think of you.

After all, just like Emperor Yang of Sui back then, everything he did was too urgent, whether it was building the Grand Canal or conquering Goguryeo, he was too anxious and urgent, all of this was no problem, but it was not something that could be done in a short time.

If he is willing to spend decades doing it slowly, then he is not only not a tyrant, but a wise monarch through the ages, comparable to the kind of Qin Emperor and Han Wu.

But he was too anxious, what he would have needed to do slowly over decades, he wanted to do it in a few years, of course, it would be counterproductive, and as a result, he provoked civil uprisings in various places, and finally lost the country, and lost the infamy of a king who died of the country with great achievements.

But fortunately they can avoid this from happening, it's okay to slow down, but you have to do it, and it's the kind that you can't change once you decide.

Therefore, seeing that he was just a little fanatical, and was moved by the blueprint of the steam revolution he depicted, but when he heard that it cost a lot and cost the people and money, Zhu Houxuan, who was immediately a little cooled and shaken, had to encourage him again.

"Yes, Your Highness, from my admit, it is indeed not so easy to lay such a track, it will cost a lot of money, as well as manpower and material resources and I don't know how much time."

"However, there is a good saying, as the so-called reluctant children can't trap the wolf, as long as we can get out of the way and make up our minds to set up this track, even if it takes a little longer, it doesn't matter, because there are a lot of natural benefits at that time, and you will feel that all the costs in the early stage are worth it."

"Because I dare to conclude that the income created by this steam train will definitely be higher than you can imagine, and even more than the current salt tax, etc., which will become another stable source of tax revenue for my Ming Dynasty and enrich the treasury."

"And it can greatly promote the development of my Ming Dynasty's national strength, because it can travel thousands of miles a day, and it can transport a large number of materials every time, which is definitely an important weapon of the country."

"For example, now, if you go from us to the capital, with ordinary means, even if you ride the fastest horse, it will take at least half a month, and you will be tired enough, eat and sleep in the open, eat and sleep well, and you will have to exhaust several horses because of this."

"But if you use this steam train, it will be there in two or three days at most, and it will be comfortable, you don't have to sleep in the open, you don't have to work and travel, you can eat and drink well, eat hot pot and sing songs, and you can sleep comfortably on the train, and you will arrive at all."

"What, it's going to be there in two or three days?"

Immediately, hearing Wan Xing say this, Zhu Houxi was also shocked again, a little incredulous, he didn't expect the speed of this steam train to be so fast, impossible!

But fortunately, he nodded sincerely and continued to follow the good path.

"That's right, and Your Highness, the benefits don't stop there, this steam train can not only travel thousands of miles a day, but also pull a lot of goods, you can also see, it is composed of the front of the locomotive and a carriage, the front of the locomotive is used to provide power, and the carriage is used to pull people and goods, a carriage is the size of a house, and ten carriages are ten houses."

"You can even load more than 20 carriages at a time, with two locomotives, one in front and one in the back, so that you can load more goods, which is more convenient than the tank ships in the canal, and more efficient, more convenient, and faster."

"We don't need too much in the early stage, we only need to lay a few such main railway roads in Daming, so that we can connect all parts of the country like the main arteries of the human body, so that the transportation of materials from all over the country, including the deployment of soldiers, will be doubled."

Hearing this, not only Zhu Houxi was surprised, but everyone around him was shocked, like the official Zhang Zuo was a little incredible.

"My God, lucky boy, is this little steam train really as powerful as you say?"

"Of course, Zhang Fengzheng, if nothing else, you also know that now our Ming Dynasty's economic and trade prosperity is indispensable for trade with countries such as the Western Regions, that is, relying on the Silk Road."

"But in fact, this ancient Silk Road is not very efficient, because it is a long way, very difficult, and every trip takes at least a year and a half."

"And there are not many goods transported each time, so the price of these goods is not only expensive, but also scarce, like spices and peppers, and the price is comparable to gold."

"But if we can lay a track like this on this Silk Road, then the trade time of each trip will be greatly shortened, and it used to take a year and a half, but now it can go back and forth in half a month at most."

"And the volume of goods transported each time may be worth the transportation volume of the past year, so that the economic and trade prosperity of my Ming Dynasty will reach a higher level."

"Even all the common people can participate in this kind of foreign trade, so that this kind of large-scale foreign trade no longer has to be monopolized in the hands of those big businessmen and big family officials, so that they can invisibly weaken their strength and strengthen the influence of the imperial court."

"And it can also be used to reduce the price of these previously extremely expensive foreign goods, such as pepper and spices, into real ordinary things, so that everyone can afford to use them, and get benefits from them."

"So as to be grateful to the imperial court, like the Song Dynasty, to strengthen the country with commerce and trade, to earn a lot of money, but also so that the treasury no longer has to be so stretched."

"Of course, the most important thing is that in this case, it will be more convenient to dispatch troops, which can increase the influence of the imperial court on the countries of the Western Regions, and even re-incorporate the treasure land of the Western Regions into the territory of the Ming Dynasty, reproduce the majesty of the Han and Tang Dynasties, and achieve the prestige of Your Highness, your heavenly khan!"

"You must know that now the imperial court has almost lost control of this place in the Western Regions, because it is too far away from the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty and difficult to control, including the Han and Tang Dynasties, although it has also controlled the Western Regions and set up the capital to protect the mansion, but in the end, it is out of control because of the long distance, the difficulties of dispatching troops and transporting materials."

"But as long as we build such a railway to the border of the Western Regions, then all these problems will be solved, such as in the past, it took at least a year and a half to send troops to the Western Regions Protectorate, but as long as this railway is repaired, then it will be there in ten days at most, and there will be no need to worry about the transportation of soldiers, including materials, it will become very simple."

"For example, in order to run the Western Regions during the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, it was often necessary to mobilize hundreds of thousands of people to transport materials and provide logistical support."

"But the final effect is not ideal, the control is still very weak, and the people are hurting money, making the people complain, it is difficult to last for a long time, and it is difficult to continue when the national strength is weak, so that this place will lose control again."

"But Your Highness, as long as you are open-minded and mobilize hundreds of thousands of people to build such a railway, then you can completely solve this problem once and for all."

"It's a one-time thing, and you can completely sit back and enjoy it later, not only will it not waste money, but it can also make a lot of money!"

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