The city of Guangzhou is thriving, but the city is full of mourning clothes.

Nowadays, far away from the capital, the news between Guangzhou and the capital is transmitted very quickly. This is thanks to the Beijing-Changsha section of the Beijing-Guangzhou Straight Road, which took eight years to complete, and then the Changsha-Guangzhou section that took less than four years to complete.

Louis, who was dressed in the robes of the county king's python, was naturally very conspicuous on the docks of Guangzhou City, and then someone brought him a white linen cloth.

"Your envoy is wearing a royal python robe, and now the queen is riding the sky, and your envoy should express condolences."

"What?" Louis was shocked when he heard the news of the Empress's death.

But Louis, who has been in Daming for several months, already knows how to follow the local customs, not to mention that this time he has a heavy responsibility?

He also tied a white cloth to express his condolences.

The death of the queen is a national mourning. The entire Ming Dynasty changes days and months, and in twenty-seven days, the Ming Dynasty will be a piece of vegetarian.

But the entire Ming Dynasty is still running, but there is a lot of silence on Louis's way north.

This time it wasn't a boat ride, the straight road winds through the mountains of Lingnan, and when the horses pull the carriages uphill, Louis always worries about what to do with the horses.

But it is clear that Daming now has a lot of horses. Every twenty or thirty miles, there will be a station. It can be used for resting, toileting, and changing horses.

The passenger travel takes the straight road, and the goods take the waterway, which is a special arrangement for the section from Changsha to Guangzhou.

This section of the straight road is not as wide and flat as the one on the north side.

However, even so, the rails could extend such a long distance beyond Louis's comprehension.

Daming, how much steel can be produced in a year now?

The seasons change, and disasters cannot be avoided. Wear and tear, maintenance, ...... Louis couldn't imagine how many people and material support were behind this.

"It's a railway bureau that is separated from the post office and is in charge alone." The chief who accompanied him to Beijing shook his head.

He can't say too much.

After years of losses, the emperor also intended to rebuild the railway from Beijing to Xuancheng, Datong, and Guihuacheng.

It is even more difficult to climb over so many mountains and passes. There is a lot of snow in the north, and it is not easy to use in winter. In the future, patrols and repairs will cost an unknown amount.

But with these straights, the imperial court did have a stronger control over the locality. Not to mention anything else, the president of the Railway Bureau can attend the military affairs meeting as an observer.

Louis's journey did not pass through the canal this time, and on the other side of the canal, Huai'an Mansion was the location of the Prime Minister's River Yamen, and Tang Shu had been the governor of the river for almost eight years.

Today, the core sections of the middle and lower reaches of the Huanghuai flood are located in Huaiyang Province. The province is governed in Yangzhou, but Huai'an, as a shipping terminal of the Caohe River, is also more prosperous.

In the Shouzhou area of Fengyang Province, there are huge lime fields, quarries, and coal quarries.

The cement, stone and gravel fired here are transported by cargo ships from the upper reaches of the Huai River to Huai'an, and then from there as the center, up to Suqian and Xuzhou in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, and down to Andong after the Huanghuai River flows.

Tang Shu is here now.

After the people of the Graduate School came to visit this place, they chose this place. Not far from Fengyang Mansion City, here is the land of Longxing. The mountains and soil here have caused a lot of discussion.

But the emperor's determination to make some achievements in this dynasty to the Huanghuai flood has never wavered, Liu Tianhe is in the center, Tang Shu is in the place, and he has not moved for many years, which is the proof.

There is a faint trend of developing into another heavy industry park in this Huainan area, which is also another clear proof.

Everything here is for the sake of river control.

But almost eight years have passed, and Liu Tianhe is already sixty-two, and I don't know if he can continue to stay in the State Hall this time.

"Zhang Guogong, the queen mother has passed away, and mourning is mourning, but you still can't be taken lightly here." Tang Shu said worriedly, "After the summer, although the inner embankment cannot be repaired, the outer embankment is fine. After the autumn, it is the time to use materials, and it is necessary to prepare enough in these months. ”

"Don't worry, Mr. Tang, I know the severity."

The Emperor Ming Assets Bureau sent to this Huainan to coordinate the work between the factories and the Prime Minister River Yamen, but it was Zhang Rong, the son of the late British Duke Zhang Lun.

When he was young, he tinkered with bicycles in the capital and gambled money in the big arena repeatedly, and was thrown by the emperor to the Jinkela Fertilizer Factory, where he had a lot of dealings with farmers.

Zhang Lun has been working hard for many years, with a little hard work, Zhang Rong did not degrade but directly attacked the Duke of Fengguo, after handing over the responsibility of the Huangming Assets Bureau to Zhu Feng, the Duke of Chengguo, the last few years were dragging the old body with Zhang Rong, starting from sending fat.

It was during that period of time that Zhang Rong knew how difficult it was to be a farmer.

What he could get in touch with was a farmer hired by a large family who had the spare money to buy fertilizer from the Jinkela Fertilizer Factory at that time.

And after the death of the English duke and his ascension to the knighthood, he was arranged here by the emperor.

Even if the Huanghuai flood cannot be cured, as long as there is merit, how much can the livelihood of farmers on both sides of the Huanghuai River be guaranteed?

Zhang Rong, who was no longer young, calmed down a lot, but introduced the information he knew to Tang Shu.

"I received a letter that after the completion of the Jingguang Straight Road, the Xuanda Straight Road has not yet been determined. But in the Beijing Heavy Industry Park, those cement factories can't stop. After the renovation of the imperial city, the merchants in Guangzhou and Ningbo who returned from overseas timber were also looking for new sales outlets. ”

Tang Shu looked at him and asked in a deep voice, "What does Zhang Guogong have to say this?" ”

"Mr. Tang has seen the outside." Zhang Rong's expression was solemn, "Mr. Tang, I won't delay here during this time." But taking advantage of this year's major policy meeting, I can ask the rest of the horses to help me talk about the more things that will be allocated to the river yamen. ”

Tang Shu didn't answer for a while.

Over the years, Prime Minister Hedao Yamen has become the third largest gold-swallowing beast outside the Beijing-Guangzhou Straight Road.

Governing the river, expanding the river, building the embankment, and smashing into the water seems to be a stone, but in fact it is silver with white flowers.

Silver in tens of millions of taels, and now that so many years have passed, it is not complete.

More more?

It is true that the treasury is not as difficult as it was in Jiajing for about ten years, but Daming is so big, there are too many places to spend money.

"Let's protect this year's summer flood first!" Tang Shu said solemnly, "Last autumn, only the abutment of the Shushui embankment was built, and when the water rises, it will sink below the river surface. If there is a big flood this year, and the river is blocked by those few abutments, I don't know if it will go wrong. If something goes wrong, let alone extra money, I still have to plead guilty. ”

“…… Tang Zonghe is really not easy. ”

"It's not easy for Liu Guolao." Tang Shu looked at the north, "If Liu Guolao can work for another three years, it will be good......"

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, and then bowed to him solemnly: "Thank you!" ”

He is dedicated to governing the river, and there are very few contacts in officialdom.

Even though Huaiyang has become a province of its own, the governance of the river is no longer related to other provinces. But every autumn and winter when the project is urgent, he still has to go to the prefectures and counties along the way. They are all things that offend people: the workers of the project have to grab the extra labor after the local farming, and they have to occupy some fields to build embankments......

There is no time to socialize around the Spring Festival.

After all, Zhang Rong is the prince of the country, and the relatives behind the Huangming Assets Bureau are also a force that should not be underestimated.

If they can support Liu Tianhe for another three years, then Tang Shu will have a lot of peace of mind.

Right now, Tang Shu really doesn't have the energy to do this. The governance of the river has reached a critical stage, and from last year to this year, there is a faint discussion among the people: this year is the year of Gengzi, the beginning of Yijiazi. In such years, folk legends often have many disasters.

Now, the death of the queen has intensified the worries of the people, which is not a good sign.

In case of a major flood this year, it is necessary to prepare in advance.

The Huanghuai sediment has been silted for many years, and the previous projects have focused on the construction of the outer embankment and the widening of the downstream river. Since last year, the emperor has also participated, and Liu Tianhe and Tang Shu together determined that the Shushui attack began to build the Shushui embankment.

On the other hand, in order to make the river narrower, 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 high.

Now, with the help of cement, it is difficult to complete the project in just one autumn and winter.

The next two or three years are the most critical.

Liu Tianhe and Tang Shu have been governing the river for more than 15 years, and it is time to produce results.

Like this, things that have been going on for many years but have not yet come to fruition, and there are also things in the capital.

That's the new way to use boiling water.

Is a steam engine hard?

The Emperor had indeed figured out the direction, and the original experimental apparatus had been going on and improving.

When Weng Wanda returned from Nanyang in a sealed boat, he took a new steamer for the first time, and he heard that the emperor was presiding over the study of boiling water for a long time.

From the twelfth year of Jiajing to the nineteenth year of Jiajing, the practical steam engine has not been completely built.

There are so many difficulties.

Steel that is stable and durable even at high strength and high temperatures, casting and sealing of round pipes, and minimizing the risk of blowing up the crankshaft and gear that rotate and transmit power, which is called air pressure control, will blow up......

But the biggest problem is that if you boil water with so much coal, you always have to release more than half of it in the end, so as to ensure that there is no danger of blowing it up. And in this way, is it worth burning so much coal with only a little power to use?

The undercurrent in the court has been calmed down for the time being, even if it is not this year after the establishment of a new one, Zhu Houxi is in a bad mood, so he simply spends more time on these things that need to be pondered in depth.

In the southwest corner of the Forbidden City, there is an office for the steam engine project.

This is the place where theoretical design research is conducted, and the real experimental equipment is on the side of the Heavy Industry Park.

Now it is actually the design that needs to be improved and optimized again before it can become practical.

When he came to the Doctoral Research Institute, Zhu Houxi looked at the few people standing in front of him, and he felt a lot of emotion in his heart.

A thing that knows its function, something that is already very clear about the theoretical principle, but wants to make a practical product in engineering, with its own attention and resource guarantee, it has taken so many years and still has not taken the last step.

At the time, I thought it was rubber, sealing, or something like that, but Alfonso had found rubber from South America in Europe, but it couldn't be used at first.

In the environment of a steam engine, the heat is high. This thing softens when it gets hot and has to be treated.

Later, this problem was solved by Tao Zhongwen, God knows how he tried it with sulfuric acid and raw rubber, and the final product was heat-resistant and more elastic.

This was the year before last, and more uses for rubber are still being experimented with.

As far as the steam engine project is concerned, Tao Zhongwen also participated.

There was also welding in this era. But now welding and the application of rubber, the sealing in the pipes in the machine is better, the steam is more sufficient, and there is more waste that needs to be discharged.

Zheng Kui, the great engineer of the "Your Majesty's ......" project and the county lord, is not what it used to be, and opening his mouth is a professional term, "Dr. Shen has been ordered to find a way, and the ministers have also built the barometer and installed it." At present, it is estimated that every time the heat is burned, eighty percent of it is discharged! The ministers have been pondering this difficulty for almost a year, but they still can't find a good way. ”

The prototype and the principle have been implemented, but it can't just be a prototype.

Zheng Kui lowered his head in shame.

Over the years, the Baojin Bureau has separately melted and cast all kinds of strange-shaped parts for them, and the factories in the Heavy Industry Park have responded to them whenever they need them.

For no other reason, the key projects that the emperor personally paid attention to.

But it's been 10 years. Not to mention the silver of white flowers, how many decades can there be in life? Does the court have no opinion on the emperor's constant spending of money on projects like steam engines?

What about Your Majesty himself? I'm probably close to disappointment.

"Boilers, cylinders, pistons, connecting rods, crankshafts, valves, barometers, these are all solved, and this problem should be left." Zhu Houxi replied, as firm as ever, "I can use it now, but it's not worth it." When it is used, coal and water are added, and there are many restrictions with trepidation, and it is extremely difficult to set the shape for future use on vehicles and ships. Sort this issue out again, and if it doesn't work, I'll find more people to brainstorm ideas. ”

At this time, Tao Zhongwen hesitated.

"What do you think of?"

Tao Zhenren is still wearing Taoist clothes, but he has never changed this.

But today's Tao Zhenren is already a scientific master under the emperor's long-term "edification". After many years of alchemy and burning so many strange things, Tao Zhongwen has compiled too many lists of different substances called elements by the emperor, as well as all kinds of three-state attributes that they manifest individually and mixedly.

I can find that rubber vulcanization will be different, not because he already knows what molecular formula, but because there are enough things to burn, there will always be some vague inspiration.

Anyway, the emperor paid for it and burned it to give it a try.

Now the emperor asked, and he only said, "The trouble now is that we have to let out a lot of steam, lest it get too hot in the machine and explode at the end." The minister also burned an unknown number of things, and naturally there was a lot of water. This vapor is water vapor. As long as it's cold, it's water again. Chen wondered if there was a way to stop letting them out so much gas and let them cool down again in the machine. In this way, there is no need to add water frequently. ”

"As soon as the machine starts, it's extremely hot inside and out, where is there room for cold?" Zheng Kui shook his head as he thought back to their experimental environment.

Zhu Houxi was stunned for a moment.

More than 20 years have passed, and his knowledge of those years has become more and more vague.

Alfonso has sent a lot of 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 popped up in Zhu Houxi's mind: condenser.

But how does this thing work? How does it work?

"What do you do?" Zhu Houxi asked Tao Zhongwen, "You burn a lot of things, what are the things that are very heat-absorbing?" If you let them touch it, the steam will be sucked up hot, and it will probably cool down. ”

"You'll have to try." Tao Zhongwen said truthfully, and then said the reason for his hesitation, "The minister can think of this today, because when he taught King Rui for many years, he talked about the difficulties of the steam engine, and King Rui has this word. ”

Zheng Kui and the others immediately secretly looked at the emperor's expression.

"Zaiyan?" Zhu Houxi was stunned again, "What did he think?" ”

Zhu Zaiyan, who succeeded to Zhu Houzhao's name, is now twenty-one years old. Last year, his mother passed away, and he is now preparing for next year's entrance exam. Zhu Houxi once promised him that if he passed the Jinshi examination, he would let his biological father and mother, who had participated in the Huguang Rebellion, come out of the high walls of Fengyang.

In fact, it's not a big deal anymore, Zhu Houxi's position is now very stable, and he could have been pardoned.

But since there was an agreement, Zhu Houxi waited with peace of mind. Anyway, after the vassal kings all lived in Beijing, those people in the high walls of Fengyang, and now Zhu Houxi has also arranged to improve their treatment.

But Zhu Zaiyan is obviously still very cautious. When he reached the age of fifteen, he began to take the initiative to be interested in physics and chemistry, as if to tell the emperor that he would not have any other thoughts about the path he wanted to take in the future.

is not badly talented, and he has the heart to develop and study in this direction, but he is very appreciated by Zhu Houxi, and he also arranged for Tao Zhongwen to give him supplementary lessons.

Now that Zhu Zaiyan can use his brains on the issue of steam engines, Zhu Houxi was a little surprised, and then he couldn't help but be surprised.

After Sun Ming became seriously ill, he was afraid that he also had a premonition that there would probably be chaos around the crown prince in the future.

At this time, he devoted himself to projects such as the steam engine, which made the government and the opposition think that what he wanted to become in the future was just a master, which was low-key and safe.

"It's good, if Zai Yan can contribute to this matter, it would be great." Zhu Houxi nodded, "Let's take him to participate in the project, let's try it boldly." I believe that after passing this level, this steam engine can really be set and practical. ”

It should be the last level, right?

Zhu Houxi did not clearly remember that Watt's improvement of the steam engine was to design an independent condenser on the basis of the Neucomen steam engine at that time, which greatly improved the efficiency of the steam engine.

There is no way, Zhu Houxi was just an accountant in his previous life, and his ability to point directions, give support, and give encouragement is the limit.

These epoch-making things still need to be practiced, pondered, and improved by specific people.

Daming has developed under the leadership of Zhu Houxi for 20 years, and now it is the moment when a new generation of young people has just grown up from the official science of heaven, things, and people.

Even so, in the imperial examinations, the mainstream is still those practical dialectical theories that represent human science, and the only ones that are more closely related to physics are the compulsory arithmetic, simple calendar and geography, and the general knowledge in an "encyclopedia" jointly compiled by many departments.

These common senses are only included in the syllabus of next year's examination last year, the first edition.

But Ruiwang's dedication to this kind of scientific research may represent the time when a new generation of young people can exert their strength.

Zhu Houxi is very relieved and looking forward to this.

It needs a sufficiently representative thing to appear, a group of people need to appear, and the emperor will give full encouragement and commendation, and then arouse new enthusiasm and trigger a new atmosphere.

Zhu Houxi returned to the palace from the Doctoral Research Institute, and Zheng Kui and the others could only be deeply moved by the emperor's patience and hope.

How have you ever seen such an emperor who made them miserable with silver and one catastrophe for ten years?

This year, there is another longevity ceremony, the queen has collapsed, and the emperor is not happy.

Zheng Kui and the others very much hope that this year will be successful, and what the emperor has been looking forward to for so long will finally be made, it should be a thing that makes his old man happy, right?

People who think like this, there is also Yan Song.

In the 20th year of the imperial pole, it was the situation of the coming of all countries, and Yan Song, who had once again set his mind, could only invest time and energy to complete the emperor's great cause of using culture to attract the hearts of the people.

This year, a lot of books will be printed, and they will be sold when the time comes!

In addition, after many years of preparation, the compatibility between the Ming Dynasty and foreign vassals, visas and many other systems have also come to the time of full implementation and large-scale absorption of foreign talents.

All this is the highlight of this year's longevity ceremony.

Zhu Houxi returned to the palace and remembered another thing because of King Rui's choice.

I haven't thought of Lao Qin for a long time, and I haven't remembered for a long time that Lao Qin said that there was a scientific genius in the Daming Sect.

Who's here? Forgot......

The emperor and his old man are becoming more and more forgetful.

A good memory is not as good as a bad pen, so Huang Jin took out a locked big box, and Zhu Houxi quietly flipped 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, just like in 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 and flipping through the books, only to feel that he was even more lonely at this moment.

After a while, the Emperor muttered softly, "Found ......"

Then he raised his voice: "Huang Jin, you send someone to the Zongren Mansion to ask, is there any feudal clan whose heirs are named Zaiyu." ”

"Zaiyu?" Huang Jin confirmed.

Zhu Houxi picked up the pen and wrote down two words and let him look at it.

After Huang Jin saw it, he went out first. When he returned, he saw that there were many books spread out on the imperial case, some compiled by the Institute of Liberal Arts and the Imperial Ming University, as well as Western books sent by Alfonso from Portugal.

“…… Your Majesty, take a break. ”

Zhu Houxi only whispered: "The tea is a little cold." ”

Huang Jin had no choice but to make hot tea again.

In the end, Zhu Houxi failed to find inspiration from these things, and the next thing pulled him back from this specific "scientific research work".

"Your Majesty, Shaanxi's right political participation Sun Yuan has arrived."

Over the years, the emperor has to pay more energy, and it will always be these things.

"Announce it."

(End of chapter)