Guangyuan Railway Station is a sea of people here. Hundreds of thousands of Sichuan people have gathered again to prepare for the opening ceremony of the Changcheng Railway. Knowing that the Emperor of Heaven will come here makes all Sichuan people in Sichuan extremely excited.
The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was coming to Sichuan to see the folks in Sichuan. As soon as the news spread, people rushed to tell each other and were very excited. Even more people came to Guangyuan.
The newly built Guangyuan Railway Station is quite beautiful, especially there is a large square next to the railway station, which can accommodate tens of thousands of people.
At this moment, the place is crowded with people, and the surrounding streets and alleys are also full of people, all coming to welcome the Emperor of Heaven.
The completion of the Changcheng Railway was due not only to the efforts and dedication of the Sichuan people themselves, but more importantly to the attention and support of the imperial court.
Although this railway is not too long, compared with other railways in the Ming Dynasty, it is relatively short, but it consumes a huge amount of money. Over more than six years, the imperial court has allocated nearly 1 billion taels of silver.
This road was almost saved with money.
There are private individuals who are willing to invest in other railways. This developed railway was almost entirely funded by the imperial court.
At the beginning, officials from the Ministry of Industry of the imperial court even believed that it was impossible to complete such a difficult project and suggested that the imperial court cancel the railway.
However, the imperial court insisted on building this railway under the insistence of Emperor Hongzhi and the chief ministers of the cabinet Liu Jin and Liu Gong.
Without the persistence of Emperor Hongzhi and Liu Jin, this railway would have been impossible to complete, because the funds consumed were too great, and the small amount of funds raised by the Sichuan people themselves was only a drop in the bucket.
The imperial court was able to spend money to build the railway. This was also the result of Emperor Hongzhi's hard work over the years. Without strong national power and sufficient financial resources, there was no way to build the railway even if he wanted to.
Therefore, Sichuan people had great respect for Emperor Hongzhi and Liu Jin. When they learned that they were coming to Sichuan, everyone was extremely excited.
With this railway in Sichuan, it will be much more convenient for Sichuan people to travel to other countries.
In the past, it took more than twenty days to pass through the Shu Road. The only way was to walk, and the speed was very slow. Even mules and horses did not dare to use the Shu Road.
Even if it is slow, it is also very dangerous, and there is no way to transport large and heavy goods. If there is a famine in Sichuan, food will not be transported at all.
But with this railway, it only takes about one day to go from Sichuan to Chang'an. You can start in the morning and arrive in Chang'an the next morning.
The speed is very fast, and with trains, all kinds of goods can be transported. Food from Sichuan can be transported out continuously, and goods from outside can also be transported into Sichuan continuously.
It has become easier for Sichuan people to go out and work. They can go to Chang'an, Kaifeng, Beijing, Tianjin and other places to work, and they can also easily immigrate to places outside the customs and overseas.
For Sichuan people, this railway is the real lifeblood!
"Woo~"
As the whistle sounded, everyone who had been waiting for a long time became excited, because the Emperor of Heaven had arrived in Guangyuan.
"Your Majesty, there are many people outside, aren't we?"
Seeing the crowds of people outside, the palace guard responsible for Emperor Hongzhi's safety hurried over and said.
"No, no need~"
"I am not a cruel king like Xia Jie and Shang Zhou who was unpopular and was punished by everyone."
"These people knew that I was coming, and they were excited and came to welcome me. How could I avoid it? Wouldn't this disappoint everyone?"
Emperor Hongzhi waved his hand and then said: "Come here, please change my court clothes for me."
"yes!"
When the eunuchs around him heard this, they could only hurry up and put on the dragon robes and golden Yishan crowns that Emperor Hongzhi wore when he went to the morning court.
Even Liu Jin hurriedly changed into his first-grade crane crimson official uniform, put on his black gauze hat, and dressed neatly. This was very formal, because he was going to meet hundreds of thousands of Sichuan folks.
There was a sea of people at the station exit, and everyone was waiting anxiously.
"I wonder if the emperor will come out to see us?"
"What do you think the emperor looks like?"
"How do I know? I've never seen it."
"The Emperor has actually come to Sichuan, so he will definitely come out to meet everyone."
Everyone was discussing and waiting patiently.
Soon, the honor guard of Emperor Hongzhi came out first.
Groups of palace guards lined up neatly, dressed neatly, carrying muskets and walked out, quickly standing on both sides of the road, followed by Jin Yiwei and Dongchang Fanzi in flying fish uniforms, also walking in neat steps
, and quickly became alert outside.
Then groups of eunuchs, small yellow gates, and palace ladies came out, holding various things in their hands, including flags, drums, etc.
Seeing this, all the people waiting became excited and looked over one after another, waiting quietly for Emperor Hongzhi to appear.
Everyone did not wait too long. Emperor Hongzhi, who was wearing a bright yellow dragon robe and a golden Yishan crown, walked out with a smile on his face. Behind him was Liu Jin, who was wearing a crimson robe and a group of accompanying officials.
Eunuch wait.
"Come out, come out!"
Everyone immediately became excited when they saw it, and stood on tiptoe one by one, wanting to take a closer look.
"Hello everyone!"
Emperor Hongzhi looked at the people around him and felt very friendly. He smiled, waved and greeted everyone loudly.
"Long live my emperor, long live the emperor!"
Here, Sichuan officials and gentry, led by Yang Tinghe and Ma Hao, had been waiting outside early. When Emperor Hongzhi came out, they also knelt down and shouted in unison.
Immediately, the people around him started shouting, and the sound was loud and resounded through the sky, echoing among the mountains and rivers.
"Everyone, get up~"
Emperor Hongzhi smiled and motioned for everyone to get up, waving his hands gently as he walked.
Seeing Emperor Hongzhi waving to everyone, many people who came to watch were also very excited.
"Your Majesty, you are much older."
Yang Tinghe came to Emperor Hongzhi's side and said with runny nose and tears.
He had been waiting for this day for a long time. Ever since he was ordered by Emperor Hongzhi to return to his hometown to retire, he had been thinking about how to make a comeback.
Other people who worked as teachers for the prince could eventually achieve great success and become cabinet ministers without any problem. For example, Liu Jian worked as a teacher for Emperor Hongzhi and eventually became the chief minister of the cabinet.
I worked as a teacher for Zhu Houzhao, but ended up having to go home to retire. Of course, I felt unhappy, so I kept working, hoping to make a comeback and become an official again.
This time, Emperor Hongzhi finally arrived, so he naturally had to perform well.
"Yang Aiqing, you are also much older."
Emperor Hongzhi looked at Yang Tinghe, the minister he had chosen to be Zhu Houzhao's teacher. He must be talented and knowledgeable.
He just blindly taught Zhu Houzhao Confucian things. Zhu Houzhao was tired of learning, and he was gradually forced to become rebellious and extremely playful.
Later, under the guidance of Liu Jin, Zhu Houzhao's character gradually improved a lot, and he also learned a lot of other things and knowledge.
Now it seems that Zhu Houzhao will be a qualified successor. He has his own ideas and methods for governing the country. Zhu Houzhao manages the Shuntian Mansion in an orderly manner.
Emperor Hongzhi is preparing to let Zhu Houzhao take charge of Beizhili next year, manage a province, and have a good experience and temper.
"Time makes people grow old. More than ten years have passed in a flash."
"It has been more than ten years since I finally met Your Majesty again."
Yang Tinghe burst into tears and burst into tears, looking very excited and happy.
"Hmm~"
Emperor Hongzhi nodded, feeling very sorry in his heart. Yang Tinghe was also a very talented person, but he was directly ignored by him and sent home to retire.
You still have to use it again when you go back, it shouldn't be too chilling.
The ministers reminisced about the past, and Emperor Hongzhi and others soon arrived at the square where the celebration was held. Everything here had been arranged, and they were waiting for Emperor Hongzhi to arrive to celebrate the completion and opening of the Changcheng Railway.
With firecrackers, fireworks, and drum music, the celebration officially began.
Under the gaze of everyone, Emperor Hongzhi came to the podium and looked at the hundreds of thousands of Sichuan people, the engineering team building the railway, as well as Sichuan officials, gentry, etc.
"It's not easy to build a railway once it's grown!"
"In more than six years, the imperial court has allocated more than 1 billion taels of silver. It can be said that such a road was paved with real money."
"I also know that in order to build this railway, the folks in Sichuan paid a huge price. Hundreds of people are buried forever in the rolling mountains and rivers, and thousands of people are disabled."
"You have frugally raised tens of millions of taels of silver, donated countless materials and food, showed up with money, and made powerful contributions, all for this railway!"
"The road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky!"
"The folks in Sichuan have spent countless manpower, material and financial resources since ancient times in order to open roads to the outside world, because everyone is so eager to have a convenient road in and out of Sichuan like other places."
"It took more than six years, and with the joint efforts of everyone, the railway was finally completed!"
"This is a great project and an unprecedented one."
"Its completion represents that Sichuan will usher in a new history. From now on, the road to Sichuan will no longer be difficult, and it will become faster, safer and more convenient for Sichuan people to travel to and from Sichuan."
“I hope that the folks in Sichuan can continue to carry forward the spirit of hard work, actively participate in the construction of our Ming Dynasty, and contribute to the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty. I also hope that this railway can bring prosperity to the folks in Sichuan.
Come to Xianghe and bring development!”
What Emperor Hongzhi said was very straightforward. This was Liu Jin's suggestion. The people present were basically rough and tumble. It was obviously inappropriate to use official language. It would be better to speak straightforwardly.
"Wow!"
As Emperor Hongzhi finished speaking, the audience burst into thunderous applause, over and over again, for a long time. Everyone was so excited.
The emperor of the Ming Dynasty did not forget the folks in Sichuan, but always cared about everyone, silently caring about them. Knowing everyone's efforts and hardships, he immediately felt that all the efforts were worth it.
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