Several strong chamberlains worked together to unload a long and narrow wooden trough from the huge flatbed truck with two rows of wheels. Those who were close could clearly see that the wooden trough was filled with water, and there was more water in it.
There was a small boat floating on it. The boat was no more than a foot long. At first glance, it didn't look particularly delicate, and it wasn't even qualified as a toy for officials.
Zhang Shou completely ignored some of the commotion in the hall. After the things were stabilized and the water in the wooden trough gradually stabilized, he stepped forward, reached out and fiddled with the boat in the trough a few times, and then fell silent after a while.
He stood aside silently. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, for a long time, everyone on the left and right saw that the boat was not moving at all.
At this time, Academician Kong, who had been tit-for-tat with Zhang Shou just now, couldn't bear it any longer. He shouted sternly: "Zhang Shou, this is the Sutra Banquet in the Wenhua Palace. You think this is some kind of monkey show!"
Zhang Shou glanced at the furious academician and said calmly: "What are scriptures? The works written by sages and sages to explain the principles of the world are scriptures. However, the principles of all things in the world are not only about teaching people how to behave.
kind."
He paused as he spoke, then raised his finger and pointed at the wooden trough, and said with a half-smile: "Just like the Confucian scholar who claims to be a well-educated scholar of classics and history, he just said that there is a small country hundreds of thousands of miles away from me.
There is nothing to be afraid of, because they cannot fly over with wings. However, there are actually things in this world that are not inferior to bird wings, but you have never discovered them before."
Regardless of whether they were scoffers or enthusiastic people, because of Zhang Shou's gesture, they all couldn't help but look at the wooden trough. This time, they were shocked to find that the boat whose stripes were motionless just now was actually the top of the wooden trough.
A line of white smoke burst out, and then it started to move forward in an instant. The speed was so fast that most of the people who couldn't take their eyes were just amazed, and the boat directly hit the other end of the wooden trough.
A sturdy butler who was guarding there wore thick gloves, quickly reached out with quick eyes and hands, and caught the boat that had flipped out of the wooden trough due to the rapid movement. Then he couldn't help but take a step back, and then shouted in a low voice.
Said: "This boat is so powerful!"
"Put down the upper mechanism spring, and don't point the top hole toward yourself to prevent burns!"
Zhang Shou hurriedly reminded him, and when he saw that the waiter carefully followed the instructions one by one, and finally placed the boat firmly on the ground, he smiled and said: "Sea ships rely on sails, and river ships rely on sails and rudders. If the wind direction is unfavorable,
At that time, no matter how experienced the boatman was, he could not move quickly. But there was no wind on the main hall just now, and no one was rowing on this small boat."
"Although the wooden trough is only more than ten feet long, the boat automatically moves forward in it, which is visible to the naked eye. In this case, Grand Master Kong can tell me whether the boat has wings or how it moves?"
Academician Confucius was driven crazy by Zhang Shou's questions. But before he could answer in anger, he heard a stern voice: "Zhang Shou, you still dare to ask! This is obviously your magic, and you are here!"
Show off your magical skills at the Sutra Banquet in the Wenhua Hall!"
When he heard the word "witchcraft", Zhang Shou didn't even move his eyelids, and he didn't even bother to look for the person who spoke. Because he remembered that voice deeply. Who else could it be but the self-righteous second prince? He smiled and looked calm.
Said: "For people who don't understand the principles of the world and only have gains and losses in mind, when they see this boat that can move on its own, of course they think it's a witchcraft."
Before anyone else in the Wenhua Palace could react, he looked up at the third prince who was standing beside the emperor with shining eyes, and asked with a smile: "But I dare to ask the third prince, do you see this?"
What did you think of when you were on the boat?"
"I..." The third prince did not expect that Zhang Shou would ask him. He hesitated for a moment, and then said calmly, "I just wanted to estimate how fast this boat is. If the sails are hung again, it will be smooth sailing."
How long will it take to drive from Ningbo to Tianjin? How much time and manpower can be saved by transporting grain from the south to the north? And..."
Although he knew that some people would suspect that he and Zhang Shou were teaming up for a show, he couldn't help but ask: "And when the wind is against the wind, if you lower the sails and use this boat, can you go against the wind on the sea? And so
How fast can it go? In this way, when the wind direction is wrong, does it mean that we don’t have to take the Cao River instead of the sea route? After all, the Cao River requires manual paddling, such as the waterway from Tianjin to Beijing, because there is often siltation.
Trackers are even needed in many places."
The third prince had a lot of questions in his mind. He originally wanted to continue talking, but when he heard his father coughing suddenly beside him, he realized that he was not in Jiuzhang Hall of the Imperial Academy at this time, nor was he in these days.
The Kunning Palace where Zhang Shou taught him was the Sutra Banquet in the Wenhua Palace, which was not suitable for teachers and students to ask and answer questions like this.
He quickly took a breath and then said in a deep voice: "However, by showing this boat in the Wenhua Hall, does the teacher want to say that there are also truths on this boat that we have not discovered before?"
Zhang Shou nodded approvingly, still not caring about the malicious glances from behind, and said calmly: "The benevolent sees benevolence, the wise see wisdom, but there is no gap in the heart. Only those who are calculating will think this is a magic method. After all,
Whether it is carriages and horses, or sea and river boats, although there have been many improvements over thousands of years, when it comes to improving speed, they can only improve the sails, not the power."
He stepped forward to take the boat from the strong chamberlain, and put it back into the water tank. Seeing that it was motionless, he fiddled with it and allowed it to rotate slowly in a circle.
Seeing that the boat had stopped moving, he said with a smile: "But this toy-like boat is different, it has another kind of power in it. It is even the same machine as the clock I presented to the emperor before.
Different power, it uses the boiling force when boiling water."
Only then did he slowly turn around, calmly look at the second prince behind him who was staring at him as if he wanted to swallow him, and said word by word: "And this, second prince, is what you just said about magic."
the truth!"
If he were somewhere else at this time, the second prince was sure that he would pounce directly on him and tear Zhang Shou's whole body to pieces along with the hateful face. But he also knew how difficult it was to come to the Wenhua Palace today.
Therefore, even if you are angry, you have to suppress it.
And he glanced sideways at the eldest brother next to him, whose face was as deep as water, and his eyes showed explicit contempt. You have come to this point, and you still don't know how to fight to the death? Who do you think put you in this situation?
The eldest prince, who was originally so silent that he seemed a little confused, did not ignore the excitement of the second prince.
He spoke slowly in a dry voice: "The Wenhua Hall Sutra Banquet is a place where sages gather to talk about sutras and history. Dr. Zhang doesn't think it's appropriate to use this place to talk about the rise and fall of foreign countries that others have never heard of, and to show these things you claim."
Are worldly principles that can bring convenience just sensationalism?"
"But that's right. You are a sensationalist, otherwise you wouldn't have built the so-called more efficient and labor-saving spinning wheels and looms, which have harmed me to this point! They say I harmed Cangzhou.
The chief culprit of civil unrest...but ask yourself, after spinning wheels and looms spread all over the world, how many people will want to have enough food and clothing!"
"Just these days, some weavers in Yangzhou who were dismissed by the owner of the machine have gathered in front of the government office to cause trouble because they are desperate! If your ship is really built, how many weavers will live in poverty because of it!"
The eldest prince actually grew up. Could it be that the prison sentence really made him sober? This was the thought that many people had in their minds at that moment. However, Zhu Ying frowned thoughtfully, feeling that this matter was very serious.
Something was wrong. Others were not familiar with the brothers, the eldest prince and the second prince, but she knew it best.
Compared to the second prince who was too lazy to pretend and always showed his violent side to others, the eldest prince was good at pretending, but his disguise was just to pretend to be gentle and kind, but in his heart he was just as selfish as the former queen taught him by words and deeds.
It is simply wishful thinking to expect him to have any long-term insights.
Therefore, it is absolutely impossible for the eldest prince to think of these words by himself. Someone must have taught him this!
Thinking of this, Zhu Ying ignored others' reactions at this time, stood up directly, walked quickly to the side of the Queen Mother, and then whispered: "The Queen Mother, someone must have instigated them to stir up trouble!"
The Queen Mother quietly shook Zhu Ying's hand, but her eyes were still calmly looking at Zhang Shou, who was standing in the middle of the Wenhua Hall. He was still standing calmly, as if he didn't take the eldest prince's accusations to heart at all.
She went up, but she didn't open her mouth to refute, but just looked at each other quietly. When she looked at the eldest prince and the second prince brothers, she only saw one pretending to be calm, but his shoulders were shaking slightly, and the other was angry.
, wishing she could rush forward and fight. At this moment, she couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.
The two brothers were a few years older than Zhang Shou and had experienced the biggest setback in their lives. However, instead of waking up and reflecting on themselves, they worked hard to get revenge and make a comeback.
Even if you want to imitate Taijia who came back from Tonggong, you must first learn Taijia's forbearance and repentance in Tonggong. If you can't get out of Tonggong, then everything will be over! The two sons of the Queen are really nurturing.
She was so stupid that she ruined herself in her own life!
The Queen Mother and Zhu Ying felt that the eldest prince was stupid, but Scholar Confucius finally came to his senses because of the eldest prince's words. Realizing the breakthrough, he sneered and said: "A strange weapon can be seen as a temporary benefit, but what's the point?"
It will be beneficial for all generations! If you neglect repairing internal affairs because of your temporary confusion and just focus on those small countries that are fighting endlessly, you are putting the cart before the horse!"
"This is funny, Master Confucius. When did I say that we will not repair internal affairs? On the contrary, it is precisely because the emperor worked hard to govern, appointed talents, and overcame all opinions to personally preside over the Northern Expedition, which brought at least one or two achievements to Northern Xinjiang.
After ten years of peace, the world below will be prosperous. But precisely because it is a prosperous age, we can have more time to be prepared for danger in times of peace, and focus on the whole world from this big tomorrow."
Everyone likes to hear good things, and so does the emperor. Especially when Zhang Shou faintly pointed out that it was his persistence that led to the great victory in the Northern Expedition, he was even more proud. Therefore, when he saw the great scholar of Confucius becoming furious, he seemed to want to
After the tit-for-tat confrontation with Zhang Shou, he immediately coughed: "Jiuzhang, you just said that your boat can move because of the power of boiling water. What do you mean?"
The emperor personally came forward to change the subject, and Zhang Shou certainly would not be disrespectful. He immediately turned around and bowed his hands and said: "Everyone knows that when boiling water, if you let it boil, the boiling steam will directly lift the lid of the pot.
, if people stand too close at this time, they will be injured by the hot steam. Therefore, the elders have always warned their children to stay away from the stove, but they did not see the reason..."
Zhang Shou once talked about the tremendous power of boiling water in Banshan Hall and Jiuzhang Hall. At this time, he explained it at the emperor's request, and then said with a smile: "There is actually only one very simple device in this boat, and I
What we just did was to ignite the fire, boil the water, and then let the power of the boiling steam drive a series of transmission devices, and finally start the propeller to push it forward."
"But the reason why I say simple is because all these things are very rough, have poor sealing performance, and have poor efficiency. So if you want to make this boat move again, you don't just need to add water. The lifespan of the whole set of things inside is also very long.
No. Moreover, such heating is not only unsafe, but also very cumbersome. Just because of my request, Guan Qiu worked for a few hours after that for less than half a month."
"He hopes to be worthy of the title given by the Emperor's Tiangongfang, and I also hope that the so-called craftsmen can think about improving the appearance of the utensils and at the same time, like the master craftsman Lu Ban of the past, think about the truth behind certain natural phenomena."
"Just now, the Confucian scholar said that these are all strange and ingenious tools. Have you ever thought that if there were no cars and ships, and all transportation in the world would rely on mules, horses and other livestock, then would the imperial court be beyond the reach of slightly remote places? If there were no rapid changes.
If you don’t have agricultural tools, then the output of farmland can only be limited to a very low level. Ordinary people can’t get enough food and clothing, so how can they study and understand?”
"If no one thought of splitting flax and using kudzu, raising silkworms and reeling silk, growing cotton and weaving cloth, people in the world would have to use fur to keep out the cold. How is it any different from the barbarians we laugh at who eat fur and drink blood?"
"Just now the eldest prince said that the dismissed machine farmers in Yangzhou gathered outside the government office to protest. However, just like the mules and horses carrying goods, simple porters were forced to have no other way out, better spinning wheels and looms will naturally make
The demand for skilled workers has been greatly reduced. Nowadays, new spinning wheels and looms are promoted downwards by the imperial court. Compared with the sudden discovery by the people, it is easier to make response plans."
"Just like Cangzhou, widening and reducing rivers, building shipping terminals, building new cities... all these places are in need of labor. Isn't this solving the problem of labor surplus? To say the least, there are no spinning wheels and looms that can double the efficiency.
The world is at peace and the population is increasing, but there is always only this little land. Isn't there a dilemma where some people can neither find a field to plant crops nor find a job to do? Because there are too many people, even if the limbs are healthy, they can't.
Has anyone ever thought about the hardship of supporting oneself?”
"In times of war, population comes first, but in times of peace, once the population is too large, the cultivated land and per-acre yield cannot keep up. Once there is a disaster, what will happen? So, I tried to introduce high-yielding crops from overseas and worked hard to think.
I would like to ask the eldest prince how to solve the problem of livelihood for the overpopulated population. You just said that so-and-so lives in poverty, and you also said that so-and-so desires food and clothing but cannot get it. Your righteousness is as awe-inspiring as that of a benevolent person, but the one who took advantage of all the people in Cangzhou and made people hungry and cold
Who are the people without attachment?"
Seeing that the eldest prince's face was ashen and speechless, Zhang Shou looked at Scholar Confucius again: "The elders in the court want to educate the world and make all people knowledgeable and sensible. I am not doing this? However,
A stable storehouse shows etiquette; a person with enough food and clothing knows honor and disgrace! If fancy tools and ingenuity can make it easy for all people in the world to have enough food and clothing, and if a chasm in the sky can be turned into a road, isn't that the right way?"