Fu Xiaoguan finally finished talking about everything he could think of about oil.

Qin Chengye's head was buzzing. He had recorded a thick volume of His Majesty's lecture notes alone!

Add to that the pictures His Majesty drew...this is another thick volume.

Qin Chengye was extremely excited about this new gadget, because His Majesty said that once this thing was developed, it would usher in the second industrial revolution!

What about your first time?

The steam engine has just developed the first generation prototype and sent it to Jiangcheng Shipyard. We still have to wait for the application feedback from Jiangcheng Shipyard.

What Your Majesty means is that the steam engine should be miniaturized and used more widely in civilian applications, such as driving looms.

"Divide the personnel at the Academy of Sciences' Power Research Institute into two groups. One group will continue to work on improving the steam engine, while the other will initiate research on the internal combustion engine."

"This thing is very particular about the materials, so when you return, you must explain it in detail to Zhou the Blacksmith's Materials Research Institute, let them understand the characteristics of the materials required, and have them set up a materials laboratory as soon as possible to research steel suitable for internal combustion engines."

"I've given you a diagram of the most primitive internal combustion engine structure. It's a two-stroke piston type. Use it to test the manufacturing process and materials. Once the technology is truly mature, we can build internal combustion engines with more cylinders and higher power."

"By the way, don't let your guard down over at the Firearms Research Institute. The third-generation Mauser rifle project can be launched. I'll only feel at ease once the Mauser rifle is developed and mass-produced."

Fu Xiaoguan stood up and said, "Don't feel pressured, don't be afraid of failure. The spirit of science is to make bold assumptions and carefully verify them. We must be critical and skeptical, creative and exploratory, and we must also have the concepts of equality and teamwork."

"Remember, oil is very dangerous. You must strictly follow my instructions. Otherwise... the consequences will be unimaginable!"

Qin Chengye also stood up, his face serious, "I understand, I promise there won't be any trouble!"

"Alright, go ahead. Construction of the new academy will begin soon. The conditions are extremely difficult right now. Thank you for your hard work!"

Feng Laosi and the others laughed innocently.

They said goodbye to Fu Xiaoguan and left Siyang County.

Feng Laosi led a group of people to Chixian, and Qin Chengye led a few people to Heitan.

Fu Xiaoguan let out a long sigh. This huge matter has finally come to an end. All he has to do next is one word: wait!

Wait until the mines in Chixian start mass production, and wait for the Academy of Sciences to develop a prototype of the internal combustion engine.

He is also waiting for the results of the application of steam engines on dreadnought-class battleships. If there are no problems, the five dreadnought-class battleships will now be equipped with this steam engine.

After all, this thing is much stronger than humans. With a steam engine, the dreadnought-class battleship will run faster. By then, it will be time to go out to sea and resign.

By the way, with a steam engine we can build a train... This thing has more uses, but the projects at the Science Research Institute seem to be full. What should we do?

Fu Xiaoguan suddenly felt a little melancholy. Talents, I have a mountain of gold, but lack a large number of talents!

He shook his head, put the train aside for the time being, walked out the door, and turned to the room where Zhuo and his group were.

The three of them stood up, but before they could even salute, Fu Xiaoguan pressed his hands together and said, "Sit down, sit down. It's so hot, why don't you stay in Guanyun City? You're really thoughtful."

The four of them sat down, and Fu Xiaoguan got straight to the point. "The problems with officialdom aren't limited to this Siyang County I happened to stumble upon. To be honest, I've already sent Zhou Tongtong to the Daling River basin to thoroughly investigate corruption in river engineering projects along the river."

"I received a message from Zhou Tongtong last night... Everyone, this earthquake is likely to be very severe! According to the current investigation, everyone from the Daling River Governor Ge Su to his subordinates is likely implicated."

Zhuo and his companions were greatly surprised. There were four river governorates in the four river basins of the Wu Dynasty, which were under the control of the Water Department of the Ministry of Works.

Among these four river basins, the problem of Daling River is the most serious.

The dam collapse that occurred in the Wuyuanzhou section of the Daling River two years ago is still vivid in people's minds. On that occasion, Emperor Wu executed more than 30 officials and allocated 30 million taels of silver to rebuild the levee... Now, after listening to what Fu Xiaoguan said, doesn't it mean that hundreds of people along the Daling River are guilty of dereliction of duty?

"Xiaoqi... bring some iced bayberry soup!" Fu Xiaoguan shouted outside, then added, "It's not just the river. At least twenty local officials in the Wuyuanzhou section of the Daling River are currently involved!"

"Of the 30 million taels earmarked for dike construction, only 6 million were actually used on the dike!"

The three of them gasped. This is too cruel!

It is obviously impossible for them to say that they were unaware of the corruption of these officials. The local officials below would at least take a piece of the pie. According to their thinking, of the 30 million taels of silver, at most 3 million would be embezzled, and more than 20 million could still be used on the levee.

But what Fu Xiaoguan said now completely overturned their ideas.

Zhuo Yihang suddenly stood up, furious: "These damned officials! I, I will cut them into pieces!"

"Don't be angry, Mr. Zhuo. After things here are over, I will go to Daling River to take a look myself."

Xiaoqi brought over some iced bayberry soup. Fu Xiaoguan took a bowl and took a big sip. "Now you know why I can't stay in that golden palace, right?"

"I tell you, they have plenty of ways to deceive their superiors. Because these officials don't care about the people at all. All they think about all day is how to make money and how to deceive their superiors."

"They are professionals in this area, so if they are to die, they need to die professionally, not be hacked into pieces. I'll take a look when I get to Daling River."

"Governing the civil service is a long-term battle! It's not surprising that everyone is greedy. But what makes a good official good? They focus on the people's livelihood, which naturally reduces their greed. While we investigate corruption, we also need to understand the hardships of grassroots officials. If a good official commits corruption due to unavoidable circumstances... it's a pity."

"By the way, Minister You, you have a lot on your plate right now, why are you here?"

You Xianzhi thought I hadn't had a chance to speak yet, so he told him everything he was thinking. Fu Xiaoguan just smiled and said, "Don't worry, tell Sitong Bank to work overtime to print! When I return, I will naturally pay 10 million taels of gold to the national treasury."

Your Majesty is very rich!

The three were shocked, "Your Majesty, where did you get so much gold?"