Chapter 197

Chapter 197

The seventh year of Yongkang.

It's another examination year.

Yin Mao came from Jianmeng Mansion. He could have come by steamship, but the steamship tickets were in short supply, so he had to take a horse-drawn carriage to take the exam.

In the third year of Yongkang, he passed the provincial examination and became a juren.

Yongkang has failed the imperial examination for four years, and will take it again this year.

Come to think of it, he passed away early that year, otherwise he would have met Ji Yuan.

It doesn’t matter, we can meet again this year.

Ji Yuan's wife was also transferred back to the capital. As the one who had presented the betrothal gift, he must have a good drink at their wedding.

I heard that the two of them are planning to settle things in the capital and will return to Jianmeng Mansion. Maybe they can go together then.

Yin Mao, riding in a carriage made of rubber tires, finally arrived in the capital with his friends and fellow townsmen.

The well-connected transportation makes this journey easy.

I heard that when Ji Yuan and his companions first came here, it took them 10 to 20 days to arrive.

But now, if you ride a fast horse, it only takes five or six days.

It only takes eleven or twelve days by carriage.

I guess it only takes three or four days to wait until the steam train is put into operation?

"Yin Mao, can you really live in the home of Grand Secretary Ji?" The students of Jianmeng Mansion School couldn't help but ask.

Yin Mao raised his head and said, "Of course, Grand Secretary Ji wrote to me specially."

"This is the house bestowed by the late emperor. It is very close to the Imperial Examination Hall."

With that said, everyone was naturally envious.

Although I know that Yin Mao's father was the mentor of Ji Daxueshi, I still find it incredible.

That’s Mr. Ji!

The youngest university scholar in Tianqi State.

Although it happened two years ago, it still excites young students all over the world when it is mentioned now.

If it were someone else, becoming a university scholar at such a young age would definitely be criticized.

But not in the t era!

Not at all!

In any place in Tianqi Kingdom where rice is grown, who doesn’t know about Champa rice?

Even though Champa rice could not be grown, technicians were sent to cultivate the local rice seeds and find out the rice that was suitable for the local area.

As long as the land is not particularly barren, the yield per mu is over 600 kilograms.

There are also fertilizer plants that have been set up all over the place. The fertilizers there are really good. As long as they are used, the yield per mu will definitely increase.

The same is true for wheat.

The worst wheat can weigh about 550 kilograms.

The substantial increase in grain production has made life better for the people, as at least they can have enough to eat.

For this, farmers all over the world are grateful to Jiyuan.

Not to mention other aspects.

The promotion of steam engines and steam factories.

The road construction in various places enabled students from Dianzhou Prefecture to participate in the imperial examination that year in time.

When Yin Mao met them on the road, he was full of praise for them.

Yin Mao could tell that everyone was truly grateful to Ji Yuan.

Some people say that the changes in Tianqi Kingdom over the years are simply incredible.

It's a level they never dreamed of.

Yeah, who says it isn't?

It is impossible to say that there were no problems in the process.

There was once a group of factory owners who banded together to lower workers’ wages.

There were also landlords and gentry who tried to annex land, and they were reported promptly by the trade unions and farmers' associations.

Lord Yuuki was in charge and would never allow these things to happen.

In the autumn of the year before last, which was the first year that Lord Ji became the Grand Secretary, several places were almost massacred.

When the news spread, it shocked those unscrupulous bosses and landlords.

Of course, there are also trade unions that have degenerated, colluding with local officials and businessmen to sell out the interests of workers and farmers.

This situation will also be severely punished.

Today's workers are completely different from those a few years ago.

They are literate, they can understand the laws, and they have specialists who explain the latest policies to them.

Fooling them?

I'm dreaming.

In the words of those people, these are all unruly people who don't obey any discipline at all.

As long as they are not given money, food and welfare, they will dare to smash and destroy things and go on strike immediately.

Many people say that these people even dare to rebel.

As for why there was no rebellion.

Because of the era.

Scholar Ji is still up there.

They still have hope.

One devil is difficult enough to deal with, what about a group of them?

"Tianqi Kingdom is still doing well, we can only thank Ji Yuan."

Yin Mao always felt that such an era was very dangerous.

But it's also safe.

Everyone in the world should pray silently for a safe and peaceful era.

Otherwise, the world will be in chaos immediately.

Fortunately, most of the time, everything is safe and sound.

The Tianqi Kingdom was thriving, and its annual tax revenue was rising steadily, a large portion of which was commercial tax. The tax on grain finally decreased year by year.

In some places, grain taxes have even been reduced to a very low level. Without relying on grain as the main source of tax revenue, farmers across the world will have an easier life.

The commerce of Tianqi State became more and more developed.

A lot of goods have been delivered to the Eurasian continent, and a large amount of silver and gold have been transported to Tianqi State, which has become an ancient oriental country that everyone yearns for.

When Yin Mao arrived at Ji Yuan's house, his mind was still on the prosperous commerce of Tianqi State, but when he walked to the door of Ji Yuan's house, it seemed as if he had returned to reality.

The home of Ji Daxueshi, who created all this, is still the same as that of ordinary people. His family seems to have not been contaminated by the wealth and prosperity of today's Qi State.

But because of this, he deserves more followers.

Yin Mao was very embarrassed.

He even forced Ji Yuan to be recognized as his younger brother.

He doesn't even look at his own weight before he dares to say that.

Yin Mao didn't let the servant knock on the door, but went there himself.

The person who came to open the door was Chai Feng, a minor official beside Ji Yuan.

Chai Feng was feeling very annoyed. The imperial examination was approaching and many students came to Ji's house to try to have good luck.

No matter what, this is Ji Liuyuan’s house, you will definitely have good luck if you live nearby.

How can this be possible? Go back and study if you have time!

How can someone be so brave as to knock on the door?

Fortunately, Yin Mao explained his purpose in time, and Chai Feng was relieved: "Everyone just walk around outside, Master Ji doesn't mind, as long as you don't sneak into the house."

Touch the door?

Only then did Yin Mao notice that the door of Ji Yuan's house had been rubbed very smooth.

Is this still possible!

Then people like him who live in Ji Yuan's house can benefit more.

Ji Yuan and Cheng Yishan saw Yin Mao coming and went out to greet him at the same time.

Although we haven't seen each other for a few years, we are still the same as before and nothing has changed because of the distance.

Yin Mao came over and brought everyone's letters.

Mainly letters from Teacher Ji Yuan.

Especially Mr. Fang, who once again criticized Ji Yuan harshly.

Ever since he was revealed to be Mr. Wu Tang two years ago, there has been an endless stream of people coming to him to ask for paintings. If Qian Fei hadn't stopped him, he would have been really annoyed to death.

Although he said so, Master Fang actually still missed Ji Yuan and asked him when he would bring his wife back home, as they had never met each other yet.

Ji Yuan and Cheng Yisan smiled at each other.

It will be soon.

They will go after this year's women's imperial examination is over.

That's right.

In the seventh year of Yongkang, the imperial examination for women also began.

This year's exam is a special one and will be held in August.

Ever since Cheng Yisan brought up this matter, after many twists and turns, it finally came to pass.

In the next imperial examination, both men and women will take the exam.

There were precedents of women studying engineering, Cheng Yisan’s success in running several girls’ schools in Dianzhou Prefecture, and the increasing number of female officials in the Ministry of Engineering.

The imperial examination for women was also a natural progression.

Things were not smooth at the beginning, and some people deliberately caused trouble for Cheng Yisan.

But the more you debate about knowledge, the clearer it becomes.

In addition, the country of Tianqi today is different from the past. There are more and more women working, working in factories, and studying.

It is only natural to let them take scientific examinations.

For this reason, Cheng Yisan was transferred to the capital to arrange the first women's imperial examination in Tianqi State, and she has been preparing for this event recently.

But speaking of Cheng Yisan.

It turns out that he has some relationship with the emperor and the prince.

This was the first time Emperor Yongkang and the current Crown Prince had quarreled two or three years ago.

Then a fierce fight broke out over the selection of Grand Secretary.

Over the years, various frictions have basically never stopped.

As the imperial examination is approaching, the prince is still under house arrest in the prince's mansion. The 24-year-old prince still has not learned to be calm.

He just felt aggrieved.

Why is this happening.

He obviously did a lot of things.

He had military merits and he helped the Tianqi Kingdom expand its territory. The Bidu Port they had taken over started operating.

Even the steamship he participated in is now hard to get a ticket for.

Why should he be restricted? Why should he be detained in the Prince's Mansion on the grounds that he is reckless?

The prince even asked his father, Emperor Yongkang.

Did the Emperor think the same when he imprisoned you?

This made Emperor Yongkang furious.

In the eyes of the current emperor, the people under his rule have reached a level that Tianqi State has never achieved before, and Chinese civilization has never had such a grand occasion in thousands of years.

All this was achieved under his rule.

Even if he is the crown prince, he is first a king and his subject, and then a father and his son.

Just relying on his little contribution, he thinks he can surpass me?

Anyway, it's just this mess.

The rift between father and son grew larger and larger.

Cheng Yisan’s matter was even one of the disputes.

The prince naturally spoke up for Ji Yuan's wife and even proposed to transfer Cheng Yisan to the capital early on.

This matter was opposed by the emperor and stopped by a group of old ministers.

The prince didn't take this matter to heart at first.

But the more the emperor opposed, the more he wanted to do it.

Anyway, Ji Yuan is on his side, so what is he afraid of?

He had won most of the many disputes over the years.

He is the crown prince, but he is also a crown prince with real power.

Now Cheng Yisan has come to the capital because of the women's imperial examination, but the prince has not been released yet. It seems that the emperor is also very angry.

Before the imperial examination, Ji Yuan made a special trip to the Prince's Mansion.

When Ji Yuan came here, he was talking about the steamship. The steamship from Fujian to Dugang had already made a round trip, which was nearly two months faster than an ordinary ship.

These are not the main points. The main point is that someone in the court has already requested to drive a steamship to the New World to find high-yield crops.

Ji Yuan once said that on other continents, the grain yield per mu was 5,000 kilograms.

They wanted to go look for it.

Most of these officials come from coastal areas, and their families may be sailors. They really want to go out and see the world.

Another group are those who have passed the military examinations in recent years and are very willing to expand the territory for the Tianqi Kingdom.

Ji Yuan said: "With them going, Your Highness can rest assured."

rest assured?

How could he feel at ease?

The prince stood up and asked directly: "Is the steamboat safe?"

"I think so. Nothing has happened in the past two years."

There is extremely high grain yield overseas.

This matter was no secret in the Tianqi Kingdom.

Everyone knows that as long as they can find these foods and bring them back to Tianqi, they will be heroes of Tianqi.

In the early era, Champa rice made the country famous in Tianqi.

If they can find a grain yield of 5,000 kilograms per mu, maybe they can be more powerful than Ji Yuan?

Although this possibility is very low, it still makes many people's heart beat faster.

It would be fine if I could catch up with Mr. Ji by one or two points.

Now everything is ready.

The steamship is ready, what does that mean?

This means this is an opportunity!

A real opportunity to make a difference!

If you go looking for a new continent, you are going to die.

But it’s not purely a suicide mission. If we can find the high-yield grain that Ji Yuan mentioned, would it still be a suicide mission?

No, it is clearly a great achievement!

An achievement that can make the world admire it!

It's just like going to war.

It's both a desperate effort and an opportunity.

It depends on whether we can catch it.

This opportunity has already been presented to many people in Tianqi.

As soon as the news got out, there was already a long line of people who wanted to jump on the steamship and go out to sea.

They are not afraid of death!

Not afraid of danger!

They also want to do something in their limited life.

As long as you do this, your wealth and glory in this life and for future generations will all be guaranteed.

Anyone with an idea would be tempted by this opportunity.

This was true for the crew members below, and even more so for the nobles above.

Many aristocratic families who had fallen into poverty during the machine revolution were now fully alert.

They also wanted to cram people onto the ship.

Anyway, the fleet is so large and the steamship is very safe. We might be able to come back in less than two years.

If they really find something good, their family will be able to catch this ride and return to their former glory.

The royal family has been severely suppressed in recent years, so naturally they have their own ideas.

Even the prince thought so.

His relationship with his father has been bad in recent years, but they have not completely broken off.

They are father and son, relatives, and they suffered together in the Qiandi.

But the prince also knew it.

If this continues.

The father emperor is the former grandfather emperor.

He was also the father emperor back then.

Instead of doing this, you might as well go out and try your luck.

He had seen the sea, he had seen the harbor, and he knew how safe steamships were.

He could even get personal guidance from Ji Yuan, making it easier to find those magical crops.

Even though he had no idea how to plant it, he knew that as long as he found it, no matter what happened in the future, he would be the only prince of Tianqi Kingdom.

When the prince heard Ji Yuan say that steamships were indeed safe, his heart was moved again.

He wants to go to sea.

I don't want to be trapped in the capital.

I don't want to be trapped in this kind of father-son relationship.

But at the same time, the prince was a little afraid.

He'd seen the ocean by day and heard the waves at night, and that was no joke.

Countless people die while sailing every year. What if you encounter danger? Can you come back?

Ji Yuan looked at him as if examining him, but did not give any advice.

Because he knew that the prince would definitely go.

The eighth day of the fourth month in the seventh year of Yongkang.

This year's imperial examination is over.

Many students breathed a sigh of relief.

But there are also some students who are waiting for the engineering examination on May 8th.

The female students are waiting for the girls' examination in August.

The imperial examination year now is truly the imperial examination year.

The Ministry of Rites was busy with this, and Cheng Yishen, who was temporarily transferred there, was also called to help.

It was just a temporary errand.

Seeing that Cheng Yishan handled things more efficiently than officials of previous years, he naturally had more official duties assigned to him.

Female officials are not uncommon in Tianqi State.

You can work directly in the Ministry of Rites or in the central government.

This is the first one.

Cheng Yisan didn't care about the eyes around her at all.

If she cared about these things, she wouldn't have lived her life, and would not have come to this day.

The engineering examination was about to begin. She had presided over the Dianzhou Prefecture's engineering examination more than once, so it was a piece of cake for her.

Cheng Yisan's expression was so natural that it made others retreat.

This is not someone you can easily mess with.

When the third prince came to the Ministry of Rites, he was exceptionally polite.

He still wanted to win over Ji Yuan's wife.

That's the era.

Ji Yuan is on the side of the prince and is his greatest support.

So he needed to do something else.

Cheng Yishan looked at the third prince's back and said after returning home: "The third prince also wants to go to sea."

Cheng Yisan’s words hit the nail on the head and she guessed the third prince’s thoughts in advance.

The engineering exam in May has just ended.

The third prince volunteered to lead the Tianqi Kingdom's steamship fleet out to sea to search for high-yield crops and explore new continents.

At this moment, in the Prince’s Palace.

The prince gritted his teeth and said, "So it's true. He really wants to go."

When the news was revealed to him in April of the era, he was still quite skeptical.

His third brother was highly respected, but he was also afraid of death and normally did not know how to use swords, guns, sticks or clubs.

He went sailing? What's the difference between that and committing suicide?

Moreover, no news channels mentioned this matter.

The prince just thought it was Ji Yuan’s guess.

And some people secretly said that Ji Yuan seemed to want him to go out to sea, and wondered if there was some conspiracy.

Even if the prince doesn't believe it, the matter should be postponed.

I didn't expect it to be true.

His good third brother really wanted to go out to sea to compete with him for the credit.

Shi Xinhui said: "Otherwise, let's just go with the flow and let them go."

The ocean is vast and the probability of accidents is very high.

The prince shook his head directly: "There have been civilian steamships that have set out and returned. Although they have not found the New World, it is obviously very safe for steamships to sail on the sea."

This thing was perfected bit by bit under his hands.

Although he didn't do many things himself, he knew every detail.

The Ministry of Industry attaches great importance to the safety of steamships. If there is anything wrong, the ship will be sent back for redoing.

He felt that many details were unnecessary, but the era still had to be changed.

Because of this, the steamship has never had an accident since it was launched a year ago.

Whether sailing on the sea or on inland rivers, it is incredibly safe.

At least the steamboat was safe.

There is no doubt about this.

The prince stood up anxiously. He had an irritable personality to begin with and couldn't control himself at this moment.

How to choose?

Should I watch my third brother go to sea, or go to sea myself?

And the latter, no one is going?

Three thoughts went back and forth in the prince's mind, and he angrily said, "Find Ji Yuan here."

"Let him give me some ideas!"

Cui Wei and Shi Xinhui did not speak, and the others looked at each other.

Sure enough, the next moment, the prince said unhappily, "Wait a little longer, let me think about it carefully."

In recent years, the prince has become increasingly unpredictable.

No one can figure out what he is thinking, and no one dares to do anything more.

After the staff left, the prince smashed the cup on the servant's head and said, "You call this tea? Get out of here!"

Even though they knew that the prince was taking his anger out on others, the servants in the prince's mansion still knelt on the ground.

But there was a little servant who thought, why don’t I become a worker? Why don’t I repair ships?

As a worker, at least you won't be insulted at will, nor will you be dragged away and beaten at any time.

Why shouldn't I go?

The Imperial Palace and the Prince's Mansion have remained the same for decades, but things outside are different.

There is a way of life out there.

Ji Yuan didn't have much opinion on this.

Although the prince still looked for him and asked what to do.

Ji Yuan just said: "Your Highness understands all the reasons."

"You can do nothing, and maybe everything will be as usual."

Everything is as usual.

Treat his father like his royal grandfather did.

His father already had this tendency.

Those veiled tortures, any random words can imprison a person, and no matter what you do, it is wrong.

Even before he was eleven years old, he could not study literature well and could only learn martial arts.

Thinking of this, the prince couldn't tell whether he was afraid or angry.

He was angry with his father and also with himself.

Why did it come to this?

Ji Yuan will definitely not give an accurate answer.

Because he knew what the prince would choose.

The Third Prince was even already making preparations. He made a special visit to the Ji family and asked for help from Academician Ji in a very good mood.

Ji Yuan naturally knew all the answers to this official matter, and everyone knew it.

These things further irritated the prince.

He even wanted to lose his temper in front of Ji Yuan, fearing that Ji Yuan would really turn to the side of the Third Prince.

If this is true, his situation will be even more difficult.

Will Ji Yuan?

Very likely.

Because the prince vaguely knew that Jiyuan attached great importance to high-yield grain, whoever could bring back grain from overseas would be valued by Jiyuan.

On the second day, the prince also made a request to the emperor, saying that he was the most suitable person to go to sea.

Whether in terms of physical fitness, knowledge of the sea, or even knowledge of steam engines, he is the most suitable person.

He will also definitely bring back high-yield grains to feed the people of Tianqi so that there will be no more hungry people in the world.

These words are exciting.

But that doesn’t mean the prince can really go.

The first one to oppose was the emperor.

The relationship between royal father and son is inevitably somewhat distorted.

It was not until August, after the first imperial examination for women, that the court finally made the final decision.

The prince finally defeated the third prince in this matter and got the opportunity to go to sea.

The prince made a strong request, and the court also considered it from many angles.

Even Ji Yuan acquiesced.

Ji Yuan even said to the prince: "Whether we find it or not, as long as we can go back, everything will be fine."

These words are equivalent to Jiyuan’s promise.

It's almost like, Prince, you can go ahead, I'll be watching here.

The prince nodded excitedly.

He wanted to go anyway, and no one could get him there.

As long as he gets out, he can prove his ability.

Like Ji Yuan, he will become a role model for the people and a person who can command the support of everyone.

Back then in Dianzhou Prefecture, he experienced what it felt like to be truly loved and supported.

If only he could come back.

He will be treated the same as Ji Yuan.

Yin Mao, who finally passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, is now serving as a Shujishi in the Hanlin Academy.

He seemed particularly weak in this court struggle.

Sitting in the Hanlin Academy, he just felt bored?

I heard from his father before how strict and difficult the Hanlin Academy was.

What else can you say? All the major events in the world are gathered here, and all matters concerning Tianqi Kingdom will be decided here.

Actually, isn’t there?

Although the Prince's party and the Third Prince's party were fighting to the death, he felt that he was powerful despite being weak.

But aside from that, it's pretty boring.

Instead of doing their work, they quarrel all day long.

And in these vortices, there is only one person who is avoided, Era.

It seemed that everyone wanted his affirmation and his answer.

But Grand Secretary Ji devoted himself to the construction of Tianqi State.

"It's a split." Yin Mao said suddenly.

It is the split between the upper and lower levels.

The imperial court in the capital seemed to have remained largely unchanged during the past decade of rapid development of Tianqi State.

These upper class people are still repeating the same routines and stories that have been going on for hundreds or thousands of years.

But below, among the people that they cannot see, fusion has already occurred.

Yin Mao patted his official uniform and said, "It seems that it doesn't matter whether I become a Shujishi or not."

But change your mind.

That's not the case.

The new officials in the court are not like this.

They have countless things to do and countless goals to accomplish.

That seems to be the new world.

After Prime Minister Li left, he took away part of the order of the old world.

Now, the steamship from the New World is also going to take the crown prince of Tianqi away.

His departure seemed to mean the end of the chaos of the old world.

Yin Mao scratched his head, wondering if he was overthinking.

When Yin Mao told Ji Yuan about his thoughts, Ji Yuan was a little surprised and said with a smile: "Don't worry, you will get used to it."

People have a strong ability to adapt.

No matter how big the change is, we can accept it.

Ji Yuan looked at his wife coming back. She was wearing the official uniform of the Ministry of Revenue, separate from the new female officials.

See, everyone can get used to it.

Some things require both the courage to think and the courage to do.

Anyway, let’s do it first.

Everyone will get used to it.

If you don't like it, you will be left behind by the times.

September, the seventh year of Yongkang.

The prince's team officially set out, bringing with them all his trusted confidants.

What surprised Ji Yuan was that Cui Wei, Shi Xinhui and Wu Renhao were not brought along.

The first two were always by his side when he was the crown prince or the eldest grandson of the emperor.

Wu Renhao has been the prince's personal guard since he returned from Ning'an Prefecture.

This time the voyage was entirely led by a royal team.

It seems that going overseas is indeed a hot topic, and everyone wants to take advantage of it.

Ji Yuan raised his eyebrows but didn't say much.

When the prince left, he looked back every few steps. He didn't know whether this decision was right or wrong.

But he really couldn't bear to see his third brother snatch this opportunity to go overseas.

He also couldn't bear to continue staying in the capital, as life there would not be easy.

He couldn't bear the thought of being placed under house arrest by his father, and being harassed and suspected by him.

Go find a new continent and find high-yield crops.

When the prince saw his father, the emperor, the queen, and Ji Yuan watching him go away, hope ignited in his heart.

Wait for him to come back.

Everything will end.

He believes it.