Under the gaze of thousands of eyes, the hot air balloon rose higher and higher, finally reaching the limit of this experiment, a height of thirty meters.
Thirty meters is equivalent to the height of a dozen stories. Even in ancient times, many buildings, not to mention modern ones, exceeded this height. For example, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda is over sixty meters high.
But how can soaring from the ground be compared with building a skyscraper?
Even though the emperor was present and even though there were imperial guards maintaining security, the noise, discussion, admiration, and surprise mixed together and continued to grow louder and louder.
Erya also forgot to stare at the big bowl filled with copper coins, and stared at the big thing flying into the sky with wide eyes. There really was someone in it!
If I cut the rope, could I fly to heaven and see the Jade Emperor?
"It worked!" Song Yingxing stroked his beard and was shocked. He went to Liaodong for investigation and found that these guys really made a big fuss.
Chen Zilong held up the telescope and laughed heartily, "It really is that foolish and bold Wang Jizhong. He finally showed his face in front of the Emperor."
Swish! Two banners suddenly dropped from the hot air balloon. One read, "Long Live the Emperor," and the other read, "The Daming Academy of Sciences Wishes the Emperor Good Health."
Haha! Zhu Youxiao smiled slightly, not surprised.
This was his idea, to use the appearance of the Emperor to support the Academy of Sciences and make it famous!
As for the words written on the banner, they were the Academy's own work. Anyway, the emperor is giving his support, so how can you ignore it?
"Reward!" The emperor waved his hand generously, wanting to show everyone that real money and real silver were nothing, the Academy of Sciences also had grades, and that was the most attractive thing.
The palace servant hurriedly ran to the center of the field holding the imperial edict and announced it in a shrill voice.
Zhu Youxiao stood there and waited for a while until the show was over, then turned around and returned to the palace amid cheers of "Long live the emperor!"
The emperor was not too concerned about when hot air balloons would become practical.
Although the development of hot air balloons was very useful in military affairs, such as lookout and reconnaissance, and guiding artillery, they were not used in the suppression of Liao and the destruction of slavery.
However, the launch of manned hot air balloons is the most eye-catching and has the greatest sensational effect, and can quickly make the Academy of Sciences a household name and spread its fame far and wide.
Of course, being directly appointed an official might be more tempting. With a rank and a salary, one would have lifelong support, and would not have to take the narrow path of the imperial examination.
On the way back to the palace, Fan Xiaohui was still filled with shock and curiosity. She was afraid to speak freely because there were so many people around, but when she met Li Chengcheng's eyes, she used her expressions to communicate.
When they arrived at the Palace of Heavenly Purity, Zhu Youxiao took a short rest and leaned lazily in the chair. Fan Xiaohui came over to serve him, massaging his legs and shoulders to show his courtesy.
"Your Majesty, that giant thing is so powerful, it can carry people to heaven!" Seeing the emperor so comfortable, Fan Xiaohui asked indirectly, "I wonder if they can select the person who rides it, or can anyone ride it?"
The emperor raised his eyebrows and jokingly said, "You want to go to heaven?"
Fan Xiaohui chuckled and said, "I'm just curious. I wonder what it feels like to fly so high."
"It's lonely up there," the emperor said casually. "When I was on the ground, it felt so good to be up there. But when I got high up, I thought I was safe on the ground."
After a pause, the emperor continued, "When the hot air balloons are improved and made safer, I will let them bring them into the palace. Whoever is brave enough will be allowed to try it."
Fan Xiaohui nodded repeatedly, feeling that she was very brave, and worked even harder.
At this moment, Wang Tigan came in to report that Luo Yangxing, the commander of the Pacification Division, had military intelligence to report and was waiting outside.
The current Zhenfu Division, also known as the Jinyiwei, is still commanded by Luo Sigong, but he has basically delegated power, and the main work is undertaken by the two commanding officers below him.
Luo Yangxing and Liu Qiao are now in charge of the work of the Pacification Office. One is responsible for collecting external military and political intelligence, and the other is responsible for the emperor's guards and ceremonial guards.
The emperor has not yet made a final decision on Luo Sigong's successor, so he decided to delay it for now and make further observations.
Upon hearing the military intelligence, the emperor immediately stood up, went to the main hall, and summoned Luo Yangxing to report.
Luo Yangxing entered the hall, knelt down and kowtowed to pay his respects.
In the Zhenfu Division, he was second only to the emperor, his father still his superior, and he was only one step away from becoming the commander-in-chief. As long as the emperor had not made a decision, he would work even harder to become the head of the Zhenfu Division.
"Mr. Luo, please stand up." Zhu Youxiao waved his hand and asked in a deep voice, "What is the military information? Report it quickly."
Luo Yangxing stood up and bowed, then began to speak: "Your Majesty, Du Zhenyu, the captain of the Pacification Division, sent someone to report urgently that Yehenara Nanchu..."
The emperor frowned as he listened to the report. This tiger-like rabbit never gets sick earlier or later, so why is he doing this now?
Before that, Lin Danhan sent Du Ling to lead the main force of the Chahar tribe to join forces with the Ming army to attack the Khorchin tribe, a Mongolian traitor who had defected to the Later Jin.
During the punitive campaign, relying on the Ming army's blasting technology, the coalition forces captured the city of Gelezhuergen and captured the leader of the Khorchin tribe, Oba, alive and escorted him to the Chahar tribe to await the disposal of Ligdan Khan.
Although the expedition was victorious, Lin Danhan also learned from Oba that the leader of the Inner Khalkha Alliance, Zhuoliketu Hong Baturu, had leaked information and secretly helped the Khorchin tribe.
Even if this had not happened, Lin Danhan, who believed in "pacifying the country before resisting foreign aggression", would have taken action against Inner Khalkha sooner or later. Now, it was even more justified.
Of course, Lin Danhan did not make it public, but made preparations in secret, ready to attack the Inner Khalkha Alliance when the autumn was high and the horses were fat.
After the autumn, the cavalry of the Beijing Camp would enter Liao in batches, and Man Gui's naturalized Flying Cavalry Camp would also form an alliance with the Inner Khalkha to attack the Jiannu.
"This Hudun Rabbit is trying to sabotage my grand plan to pacify Liao and exterminate the slaves." Zhu Youxiao snorted, looked at Luo Yangxing and asked, "What does Yehenara Nanchu want?"
Luo Yangxing bowed and said, "I am a descendant of the Yehe tribe and the grandson of Beile Jin Taishi. I have a grudge against the Jiannu, but I also want to restore the glory of the Yehe tribe."
Zhu Youxiao pondered for a moment and said, "The court has already appointed Nara Zhongming as the commander of Jianzhou, so it's not easy to go back on one's word. Since he is the grandson of Jin Taishi, how about letting him inherit Jin Taishi's title of Beile?"
"Your Excellency," Luo Yangxing complimented, then reminded him, "Since Narananchu sent someone to tip off Huduntu, it's clear he didn't want Huduntu to know. Perhaps he didn't know how the court would handle this, or perhaps he was worried about his sister's position within the Chahar tribe."
Zhu Youxiao nodded and said, "That's fine. Let him serve as the eyes and ears of the Chahar tribe. I will deal with this tiger-like rabbit sooner or later."
After a pause, Zhu Youxiao asked, "Mr. Luo, do you have a plan to stop the Tiger Rabbit operation? At least, don't cause any more trouble before we pacify Liao."
Luo Yangxing knew what the emperor was worried about. He wanted to delay Ligdan Khan's attack on Inner Khalkha, but at the same time, it would be best not to worsen relations with the Chahar tribe or even lead to war.
Suppressing the Liao and destroying the slaves was the top priority. Before that, the emperor did not want to make more enemies and wanted to concentrate all his efforts on completing this great cause.
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