14. Chapter 14
"You can't die in vain"
Kangxi was very sad when the Sixth Prince passed away, but he had to deal with major events in the world every day and did not have much time to be sad.
After Yang Dan passed away, Qi You became depressed. He usually buried himself in his studies and people around him did not notice his emotions.
Nan Huairen was careful and noticed that something was wrong with him, so he asked for leave from Kangxi and took him to the observatory while the weather was cool and cloudy after the rain.
Nan Huairen was a Belgian who had been in the Qing Dynasty for decades. He first preached in Shaanxi and could speak Chinese fluently with a distinct Shaanxi accent.
He is old and has to hold on to the handrail when climbing the stairs. He has to rest after every few steps, but he is still sweating profusely.
Seeing this, Qi You wanted to step forward to help, but Nan Huairen quickly shook his hand away and said, "I can do it myself."
Qi You smiled and stepped aside. He understood Nan Huairen's thoughts. Being supported by someone meant that he was really old, but he still refused to admit it.
"Seventh Prince, why are you unhappy? Is it because your brother left?" Nan Huairen walked slowly, turned his head to look at Qi You and asked with concern.
Qi You forced a smile and said reluctantly: "Both of them, my classmate and good friend also passed away."
Nan Huairen was stunned. He made the sign of the cross on his chest, his expression filled with sympathy. He said, "That's a really sad thing. No wonder you've been feeling so down lately. Don't be sad. They've gone to see God and will be living happily in heaven."
Qi You said: "Sir, I have never seen heaven, I have only seen the human world. I hope they can live well in the human world."
Nan Huairen was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, shook his head without saying anything, and turned around to continue climbing up.
Arriving at the observatory, Nan Huairen leaned against the railing to catch his breath. Pointing at the various instruments before him, he proudly said, "I personally participated in the construction and design of most of these. When I die, they will still be standing here. My soul will remain in this world forever."
Qi You walked over, looked up at the huge bronze instrument and armillary sphere, and touched the gnomon and clepsydra, his heart surging with emotion.
In later times, many small instruments were looted by foreign powers. Some were too heavy to move and still bore traces of damage, completely different from what we see now.
Falling behind means being beaten, this is an irrefutable truth. However, Qi You thought of Nan Huairen's identity and swallowed back what he wanted to say.
Nan Huairen came over and asked with a smile, "Do you think it's magical?"
Qi You smiled and nodded, praising: "Amazing, sir is amazing."
Nan Huairen smiled slightly, "Seventh Prince, look at the changing of the stars and the changing of the sun and moon. We shouldn't just dwell on unhappy things. The dead will always remain in our hearts. We who are still alive should continue to live well."
Qi You touched the slightly cool bronze face and said, "Thank you for your guidance, sir. Sir, I miss them and have thought about many other issues, such as why they shouldn't have left at such a young age."
Nan Huairen simply sat down by the clepsydra and asked curiously, "What questions have you thought about? Can you share them with me?"
Qi You then sat down next to Nan Huairen, hugging his legs, tapping his chin on his knees, and said dejectedly, "Why can't their illness be cured? We can all observe the celestial phenomena, but we are still helpless against even simple illnesses. I don't think we should just watch them leave, cry, and miss them for a few days or years and think that our love is deep. I don't want their deaths to be in vain. We should find out the cause of their illness, find the right medicine, and then cure them."
The Sixth Prince Qi You didn't know about it, but Yang Dan did have a minor illness, but because the medical conditions were too backward, it turned into a serious illness and he died.
The royal family had the most advanced and best medical facilities, yet the mortality rate was still so high. Just by Qi You's side, eight brothers and five sisters had already died young. One could only imagine the situation among ordinary people.
To develop healthcare, we must not simply focus on improving medical skills and pharmaceutical production. The healthcare industry is closely related to the development of other disciplines, such as mathematics, biology, and chemistry.
Under the current circumstances, this is simply impossible to achieve.
Qi You had seen a scientific research report in his previous life that stated that insufficient nutrition absorption in infants during their childhood would limit their brain development.
In other words, if children from poor families lack nutrition when they are young, most of them will have low IQs when they grow up.
The imperial examination opened a path to success for people from poor families, but only a few of the truly poor could squeeze into this path, and their fate in life was basically determined from birth.
For example, were Kangxi and others willing to encourage the people under them to read more and join this path?
Qi You guessed that they were willing, but they didn't want to squeeze in too many people.
The lack of public enlightenment is conducive to imperial rule. Anyone who can become an emperor generally understands this, regardless of the dynasty.
In order to shake the interests of the entire ruling group, Qi You seemed to see himself being turned into dust.
He is not afraid of being torn to pieces. How many people can live two lives? This life is just a chance.
What really made Qi You silent was that he still cared about the common people of the world. When he enjoyed the temptation of supreme power, would he still be able to keep his original intention?
Nan Huairen gazed deeply at Qi You and said with deep emotion, "Seventh Prince, you are different from others. You are right. People are too fragile and helpless in the face of even the smallest illness. It seems that I don't need to persuade you anymore. You think much more and see further than I do. You are so young, and you are the person I admire most. I am very proud to have you as my student."
Qi You nodded and bowed, saying modestly, "Sir, you are too kind. I was just daydreaming. It's easy to say these big words, but it's hard to change them. Sir, I hope you will take care of me in the future. I want to learn more from you."
Nan Huairen smiled and said, "As long as you are willing to learn, I am willing to teach you everything I have learned in my life."
Qi You thanked him again and said, "Sir, do you have any friends in your hometown or other countries?"
Nan Huairen said, "Yes, there are, but the distance is too far, so it's inconvenient to write letters to them, and I don't know if the letters can reach them."
Qi You pondered for a moment, then stood up and saluted, "Thank you for your help, sir. Could you please write back and ask what subjects children my age in your hometown are studying? Could you please bring some of their textbooks and ideas to the Qing Dynasty?"
Nan Huairen thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll try my best, but it will probably take several years."
Whether the letter could be delivered or whether a reply could be received was not something that Qi You, or even Kangxi, could control. Qi You just had to do it, because only by doing it could you see the results.
In Qi You's opinion, we should not only focus on the ruling class and see how many inventions and scientific achievements they have made. After all, the ruling class is a small part, and the situation of the people below can reflect the true level of a country.
Learn from the barbarians to defeat them. If Qi You could get the book, he would integrate the knowledge he learned later and wait for the opportunity to change the existing textbook structure.
Focusing solely on studying the Four Books and Five Classics was not enough to improve the strength and level of the Qing Dynasty. Later generations have learned a profound lesson from this.
A Newton could emerge from a British cowherd. China is full of talented people. There is no reason why those who eat rice and flour would lose to those who eat potatoes.
Qi You said, "Excuse me, sir. Could you please teach me how to use these armillary spheres?"
Nan Huairen immediately became interested, propped himself up and stood up, explaining each thing to Qi You.
The teacher and student stayed in the observatory until almost evening before leaving. Qi You returned to the palace and was called by Kangxi as soon as he finished washing.
Kangxi looked at Qi You and said with disdain, "Even though there's no sun outside, it's still very hot. Look at your face, it's as red as the dolls in those New Year paintings. What have you been doing? Why are you back at this hour?"
Qi You touched his face, his heart moved, and he said seriously: "Khan Ama, I went to the observatory with the teacher. He taught me a lot of astronomy knowledge, which I like very much. I also asked the teacher to find some textbooks used by students in his hometown and other Western countries. I want to know what they learned since childhood. How could the teacher be so amazing that he came all the way to the Qing Dynasty and knew so much knowledge?"
Kangxi was still laughing at first, but the more he listened, the more solemn his expression became. He looked at Qi You without saying a word, and he couldn't calm down for a long time.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
