Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 143 Give Lao Zhu a Face, Air Buoyancy [Subscription Request]

Times have changed?

This was the first time Li Wenzhong had heard such a statement, so he asked, "Why do you say that?"

Liu Kuan said: "First, our Ming army is now equipped with Shenwei cannons, tiger squat cannons, matchlock guns, and telescopes. It is much more advanced than the Yuan army a hundred years ago."

"It can be said that if the Ming army today were to fight against the Yuan army a hundred years ago, the Ming army would surely win!"

"The Japanese army's equipment, even its elite troops, is about the same as that of the Yuan army a hundred years ago. How can they be a match for our Ming army?"

"Secondly, His Majesty has ordered the establishment of the Great Ming Shipyard, which specializes in the research and manufacture of large ocean vessels."

"With the shipbuilding and navigation information I have provided, the safety of our Ming army's future voyages to Japan will be greatly improved, and there will be almost no chance of being destroyed at sea."

"Third, a few decades later, Western nations will embark on the great voyages of discovery, colonizing the globe and striving for world hegemony."

"If the Ming Dynasty remains complacent, will it cede all the benefits of the great voyages to the Westerners, enjoy a comfortable life, and wait for them to attack the Ming Dynasty when they become powerful in the future?"

Li Wenzhong basically understood what Liu Kuan said, but he didn't quite understand the meaning of a few words.

He frowned and asked, "What do you mean by colonizing the world?"

"Global colonization refers to the discovery of new islands and continents by Westerners after they embarked on the great voyages of exploration. They then used their powerful military forces to plunder these places' wealth and enslave their people, thereby strengthening their own nations..."

Liu Kuan patiently explained the meaning of "colonizing the world" and also helped Li Wenzhong understand the concept of the earth and the vast oceans and continents outside of China.

It even describes the general situation and rich products of Australia, India, Africa, North and South America, and emphasizes new agricultural crops such as sweet potatoes, corn, and potatoes that are only found in the American continent.

After Liu Kuan finished speaking, Li Wenzhong's expression was completely different from before - the melancholy between his eyebrows disappeared at some point, and his face was full of surprise and joy.

He asked in disbelief, "Can sweet potatoes really be grown in mountainous areas and poor land, and yield 400 to 500 kilograms per mu?"

Liu Kuan smiled and said, "Four or five hundred kilograms is just the result of the Native Americans not domesticating the potatoes. If the Ming Dynasty can cultivate sweet potatoes for a hundred years and cultivate them carefully, it won't be a problem to increase the yield by another one or two hundred kilograms per mu."

Although Li Wenzhong was more of a civil official than a military general because he read too much, he also cared about the people more than most military heroes in the early Ming Dynasty.

At that time, the Li family could only be considered rich farmers. When he was young, he went to work in the fields with his father every year. He knew very well that the new crops such as sweet potatoes that Liu Kuan had just mentioned were of great significance to the people.

For example, when there was a severe drought in Huaixi, if there had been sweet potatoes, I wonder how many lives could have been saved.

After receiving Li Kuan's affirmative answer, he couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect there are so many excellent crops overseas. If so, this great voyage of discovery should really begin."

Liu Kuan smiled and said, "New crops are only one aspect. By analogy, overseas, because the environment is so different from that of China, we can find many new plants and animals that are of great use to the people of China."

"For example, there's a herb in South America that's incredibly effective in treating malaria. There's also a tree in South America called the rubber tree, whose sap forms rubber, which is very useful in military and industrial applications."

“There are countless examples like this!”

After listening to Liu Kuan's introduction, even though Li Wenzhong was already in his forties, he couldn't help but be fascinated by overseas.

At this point, Liu Kuan changed the subject and said, "Your Majesty was harsh on the military heroes and civil officials back then. Firstly, those people had indeed violated the law and even committed acts of rebellion. Secondly, Your Majesty did not value the founding military heroes enough."

"But now that the Ming Dynasty is about to embark on the great voyages of exploration and embark on the road to global domination, I wonder how many generals will be needed to fight overseas, and how many capable ministers will be needed to govern the overseas territories."

"Even though the court is now filled with brilliant generals, Your Majesty still feels it is not enough and will naturally treasure those who have made outstanding contributions even more."

"Let's put it this way. Your Majesty has actually accepted Duke Cao's original advice in his heart, but he just can't bring himself to admit it."

"Your Majesty is not only Duke Cao's uncle, but also the Supreme Lord. You can't ask him to apologize to his nephew and his subjects, right?"

"Now that Your Majesty has relented regarding what happened back then, why not take this opportunity, Duke Cao, to save Your Majesty's face, free yourself from confinement, and throw yourself into the great wave of exploration that the Ming Dynasty is about to embark on?"

After Liu Kuan finished speaking, he and Zhu Biao looked at Li Wenzhong together.

Although he appeared quite confident in his words, he was actually quite nervous - he had said everything he could, and if Li Wenzhong still couldn't find a way around it, there was nothing he could do.

Unexpectedly, Li Wenzhong hesitated only briefly before nodding and saying, "Vice-Law Liu is right. I should indeed admit my fault to Your Majesty regarding that incident."

Upon hearing this, Liu Kuan and Zhu Biao both breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhu Biao couldn't hide his delight. He said, "Cousin, it's truly wonderful that you've come to your senses! Without further ado, why don't you follow me into the palace now?" Li Wenzhong replied, "I angered Your Majesty with my memorial back then. Now, I'll admit my fault with this memorial. This is the only way to truly save Your Majesty's face."

Obviously, Li Wenzhong still didn't think that his advice was wrong.

Zhu Biao and Liu Kuan pretended not to hear these words - after all, all Zhu wanted was Li Wenzhong's attitude, and who could care less what he thought in his heart?

Next, Zhu Biao and Liu Kuan chatted with Li Wenzhong for a while about naval construction and overseas affairs, and then said goodbye and left.

Things progressed slower than Liu Kuan had expected.

Five days later, Li Wenzhong submitted a memorial admitting his mistakes. Liu Kuan and Zhu Biao were actually a little worried about this, fearing that Li Wenzhong would say something in the memorial that would anger Zhu.

Perhaps it was the two years of imprisonment that had tempered Li Wenzhong, and his "admission of mistakes" did not cause any trouble.

After reading it, Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed and immediately issued an order to lift Li Wenzhong's imprisonment and appointed him as the Left Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Commandery.

When Li Wenzhong was the Grand Commander-in-Chief of the Five Military Commandery, he angered Zhu Yuanzhang and was imprisoned. Zhu Yuanzhang then took advantage of the situation to abolish the post of Grand Commander-in-Chief and divided his powers among ten commanders-in-chief.

Therefore, although the Left Admiral of the Navy Commandery was not as high as the Grand Admiral of the past, it was already the highest military rank in the Ming army. Above that were the various temporary generals and generals.

At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang did not forget to send a team of imperial physicians composed of several famous doctors including Dai Sigong to give Li Wenzhong a comprehensive physical examination.

The results of the examination showed that Li Wenzhong was weaker than ordinary people due to long-term depression and irregular work and rest, but there were no major hidden dangers. He only needed to pay attention to conditioning and exercise, and he would be able to recover in a few months.

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In February of the 15th year of Hongwu, Mu Ying and Lan Yu were ordered to lead a force to capture Dali.

Historically, Duan Shi, the leader of the Duan family, gathered his men to guard Longwei Pass. Mu Ying ordered Wang Bi to lead troops to attack Longshou Pass and Lan Yu to lead troops to attack Longwei Pass. He then led a special force to climb Dian Cang Mountain, overlooking the enemy, to provide support, and defeated the Duan family's army in one battle.

This time, Mu Ying used several Shenwei cannons that were later transferred to Yunnan, plus many tiger squat cannons, to directly blast open Longwei Pass.

Duan Shi was hit on the head by the Shenwei cannon during the battle and died on the spot.

Once the Longshou and Longwei passes were broken, Dali no longer had any real dangerous passes or fortresses to hinder it, and was easily captured by the Ming army.

Afterwards, the barbarian tribes in western Yunnan that had originally been affiliated with the Duan family also surrendered upon hearing the news. Soon the Ming army took over western Yunnan and pacified the entire Yunnan.

The time is more than a month earlier than in history.

Because many barbarian tribes surrendered at the sight of the enemy, and were obedient on the surface, but in fact they had two minds and were waiting for an opportunity to rebel.

In addition, there are still many small groups of Yuan troops remaining in Yunnan, and bandits are gathering in some places, so the area has not been truly pacified.

The Ming army that had gone to Yunnan was not recalled by Zhu Yuanzhang, but was temporarily stationed there to suppress the rebellion and conquer those who disobeyed.
Because this year is a leap February.

In early March, the south of the Yangtze River is already a scene of late spring with lush grass and flying birds.

In the main hall, Liu Kuan had just started his lecture and more than a dozen students, including Zhu Huilan, were listening attentively.

"In the previous two science classes, we explored the buoyancy of various liquids, including water, salt water, and oil, through various experiments."

"Finally, I'll leave you with a question for after-class reflection: Does air have buoyancy? If so, what common phenomena in life can demonstrate this?"

"Please raise your hands and answer."

As soon as Liu Kuan finished speaking, almost all the dozen or so students in the main hall raised their hands, even Zhu Zhi and Zhu Yunwen who were sitting in the front row were no exception.

"Student Zhu Yunwen, you answer." Liu Kuan unexpectedly gave Zhu Yunwen the opportunity to earn credits.

Zhu Yunwen stood up with a look of surprise on his face and said crisply, "Teacher, Yunwen believes that air also has buoyancy."

Liu Kuan smiled slightly and asked, "What common phenomena can prove this?"

Zhu Yunwen was clearly well prepared. He counted on his fingers and said, "Feathers fall from birds and float in the air for a while. There are also kites, which can be pulled and fly in the air like birds."

At this point, Zhu Yunwen blinked his eyes and said, "Teacher, I can only think of these two phenomena, do they count?"

　First update.

　　(I’m too tired today, so I can only write a smaller chapter)
　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)