Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 193 Xu Miaoyun brings her baby to Beijing, railway asphalt road and cement road [Please subscribe]

"While we were testing on the bridge, a mist suddenly arose..."

After Liu Kuan finished telling his experience on the bridge, Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei both looked frightened.

After coming to her senses, Zhu Huilan didn't care about the maids beside her. She walked forward and hugged Liu Kuan's waist, with her pretty face pressed against Liu Kuan's chest.

After several breaths, she looked up at Liu Kuan and said, "Luckily, that strange fog didn't take you away. Otherwise, what would I do? What about Caiwei and the baby in her belly?"

After a pause, she continued, "Husband, promise me that you won't go to that cross-river bridge again, okay?"

Liu Kuan explained, "I don't know if this strange fog will appear again in the future. Even if it does, the mist won't allow people to pass through it. It's not as dangerous as you think."

Zhu Huilan asked, "What if there's thick fog next time?"

Then she continued, "I know that my husband cares about his relatives in the afterlife, but aren't Caiwei and I your relatives? Could it be that my husband doesn't care about us?"

At this time, Su Caiwei also came over and said, "Master, father and mother still have uncle and sister-in-law to take care of them in the future, but if you leave Daming, who will take care of us?"

In fact, Liu Kuan had been thinking about this matter since he left the bridge, and he had realized that he had been a little inconsiderate at the time.

If he had not settled down in the Ming Dynasty, he could have returned to the afterlife without any worries.

But now he not only has a beautiful wife and concubines, but also a child who is about to be born. How can he give them up?
He missed his parents and other relatives in the Ming Dynasty. Wouldn't he miss Zhu Huilan, Su Caiwei and his children when he returned to the afterlife?

Most likely I will miss you more and feel more guilty.

Moreover, he believed that if his parents knew his situation, they would let him stay in the Ming Dynasty to accompany his wife instead of returning to the afterlife to fulfill his filial duties - Chinese parents have always been accustomed to considering the next generation.

Thinking of this, Liu Kuan hugged Su Caiwei and said softly, "Next time there's strange fog, I won't take such a risk. If I encounter thick fog, I will leave the bridge immediately."

Although Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei hoped that Liu Kuan would stay away from the cross-river bridge in the future, they also knew that this was unlikely.

After all, Liu Kuan had mentioned that he had used his mobile phone to download videos and movies before. This meant that if a mist like today's appeared again in the future, Liu Kuan would most likely use it to obtain various information about future generations.

Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei looked at each other, and then they snuggled closer to Liu Kuan...
···
Seven or eight days later.

Three official ships came from the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and stopped at the Xiapukou Wharf on the north bank of the river, only three miles away from the cross-river bridge.

Teams of Ming army soldiers came down from an official ship in front, some holding swords and shields, some carrying bird guns. Although there were only a hundred of them and they were not wearing armor, they exuded a sturdy and fierce aura that was intimidating.

Dozens of servants disembarked from the second official ship, and a carriage was taken down from the ship.

After the servants had placed the carriages and other items at the dock, guards and maids came out of the third ship, escorting several distinguished guests.

The young man in the lead was tall and burly, wearing a bright red dragon robe and a winged hat on his head. His skin was a dark bronze color. It was none other than Prince of Yan, Zhu Di.

Next to Zhu Di was a bright and beautiful lady with a dignified appearance and a scholarly air.

The lady was holding a fat boy of five or six years old in her right hand and standing on the deck, looking down at Pukou Wharf.

Seeing the rows of houses on the dock, the constant flow of carriages and horses, and the bustling crowds of people, she couldn't help but say, "I never thought that we'd only been away from Beijing for a little over three years, and now Pukou Dock has become so prosperous."

Zhu Di laughed and said, "Did Miaoyun not foresee the changes that Pukou has undergone? Ever since the Immortal Bridge appeared and the imperial court lifted the ban, countless people from all over the world have come here to visit."

"Although the number of tourists coming to the bridge from the north side of the river is not as high as from the south side, it is still quite a lot. With the increase in tourists, Xiapukou, as the market closest to the north end of the bridge, has become increasingly prosperous."

It turned out that this noble lady was Zhu Di's princess, the eldest daughter of Xu Da, Duke of Wei, Xu Miaoyun.

"Mom, I want to come down!"

A boy's voice came from behind.

It was a little boy held by a maid behind Xu Miaoyun who was struggling and shouting - the boy looked about three or four years old, with a rosy and cute little face, but when he struggled, it seemed that even the maid, who looked quite strong, could not hold him.

Xu Miaoyun looked helpless and said, "Let him down."

The maid put the boy down and breathed a sigh of relief - the second prince was active by nature and very strong, so it was too difficult to hold him.

As soon as the boy landed, he held Xu Miaoyun's hand and looked towards the pier curiously.

But he is too short and can't see anything.

Then he ran to Zhu Di's side, stretched out his hand and shouted, "Father, hug me!"

Zhu Di didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "You little bastard, you just got down from grandma's arms and you want me to hold you again."

While saying this, Zhu Di picked up the boy.

Compared to this boy, the boy Xu Miaoyun cared about was very quiet the entire time. He only smelled the various aromas wafting from the dock, secretly sucked on his fingers, then looked up and said, "Mom, I'm hungry."

Xu Miaoyun was speechless when she heard what her eldest son said.

She thought of Zhu Di's private words to her, and pictured her eldest son becoming a fat man who had difficulty walking. She put on a stern look and scolded him, "You just had a meal at Guakou, how come you're hungry again? I think you're just greedy."

The boy pouted, "Dudu is really hungry."

"If you're really hungry, just bear it."

Just as Xu Miaoyun finished speaking, she heard a baby crying loudly from behind. It was her little son who was only a little over half a year old.

"Princess, the little prince is hungry and wants to drink milk." The wet nurse reported.

"Then feed her before getting off the boat."

Zhu Di and Xu Miaoyun's three sons each made a fuss, and it was a long time before they got off the boat.

Xu Miaoyun took Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Gaoxu into the carriage she brought with her.

The wet nurse and several other maids got into the carriage that the guards rented from Xiapukou.

As for Zhu Di, he joined a team of cavalry guards traveling by land and rode his favorite horse.

When the team passed by Xia Pukou Market, Zhu Gaochi lifted the curtain of the car and smelled the tempting aroma wafting from the restaurants, hotels and even roadside stalls, especially the sweet smell of some pastries, and he couldn't help sucking his fingers again.

"Pa." Xu Miaoyun slapped Zhu Gaochi's hand down and said sternly, "Dudu, if mother sees you sucking your finger again, I'll punish you by not letting you eat!"

Upon hearing such a severe punishment, Zhu Gaochi's mouth suddenly drooped and he wanted to cry.

"Don't cry!" Xu Miaoyun shouted again.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaochi could only pout and hold his breath.

Zhu Gaoxu was watching from the side and was laughing so hard that he fell down.

Seeing this, Xu Miaoyun slapped him on the back and shouted, "Your elder brother is being punished, what are you laughing at? Sit down!"

Zhu Gaoxu sat down reluctantly, but still grinned.

Xu Miaoyun felt a headache when she saw that her second son was so young but only knew how to gloat over other people's misfortunes and did not know how to be friendly and respectful to his brothers.

When she thought about some of the things Zhu Di had said, she not only felt a headache, but was also filled with worry.

Ever since listening to Zhu Di recount some of the historical events that happened to his three sons in later generations, Xu Miaoyun has paid more attention to his sons' education.

The younger son is still young, not to mention the older son. No matter how she teaches him, he just loves to eat, especially sweets, and he is so fat that he can't lose weight.

Nothing happened to the second son in the first two years, but this year, his naughty side gradually emerged. He started competing with the eldest son for things and even fought with him.

As her three sons grew up day by day, Xu Miaoyun became less and less confident in their education.

Therefore, when Zhu Di proposed that Zhu Gaochi, who had reached the age of enlightenment, be admitted to the Dabentang, she immediately agreed.

Afterwards, Zhu Di asked Zhu Yuanzhang for permission, and Zhu Yuanzhang allowed her to bring her children to live in the Prince of Yan's Mansion in the capital.

This is why the Prince of Yan and his entire family rushed south to the capital before August 15th.

Originally, the group could take a boat directly to the capital.

But when Zhu Di heard that the railway from Dantu to Xuzhou had been opened, he had to take a detour to the north side of the cross-river bridge to take a look and walk across the bridge again.

Xu Miaoyun had also long admired the cross-river bridge, railway, and train, so she took her children and followed Zhu Di to travel by land in Xiapukou.

After the team left Xia Pukou and headed southwest, Xu Miaoyun felt that the car was moving extremely smoothly, even smoother than the brick and stone roads in Peking.

"Isn't the road from Xiapukou to the bridge across the river all brick and stone?"

Thinking of this, Xu Miaoyun asked the maid in the carriage to open the door and take a look (in ancient times, the doors of carriages were mostly opened at the back).

Then she saw a strange gray-white road!

This strange road is wide enough for three carriages to run side by side. Except for a narrow horizontal and vertical gap every few feet, it is almost a whole.

There are also shallow horizontal and vertical lines carved on the road surface, perhaps to prevent slipping in rainy days?

Xu Miaoyun stared at the road for several breaths before she couldn't help but ask, "What kind of road is this? How was it built?"

Both sons looked confused.

The maids in the car all shook their heads.

Soon, the team stopped. Zhu Di rode up to the carriage door and said with a smile, "We've arrived. Bring the children down to take a look."

When Xu Miaoyun and others got off the carriage, they saw three strange gray-white roads that met at the end of a wider strange black road.

The strange black road went south and connected to a bridge. Before connecting to the bridge, a railway emerged from underneath and extended in a northwest direction. Xu Miaoyun had seen the railway in Peiping and recognized it.

In addition, Xu Miaoyun also discovered that near the intersection of several strange roads, there were many restaurants, wine shops and even other shops, and there were even more small vendors, which already had the rudiments of a market.

Xu Miaoyun felt that if it continued to develop in this way, in dozens or hundreds of years, this place would most likely be connected with Xia Pukou, becoming a large market town with a building scale no less than that of some cities.

There were many tourists and pedestrians around, but Zhu Di's family had the palace guards to clear the way and protect them, so no one dared to approach. This made it easy for them to occupy a good place to watch.

Xu Miaoyun stood with Zhu Di, pointed at the strange intersection of roads not far away, and asked, "This black road should be the asphalt road that the king mentioned, right? What is that gray-white road?"

Although Zhu Di hadn't been back to the capital for a year or two, he had always been following various news from the capital. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "The gray-white color must be a cement road."

"Concrete road?"

“It’s a road made of a material called cement.”

"Isn't cement also the invention of the Third Prince Consort?"

"It must be so."

"This person truly deserves the reputation of being a banished immortal among the people."

Xu Miaoyun sighed like this, and then waited patiently with Zhu Di.

Zhu Gaochi stood there for a while. He was really hungry and a little tired, so he asked, "Mother, what are we waiting for?"

Xu Miaoyun smiled and said, "Wait for the train."

"What is a train? Is it the same as a horse-drawn carriage?" Zhu Gaochi became curious.

"You'll know when the train comes."

As soon as Xu Miaoyun finished speaking, a long and strange "Woo" sound came from the distance.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a long steel monster, spewing thick smoke, rushing along the railway from the north!

Zhu Di held Zhu Gaochi in his arms, while Xu Miaoyun held Zhu Gaoxu in his arms.

When the two children saw the train speeding past, their eyes widened and their faces were filled with shock.

　Second update
　　Good night~
　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)