Chapter 497: All is Heavenly Grace, in Thunder and Rain
The students in the school instantly listened with eyes gleaming with fervent ambition: “We will dedicate ourselves to our studies, striving to master these techniques swiftly and advance to senior technical engineer.”
Young Master Bai nodded: “Excellent, your enthusiasm is exactly what's needed. I'm confident that all of you possess exceptional blacksmithing skills. Now, it's time to build upon that with the theoretical understanding of this system. Come, let's explore together how the steam engine powers this entire mechanism...”
Young Master Bai explained the operating principles of the steam engine in detail.
Shi Kefa stood outside the window, eavesdropping. For a good while, he listened, yet understood absolutely nothing, lost in the technical jargon. What particularly disheartened him was that the students inside, who appeared to be nothing more than unrefined commoners, seemed to grasp every word.
It was utterly preposterous!
For the first time, Shi Kefa felt utterly useless, his knowledge seemingly inferior to that of mere laborers.
Shi Kefa ambled out of the vocational technical school, his mind reeling. He felt disoriented, momentarily unsure of his surroundings. Yet, one crucial point remained perfectly clear: this vocational training academy possessed the capacity to cultivate a vast number of skilled artisans in a remarkably short period.
Should these artisans be integrated into production, they would unleash an immense surge in productivity.
No sooner had he stepped out of the school than he encountered Saintess Gao Yiye approaching him.
Shi Kefa: “Extremely practical. If it could be universally implemented throughout our Great Ming... it would certainly...”
Speaking of which, he suddenly froze, then his expression instantly darkened.
Gao Yiye smiled: “It seems Lord Shi has already realized that this cannot be widely implemented.”
“Indeed!”
Shi Kefa said despondently: “Artisans hold an utterly debased status; many are forced to sell their wives and children just to survive. Who, then, would willingly choose such a path?”
Seeing that he understood completely, Gao Yiye secretly thought: The Heavenly Lord was right. There were indeed many clever minds within the imperial court, capable of conceiving numerous solutions. However, shackled by countless constraints, they were simply unable to act upon them.
Just then, she heard a voice from the heavens: “Yiye, give him a lesson in ideological and political principles, just as you teach the children in your classroom.”
Gao Yiye, it turned out, spent her days diligently studying “ideological and political principles” using materials provided by the Heavenly Lord. She not only taught political classes at the Gao Family Village School but also delivered ideological lessons to the militia. Now, with the Heavenly Lord instructing her to speak to Shi Kefa, her spirits instantly brightened.
A knowing, almost practiced smile, characteristic of a teacher, touched her lips: “Lord Shi, have you ever considered something? Advanced productive forces demand a complementary advanced political system. When a political system becomes antiquated and corrupt, it inevitably shackles the very progress of production.”
Shi Kefa: “Oh? Pray tell, what is the meaning of this?”
“The artisan problem we just discussed, isn’t that the very answer?” Gao Yiye replied. “The current artisan system of the Great Ming, for example, is demonstrably dragging down our productive capabilities. Artisans suffer from low social standing and meager incomes, discouraging people from entering the craft. Consequently, their numbers dwindle, and crucial skills cannot be passed down or refined. This, Lord Shi, is a prime example of how an outdated political system restricts the very forces of production.”
Shi Kefa: “Hmm!”
The words struck him like a physical blow, leaving Shi Kefa utterly rigid and speechless for a considerable moment. As a loyal official of the Great Ming, he tolerated no criticism of his dynasty. Yet, faced with such an undeniable truth, he found himself utterly without a rebuttal.
Hold firm. Allow me to present my counter-argument!
Shi Kefa rallied his spirits, adopting the argumentative stance he used when debating a host of officials: “The imperial court is capable of reform! We can elevate the status of artisans, increase their pay—I shall personally propose this upon my return! Why does such a seemingly minor issue suddenly escalate to a critique of our entire political system?”
“Is it truly a minor issue? And can it genuinely be rectified simply by proposing it?” Gao Yiye chuckled, a hint of steel in her voice. “Lord Shi, you surely know better than we do the true state of the imperial court. How much endless bureaucratic squabbling would such a ‘small matter’ entail? Would it ever truly be implemented? Does this not, in fact, bear directly on the political system itself?”
“Ugh!” Shi Kefa winced, struck by another piercing point.
Don’t falter. I am a loyal minister of the Great Ming, and I must defend the court. Allow me to construct another rebuttal!
Shi Kefa shifted his strategy, launching a fresh offensive: “If too many individuals become artisans, the farming population will inevitably shrink, leading to a decline in grain yields. Then, it will be impossible to sustain such a large artisan class. Your village’s method, I fear, may not be applicable to the entire realm.”
Gao Yiye: “Lord Shi, why do you think our grain production here can support more artisans?”
Shi Kefa scoffed: “That is simply because you here enjoy the Heavenly Lord’s favor! You have acquired celestial fertilizer, which causes your fields to yield twice as much as anywhere else. While it takes two farmers to support a single artisan elsewhere, here, one farmer can sustain one artisan, naturally allowing you to cultivate artisans extensively. This is a divine means, beyond the reach of ordinary mortals. To use such divine methods as a basis to criticize the court’s system is preposterous!”
Gao Yiye smiled: “Ah, but there you are mistaken. While the celestial fertilizer was indeed a gift from the Heavenly Lord initially, our Gao Family Village is now capable of producing it ourselves.”
“What?!” Shi Kefa exclaimed, startled. “Produce celestial fertilizer ourselves?”
Gao Yiye explained, still smiling: “Our fertilizer factory unintentionally produced sulfuric acid, and by using this acid to treat phosphate rock, we were able to create fertilizer... While its efficacy is slightly less than the true celestial fertilizer, it still dramatically boosts crop yields.”
Shi Kefa: “...”
Gao Yiye pressed on: “Artisans are the ones who produce this fertilizer! The innovations created by artisans lead to increased farm yields, and those increased yields, in turn, can sustain even more artisans.”
“Ugh!” Shi Kefa groaned, utterly defeated by yet another irrefutable point.
In truth, despite his outwardly stubborn arguments, a part of him knew better: the Great Ming's political system had long been holding back productive forces. Just the system of princely enfeoffment alone had dealt a devastating blow to the Great Ming's economy.
This was a truth many civil officials were acutely aware of!
Officials had repeatedly petitioned, hoping the emperor would curb the extensive privileges granted to imperial princes. However, as a member of the imperial clan himself, the emperor was naturally intent on protecting his own. Following the demise of the previous Prince of Qin, the question of succession had caused endless friction between the emperor and the civil bureaucracy. The emperor wished to swiftly appoint a new Prince of Qin, while the officials sought to delay, fearing the court would once again shower the new prince with countless benefits, further depleting the national treasury.
Consequently, the position of Prince of Qin remained in limbo, the court embroiled in disarray, with no resolution in sight to this day.
Shi Kefa felt immense pressure mounting.
With his arguments thoroughly outmaneuvered, what was he to do? Hold steady. A final, desperate rebuttal was needed!
Shi Kefa, mustering his last vestiges of conviction and energy, asserted, his voice strained: “Don’t speak as though your Gao Family Village is somehow separate from my Great Ming! You are very much a part of the Great Ming, and the life you enjoy today is a direct result of the imperial court’s benevolence. As the saying goes: *‘Whether thunder or rain, all are imperial grace!’*”
Gao Yiye blinked, her smile growing even sweeter, tinged with a distinct note of pride and triumph: “Lord Shi speaks truly. All is indeed Heavenly Grace!”
“All is Heavenly Grace!” Shi Kefa echoed, but as the words left his lips, a sudden unease settled upon him. The “Heaven” she spoke of, and the “Heaven” he referred to... they were, it seemed, not one and the same.
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