Chapter 951: Stronger Backing?
Shi Lang held the introduction letter, preparing for his journey to Anqing Prefecture. Yet, he couldn't shake the feeling of having received a favor without offering anything in return, which seemed rather impolite. He whispered, "Uncle, you've been so kind, guiding me and even writing this introduction letter. I've benefited from your generosity, and I truly wish to do something for you. How about I go beat up that madam?"
Zhu Piaoling's mood suddenly brightened, and he burst into laughter. "Don't be reckless! As a man of my standing, do you think I need a child like you to do my dirty work? Hurry to Anqing Prefecture; don't dally here."
Shi Lang glanced at the dozen bodyguards behind Zhu Piaoling and thought, *Alright, Uncle probably doesn't need a kid like me after all.*
He bowed respectfully and swiftly departed for Anqing Prefecture.
With Shi Lang gone, only their own people remained.
Zhu Piaoling's expression finally darkened. He snorted, "I can't expose my identity here. How can I get that brothel to sell me all their girls?"
Bodyguard A suggested, "A night raid. Kill the madam and the guards, then spirit the girls away under cover of night."
Zhu Piaoling roared, "Are you trying to get the Heavenly Lord to smack this prince to death with a single palm?"
Bodyguard A quickly fell silent.
Zhu Piaoling: "???"
Bodyguard B explained, "My lord can write a letter to the Emperor. In it, say that you are bored in Xi'an with nothing to do. You heard that the Pear Garden in Suzhou has a group of renowned courtesans skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and you wish to purchase them as concubines. You sent your subordinates to Suzhou to buy them, but the Pear Garden madam refused to sell... write it dramatically, perhaps shed a few tears. The Emperor will surely help you."
Zhu Piaoling: "Oh? Oh, oh, oh? That's a brilliant plan!"
Crying to the Emperor for favors, or "fleecing the Emperor," was a specialty of princes across the realm. Even an obscure prince could often secure vast tracts of land and various rewards by simply wailing for a bit.
Especially for him, the foremost prince of the realm, this sort of thing was second nature.
After all, the Zhu imperial family had always been exceptionally "benevolent" towards its relatives.
Zhu Piaoling grabbed a brush and immediately began to write, feigning tears. He first described his unbearable boredom in Xi'an, on the verge of losing all hope in life. Then he wrote about hearing of the beautiful girls in Suzhou's Pear Garden, and how he wanted to buy them to alleviate his loneliness. He'd sent his head steward to Suzhou to redeem them, only to be humiliated by the Pear Garden madam... The royal dignity was trampled! The Qin Prince's prestige was gone! He pleaded with the Emperor to administer justice.
He finished, signed his grand name, pressed his handprint, and even took out his personal seal from his bosom to "thud" it onto the paper. Then he sealed the letter with sealing wax.
Everything prepared, he handed it to Bodyguard B: "Gallop swiftly and deliver this to the capital... Remember, when you're nearing the capital, take a detour and pretend you're coming from Xi'an."
Bodyguard B accepted the order and departed.
"Hmph!" Zhu Piaoling declared, brimming with self-satisfaction. "We'll see whose backing is stronger."
---
Gao Family Village, the main settlement.
Gao Yiye, arm in arm with the mass-produced Heavenly Lord, entered the research building of the Thirty-Two Middle School.
With the continuous increase in graduate students, the variety of research departments expanded steadily.
The fifth-floor laboratories in the old teaching building were no longer sufficient.
Gao Family Village allocated special funds to construct a new research building.
The lowest qualification for anyone working in this building was a graduate degree.
Every room in the building was engaged in different research projects.
The entire building presented a surreal sight.
As Li Daoxuan and Gao Yiye stepped inside, they saw a graduate student carrying a human skeleton model passing by. Upon seeing the Heavenly Lord and Saintess, the student quickly bowed: "Heavenly Lord, Saintess! Greetings."
He bowed, but insisted on a 90-degree bow, and the human skeleton model on his back followed suit, also bowing to Li Daoxuan.
Gao Yiye let out a soft chuckle: "That's a hilarious sight. What a pity we didn't capture it; otherwise, it would make for a great little news segment."
Li Daoxuan couldn't help but smile, taking Gao Yiye's hand and continuing deeper into the building.
Before long, they arrived at Bai Gongzi's research lab.
As they entered, they heard a "woosh" – the distinct sound of a steam engine. Gao Yiye focused her gaze, and in the center of the lab, there stood a massive steam engine. A large hammer was connected to the engine's crankshaft, moving up and down in a striking motion as the crankshaft rotated.
A crowd was gathered around the machine, pointing and discussing. Bai Gongzi, Song Yingxing, Wang Zheng, and many other graduate students and senior technical engineers were present.
Gao Yiye exclaimed, "Oh, I recognize this! This is the steam forging hammer invented by Chen Ergou and assisted by Qi Cheng, from the news broadcast I read last time. Why has it been moved to the research lab?"
Hearing Gao Yiye's voice, everyone in the lab turned their heads in unison, realizing the Heavenly Lord and Saintess had arrived, and quickly bowed in greeting.
Bai Gongzi replied, "This steam forging hammer's design is still too rudimentary. Although Chen Ergou invented it, he relied entirely on practical experience. His physics knowledge isn't sufficient to take it to the next level, so we moved it into the research lab, intending to pool our wisdom and make it even more formidable."
Gao Yiye: "Oh, I see. That makes sense."
Li Daoxuan smiled. "Indeed, many scientific inventions follow this pattern. The initial ideas often come from the grassroots workers on the front lines. But after these workers conceive an idea, their own limitations prevent them from elevating it.
So, scientists step in, improving and innovating upon the workers' basic designs, incorporating a great deal of advanced technology...
And then, once that advanced technology is put into practical use, it might reveal strange quirks, leading the workers to propose new improvement plans.
This is what we call the combination of 'fundamental science' and 'applied science,' complementing each other and jointly driving the helical advancement of science and technology."
Li Daoxuan was quite pleased to see them progressing on this path. "Bai Gongzi, I came to you today to discuss the issue of steamships."
"Ah?" Bai Gongzi turned his head. "What about steamships?"
In fact, many years ago, Bai Gongzi had already designed a steamship, which was built at the shipyard at Qichuan Ferry in Heyang County and put into service on the route between Qichuan Port and Yongji Ancient Ferry Dock.
However, because Yellow River shipping wasn't very reliable, the steamship project stalled there and didn't see further development.
Li Daoxuan stated, "The Wanli Sunshine has successfully navigated from the Yellow River to the sea. It's time we consider ocean-going vessels."
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