Seeing the seriousness written on Li Yu's face, Fang Zheng bowed and turned over the books on the table, picked up a few of them and said: "From today on, Your Highness does not need to understand the contents of the book, you only need to memorize it, and you will memorize it in one day." That’s a lot.”
Li Yu's face turned pale and he said, "Master, you have to read so many words in one day, right?"
That’s four to five thousand words!
Can’t finish it! I can’t even finish watching it!
How to carry it?
"It's okay. Although the content is thick and full, you can read as much as you can. As long as you keep reading every day, you will finish it sooner or later." Fang Zhengyi comforted him, "There is still one month left and Yucai will start school. Learn more. Only when you come to school will you be able to stand out from others."
"This is called sweating more in peacetime and bleeding less in wartime!"
"I understand, master!" Li Yu was heartbroken and continued to study hard.
"Your Highness, I have something to discuss with you." Fang Zhengyi led Li Yuanzhao out.
Arriving in the courtyard, he said: "The train is about to succeed now. I need a train driver. Oh, I should call the train driver. I see that Your Highness is proficient in this. Are you interested?"
Li Yuanzhao said in surprise: "Wow, the number one train driver is none other than me!"
Then he hesitated and said: "However, although the locomotive is almost ready, the road... is still far away. How about laying out a hundred-foot-long railway in the next two months to show it to the court?"
Fang Zheng shook his head: "No, if you want to display the finished product, you must show it. The railway must be long enough, otherwise there will be a lot of trouble later. I plan to build the railway from Dongjiao University to Beijing and then to Taoyuan County. At the moment, I need manpower to connect with other colleges to research the railway. , including geographical surveying and mapping, etc.”
The talent pool of Taoyuan County and Dongjiao University is sufficient, and these majors already existed when the school was founded.
Nowadays, many theoretical talents have been cultivated, but since they lack practical experience, it would be more appropriate to hand them over to the prince for management.
At least the subsequent projects can be guaranteed to be free of any technical troubles.
After all, something as extravagant and wasteful as laying iron on the ground will inevitably be attacked by the court.
I can’t explain it clearly...
This is like when he promoted sweet potatoes. If he told the court directly, he had a crop that could double the food production.
Instead of appreciating him, the courtiers and emperor immediately regarded him as a lunatic... No matter how unpopular he was, it wouldn't be surprising if he was kicked out.
Everyone knows what's going on with Xianxiangrui, but you shouldn't be joking about grain production!
"What's the trouble with this railway? Just customize the rails according to the model and lay them on the road. It's not difficult." Li Yuanzhao said indifferently.
Fang Zheng said: "No, it's a lot of trouble. We also need gravel sleepers to absorb shock and prevent the rails from shifting. The knowledge involved is no less than building a train, but we have enough talent. As long as we solve the problems one by one and build as we go. Study, I believe it won’t take long to have a perfect method, I’ll leave it to Your Highness.”
Li Yuanzhao thought for a while and said in surprise: "Hey, what you said seems to make sense. You never care about technology, how can you be more knowledgeable than me?"
"I think about it every day, and I dream about it at night." Fang Zheng raised his hands and said solemnly, "My father gave me a dream yesterday."
"Uh... ok, but you mentioned the railway, I have already calculated it. I am afraid that the cost of building a mile of railway is no less than 5,000 taels, maybe 6,700 taels. There are too many links involved. From From the capital to Taoyuan County, I'm afraid I won't be able to get there without 1.8 million taels. Do you have that much money?" Li Yuanzhao asked.
Fang Zhengyi was a little confused when he heard him mention this issue.
So expensive?
It is not impossible to get the money of 1.8 million taels, but this thing is a public weapon, and the amount of it must be controlled by the imperial court.
If he takes it all out, how will the money be divided in the future?
Although we are serving the country and the people, if we can’t make money for ourselves, who will serve the country and the people in the future?
It is best to ask the Ministry of Household Affairs to approve the money. All the money will come from the national treasury, and he will enjoy the subsequent benefits of the railway, but the possibility is not high...
Thinking of this, Fang Zheng said: "Since it is connected to the capital, it is natural that the Ministry of Husbandry will allocate the money, and I will go to the Ministry of Husbandry to ask for it."
"Well, I think it's not difficult. Unless you build a section of railway first and show it to the court, then I think I can allocate two million to you."
Fang Zheng rejected it all: "No! I'll try it first. If it doesn't work, we can pool money together to repair it."
Railways, trains, these things are really shocking.
According to the knowledge of the common people in the imperial court, there is no telling what will happen in the future. Although the newspapers have vigorously publicized these years, the common people have broadened their horizons a lot.
But superstition has always been rooted in people's hearts.
There is no chance that there will be some nonsense in the future that shakes the dragon's veins, is ominous for the great future, and builds the railway to dig up people's graves in order to set up formations.
The expansion of public opinion will inevitably affect the decision-making of the DPRK and China, and many subsequent projects will be delayed.
Unless the finished product is produced at once and huge benefits are directly put on the table, the rest will fall into place!
Compared with this possible huge negative impact, whoever provides the money to build the railway is a small matter.
Seeing that Fang Zheng denied his suggestion once or twice, Li Yuanzhao stopped asking further questions.
Since Lao Fang is unwilling to build a section of railway first, he must have his reasons, and there is no point in asking.
"Okay, then I will go to Eastern Suburbs University tomorrow to select a group of people to start discussions."
The prince is really becoming more and more reliable!
Fang Zheng smiled and said: "Your Highness, please do it well. The foreign mission is leaving, and I have decided to go to Honglu Temple to hold a big event. It won't be long before there will be a good show. The first shovel of our railway will start, and it must be done by Your Majesty." !”
"Sounds interesting. But why is it that my father is the one doing this, but not me?"
"No, the right to explain the dragon vein is not in your hands yet."
"???"
After saying this nonsense again, Li Yuanzhao curled his lips in disdain: "What kind of event are you talking about at Honglu Temple?"
"Your Highness, don't ask any more questions. If we do this, we will leave a name in history! And I promise that you will have fun when the time comes." Fang Zheng promised, patting his chest, "Then I will take my leave. I still have some official business to attend to. Your Highness will do the rest!"
...
The next day, inside Honglu Temple.
Chen Hong took a pot of tea with an expressionless face and poured a cup for Fang Zhengyi: "Master Fang, please use tea."
Fang Zheng took a sip of tea and said with a half-smile, "Master Chen, are you so unwilling to welcome me?"
"Don't dare, I wish Mr. Fang would come here every day. If nothing else, I have plenty of good refreshments." Chen Hong waved his hands repeatedly and said with a grimace, "But those Western missions are not something I have to worry about. The adults are involved, those are troublesome things. And..."
"And what?" Fang Zheng asked, raising his eyes.
Chen Hongyi said coquettishly: "And this is the end of my life. In this position, I can receive missions from twenty-three countries at the same time, and it is a country that I have never had contact with. It is an unprecedented event, so I hope It’s better not to make any mistakes before taking up the official position..."
...
