In an inn room near Tongzhou, three monks were hiding, one of them was Xia Chengde, the former deputy general of Songshan in the Ming Dynasty.
At this time, he was listening to a report from one of his subordinates, who was also bald.
There is no way, the money rat tail is so iconic, as long as someone discovers it, the identity will not be lost.
Even if you are wearing a hat, what if someone knocks it off?
Therefore, to be on the safe side, Xia Chengde ordered his hair to be shaved and pretended to be a monk.
At this time, he heard his men report: "Master, it's true. I saw it with my own eyes. There is indeed a coal-eating monster. It is extremely powerful, can pull a lot of things, and can run very fast!"
Xia Chengde's face was full of shock when he saw his subordinate. He couldn't help but touch his bald head. He was equally shocked in his heart. He really saw a ghost!
After sneaking across the Great Wall and entering the customs, he did not dare to stay near the Great Wall. After running a long way in one breath, he killed several Ming people and robbed a few donkeys to travel. It was not until Qian'an that he took the donkeys in the mountains. After eating, he sent someone to the city to inquire about the news.
Of course, they didn't go into the city together as four people. That would have been too big a goal, so they just sent a clever subordinate named Xia San to inquire about the news.
When the news came back, Xia Chengde was shocked.
It is said that in the fifteenth year of Chongzhen, Duke Xingguo of the Ming Dynasty fought in the north and south, and defeated the bandits to a great extent. In the Ming Dynasty, at least there was peace in the pass.
It is even said that under the inspiration of Duke Xingguo, many bandits were recruited one after another to serve the court. It was also the same that many Ming troops suddenly appeared. Those extra Ming troops were actually bandits.
Not only that, but it was also said that these Ming troops who were born as bandits had actually swept across the grasslands, wiped out the Tumut tribe, and recovered the Hetao area before leaving the border.
Xia Chengde was very puzzled by this, and immediately asked for details, and then learned that it was this Duke Xingguo who ransacked the homes of many dignitaries, making the court gain a lot of money in a short period of time.
He also suggested to the court that the feudal kings should be established overseas, so the court also collected the money of those feudal kings. It was all these things that allowed the court to have a lot of money in a short period of time to appease the army and the people and recruit thieves.
Xia Chengde was dumbfounded by these operations: When did the imperial court become so overbearing?
For him, it was really unimaginable.
You must know that in his impression, the imperial court's will has reached the point where soldiers from all over the country are violating it openly and covertly. As far as he knew, the most famous ones were Zuo Liangyu.
However, after he asked, he learned that Zuo Liangyu wanted Qingjun to rebel, but was captured alive by the Duke of Xingguo and taken to the capital to be cut to pieces!
Xingguo Gong Xingguo Gong, why are they all Xingguo Gong?
To be honest, Xia Chengde was a little bit crazy, why is this Duke Xingguo? Where did this come from? With such ability, why didn’t it come out earlier?
Such a ruthless man who ransacked countless homes was even more domineering than that nine thousand year old man. In troubled times, do we really need such cruel officials to suppress us?
However, when he had this question, Xia San reported to him that Duke Xingguo was not just a cruel official, but also very capable!
Then he pointed his fingers at Xia Chengde and told him about Duke Xingguo's abilities.
It was said that Duke Xingguo was very knowledgeable, and the emperor always called him sir. His daughter, Princess Kunxing, did not want to be named, so she accompanied him early in the morning.
The Confucius family in Qufu is famous, right? He was jealous of Duke Xingguo's knowledge and wanted to suppress him. Unexpectedly, he was slapped back by Duke Xingguo, and now the Kong family in Qufu has been wiped out!
If this is a bit false, then Xia San gave him another example, saying that the hard road outside the city, wasn't Xia Chengde wondering what it was before? That is called cement. It was invented by Xing Guogong, and he also published the formula so that anyone can make cement.
Everyone is saying that if Duke Xingguo had not announced this formula, just this formula would be a treasure chest!
Not only that, Xia San continued to talk about Duke Xingguo's inventions, such as textile looms, shuttles, and glass, all of which were treasure trays, but Duke Xingguo dedicated them all to the court.
While Xia Chengde was dumbfounded, Xia San enthusiastically talked about recent rumors, saying that Duke Xingguo had created a very powerful "steam chicken", which the current emperor designated as "Shenli No. 1", which only eats coal. Then you can pull a lot of things and travel many times faster than a horse-drawn carriage.
To be honest, Xia Chengde was stunned. When he came to his senses, he didn't believe that there was such a powerful "steam chicken" in the world. If there really was such a powerful "steam chicken", stealing a few eggs back would definitely shock Prince Baylor in Liaodong. !
Therefore, he asked Xia San to buy a few horses in Qian'an to travel around, and went out day and night to rush to Tongzhou, just to see this incredible "steam chicken" with his own eyes!
As for whether he would find out, he wasn't afraid.
Because he knew that Tongzhou was the end point of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. It was very prosperous, and there were many people traveling from north to south. It could be said that there was a mixed bag of good and bad people.
There are only four of them, mixed together in Tongzhou, just like a drop of water in the ocean. Be careful, who can find it?
At this time, after hearing Xia San's report, Xia Chengde could no longer bear it. He immediately waved his hand and said, "Let's go, I have to see with my own eyes. Why is this chicken so powerful? How did Duke Xing Guo do it?" of?"
At this time, Xia San had already seen it, so he quickly explained: "Master, that steam chicken is not the kind of chicken that crows. It is a machine made of iron, so it is called a steam engine. It has no eggs!"
Xia Chengde was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized: "I think so, where can such a powerful chicken come from in this world! There is absolutely no such powerful animal!"
Of course he was ignorant. If an extinct dinosaur or the like were used as the locomotive puller, the friction on the rails would be small and it might be able to pull a lot of things.
After hearing Xia Chengde's words, his other subordinates were also very curious and wanted to take a look. The urgency on his face was already written on his forehead.
Xia Chengde saw it. After pondering for a moment, he shook his head and said: "Although we are not in the capital, it is very close to the capital after all, and there are many officials. To be cautious, it is better to stay in the room!"
Although he rejected their request, Xia Chengde also knew that he needed to appease them, so he said to them: "You can send out one person, put on a hat, pay attention to hiding your identity, buy some food, and hide in the room. Just eat it!”
Liaodong has been blocked by the Ming Dynasty, and was even raided by the Ming army once. There is a shortage of supplies. In the words of the Jianghu people, the mouth is like a bird!
After entering the pass, it is so prosperous and carrying a lot of property, it is best to enjoy something.
When his men heard this, they stopped asking to follow him. After all, eating was also very important.
Afterwards, Xia Chengde and Xia San walked out of the room, dressed as monks, and walked "Amitabha" to the train station on the other side of the Tongzhou River.
Along the way, people were coming and going, and there were people everywhere. To describe it as crowded, it is not an exaggeration at all.
The goods traveling from south to north are even more dazzling!
The prosperity of Tongzhou is beyond words.
Xia Chengde, who lowered his eyebrows and looked at Xia Chengde intently, was shocked by what he saw.
It's not that he has never been to the capital, nor has he never seen Tongzhou, but this is the first time he has seen the now prosperous Tongzhou.
Compared with the time in his memory, it felt like two different worlds!
Is this really a time of peace and prosperity again? It has only been a few years, but it has become so prosperous?
Xia Chengde was so shocked along the way that he didn't even know when he had arrived.
"Master, this is the train station!" Xia San whispered to Xia Chengde in a low voice, "The Shenli No. 1 is leaving for the capital. It takes two hours to go back and forth. We can wait a moment."
"Two hours?" Although Xia Chengde had been mentally prepared before, he was still very shocked when he heard it in front of him.
You must know that the carriage from Tongzhou to the capital takes two days to go back and forth!
"Yes!" Xia San nodded excitedly, "More than an hour has passed, and it won't be long before we see the return of Divine Power No. 1!"
After hearing this, Xia Chengde stopped talking and looked straight ahead. Then he immediately discovered a problem, and immediately asked doubtfully: "Is the imperial court so rich? Why is the ground paved with iron? What is it for? Aren't you afraid of someone stealing it?"
"I asked about it!" Xia San was also curious at first, and after asking, he was able to answer Xia Chengde's question, "Then Shenli No. 1 must walk on this iron. As for stealing? This railway goes to the capital, and The official roads are parallel to each other, with people coming and going, and there are no remote areas, so it is difficult to attack. Moreover, there are road protection teams to patrol, and the government has also announced that if you steal things on the railway, if you are discovered, you will be exiled to Qiongzhou! "
Xia Chengde nodded after hearing this. In this case, there won't be many people who really want to steal this iron bar. If you really want to be exiled to Qiongzhou, it's not much different from death!
After standing for a while, Xia San suggested to Xia Chengde that he took him to a slightly remote teahouse to drink tea. He also chose a remote corner to wait for the arrival of Shenli No. 1.
Such a magical thing, after finally coming to the capital, he naturally wanted to see it with his own eyes.
While Xia Chengde was drinking tea and waiting, his ears suddenly perked up and he heard some voices coming in from outside the wall.
"Fucking Divine Power No. 1, why don't you die?"
"That thing is just a lump of iron. How could it die?"
"Isn't it okay if the car rolls over? Is it okay if it explodes?"
"Be careful not to be overheard by the officials. I'll take you to task!"
"What are you afraid of? Can't I just say it? If you really get angry one day, go and remove the iron bar and make it overturn!"
"..."
