Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 298 A gift for Zhu Yuanzhang!

The carriage slowly drove out of Yuhang County.

However, not everyone left. Only Xia Zhibai and Lu Cang left.

Engineers such as Zhou Ning, as well as Hua Lun and others, still stayed in Yuhang. They still had unfinished business and needed to continue staying in the local area to supervise the integration of local government salt factories and the migration of stove owners who had decided to move north.

On the carriage.

Xia Zhibai opened the car window and looked out.

There was a little bit of white frost on the trees on both sides of the road.

The weather has become freezing cold.

Xia Zhibai seemed not to notice and even reached out to feel it, seeming to be enjoying the quietness of the moment.

Lu Cang said, "Brother Xia, what's so good about this snow? The snow in the north is really heavy. It's as heavy as goose feathers. If you stand outside for a while, it can bury you. In the winter, people can't go out. If they walk, they might disappear."

"But it seems to be colder in the south when it snows than in the north."

"It's chilly."

Lu Cang shrank his nose and pulled his collar up to cover his entire neck.

Xia Zhibai retracted his gaze and took back his hand. The curtain that was originally supported by his hand also drooped a bit. Xia Zhibai said: "The snow in the north and south is indeed different. There is more water in the south, which is actually a kind of wet cold. There are differences between the two, but they are both very cold."

“The snow feels heavier than normal this year.”

"I don't know what the situation is like in the north, but since it's the same in the south, I'm afraid the situation in the north is not optimistic either."

"In the past, whenever such natural disasters occurred, the North would prepare for war, because the minority tribes on the grasslands could not resist natural disasters on their own, so they could only think of plundering the south."

Lu Cang's face changed slightly, and he asked anxiously, "Are the Mongols from the north heading south?"

Xia Zhibai smiled and said, "Not yet. The snow has just started to fall. The Mongols fought a battle with the Ming Dynasty two years ago, so they don't have the courage to go south in a short time. But if there are too many casualties in the winter, there is no guarantee that the Mongols will take risks in the winter or spring."

"No matter how much the Mongols fear the Ming, they must first ensure their own survival."

Lu Cang seemed to be thinking about something.

He looked at Xia Zhibai and asked, "Brother Xia, why do we have to leave so early? People like Master Hua are still staying in Yuhang, and even Governor Zhou and his people who came with us are still staying."

"Why did we leave so suddenly?"

Xia Zhibai laughed, touched Lu Cang's head, and said, "Leaving is to come back better."

"Now I have almost finished all the things I needed to do, all the things I needed to explain, and all the things I was told to do. If I continue to stay in the south, I will just be doing the job of a supervisor. Although I can do it, the local officials are afraid of me because I have made too many moves in the south. If I stay here, they may not be able to celebrate this good New Year."

"Man must be self-sufficient."

"We also need to consider other people more."

"After I left, the local government was relieved. But they still had to do what they had to do. After all, Hua Lun, Lian Zining and the others were still watching. But they didn't have to be on guard against me anymore."

“I can’t keep local officials on edge all the time, can I?”

“Humans are not machines.”

Lu Cang said: "But there is nothing to do when we go back."

"The salt factory and the textile factory do work in the winter, but there isn't much to do."

Xia Zhibai said: "Just because the salt factory is fine doesn't mean I have nothing to do. I am still a university scholar and I am also responsible for compiling textbooks. It's been almost two months now. I don't know how many 'surprises' these scholars from the Hanlin Academy will give me."

He was prepared for something ominous.

It is too difficult to ask those old scholars in the Hanlin Academy to compile a book based on the point of view of seeking truth from facts.

These people's quotations from classics can make you a "big news" if you are not careful. If he had not decided on the direction of editing the book early on, who knows what would have happened if he had been biased by these people. Even so, when he first proposed that "Song, Liao and Jin" was the Three Kingdoms period, he was scolded by Liu Sanwu, Dong Guan and others.

Unfortunately, no matter how much Liu Sanwu and others spoke for the Song Dynasty, they still could not cover up the fact that the "Song" was just a separatist regime.

And it was impossible for him to recognize Song as the only regime in China at that time.

Because China cannot have only half of the country.

Although he knew that Liu Sanwu and others had more political purposes and wanted to speak more for the South and consolidate and improve its political status, the North was equally important. Moreover, Liao also regarded itself as the orthodox Chinese nation in history, and even Song and Liao recognized each other.

When will it be the turn of later scholars such as Liu Sanwu to comment on it?

What was even more unexpected to Xia Zhibai was that Liu Sanwu and others had a different beautification of "the migration of the elite to the south" and "Wu" during the Three Kingdoms period, which made Xia Zhibai so angry that he turned his face away on the spot.

How can it work if you only have a butt but no stance?
He was always worried about letting this group of old Hanlin scholars compile books.

He had to go back and see it himself.

In addition, he also had something to give to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Something that Zhu Yuanzhang cared about very much, even extremely.

He believed.

Zhu Yuanzhang will change his mind.

When he heard about compiling a book, Lu Cang's eyes lit up and he said excitedly, "Brother Xia, when will the textbooks be compiled? After they are compiled, will everyone be able to read them? Everyone can go to school?"

Xia Zhibai chuckled, flicked Lu Cang's head, and said, "How is this possible?"

"Although I would like to do so, I can't do it at the moment."

“It’s so unrealistic.”

"For ordinary people, even children aged six or seven are laborers. How can they afford to send them to school? It is not easy to support a family. These books are only used for political purposes to unify people's thoughts."

“Reshape the understanding of Han people all over the world.”

"If we want to really popularize it, we have to wait until productivity develops a little bit more."

"Only when the people can afford food and clothes will they consider sending their children to school. Otherwise, they don't have to think about it." Xia Zhibai was silent for a while and said, "But the world is progressing very quickly, so maybe it won't take too long."

Lu Cang nodded thoughtfully.

He then said, "I know a brother in Yuhang, his name is Zhang Zhicheng. He seems to be very interested in steam engines and has been pestering me to tell me about related things. Why don't you ask Governor Zhou to bring Zhang Zhicheng back with him when the time comes?"

Xia Zhibai hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and refused.

"This won't work."

"How can we take someone away casually? Even if we like him, we have to listen to our parents' opinions. But I can make the decision. I will send him a copy when the textbook is compiled. As for coming to Kyoto, there is no need for that."

"Oh, okay." Lu Cang felt a little disappointed.

He also knew that his idea was inappropriate.

But he gets along very well with Zhang Zhicheng.

He was also a friend he had met with great difficulty in Yuhang.

So I wanted to call Zhang Zhicheng as well.

But Xia Zhibai couldn't make this offer. What was the difference between this and child trafficking? Moreover, their parents would definitely be happy to send their children here. It was just that he couldn't give these "children" a bright future, and would instead delay others.

Again.

China places great emphasis on family.

After all, it is not suitable for a person to leave his hometown.

When he grows up, has his own opinions, and knows what he likes and what he wants to do, it will not be too late to make a decision then. Now, it is still too early. He cannot do such a thing to force things.

The carriage fell silent.

All that could be heard was the squeaking of wheels.

Xia Zhibai leaned against the wall of the carriage and opened the book under him with a calm expression.

This was the 'gift' he wanted to give to Zhu Yuanzhang.

He opened the book.

There are only two words on it.

It is still the familiar "Great Edict".

This is what Zhu Yuanzhang most wanted to leave in the world, and it is what he has always been promoting throughout the country. However, the actual situation is completely opposite to what Zhu Yuanzhang thought. The Ming Dynasty did not do what Zhu Yuanzhang wanted, but instead has been committed to "de-Zhu Yuanzhangization".

Zhu Yuanzhang is old.

One emperor and one courtier.

Many people in the world are waiting for Zhu Yuanzhang to die.

His influence on the world has been weakening and is still continuing.

From ancient times to the present.

Whenever the emperor grows old, his ministers will have all kinds of thoughts and will take the words of the old monarch less and less seriously, because the emperor is old, and how can an old dragon suppress the ambitious ministers?

(End of this chapter)