The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 404: Technology Preservation and the Princes' Reports
Zhu Jianxuan came out of the chemistry laboratory and went to the electrical steel laboratory.

The mission of this laboratory is to develop various new technologies related to production and manufacturing around electricity, steel energy and materials.

Under the guidance of Zhu Jianxuan, the craftsmen's skills and creativity were brought into play to continuously develop and improve various electric welding technologies and electric steel smelting technologies.

It was also under Zhu Jianxuan's special request and reminder that the improvement from air converter to oxygen converter was completed. The key was the completion of the electric slag remelting technology.

Electric welding is a very important basic technology in modern industry and an indispensable technology in various forms of industrial production.

Electric furnace steel smelting plus oxygen converter are an indispensable part of the modern steel industry.

The electroslag remelting technology can mass-produce purer, denser and more uniform steel ingots, allowing high-performance steel to be mass-produced.

With the electroslag remelting technology, the basic performance of various precision parts and tools that have requirements on material properties, including various boring tools, drill bits, wrenches, crankshafts, bearings, springs, etc., can be greatly improved.

It can also be used to produce high-strength barreled artillery on modern tanks, as well as high-strength, high-power centrifuges used to refine enriched uranium.

This upgrade in basic material performance will have a certain impact on the entire industrial system.

Specialized tools that were once expensive may become ubiquitous in the future, enabling a new round of industrialization in high-precision industries.

With these steel material technologies, the chain of the modern steel industry has finally been basically completed.

I looked at the materials in the electric steel laboratory and also saw various samples made from the materials, including several special gun barrels and cannon barrels.

These barrels also used new technologies from the Artillery Laboratory, including hydraulic barrel self-tightening and chrome plating of the inner bore.

The entire barrel is tight and uniform. Compared with traditional artillery, it is thinner and lighter but tougher. The inner side walls and rifling are shiny silver.

Zhu Jianxuan knew in his heart that compared to the latest military artillery he knew in his previous life, there was no absolute technological gap between the things in front of him and them.

Up to now, the artillery production technology that I know has been basically restored, and there is nothing I can do about it in the future.

The craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty could only rely on their own experience and skills, continue to explore and accumulate in production and processing techniques, continue to upgrade and optimize technology and look for new technologies.

When Zhu Jianxuan thought about this, he felt an inexplicable sense of emotion and melancholy in his heart.

After coming out of the artillery laboratory, Zhu Jianxuan took a tour of the various laboratories under the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Engineering, and returned to the conference room of the Academy of Sciences in the afternoon to hold a small meeting.

Zhu Jianxuan habitually reminded people of some matters needing attention and talked about some experiences he could think of that might be related to existing research.

In fact, there is not much left to say, and some things are useless even if they are said now.

Things like artificial intelligence do not have the corresponding technical foundation yet, and it may take at least another 20 years before they can be used.

But I should have written them down in case I suddenly fell ill and died and didn't have time to make special arrangements.

Zhu Jianxuan thought so in his mind, so he asked the ordinary craftsmen to go back to their own work, and left the main leaders of the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Engineering to arrange tasks:
"The specific project matters have been arranged. I will now give you a task outside of the specific scientific research project.

“You know about the Meritorious Service Building, I’ve told you about it before, and the Ministry of Rites has also contacted you.

“I want you to compile a description of the main achievements of the craftsmen over the years and put it in the Merit Building for display and commemoration.

“However, this kind of display is selective, and the explanation is general and conceptual, just to let people know what this thing is.

“So I now ask you to make a more complete and detailed explanation document based on this.

“It’s not just the technologies developed under my guidance, but also the technologies that the craftsmen discovered and created on their own, as well as the technologies that folk craftsmen invented and created on their own.

"In other words, the key technologies within the existing industrial and technological system of the Ming Dynasty have been organized into relatively complete documentation by category.

“Use a combination of pictures and text, with models of the complete structure, and video and audio recordings of the explanations.

“The explanation should be as detailed and clear as possible, not prone to misunderstanding, so that anyone who can read can roughly understand it and understand the underlying principles.

“For example, a country in the agricultural and handicraft era accidentally obtained this document.

“As long as their intellectuals read this document on their own, they will be able to quickly understand and master the corresponding technology without direct guidance.

“As long as you follow the instructions and guidance in the document, you will be able to manufacture the corresponding product in the end.

“There is no rush for this. Just finish it before my mausoleum is built. It’s not too late to finish it before I’m buried, but you have to do it with all your heart.

“From now until that time, the new technologies that emerge during this period must also be sorted out and put in.

"Li Rui, Wang Lai, you two are my favorite students. You don't have anything to be directly responsible for right now, so you should focus on this matter from now on."

When Zhu Jianxuan first announced this new task, the craftsmen on site were a little confused.

This task is troublesome to talk about and even more troublesome to do. God knows how much content is involved, and the key is that it seems to have no practical significance.

Requiring people in agricultural countries to directly master the technology in the document seems to be used to guide the development of industry in remote and backward areas.

However, Zhu Jianxuan specifically gave examples and asked these people to master the technology without any guidance.

Ordinary craftsmen do not realize that civilization may regress and technology may be discontinued.

But when Zhu Jianxuan mentioned the final deadline, the craftsmen led by Li Rui and Wang Lai reacted.

This is their emperor teacher starting to prepare burial objects.

But there are still some doubts. Why do burial objects require ordinary people to be able to understand them and learn them quickly?
What kind of special thoughts do you, the emperor teacher, have in your mind?
However, no matter how they thought about it, preparing burial objects was such a serious matter that the craftsmen led by Wang Lai and Li Rui could only agree very seriously:

"Students obey."

Zhu Jianxuan continued to look at his two students and said:
"If you have any questions, it's best to speak up now so that you don't mess things up later."

Wang Lai and Li Rui are Zhu Jianxuan's students and basically the same age. They have been studying together since they were twelve years old and often discuss issues directly with Zhu Jianxuan.

They were not as afraid of Zhu Jianxuan as they were of ordinary ministers. Instead, they treated him with respect and a certain degree of closeness.

Faced with this kind of question, Li Rui spoke very carefully:

"Teacher, we understand your idea. Since it is a personal gift prepared for you, why do you want people from the agricultural country to understand it?"

Zhu Jianxuan smiled and said:
“I do plan to take a copy with me, but these things are not just my burial objects, they are technical documents prepared for future generations.

“I plan to have a stockpile on every continent in the world, stored in the safest possible place.

“If some technology is lost in the future, they can go back to these documents and quickly restore it.”

Wang Lai, Li Rui and others understood Zhu Jianxuan's true intention, but new questions arose:

"Teacher, are you worried that the technology will be lost? But why would it be lost?

Zhu Jianxuan immediately asked them helplessly:
“Why hasn’t it been lost?”

Li Rui continued to carefully explain his thoughts:

"Before the Tiangong Dynasty, various manual techniques were usually passed down between father and son, master and apprentice, and many techniques might only have one inheritor in each generation." Books in the past were quite precious. There were only a few copies of many ancient books, and they might be stored in a few places.

“Simply accidents, such as fire and flood, can lead to the loss of technology.

“However, since the Tiangong Dynasty, all the new industrial technologies have been passed down through large schools and large factories.

“Every technology is used by countless people, and there are textbooks of various types.

"There are millions of technical books, and all of their technical content will no longer be lost due to various disasters."

Zhu Jianxuan couldn't help but shook his head after hearing this:
"You all do have a good new kind of logical thinking that can detect and analyze changes in the way society operates.

“It’s precisely because you are used to everything now and ignore traditional things.

"As the saying goes, when the cunning rabbit dies, the running dog is cooked; when the high birds are gone, the good bows are hidden; the world is at peace, with singing and dancing; the swords and guns are put into storage, and the horses are released into the mountains.

"This can be regarded as historical inertia, or it can be regarded as demand-driven. Without sustained demand, there will be no sustained investment.

“Without wars and enemies, monarchs and bureaucrats would be unwilling to spend too much on the military, and both the size of the military itself and the research and development of military equipment would be reduced.

“Someone must be thinking this now.

"The Ming soldiers are already invincible, what are the craftsmen still struggling with?
"Piston propeller planes can suppress barbarians and unruly people, what's the point of your jet planes?

“In the eyes of ordinary officials, much of our current research content and direction has exceeded the actual needs of real life.

“And this is going to happen more and more.

"Wouldn't it be good to use this money to build palaces and gardens? Or even to build ships or roads?
"I will continue to support all your technological research and development, and continue to support the development of the corresponding industries until I die.

“But when I die, nothing can be said for sure.

"My descendants in the future will never have the same reputation as me, nor will they be as persistent as me, nor will they be as feared as me.

"Some short-sighted people dare not talk in my ear, but I may not dare to talk in their ears.

“Even if my descendants listen to my teachings and reminders now, they may slowly change their minds after hearing too much gossip from the sycophants in the future.

“Scientific research is like sailing against the current; if you don’t move forward, you will fall behind.

“Once we really stop, not only will our scientific research capabilities decline, but even our production capabilities will decline.

“When society becomes turbulent again in the future and these technologies are needed again, it will be difficult to recover without systematic instructions and guidance documents.

"The documentation I left behind can help them quickly find the technology they need."

Zhu Jianxuan kept talking about his death, and Li Rui and Wang Lai couldn't help but feel anxious when they heard it.

They were instinctively afraid of Zhu Jianxuan saying this word, because they already understood that what Zhu Jianxuan said might indeed happen.

Li Rui and Wang Lai were silent for a while, then they bowed to Zhu Jianxuan together:
"Students must obey their teachers' instructions."

Zhu Jianxuan nodded slightly:
"Okay, that's all for today. I'm going back to the palace to deal with court matters.

"By the way, Li Rui, you should also join the cabinet and be in charge of the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Engineering, as well as the organization of technical documents."

Li Rui quickly bowed again:

"The minister obeys the order."

Zhu Jianxuan got up and returned to Beiyuan to review the memorials sent by the Ministry of Public Administration and the Cabinet.

Time passed slowly, day by day, and the end of Tiangong's twenty-five years was getting closer and closer.

A few days before the holiday, reports from Zhu Jianxuan's sons were delivered to Zhu Jianxuan through a dedicated channel.

There are their own year-end summaries, as well as a special report on the Jiangnan women's imperial examination incident.

The reports from these princes can all explain the matter. At least they all have their own attitudes and opinions, and they have also given some suggestions.

Zhu Jianxuan's own intelligence level is above average, and his concubines are all smart people who have been selected through examinations.

If the parents' intelligence level is sufficient, their children's brains are usually not too bad.

Among Zhu Jianxuan's more than one hundred children, only a few may have undergone some bad mutations during their development, so they are born dull or reckless.

The talents of most children are above average.

With the high-level education arranged by Zhu Jianxuan, they can be considered elites when they grow up.

As the saying goes, you can tell a child's character by looking at him when he is three years old. Whether a child is smart or not can be roughly seen when he just begins to understand things.

Zhu Jianxuan's stupider children were eliminated from the competition for succession gradually during their primary education because they were very slow at learning.

Although the sixteenth prince Zhu Jingjian was not stupid in intelligence, he had some obvious flaws in his character, so he was thrown to Europe to be king and was excluded from the line of succession.

Among the local princes who have now reached adulthood and have completed their studies and entered the practical training phase, there is no stupid, dull or reckless type.

Zhu Jianxuan sent them the investigation results of the eldest prince Zhu Jingkun and asked them to write analysis reports and suggestions.

They all instinctively rack their brains to analyze and seriously consider how they should decide and deal with things in order to demonstrate their abilities and maturity.

Most of the reports that Zhu Jianxuan saw were quite calm analyses and suggestions.

Such as banning child and old-age labor, clearly unifying the minimum wage for all workers, cracking down on adultery and illegal immigration, etc.

Many of the things that Zhu Jingkun mentioned were also mentioned again by other princes, but most of them were not as comprehensive as Zhu Jingkun's analysis.

It’s not because Zhu Jingkun is much better than them, but because these investigations were done by Zhu Jingkun himself.

It is impossible to have the same depth by personally conducting a year-long investigation and then writing your own analysis and recommendations, or by reading someone else's investigation report and then writing their analysis and recommendations in a month.

Zhu Jianxuan would not use this incident to compare the gap between Zhu Jingkun and other princes.

However, among these princes, there are some special ones, perhaps considering how other brothers might be written.

Then, in order to make himself stand out as much as possible and thereby improve his status in the heart of his father, the emperor, he made some more radical suggestions.

For example, women were completely prohibited from working, and even from going out without a man.

All widows were under the unified control of the imperial court and were forced to remarry.

Others have suggested banning private factories and making all factories of a certain size government-owned, with only individual shops and small vendors allowed to be run by the private sector.

Or private factories and businesses can be prohibited from hiring workers, leaving them only able to run family workshops.

(End of this chapter)