The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 92: Become a disciple and set off

After Zhu Jianxuan decided how to arrange the candidates this time, he went to see his father again.

The Ming Emperor Zhu Zhonglin immediately summoned officials from the Ministry of Rites and asked them to pass on Zhu Jianxuan's decision.

Notify the thirty-two students in the front row to go to Wu Wang’s laboratory three days later to become Zhu Jianxuan’s apprentices.

On the morning of August 29, the 35th year of Xianning in the Ming Dynasty, in the conference room of the King Wu Laboratory which had been basically vacated.

In the center of the main hall of the conference room, Zhu Jianxuan put on his princely uniform and sat on a throne.

Thirty-two children of almost the same age as Zhu Jianxuan, under the guidance of two officials from the Ministry of Rites, paid homage to Zhu Jianxuan together.

In the daily life of the Ming Dynasty, the bowing gesture was basically the only gesture used. However, important ceremonies such as paying homage to a teacher and worshiping ancestors still required grand ceremony.

Normally one would bow three times to become a disciple, but since Zhu Jianxuan was a prince of the Ming Dynasty, he bowed four times according to the traditional etiquette for princes.

After the ceremony, Zhu Jianxuan established a very serious relationship with the 32 children present, a master-disciple relationship.

Once a teacher, always a father. This is not just talk in this era. It is more serious than what was said by principals in the Republic of China era.

Zhu Jianxuan raised his hand to let the disciples who had finished their ceremonial ceremony stand up, and then gave them a few simple instructions:
“You are entering my school today, and you will be my disciples for life. You and your families will also be my subjects as the king.

“As your monarch and master, I will of course take care of you and your families and teach you all the knowledge I know.

"As long as you study hard and don't slack off, you will have a place in the future science and technology world and in all walks of life in the Wu Kingdom.

“When you leave school in the future, you can learn from me and follow me, but you cannot stop studying normally, especially mathematics.

"Mathematics is the foundation of natural science and the basis of all my knowledge and inventions that I will pass on to you.

“If you are not good at math, you can’t do anything well. Even if you discover a law, you can’t describe it.

"So after you go back today, continue to study mathematics on your own and wait for me to notify you to leave with you."

Although the thirty-two children were the same age as Zhu Jianxuan, their actual generations were directly separated after they became his disciples.

Zhu Jianxuan was not only their master, but also the prince of the Ming Dynasty and the king of a vassal state. They had to be careful in dealing with and serving him.

Their parents and officials from the Ministry of Rites also educated and instructed them many times before they came to become disciples.

So the thirty-two children were now all very obedient and agreed respectfully:

"Follow Master's teachings."

Zhu Jianxuan nodded slightly, then stood up and left the meeting room with his disciples.

He arrived outside the laboratory yard, in the middle of the West Street of the Imperial City, and accepted the worship of more than 900 other apprentices, who also performed the four-bow ceremony.

After the grand ceremony, Zhu Jianxuan also said something similar to what he said to his direct disciples. The apprentices behind him obviously couldn't hear clearly, so the direct disciples conveyed it to him.

After the simple outdoor ceremony, Zhu Jianxuan asked his disciples and apprentices to go home.

Zhu Jianxuan went to the Qianqing Palace and said goodbye to his father semi-formally, because he might be leaving in the next few days.

Men's emotional expressions are relatively weak.

Emperor Zhu Zhonglin knew that his favorite youngest son was about to go on a long journey, so he just patted his shoulder again with emotion:

"Be careful on the road. When you arrive in America, be careful about everything. Make sure to eat clean food and never drink raw water. Live with the guards as much as possible.

"Never beat or scold the cook. If you don't like him, just replace him. Give him more rewards and encouragement. You are not short of money, so don't be stingy..."

Zhu Jianxuan also nodded very seriously and agreed:

"I will follow my father's teachings and keep them in mind."

The emperor sighed and nodded, then took Zhu Jianxuan back to the harem and went to Kunning Palace to meet the queen.

The queen already knew Zhu Jianxuan's arrangement, so she hugged her youngest child and said to her husband and son reluctantly:

"Do we have to go to America right now? Xuan'er is only twelve years old this year. What if she can't adapt to the climate there?
"Can't you wait until after the coronation ceremony before going to America to become the King of America?"

Zhu Jianxuan comforted his mother and said:

"Don't worry, mother. The child has grown up. Now we have the magic medicine of garlic. Although it can't be said to be a cure for all diseases, it is almost there. The child will be fine."

The emperor also sighed and said:
“I don’t want him to leave now, but things in America are different from our ordinary vassal states.

“There are more than two million Europeans in the area, most of whom are of British origin, and trade links with the UK mainland remain strong.

"It was our Ming Dynasty that helped them win the war of independence, so they are very fond of us now, and everything they want to do can go smoothly.

“If we wait a few more years, our people will have lived with these European barbarians for a long time, and conflicts in their lifestyles may emerge.

“So we should take advantage of the current situation when the relationship between the two sides is at its hottest and let Xuan’er become their king directly.

"That is, we should make it a done deal as soon as possible to avoid any recurrence or trouble later."

The queen understood this truth, but she couldn't help but repeat it again:

"But Xuan'er is only twelve years old after all. He is still a child. Can he handle those European barbarians?"

The emperor was very relieved about this matter:
"Don't you understand your son? He has been much more mature and stable than other children since he was young.

"Even a twenty-year-old adult today may not be as comprehensive as he is, so you don't have to worry about that.

"And I've already told Xuan'er that once he's settled things over there, he'll come back to see us."

Zhu Jianxuan also followed suit at the right time:

"Yes, mother. When I become king and assign various tasks, I will come back."

The queen could understand it rationally, but found it difficult to accept emotionally. She held Zhu Jianxuan's hand and talked to him intermittently for a long time.

Zhu Jianxuan had dinner with his parents and stayed in his childhood room in Kunning Palace to rest at night. In the next few days, Zhu Jianxuan did not go anywhere else, but stayed in Kunning Palace to talk with his mother.

On September 9, the 35th year of Xianning, Zhu Jianxuan was finally about to set off.

This is a good day for climbing, but the lunar calendar does not allow for travel in the next ten days, so Zhu Jianxuan can only set off today.

That morning, Zhu Jianxuan came to the Fengtian Hall and met up with his great-uncle Zhu Bohai, officials from the Ministry of Rites who were in charge of the founding of the North American nation, members of the Honglu Temple who were in charge of visiting European countries, and Zhu Jianxuan's thirty-two disciples.

According to the plan discussed by Zhu Jianxuan and the Ministry of Rites, the Ming Emperor, as the religious leader of Shenzhou, had to arrange for a person with sufficient status to go to the United States to preside over Zhu Jianxuan's coronation ceremony.

We need to preserve Shenzhou’s core political characteristics while making it easier for Americans to accept them.

So in the end, a younger uncle was chosen to go to America to read the Ming Emperor's imperial edict to Zhu Jianxuan, and to give Zhu Jianxuan the king's seal and other tokens.

Zhu Jianxuan's formal disciples should also follow him to pay homage to Zhu Jianxuan's parents, the emperor and empress of the Ming Dynasty.

After the groups of people gathered together, Zhu Bohai led Zhu Jianxuan, Zhu Jianxuan led his disciples, and finally officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple, all entered the hall together under the guidance of the eunuchs.

Zhu Bohai, Zhu Jianxuan, Zhu Jianxuan's disciples, and officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple performed the ceremony of five bows and three kowtows to the emperor and the empress.

Bidding farewell to parents before going on a long journey is a very serious matter in this world, so it should be done with great respect.

The emperor ordered the eunuch to hand over a prepared imperial edict and seal to Zhu Jianxuan.

The imperial edict first announced that in addition to the original Five Military Governor's Office, the new Ming Dynasty North American Governor's Office was formally established.

Then he appointed Prince Wu Zhu Jianxuan as the governor of the Ming Dynasty's North American Governor's Office, and was in charge of all military and political affairs of the North American continent and surrounding areas.

The King of Wu was allowed to set up a military command and garrisons and appoint corresponding officials according to the situation in North America.

Then Zhu Jianxuan followed his parents in their carriage and went to Yingtianfu Wharf with his parents and brothers.

Most of the representatives from other countries have left in the past half month, and now only the representatives from the United States remain in Yingtian Prefecture.

The final destination of the American representatives was North America, the same destination as Zhu Jianxuan's Ming fleet, so there was naturally no need to go with the French who had traveled with them.

Zhu Jianxuan followed Zhu Bohai and brought his disciples to say goodbye to the emperor and empress again at the dock.

Then, he boarded a third-level battleship with the eunuchs and maids accompanying him and under the escort of the North American Central Guards.

The North American Central Guard had an important mission, so the Governor's Office recruited two thousand veterans and officers from the main force and gave all of them a two-level promotion.

After arriving in North America, Zhu Jianxuan will allocate enough land around the palace to all the guard families so that they can settle down.

The fleet that set sail from Yingtian Prefecture this time consisted of a total of 266 large armed merchant ships, 82 of which were steam paddle steamers.

There are already hundreds of steam and paddle steamers in the Ming Dynasty, but most of them are used to run the Australian route, which requires steamships.

The trip to North America was smooth sailing, and the extra power was only used to deal with emergencies.

A total of more than 50,000 immigrants from the American Central Guard, including the main force of the First North American Division formed by their families, have all boarded the ship.

There are also Zhu Jianxuan's one thousand and twenty-four disciples and apprentices, and thirty-two craftsmen who decided to follow Zhu Jianxuan to North America and then immigrate to Australia.

There are more than 260 craftsmen in Zhu Jianxuan's King Wu Laboratory, and more than 160 of them want to follow Zhu Jianxuan.

But it was impossible for Zhu Jianxuan to take them all away, at least it was impossible for him to take them on a tour of America.

He has only thirty-two direct disciples in total. If all of them were to sit in on his lectures, the number of auditors would be several times more than that of normal students.

There is not enough space on the ship for them to observe their teaching at any time. The key is that these people may not be reliable.

In the end, Zhu Jianxuan carefully screened and picked out the craftsmen he thought were the most reliable and the craftsmen who had followed him the longest, and selected a total of thirty-two people to accompany him.

If other craftsmen are still willing to follow him, they can go directly to Australia with the new Australian Guard Corps.

After I come back from America, I will teach them knowledge in Australia. If they can't accept it, they can stay in Ming Dynasty.

The King Wu Laboratory in Ming Dynasty will continue to operate, and they will not be without a place to work.

The apprentices and craftsmen who will travel to North America are all alone. Their families will also stay in Ming Dynasty temporarily and move directly to Australia within the next two years, without having to travel to America.

Finally, all the representatives of the United States had already boarded the arranged merchant ship in advance.

The entire fleet was ready early this morning and was ready to set off as soon as Zhu Bohai, Zhu Jianxuan and his disciples arrived.

So after Zhu Jianxuan and his party went on deck, the Ming Emperor Zhu Zhonglin took a deep breath and gave the order to set sail.

Whistles sounded one after another in the huge fleet, and Zhu Jianxuan, along with his students, craftsmen, and guards, embarked on a journey to North America.

Zhu Jianxuan stood on the deck of the warship and waved goodbye to his parents and brothers on the shore.

As the warship slowly moved away from the port, the figures on the shore gradually became completely invisible, and Zhu Jianxuan's attention turned to the city in the distance.

Looking at the outline of the buildings in Yingtian City and the shadowy chimneys in the distance, Zhu Jianxuan muttered to himself with deep emotion:

"Yingtian Prefecture, where I have lived for twelve years, is now finally leaving.

“I don’t know how long it will take before I can see the scenery here again.

“I don’t know what this place will look like when I come back again.

"I hope there won't be chaos in the world..."

Zhu Jianxuan stood on the deck for more than two hours.

Until the shadow of Yingtian Prefecture became increasingly blurred, and it was almost impossible to see anything at all.

Only then did he return to his cabin with a bit of melancholy.

(End of this chapter)