The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 348: Restoration of the Wei Dynasty
The Great Wei Dynasty was full of talented people. In addition to Du Yu, a famous inventor in history, the Great Wei Dynasty also had another heavyweight figure.

After Cao Mao took power, he sent eunuchs to inquire about his whereabouts and finally determined his residence.

Cao Mao was wearing very ordinary clothes, like a nobleman, sitting in a carriage. The driver was Zhang Hua, and Cheng Ji and others were naturally distributed in front and behind the emperor, secretly protecting his safety.

The carriage shuttled back and forth in Luoyang City, and finally stopped in front of an ordinary house in the east city of Luoyang. It was very lively here, with children playing back and forth. There were also a few old people in the distance. They looked at the carriage warily at this moment, holding the children back and not daring to get close.

Cao Mao looked around and said to Zhang Hua with a smile, "Knock on the door."

Zhang Hua immediately went forward and knocked on the door.

Soon, a servant opened the door. Seeing Zhang Hua outside, the man was shocked and hurriedly saluted.

"Excuse me, is Ma Gong at home?"

“Yes, yes!”

"Just say that a junior is here to pay his respects and this is my business card."

Zhang Hua directly used his business card. The man took it and rushed into the yard.

Cao Mao was standing behind Zhang Hua, his eyes full of anticipation.

The person he came to see this time was the former Censor-in-Chief, Ma Jun.

This man was from Fufeng and came from a humble family. He served as a doctor during the reign of Emperor Wen. Later, during the reign of Emperor Ming, he improved the loom, made great contributions, and was promoted to the position of Jieshizhong.

The twelve-legged loom was his invention, which greatly improved efficiency.

He invented many other things, including the dragon-bone waterwheel, the rotary catapult, and he also improved the Zhuge Crossbow.

In short, his skills and creativity surprised people at that time. Cao Xi personally recommended Ma Jun to Cao Shuang, believing that this person could be used in an important position.

However, General Cao Shuang is still the same level as before. In one word: You don’t need me!
It is worth mentioning that Pei Xiu disliked Ma Jun very much. After learning that Ma Jun invented the catapult, Pei Xiu was very disdainful and went to debate with Ma Jun.

Like Deng Ai, Ma Jun suffered from stuttering since childhood and had difficulty speaking fluently.

Pei Xiu's behavior of seeking a debate with Ma Jun is undoubtedly a race with a cripple.

Sure enough, after a wonderful debate, Pei Xiu won a great victory. Ma Jun hesitated and spoke incoherently, and was unable to refute Pei Xiu at all.

Pei Xiu was very proud of it and always told others about it. Later, he told this to Fu Xuan, the prefect of Hongnong. Fu Xuan felt that what Pei Xiu did was very dishonest.

Later, when Cao Shuang fell, Ma Jun was dismissed along with many other ministers. He then lived in Luoyang and continued to tinker with his various inventions.

Cao Mao only waited for a moment before he saw a man walking quickly to the door.

When he saw this man for the first time, Cao Mao could not connect him with Ma Jun in his mind.

This was a rather sturdy old man with thick eyebrows, looking a bit fierce. At this moment, he was looking at Zhang Hua in front of him, and then at Cao Mao beside him.

"Hou, hou, housheng, I don't recognize you."

Ma Jun spoke.

Zhang Hua hurriedly greeted him, offered his seat, and said, "Excuse me, I am here to see you on behalf of my monarch."

Only then did Ma Jun see Cao Mao standing beside him.

Looking at this young man with a heroic face, Ma Jun was still puzzled. "This gentleman..."

"Ma Gong, can we go inside and talk?"

"it is good."

Ma Jun invited the two of them in. The mansion was not too luxurious. Cao Mao saw many spare parts placed randomly in the courtyard. These parts were of various types, and even Cao Mao could not tell what they were used for.

They walked into the inner room. Ma Jun's inner room was even more exaggerated. It looked a bit messy, with all kinds of sketches placed everywhere.

Cao Mao's eyes lit up.

Ma Jun asked them both to sit down, and he sat in the upper seat.

"Her, her, her son, whose family are you from?"

Cao Mao smiled and replied, "He is a son of the Cao family."

Ma Jun was stunned. "Is it from the Anxiang Marquis family?"

Cao Mao nodded, "I guess so."

Ma Jun sighed deeply, "Marquis Anxiang is a good man. I thought he had no children left."

The Marquis of Anxiang that Ma Jun mentioned was Cao Shuang's younger brother Cao Xi.

Compared with Cao Shuang, the intelligent general, Cao Xi was still pretty good. Like Pei Xiu, he looked down on Ma Jun at first, but after seeing Ma Jun's many inventions, he was immediately impressed and actively recommended him to Cao Shuang.

The relationship between the two is still good.

However, Cao Xi and his three clans had already been executed, and he had no descendants left in the world.

The servants serving them inside vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

All three clans of Marquis Anxiang were executed. Not to mention his descendants, even his relatives were killed cleanly. Where did this come from?
He looked at the head of the household, but it was difficult to remind him in front of the guests.

Ma Jun has been staying at home all these years, never leaving. He is a taciturn person, has few friends, and does not interact with others. He basically knows nothing about what happens in the temple.

Cao Mao smiled and said, "Ma Gong, I came here just to see you. It seems that you are still in good health."

"Ah."

"I've heard people say you're the most skilled craftsman in the world." "Come to think of it, I also enjoy making things and have drawn a few blueprints myself, but seeing these in your house made me realize how crude my own drawings were!"

This sentence obviously aroused Ma Jun's curiosity.

Even a mechanical master like him is often looked down upon, and few noble people have such a hobby.

"Jun, Jun, a gentleman's picture?"

Cao Mao looked at Zhang Hua, and Zhang Hua quickly took out several drawings. These were the drawings that Cao Mao had given to Guanqiu Jian in the past.

Ma Jun snatched it away, and Zhang Hua felt a little embarrassed.

Ma Jun looked at it carefully for a moment before saying, "It's rough, crude, but the idea is good, not bad."

Ma Jun immediately recognized the ingenuity of the new plow and said, "If this thing is promoted, the benefits will be enormous!"

Cao Mao nodded, "Yes, it has been promoted to various places."

"Mr. Ma, I have always believed that these new instruments are the true tools for governing the world. The loom you improved has only been widely used around Luoyang until now. This is simply a waste of natural resources."

"The emergence of these new tools can change the times. How many soldiers can your improved crossbow save on the battlefield? How many civilians can your loom and this new plow save?"

Ma Jun did not answer, he was not good at speaking.

Even if he agreed with Cao Mao's words in his heart, he could only nod to show his support.

Cao Mao said seriously: "The current government lacks an institution to promote and produce new tools."

"The world has never lacked talented people like you, but it has lacked people who can make use of you."

Ma Jun shook his head, "No, no, no interest in official title."

"Hahahaha, this isn't for official titles, this is to promote your skills, to pass on your skills, and to change the world!"

Cao Mao spoke loudly.

The servant felt something was wrong again.

He felt an indescribable feeling from this young man, as if the world was in his hands.

Ma Jun was also very surprised. He shook his head again, "Difficult, difficult."

"Don't worry. It may have been difficult in the past, but it won't be so in the future. In a few days, I'd like to invite you to a banquet. Don't misunderstand me. Although it's a banquet, it's not a banquet for casual conversation. It's a private banquet."

"I'll send someone to pick you up then."

Cao Mao and Ma Jun started chatting like this, and then talked about some designs in his mind. When Cao Mao asked if there was any way to reduce the cost of paper, Ma Jun stopped stuttering and explained the papermaking process to Cao Mao in detail. He also said that different low-priced raw materials could be used for testing to see if the cost could be further reduced.

When Cao Mao talked about the principles of printing books, Ma Jun became even more excited. He even took Cao Mao to visit his own "computer room".

Cao Mao saw many of Ma Jun's half-finished inventions.

The two chatted for more than an hour. If it weren't for something important, Cao Mao would not have been willing to leave.

At this moment, Ma Jun was shining in Cao Mao's eyes.

This is a true talent, and his importance is no less than that of Zhong Hui, Ma Long and others.

This person has no pursuit of official titles and is a mature technology geek.

Cao Mao happily said goodbye to Ma Jun. Ma Jun then remembered something and asked hurriedly, "May I know your name, young man?"

"My name is Mao, you can just call me Yanshi."

"well."

Ma Jun politely sent Cao Mao out. These days, it is really not easy to find a young man who attaches so much importance to equipment and has such imagination.

I am not alone.

Ma Jun felt somewhat relieved and sent Cao Mao out of the mansion. When he turned around, he saw the servant trembling all over.

This servant had followed him for many years and the two had a very close relationship.

Ma Jun asked in confusion, "Why are you shaking? It's such a warm day."

The servant trembled and said, "Master, you don't go out, so you don't know. The county government has an order: after the change of the reign, we must avoid the taboo of Mao."

“Avoid, avoid, avoid.”

Ma Jun suddenly remembered something.

The next moment, his face turned pale and he began to tremble.

Sitting in the carriage, Zhang Hua asked in confusion, "Your Majesty, why don't you just state your identity?"

Cao Mao shook his head. "If he had known the emperor was coming, would he still have been so frank?"

"I didn't know him before, I just heard his name. Only by meeting him like this can I understand him. Moreover, I don't think he is eager for fame and fortune. If I were to meet him as the emperor, he would just try to evade and hide his incompetence."

"No problem, after a few days, he will naturally know my identity."

"Continue to send people to protect him. If we want to revive the Wei Kingdom, don't we have to rely on this person?"

Zhang Hua was a little surprised. The emperor's evaluation of this person was really too high.

It was the first time he heard the emperor praise someone like this.

Can that old man and his strange pieces of wood and iron really revive the Wei Dynasty?
(End of this chapter)