The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 585 Steam Engine and the Beisemeier Converter Steelmaking Process
Nanjing Yingtian Prefecture, Tangshan Hot Spring Palace.

The banquet to welcome the retired emperor back to the capital was still being prepared, and the officials and meritorious officials who had been summoned to attend the banquet were still on their way.

And during this period, on the snow-capped Tangshan Mountain, Mo Zibu was with his father Mo Tianci, his elder brother Mo Zihuang, and his second brother Mo Zitang.

And the Governor of Shangchuan who returned from Shangchuan (northern Myanmar), his eldest nephew Mo Gongbai.

Rear Admiral Mo Gongbing, captain of the third-class battleship Zhang Huangyan.

Lieutenant General Mo Gongyan, who made great contributions in the Sino-British Battle of Trincomalee and almost had his skull opened, is currently serving as the deputy principal of the Quanzhou Naval Officer School and is in charge of daily work (the principal is the emperor). He and his three nephews are taking a hot spring bath together.

Of course, also participating was Emperor Mo’s eldest son Asen, who was about to turn twelve.

"The only one missing is the third brother. He's in the west and hasn't come back in ten years."

Mo Tianci felt a little sad. He had never thought that there was anything good about his third son, who was lustful and frivolous. Apart from being good at calligraphy and painting, and able to write a few poems.

But unexpectedly, the third brother has changed a lot over the years. Not only has he become the most important vassal king in the Western Holy Roman Empire, he is also very filial.

Every Spring Festival and his birthday, he would send ministers from thousands of miles away to congratulate him and offer gifts.

It is much better than the eldest brother who only knows how to curry favor with the emperor and the second brother who is stupid and stubborn.

As for the emperor, Mo Tianci didn't even want to criticize him. From ancient times to the present, there were really not many cases where a son used his eighty-year-old father as a tool.

"Emperor, our China, our Great Yu Kingdom, must not become weak. If it does, your third brother in the West will be in danger."

When mentioning the third brother, Mo Tianci raised his glass and invited Mo Zibu to drink, saying this with some concern in his mouth.

Mo Zibu had finished his drink and hadn't spoken yet when the eldest brother, Mo Zihuang, interrupted, saying, "Don't worry, Dad. Even if Joseph II had a hundred guts, he wouldn't dare do anything to the third brother. His entire Holy Roman Empire is almost falling apart because of him."

Mo Tianci rolled his eyes at the eldest brother. When he came back this time, he found that the eldest brother had completely become the fifth brother, that is, the emperor's lackey.

"The more this happens, the more worried I become. If the Holy Roman Empire falters, the Third Brother, the Grand Duke of Transylvania who serves as the stabilizing force, will bear the brunt of the consequences."

Seeing that his father was genuinely worried, and not just hinting at something, Mo Zibu spoke, "Yes, Third Brother's position is indeed very delicate, and if China wants to provide substantial support to Third Brother, I'm afraid we have to wait until we control Hezhong.

If we can control Hezhong, we can cross the Eurasian steppes and reach Eastern Europe. Then, our country will be as stable as Mount Tai."

There is often a misunderstanding when looking at maps in later generations, that it would be very far from East Asia across the grasslands to Eastern Europe.

But in fact, the straight-line distance from Kulun in Mobei to Ukraine is basically the same as the straight-line distance from Kulun to Jiading in Nanyang.

Moreover, the Eurasian steppes are connected, and as long as it is not the middle of winter, the journey is much less difficult than going from Kulun to Jiading.

You can really walk in a straight line on the Eurasian steppe, but to reach Southeast Asia you have to cross mountains and rivers. The difficulty of walking is probably not even greater than that from Kulun to Guangdong.

Therefore, for China, which controlled Mongolia in both the north and south of the Gobi Desert, Europe was not so far away and out of reach.

Hearing what Mo Zibu said, Mo Tianci sighed, "Old Fifth, you are indeed capable of becoming an emperor throughout the ages.

If I were to become the emperor, I would probably only want the eighteen provinces of Han, but you have been planning for so many years, you have foresight! "

“Yes, Grandfather, Father said that once the power and endurance of steam engines are further improved, a railway will be built from Xi’an to Hezhong.

That way, our Central Plains supplies can be transported to the river in the fastest and most convenient way. By then, the Europeans will have to rely on us."

Asen looked at his father Mo Zibu with admiration, and waved his hand, asking the eunuch serving beside him to bring over his favorite toy, a huge steam train and track model.

Asen enthusiastically demonstrated to his grandfather what a steam locomotive was. He drove the small train on the wooden track, making a loud noise and quickly completing the entire journey.

Although this is a toy and it is impossible to install a steam engine, the dozens of wheels and the tracks made of wood but appearing to be rails all clearly show what the steam train represents in the future.

Mo Tianci was speechless for a long time as he looked at this thing that was beyond his time and also beyond his imagination.

After a while, the rather knowledgeable Emperor took a breath and said, "I was wondering what use the steam locomotives Wu Wenyao and Qian Duo made were. They looked flashy but not practical. So, it turns out they're going to use this thing in the end."

As he spoke, Mo Tianci fiddled with the little train and watched it run on the tracks again.

"With so many carriages, there must be enough space for a lot of stuff. A steam engine should be able to move it. It just requires burning more coal and making the seals a little better.

But, Your Majesty, these rails are not cheap. Where can we find enough iron to lay them on the ground in such an extravagant way?

Mo Zibu gave his father a thumbs up, saying that it was insightful. It was not easy for an 83-year-old man to abandon his prejudice and realize the future represented by this new thing.

"Father, the Sanzhong Temple Imperial College in Foshan has recently developed a new steelmaking method. Soon, the era of ten ounces of silver per pound of steel will be over, and the era of coal and iron will truly arrive."

In fact, in this era, steel is not only expensive in China, but also in Britain and France in Europe.

Because the method commonly used in steelmaking at present is still the rather primitive Prind stirring method, or even the more primitive crucible ironmaking method.

"One pound of steel costs ten ounces of silver" is no exaggeration. Even slightly better steel is this expensive in China. The backwardness of steelmaking technology has become the greatest obstacle to China's further development.

In fact, even Emperor Mo Zibu was wrong. Because of the inherent impression he had read in books, he always thought that the improvement of the textile industry was an important symbol of the Industrial Revolution, or even the only symbol.

But in fact, since China has no shortage of population, its silk and cotton cloth for export also take the high-end route, with few competitors at all, and both upstream and downstream can make enough profits.

It can be said that the improvement of textile technology is crucial for England, but it is not so urgent for China.

So although Mo Zibu forced England to bring the Jenny spinning machine and other related technologies, it did not trigger any technological revolution. Even the textile factories in Jiangnan and Lingnan did not think they were that great.

Fortunately, although he was a somewhat ignorant emperor, the professional teachers and students in the fields of Gewu, Danhua, and Tiangong (mechanics), who were trained by him with millions of silver dollars, accurately and keenly perceived the bottleneck of this obstacle.

So, a few months ago, more than 30 teachers and students at the Sanzhongci Imperial College in Foshan, the steel capital, jointly developed a new steelmaking method.

After being reported by Fuxing Company, Mo Zibu, who still had a little engineering background, quickly discovered that this thing was the famous Beisemai acid bottom-blown converter steelmaking process in history.

Although there is a slight difference, it is not very big and some aspects are still not perfect, but the general direction is correct and Mo Zibu has even seen the light of day.

So, Emperor Mo, who was a little addicted to engineering, pulled his father, brothers and nephews aside to give them a lecture.

The two brothers looked confused and didn't understand at all.

Emperor Mo Tianci didn't understand it either, but he knew that this was probably a groundbreaking new technology that would change the world.

The three nephews Mo Gongbai, Mo Gongbing and Mo Gongyan were slightly better. They were forced by Mo Zibu to read about this subject and could barely understand it.

"If steel production could be greatly increased, we could cover our warships with iron sheets to maximize their protection. In future naval battles, we wouldn't have to worry about taking a salvo."

"But that would mean a loss of power. To truly realize this, we need steam engines. But the ones we have now can't even pull a few people faster than a horse-drawn carriage. It's far from enough."

A bunch of the emperor's close relatives started discussing it enthusiastically. Mo Zibu looked back and saw that only his son Asen's eyes were shining as he listened, as if he really understood some of the principles.

Thinking that the child was old enough and it would be good for him to exercise, Mo Zibu said to Asen, "This specific situation was all reported by Fuxing Company, and I haven't actually seen it.

Well, Asen, your grandfather hasn't been in good health recently, so you should go back to Guangzhou to visit him and also visit the Sanzhong Temple and Imperial College."

Asen's face lit up with joy. Grandpa's illness was not serious, so this trip could be considered a special one.

He was very happy to be able to leave his father, and especially his mother who pushed him hard every day.

After arranging these, the father, son and brothers chatted for a while, and then Mo Zihuang and others left tactfully.

Only Mo Tianci and Mo Zibu, father and son, were left in the hot spring.

Mo Tianci looked at his son, the emperor, and saw the steam rising from the hot spring. He couldn't help but blink his eyes, but he always felt that he could no longer see his son's appearance clearly.

At this moment, Mo Tianci finally had an epiphany. The person in front of him was once his son, but now, he was more of a king, an emperor of all ages.

"Emperor, I am going to Japan. Do you have anything to tell me?" Mo Tianci asked softly.

"Dad, when we get to Japan, you can hand over Kanto to Tanuma Okitsugu and have him deal ruthlessly with those who are ungrateful, while you yourself can command the army and guard Osaka.

In addition, one of the important reasons why the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan was in such difficulty was that the wealthy merchants who were originally dependent on the shogunate gradually lost control.

After you go to Japan, you can listen to Heshen's opinions. I think it would be best to kill a group of wealthy merchants in Japan, mainly those in Osaka and Edo, and nationalize their stored gold and silver so as to continue to implement the silver dollar system in Japan.

At the same time, the daimyo of Japan owed huge sums of money to the wealthy merchants. After you go to Japan and deal with the wealthy merchants, you can get the daimyo's debts in your hands, making it easier to drive them away.

As for other details, I have prepared a 60-member staff team for you from the Prime Minister of Japan. Father can discuss it with them."

Mo Tianci nodded, looked at Mo Zibu, and said with a bit of sadness: "I am already eighty-three years old this year. If I go to Japan, I may never come back.

Your mother doesn't like me taking a concubine when I'm over 80 years old, and she refuses to go to Japan with me. That's up to her, as long as she's happy.

Your sixth disciple, Ling, is intelligent and polite, and his mother passed away early. I entrust him to you. Please teach him well for me. As a brother, you should treat him like your own son."

After hearing this, Mo Zibu immediately stood up, wrapped himself in a towel, walked to the hot spring, and solemnly performed a father-son ceremony for Mo Tianci.

Yes, the old man is eighty-three years old. It is estimated that he will have to stay in Japan for at least five years. It is very likely that he will not be able to come back.

"Don't worry, father. I will raise Ziling well. He will at least be a prince in the future.

As for the seventh son, Jun, he was granted the land of Owari and other places where Nagoya is located, and was given 800,000 stones according to Japanese standards.

From now on, let the seventh son take your place and fulfill his filial duty to you."

(End of this chapter)