Film and TV: Starting from the Night Watchman of Dafeng

Chapter 45 I think Confucianism can have another path
He looked around and found that except for Nangong Qianrou and the golden gong owned by the Zhu family, all the other golden gongs were there.

The Jinluo people exchanged glances, and finally Jiang Luzhong stepped forward and said, "I heard that you asked the dean for a book on the art of reading qi?"

The art of looking at qi?
He had noticed something was wrong during the last incident with Xu Qian'an.

Wei An remained calm and said, "I'll leave it to my uncle."

Hearing this response, the Jinluo people were a little excited.

Jiang Luzhong clasped his fists again and said earnestly, "Sir, please ask the dean for some more Qi-gazing techniques for us. We won't let your efforts go in vain. From now on, if you have any instructions, we will not refuse."

"I will not refuse!"

The other Jinluo also clasped their fists in agreement.

In this situation, how could Wei An not understand what was going on?
My uncle is really...good at acting!
He suppressed his turbulent emotions, grinned, and said, "I didn't know how precious the Qi-gazing technique was. My uncle mentioned it that day, so I went back to the academy and got some for him. From what you all say, this Qi-gazing technique is very rare."

"Of course!" A Jinluo named Zhang rushed to explain, "Only those of the sixth rank in Confucianism have the ability to engrave other schools' spells, and how many people of the sixth rank are there in the academy?"

Another Jinluo took over and said, "Spells engraved at the sixth level are not very effective. Spells engraved at the fifth level and above are more effective!"

"I don't know what others think, but it is really useful for us night watchmen!" said another Jinluo.

"Sir, you don't know. Night watchmen have a code of conduct. They can't use qigong on officials above the fourth rank. If we bring a sorcerer from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau with us, we will be impeached afterwards. The engraved qigong is different. How can anyone know whether it works or not except ourselves?"

"Haha~"

Everyone laughed.

Jiang Luzhong finally said, "Sir, the benefits of the Confucian Qi-reading technique are more than just this. I hope you can help me."

"I'll try my best."

Wei An nodded.

After the golden gongs faded away, he raised his head and looked towards the top floor.

He rushed into Haoqi Tower again.

...

"Alright, there's no need to investigate this matter any further. Just keep an eye on what's happening at Sangpo Lake during your day and night patrols."

There was a hint of solemnity in Wei Yuan's eyes as he spoke.

"Yes, foster father."

"How did the investigation of the brokerage firm go?" Wei Yuan closed the "Thirteen Codes of Dafeng" in his hand and asked.

"We've captured a few of the junior stewards. We'll begin interrogating them once they return safe and sound."

Nangong Qianrou finished speaking and looked back at the stairs.

"he came."

"I'm quite displeased. Why, who in this capital city is so blind as to dare to provoke you?"

Nangong Qianrou smiled.

Wei An glanced at him and said, "I've been a bit busy these days. Can the interrogation be postponed for a while?"

Nangong Qianrou nodded, "It's okay, I have plenty of ways."

Wei An ran straight towards Wei Yuan, stopped in front of the horizontal table, and said, "I heard that something went wrong with today's ceremony. Is your uncle okay?"

Wei Yuan glanced at him, shook his head, and said, "It's a small matter. Did Jiang Luzhong and the others stop you to ask for the Qi-reading technique?"

"Uncle really has a plan for everything." Wei An replied with a double meaning.

"Did you record the Qi-gazing technique?" Wei Yuan said with a smile.

Wei An's expression was not very good for a moment, then he nodded, "Yes."

"Please pay more attention. You owe me three hundred and ten tickets, and not even one has been paid."

Wei Yuan urged lightly, which made Nangong Qianrou stare in amazement.

Three hundred and ten tickets, this is enough for them to squander for a year or two.

When did my godfather do such a big thing!

Wei An gritted his teeth in hatred and said, "Forget it. You are my uncle after all. If I don't take the blame, who will?"

He was a bit pretentious.

There must be conditions.

Wei Yuan smiled, imitated someone, and said nothing.

It didn't matter if he didn't say anything. Wei An was still thick-skinned. He said directly, "Uncle, I have a favor to ask of you."

"No need to say anything, pay your debt first and then talk about other things." Wei Yuan said without raising his head.

"Uncle, how can you be so heartless?" Wei An complained, then said, "Well, uncle, tell me the price."

Wei Yuan raised his eyes, his gaze fell on his fearless face, and chuckled, "Return twenty first."

"Served with pen and ink!"

Wei An stiffened his neck, looking very proud.

Wei Yuan glanced at his adopted son.

The latter brought the four treasures of the study swiftly.

Rice paper is replaced with a blank booklet.

Wei An picked up the brush and dipped it in ink, infusing the tip of the brush with literary spirit. He used the literary spirit to construct lines of thought, and an eye full of clear light jumped out of the paper.

He was tireless and repeated the process over and over again, and soon finished burning all twenty sheets.

What delayed his engraving was not the literary spirit, but the time it took for the ink to dry.

Nangong Qianrou stared blankly, somewhat doubting her own understanding.

It doesn't mean that engraving other people's spells consumes a lot of energy, and it takes a long time to engrave one.

Why he...

"Uncle." Wei An put down his pen and waited for the last piece of ink to dry.

"Tell me about it." Wei Yuan put down the book and sat up.

Nangong Qianrou also looked curious.

As the two of them watched, Wei An said, "I want to start a school."

...

this day
The wind is gentle and the sun is beautiful, and the sky is blue.

The imperial farm under the name of Princess Huaiqing in Taikang County is quite lively.

Many important people came to the eldest princess's "palace".

The village head had already dispersed the tenant farmers who were watching and selected a few smart women to help in the kitchen.

"Good heavens, Uncle, I just went out and saw a very handsome man."

"That's Duke Wei!"

"Second Uncle, where is the old man with white beard?"

"What old man with white beard? That's the dean of the academy!"

"... "

In the front yard, Wei An and Huai Qing were welcoming guests.

The teachers of the academy arrived first.

Wei Yuan also arrived, escorted by Nangong Qianrou and Yang Yan. The two sides exchanged a few pleasantries.

Suddenly, a figure came rushing towards them from the distant sky.

"Dad, Mom, come out and see the gods."

"What gods? Stop talking nonsense!"

I don't know which family the kid was mumbling, but when the farmers who were hiding at home saw Luo Yuheng coming in the air, they all came out.

Including the tenants in the courtyards on the left and right of Huaiqing's "palace".

Huaiqing frowned.

"Mr. Wei." Luo Yuheng landed on the ground with an air of immortality, nodded slightly to Wei An, and stood aside, ignoring Wei Yuan, Zhao Shou and others.

Wei Anquan pretended to be unaware of and had not seen the conflict between Luo Yuheng and his uncle.

He led everyone to the large courtyard nearby and said, "Dean, teacher, all the teachers, uncle, and national preceptor, let's begin."

Huaiqing winked at the guard beside him.

The latter immediately stepped forward and began to prepare with a team of guards.

Wei Yuan, Zhao Shou, Chen Tai, Luo Yuheng and others' eyes fell on the center of the courtyard as soon as they entered the large courtyard.

"I've named this a hot air balloon. It's very self-explanatory. You'll understand once you see it in action."

"The spherical bag is made of thinly-beaten Kui animal hide; the hanging basket is made of hard bamboo, and the two hemp ropes tied underneath are each a hundred feet long. The fuel is pine wood soaked in kerosene, a type of kerosene refined from lacquer. There is also a spare supply of kerosene and pine wood inside the hanging basket. The stove is made of iron mixed with other metals to withstand high temperatures. The ladders on both sides are used to assist in takeoff."

"None of these have any magical arrays, and not a single magical weapon has been mixed in."

After Wei An finished the introduction, he walked straight forward and came in front of the two young men.

"How is it? Sanwa, Dahu, are you scared?" Wei An asked.

"Don't be afraid!" they said in unison.

The two teenagers, one one year younger than Wei An and two years younger, were bold and courageous, and were the treasures that were carefully selected on the farm.

"Okay!" Wei An patted the two men's arms and said, "Don't worry, even if something goes wrong, I can catch you by myself. What's more, there are so many masters here."

He gave Sanwa and Dahu a sense of security using words that they could understand.

"Sir, all right."

The person on the ladder lifted the balloon with a bamboo pole to ensure that after it was ignited, enough hot air could flow into the balloon.

"Sir, I'm going." Sanwa put on a cork helmet, ran quickly, flipped over, and entered the hanging basket.

The big tiger is chasing closely behind!

These two can’t wait!
After the final inspection, Wei An looked at the person in charge of lighting the fire, and gave a thumbs up to Sanwa and Dahu.

"ignition!"

He shouted and thrust the torch into the furnace.

"boom!"

It ignites at the touch of a button!
The billowing hot air surged up and blew into the balloon, and the balloon expanded at a speed visible to the naked eye. The person on the ladder seized the opportunity and removed the bamboo pole that controlled the balloon.

Then, these people quickly got down the ladder and worked together to move it away.

After a while, the basket shook, began to leave the ground, and gradually rose into the air.

Its trajectory is not vertical, but slanted upwards.

Seeing this, Wei Yuan, Zhao Shou, Luo Yuheng and others were slightly moved.

As the hot air balloon continued to climb, the emotion in their eyes grew more and more profound, and their feelings became more and more difficult to describe.

When the hot air balloon rose to about ten feet, a warrior gathered his energy and shouted upwards, "Release!"

Da Hu and Er Wa in the hanging basket untied the straps on the basket at the same time, and two square stones fell to the ground with a roar.

The hot air balloon is climbing faster!
Wei Yuan, Zhao Shou, and Luo Yuheng just watched, no one said a word, and the hot air balloon in the sky seemed to be more than just a hot air balloon.

The person guarding the hemp rope below was very cautious.

Wei An also stared at the hot air balloon closely.

The same went for Huaiqing, her delicate chin always held high.

Do not!
Not only the two of them, but everyone in the yard raised their heads and focused their attention on the hot air balloon in the sky!

When it was almost thirty meters high, the hot air balloon's climbing speed gradually slowed down.

Wei An and others breathed a sigh of relief.

Before Wei An learned mathematics, this combustion design was developed bit by bit through repeated trials using a sand clock and an abacus.

The fire in the furnace grew smaller and smaller, and the hot air balloon rose slower and slower until it began to fall.

"receive!"

The moment it fell, Wei An shouted, and the people guarding the hemp rope began to evenly pull it together.

The hot air balloon swayed and fell, thirty feet... twenty feet... ten feet...

"Boom."

With a dull sound, when it finally landed on the ground, a warrior immediately flew over and grabbed the stove before the balloon deflated.

"The only thing that can be considered a magical tool is this person's gloves, which are used to prevent burns."

Wei An said to Wei Yuan and the others, then looked at Huai Qing, "Your Highness, we succeeded."

Huaiqing's lips curled up in joy, his eyes flashed, and his cheeks flushed slightly.

She nodded heavily at Wei An.

He tried hard to control his emotions and quickly regained his normal composure.

Together with Wei An, he went forward to welcome Da Hu and Er Wa down.

"Princess, sir."

"No need to be polite."

"Your names will definitely be recorded in history books!"

"Sir, can you fly again?"

"There will be a chance!"

He talked to the two of them and gave them a generous reward.

Returning to Wei Yuan and the others, he smiled, bowed, and said, "Dean, teacher, all the teachers, uncle, and Imperial Master, I didn't invite you here today just to watch this little hot air balloon take off."

Everyone listened to him in silence.

"Flying, an ability that many high-level people can master, is a fantasy for ordinary people."

"Although the hot air balloon is small, the principles behind it, or I prefer to call them laws, are not small. How can such a combination be able to fly?"

"I still remember that day when Your Highness and I were discussing academic matters. I casually mentioned something. Your Highness went back and continued to experiment, figuring out that the buoyancy generated by combustion was what pushed the hot air balloon into the sky. Is this indeed the law? Is this law correct? I'm not sure."

"I recall that day in the mountains behind the academy, when I asked the dean, teachers, and other instructors, 'Why do there are wind, frost, rain, snow, lightning, and thunder? Why does water flow from high to low?' I believe there must be a pattern behind it."

"Today, we may not understand the laws behind hot air balloons, but we have exploited these laws to allow ordinary people to fly in them. So, if we discover more laws, enough laws, will we change this world? I'm not sure, but I have faith."

He paused and looked at Zhao Shou, Chen Tai, and the others. "Dean, teachers, and all the other teachers, when I discovered these laws, I was the only one who knew them. They might be beneficial to me, but they might not be fully realized. Shouldn't we let more people know about them, understand them, and learn to use them?"

"Just like today's hot air balloons, using these laws, will there be more things in the future that transcend our concepts? These things will not only change this world, but also help humanity prosper!"

At this point, Zhao Shou, Chen Tai and other teachers in the academy had already understood Wei An's meaning, and their expressions were full of excitement!
Wei An took a breath and said in a loud voice, "I think Confucianism can have another path!"

(End of this chapter)