Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 332: All government offices are electrified, and we witness the era of awakening! [Subscription Request]

Two days later it will be August 14th.

Several construction teams organized by the Tiangong Institute finally completed the work of wiring and installing electric lights in various government offices in the capital before the Mid-Autumn Festival, so that all government offices had access to electricity.

Compared with the imperial city, although many government offices in the capital were mainly located in the large square in front of Hongwu Gate, many were also located in other places.

When these government offices were connected to electricity and lit up their lights at night, they attracted many people to watch. Even during curfew, many people would climb up the walls of their homes to look at the lights in the government offices.

Although they did not have electric lights at home, people still yearned for the days of electric lighting.

"I don't know if it's an illusion, but the lights in this government office seem brighter than those in the Imperial City."

"This electric light is indeed brighter than a candle. I wonder when we can use electric light."

"If we had electric lights at home, Mom wouldn't have to strain her eyes while spinning and weaving at night, and I could read more books."

"···"

However, in the Liu Mansion, thanks to the honor bestowed by Zhu Yuanzhang, electricity had been connected and electric lights were installed wherever needed.

Liu Ruoxue and Liu Ping'an gathered under the electric light in the main hall of the central courtyard to play, and the servants from each courtyard also gathered in groups of three or four in the corridor under the electric light to chat and laugh - there were hundreds of rooms in the Liu Mansion, and it was impossible to install electric lights in every room. Therefore, there were no electric lights in the ordinary servants' dormitories, and they still used oil lamps, but electric lights were installed in each corridor.

In the side hall of the central courtyard, Liu Kuan, Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei sat at the table drinking scented tea and chatting.

Liu Kuan took Su Caiwei's hand and said, "The baby in your belly is almost full-term. You need to pay more attention these days."

"I know."

Su Caiwei didn't want to appear too intimate with Liu Kuan in front of Zhu Huilan, especially when she knew that Zhu Huilan had been trying to have a child for the past six months but hadn't been able to conceive. She was even more cautious and pulled her hand away without leaving a trace.

Liu Kuan didn't care either.

Zhu Huilan said from the side, "Don't worry, my husband. We've asked a midwife to live with us at the beginning of the month. The gynecologist from the medical school comes every other day and checked Caiwei's pulse. The baby is in good condition and will be fine."

Liu Kuan said, "When it comes to having a child, it's always right to be well prepared and careful."

Although Zhu Huilan was not particularly jealous (Liu Kuan had been so caring when she was pregnant), she did not want to hear Liu Kuan nagging about this matter, so she said, "Tomorrow is Mid-Autumn Festival, and my father and mother hope that we can go to the palace to get together again."

"Let us show movies again?" Liu Kuan asked speechlessly.

"My mother said that it's mainly because it's a rare opportunity for all the brothers to get together, and my fourth brother will be going to sea to be a fief next year, so she hopes the family can be together more often."

"And he said you don't have to pick videos or movies like before, just a few songs and a movie."

"Besides, it's not dinner, it's lunch—and we can spend the evening at home with Caiwei and the children."

After hearing what Empress Ma said as relayed by Zhu Huilan, Liu Kuan felt that it would be okay to get together more often - if Zhu Di really went to sea to be a fiefdom next year, there would indeed be few opportunities for them to get together again.

"Okay, then I'll go to the study and pick out a suitable movie and some songs."

Zhu Huilan said with a hint of meaning, "Don't work too late, go to bed early."

"Know, know."

Liu Kuan responded and hurried to the study.

···
···
noon the next day.

Liu Kuan and Zhu Huilan came to the palace with their two children.

When the couple entered the Dashan Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma and others who had gathered there for a long time found that Zhu Huilan had a rosy complexion and looked very good, but Liu Kuan looked a little haggard.

After the ceremony, Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "Liu Kuan, I heard that you have prepared songs, videos, and movies today?"

Liu Kuan thought to himself: You asked me to prepare, how dare I not prepare?
He said, "Your Majesty, I have only prepared five songs and a movie."

"So little." Zhu Yuanzhang seemed really unaware and a little disappointed. "Then let's have lunch first, and then listen to music or watch a movie together."

"Yes."

Then Empress Ma ordered the palace servants to serve the dishes, and the Zhu family’s Mid-Autumn Festival lunch began.

Needless to say, the delicacies prepared by the imperial chef were indeed good, at least better than those of the two cooks in Liu Kuan's mansion. Liu Kuan happened to have worked too hard the previous night, so he worked hard.

Zhu Huilan didn't know whether she felt apologetic or not, as she served him more food and ate less.

Nearly an hour later, the lunch was over, the palace servants cleared away the plates and bowls, and set up the "home theater".

After Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma and the whole family sat down in rows in an orderly manner, Liu Kuan called up the song collection he had prepared long ago and placed the tablet computer on it.

Then, with a serious and solemn expression, he said, "Your Majesty, these five songs are carefully selected by me. Your Majesty, haven't you always been curious about how the new dynasty came into being? These five songs and the video can barely describe it."

After saying that, Liu Kuan ignored Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and others who were slightly surprised, and clicked on the video.

In fact, Liu Kuan had prepared these five songs a long time ago, and originally wanted to play them for Lao Zhu at some special moment in the future.

For example, when Zhu Yuanzhang made serious mistakes in some major policies and refused to listen to advice, or when he himself encountered a crisis of trust and was about to die, or when he was forced to do so by Zhu Yuanzhang's questions.

His original intention was to use these five songs to let the Zhu family understand how difficult it would be for the new dynasty to come.

As rulers, every decision they make not only affects China's present, but may also have a profound impact on China's future. They must be cautious!
He thought about it again and again last night, and felt that since Zhu Di was going to be a vassal overseas, he could be regarded as a seed sown by the Ming Dynasty, so he might as well play the video consisting of these five songs while Zhu Di was still around.

Zhu Yuanzhang and others shifted their attention to the tablet screen.

The first scene of the video revealed the name of the first song - "The Wind Rises".

However, at the beginning of the video, there is no melody, but a scene from an era that is similar to the later (modern) era, but the clothing is obviously different.

First, an executioner was beheading people at the vegetable market. Many people in ragged clothes were crowded outside with bowls and steamed buns. When the head fell to the ground, these people immediately used bowls to collect the blood and used steamed buns to dip into the blood.

After a middle-aged woman successfully poured human blood on a steamed bun, she ran back happily, muttering, "My son is saved, my son is saved..."

There were many smart people in the Zhu family. When they saw this scene, some experienced ones, such as Zhu and Empress Ma, immediately understood something - most likely these people were using some unconventional remedy to use the blood of prisoners to treat patients.

This made Lao Zhu and the others frown, and a complex feeling, almost like sadness, came over them. The camera then shifted to show a girl, perhaps just over ten years old, dressed as a bride, riding a red mule, as if about to get married, but with tears in her eyes.

The camera extended to the front of the wedding procession, and there was indeed someone holding a big rooster with a red flower tied to it, dressed as a groom.

Seeing this scene, Old Zhu immediately understood: this was a wealthy family trying to find a wife for a sick and dying man to bring him good luck.

But the bride is too young, isn't she? She's obviously unwilling.

Then a large group of soldiers wearing uniforms similar to those of later generations walked through the street. Then a shopkeeper held up a long bamboo pole with braids hanging on it. Then many old men in silk clothes were seen fighting for the braids below, and they swayed with the wind, which was extremely funny.

Old Zhu didn’t quite understand this scene and only had some vague guesses.

The camera turned again and saw two short-haired men in long robes arguing fiercely on the busy street.

The man with glasses angrily said, "You've locked yourself up in this little building you painted. If that's not depression, what is it?"

The thin man with a short mustache on his upper lip said, "Don't yell at me!"

"Suppose there is an iron house with no windows and it is impossible to break down. Inside are many people who are fast asleep and will soon suffocate to death. However, they are completely unaware of the sadness of being suffocated as they fall into a deep sleep."

"Now you shout and wake up a few more sober people, but these unfortunate few will have to endure the irreparable pain of death, and you think you are doing them justice."

The man with glasses said firmly, "If I shout a few times and wake up a few people, you can't say that there is no hope for them to destroy this iron house!"

The short-bearded man was silent for a moment.

The scene changed, and another honest-looking man said, "The medicine is still available, but we need someone to find it."

"Who is the person looking for medicine?"

Another man with a striking temperament appeared and said, "It's me, us!"

"This medicine is your masterpiece, Brother Yucai."

"Let me try."

Then the man with short beard locked himself in the house and pondered hard. Finally, he figured out some truths and gave himself a pen name.

At this time, the prelude of the song finally sounded, and the song also sounded.

"We stopped and walked along the way, following the traces of social decay..." (lyrics adaptation).

The lines in the video continue to appear between the songs, and because the singing voice is lower and the dialogue voice is higher, it does not seem confusing.

"After looking around, I feel that this society is completely rotten and there is no way to save it."

“Works without figurative thinking cannot possibly touch people’s souls!”

In the video, the short-bearded man seemed to have finished writing a masterpiece. He was lying on the floor covered with manuscripts, holding a brush and smiling comfortably.

"Done! Done!" someone cheered while holding the manuscript.

Then, the people who had appeared before appeared one after another, reading the manuscript aloud, and their voices gradually blended together:
"Diary of a Madman"

"I have a 4,000-year history of cannibalism..."

"The man-eating man is my brother, and I am the man-eating man's brother..."

“It’s hard to see a real person…”

"There may still be children who haven't eaten humans. Save the children!"

"I opened the history books and looked them up, and they were all filled with two words—cannibalism!"

Seeing this, Lao Zhu, Zhu Biao, and the others were a little confused, wondering: How could this article, which seems so plain and simple, be so popular? Is it true, or are the people in the video exaggerating?
Also, what is the meaning of this book about cannibalism?

Could it be referring to the chaotic times after the Qing Dynasty, when famine led to large-scale cannibalism?

Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and others were all smart people, and they vaguely felt that the word "eating people" was not as simple as it seemed.

Perhaps the word "cannibalism" was simply used to refer to the various ills and injustices of that era?
"I would describe the pen in Yucai's hand as being like a surgeon's scalpel, incredibly sharp."

"Yucai, I have always believed that you are the most profound novelist in China. You are the one who carries the banner of the New Culture Movement."

"What have I seen this month? The backbone of China!"

"The enlightenment effect of the New Culture Movement has already emerged. The East Asian lion is awakening!"

After these lines were finished, the song entered its finale.

There were many comments on the video, all of which contained four words: Sir, live forever!
Speaking of which, the barrage on the video Liu Kuan downloaded disappeared for some unknown reason.

But Liu Kuan had a deep impression of this video and also remembered the commentary with these four words at the end, although he added it using computer software last night.

When Zhu Yuanzhang saw that this song was over and he was about to play the next one, he paused the video - he had too many questions in his mind and had to ask first.

"Liu Kuan, is the story in this video, and the main character, Mr. Zhou, true?"

Liu Kuan said, "Of course it's true."

"This person seems to be highly respected in later generations? Could he be a later generation's Emperor Wenzong?"

Liu Kuan thought for a moment and said, "It's actually not appropriate to call him Wenzong. To be more precise, he should be called the Enlightenment Master."

Zhu Yuanzhang was curious, "Why do you say that?"

Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and others also showed curiosity.

Liu Kuan said, "Your Majesty, this involves the chaotic decades after the fall of the Qing Dynasty and before the establishment of the Xin Dynasty. Why don't you wait until the songs are finished and then I can talk about it together?"

　Second update.

　　Good night~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)