A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"Is this the legendary Yanzhou? It is indeed prosperous."

Yang Yong had only ever seen introductions to Yanzhou in books before; this was the first time he had ever seen Yanzhou and its people in person.

"This is the most prosperous state in the world, even the capital region cannot compare to it."

Gao Ying also drew back the curtains on the other side and gazed into the distance.

This was his second visit to Yanzhou. The first time was after he graduated from the Imperial Academy and traveled all over the country to visit his teacher in Yanzhou.

After that, he returned to the capital and joined the Emperor's service. He then devoted himself to government affairs and never had time to come to Yanzhou again.

"Teacher, what's that?"

Yang Yong pointed to a small pavilion not far from them, where dozens of people were queuing up.

There were two obvious gaps in front of the pavilion, gleaming with a metallic sheen.

"That's the platform for the steam-powered railcar. Those two gaps are the rails of the steam-powered railcar. You can think of it as the highway in the book."

"The rail-powered steam buses traveled along rails throughout the city, stopping at designated stations to allow passengers to board and disembark as needed."

"The teacher had only heard of it; this was the first time the teacher had ever seen it."

Gao Ying, also curious, drove the track and saw a track car slowly approaching from afar.

"Your Highness, shall we give it a try?"

Gao Ying said with great interest.

"OK."

Yang Yong is young and extremely curious about new things, so he was naturally very interested in something so new.

The two ignored the servants who were preparing stools to help them up and jumped directly off the carriage.

Upon arriving at the platform, Gao Ying pulled Yang Yong to stand at the back of the line.

Yang Yong was somewhat dissatisfied. He knew he had to bow to the Wei family, but these people were just ordinary citizens. Why should he, the Crown Prince of the Great Qian Dynasty, be at the very end of the line?!

Shouldn't they be the first ones standing?!

"It's a show; we need to let the Wei family see a crown prince who is willing to share joy with the people and immerse himself among them."

Gao Ying whispered in Yang Yong's ear.

Yang Yong then suppressed his anger. So what if he was pretending? He knew how to do that.

The steam railcar stopped in front of the platform, and the two doors were opened. The queue slowly entered through the front door, and people continued to walk out through the back door.

When the two of them boarded the bus, there were only two seats left. They quickly went over and sat down, while their servant stood up next to them and, at Gao Ying's prompting, gripped the handrail tightly.

A surge of power came from behind, and the steam railcar began to move forward and accelerate slowly, releasing steam with a whooshing sound that startled Yang Yong.

Feeling the entire carriage moving forward without being pulled by horses, Yang Yong felt it was amazing.

"Is this a steam engine? It's truly amazing."

Gao Ying scanned the entire carriage; it was just one carriage, yet it was packed with nearly a hundred people.

According to the original plan, the future intercontinental steam locomotive would have as many as 20 carriages, and even if the carriages were smaller than this, it could carry about 1500 people per trip.

If it were about hauling the most manpower-intensive supplies and provisions, Gao Ying estimated the space in the carriage and felt a mix of emotions.

In this era, transporting grain and supplies was extremely costly in terms of both manpower and money.

Often, ninety percent of the money and grain would be consumed on the road, and only one-tenth of the grain collected from the capital would reach the battlefield.

Especially now that the Sui Dynasty has such a vast territory, the cost of transporting grain to the border is enough to cripple any powerful country.

However, with this steam engine, transporting supplies and provisions for sending troops out would be much easier.

With only a small number of troops, it is possible to transport the provisions for tens of thousands of people at a very fast speed, which ensures that the consumption of provisions is minimal.

This represents a qualitative leap forward in the empire's ability to wage war abroad.

The only requirement was steel; the amount of steel needed to lay the railway that ran across the empire from east to west and north to south was astronomical.

Otherwise, Yang Jian would have already begun laying the foundation for the entire country.

During these ten years, Yang Jian spent his time conquering the country and using the new steelmaking equipment manufactured by the Gongshu family to hoard steel on a large scale.

This matter touched upon the lifeblood and fundamental interests of several families whose core industry was steel, and they desperately tried to prevent Yang Jian from unifying the country, causing him great trouble.

"The next stop is the Inn Station. Passengers who need to disembark should do so in an orderly manner."

The train conductor sitting at the very front shouted loudly to the entire carriage.

Gao Ying was awakened by the sound and got off the car through the back door with Yang Yong and a group of servants.

"The speed is incredible."

Gao Ying murmured, a flash of inspiration passing through his mind before disappearing.

Gao Ying felt that this flash of inspiration was extremely important, but after it disappeared, she couldn't recall it no matter how hard she tried, so she had to give up.

The group arrived at Youjian Inn, which was not an ordinary inn. It not only offered single rooms but also house rentals.

Gao Ying and the others rented a three-courtyard house and went back to their rooms to rest.

The next day, after bathing and changing, Gao Ying took Yang Yong, and the two of them once again took a steam railcar to the Zhongwu Prince's Mansion.

"Teacher, it's been a long time."

Gao Ying looked at Wei Hao and bowed respectfully.

All his learning throughout his life came from Wei Hao, and he held this teacher in the highest esteem.

"It has indeed been a long time. I am very pleased with your achievements today."

Gao Ying's aptitude was the highest Wei Hao had ever seen in his life. He had a photographic memory and could apply what he learned to other situations; these were all basic skills for him.

Now, Gao Ying is assisting Yang Jian in unifying the world and holds the position of Prime Minister, second only to the emperor. In the future, Gao Ying will surely have a place in history.

The two sat there reminiscing, never getting to the point.

They are both seasoned foxes, their Tai Chi skills are superb, and they are also master and disciple from the same school, so neither of them can break the other's defenses.

The two stayed at the residence and had dinner together. Gao Ying did this so that outsiders would think that they had a pleasant conversation with the Prince of Yan, so that even if they failed to achieve their goal, it would make their situation better.

For three consecutive days, Gao Ying visited Wei Hao every day and had pleasant conversations with him each time.

He would always insist that Wei Hao personally see him off from the mansion, and he wouldn't let go unless Wei Hao saw him off. He would even throw a tantrum and act like a rogue, leaving Wei Hao helpless.

I can't just kill my prized student because he threw a tantrum and acted like a scoundrel, can I?!

It hasn't come to that point yet.

As Gao Ying's teacher, Wei Hao could naturally see through Gao Ying's intentions, but he didn't mind helping his disciple. It was just a small favor for him, and it wasn't like he was agreeing to go to the capital with Gao Ying.

It wasn't until the fourth day that Gao Ying revealed her true purpose for coming here.

"Teacher, the position of Grand Minister of Agriculture is vacant. Do you have any suggestions?"