I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

Zhu Youjian suddenly turned his head and looked at Guan Shaoning: "Minister Guan, you must have made quite a bit of money lately?"

Upon hearing this, Guan Shaoning trembled and quickly bowed, saying, "Your Majesty is wise. I...I dare not conceal the truth; I have indeed made a little money these past few days."

Upon hearing this, everyone was surprised, and Wei Zaode couldn't help but ask, "What did you do?"

Guan Shaoning wiped the sweat from his brow and truthfully replied, "I just bought some houses in Tianjin. Their value has increased in the last few days; the price has doubled..."

Wei Zaode asked impatiently, "How much did you earn?"

"The housing price hasn't stabilized yet; currently... it's probably around 15,000 taels."

"Take the young master!"

Wei Zaode's voice suddenly rose, and his eyes seemed to spit fire.

This guy usually prides himself on being a pure and upright person, but I never expected that he could smell a business opportunity in this and make so much money in the blink of an eye!

Seeing the shocked expressions on his ministers' faces, Zhu Youjian said meaningfully, "When the railway extends to Tianjin, the prices of houses, land, and shops all rise. What would it be like if I were to extend the railway to its entirety?"

The sea breeze howled past, and an eerie silence fell over the gun emplacement.

Recalling the sights he had witnessed on the train the previous day, Wei Zaode exclaimed, "If the railway network were extensive, silk from Jiangnan could reach the capital in ten days, and coal from Shanxi could reach Tianjin in five days! This...this is simply unbelievable!"

Zhu Youjian stood with his hands behind his back and said, "I have ordered the Academy of Sciences to draw a national railway map. It will extend north to Liaodong, south to Qiongzhou, west to Gansu, and east to Korea. Stations along the route will surely become important commercial centers."

Wei Zaode suddenly knelt down: "Your Majesty is wise! But... the cost of this railway..."

Zhu Youjian shook his head and said, "Railways are connected to sea transport. Goods from our Great Ming can reach Southeast Asia and the West directly. Compared to the value generated by railways, what is the mere cost of construction?"

People finally realized that the emergence of railways foreshadowed a change in the rules of the world.

Zhu Youjian didn't say anything more, only waved his hand lightly: "Return to the capital!"

The officials, each with their own thoughts, boarded the train back to the capital. Wei Zaode was restless the entire way, and upon arriving at Beijing Station, he couldn't even wait for his official sedan chair; he rode straight back to his residence.

"Madam! Something urgent!"

Wei Zaode shouted loudly as soon as he entered the door, not even having time to take off his official hat.

Madam Meng emerged from the inner room, surprised, and asked, "What's wrong, sir? Has something happened at court?"

Wei Zaode grabbed his wife's hand: "How much land does your family still own in Shandong?"

"this……"

Madam Meng was taken aback by the question. "My father owns over a thousand acres of fertile land in Jinan Prefecture, and several of my uncles also have some businesses in Yanzhou Prefecture. Why is the master asking about this?"

Wei Zaode stamped his feet anxiously: "Quick! Write a letter to your father immediately, telling them to buy as much land as possible in the areas where the court wants to build railways! Houses and shops, everything!"

Meng was even more confused: "A few days ago, we received a letter saying that the imperial court wants to build a railway in Dezhou and needs to requisition our land. The elders in the clan are trying to stop the requisition..."

"Oh dear, how foolish of me!"

Wei Zaode's voice trembled with anxiety: "Make them agree to the land requisition immediately!"

"But the compensation offered by the government is too little..."

"What do you know?"

Wei Zaode shook his head repeatedly, saying, "Once the railway is completed, land prices along the line will increase at least tenfold! What's the compensation compared to that!"

Meng asked with skepticism, "Is it really that miraculous?"

Wei Zaode sighed and said, "That scoundrel Guan Shaoning bought over a dozen houses and made 15,000 taels of silver in just a few days!"

Madam Meng looked on in astonishment: "This...so many?"

Wei Zaode didn't have time to explain and continued, "Don't ask anything now, just do as I say, and go quickly!"

Meng immediately understood and stood up: "I'll go write a letter right away!"

The next morning, the Wei family sent several servants with a secret letter on horseback to Shandong.

At that time, the Chinese Academy of Sciences was still in Shandong Province, but it was met with resistance everywhere and could not proceed at all.

Zhang Mingyuan, along with Li Xiuwen and others, was discussing matters with a family.

The weather was hot, and he wiped the sweat from his brow, pointing to the blueprints in his hand, he said, "Old man, the imperial court has approved the railway plan, and your ten mu of land is right on the route. The court is offering compensation of five taels of silver per mu, which is already double the market price."

The old man, leaning on his cane, sneered, "Five taels of silver to buy my ancestral fertile land? Dream on! It'll cost at least fifty taels per mu!"

Suppressing his anger, Li Xiuwen stepped forward and said, "Old man, this is clearly price gouging! The compensation for land expropriation in other parts of Jinan Prefecture is the same..."

"Then go get it fixed somewhere else!"

The old man, neck stiff, was joined in by several burly men behind him: "Don't even think about touching a blade of grass in our field unless you give us this price!"

Li Xiuwen, young and impetuous, immediately shouted, "Don't try to fool me! Building the railway is an imperial decree, and you've already been compensated according to the highest standards for the land requisition. If you have special circumstances, we can consider them on a case-by-case basis. But what are you up to by demanding a higher price? Does this estate not belong to the territory of our Great Ming?"

That old man was the head of Xiaowangzhuang, and he was notorious for his infamy in the surrounding area. He was more than capable of dealing with this kind of refined person.

Suddenly, he took two steps forward, sat down on the ground, and shouted, "They're hitting people! The officials are bullying ordinary people..."

His sons immediately stepped forward, wielding hoes and sticks, looking menacing and ready to fight.

Seeing that things were going badly, Zhang Mingyuan quickly stepped in front of Li Xiuwen, but then everything went black as he was struck on the head with a hoe.

Old Wang retorted fiercely, "Don't be afraid, we have people at the yamen gate. Give them a good beating!"

"stop!"

Amidst the chaos, a loud shout suddenly rang out, followed by a large group of people appearing in a flurry.

Old Wang thought the other side had brought reinforcements, so he said, "Go back and find more people, we won't let this go today..."

"Why!"

His eldest son agreed and was about to leave when he was stopped.

"Stop right there! Nobody's allowed to leave!"

As they were speaking, a person suddenly appeared and came to Old Man Wang's side.

Only then did Old Man Wang recognize that this man was Zhang Laifu, the steward of the Meng family. The Meng family was the largest landlord in the area, and his own small plot of land was nothing compared to theirs. Moreover, the Wang family made their living from the land, producing grain, pressing oil, and brewing wine, and they relied on the Meng family to buy their produce, so they couldn't afford to offend them.

"So it's Butler Zhang. You're here about the land acquisition too?"

Old Man Wang quickly flattered them, his face beaming with smiles, saying, "Don't worry, our Wang family will take the lead for you. They won't even think about building the road unless the land price is fifty taels!"

Zhang Laifu walked up to Old Man Wang, a half-smile on his face, and said, "My master asked me to pass on a message: whenever the imperial court requisitions land, the price must be set by the court; no one is allowed to arbitrarily raise the price!"

"What...what's going on?"

Old Wang was a little confused at the time, after all, who would turn down money?

Zhang Laifu continued, "Now I'm giving you two choices: either sign a contract according to the compensation standards provided by the imperial court, or sell the land to my Meng family!"

Old Wang's expression shifted between anger and uncertainty as he tentatively asked, "What price... for the Meng family?"

"The going rate is two taels per mu!"

"This, this can't be done..."

"I'm warning you, this isn't something I'm discussing with you now, you'd better decide quickly!"

Old Wang's sons were immediately displeased, saying, "You Meng family are really bullying us! You buy it at a low price, then sell it to the imperial court at a high price, aren't you?"

"Bullshit!"

Zhang Laifu immediately rebuked, "When the imperial court builds the railway, all land belonging to the Meng family is compensated at two taels of silver. I don't have time to waste with you. Either sign an agreement or sell the land!"

Old Man Wang's face slowly darkened: "Steward Zhang, you're leaving our Wang family no way to survive!"

"So what?"

Zhang Laifu's tone was very firm as he said, "You can refuse, but try it and see if your Wang family will still have a place to stand after losing the Meng family's support!"

The Wang family members were filled with righteous indignation and stepped forward one after another, wanting to demand an explanation.

However, Zhang Laifu didn't care about his faults. With a wave of his hand, dozens of servants and guards came up with sticks.

Old Wang hurriedly said, "I'll sign, I'll sign, okay..."

He dared not go against the Meng family. The Meng family was a prominent local family, and it was said that they were related by marriage to the current Grand Secretary. Going against the Meng family would only lead to his death.

Zhang Laifu turned to Zhang Mingyuan and the others and said, "Gentlemen, my master has a message for you: if you encounter any problems with land acquisition in the entire Jinan Prefecture, come to the Meng family! My master also said that today we'll see which fool dares to oppose the imperial court!"

Zhang Mingyuan was still a little dazed, but he clasped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you very much!"