The First Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Even Zhu Yi didn't expect that, just half a day after he made his request, before nightfall, Gongsun Jin had someone deliver some of the manuscripts and items he had ordered.

He initially thought the other party was just giving him the runaround, but when he saw a handwritten copy of the Yongle Encyclopedia, specifically the sections on astronomy, geography, and technology, he realized the strength of the other party's background.

After all, since its compilation, the Yongle Encyclopedia has only existed in two versions: the original Yongle edition and the Jiajing manuscript. However, the content on astronomy, geography, yin and yang, medicine, divination, Buddhism and Taoism, and arts and crafts was organized and transcribed by the imperial court as a technical book and was preserved in certain government offices, but it was basically lost in the transmission to later generations.

In addition, he also obtained a portion of the manuscript of the lost "Old History of the Five Dynasties," which contained very detailed information.

When the books arrived, the other party had made virtually no preparations. In other words, these books were already in the other party's possession before he made the request. They were not compiled specifically for him. The fact that they were presented to him in the form of ancient books, mostly in handwritten form, made him marvel at the other party's extraordinary abilities.

However, since it was a lost manuscript, its authenticity was difficult to determine. He could only rely on his previous knowledge and interests to study it, and he stayed up all night reading it.

The ancient books lacked even punctuation marks, and much of the content was written in classical Chinese, making them obscure and difficult to understand. Furthermore, there were no simplified forms for numbers in ancient times, making it difficult for him to find any basis for ancient Chinese geographical surveying in the section on geography. As for the section on technology, it appeared detailed, but there were many obscure and distorted parts in the records. Even for the same waterwheel device, there might be different records, and even the drawings could not be marked with specific dimensions.

In summary, the knowledge of geometry and mathematics that he will learn in the future is completely different from the surveying and recording methods of this era.

It's a difference in knowledge systems.

He was still reading late into the night.

Xiao Tang and Xiao Mei, who were standing nearby, were already sleepy, but Zhu Yi didn't let them sleep, so the two sisters had no choice but to stay awake.

Finally, after they brought Zhu Yi hot tea, which finally caught his attention, they were granted a reprieve. The two women went to a makeshift bed that was no more than half a meter wide, and they fell asleep quickly in each other's arms.

……

……

The next morning, Zhu Yi got out of his bed.

He had been reading until late last night and only rested for a little over an hour. When he got up, his eyes were still bloodshot. However, the goatee-bearded servant had been urging him to hurry up at the door several times yesterday.

"What time is it?" Zhu Yi looked at the small bed next to him.

The two sisters had already woken up, but hadn't gone out yet. They were clearly more energetic than him, but their big, wide-eyed stare at each other had a cute and silly look to it.

"It's dawn." Xiaomei's answer was simple and direct.

If it were the day before yesterday, he would have thought the sisters had extraordinary acting skills.

And right now...

He seemed to be realizing that what lay before him was unlikely to be a civilized world, and he had to re-examine a very harsh reality...

With the disappearance of mobile phones, computers, and the internet, the era of information explosion is gone forever. The difficulty of acquiring knowledge has increased dramatically, and the means of daily life and production are no longer so easy to obtain.

He has to figure out how to make a living in ancient times...

Thinking about this gives me a headache.

However, he was not confused about "who I am", because in his view, he was caught in a time vortex, and he, Zhu Yi, was still Zhu Yi. He had not died, nor had he possessed anyone else.

It could also be interpreted as a dream, or perhaps someone wants to gain some knowledge from his dream?

……

……

"Sir, Mr. Gong arrived before dawn and said that the distinguished guest from yesterday would be arriving later, so he asked you to prepare in advance. You haven't woken up yet, and I almost wanted to go in and wake you." The goatee-bearded steward was very anxious.

Zhu Yi said, "Wasn't this courtyard given to me? I can decide when to host a banquet, depending on my mood."

The goatee-bearded steward said, "I'm just following orders. Whose orders aren't orders? I still want to keep my job."

Zhu Yi instantly realized that without the other party's "assistance," he would not have been able to have a place to live or support a group of servants.

A scholar is useless in every way, let alone a scholar hundreds of years later.

"Damn it, if I had known I should have studied engineering instead of literature, history, and philosophy, I could have made a name for myself in this godforsaken place," Zhu Yi suddenly said, as if he were furious.

The goatee-bearded steward listened in stunned silence, finally unable to resist asking tentatively, "Sir, what did you say?"

"I said, call the person in and prepare breakfast for me. I don't want to sit and discuss philosophy with someone on an empty stomach like yesterday." Zhu Yi was filled with a sense of pent-up frustration. "Also, add more salt to my food. I like it salty, and I won't have the energy to do anything if I don't eat enough salt."

The goatee-bearded steward said, "We've already added salt, what more could you ask for?"

It's probably saying, "You can eat salt, so why are you so picky?"

It's true that a well-fed man doesn't know the hunger of a starving man.

……

……

While Zhu Yi was still eating, Gongsun Jin came in and briefly explained to Zhu Yi the matter of receiving his master.

Zhu Yi didn't say a word.

I really don't know what to say.

I was always afraid that you were concerned about my heart, liver, spleen, lungs and kidneys, but it turns out you only care about the little bit of knowledge in my brain.

"Brother Zhu, were you satisfied with yesterday's book?" Gongsun Jin was also afraid that Zhu Yi would not cooperate today, so he tried to find common ground.

Zhu Yi said, "It's alright. If you can find a few more, please find me a few more."

Gongsun Jin said helplessly, "In such a hurry, we really couldn't find too many. By the way, you just wanted to find out what year it is now? The higher-ups have given you orders that you can go out at any time, and no one will restrict your movements anymore."

"I'm free to come and go as I please?"

Zhu Yi put down his chopsticks; he hadn't expected that.

Why did the other party lower their guard against him so quickly?

"Yes, but given your noble status, you must bring more people with you when you go out to protect you," Gongsun Jin said with a smile. "I am also available to serve you at any time and accompany you."

Zhu Yi said, "I understand the rules; someone needs to keep an eye on me, right?"

"That's too formal," Gongsun Jin said helplessly.

"Who exactly is your master? Can't you say yet? Is he a prince or nobleman? A local official? Or a gentry?" Zhu Yi asked.

Gongsun Jin sighed, "It seems your heartache hasn't healed yet; you still haven't remembered the past. But that's understandable. After going five hundred years and being reborn, you'll gradually remember everything when you return, won't you?"

Zhu Yi frowned upon hearing this.

Does this mean I still have memories of this era? Furthermore, do I still have a unique identity in this era?

"Brother Zhu, it doesn't matter if you can't remember. Take your time to remember, and I will definitely cooperate with you. Once you remember everything, you will be a dragon, and you will surely soar to the sky." Gongsun Jin seemed to be full of expectations for this.

Zhu Yi shoveled another mouthful of rice into his mouth and mumbled, "Thanks, huh?"

Gongsun Jin suddenly remembered something and asked, "Brother Zhu, you mentioned many famous people from later generations yesterday. May I ask if you have ever heard of a person named Sima Jin?"

"Sima Jin? Emperor Yuan of Jin's father?" Zhu Yi couldn't figure out the other party's purpose for a moment.

Gongsun Jin smiled and asked, "And what about Gongsun Jin?"

"A member of the Gongsun family of Liaodong during the late Eastern Han Dynasty? Or a figure from the early Tang Dynasty? Mr. Gong, are you testing me by asking this all of a sudden?" Zhu Yi asked.

"No, I was just asking casually..."

Gongsun Jinxin breathed a sigh of relief.

I'm safe as long as you don't remember me. But if you mention to your father that I'm one of the traitors in the Prince Ning's mansion, given the Prince Ning's ruthlessness, I'll be dead.

You casually brought up Chen Xuan yesterday; that was terrifying.

Then he became a little worried. If I bring myself up like this, will this kid make things up and deliberately add me into the story?

"The Lord will bring someone with him today," Gongsun Jin reminded him. "His condition has recently worsened, and he is rarely able to speak to anyone. You should also try not to provoke him, lest you be offended."

Zhu Yi said, "Aren't you afraid of this getting leaked? And you even brought outsiders to listen in? Was that necessary?"

"Uh...yes." Gongsun Jin said helplessly, "Young Master, you don't understand the reason now, but you'll understand everything later."

In his haste, Gongsun Jin almost went so far as to formally acknowledge the master.