Chang'an and Luoyang were the most important cities of the Tang Empire. The distance between the two cities was about seven to eight hundred miles, which was considered a relatively long distance.
Every time the Emperor went out to inspect Luoyang, he would spend half a month on the road, and a round trip would take more than a month. The commercial transportation between the two cities would also take the same amount of time to reach their destination.
The transportation capacity of carriages was limited, and they had to travel for half a month. In order to guard against bandits, they also needed a large number of guards along the way. As such, the cost of transportation was naturally not cheap, and the price of goods naturally soared. This greatly increased the burden of the commoners.
If they wanted to change this situation, they had to use a new transportation method, and the railway was the best method. Even if there were no trains for the time being, they could modify the wheels of the carriages to travel on the railway, increasing the efficiency by twofold. This would reduce the cost of transportation and benefit the commoners of Chang'an and Luoyang.
During the Sui Dynasty, Luoyang was the capital of the empire. Emperor Yang of Sui, Yang Guang, recruited the commoners and opened up the famous Grand Canal. This Grand Canal was different from the Grand Canal of the later generations. The only difference was that the starting point did not change, but the middle point was at Luoyang.
As such, a large amount of resources from the northeast and southeast of the empire could be transported to Luoyang through the water, greatly reducing the pressure of land transportation and the cost of transportation.
The poet of the Tang Dynasty, Pi Rixiu, wrote a very good poem, "The Sui Dynasty fell because of this river, and even now, thousands of miles have passed because of it." This poem affirmed the huge effect of the Grand Canal on the commoners.
Naturally, the true reason for the fall of the Sui Dynasty was not only because of the Grand Canal, but also because of the three expeditions to Korea and the struggle for power among the aristocratic families. It was not just because of the Grand Canal. Moreover, after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, in order to show that it was reasonable to replace the Sui Dynasty, they naturally wanted to belittle Emperor Yang of Sui. Therefore, even if Emperor Yang of Sui opened the Grand Canal for the commoners, it was also said to be for his own enjoyment.
This was clearly a paradox. For example, some people said that the fall of the Great Qin Empire was due to the Great Wall built by Qin Shi Huang, causing the commoners to complain. Could it be that the Great Wall was also built for enjoyment? It was obvious that the Great Wall was built to defend against the Xiongnu. It was the purpose of national defense, and the Great Canal could only be used for the people's livelihood. It was natural for the Emperor to inspect the people's livelihood. It was just that he had been purposely corrupted.
Of course, Sui Yang Emperor was too impatient. He did not care about the fact that the empire had just been built and the country was still unstable. He recruited people to dig the canal, sent troops to conquer Korea three times, and spent a lot of money to build dragon boats. He used up all the strength of the country and caused the people to suffer. As a result, the country fell step by step.
If they did not go to Korea and just dug the canal, Great Sui might be in a different situation.
History could not be assumed. The Great Sui Dynasty was already over, and now it was the era of the Tang Empire. Moreover, the Tang Empire had been established for a hundred years, and its national strength was strong enough. Coupled with the modern technology brought by Ang Lee, it was fully capable of providing the manpower, material, and financial resources needed to lay the railway.
When Li Longji heard this, he was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "Assistant Minister Li, you can go to the front line of Luoyang City with the Ministry of Works to inspect the roads. A month later, we will begin to pave the road to Luoyang City."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Ang Lee and the Ministry of Works officials gave the order together.
Because the laying of railway tracks was a good thing for the country and the people, and because Li Longji had already made up his mind, none of the officials raised any objections, and the new railway project was successfully approved.
The following banquet was just drinking and enjoying the singing and dancing. They also complimented each other and talked about happy things.
When the sky turned dark, Ang Lee and the officials were arranged to rest in the hot spring palace. Li Longji brought Yang Yuhuan to bathe in the Huaqing Pool. Bathing in the hot water before sleeping was naturally much more comfortable than sleeping directly.
Ang Lee didn't know if it was because of the change of place or something else, but he couldn't fall asleep. Therefore, he could only lie on the bed and think about what to invent next.
The Tang Dynasty was now the most powerful country in the world. No country had the ability to provoke the Tang Dynasty. However, the Tang Army faced more opponents. There were enemies in all directions. Although the strategic mobility of the Tang Army would be greatly improved after the railway was paved, it was still difficult to form an overwhelming advantage over the surrounding enemies by using outdated cold weapons. This was especially so for a highland country like Tibet. It was very difficult to conquer it with cold weapons. Moreover, in a confrontation with cold weapons, both sides would suffer great casualties.
The development of cannons seemed to be on the agenda. After all, black gunpowder had already begun to be mass-produced. Since there was black gunpowder, of course, they had to build cannons. This way, the power of black gunpowder could be better displayed on the battlefield and make the enemy tremble in fear.
Ang Lee still had some general knowledge about the casting of cannons. As long as he told the relevant talents in the Ordnance Monitoring Bureau the most basic ideas, they could definitely make cannons that could be used. Ang Lee believed that he could definitely make cannons.
Using a full two hours, Ang Lee wrote down all kinds of knowledge about cannons, as well as the drawings and technical parameters, on paper. He constantly revised it to ensure that the people in the Ordnance Monitoring Bureau could understand it.
After midnight, Ang Lee sleepily fell asleep.
On the morning of the second day, after breakfast, Li Longji and the ministers again took five carriages and went along another parallel railway to return to Daming Palace.
Because there was no bumpy ride on the way here and they also soaked in the hot spring last night, Li Longji's complexion looked very good. Yang Yuhuan's complexion was also very rosy. Obviously, Li Longji had slept with her last night.
After they boarded the carriage, Li Longji accompanied Yang Yuhuan for a while. Then, he walked to the second carriage and sat in the second half of the carriage.
"Call Assistant Minister Li here."
Li Longji ordered.
Very quickly, Li An walked in from the third carriage. Actually, there was no need to announce his arrival. After all, the third carriage that Li An was in was only one step away from the second carriage that Li Longji was in. When Li Longji was speaking, Li An had heard everything that Li Longji said.
"Your Majesty, what orders do you have?"
Ang Lee asked respectfully.
"Assistant Minister Li, please have a seat!"
Li Longji waved his hand and motioned for Ang Lee to sit.
Seeing that Li Longji sincerely asked him to sit down, Ang Lee did not refuse. He sat down directly and waited for Li Longji's question.
"Well, Assistant Minister Li didn't seem to sleep well last night."
Seeing that Ang Lee's eyes were bloodshot, Li Longji was slightly surprised.
"Your Majesty, I was busy drawing last night, so I spoke a little late."
"Drawing? Assistant Minister Li must be doing research again! What good thing is it? "
Li Longji was suddenly interested.
"Artillery."
"Artillery? What is artillery? "
Li Longji was even more curious. His eyes were full of expectation.
"Your Majesty, I have mentioned this before. It is something that can throw a large round iron ball thousands of steps away and cause great damage to the enemy."
Ang Lee immediately explained.
"Oh, if it can really be invented, it will definitely greatly enhance the strength of the Tang dynasty's army. However, can such a thing really be invented?"
Li Longji said happily. At the same time, he had some doubts in his heart.
"Your Majesty, I intend to use the thrust generated by the explosion of black gunpowder to push the large iron ball thousands of steps away. In addition, the large iron ball can be a solid lump of iron or a bullet with black gunpowder in the middle. As long as there is a bamboo-shaped metal tube, it can be launched."
Ang Lee explained the basic principle of artillery in a soft voice.
"Artillery, very good. Assistant Minister Li can develop it as soon as possible. How can I help?"
Li Longji asked with a smile.
"Your Majesty, I have invented too many things, and I am still short of manpower. Why don't you let the Military Weapons Administration send people to be responsible for the development? I can provide guidance and assistance. "
Ang Lee took a fancy to the people in the Military Weapons Administration and wanted some of them to be responsible for the development.
Li Longji thought for a moment and nodded. "Good. Assistant Minister Li's suggestion is very good. I agree. I will let the Military Weapons Administration be responsible for the development. I will transfer the best talents from the Military Weapons Administration to the R&D Center. In the future, these people will be trained by Assistant Minister Li."
"Your Majesty, please rest assured. I will not let you down. Within a year, the artillery will be successfully developed. At that time, the army of the Tang dynasty will be able to run rampant in the world."
Ang Lee said excitedly.
Later, Li Longji asked some questions about the railway line of the Hot Spring Palace, the miniaturized carriage and the open-air carriage. Ang Lee answered them one by one. Moreover, his answers satisfied Li Longji.
Two hours later, they arrived at the Zhongxuan Gate of the Daming Palace. A large group of people who had received the news in advance were waiting outside to welcome them.
Li Longji and Yang Yuhuan sat in the carriage and returned to the Daming Palace. Ang Lee went directly to the Military Weapons Administration with Li Longji's imperial edict, asking for the best talents. He even moved some of the equipment from the Military Weapons Administration to the R&D Center. Of course, since he was here, he naturally visited the Military Weapons Administration and praised the cold weapons produced by the Military Weapons Administration of the Tang dynasty.
It was not easy for the Ordnance Supervisor to create such an excellent weapon with the current technology. Li An was full of admiration for them. However, with Li An's perspective as a person of the future, he could of course find some problems and find some ways to improve it.
"This is the Mingguang Armor! So mighty. "
Ang Lee picked up a Mingguang Armor and looked at it for a long time. He was full of praise and took off the helmet.
"Assistant Minister Li, this is the Mingguang Armor that has just been made. We are going to send it to Anxi."
The craftsman introduced in a low voice.
"Well, it's well-made. Do you know where the Mingguang Armor's weak point is?"
Ang Lee asked.
"Assistant Minister Li, it's the wrists and ankles. It's not convenient to cover these places with armor, so it's easy to be injured by the enemy's swords."
The craftsman said.
"No, even if these places are injured, it's only a minor injury. At least it won't be life-threatening. But if the cheeks and eyes are hit by swords, it will be a serious injury. It may even be life-threatening. These are the real weak points of the Mingguang Armor, the places that are most likely to be injured."
Ang Lee put forward his opinion.
"Assistant Minister Li, if the cheeks and eyes are covered with armor, the soldiers won't be able to see anything. How can they attack the enemy?"
The craftsman was very puzzled.
"If we can make a helmet that covers the face and eyes, what will the result be?"
"If we can really do that, it will greatly enhance the combat power of the Tang dynasty's army. The enemy will be frightened when they hear the name of the Tang Army."
The craftsman said excitedly.
"Very good. You're right. I can invent such a mask that can block the enemy's swords and sabers. At the same time, you can see the enemy's face clearly. You have good skills. Follow me! I'll be in charge of commanding, and you'll make it. "
Ang Lee said seriously.
"Yes, Assistant Minister Li. I understand."
Ang Lee left the Weapons Division happily and went to the R&D Center with the technical talents he was satisfied with. He arranged a position for them and asked them to be in charge of developing cannons and, of course, new helmets.
With the popularity of the Medicine Jade Mirror, Ang Lee made a lot of money. He had more and more money in hand, and it was still growing. With money, it was more convenient for Ang Lee to develop all kinds of practical things.
Although the imperial court had built a R&D Center according to his request, Ang Lee also kept his own R&D Center. After all, Ang Lee did not want to give all the technology to the imperial court. Some of the technology would be kept for himself.
As the weather continued to warm, the business of the solar stove was better. Li Longji's little treasury was also gradually filling up. In the past, in order to reward the concubines with more money, Li Longji had suffered many cold looks from the remonstrants. Now, he only needed to allocate some money from his little treasury to buy the rewards. He no longer needed to care about the faces of the remonstrants. This made Li Longji very happy. Of course, it also made him value Ang Lee more.
Li Longji valued Ang Lee, which meant that no one could frame Ang Lee. Because Li Longji needed him, he would do everything possible to protect him and let him continue to serve him.
When he had nothing to do, Ang Lee asked the craftsmen to build a distillation crucible. Of course, it was used to make distilled wine. With the improvement of distillation technology, not only could it produce distilled wine, but it could also produce alcohol. Alcohol could be used to disinfect and reduce the infection of injuries. It could be directly applied in the military field to reduce the proportion of casualties among the soldiers.
In this life, Li An's health was very good. Because of this, he liked to drink very much. Therefore, he invented this liquor purification technique. However, he did not expect it to be accidentally spread, causing all the nobles to come to buy liquor to drink. This made Li An unexpectedly made a lot of money, and also made the name of liquor known. He even came up with a name, Five Steps Down. It meant that after drinking it, one would fall down after five steps.
Good wine had to be offered to the Emperor. This was something Li An would never forget. After his reputation spread, he would offer a batch of strong wine every few days as a tribute to the Emperor. Moreover, it was completely free of charge. He did not charge a single cent from the palace.
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