bookbashuk Page 2490
Page 2490
Taoist priests often encounter all sorts of strange situations when refining elixirs.
They could serve as subjects for observation and experimentation, allowing for analysis and research of these situations. This was precisely Zhao Yuan's purpose in summoning the Taoists.
Zhao Yuan also wanted to build a hand-cranked generator specifically for experiments.
Unfortunately, I only remembered the principle. I asked someone to bring me a magnet, and then I tried to wind a coil around it, but I failed several times. I don't know what went wrong.
As darkness fell, the royal family members left.
The scholars, who had been impulsively interested in studying chemistry, suddenly calmed down.
Is this thing really reliable?
Wang Zhongfu was also feeling uneasy. On his way back to his residence, he kept recalling the events of the day.
It turned out that, apart from certain experimental phenomena, he had forgotten all the remaining theories.
Chapter 3283 Prices
Compared to the failed candidates, the remaining Taoist priests were in high spirits.
They even pondered carefully and felt that many of the Taoist arts of the past were very likely some kind of chemical or physical phenomenon.
Of course, most of it is just magic tricks...
Sa Shoujian's jujube-cursing technique was particularly powerful. He said that chanting incantations on jujubes could cure all diseases and also bring copper coins.
Master Sa decided to stay in Beijing to study chemistry and improve his mastery of the Divine Firmament Thunder Magic.
He had also traveled in the north for the past two years and had heard about the firearms and cannons of the Ming Dynasty.
Every time I think about it, I really want to see it for myself, but I'm afraid my Divine Thunder Technique will still be at a disadvantage against firearms and cannons.
Back at his lodgings, Sa Shoujian asked, "What is your opinion on chemistry, my mentor?"
Wang Wenqing sighed, "Alas, the Emperor is well-versed in the workings of Heaven and Earth; the various Taoist practices we have cultivated are truly incomparable to his."
"It's best to use those spells sparingly in the future; we should focus on self-cultivation and character building."
"The art of internal alchemy can still be practiced and can prolong life."
Sa Shoujian nodded and said, "Internal alchemy is the foundation of thunder magic, and it is indeed something that should be diligently practiced."
"I heard that Master Xue, who also practices internal alchemy, was granted a Taoist temple in Jiangnan by His Majesty, and last year he even set sail to search for gold and silver."
"A lot of gold and silver was found, and the imperial court specially appointed a third-rank governor for this purpose," Wang Wenqing said.
Sa Shoujian exclaimed, "Master Xue is truly a role model for us all. Those who cultivate the Tao should also share the burdens of the court."
Whether it was Li Qingzhao becoming a concubine or the emperor's blunder in alchemy, both became popular topics of conversation among the citizens of Tokyo.
As long as the emperor doesn't act recklessly, whatever he does, the common people will happily watch and enjoy the spectacle.
Last year there was a truce, and this year there will be no war either; life is getting better and better.
The price of grain has dropped significantly; prices in Tokyo today have returned to levels seen before Emperor Huizong ascended the throne.
According to elderly people in Beijing, there were times when grain was even cheaper.
Even the shop assistants who do manual labor have resumed eating meat at least two days a month.
If a boss is too stingy, he will be criticized behind his back, and employees will secretly slack off.
This is due to the continued decline in meat prices, and is also related to the promotion of corn and sweet potatoes.
Corn and sweet potatoes are cheap foods, and they don't keep people full for long.
However, it can be used to feed pigs, and by adding sweet potato vines, soybean meal, distiller's grains, etc., the cost of raising pigs can be reduced.
At that time, the price of meat in Tokyo was 60 mon per catty for mutton, 35 mon per catty for pork, and 30 mon per catty for beef (the specific price varied depending on the cut of meat).
As for why beef is the cheapest, it's because it has an official price.
30 wen per jin of beef was already the price after the Ming Dynasty's new era.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, a pound of beef could only sell for a maximum of 20 coins.
If beef prices exceed the government's price limit, getting caught is a serious problem.
There's no other reason than to prevent people from deliberately slaughtering cattle for meat!
Pork costing 35 wen per pound meant that, unless one was in dire straits, Tokyo residents could afford to treat themselves to a feast several times a month.
This situation has also occurred in large cities such as Hangzhou and Guangzhou, where even ordinary people can eat meat every now and then.
However, development is extremely uneven across the country, and a large number of farmers are still struggling to make ends meet.
The central ministers had long resided in Tokyo, and they had no direct experience of the impoverished areas. They only knew that Tokyo was becoming increasingly prosperous and wealthy, and that it was only a matter of time before it was restored to the height of the Northern Song Dynasty.
Chapter 3284 Floating
One by one, they gradually became arrogant.
Because Zhao Yuan was very frugal, his ministers also advocated thrift, and they all wore old clothes as their outermost garments.
Li Bangyan was particularly outrageous; he even wore patched clothes.
However, their inner garments were all dressed in increasingly luxurious styles.
Moreover, the boots are also extremely particular. Recently, deerskin boots have become popular, and some merchants have even purchased large quantities of deerskin from the Jin Dynasty.
When the children of the powerful and wealthy get married, they dare not hold lavish weddings in Tokyo, but they indulge in extravagance in their hometowns.
For any official with a bit of power, it was standard practice to provide a dowry of several thousand strings of cash when their daughter got married.
Where did they get their money?
Of course, it was accumulated over generations of ancestors. How could there be corrupt officials in the new Ming Dynasty!
...
When Hanafi scholar Abu Fadl Kirmani arrived in Guangzhou on a merchant ship at the behest of the Seljuk Sultan, he immediately witnessed this "prosperous scene".
A local official from Guangzhou, who had served as an official in Sichuan, happened to join the new dynasty early on and has now risen to the rank of prefectural vice-prefect.
His son's wedding procession traveled by boat from a neighboring house all the way back to Guangzhou, accompanied by music.
It was a fleet of ships that landed outside Guangzhou, with hundreds of people disembarking one after another.
Even the porters carrying all sorts of goods were dressed in brand-new silk clothes, which were provided free of charge by the master.
"Are those all the king's attendants? Is this the royal city of Peach Blossom Stone?" Abu exclaimed in horror.
The merchant Pu Mawu explained: "Respected great scholar, this is Guangzhou City of Peach Blossom Stone. There are many such great cities in Peach Blossom Stone."
"The procession in front of us is for a local tycoon's wedding. Those people wearing silk clothes are just servants of the tycoon's family."
"Can servants wear silk?" Abu found it hard to imagine.
Pumawu said, "Gold is everywhere here, honey flows in the river, and silk is just an ordinary commodity."
Abu hesitated, unsure how to respond.
Pu Mawu witnessed Li Bao's recapture of Hangzhou, and his merchant ship was also requisitioned by Li Bao as cover to attack Fuzhou.
Later, Pu Mawu, along with other foreign merchants, received a mission from the Ming Emperor:
As long as one brings rare and useful crop seeds and gains the emperor's approval, a portion of the tariffs can be deducted.
Pu Mawu brought many crops, but only one of them won the favor of Emperor Zhu.
That is—a carrot!
He not only received a reduction in tariffs but also gained the right to purchase top-tier goods.
Although this qualification was only available once, the 30 bolts of Shu brocade made Pu Mawu a fortune.
The nobles of the Seljuk Empire went on a buying spree for Shu brocade, which was eventually presented to the Sultan.
The Sultan specially received Bhumiu, inquired about many things concerning China, and also sent Hanafi scholar Abu to visit China.
Decades ago, the Seljuk Empire had already fallen apart.
Sanjar emerged victorious from a host of competitors and successfully seized the Sultanate.
Soon, rebellions broke out both within the empire and in its vassal states, plunging the entire empire into a war of division.
Through a series of military and political means, Sanjar reintegrated the Seljuk Empire.
They even expanded outwards, subjugating the Western Karakhanid Khanate, installing King Ghazni, and this year even bringing the Eastern Karakhanid Khanate into submission.
The Eastern Karakhanid Khanate is the place Yelü Dashi is about to attack!
Sanjar and Yelü Dashi are bound to clash in the next few years.
Sultan Sanjar's understanding of China was very vague; he could not distinguish between the Turks and the Khitans, and mistook the Western Regions for China.
They were unaware that the Western Karakhanid Khanate, which they had conquered, had a large number of Khitan soldiers.
These Khitan soldiers would soon cause him to suffer a setback, allowing Yelü Dashi to reap a great advantage for nothing.
Sanjar continued to expand eastward, exhausting his efforts to conquer the Karakhanid Khanate, all in an attempt to reopen the Silk Road.
When he heard that China could be reached directly by sea, and that the richest country in the Peach Blossom Stone Land was called the Great Ming, Sanjar couldn't wait to send a fleet over to trade.
Unfortunately, he didn't have a proper fleet and could only rely on merchants to make contacts.
At the same time, a scholar and more than ten guards were dispatched to make diplomatic contact with the Ming emperor.
"Go and find out which nobleman from the Ming Dynasty is getting married. I think we should pay a visit out of courtesy," the scholar Abu advised.
Pu Mawu quickly ran to inquire. He could barely speak Cantonese, and he could get information from any passerby he randomly grabbed.
Pu Mawu ran back and said, "The father of the man who is getting married is a prefectural judge in the Ming Dynasty, which you can think of as a deputy governor of a certain place."
"At the same time, the deputy governor's family also supplied goods to maritime merchants in Guangdong and had been involved in maritime trade for over a century."
"As expected, they are a noble family from Peach Blossom Stone." Abu thought he had figured it out.
They have already registered with the Guangzhou Maritime Trade Office and are allowed to stay in Guangzhou for a few days before taking a boat to Kaifeng to pay their respects.
From Guangzhou to Fuzhou, and then from Fuzhou to Hangzhou, the supply points along the way were all in major cities.
Chapter 3285 An Eye-Opening Experience
When Abu and his entourage came ashore for some fresh air, they happened to encounter a group of dockworkers changing shifts.
These laborers wore tattered short clothes, some even shirtless, with only a towel draped over their shoulders.
Abu believed that the laborers were definitely at the bottom of society and wanted to observe their basic situation.
So he followed them quietly and saw these laborers come to a roadside stall, sit down and eat noodles with lots of oil floating on them, and some even added slices of meat to the noodle soup.
Pu Mawu followed and said, "This place is just like the outer harbors of Guangzhou and Fuzhou; it's just a small harbor town."
"The real city of Hangzhou is located further west along the river."
Looking at Ganpu Town, which was even more prosperous than during the Northern Song Dynasty, Aibu murmured to himself:
"Such a big city, yet it's just a small outer harbor town?"
They changed boats at Haimen to enter the Yangtze River, and then transferred to a northbound cargo ship at Guazhou Ferry.
There were transport troops on the boat, and we also encountered them sporadically along the shore.
These canal soldiers all wore leather armor, most of them were equipped with long spears and waist knives, and a few were also equipped with a bow and arrows, and the long spears were only about two meters long.
Abu said, "The Ming soldiers are well-equipped, but they will definitely suffer a defeat if they encounter the Sultan's army."
“They don’t even have armor, while Sudan has many armored troops.”
Pu Mawu said, "The Ming Dynasty also has armored soldiers."
The official in charge of the Maritime Trade Office who escorted them to the capital was named Jian Xun.
Jian Xun had been observing the Seljuk envoys' movements all along, and now that they had entered the canal, he was finally determined to extract intelligence, hoping to seize the opportunity to gain merit.
"The country you mentioned, the Seljuk Empire, was it called the Byzantine Empire decades ago?" Jian Xun inquired.
He was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the first batch of the Ming Dynasty. Due to his low ranking, he was assigned to the History Museum of the Hanlin Academy for an internship, and then he was sent to the Maritime Trade Office in Guangzhou.
While assisting in the compilation of the History of the Song Dynasty, Jian Xun came into contact with some historical materials from previous dynasties.