Great Tang princess

"call out--"

A flame burst into the sky with a sharp sound, and then exploded, marking the official start of this year's fireworks festival.

In fact, Li Yuechen originally planned to add the newly made magnesium powder to the fireworks.

But the fireworks on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month actually start several months in advance, so there is no time at all.

If you want to see more splendid fireworks, you can only wait until next year.

Every year at this time, the city is always the busiest, with countless people drinking and chatting with each other, celebrating the New Year.

Strictly speaking, the Chinese New Year is just a family reunion, and the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is for the whole people to enjoy.

Seeing Wu Zetian staring at the fireworks in the sky, slightly lost in thought, Li Yuechen asked: "What is A Niang thinking?"

"I was thinking how wonderful it would be if your grandpa could see such a sight."

Hearing her talking about her father, Li Yuechen froze for a moment: "Don't worry, Mom, Grandpa is watching us from the sky!"

In fact, after so many years of father's passing, Li Yuechen often thinks of him.

Sometimes I also feel a little regretful. If he can live to the present and see the development of the country, he should be very pleased.

The other brothers and sisters also showed nostalgic expressions, and couldn't help but think of all the details of the father when he was alive.

But the overall atmosphere is not sad, but everyone has a faint smile on their faces.

Under the endless fireworks in the sky, the silhouettes of the family do not look lonely on the city wall.

……

As soon as the fifteenth day of the first lunar month passes, the year will be over, and the empire will officially begin to operate next.

Li Yuechen went to the engineering institute every day, assembling steam engines and gradually perfecting cars with the craftsmen.

Now that the frame has been installed as a whole, after the steam engine test, it can be installed after confirming that there is no problem.

Because this first car must be made for the emperor to sit on, so the seats and so on were installed in place in one step.

As for the second car, it must be a transport truck, and the size will be much larger.

Of course, the most important thing is the steamship. As long as the first steam engine is tested and it is confirmed that there is no problem, the capability of the machine tool can be raised to another level immediately.

When the steam engine is produced in batches, the steam boat can be arranged immediately.

At that time, the shipyard in Qingdao will be able to live up to its name.

It was for this plan that Li Yuechen frequently went to the Engineering Academy recently.

On February [-], the dragon looked up.

On such a day, it stands to reason that the emperor should obediently prepare for the spring plowing ceremony in the palace.

But on this special day today, both the emperor and the prince came to the Academy of Engineering.

The reason is very simple, Li Yuechen told them that today is the day of the official car experiment.

A car that can move without a horse sounds so amazing, how can it work if you don't come to see it yourself?

When they came to the engineering institute, what they saw was the fully assembled car.

Overall, it is about two feet long, with four doors and two rows of seats.

And there is a large iron pot behind the car, and the mechanical rod under the iron pot is connected to the bottom of the car.

Glass windows are installed on all four doors, and the glass can still be lowered by hand.

Although it looks a little weird, but standing next to him, it is indeed much bigger than the carriage, and I am somewhat shocked in my heart.

Coupled with the fact that the temperature is not high now, the heat from the big iron pot permeates the air, making the whole venue look smoky.

Li Yuechen took a deep breath: "It's finally done, I will try it first!"

Yiluoru who was at the side asked: "Your Highness, there is no danger, right?"

"This kind of machinery will naturally be dangerous if it is not operated properly, but it is not as exaggerated as you think."

Li Yuechen smiled, then opened the door and got into the car.

Because it is a steam-powered car, there are only two pedals under the feet, the clutch and the brake, and there is no accelerator pedal.

As long as the forward gear is engaged, the car will go forward and cannot accelerate.

After getting into the car, Li Yuechen rolled down the window, and then stepped on the clutch to put into gear.

The next moment, the seemingly huge car actually started to move slowly.

And after the gears were fully engaged, the speed increased a lot.

It quickly opened the gate of the Engineering Institute and drove towards the cement road, carrying a large amount of steam, leaving behind a trail of white smoke.

The Academy of Engineering was not too far from the barracks, and the sentinels standing guard at the gate spotted this weird car almost instantly.

He subconsciously turned his head and carefully observed the strange car passing by the gate of the barracks.

Holding the weapon tightly in his hand, he was afraid that it would hit him directly at a turn.

However, Li Yuechen didn't turn the corner, but drove past the barracks all the way and continued to drive in the direction of Xuanwu Gate.

The sentry on guard also saw Li Yuechen sitting in the driver's seat clearly, and then heaved a sigh of relief.

Since it was created by Her Royal Highness, there is nothing to worry about.

And Li Yuechen, who was sitting in the car, was also carefully feeling the specific performance of the car.

The first is speed. Running on a straight road, the fastest speed can be about forty kilometers per hour.

In addition, because the steering wheel is not assisted by a hydraulic system, it requires a lot of force to turn it, which is not as easy as future cars.

Of course, the overall sense of control is not as good as that of future cars, which is a limitation of the times.

But at least it was a real car, one that moved by steam power.

In terms of efficiency alone, it is indeed many times better than that of a horse-drawn carriage.

……

After walking around the square outside Xuanwu Gate, Li Yuechen drove back to the Engineering Institute.

After stopping the car, put it in neutral, and pulled up the handbrake, Li Yuechen poked his head out: "Aniang, brother, do you want to come up and try?"

"Is this thing easy to operate?" Li Xian looked eager to try.

Li Yuechen shook his head: "It's difficult, brother can't control it, but you can come up and sit."

Hearing that he couldn't drive it himself, Li Xian felt a little depressed.

But as my sister said, this thing looks extremely complicated, and I definitely can't play it.

Such a huge monster, in case of bumping into it, it is a trivial matter if something breaks, I am afraid that my life will be lost.

So he didn't say anything, and got into the car with his mother.

Wu Zetian originally planned to sit in front, but was stopped by Li Yuechen.

"Aniang, you still have to sit in the back in the car. The front is where the driver and guard are."

Hearing what her daughter said, Wu Zetian followed Li Xian and sat in the back.

Then Li Yuechen took Shangguan Wan'er to the front row to sit down, and then drove the car again.

The other guards followed on horseback. Fortunately, the speed was not very fast, and they could keep up on horseback.

Driving on the road, Li Xian looked left and right in the car: "Oh, this car is not slow, it is comparable to a good horse, and it can be said to be fast..."

"Ha ha……"

Li Yuechen, who was driving, smiled and said nothing. To her, she has experienced the speed of nearly [-] per hour, and this thing is really nothing.

"Yuechen, how about giving Brother Wei a car when it's over?" Li Xian asked.

"I can't deliver it, it's too expensive to make, and it will mainly be used to transport supplies to the army in the future." Li Yuechen directly refused, "Of course, if brother is willing to pay for it, it's not impossible to buy one."

Li Xian raised his eyebrows: "How much will it cost?"

Li Yuechen raised three fingers.

"Three hundred guan?" Li Xian asked.

"Sanjin!"

The three golds mentioned in this era refer to three catties of gold!

Hearing this answer, Li Xian couldn't help gasping: "It's so expensive?"

Wu Zetian also frowned. Although it is really good not to use horses, the cost is indeed too high and a bit scary.

"Actually, this is also the reason for the first one. After the production line is produced in the future, the cost can be reduced a lot. And ah, the price is really not too expensive."

"Not expensive?" Li Xian asked back.

Li Yuechen nodded: "As trade increases in the future, exchanges and business activities with other countries will become more frequent. Such a price is really not expensive."

After all, the steam engine is already available now. Once it can be applied on the ship, it will be able to earn a lot of money by selling the technology of the Queen's Ship.

Now Japan, Silla, and many other countries are very greedy for this huge queen ship, and have also tentatively inquired about it.

Instead of slowly researching it by themselves, the cost will not be too low, not to mention the time.

At that time, if you package and sell the existing technology to them, you will definitely make a lot of money again.

……

While chatting, they returned to Xuanwu Gate. After getting out of the car, Wu Zetian couldn't help but nodded slightly: "This car is really good."

"Take this car back and let them refine it. It will be Aniang's car in the future." Li Yuechen said with a smile.

To serve as the emperor's car, this car must not be too simple, carving dragons and drawing phoenixes are basic operations, and the more high-end the interior, the better.

The most important thing is that the wipers and steering prompts should be done.

Although there is already electricity, it is still in its infancy, and there is definitely no way to make it electric.

Therefore, the wiper can only be made into manual mode, but this also means that when the rain is too heavy, it is still impossible to drive.

The other is the steering prompt, the turn signal is not considered, only two small flags can be made on both sides of the car body, and they can be swung through the control in the car to play a similar role.

Of course, the good news is that cars will definitely not be popularized in this era, and they will definitely be military supplies in the next ten years, so there is no need to be too detailed.

……

After driving the car back to the engineering institute, Li Yuechen asked Pei Bishu to call Wang Gangdan and others into the office.

"First of all, I am very satisfied with this car! This is the result of the joint efforts of everyone present! I am here to congratulate and commend you..."

Hearing the princess' speech, everyone present couldn't help applauding.

Li Yuechen gently raised his hand and continued: "But next, there is another thing that I want you to study together... To be honest, I didn't plan to take out this thing early, because this thing will completely change the future. towards..."

Li Yuechen originally planned to bring up some things ten years later, but after seeing this car today, he finally figured it out.

It's better to take advantage of your lifetime to figure out all the things you can do, and then slowly guide them to the right path.

Hearing what the princess said, everyone present became serious, not knowing what she was going to say.

Li Yuechen said slowly: "Actually, I don't know too much about this item. This item is called nitric acid. It is an indispensable item in the future industry, and it can be regarded as a basic item. Its specific function, You still need to go through a lot of experiments and to verify..."

Originally, she didn't plan to say it because this thing was too dangerous, and no one could say what the consequences would be if it was taken out in an immature period.

But now that she has figured it out, it is better to give guidance in advance while she is still alive.

This thing can really be regarded as something that can change the world.

Today's meeting belongs to the top-secret record of the Academy of Engineering, and no one has the right to watch it except the emperor himself.

No one knew what Li Yuechen talked with these senior craftsmen for the whole afternoon.

Those apprentices only knew that after the group of senior craftsmen came out of the office at night, all of them had serious expressions.

But to be honest, Li Yuechen didn't know much about nitric acid, he just gave them a concept, and asked them to try various experiments specifically.

The formation of this system alone will take decades, and it will definitely not be done overnight.

……

One month later, on the second day of March, Li Yuechen came to the banknote printing factory not far from the military camp.

It was completed last month, and then various machines were moved over for repairs, and it was almost complete.

The young eunuch Gao Lishi went out to greet him: "I have met Your Highness!"

"Excuse me, I heard that the sample has been made?" Li Yuechen asked.

"Yes, Your Highness, please follow me!"

Gao Lishi led her into the banknote printing factory, took out a stack of brand new banknotes and handed them over with both hands: "Your Highness, please have a look."

Li Yuechen took it over and looked at it. This stack of banknotes still had a unique smell of ink.

To be honest, it is just a stack of paper, but once it is linked to silver, it is money that can buy things.

In the middle of the black and red interlaced patterns, Wu Zetian's photo is printed there, which is full of domineering.

The face values ​​of the sample banknotes printed this time are 50 and [-] yuan, regardless of the small denominations for the time being.

Anyway, it is impossible for copper coins to be completely replaced immediately, and there is a cost issue, so the small denominations are not considered for the time being.

The next day, Li Yuechen asked Princess Xuancheng to come over and have a look.

Now that the Imperial Central Bank has also been completed, it is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Accounting, and she, the Minister of the Ministry of Accounting, naturally wants to come and have a look.

On March [-]th, the imperial court officially issued an order, and banknotes began to be officially circulated in Chang'an and Dongdu.

People can take copper coins to the bank to exchange for banknotes, and the usual money can be exchanged for one hundred yuan.

The staff of the bank also made it clear to the people who came to exchange that the banknotes are currently only used in Chang'an and Dongdu.

Of course, if you can spend it in other places, that is your ability, but whether the other places recognize this at present, it is not the bank's business.

At present, this banknote is still very popular in Dongdu. Suddenly, there are huge crowds of people at the entrance of the bank.