Daming: After self-explosive time travel, Lao Zhu's mentality collapsed

"Your Majesty is truly wise and powerful! From Fengyang all the way to today, your hegemony has been accomplished! Only then can our people enjoy such a prosperous and peaceful life."

"Yes, His Majesty, the Emperor is truly foresighted in governing the country. Under heaven, those who should be treated as enemies should be treated as enemies, and those who should be eliminated should be eliminated. With the prince's magic weapons, the country should be forever peaceful!"

Although military force is always effective, what can truly consolidate a country's strength is to enrich the country and strengthen the people.

Chu Ze was well aware of this, so while he fully supported Zhu Yuanzhang in launching an expedition to punish the culprits, he did not neglect the major plan of national modernization.

On this day, Chu Ze led several of his confidants into the depths of the palace. Zhu Yuanzhang was reviewing memorials in front of the dragon case, and when he saw Chu Ze coming, he waved for him to sit down.

"Your Majesty is wise. The new firearms have now created an indestructible firepower. It is time for the army to unify the barbarians." Chu Ze went straight to the point, "But I have a favor to ask of you."

"You say." Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.

"Although we have prepared enough weapons to suppress violence, it is only a temporary measure." Chu Ze pondered for a moment and said slowly, "To make the country truly prosperous, we must start from the basics and work hard on economic construction."

"That's exactly what I meant." Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and motioned Chu Ze to continue.

"I intend to build railways throughout the country to efficiently connect mineral resources, arms bases and major cities to form a three-dimensional transportation network. Only in this way can we truly make the country's strength advance in all aspects of industry, agriculture and commerce."

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned upon hearing this, as if he was thinking deeply. After a long while, he nodded heavily and slammed the table and stood up: "My dear minister, what you said is absolutely right! I will issue an order that day to discuss the matter in detail and let you take charge!"

Without further ado, Zhu Yuanzhang quickly convened a special meeting of civil and military officials to discuss the construction of railways. Beside the dragon table, Chu Ze spread out a topographic map of the country and explained the planning blueprint to the officials present.

"Based on the distribution of coal and iron resources we currently control, it is recommended that trunk lines be laid out in these places first."

Chu Ze pointed to several areas on the map and said, "There are rich mineral resources there, which is indeed a perfect place to set up a hub."

"Once the main line is opened, we will radiate branch lines from the center to all directions. By then, all parts of the country will be efficiently connected by rail, forming a three-dimensional network."

"What a long-term plan! Very good, very good!" The ministers present nodded repeatedly, all impressed by Chu Ze's grand plan.

Zhu Yuanzhang also clapped his hands in satisfaction and said loudly: "Just do as you said! All civil and military officials must work together and go all out!"

As soon as the decree was issued, there was an uproar across the country, with the scene becoming bustling with activity.

From the Central Plains to Guanzhong, from Jiangnan to Sichuan, large numbers of craftsmen and laborers gathered everywhere and started the massive "road construction" project.

"Wait! The mountain here is too steep. I'm afraid we can't build the road in a straight line." The governor of Lin'an Prefecture suddenly pressed down the pickaxe his men were working on and frowned.

"Please calm down, sir." A young engineer in a long gown stepped forward to report, "This place is indeed a dangerous place by nature, but it is not unsolvable. As long as we follow the calculation formula here and plan the curvature of the tunnel, we can still make it smooth as a mirror."

As he spoke, he unfolded the blueprint in his hand, which was a brand new engineering design blueprint. Dozens of pages of calculation formulas and construction techniques all showed that modern scientific theories were guiding engineering construction.

"These 'magical knowledge' of the West is truly amazing! With its guidance, even the steepest mountains can be climbed!" The governor praised with all his heart and immediately called in more engineers to conduct research together.

Soon after, similar scenes were staged one after another on various construction sites throughout the Ming Dynasty. Young intellectuals, armed with the latest theoretical findings, directed the workers to follow the blueprints.

Although most of these people came from poor families, they had already mastered modern scientific theories after the careful enlightenment of Chu Ze and others. They directed the workers to work in an orderly manner, and the quality and progress of the project far exceeded the previous ones.

"Just aim at the direction of the line, use the drill to drill a hole through the ground, and then blast a small hole that can accommodate a person."

"This was originally a plateau, and we have to raise it a few feet, otherwise it will be full of thorns during the rainy season. We have to draw contour maps to observe the direction of the landform."

"This river is winding and obviously not suitable for building a bridge here. Once the pillars are laid, we will divert a section of the river to facilitate construction."

On the construction site, these new engineering theories and operating processes are being continuously advanced.

The backward practices of relying on brute force to survive on their own have long since disappeared under the huge wave of modernization.

Unconsciously, each construction site gradually showed a new and vibrant atmosphere. The orderly operation process built the backbone of steel, and the work site also became full of rhythm and order.

"You new generation engineers are really outstanding!" An old foreman looked at the machines and young foremen on the ground and praised sincerely, "With your leadership, building railways is a piece of cake! We don't have to give up halfway like before!"

The young people were all proud when they heard this. As a new generation, they are using scientific theory as a mirror to illuminate the difficult road of the ancient nation towards modernization.

From arduous journeys to climbing cliffs, from cutting through mountains to building bridges across the sea, these challenges came in all shapes and sizes and all made their predecessors sweat and suffer.

Now, with the power of modern technology, all these obstacles have disappeared. But at the same time, every place that was once considered an "impossible task" has now become a stage for them to show themselves.

"Look! This is the site of the landslide that occurred last month. Now, thanks to our careful design, it has been completely reinforced and there will be no danger anymore!"

"The middle tunnel has been penetrated! Thanks to our careful calculation of the slope and curvature, the tunnel is brightly lit and well ventilated. Transport trains will no longer be trapped in the dark and narrow corridor!"

From one station to the next, from one section to the next, the railway project has left irrefutable traces of progress everywhere. Overcoming difficulties is no longer a toil and sorrow; overcoming difficulties has become a journey of renewal.

All of this embodies the spirit of struggle and rational pursuit of the new era, and has pushed this project, which concerns the country's future, to a new height.

At the same time, the exploration and construction of factories and mines were carried out in full swing.

"Look over there! Those holes are the coal mines we recently opened. According to my estimate, there are at least millions of tons of high-quality coal stored in them!"

"Hey, that's nothing! Our brand new steel plant has already started trial operation. From raw ore to smelting and casting, the whole process is one-stop, and the quality and efficiency are several times higher than before!"

For a time, dust and smoke rose from east to west, north to south, and from the center to the center. Hammers and stirrups, machines and labor complemented each other, composing a rich industrial symphony.

With the continuous supply of bulk materials such as coal and steel, the construction of railways in various places has gradually improved, becoming the steel arteries that run across the motherland.

"It seems that the vision of our 'Zhi Lu' has taken shape." Chu Ze said with satisfaction when he inspected the project with a few confidants, "As long as we work hard, we will be able to weave a three-dimensional transportation network connecting minerals, cities and arms bases across the country!" (End of this chapter)