The Great Han Dynasty: From Feng Lang Juxu to the Eternal Emperor

Chapter 227 Typography

At night, the snow in Guanzhong gradually became heavier.

The maid came in carrying the stove and added charcoal to the stove to cool it down. There were strong charcoal burning everywhere in the house, making it warm.

The maid warmed a pot of tea for Wei Ning and quietly added some tea for Wei Ning beside the desk. Then she quietly left the study and opened the door a crack.

Wei Ning stared at the fire on the red clay stove in a daze. When he was in Qianshui Village, he was most afraid of winter.

At that time, he really wished that the house could be warm so that his mother would not have to suffer from the cold and he would not suffer from frostbite.

Time flies, and now the red sleeves are fragrant, the clothes are fine, and the food is fine. Comparing the two, they are completely different.

Wei Ning didn't feel too sad. He called Zhao Ce in and asked him to get some clay.

Not long after, Zhao Ce sent the clay to Weining.

Wei Ning sat on the futon and used a knife to carve the word "official" on the clay, but it was reverse carving.

After carving a simple Chinese character, he took the clay and went to the stove to dry it.

……

No words all night, early the next morning.

It was completely white outside. Zhao Ce was sweeping the snow with his family and maids. Wei Ning was wearing a cloak given by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, put the dried clay into his arms, and then walked towards Weiyang Palace.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty Jiao Fangdian and Wei Zifu were having breakfast. After Wei Ning arrived, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty called him over, and the three of them gathered around a low dining table to eat a sumptuous breakfast together.

The Han Dynasty implemented a food-sharing system, but there were no outsiders here, so there was not so much emphasis on it.

After breakfast, Wei Zifu and I went to weave clothes, while Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Wei Ning were walking in the courtyard outside Jiaofang Hall.

Dozens of plum blossoms grow proudly and beautifully.

"Your Majesty, I plan to recommend two people to go to southern Xinjiang."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked: "Have everyone been selected?"

"Is two people enough?"

Wei Ning nodded and said: "Two people are not enough. I can't find the remaining officials now. Please help me choose someone. I really don't know how to choose."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty rolled his eyes at Wei Ning: "A typical selfish thought."

"what?"

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty said to Wei Ning: "I will give you all the resources that can be mobilized. If you can't find anyone, you can go to Zhuang Qingzhai. He is the prime minister."

"Li Caizhen was killed by you. Is there anyone who dares not to cooperate with you?"

"Not everyone needs you to carefully select them. How can you have so much time to do these things?"

"Let the people below do it for you. What does the imperial court do to support these people? You have to do everything yourself, won't you be exhausted?"

Wei Ning: "..."

Well, I really haven't thought about this matter. The main thing is that Wei Ning still brought it into the minds of his ministers to consider the governance of Southern Xinjiang. I didn't realize that he was now the supreme leader of Southern Xinjiang and decided to govern Southern Xinjiang. All governance matters and future direction.

Wei Ning said: "I understand. I will go to the Prime Minister's Mansion later."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sighed: "Every winter, the people are the most miserable. It is cold in Guanzhong, and a large number of people will freeze to death every winter."

This is no exaggeration.

Weining has lived at the lowest level, and he knows how harmful winter is to ordinary people.

Unfortunately, there was no cotton in the Han Dynasty. It would be better if cotton could be grown during the winter.

He advised Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty: "Your Majesty, don't worry too much."

"correct."

Wei Ning took out a piece of clay from his arms and handed it to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked at Wei Ning in confusion and asked, "Why are you showing me clay?"

Wei Ning said to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty: "Your Majesty, squat down."

Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty:? How old am I? Can I squat down and play in the snow with you?

However, he still squatted down, and Wei Ning lightly covered the snow with clay, and the word "Han" clearly appeared on the snowflakes.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty said in confusion: "Isn't this just a seal? What's wrong?"

"You're not really going to let me squat down and play in the snow with you, are you? Don't go too far, kid."

Wei Ning smiled and said, "Of course not. Your Majesty, you can stand up now."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked like he couldn't laugh or cry, and asked Wei Ning: "Can't I see the words when I stand?"

Wei Ning: "..."

"Yeah, you can see it even while standing."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was speechless and asked Wei Ning: "What exactly do you want to say?"

Wei Ning said: "Your Majesty, how many Chinese characters does the Han Dynasty have now? Commonly used ones."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty said: "How many millions do you think it is?"

Wei Ning: "Huh?"

"Chinese characters, characters, are not hanzi."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty covered his forehead with an embarrassed look on his face and said, "Oh, two or three thousand are commonly used? Or even less, what?"

Wei Ning said: "What if it's all carved on clay?"

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked: "What's the use?"

Wei Ning said: "Printing! It's just like rubbing. These Chinese characters are all like this clay. After being arranged and splashed with ink, can't it be easily printed into a book?"

"In the past, we used cloth and bamboo knives to compile, so it was naturally impossible to achieve large-area printing."

"Nowadays, paper is flying into ordinary people's homes, but books are still handed down by hand. People regard books as treasures and even have to pay to borrow a book."

"To put it bluntly, it's still a technical barrier. The rich have countless books, but the poor can hardly find a book."

"With such an ever-widening gap in knowledge between the rich and the poor, wouldn't the talent eventually recruited by the imperial court come from powerful families?"

"If their families continue to develop hereditary, won't these families accumulate and grow stronger from generation to generation?"

"Now His Majesty is very clever and has ways to deal with it, and the concept of aristocratic family has not yet been formed. What about the future? Has Your Majesty thought about it?"

After Wei Ning finished speaking, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty slowly fell into deep thought.

According to Weining's expected development, it won't be long before the concept of aristocratic families will be formed.

When they have a monopoly on knowledge and culture, they will send unlimited talents to the court. When the talents in the court are all cultivated by aristocratic families, what power does the royal family have against them?
  Divide the world equally and be checked and balanced by the other party?

The more he thought about it, the more timid Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty became. He gradually narrowed his eyes, looked at Wei Ning seriously, and said, "Your analysis is good."

"You are really starting to impress me. This is something I never thought of."

Paper was developed by Weining and indeed benefited thousands of households, but Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty never thought of the impact and consequences that the birth of paper would have on the dynasty.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty looked at Weining and said, "So what is your suggestion?"

Wei Ning said: "Develop printing technology so that poor people can afford to read books and go to school."

"Printing? Is this the clay you are talking about?"

Weining nodded and said: "That's it. There are only so many Chinese characters. They are all carved into clay and arranged. If you need any written books, just arrange them and print them. One volume is easy and convenient."

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was silent for a while, and then said to the eunuchs on his left and right: "Go to Zongzheng Da Nong Mansion and summon Lu Chongguo."

"Here!"

Since he specializes in medicine, he wanted to ask Lu Chongguo if this idea was feasible.

Of course it is feasible, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty just wanted to show off.

(End of this chapter)