At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 636: The Situation of International Students

After visiting the Kuaiji County Museum, Cornelius went to meet the Roman students studying in Kuaiji County.

Over the past decade, the scale of industrialization in the Han Dynasty has increased exponentially, and the demand for talent has also increased exponentially. There are now more than a hundred universities in the Han Dynasty, and each county has an institution of higher learning. Among them, Kuaiji County has come from behind to become the second county with the most universities in the Han Dynasty, with more than a dozen universities including the Mechanical College, Iron and Steel College, Agricultural College, Naval College, Law School, and Railway College.

Most of the Roman students were in Kuaiji County, and the largest number of them were in the Mechanical College and the Agricultural College. Cornelius first met with the students from the Mechanical College.

The international students were overjoyed to have someone from their hometown come to visit, but they had heavy academic workloads. After a brief exchange, the two sides agreed to meet in the evening.

That night, Cornelius met the Roman students at a night market next to the School of Mechanical Engineering.

Anthony, an international student, said loudly to the boss, "Give me two large plates of roasted whole lamb, 20 kilograms of spicy crayfish, 40 more roasted squids, 10 servings of snails, 20 servings of various vegetables, and a box of iced fruit wine. That's all for now."

The boss called out, "Okay, please wait a moment."

There were 22 people in their group, who filled up two large round tables. Before long, the boss had filled the table with delicious food, and all kinds of aromas filled the air. Bottles of chilled fruit wine were opened, and everyone ate and chatted.

Cornelius smiled and said, "It seems that you have adapted to the environment of the Han Dynasty very quickly."

Seeing them, he missed the days when he was studying abroad in the Han Dynasty. At that time, they also liked to go to the night market in Chang'an. All the delicious food and fun things could be found in Chang'an City. They were shocked by the prosperity of Chang'an City at first, but now they were used to it.

Anthony said enviously: "The Han Dynasty is indeed a very suitable country to live in. It can be so lively even at this late hour. This is impossible to see in Rome."

Cornelius asked, "Are you having any difficulties in life? Is the living allowance enough for you?"

Anthony said: "It was a bit difficult to communicate in daily life at the beginning, but it is much better now. I suggest that you open a Chinese class in Rome and learn Chinese before studying abroad. This will allow everyone to integrate into the Han Dynasty faster."

Another international student, Marcus, said: "Our living expenses are also enough. The teacher knows our situation and helped us find a part-time job to earn thousands of dollars every month."

For these international students, this work-study job is very important. The Roman Pax Romana's own development funds are extremely tight. It has to place large orders for various machinery, steel and other goods in Han Dynasty to carry out industrialization and develop newly occupied land, so there is not much living expenses left for these international students.

There are many places to spend money in Kuaiji County, including the books and various study materials that need to be purchased on a daily basis, as well as daily consumption, such as a barbecue at the night market, watching a football game at the football field, watching an opera at the theater, and buying the latest bicycle from Dahan. All of these expenses are not low.

The status of these students was not as high as that of Cornelius and his group. Very few of them were born nobles, and most of them were citizens and commoners. They had already exhausted their families' efforts to come to the Han Dynasty. Although this part-time job made them work hard, the money they earned was enough to meet their daily needs, and many of them even had a considerable amount of savings.

Cornelius asked with concern: "Will this affect your studies?"

A salary of over a thousand was not considered high in Kuaiji County, but it was a bit high for work-study programs. He was worried that these international students would put too much energy into work-study programs and affect their studies.

Anthony said, "Don't worry, elder. Our teacher said that we should put what we learn into practice. He introduced us to a job in a machinery repair shop. Only after practice can we better understand the operating principles of machinery."

Cornelius nodded in relief.

Antony asked, "What major events have occurred in Rome in the past year or so?"

All the international students were also looking at Cornelius. They had been studying in the Han Dynasty for more than a year and were very curious about what was happening in their hometown. However, the Han Dynasty's newspapers rarely paid attention to what was happening in Rome. Even if they did appear occasionally, they would only be briefly mentioned on an inconspicuous page.

Cornelius told these international students what had happened in Rome over the past year. The main point was that Senator Appatius proposed a policy of redemption, but the Roman senators disagreed and assassinated him and his supporters in Appatius's estate.

When the international students, led by Anthony, heard the news, they were all furious.

"The Roman senators have become a group of insects. If Rome wants to develop, they must be completely defeated." Anthony said angrily.

The closer you are to the Han Dynasty, the more you can feel its power. The population of Kuaiji County alone exceeded that of the entire Roman Empire.

Kuaiji County had dozens of times more steam engines than the entire country of Rome, and the wealth created by Kuaiji County was dozens or hundreds of times that of Rome.

There were only a few steam looms in Rome, but on the streets of Wu County, there were already a constant stream of steam locomotives.

Wu County's eight wide asphalt roads, viaducts, skyscrapers dozens of meters high, docks that stretch as far as the eye can see, mountains of containers, and giant ships as big as mountains transport the goods produced in Kuaiji County to all parts of the world.

Everything in Kuaiji County demonstrates the strength of a great industrial country. The power of this county is several times that of Rome, while Kuaiji County is only the tip of the iceberg of the Han Dynasty's power.

Facing such a huge giant, the Roman students could no longer describe their feelings. This was already a world beyond their comprehension. Moreover, the Han Dynasty was still growing stronger and developing rapidly, which made the Roman students feel very anxious. They were afraid that Rome would be abandoned by this surging era.

The international students who came to the Han Dynasty, regardless of whether they were of noble, citizen, or even commoner origin, after seeing the strength of the Han Dynasty, all understood that if Rome wanted to survive, it had to learn the policies of the Han Dynasty and develop industrialization.

But based on what they knew in Rome, it was simply impossible to develop industrialization by relying on those comprador senators.

Marcus even asked, "When are we going to go south and drive out those corrupt elders?"

For these Roman youths, the Han Dynasty was the best role model to learn from. So what did the Han Dynasty do before it started industrialization?
That was the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty, who used tough means to expel all the nobles who had lived on this land for 3000 years and distributed all the land equally to the farmers.

The Romans also learned from the Han Dynasty and started industrialization for more than 10 years. However, the results were not great. Instead of being as wealthy as the Han Dynasty, the citizens of Rome went bankrupt and became civilians or slaves. In the eyes of these international students, it was these elders who hindered the development of Roman industry. They were like termites, sucking the blood of Rome and making it difficult for Rome to enter an industrialized society.

Cornelius said, "It will be soon. The three northern provinces are already stockpiling munitions and food. Once our Datong Society takes over Rome, it will be time for you overseas students to return home and display your talents."

Cornelius knew even better the gap between Rome and the Han Dynasty, but fortunately they had established a certain industrial foundation in the three northern provinces and started the industrialization of their own Romans.

"Boss, give me 20 skewers of lamb, 5 servings of pancakes, 20 pounds of crayfish, 5 skewers of leeks, and bottles of fruit wine." A young man shouted.

"understood!"

Cornelius heard the voice and looked over, and found that the young man was the tour guide Xu Qiang they hired during the day. There were four young men around him who looked similar to him. This would not have been a big deal, but he was surprised to find that the language these young men were communicating in was Roman.

Anthony followed Cornelius's gaze and said disdainfully, "That man is Xu Qiang, a well-known liar in our school."

"Swindler?" "We have inquired about it. He was born a Roman slave and was sold to the New World with his mother when he was very young. Later, for some reason, his mother married a Hun citizen in the New World, and he became the adopted son of the Hun. Now Xu Qiang is a Tang citizen. In recent years, the Han Dynasty has admitted more than 10,000 Tang students every year. Xu Qiang is a member of the School of Mechanical Engineering. Originally, everyone was Roman, and we still want to contact him."

In the examination for the Han Dynasty, it was easier to pass the examination in the overseas vassal territories than in the Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty formulated such a policy mainly to strengthen the people of the major vassal territories' sense of identity with the Han culture.

Marcus said angrily, "But he is a racist. He keeps calling people Roman barbarians. It's obvious that he himself was born a Roman slave, and a lowly German."

These international students in Rome were also very strange. Although they were all from Daqinzhou, Xu Qiang was full of hostility towards them.

Cornelius immediately stopped him and said, "Now the Germans are also our Roman blood brothers. Don't say such things in the future."

On the other side, Xu Qiang didn't care about what Cornelius and the others said, and discussed his future with his partners.

"Have you found a job?" Xu Qiang asked.

Jin Chen said with a bitter face: "The competition pressure here in Dahan is too great. Even bachelors like us have to go to the front line to fix screws. There are too few management positions. Instead of fixing screws in Dahan, I might as well go back to Tang Kingdom and inherit my family's ranch."

The other people had almost the same idea. They had studied mechanics for 4 years and had to intern in machinery factories for several months every year. They naturally knew the hard work of front-line craftsmen.

These international students are interested in machinery, but they are not interested in the boring life of screwing screws on the assembly line. More importantly, these people have a way out, and their families have tens of thousands of acres of pastures waiting for them to inherit.

Xu Qiang said: "Tang Kingdom can be as prosperous as Han! I have no intention of leaving since I came to Han. I have asked the Master, the competition in Kuaiji County is too great and it is difficult to stay. However, Changsha County is building a new industrial zone and there are many opportunities there. Do you want to fight for it?"

International students like them usually return to their home country after completing their studies, but if they want to stay, they must have a formal job.

"Changsha County?" His friends were a little hesitant. Such a poor inland county was not as good as their hometown. After all, Tang State had many gold mines and the coastal areas were also well developed.

"Changsha County, what's wrong with it? At least I'm in the Han Dynasty, so I'll stay here for now. There will always be opportunities to go to more prosperous places in the future. I can also take annual leave to go to prosperous places like Chang'an City and Kuaiji County. Anyway, I will not leave the Han Dynasty." Xu Qiang said firmly. He was determined to stay since he came to the Han Dynasty.

The next day, Cornelius went to the Agricultural College to see another group of international students.

Compared to the Mechanical College which is located in the city center, the Agricultural College is located in a rural area far away from the city.

Cornelius was riding in a public carriage, slowly driving from the city to the suburbs of Dahan.

Wherever they looked, they saw stretches of rice fields with lush rice grains and a density of rice seedlings that was far beyond anything seen in Rome.

Cornelius's deputy, Polo, was surprised and asked, "Can the Han people feed the people if they grow crops so densely?"

Polo was a Roman citizen who came from a farming family. Although he planted wheat in Rome, he also had some experience and knew that grains should not be planted too densely, otherwise the harvest would be poor.

Cornelius said: "The Han people applied fertilizer to the fields, so the same amount of land can produce more food."

Cornelius looked regretful when he said this. The Carthaginians had become powerful again. The islands around the Mediterranean and Daqinzhou were occupied by the Carthaginians. The guano that could be used as fertilizer was also basically occupied by them. Rome could only rely on learning the farmyard manure from the Han Dynasty to barely increase the fertility of the land, but this led to Rome's grain production capacity being far inferior to that of the Han Dynasty.

"But I am more surprised at the Han people's investment in land. The irrigation canals built along the way have far exceeded those of Rome. The cement consumed in this area alone exceeds Rome's total annual production capacity." Wherever Cornelius looked, the river channels were built into embankments with stones and cement. He could also see the main canal partitions built with cement, and tall windmills were running around the fields. He could also see farmers holding steam pumps and pumping water from the canals into the fields. The canals were like smooth mirrors that could reflect the blue sky and white clouds. The Han people's investment in agriculture was evident from these farmlands.

After arriving at the agricultural school, the school teacher told Cornelius that all the international students in Rome went to the cooperative to guide farmers in farming.

Agronomy is a discipline that emphasizes practice over theory, and all knowledge learned in the classroom must be put into practice by working in the fields.

Kuaiji County would not waste the advantage of having an Agricultural College. The farming cooperatives around the college all have cooperative relations with the Agricultural College. If the students of the Agricultural College want to graduate, the food from the farming cooperatives is their best graduation thesis.

The security guard of the academy took Cornelius and his party to find the Roman students. Under the guidance of the security guard, they came to a farmhouse and met Quintus and other Roman students who knew the farmers.

Quintus was also very excited to see people from his hometown. He brought Cornelius and others to a rice field. Beautiful rice flowers swayed in the wind, and there was a group of ducks quacking in the middle of the field. They could even see fish swimming in the rice field.

Cornelius was surprised and asked, "There are ducks and fish here. Won't the ducks eat the rice and fish?"

Quintus smiled and said, "This is a comprehensive agricultural area. As long as there are not too many ducks, they will generally only eat various pests on the rice. With the presence of these ducks, the grain production capacity of this area can be increased by 20%. The fish below will also eat pests. Such a piece of land can be used for three purposes: farmland, breeding farm, and fish pond. The ducks raised are called rice ducks and the fish are called rice fish. Their meat has a fragrance of rice and is especially delicious. Such rice ducks can be sold for 12 coins per catty, and fish can be sold for coins per catty. Now, rice ducks and rice fish have become the characteristic brands of Kuaiji County, and they are in short supply every year."

Cornelius was extremely surprised to hear this. You know, the prices in the Han Dynasty were extremely low. One penny could buy two kilograms of rice, pork cost five pennies per kilogram, and beef cost only ten pennies per kilogram. However, the so-called Rice Duck and Rice Fish were actually more expensive than beef.

"How much money can I make from this acre of land?" The Han people's grain yield per acre is already high, and now they are raising ducks and fish, and the price they sell is even higher than beef. These are not just fish, but swimming money.

Quintus smiled and said, "Last year, the income of a farmer in Daoxiang Village was 68000 coins. This year it should be higher, about 7 to 8. It has already exceeded the wealthy life that the emperor mentioned."

Cornelius remained silent. This income was far more than that of Roman citizens and even the knight class. Even ordinary small nobles could not compare to it.

Polo hesitated and said, "But we in Rome do not grow this kind of food called rice. Isn't it a bit useless for you to learn this?"

Another Roman student, Titus, said, "How can it be useless? Rome's latitude is similar to Kuaiji County, and rice can be grown there. And we are not only learning to grow rice, we can also grow wheat, barley, and all kinds of crops."

Quintus thought for a moment and said, "In the past two years, the Han Dynasty has developed a fertilizer called synthetic ammonia. However, this is the latest high-tech of the Han Dynasty. The price of chemical fertilizers is high and the production capacity is low. Even the Han Dynasty has not popularized it, let alone Rome. But this kind of compound agriculture is the hope of Roman agriculture. It is said that in other agricultural groups, there is a way to mix two crops together, which can greatly increase food production capacity."

Then Quintus took Cornelius and his party back to his Indaba Village.

Quintus usually lived in the academy, and during the busy farming season he lived in the homes of the farmers he mentored.

When Wu Ming learned that someone from Bachelor Quintus' hometown had come, he immediately killed two rice ducks and caught a few rice fish, and prepared a very sumptuous lunch.

Polo whispered to Cornelius, "Senator, except for the lack of servants, this family's wealth is completely comparable to that of the Roman nobility."

Wu Ming's home is a three-story concrete building with a yard in the front and a courtyard in the back. He also saw a tractor worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in Rome. It is said that it is impossible to be a millionaire. In Rome, to have such a huge wealth, one must at least be a noble.

(End of this chapter)