Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

"Sell newspapers! Sell newspapers! The latest issue of Ming Pao!"

In the city of Nanjing, there was a long mist, and the newsboy stood on the street corner holding up the small book in his hand and shouting loudly.

"Isn't this today's newspaper? Why was it delivered so early?"

A pedestrian heard the newsboy's shout, walked out from the roadside, took out a penny, and bought a copy.

After receiving the newspaper, which had acceptable printing quality and clear handwriting, but the paper was really poor, he dipped his finger in saliva and flipped through it: "Hey, there doesn't seem to be any special news, just some business information and current affairs news."

"No, what is this?"

The person next to me pointed to another page.

"Today at noon, Qin Tian Jian and the Science Department of the Imperial Academy jointly held a rainbow optical scattering experiment?"

"There's more down there."

"99 pieces of glass prisms will be randomly given away for free on site, and you will be the next lucky winner."

This immediately aroused people's interest. Glass, as a newly refined thing by some great masters who are good at alchemy, can replace crystal. The glass mirror made is extremely clear, much higher than the clarity of the bronze mirror. It has been It has become the new favorite of young ladies from all over the Yangtze River.

Or how to say "women make the best money"?

As for microscopes used for scientific research and telescopes for observing distant places, they are not yet available to the market, but are mainly concentrated in the hands of high-level officials and the military.

As for what the glass prism is used for, Ming Pao didn't say it, but I thought it might have something to do with the rainbow.

"La la la, la la la,

I am a small expert in selling newspapers.

Don't wait for dawn to wait for the newspaper to be dispatched,

Calling as he walked——

Really good news today! "

The newsboy continued to trot against the clock and came to a not-so-tall, but definitely elegant, restaurant on the side of the street to start selling.

At this time, the guests having breakfast in the restaurant stopped eating after hearing the sound and cast their eyes over, their eyes full of curiosity and expectation.

"This little guy is quite funny."

The man sitting at the window of an Accord on the second floor looked at the newsboy who was shouting hard outside the window, smiled and shook his head.

A young man with a square scarf on his head, a simple and upright temperament, also raised his head: "Look at that little guy talking, as if he is singing. It's really interesting!"

The two of them took their heads back, and the man by the window looked at each other and asked, "Master, how did you do what Jiang Xinghuo asked you to do? Do you think there is any progress?"

These two people were none other than Gao Xunzhi and Cao Duan.

The former temporarily left his academy in Jiangning Town and lived in Nanjing for a period of time, while the latter was concentrating on studying a new path in philosophy.

"To be honest, there's not a lot going on."

Cao Duan didn't look depressed at all, he just said calmly: "There are some things about antinomies that are too subtle and profound to be proven by pure speculation. However, the imperial teacher taught a set of methods about "Logic". In short, It can be pushed forward slowly. If you check one thing today, you will check another thing tomorrow, and everything in the world will eventually be completed."

"Gao Taichang, what are your plans?"

Gao Xunzhi picked up some pickles with chopsticks and drank the gruel. After thinking for a while, he said: "The world is changing with each passing day, so we should live and enjoy it."

Cao Duan nodded and said: "Each day is a good word. It does feel that way. Not to mention that I left my hometown and came south to the capital. The customs and customs are very different. I have lived in the capital for just half a year. It's really a month." The same look, with new changes every day.”

This is true. If nothing else, the battle situation in Annan is updated every few days, with map demonstrations. Although it is a bit delayed, the people in the Ming Dynasty obviously don't mind.

This kind of popularity is comparable to the conflict in Eastern Europe in Jiang Xinghuo's previous life. The majority of netizens stared at the sand table battle situation every day and acted as cyber commanders.

In addition to foreign wars, the Ming Dynasty's commodity economy also began to gradually become richer and more active.

The imperial court revised the "Da Ming Law". The previously semi-underground usury money (moneylenders issued loans at high interest rates, and the borrowers had to repay them in installments, and each return had to be stamped with a stamp on the loan, so people called it "usury money"). ") The industry began to go bankrupt or transform, and more business giants with deep backgrounds squeezed into the bank industry. Formal banks directly supervised by the newly established Daming Bank gradually became the mainstream of commercial capital turnover. As long as there is collateral, businessmen It is easier to borrow a loan from a bank with an interest rate that is not as high as the previous loan sharking.

Of course, this is related to Ming Dynasty’s current relatively loose monetary policy.

The reason why I say "relatively" is that on the one hand, Daming Bank, which is directly managed by Jiang Xinghuo, has been using various treasury bonds to buy back the excessive treasure banknotes on the market, making the currency value of the treasure banknotes strong again; on the other hand, for The issuance of copper coins and auxiliary coins began to gradually increase the intensity of water release, trying to put more copper coins into the market to activate the economy.

The most profound problem here is of course the serious mismatch between the face value of treasure banknotes and the actual currency value. Judging from the flood of excessive issuance of treasure banknotes in the past thirty years, it is obviously impossible to achieve a match for a while. It is not easy. We can only increase the actual purchasing power of treasure banknotes while depreciating the actual purchasing power of copper coins. Only in this way can we achieve matching.

When the currency value matches the actual purchasing power, the purchasing power of 1 penny now is completely different from that of 1 penny in the past. It may be equivalent to 0.5 yuan or 0.4 yuan or even 0.1 yuan. Who cares, anyway, treasure banknotes and copper coins As long as the purchasing power can match it.

Because this is part of Jiang Xinghuo's currency system reform plan, and it must be completed within the next few years, at least before the conquest of Japan to obtain the silver mountain. In this way, the banknotes can be exchanged and the Ming Dynasty treasure banknotes can be exchanged for silver. The banknotes will be anchored to the silver standard, and then the plan to implement a dual-track system at home and abroad will be implemented.

And business and culture are closely related. What do you think about food and clothing?

When the commercial products on the market are enriched, cultural products will also be enriched. This is an objective law and no one can stop it.

The corporate system was clearly stipulated in the revised "Da Ming Law". After investors could choose to bear limited liability, all walks of life began to corporateize and reorganize. In fact, the process was not as difficult as many people imagined, because it was said before However, the shops that were merchants in the Ming Dynasty had "market registration", and the necessary information including the names, assets, and addresses of the merchants were registered with the government. Now it is nothing more than further clarifying the issues of assets and responsibilities.

Although the newspaper industry is still a government monopoly industry, other industries such as scripts and operas have begun to show a trend of prosperity and development. Yuan opera has begun to recover and prosper, and the same is true for the novel industry.

Well, how should I put it? It can be said that the citizen class began to gradually rise, and what followed was the emergence of bourgeois ideological trends.

The traditional moral concepts under the Confucian system have been impacted by new ideas and new things. It is precisely because of this that Gao Xunzhi, the moral defender, sighed deeply.

At this point, his face suddenly darkened: "But what I'm worried about is not the rapid changes, but the people's hearts."

Since ancient times, people’s minds are unpredictable. Who can know what will happen on any given day?

Especially in the changing situation, people are even more confused.

If it were normal, we would naturally not be afraid of changes, because Confucianism has the ability to adapt to the times and patch itself. Even in the past eras of disgrace like the Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, it can get civilization back on track.

However, things are different now.

After the three debates of "overlords, righteousness and interests, ancient and modern" and the subsequent debates, serious divisions had already occurred within Confucianism. The dominance of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, which was originally an official school, was greatly shaken, and it became unworthy. The new version of Xinxue, which is a demonic cult, started to spread as fast as a virus. There is no way around it. The temptation of everyone becoming a saint is too great. Who doesn’t want to take shortcuts?

As for the practical thinking in eastern Zhejiang and Jiangnan, it did not develop as fast as Xinxue, but it followed a very steady path. It was a serious "management of the world and application". The imperial court restored the Sanshe method and established the Ming Dynasty School of Administration. It was based on the idea of ​​practical learning, which was equivalent to establishing a new small-scale official selection system and ideas in addition to the Neo-Confucianism of the imperial examination system.

The most important thing is that all this is led by Jiang Xinghuo, and disciples of various practical schools have spontaneously or passively recognized Jiang Xinghuo's identity as the only master of practical learning in the world.

The first is, of course, that Jiang Xinghuo's reputation and ability in the Ming Dynasty's academic circles are unquestionable. The second is that if he follows this path, he will eventually be able to become an official. What does the translation of the four words "jingshizhiyong" mean? You have to be an official first, right?

The three major factions within Confucianism have returned to the situation of the Southern Song Dynasty. Although they have not reached the level of a tripartite confrontation, judging from this trend, it is estimated that it is not far away. Neo-Confucianism is so skinny that a camel is bigger than a horse. Everyone is flocking to spiritual studies, but practical studies have their own The promotion channel is invincible.

There was chaos within the academic world. Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, as an official school, could not protect itself when the Clay Bodhisattva crossed the river. Naturally, it was difficult to control the thoughts of the people, not to mention that the court did not want to control it.

And under this situation, all kinds of strange trends of thought began to spread among the people.

"This is also a helpless matter!"

Gao Xunzhi sighed.

Cao Duan also bought a newspaper at this time. When he saw the message on it, he asked: "I have nothing to do. Let's go and see this optical experiment at noon? It's on the square in front of the Imperial College."

The Imperial College is located on the north side of Nanjing City. There is a large square in front of it. When Kong Xilu appeared on the stage, thousands of Imperial College students were there to greet him.

There is also a huge sundial there, used to keep time based on the shadow of the sun.

The reason why the venue for the optical experiment was chosen to be in front of the Imperial College rather than in front of the Qin Tian Jian was because the nature of the Qin Tian Jian's work was rather special. It was located inside the imperial city (not the palace city) and it was difficult to let the common people in.

Zhuo Jing, the Minister of Rites, was familiar with the people at Qin Tian Jian, so he ordered them to come to Guozijian.

One thing to mention here is that Qintian Prison is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites in terms of management system, but this department is quite special. Whether the people in it are promoted or become officials, the emperor has the final say.

Because when Lao Zhu established the Hongwu Kingdom, he instituted a household registration system for military households to serve as soldiers and craftsmen to work. People of all nationalities were only allowed to inherit their father's business and were not allowed to change jobs at will. Therefore, the Qintian Prison did the same thing. Basically, all It is passed down from father to son and it has been said before that Lao Zhu did not allow people to learn knowledge about astronomy and divination, so Qin Tian Jian was more authoritative in the hearts of the people.

The Qin Tianjian has four departments: astronomy, Lu Ke, Hui Hui, and Li Ke. The astronomy department observes astronomical phenomena; the Li Ke department determines the date; the Lu Ke department determines the time of each day and reports the time; the Hui Hui department, therefore The Huihui method can be used to calculate the degree of heaven's movement, which can be regarded as a supplement to predictive astronomy.

The ones coming now are people from the astronomy department.

It is obviously more convincing to have such an official authoritative organization come forward to endorse.

"Then let's go."

Gao Xunzhi originally wanted to refuse instinctively, but after thinking about it, he happily obeyed.

In front of the changing tide of the times, it is obviously meaningless to be a martyr holding the ship of the old era. People must see the scenery along the way while living.

——————

At noon, in front of the Imperial Academy gate.

Under the temptation of randomly selecting 99 glass prisms, many students from the Imperial College and Nanjing citizens came here. It was a scene of a sea of ​​people. Fortunately, the square was big enough, and there was no stampede due to the dense flow of people. event.

Everyone is not stupid. Even if 10,000 people come, there is still a 1% chance. Glass is very valuable now. Regardless of the difference between a prism and an ordinary mirror, as long as you get it for free, it will definitely be worth it if you resell it. Earned with blood.

"What on earth is this for? Can it really make a rainbow?"

"Hey, you know nothing!"

A companion nearby heard what he said and laughed and cursed: "Do you know what happened in the Imperial College two days ago?"

"Um?"

Hearing that there was something they didn't know, other pedestrians around them stopped and listened.

I saw the person just now lowering his voice and asking mysteriously to his friend next to him: "What happened?"

"Hurry up, don't delay, I'll die of curiosity too."

The person next to me said impatiently: "You should tell me quickly."

"When the National Master took the time to teach in person in the Science Hall, he took a candle, a wooden board, and a glass. Guess what?"

"I guess you're a ghost!"

"Hehe." The companion smiled triumphantly, "What happened is amazing! It is said that a small hole was poked in the middle of the board, and guess what?"

"If you don't finish it in one breath, I will beat you to death!"

Seeing that he would be beaten if he kept showing off, he finally spoke sharply.

"The light of the candle shines through the small holes in the wooden board, and the shadow of the candle on the glass is turned upside down!"

"What?"

"I said, the shadow of the candle is upside down!"

"this"

"Why is this?"

"Who am I asking you to ask me?"

Many passers-by talked about it.

"This is not a strange thing. Our ancestors have studied it and understood it."

At this time, Cao Duan suddenly spoke.

Seeing this tall, dark-skinned scholar speaking, everyone looked at him, and among them was the sharp-eyed Imperial College student, who directly recognized their identities.

"It's Gao Taichang and Mr. Yuekawa!"

When they heard that these two great scholars were present in person, the crowd immediately became excited.

Cao Duan raised his hand to suppress the people's shouts and said: "It is recorded in the "Mo Jing" that when the scenery arrives, there is an end at noon; when the scene is long, it is said that in the end of the scene, the light is as warm as a shot, and the scenery is long. The people above are also high; the people above are also below. The feet cover the light below, so the scenery is above; the head covers the light above, so the scenery is below. There are ends in the far and near, and they are in line with the light, so the scenery is in the library."

Here we need to briefly explain a few words: "to" is connected to "inverted", which means to stand upside down; "Wu" refers to the intersection of two beams of light in the middle; "Duan" means "ultimate" and "terminal" in pre-Qin Chinese.

In other words, 'There is an end at noon' refers to the intersection point of light, that is, the pinhole. The reason why the projection of an object appears inverted is because the light propagates in a straight line and comes from different directions at the pinhole. The beams of light cross each other creating reflections.

"A person of light shines like a shot" is a very vivid metaphor. It means that the light shining on a person is like shooting an arrow. The following meaning is that the light shining on the upper part of the person will be imaged on the lower part; and the light shining on the person will be reflected on the lower part. The light rays from the lower part of the person are reflected on the upper part, so if an upright person is imaged through the pinhole, the projection becomes inverted.

‘Library’ refers to the relationship between the light reflected by an object and the size of the image inside the cassette, which is the pinhole distance. The farther the object distance is, the smaller the image is; the closer the object distance is, the larger the image is.

Therefore, pinhole imaging in basic optics is really not a rare thing in China. Our ancestors have thoroughly studied the principles long ago. However, later Confucians did not learn from Mohism, so basically only craftsmen can use it in practice. But no one has publicized the specific principles for a long time.

But for modern science, especially physics, optics is an absolutely indispensable branch.

Let’s not mention the barrage question of “What is the unit of light year?”, let alone the wave-particle duality of light that is the basis of quantum mechanics, let’s talk about the most basic applications, whether it is astronomy or navigation, the branch of optics All subjects must be popularized.

Without sufficient optical knowledge, humans will inevitably encounter countless setbacks in the process of exploring the world.

Optics is precisely the science that is easiest to prove to the people and the easiest to popularize.

There is no other reason. Light is everywhere. With this thing, you can nearly 100% restore various experiments with a mirror, and the required conditions are almost none.

Therefore, it is extremely appropriate to use it to enlighten people's wisdom and establish correct scientific concepts among the people.

At the same time, popularizing optical knowledge can also warm up the launch of glass products in the next step.

The task of collecting 2.1 million taels of commercial tax revenue still has a long way to go. Reforms of the Salt Law and Tea Law are in progress at the same time, and dumping of goods has not stopped. However, the sales spread of new domestic monopoly products such as fertilizers and glass is naturally a top priority. Heavy.

Although the bet is a commercial tax, after all, things like fertilizers and glass are government-run. If you have to round up the figures, it is not unreasonable to deduct the cost and expansion of reproduction from the interest rate, and pay taxes on the rest. Can.

Just when Cao Duan had just finished explaining, the middle door of the Imperial College suddenly opened wide.

"The Imperial Master is here!"

"It's actually the Imperial Master who is presiding over it himself?"

There were shouts and shouts in the square, showing everyone's excitement.

I saw a man in a green shirt walking out of it. He moved forward slowly and unhurriedly, as if the air around him was moving. Dozens of people followed behind him, heading towards the center of the square in a mighty manner. .

"Is this the legendary national master?"

"The demeanor of the banished immortal is indeed well-deserved when I see it today!"

The people around Cao Duan looked at the approaching group and murmured that he was also a Imperial College student, but he didn't expect to be able to see the Imperial Master up close.

Although the Imperial Master is very low-key and rarely appears in public, his prestige in the Imperial Academy is extraordinary.

Even ordinary officials would respect such a figure, let alone these Imperial College Supervisors?

But Jiang Xinghuo saw Cao Duan at a glance.

There was nothing I could do about it, Cao Duan was tall and thin. When standing in the crowd, the word "stands out from the crowd" is the most appropriate word to describe him. He really looked like a black crane with a long neck.

"Huh? You are here too, please come out and do experiments with me."

After giving the instructions, Jiang Xinghuo withdrew his gaze and continued to move forward.

Arriving at the center of the square, a piece of open space was separated by the guards, which was specially used for experiments, and no other people were allowed to get close.

Jiang Xinghuo stood in the center, facing everyone's attention, cleared his throat and said.

"Thank you for coming today. Let's draw a prize first, 33 prisms."

After hearing this, the audience immediately felt at ease.

——The Imperial Master is a real person! Know what we came for.

Watching the fun is the next best thing. For some people, watching the fun is not enough to make them come to the Imperial College in the north of the city. The most important thing is the lottery.

The lottery is also very fair. Jiang Xinghuo throws a small sewn leather ball directly to Cao Duan. Just throw it casually. Whoever hits the head or shoulder will count. After the start, no movement, no fighting, no holding a child in the air to intercept. Violation of regulations will result in disqualification and expulsion.

Under the supervision of the Jinyi guards, the lottery was conducted in a relatively orderly manner.

Soon Cao Duan threw the hydrangea 33 times, and all the prizes were drawn in the first round.

When the people looked at the crystal clear glass prisms in their hands, they couldn't help but marvel. Although this exquisitely crafted glass product is not as exaggerated as being worth thousands of gold, it is equivalent to the monthly income of ordinary Nanjing citizens, especially The midday sun is reflected on it, and even more, wait?

Why does this light change color?

In fact, this was one of Jiang Xinghuo's reasons for drawing the lottery first.

In addition to enlivening the atmosphere, it is natural for them to take the initiative to discover the problem.

At this time, Jiang Xinghuo asked at the right time: "The theme of today's experiment is what color is light."

"Perhaps everyone thinks that light is white, or colorless, but what is it?"

As he said that, the surrounding Jin Yiwei took a huge watering can and sprayed water in the direction of the sun, and a rainbow appeared in front of everyone.

"Whether light is white, colorless, or colorful? I think everyone had similar doubts when they were playing naughtily in childhood, but no one paid attention to it. Today, we are going to reveal this secret. This is also Optics is an important part of physics, and subsequent public experiments in physics will be carried out in public from time to time in the same way, providing a possibility for everyone to have a deeper understanding of the scientific world."

"The first step is to explain to everyone the relationship between the seven colors of the rainbow and ordinary white light."

After that, Jin Yiwei pushed up two huge roulette wheels.

The roulette wheel is a bit like one used by an acrobatic team, but it is divided into three and seven areas in equal proportions, and they are painted in three colors: red, green, blue, and red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

"There are seven colors of light in the rainbow. To simplify things a bit, there are three main colors of light. Let's spin two roulette wheels respectively to let everyone see clearly how the seven colors of light become one color."

Since the roulette wheel was exquisitely made and could spin quickly with just a little force, the operator just turned the roulette wheel first slowly and then quickly. Soon, all three colors began to slowly turn white.

"How is this going?"

The people looked at the situation in front of them in surprise. Everyone was stunned and couldn't help but wonder. Some even stood on tiptoes to look out and saw that the roulette wheel had indeed stopped rotating and changed from pure white to three colors. Only then did they believe it. this matter.

"Let's try it a second time!"

Jin Yiwei controlled the seven-color roulette wheel to slowly rotate, and then the same situation happened.

"Okay, you should be able to see it. There are indeed seven colors in the rainbow, and they have their own unique connections. No matter how many colors they are, as long as they move fast enough, they will turn into pure white. "

Listening to Jin Yiwei's words, the people around the square were even more shocked.

"Oh my God!"

"It's really like this!"

"It's not a worthwhile trip, it's not a worthwhile trip!"

"So why?"

…

Seeing everyone's reaction, Jiang Xinghuo nodded with satisfaction.

"And this answer can be answered completely by optics, because light is both white and seven colors!"

"We will verify this next."

Under the spotlight, Jiang Xinghuo firmly believes that this is the meaning of public experiments, because through experiments, no matter who wants to understand how the world works, they no longer need to read books, but can formulate their own rules through observation and experiments. Test a hypothesis.

Who would have thought that using a glass prism, you could understand what natural light is all about?

Best of all, everyone can repeat and practice this experiment themselves using Prism.

Once this spirit of scientific experimentation spreads, science will never truly become a part of public knowledge like it has this time.

A dark room was set up by the Jinyi guards.

In this darkroom, there is only a small circular hole in the window panel to allow sunlight to enter.

Another person from Jinyiwei came in and placed another prism in front of Xiaokong.

In an instant, the onlookers immediately saw bright rainbow-like colorful ribbons on the wall opposite the darkroom through the windows!

Light is seven-colored, it has been proven!

The crowd began to rotate, and everyone saw this scene with their own eyes.

But the experiment isn't over yet.

"Now we can assume that if white light changes into seven colors of light after passing through a triangular prism, it is due to the interaction between white light and the prism. Then, when the light of various colors passes through the second prism, will it change color again?"

"Everyone can give their own answers in their hearts."

Then, there was another mid-time lottery draw, but obviously the people were a little absent-minded. Even if they were giving treasures, they couldn't resist the enthusiasm to verify and witness history in public.

After finishing the lottery of 33 prisms, the Jinyi guards immediately brought another prism and placed it behind the first prism, and placed a screen with a small hole between the two prisms.

This was the purpose of Jiang Xinghuo's previous small hole imaging experiment in the Imperial College.

"When the first prism is turned, the light of various colors passes through the small hole alone. The light that comes out through the small hole is the light of a single color. Then let it pass through the second prism. If the white light is composed of the light of the colors, A prism can decompose white light, so using another prism can also restore the light of these colors to white light."

And the next moment, as if the words were spoken, a miracle happened!

The seven-color light turned white again!

The crowd was completely excited!

At this moment, Jiang Xinghuo announced another big news.

"Based on other similar optical principles, Qin Tian Jian has recently developed an astronomical telescope that can directly observe the moon and stars. At the same time, the astronomical telescope will also be put on the market so that all people of the Ming Dynasty can realize their dream of looking up at the stars!"