Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

And the carriage behind them had fallen into another kind of silence.

The people from the Steam Workshop, after their frenzy, were speechless, watching the scenery rushing past the window with tears in their eyes.

A project with a development cycle of more than ten years had allowed a world-shaking achievement to be born in the hands of a group of unknown commoners.

Initially, it was just an idea of Fang Zheng Yi's.

He told everyone that there was a kind of car in this world that could walk on its own and transport countless goods, and with this kind of car, they could live a life they could never have imagined in their dreams.

If it were anyone else, they would never believe that there was a car in the world that could walk on its own.

But the person who said it was Fang Zheng Yi, and they believed it!

People say that life is full of worldly pleasures, but their lives had only had smoke before, and Fang Zheng Yi brought the fire.

No matter when or what difficulties they encountered, Fang Zheng Yi was always at the forefront.

From nothing to something, from poor to rich, this guardian had created countless miracles.

They had no reason not to believe, and they would never allow themselves not to believe!

After that, starting with a kettle, they followed Fang Zheng Yi and personally embarked on this research journey.

There were countless difficulties and problems in the middle. The manuscript paper they used for calculations could cover the entire Taoyuan County, and the castings could fill all the warehouses of Dongjiao University.

Many people thought about giving up. The road ahead was simply a long and bottomless bumpy road.

And the road was full of fog and traps...

But everyone persevered in the end, because there was always a lighthouse standing at the end of the road.

Today, they proved their value and achieved Fang Zheng Yi's goal.

Satisfaction, excitement, happiness, and expectation were all present at this moment.

And the painter in the carriage, from the initial fear to being infected by the group's emotions, also became serious.

....

The test section had reached its end, and the train slowly stopped.

Fang Zheng Yi and Li Yuan Zhao jumped off the train at the same time. With the help of coal ash, the two had become big smudges.

At his invitation, everyone began to get off the train one by one.

But the expression still could not hide the excitement.

Fang Zheng Yi raised his hands and said: "Congratulations, everyone, our train has finally been successfully launched today. In order to record this history-making moment, I have specially called the painters from Dongda. Let's have them make a group painting here, for posterity! Now line up in three rows behind me."

Everyone was in an uproar, and their hearts were filled with emotion.

Li Yuan Zhao then suddenly understood that the painter was brought for this purpose.

"Old Fang, you are still the most thoughtful."

Fang Zheng Yi grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth, and took out a small notebook from his chest and shook it in front of him.

"This is not enough, I want to find someone to write a history! Write a history of the railway, and the names of all the personnel involved in the construction of the railway train are here, not one will be missed."

"You are the real heroes."

Li Yuan Zhao nodded and smiled, patted him on the shoulder, and then the two walked to an open space.

All the staff of the Steam Workshop began to line up automatically.

Although most of the painters still didn't understand what was happening, this moment was obviously extremely solemn.

Everyone used great enthusiasm, took out their drawing boards and charcoal pencils, and sat on the ground to start painting in sections.

In just one and a half hours, a world-famous painting that would be pivotal in later generations was born.

In the center of the picture were Fang Zheng Yi and Li Yuan Zhao sitting next to each other, and on the left and right sides behind them were many researchers.

Everyone had a smiling face and made a V sign with their hands.

This action caused a trend of photo imitation in later generations, which lasted for a long time.

However, as for why everyone held up two fingers to form a V shape, what specific meaning this action had, it was another unsolved mystery that kept countless scholars up at night in later generations....

.......

Inside the warm pavilion, Emperor Jing was asking about government affairs as usual.

The ministers of the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and several members of the cabinet were sitting on the lower chairs, and the atmosphere was a bit heavy.

Feng Jie reported: "Your Majesty, today, due to the shortage of pig iron on the market, the price of iron is still rising steadily. Compared with the previous two months, it has doubled again. Now our Ministry of War, the Ministry of Industry, and the Royal Academy of Sciences are jointly casting new cannons. Due to the soaring price of iron, coupled with the fact that the craftsmanship is not fully mature, the original approved 370,000 taels of silver is no longer enough to cover the expenses."

"Today, Lord Xu is also here. Can we add another 200,000 taels to the Ministry of War to cope with unexpected events? I have already reported this earlier. Guns and cannons are a major national defense matter and cannot be delayed for a day. Give me a definite answer."

Xu Wen Shu looked embarrassed: "There is no war at the moment, so we can slow down if we can. The main problem is still on the railway. After two months, won't we have iron? Besides, the Ministry of Revenue recently allocated three million taels of silver for the development and construction of new ships. If it really doesn't work, the Ministry of War can adjust internally."

Feng Jie was slightly angry: "Lord Xu, one thing is one thing. The navy belongs to the navy. For the sake of national defense, am I still waiting for that damn railway? The manufacture of weapons cannot be stopped. The entire army of our Da Jing needs to update its equipment, and the progress must not be delayed."

Emperor Jing tapped the imperial desk lightly and said with a headache: "Don't quarrel first. These past two days, you have been saying these things in front of me over and over again. Aren't you just trying to get me to immediately call a halt to the dismantling of the railway?"

"I have already said in court that I will give Fang Zheng Yi two months. A ruler's words are gold! You ministers might as well wait a while. When his railway is completed, there will be countless refined iron."

Several old ministers looked at each other.

Li Yan Song smiled wryly: "Your Majesty, it is not that we ministers are forcing Your Majesty. This old minister does not understand why Your Majesty clearly knows that it is nonsense but still allows Lord Fang to continue? That railway protecting the country is clearly just talk of supernatural powers and chaos."

"This old minister believes that Your Majesty also disdains these claims."

Facing the questioning gazes of the old ministers, Emperor Jing looked embarrassed and opened his mouth with difficulty after struggling for a long time.

"The construction of the railway... was the first shovel that I struck..."

"? ? ? !"

A group of old men all had sluggish eyes in an instant.

So you struck the first shovel, no wonder this broken thing has been delayed for so long without being resolved.

Now everything is clear.

The emperor started this project, wouldn't abandoning it halfway be slapping the emperor in the face?

Now it is a case of riding a tiger and being unable to get off, so we can delay it as long as possible....

The warm pavilion fell into silence, and no one dared to speak.

At this moment, Guo Tian Yang suddenly entered and broke the embarrassment, reporting with a look of surprise: "Your Majesty, this servant has already found out."

Emperor Jing coughed lightly: "The railway, right? There is no need to be secretive. Tell everyone here directly about the specific situation."

Guo Tian Yang responded: "This servant sent people to investigate the railway, and it took a lot of effort. The Embroidered Uniform Guard has been strictly guarding against the Eastern Depot's probing."

"Later, this servant sent people to enter Dongjiao University and accidentally discovered that a painter knew the inside story before finding out the news about the railway, but after the painter said a few words and realized that he had been tricked, he refused to reveal anything else..."

Emperor Jing said irritably: "Tell me the result directly, what is the railway used for?"

"Yes! This servant heard that they seem to be researching a kind of car that can run on its own!"

Emperor Jing: "....."