ATPnovel Chapter 33 Wax Paper Printing
Chapter 33 Wax Paper Printing
As Zhu Yunwen turned to leave Qianqing Palace, he noticed Zhu Gaoxi sitting quietly on a stool, gazing at him with clear eyes.
The scene was somewhat awkward.
If he had known this shrew was here, he certainly wouldn't have said anything like "the prince is not obeying orders." He's just a mouthpiece, relaying every word he hears to his father.
Zhu Yunwen racked his brains, thinking rapidly, when suddenly a brilliant idea struck him: Didn't he want to be a prince? This would be perfect for him.
Thinking of this, Zhu Yunwen turned back to Zhu Yuanzhang and said, "Grandpa, there is one more thing I forgot to mention, which is about my brother being granted the title of king."
Zhu Yuanzhang thought he was referring to Zhu Yunwen, saying, "Your younger brother is still young, so there's no rush to enfeoff him as a prince. It won't be too late to do so after you ascend the throne."
"Grandpa, I was talking about Gao Xi," Zhu Yunwen said softly.
"Xi'er?!" Zhu Yuanzhang turned his gaze to Zhu Gaoxi, meeting Zhu Gaoxi's calm gaze. He paused for a few seconds, then looked at Zhu Yunwen, "What are your plans?"
"My younger brother is exceptionally intelligent, a rare talent indeed. He should be entrusted with important responsibilities. Why not bestow upon him the title of Prince and let him serve the court?" Zhu Yunwen suggested.
"This is not in accordance with regulations," Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head, fell into deep thought, and waved his hand, saying, "Let us think about it again."
Upon seeing this, Zhu Yunwen bowed and withdrew.
Seeing that Zhu Yuanzhang was engrossed in thinking, Zhu Gaoxi tiptoed to the door, intending to slip away.
"Come back, come back," Zhu Yuanzhang said, waving his hand.
"Grandpa," Zhu Gaoxi said, acting more docile than an obedient cat.
"You shouldn't be listening to important military matters, and even if you do, you can't tell anyone, especially not your father. That's the rule," Zhu Yuanzhang said, narrowing his eyes. "Do you understand?"
"Understood, grandson will never speak carelessly," Zhu Gaoxi raised his chubby hand, ready to swear an oath, but seeing that Zhu Yuanzhang had no such requirement, he quickly lowered it.
Zhu Yuanzhang glanced sideways and gave a soft snort, indicating that he had seen all of Zhu Gaoxi's little tricks.
Zhu Gaoxi quickly stepped forward to fawn over his grandfather and massaged his legs.
The pressure was just right, and Zhu Yuanzhang closed his eyes comfortably.
"Tell me, if Miaojin were to become Youdun's concubine, would she be willing?"
What?!
Miao Jin would definitely be willing to marry You Dun.
Does that mean I'll never have another chance?!
Zhu Gaoxi pretended not to hear and continued to massage his legs, but the movements were very slow.
"You little rascal, are you still harboring wicked intentions?" Zhu Yuanzhang opened his eyes. "Stop dreaming. That girl is stubborn. Since she likes You Dun, she can't possibly like you anymore."
The truth was too painful; Zhu Gaoxi almost burst into tears. "Grandpa."
"You can't rush into marriage. Your time for marriage is still ten years away," Zhu Yuanzhang said, sitting up. "Go out and have some fun. Your grandfather has things to do."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaoxi stood up like a little adult, bowed, and then walked out of the palace gate.
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the small figure, lost in thought.
This is indeed a precocious child.
However, we must heed the lesson of Emperor Wu of Han passing the throne to his youngest son, Liu Fuling.
A ruler needs more than just intelligence; he also needs to be healthy and live a long life so that he has time to put his ideas into practice.
If we were twenty years younger, we wouldn't need to...
Zhu Yuanzhang sighed, picked up his pen and wrote an imperial edict, ordering the Embroidered Uniform Guard to go to Beiping.
Let Dai Sigong come back; he shouldn't just stay with Lao Si all his life.
Of all the imperial physicians, Zhu Yuanzhang trusted Dai Sigong the most.
Zhu Gaoxi returned to the vegetable garden and taught the young eunuchs Arabic numerals and the four basic arithmetic operations.
He wrote down some addition and subtraction problems up to 100 on paper and had them practice on their own.
Although Arabic numerals had been introduced to my country at this time, they were not yet in use.
Among all the junior eunuchs, Li Hui was the most diligent in his studies, learned the material the fastest, and rarely made mistakes in his calculations.
Li Hui's intelligence is second only to Sanbao's.
Sanbao had attended school before entering the palace and knew how to read, so he had a certain level of education. He was the most educated among the eunuchs in the vegetable garden, which is why he became Zhu Gaoxi's capable assistant.
The other eunuchs, like Li Hui, were all illiterate.
Zhu Gaoxi would first explain the teaching content to Sanbao, and then Sanbao would supervise their practice.
After finishing his studies, Prince An, Zhu Ying, passed by the vegetable garden and stopped in for a short rest.
Since Zhu Gaoxi and Zhu Yunwen's relationship cooled, Zhu Yunwen intentionally kept his distance from Zhu Gaochi and rarely came to the vegetable garden. Zhu Gaoxi's only playmate was Zhu Ying.
Among the underage princes, Zhu Ying was twelve years old, Zhu Jing was nine years old, and Zhu Dong and Zhu Yi were only six years old. Zhu Gaoxi still preferred to be with Zhu Ying, and Zhu Ying knew how to give in to him.
Those three little brats just cry. Every time they start crying, they shout that they want to find their mother. They're so pathetic. We don't want to be with weaklings.
Zhu Gaoxi thought this with disgust whenever they cried.
"What are they writing?" Zhu Ying asked curiously.
"I'm doing math problems," Zhu Gaoxi explained, "using Arabic numerals."
"I've seen these numbers in a book," Zhu Ying asked, puzzled. "Why use Arabic numerals when you can calculate so quickly using counting rods or an abacus?"
"Because it's faster," Zhu Gaoxi replied succinctly, not wanting to engage in a lengthy argument.
Mathematics is the foundation of natural science, and it is very difficult to explain these things clearly to Zhu Ying.
"Not necessarily," Zhu Ying shook his head, turning his head to look at Sanbao's work. Suddenly, he remembered something, "Father forbids eunuchs from reading. If you do this, be careful that they will be punished as a result."
"I'll tell my grandfather tomorrow that they will not be punished," Zhu Gaoxi said, casting a reassuring glance at the fearful eyes of the young eunuchs.
"That's good. Giving advance notice will prevent anyone from complaining," Zhu Ying said with a sense of understanding. His birth mother died in childbirth, and he lived in the deep palace. He understood the coldness and warmth of human relationships earlier than children with mothers.
"Copying exercises like this is too inefficient. I plan to build a printing press so that many people can use it and it can be promoted to schools so that children from poor families can also study. However, I need Uncle Wang's help," Zhu Gaoxi said, seeking Zhu Ying's assistance.
"Find someone to carve the engraving?" Zhu Ying always readily granted his clever nephew's requests.
"It's not woodblock printing, it's wax printing," Zhu Gaoxi shook his head, then mysteriously went back into the house and took out two sheets of wax paper.
Zhu Gaoxi took it and asked incredulously, "Can this be used to print characters?"
"Of course," Zhu Gaoxi said, handing Zhu Ying a list of all the necessary tools and materials that he had prepared in advance.
Zhu Ying took it and looked at it carefully. "Even if we have all these things, we still can't make it. We need to find specialized craftsmen. I think we should talk to Father about this. It's a meaningful thing. Father will definitely support it."
Zhu Gaoxi originally wanted to give Zhu Yuanzhang a surprise to prove his ability and make a name for himself.
However, Zhu Ying's words were not without reason. Although wax paper printing seems simple in later generations, since no one has ever made it by hand, they do not know what problems they might encounter. It is safer to seek help from professionals.
Zhu Gaoxi decided to ask Zhu Yuanzhang for help the next day.
His desire to become the crown prince stemmed from two reasons: his anxiety about his own fate and his desire to avoid the Jingnan Campaign, which would have resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths.
Since I've been reborn, I should try to change something and improve the situation. I should use my knowledge and technology from this future life to benefit the people here, so that my second life won't be in vain.
Zhu Yunwen lacked both the ideas and the ability to solve the numerous problems, and he also lacked the kindness to properly settle his relatives. He only wanted to forcibly use the power in his hands to eliminate all hidden dangers that threatened his position.