My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 427: No Etiquette or Morality
As Lao Li said, to build a power grid, we also need wires, transformers and other things. It seems that the construction of this power grid, like the railway network, is a huge system project.

But apart from the wires, I didn't understand anything else.

According to Lao Li, wires are used to transmit electricity. By watching the electricity generated by Li Min's generator, he realized that electricity is something invisible and intangible, but has great power.

Being invisible and intangible means that electricity cannot be touched, unlike steel, coal and other items that can be transported by manpower or by train. This is also the urgent problem that Li Min and others who have created the generator need to solve, that is, how to transmit electricity.

So if we have electric wires, they can be used to transmit electricity. But if we say so, electric wires are used to transmit electricity, then what does it have to do with radio?
Zhu Yuanzhang recalled that his first contact with "electricity" was through radio. Does this mean that electricity can also be transmitted through wires and wirelessly?

From the letter, it can be seen that Lao Li’s intention should be to let Daming develop wired electricity first.

Uh, that’s not right. Zhu Yuanzhang quickly overturned his idea. Wires are used to transmit electricity, while radio should be used to transmit information.

What Lao Li meant was that tangible wires should be used to transmit electricity to enhance the "power". The increase in power means that radio can transmit over longer distances.

This is the correct understanding! Zhu Yuanzhang felt that he had once again followed Li Han's train of thought, but when he saw the word glass, he was a little puzzled. Glass was not uncommon. It was produced in many workshops in the Ming Dynasty, but what did it have to do with electricity?
Could it be that this glass is a material that can transmit electricity? Let’s see what Lao Li says.

“First of all, glass has no direct relationship with power transmission, but it has a wide range of applications in industry and life.

What exactly is glass? It is a transparent material. You can imagine it as something more crystal clear than crystal. It is transparent, light-transmitting and has stable properties. In life, it is mostly used to make doors, windows, cups, mirrors, etc.

Of course, I know that Daming can produce glass, but the glass I'm talking about here is produced using a completely new process. Old Zhu, can you imagine glass that has no impurities and is completely transparent? "

Glass that is free of impurities and completely transparent?
Zhu Yuanzhang had never seen this before. The glass produced in the Ming Dynasty today is mostly bluish in color and mixed with various pigments. It is no different from colored glaze, but there is no completely light-transmitting glass.

"This kind of completely light-transmitting glass is currently used most importantly by the Ming Dynasty to make light bulbs. What is a light bulb? It is a tool that uses electricity for lighting.

Of course, you may not have any idea of ​​what I am saying. I have put the specific production and instructions into a USB drive. You can take a look at it when you have time.

I have said so much just to introduce the production of another important industrial raw material - soda ash!"

Soda ash, what is it?

Zhu Yuanzhang also became interested. How come Old Li was like a treasure pot, with all kinds of new things?

“Soda ash is one of the important raw materials for making glass. Not only that, it also has a wider range of uses in other fields.

This thing is called industrial salt. Just like salt is needed for cooking, soda ash can be used in all fields. In addition to making glass, in the metallurgical industry, soda ash can effectively remove impurities in ores, thereby achieving the effect of quickly purifying metals. Of course, this is only one of the simplest uses of soda ash. "Metallurgy, improve purity? Oh, Lao Li, why didn't you get this good thing out earlier? Zhu Yuanzhang complained in his heart, this guy, he always hides his good things.

"I've put the method for making soda ash in the USB drive for you. Now let's get down to business.

First of all, congratulations on wiping out Chen Zuyi and gaining control of Temasek and the Strait of Malacca.

The surrender of Srivijaya and the destruction of Chen Zuyi also meant that there was no longer any force in the Malacca area that could pose a threat to the Ming Dynasty. However, Srivijaya, which was thousands of miles away from the Ming Dynasty, was willing to be manipulated by the Ming Dynasty. I think the expeditionary force you sent, Zhu, should have taught Parameswara a good lesson, right?

This should be regarded as the effect of killing three birds with one stone. Not only did it wipe out Chen Zuyi and take Malacca, but it also shocked Srivijaya. There is a saying that goes, "If you strike the first blow, you can avoid a hundred blows."

"Hahahahahaha!" Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but burst into laughter. What Lao Li said was really interesting.

One punch is enough to prevent a hundred punches from coming. This is the effect we, Old Zhu, want!

"Now that Malacca has been captured, the next step of the plan can be carried out smoothly. Old Zhu, you are right in your letter. The great voyages can only be led by the Ming Dynasty and cannot be taken over by those Europeans.

The core of East-West trade is in the East, and Malacca is the fulcrum of the East’s core to pry the West!
Now that the Europeans have found Malacca, it is time to tell you about the customs and situation of Europe so that you will not be at a loss when dealing with Europe in the future.

Let’s start with the names of the people. Don Ferdinando Makaros, who was captured by Xu Da, did not have the surname Tang but Makaros. According to European custom, they put the first name first and the surname last.

As for Don Ferdinando Makaros, his real first name is Don, but he has two surnames, Ferdinand and Makaros, but the Ferdinand in the middle can be used as both a first name and a surname, and the same is true for Don. "

After being confused by Li Han, Zhu Yuanzhang felt dizzy and didn't understand what this meant.
The surname is passed down in the family, so how can it be put after the given name? Then how can Tang and Ferdinand be both surnames and given names? Those guys in Europa are really not particular!
“According to the tradition of the Kingdom of Castile, Don is a special noble surname. This guy named Makaros must have married a noble lady with the surname Don, so he put Don in his name.

As for Ferdinand, it is the royal surname of the Kingdom of Aragon, the neighboring country of the Kingdom of Castile. Therefore, this guy's mother should be a princess from the Kingdom of Aragon, and he took his mother's surname. As for Macaros, it should come from his original surname, the Macaros family.

Don't find it strange. Europeans particularly like to emphasize their aristocratic blood. They don't have the idea that kings, princes, generals and ministers are born with a special family. You can understand it as people in the Jin Dynasty liked to emphasize that they came from the aristocratic class of the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers and the aristocratic class in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. They liked to emphasize their aristocratic origin and how noble their bloodline was.

Therefore, when they were getting married, if the woman's family was particularly noble, it was common practice to use the woman's surname in the child's name to emphasize the child's noble origin.

Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes and frowned. Should he say that these guys disregarded etiquette and morality, or that they liked to flatter themselves?

Just like his eldest daughter, Princess Lin'an, married Li Shanchang's son Li Qi. However, Lin'an and Li Qi's child, Li Mao, could not be renamed Li Zhumao just because "Zhu" was the royal surname, right?
(End of this chapter)