Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

After all, although they have "power", everyone in the court has power.

Also because there are too many people, they don't actually feel any specific power, and they don't actually get anything from this high-intensity work. At most, they only get the salary of a 5th-rank official. The Six Departments' Censors who hold the veto power are only 7th-rank officials, and the lowest-level Shujishi are not even in the mainstream - they don't get paid.

The lowest-level Shujishi actually had two jobs, one in the Hanlin Academy and the other in the six ministries and nine government offices as an intern, and they only received an internship salary. The Hanlin Academy was not a mainstream place, so there was no salary.

However, they don't rely on their salary to live. The Hanlin Academy provides a lot of subsidies, so they don't have to spend money on food, clothing, housing and transportation. Whatever salary they get is just a deposit. So compared to power, they want to know what is happening now. Because this will directly affect their future work.

Now they only care about whether this will increase their workload. Because drafting an imperial edict is not just a matter of writing it, and it cannot be done behind closed doors. They also need to investigate, travel, and form a working group to coordinate with various departments when something happens, let those Shujishi who are on internship in the six ministries and nine officials run errands, and let the Hanlin talk to the officials of each department one by one. Drafting the imperial edict is only the last step.

Nowadays, when archives are generally written on typewriters, the imperial edicts of the Hanlin Academy are all handwritten in the official script without exception - because this is like cooking, the most complicated step is to cut the vegetables and prepare the side dishes, and the final cooking can be said to be the most interesting part of the entire cooking process. In the work of the Hanlin Academy, handwriting imperial edicts is one of the few times when they feel the most fulfilled, and usually the leader of each working group writes the main text. They are unwilling to leave this kind of thing to typewriters, and they must write it by hand.

However, even so, if the imperial court really starts to mobilize troops, they probably won't care whether it is written by hand or not.

Because as Wen Zhong said, the winter solstice is approaching, and now is the time for the court to conduct a full fiscal year of settlement. All matters, big and small, will begin now, and there won't be enough people here for a long time. Not to mention anything else, the Shujishi who are on internship will no longer have time to come here for meetings.

In the future, the drafting process of the imperial edict will be suspended to a certain extent, leaving only some basic work that does not require coordination with the outside world to maintain the normal operation of the center, especially the cabinet. This working group is usually carried out by Wen Zhong himself, and he will bring several full-time Hanlin to handle this matter.

Therefore, if Wen Zhong doesn't explain things clearly here, then everyone else will be like headless flies, running around in confusion.

"I know what you are thinking. In fact, because the incident happened suddenly, I only found out about it yesterday afternoon. So before the deadline, I will tell you what is happening now." Wen Zhong picked up a manuscript, "Currently, there are 10 royal troops and 8 naval forces on the front line of the expedition against Japan. According to the latest battle report, the Japanese capital Edo has been suppressed by the royal army and razed to the ground. But the royal army will continue to carry out the mission until the goal is achieved - that's it."

He put down the manuscript and everyone was stunned.

"Master Wen, Principal, you haven't said anything! What is the mission? Where is it carried out? When will Master Wang come back?"

"I don't know." Wen Zhong shook his head. "I don't know about this either."

"What about the supplies for the Royal Division? What about the propaganda work? The New Year is coming to an end. There are many ceremonial tasks that need to be performed by the Beijing Guards, especially the Tianjin Guards. What should we do with them? Also, the New Year is coming to an end. If this war lasts beyond the New Year, how are we going to explain it to the outside world?"

They haven't mentioned the most realistic economic issues yet. They know what Wen Zhong will say.

"Everyone, let's settle the accounts first." Wen Zhong said, "This account is 0. All expenses today will be borne by the emperor himself, so you don't have to record it in the account."

There is no need to settle accounts, this can be said to be the best news today - and there is even better news that comes with it: because the account books do not come from the court, this matter has little to do with the court in general.

As for the fact that the imperial court hadn't been informed of the mobilization of so many troops, was that even that important? It was important, but that wasn't the Hanlin scholars' concern. The Fengtian Hall only ensured the advancement of the agenda, ensuring that all matters were decided, drafted, and widely disseminated. As for the ins and outs of this matter, since they had no role in its formulation, they clearly didn't need to know.

"So, what should we do?" someone asked Wen Zhong.

"It's mainly propaganda work," Wen Zhong replied, "because right now, I have something to tell you."

Wen Zhong looked at the door. The Jinyiwei stood around the Fengtian Hall, acting as "Han generals". The people in the Fengtian Hall were in control of the cardinal matters, and everything discussed here was the top secret of the court. Therefore, they could know about this matter - but even if the authority was sufficient, it was still a cognitive shock to everyone:

"The 'naval force' in this operation refers to the Dragon King."

There was silence in the Fengtian Hall for a moment.

Needless to say, the Imperial Guards knew everything from the beginning to the end, and now the Imperial Academy also knew about it.

"The Dragon King means."

"That's the Dragon King you all know. In fact, the Dragon Palace is a vassal of the emperor, and the Dragon King will come to pay tribute regularly. He is your colleague - yes, the Dragon Palace exists, and the Dragon King is a dragon. Dragons also exist, and they really can make clouds and rain. That's it."

Wen Zhong announced this matter in the briefest and clearest words possible - this was also the first time that the relationship between the court and the mysterious was unveiled on a small scale.

"Oh, that's not surprising, that's not surprising."

Everyone was very receptive. After all, they were the most nervous people in the entire empire. They quickly digested this explosive news and connected it with many past events. There were many inexplicable things in the past, such as the strange phenomenon of heaven and earth and the incident of the Yangshan stele. Although they could all be considered auspicious signs, the court did not explain them.

And now, they are the first to know the clear explanation - they also know that Dragon Palace is just the beginning.

"Lord, was the Dragon Palace also responsible for the last incident? I'm talking about the giant spirit carrying the Yangshan Stele."

"That's not the Dragon Palace. That's a real person - it's time for me to introduce him to you: Shangluo. He may be a classmate of many of you. He is the Heavenly Lord and the emperor's junior fellow apprentice. Currently, he is entrusted by many 'big shots' to handle extraordinary affairs during the emperor's northern hunting trip. So I will immediately organize a working group to connect with Shangluo and pass messages between him and the court. I have already drawn up the list, and those whose names are called will stay after the meeting."

Chapter 1175: Roman Tutelage

"The Hanlin Academy is going to send an advisory group over?" Shangluo received a call.

[Yes, I'll answer it for you. They hope you can receive them because the court wants to know what happened here.]

“Who are they?”

[It is said that they are mainly Shujishi who are interning in the Metropolitan Procuratorate - that is to say, they may become imperial censors in the future. Also, those who come from the Hanlin Academy may become cabinet ministers in the future? ]

"That's the theory."

According to what Shangluo knew, the rule of the Ming Dynasty was "Only Jinshi can enter the Hanlin Academy, and only Hanlin can enter the Cabinet."

Although there are more than one channel for promotion, one can also obtain public office through other channels such as examinations in various departments. However, if one wants to enter the cabinet, the top of the imperial court, then this person must have served in the Hanlin Academy. In other words, he must have obtained at least the third-class Jinshi in a certain imperial examination and started his official career as a member of the Hanlin Academy.

[From a Roman perspective, the Imperial Academy is similar to the Senate? ]

"That's not wrong. The Hanlin Academy is indeed responsible for formulating policies, and its meetings are held in the Fengtian Hall. But in terms of ruling power, the Hanlin Academy is completely incomparable to the Senate."

【But your Hanlin Academy seems to be more righteous. It is the highest authority that everyone can enter through the imperial examination - or at least one of the highest authorities. Is there a limit on the term of office? I see that many Hanlins have very long terms of office. 】

"The Hanlin Academy has a term of office. The end of the term is called 'disbanding the academy'. If you keep passing the exam, you will continue to be a Hanlin. The longer you serve, the higher your rank will be, and the term will be slightly looser."

This is different from the "historical" Hanlin Academy. Generally speaking, the disbanding of the academy is only for the interns of the Shujishi, not for the senior Hanlin. But here, it seems that in order to increase mobility and keep all Hanlin in working condition, all Hanlin have to take the disbanding assessment regularly in their own academy. If you pass the exam, you will stay or get promoted, and if you fail, you will be disbanded directly.

Above the Shuchang Hall of the Shujishi, there are the Shilin Hall and Yutang Hall, as well as the highest level Taishi Hall. But in fact, they are all honorary titles, used to receive salaries. In terms of duties, all Hanlin are similar.

"The Hanlin sent later is a Shujishi from the Metropolitan Censorate, so he shouldn't come to cause trouble for me - come to think of it, why would he cause trouble for me? Now everyone just wants to resolve the matter."

[Wow, if this happened in Rome, the Senate would definitely come to hold you back. ]

"Because you Romans are going downhill, and we are going uphill - to put it bluntly, they are too busy to even bother me."

【But why isn't the Roman Senate busy?】

"Then I think this is the Romans' problem. For such a big country, if even the people who rule the country are not busy, it means that the country is not being run effectively. Just like during the Jiajing period, there was no court session, but the inner court was still busy. In the late Wanli period, if there was no court session, it would really be the same as giving up. Things are there. If you don't work on them, someone else will. They won't disappear just because no one is busy. When the entire court begins to become corrupt and can no longer handle the affairs of the country, then the court is not far from being destroyed - so, it's better to be busy."

Apollonia paused. "I have a hypothesis. Can Romans take the imperial examination?"

"Why do you ask this suddenly?"

[Because it is so bright, it makes people fascinated. ]

"speak English?"

[What a shame! It's a pity that Rome died like this. There is obviously a way to save it. I want to see if it can be saved - I mean, can Rome be reorganized according to the Ming model? And in this process, the Ming Dynasty will be responsible for the training? ]

"Wait a minute, let me ask. I remember something similar happening."

——"The Romans are here to take the imperial examination?" Lu Huaiyang was loading bullets into his magazine in his lounge.

He unpacked the bullets one by one and put them into the magazine one by one, preparing for the next operation of getting medicine.

There was originally a clip for loading bullets. But Lu Huaiyang had not yet recovered from the psychological trauma of being jailbroken by Xu Fu, and he was loading bullets into the magazine one by one, just to relieve the pressure.

"In principle, it is possible, but it may not be what you think - for example, North Korea can also participate in our imperial examinations, but North Korea relies on the Bingong exam rather than the Jinshi exam. Because to take the Jinshi exam, you must first take the Juren exam, and before taking the Juren exam, you must be a Xiucai, and the Xiucai exam requires taking the exam in the place of household registration, so if you don't have a household registration, you can't take the Jinshi exam from the source."

"That's natural. It's impossible to let Romans take the imperial examination. What happens after Bingong passes the imperial examination?"

"In theory, they will take the exam for Shujishi together with Jinshi. The overall pass rate of this exam is 12%. There is no fixed number of people. Those who pass the exam will stay in the Shuchang Hall. As many people as pass the exam will stay, so Bingongke also has a chance to stay here. If they can really pass the exam, they will enter the six ministries and nine ministers to study. In fact, there are about 10 Koreans working in technical positions in the six ministries and nine ministers. If all the tributary states are counted, there are about 30 people. They can be said to be elites at the level of the entire human race. At this level, it is not impossible for the emperor himself to issue household registration certificates to them."

“What about the remaining 88%?”

"Go home. North Korea is a special case. North Korea has already annexed the country. The highest authority in North Korea is the 'Korea Xuan Government'. The Xuan Government's mission is to maintain the daily operation of North Korea, and to report to the emperor and govern the country. The members of the Xuan Government are the ones we sent back - so you say Rome also wants to use this plan? That's fine, let them come, the court will educate them into qualified talents. Their country can also prosper like North Korea, with an annual GDP growing at an ultra-high speed of 4%."

[Ahh! This is the light of heaven! Rome is saved! So what is the process? ]

"The process is quite long." Lu Huaiyang replied, "After this, I guess Japan will have to go through a similar stage. If Miss Apollonia wants to observe, she can continue to pay attention to the progress here. The general process is to enter the training state first, that is, to form an effective reorganization under the supervision of the king's teacher. After the reform is completed, it will enter the Xuanzheng state, following the same process as the Xuan government of North Korea. The whole process can be said to be selfless. The Xuanzheng state is 30% tax-1, and the training state is even tax-free. The court provides first-class administrative services without charging a penny, and the court is losing money. Don't you have to thank the court?"

【thank you! 】

Chapter 1176 Reloading

"Hey, hey, hey." Victoria made a sound, "You guys just decided the future of Rome like this? You haven't even asked me yet."

[Um, sorry. How about Shangluo, can you tell me more? ]

"I will respect your choice." Shangluo replied, "If you really need the royal teacher to conduct training to reform the system, I personally have no objection. Victoria, if you have any objection, then we will not change it."

"I have no opinion, but I have a question - will it cost money? We don't have much money now."

"No need!" Shang Luo waved his hand, "I'll pay for the upgrade. Just leave me a portion of the tax revenue from your regency over Rome."

[I thought you just waved your hand and said you took care of it.]

"Don't you know how much money our family has?"

[That's right. Okay, that's settled.]

The future of Rome was decided, and no one cared that Rome would become a complete vassal state after this.

"Wait a minute." Lu Huaiyang suddenly asked, "If Rome changes like this, it will become a vassal state. Don't you care?"

"I don't care." Victoria replied, "Since Cyberlania has become an interdimensional country, it's no problem for its real part to become a vassal state."

"You're talking like you want me to keep an ancient god's tentacle as a pet!"

"Why worry so much? The Romans won't care anyway. This is a window for all Romans to re-enter reality. Those who are interested may actively prepare for the exam. Maybe it can provide a group of talents."

"Do the Romans still have the ability to prepare for the imperial examinations?"

"Don't underestimate our Academic Aurora Language. It's not a problem to study the Four Books and Five Classics and learn some more classics. If the Koreans can pass the test, then of course some of us can too. What is it called?"

"Bingong," Shangluo replied, "is the ancient princes offering talents as tribute to the emperor. The princes first select their own candidates, and then the emperor decides who to keep and appoint."

"Okay, okay, thank you for your care. By then, some Romans who are tired of death may want to live again, and they should try to re-participate in social affairs in this way. If any of you are tired of living, you can also come to Cyborenia to die, and we will also entertain you."

"I will tell you." Although Shangluo didn't know what the specific demand was, based on his own experience, the ice cream there tasted pretty good.

[I have a question.] Apollonia asked, [Victoria, where will you live then?]

"I don't know." Victoria expressed her hesitation without hesitation. "I don't really like going out. I just want to stay in my palace. So, it seems that both sides are the same. But compared with the fate of the empire, my personal life doesn't seem to be that important, right?"

"Very important." Shangluo replied, "You are much more important to me than the Roman Empire. I don't know anyone named 'Roman Empire'."

"Eh? You actually think so? Don't you want to rule the Roman Empire?"

"The Roman Empire is indeed a piece of land that can be cultivated for me, which can inspire my desire to farm. But if there is no one, who can I show my crops to? It is meaningless. If you are not watching, then farming in Rome is like returning home with wealth. You are the 1, and no matter how big Rome is, it is the 0 behind it."

"."

"Huh? Why don't you speak?"

[She was hit hard and for safety reasons, she took the initiative to log off. How did you say these words without changing your expression? ]

"Because I am just narrating! There is no personal emotion mixed in these words. My ideal is pure and flawless."

[I can’t imagine what she would be like if you took the initiative to communicate with her]

"Well, thank you for your kindness. I think it was mainly Victoria herself who was driving me, and I just triggered her emotions. I reflect on myself every day, wondering if I really deserve such love. So far, I am still very confident, and I think I am pretty good. If I can get the elixir back this time, I think I will be a great man."

Click. Lu Huaiyang next to him loaded the last magazine. He loaded the magazine into the pistol and tested the feel.

The barrel of the pistol has a caliber of 15 millimeters. Shangluo's fingers are relatively thin, so his pinky finger can fit in. The bullets of this gun are also as big as a glucose ampoule. Just now, Fu Yuanshan stuffed these huge bullets into the magazine one by one.

"Oh, right." Shangluo suddenly realized something, "Captain Lu, why did I seem to hear you put 20 bullets in one magazine? These bullets are so big, how did you put them in?"

"This is a caseless bullet." Lu Huaiyang pointed to a bullet that had not been loaded on the table and showed it to Shangluo - it was not just an ordinary caseless bullet, but it was actually square. The bullet column was cut into a square shape, with a tightly fitted fabric on the outside. The bullet was deeply buried in the bullet column and could not be seen from the outside.

"Do we have such technology?!" This has completely surpassed the light weapons technology of the first 21 years of the 30st century. Because he has this caseless rifle, but it is just an experimental weapon.

"No, we don't." Lu Huaiyang explained as he packed up, "But we don't have the technology, but we have precision manufacturing. This gun and these bullets were all made by top craftsmen, many of whom are Qigong practitioners. It takes decades of hard work to cut these ammunition."

“So it’s hand-cut?”

"That's what precision manufacturing is like. Even a Qigong practitioner has to cut it for a while, and there are tiny stamps on each bullet." He tried to pull the safety and load the gun - when he pulled the bolt, there was no crisp metallic sound, but rather a bunch of mechanisms inside the gun that seemed to be linked together like a clock, making a rattling sound.

"This thing can fire 2000 rounds of 15mm intermediate-power bullets in one minute. It has a tungsten bullet head and can even penetrate armored vehicles. Because the rate of fire is so fast, it is usually fired in three-round bursts."

"What is this thing used for?"

"This? It's just a self-defense weapon." He took out his gun and aimed it quickly at the empty space. "But if it hits Xu Fu, I don't know if he can handle it. I heard that the characteristic of traditional magic is that even immortals are not bulletproof. A few strong men can catch them and soak them in water."

After that, he put the gun back: "Anyway, I will follow you in a while. Although this pistol is not a main combat weapon, it is unexpected and can be used as a hidden weapon. If Xu Fu makes any small moves, I can try to see which is harder, his face or the steel plate of the armored vehicle. I bet his face is harder, so I have a special ingredient here."

Chapter 1177 Loaded

Lu Huaiyang loaded a bigger gun. This time it was not caseless bullets, each bullet was as big as a cigar. There were hundreds of kinds of weapons in the Jinyiwei's arsenal, and he picked the most powerful one.

"Torch Bolter. A new thing." Lu Huaiyang loaded the gun. "Inject the torch directly into the bullet. It is both a propellant and a charge. After hitting the target, the unburned part will explode directly. The metal jet produced by the explosion can penetrate the armor of the tank. It is a good thing that is both old and new."