Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

All this time, Shangluo's work had not actually made any progress. Because he knew that Shangluo had not even considered paying for the Water Dragon - this fee was actually something no one could "pay", because it was a huge sum of money even for the imperial court, and it was not something that could be decided lightly.

Now all the problems were solved at an unimaginable speed. However, the person who sent the communication was not Shangluo himself, but Zhu Ling.

"Your Highness, Princess, why are you here?"

"Guoxing. I have a question. Why didn't you help Shangluo to pay the money before?"

"Ah?" Zheng Shijie was stunned for a moment. "Why? This is his business after all. If he doesn't say anything, I can't get involved."

"I think this matter has the most to do with you, Guo Xing - don't you want to know whether there is spiritual energy on the moon?"

"Of course I want to know. But there are already professionals doing it, so I think it's better for me to just watch."

"I think you understand technology, Guoxing, but you can understand it even better. These problems can be solved with money, and they won't be a problem in the future, right? You also know that you have taken many elixirs before but they didn't work. Since you succeeded as soon as Shangluo came, why don't you continue to support Shangluo?"

"Eh? Right!" Zheng Shijie said in surprise, "Why didn't I think of that I should go against all the opinions and solve the problem? Why didn't I think of that and gave in to the voices of other board members?"

"That's because the other people on the board of directors are not as familiar with Shangluo as you are. I think there is a way. You can transfer the shares of Lanfang Company to Shangluo and let him become a member of the board of directors of Lanfang Company. In this way, you two will know each other."

"Hey! Wait!" Shangluo took the phone. "Guoxing, you don't have to think too much. She is just imagining things."

"Wild thoughts? No, no, no, I think this makes a lot of sense. Letting you, Shangluo, join the management of Lanfang Company can indeed improve the integration of both parties. From this point of view, I do hope that Shangluo will hold shares."

[Does she know any kind of soul-stealing technique? ]

"No, she is telling the truth," Shangluo understood. "She is solving the right problem in a low-cost way. It's like putting a pill in an apple. From our point of view, there are many problems in the court that should have been corrected long ago. For example, since this matter is so important, the aerospace department should be separated and contact us separately."

The current aerospace system is very complex. According to the system of the Ming Dynasty, all parts of the court belong to the sequence of six ministries and nine temples. Except for the nine temples, which are 9 departments directly under the emperor such as Guanglu Temple, the six ministries are actually super large departments.

Each of the six ministries has the strength comparable to that of a medium-sized country. Even the Ministry of Rites, which has always been low-key, can mobilize the Xiaoling Guard to complete certain tasks. Rather than six ministries, it is better to say that they are six interest groups that share a budget.

This can certainly speed up work efficiency in many cases, but it will also increase the gap between departments. Especially when facing new types of affairs, the gap between departments has become the top priority of the problem.

The aerospace department is not an independent department in the current Ming Dynasty, but a "symposium" composed of a series of departments under the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of Rites, and various colleges and universities. This symposium is not actually mandatory, and its decisions are mostly based on advice and inquiries.

However, as long as the aerospace department is separated, it will have its own budget and plan. By then, Shangluo will not have to worry about funding, because there will still be tall people to help if the sky falls.

"So Shangluo, I do think this is necessary. I think it is necessary to establish aerospace research teams and military aerospace forces in the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Military Affairs respectively."

"Wait a minute." Shangluo asked, "Does this mean that we have the opportunity to fund two space projects?"

"No, I intend to involve the Lan Fang Company as well. I brought up the military aerospace sector because there are many things we can't touch due to confidentiality requirements. So I hope the court will separate the military aerospace sector, preferably within the Ministry of Thunder."

The Ministry of Thunder, as the first department of the Heavenly Court, is currently imitating the Six Ministries and is very similar to the Ministry of Rites in some ways, as it also has an elite force that acts as a solution.

"Very good." Shangluo replied, "Then Guoxing, are you interested in serving in the Thunder Department as well?"

"Actually, I have a request." Zheng Shijie asked, "Can I have my own department? For example, can I set up a fire department?"

"Yes, it's all right. I only have one request."

"Okay! So, what do you need from me?"

"I need you to join the operation and organize the second echelon. At the same time, we will requisition the area around the Moon Cannon as a temporary base of operations. The launch plan will be controlled by the Thunder Department for the time being, and will be controlled by the Fire Department in the future."

"Huh???" Zheng Shijie was surprised, "That's the hard work of three generations of our family! We have to pay more!"

"You will be in charge of the Fire Department in exchange. Until a more suitable person appears, you can take priority in filling in as the head of the Fire Department."

"really?"

"Really?" Shangluo replied, "I have only one request - you have to go to the moon and personally command the second echelon."

"." Zheng Shijie suddenly asked, "Did something happen? Why did the situation suddenly become urgent?"

"Please look at the big screen."

Shangluo sent a video.

"This is the image that the Colombian Automata sent me earlier."

On the moon, the earth was rising slowly from the horizon. The view was all white, but a spot had already been circled on the screen. The image zoomed in—a pair of rabbit ears were quietly rising from the crater, as if they were listening to something. When the rabbit ears turned around, the image had disappeared.

"The Moon Rabbit really exists!" This was the first time the Moon Rabbit was confirmed visually. "Shangluo, how did you get this?"

"In fact, the Automata Nation is serving as my advance force to repair the lunar surface in preparation for the follow-up large force. However, not long ago, when I was about to call you, they suddenly sent me intelligence. Now the entire base on the moon has lost contact, so I need to split into two echelons to carry out the mission. If one fails, there is always another."

"I understand. The Lan Fang will independently organize a task force to follow you. My uncle will be in charge of the operation. To be honest, we also have some military aerospace forces, such as military satellites."

"???"

"Now they all belong to the court! They all belong to the Fire Department. I'll hand them all over. Wait a minute, I'll have them assemble at the space station. There aren't many of them, but they can be deployed immediately. I plan to keep them for orbital landings. Now they all belong to the Fire Department."

Chapter 1315 Warriors Falling from the Sky

"Wait a minute." Shangluo noticed something, "Lan Fang has orbital airborne troops?"

"Yes. We have orbital airborne troops." Zheng Shijie was a little unconfident, but now that he was going to merge with the Fire Department, he might as well speak frankly.

"How is it done?"

"Based on our new combat uniform, the Tiger Armor, the Lan Fang Iron Man Army was able to maintain its safety during the process of breaking through the atmosphere. Before landing, the Tiger Armor can also reverse thrust through the phlogiston engine, allowing the company's employees to land safely."

"Then how do you send people up there?"

"Cannon. Yes, we can use cannons to launch people. But it's not into orbit, it's just a parabola. Although the orbital experiment is still underway, if it's just a parabola, ordinary Qigong practitioners can withstand it. Our fighters will fly into the sky on the cannonball, stay in space for a short time, and finally land smoothly."

"Wait, I have a question - why don't you let the soldiers ride in the warheads when they fall?"

"Because the warhead is very unsafe." Zheng Shijie answered truthfully, "In fact, we haven't completely modified the warhead yet. When it lands, the hatch will be deformed and can't be opened. Sometimes it will even roll over. Even if the people inside try their best to operate it, they can't keep it stable, and finally they can only fall to the ground."

"Wait a minute." Shangluo noticed another blind spot. "So you said that, you actually did an experiment? Someone inside 'operated with full force and then fell to the ground'? Is he okay?"

"My uncle is fine. It doesn't matter. He is a celestial being. Even if he were to be re-entered into the atmosphere at 15 times the speed of sound and crashed into the ground, he would only be covered in bruises."

Shangluo understood now. Why Zheng Yin had always been so resentful about this experiment? It turned out that there was such a thing before. If his nephew was not reluctant to beat him, Shangluo felt that Zheng Shijie might not be able to pass this test.

"Don't look at me like that. I've been beaten before."

"This kind of thing can be solved by beating them up, they are really a family"

"That's right. My uncle has always been very supportive of our experiments. And this experiment was not completely unsuccessful. It was at least 70% successful. Although the hatch cannot be opened due to the high temperature when re-entering the atmosphere, we can open the hatch before re-entering the atmosphere. Subsequent experiments based on this plan were also all successful. The new type of armor is fully capable of supporting a Qigong practitioner falling from the edge of the atmosphere, maintaining its own stability, and finally landing normally."

"Let me guess. Is it all thanks to the Qigong practitioner that this thing was able to land normally?"

"Yes. Thanks to the Qigong practitioner. Although we can't make a magical weapon as big as a vehicle, we can make one as big as a suit of armor. Under the control of the Qigong practitioner, the Tiger Guard Style can allow the Qigong practitioner to land normally without burning up on the way."

“Is there a possibility of failure?”

"No." Zheng Shijie replied, "Our Taoism is not some uncontrollable magic. The so-called Taoism means possibility. If you can do it, you can do it, and if you can't do it, you can't do it. Under the premise of control, everything will proceed step by step. After all, this is not too difficult for Qigong practitioners."

"Can I ask what the process is like? Because the heat seems pretty outrageous."

"Just control the speed. In fact, it doesn't make the Qigong practitioner resist the high temperature directly. Instead, it makes the Qigong practitioner use the airflow to glide on the edge of the atmosphere, extending the gliding distance while slowing down. This can extend the range by several thousand kilometers, and ensure that the surrounding temperature will not exceed the upper limit that the Qigong practitioner can handle when entering the atmosphere. My uncle had problems with this part before, because something as big as a shell was beyond his control. In the end, he lost control and rolled over, the reverse thrust failed, and the hatch could not be opened or not. There was nothing we could do about it."

His words "there is no way" made Zheng Yin fall over countless times.

"But speaking of which," Shangluo asked, "how much spare stock do we have of this airborne armor?"

"There's plenty. More than enough."

"Can it be used to attack the moon?"

"Of course." Zheng Shijie replied, "Our combat suit is actually a small spacecraft that can withstand harsh natural environments. The environment on the lunar surface is actually not very harsh, so of course we can withstand it."

"Very good." Shangluo nodded, "Now even the equipment is complete. So, are there any requirements for the Qigong practitioners?"

"As long as they are Qigong practitioners, they can do it."

"What about me~~" Zhu Ling suddenly jumped out from outside the screen.

"Your Highness!" Zheng Shijie stood up at once. "This is unacceptable. How can we let Your Highness put her precious body in danger? If something happens, I will be... Eh?"

Zheng Shijie also noticed it: "Have you become a celestial being?"

Zheng Shijie was so surprised that he even forgot to say the polite greeting.

"Hey~~ Do you think I look like a celestial being?"

"Brother Huohua succeeded? Did he make the medicine?"

"It's not him, but this princess's own opportunity has come! Hehehe!"

"Let me add something." Shangluo replied, "There are some twists and turns here. This process is not easy to repeat, but our Holy Son of Heaven Emperor did save another celestial being. How many did he save?"

"Including himself, there are four of them," Zheng Shijie exclaimed, "Two innate spirit beasts, and two celestial beings. His speed of saving people is even faster than that of the Heavenly Master! The Heavenly Master Sa has saved so many foundation-building stage people in such a short time!"

He said in annoyance, "Did I do something wrong? If I had followed him all the way and helped him test drugs every day, would I have become like this by now?"

"By the way." Shangluo pressed the issue, "How long has it been since you helped him test the drug?"

"Except for a few times in college, I haven't tried it for him. His medicine is useless! It's just a permanent white hair dye, and it explodes every now and then. Later, our experiments turned to functional pills, which have a detailed verification process and do not require me to test the medicine myself. Oh my God." Zheng Shijie said in annoyance, "It's four, why didn't I catch up."

"I think, Guoxing." Shangluo said seriously, "I think you can try it now."

"Really? Really?"

"Yes." Shang Luo nodded. "This time, Zhu Ling's promotion has enabled us to make a huge breakthrough in theory. I think you can try it quickly, you can still catch up. I think my senior brother will also be happy to let you, an old friend, join the experiment."

Chapter 1316: The Fire Department's Plan

"Wait, he's not a volunteer who's short of medicine, is he? This time I'll go with you! I'll try it myself! I don't believe that if the other four succeed, I won't. But I have a condition! I hope my uncle can come and help monitor me. And my ancestor, I hope to let the Red Dragon King come and watch."

"I think, except for the Red Dragon King, everything else is easy to deal with." Shangluo said helplessly, "If you agree, this plan will be finalized. I just asked my senior brother."

"Great! It's okay if my master doesn't come. I don't think he will come either."

"I knew it."

He knew that Zheng Shijie would ask for the wall to be demolished first when he made his offer, and he would compromise after the other party refused for the first time. Zhu Xianxun also knew his temper, so he started to compromise directly. What's more, it was unlikely that the Red Dragon King would come, as he had been sleeping all the time. Instead of waiting for him to come, it would be better to let the Taiye Dragon King, Ms. Xiaohong, who was at the door, come and watch.

However, Zhu Xianxun really needs to find someone to test the drug. The new "triple chaos" theory requires a lot of experiments to verify, and it is really important to have someone who knows everything about it. Because if something goes wrong, it is easier to "clean up" with someone you know.

"So, I am willing to hand over the Lan Fang Company - by the way, does the imperial court want to use this opportunity to reduce the power of the feudal lords?"

"That's not the case." Shangluo explained directly, "In fact, we want to help you change your fiefdom. There are some new businesses that need you to handle. So the court hopes that you, as the Marquis of Yanping, will be separated from Lanfang's affairs so as to complete the substantive unification of the earth."

This is crucial because the imperial court does not want another sovereign state to appear on the sacred Earth of Kongo. As a vassal, Lan Fang actually has considerable sovereignty. So at that time, it will not only reclaim the sovereignty of the technological barbarians, but also the sovereignty of the vassal.

The entire King Kong Earth will take new steps towards the universe after achieving complete unification.

"So the court is going to expand the scope of the royal domain? Or is it just going to abolish the vassal states?"

"It's the latter." Shangluo replied, "Abolishing sovereignty does not mean that the court will change the entire Earth into a state of rule. The court will use a new system to manage other regions on Earth, such as sending out commissioners. The template for the transformation is the Protectorate. The subordinate technological barbarians can maintain autonomy at the city-state level, just like the city-states under the Western Regions Protectorate."

"Ah, the court is really kind." Zheng Shijie couldn't help but admire, "Then where should I go next?"

"Mars." Shangluo replied, "The south is associated with fire, so the court hopes that you will develop Mars on a large scale. I am just conveying your opinion. This is not my decision. It was made by my senior brother."

"Mars? That's so far away, the farthest terrestrial planet. But it's true, Lanfang is also a remote place. Never mind, I don't plan to go to Mars anyway, I can just claim the fiefdom remotely. At worst, I can follow the example of my ancestor Zheng Yi Guan. Oh no, my ancestor Guo Xing, who was successful, and recruit immigrants to develop Mars. The Ministry of Fire should be on Mars, it's very reasonable."

Shangluo also conveyed the future arrangements for Marquis Yanping - this is actually not just for the purpose of "unifying" the earth.

If the Yanping family had always ruled Nanyang, their affiliation would have always been to the imperial court rather than the heavenly court. However, if they were enfeoffed to heaven, their affiliation would officially shift from the imperial court to the heavenly court.

In other words, they will temporarily become subordinates of Shangluo.

After the establishment of the Heavenly Palace, Shangluo planned to step down from frontline management—he had no intention of becoming the Jade Emperor, a position reserved for Zhu Xianxun. Only then would the relationship between them, as ruler and subject, be restored.

However, at present, Shangluo can intervene more in Lanfang's affairs through the jurisdiction of the Fire Department. This is also the decision he made after discussing with Zhu Xianxi.

Because Lan Fang's space affairs accounted for half of the empire, the court needed to manage this half in order to continue to maintain control over the world in the future. And more importantly, the current combat plan for the moon also required Lan Fang's participation.

"Oh, right." Zheng Shijie said, "Since we are going to attack the moon as well, how about we make some small changes to the plan?"

Shangluo was waiting for him to say this: "What do you think of Guoxing?"

"I think if we just send a combat squadron up there, it will lack some deterrent power. I think we should organize warships to go up there!"

"How do we set it up?"

"We can't send out too many Water Dragons in a short period of time. But we can use the Water Dragon as the main body, and then launch the rest of the battleship through cannons, and finally dock in orbit. But there is a problem. The Water Dragon is a cylinder, which is actually just a shell and does not have complete combat capabilities. If we want to form a battleship in a short period of time, we may need some more complete cores. Do you have any ideas?"

"If you put it that way, yes." Shangluo nodded. He did have an unfinished warship in his hands.

"You have it? Wait, the Lianshan? The Lianshan is in your hands, right? We want to turn the Lianshan into a space battleship?"

"In the short term, this is the only realistic plan. We have to hurry because the moon rabbits on the moon have discovered us. If we don't capture them in a short time, they may retreat back into the moon and escape."