Chapter 820: Significance

"Exactly. The railway from Yancheng to Jinghai is complete, and the Railway Department is preparing for the first test run. I hope Your Highness will grace us with your presence to observe it." Zou Rong's eyes seemed to shine, and as he spoke, he rubbed his hands together in excitement.

This Railway Department currently falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Works.

The laying of the railway is also directly overseen by the Ministry of Works.

Zhao Xu nodded, feeling a surge of excitement.

This is, after all, the first railway in Great Song and even in the entire Dongtu, and it was built entirely relying on their own technology.

At the same time, it means that not only in terms of steamships, but now in terms of railways, Jiangbei has also achieved a catch-up with the steam industry of the Western Lands.

From here on out, technological upgrades will be a one-sided surpassing.

"For such an important matter, I naturally must go," Zhao Xu said with a face full of smiles. "When is the test run?"

"It can be done at any time," said Zou Rong.

"Hmm, then let's make it the day after tomorrow. Also, spread the news so the common people can come and witness the grand occasion," Zhao Xu said.

He had been planning to make a trip to Jinghai to inspect the construction of the warships.

Taking advantage of the test run, he could experience the steam locomotive while traveling directly from Yancheng to Jinghai.

The distance from Yancheng to Jinghai is only about 180 li, which is roughly 90 kilometers.

In the past, it often took more than a full day to arrive.

If the steam engine runs without issues, he could reach Jinghai in just an hour and a half this time.

He could go in the morning and return in the afternoon.

However, for the first test run, one must naturally be cautious; with him personally on board, the Railway Department would certainly not dare to run at the full speed of 60 kilometers per hour.

But even at 30 kilometers per hour, he would only need three hours to reach Jinghai.

From the more than a day it took before to just an hour and a half now, it is clear that the steam locomotive is a massive revolution in transportation.

Commoners, merchants, officials, and cargo will no longer need to waste vast amounts of time on the road, thereby increasing the efficiency of all of Jiangbei.

This is like the blood flowing through the blood vessels of a human body; the speed of oxygen transport undoubtedly determines a person's athletic ability.

From now on, Jiangbei will enter an era of high efficiency.

"Yes, Your Highness." Zou Rong chuckled twice, bowed, and departed.

Once Zou Rong's figure disappeared, Zhao Xu sent someone to Wuji Palace to invite Zhao Heng to attend the steam locomotive test run.

Although this Emperor of Great Song currently holds no power, he is at least still the mascot of Great Song.

Furthermore, he wanted this Emperor to see his capabilities with his own eyes, to make him regret having treated the Ninth Prince so harshly in the past.

Besides Zhao Heng, he also ordered that this matter be made known to Yang Feng and other old officials from Jinling, as well as royal clansmen like the Prince of Chun, so they could all come together.

One servant of the Prince's estate after another received their orders and left.

This news spread like wildfire, and naturally, Yang Susu, Feng'er, and Luan'er learned of it as well.

Halfway back to his sleeping quarters, Yang Susu came to meet him along with Feng'er and Luan'er.

"Your Highness, this concubine wishes to go as well," Yang Susu said, exchanging a glance with Feng'er and Luan'er, and pleaded.

Ever since she witnessed the steamships in Jinghai,

Yang Susu was no longer interested solely in needlework and weaving.

Zhao Xu could understand this point.

After all, Yang Susu had been reading books since she was young, and her knowledge was broader than that of the average woman in the inner chambers.

Coupled with the intense scientific atmosphere in Yanzhou and the influence he exerted, whether intentional or not, it was natural for her to develop curiosity about matters completely different from poetry, books, rites, and music.

Of course, the most important point was that sometimes when Zhao Xu chatted with Wang Chong and the others, she felt as if she were listening to heavenly scripts, making her feel inadequate.

There were also fewer topics for her to chat about with Zhao Xu.

She came from a family of military generals and had a gentle exterior but a firm interior; because almost all the men of the Yang Family had died on the battlefield, and she, being a woman, could not go to the front lines to kill the enemy, she had always harbored the thought that women should not be inferior to men.

Thus, she had been secretly competing.

However, if it were only that, she wouldn't have gone this far.

There was another matter: under Zhao Xu's instruction, Mi Zhuang had recently been spreading New Confucianism alongside other great scholars.

The core of this New Confucianism was to target Old Confucianism, taking its essence and discarding its dross.

On one hand, it overturned the traditional old learning that only valued the classics of the sages, and on the other, it advocated for the Public School model of new learning.

It also encouraged enrollment regardless of gender.

Therefore, since the Yan Wang had this idea, she, as his Princess, had to follow her husband's lead.

"Go? Of course you must go. This time, the assistant conductor of the steam locomotive is a woman," Zhao Xu said with a smile.

The reason he made the railway test run so grand, besides using it to demonstrate the formidable steam industry strength of Jiangbei and boost the confidence of everyone from commoners to officials, was also to take the opportunity to educate the public.

One of the purposes of education was to make everyone realize that women could handle key jobs by showcasing the female assistant conductor, thereby stopping the commoners from obstructing girls from attending school.

According to the information provided to him by Liu Fu, since the Imperial Court began promoting Public Schools, ninety percent of those enrolling were still boys.

In this feudal society, the bad habit of girls only waiting in their chambers to be married and the belief that "a woman without talent is virtuous" could not be allowed to continue.

After all, the competition between modern nations is a competition of comprehensive national strength and a competition of talent.

The more students enrolled, the more likely it is to select geniuses from among them.

If Public Schools lacked girls, it was equivalent to losing half of the student body.

Another educational purpose was to make the public recognize the importance of technology.

Even the Emperor and the ministers attending the steam locomotive test run would leave a deep impression on the hearts of the common people, changing the slanderous claim that it was merely "strange skills and ingenious devices."

"Is that so? Since that is the case, this concubine must go and see it even more," Yang Susu smiled, revealing two small dimples.

Zhao Xu shook his head. Yang Susu was two years younger than him, only eighteen, which was exactly the age to be lively and full of vitality; there was indeed no need to make her a canary in a cage.

He then thought that encouraging the Princess to actively learn various scientific knowledge would also serve as a spur to other women.

It would be even better if he could establish an organization and have her specifically take charge of the difficulties girls face in enrolling in school.

Thinking of this, he nodded secretly.

Another day passed.

On the third day, Zhao Xu and Yang Susu first went to Wuji Palace to invite Zhao Heng and Imperial Concubine Mi Fei, then headed straight to the station located on the east side of Yancheng.

At this time, Liu Fu, Yang Feng, Prince Chun, and others had all arrived, and the commoners who came to watch the excitement were as numerous as a mountain or sea; they stood on both sides of the Railway, forming a thick human wall.

"Your Highness, please."

As soon as Zhao Xu arrived, Zou Rong immediately came to Zhao Xu's side, leading everyone into the station.

Zhao Xu walked inside while observing this old-fashioned station.

Lacking the luxury of a modern train station, the north side of Yancheng station only had a row of houses with red tiles and red walls; these were the offices for the Railway staff.

In front of the houses was a row of pillars, with a canopy extending out from above them.

Opposite was another row of canopies, and the space between the canopies was paved with crushed stone, with two tracks on top of the crushed stone.

A Steam Locomotive was parked on the departure track, with six carriages pulled behind the Steam Locomotive.

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