Chương 645: Railway Construction Completed

In the tenth year of Shenwu, in April, spring.

The willow catkins in Luoyang haven't finished drifting away yet; the whole city is covered in fluffy white clumps, and when the wind blows, it's like a gentle snowfall.

A terribly boring court assembly was taking place in the Liangyi Hall.

Minister of Revenue Shen Wansan was arguing with Minister of War Li Jing about military expenses, their words flying as they spoke.

"Old Li! The railway needs money right now, and your artillery battalion wants another budget increase—fifty million coins! Do you think the Ministry of Revenue is a treasure trove? That money falls from the sky? I'm about to lose my mind!"

Li Jing slammed his fist on the table and retorted:

"The railway is important, but the border defense isn't? The Xianbei in the north may have been wiped out, but who knows if new nomadic tribes will emerge? The Western Regions have only just been settled, so we still need to station troops there to maintain order! Ten million coins? I think that's too little!"

The ministers below were all slacking off, while Cheng Yu secretly yawned...

Xun Yu lowered his head to organize the memorials, straightening each crooked sheet of paper...

Cheng Yaojin stood among the generals, secretly taking out the melon seeds from his pocket and cracking them open. After he finished, he stuffed two more into Zhang Fei's hand. The two of them, like hamsters, had their cheeks bulging out and were making a crunching sound as they chewed.

Liu Ce sat on the dragon throne, slowly twirling the vermilion brush in his hand, pondering what to eat for lunch... Should he have the braised pork knuckle from the imperial kitchen, or should he ask the kitchen to make a bowl of beef noodles with two spoonfuls of chili and a poached egg? Just thinking about it made him hungry.

He had heard the content of the court assembly eight hundred times; it was always the same few things, and he was tired of hearing it.

Just then...

"Report!!!"

A loud shout came from outside the hall, and the messenger rushed in, his face beaming with excitement, as if he had found a gold ingot.

He quickly bowed, his voice cracking:

"Your Majesty! Minister of Works Song Yingxing urgently reports... The railway from Luojing (Luoyang) to Chang'an is now fully operational!!"

"Whoosh..."

The hall fell silent instantly...

Shen Wansan's mouth was agape, and Li Jing's hand, raised halfway up, froze, as if someone had acupunctured him...

The old ministers looked at each other, their eyes filled with disbelief... Was this the road that had been debated for so long before it was finally decided?

This is a 900-mile-long steel artery that requires opening up mountains, building bridges, and navigating the treacherous Xiaohan Pass.

Is it really completed? Back then, so many people secretly said it was a pipe dream, that it wouldn't even cover a mile in three years, but now, after just over two years, it's actually completed!

Liu Ce's vermilion brush hovered in mid-air. He didn't look at the memorial; his eyes were fixed on the messenger. He slowly placed the brush back on the brush holder, his lips gradually curving upwards until he burst into loud laughter. He laughed so hard he stood up abruptly from the dragon throne, his hands gripping the table, his eyes gleaming, and his voice trembling.

"Where's Song Yingxing? Didn't he come back?"

"Your Majesty! Lord Song is still finishing up at the construction site in Chang'an. He sent me to report this day and night!" The messenger was panting, speaking rapidly, his lips practically sparking.

"Enclosed with the letter are the survey records of the postal courier... A total of seventeen bridges were built along the entire line, three mountain tunnels were dug, and the total length of railway track is 913 li! On the steepest section, double-decker locomotives were used for push-pull testing, and the heavily loaded freight trains passed through smoothly..."

As he spoke, he presented a scroll of documents with both hands, wrapped in three layers of oilcloth and sealed with the official seal of the Ministry of Works.

The eunuch took it and handed it to the emperor's desk.

Liu Ce opened it and flipped through the pages one by one... It was filled with densely packed data, signatures, and fingerprints: The load-bearing test results for each bridge, the settlement observations for each section of the roadbed, and the hardness inspection records for each rail—every word is written with sweat and toil, and some parts are even stained with oil. It's clear that these were written on a construction site.

Turning to the last page, one finds Song Yingxing's own handwriting, the characters powerful and clear:

"Your Majesty, I led the Ministry of Works Research Institute and employed over 800, 000 laborers for more than two years. When the railway reached Chang'an, hundreds of thousands of people took off their hats and remained silent for the entire time it takes to drink a cup of tea; no one spoke... Then, someone shouted first, and the whole place erupted in a wail like children. Your Majesty... tears streamed down your face. The railway is now complete; please inspect it, Your Majesty.

Your Majesty, I, Yingxing, bow a hundred times."

After Liu Ce finished reading, he gently closed the document and ran his fingertips along the edge of the paper... There was a deep crease there, as if it had been unfolded and folded back countless times. He guessed that Song Yingxing himself had looked at it dozens of times and was reluctant to put it down.

He took a deep breath, looked up and scanned the civil and military officials in the hall. His voice was not loud, but every word was delivered with force: "Draft an imperial edict."

Everyone in the hall... including Shen Wansan and Li Jing, who had just been arguing heatedly, suddenly straightened up.

"First, Song Yingxing, Minister of Works, was promoted one rank for his meritorious service in supervising the construction of the railway. He was awarded one million coins, one hundred jars of imperial wine, and a residence."

"Second, all craftsmen, technicians, and supervisors at the Ministry of Works Research Institute and railway construction sites, regardless of their background, will be awarded one thousand coins each.

Among them, craftsmen who died in the line of duty will be posthumously awarded the title of 'righteous craftsman,' their children will be directly admitted to the Royal University, their families will be supported by the court for life, and their money and provisions will be sent to their homes every month, with an extra amount during festivals."

"Third, the prefectures and counties surrounding the railway stations will be exempt from taxes for three years. Every household of laborers who participated in the road construction will have their merits recorded, and they will be given priority in future railway maintenance job recruitment. Those with skills will be given priority."

"Four..." Liu Ce paused, his smirk becoming infuriating again.

"The official opening ceremony of the Luoyang-Chang'an railway is scheduled for one month from now. I will go in person and take the first train."

Shen Wansan's lips twitched, and he took a step forward, his palms sweating.

"Your Majesty... a month from now? Isn't that too rushed? The ceremony's ceremonial guards, sacrifices, receptions... just arranging seating for the officials will take three days."

"No rush." Liu Ce picked up his vermilion pen and continued reviewing the memorials, his tone casual.

"The roads are all cleared. All that's missing is hanging lanterns, laying out red carpets, and having the Ministry of Ceremonies arrange the procedures. The really important work has already been done... Oh, by the way."

He looked up at the messenger who was still kneeling on the ground. The young man's forehead was covered in sweat, and his lips were chapped.

"Go back and tell Minister Song... Well done. I'll be waiting for him at Luoyang Railway Station a month from now. Tell him to clean the locomotive properly, so it doesn't look like my train engine came out of a coal mine, all dusty and unsightly."