Chương 770: , "The Divine Martial Arts Grand Canon," has been completed.

Official documents from the Ministry of Rites were posted all over the city gates of every county, with the following clearly written in black and white: Those who voluntarily donate rare, unique, or precious books from private collections will be rewarded with money or silk, and the original will be returned after the book has been copied.

If one is willing to donate the books to the government, the reward will be even greater, and it can also help one's family members gain a place to study at the university in the capital.

Anyone who dares to hoard precious books and refuses to hand them over will be punished if discovered.

He even added a special note: not only classics, histories, philosophical works, and mathematical texts, but also agricultural books, medical books, artisan books, arithmetic books, geographical records, and even recipes and brewing methods—anything that is a book, he wants!

This is going to be quite lively.

Local officials and their clerks went door-to-door asking questions, just like collecting taxes, except this time they were "collecting books".

The public's reaction was mixed.

When scholars heard that the imperial court was going to compile a grand ceremony, they took out their treasured books and donated them without asking for a penny, just to gain a reputation for "carrying on the cultural tradition."

An old wealthy man who possessed a rare copy of the book was initially reluctant to part with it, but upon hearing that donating the book would earn him a reward and also allow him to fund his son's university education, he immediately and happily handed over the book.

Some ordinary farmers even donated their family's agricultural books, medical prescriptions, and even winemaking recipes, exchanging them for a few strings of cash, and they were overjoyed.

Of course, it also led to quite a few laughs.

There was a county magistrate who, in order to meet the quota, even presented his family's ancestral recipe book, arguing confidently, "His Majesty says he wants all kinds of books, and a recipe book is also a skill!"

There was also a local official who had all the local folk songs and ballads copied down and sent them to the capital, saying, "This is also folk literature and should be included."

The Ministry of Rites received these items and was both amused and exasperated. They dared not simply discard them, lest His Majesty decide to include them in his records in a couple of days. They could only register them and pile them aside.

The Hanlin Academy was the busiest.

Books from all over the country were continuously transported to Luoyang, and truckloads of them were brought into the Hanlin Academy, piling up like small mountains.

The editors were constantly surrounded by books, classifying, proofreading, copying, and writing prefaces, keeping themselves extremely busy.

They arrive before dawn and leave after dark, their eyes bloodshot and looking like rabbits.

No one complained; on the contrary, they became more and more energetic as they worked.

Being able to personally compile this unprecedented encyclopedia, what does a little fatigue matter? It's all worth it!

Zhuge Liang was appointed by Liu Ce as deputy editor-in-chief, in charge of the overall layout and arrangement.

He spent every day at the Hanlin Academy, studying the books with a feather fan in hand, dividing the entire collection into twelve major categories: classics, history, philosophy, literature, crafts, agriculture, medicine, astronomy, terrestrials, arts, Buddhism, and Taoism. Each major category was further divided into subcategories, making the organization very clear.

Xun Yu also frequently went to oversee the collation of the classics and history sections, scrutinizing each word for its correctness and error without any ambiguity.

Guo Jia, Xi Zhicai, and their group were also arrested to help organize the works of various philosophers and miscellaneous records. They dealt with ancient books every day and drank less wine.

Liu Ce would occasionally visit the Hanlin Academy to encourage everyone and offer his opinions.

For example, when you see the section on agricultural books, you might say, "Include the blueprints for new agricultural tools as well, the more detailed the better."

When he saw the medical section, he instructed, "Write down the methods of surgical procedures as well. Don't be afraid of the gore; a book that can save lives is a good book."

When he saw the process section, he demanded that "the structural principles of the steam engine and machine tool be drawn and clearly labeled so that future generations would not be unable to understand them."

His suggestions were all very practical and always hit the nail on the head. The officials of the Hanlin Academy admired him more and more. His Majesty was not only good at fighting and governing the country, but also knew about these miscellaneous studies. He was simply a genius!

Five years have passed in the blink of an eye.

In the first month of the thirtieth year of the Shenwu era, the Shenwu Grand Canon was finally completed.

The entire book comprises 22, 000 volumes, 11, 000 books, and more than 300 million words, encompassing everything from classics, history, philosophy, literature, industry, agriculture, medicine, commerce, astronomy, geography, Buddhism, Taoism, and miscellaneous arts.

The original copy alone was made with the finest Xuan paper and the best pine soot ink, and it was bound neatly with a bright yellow brocade cover, making it exceptionally grand.

Liu Ce, accompanied by the Crown Prince and officials, personally went to the Hanlin Academy for inspection.

Looking at the rows of bookshelves filled with neatly arranged ceremonies, everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of awe.

This isn't just a set of books; it's the culmination of thousands of years of knowledge accumulated since the time of Fuxi and Shennong—it's all here!

"Good! Good! Good!" Liu Ce said three times, his face full of smiles.

"It wasn't a waste of five years of hard work."

By imperial decree, in addition to the original copy stored in the royal library, six more copies of the ceremony shall be made.

One set was placed in the Zhaoji Pavilion, another in the Royal University, and the remaining four sets were placed in the official schools of the four major metropolises of Chang'an, Jinling, Kaifeng, and Zhuozhou, so that scholars throughout the land could access them.

We'll print more later, so that each province has a set.

All the officials bowed in unison and shouted, "Your Majesty is wise! The transmission of the 'Divine Martial Canon' is a blessing for all generations!"

His voice was full of excitement and pride.

They participated in an event that will be remembered for generations; their lives have been worthwhile.

When the "Divine Martial Arts Canon" was completed, Liu Ce was exactly fifty-six years old.

He spent half his life fighting for the country and half his life building it up. He had fought all the battles he needed to fight and built most of the foundation he needed to build.

He simply relinquished control, handing over the vast majority of national affairs to Crown Prince Liu Chen.

Liu Chen had been training under his guidance for over a decade, and his abilities had long since been honed. He was now adept at handling state affairs, even more so than when he was younger.

Liu Ce himself found himself in a state of leisure, spending his days in the Ganlu Palace, devoting himself to one thing: teaching the imperial grandson to read.

Crown Prince Liu Chen lived up to expectations, fathering three sons and two daughters. His eldest grandson was eight years old, and his youngest grandson was only five.

In addition to the children of other princes, there were more than a dozen imperial grandsons who were not yet grown up, gathered in Ganlu Palace, chattering like a flock of sparrows, making quite a scene.

Every morning, the main hall of Ganlu Hall becomes a classroom.

Liu Ce sat at the head of the table with a book in front of him. Below him, a row of little kids sat upright, dressed in tiny Confucian robes, swaying their heads as they learned to read and recite poems.

Liu Ce taught in a free-flowing manner, without resorting to rote memorization.

When teaching them to recognize characters, tell them the origin of the characters; when teaching them history, tell them stories; when teaching them geography, give them a globe to spin and tell them where there are mountains, where there are seas, and what people look like there.

The children listened with great interest and didn't find it boring at all.

That morning, sunlight streamed in through the window, casting patches of light on the floor.

Liu Ce was holding a pointer, pointing to a map and telling the children the story of the Han army's westward expedition to Rome, how they crossed the Pamir Mountains and how they forced the Roman emperor to surrender.

The little princes' eyes widened in astonishment. The youngest one clenched his tiny fist and cried out in a childish voice:

"Grandpa Emperor is so amazing! When I grow up, I'm going to fight bad guys too!"

Liu Ce was amused and reached out to rub his little head.

He was laughing when he suddenly froze.

In a daze, it felt like I had returned to more than 20 years ago.

Liu Chen and the others were about the same age back then, sitting in this hall, looking up with their little faces, listening to him talk about world affairs and teach them to read and write.

In the blink of an eye, my son is a father now, and my grandson is all grown up.

He sighed softly to himself, thinking: Life is short, fleeting like a white horse galloping past a crack in the wall.

But this feeling of being passed down from generation to generation is very, very long, like towering mountains and great rivers, stretching endlessly, with no end in sight.

What could be more reassuring than guarding this land and watching your children and grandchildren grow up?

"Grandpa, what's wrong?"

The eldest grandson, Liu Yan, looked up at his grandfather, who was suddenly lost in thought, and asked in a low voice.

The other children also looked over, their little faces full of confusion.