Louis XVI nodded repeatedly after Zhu Jinsong spoke, saying, "It must have been hard work for the teachers of the Great Ming."
To be fair, these teachers from the Great Ming were quite reliable. At the very least, the things they taught Bonaparte and the others were very useful, such as how infantry should deal with cavalry, or how cavalry should deal with heavily armored infantry.
This included other miscellaneous topics such as battlefield situation analysis, how to divide troops, how to coordinate attacks, and how to ensure logistics.
To put it simply, if Bonaparte and the others could fully grasp this knowledge, dealing with the Mongol armies led by Genghis Khan might be a bit difficult, but dealing with the Tanmachun Army of the late Yuan Dynasty would be no problem at all.
Even Louis XVI, who had no actual experience leading troops in battle, felt a sense of enlightenment after just a short lesson, as if they could lead troops in battle as long as they were given an army and logistics.
However, after listening for a while, Huashentun couldn't help but frown and ask, "Why did they only teach strategies and tactics for cold weapons, and not for firearms and artillery?"
Zhu Jinsong glanced at Huashentun and retorted, "Can you run before you learn to walk?"
"Their current level is no different from commoners who have never learned how to fight. If you don't teach them from scratch, their foundation will be unstable. Are you planning to let them practice with the lives of soldiers?"
"Besides, strategies and tactics, although they vary with different weapons and equipment, their essence does not change. Once you understand the strategies and tactics under cold weapons, learning about strategies and tactics under firearms will naturally be twice as effective."
Huashentun was so choked that he was speechless.
The key was that he couldn't find any flaws in what Zhu Jinsong said, so he could only accept Zhu Jinsong's words as correct.
After listening outside the door for a while longer, Zhu Jinsong said, "Let's go. Their class is about to end, and we shouldn't stay here to disturb them."
Louis XVI immediately agreed, "Good, good. Where are we going next?"
Zhu Jinsong said, "Next, I plan to take you to see the yamen in charge of the 'Great Ming Newspaper,' so you can verify what you learned from that old dog Qian Long."
Then, Zhu Jinsong led Louis XVI and the others to the yamen in charge of the 'Great Ming Newspaper.'
Unlike the other yamens they had seen along the way, the yamen in charge of the 'Great Ming Newspaper' was somewhat quiet, with only occasional sounds of dispute.
"Who wrote this article? How dare it praise the Great Qing? Are they tired of living?"
"I've said it before, you're not allowed to directly mention His Majesty the Emperor's name in the newspaper. The taboo character must not be overlooked!"
"Who approved this article criticizing the government? No salary this month!"
"..."
After listening for a while longer, Zhu Jinsong said to Louis XVI and the others, "Did you hear that? This is the yamen in charge of the 'Great Ming Newspaper.' All articles published in the newspaper are reviewed and proofread here before being released."
"In this way, the people can only see what we want them to see – for example, isn't there a rebellion in your Russia? You say in the newspaper that corrupt officials and wicked clerks are harming the people. Will the people believe you or those rebellious rebels?"
"And you, Louis XVI, you can describe the Queen's garden construction as landscape renovation, the banquets as academic discussions, and then properly organize the financial accounts. Your deficit of 2 billion francs will no longer be a problem?"
"..."
After commenting on the situations of the other four great families, Zhu Jinsong made a final summary: "Don't underestimate what that old dog Qian Long taught you. Those things are almost the experience and insights of Qian Long after being an emperor his entire life. For any emperor, king, or leader, it is an extremely valuable treasure."
Louis XVI nodded thoughtfully and said, "No wonder. I once heard Pierre talk about some aspects of the Great Qing. I was very curious why the people of the Great Ming did not oppose that old dog Qian Long. Now it seems that Qian Long must have used some secret means."
Even George III, who was not on good terms with Louis XVI, couldn't help but nod and say, "It is indeed the case. The fact that Qian Long could rule for so many years under conditions where common people could hardly survive is enough to show his ability."
Seeing that Louis XVI and George III had both taken to their wheelchairs and even actively led Paul I and Huashentun to join them, Zhu Jinsong couldn't help but laugh and say, "Alright, you've learned what you needed to. You can discuss it later. I'll take you to see the manufacturing of steam locomotives first."
Louis XVI was overjoyed and asked, "The manufacturing of steam locomotives? Has the Great Ming found a way to increase the output of steam locomotives?"
As Zhu Jinsong led Louis XVI and the others towards the Shandong Vehicle Manufacturing Plant in Jinan City, he shook his head and smiled, "Manufacturing steam locomotives isn't just about taking steel and using it directly. There are too many things involved, how can the output be increased in a short period of time?"
"To manufacture steam locomotives, you need high-quality steel. After meeting the requirements for steel, you also need to solve other problems such as sealing and circulation."
"It's very easy to manufacture a simple steam engine, it's very easy to make a steam engine drive machinery like a spinning machine, and it's even very easy to manufacture a simple steam locomotive. But it is very difficult to manufacture a steam locomotive with a speed of thirty kilometers per hour, capable of pulling a large amount of cargo and being widely used, because it involves knowledge in dynamics, aerodynamics, material science, mechanics, geography, and so on."
"To put it this way, every steam locomotive you see is the result of the joint efforts of several disciplines, a dozen yamens, hundreds of supporting workshops, thousands of master craftsmen, and tens of thousands of workers. If even one link is missing, this thing cannot run."
Zhu Jinsong was truly boastful. Talking about a radish meeting as a gathering of heroes was child's play. Zhu Jinsong directly forced unrelated matters together!
In reality, some of the disciplines like dynamics and aerodynamics were not even present in the Great Ming, and some were just starting out. In Zhu Jinsong's mouth, it was as if these disciplines were already very complete.
What was even more impressive was that steam locomotives were not greatly related to these miscellaneous disciplines. Most of it was due to Zhu Jinsong's prior cheating, but Zhu Jinsong insisted on attributing the credit to these disciplines.
As for Louis XVI and the others, listening to Zhu Jinsong constantly spew out various disciplines and the numbers of yamens, workshops, master craftsmen, and workers made them feel a mix of emotions, including envy, jealousy, and utter despair.
The steam engine itself was not a rare thing in Europe, and steam locomotives that could pull cargo had been experimented with by some.
However, what was despairing was that even the most advanced steam locomotives in Europe had a speed of only ten kilometers per hour when unloaded, which was more than twice as slow as the Great Ming's steam locomotives with a speed of over thirty kilometers per hour, let alone the Great Ming's steam locomotives that could pull large amounts of cargo.
Therefore, George III and Louis XVI and the others were completely hoodwinked.
Zhu Jinsong continued, "To be honest, the research and development cost of this thing is too high, and the production cost is even higher. If it were from scratch... well, Louis XVI would probably have to incur another 2 billion francs in national debt."
"However, you can rest assured that since the Great Ming already has steam locomotives, it means you will also have them soon."
"If nothing unexpected happens, the Great Ming will completely solve the production problem within two years. At that time, if you want them, you can simply place an order with the Great Ming. I guarantee a very cheap friendly price."
"This way, you can save a lot of costs and only need to focus on producing and laying railway tracks."
Louis XVI was somewhat tempted.
As Zhu Jinsong said, the cost from research and development to manufacturing was indeed too high. The treasury of France at this time could not afford such a large investment.
If the Great Ming could solve the production problem within two years, wouldn't France save more money by purchasing directly from its distant ally, the Great Ming, than by researching it from scratch?
After thinking about it, Louis XVI said, "On behalf of France, I will place an order for fifty steam locomotives with the Great Ming."
George III also chimed in, "We, England, need sixty!"
Paul, with disdain, glanced at Louis XVI and George III and said, "We, Russia, need one hundred steam locomotives!"
Huashentun, not to be outdone, called out, "We, the Silly Eagle, also need sixty!"
Louis XVI immediately became displeased and snorted, "We, France, need two hundred!"
Zhu Jinsong chuckled and said, "Don't rush, don't rush. The reason I took the lead in establishing this little pot, and even blocked you to jointly form the Five Great Virtuous Families, means that I don't consider you outsiders. You are all my friends."
"Steam locomotives come in sets of two locomotives, which can pull twenty carriages in between. How about this: after the Great Ming solves the production problem, we will ship them out in batches of two sets. We will absolutely prioritize supplying you few, and let the other countries line up behind."
Speaking of which, Zhu Jinsong looked at Louis XVI and the others and asked, "Do you know where there are large iron ore deposits? Don't worry, I won't rob you. I'll pay with money, and I guarantee a fair price."
Louis XVI and George III exchanged glances, and then they all nodded in agreement, implicitly accepting Zhu Jinsong's proposal.
There was no other choice but to agree. The production difficulty of steam locomotives was too great, at least for Europe at the moment.
Especially since Europe was currently experiencing a trade deficit with the Great Ming – Europe needed to import a large quantity of goods from the Great Ming, while the Great Ming had very little need for imports from Europe. If they didn't earn some money through iron ore, Europe's situation would become increasingly difficult.
Upon thinking of this, George III and Paul I couldn't help but exchange glances.
After hearing about the former state of the Great Qing and personally witnessing that old dog Qian Long, both of them felt that the Great Ming was not as good as the Great Qing. If the current Great Ming was still like the Great Qing, then the trade surplus or deficit would not matter, as the money was temporarily held by the Great Qing, and there would be plenty of opportunities to reclaim it with interest later.
The problem was that the current Great Ming was not the former Great Qing. Money that fell into the hands of the Great Ming was the Great Ming's. Neither England nor Russia dared to tear their faces and snatch it.
Just then, Zhu Jinsong continued, "By the way, it's almost noon. Shall we go to eat first and chat while we eat?"
Zhu Jinsong intended to add more fuel to the fire, if not completely destroy their confidence, then at least make them feel inferior from the bottom of their hearts.