Outside the window, merchant ships came and went at Lin’an pier.
A hint of cunning showed on Cao Kun’s face. He asked seemingly casually, “The Dutch Parliament is truly generous. I wonder what price Queen Victoria would be willing to pay in exchange?”
Manster maintained a polite smile. He said, “If you can dedicate all the Great Yu Empire’s steam locomotive, steamship, firearm, and artillery manufacturing technologies to the society, I can at least guarantee you will also hold the status of an Earl in Britain.”
Cao Kun helplessly shook his head. Clearly, Manster understood Qingzhou Province’s technological development quite well, after all, things like steam locomotives and steamships were openly visible.
But the real difficulty lay in understanding how Qingzhou Province achieved these things.
“This is very difficult,” Cao Kun said in a deep voice. “The secrecy of these technologies has always been very strict. The only thing we can rely on is that our students, whom we’ve placed in Bowen Academy, can bring these technologies back, but this will take time.”
Manster gently nodded. “I just hope this time won’t be too long. You understand that the society’s patience is limited. And you must remember, without our help, your Cao family would not have today’s glory. Since you have joined the society, you are forever a member of the society, for our common goal.”
“Yes, Mr. Manster, I will do my utmost to serve the society. God bless us.” Cao Kun’s expression suddenly turned a bit fervent. He extended his right hand, his index and little fingers pointing upwards, with the tips of his other fingers touching and placed on his chest.
Manster returned the gesture with the same hand sign.
After a brief exchange, Cao Kun left the room. Manster then turned to look at the pier outside the window.
When the Dutch transported the single-cylinder reciprocating steam engine back to their country, all of Europe was shocked. Especially for Britain, who developed the steam engine, this shock was unparalleled.
It was at this time that he was dispatched by Queen Victoria to the Great Yu Empire to gather intelligence as a merchant.
However, Queen Victoria did not know that he was also a member of the society. So, upon arriving in the Great Yu Empire, he immediately contacted Cao Kun, who was also a society member.
This Great Yu Empire merchant had been engaged in maritime trade from a very young age. He was selected by the society at that time, which was why he rapidly rose to become the Great Yu Empire’s wealthiest merchant.
Otherwise, when Britain ruled the seas, he would not have been able to achieve such things. And at that time, the society needed such a person to establish a foothold in the Great Yu Empire.
Of course, besides Cao Kun, there were also some influential families who were society members in the Great Yu Empire. It was just unfortunate that many of them were killed during this Great Yu Empire Emperor’s purge of the country.
“How many secrets does this Great Yu Empire have? I hope the situation isn’t too bad,” Manster said with some worry.
Europeans, who attached great importance to technology, understood very well that once the Great Yu Empire mastered technology more advanced than Europe, their history of colonization would end.
They might even continuously lose colonies in competition with the Great Yu Empire. Precisely because of this, European countries were now trying to understand the Great Yu Empire and acquire technology from here that even surprised them.
At the same time, feeling a sense of crisis, European royal families once again increased their investment in technology. They were unwilling to be left behind by the Great Yu Empire.
Turning around, Manster picked up a firearm from a box beside the bed. This firearm was a flintlock gun from the Great Yu Empire.
In the war between the Great Yu Empire and the Golden Tent Khanate, some weapons of dead Great Yu Empire soldiers were picked up by barbarian soldiers, and these weapons circulated among the barbarians.
Due to the chaos and hunger, merchants could easily acquire this type of firearm from these barbarian soldiers. After witnessing this forging method, which was even more advanced than European flintlock guns, Manster was so excited he didn’t sleep a wink.
From then on, he intensified his efforts to understand the Great Yu Empire’s technology. However, what was most important to him were the students of Bowen Academy who possessed technological knowledge in the Great Yu Empire.
As long as he could acquire one talented student, it would be extremely beneficial to both the society and Britain.
Weren’t all European countries now trying to steal technology from Britain in this manner?
…
Qingzhou Province.
Hwang Ja-man, still a bit dazed, sat in the four-wheeled carriage. He and his delegation had just arrived at the Qingzhou pier after traveling all the way from Haigucheng.
When they disembarked, the bustling pier shocked him. If the official responsible for receiving them hadn’t explained that this was a pier, he would have thought it was a marketplace.
However, this shock was just the beginning: the flat cement roads extending outside the pier, the four-wheeled carriages with spring suspensions.
Hot air balloons occasionally drifted across the sky. In the fields, horse-powered harvesters and drill seeders were at work. And on the official roads, common people of the Great Yu Empire, dressed in bright, clean clothes, came and went.
After entering the city, Hwang Ja-man and Prince Kim Chang-myung were even more overwhelmed, wishing they had four pairs of eyes to see all the sights of Qingzhou City.
“What a truly prosperous place.” Hwang Ja-man sighed deeply. Now he finally understood the disparity between Goryeo and the Great Yu Empire.
Compared to Qingzhou Province, Ryukyo City was merely equivalent to a rural village.
Sitting opposite Hwang Ja-man was an official from the Great Yu Empire’s Foreign Affairs Department. There was no need for a high-ranking official to receive the delegation from Goryeo.
The Foreign Affairs Department merely dispatched this translator, who arranged for Hwang Ja-man and his party to stay in an ordinary restaurant in Qingzhou Province.
According to the Foreign Affairs Department, the Wei Family Restaurant would no longer host foreign delegations in the future. After all, one couldn’t sacrifice silver for the sake of appearances.
If a foreign delegation wished to enjoy the convenience and comfort of the Wei Family Restaurant, they could simply pay for it themselves.
The carriage stopped in front of the Splendid Restaurant. The translator led Hwang Ja-man and his party into the restaurant. All along the way, the Goryeo delegation sighed in admiration.
In their opinion, the Great Yu Empire’s reception of them was extraordinarily grand, because this restaurant was more exquisite and luxurious than any restaurant in Ryukyo City.
And after they entered their rooms, they were even more shocked, unable to close their mouths. The glass windows on all four sides, the ceramic toiletries, and the faucets all genuinely satisfied Hwang Ja-man and the Goryeo prince.
“Thank you, Emperor of the Great Yu Empire, for your hospitality. This must be the best restaurant in Qingzhou Province,” before Hwang Ja-man could speak, the Goryeo prince, Kim Chang-myung, said with a beaming smile.
He had initially thought Qingzhou Province would be no different from Ryukyo City, but now everything had exceeded his expectations.
The translator smiled helplessly. In fact, when the Wei Family Restaurant’s business was booming, all restaurants in Qingzhou Province renovated themselves to resemble the Wei Family Restaurant.
Because now, merchants were accustomed to the Wei Family Restaurant’s refined taste; without a series of facilities, they were unwilling to stay. The only difference was the quality of the ceramic products in the rooms.
Thinking to himself that he truly couldn’t find a shabbier restaurant to entertain them, the translator smiled and said, “I will convey your sentiments to His Majesty.”
The novel has already been fully translated up to the final chapter. You can access it on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/c/caleredhair