As time entered July, Dong Shuheng walked around Sanchuan and felt the unique charm of the Land of Abundance.

Sanchuan was very large at this time because western Sichuan included the eastern part of the plateau.

This was already set up during the Manchu and Qing Dynasties. Although the Manchu and Qing Dynasties had many shortcomings, they had their own uniqueness in dealing with nomads.

At least those nomadic tribes were kept in submission. Regional division played a big role in this.

The area in western Sichuan was forcibly separated from the plateau. It has been changing its land and returning it to its current state. Through this area in western Sichuan, Sanchuan became the bridgehead for controlling the plateau.

Dong Shuheng walked all the way to western Sichuan, took a look at the road being built to the plateau, and expressed condolences to the engineering soldiers who were building the road.

Most of these people were recruited by the Renaissance Army in western Sichuan. They used to be serfs, but after becoming engineering soldiers, they broke away from their original identities and became free people.

Not only that, they also received pay and silver like Han soldiers, and their families were also allocated land.

They were grateful to the Renaissance Army from the bottom of their hearts. Even though they caused a lot of damage during road construction, there was not a single deserter.

Now they are not afraid even if they go to the battlefield to fight, let alone just building roads.

How many casualties could there be if the road construction casualties were just accidents? These people are all natives of the plateau and do not suffer from altitude sickness.

If Han people were used to build this road, the damage would be even greater.

Dong Shuheng's arrival boosted their morale. After all, in their eyes, Dong Shuheng was like an emperor. Some people even prostrated on the ground and did not dare to look directly at Dong Shuheng.

Not only that, Dong Shuheng also met with several local living Buddhas and talked about Buddhism.

He stayed in Sanchuan for nearly a month. This forced Dong Shuheng to speed up his next trip.

Looking back, Dong Shuheng returned along the Yangtze River. A major thing the Renaissance Army did in the past two days was to dredge the water channels of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River.

Thanks to high-performance explosives and high-horsepower steamers, the Renaissance Army's ability to blow up rocks and dredge waterways has improved compared to before.

Even with the arrival of the railway, Dong Shuheng still attached great importance to this golden waterway connecting the east and west.

There are many rivers in the world, but not many are as long and navigable as the Yangtze River.

Moreover, there are many mountains blocking the upper and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Relying on the miraculous workmanship of nature, the Yangtze River has helped us split these natural chasms.

As descendants of China, we naturally have to make good use of God’s gifts.

Dong Shuheng left Jinguan City, returned to the Yangtze River Basin, and then followed the waterway down the river, finally feeling the speed of returning thousands of miles to Jiangling in one day.

But he stopped when he reached the mouth of Dongting Lake and did not continue to return eastward.

Instead, the fleet entered Dongting, eight hundred miles away. Then the fleet went directly upstream along the Xiangjiang River to Changsha Prefecture.

At Yuelu Academy, Zeng Disheng was still reading and writing in the chief's room. This was his main pastime besides lecturing.

Ever since he gave up politics and entered Yuelu Academy, Zeng Disheng rarely saw outsiders, especially his former subordinates, who had always been turned away.

Unless some old friends came to visit him, he would only meet them.

Now Zeng Disheng's younger brother Zeng Laojiu was assigned to the Far North Province and became a Han officer in the advance team.

It is said that he is doing well there and has a group of Fuso warriors and forest hunters under him.

In the secret contest with the Tsarist Russian hunters, Zeng Laojiu made many meritorious deeds. Logically speaking, this was enough to redeem himself.

But that guy seemed to like the life of ice and fire there very much.

He actually transferred his household registration. He even married a side wife there and started to spread his business.

Zeng Disheng didn't ask much about this. His younger brother, Zeng Laojiu, was rough by nature, so he might be more suitable to work in such a bitter and cold place to let go of his inner wildness.

His eldest son died young, and his second son was practicing in the Lifan Academy and went abroad with Liu Qingbei for a visit, which was pretty good.

There is also a young son at home who is always with him. Zeng Disheng seems to enjoy such a comfortable life.

In fact, only those closest to him knew that Zeng Disheng was extremely concerned about the development of China.

The first thing he does after dinner every morning is to read newspapers. Whether it is a government-run newspaper or a privately-run newspaper that specializes in introducing international affairs, as long as it is related to politics, he reads almost all newspapers.

He also has a habit of writing a diary every day, but no one can see it. In fact, he has written down some of his views on current affairs.

"Zi Qian, is the academy ready?" Zeng Disheng asked nonchalantly, still holding the book in his hand.

The man he was questioning was named Xu Geng, also known as Ziqian. He was Zeng Guofan's favorite student. After graduation, he stayed in the academy to teach and usually assisted Zeng Disheng in managing school affairs.

This man is probably in his twenties, has a fair appearance, has a Han Chinese bun, and is wearing a blue gown. He is dressed like a typical scholar.

The Renaissance Army does not force ordinary people to cut their hair short. However, with the publicity in recent years, almost everyone has abandoned braids.

Most people have short hair that is both energetic and convenient. Because Dong Shuheng himself also has short hair, all officials and soldiers also have short hair.

However, there is still a retro movement in some readings. It has become a genre.

They wear ancient costumes, and there are people who have gone through ancient books and ancient paintings and calligraphy to study these costumes.

But it is also mainly concentrated in some circles of scholars.

Xu Geng was one of them, and Zeng Disheng was a great Confucian of the Tongcheng School, which respected ancient Chinese literature.

Xu Geng's style of work is consistent with the direction of his research.

This young man is addicted to ancient literature and does not seek fame or fortune.

In Yuelu Academy, which has a relatively strong political atmosphere, it can be considered an outlier.

"When I get back to the chief, everything is ready. The Changsha Prefecture government sent people to arrange it together with the people from the Presidential Palace. We just need to cooperate. There is no need to make any preparations at all." Xu Geng said in a tone of voice.

Still a little unconvinced.

It seems that he can't stand this kind of behavior.

It seems that in his impression, when a superior comes down, he should pay private visits incognito. Only in this way can he be close to the people.

As everyone knows, those emperors' private visits in private were just fabricated by some literati in order to please the emperor.

"Zi Qian, when I was the governor of southern Hunan, I never dared to go out alone for fear of being stabbed by others. People who do great things will always offend others. People who do great things must cherish their lives, otherwise they will die.

It’s all gone, so what big deal can we do?” Zeng Disheng raised his head and looked at Xu Geng and said.

This student of mine is good at studying knowledge, but is not suitable for entering officialdom.

Zeng Disheng kept him in the first place out of good intentions.

"Student understands." Xu Geng wanted to say something about the ancient wise king, but he still held back.

Yuelu Academy is on the west bank of the Xiangjiang River. There is a dedicated wharf on the side facing the Xiangjiang River, which is also the ferry connecting Changsha Fucheng.

Dong Shuheng got off the warship and looked around. On the mountain ahead, he could vaguely see some buildings hidden by trees.

At this time, the shore was already crowded with people welcoming him.

The Praetorian Guards automatically formed a separation line among the crowd.

In fact, these people were also selected, and most of them were staff from various government offices in Changsha and student representatives from various colleges.

Dong Shuheng waved to the crowd. He was wearing a single-breasted, stand-up-collar Fuxing Army work uniform. He had a short beard on his fair face, his eyes were bright and alert, and he looked very capable.

The main officials of Xiangnan and Changsha Prefecture came forward and shook hands with him.

Immediately, Dong Shuheng gave a simple speech to the crowd and then started his journey to visit wise people.

After leaving the pier to enter Yuelu Academy, you can only walk.

Because the academy is built on a mountain, there is only a stone path to go up.

Dong Shuheng was not so pretentious as to ask someone to carry him on a shoulder cart.

He walked alone in front, followed by Wei Yuxiang carrying a bag.

Today we are looking for an elder, and it is not a good idea to take Du Ji there, so Dong Shuheng only asked Wei Yuxiang to accompany him.

It just so happens that Wei Yuxiang is also from southern Hunan and a local here.

After passing through the narrow mountain road shaded by green trees, Dong Shuheng finally arrived at the entrance of Yuelu Academy.

He saw an old man with a thin body, a slight stoop in his back, and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose.

The people around this person consciously lag behind him.

Dong Shuheng had naturally guessed who this person was.

Historically, this person has been both criticized and praised, but Dong Shuheng felt that to evaluate a person without the historical reality at that time was to act like a hooligan.

He pulled the hem of his coat with his hand, and then walked forward quickly.

He always had that friendly smile on his face.

Zeng Disheng, who was standing in front of the mountain gate, was also looking at this young man.

This is the young man who once defeated himself and the entire empire.

This is the unique young man who holds great power but is unwilling to call himself emperor!

This young man is handsome, but he doesn't look like a man of power.

On the contrary, the smile on his face is very friendly, and people can't help but want to get close to him. I really don't know how such a young man can lead such a tiger and wolf army.

"Mr. Disheng, it is the happiest thing for me today to see you in such good health." Dong Shuheng still had a smile on his face, and he said it before Zeng Disheng and others saluted.
To be continued...