Chapter 33

Last time, we mentioned that Li Kuan used the voice-changing skill he had exchanged for, pretending to be his so-called master, and negotiated with Li Er.

"Your conversation with Kuan earlier, I am also aware of. The fact that you could quickly react to the absence of dragons in this world proves that you have long harbored doubts. You do not believe that the so-called Son of Heaven is predestined by heaven. In your heart, a seed of ambition has long been buried, always coveting the supreme imperial power. Am I right?" Li Kuan was no longer afraid that Li Er would harm him. He discovered that Li Er was a very emotional person, as well as a very decisive one. When he considered you important, he would do everything in his power to protect you. If he felt your existence was a threat, and if you had no value, he would discard or even destroy you.

This was Li Er, a person who was lenient and protective towards his own people but cold and ruthless towards enemies. He was also the only emperor in history who did not kill his meritorious subjects. Even after the failed rebellion of Hou Junji, Li Er only executed the ringleader and did not completely exterminate his family. If it were Zhu Yuanzhang, Hou Junji's nine generations would not be enough to be killed. At this moment, the value Li Kuan displayed far outweighed the fault of his impertinent words, so Li Kuan was confident that Li Er would not harm him and directly pointed out the deepest ambition in Li Er's heart.

"Indeed, I do have the ambition to pacify the world and enjoy the supreme glory!" Li Er's decisiveness was not just talk. He straightforwardly admitted that he did have the ambition to ascend the imperial throne. So what? The person in front of him was his son's teacher, the first so-called scientist to interact with him. If he did not show his magnanimity, how could he震慑住 these people who might be either truly carefree or harboring ulterior motives.

"Then, I will not say more. However, in my opinion, the time is not yet ripe. The world is still in turmoil, and if we add the struggle for the throne, the people will suffer!" The elderly voice from the small figure carried a deep sense of compassion for the people.

"I am also aware of this. Therefore, I have decided not to conflict with the Crown Prince for now and to accelerate the pacification of the rebels. Once the realm is peaceful, I will engage in a decisive battle with those two who only know how to plot and scheme. Since they want to put me to death, they must be prepared to die by my sword." Li Er's aura of killing intent soared. Over the years, he had fought in numerous battles, and the number of people he had killed was not small.

How could Li Kuan, a person from the future, withstand such an aura? He was someone who had to grit his teeth to kill a chicken. So he quickly said, "I am just a wisp of divine consciousness attached to this boy, obtaining necessary information and contact. I cannot withstand your killing intent. Moreover, we carefree people are not interested in the power struggles of the court. Please retract it!"

"I have been rude!" Li Er did not expect that this seemingly unfathomable Chen Tuan would not be able to withstand a little killing intent. This was somewhat unexpected. Li Er had another guess. These scientists were definitely not recluses, as they had a deep understanding of the current situation. However, they were not people with great ambitions, otherwise, they would not directly say such treasonous words to him. It seemed they had other purposes.

"I want to know, what is the real reason for your mysterious approach to my child? I do not believe it is simply to find a successor. There are so many people in the world; with your abilities, how could you not find a suitable one?" Li Er asked the question that had been puzzling him for the past two days.

"Actually, it is mainly because of Kuan's identity, and because you are behind him, that we sought him out, hoping to use your hands to complete our greatest experiment!" Li Kuan said.

"What experiment? I do not care, but please remember, do not harm Kuan, or else..." Li Er said. He did not believe there was an enemy his army could not defeat. If these so-called scientists really intended to harm Li Kuan or the Tang Dynasty, Li Er would not hesitate to engage them in battle. This was his pride.

"You can rest assured, we will not harm this young man. He is our last hope. Let me tell you about our lineage!" Li Kuan took the opportunity to impart the background he had been thinking about, hoping to dispel Li Er's hostility. After all, he was the true protagonist of this era, and if he did not get along with him, it would be difficult to move forward in the entire Tang Dynasty.

"Our lineage originated in the late Spring and Autumn period. Our ancestor Wu Zi founded the scientists, but because his ideas were at odds with Daoist thought, they could not be widely spread. We could only choose a few successors each generation to pass down and develop our knowledge. Our ancestor discovered that with sufficient conditions, humans can achieve everything that the legendary gods can do, such as flying, diving, and exploring the mountains and seas. As long as the right conditions are created, even a weak scholar can do it. Therefore, our ancestor believed that all things in the world do not evolve from the so-called Dao, but develop naturally. The so-called gods and monsters are the result of fear and reverence for the unknown." Li Kuan said a lot, then paused to catch his breath.

"Our ultimate goal is to 'achieve the abilities of the gods through human effort.' We use various tools and experiments to uncover the true nature of the supernatural and ultimately explore the essence of the world. This is what we call 'scientists'!" Li Kuan had been thinking about this for over two months, and it was finally time to put it to the test. He wondered if Li Er would believe it!

"Is what you say true? How can I believe it? There are many secrets in the world that are hard to understand. Can you answer them all?" Li Er did not seem to fully believe it, which made Li Kuan nervous.

"Then, how can I make you believe? I do not have much time to chat. If it were not for the secret technique that only reacts with Kuan in your family, I would not have to talk to you about these things! Damn ancestral rules!" Fortunately, Li Kuan still had a trump card.

"I just want to ask you a few questions, hoping you can help me understand." Li Er still spoke calmly.

"Ask away!" Li Kuan did not know what questions Li Er would ask, but he was in a difficult position and had to say this.

"How high is the sky? How thick is the earth?" Li Er first asked the two questions from Qu Yuan's "Heavenly Questions." These questions were very difficult to answer because the ancients did not have a systematic understanding of geography and could only guess the height of the sky and the thickness of the earth, which was purely speculation.

"I cannot give you a precise answer, but I can tell you what our lineage has discovered over the years. You know that the earth we stand on is a large sphere. If we compare it to an egg, the earth is the yolk, and the sky is the egg white. According to the information passed down by our ancestor, the sky is infinite and immeasurable. However, the earth is finite. After a thousand years of accumulation, we have roughly determined that the thickness of the earth is about four million zhang, which is the distance from one point on the sphere through the center to the opposite surface." Li Kuan roughly remembered that the diameter of the earth is 12,000 kilometers, which is about 4 million zhang when converted. Whether Li Er would believe it was another matter.

"Then, why does the moon have phases? Why do we have day and night?" Li Er continued to challenge him.

"This, my younger brother who studies geography has researched. He concluded that not only is the earth round, but the sun and moon are also round, like three spheres floating in the universe. They are constantly rotating. When the earth is between the moon and the sun, it blocks the sunlight from reaching the moon, causing the moon to appear in phases. Day and night occur because the earth is constantly rotating. The side facing the sun is daytime, and the side facing away from the sun is night." Li Kuan was grateful for the geography lessons he had taken seriously in junior high school, which gave him some basic knowledge.

"Last question, how do you treat an infected wound?" Li Er's last question was clearly the one he really wanted to ask, and it was also the condition for whether he would accept the cooperation of the scientists. This was for Princess Pingyang, Li Xiuning.

"This, an infected wound is due to the wound not being cleaned properly, allowing various bacteria to grow, which is what traditional Chinese medicine calls 'evil wind entering the body.' As long as the necrotic tissue is removed and the wound is disinfected, it should heal." Li Kuan's limited knowledge of hygiene only went this far, so this was all he had. If Li Er asked more, Li Kuan would be at a loss.

Fortunately, Li Er was satisfied to hear that infected wounds could be treated, as Li Xiuning's most serious problem was the infection. As for removing necrotic tissue, the imperial physicians could do it. The so-called disinfection was not something he fully understood, but he assumed it was a method of treating wounds, similar to bandaging.

"I will provisionally believe you. My main goal this time is to treat Pingyang's wound. As long as your methods are effective, we can discuss any requests you have!" Li Er got the result he wanted and did not say more.

"Hehe... What I want is very simple. I want the Black Stone Mountain on Leyeu Plain." Li Kuan said, feeling elated as he was finally reaching his goal.

The Black Stone Mountain on Leyeu Plain was actually an open-pit coal mine. All the coal used in Chang'an came from there. Li Kuan had been gathering information about this since he first discovered coal.

"What do you want the coal for?" Li Er was not someone to be easily fooled. As soon as Li Kuan mentioned the Black Stone Mountain, he knew Li Kuan's intention.

"This... I will tell you! Our research has reached a bottleneck. We are studying energy conversion and need a large amount of energy for experiments. This coal is a carrier of energy and is very useful to us." Li Kuan paused, thinking of an excuse.

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