“What did you say? Yue He is dead?”
After seeing off Yu Shen, Han Mo had just returned to Mingzhou City when he heard the dire news.
“That’s what the person from the Yue family just said…”
“Where are the people from the Yue family?”
Hearing his attendant’s words, Han Mo felt a headache coming on.
While promotion for military officials was certainly much simpler than for civil officials, the problem was that Yue Fei had only managed to climb to his current position with great difficulty.
To be fair, although Zhao Zhen had forcibly transferred Yue Fei away from Han Mo, which was a bad thing for Han Mo, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for Yue Fei.
Regardless of Zhao Zhen’s intentions in wooing Yue Fei, Yue Fei and Han Shizhong’s joint capture of Fang La was still a recognized achievement.
As long as he safely returned to Bianliang City with Zhao Zhen, Han Mo could guarantee that he would secure a position as a Hengban official.
But now, the situation was different. With Yue He’s death, according to the rules of the Great Song Dynasty, Yue Fei would definitely have to return home to observe three years of mourning for his father.
This meant that everything Han Mo had planned for Yue Fei and his peers had returned to square one. At this point, even Han Mo had to admit that human planning was no match for the heavens…
“That person is right ahead. Do you want to see him, my lord?”
Hearing Han Mo’s question, the attendant quickly replied.
“Forget it, forget it. Send someone to Suzhou to find Yue Fei and inform him of this terrible news. Also, dispatch some men from the mansion to the Yue family to see if there’s anything we can do to help them with the funeral arrangements…”
After a moment of silence, Han Mo slumped into the carriage like a deflated balloon, leaning back heavily.
“Young master, are you alright?”
Hearing the weariness in Han Mo’s voice, Jiang Yan quickly asked in a low voice.
“Let’s go back to the mansion. I need some quiet time!”
“Yes, sir!”
Glancing at Han Mo through the gap in the carriage door and confirming that he was alright, Jiang Yan sat back in the carriage and drove towards Han Mo’s mansion.
Once he returned to his study and closed the door, Han Mo sat alone in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling.
No matter how many plans he made, how he wanted to give Yue Fei and Han Shizhong a better starting point, allowing them to gain more influence in the military sooner.
But history was like a stubborn child. No matter how much he, an outsider, messed things up, that invisible, intangible hand always tried to restore everything to its original historical course.
He had already provided the Yue family with a comfortable life, yet he still couldn’t change Yue He’s fate.
This feeling of powerlessness made Han Mo feel a deep sense of dread.
Did the Humiliation of Jingkang have to happen?
Were the Jurchens truly unstoppable?
“Gurgle—gurgle—”
Just as Han Mo began to question the meaning of his actions, a gust of wind blew, and the simple spinning jenny on his study shelf suddenly turned.
Seeing this, Han Mo’s mind felt like it had been struck by lightning.
What was this talk of human plans being inferior to heaven’s? Wasn’t he the biggest anomaly?
Even if there was a great hand behind the scenes trying to restore everything, could it erase these things that had already appeared out of thin air?
Since the Jurchen cavalry was unstoppable, and the Song army’s soldiers could not engage them in the open field, why didn’t he create some powerful weapons for them?
It was indeed a bit difficult to forge mass-producible cannons in a short period.
But if he had a lathe, wouldn’t this matter become much simpler?
Since he could create the water-powered textile machine, why couldn’t he create water-powered forging lathes and water-powered lathes? Kanshu5.net
He was currently in the Great Song Dynasty, and with the continuous efforts of generations of skilled craftsmen, even the process of case hardening had become quite mature in the Great Song Dynasty.
Although, in recent years, due to the tight fiscal situation of the court, even the output of steel had been greatly affected, the skilled craftsmen were still there.
Wasn’t it just a matter of money?
He had already spread his ventures this far. Money was just a number to him!
“It’s just a matter of spending money! I have plenty of it!”
Slamming his fist heavily on the table in front of him, Han Mo suddenly felt a wave of clarity.
After a moment of thought, Han Mo spread out a small booklet and began to write a memorial to the emperor.
The emperor had granted him the authority for confidential memorials, but Han Mo had used this right very sparingly until now. It was just the right time to use it.
After quickly writing his memorial, affixing his official seal, and taking a brocade box from the nearby shelf, he sealed it and took out a small lock from a hidden compartment.
Don’t underestimate this small item. This lock was the work of skilled craftsmen in the imperial palace. The emperor had one key to this lock, and another was in Han Mo’s possession.
Only officials who had been granted the authority for confidential memorials by the emperor would possess such a small key.
“Someone, send this memorial out via urgent dispatch!”
“Urgent dispatch?”
Hearing Han Mo’s words, Jiang Yan couldn’t help but shudder.
Urgent dispatch was the fastest way to deliver official documents in the entire Great Song Dynasty. Under normal circumstances, this method was only permitted in situations of extreme military urgency.
“Why so much nonsense? After sending this out, go find Li Yueyang and have him bring the topographical map of the Mingzhou area!”
“Yes, sir!”
Glowered at by Han Mo, Jiang Yan no longer dared to delay. He responded and quickly turned to leave.
Having been by Han Mo’s side for so long, he could tell that although Han Mo showed no outward expression, he was harboring a fire within. He didn’t want to be the unlucky one to be reprimanded!
“My lord!”
Half an hour later, Li Yueyang, in a hurry, arrived at Han Mo’s study, carrying a topographical map of the Mingzhou area, his forehead covered in sweat.
“I’ve called you here today for something. You’re more familiar with the terrain around Mingzhou than I am. Help me find places on this map where the river drops significantly!”
Building water-powered forging lathes naturally required specific terrain conditions. Fortunately, the Yongjiang River near Mingzhou had excellent hydrological conditions.
With a vast river flowing directly into the sea, he was sure to find a suitable spot!
“I don’t quite understand, my lord. What do you mean?”