Strongest Among the Heavens
Chapter 261: Bi Sheng

Chapter 261: Bi Sheng

Bi Sheng was here. It took everything Kazi had not to get up and shake his hand.

"Oh." Blink, blink. Bi Sheng flipped through another page of the patents, reading quickly. "Ohh."

When Kazi was a young, fresh child servant, he snuck to the library and scoured every book there. It didn’t matter the context or the language or if it was fiction or non-fiction; he wanted to read. He wanted to stimulate his brain. Learn new things. Discover unknown lands and inventions. And as a child, he had his favourites; history, mythology, inventions, and the people that made those inventions.

Kazi took a liking to a specific type of inventor. Not the rigs-to-riches types, no. Those stories didn’t move him because they were an obvious outcome. Kazi himself would follow that route in years to come. What impressed his child self were the geniuses that did great things and yet in spite of their greatness were tossed aside. Forgotten. Treated like trash.

But kept going. Kept learning. Exceeded the legacies of those around them.

Bi Sheng was among those people.

’To think he’s standing right in front of me...’ Kazi’s eyes drifted to Prince Yuzin. ’I doubt even you don’t realize how important this man was to the development of China.’

He made the world’s first movable type printing! The first! Money, books, the alphabet! In east Asia, this seemingly irrelevant invention from a commoner altered the fate of the world.

Kazi’s eyes were sparkling. He hadn’t been this excited in so, so long!

Bi Sheng looked up from the paper. Kazi glowered, eager to please. Bi Sheng looked back down at the papers, scanning and reading the current page several times over, double-checking everything, and then asked, "You mention showing letters and words but how do you do it without ink?"

Kazi answered and did his best not to be overly smile. He kept asking and asking, and Kazi answered without pause or offence.

"Is that how it is?"

"Ahhh, I see!"

"What does this do?"

Bi Sheng was a mirror. Everything in Kazi’s patents was fresh and exciting and a little beyond his scope. His neck was practically snapping up and down, the sparkle of science taking over.

There were many things the old school engineer didn’t quite grasp, but at the end of the day, he was a commoner like Kazi. A true genius from the Song Dynasty of China. In minutes, the genius began to explain to the prince exactly how incredible Kazi’s patents were. He outright declared that the technology described in the patents was nearly a century ahead.

"Fusion-formed glass..." Bi Sheng was addressing Kazi again. "Such a fascinating material! The trimming is impressive to say the least. I presume you have its full structure detailed elsewhere?"

"I do. But..." Kazi winked.

Bi Sheng understood. "A secret?"

"Yep. It’s great in quality and great for fitting but high in expenses, so I outlined three other alternatives on the next page," Kazi said. "My favourite is CRT glass. I was told that some factories have begun to produce it here so buying boat loads of it shouldn’t be an issue."

Bi Sheng licked his lips and did just that. "Mm, yes, yes, I see. But, ah, hold on, I heard from a colleague that CRT glass can be dangerous when transmitting imagery."

"Right you are, which is why we’re pumping it with lead too. Approximately four pounds of lead per CRT. That way, the radiation is mitigated."

"Ohhh, yes, I see, I see."

Prince Yuzin’s gaze flicked back and forth. Bi Sheng was his smartest man. To impress him was a feat.

"I am going to have to see everything here for myself," Bi Sheng told Prince Yuzin, "but to be frank with you, my Prince, the data and structures are real. I have been met some of the engineers of the new era. Their technology is indeed impressive as it is effective."

"I see..." Prince Yuzin glanced between the engineer and the papers, and settled on Kazi. "How long can you build the earliest prototype for the Raman Spectroscopy?"

"Four or five days."

"I want to see it function. Then, we can discuss terms for the integrated circuits. Let us meet again in a week and show me what you can do. Otherwise, the deal is off."

"Agreed," Kazi said. "Allow me to erase all doubts next week, Prince Yuzin."

The meeting ended not long after, with Lady Ann eyeing Kazi. She seemed to wonder where a man like him came from. Bi Sheng asked to keep in touch. Kazi smiled and said that if the prince was able to secure a deal, then they would see each other much more often.

The moment Kazi and David were out on the streets of the Nebulous Bazaar, David let out a large, chuckling sigh.

"Oh, man. I’m amazed," David said. "The situation played out exactly like you said it would, Kazi. Like almost word for word. It was almost freaky."

"Haha, consider it luck."

Kazi made three great predictions. Three lengthy conversations depending on the kind of man the Finance Minister was. Was he bold? Stupid? Or rightfully competent? In the latter most, Kazi surmised that convincing him to a long-term plan in a single appointment was impossible. Thus, he planted two seeds.

One was the mention of the Unorthodox Sect. As soon as Kazi mentioned them, in the back of the prince’s mind, he thought of the opposition and how this opportunity could slip away from him. Second, he dangled a smaller, more fruitful option, that being agricultural-based technology. Every organization, whether it was a government or corporation, sought to endlessly increase profits no matter stupid such a concept sounded.

’Endless growth is a foolish dream to chase after; but it is a dream we chase after anyway. It is what makes us human, prince or otherwise.’

To broaden the portfolio of the Imperial Sect meant to increase profits. It didn’t matter if he was struggling or not, this was the Imperial Sect and finance was vital to their operations.

And by next week, so would Kazi and David.