The early morning sunlight shines warmly through the cabin's glass window onto Irina's bedside. *Literature Hall* She had already woken up, but she didn't get up because of her heavy body. She is now nearly eight months pregnant. If nothing goes wrong, her child will be born in Chang'an of the Tang Dynasty, just like the child's father Li Ke.
Just as Irina was stroking her bulging belly with a sweet smile on her face, imagining the scene when the child was born in the future, the door of the bathroom next to her opened, and Li Ke, who had finished washing, walked out of it.
Irina watched Li Ke wiping his scalp as he walked, and couldn't help but smile and said: "Sanlang, the conditions of your steamship in Datang are really good. There is hot water for us to take a bath every day!"
Li Ke also dried his hair at this time and replied: "Of course, this kind of steam ship is several times faster than a sailing ship, and it requires a lot of fresh water. In addition, we have entered the Nanyang region. The fleet can find ports at any time to replenish fresh water and coal, so hot water supply is naturally not a problem!¡±
Some time ago, after Li Ke and the others arrived at Ceylon Island, they immediately changed to a steamship with faster speed and better conditions. Irina and some of the accompanying Roman personnel were also very shocked by this kind of fast ship that did not use manpower or wind power and only ate coal. They had been interested in the structure of the steamship for a long time, but in the end they discovered that this The core of this kind of steamship is an iron thing called a steam engine. Even if they knew the principle, Roman craftsmen could not build it.
"Sanlang, what do you want for breakfast today? I want steamed dumplings!" Irina said with a smile. She and Li Ke had noble status, and she was pregnant, so they had a dedicated team. Responsible for taking care of her, there are doctors and cooks among them. She will be taken care of in every possible way every day.
"I don't have much appetite, let them do whatever they want!" Li Ke replied still absentmindedly.
Seeing Li Ke's look, Irina also understood. She immediately stood up and took Li Ke's hand, saying with concern: "Sanlang, I know you care about your father's body, but don't be in trouble with your own body. , you haven't eaten well during this period, and you are obviously much thinner than before. We are still such a long distance from Chang'an. If you fall ill on the road, your trip may be delayed. "
Hearing Irina¡¯s words, Li Ke couldn¡¯t help but sigh. After learning that his father Li Shimin was seriously ill, he immediately made arrangements for Rome and Wu, and then rushed to Chang'an desperately. However, the distance was too far, and there were no steamships from Ceylon to the Mediterranean. . So he was delayed for a while on the road, which made him very anxious. He was afraid that he would not be able to see his father for the last time, and naturally he was not in the mood to eat or drink.
"Okay, Irina, please ask someone to prepare some breakfast that I like in the next time. I will take good care of my body!" Li Ke didn't want the pregnant Irina to worry about him, so he just He gave her a smile.
Seeing the long-lost smile finally showing on Li Ke¡¯s face, Irina also felt her heavy heart relax. Immediately he ordered the maid to prepare breakfast. After a while, breakfast for the two of them was delivered to the room.
Irina had a basket of steamed dumplings and a bowl of lean meat porridge. The breakfast she prepared for Li Ke was fried eggs, but there were a lot of shrimps added to the eggs and a lot of caviar on top. These caviar are all made from sturgeon eggs from the Caspian Sea and were one of the favorite foods of Roman nobles. After Li Ke tasted it once a few years ago, he immediately fell in love with this kind of caviar.
Seeing how hard Irina was preparing breakfast for herself, Li Ke had no choice but to sit down and finish it with her. The weather was good today. After breakfast, Li Ke accompanied Irina to the deck again, holding the side of the ship and looking at the scenery on both sides of the strait.
The place they are driving now is the eastern section of the Strait of Malacca, and they will soon reach the Lion City, which is regarded as entering the western end of the Nanyang region. Now that the Strait of Malacca has been regulated by Li Min, several small countries on both sides of the strait have been wiped out. The entire strait is completely controlled by Li Min, which makes the public security here good. At the same time, some small ports have appeared on both sides of the strait, which can make up for the loss. The deficiencies of the Lion City Port.
Li Ke's fleet consists of nine steamships, four of which are the latest steam warships. Although they are wooden-hulled ships, they are also covered with a layer of iron plates on the outside to protect against ordinary giant crossbows. It doesn't have much effect on artillery.
In fact, the journey from Ceylon Island to the east is already very safe, and there is no need to use warships to protect it along the way. The reason why Li Min arranged these four warships was mainly out of politeness. After all, Li Ke was not only his third brother, but also his first brother. The king of the country, so the escort fleet is absolutely indispensable.
Although steam ships are very fast, they have a huge disadvantage, which is their strong dependence on ports, mainlyFuel and fresh water, these two things are the source of power for steam engines, and their consumption is naturally very large. Therefore, every time a steam ship arrives at a port, it needs to enter the port to replenish supplies.
After years of development, the Lion City has become the largest port in Southeast Asia, ranking higher than Manila. Sea-going ships traveling from south to north will berth here, and with the rise of steamships, the Lion City Port will also expand the entire The harbor is divided into two, with one half harboring sailboats and the other half harboring steamships.
If it were normal times, Li Ke would definitely take Irina to stay in the Lion City for a few days, but now is an extraordinary period, and he is not in the mood to play at all. Irina is also very sensible, urging her to hurry along the way, so After their fleet entered the Lion City to replenish supplies, they immediately set sail again and officially entered the core area of ??Nanyang.
Although she only made some supplies in the Lion City, Irina has already felt the prosperity of Daqi. The ships in the Lion City port are in an orderly manner. Merchant ships from almost all countries can be found here, and on the pier of the port , there are countless hoisting equipment made of steel. Under the pull of the dock workers, it is incredible that a worker can lift thousands of kilograms of things.
After leaving the Lion City, the fleet went all the way north, first anchoring in Linyi, and finally after several days of sailing, it finally entered the southern coast of Datang. When the fleet docked in Guangzhou, Irina seemed very excited. She had long heard Li Ke talk about the scenery of the Tang Dynasty, and she was full of longing for the Tang Dynasty. Today she finally arrived at the land of the Tang Dynasty.
But Irina soon discovered that the Guangzhou port was actually similar to the ports in Daqi she had seen before. There was almost no big difference in terms of people and customs. Of course, this is just Irina's own feeling. After all, she only looked at it from a distance on the boat and did not enter Guangzhou to visit.
When Li Ke and his fleet arrived in Keelung, Taiwan, the fleet did not leave immediately after replenishing supplies. Instead, they planned to stay in Keelung for two days. This was mainly because they often traveled for such a long time without stopping. Li Ke I was worried that Irina's body wouldn't be able to bear it, especially the fetus would be affected. It happened that there were royal doctors in Li Min's palace in Keelung, and they could help Irina take care of her body.
It was for this reason that Irina finally had the opportunity to go ashore. That night, they were arranged by Wang An and other Qi ministers to rest in the palace. The next day, Li Ke accompanied Irina in Keelung City. A bit of a layover.
"Sanlang, this amusement park is really fun, especially suitable for children. Can we build one in Constantinople in the future?" Irina sat on the small train and looked at the lively crowd in the amusement park with an excited look on her face. 's mouth said. Since we were out for fun, we naturally had to go to the playground in Keelung. This is the busiest place in the city and one of the most concentrated places for children. Irina is pregnant with her child now, so Li Ke took her here for a walk. .
"Of course there is no problem. There are also coal mines in the Mediterranean region. Now my people have discovered some and are organizing manual mining. When we have coal, we can introduce steam engines. Not only will there be amusement parks, but there will also be steam engines. Ships and trains, maybe we will build a railway directly to Datang by then, and then we won¡¯t have to take a boat to go around like we do now when we come to Datang." Li Ke said with a look of longing.
Now they are sitting on a small train in the amusement park. This small train is specially prepared for tourists. Along the way, they can pass most of the facilities in the amusement park. Unfortunately, Irina is pregnant and most of the amusement facilities cannot be used at all. I can only sit in the car and watch the parents playing with their children in the playground.
"Sanlang, I heard that there is new news from Chang'an. How is my father's health now?" Irina didn't just focus on having fun, she quickly thought of the most important thing.
"There is good news from the sixth brother. My father has woken up from a coma and has not been in a coma for several days. His condition must have begun to improve!" Li Ke said with a smile after hearing this. Just as they arrived in Keelung At that time, Li Min heard this news from Chang'an, which made Li Ke very happy. It was precisely for this reason that he decided to take Irina to take a rest in Keelung.
It¡¯s a pity that Li Ke didn¡¯t know that the true condition of Li Shimin¡¯s body needed to be kept secret. Li Min was worried that the secret would be leaked during the transmission of the news, so he didn¡¯t dare to tell him the truth.
Li Ke, who was in an improved mood, took Irina for two days of fun in Keelung. In addition to the amusement park, they also went to zoos, museums, libraries and other places. These places are all iconic areas of the city. At the same time, It is also the center where people gather. This is an eye-opener for Irina, and she also has a deeper understanding of the Han people's lifestyle.
Two days later, Li Ke¡¯s fleet finally left Keelung, stopping in Shanghai and Dengzhou on the way, and also received news that Si Zi was getting married. However, when he heard the newsHowever, Li Ke's expression changed. With his intelligence, he also smelled something different about Si Zi's sudden wedding, so he immediately stopped wasting time and rushed to Chang'an.
While Li Ke was speeding up, Li Min accompanied Li Shimin to a very special place, and their trip was so secretive that even Li Zhi and others didn't know where they went.