Having children earns benefit, start competing for dominance in the world by marrying a wife

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Dongfang Yi looked once again at the steamship blueprint in his hands, still finding it somewhat unbelievable.

If, as Lu Chen said, this steamship could move without relying on human or wind power, and was made entirely of metal, wouldn't that make them invincible at sea in the future?

While Dongfang Yi was entranced by the steamship blueprint, Lu Chen said, "The North Country doesn't have much of an industrial foundation right now, so it's not easy to manufacture such a steamship. There's no need to rush; the Prince can afford to wait another three to five years."

At present, their navy could continue to use wooden ships. The large ships made by the Dongfang Family could still be armed with cannons and serve as warships, there was no necessity for steamships.

It was then that Dongfang Yi suddenly thought of something, and then he asked, "Prince, can this steam engine really provide power for large ships?"

Lu Chen replied, "Of course, the steam engines manufactured in Great Yu City have already succeeded in their trial use, and the railway from Yan County to Great Yu City is already being laid. It won't be long before you'll see vehicles that don't require horses."

"In the future, it will only take a few days to travel from Great Yu City to Yan County."

After hearing this, Dongfang Yi said, "Prince, how about this? I'll first offer a few merchant ships, put the steam engine on them, modify the merchant ships a bit, and test out the effects of the steam engine?"

After thinking for a moment, Lu Chen said, "That's feasible. In a few days, I'll have craftsmen from Great Yu City produce a few steam engines suitable for merchant ships to test the power effect first."

Lu Chen thought to himself that since he was not in a hurry, why not try modifying the existing wooden ships first? If the modification proved effective, his steam warships could be mass-produced before long.

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Metal steamships required a lot of metal. Since the industry of the North Country was not well developed, manufacturing metal steamships would take a lot of time, but it was different for wooden ships.

If it were wooden ships, the craftsmen of the Dongfang Family could make them, and the North Country had plenty of forests, providing more lumber for shipbuilding.

However, on second thought, steam engines needed to burn coal and operated at particularly high temperatures. He wondered if it was even possible to place steam engines on wooden ships.

What followed would depend on the modification experiments by Great Yu City and the Dongfang Family. He hoped they would be successful.

At this moment, Lu Chen said, "Dongfang Family Master, if there's nothing else, you may return first. The city is going to be relocated in a few days; your family should prepare as well."

Hearing this, Dongfang Yi was about to take his leave with a "retiring," but then he suddenly thought of something and continued, "Prince, I've just remembered something, may I speak?"

Lu Chen curiously asked, "What is it? Speak."

Dongfang Yi inquired, "What do you think of my daughter?"

Upon hearing the question, Lu Chen was stunned for a moment, as he had not expected Dongfang Yi to ask him this.

Why would Dongfang Yi ask this question? Surely this fellow wasn't planning to sell off his daughter?

With that thought, Lu Chen said, "Longyue is diligent, intelligent, and capable, an excellent woman."

At this point, Dongfang Yi said, "When I was in the South, I had always been looking for a suitable husband for my daughter, but she never took a liking to those poets and scholars. Not until she met the Prince did I notice that she often drew pictures in her room, and the portraits were of the Prince.

To paint these pictures, she would often lose interest in food and drink, which clearly shows her deep admiration for the Prince."

"I wonder if the Prince can give my daughter a chance? Allow her to attend to the Prince at his side?"

Hearing this, Lu Chen smiled; it was as he had thought, Dongfang Yi intended to marry Dongfang Longyue to him.

However, this was not surprising. Dongfang Yi was not the only one trying to push his daughter into the Prince's Mansion. Lu Chen was well aware of their intentions; they were trying to bind their families more firmly to the Prince's Mansion.

At this moment, Lu Chen said, "The Prince does not have a habit of forcing others. It will depend on Longyue's wishes. If she agrees, she can marry into the North Prince Mansion at any time. If she doesn't agree, don't force her."

Hearing this, Dongfang Yi hastened to say, "Not forcing, not forcing. I have always respected my daughter's choices."

"I believe she will be delighted to hear this news."

Lu Chen said with a smile, "She might not necessarily be happy. She is a woman who prefers independence. Currently, she manages the Eastern Newspaper Agency, which is nominally owned by the Dongfang Family. If she were to marry into the Prince's Mansion, it would mean that she would have to give up the Eastern Newspaper Agency and let others from the Dongfang Family manage it.

Do you think she would want to give it up?"

Hearing this, Dongfang Yi was taken aback, having almost forgotten about this matter.

The main reason Lu Chen had the Dongfang Family establish the newspaper agency was to create a platform for public opinion in the name of the "people". If Dongfang Longyue married the North Prince, she would become part of the North Prince Mansion. At that point, it would be inappropriate for Dongfang Longyue to continue serving as the chief editor of the Eastern Newspaper Agency.

She would have to step down and let other members of the Dongfang Family take over.

If Dongfang Longyue, after becoming a consort of the North Prince Mansion, still controlled the Eastern Newspaper Agency, wouldn't it be telling others that the agency belonged to the North Prince Mansion?