To Four Thousand Years Later

From late autumn to early winter, from early morning to late night, except for eating, reading, and exercising, Leonardo devoted all his time to studying science. Although Master Verrocchio was very annoyed at Leonardo's behavior of wasting his painting talent, he still didn't say anything in the end.

What else can he say? But after that, Leonardo did not return another painting, which made Verrocchio very worried. But after that day. Verrocchio finally fully understood Leonardo's talent after Francesco absconded. Leonardo just shut himself in the studio every day, building a strange machine by hand. Master Verrocchio came to see it occasionally, but he couldn't see what he wanted to make. But one day, suddenly a bunch of big businessmen came to visit his studio. It is said that it was introduced by Chairman Lawrence of the International Chamber of Commerce.

Coincidentally, Verrocchio basically knew all these people. Almost all of them are businessmen who have bought their own paintings... In fact, if they can afford Verrocchio's paintings, their value will never be low.

But Verrocchio had never seen such an expression on their faces—it was not the attitude of rich people to painters, or even the attitude of art lovers to idols. The other Verrocchio students were temporarily invited out politely. Only Verrocchio himself was left behind. Then, he watched Leonardo start the machine together with the seven or eight nervous high-ranking businessmen.

Afterwards, something that shocked him happened—the machine hummed in a low voice, and countless fine needles fell down one after another like soldiers standing still. With the continuous sweeping of the machine, at the end of the machine, there are complex and beautiful canvases slowly piled up and formed. Verrocchio recognized it immediately. It was a very expensive jacquard.

In the past, it could only be woven by skilled workers by hand, and the annual output was extremely limited. So the price is very expensive. He was also invited to design jacquard patterns in previous years. Therefore, it is clearer than ordinary people how difficult it is to manufacture such a complex jacquard pattern. He only needs to press the safety button, turn on the steam engine, and slowly turn the wheel, and the machine will start to run endlessly.

- This is a fully automatic jacquard machine with 1244 needles and a maximum of 600 revolutions per minute.

In addition to continuing the thread, modifying the registered pattern, and turning on and off the machine, it does not even require the manual work of the workers at all, and can weave complex Verrocchio weaves at a speed that is ten times or even dozens of times faster than skilled weavers. Cloth must be printed and dyed in order to sell at a good price.

And this is the biggest difference between jacquard cloth and ordinary dyed cloth. The wages of weavers who can use jacquard machines are not at the same level as those of weavers who use looms—the monthly wages of experienced weavers are even in pounds. Some extremely complicated jacquard fabrics, specially for certain special customers, are even worth hundreds of pounds each. Verrocchio even once believed that this kind of complicated manual manufacturing technique should be a realm that those clumsy machines would never be able to reach... But now, Leonardo told him with facts that he was wrong. No matter how complex the process is. Machines can still replace human labor. And do it finer, faster, and better.

Humans make mistakes after all...but machines don't. Verrocchio was keenly aware that if machines continue to develop, one day all manual work will be completely replaced by machines. Spinners or weavers, cooks or blacksmiths, artisans or dyers...they will all lose their jobs.

At that time, the skillful hands of the craftsman. What value can there be? Seeing the merchants happily paying a deposit to Leonardo, and calling him "Master" in a very respectful manner, Verrocchio felt that his mood became extremely complicated.

"Leonardo, do you know how many people your invention will kill?" After they left, Verrocchio asked Leonardo: "Your new machine will destroy countless families. Even It will cause turmoil in the entire principality's market. You will kill at least tens of thousands of people. Verrocchio must know whether Leonardo's innate wisdom was used by villains. Or Leonardo himself tried to Using knowledge to make a profit "more than tens of thousands, teacher. My invention will kill far more people than that, I know it all too well. Leonardo replied peacefully: "And I know that this will make countless people fall into poverty; He becomes the cheapest commodity. The worker's creation is the **** he himself serves. Leonardo said: "The more the believer gives to the god, the less he keeps for himself. He becomes weaker and weaker. The same is true of the worker—the more wealth he creates, the greater the forces against himself, the poorer his inner world, and the less that is his own. Because this power was created by himself and enslaved him progressively.

Seeing Leonardo speak so clearly, Verrocchio himself was confused. He is not without thinking, and even thinks far more and more comprehensively than Verrocchio. But because of this, Verrocchio began to wonder if he was thinking wrong, or if he had overlooked something. Leonardo just shook his head: "Because this is something that cannot be changed, teacher. At least for now, it cannot be changed.

"It can be expected that with the development of automated machinery, there will be fewer workers engaged in purely physical labor. The number of skilled workers who use machines to work will increase." A direct substitute for social progress. Nor is it black and white. He smiled and said softly: Teacher, you can realize that the appearance of the Leonardo machine is likely to make the workers suffer, and can be unhappy about it, I am very high...but this is the progress of human development The only way to say, is already happy enough.

"Children will not be sick before they become adults. It is no longer a luxury to wear warm enough clothes. Filling their stomachs and living are no longer people's only wishes. Being sick no longer means obeying fate. Everyone You can travel to places that cannot be reached for several months, and it is no longer a matter of course for slaves to be killed...

Leonardo slowly counted the progress of mankind. That natural tone is extremely convincing and contagious.

"Then why do machines kill workers?"

He couldn't help asking. As if Leonardo was his teacher.

"It's not that machines kill workers, it's that the advanced eliminates the backward. Industrial civilization will not deprive human beings of freedom, and technological development will not bring disasters to human beings. Humans want to be free, and neither does it." Leonardo replied: " Human beings are always improving, but don't be in a hurry. Don't pin the idea of ​​changing the world on one generation, let alone speculate on the future pessimistically.

"People are living to suffer, and this has been the case since ancient times. It's just that you don't need to suffer from the suffering that your ancestors have suffered; you don't need to suffer from the suffering you have suffered, and future generations don't need to suffer again.

Also whispering, the pupils of Shengbi color did not waver at all, as if they were gods overlooking human beings.

_This is human beings, sir. this is us. "We are so strong... that we can be born again in the fire.