"Hmm." Zhao Xingde nodded. Having said that, because the new battalion involves increasing the number of lieutenants, that is, it may change the power structure of the Protectorate itself, so the Protectorate is extremely cautious and even disgusted with all plans to expand the battalion. Therefore, the number of battalions of the summer army has always been maintained at a "reasonable" level. If the garrison battalion had the name of the Liaodong Han Army, it would be easier to speak.

"In that case, I'll make arrangements. After a tiring journey, rest for a while. Jin Changtai nodded and said, Zhao Xingde has been away for the past few months, and he has presided over all the affairs in the mountains, and he has already had a bit of a taste of sitting and talking, so he picked up the teacup and took a big sip, and he was going to immediately prepare for the selection of Ding Zhuang's elite.

Zhao Xingde smiled: "Jin Sima wait. Just now, Lieutenant Li of the Fourth Battalion came over and talked about the fact that the people cut down the wood, went down the river to the sea, and used it as a sailor to build ships, and exchanged money for silver money to buy grain for the winter. I think it's quite doable. According to Captain Li, to build a large sea ship alone, it will take thousands of trees of nearly 100 years, and each piece of wood is worth a lot of money, and the price of excellent timber for important parts such as shipbuilding rudders can be as high as hundreds of yuan, so that there is no need to ask the Protector Government for another relief of money and food, and these tens of thousands of people can be fed. ”

"Is that so?" Kim Chang-tae's eyes were full of joy and he smiled, "That solves a big problem." In fact, Li Sihai has been in the village for more than ten days, and he and Jin Changtai have met several times, but they only introduced the situation of the two camps to each other. Jin Changtai has always treated each other with courtesy, and he has no intention of replacing Zhao Xingde as the master, and Li Sihai does not see the true Buddha and does not say anything. The two of them were happy and happy, and they did not talk about the operation of Liaodong and the actual cooperation such as logging and shipbuilding.

"Exactly," Zhao Xingde nodded and said, "As far as I know, the Central Plains of Hebei is also the most short of wood, if this logging industry becomes the climate, in addition to cutting down the good wood used for shipbuilding, you can also cut down other trees and pile them up and transport them to the Central Plains to sell." A smile flashed in his eyes, "No matter how many woods there are in Liaodong, there will always be a day when they will be cut down." When the woods are almost cut down, no matter in any way, there is a lot less trouble in clearing the wasteland and cultivating the land and passing through Liaodong. ”

Jin Changtai smiled: "It is indeed a big deal worth doing, I know that with you, there will always be a good deal to do." The two raised their teacups and touched them, replacing wine with tea and chatting to celebrate.

Liaodong bitter cold, in the winter if there is no grain storage, there is only a way to freeze and starve to death, whether it is the Han army, or the Chengying battalion after collecting tens of thousands of people, the most tricky thing is not how to fight with the Khitans, but how to obtain grain and grass, and survive in this extremely difficult place. The rich fields outside the mountains are easily harassed and attacked by the Khitan and Jurchen, and the harvest in the mountains is far inferior to the outside. Although there are ginseng and sea cucumbers and other rare treasures in Liaodong, the number is scarce after all, and now there is more logging this road, which is tantamount to unloading a heavy burden on the two of them.

In addition to being happy, Zhao Xingde talked about Li Sihai asking him for a list of prostitutes, which made Jin Changtai cry and laugh.

"Li Sihai is really a weirdo." Jin Changtai smiled slightly, "If the famous prostitute of Qinglou in Chang'an knows that he is looking for prostitutes everywhere in this barren mountain and wild land, I am afraid that he will be so angry that he will tear up the glamorous words he wrote." ”

Zhao Xingdeqi said: "Oh? Jin Sima seems to know a lot about this person? ”

Jin Changtai nodded and said with a smile: "When I was not in the army, my cousin whispered about him in my ear every day, and I never met him, but I couldn't wait to make a promise to each other, I didn't expect it, I didn't expect it." He poured a cup of tea for Zhao Xingde, poured it for himself, and said with a smile, "This person's literary style is a family history." When he didn't join the army, Chang'an every Lantern Festival and Chongyang, there was a grand Qinglou word meeting, he wrote one or two poems as he liked, and he could spend a lot of money, often winning the hearts of beauties, but unfortunately no one could keep him. Later, for some reason, he suddenly joined the army, and the world only said that he didn't know what to do, and until now, there are still people who are secretly sad for him. Jin Changtai said with a hint of mockery on his face, "I also learned after I went to the marching department that Bowang Hou Shizi did not go to the Tiger Wing Army, but entered Chengying, killed the enemy and fought hard, and in just a few years, he became a captain." ”

"Unexpectedly, this person still has a great background." Zhao Xingde listened with relish and took a sip of tea, as if listening to a story.

"When I was in Chang'an, I saw him once or twice from afar, but he was trapped in the fat powder array, red and green, proud of the spring breeze, and didn't have a chance to say hello." Kim Chang-tae sighed, with a lot of embarrassment, "But when I see him here, it's like a different person, not only has his appearance changed a lot, but even his temperament has changed a lot." ”

"The Chengying Camp is all a lonely domain, and they have experienced life and death, and if they stay for a few years, who can not change?" Zhao Xingde sighed. He suddenly remembered something and muttered, "The garrison camp is all from Liaodong, and we need to teach more loyalty and righteousness in order to prevent it from turning against it." After the selection of the sharp, a hundred reliable sergeants went over to lead the garrison camp, and then selected a group of usable ones from among the people, and I personally taught them to read and write, and to teach the way of loyalty. When Zhao Xingde was in Hejian, he had already compiled a Chinese script in the army, and he did it at this time, plus some examples that were suitable for the Han people in Liaodong, but he was familiar with it.

"No problem," Jin Changtai drank all the tea, stood up and said, "I'll go and prepare for the selection of Rui first," there was a look of distress on his face, "It is said that it is one of six dings, but it may not be able to pick the right one, these Liao people were hungry in the early years, and they never practiced martial arts, and there were few who could open a hard bow, and even fewer could shoot at the target, and the situation in Guanzhong and even Shuzhong was very different." Alas~" He sighed heavily, said goodbye and walked out.

Several gongs rang out outside the tent, signaling that dinner was ready to be distributed. Sanyin Village is still a big stove, just two or three months, the people who are fortunate to live in the village seem to have adapted to this kind of life, the first people with a proud mood to look down on those who came later, with a proud tone to teach them the rules. Kim Chang-tae took advantage of this by selecting smart and capable men from among them, some of whom served as foremen, others as assistants to sergeants, and at the same time, according to the custom of the Xia Kingdom, each new group of people elected a highly respected overseer, and Kim Chang-tae had to speak to these people every day to ensure that the people were satisfied with the order here.

In order to prevent this from happening, in addition to labor, the sergeant was taught various rules at other times, and every few days, there was an examination, and the people who answered the rules correctly were rewarded with extra food, and those who did not understand the bullshit were punished, and in extreme cases, they were even moved out of the camp and driven to live in more dangerous and difficult places. The people had to devote all their energy to learning these boring but indispensable rules for the future, and naturally they had no energy to think about anything else. Those who can understand all kinds of rules and draw inferences from one another have been selected by Kim Chang-tae to prepare for the future as officials, and most of them have shown resistance and some are not very regular, and most of them have been tried out in repeated assessments.

Looking at Jin Changtai's back, Zhao Xingde smiled slightly, and shook his head again, remembering that when he just came out of Xia Kingdom, Jin Changtai looked lost and depressed, as if he was bent on death, which was as energetic as he is now. Jin Changtai said about the lack of qualified soldiers, Zhao Xingde frowned and thought for a moment, he couldn't think about it for a while, he stood up and stretched his waist, only to feel that the bones and muscles of his body were a little sore. But at this moment, there is no relaxation, and a banquet will be held in the evening to entertain more than 100 gunners and blacksmiths who came from the sea with the artillery, so that they can serve in Liaodong with peace of mind.

After making a few movements to stretch his limbs to slow down his fatigue, Zhao Xingde took out the unopened family letter, and before he opened it, he put the letterhead on the side of his nose first, and breathed deeply, the letterhead seemed to have a faint fragrance, he closed his eyes, this is a familiar taste, and Ruoxue, who is happy and angry, seems to be in front of him.

After a long aftertaste, Zhao Xingde opened his eyes, took out a knife, and gently opened the letterhead. Immediately, Juanxiu's upright handwriting came into view. A few thin letters, in addition to pouring out the pain of lovesickness, also let Xingde know that the two children not only babble, but also can walk on the ground, the maid's Aunt Liu is very dedicated, and the proprietress of the Sun family and Mrs. Lu often come to visit. After Song Guo's parents-in-law knew that Xingde was in Liaodong, they wrote a letter to Ruoxue to comfort her, but Li Ruoxue had to reply to comfort her parents, and finally asked Xingde not to worry and take care of his health in Liaodong.

In addition to the letter, there are two small poems, Zhao Xingde read it several times before folding the letterhead squarely, and when he picked up the envelope, he found that there seemed to be something inside, and he carefully shook it out, and it was actually two slender nails, painted in a red color, as if delicate. Zhao Xingde took a deep breath, feeling that his whole body was filled with a kind of slow happiness. Because of Rong Ma's handsome and hard and rough heart, it suddenly became a little soft.

"Wakayuki," he muttered, "I'll be back soon." ”

A group of workers in the ironworks sweated profusely and marched past Zhao Xingde's military tent, and many people looked curiously at this side. In a short period of time, the news of the return of the captain has spread to every corner of the cottage. Although these people don't know what kind of person Zhao Xingde is, everyone carries the deed stamped by his big seal in their arms, and to a certain extent, he is the owner. Normally, the owner comes back from a long trip to celebrate the work with vegetables, but today's dinner seems to be indeed, a strong smell of broth, which has long been wafting in the village, hooking people to swallow their saliva.