Li Yan stayed in Kaifeng for four days, and Master Fan and the others bought all the things they needed. And he himself went to Master Niu's bronze shop again, wanting to invite Master Niu to Qixian again.

"Master Niu," Li Yan arched his hand and said, "I'm here to invite you out of the mountain again." ”

Master Niu invited Li Yan to sit down, poured tea, and said with a smile: "The son has found the wrong person, the old man is not Zhuge Kongming, and this place is not Wollongong." ”

Li Yan smiled: "Your craftsmanship is much higher than Zhuge Liang." ”

"Gongzi Mo said with a smile," Master Niu took a sip of tea and said, "We are still alive here, and the various palaces still need gold, silver and bronze utensils." Our wages are half grain and half silver, and the palace also has to save silver money to buy land, silk, jewelry and jade. So, we don't need to follow Childe to do the business of losing his head. ”

Li Yan explained: "I am now a village soldier, a member of the imperial court, not a rebel. ”

Master Niu waved his hand and said, "No matter who it is, in short, it is not as safe as our current business." Besides, do you know why the cannon is called 'general cannon' and 'general cannon'? It is because the artillery is powerful that it can withstand the role of a good general. Only the imperial court can seal generals and generals, unless you are the imperial court, otherwise make cannons privately, that is a capital crime! ”

Li Yan said helplessly: "Then can't you help me replace the two apprentices?" ”

Master Niu shook his head and refused, "No, no." The world is chaotic enough. I heard that Zhang Xianzhong rebelled again, I don't know how many people will die! You don't know the power of the cannon, and if you hit it for two or three miles, the middle one will die immediately. If you use a group, you will be killed within a mile. Karma! This kind of thing shouldn't have been made at all. ”

Li Yan was a little speechless, but he didn't expect Master Niu to be a pacifist. He thought for a moment and asked, "Then can you draw me a picture?" Give me the proportion of materials used in the cannon, the thickness of the barrel, the position of the center of gravity, the thickness of the muzzle, and the length of the barrel, and I will go back and get it myself. Whatever you want, just say, I'll do my best to satisfy you. ”

"Childe knows artillery?" Master Niu stared at Li Yan in surprise and asked.

Li Yan shook his head and said, "I read it in the book, but it is not clear what is written on it, if you try it slowly, I don't know how much time it will take, so I will ask you for help." ”

Master Niu still refused: "Childe already understands the essence of cannon making, as long as Childe understands what he just said, Childe himself will be a master." I believe that with the wisdom of the childe, it will not take much time. Old man, I don't plan to make this kind of thing again, and Childe still doesn't need to persuade him anymore. ”

Li Yan had no choice but to give up.

After that, Master Niu saw that Li Yan didn't talk about artillery anymore, and seemed to come to talk and said a lot. It's mostly about Wu Niang, what Wu Niang's mother died, and the death was a little strange, and Wu Niang didn't come out for a while. There is also the list of the palace's request for sealing, name, and marriage (these are all to be set by the emperor, there are many clans, and they are called nicknames all their lives), and it seems that there is no Wu Niang, and even the fifteen-year-old lord of the seven counties is going to ask for marriage.

Li Yan listened to Master Niu's chatter before politely saying goodbye. He was still disappointed, and he didn't care at all why Master Niu wanted to mention Wu Niang. He was still wondering if he could go somewhere else and ask, artillery was something more useful than firecrackers. But he didn't dare to ask casually, Master Niu didn't report to the official, it doesn't mean that everyone else is also kind.

Li Yan returned to Qixian with the seeds of winter wheat and the materials bought by Master Fan. The roads were relatively peaceful, mainly because there were many officials who collected taxes, and the village soldiers also increased their patrols in various places in order to deal with possible thieves.

After he returned to the county seat, he went to the county commander Su Jing, wanting to select the strong from the homeless people in the county seat, expand the township soldiers, and cultivate barren land to raise food and pay for himself.

Su Jing was naturally very happy, it would be good to get these homeless people away, so he didn't have to worry about it. So he immediately agreed, and instructed Li Yan to pick as many as he wanted.

Li Yan got permission, so he took Li Zhong to the City God Temple, preparing to pick some people in good condition to come out. But when I arrived, I saw that almost all the displaced people there were old and weak, but very few were strong. When I asked, I found out that a few days ago, the elite among the homeless people was pulled away a lot by Yang Shouqiang, and I didn't know what to do.

Li Yan and the others had no choice but to select some of them who were quite strong and take their families with them. After picking for a long time, I only picked out more than two dozen of them.

"This son, what are you looking for us to do?" A thin young man asked timidly.

Li Zhong explained: "Don't be afraid, I want you to be a village soldier, and your family is to farm." You have your own grain, and we will collect only 30 percent of the tax on the land planted by your families, and the rest will be yours. You don't have to worry about other taxes of the imperial court, you just need to farm with peace of mind. ”

"Is this true?" Another old man asked suspiciously: "You don't have to pay the taxes and forced labor of the imperial court?" Is there such a good thing? ”

Li Zhong smiled: "We have a lot of other people there, you can go and ask." If you're not satisfied, you can come back here. ”

Those who were picked didn't have anything to say, but those who weren't picked were rushing forward, all wanting to follow Li Yan and them.

"Childe, take us with you. We can farm too. ”

"Yes, Childe, even if we can't be Ding Zhuang, we can do something else."

……

Li Yan pressed his hand, and waited for the displaced people to calm down before he said loudly: "You can go, but if no one in your family enters the township soldiers, you will give us fifty percent of the harvest." Would you still like to go? ”

Those homeless people hesitated a little, and handed over fifty percent of the harvest, which was indeed a bit much. However, other taxes, especially those who do not have to pay forced labor, are still better treated. So they immediately began to clamore again, shouting that they would serve Li Yan.

Li Yan and the others picked some more, and they also picked some people who were still able to work. The reason why it is necessary to select families who are still able to work is to ensure that these people can continue to provide them with food, and that the food left for them must be able to feed their whole family, and there will be no phenomenon of running away due to hunger.

Li Zhong looked at the old and the young, and there were still many women who were left behind, and some of them couldn't get over it with their conscience. So he reminded: "As long as you can find the men of your family, go with them to Qili Village in the west of the city." Remember, before August, if it's late, you'll have to wait until next year. ”

He was kind-hearted, but he brought a lot of trouble to Qilizhai.