Chapter Ninety-Six: Gossip About the Future at Vigil

When Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were working hard to train fifty-six people, Zhang and Wang's two families were all in a hurry, the two children ran away, and they took so many people with them, and they heard the people who stayed at the foot of Yaowang Mountain say that they were going to Xiangshan, and Zhang Zhong didn't go to find it in person, and arranged for someone.

Zhang Zhong, who returned to the Yamen, still did what he should do, and he was not distracted at all by the fact that the seven counties would send people to establish a state capital after the New Year, that was already a matter of the imperial court, and it had nothing to do with him, and the new assassin could not deal with him, if it was someone who was brought up from elsewhere, he should be thanked.

Compared with Zhang Zhong's calmness, people elsewhere can't continue to be as steady as before, the fast horses in the capital are running everywhere towards various places in the Tang Dynasty, and the people who are going to report the situation in Xinzhou to various places, and some people who have specially collected some information about the Zhang family need to send the information to their respective masters.

The Zhang family had already caused a lot of sensation when they pushed a county to become a county, and this time they united seven counties to become a state, which was even more terrifying, and Zhang Wang's maiden family also sent someone to see Zhang Zhong, and brought a lot of gifts.

Now Zhang Zhong is no longer the person who was going to elope, he received the Wang family's visitors well, and the conversation was good, but he did not agree to take his family to the capital to have a look, and when he sent people away, he also brought many things, including two tricycles.

Li Xun also rushed back, and after inquiring, he heard that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had gone to Xiangshan, and only thought that the two of them wanted to hunt in winter, and after thinking about it, they decided that it would be better to stay next to the yamen, in case something new came out, the Zhang family would definitely look for him, and he was also waiting for the propeller to be made and installed on the steamer that was being restructured.

The old man in the water and clouds was not idle, since he saw the propeller, he took out the copy of the nature book again, and after reading it from beginning to end a few times, he came to the academy and asked people to copy it, preparing to take this book as a subject that must be learned by the students of the academy.

Even if it is not very orthodox, but this thing can be made into a propeller, this kind of sharp weapon, naturally can not be underestimated, after thinking about it, the old man checked the student's household registration, and found that there were no people from other countries, so he was relieved.

Liu Zhirou didn't leave, and took a group of people from the Ministry of Industry to study there, and let people send a lot of good steel, and also transferred some craftsmen belonging to the Ministry of Industry from the capital, and a lot of people from the Ordnance Supervisor also came.

Things look simple and simple, but it is difficult to figure out the reason, one by one to make some parts, after piecing together, and use some of the usual oil for the axle of the carriage, find a ship to install and try, found that it is really easy to use.

"I only know it, but I don't know why, what is the reason for this thing?" Liu Zhirou said with a sigh after knowing that the imitation propeller was also easy to use.

Liu Feitong also followed here, watching the things being made, thinking of what he heard that day, and asked Liu Zhirou: "Uncle, when can I learn this thing?" You are such a big official, did you let that yamen accept me, and they will accept me? And the matter of the zigzag plow, I will not continue to let them pay for it. ”

"Hehe" Liu Zhirou smiled helplessly, "It's not a bucket, don't say that the Zhang family has great ability, even if it's an ordinary county order, what I say, people shouldn't listen to it, I will ask Bi Laoshang to write a letter and ask for a while, to see if they are willing to let you pass, it's really over, you have to be obedient to the place." ”

Liu Zhirou doesn't have a very good way, this distant nephew belongs to the kind of guy who can't hit with eight poles, but people came here to help, and he also has half a family tree, which is nothing more than one more mouth to eat for him, not to mention that this nephew is usually honest, and he will only be clever when he encounters something strange.

The Zhang family went to a letter last time, wanting to meet, but was politely refused, if the nephew can go over, he can learn something, and he will be able to get into the Ministry of Industry in the future, and he can also do something.

With this in mind, the two of them headed towards the academy.

When a few heavy snowfalls and the New Year is just around the corner, it has been two days since the end of the New Year, and almost everyone is preparing for the New Year.

The shipping stopped, but the people were not idle, there were no boats coming and going, and the ice in the river, especially the people who saw the cold storage at the wharf to make money, all started the idea of ice, at this time to dig out, dig the cellar and put it in, and then it can be taken out and sold next summer.

Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also came back with people, and only returned to the yamen on the day of the New Year, and the fifty-six people have changed a lot, one by one, their eyes are firm, and the muscle mass on their bodies is also different from the original.

It makes people feel unusual, fifty-six people are really tired, even if they are on the mountain during the day, they will find a flat place to practice in the queue, this is the one in the morning, or swimming in the afternoon, there are many large and small ponds in Xiangshan, and there are rivers passing through.

Later, when the ice froze, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan did not give up their swimming training, smashed the ice open, cleaned it up, first moved on the shore, and then went down to swim a few laps, this could not be soaked in the water for so long, in the afternoon, as long as there was half an hour in the water, it was enough.

Waiting for the end of the New Year, the training will continue, and if you don't practice much at this time, there will be no one available at the critical moment.

In the festive busy, thirty is finally here, this year the two families are still together, but did not return to Zhuangzi, the Yamen in the New Year must also be guarded, especially firecrackers, in case of fire, you have to hurry over to save.

The bankers of the two families also knew this, and sent a lot of things to them, and they took a lot of things back.

Accompanied by the crackling sound of firecrackers, the family ate the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner, Zhang Zhong hurriedly ate, then took the servants to some personal homes to visit, in the past half a month, he has not been idle, leading people to send things to the people in the county who are not living well, a bag of noodles, a bag of rice and a barrel of oil, or adding more than ten pounds of pork, has become a tradition.

Zhang Zhong didn't forget the other six counties around him, and asked people to send things, as for whether those county orders would be like him, it didn't matter, the result was that those six county orders also learned from him and sent things to the people, in exchange for the people's smiles and respectful eyes, so that they felt different moods.

"Xiaobao, when will you be able to leave next year? Do you need to prepare something? When Wang Juan followed the vigil, he asked Zhang Xiaobao, who was eating watermelon seeds on the side.

Zhang Xiaobao laboriously ate a melon seed, pondered it and said: "It will take about a month, and after the New Year, you can almost leave, this time the team is not small, and the things collected from several surrounding counties will be sold along the road, and two boats of Maifan Stone will be pulled, there will be more land over there, and there will be fewer people, let's circle it again."

When you get there, you can eat bananas as hard as you can, and what other fruits are there? I don't know if anyone has gotten coffee from somewhere else to grow it. ”

"Probably not, can we plant some of the seeds of crops over there?" Wang Juan hadn't seen what a banana looked like since he came here, and when he heard Zhang Xiaobao mention it, he licked his lips and picked up a smashed walnut and ate it in his mouth.

"It doesn't matter if he can plant it or not, bring it over first, cotton will definitely be planted, and the specific place has not yet been decided, so I have to wait for the squire to help, and see where he will harm my father, and what excuse will he use?"

Zhang Xiaobao had a map in his mind, and he pondered it from place to place, where to go, what to do, and some local factors had to be considered.

Wang Juan also has a picture in his mind, not a map, a picture of playing on the beach, sitting under the coconut tree, listening to the sound of the tide, looking at the blue sky and the sea, the seagulls are spreading their wings and flying, a round of red sun hangs there, holding a big lobster in both hands and gnawing.

"It is said that Japan has a lot of silver, and when we get there, let's do more trade with them, get the silver back, sell things, and don't sell the technology, what other specialties does Japan have? Then let's make a boat and go to Southeast Asia, and get some good things back, especially corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and what? Think about it. ”

The picture in Wang Juan's mind changed again, and the big lobster in his hand disappeared, replaced by a packet of potato chips.

Zhang Xiaobao picked up another melon seed and said, "Aren't all those things from Southeast Asia?" It seems that in Africa, do we dare to go through that boat? Let's trade with Japan first, and see if we can find something else along the coast that we don't have, including animals.

It is estimated that there will be a lot of mess waiting to be dealt with when you first arrive in the place, especially with the people living in the mountainous areas over there, you must coordinate the relationship, not hostile, you can give them some things first, such as food or something, and then slowly teach them some knowledge. ”

"Isn't it fusion?" Wang Juan gave up his plan to go to sea directly, and asked about ethnic matters, which were not easy to handle.

"It's not integration, it's that they have been treated as a family in their hearts, everyone lives a good life, and the benefits are distributed as much as possible, so there will be fewer conflicts, they should have a lot of good handicrafts and specialties there, help them sell them, buy things from other places and sell them to them, as long as they respect their national culture and respect their totems, they won't care who rules."

Zhang Xiaobao has long thought about this matter, under normal circumstances, ethnic minorities are not friendly to the outside, it is nothing more than poor use of resources, poverty, and there is a psychological idea that outsiders will make them poorer.

Send things first to show friendship, and then teach them a little bit, so that they can see the outside world, and their hearts will naturally be broad-minded, and they will be willing to try to live a better life and yearn for a more prosperous place.

Wang Juan also agrees with this approach: "I don't know what they really look like there, what kind of house they live in? What to eat? Trick a few more doctors to follow you to see if you can find good medicinal materials, and also learn from the locals, some earthworks are still more effective. ”