Three industries are to be born in his hands, and Zhu Changhao is still very happy in his heart, the textile industry, the steel industry, and the manor planting industry. ，

In fact, Zhu Changhao thinks about these things a little simply, if he doesn't say anything else, just talk about the textile industry, and cotton is not something you can grow if you want to.

Fortunately, things will end tomorrow in the righteous hall, and Zhu Changhao will not matter, the so-called ignorant are meaningless.

In the afternoon of the same day, Zhu Changhao asked Uncle Wang to inform the subordinate officials of the Rui Wangfu who would negotiate tomorrow.

Early the next morning, at 10 o'clock in the morning (10 o'clock in the morning), in the Ruiwang Mansion, Sun Chengzong, Lu Xiangsheng, Yu Kaiyi, Song Yingxing, Qu Shiyun, Sun Yuanhua, Sun Chuanting, Deng Rujiao, Chen Qi, Lao Dao, Wu Yankai, Wang Zheng, and the four housekeepers in the mansion attended today's meeting together.

After everyone sat down around an oval pear wood table, Zhu Changhao looked at the record book in their hands and the pen and ink inkstone in front of each person, and said with satisfaction, "Today, at this time, recruit everyone to the righteous hall, mainly to discuss, a major event that this king is going to carry out in Hanzhong this spring is actually three small things, but these three things affect all the people of the three thousand miles of the Han River. Next, this king will talk about what is going on. ”

"Since last year, our five provinces in the north of the Ming Dynasty have basically been drought and little rain, and it is common for crops to fail. Think about it, isn't that the reason? ”

"Lord Wang, last year, I went from Guangping Mansion in Beizhili, and then went west to Xi'an Mansion, and the scene I saw along the way was indeed shocking. From Beijing, that is, Shuntianfu, all the way south to the west, through Baoding, Zhending, Taiyuan, Pingyang, and finally arrived in Xi'an. In general, I didn't go to see the granaries in the upper and lower counties, but in some large prefectures, the official warehouses were basically empty, and in the provincial capital, the political envoy and the yamen posted a notice saying that the relief grain was on the way, and the peasants from all over the country were asked to wait patiently. ”

Speaking of this, Wang Zheng stopped talking, but asked everyone to digest what he just said. It took about a minute or so, Wang Zhengcai continued, "Whenever I see such a notice, my heart is like a cat's paw scratching, this is a big official and a small official, colluding to cover the lid, and at the same time, it also gives these farmers a little hope, that is, one day, when the relief food comes, they will have hope, but they are starving to death on the road every day, and the peasants on the street have been numb." ”

"With his own personal experience, I want to tell my colleagues that waiting for relief is to send my life", in the end, Wang Zheng also concluded with a rainbow of momentum.

After Wang Zheng finished speaking, Zhu Changhao looked at everyone's expressions and understood in his heart that such a thing should be known to everyone.

Since there are numbers, then Zhu Changhao's next words are easy to say.

"Gentlemen, when this king heard what Brother Liangfu said, he made a decision in his heart, that is, one of the three trivial things, to prosper the textile industry.

Now, what is textile in the textile industry?

In September last year, this king went to inspect the Beiyang Naval Division, and found that the textile industry there was fine in Songjiang Mansion, Ningbo Mansion, Ningguo Mansion, and Huizhou Mansion, but no one led the workshop owner to operate it, and it was exported to other provinces and even other states. Also, their looms, spinning machines, and looms, the king took a look at them, and the efficiency was too low. Brother Chang Gung, when this king left last year, he gave you a modified loom, that is, the king of spinning machines, do you remember? ”

"Back to the prince, I remember that the new spinning machine has been restructured."

"Oh, then tell me about it"

"Lord Wang, it's actually very simple, it's still Lord Wang, you reminded me of my humble duties. According to the prompts of the prince, several spindles were arranged vertically, and more yarn could be spun at once by driving it with a spinning wheel.

Sure enough, he was very excited, and immediately tried to do it, and the next day he built a new spinning machine that used one spinning wheel to drive eight vertical spindles, and the efficiency was increased by a factor of eight. Later, I tried it, and this spinning machine is suitable for spinning cotton, wool and linen. ”

"Okay, yes, since there is a spinning machine, the loom should also be restructured, this king thinks, the general small workshop will use small spinning machines and looms, but this king wants to do it, then it is necessary to use the Han River to make a fuss, to create a water-powered spinning machine, as well as a loom"

"Lord Wang, I will start to study the restructuring of the loom after I came down from my humble position", Song Yingxing said with some depression.

"The loom is restructured, there is no hurry for the time being, and now I mainly want to talk about the origin of these cotton, silk and hemp."

"Lord Wang, Lao Yu thinks that we can plant some cotton this year, those silkworm seeds, can be transported from Songjiang Mansion, Huguang and other places, hemp silk, Daming Over the years, basically except for funerals, no one has used it, Lao Yu thinks, can't sell it?"

Zhu Changhao listened to it and smiled slightly, "What the boss said is the words of the country, very insightful, to be honest, we have three thousand miles of the Han River, and we need cotton, silk, and hemp skin, on the one hand, we need to plant it ourselves, on the other hand, we have to introduce it, and purchase it from other places. The price can't be too low either. ”

"Yes, Lord Wang, the small ones will be arranged, but cotton will be planted in spring and March, and the small ones are estimated to not have enough cottonseeds."

"Then let the speedboat of the Henghai Division carry out the urgent transportation, General Wu, you come down and discuss with Steward Hua about the transportation."

"Yes, the last general will obey the order", Wu Yankai stood up and clenched his fists and said.

Originally, Zhu Changhao was about to talk about the plantation, but Lao Dao suddenly interjected, "Lord Wang, this cotton is not so easy to grow, we Daming, in addition to Zhili, there are also Jianghuai, Songjiang where a large number of planting, other state capitals, it is estimated that they have not even seen cottonseed." ”

"Old Dao, don't go around the corner, briefly tell me how this cotton is grown?"

"Lord, since spring and March, farmers have begun to choose cotton seeds, because there is cotton silk on the cotton seeds, and the cotton silk must be burned off with fire or dismantled.

Besides, cotton is not planted directly like beans, but first with a special canning machine, (a kind of agricultural tool made of cast iron) to make the damp soil into a pen holder, leaving a hole at the top, and then thousands of "cotton jars" are placed neatly, and the cotton seeds are placed in the hole at the top, watered, and fertilized.

Then put it in a sunny and sheltered place, and cover it with a reed mat at night, for fear that there will be a cold spring, and then it will be over.

In this way, after about three or four days, the cotton seedlings will grow, tender yellow, very cute, to keep the wind clear, and in a few days to "plate jars", that is, to move those cotton jars. On the one hand, the immature seedlings are removed, and on the other hand, the reed mat must be opened up with a big opening, of course, it is still necessary to place it neatly!

Wait until about half a month and 20 days, and wait for the cotton seedlings to be about five inches long before transplanting, still use a canning machine to dig a hole in the field, put the cotton jar in, and still apply some good fertilizer such as sheep manure and oil residue in the hole before putting it in.

In this way, the cotton seedlings are also growing, but at this time they need to weed and hoe the ground. This is also a very long process, when the leaves are all grown, you have to water, apply some manure grass ash fertilizer and so on.

If there is a spring drought, then you have to transport water to fight the drought! After this qiē is completed, you will see that the cotton will grow buds, and it is already around July, and then it will be dewormed, smoked, and plant ash, aphids, red spiders, etc.

At the same time, it is necessary to erase the branches without flower buds (commonly known as "male branches" and "small ears") on the cotton.

This is followed by fertilization to allow it to grow more buds. This time, instead of watering, a small plow (farm tool) was used to drag a ditch on the field, mix the above-mentioned manure, plant ash, and human and animal manure, sprinkle it evenly, and then cover it with soil! Then, pluck the cotton head and let it grow more buds.

Cotton is white when it blooms, and it usually blooms at night, so all you see in the morning are white petals, but at night. The flowers have turned red, and the peasants still can't rest, so they have to use stones to cure insects, the main pests - cotton bollworms. Cotton bollworms generally hide on cotton fruits (commonly known as "cotton peaches") or on flower buds, this thing is really hateful, eats quickly, and is difficult to find. But after this pass, the cotton is about to ripen.

It is probably the end of August, the fruits of cotton began to be opened, at this time the farmers have begun to harvest, at first with the pocket to pick the "cotton peaches" in the row, and then take home to dry evenly under the sun, the reason why this is because the cotton will open a little faster, and the column in the field is not concentrated to pick cotton, and then the cotton officially opened, there is no need to pick peaches, directly in the cotton field to pick cotton, snow white, from mid-September to November is the harvest season, The peasants never had a break. But looking at the snow-white cotton, everyone laughed, because the cotton was sold to the prince, and there was silver to earn. ”

In November, when the cold wind began to blow, the cotton withered again, the harvest was finished, and the year's cultivation was over. But luckily, the waist pouch was also full, and it was full of silver dollars, and almost all the clothes on everyone's bodies, and the quilts they slept on, were almost all made of cotton, and this is how cotton grows. ”

The old Taoist said a lot crookedly, but everyone listened to it very happily. Zhu Changhao immediately asked, "Old Dao, this king wants you to preside over the cotton planting of the three thousand miles of the Han River, how about it?" ”

Lao Dao heard this, and shook his head again and again, "Lord Wang, Poor Dao is just saying that if you want to teach farmers to plant, then let Qin Ruzhen from the Xiangyang Agricultural Bureau do it, because the sweet potatoes and corn planted in the back depend on him, besides, Xiangyang has been planting cotton since the Song Dynasty, and they are also familiar with the road." ”

"Okay, this king has responded, my lord, come down and immediately draw up a royal order, and quickly let Qin Ruzhen organize 3,000 people, led by him, from Hanzhong to Hankou, and teach the local people to plant cotton."

"Yes, my lord, the old man obeys his orders."

"Okay, that's all for this matter, and now let's talk about the second of the three small things, about the redemption of the unharvested fields and the creation of a large manor."