"Well, food is a big problem!" Liu Cheng nodded, Xu Xianming's words were indeed Lao Cheng's words. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info in the ancient society below the county is the world of local tyrants, especially in the Ming Dynasty, due to the gradual improvement and expansion of the imperial examination system, even the people who have not been out of the township show talents, people and even students have this or that kind of political and economic privileges, they combine these privileges with their own strength, and the powerful ones are against the government; If the power is small, it will be arbitrary, and the fish and meat will be on the side. By the middle and late Ming Dynasty, this class had actually monopolized the administration and various interests at the grassroots level, and even local officials could not go against their wishes, and even government decrees could not be implemented without their cooperation. It is impossible for any outside force to do something to bypass the local class. For example, with the development of industry and commerce in Chaoyi, a large and stable supply of grain was needed, but Liu Cheng could not directly buy surplus grain from farmers by going to the nearby grain-producing areas, because usually the business of buying grain and selling it was in the hands of the largest local grain households, usually the largest gentry, and the prices given by these local grain farmers were not only expensive, but also very unstable, because people with a little vision saw that the troubled times were coming, and began to hoard grain to prepare for it. Any foreign businessman who dares to ignore their presence is usually threatened with violence and even killed. But in reality, this step is generally not achieved at all, because the local peasants do not dare to sell grain directly to foreign merchants, even if the prices of foreign merchants are much higher than those of the gentlemen. Foreign merchants are only temporary, while the local gentry are one, several, or even centuries, and these local emperors have the means and time to punish the poor who dare to violate their "rules".

Liu Zongmin sat at the end of the long table, and he didn't fully understand the conversation between Liu Cheng and Xu Xianming, but he already understood one thing, that is, there was a shortage of food in Chaoyi. Although he, like Li Zicheng, entered the court as a prisoner, the difference is that he has a good skill in striking iron, and he has an uncle who has been separated for many years. So Liu Zongmin quickly settled down in the factory, and as time went on, he gradually discovered that it was different from other places: boatloads of ore and coal were poured into furnaces several stories high, and red molten iron rushed out; Hydro-powered machinery turns bales of wool into woolen wool, and kneads hard iron bars into desired shapes. The roar of the machines, the beating of the hammers, the sound of the workers' horns, everything seems so vivid and powerful. Slowly, Liu Zongmin found himself in love with Chaoyi, where he could support himself with his own efforts and skills, rise step by step, and even become a big leader in the management of hundreds of people, becoming the envy of everyone, instead of robbing and burning everything he went in order not to starve to death as he did in the past in the thieves. The two lives are worlds apart, so when he found out that he could do something for Chaoyi, he couldn't help but feel an inexplicable ecstasy in his heart.

"Great, my lord, can I say a few words about food?"

A voice woke Liu Cheng up from his thoughts, and he turned around to see a black tower-like man standing at the end of the long table, wearing a long shirt, looking a little awkward, looking at himself with some twist. Liu Cheng shrugged his shoulders: "Say, I'm here today to listen to what you say!" ”

"Yes, my lord, I invented a machine!" Liu Zongmin took a deep breath, and when things turned to his profession, his voice became smooth: "He can make a farmer use ten people, or even more!" ”

"Hehe, Lord Liu wants food, are you still afraid of people who haven't farmed these years? Give food to eat, and those who are willing to work hard should have as much as they want! Ma Rencheng at the long table laughed, he rushed over from Juzhou overnight, and finally squeezed into this long table, since Liu Cheng sent troops to Mobei, the Ma family father and son felt that their family was a little marginalized around Liu Cheng, so they were even more careful, lest they be squeezed out by the latecomers.

"That's it, just keep talking!" Liu Cheng waved his hand, and out of a hunch he realized that this black tower-like man would surprise him.

"Yes, sir!" Liu Zongmin sorted out his emotions and said in a deep voice: "My lord, what I invented is actually a new type of plow, which is pulled by four horses, and can plow fifty or sixty acres of land in a day, and one person can be worth ten people." I heard that after you defeated the Tartars, you occupied a large area of land in the Hetao, and there was a large area of barren river beach land over there, with this, it will be turned into a barn in less than two years, and the grain laid down can be transported directly to Chaoyi along the Yellow River, so we don't have to worry about food anymore! ”

"A new type of plow? Do you have a sample? ”

"Yes, it's in the yard behind the factory, and I made it myself in my spare time!"

"Okay, you sit down first, and I'll go to your place when the meeting is over!" Liu Cheng nodded with satisfaction, in fact, he didn't care too much about the other party's design, but more about the other party's ability to process and implement technology, anyway, if you only talk about the foresight and basic knowledge of future scientific and technological development, no one in this world can compare with himself, it depends on how much Liu Zongmin can absorb from himself.

"Thank you, sir!" Seeing that Liu Cheng did not refuse, Liu Zongmin was secretly happy in his heart and hurriedly sat down.

"Rank!" Liu Cheng returned to the long table, leaned forward, propped his arms on the edge of the table, and said to everyone in an enthusiastic voice: "I am also here to reveal to you a top-secret news, after Lord Yang enters the cabinet, he will begin to levy new taxes, and strive to launch an attack on Dongyu within five years to solve the war in Liaodong." And one tael of every two taels of silver that is requisitioned will go into the storehouse at your feet, to be used to pay for the new army's armor! And this will replace the Ministry of War to become the largest arsenal in the Ming Dynasty! Speaking of this, Liu Cheng stomped his foot vigorously to emphasize his tone. Everyone at the table subconsciously lowered their heads and looked at the ground, as if they could see through the hard green bricks and thick soil to see the mountains of gold and silver ingots underneath.

"I knew that to achieve this, we would have to expand our production capacity five times as much as it is now; I also know that this means great difficulties, raw materials, plants, equipment, and skilled workers will not fall from the sky, and at the same time, we cannot give up our support for our allies, who are fighting a hard war against the enemy, and without the guns, gunpowder, and armor we provide, they will be defeated, which means that we will lose most of our raw material sources and have to suffer from the enemy! Speaking of this, Liu Cheng paused slightly, and his burning gaze swept over everyone's eyes: "But the final victory will eventually belong to us, and every one of you in the past few years has watched from scratch, from small to large, with all this, this not only belongs to me, but also to each of you." People will not be in the depths of the water, and everyone will succeed! There is no difficulty that cannot be overcome by mind and sweat, now the Chaoyi is just the Chaoyi of Shaanxi, and in five years this will be the Chaoyi of the Ming Dynasty and the Chaoyi of the world! And you will be richly rewarded, and future generations will be proud of you! ”

Liu Cheng's somewhat abrupt words aroused everyone's enthusiasm, or the golden future in Liu Cheng's words fascinated the eyes of most people, half of the new tax in the future of the Ming Dynasty, surpassing the Ministry of War to become the largest arsenal, if these words were not from Liu Cheng's mouth, they would never believe that this was true. Even so, Ma Rencheng still trembled and asked, "Liu Zhentai, is this true?" ”

"If we do it, it's true!"

"I see!" Ma Rencheng's face showed a trace of sickly red, and he stood up: "Don't worry, my lord, I will go back to Dunzhou immediately, as long as it is a person from the Pitang Bureau, I will send all the surplus grain for the coming year to Chaoyi!" ”

"Then please!" Liu Cheng nodded: "There is also the matter of reclamation over there, I hope Ling Zun can come forward and pull more gentlemen to participate in the grand event!" ”

"My lord, please rest assured, I will tell my father when I go back, and he will definitely fully support my lord's affairs!" Ma Rencheng arched his hand, walked to the door and stopped: "But can I reveal some of this matter to my father now?" ”

Liu Cheng hesitated for a moment, nodded and said: "Ling Zun is a person who knows the severity, it doesn't hurt to tell him, anyway, this matter will definitely cause an uproar in the court, it is nothing more than a few months earlier, a few months later!" ”

Like a wind-up toy, after the meeting, everyone rushed into action, and the bright prospects revealed in the words of the boss filled their hearts with motivation. When Liu Cheng was the last to walk out of the conference room, a third of the people had already run out of the courtyard. Liu Cheng stomped his feet and said to Hao Shaoqi, who was standing behind him: "Shaking the flag, do you think they can do it?" ”

Hao Shaoqi looked at those people with his slightly brown eyes, patted the hilt of the knife on his waist, and said in a deep voice: "My lord, if they really understand the consequences, they can definitely do it!" ”

Hearing his henchman's answer, Liu Cheng glanced at Hao Shaoqi in surprise: "It seems that I am condestinuing, well, I can let you replace Tang Muyao when necessary!" ”

The yard was empty, Liu Cheng stood next to the strange plow, listening to Liu Zongmin explain the various advantages of his new invention, don't look at him who is usually taciturn, but when he meets what he likes to do, he immediately becomes talkative, and when he finally finishes speaking, Liu Cheng has remained silent, which makes Liu Zongmin a little uneasy, and finally he asked carefully: "My lord, what do you think of this plow?" ”

"I don't know! I'm not a farmer, I haven't farmed! As the saying goes, it's a mule or a horse that has to be pulled out and yo-yo! You can't see anything like this just by looking at it! ”

"That's nature! If we can, we can go to the river and try it now! Liu Zongmin said.

"Let's not mention that! I ask you, how many people did you use to make this thing? How much time did it take? ”

"Four people, I still have three apprentices, because they are all during the break, it took about half a year from beginning to end!"

"Half a year?" Liu Cheng sighed: "Master Liu, you should be regarded as the best blacksmith master under me, right?" ”

"Don't dare to be!" Liu Zongmin didn't know why Liu Cheng suddenly praised his craftsmanship, but this is always not a bad thing: "There are still better craftsmen in the factory than villains, but adults don't know!" ”

"Well, it's one of the best, if not the best, right? As the saying goes, a famous teacher makes a high apprentice, and the craftsmanship of your three apprentices must be good! But it's taken you so long to do such a thing, and the man-hours alone are scared to death, how dare you make me do it? Speaking of this, Liu Cheng sighed: "Master Liu, you have to understand one thing, you are no longer just a blacksmith master, but also the head of this forging workshop, there are hundreds of people under your hands, even if you are covered in iron, how many nails can you hit?" It's great to make it accessible to everyone! ”

"Yes, sir! The villain must step up the training of apprentices, so that everyone has a good craft! ”

"Hey!" Liu Cheng sighed in disappointment: "I don't mean to let you practice the craftsmanship of every craftsman to your level, some things are talented, even if those craftsmen under your command practice to death, few people can practice to your level, don't they work?" You're making more than forty silver coins a month now, and if only you can type it out in one go, who can afford it? I mean you have to spend your mind on how to break down what you want to do into simple parts, so that ordinary workers can also use machines to make them, and then put them together, so that the cost can be kept down and everyone can afford it. ”

Hearing Liu Cheng's words, Liu Zongmin suddenly realized: "What adults mean is the same as a bird's gun?" ”

"That's right, that's it!" Liu Cheng saw that his subordinates finally understood what they meant, and then breathed a sigh of relief, this is the disadvantage of the low cultural level of ancient craftsmen, it is true that they can make many ingenious items, but they cannot upgrade their experience and skills into theory, and then give back to practice: "Master Liu, you are in charge of hundreds of people now, and you will be in charge of thousands of people in the future, or even tens of thousands." How to make these man-made things fit together with each other, so that there is no waste and less waste? You have to set a rule, and everyone builds things according to that rule, not their own set of things. You have to put this rule on paper and then use it to educate new apprentices, there are no rules! It's not just about good craftsmanship! In this way, I will invite a few gentlemen for you, first start by reading books and literacy, and then arithmetic, and go to Mr. every day after dinner, and bring the workers under the age of twenty-five in your factory with you, and I will give you three months, and everyone can read and write at least 400 common words, and can count within 50 to pass the test! (To be continued.) )