When Su Mai saw the Haizhou city wall, he breathed a long sigh of relief, and then looked to the north.

To the north of Haizhou is Mizhou, where his father served as a taishou in Mizhou, wrote poems full of pride, and did many things that at least the people of Mizhou remember.

He hopes that he can do the same in Haizhou.

After all, he is in his fifties, and he is no longer as physically strong as he was when he first traveled between the north and the south.

But Su Mai's spirit is still very uplifted, and this time knowing Haizhou is a rare opportunity for him.

Before coming to Zhihaizhou, he went to Jingshi, and by the way, he also paid a visit to his uncle Su Zhe in Yingzhou. At this time, Su Zhe was old and his body was decaying, and he was very happy to see him coming from afar. But when he heard that he was going to Zhihaizhou, Su Zhe was silent for a long time, and then gave him four words.

"Don't forget your Father."

Su Mai thought of these four words given by his uncle, and sighed in his heart.

has a big writer as a father, and the pressure is really not small. However, it is not as good as poetry and calligraphy, and it can only be seen whether it can be better than in merit.

This is not an easy task.

After entering Haizhou City and completing all the formalities, Su Mai was still asking his children and grandchildren to carry their luggage, when he heard an old man who was driven come in and said: "Master, there is a Zhou Yanei visiting outside, and his name is here." ”

"Zhou Yanei?" Su Mai paused, then looked at the family alone.

It was Zhang Shun, who had saved Zhou Quan, and he said with a happy face: "It should be Zhou Dalang, master, the villain went out to have a look." ”

This Zhang Shun was originally just an errand officer, and was sent to Beijing by Su Mai, because he brought Su Guo's letter when he came back, and he was trusted by Su Mai. This time he left Jiahe to go to Haizhou, and it happened that Zhang Shun was also recruited by Zhou Quan, so Zhang Shun went north with Su Guo.

A moment later, Zhang Shun walked back with one of them.

"This is our Taishou master, master, he is Zhou Dalang." Zhang Shun is still that rough and heroic.

Zhou Quan stepped forward and saluted Su Mai: "The younger Zhou Quan once took the liberty to write a letter to Su Gong, and it is really a blessing to see his face today!" ”

The two sides had a cold chatter, Su Mai asked people to move their seats, and the two sat in the courtyard, and at this time, Su Mai began to look at the young man carefully.

The first impression is naturally handsome.

Zhou Quan followed his mother, and his mother was a flower in the forbidden army, otherwise the surname Xie would not have been remembered to this day.

The second impression is that there really been so much credit here?

When he was in Beijing, Su Mai and his younger brother Su Guo had a long talk all night, which let him know that he was successful in the position of governor of Haizhou, and Zhou Quan had a share of credit.

Cai Jing doesn't have a good impression of Su Shi, and naturally he doesn't have a good impression of Su Shi's son Su Mai. Su Mai was able to get this opportunity for promotion when he was about to resign from Jiahe Ling, on the one hand, because Liang Shicheng was working hard, and on the other hand, thanks to Zhou Quan.

According to Liang Shicheng, Zhou Quan seems to have agreed to Cai Jing's condition for this...... I don't know why, Zhou Quan values you so much. ”

"This Zhou Quan, I only communicated with him through two letters, he ...... What kind of person is it? ”

"Like a dragon in the depths, I don't know its depth, like a star in the sky, I don't know how far away!"

Su Mai thought of the conversation between the brothers, and then looked at Zhou Quan in front of him, but he was the same age as his grandson, which made Su Mai feel old.

He followed his father when he was young and met the world's heroes, which can be regarded as well-informed, but sitting opposite Zhou Quan at this time, he couldn't see what kind of character this young man was.

"I once wrote to Su Gong for advice, the land of Hainan, the local Li people weaving machinery, can be different from the Central Plains, Su Gong said that he did not pay attention to this matter, and then I asked Mr. Uncle Dang, I learned that the machinery used by the Li people in Hainan to weave cloth is really more convenient than the Central Plains, so I recruited famous craftsmen, improved it, and got one or two ......of them."

What Zhou Quan said to Su Mai was an improved loom!

When he was in Beijing, he handed over the matter to Lao Min and Cui Dakai, Cui Dakai developed gears, and now there has been a breakthrough, and the loom is not difficult, there are many mechanical patterns of cotton textile used by the Li nationality drawn by Su Guo, plus some improvements made by Zhou Quan according to his own experience in another life, so the entire cotton textile industry is about to usher in a breakthrough change in technology!

Haizhou is the place where Zhou Quan is ready to promote this set of technological revolutions.

He studied the history of the Industrial Revolution in England, which first took place in England, not Italy, not France, not Germany, or even Spain, which took advantage of the Great Voyages.

Pick and choose, the area around Suzhou and Hangzhou is a good place, but the forces over there are intertwined, and it is too far away from Beijing. Zhou Quan eventually set his sights on Haizhou, which had an abundance of water, easy access to canals and seas, a population large enough to serve as cheap labor, a climate suitable for cotton cultivation, and proximity to several major sales markets.

At this time, cotton has been planted in the south of the Yangtze River, the Huai River, and near Haizhou, but because the textile technology is not yet mature, there is no large-scale promotion. But Zhou Quan is sure that as long as the loom is released, countless people will naturally know that it will be profitable to grow cotton.

"If this thing is done, then the land of Haizhou can be clothed by the world, and in general, the people of the Song Dynasty, who can't afford to wear silk, can have cotton cloth and clothing, which is a good thing for the benefit of the world; To be small, I look at the whole Huaisi land, the people are gradually thickening, the land has been exhausted, there is no spare land to cultivate, and this industry is also a place where the people of Haizhou and even Huainan can have a livelihood. If the public can do this, it will be famous in history, and it will be just around the corner! ”

Just as Su Mai once inquired about Zhou Quan in Su Guo, Zhou Quan also inquired about Su Mai as a person.

Although Su Mai does not have Su Shi's academic ability, he has one thing, the same as Su Shi, that is, he is still quite attentive to the livelihood of ordinary people, and he is not completely separated from the people's high-ranking scholars.

And Sumai also has his own dreams.

His father's political situation was rough and he was unwilling, and he hoped that he could do something to make up for his father's regrets.

It's just that he is now in his fifties, and when he was the most powerful before, he was only the head of a county, so he really didn't have the opportunity to implement his ambitions.

Now, the opportunity is in front of his eyes.

When Zhou Quan was talking, Su Mai was in a trance, and seemed to have returned to the time when he was young, when he saw his father and friends pointing out the country and counselloring national affairs.

He settled down, and after a while said, "I'll think about this matter for a while......

"I'm still young, I can still treat it, and if the public is over half a hundred, how can I sit by mistake?" Zhou Quan raised his brows slightly and said calmly.

Su Mai saw his unspeakably young face again, and smiled bitterly.

This sentence, although straightforward, really hit the nail on the head. He saw that his father died, and now his uncle Su Zhe is also dying, and he is also full of gray hair and is no longer a teenager, if he doesn't hurry up, where can he make meritorious deeds?

"Even so, it is a matter of people's livelihood, and it must be investigated in detail...... Why did Zhou Lang teach me? He finally relented.

"Quan also drew up a plan, please Su Gong to take a look." Zhou Quan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he had already agreed, and then took out a booklet from his sleeve.

Before coming to Haizhou, Zhou Quan drew up this booklet based on his understanding of the growth of an industry. Su Mai took it and looked at it, although the booklet was not thick, but it was written in great detail. Su Mai just wanted to flip through it at first, but after watching it, he was reluctant to let go.

He has served as a pro-people official such as a county magistrate, and he knows best that a good policy is often deformed in actual operation and ultimately backfired. For example, Wang Anshi's many changes, many of which were originally intended to benefit the country and benefit the people, turned out to be out of shape and became a move for the remnants of the people.

Another example is the many measures promoted by Cai Jing now, such as the nursing home and the drain garden, which seem to allow the homeless to be supported, but it turns out that a group of lazy people are raised!

But Zhou Quan's plan is different.

It is not like someone else to sell their own plans, just boasting about how good they are, never mentioning the disadvantages, or downplaying them.

In Zhou Quan's plan, the first problem is food.

If cotton cultivation is promoted in Haizhou, will it affect grain production?

Naturally, it is inevitable that cotton and grain will compete for arable land, and Zhou Quan's suggestion is to buy grain from outside. Haizhou is close to Jianghuai and Suhu Lake, which are all places where grain is produced, and Haizhou has convenient water transportation, and grain can be purchased through water transportation.

"Zhou Lang, the old man has a problem, why do you say that you want to replace Cao Yun by sea and go to Suzhou and Hangzhou to buy grain?" Seeing this, Su Mai felt that there was a loophole.

"There are two reasons, one is that the volume of sea transportation, although the risk is better than that of river transportation, but the volume is far greater than that of river transportation, if it is a sea ship, it is a general sea ship can also have 3,600 to 5,000 materials, and the grain can be transported to 4,000 stones, if the method of shipbuilding is improved, it may even reach 10,000 stones, and the canal boats, because of the canal restrictions, a thousand stones is the extreme."

"Second, now the canal is overwhelmed, especially the matter of Huashigang, there are many complaints along the coast, and taking the seaway can avoid the congestion of the canal, and it will not be forbidden by the checkpoints along the way!"

Hearing these two reasons, Su Mai shook his head: "No wonder you applied to the imperial court to move the shipwright from Mingzhou to Haizhou." However, in the course of shipping, the risks are also great, so you must be cautious! ”

"There are also risks in river transportation, Su Gong, even if you are farming, you have to worry about the wind and rain, not to mention the rest? I look at the risk at sea, it may not be comparable to the canal, and why I need to use Mingzhou shipwrights, is because Mingzhou shipbuilding, famous all over the world, can withstand wind and waves, and the sailors recruited are mostly those who have experienced wind and waves, so they are not afraid. ”

The two asked and answered, and the more Su Mai looked at it, the better he felt that this booklet was done, but the more questions he had, so he kept asking. Unconsciously, time passed, and Su Mai left Zhou Quan to have lunch, even when he was at the table, he still kept asking questions.

After the meal, Su Mai was completely immersed in the future outlined by Zhou Quan: as long as it took three to five years, the cotton cloth woven and the cotton clothes made by Haizhou were exported to the north and south of the Great Song Dynasty, and could even be sold to Liao, Goryeo, and Japan by sea. The profiteering is not only the businessman, but also the farmers who grow cotton, and the mechanics who weave can all benefit!

If this is the case, at least in terms of magistrates, Su Mai is confident that he is no worse than his literary father.