Even in such winter, the scenery is still beautiful. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

The majestic Yang Mountain, passing through the south of Zhiyang, is like a barrier, covering the wind and sand from the north of the curtain.

Therefore, when the Han army arrived here, many soldiers felt that the air was fresh, and even people were refreshed.

The frozen Nanhe River allowed the Han soldiers to walk across on foot.

The thick ice allowed even the heavy equipment of the Han army to pass through safely.

At this moment, Yi Zong was standing on a mountain in Zhiyang, looking at the army that was passing through the Nanhe River in front of him.

However, his attention was completely attracted to something else.

On one side of the South River, on the hill, is a forest.

But there's something strange about this forest - there are a lot of trees in this woods, and they're headless trees!

There seems to be some special power that keeps these trees from growing taller.

However, the trees on the two adjacent hillsides are growing well.

The so-called, there must be a demon when things are abnormal!

The ink scholars who accompanied the army were full of curiosity about this phenomenon.

Early in the morning, under the protection of a team of Han cavalry, I went to the forest to inspect and study.

They also took a squad of soldiers from the tunnel battalion, supposedly to take samples.

From morning to now, more than a dozen ink artists in the ink garden have been squatting in the place and have not left.

This lets Yizong know what they should have discovered.

There are not many things in this world that can make these ink artists so interested, even like a farmer, to dig with a shovel.

"Ink masters of the Ink Garden, what have you discovered?" Yi Zong asked a civilian staff officer beside him.

As the main force in the pre-war plan, the Yizong Department was equipped with a staff group composed of more than 100 examination scholars and martial arts students.

These men act with the army and act as a think tank.

At the same time, these experiences in the army will become the nutrients for their growth in the future, so that they will have rich experience after more than ten years.

And the one next to Yizong is also relatively big.

He is a good friend of Yizong and the younger brother of Zhang Tang, the county guard of Nanyang County.

The so-called homogeneity is a brother born from a mother.

This is the closest blood relationship in the Han family.

However, this young man named Zhang Wu obviously does not have the talent and ability of Brother Nai.

It's just a middle-class attitude.

However, because his brother is Zhang Tang, even if it is Yizong, he has to give a few thin noodles.

After all, although Zhang Tang is not in the center, everyone knows that this Zhang Junshou, once he returns to Chang'an, will at least start as a Jiuqing giant.

In the future, it may even be possible to pay homage to the prime minister.

"General......" Zhang Wu said, "It is said that the ink masters seem to have discovered a large iron mine!" ”

"Big Iron Mine?" Yi Zong's brows furrowed, thinking of something.

What is the most profitable business in China today?

Salt and iron, of course!

The state implements a monopoly system for salt and iron, and although private production and manufacture of all salt and iron are allowed, private sales are prohibited.

In order to carry out the salt and iron official camp, when the people killed for this purpose today, they can almost be put together to strengthen the camp one by one.

But the private salt and iron industry, especially the iron smelting industry, has not declined at all.

Even Yi Zong, a relative who was devoted to the army, had heard of the prosperity and strength of the iron smelting merchants such as today.

The two abbots of Linqiong, relying on the big iron mine of Linqiong, are making gold every day, and they are rich enough to rival the country.

The profits of iron are so great that wherever there are iron mines in the world, they are developed.

And the Han family's demand for iron tools, at present, is almost a bottomless pit!

In the army alone, the demand for iron tools is more than 300,000 catties per year!

Not to mention, a pair of cuirasses requires dozens of catties of fine iron.

A Mo knife also needs twenty or thirty catties of fine iron.

Not to mention, Anton's thirst for iron is almost endless.

Therefore, no matter how many iron tools the merchants produced, they could be purchased by the government immediately.

They don't even save on sales.

As long as you work hard at home to dig a pit and smelt iron, then you can count the money.

The merchants, landlords, and scholars of the world are all vying to open mines.

But the problem is - iron ore in China is not so easy to find.

At present, two super-large-scale open-pit iron ore veins have been discovered in the vicinity of Nanyang and Linqiong.

The other iron ore mines are all small and medium-sized iron ores.

Moreover, the ore quality is very poor.

According to the Mohists, it contains too many impurities, and can usually only be used as pig iron, and it is difficult to use it as a raw material for crude steel or even stainless steel.

Only the big iron ore in Linqiong and the iron mine in Nanyang can barely select some high-quality ores that can be used to smelt crude steel and refined iron.

So you found a big iron ore?

This made Yizong feel a little incredible.

"How big is this iron mine?" Yi asked in a deep voice.

"It is said that ......," Zhang Wu replied, "is larger than any iron ore discovered in the current dynasty, and it is also associated with some rare metal minerals......"

"That's it......" Yi Zong looked up, and he remembered what the Son of Heaven had said to him.

"Steel is power!"

"Send someone to inform Cheng Buzhi and ask him to send troops here immediately!" Yi Zong made a decision immediately.

An iron mine bigger than Linqiong is enough for Chang'an to do whatever it takes!

Not to mention, the mine may also be associated with many rare metal minerals.

Yizong believes that once the news reaches Chang'an, it is estimated that many people will not be able to sit still.

The Cheng Zheng clan and the Zhuo clan of Linqiong occupied such a large ore, so they became the richest people in China, and it is said that even some princes and kings are inferior to those with a lot of wealth!

Today, relying on the salt and iron official camp, the annual income is more than 200,000.

What's more, there is no limit to the army's demand for high-quality steel and refined iron.

Everybody wants better weaponry.

However, limited by production and raw materials, it took six years for the Han dynasty to save less than 5,000 cuirassiers.

Thinking of this, Yi Zong ordered: "Send someone to inform the tunnel camp again, let the people of the tunnel camp stay here, and rebuild the city of Zhiyang!" ”

There's almost no need to think about it anymore.

Yizong has understood that in the future, this place will definitely become another pig iron smelting base of the Han family after Linqiong and Nanyang.

It's just that I don't know if this place will fall into private hands or into the hands of the state.

"It's going to be a big deal...... Yi Zong thought to himself.

He could already predict the turmoil that would arise in the court for this iron mine.

"Immediately send this matter to Taiyuan with a flying pigeon, and please report to the Son of Heaven on behalf of the king......" Yi Zong thought about it and ordered.

The appearance of this large iron mine is of great benefit to the actions of the Han army now.

Not to mention, the discovery of this mine can almost make up for the cost of the Han army.

You must know that Cheng Zheng and Zhuo of Linqiong, relying on iron smelting, produced hundreds of thousands of catties of iron every year, and sold the world, and their business even reached Rinan and Jiuzhen in South Vietnam. (To be continued.) )