But when their eyes saw the rice fields in the distance, they immediately showed an incredible look.

"This ........."

Liu Bowen couldn't believe it, in his eyes, there were patches of rice fields in the distance, and even some hills and mountains There were patches of rice terraces.

From the perspective of the position he was standing at the moment, Liu Bowen knew very well how large and wide the area and scope of the paddy fields in front of him were.

Liu Bowen hurriedly followed Zhu Yuanzhang's footsteps with Li Shancheng and ran to the hill on the side, wanting to see as far as possible through the improvement of the height of the position where he was standing.

And when everyone came to the hill where Zhu Yuanzhang was located, looking into the distance.

Compared to the crowd standing at the foot of the hill, the sight is even more spectacular.

The endless rice fields converge on the great plains in the distance.

If all that was planted on the ground was wheat, they wouldn't have been so shocked, but now it's rice.

They are well aware that the construction of a rice field takes several times more time and effort than a wheat field.

Moreover, they passed through the hinterland of the great plains along the way, and did not find any water tributaries at all.

Where does the water for these rice fields come from?

And in the distance, on the not-so-high mountain.

The terraced rice fields, as if the gods were cultivating the land, have split the steep slopes one by one, forming the current terraced rice fields.

In the middle of those rice fields, there are countless people who are bending down and working hard.

Everyone present was no stranger to rice fields, but it was the first time they had seen such a large, wide, and vast area and area of rice fields.

But if that's just a visual impact on them.

Then, the aqueduct that spanned the entire plain was an impact on their perception of the world.

That wide canal spans east and west.

It is also flanked by smaller dividing canals.

These tens of thousands of hectares of inland land have been transformed into natural rice fields.

And judging from the fact that there are farmhouses at intervals in these rice fields, the division of labor here is unusually clear.

And in the middle of this rice paddy, there seems to be a small city standing there.

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang stood on the hill, dumbfounded, although he had long known the construction of the grain-producing area.

But the columns of numbers and words on the document really could not describe the scene he saw at this moment.

There are a lot of things that you can only feel when you see them with your own eyes.

With an area of 15,000 hectares, this number is hollow.

But when you stand in front of these 15,000 hectares of rice fields, you can feel how big these 15,000 hectares are, and you can imagine how many people these 15,000 hectares of rice fields can bring food.

How many people will be fed and clothed, and how many people will be lifted out of hunger.

Although this grain-producing area was built in the land of Huanggang and Haozhou.

But it doesn't stop there.

Liu Bowen, who was shocked, couldn't help the joy on his face, and hurriedly asked Qi Heng on the side: "Dare to ask the general, how big is the total area of this rice field?" ”

Qi Heng chuckled and said, "Fifteen thousand hectares." ”

When Liu Bowen heard this accurate number, he could no longer suppress the shock in his heart.

The mouth kept repeating the number of fifteen thousand that Qi Heng said.

Looking at the shock that Liu Bowen, who was quite arrogant in the past, showed at this moment.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was on the side, suddenly felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction.

This is our father-in-law, our general!

With him here, how dare Liu Bowen pretend in front of him, so he postured.

Isn't it just disgusting with our poor background and lowly identity?

How do you compare with our Engong general?

Just the patches of grain-producing areas in front of you, how can you poor and sour people make them?

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was full of satisfaction in his heart, unconsciously raised the corners of his mouth slightly.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't wait to ask Qi Heng beside him: "Engong, what is the annual output of this grain-producing area now?" ”

Zhu Yuanzhang's question immediately attracted the attention of everyone present, and they all wanted to get the final answer from Qi Heng's mouth.

Hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's inquiry, Qi Heng turned his head and said a number with a smile.

"The annual output is four million stone rice."

This time, Qi Heng's words silenced everyone present.

Annual output of 4 million stones!

This is enough rice production to meet the consumption needs of more than 1.8 million people in a year.

According to the total population of Anfeng Road today, 870,000 people, less than one million!

This is still the number of people that has only developed under Qi Heng's hard work for three whole years.

Three years ago, the population of Anfeng Road was only 400,000!

Today, the amount of rice produced in this grain-producing region alone is enough to meet the food consumption of 1.8 million people.

One can imagine how terrifying this number is.

This is also the reason why when everyone heard this number, they suddenly fell silent, and at this time they no longer knew what way to express the emotions in their hearts.

Just when everyone was silent, Qi Heng suddenly said to Zhu Yuanzhang: "I know that this kind of output is not too much now, but big brother rest assured, in about three years, the output of the grain producing area can reach the peak of seven million stones." ”

And as Qi Heng said this, the expressions on the faces of everyone present had changed from the initial stunned to a bitter smile.

A rice yield of four million stones...

Isn't that much.........

Compared with Liu Bowen and Li Shanchang, Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da don't have so many things to worry about, they only feel full of energy.

"Engong, is it a village in the northwest?"

Zhu Yuanzhang asked, pointing to a building complex in the middle of a rice field in the distance.

Qi Heng replied: "Big brother, it's a trading bazaar, a place for people from all over the world to buy grain. ”

Zhu Yuanzhang, who heard this, was quite interested, and immediately said, "Let's go, let's go and take a look." ”

As he spoke, he beckoned everyone to start again.

The bazaar didn't look very far, but when the group actually walked away, it took a full two quarters of an hour.

And when they came to this bazaar.

Again, the guards asked for their identity credentials and household registration in various places on Anfeng Road.

For this reason, Qi Heng also patiently explained: "This move is to prevent merchants from outside Anfeng Road from coming here to buy grain. ”

But Zhu Yuanzhang and the others who heard this were a little puzzled.

"Engong, since the door of this bazaar is wide open, it is natural to welcome the Quartet. Why can't people from other places buy it? ”

Qi Heng said with a smile: "Big brother, which do you think is worth this grain or silver?" ”

Qi Heng asked this question strangely.

Everyone was a little puzzled.

Xu Da didn't think about it so much, and immediately said: "Naturally, silver is valuable." ”

Qi Heng chuckled and shook his head.

And Zhu Yuanzhang on the side also frowned and said: "Engong means that it depends on what circumstances, if there is a shortage of food, it is naturally more valuable food." Are we right? ”

Qi Heng nodded and said: "Exactly, we often say that what things are valuable and what things are not, it is nothing more than to measure the value of these things, and gold and silver are just a tool to measure the value of these things." ”

"In troubled times, what is the most valuable? Nature is food and weapons. ”

"If someone takes the gold and silver that is useless, cannot be eaten and cannot be used to buy food on a large scale, what do you think will happen, big brother?"

Listening to Qi Heng's explanation, Zhu Yuanzhang understood after thinking about it.

If someone really buys the grain here with more than the market price, and snaps up the grain in the entire market, it will be a huge loss for Anfeng Road.

Because this money is not enough for them to buy any useful goods.

And, the entire Anfeng Road needs to pay for this money.

There is more money but food and materials are not increasing, but falling, which means that prices are rising and the economic order is collapsing.

Therefore, for the time being, the best way is to curb foreign businessmen from buying grain in Anfeng Road.

Let the entire Anfeng Road form a small economic closed loop, rather than integrating into the entire Yuan Dynasty's many territories.

The outside world is too big, and the small Anfeng Road cannot, nor can it reach the extent of dominating the economic trend.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang didn't understand Qi Heng's words so clearly, he could be regarded as having some understanding of the skin, and knew that if the money from the outside world was integrated into the territory of Anfeng Road, it would lead to violent fluctuations in food and prices in the territory.

Listening to Qi Heng's remarks, Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen on the side also began to think about these truths.

The financial economy is still too avant-garde for people in this era.

However, it can be regarded as opening a new window in their minds to understand the world.

Of course, Qi Heng did not really completely reject business dealings with the outside world.

The area of Anfeng Road is still too small, and many materials are not so abundant.

If you want to meet all the materials you need in the country, you must communicate with the outside world.

Therefore, Qi Heng also opened a special voucher for exchanging money for silver, that is, paper money.

If you want to buy everything in Anfeng Road, you must buy it through banknotes issued by the government.

In this way, the standard of how much gold, silver, and materials can be exchanged for a pound or a stone of grain in the territory is controlled by the government.

Then through the analysis of data to achieve the balance of domestic materials.

At the same time, the government can also profit from the exchange process.

As for the authenticity of banknotes, it is also very simple.

Because all the banknotes issued by the domestic government are printed by the printers rewarded by the Qiheng system.

The recognition is still very high, and the difficulty of fraud is also extremely high.

As for the power required by the printer, it is very simple.

Just like the energy brought about by a steam engine, the way in which that energy is produced is not inherently complicated.

The real complexity is how to use this energy to achieve what you need.

Just like this printer, how to bring electricity to this printer is very simple, but the printer itself is something that cannot be solved by technology in this era.

With these prerequisites, Qi Heng can naturally shape the economic environment in Anfeng Road into the situation he wants according to his own ideas.

Of course, these things are a little too complicated, and he can't explain them in too much detail to Zhu Yuanzhang in front of Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen.

Even if he explained, Zhu Yuanzhang might not be able to understand.

As the group walked into the trading bazaar in the grain-producing area.

Looking at the lively environment here, the smile on Zhu Yuanzhang's face never disappeared.

Although the whole trading bazaar is based on the sale of grain, along with the development of the grain industry, other industries such as catering and accommodation have also made great progress.

The entire bazaar has now been transformed into a small city.

Farmers who grow rice in the surrounding area, merchants who sell rice, owners of inns and restaurants, and so on......

These people have become permanent residents of the bazaar.

Including many businessmen who come and go to various places on Anfeng Road to do grain business, many have also chosen to settle here.

It is believed that with the steady development of the grain-producing area, the population of these people who have lived here for a long time will increase.

The properties of the entire trading market are all built by the Haozhou City Government.

If you want to buy these residences or rent these shops, you need to pay a certain amount of money to the Hangzhou city government.

At the same time, the trading bazaar also drove the prosperity of the surrounding Huanggang City and Haozhou City.

So that the two cities, which originally relied solely on the number of local populations to develop slowly, also have a stable growth base.

Originally, because of the construction of reservoirs, canals and grain-producing areas, the government was short of money and materials.

Now he has become the largest landlord in the entire Anfeng Road.

The taxes of the grain-producing areas, the taxes of the people of the two cities, plus the rents of the shops, the proceeds from the sale of real estate, and so on.

Many times, when Shi Caiying, who was in Shouchun City, wanted to do something, he had to discuss with Zhou Nian and borrow some money from them.

For this reason, Shi Caiying complained to Qi Heng more than once.

said that he, the manager of Anfeng Road, had missed such a big political achievement, and he usually had to look at Zhou Nian's face.

Although Shi Caiying said this as a joke, it also reflects the recent rapid development of the Haozhou City area of Huanggang City.

In fact, it is not only Huanggang City, but also Haozhou City has made great progress.

The people in other cities in Anfeng Road have also solved the initial dilemma of food shortage because of the development of grain-producing areas.

At the same time, after solving the problem of food and clothing for the people, it also began to develop in other directions.

For example, Mengcheng, as the largest inland city in Anfeng Road, is not very rich in water resources compared to other cities.

However, because they have less rain, it is the best place to grow cotton.

Since the Song Dynasty, cotton has existed as a luxury.

The reason why it is so expensive, in addition to its precious quantity and really easy to use, the origin of their production in some remote areas is also an important reason that affects the price of cotton.

Nowadays, Qi Heng is planting cotton on a large scale around Mengcheng, just to make cotton an affordable thing for the public, not to let it always exist as a luxury.

For the people living in this era, food, clothing, housing and transportation are naturally issues that those in power urgently need to consider and solve for the people.

In terms of eating, after having a grain-producing area, the staple food of the people of Anfeng Road can basically be satisfied.

As for other side dishes and meat, local cultivation and animal husbandry are needed.

In terms of clothing, with the women in Anfeng Road under the guidance of the Huanggang City women's policy, they have gradually begun to have some liberation.

This huge labor force, just a little liberation, is enough to provide clothing for the people everywhere.

However, it is difficult for a good woman to cook without rice, and in this day and age, the foundation of the textile industry is made from those coarse cloths.

In winter, the clothes woven from these things have no way to protect against the cold.

Therefore, as an official and a person in power, what Qi Heng needs to solve for them is the problem of cotton.

Once the problem and yield of cotton are solved, then the demand for clothing will also be completely solved.

As for housing, living in this era itself is not a problem.

Well, under the leadership of the General Qi Heng's Mansion, the whole territory is constantly building roads with cement concrete.

Although it will take time because of the large amount of work, this thing is already on track.

These are most of the things that Qi Heng has done in the past three years in charge of Anfeng Road.

It has laid a solid foundation for the development of the entire Anfeng Road.

In the trading bazaar, as Zhu Yuanzhang and others crossed the trading bazaar, they came to the wharf.

When they saw the density of ships coming and going on the dock, everyone once again showed a look of surprise.

The bustle in the bazaar has exceeded their expectations.

And now, when I see that the wharf transportation is also so developed, I can't help but be a little unbelievable.

Three years, that's just three years.

What was the situation of Anfeng Road in the past, everyone knows very well.

I dare not say that abject poverty is like washing.

But whether it is floods in the two river basins, wars, or famines.

This is inseparable from Anfeng Road.

But after experiencing these tribulations, Anfeng Road has now developed to such an extent.

The bustling wharf of a place often represents the economic prosperity of a place.

Just this one pier, you can see something.

Even if it is Li Shanchang, who has always been good at governing the city, at this moment, in the face of Qi Heng's achievements in the past three years, he has to bow to the wind and feel ashamed.

And the layman looks at the liveliness, and the insider looks at the doorway.

Liu Bowen carefully counted the number of ships coming and going around the dock at this moment.

A look of confusion flashed across his face.

Liu Bowen, who has always been humble and low-key, took the initiative to come to Qi Heng at this moment, as if studying mathematics, and asked Qi Heng respectfully: "General, there are a few things I don't understand, I don't know if the general can solve my doubts for you." ”

Listening to Liu Bowen's words, look at his humble attitude.

Qi Heng shouldn't have had too much resistance to him.

However, in the process of Zhu Yuanzhang's recruitment of Liu Bowen into the scene, he knew everything about the matter between them through the intelligence of the secret guard.

Although the relationship and relationship between Qi Heng and Zhu Yuanzhang are very complicated, I don't know what the future will be.

But to be honest, in Qi Heng's heart, Zhu Yuanzhang is his eldest brother, and in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart, Qi Heng is also his good brother.

When Qi Heng learned from the information from the secret guard that Zhu Yuanzhang was humiliated by Liu Bowen, he was not very comfortable.

However, he was on Anfeng Road, and there was no way to do anything.

The words he said when he met Liu Bowen for the first time were also sarcastic.

In order to give his eldest brother Zhu Yuanzhang a bad breath.

And now that he heard that Liu Bowen took the initiative to ask him for advice, Qi Heng didn't want to deal with him at all.

He Qi Heng is not a restaurant junior, you have to answer whatever you ask.

And the words he said were of great value.

These things like the things he explained to Zhu Yuanzhang along the way, if they are placed in ordinary times, they can be regarded as a kind of guidance from the elders to the juniors.

In terms of academics, after he, Liu Bowen, heard these words next to him, he should kowtow a few times in front of him, and thank him for the grace of solving doubts and teaching.

What's more, these things are not just academic issues, they are conclusions that have been produced through practical argumentation, and they are real governance experiences.

The gold content is countless times higher than those academic questions.

And now you're close to a mouth, and you're trying to get these things from his mouth.

Why?

He Qi Heng is not Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang is rare to you, that's because he has no one to use.

And his Qi Heng's subordinates are innumerable, and which one of them can't fight with this Liu Bowen.

And most of these people have practical experience with the ruling side.

is no worse than him Liu Bowen.

What's more, he Qi Heng is the general of Huwei in the righteous army, and he is in charge of the military and political affairs in the entire Anfeng Road.

And he, Liu Bowen, is just a white body now, and he can't say anything good, what can he do if he kills him?

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was standing beside Qi Heng, saw that Qi Heng didn't mean to pay attention to Liu Bowen at all at this moment.

After knowing the identity of the other party, he didn't look at him yet.

It was an indescribable joy in my heart.

However, after being happy, he still took the initiative to look at Qi Heng.

And Qi Heng, who saw Zhu Yuanzhang's actions in his eyes, also understood Zhu Yuanzhang's thoughts.

Just when Liu Bowen saw that the other party didn't want to deal with him and was extremely embarrassed, Qi Heng finally said slowly: "What's the matter, let's talk about it." ”

But from beginning to end, Qi Heng didn't look at Liu Bowen much, with his hands behind his back, as if listening to his subordinates reporting and asking for advice by his side.

Liu Bowen, who heard Qi Heng's words, was relieved, and he didn't dare to be the slightest bit angry, and asked respectfully: "Dare to ask the general, where does the water in this rice producing area come from, and what are the things that built those canals and markets, which seem to be completely different from what you usually see." ”

"In addition, there are these boats, and it is not yet the autumn harvest, why are there still so many ships coming and going on the docks of this trading market?"

"Please also ask the general for advice."

Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da on the side, looking at Liu Bowen, who had always been proud, now in front of Qi Heng, but when they became so well-behaved, they snickered in their hearts.

After hearing Liu Bowen's inquiry, Qi Heng still appreciated Liu Bowen's vision.

Everything that shocks them today comes from these three questions.

How can such a thing be made.

How can it grow so fast?

What's behind these superficial exuberances.

Obviously, Liu Bowen has seen that the reason why this grain-producing area, including the trading market, can be so prosperous and lively is very simple, it is based on the rice production of the grain-producing area.

So he really wanted to understand why Qi Heng could turn these dry inland hinterlands into high-quality rice fields.

That's why he asked where the water came from.

And the reason why he asked what the things that built these canals and buildings were was because he saw that the reason why Qi Heng could do all this in the past three years should be because of these things, which is why he developed and built them so quickly.

Otherwise, under normal circumstances, just the amount of work in front of them is enough to make the dynasties of the past dynasties take seven or eight years, or even more than ten years.

Just look at the time it took the emperors of the dynasties to build the mausoleums.

Some emperors even began to build their own tombs as soon as they ascended the throne, because they were afraid that they would not be built when he died.

After observing all the places, Liu Bowen found that the biggest difference between this place and other places is the different materials used.

Therefore, it is believed that the reason why Qi Heng can complete these construction projects so quickly is precisely because of relying on these materials.

As for the last question, why is it so prosperous and lively here before the autumn harvest.

It is not only the doubt in his heart at the moment, but also his conjecture after seeing through all this.

Obviously, if a place only produces a large amount of grain, it is impossible to have such a prosperous scene of water transportation.

It is not enough to support the construction of these projects and buildings.

Because you can't build a building out of food.

It is also impossible to gather such a large number of people by relying on the autumn harvest that occurs only once a year.

With Liu Bowen's inquiry, Li Shanchang on the side also heard some strange things from his words.

Saw the essence of the problem.

In fact, Li Shanchang is not stupid, the reason why he is not as fast and clear as Liu Bowen thought is because he is not good at being quick.

It doesn't take long, maybe it only takes one night for Li Shanchang to return home and think alone, and he can figure out the key.

But I have to admit that he is not as fast as Liu Bowen thinks, and the logical analysis and transformation are clear.

As for Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da on the other side. Xu Da had a desire to watch the excitement from the beginning, because he was a military general and not a civil servant, so he could not pay attention to these at all, and just need to take a look at the excitement.

And Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the exchanges between his subordinates in front of him, and he was completely thinking of studying.

It is true that he is not as skilled or experienced as anyone present in the administration of the present day.

But now he has a humble attitude, like a dry sponge, quickly absorbing nutrients.

The rate of growth is also very fast.

At this moment, Qi Heng did not answer him directly after listening to Liu Bowen's inquiry.

Instead, he said to Zhu Yuanzhang beside him: "Big brother, do you remember the materials when I built Huanggang City?" ”

Listening to Qi Heng's words, Zhu Yuanzhang fell into memories, and soon his thoughtful face suddenly showed a look of sudden realization.

"Eun Gong is saying, what is that called concrete?"

Hearing this, Qi Heng nodded and said with a smile: "Exactly." ”

As he spoke, Qi Heng waved his hand, and Chen Du, who was following behind him, immediately ran over.

"Arrange a carriage and let's go up to the reservoir to have a look."

Hearing Qi Heng's words, Chen Du immediately turned around and left.

And Qi Heng also said to everyone present: "Let's go, take you to see where the water in these rice fields comes from." ”

With anticipation, everyone followed closely behind Qi Heng and Zhu Yuanzhang and walked towards the side of the mountain road.

Soon on the side of the road where the cement was poured, everyone waited for two carriages.

Sitting in two carriages, the group began to move towards the distant mountain.

After about a quarter of an hour, the carriage stopped, and the crowd dismounted.

Along the mountain road, I walked a long way on the mountain road guarded by hundreds of soldiers.

It wasn't until they saw a reservoir completely flooded with river water that they finally understood where the water from the countless rice fields below came from.

From the outside, you can still clearly see the traces of the former canyon.

But in the distance, on both sides, it is now blocked by a wall dozens of meters high, which is said to be a wall, but in fact it is like a miracle, cutting off mountains and rivers.

Liu Bowen looked at the scene in the distance, opened his mouth, and couldn't help exclaiming: "It's really a miracle!" ”

Li Shanchang, Zhu Yuanzhang and others on the side were no better, like most people who saw this scene for the first time, they couldn't close their mouths in amazement.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the scene in front of him, thinking that these were all things under his command now, and suddenly felt that his whole body had become lighter, and he was about to float.

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang finally understood why many emperors felt when they saw the territory under their command.

However, thinking that these are all the exploits that Qi Heng has made in the past three years, I can't help but be amazed, but also understand Qi Heng's hard work for this.

Thinking about the fact that Qi Heng and Zhou Nian were crammed into a hut for more than ten days, they planned such a grand plan.

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed in his heart, so he couldn't help but arch his hand to Qi Heng and said, "Engong, it's a blessing." ”

Suddenly hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words, Qi Heng was stunned at the same time, and seemed to have found the purpose of doing this so hard.

In addition to being for the people of the world, why not for his eldest brother.

Now Zhu Yuanzhang's words are affirming his dedication.

Qi Heng smiled and said, "Big brother, do you and I still need to say this?" ”

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed loudly.

It is not only to feel the love between brothers, but also to see this miraculous miracle in front of him.

Xu Da, Li Shanchang, and Liu Bowen on the side were all touched when they saw this scene.

After seeing this place, Qi Heng explained to everyone: "Now this place is built of concrete, and at the same time, the canals, houses, and wharves under the mountain are all built by this thing, and the craftsmanship is simple and solid. Only with this thing can we achieve this grand occasion. ”

Listening to Qi Heng's words, everyone finally understood.

After descending the mountain, the group came to the ferry.

Riding on a five- or six-meter-long boat, heading forward.

About an hour or so, everyone happened to have a meal in the boat and rested for a while.

"My lord! Mongsa Pier has arrived! ”

Inside the cabin.

A soldier suddenly walked in and said to the people in the cabin.

Hearing the soldier's words, everyone was shocked.

"Where are you?"

As a general, Xu Da was extremely sensitive to the distance between cities, and when he heard what the soldiers said, he suddenly felt incredible.

The soldier in front of him looked surprised, and said in confusion: "Mengcheng." ”

"Mongcheng? The city of Mongolia in the northwest? Zhu Yuanzhang on the side couldn't help but ask.

The soldier's face was puzzled, and he repeated again: "Dashuai, it's time to Mongolia." ”

When repeatedly confirming that the Mengcheng in his mouth was the Mengcheng in the soldier's mouth, Zhu Yuanzhang suppressed the surprise and doubt in his heart, waved his hand, and motioned for the soldier to go out.

The shocked Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da glanced at each other, and Li Shanchang and Liu Bowen on the side also heard some signs in their conversation.

After thinking about it, it became clear why they were so surprised.

Facing the complicated looks on the faces of these four people.

Qi Heng, who was sitting peacefully on the chair, smiled slightly.

It wasn't until everyone fell silent that they got up and said to them with a smile: "Let's go, everyone, Mengcheng has arrived." ”

With Qi Heng's pace, the other four also walked out of the cabin and went to the deck.

Looking at the city outside the river in the distance, and the word Mengcheng clearly written on the city.

They finally believed that in an hour or so, they had reached Mengcheng from outside Huanggang City and Haozhou City to Mengcheng, which was far northwest of Anfeng Road.

For a moment, everyone's minds went blank, and they couldn't figure out how they had reached their destination in such a short time.

Because there was no clock in the cabin, and they couldn't tell the time, they were all a little skeptical at this time, whether they had misremembered the time and confused their memory.

Based on their estimates of the time they had just been in the cabin, it was impossible for the voyage to last more than an hour.

Just when everyone began to wonder if their brains were wrong because they had been in the cabin for too long.

Qi Heng, who understood all this, opened his mouth and explained with a smile: "Big brother, take a look behind you." ”

Hearing Qi Heng's words, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately turned his head to look at the back of the boat.

Just now, because he was thinking about the problem of time, he didn't notice it at all, but now when he was reminded by Qi Heng to focus on this matter, he finally found that something was wrong.

He noticed that the whole ship was moving forward at a very fast speed.

This speed is much faster than on horseback.

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang finally discovered the problem, he stared at a pair of bear eyes, and looked at Qi Heng with a smile on his face: "Engong, why is this ship sailing so fast?" ”

Hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's exclamatory words, Qi Heng led him to another cabin of the ship.

As soon as they entered the cabin, they saw what made it different from the others.

The place they had been in before was made of wood, and it was still essentially a wooden boat.

The chamber, however, is made entirely of steel.

Inside the chamber, scorching flames were rising, and the sound of boiling hot water came from inside the completely enclosed steel box.

The axle wheels cast from steel on the side are spinning at a rapid pace.

At this time, under Qi Heng's prompt, everyone reacted one after another, this ship was completely different from the wooden boat they imagined.

Just when Zhu Yuanzhang was still looking at Qi Heng in confusion, wanting to get the answer he wanted from his mouth, Qi Heng took him to the stern of the boat again.

Holding on to the railing on which the boat overturned, Qi Heng pointed to the propeller under the boat and said to Zhu Yuanzhang: "Big brother, the power of this boat is different from what you usually see, it is driven by steam energy. ”

Listening to the strange words in Qi Heng's mouth, everyone's faces showed a look of confusion.

Qi Heng understood that there was no way to explain the principle of the steam engine to them from his own words alone.

Thinking of this, he had no choice but to say: "You can understand it as long as the fire inside keeps burning the water in the tank, it can make the boat constantly brake and run, and the propeller behind the boat will keep rotating, thus driving the boat to continue to sail forward." ”

Although everyone still didn't understand Qi Heng's words, they couldn't understand the principles that Qi Heng said.

But they heard them clearly.

Knowing that the boat is powered by a way that they don't understand, that's why the boat is sailing very fast.

However, different people think in completely different directions about the benefits and effects that this boat can bring.

Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang's minds were full of thoughts that in just two hours, they could go directly from Haozhou City to Mengcheng.

This is a role that I can play for them, who are good at military warfare, and I can't imagine that once the number of such ships increases somewhat, the number of troops they carry will increase a lot.

Just imagine, when the front line is fighting, suddenly thousands or even tens of thousands of troops suddenly appear in the enemy's hinterland within an hour or so.

For the whole battle situation, it is absolutely subversive.

When the enemy army thought that there were only 5,000 soldiers on duty in the city and attacked the city, suddenly 10,000 troops arrived in the city in an hour or so.

It is estimated that the generals of the other side have the heart to die.

Not only that, but also the transmission of information.

In this day and age, the reason why raid tactics can work so well is precisely because it takes too long for information to be transmitted.

Often, when there was a war on the border of a dynasty, it took several days for detailed intelligence documents to reach the imperial capital.

And when the emperor in the imperial capital convened the ministers to discuss and discuss, and then deployed and dispatched troops, the daylily was already cold.

The situation on the front lines has long since changed dramatically.

But now it's different, and the ship's speed can make up for most of the losses.

When the other party's information was just transmitted back to the center, the army on his side was already about to arrive at the front line.

In contrast, the advantages are fully revealed.

Of course, these are just two of the benefits that are evident with the speed increase.

There are many other advantages.

And for Wenchen like Liu Bowen and Li Shanchang, the benefits are even more.

The speed at which government decrees were transmitted, the mingling of the people between the cities, the increase in commerce, and so on......

Even the vegetables that Mengcheng just picked today only need more than an hour to be delivered to Haozhou City.

It's absolutely unimaginable.

In the past, it was impossible for these vegetables to be transported to Haozhou City, because by the time it arrived, they were already broken.

Isn't there a lot of ships coming and going?

After all, there are more materials and goods that can be transported, so this kind of interaction behavior is naturally more.

This is still Mengcheng, the farthest city from Haozhou City, if it is in other cities that are closer, I am afraid that the food that his mother cooked for him will still be hot when it is sent to another city.

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