Shen Shuren spent a few days rectifying the ordnance manufacturing in Huangzhou, and as everything got on track, he calculated that the days were almost over, and he embarked on a journey back to Suzhou for the New Year.

Samples of bayonets and concave-backed tomahawks were not difficult to build, they were much more convenient than muskets.

Before leaving, Shen Shuren also got dozens of samples, and the initial model was a little flawed, so quickly iteratively modified, and after confirming that there was no problem, he finally set a sample and mass-produced it according to the sample.

In the whole process, Shen Shuren also had to add a few words to emphasize the standardization issues and the unification of size and weight weights and measures that some traversers often talked about.

Silver was also allocated to the craftsmen of the workshop, and they were equipped with new measuring tools, which were uniformly equipped. Ensure that the machined barrel and ferrule bayonet can be matched, and the problem of barrel eccentricity can be minimized.

As for the dozens of axes and bayonets that were in trial production in the first batch, Shen Shuren didn't intend to waste them, so he directly gave his henchmen guards equipment.

On the sixteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, five big sand boats carrying Shen Shuren and his party, and more than 300 escort soldiers, embarked on the return journey down the river from Huangzhou.

Zhang Huangyan personally went to the dock to see them off, and took care of them a few words, so that when the Shen family's fleet came back after the New Year, he would bring more copper and iron materials.

In the next month and a half, Zhang Huangyan will organize the production of bayonets and long-handled battle axes step by step. However, there are no iron mines in Huangzhou, and the existing iron materials in the government can only maintain full military production for two or three months at most.

Originally, Shen Shuren's equipment was purchased from outside, so the problem of buying raw materials was not prominent, but now it was all made by himself, and the contradiction was exposed at once.

After Shen Shuren wrote down this, he didn't have to handle it all by himself. After the ship set sail, he changed hands and instructed Shen Shou, who helped him manage the money, to buy copper and iron according to the daily business process on the return trip.

If the transportation needs to be escorted, let Shen Shou's younger brother Shen Fu handle it.

However, Shen Shuren also asked one more question in passing: "Our family originally needed to purchase copper and iron, where do we usually go to purchase it?" ”

Shen Shou has been running the business for the Shen family for many years, and he didn't think about answering the answer:

"Back to the young master, if you want to use it here in Huangzhou, the most convenient way to buy iron is to buy it in Wuchang Mansion. If you want goods from Suzhou, it is more convenient and cost-effective to use Fujian railway transportation.

There is an iron mountain in Daye County, Wuchang Prefecture, which has been mined since the Tang Dynasty, and Daye County is transported here on the opposite bank of Qishui County, Huangzhou, without a few dollars.

As for copper, whether it is Huangzhou or Suzhou in the south, copper materials go to Tongling, Anqing Prefecture, which is an old copper mine that has been mined since the end of the Han Dynasty. ”

Shen Shuren listened, and it was a little bit to make up for the geographical knowledge of the late Ming Dynasty, review the old and learn the new, and understand which copper and iron ore has been mined now and which has not yet been discovered.

According to Shen Shou, the more famous Ma'anshan iron mine in the south in later generations does not exist now.

The iron ore in Daye, Hubei Province has been there for a long time, but when Zhang Zhidong engaged in 'Hanye Ping' in later generations, the Anyuan Coal Mine in Pingxiang, which is matched with the iron ore, must have not been discovered yet.

If you want to use metallurgical coal in the southern region, it is estimated that you should go to Zhejiang to find those small coal mines in Changxing, Huzhou, which have begun to be mined in the Song and Ming dynasties, although the proportion of bituminous coal is high and the quality is slightly worse, but the transportation around the Taihu Plain is very convenient, and it is relatively easy to transport the coal out.

If you have to engage in coal from Pingxiang Coal Mine, the difficulty of mining is easy to solve, but the transportation will be very troublesome - in history, Zhang Zhidong built a small railway from Anyuan Mountain to Pingxiang County for Anyuan Coal Mine.

After the coal is transported to Pingxiang County, it can be transported along the Xiangjiang River by water. The subsequent mileage cost is negligible after boarding. The Xiangjiang River leads to Dongting Lake and the Yangtze River, and you can go anywhere.

Shen Shuren calculated it all, and he didn't avoid his henchmen, and directly sighed with emotion: "The amount of iron and copper we want to buy this year is not huge, and it will not arouse the suspicion of the imperial court."

However, I am in Huangzhou, and I must continue to expand my armaments and pursue the thieves, and I must also prepare for being transferred by His Majesty to deal with the Tartars in the future, and the speed of ordnance construction will definitely be accelerated many times next year and the year after that.

In the past two years, we still have to pay attention to our own private land, occupy and open private mines, and be self-sufficient and low-key. lest the copper and iron in the south of the Yangtze River be bought, and the price will be too eye-catching. ”

After the New Year, it will be the fourteenth year of Chongzhen. In history, until the fifteenth year of Chongzhen, the emperor still had the appeal to punish the local real power, so it was still necessary to keep a low profile and cover up.

It wasn't until around the end of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen that the emperor was completely out of touch with the local forces. Shen Shuren wants to act and develop in a low-key manner, and it will be enough to be low-key at that time.

In the future, no one will be able to trouble you just because you make steel to make firearms.

Shen Shou saw that the young master even dared to talk to him about this topic of "deceiving the court", and he also felt trust, and he was in good spirits for a while, thinking hard, and helping to make suggestions:

"Young master, since you want to open an iron mine privately, you have to pay a lot of money to the local government, and then cover it up and down. The benefits that should be given to the DPRK and China should not be missing, so as not to give people a handle.

However, at present, around Huangzhou, the most suitable iron ore is Daye Iron Mountain, and Wuchang Mansion is under the guard of Zuo Liangyu. I heard that it was also mentioned in the old man's book that Zuo Liangyu ...... with our family"

At this point, he was afraid that the words would be inappropriate, so he stopped talking about it for the time being.

Shen Shuren also understood, and as soon as he raised his hand, he signaled that this was not something he should worry about: "Zuo Liangyu's affairs, I have my own measure, all you have to think about is the details of business and accounts." Regardless of whether these iron mountains can be obtained or not, you should first assume that you can get them, and think carefully about the work that should be prepared. ”

……

In the past few days on the ship, Shen Shuren has been idle, so he chatted with his subordinates about the future military supply chain.

It is always easy for people to figure out a lot of questions when they calm down, that is, in the past few days, Shen Shuren has also had a new view on how to deal with Zuo Liangyu in the future.

To tell the truth, originally according to Shen Shuren's established rhythm, he planned to stabilize Zuo Liangyu first. The meal should be eaten one bite at a time, first completely kill the fifth battalion of the left of the revolution, and then deal with Zhang Xianzhong, and after Zhang Xianzhong is crippled, it is not too late to slowly clean up Zuo Liangyu.

According to the preliminary timetable for Chongzhen's fourteenth year to deal with the fifth battalion of Gezuo and Chongzhen's fifteenth year to deal with Zhang Xianzhong, dealing with Zuo Liangyu is at least a matter of Chongzhen's sixteenth year. In this way, it is possible to avoid "fighting on two fronts" at the same time.

Cleaning up is definitely going to be cleaned up, and there is no doubt about the general direction.

Historically, Zuo Liangyu played the banner of "Qing Jun's side" in the Southern Ming Dynasty, which was actually a rebellion, and directly led to the fact that at least two of the four towns in the Southern Ming Dynasty were restrained and could not be used to deal with Duoduo's southward movement.

Therefore, Zuo Liangyu must be responsible for Shi Kefa's defeat in Yangzhou and the final fall of Nanjing.

Of course, some people may think that Zuo Liangyu's situation should be better than Zheng Zhilong, at least Zuo Liangyu himself died of illness on the way to the army, and he himself didn't have time to become a traitor.

But after his son Zuo Mengeng inherited his military legacy, he did not hesitate to directly lead the troops to settle it, and this account was calculated on Zuo Liangyu's head, and it was not too wronged to him.

For an existence that will become a traitor family in history and in the future, Shen Shuren will not have moral pressure to deal with him, of course, this is doing the right thing for heaven.

But now, firstly, Shen Shuren realized that Zuo Liangyu was close to Wuchang, and after the relationship between the two sides had been torn apart, if he had any major demolition and construction in Huangzhou, he would be easily targeted by Zuo Liangyu. If he wants to take Daye's iron mine and build nearby, he will also be constrained by Zuo Liangyu.

In his father's family letter, it is also obvious that he took hostile measures against Zuo Liangyu before.

In this case, it is better to advance and strive to compress to the fourteenth year of Chongzhen and start to deal with Zhang Xianzhong, and in the fifteenth year of Chongzhen, make a game, so that Zuo Liangyu can act out of personal vendetta and restrain himself when dealing with Zhang Xianzhong.

In history, when Chongzhen was fifteen years old, he was able to let Sun Chuanting kill the powerful general He Renlong, and Zuo Liangyu was completely arrogant and domineering in history, which was after Chongzhen was sixteen years old and the court was completely powerless.

If he can provoke Zuo Liangyu in advance, make Zuo Liangyu flutter, not calm, restrain friendly troops in advance, and sabotage the overall situation of suppressing thieves, then is it possible for Zuo Liangyu to enjoy the fate of He Renlong in history?

The biggest advantage of this is that it can prevent internal friction in the Ming army - according to Shen Shuren's original plan, when he wants to deal with and annex Zuo Liangyu in the future, he will definitely have to fight a war, both sides are the official army of the Ming Dynasty, and whoever dies is a consumption of the Han people's force, which is too cost-effective.

If you can use Chongzhen's last righteous position in the imperial court to only deal with the first evil and incorporate Zuo Liangyu's army, it would be great, and everyone would be happy.

However, the flaws and risks of this plan are also obvious - Shen Shuren has to take risks and take a certain risk of "making enemies on two fronts".

Avoiding fighting on two fronts is also common sense in itself. Before he completes the final blow to Zhang Xianzhong in the future, he tears his face with Zuo Liangyu, which is equivalent to having a few months to face the madness of Zhang Xianzhong and Zuo Liangyu at the same time!

Will you be able to bear your strength at that time?

After thinking about it, Shen Shuren felt that for the sake of additional income, this risk was still worth taking.

The key is that even if he doesn't provoke Zuo Liangyu, Zuo Liangyu's hatred value is not easy to control. Rather than leaving a remote-controlled bomb with an unknown hatred value, it is better to turn it into a time bomb with its own fuse length cut short.

"After the New Year, when I go to Nanjing to go through the formalities, I have to find out about Zuo Liangyu's relatives and friends in Nanjing, and grab a little black material and hold it in my hand." Shen Shuren was secretly worried in his heart, and silently made a plan.

The ten-day voyage on the Yangtze River soon ended, and on the 26th day of the lunar month, Shen Shuren's fleet successfully arrived at Liujiagang in Taicang, Suzhou.

From the end of the Lantern Festival at the beginning of the year, when he went north to the capital to take the exam, to the end of today's month, he felt that he had a bit of a sense of drifting north to work as a worker.

It's just that his performance in the north drift is better. After drifting for 11 months and 10 days, he was promoted from an eight-rank official to a seventh-grade, sixth-grade, and fifth-grade, and made two meritorious contributions in one imperial examination, which can be called a rocket.