Iron Ore 2

Chapter 32: Iron Ore 2

While the five were exploring the mountains, a letter arrived from Jin Yi, saying that the grain merchants and grain routes arranged last year were progressing smoothly, and that the grain stores would be able to be brought to the northern border next year.

Sun Mingsi felt relieved at this. He had been having bad premonitions from time to time for the past year, which made him panic, but he couldn't find anything wrong or wrong. He could only suppress it in his heart and give the order first.

Recently he borrowed Uncle Deng's medical book to kill time. Unexpectedly, this medical book is very interesting. It is not at all old-fashioned like those written by his predecessors. The more he reads, the more interesting it becomes.

After the five of them entered the mountains, Chu Huaibei began preparing for the ironworks. First, the workshop had to be hidden within the mountains; the iron ore couldn't possibly be found in the open. Secondly, they needed craftsmen, and this was where the difficulty began. All blacksmiths were registered. The disappearance of one or two was fine, but the disappearance of more than a dozen would be a serious investigation, as the court's first reaction would be that they had been abducted by the Mongols. The selection of craftsmen required careful consideration.

There was also the matter of supplying daily necessities in the mountains, which required finding a new, uninhabited mountain path to transport supplies. This would require manpower, and since the personal soldiers couldn't be mobilized, the only option was to mobilize the palace soldiers. This matter also needed to be explained clearly to my mother.

Chu Huaibei calculated and counted the people he had under his command. They were not enough, really not enough.

After finding a time to spend the afternoon alone with his mother, Chu Huaibei walked out of the room, looking relieved. His mother was truly reliable, having immediately solved the problem of the palace's lack of soldiers. It turned out that his mother's caravan had been taking in people as they traveled extensively, usually filling the caravan and sending those who had passed the test to the palace when needed. Chu Huaibei simply asked for a hundred men, intending to disband them and then add them to the palace's soldiers before making further arrangements.

After seeing the success of literacy training for the personal and government soldiers, my mother also adopted it for the caravan. While it wasn't particularly effective, it was still possible to read and write. If there were words they didn't know, they could write homophones instead, without affecting their reading. This made the caravan more efficient.

The most important thing now was blacksmiths. Where could he find so many blacksmiths without being investigated? Chu Huaibei sat in his study for a day and finally had an idea. The blacksmiths in the Sinong Office were considered officials, and their names were only registered in the military camp, not on the list of prefectures and counties!

The next day, Chu Huaibei personally went to the Sinong Office and spent a long time in his room with Chen Sinong. Chen Sinong gritted his teeth and decided to send his grandson to the mountains to help the prince. He had originally planned to resign at the end of the year and let his grandson take over, but now that the prince had a request, he would work hard for a few more years! If his grandson's ability was outstanding and the prince valued him, then their family would be considered a fish leaping into the dragon gate.

In addition, since the number of people in the Sinong Office cannot be changed on the surface, we must now speed up the training of the younger generations in the families of all the craftsmen to fill the vacancies left by the selected people. The craftsmen in the Sinong Office are generally inherited from the family. One reason is that it is convenient for the higher-ups to find people, and the other is that the skills of repairing farm tools are guaranteed. After all, the younger generations learn from the experience of the older generation.

The Si Nong department, under the old Zhenbei King, was already a powerful department directly under his command. Because it was a place without any lucrative or profitable opportunities, the aristocratic families disdained to get involved. Chu Huaibei also maintained full control after taking over. As long as the number of people remained unchanged, no one would delve into it.

Chu Huaibei summoned each member of the Sino-Agricultural Office into the inner hall, asking them if they were willing to work for her in the mountains. The monthly salary would be double their current rate, and their families and the palace would help take care of them. However, they were not allowed to leave the mountains without her permission. The nature of the work could not be disclosed for the time being; it was entirely voluntary and there would be no coercion.

An answer must be given immediately, and not a single word can be revealed to the family.

Of the thirty-plus people in Sinong, eleven were willing to follow the King of Zhenbei, including Deputy Secretary Ding, the main maker of the Quyuan Plow. Chen Sinong's grandson, Wang Feng, had also volunteered without his interference, much to Chen Sinong's delight. Although his grandson wasn't good at speaking, he was very sensible.

After the candidate is decided, Chen Sinong will handle the subsequent matters of Sinong Office and just wait for her to send someone to pick him up.

With these eleven people, Chu Huaibei was no longer in a hurry. The manpower was just enough, and he would make the allocation based on their skills.

The five men explored the mountains for over half a month, yet they still hadn't found hematite. However, they did find coal, which was a pleasant surprise. Without it, the vast quantities of charcoal needed for iron smelting would have to be calcined manually through felling trees. Over time, it was inevitable that someone with a keen eye would discover the clues. Finally, near the end of the month, they found hematite beneath a cliff. It's fair to say the entire cliff face was covered in hematite, which is why the scholar recorded it so clearly.

This place is in the eastern mountain range of Qizhou. They entered the mountains from the west, so it's no wonder it took so long to search. However, this mine is actually not far from the nearest village. If a large number of people enter and exit, they will definitely be discovered. The King of Zhenbei will not let the mine be exposed, so they still need to find a way to enter and exit smoothly away from the village.

After staying in the mountains for half a month, the five people finally returned to the palace and handed the topographic map they had drawn to Chu Huaibei.

Chu Huaibei opened it and took a look. It was quite abstract. They had been asked to bring charcoal pencils this time, but they might not be used to them. After looking through the entire map, they found not only hematite but also coal. What a surprise! Not only that, they had also discovered a hidden path into the mountains.

As long as the team is disguised as a caravan, they can bypass everyone's sight and enter the mountains from the edge of the grassland. As for the Mongolian army, she can directly send her personal soldiers to patrol, which is justified.

Hu Zhi's guards are truly extraordinary. None of the personal soldiers she trained are as capable as him. I'm a bit envious of his men, and I wonder if I can keep one or two of them.

After reading it, he handed the map to Hu Zhi so that he could have a better idea of ​​the situation.

"You've done so well, so well that I'd like to reward you, regardless of your master. Huzhi, do you agree?"

"Okay, you can give me your reward, and I will give them my own reward."

"Your master has agreed. Whatever you want, as long as I have it, I will give it to you." Chu Huaibei said very generously.

The five of them quickly exchanged glances, and finally let Twenty-One speak.

"Your Majesty, can we have wine and food?"

"No problem. I'll give you three jars of fine wine each. However, I don't recommend drinking too much at once. The high concentration of this wine can be harmful to your health. As for the food, what kind of delicacies would you like? The palace has always been frugal in its food, and we don't have any delicacies from land or sea. But it's okay. Just write down what you want to eat, and I'll send someone to buy it." Chu Huaibei was surprised by the mention of delicious food. Could it be that Hu Zhi's food for the guards was not very good? No way, he was quite wealthy, so it didn't seem like he would skimp on this.

Sun Mingsi was mortified by the requests from Twenty-One and the others. Fine wine was understandable, but how could he even begin to understand the delicious food? Since he'd entered the palace, he'd never seen any delicacies on the table. Was he missing out on food for them? He'd definitely write to Jin Er and ask!

They saw that the King of Zhenbei was really planning to buy something. Could it be that all the food prepared before was bought outside? If so, it shouldn't be an unknown shop, after all, it's so delicious.

"Your Highness, we want to eat the pancakes, dried meat, buns with various fillings, and fried steamed bread slices that you prepared for us. If these are the famous dishes in a restaurant, just tell us the address of the store and we will go there to eat by ourselves. There is no need to buy anything." Twenty-one thought about it and decided that it would be better to say it directly. Why did he see that his master's face looked a little stiff?

"Ah, that's it? This was made by the cook in the palace. If you like it, just tell Aunt Wen and I'll talk to her later." Chu Huaibei was at a loss whether to laugh or cry after hearing this. What was going on?

Sun Mingsi suddenly realized that these dishes were indeed not available there. He was used to staying at the palace and didn't think the new dishes every month were any different. He didn't have a big appetite, but he would still eat a few more bites of the new dishes. After more than a year at the palace, he had obviously put on weight, and the clothes that Aunt Wen had made for him at the beginning no longer fit him.

He hadn't expected someone to be so attentive to food. It was his fault for not doing enough and not considering it enough. He went back to Huaibei to get the recipe and sent it to Jin Er, asking him to improve the food for the guards staying in Longzhou. This would prevent him from looking like an unsophisticated person when he returned to the Northern Territory.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" The five people spoke with excitement, and it seemed that they really enjoyed the food.

After they left, Chu Huaibei looked at Hu Zhi, opened his mouth several times, but still didn't dare to ask: Hu Zhi, is the food in your restaurant not very good...

Sun Mingsi lowered his head, thinking about something, and did not notice Chu Huaibei's hesitant expression.

"Huaibei, can you write down the recipes for these dishes for me? I want to try new dishes for them." Sun Mingsi looked up and asked.

"Oh, yes, sure. Wait, I'll write a few more for you while I'm free." Chu Huaibei then remembered that these dishes might only be available in the palace, and probably not elsewhere. She said that Hu Zhi was not such a stingy person.

My goodness, if she hadn't been the King of Zhenbei, she could have opened a snack bar or a small restaurant now. Don't think she has no ideals. In fact, her ideal is to lie down, but it is impossible to achieve. If she lies down, she will really lie flat...

"Huaibei, when are you planning to go to this mine? Do you need any more manpower? Besides knowing how to identify the mine, the five of them can actually make weapons. I think they are willing to stay now." Sun Mingsi didn't know how well she was prepared, but all the blacksmiths in Daxia were registered. If so many people were missing all of a sudden, they would definitely be tracked down.

Chu Huaibei was busy writing a recipe when he heard Hu Zhi's question. His eyes suddenly lit up. "Really? That's great! With these five people joining, there will be sixteen people in total. It will definitely be enough for the early trials! Hu Zhi, you really come at the right time!"

Chu Huaibei put down the pen in his hand, stood up and hugged Sun Mingsi, pouting his lips and kissing her twice, laughing. Seeing this, Sun Mingsi also laughed.

"Are Daddy and Mommy playing kissing again?" Hengheng's voice came from the door.

"Um, why did Hengheng get out of school so early today?" Chu Huaibei was pushed away by Sun Mingsi, and she asked casually.

"The teacher has to give a lecture to the brothers who need to take the exam today, so he asked me to come back first."

"Okay, boo~" Chu Huaibei picked up his son and kissed him hard on the cheek. The four-year-old child's face was still chewy.

Hengheng kissed her back: "Dad, the master said that we should avoid people when doing this. You must remember to close the door next time."

"Okay, I'll listen to Hengheng."

Listening to the conversation between the father and son, Sun Mingsi felt that his ears were about to burn again. How could he seriously discuss such an issue with his child? Sometimes Sun Mingsi really thought that Chu Huaibei was quite thick-skinned. He had never heard of such rumors from the old prince. The concubine was also a serious lady.

Seeing Hu Zhi's ears were red and bleeding, Chu Huaibei knew that he was embarrassed to have sex again. It was nothing. Thinking of this, he turned around and put Heng Heng in his arms, signaling Heng Heng to give his mother a kiss as well. "Bo~~"

Sun Mingsi was defeated by the two of them.