Wei Xiyin went to the county government office and wanted to ask Uncle Jiu about the planning of the county town.
The yamen had been renovated, but the two stone lions at the entrance were gray and covered with a thick layer of dust.
Houses are being demolished and rebuilt everywhere in the city. The dust is really too heavy, and water is in short supply. Who has time to clean it every day? No one cares about it anyway. We can just do a thorough cleaning after everything is repaired.
Wei Mingkuan was about to go out when he bumped into Wei Xiyin who was coming in.
Wei Xiyin pointed at the book in his hand and asked, "Where is Uncle Jiu going?"
"Go to the public kitchen. Your seventh uncle has taken people to the camp to register the household registration and asked me to go over and keep an eye on it." Wei Mingkuan looked up at her with a complicated expression. "I have something to ask Wu Niang, so I'll go over later."
He turned around and went back, and Wei Xiyin had no choice but to follow him.
The yamen is very large, and behind it is the residence of the Ling County magistrate.
Wei Mingkuan led her through many twists and turns until they arrived at a room where they handled chores. He explained, "It's too dusty out front, so we can only move our things to the backyard first."
He pointed to the next room and said, "Your cousin Ting and I will sleep next to it. It's more convenient here. It's too hot, and it's a bit tiring to run back and forth."
Wei Xiyin quickly said, "Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Jiu and Cousin Ting."
Wei Mingkuan waved his hand and fanned himself with the booklet in his hand. "We don't have to do it ourselves. We don't have to worry about food and clothing here, so how can we say it's hard work?"
It’s just a little hot, but the dock is also hot.
It was only when he returned that he learned about the ice-making recipe.
This time, Wei Mingze came over and gave him the recipe, asking him not to spread it to anyone else.
The mining of saltpeter mines is currently very slow. Only Cheng Qing and some new recruits are mining there. They not only have to transport the saltpeter mines, but also need to find other raw materials for making explosives.
I am afraid that after the recipe is announced, people will secretly hoard saltpeter and water, or even take over the reservoirs on the mountain, which will be very unfavorable for management. It would be better to use ice as a reward for work, distributing a batch every few days, and at the same time stimulate everyone's enthusiasm for work.
Wei Mingkuan picked up the blueprint on the table and asked, "Wu Niang, are you here to ask about the renovation of Ling County?"
Wei Xiyin nodded. "When my niece went to Fuyang, the blueprints hadn't come out yet. I don't know what the progress is like here now."
While she was replying, Wei Mingkuan had already opened the drawings on the desk.
"The progress is a bit slow. Firstly, the weather is too hot. Now, for those who work outside, Mingjingtang allows them to work for an hour and rest for half an hour. We are afraid that everyone will get sick and add pressure to the herbal medicine shop."
"Secondly, most people are concentrating on building the city wall outside. We need to enclose the entire Ling County first. Once the area is safe, we can dare to work at night when there is no sun."
Wei Mingkuan sighed and said, "Although the population is now 18,000, apart from the Wei family army, the Wei clan's followers, the women doing manual labor, some elderly and weak children, and the logistics staff of the fort, there are actually not many people outside."
A total of 3,000 people were transferred to transport food and mine Fuyang ore, and they have not returned yet.
The other five hundred people were there after Wei Xiyin came back. Some of them saw that the people transporting the ore received several bamboo plates at once, and everyone was envious and signed up to join.
Although it is dangerous outside, danger and rewards coexist.
Smart people have already realized that since the summer is so difficult to endure, this year's winter may not be much better. After the city wall is repaired, there may not be any work to do, so the important thing is to store food for the winter as soon as possible.
Mingjingtang did not object. The weather was bad and the ore work should be completed early, so he selected another thousand people to go out, and another five hundred people went to the granary to transport the remaining grain.
In addition, a group of people with weaving skills were recruited to make bamboo safety helmets.
Despite the large population, the number of people working outside is not as high as one might imagine. Even the smallest county would not be too small if one were to encompass all four sides of Ling County. At least if one really wanted to explore, it would take several days to complete the journey.
Wei Xiyin stared at the blueprint and nodded, "Let's go slow. Survival is the most important thing right now. Just like my grandfather said, there's no rush. Let's just do it step by step."
Wei Mingkuan smiled at her and said, "Things need to be done slowly, but the fortress's paper inventory is running low, so I separated the paper mill first. As for the blacksmith shop, your cousin Ting is personally watching over it, and I'm not interfering."
He pointed to three places on the blueprint and said, "Currently, the planning for three places has been completed: the blacksmith shop, the dyeing factory, and the paper mill."
Papermaking technology existed in this era.
When Wei Xiyin was still a baby, she discovered that her family used paper to write, not bamboo slips. At first, she thought she had been transported back to a period after the Western Han Dynasty. As she grew older, through the conversations and actions of those around her and the books she read, she realized it was a dynasty she had never heard of. It resembled the Wei and Jin dynasties, but also wasn't.
The straightforward, unrestrained, and elegant behavior style of the famous scholars of the Wei and Jin Dynasties is not there. The literati and scholars will not indulge in mountains and rivers, nor will they dress themselves up excessively, but some bad habits are still the same.
It should be said that no matter which dynasty, people in the upper class have a common problem: they have too high an opinion of themselves and are conceited.
That's getting off topic.
Wei Xiyin pulled back her thoughts and said, "It should be."
She moved closer to examine the drawings more closely.
Wei Mingkuan stepped aside and sat cross-legged on the futon. "I asked the mason to draw the blueprint according to my idea. We have only built one public kitchen for now, but we have also reserved a spot for when more people come here in the future."
He pointed at the blueprint and said, "Except for the military camps near the two city gates, I've divided the entire county into seventy-seven workshops of varying sizes. Each workshop has been numbered, but their purpose hasn't been determined yet, to avoid shortages."
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