Chapter 229: The Developing East China Sea Base
The latest model of catapults that could throw three shells in a row were pushed out. The two catapults first fired three shells at the sea and then fired three shells at the sand.
Gu Changxiao and Yan Jiu each had a telescope, watching the shells blast out a water curtain dozens of meters high, a huge deep pit, and the collapse of rocks, and they all felt their blood boiling. In the future, the battlefield will be dominated by our Daxia artillery! Gu Changxiao also understood why Jin Sui insisted on not letting him enter the workshop. It was indeed too dangerous. The huge workshop was completely a powder keg, and it would be blown up if not careful.
At the same time, he thought of Jinsui's research on gunpowder and oil in the workshop before, and suddenly broke out in a cold sweat. Suisui always said that he had a way to protect himself, but in Gu Changxiao's opinion, this was also risking his life! He looked at Jinsui and said sternly: "Suisui, don't enter the workshop again!"
Jin Sui smiled and nodded: "Okay."
Seeing that Gu Changxiao was still worried, she had to adjust her facial expression and said solemnly: "I promise that I will not go to the military workshop in the future."
Anyway, she only needs to give the design drawings, and as for the new ingredients, she can debug them in the space, which is safer.
Gu Changxiao was satisfied: "I will give all the officials and soldiers in the military workshop promotions and rewards. With such weapons, our Daxia warriors will be even more powerful in the future!"
He exclaimed again: "The gunpowder I brought with me when I went to Chang'an was already powerful enough. I didn't expect that in just half a year, the trebuchet would be improved and the gunpowder would be even more powerful."
Jinsui said: "As long as we find ways to improve them, weapons will continue to improve. What we are trying to accomplish now is to improve the trebuchet into a turret, making it smaller but with a longer range, so that it can be installed on a warship."
"In this way, when we attack Japan, our warships will be able to sink all of their ships at sea."
…
Jinsui and Gu Changxiao talked about the sailing route to Japan and about transferring all the craftsmen from Chang'an to build ships and cannons.
Yan Jiu listened quietly on the side without making any comments, but he understood one thing just by watching the gunpowder drill.
The aristocratic families had no chance of recovery. If the land reform had broken the bones of the aristocratic families, then the new weapons of the military industry had broken their backbones.
In the past, their warriors, guards, and tenants, who were so proud of them, secretly stored armor and swords, but in the face of artillery, they were like chickens and dogs and were completely vulnerable.
Yan Jiu sighed in his heart, but His Majesty did not want to suppress and kill all the aristocrats. He still needed the aristocratic families to be pioneers and develop trade in the northern border, the western regions and overseas.
Whether others can see clearly and understand His Majesty's tactics and the strength of the court, and whether they can find a way to transform the family in time, Yan Jiu has no control over it, and he is powerless to do anything about it.
But as the helmsman of the Yan family, he must control this giant ship of the Yan family well and never let it suffer a devastating disaster.
Responding to Your Majesty's land reform is the first step. The second step is to actively cooperate with Your Majesty and Miss Ling in the war against Japan.
He had already discovered that Miss Ling had an obsession with Japan, an obsession that was even deeper than opening an academy or becoming a queen.
Now Daxia has no navy. Before the imperial court builds a navy, builds warships, and launches a naval war, what can my Yan family do?
Yan Jiu soon came up with an idea. The Yan family had traded with Japan before, so he could use the maritime merchants to send more people to sneak into Japan to collect intelligence and gather information. When the war broke out, he would present all the information to the court.
After watching the gunpowder drill of the Ministry of Military Industry, the group came to the base under the leadership of County Magistrate Liu. It was truly a tremendous change.
I still remember the first time we came here, Jinsui and his friends all slept on the beach. Apart from the sea, all you could see was the Gobi Desert. Now there are salt fields along the coast and workshops and houses on the Gobi Desert.
In order to protect against sea breezes, the houses are not built high, and are not connected by walls. They are all independent houses with a small alley in the middle that can accommodate two people.
All the houses are made of red tiles and blue bricks, painted white with lime. The style of this complex is different from that of Chang'an and Border Town. It is not so majestic, but very beautiful.
Especially in the early morning and at dusk, when the setting sun is half on the sea and half on the town, even the hardest-working people will look up at the distant scenery and say "it's so beautiful!" "It's so beautiful!" This is also what Jin Sui felt at the moment. She climbed up the lighthouse with Gu Changxiao, Yan Jiu, and County Magistrate Liu. At present, the lighthouse does not function as a morning star at sea, but as a watchtower.
With the help of a telescope, the whole town can be seen. The center of the town is the county government office, outside is a semicircular square, and on both sides of the wide road are workshops and residential areas.
Further out, there are salt fields along the coast, reclaimed farmland in the south of Yanzhou, a forest in the north, and a pastoral area through the forest. No one came to graze here before, but now you can see flocks of sheep.
Jin Sui praised: "The planning is very good, but I am afraid that if it is not well planned at the beginning, when the houses are built, one building in the east and another in the west, the road will become winding and difficult to walk.
It will be very troublesome to demolish and rebuild in the future, so it is better to plan well from the beginning, including industrial areas, residential areas, commercial areas, and government agencies. This will facilitate management and speed up urban construction."
County Magistrate Liu was very happy to receive the compliment, and smiled stiffly, "It is the credit of Miss Ling and Lord Cheng. It was you who gave us the blueprints and helped us plan the route and the division of the areas.
I am not smart enough to come up with new ideas, so I will just follow your instructions and Master Cheng’s. I dare not make any changes or additions at will.”
Gu Changxiao praised: "You have done a great job. You have made an indelible contribution to the development of the base to its current level!"
The emperor's praise made County Magistrate Liu very happy. Who could have thought that he was a captain of the Tuntian Camp and could not afford to pay the soldiers' salaries and rations. He was suppressed and scolded by his superiors every year, and his whole family, including his brothers in the Tuntian Camp, almost couldn't survive.
As a result, they waited for the "King Li", and when the King Li besieged the city to demand money, he, who had been timid all his life, made a bold choice, which was to take his brothers and follow the King Li to demand money.
It was this decision that made him what he is today. A small lieutenant at the border became the magistrate of a city and a close confidant of His Majesty. Although he was old and had limited prospects, he earned a future for his children and grandchildren.
Lord Liu looked at the "King of Li" he had followed in the past, uh, that is, Jin Sui, and a thousand words of gratitude welled up in his heart, but he could not say anything. He could only repay this kindness with a lifetime of loyalty and dedication.
Gu Changxiao then asked about the base's population situation, grain harvest, seafood trade, etc., and Lord Liu answered fluently.
At this time, a ship appeared on the sea. Jin Sui looked at Yan Jiu and heard him say, "It is the Yan family's ship. If I remember correctly, the Yan family has already lent this ship to the base."
Lord Liu said hurriedly: "That's right! The boat is carrying Lingnan's citrus, brown sugar, longan, dried lychees and other Lingnan specialties. These goods are in great demand in Yandi.
On the return trip, we will bring potatoes, sweet potato flour, pickled cabbage, canned tomatoes and other specialties from our border town to sell in Jiangnan."
Jin Sui said: "People in Northern Xinjiang like our canned food very much. We can go to Lingnan to make canned fruit and ship it to the base by sea. Then we can sell it to Northern Xinjiang from the base. The profit should be good."
Yan Jiu was somewhat tempted, but he did not speak. He could not give His Majesty the impression that the Yan family wanted to be involved in all businesses, as that would make him appear too ambitious.
Gu Changxiao nodded: "I will send an imperial envoy to bring workers to Lingnan to teach the locals how to make canned food. Unfortunately, the Lingnan seaport has not been built yet, so it is not convenient for a large number of ships to flow in."
There is so much business that can be done at sea, but because the ports are not built and there are too many pirates, it is impossible to completely liberalize maritime trade.
Their wedding is approaching, but Jinsui is still worried about government affairs. There are too many things to do, and he always feels that there is not enough time.
After returning to the border town, Jin Sui met Yan Shiyi again. He happily came to report to Jin Sui: "This winter, we opened a hundred new hot pot restaurants. In addition to the sixteen states of Yan, we also have hot pot restaurants in Shuzhong, Jiangnan, Chang'an, and Luocheng.
The franchise model is profitable and the industry is expanding rapidly. We have the hotpot ingredients in our hands, so they have to buy them from us. And our tomatoes and vermicelli are the specialties of the border town. "
Jinsui didn't tease him, but kept calling him "we" as if you were also from the border town.
"That's right! But you have to do a good job of supervision and set up an inspection team. If any franchise stores sell inferior products as good ones and cheat customers, it will damage our reputation."
Yan Shiyi came to see Jinsui, and besides talking about the hot pot, he also said two things: "My brother said that after you get married, I will go to Chang'an to see Twelve Mothers, and then go to the Northern Frontier.
Isn't your junior fellow apprentice still in Northern Xinjiang? Do you want me to tell you something?"
Jin Sui was stunned for a moment before realizing that he was talking about Liu Yun. He nodded and said, "Nothing to bring. He should have received the news that His Majesty and I are getting married. If he wants to come back, he will ask His Majesty for permission."
…
At this time, Liuyun was sitting in the snow, looking at the secret letter in his hand, with a look of shattered faith on his face.
Senior Sister is actually going to marry His Majesty and become the Queen! What on earth is she thinking? She wants to be the Queen instead of a deity!
Being a queen is good, but can it be as good as being a god? If you become a queen, can you still practice immortality? Can you pass on the Qiankun bag to me? But Tuoya came to ask him: "Do you know that your emperor is going to get married? Which noble family is this Ling's daughter from? I have never heard of her."
Liuyun looked at her as if she were a fool. Of course, he didn't say that Ling was Ji Xiangu. He just said coldly, "Ling is a new noble."
"What does she look like? I thought your emperor would marry Ji Xiangu?"
"Yeah, she's as pretty as Senior Sister Ji."
Bater came running over excitedly: "Master Liuyun, your emperor married another woman, and Ji Xiangu must be heartbroken. How about we go and grab her to Northern Frontier together? I promise that I will build the largest temple for Ji Xiangu as a place of practice, and make you the national teacher. You and your brother will have more power in my Northern Frontier than the Left Wise King."
Liuyun looked at him as if he were a fool again, and thought of what his senior sister had said: if we help Bater defeat King Zuo Xian, we are also helping ourselves.
Look, with such a king in the northern border, are we still afraid that they will attack the border?
Senior sister is absolutely right! The Northern Frontier court is still arguing about whether to ban the raising of rabbits.
Some of them believed that rabbits were very profitable, and that Daxia merchants paid high prices for rabbit skins, rabbit hair, and rabbit meat, and that our people could get rich by raising rabbits.
Some people believe that rabbits destroy pastures, leaving cattle and sheep without grass to eat, and that the holes they dig can injure war horses. At the same time, because of the proliferation of rabbits, there are more wolf packs, and our sheep are often attacked by wolves.
The court was arguing non-stop, but Bater thought it was a small matter. As a king, he should be thinking about expanding the territory, not rabbits. He let the court officials argue and did not make a decision.
Liuyun knew the root cause of the rabbits' rampant spread and his senior sister's purpose very well. In fact, there was no need to keep him here to watch over them. Northern Xinjiang would not be able to develop in Bater's hands.
Bater urged Liuyun: "Do you want to go with me? If your sister comes, we will have a flying artifact, and you can practice."
Liuyun glanced at him, pretending to be a hermit, and turned around calmly, ignoring the lingering snow on his body, saying, "I respect Senior Sister's wishes and will never do anything to embarrass her.
"You should just give up on this idea, Wang! Senior Sister will not come to Northern Frontier."
Liuyun returned to the Taoist temple, climbed up the tall building and closed the door. Then he sat cross-legged like a child, supporting his chin with one hand and playing with the Taoist's whisk with the other hand. Looking at the snowflakes flying outside the window, a very sad thought came to his mind: Could it be that in the end, I will be the only one who becomes a real Taoist priest?
In order to look more like a Taoist priest, I even started wearing Taoist robes and carrying a whisk. Senior sister, how could you abandon the immortal path and enter the mortal world? Liuyun couldn't figure it out, so he wrote a letter to Jinsui.
At first, Gu Changxiao thought that the letter was for him, and was about to open it, when he saw another envelope inside the envelope, which was written "From Senior Sister" and was sealed with the Taoist temple's sealing wax.
Gu Changxiao laughed. I, as a personal guard, have unique ideas. After staying in the Northern Frontier, I actually insisted on becoming a Taoist priest instead of an official.
He asked someone to deliver the letter to Jinsui. Jinsui read it lightly at first, but when she read the middle, she was suddenly startled. It should be said that she was so scared that sweat broke out on her back. Grandpa Ling and Jinan were both there, so she didn't dare to read it. She made an excuse to go back to her room and then entered the space to read it.
The flowing clouds are really silent, but when they do, they make a splash!
What did this kid discover?
He started by saying that he wanted his senior sister to give him some Taoist cultivation manuals. Jin Sui thought to himself that if he asked his grandfather to find him a batch of Taoist books, he could pretend to be good in Northern Xinjiang and fool the powerful people in Northern Xinjiang.
As a result, he changed the subject and said, "Sister, you are obsessed with the world and give up the immortal path. Then can you give the Qiankun bag you inherited to me? I will practice Taoism for my whole life and stick to the immortal path..."
Jin Sui hissed. Is this kid stupid? Has he gone astray? Seeing the Qiankun bag, she instantly had only one thought: the secret of the space has been discovered by Liuyun.
But he mistakenly thought that the space was a Qiankun bag. Of course, in some ways, he was right.
That's why he insisted on worshipping me as his senior sister. Is he going to cultivate the Dao? Does he think I'm a god? He's even more outrageous than the people in Northern Xinjiang!
I really am misleading young people!
Jin Sui put the letter away and hurried to find Gu Changxiao: "Can you transfer Liuyun back? Send another imperial envoy to the northern border and treat the Taoist temple as our embassy!"
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