Chapter 2890 Confidant
Manbao took a sip of water and asked him, "How's County Magistrate Lu doing?"
Bai Shan said: "He agreed."
Of course County Magistrate Lu agreed. Otherwise, if Bai Shan and Guo Cheng joined forces, as Bai Shan said, Guo Cheng was a person who valued profit and power. If they were in the same city of Qingzhou, there would definitely be conflicts. As the governor, he still had great power.
If Bai Shan formed an alliance with Guo Cheng at that time, it would be most disadvantageous to him.
Manbao thought for a moment and said, "I'll take Wen Tiandong to familiarize himself with the county town in the next two days, and then take him to the countryside. When Governor Guo arrives, I'll talk to him about the development of the medical department."
Bai Shan nodded, "Be careful when you go to the countryside."
Manbao agreed.
Bai Shan is going to take Zhou Liwei to familiarize himself with the county government office these two days. He will bring him with him to handle various government affairs, mainly to let him get familiar with County Magistrate Fang, County Lieutenant Dong and others.
County Magistrate Fang couldn't help but look at Zhou Liwei's calligraphy and felt that he was not here to be Bai Shan's advisor. So he couldn't help but ask, "Where will you place Mr. Zhou?"
Bai Shan smiled and said, "Let's take him to familiarize himself with the county government office first."
County Magistrate Dong felt something and couldn't help but look at Bai Shan.
Sure enough, within two days, Bai Shan took Zhou Liwei and Dong Xianwei to the countryside and took them directly to the new salt field in Dadawa.
Many salt fields were opened up here. Following Bai Shan's instructions, the village chief led the villagers to dig a deep ditch extending outward. When the seawater backflows, it can flow along these ditch into the salt fields.
Even if the seawater backflow cannot flush out the seawater, it is easy for them to pour seawater into the gully.
But now, not only were salt fields opened up in front, but the sunny land on a hillside behind was also leveled and ridges were arranged, forming divided fields. There was also sea water in the fields, but it was thinner.
No, it cannot be said to be thin, but there are white crystals under the water, which seem to raise the ground a little, making it appear that there is less water.
The village chief came forward excitedly when he saw him and said, "Sir, please come and see if we are drying the salt correctly. Do you think there is salt in the fields?"
Bai Shan stepped forward, reached into the field and twisted it, then picked up a finger of white crystals and twisted it, then put it in his mouth to taste it. It was a little bitter, but salty. He nodded with satisfaction, "It's salt."
The village chief knew it was salt, so he was so excited. He never thought that the sun could really produce salt.
Bai Shan asked, "Have you used the salt here?"
The village chief quickly said, "No, without the adults' orders, none of us dare to move."
Bai Shan smiled and said, "I want to compare the difference between the salt made by sun-drying and the salt made by boiling."
There is, however, a salt that is sun-dried and less bitter than the salt that is boiled. Bai Shan ate both types of salt and pondered, "Why is boiled salt more bitter?"
His eyes moved back and forth over the sea water in the field, and finally he looked at the two salt fields in front and behind him thoughtfully.
County Magistrate Dong didn't think about why the salt tasted less bitter after being dried. He just felt that the weather in Beihai County was about to change. He was slightly excited and couldn't suppress his emotions. He asked Bai Shan, "Sir, this salt is of better quality. Can it be sold at a better price?"
Bai Shan came back to his senses, raised his eyebrows slightly, and smiled: "Of course."
He asked County Captain Dong, "Of the two inspectors in Beihai County, who do you have a better relationship with?"
County Lieutenant Dong's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately lowered his head and said, "This humble official and Inspector Luo get along better, and we occasionally go out for drinks together."
Bai Shan nodded and said to him, "Invite him out for a drink when we get back."
He gazed deeply at the lush green hillside not far away and said, "Although the new saltworks doesn't require firewood for cooking salt, it wouldn't be good for a fire to break out in such a beautiful place. When I get back, I'll give orders for Inspector Luo to bring his men to guard the new saltworks, and County Lieutenant Dong to assist him."
County Magistrate Dong immediately responded, "Yes."
Bai Shan was satisfied and introduced Zhou Liwei to the village chief. "This is the manager of the Dajiawa Salt Field, Zhou Liwei. From now on, you will obey his orders."
Then he said to Zhou Liwei, "If you have any questions about the salt field, you can ask the village chief. I will go back to the old salt field and see if I can find two helpers for you."
Zhou Liwei agreed.
Zhou Liwei had to manage the saltworks, so he couldn't return to the county town. He settled directly in the village. Bai Shan said, "I'll give you some money. Later, you can choose a piece of land nearby to build a house. Not only you will live there, but also the workers who will come to dry the salt in the future will need a place to live."
Zhou Liwei agreed.
The village chief beside him looked anxious and said hurriedly: "Sir, everyone in our village will work hard."
Bai Shan smiled when he heard this and said, "Under the same conditions, people from the village will naturally be given priority. However, with the expansion of the salt field in the future, this number of people will obviously not be enough."
Because this piece of land cannot grow much food, it is sparsely populated. The area of Dajiawa is basically all fishing villages, and further in is all mountains and forests. The villages are also very small. They don’t get much from farming, so some villagers go to sea to fish, and their lives are worse than those in Xiaowa Village.
Even if it is just for the salt fields, he will need to recruit a large number of people, and some people will definitely be migrated here at that time.
Bai Shan touched his chin thoughtfully. The population of Beihai County was still too small. It would be great if some people could be migrated from other places.
I'll look for ways to increase yields on these lands. I can't say how high the grain output will be, but as long as it can be the same as in the Central Plains, it can feed a lot of people.
Bai Shan had a plan in mind, so he quietly said to Zhou Liwei, "Pay attention to calming the villagers. When you have time, walk around the area and find a suitable place to build houses and live. We'll need more salt fields later, and we'll need houses."
Zhou Liwei agreed and asked, "Uncle-in-law, do you want to find brine by the sea?"
It was also his first time seeing the ocean. He had only seen well salt, but never sea salt, so he asked, "Is there brine under the sea?"
Bai Shan had memorized the booklet Man Bao had given him and had pondered it. He said, "Some places have it, some don't. I don't know if it's in this sea. If you have time, go look for it. Maybe it's there."
"By the way, the sea is different from the river at the entrance of the village. Don't go swimming in the sea. I won't be responsible if you get swept away by the waves."
Zhou Liwei: "...I'm not a child."
I'm a little older than you. Do I need to remind him about this kind of thing?
Bai Shan left with peace of mind. Now that the new salt field had produced salt, he had more freedom to deal with the old salt field.
County Magistrate Dong asked quietly, "Sir, should we tell County Magistrate Fang about this?"
Bai Shan pondered for a moment and said, "No rush, let's wait until the old salt works are dealt with."
County Magistrate Dong then felt that he was Bai Shan’s first confidant, no, his second confidant. The first confidant should be Zhou Liwei who had just taken office.
However, Zhou Liwei was just a minor official and could not be compared with him. County Magistrate Dong felt that within the county government, he was still his most trusted confidant.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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