Chapter 266 Yuan Xi Returns to Ye
When Tian Feng led Yuan Xi to attend the celebration banquet, he was extremely nervous, but it seemed that except for Guo Jia who greeted them when he first saw them, no one else noticed them.
It made sense. The protagonist of this celebration banquet was originally Qiao Yan. It was to celebrate her ability to take back the authority over winemaking along with the salt and iron affairs, to ensure further concentration of resources in the subsequent rectification and expansion.
It has nothing to do with Tian Feng and Yuan Xi.
After the celebration banquet, when to release the wine, how much to sell and what price to set will all gradually be decided.
Guo Jia held the ice tea in his hand and couldn't help but reveal a depressed expression.
He originally thought that since it was a celebration banquet, there should be at least one final revelry to let him indulge in his food cravings. However, Qiao Yan said that this celebration was just an internal exchange meeting, and in order to keep a low profile, there was no need to consider alcohol or anything like that.
"You know, since we want Tian Yuanhao and Yuan Xianyi to take a few more steps into the trap, wouldn't it be better to let them think that they are speaking the truth after drinking?" Guo Jia complained to Xun Yu.
Xun Yu replied: "The Grand Marshal may be afraid that you will really speak the truth after drinking."
Guo Jia: “…”
This is really heartbreaking.
But not being able to play the drunken truth-telling scene is not necessarily a bad thing.
Just as Qiao Yan said, Guo Jia used the cat-catching-mouse technique to deal with Tian Feng and Yuan Xi. In order to hit the target with one strike, now is also the time to wait and see and indulge in his actions.
The bait he should have given had already been delivered. If he said anything more, it would easily alert these two people. It would be better to do it like this -
Everyone was sober at the party, so naturally no one told them more inside information, which forced them to act cautiously out of fear for their own safety.
Yuan Xi was sitting at the table and heard Qiao Yan, who was sitting at the top of the table, say that thanks to everyone's help, she was able to produce more miraculous products like soy sauce, which could be exchanged for a market share in the wine-making business.
But there was no need for Qiao Yan to, and it was impossible for him to, explain how soy sauce was made.
Only the person who had traveled hand in hand with her from Bingzhou said from the bottom that this thing could finally be put on the table and used.
Yuan Xi looked at the harmony between the leader and his followers, and saw how proud they were of each other, and his heart was filled with doubts.
He had heard of the words "sauce" and "oil", but he was completely confused about what soy sauce was.
Fortunately, since there was no wine at the banquet, there must be dishes. He tasted this thing in the dishes, which explained his doubt.
However, this act of clarifying his doubts, instead of making him feel better, fueled the complex emotions in his heart.
As long as he is sane, he will see how great an impact this product will have on the salt market once it is launched.
It’s okay for Qiao Yan because the salt used as the raw material for soy sauce is provided by her. But what about Yecheng?
Should Yuan Shao stop such things from entering Jizhou territory along with the merchants’ trade?
If he tried to stop them, he would certainly offend these merchant forces, restricting some useful things that should have flowed into Jizhou from entering. At the same time, he would also offend the aristocratic families that produced soy sauce, pushing them further towards Qiao Yan's direction.
But if it is not stopped, the presence of soy sauce will encroach on the salt share, which will actually weaken the financial revenue of Jizhou and Qingzhou.
This is an open conspiracy!
Yuan Xi tasted the food in front of him and felt bitter.
He and Tian Feng were comforting each other before. If they wanted to achieve the interests that Qiao Yan hoped for, those old foxes would definitely take some benefits from her.
But in the current situation, it is hard to say whether she has suffered any loss or not. Yuan Shao’s loss is definitely greater than hers!
Tian Feng whispered to him, "I will find a way to get a few bottles of soy sauce when the time comes. You can bring them back to Ming Gong and let Ming Gong make the decision."
Yuan Xi nodded solemnly.
Things like soybean paste and black bean sauce, made using the old fermentation method, are mostly made in winter.
Even if the effect of this thing is really amazing, due to the fermentation season and the time required, it will take at least until next year for large quantities of soy sauce to appear.
They still have more than half a year to prepare for the situation, and maybe they can even figure out the secret of this thing.
But how could Yuan Xi know that people in the Tang Dynasty had expressed their deep confusion as to why the previous dynasty only made sauce in winter.
After the full-ingredient koji-making technology completely replaced the method of producing yellow skin first and then producing sauce, the season is no longer a restriction on them. On the contrary, the sauce made in summer has a better flavor.
In the end, they came to the conclusion that making sauce in winter was to provide some work for people who did not have to participate in farm work and had nothing to do. This was set by the rulers above and became a commonly accepted experience. 1
In other words, Qiao Yan chose to put forward such chips in May and June precisely to allow those who obtained new formulas and new technologies to directly invest in the production of new things.
This was clearly stated in the recipe given to them.
Everyone who received the new prescription had to praise her for her kindness.
That is to say, people like Yuan Xi and Tian Feng who only have a superficial understanding of the situation still think that they have enough time to react.
After the banquet, Tian Feng hinted that he wanted to purchase two bottles of soy sauce to improve the food. The person he asked told him that there was enough stock in the Sima treasury, and starting tomorrow they could provide internal staff with a channel to purchase at a low price.
While he felt that his action was indeed a bit unkind, he tried to convince himself that in a situation where two parties were fighting, there was no such thing as being kind or unkind. He immediately packed up Yuan Xi's luggage for return.
"Aren't you considering staying here for a long time?" Upon hearing the news that Yuan Xi was going back, Guo Jia still came here despite his busy schedule.
After all, he had once taken Yuan Xi for a tour around Chang'an City. Even though Yuan Xi was clumsy and destroyed a batch of his allicin miracle medicine, there was not much point in arguing with his colleague's son about it.
Judging from his attitude, he didn't take the matter to heart.
As he spoke, he casually opened Yuan Xi's suitcase and saw that apart from his spare clothes and money, there were only soy sauce, garlic extract and several kinds of external injury medicines that could be bought in Sili.
The latter is a weakened version of the military's wound medicine formula.
"Is this enough? We should bring some Sili specialties, right? Otherwise, our land under the Emperor's feet will seem shabby."
Hearing Guo Jia's question, Yuan Xi couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and replied, "Father means that this trip back is just to let my family see the situation in Chang'an. It is enough to bring a few symbolic things to show that there is food to eat, illnesses to be treated, and injuries to be healed. If I can convince my family to move here, then next time we meet, it won't be just me who comes to visit father."
Guo Jia's eyes seemed to sweep over Yuan Xi unintentionally. He saw that it was clearly summer, but Yuan Xi's clothes seemed much thicker than usual. The clothes in the box also showed similar signs of fillings. He knew that he had brought something with him, but he did not expose Yuan Xi's actions.
He just replied: "It would be great if it could be so. Your father lived frugally in Chang'an City, saving money and goods. He was reluctant to even send his clothes for repair and did it himself. Unfortunately, he probably didn't have the talent for this and his sewing skills were really bad. It would be great if someone could help him."
Tian Feng: “…”
There is no need to remind him that during these six months, in addition to learning how to be a good undercover agent, he even learned how to mend clothes.
If not for this, he would not have thought of how to sew the three new types of paper produced in Chang'an, along with agricultural books and medical skills, into Yuan Xi's clothes.
What made him even more fortunate was that after Guo Jia casually mentioned the mending matter, he did not realize the problem. Instead, he was much more interested in the fact that Yuan Xi would bring other people with him after returning.
"Since Zi Gu is the person that the Lord mentioned, his family should do their best to welcome him here." Guo Jia stroked his chin, revealing a thoughtful look. "How about this, I'll make the decision and make this trip back home more glorious!"
So when Yuan Xi walked out of the Chang'an city gate, he was carrying a cotton bag that Guo Jia commented as a summer trend, and riding a mule.
He didn’t know if it was Yuan Xi’s illusion, but no matter how he thought about it, he felt that there was something wrong with his current image.
But if you have to say, Guo Jia also had good intentions.
According to what he said, there just happened to be a mule that could carry less load after growing up, and it would be a bit difficult to use it to transport military supplies. It would be better to do Yuan Xi a favor and lend it to him for use on the road. It would be much better than for him to walk back to Jizhou, and it would also be more comfortable than squeezing in a car with others.
At most you just need to be careful, and don't slack off on the road this time.
Although it would not collide with other mule carts and would not knock over a jar of garlic, the return to Jizhou still requires passing through mountains. If something went wrong on the road, it would be bad.
Yuan Xi had no choice but to accept this kindness.
It’s okay if the shape is a little weird! Anyway, he successfully completed the mission of sneaking into Chang'an to spy on secrets!
"What do you think Yuan Benchu's reaction will be when he sees these things?" Qiao Yan was standing on the city wall, watching Yuan Xi's back as he rode away on a mule, with a hint of amusement on his face.
He thought he had jumped out of the cage, but he didn't know that he was taken out of the mousetrap by the cat out of evil taste.
But anyway, ignorance can sometimes be a kind of bliss.
The mule he rode was certainly not one that was eliminated from some military transport team, but an adult mule that Qiao Yan had specially found from the three states. The weight it could carry was much greater than the newly grown mules he had seen before.
Due to the rarity of mules, there are bound to not be many of them, so Qiao Yan spent a lot of effort when asking people to look for this thing.
Fortunately, with its existence, Yuan Shao would probably be more convinced that "Qiao Yan raised a group of mules and used them to transport military equipment.
Yuan Xi, who was able to bring back so many secrets, really lived up to Yuan Shao's trust in him.
Guo Jia replied: "Truth mixed with lies is easier for smart people to believe than a story filled with lies. This is what Yuan Shao is facing."
It was almost impossible for Yuan Shao and his advisers to successfully avoid every misconception in thinking.
"But you still surprise me a little." Guo Jia thought for a moment and added.
Qiao Yan turned his head and looked at him, "What's the surprise?"
Guo Jia said: "Of course I am surprised by your choice."
As Qiao Yan turned around, she also took in the scenery of Chang'an City. She could also see a hint of color from the new Chang'an Road in the distance. Seeing this scene, she felt a little more calm and composed.
"For us, the standardized cultivation of farming methods is to lay the foundation for the exchanges between the people of the three places, and also to provide a practical way for the newcomers to integrate. The various conditions accumulated earlier are to provide conditions for the implementation of this move. Yuan Shao's situation is different."
"He needs to find out whether the new method is suitable for him. The public will not accept such a hasty change without reliable evidence of yield, unless he experiments with his own farmland for a year. But at least he has missed this year."
Qiao Yan said: "This seems to be a sacrifice, but why isn't it a gain that disrupts the other party's plan?"
There is a saying that goes "Those who learn from me will live, those who imitate me will die", but for Yuan Shao, it is very likely that "Those who learn from me will also die".
"The gap has been created over the years. Unless the Wei River bursts and Guanzhong disappears, if Yuan Shao wants to catch up with the gap by knowing these seemingly useful things, he might as well study the art of shipbuilding in Qingzhou earlier."
Guo Jia couldn't help laughing.
Your Excellency's words are quite hurtful.
Isn't studying shipbuilding technology in Qingzhou just saying - let Yuan Shao consider the option of escaping to the sea?
But perhaps Guo Jia was not laughing just because of the joke, but also because of the confidence revealed in Qiao Yan's words.
She was still in her prime, and had her own spirit to make rapid progress in the personnel under her command, so during this period of change, she was no longer afraid that someone would learn something from her.
Because she is still moving forward, until she is ahead of everyone else, leaving no chance for others to learn from her various actions.
It was also on the day when Yuan Xi returned to Yecheng that the results of the Chang'an submission selection were made public here, and the construction plan and recruitment of personnel for the Chang'an Painting Academy were also announced.
painting?
The people of Chang'an had just experienced an incident in which a ten-year-old child refuted all kinds of doubts and drew a scene of a corner of the streets of Chang'an on the spot to prove his point, when they saw this new news.
In today's conditions, most people had few toys in their childhood, so many people had broken off branches and smeared them on the sand and mud to pass the time.
Just like the early oracle bone inscriptions were more like drawings than words, this was an easy way to convey their emotions.
But in their cognition, this is a level lower than literacy.
So when such news came out, these people couldn't help but wonder why the Academy of Painting should be formed as a formal department.
They followed the notice and read on, and then even those who could not read understood the significance of this painting academy.
There are four pictures on this notice.
The first one is a mark of the newly opened canal of Weishui this year, which is intended to inform the public that they can reclaim wasteland within the range that the canal can irrigate.
The second picture is a diagram of the method of dividing fields in the book Fan Sheng, which is intended to show people the standard farming operations in the most concise way.
The third picture shows how to provide emergency treatment after being bitten by a snake.
The fourth one is a correspondence between a picture and a word, which is intended to explain the usefulness of this picture in recognizing words.
The existence of this painting academy is by no means a pastime for scholars; on the contrary, it is something for more illiterate people!
So when they were told that the only thing needed here was a talent for painting and literacy was not required, the topic on the streets of Chang'an was immediately ignited once again.
This seems to be another way for those who want to change their lives and change their original job of farming.
"The dean of the Academy of Painting is Zhao Qi. Do you know him?" someone in the crowd asked.
Zhao Qi is too old, which may not be a good thing in some matters, but it is definitely a good thing here.
From the year 108 when he was born to the year 192 now, he has left behind many things worth talking about.
In his early years, he offended the eunuchs and was forced to flee to Beihai to sell cakes, where he was rescued by people who admired his noble character.
He once served as the governor of Bingzhou, and had some connection with Marquis Leping, but he was imprisoned for more than ten years because of the Party and Factions Persecution. During this period, he completed the writing of "Mencius Chapters and Sentences".
He was once transferred to Dunhuang to serve as a prefect, but unfortunately he encountered a rebellion by Bian Zhang and was almost taken hostage. He escaped back relying on his eloquence.
This is a man who is not very lucky in his career as an official, a bit down-to-earth, and a representative of the upright scholars.
The people of Chang'an thought it was very appropriate to have such a person serve as the president of the Academy of Painting.
The person who stopped under the notice more than ten days later focused his attention on the emergency diagram at first glance, with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
When Zhang Zhongjing first received the invitation in the letter written by Qiao Yan, he was still a little hesitant about whether to come. It was because of the strong liquor that made him decide to go to Chang'an first.
Now seeing this painting, he suddenly realized intuitively that although Qiao Yan's various measures in promoting medical skills were surprising, each of them was practical.
Only such a person could support him in completing the integration work of those typhoid symptoms!
He didn't make the wrong choice!
Now it's time to meet Qiao Yan.
Of course, now is the time for Yuan Xi to meet Yuan Shao.
This mule is indeed hardworking and good at traveling long distances. Yuan Xi has experienced this deeply during the journey. So much so that when he was approaching Yecheng, he wanted to fly directly to his father and tell him what he had gained from this trip.
However, when he was at the city gate, he was stopped by someone.
Because he had been running around outside for the past one or two months, his originally fair face had become much darker.
That's fine.
He was riding a mount that looked like both a donkey and a horse, carrying a strange big bag, and wearing poorly mended clothes.
Zhang He stared at him for a long while before hesitatingly speaking, "Second... Second Young Master?"
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