Chapter 60 Struggle
"When can we bring His Royal Highness back to see our ancestors?"
A middle-aged man who looked quite old was stroking his goatee while looking at Su Jinghe. This was not the first time he asked Su Jinghe this question.
Walking in the experimental field, Su Jinghe had to admit that these farmers were really capable. They were not just talking big, but really working diligently on the land, combining theory with practice. The first batch of seeds that Wang Wenjun brought back had already borne fruit.
"This melon looks good. Is it delicious?"
"It's not time to eat it yet. This batch probably doesn't taste good. The next batch next year will taste better than this one." The middle-aged man didn't just ask questions without answering them. He had answers to all the questions Su Jinghe asked him. Instead, it was Su Jinghe who got the answers and went to the next field happily.
"Huh? No? I..."
The man watched Su Jinghe walk away. They were just like normal farmers, each with his own responsibility plot, and they didn't often go to other people's fields, especially now that the harvest was almost over, they couldn't go any further.
The main reason is that I am afraid that my brothers and sisters will disregard the friendship between fellow disciples and do something, so I simply don’t go to avoid suspicion.
But if Su Jinghe could hide one, there was still the second one. This field was very large and there were many people. It was divided into sixteen neat squares by Su Jinghe. There were sixteen people waiting for him.
After walking around, Su Jinghe refused to give in.
"Everyone has done a great job growing the crops. I will speak highly of them to His Majesty."
This statement sounds more like that of a very bad and treacherous minister.
"No need, we don't want these..." With resentful words and resentful eyes, the group watched Su Jinghe go away.
"Why didn't it succeed again today?"
They are still reviewing the matter, but there has been no progress at all, and even if they are reviewing it, there is only mutual accusations and blame-shifting.
"You can't blame us. It's mainly because he's quite flexible and keeps talking. He actually knows what he wants."
"Actually, we already know that..." A senior sister said calmly. She looked at her fellow disciples who looked surprised and asked, "Their attitude is very clear. They won't let us take the child out of the city."
Ah, you actually know this, then you do know it.
"You make it sound like we're some bad guys who kidnap children." The junior brother complained, "We have to believe in ourselves. We're not bad people."
"Who would believe that?" Another senior brother was also a little speechless, "Our group...ah."
They don't look like good people.
Su Jinghe absolutely did not mean to distrust them because of their appearance. He knew that they were genuine, but he just admired Zhao Zongshi very much.
With this group of people, Su Jinghe also used the system to look at Zhao Zongshi's future.
It has to be said that Zhao Zongshi's fate was no different from that of a cheat, as he was able to sit on the throne from a royal family member. The same is true now. If he wants to engage in agriculture, he can really become an agricultural expert in the future.
"Hey, this has been stamped by the system. It can promote the development of our Northern Song Dynasty. It's better not to take it out casually. The risk is too high."
After Su Jinghe came out of the experimental field, he turned to another area, where he built a laboratory for some young disciples of the Mohist and Gongshu schools.
Um……
A place to pay for his inspiration.
It was said to be inspiration, but in fact he wanted to replicate some modern things.
As soon as he turned in, he met someone with a joyful expression and brisk steps, and was ecstatic when he saw him.
"Teacher Xiao Su, you're here? It just so happens that our faucet test has come out with results. We've tried it and it definitely won't produce any unpleasant odors due to aging pipes, nor will it affect your health."
As if afraid that Su Jinghe wouldn't believe him, he emphasized, "I found a doctor and tested it together."
It sounds like a doctor's experiment. Fortunately, Su Jinghe understood that the Mohists, like the agriculturalists, had sufficient knowledge reserves, but they were not as good as politicians in speaking... Older and experienced politicians used precise words.
He followed and walked in. "If the source is changed to something else, will water still flow smoothly? For example, if I put a bottle of juice in it?"
"Huh? I haven't tried it, so I'm not sure..." This person was probably not the main person in charge of the experiment. When he said he hadn't tried it, someone refuted him.
"Of course it can. We've tested it with porridge, and the thin porridge can be drained out smoothly. For subsequent cleaning, you just need to replace it with water in time and go a few more times."
The person who spoke was a woman who looked very decisive. She even had an orange in her hand, and it looked like she wanted to make Su Jinghe a glass of freshly squeezed juice to test it on the spot.
"So amazing?" This was far beyond Su Jinghe's imagination. He wasn't that worried about cleaning. "If you're worried about not being able to clean it properly, you can take it apart and wash it. I'm not worried about that."
He was quite excited about the porridge experiment the female experimenter mentioned. "If we have this, we can set up a self-service porridge station...but I'm worried that someone might sabotage the porridge station, and if they poison the food, it can't be guaranteed to be safe."
Soup distribution? Self-service?
Having been around Su Jinghe for a while, everyone understood the meaning of this new word. Their school often had self-service hotpot and barbecue spots.
Let people go get their own porridge... This... the main point shouldn't be worrying about whether someone will poison it...
"Isn't this a huge expense? It's going to waste a lot of money."
I still couldn't help it, and someone said it.
"Of course we're not the ones paying for it. We'll let the rich pay for it."
Su Jinghe felt that there were too many rich people in the Song Dynasty.
"Ah... then... then there really will be people who want to do it themselves."
Some people thought of the current Song Dynasty, and their tone of voice became a little weak.
They didn’t know about other places in the Song Dynasty, but Bianliang had already been occupied by the rich.
If Su Jinghe had not said that a place needed to be reviewed if it was renovated, they felt that these people would raise funds to renovate the palace just to be able to erect a stone tablet next to it, saying that this thing was renovated by them.
Everyone who has heard of Su Jinghe's method knows how powerful it is. What's more terrifying is that someone has already publicized it.
He didn't say that it was Su Jinghe who said it, but he did say that he was taking advantage of people.
Mohism had heard of such an argument once, but it did not say that this move was particularly damaging.
But...
"We have plenty of money. It's worth it to spend only this little money to become a famous person for eternity."
After learning about this episode, the Mohists no longer regarded Su Jinghe as someone who was good at business and proficient in Guan Zhong's teachings.
This is clearly a mastery of human nature!
It's terrible.
Now, too, when Su Jinghe said it, they felt that Su Jinghe could do it.
Su Jinghe himself didn't know that he had been "deified" to this extent. He observed the faucet, looked at it, and finally made a suggestion.
"The shower head above can be designed in different shapes."
"Don't the pipes need different shapes?" someone asked.
"That's fine. Let's design it together. There will always be people who need non-classic styles." Su Jinghe touched his chin. "If it becomes very popular in the future, the funds can be self-sufficient."
What? You're actually going to split the money from selling this with us?
"This idea is yours, Teacher Su." Someone reminded Su Jinghe, "The copyright fees and subsequent profits have little to do with us. With your idea, even if it's not us, any craftsman can figure it out."
"Then you're overthinking it. I've looked for it, and it smells good after I've used it for a while. So what you've researched is very useful and worthwhile."
It’s better to be a simple researcher. Look, this is pushing money out.
Su Jinghe sighed and politely declined their idea of letting him have exclusive ownership of the patent. "It's not for you personally, it's for this lab. In other words, once you leave this lab, it will have nothing to do with you. If you want a personal patent, you have to think for it yourself."
Su Jinghe actually encouraged them.
A bunch of people looked at Su Jinghe with tears in their eyes, "Teacher Su, you are so kind!"
The enthusiasm almost made Su Jinghe unable to escape from here, and he was already sweating profusely when he ran out.
When Princess Fukang saw him, she almost thought he was in danger.
"Is someone pursuing you, Teacher Su?"
While asking, Princess Fukang raised her hand. As long as there was anything wrong with Su Jinghe, someone would rush out to protect them behind them.
Su Jinghe was originally panting heavily, but when he saw her movements, he quickly clarified, "It's nothing, I just came from the experimental field and the laboratory."
That's okay.
Princess Fukang knew the personalities of people on both sides. She wasn't too flattering, but she was indeed enthusiastic.
Of course, I am not stingy when applying for funding. Every time I have an idea, I want to start research.
Princess Fukang is now a reliable student union president and is involved in the decision-making of major events. She has not yet made the final decision, but only listens and has the right to vote by raising her hand.
This is also what she fought for in order to become the future president of the student union. At least in the future, unless there are any major mistakes, students will always be involved in the school's decision-making.
After knowing this, Song Renzong always wanted Zui Xinglai to join in. He even thought about letting Zui Xinglai serve as Princess Fukang's assistant and participate more in decision-making, or go directly to the next level, not at the same level as Princess Fukang, and compete for the president of the student union of the next level.
This really gave Zui Xinglai some ideas.
Now the child is wavering. On the one hand, he wants to go to school with his sister, but on the other hand, he also wants to stay in kindergarten longer.
Zui Xinglai and Princess Fukang had very different personalities. For example, right now, Princess Fukang had already made friends with quite a few people, while Zui Xinglai's circle of friends only included Su Shi and others, as well as...
He tried hard to get Zhao Zongshi to come to this kindergarten as a non-staff member of their food club.
This severely delayed Zhao Zongshi's study progress, but Zhao Zongshi was quite happy. He also had an experimental field in school, where he could compare the gap between himself and more professionals up close.
"Should we expand the majors? For example, more sports? Right now, only Cuju is too little."
It's normal for Su Jinghe to have this idea, because...
"The rubber trees have been planted?" Princess Fukang knew what was going on as soon as she heard it.
When Wang Wenjun came back, Su Jinghe was happy about this.
"We've grown some, and Wenjun said they've established long-term cooperation with the surrounding farmers. They can keep supplying us to the Song Dynasty as long as we want. But I think transporting rubber from the rubber trees would be a bit time-consuming and laborious. It would be better to build a factory locally... But we definitely need to have first-hand technology for this factory, leaving second-hand technology for others."
When Su Jinghe said this, Princess Fukang also nodded vigorously.
"That's right. I told Dad before that we could resell some of our obsolete products at a high price, but he still refused to accept." Princess Fukang really felt regretful.
"Your Majesty is also worried."
In many people's minds, Su Jinghe has transformed from an official to an academic, but he still goes to court from time to time. There is a lot of information in the morning court, and with the system, he understands the current situation.
"We can win battles with gunpowder, but we can't rely on it forever. They are also researching..."
It is definitely possible all the time, but it is difficult to always have more powerful gunpowder.
Su Jinghe sighed deeply in his heart.
[It would be nice if there were a mastermind involved in nuclear technology, but if this kind of advanced technology were to appear... wouldn't future generations think we've been time-travelers?]
That is true.
[We still have to improve the quality of individuals and the army first. It won’t work if we only rely on gunpowder without improvement. It will feel like the poor students have too much stationery.
We can't sell it for now. The idea of arms dealers getting rich is good, but... everyone around us is eyeing our Great Song Dynasty covetously. It's safer to sell it farther away.]
The idea of "selling farther away" also made Princess Fukang's eyes light up, and she remembered this key point.
But she was not planning to resell arms anymore. After talking to her father last time, she realized one thing.
At present, the Song Dynasty cannot support her idea, not because the national treasury cannot support it, but because the stockpile of arms is insufficient.
The inventory is not enough, and we dare not store too much.
But even without arms, they could still sell other things. Princess Fukang set her sights on the wool business that Su Jinghe had done before.
"What? Selling wool clothing across borders?" After hearing what Princess Fukang said, Su Jinghe's mind first came to the enclosure movement of the British Empire and the famous "sheep eating people" incident. Then he remembered that he had also done this in the Liao Kingdom.
He sighed, "It's true that the Liao Kingdom didn't get a very good result from the wool war. It should be better abroad and easier to control."
Princess Fukang was also shocked by Su Jinghe's words. She thought for a moment, "Isn't it good enough?"
The fact that the Liao Kingdom has been peaceful in recent years was not what their management wanted, mainly because the conflicts between the nobles and the common people were too great. It is said that they also affected many of their neighbors in the Western Regions.
There were uprisings within Liao and conflicts in the Western Regions outside, so they did not dare to attack the Song Dynasty.
Su Jinghe was asked this question and responded even faster, "Yes, the benefits we in the Song Dynasty gained from this were not very great. Although we did not lose money and even made a lot, the Liao Kingdom is still alive and well and is not under our control."
"If the supply is stopped..." Princess Fukang knew that the price they paid for wool was lower, but the price of wool products they sold was higher.
The Liao Kingdom's approach to dealing with them was to stop people from selling wool at the beginning.
It turned out to be useless. The Song Dynasty had inventory and was not affected. In addition, the price would be raised again.
Now I just accept my fate.
Princess Fukang felt that if this route was completely cut off, there would be more people revolting in the Liao Kingdom and the situation would become even more chaotic.
"That's a good idea, but it can't be used for the time being." Su Jinghe raised his eyes, "Let's wait until we're stronger and intensify this conflict. Now..."
"They know about this conflict, so they'll proactively buy more of our clothes. I guess they're hoping to lower prices themselves once we completely cut off their supply."
"It's also possible that they want to find out how we did it," Princess Fukang added.
"We are the ones who benefit now. As for when they figure it out or when we cut off their supply, they take out their stockpile... we are already providing other things to them, and we can cut off their supply when the time comes." Su Jinghe smiled.
Something else?
Princess Fukang really didn't know this.
Su Jinghe looked around and told Princess Fukang.
"Salt."
"Salt?!" Princess Fukang was even more surprised. This was the first time she had heard this news. "Salt and iron are both regulated, right? Teacher, please don't do anything bad. How about I find Zui Xing and we can plead for you together?"
What you said! It's as if I were selling illegal salt.
"I have to be brave too, not me." Su Jinghe quickly clarified himself. If there was any contradiction, it would be a matter of life and death.
"We've developed a simple method for producing salt, so we can provide it there. Salt, however, is more deadly if it's lacking than anything else."
"Is the impact of not eating salt so great?" Princess Fukang really didn't know.
"Of course." Su Jinghe began to explain science with a mysterious smile.
As for the salt issue, someone has to lay the "net of heaven and earth".
On the other hand, Wang Wenjun had just returned to the Northern Song Dynasty not long ago. She originally planned to rest for half a year before embarking on the journey abroad.
Make money, but also need to rest.
but……
"Damn it, I was also controlled by that madman." Wang Wenjun complained.
She really thought Su Jinghe was crazy. It was sheep, and now it was salt.
They actually asked her to come and explore the Liao Kingdom firsthand to determine how long it would take for them to squeeze out the local merchants...
"If I could squeeze them out, I would be the Guan Zhong of the Song Dynasty, the Lü Buwei of the Song Dynasty. How could I still be in such a mess?"
Although he said this, Wang Wenjun's expression was smiling and his eyes were full of ambition.
She also wanted to try it and see if she could do it.
Not only does she want to squeeze the space of Liao merchants, she also wants to control the economy of the Song Dynasty!
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