On the way, Zhao Hao asked about his grandfather's illness again.

Xu Bangrui said that his father was fine during the Chinese New Year, but he suddenly fell a few days ago and has been bedridden since then. He has been unconscious and even has signs of incontinence.

Zhao Hao thought to himself that this was probably a brain disease such as cerebral ischemia or cerebral infarction. His accurate memory from his previous life told him that the old master should have passed away in February of the fourth year of the Longqing reign. He had less than a year left to live...

Of course, there was no need to tell Xu Bangrui about this, nor was there any need to persuade him to spend more time with Xu Pengju, and for the father and son to try their best to reconcile without any regrets.

In Mr. Zhao's view of right and wrong, forgiving others is a virtue, but persuading others to forgive others is pure idle talk, it's so disgusting.

So he just asked again, whether Jiangnan Hospital needed to send an expert to see the patient?

Xu Bangrui hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "There are several imperial doctors in Jinling City who are national experts. It would be overkill to invite more from outside. Let's first see how effective their treatment is. If it doesn't work, we can trouble Dean Wan and the others."

"Okay." Zhao Hao nodded and said nothing more. He thought to himself that it was a good thing that he didn't persuade him to reconcile with his father...

After a short silence, Xu Bangrui continued, "By the way, Madam Zheng has been crying beside my father's bed recently."

Zhao Hao thought to himself, I saw Chang Wei beat Lai Fu. But he said seriously, "I'm sorry, the law is not merciful. If you don't serve your sentence, the county will not release you early unless the court grants amnesty."

"I won't force you." Xu Bangrui looked at Zhao Hao deeply. It's simple to talk to smart people.

He shook Zhao Hao's hand and whispered, "My father is seriously ill and cannot accompany you to Longjiang Factory. If you need any help, just ask. Although my father has fallen, the Duke of Wei's Mansion will never fall."

The domineering aura contained in this calm tone was simply beyond the reach of Master Zhao.

There is no way, the hereditary succession is like this Niu Boyi...

~~

The carriage dropped Xu Bangrui off at Jiangdong Gate, and then continued towards the stone camp next to the Yangtze River.

Looking at the dense rain outside, Ma Xianglan suddenly whispered, "I don't like this person."

Zhao Hao smiled and stretched out his hand, holding Sister Ma's soft hand, and said slowly: "There are hundreds of thousands of families in Jianghuai who are in despair."

Ma Xianglan was a kind-hearted person who had spent the most time with Zhao Hao, so she naturally understood what he meant. In the face of some overwhelming and huge problems, personal likes and dislikes were not important at all.

Even good and evil are not important. What determines whether one is an enemy or a friend is only the position of both parties...

"Why do you carry all this on your back, young master?" Ma Xianglan stretched out her fingers distressedly and gently rubbed his slightly frowned brows. Finally, she asked the question that had been weighing on her mind for a long time. "These things are not something you should worry about."

"Because who else but me?" Zhao Hao domineeringly squeezed Sister Ma's hand, making her face flushed and her heart beat fast. It seemed that the young master had grown up a lot.

Unfortunately, at this time, Longjiang Shipyard arrived.

Seeing the convoy coming in the rain, the officers and soldiers from the Tizhusi who were guarding the camp gate hurriedly shouted and questioned them.

After the guard revealed his identity, the officers and soldiers of the Tizhusi rushed in to report that the God of Wealth had arrived.

After a while, the tightly closed gate of the shipyard slowly opened, and the convoy entered one after another from under the water gate tower.

Opening the car window, Zhao Hao looked at the mottled and weathered stone walls and the incomplete watchtower, which actually showed a kind of weathered perseverance in the rain.

Well, it was purely a psychological effect as he was too excited at the moment.

~~

Zhao Hao ordered the guards to stop the carriage by the pond, and then got off in the rain.

Ma Xianglan quickly got out of the car and stood behind him with an umbrella.

Young Master Zhao stared at the rows of five-masted ships neatly arranged in the ponds, his heart almost jumping out of his chest with excitement.

It was getting late and it was raining, so the shipbuilding craftsmen had naturally finished their work, and the huge shipyard was filled with silence.

Suddenly, the sound of wooden clogs splashing in the water was heard. It was Yang Fan, the supervisor of Longjiang Factory, who came over breathlessly.

"Didn't you say you would come tomorrow?" He asked after taking a deep breath after greeting each other.

"I can't wait any longer. I can hear their cries." Zhao Hao looked at these thousand-ton ships with the eyes of a general inspecting his soldiers, and muttered, "Set out to sea, set out to sea, don't wait a moment..."

Ma Xianglan behind him just felt heartache, her eyes turned red, and she quickly turned her head away.

Yang Fan was not as sensitive as Sister Ma. With the thinking of an engineer from later generations, he eliminated Mr. Zhao's lyricism:

"Sir, don't be impatient. These ships have only completed the carpentry work. There is no hemp or tree oil used to caulk the walls and seams, and the hulls have not been oiled. There are also cables, sails, decorations... There is still a lot of work to be done. It will take at least two months before they can be launched!"

"Didn't they say that forty ships had been built?" Upon hearing this, Master Zhao's excitement instantly disappeared and he almost fell into the pond.

"The most important carpentry work has indeed been completed." Yang Fan hurriedly explained: "The carpenters have already prepared materials for the other 40 ships, and construction will begin soon."

The Treasure Ship Factory, which was built for the fleet sailing to the West, was so capricious.

"What I want is a boat that can be launched into the water!" Master Zhao was so angry that his nose was crooked.

"Normally, there's no such rush." ​​Yang Fan lowered his head in fear, still muttering to himself, "Even if we can launch it, we have to test it for two months first, and then we can go out to sea after it's checked to be safe."

"Another two months? That means four months?" Zhao Hao wanted to eat this guy.

"This is already the fastest speed. Ships custom-made by the court usually take one to two years to deliver." Yang Fan lowered his head and rubbed two fingers together, saying, "I have to be responsible for the reputation of Longjiang Factory for two hundred years."

After a pause, he reminded in a low voice: "Besides, young master, even if I give you a boat now, do you dare to sail it out to sea? This is a thousand-ton sea-going ship, which the imperial court does not allow ordinary people to own..."

"Uh..." Mr. Zhao was suddenly speechless. He then realized that he was so excited that he had actually forgotten about this.

The first voyage he had planned did not require these thousand-ton ships.

Mr. Zhao's arrogance disappeared immediately, he glared at him and said, "You're just going to let me get wet in the rain?"

"Oh, sir, please come into the government office to take shelter from the rain. I have asked someone to prepare dinner, and you are welcome to come." Yang Fan said respectfully.

"That's better." Master Zhao turned around and got on the carriage.

~~

The office of the Tizhusi was a small courtyard with two entrances. The front was the office space, and the back was where Yang Fan and his family lived.

The family of more than a dozen people was making a lot of noise, and Yang Fan was embarrassed to leave Zhao Hao behind, so he set up a table of wine and banquet in the hall to entertain Mr. Zhao.

"The food is good." With the help of Secretary Ma and Qiaoqiao, Mr. Zhao had dried his hair, changed into a woolen blue robe, and came out of the side hall to sit down.

"It's all thanks to you, young master." Yang Fan finally smiled. "The lives of the craftsmen in the factory have become better. As a supervisor, I can enjoy myself a little bit without worrying about being criticized."

ps. Please give me monthly votes for the fourth update, as there are no more today.