Chapter 166
Chapter 166
The forty-fourth year of Huayuan, the end of April.
The new emperor has ascended the throne, and logically the reign title should have been changed, but the new emperor did not change it immediately, saying he would talk about it next year.
The new emperor ascends the throne, which means the old emperor is dead.
In Ning'an Prefecture of Dianzhou, this incident did not have much impact.
For them, knowing who the local governor was was good enough, no matter who the emperor was.
But for the Cheng family in Ning'an Prefecture, it was very different.
First, Lord Cheng was reinstated as an official. Although he did not have a specific position due to illness, he would still receive the necessary treatment.
Ning'an Prefecture is a wealthy place, and these things were delivered in a timely manner.
But there was always something missing in the hearts of the Cheng family.
Especially Cheng Yisan, she knew that this was only temporary, if the other party wanted to make life difficult for them, there were other ways.
Now they were told that the old emperor was dead, and the old emperor who had caused the Cheng family to rise and fall several times was completely gone.
The outrageous thought in her mind appeared again.
Die well.
It’s a good death.
Only then did Cheng Yisan reveal a smile.
She told her father about this. Her father continued to design her house, but his expression was obviously much more relaxed.
In addition, there was a letter that Ji Yuan wrote to her alone, asking her if she was married.
This was the first time Ji Yuan asked so directly.
All in all, Ji Yuan has been away from Ning'an Prefecture for more than a year.
It actually felt like a long time had passed, and he had done a lot of things.
The letter also said that he was currently working in Suzhou and asked how she was doing recently.
Suzhou is very far away from Ning'an Prefecture.
But the two people did not become strangers because of the distance. Instead, they could take advantage of the present to do their own things well.
When Teacher Cheng heard the news, he came to Ning'an Prefecture almost overnight.
The Cheng family's hearts were completely settled.
The dark cloud hanging over the Cheng family finally dissipated.
They no longer had to deal with the capricious emperor.
Cheng Yisan sighed. She seemed to understand something, but didn't say much at the moment.
And overall, it is indeed much better. The Cheng family will definitely have an easy life in the future.
As for marriage.
Before Cheng Yisan could speak, her uncle looked at her, then at her father and mother.
Teacher Cheng said, "Ji Yuan wrote to me and there is one more thing he wants to say."
"He wants to propose marriage."
Not to mention Madam Cheng, even Lord Cheng couldn't help but look up.
Although Mr. Cheng's mental state was sometimes good and sometimes bad, he could understand most of the time.
ah?
era?
Propose marriage?
Propose marriage to his family?
Don’t you know how popular Ji Yuan is?
He didn't even marry the granddaughter of the Shangshu back then.
Cheng Yisan also didn't expect that Ji Yuan would tell his uncle directly.
The Cheng family fell silent.
There seems to be no reason not to agree?
What does Shanshan think?
During this period of time, the era has settled in Suzhou.
This was his second time in office and he was familiar with everything.
And after a few days, Wuying and Liu Jun arrived.
After not seeing each other for six years, everyone looked much more mature. Liu Jun even grew a beard. Wuying had a pair of children, one four years old and the other two years old.
Speaking of which, Ji Yuan is the only one who has not yet started a family.
So he still lived in the prefectural mansion, and even only had to clean up the main courtyard.
The former prefect and the former deputy prefect have already left.
Although they looked weird, they didn't dare to do anything to Ji Yuan.
Who doesn’t know Ji Yuan’s reputation and abilities?
But the prefect treated him so well that he even transferred people from the command camp over.
You must know that this matter is not decided by the prefect alone, but also needs to be discussed with the general of Hexi Prefecture.
The result of the discussion was that whoever Ji Yuan wanted could be transferred.
Wuying, Liu Jun, and Wuying's superior, Commander Li, were all transferred here.
It seems that they need to fully cooperate with Ji Yuan and others in making rubber.
They looked fine on the surface, but their private expressions were quite disdainful, and they wished that Ji Yuan and the others would fall somersaults.
Ji Yuan knew what they were thinking, but he didn’t care much. If he cared about these things every day, he would have no point in living.
However, these people were transferred to Hexi Prefecture and are considered his superiors. He will have to deal with them in the future, so he hopes they don't go too far.
After Ji Yuan sent them away, Suzhou became different.
As the governor of Suzhou, his deputy was Cai Fenglan.
The remaining departments included both officials appointed by the imperial court and local officials.
But the way they looked at Ji Yuan was the same.
Ji Yuan couldn't help but ask, "Are you expecting too much from me?"
It seemed as if everyone was waiting for his order.
The head of the household department said, "Master Ji, the official fields are ready. Do you want to cultivate good varieties?"
The people from the factory asked, "We still have a few workshops to spare to make rubber?"
Since the beginning of the era, I came to Suzhou.
No, since coming to Hexi Prefecture, people have been constantly mentioning these two things.
From officials to ordinary people, everyone is prepared to cooperate fully.
Ji Yuan was really helpless.
Even if we want to do it, it won't be done that quickly.
Ji Yuan looked at Cai Fenglan, and Cai Fenglan took the initiative to say, "Don't worry, the wheat seeds have been planned."
"Leave the Guantian matter to me."
Although this is Cai Fenglan's first time in office, let's not talk about the fact that his family is a farming family.
Furthermore, this plan was made by him and Ji Yuan at the same time, so there won’t be too many problems.
As for rubber?
Ji Yuan looked at Wu Ying and Liu Jun. They both could definitely complete his orders.
There is no doubt that dandelions can be used to extract rubber.
The problem lies in how to grow large areas of dandelions. This is not like Ning'an Prefecture, where there are water melon trees everywhere. If you want to collect them on a large scale, you must first plant them on a large scale.
There will be absolutely no problem if we leave this to Wuying.
So, what about you?
Other officials in Suzhou were dumbfounded.
They all thought that Lord Ji would do these things himself.
That's the rumor I heard before.
Lord Ji has always been like this.
I heard that he sat in the rice fields in Ning'an Prefecture all day long, for several months in a row.
Why is this different when we arrive in Suzhou?
Ji Yuan probably knew what they were thinking, but he did have other things to do.
But he couldn't just agree and say that he could definitely do it, so he had to say, "Don't worry, Tsai Tong-Chief is as capable as I am."
"Captain Wu and others also conducted research on rubber grass much earlier than I did."
is that so?
Why don’t they believe it!
Wait a minute, let’s see what Lord Ji arranges. Didn’t he plan to do these two things personally before he came?
The people in Suzhou couldn't help but feel skeptical and even a little disappointed.
God knows how happy they were when they heard that Lord Ji was coming to Suzhou.
I can only say that how happy I was before, how disappointed I am now.
The news spread quickly, and the merchants in Suzhou City were dumbfounded, and the farmers outside the city were equally disappointed.
Why is it that things are different after coming to Suzhou?
Can Lord Ji's subordinates get things done?
Does Lord Ji not value us?
A common question arises: Lord Ji T has given all the instructions, so what should he do?
Even the prefect of Hexi Prefecture wrote to inquire.
The general meaning of the letter is, Brother Ji, it’s not that we don’t trust you, but both good varieties and rubber are very important, are you sure you don’t care?
Ji Yuan was also helpless.
But when he came here, he did use these two things as an excuse.
Ji Yuan replied seriously, saying that he had just arrived in Suzhou and would talk again after everything was sorted out.
Finally, he promised that he had equal expectations for good varieties of rubber and would not really ignore them.
It wasn't until May that everyone felt relieved.
During this period of time, Ji Yuan also got to know the situation in Suzhou.
Suzhou is also considered a remote city in the northwest.
But Suzhou's situation is uniquely advantageous compared to other northwestern cities.
There is a desert to the west and a grassland to the north, and there is also a river passing through, making it an oasis in the northwest.
Therefore, this is also the only way to Central Asia.
Ji Yuan also learned about these situations when he was in the capital.
Suzhou is not considered poor in the northwest, and it can maintain its prosperity by relying on the caravans coming and going.
If there is anything bad to say, it is that you must not leave the house after dark.
It’s easier in Suzhou City.
The doors outside the city must be tightly closed.
There are a lot of bandits nearby. Although most of them target merchants along the road, there is nothing we can do if there are some who want to kill civilians with malicious intent.
Suzhou has a total population of 600,000 and a total of 26 counties.
Most of them make a living by farming, and during the slack season they help run caravans, which is their source of income.
Moreover, there is a lack of rain in the local area, and water supply is also a big problem. Most county towns are built around water sources.
At the same time, the problem of water grabbing in various villages and regions is also very serious.
To sum it up is this.
1. Public security issues.
The frequent appearance of sand bandits made life difficult for local people.
Second, the water source problem.
Draft is a problem.
Third, the people there are tough.
Because there is a possibility of a fight over water sources.
These local people are most likely the robbers who usually block the road.
Those who pick up a hoe are farmers, and those who pick up a machete are robbers.
This tough folk custom is not a bad thing.
The living environment in each place is different. Suzhou is not far from the border, and there are too many merchants coming and going. Over time, this habit has been formed, purely for self-protection.
This could even be explained.
Why don’t highway robbers recognize official boots and hats?
Simply because they are not "regular troops".
This situation is actually more difficult to deal with than real robbers.
It is important to distinguish whether they are bandits or civilians.
Wuying is now around the same time as Jiyuan, so the rubber issue is mainly handed over to Commander Li and Liu Jun.
Wu Ying said: "What should we do? It's not good to arrest them all."
Wu Ying knew that Ji Yuan would not tolerate any injustice and would definitely not be happy to see the situation in the local area.
Ji Yuan shook his head: "Don't worry about it for now."
"Instead of arresting them, we should find out why this happened."
Why did they rob merchants? Was it for money?
Isn’t it said that Suzhou is not actually poor?
The commercial taxes collected every year are quite a lot.
If we want to stop the local people from being half bandits and half civilians, we cannot simply and roughly deal with them, but we need to know the reasons behind the situation.
When Wu Ying heard Ji Yuan's explanation, he thought about it from this perspective for the first time.
After a long while, he said, "Ji Yuan, do you think solving this problem is more important than rubber?"
Ji Yuan smiled: "Yeah, yes."
Otherwise, rubber can only solve part of the problem.
However, he now has sufficient manpower and previous experience, so he can handle these things more easily.
In Suzhou in May, it is relatively cool in the morning and evening, but extremely hot at noon.
But there are a lot of fruits and vegetables here. Ji Yuan ate the local watermelon and looked at it carefully. He was happy. Although it was far inferior to the modern varieties, it tasted sweet and delicious.
Ji Yuan finally found what he needed.
Coal mine.
Suzhou also has coal mines, and he came here just for this.
Suzhou has a long history, and coal mining has been going on for at least a hundred years, so the deeper you dig, the more difficult it becomes. There are already dozens of abandoned mines of all sizes.
It’s not that there is no coal underneath, but because once you dig deeper, you will definitely encounter groundwater.
If you want to continue mining, you have to drain the water first.
This is one of the biggest problems encountered by all types of mines throughout history.
In ancient times, coal mines were called stone coal.
When coal was discovered, most of it was on the surface, that is, in open-pit coal mines.
At this time, coal could be picked up just like stone.
As they were picking up coal, the surface coal was gone and they had to dig deeper.
Everyone knows that as long as you dig deeper, there will be problems such as groundwater infiltration and lack of oxygen.
The construction of mine interiors and the delivery of oxygen were problems that could be solved in ancient times.
However, the problem of how to drain the water from the mines was not solved until the advent of the steam engine.
There are no steam engines in Tianqi Kingdom today.
Therefore, the coal industry in Shixing County near Suzhou gradually became abandoned.
The local county magistrate also said: "A few decades ago, coal could be dug here, but now it is no longer possible. The groundwater is as high as a human being, so it is really impossible to mine it."
More water means less oxygen.
No matter from which perspective, it is indeed not suitable to continue collecting.
The magistrate of Shixing County was trembling with fear, but he answered every question anyway.
Lord Ji neither went to the official fields nor to see the rubber, so why did he come to them?
Speaking of Shixing County, it must have been considered a good place in the past.
Although the local miners work hard, they have extra income and the coal industry is particularly profitable, so their Shixing County is quite large.
There were more than twenty private schools and academies of various sizes at that time.
But since coal can no longer be mined, this place has become increasingly desolate.
There are also people who have forced their way down into the mine. Those who are lucky can be rescued, but those who are unlucky will die directly in the water in the mine.
After four people died in a row, everyone in Shixing County realized that it was impossible to make money from coal anymore.
Some miners moved their families to other places and continued to mine coal there.
But most of the locals will naturally not leave and will stay here.
In the words of the magistrate of Shixing County, Shixing County is dead, just like coal. Now that coal can no longer be mined, the local area will gradually lose its vitality.
In this case, what is Lord Ji doing here?
Does he want to reopen the mine?
This is impossible.
Ji Yuan visited dozens of mines, large and small, all near Shixing County. It took him two or three days to complete the trip.
Mr. Gao and others who followed were recording together.
Finally returning to Shixing County, the magistrate was able to ask, "Master Ji, do you want to continue digging coal?"
Ji Yuan nodded: "Yes, it looks like there is still coal underneath, but it cannot be dug because of the accumulated water."
"Yes! If there is too much water, people won't be able to breathe, and it's not realistic to dig for coal underwater."
The magistrate said, looking at Lord Ji: "Sir, do you have any way to dig coal underwater?"
Ji Yuan shook his head in amusement.
Mining coal underwater is also conceivable.
"How do we get the water out? That's not easy either. We have to lift it up little by little manually, which is both laborious and inefficient."
After all, groundwater seeps continuously. The deeper you dig, the more it seeps. It is impossible to pump water by manpower.
Ji Yuan nodded: "Yes, it's not possible."
Not to mention the Shixing County magistrate was confused, Master Gao was also confused.
But Ji Yuan would not do this for no reason, he must have his purpose.
Ji Yuan spoke his mind directly.
"Master Gao, this Yongxing Coal Mine is the largest coal mine in the area. It is nearly 22 meters deep and the water is half a meter high. Is there any way to drain the water out?"
"Use the steam engine."
One zhang is about three point three meters.
The Yongxing Coal Mine is more than 70 meters deep, with the water level below 1.5 meters. It is a completely abandoned mine.
When Ji Yuan said the first sentence, Master Gao wanted to refuse.
But the second sentence made Master Gao's eyes light up.
If the steam engine is powerful enough, it is possible.
By using the power of a steam engine, water can be pumped out directly.
This is the idea of Epoch Times.
It would be useless to just let Mr. Gao and his people build the steam engine.
If you only know how to create but don’t know the use of creating it, then it will be aimless.
The idea of using steam engines to improve the textile industry was just an idea to them, not a practical goal, so they had no idea of the direction to develop it.
Ji Yuan brought them here from afar.
It is to set a small goal for the development of the steam engine.
Helps drain mines.
It's no exaggeration to say this.
If this kind of machine is really made, thousands of abandoned mines throughout Tianqi Country will be able to regain vitality.
In the small Shixing County, there are dozens of mines abandoned due to water accumulation, and they are just coal mines.
How many are there across the country?
Without a goal, everything you design will be a castle in the air.
Now the era is to give Master Gao and others a purpose.
Build a machine to drain waste water from mines.
A steam drain machine.
Perhaps such a steam engine is too simple.
But it doesn’t matter, there is only one and then there is two.
Only after people discovered the function of the steam engine would this thing be promoted throughout the country.
Designed and perfected by skilled craftsmen from all over the country.
That's not what rubber is.
When Ning'anzhou first made rubber, it was first used to make rubber shoes and later to make parts for horse-drawn carriages.
Until the product spread across the country, craftsmen from all over the country developed other things using rubber.
Some inventions are incredible, while others can be found in thousands of households.
If we only rely on Ning'an Prefecture, the rubber industry will definitely not be as developed as that of Tianqi State.
In some places, designing rubber products is even an industrial chain.
Simply because this is the result of the intellectual labor of the entire nation.
All Jiyuan needs to do is just to be a pusher.
Let everyone in the world see the benefits of the steam engine, and then they can pool their wisdom.
Once such development and invention begin, there is no way to stop.
Ji Yuan not only believed this, he was even certain of it.
The origin of rubber started with rubber shoes.
The beginning of the steam engine should start with the steam drainage machine.
This is an industry that, once completed, will drive most people to promote the development of steam.
To the magistrate of Shixing County, Ji Yuan's discussion with Master Gao sounded like a complete fantasy.
Pumping?
How to pump water?
What is a steam engine?
Ji Yuan smiled and said, "The Yongxing Coal Mine will be under the jurisdiction of the prefecture government from now on. Please clean up the abandoned houses here and all the people from our company will move in."
The people in the engineering company that Ji Yuan mentioned were naturally the ones headed by Master Gao and his five fellow apprentices.
They followed Ji Yuan and were already officials of Suzhou Engineering Bureau.
Before, other people in Suzhou Engineering Company thought that Master Gao would replace them, but they didn’t expect that after a trip to the county town below, Lord Ji’s confidant would just stay there?
What was even more surprised were the people of Shixing County.
Most of the people in Shixing County are descendants of miners, and some of the elders were miners back then.
I was really dumbfounded when I saw Lord Ji arranging a group of engineering officials to live directly near the mine.
These mines are all abandoned.
What are you doing here?
What?
Want the mine to continue working and drain the water?
You’re dreaming.
How is that possible?
That's what they say, but when Master Gao and his colleagues were recruiting people, many young people still participated enthusiastically.
What if?
In case these mines come back to life.
Can their Shixing County prosper again?
I used to always hear our parents and grandparents say how good their lives were when the mine was still alive. Unfortunately, now that the mine is dead, life has become difficult for everyone.
Oh, I hope their Lord Ji has the ability to revive the mine?
There was a long queue of people coming to work at Yongxing Coal Mine. Although Jiyuan, Wuying, and Master Gao were not personally responsible for recruiting people, they still came to take a look.
If you want to build a steam engine, you will definitely need a lot of manpower. After all, the first generation steam engine will not be small in scale.
Just don’t watch it.
At a glance, Ji Yuan saw a few familiar faces in this team.
Ji Yuan’s expression was hard to describe, and the other person looked at him with horror.
Wu Ying said, "What's wrong?"
“Run!”
"ah?!"
“Quick! Quick!”
"Wuying, go chase them." Ji Yuan said directly.
Wu Ying, as the captain of the Wu team, had dozens of soldiers under his command. He personally led the team and quickly captured four or five young men who had escaped.
This action immediately caused a commotion.
The young people who came to Shixing County to apply for jobs looked confused.
What's going on?
It’s because Ji Yuan has a good reputation. If other new officials did the same thing, the locals would definitely not accept it.
The four or five young men shook their heads desperately at the people they knew.
Don't come to rescue us!
Don't come!
Every one that comes will die!
Why?
Because they took advantage of the slack season to rob people, why did they rob the new prefect?
That’s right, these four or five young men were among the people who robbed the road.
It was just a coincidence today. Ji Yuan recognized these people at a glance.
Ji Yuan saw that they were dressed in rags, with expressions of fear and a little dissatisfaction on their faces, and he was even more confused.
To say they are not bad people, they are robbing people.
If you say they are bad people, they work hard during the busy farming season, and now they are at the forefront of the local recruitment.
It's really hard to evaluate.
The four or five people who were arrested were a little unwilling to accept it at first, but now they have completely given up and said through gritted teeth: "Master Ji, you are a good official. We were wrong. You can kill us or chop us up as you please, but please let our families go."
"Yes, our family doesn't know about it, please let them go."
"Just give us a quick death with one blow."
"We were wrong to rob people on the road. Sorry!"
The last "I'm sorry" was spoken with true feelings.
But the magistrate of Shixing County, who came in a hurry, was so angry that he almost had a heart attack.
ah?
Are you robbing?
You also robbed Lord Ji, the governor?
Don’t you want to live?
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