Chapter 70 Endless Yearning (Part 2) Update
Liu Ziye smiled faintly when he heard this.
The man looked down at him from his horse and said, "Sir Governor, are you still dreaming of getting something for nothing? Why should I give you the work of the craftsmen I personally trained?"
Wang Yanpeng said anxiously, "But I am working for the Crown Prince..."
Liu Ziye ignored him completely. Even though the salt mine now belonged to the prince, there was no reason for him to take things from his own hands and give them to the prince!
She gave an order and left with a group of people without looking back.
Because Xiying brought back news that Fu Zhener and his team had discovered a black gold mine - that is, coal. Liu Ziye needed to go ahead and rush to Fu Zhener's location to personally confirm the amount of coal reserves there and the subsequent mining excavation plan.
Therefore, this team was not large in number and did not carry too much supplies, aiming to be light and fast.
The heavy sound of iron hooves stepping on the ground threw dust and smoke all over Wang Yanpeng's face.
He stood there blankly, watching the young Marquis of Xiguan quickly passing news in the thick smoke and dust. The only thing in his mind was the words that the young Marquis of Xiguan had left him -
The young marquis said that he was dreaming of getting something for nothing!
Does he have it?
Wang Yanpeng and Liu Ziye, who stayed behind to start the road of reflection, led by Xiying and marched quickly for five or six days, and finally saw the temporary camp of Fu Zhener and his group.
Fu Zhen'er heard the sound of horse hooves in the distance and came to meet them.
Jin Ji controlled the reins, slowed down the horse, and stopped steadily a few steps in front of Fu Zhen'er.
As soon as he loosened his arm that was holding the reins, Liu Ziye jumped down in front of him.
She walked quickly towards Fu Zhen'er and said, "Brother Fu! Long time no see! Brother Fu, you've been running around on Ziye's behalf, you must be very tired!"
He took a look at Fu Zhen'er's appearance. Her skin, which was originally wheat-colored, had now turned completely brown. However, her eyebrows, hair, and eyelashes seemed to have been dyed at the same time, and the black was even more mellow and dark.
Long-term outdoor conditions have made him much thinner.
Fu Zhen'er also looked at his sworn brother whom he had not seen for many days, smiled and said, "Ziye, you are not much behind."
The last time they met at the Queping Mountain Mine, Fu Zhen'er had noticed a significant change in Liu Ziye's appearance. This time, he seemed to be radiating a new vitality, both inside and out.
At this moment, being looked at by him so passionately, Fu Zhener believed that no matter who it was, it would be difficult not to be infected by Liu Ziye.
He said, "I have finally lived up to Ziye's trust. I think I have found the black gold mine you mentioned."
When Xiying rushed back to Yucheng to report the news, she brought with her a sample of the black gold they had collected. Before leaving, Liu Ziye had already confirmed that Fu Zhener had indeed found the coal mine!
She came first, firstly to see Fu Zhener, and secondly to personally confirm the possible mineral reserves of this coal mine.
This determined the coal mine development plan in this area, and most importantly, used coal as power to improve her prototype steam engine.
Fu Zhener took Liu Ziye back to his tent and took out the detailed exploration record log and the mountain topographic map of the mining area that he had learned during his stay here, including the rules set by Liu Ziye in each mine and the recording methods that Liu Ziye had taught him.
He introduced to Liu Ziye the location where the coal mine was discovered, and pointed out to her on the map the coordinates of the location where they had dug out black gold in the shallow layer of the mountain in recent days.
Soon, Liu Ziye had a clearer understanding of the situation here.
After Jin Jie and others set up a simple camp, they followed the two of them into the mountains and forests and walked across the river where the coal mine was discovered.
At dusk, he returned to the tent.
Liu Ziye was in a good mood and said to Fu Zhen'er, "Although I couldn't wait to set out to see Brother Fu as soon as I heard the news that Xiying was coming, I also didn't forget to bring some goodies for you, Brother Fu! Tonight, we'll have a bonfire party here!"
After she finished speaking, she subconsciously glanced at Jin Jie.
Thinking back to the pleasant experience they had at the Yi Town bonfire party.
Jin Jie twitched his lips, knowing that she was in a good mood at the moment, and replied, "I will go and prepare."
He asked Fu Zhen'er and his team to rest where they were, and asked the private guards he brought with him to chop wood, hunt game, and cook.
They unloaded the gourds they brought from the horses, which were filled with several pots of newly brewed grain wine from the Yucheng Marquis Mansion.
From what Fu Zhen'er heard Liu Ziye's words, she thought that he must have participated in this event in other places before and had a happy experience, so he wanted to share it with her.
He immediately smiled and nodded: "Great. Everyone really should have some rest and some fun!"
·
The coal mining area discovered by Fu Zhener is located further north than Yucheng.
On an autumn night, a gust of wind blew, sweeping up gusts of fallen leaves. In such a wilderness at the foot of the mountain, even if the camping site was in a leeward valley, the temperature was still cold.
However, the people in it did not feel any chill at all.
In the center of the camp, a large bonfire was burning. The dry branches of autumn and the pine branches dripping with pine oil made the flames shoot out four or five feet high, burning with a crackling sound, illuminating the camp around the bonfire brightly.
Neither Fu Zhener's group nor the people Liu Ziye brought today had drunk alcohol for several days.
After taking a sip of wine, the hot and spicy aroma of grains spreads warmly from the stomach and intestines, making people feel comfortable and energetic!
Xiying had also been drinking today. He had spent so much time with the team members who were out exploring for black gold that they were already very familiar with each other. He was currently following the group, either reminiscing about their experiences along the way or sharing their past embarrassments.
"Last time, by the water's edge, Xiying dug up a layer of black soil with a shovel. She was so happy that she dragged our young clan leader to see it! She even dug out handfuls of it with her hands and sniffed it!"
"What's the result? Hahaha, there's no need for our young clan leader to test it again. Xiying was so nauseated by the smell of fermented feces after sniffing it!"
Everyone in the group remembered that day and burst into laughter.
Xiying was unconvinced and exposed his past: "Fourth Brother Fu, you're not much better! Have you forgotten how you sneaked into the river to take a bath, got chased by a water snake, and then crawled onto the shore naked and ran away?"
After listening to this, Fu Baosi simply pointed at him and said, "Good boy!"
Whatever he wanted to say next was drowned out by the booing laughter.
Liu Ziye and Fu Zhener's group did not make as much noise, but not long after the bonfire party began, Liu Ziye had already accepted a round of toasts from groups of three or four.
Since she brought some drinks today, she naturally didn't intend to be restrained and drank everything she was offered.
Although everyone was very lively, they all kept their distance and toasted the young marquis with the smallest possible portion. Even so, Liu Ziye still felt a sense of drunkenness.
Let’s look at Fu Zhener again.
Everyone was very cautious about the young marquis's behavior, but when it came to Fu Zhen'er, he was not restrained at all.
Fu Zhen'er grew up in Xiguan and had a good alcohol tolerance, which everyone knew very well! At this time, although Fu Zhen'er was not completely drunk, she was still about five or six points drunk.
Liu Ziye held a piece of tree branch in his hand and wrote and gestured back and forth on the mud in front of the two of them.
"This is Yucheng, this is Qingcheng, and here are the Thirteen Towns... Queping Mine, the Quarry, the Timber Yard, the Prevention Yard, the Engineering Machinery Yard... and here, the Black Gold Mine."
She pointed at them one by one, and then connected the branches at these scattered points one by one.
"Brother Fu, do you believe that one day, within three days, you will be able to reach any place you want, whether you are traveling up or down Xiguan?"
Fu Zhen'er's eyes shone in the light of the campfire and she nodded, "I believe it."
"On the two great plains of Yucheng and Qingcheng, only one-tenth or one-twelfth of the land is currently under cultivation. Brother Fu, do you believe that one day, the two great plains of our Xiguan County will be completely fertile, with irrigation water systems directly connected to the fields? And the people of the two cities and thirteen towns of Xiguan County will have their granaries overflowing?"
"I believe it."
"There are only a few hundred people attending classes in the Yucheng Marquis's academy, morning and evening. Brother Fu, believe it or not, one day, all children in Xiguan County will be able to study Confucianism at the appropriate age, learning to read and do arithmetic, reading and painting, learning physics and chemistry, studying tables and doing experiments... When everyone is literate, I will build a library and put all the books I can collect in it, so that everyone can read at will!"
Fu Zhener's eyes were filled with endless yearning: "I believe it!"
"Look at this again." Liu Ziye said, rolled up his sleeves, and wrote and drew on the ground for a while.
Then he asked Fu Zhen'er, "Brother Fu, guess what this is?"
Fu Zhen'er used the firelight to get closer and look at the pattern on the ground.
The outline of the shape was square, with Liu Ziye somehow dividing the center into sections. It looked more like...
He raised his head and asked, "Is this a house?"
“That’s right!”
Liu Ziye said excitedly, "This is the house I designed for Brother Fu! Before I met up with Brother Fu this time, I left the blueprints to Mr. Du, asking him to build it according to my design! This is my gift to Brother Fu. When Brother Fu sees the completed house with his own eyes, I hope he will be amazed by Ziye's genius!"
Fu Zhen'er didn't expect that Liu Ziye would do such a thing.
Not to mention waiting for the day when the house is completed, he is already so surprised and delighted that he cannot express it in words.
Jin Jie, who was not far away, was following Liu Ziye's words and engaging in an unprecedented imagination.
Hearing this, he couldn't help but look at the house design drawn by Liu Ziye in the light of the fire.
Before they set off, Mr. Du had said that the young marquis was planning to build a house for him at his home in Yi Town and invite his younger brother and grandfather to live there.
Jin Jie had seen the designed structure of the house at that time.
It is obviously different from the one Liu Ziye designed for Fu Zhener.
It turned out that when they left the mansion, the young marquis personally handed Mr. Du the blueprints of the house designed for the young patriarch Fu.
He pursed his lips slightly, moved his eyes away from the ground, looked at the leaping bonfire in front of him, and drank the first sip of wine tonight.
He was one of the people on duty tonight and shouldn't have been drinking.
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