Chapter 140 Chapter 140 Shell Glass
Nandong Road is close to the sea, so its development advantages are obvious.
First, he opened a glass factory and a cement factory according to local conditions. Now Lin Si wants to develop the Maritime Silk Road and build a port on Nandong Road.
Everyone who had taken the exam before was deeply regretful. Initially, they thought this place, being close to the sea, had little future. But then, two major projects suddenly emerged, and the resumes of the Nandong Road magistrate and Bai Zhi were about to improve.
The construction of the port was proceeding in an orderly manner. As soon as Shi Jin got off the car, he could see many people working.
Shi Jin came to inspect the Nandong Road port on behalf of the Ministry of Commerce this time. She was accompanied by several officials from the former Maritime Customs.
The Maritime Customs Office was originally the department in charge of maritime transport and was previously under the Ministry of Personnel. Now Lin Si assigned them to the Ministry of Commerce.
This is Da'an's first port for foreign trade. There are many considerations behind its choice of Mingzhou on Nandong Road.
First, shelter from the wind is essential. Avoid typhoon-prone shores, as this can lead to severe losses if a typhoon strikes. Secondly, water depth is crucial. The berth must be deep enough to accommodate at least ten vessels. The gentleness of the current and the stability of the foundation are also important considerations.
Shi Jin and several Maritime Customs officials did not go directly to the provincial government office. Instead, they got off the car and walked to the port construction site.
After Mo Jinglian handed the port matter over to Shi Jin, Shi Jin began to study hard.
Now she has a clear understanding of the area that needs to be designed and planned to build a port.
In addition to the berth area for ships, warehouse areas, customs inspection areas, and cargo trading areas also need to be built.
What is currently under construction is the berth area.
When the news of the port construction first came out, many people were curious and came to take a look from time to time. However, after it was built for some time, no matter how novel it was, it was no longer interesting, so it was rarely seen.
Several officials from the Maritime Customs pretended to be ignorant and asked the people working on the project about the progress of the construction and their wages.
When the prefect arrived at the port, Shi Jin and several officials from the Maritime Customs were having a pleasant conversation with the people working there.
The prefect was terrified. He was not from the Majesty's system, and the only reason he could stay in this position was that he was honest, afraid and timid.
It was precisely because he was timid that he was afraid that the people would say something bad, even though he always did things according to the rules.
Because there are many people working at the port, some people also set up some food stalls near the port.
The daily work is strenuous, and most people have big appetites, so the big pot meals at the port are not enough for them.
The Mingzhou prefect wore an ingratiating smile. "Sibu Si is here to inspect the port, so why didn't he come to the prefectural government office first? You've been so tired from the journey, you should rest well first."
Shi Jin smiled. "It's no problem. My ox cart happened to pass by here, so I stopped to take a look. I want to chat with the people and learn about the grassroots work."
The Mingzhou magistrate wiped his sweat. "Yes, yes, you have your own considerations."
The magistrate of Mingzhou then invited Shi Jin and others to dinner.
Shi Jin pointed to a food stall not far away and said, "This one looks good. Let's eat here."
The prefect of Mingzhou was surprised: "How can this be possible? Such simple food."
"What's so simple about it? If ordinary people can eat it, why can't we?"
The Mingzhou magistrate did not refute this time, "Ishibe Si is right."
The couple running the food stall were flattered. It wasn't mealtime, and most stalls wouldn't set up shop before mealtime, but they wanted to make more money, so they kept the stall open until after dinner.
During breaks, some workers would occasionally come to eat something because they were hungry, but they were a minority.
There were so many people at once that the three small tables prepared by the stall could hardly accommodate them all.
The young couple was almost unable to speak clearly after being looked at by the prefect. "Today we have soup noodles with dried fish soup base, and we will sprinkle some shrimps on top at the end."
The young couple were already nervous enough when they saw the prefect, and when they learned from the conversation of these people that this was an official from Anjing, they were so scared that they almost couldn't hold the spoon.
Shi Jin has the highest status in the whole audience. If she says to eat dried fish soup noodles, then they eat dried fish soup noodles. She is the one who speaks, and the others discuss based on her words.
The girl in the young couple couldn't help but take a few more glances.
The girl from Anjing is really different. She can be so majestic in front of her husband.
It was Shi Jin's first time eating seafood-flavored food, so he praised it: "This soup base doesn't have any special seasonings, but it's very delicious."
The girl at the food stall mustered up the courage to reply, "Seafood is all about its freshness. If you add too much seasoning, it won't taste good."
The prefect of Mingzhou also nodded, "That's right. Tomorrow I will hold a banquet to welcome you all."
After eating, we rested in the accommodation area.
Shi Jin smelled the sea breeze for the first time and was very curious. He thought that when the family of four reunited during the next Chinese New Year, he would tell his family about the things that happened at the seaside.
Speaking of family, she hasn't seen her younger brother for a long time.
She can see her parents twice a year, but it is difficult for her to see Shitou, as one is in Anjing and the other is in Tongchuan.
Your Majesty has been on the throne for only two years now, and it is a very busy time with many affairs. Even during the Chinese New Year, you cannot get away.
As he was thinking, Shi Jin fell into a deep sleep.
A few days after inspecting the port, the prefect summoned the magistrates of several counties to a meeting, which was Shi Jin's request.
Since she came to Nandong Road, all the goods in the workshops were under her control, and the county magistrates could also express their opinions and ideas to her.
Chen Sui was ecstatic when he heard the news.
This is a department from the Anjing Ministry of Commerce. It is a rare opportunity for them to come down and hold a meeting with the grassroots county magistrates. She has a lot of ideas to say.
First it was canned food.
The concept of canned food was discussed by her and Zhang Dai, and they concluded that it was worth a try.
Chen Sui studied physics and chemistry in middle school, not to mention Zhang Dai.
At first, the two of them only talked about food preservation, and later they talked about whether some pickled seafood could be preserved for a long time if they were sealed with glass.
Zhang Dai then shook his head. "That would be too expensive, and to determine how long it can be preserved would require repeated experiments, which would be a bit troublesome."
Chen Sui felt very disappointed at the time, but after thinking about it carefully, it made sense.
So she started studying other things.
She set her sights on those colorful shells, such as the luminous shells. These shells were extremely eye-catching to her, an outsider, but to the locals, they were just beautiful and useless shells.
This glass factory also produces glass beads. Chen Sui knows that these glass beads are very popular in Nanzhao and Xiping. The nobles like to use these glass beads to decorate various jewelry and clothing.
Chen Sui asked his maid Ai Liu, who had been with him since childhood, to try making jewelry using glass beads and shells.
Ai Liu has been with her since she was a child, and she is particularly skillful with her hands. Some jewelry that Chen Sui dislikes and thinks is old-fashioned can become very beautiful after her transformation.
Ai Liu thought he couldn't help with anything else, but when his daughter said she wanted to make beautiful jewelry with glass beads and shells, Ai Liu had no problem helping her.
After receiving this task, Ai Liu concentrated on researching in the house. Her house was filled with several precious glass beads and a large number of colorful shells.
Ai Liu finally made earrings, hairpins, combs and necklaces using shells and glass beads.
Due to the special nature of shells, they have their own iridescent luster, and when paired with glass beads, they look particularly beautiful under the sunlight.
Chen Sui was very happy. Coincidentally, Shi Jin came to the meeting, so she immediately took Ai Liu to the meeting.
There were several county magistrates who came to the meeting, and they spoke one by one. Chen Sui was unlucky and got the last one to speak, so she waited patiently for the person in front to speak.
Chen Sui first talked about how much economic benefits the glass factory brought to Yudao County and how many families could have enough food to eat thanks to this glass factory.
The current management model of the glass factory, etc.
Chen Sui's speech basically contained no nonsense, so Shi Jin listened very carefully.
After discussing the glass factory, Chen Sui cleared his throat. "I've recently developed something new, and I'd like to ask the Stone Department to review it and see if it's possible to sell it to Nanzhao Xiping, or even overseas."
Shi Jin suddenly felt curious and asked what Chen Sui was.
Chen Sui immediately asked Ai Liu to get those pieces of jewelry, and took this opportunity to introduce them to Shi Jin.
"I'm originally from Lingzhou. When I first visited the beach on Nandong Road, I was struck by the dazzling array of seashells. Later, however, I learned that the locals regarded these beautiful shells as useless waste. I felt a pity for them. It just so happened that after the glass factory was built, they began producing glass beads in addition to utensils. So, I asked my maid, Ai Liu, to combine seashells and glass beads to create some jewelry. I'd appreciate your approval."
Ai Liu carefully opened the wooden box, which contained four items: earrings, hairpins, combs, and necklaces.
The sunlight outside happened to shine in, making the four pieces of jewelry shine brightly.
Shi Jin picked up the hairpin.
She worked in the Ministry of Commerce, so she naturally knew the hobbies of the nobles in Nanzhao and Xiping. They had never seen the sea, so naturally they had never seen beautiful shells.
The inlay of shells and glass beads looks really impressive, and they will definitely be able to make a lot of money from it.
I just don’t know if we can deceive foreigners on the Maritime Silk Road.
Chen Sui carefully observed Shi Jin's expression, feeling very nervous.
In fact, she had already written a plan. She only needed to set up a small workshop and recruit only female workers. She would let Ai Liu be responsible for the style of the jewelry and then teach the female workers how to do inlay and other crafts.
Nowadays, glass factories and cement factories all require manual labor. If this jewelry business succeeds, the girls on Nandong Road will be able to earn money by working and feel more confident.
Shi Jin smiled and nodded. "This thing certainly suits the aesthetics of Nanzhao and Xiping. It'll sell well there. I wonder if County Magistrate Chen could write me a proposal in the next few days. I'll take it back to Minister Mo for review."
Chen Sui quietly pulled out two large sheets of densely written paper from the table, giving an awkward but polite smile.
"In fact, I have already written the plan. I hope Mr. Ishibu will review it."
Seeing that Shi Jin had almost finished reading the plan, Chen Sui asked cautiously, "Shi Bushi, can these four pieces of jewelry be presented to His Majesty?"
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