Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 1427 Prestige and Trend

In fact, as early as the end of the fourth year of Jianji, the east-west first-class national road (Liangjing Dayi Road) had been completed to Bianzhou.However, due to factors such as war expenses, the next move was very slow. In two years, it only reached Mianchi County in the west, and had not yet left Henan Prefecture.

In the following two or three years, the two capital post roads were built intermittently.At present, it has passed Shanzhou City in the west and continues to advance in the direction of Tongguan.The cost of this section is still relatively high, and it is a bit difficult to expand in many places, requiring a lot of manpower.

Dong Xiang moved a little faster, and arrived at Jiyin County, Caozhou after passing the examination and injustice.That is to say, the section between Bian and Cao has been completed for more than 30 miles, and the section from Caozhou to Yunzhou in the east has been completed for more than [-] miles, which is not very far from Dingtao Town.

The north-south Yunxiang Road, the north end continues to stay at Taihang Xingkou, the south end passes through Fangcheng County, passes through Bowang Old City, Nanyang County, and Fuyang Old City to Xinye County, and is heading to Dengcheng Old City, Anyang Moving in the direction of the county, it will definitely be repaired outside Xiangyang next year.

The two main roads, with Luoyang as the intersection point, are actually the backbone projects of the empire. Equipped with four-wheeled carriages, they should benefit all people.

In addition to the Dayi Road and Yunxiang Road in the two capitals, there are actually some small-scale projects.

Chang'an in Xijing is building roads in the two directions of Binning and Huazhou, and Beijing is building the section from Fucheng to Changping County—for the convenience of the saints to soak in hot springs.

Two four-wheeled carriages got on the national road one after another, Xia Luqi and Zhong Yanyou led troops to guard beside them.

It was October at that time, and the work in the field was already over. The farmers were repairing the canal. When they saw a large group of soldiers and two rare large carriages from a distance, they were very surprised and stopped their work. Watch from the side of the road.

Some people even climbed up the trees to watch because soldiers would block their view, and the scene was very lively.

"Break it out a little, let people see it." Shao Shude said happily while blowing the wind on the carriage.

Walking on the flat first-class national road, pulled by four horses, the speed is soaring—he suspects that the speed is 20 kilometers per hour, but it must not be so fast when pulling the goods.

Zhao Zhi was in the same car with him, and he was also very emotional, saying: "Your Majesty, if it was in the former Tang Dynasty, there must not be many people using this car, but it is somewhat possible in this dynasty."

"Why?" Shao Shude wondered.

"Although there were many official horses and civilian horses in the former Tang Dynasty, they were still not as good as this dynasty." Zhao Zhi said: "This is all due to your majesty. In the former Tang Dynasty, there were many official horses but few civilian horses. This dynasty has many official horses, which is different from that of the former Tang Dynasty. They are comparable, but the civilian horses are far ahead of the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, the price of horses is very cheap, and many people can afford them."

Shao Shude nodded.

In fact, in the Roman era, four-wheeled carriages appeared, but then experienced a long period of low tide. Although there were a lot of usage, it was definitely not to the extent that it could be seen everywhere.The reason is closely related to road conditions, cost and technology.

The resumption of large-scale use of four-wheeled carriages will not be until the era of the first agricultural revolution in Europe.

With the promotion of the three-field system, Europeans began to plant a large number of crops such as alfalfa, turnip, and oats. These are excellent feed for horses, which greatly increased the maintenance of folk horses, and the cost of using horses was finally lower than that of cattle.

Naturally, horse carts began to replace ox carts in large numbers.

As the market share of carriages exceeds that of ox carts, it is natural to regain the four-wheeled carriages that were once marginalized due to cost issues, so the technology of this carriage has also been continuously improved.

By the first half of the 17th century, that is, at the end of the Ming Dynasty in China, there were even four-wheeled carriages carrying passengers in London—only in the city.

As for the areas outside the city where the traffic conditions are extremely bad, it is of course road construction, because the transportation demand for carriages is increasing day by day, and road construction is not enough, so the improvement of transportation infrastructure has been promoted step by step.

It can be seen from this process that the cost issue is very important and it is the basis of everything.

The superiority of the four-wheeled carriage is far superior to that of the ox cart, but because of the scarcity of horses and the high cost of use, it was three times that of the ox before the 12th century, which made the four-wheeled carriage almost extinct.

But when the three-field system became popular throughout Northwestern Europe and the number of horses exploded, everything changed.

The horse-drawn carriage appeared, first it was the old style of the Roman era, and then iteratively improved. When the output, quality, and cost of metal gears and bearings reached an acceptable level, a new steering device also appeared and gradually replaced the old carriage. .

The whole process does not require you to manually intervene, because intervention is useless.If you use the horse-drawn carriages of the 11th and 12th centuries in the 15th and 16th centuries, it will only make this kind of thing disappear, because the position of the horse-drawn carriage was not stable at that time, such high costs and low production will only make people continue to use bullock carts.

Orders from nobles and royal families are not enough to promote the progress of the industry, because the magnitude is not enough.The development of other industries is also very immature. There are no common components to reduce costs for you, and this will only kill new things.

"Secondly..." Zhao Zhi continued: "If this car carries passengers, you can choose a fast-running horse or four horses to pull it. If you want to pull goods, you can choose a slower but stronger horse." Horses. There was no horse breed selected and bred in the former Tang Dynasty, and they are not good enough. Your majesty has devoted himself to horse administration for 30 years, and has achieved a lot. In this matter, no one in the former Tang Dynasty can compare with your majesty."

When Shao Shude heard this, he stroked his beard triumphantly and smiled.

I changed the world, and it feels so good.

Seriously analyze the level of productivity, respect objective laws, actively integrate into society, and leverage progress little by little in a practical way.It doesn't make people of this era feel too abrupt, because if they feel this way, there may be unexpected resistance.

Change little by little, and slowly add up, so that the resistance is the least, and the success is the most likely, he did it.

Of course, thanks to Tang Dynasty's surprisingly open atmosphere.In another era, doing so may not be successful, this is the truth.

The carriage went all the way to the north, and after walking for about an hour, the city wall of Changping County could be seen from a distance.

There are more people here.After seeing the shining silver-saddled straight knight, and then saw the fast-running four-wheeled carriages, or two in succession, everyone was immediately attracted.

"Could it be the Holy Driver?" someone asked.

"Is it only four wheels for the holy driver to go on tour?"

"Not to mention four wheels, there are dozens of wheels. Yang Guang used this kind of car when he visited the grasslands."

"How do you know? How do dozens of wheels turn?"

"I heard what people said." The man was dissatisfied, and said stubbornly: "As long as there are enough horses, you can turn around by pulling hard. It's just a little slower, so it shouldn't be so fast."

Liu Shoujing was about to enter the city, but when he heard the noise of the crowd, he stopped in his tracks.

He is a descendant of the Liu family in Changping, and he is 15 years old this year.In the fourth year of Jianji, he was selected to study with the princes and princesses in the palace. This time, because the elders in the family were seriously ill, he took a few days off work and went home to visit him. Unexpectedly, he saw Shengjia before entering Changping City. ——He knew very well that the large group of silver-saddle guards could only be saints. Even if the queen went on a tour, they would only be accompanied by palace guards, and it was impossible to send out silver-saddle guards.

He did not delay outside, and hastened his pace into the city.

After a while, suddenly a few teenagers rushed in from the outside, ran straight to a shop, and asked out of breath, "Shopkeeper, is there that... that... is that that?"

Curious, Liu Shoujing stopped and listened silently.

This is a shop that mainly sells wild products, medicinal materials, and leather from outside the Great Wall.The store's business was slow, and he was dozing off at the door. Hearing this, he glanced at the young man, sighed, and said, "It's a pity that you can't do it at a young age."

"Huh?" The leading boy had question marks all over his face.

"The saint is more than 50 years old, and he can still court several daughters at night, and even win princes and princesses..." The shopkeeper shook his head and said, "You are only fifteen or sixteen years old, and you don't know how to take care of your body when you are young, alas. You are late, there is no such thing in the shop." Medicine."

"Good job, Jia Shu! How can you be so innocent?" The young man grabbed the shopkeeper by the collar, blushing, and said angrily, "I'm here to buy a fur hat, what do you want?"

"Uh..." The store owner was dumbfounded, it turned out that he had misunderstood, so he repeatedly apologized.

The young man let go of his hand, cursing to himself.

At this age, you can say that he can't do anything else, but he needs to use the medicine of tiger and wolf to maintain it, that is insulting, so he is very angry.

The store owner wiped off his cold sweat, and introduced five or six teenagers into the store.There is a lot of noise outside, and people who don't know the truth may think that he is selling counterfeit medicine when they see it.

"What kind of fur hat do you want? This store has sheepskin hats and dog fur hats..." The store asked the clerk to bring several hats and introduce them one by one.

"Not these!"

"What is the use of such a hat?"

"Do you have a bearskin hat?"

"Just like the silver saddles that samurai wear on their heads."

The teenagers chattered and asked questions one after another.

When the shopkeeper heard this, he shook his head and said, "No."

"You don't even have a bearskin hat, how can you sell it?" A teenager asked angrily, knocking on the table.

The store owner said helplessly: "I want to teach all the strong men to know that this store only started selling fur goods a year ago. There are more fur clothes sold, but eight out of ten are sheep fur. There are few hats. In the border of Youzhou, except Who among the Tibetans wears fur hats? Besides, if they wear fur hats, they make them themselves, and they would never come to the city to buy them. If the sages hadn’t started a trend, I wouldn’t be able to sell a few fur hats this year. Bearskin Hat, haha, who will buy it!"

"You poor shop, just close it."

"I will burn down your bird shop tonight, and tell you not to have a bearskin hat."

"It's burned too much, I'll throw dung on him."

"Forget it, this store doesn't sell bearskin hats, it sells fake medicines all day long, and it will close down sooner or later."

"Someone in our village was over [-] years old. He bought counterfeit medicine here. He died that night after taking it. We haven't settled with him yet."

The shopkeeper showed blue veins on his forehead, flicked his sleeves, and ignored these people.

Liu Shoujing listened outside the door for a while, but also burst into laughter.

At the same time, I also felt a little surprised. I didn't feel it when I was studying and practicing martial arts in the palace. Today, I walked outside and found that the world has changed so fast.

The prestige of the saint is really nothing to say.Young men in Youzhou, you should have often heard stories of saints fighting in recent years, right?Defeating the Khitan, conquering the Bohai Sea, great martial arts, how can we not make people fascinated?

Middle-aged people may not be fine, but the hot-blooded young man admires this kind of king with incomparable martial arts most.

If it were an emperor who had no achievements, would bearskin hats still be so popular?
Yin An Zhi, that is the pro-army of the saint, representing the first-class strong soldiers of the Great Xia, and it is the place that all the young men who are skilled in horse bow and horse in Youzhou yearn for most.

The world has changed, and people's hearts have gradually changed.

The quarrel in the store ended, and the teenagers slammed the door and left one after another.Liu Shoujing noticed that the last person walking deliberately slowed down, turned back secretly, bought a package of medicine like a thief, hid it, and trotted away.

"You want to buy medicine too?" The shopkeeper sized Liu Shoujing up and down, and persuaded him, "I see that you are full of vitality and healthy, unlike the one who was deficient in Qi and blood just now. You should not use the medicine of tiger and wolf." , the more you use it, the more useless it becomes, it’s important to take care of your body.”

Liu Shoujing was not angry, and said with a smile, "I don't buy medicine, I just ask about something."

"Let's talk." The shopkeeper was also bored, brought two Mazas over, gave Liu Shoujing one, sat down and asked.

"Is the leather goods and herbal medicine outside the Great Wall easy to sell?" Liu Shoujing asked after thanking him.

"This store was handed down from my ancestors. To be honest, it was not very easy to sell before, but since last year, the business has suddenly improved." The store said: "It is true that leather goods are the best sellers, but unfortunately I can't get good ones."

"Why is it suddenly easy to sell?" Liu Shoujing asked.

"I just heard those young men quarreling, what new thing did the saint come up with?" the shopkeeper asked without answering.

"Yes." Liu Shoujing nodded, and said, "The four-wheeled carriage is very big, it can turn freely, and it runs very fast."

"I saw four-wheeled carriages when I was young." The shopkeeper sighed: "There is a stone road in the northwest of Changping. It has been a long time, and the stone surface is full of deep ruts. The shogunate built a four-wheeled carriage and sent it to the army. Duxing transported grain and turned by ruts. It disappeared later, and I don’t know why.”

Rut turns?It's a good idea.Liu Shoujing secretly praised it in his heart, a bit like the "rail car" that the sage said.

"The saint of Daxia is amazing." The shopkeeper continued: "every time you come up with something, it can set off a trend. Let's go back to what Mr. Xiaolang asked, it's actually very simple. Fur coats are issued. The soldiers of the imperial army who made meritorious service were also rewarded with fur coats, furs, and gloves. These soldiers wandered around, and over time, more and more people admired them. Mr. Xiaolang may not have noticed, but in our Changping County, a year There are two more fur shops in the city. Alas, they earn more than me."

"Why do you earn more than you?" Liu Shoujing wondered.

Although he didn't pay much attention to the store in front of him, he had a vague impression that it should be a time-honored store.

"People from Kansai all drive with a Lingzhou accent." The shopkeeper said bitterly: "They can get the goods from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This year's Zhengdan, the queen invited women from abroad to the palace to give a banquet. I heard that they all wore furs and rewarded them. There were a lot of furs. Then, you know, anyone who has a little money is pestered by his wife to buy furs. It’s already October, and it’s when furs start to sell well. I hate it, I can only watch Watch other people make money."

They can only sell fur clothes, but you can also sell medicine...

Liu Shoujing smiled and said, "So that's how it is. Today, the sage rode in a four-wheeled carriage and spread the news far and near. After staying for a while, there may be a lot of discussions in the streets and alleys. This is another good deal."

"Who says it's not!" The shopkeeper sighed: "The things used by the sage are naturally excellent. His old man has such a high prestige, so naturally everyone follows suit. It's a pity that the sage doesn't come to me to buy medicine. It's a pity, a pity!"

This time it was Liu Shoujing's turn to sweat.

"Listening to your words is better than reading for ten years, so I'm going to buy medicine... No, I'm leaving!" Liu Shoujing hurriedly finished and fled.

(End of this chapter)