Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

"If others say this, I definitely don't believe it. What the general said is another matter!" Igilian Bod smiled and said: "He has done many more incredible things than this!"

Di Renjie smiled and said nothing, but he didn't care in his heart. He thought to himself that the Japanese had little knowledge after all, and they would make a fuss when encountering any novelty, thinking they were ghosts and gods.This boat can travel on water by either using sails to borrow wind power or by oars to propel it. What other methods are there other than this?So even if Wang Wenzuo had the ability, could he still make something out of nothing?

Di Renjie didn't believe it in his heart, so he turned his eyes around and saw that the drawing showed a simplified diagram of a ship. It was two long and narrow hulls side by side, with a layer of wooden boards in the middle to connect the two long and narrow ships, as if they were two parallel ships. It looked like a fish. On both sides of the boat, there were two pairs of large wheels, which looked a bit like waterwheels used in rural areas. This style was very strange. Di Renjie had never even thought about it, not to mention seeing it before.

"Huaiying, what do you think of this ship?"

"This -" Di Renjie hesitated for a moment: "I have never seen such a strange ship before. For example, other ships are wide and narrow, long and short, but there are obviously two like this, but they are placed side by side, with the middle Why are they connected by wooden planks? And what are the big wheels on both sides of the boat? It doesn’t look like the boat can walk, either?"

"Hahaha!" Yiji Lianbode laughed and said, "Huaiying, look at this." He turned over the drawing, and a dense explanation diagram was revealed below. Di Renjie looked carefully and saw that it described the history of the watercraft. Therefore, it is easy to capsize. First, because going upstream, the current is turbulent and there are many reefs. Therefore, you can imitate Cao Cao of the Three Kingdoms and use iron chains to connect the ships and lay wooden planks to resist the wind and waves. Place the two ships side by side and connect them with wooden planks. (Actually, it is a catamaran. Wang Wenzuo used "Three Kingdoms" as an excuse); and the wheel is modeled after a waterwheel mill, which can be pedaled with the full strength of a sailor, because the strength of a person's lower limbs is much greater than that of the upper limbs, and the blades are much stronger than an oar. Oars are highly efficient, so this method is much faster and more durable than ordinary paddle boats.

"Huaiying, what do you think?" Yijilianbod smiled.

"I haven't seen the real thing, so I don't dare to say good or bad!" Di Renjie put down the drawing, took a deep breath, and suppressed the excitement in his heart: "But General Wang can draw such a ship, it is really a wonderful idea. , Lu Ban, Mozi and other sages are nothing more than this!"

"The generals are more than just Lu Ban and Mozi!" Yijilianbod smiled and said: "How about it? Before May next year, can you build fifty water ships with a load of three hundred stones?"

"Shangguan, aren't you trying to embarrass me?" Di Renjie was surprised. He pointed to the drawings on the desk: "Just give me two drawings and ask me to build [-] new ships in half a year. It’s impossible to build this ship, but we don’t know where the ship’s materials, craftsmen, and workshops are? How can we build it?”

"You can't blame me!" Yijilianbode said with a bitter smile: "The general has already patted his chest in front of the emperor and said that the grain transported into Guanzhong next year will be no less than 80 shi. The days when it is not suitable for sailing can only be eight months at most in a year. In conversion, the grain that can be transported through Shaanzhou in one month cannot be less than [-] dan. For a [-]-stone boat to make four trips a month, that is [-] dan. Shi, [-] shi of grain must be transported in a month, and even if it is damaged and repaired, [-] is still a small amount!"

"Shaanzhou is not the only place where the grain enters the Pass, right? Some grain from Puban also enters the Pass!" Di Renjie said.

"The land east of Hedong is so narrow and densely populated that the grain that can be transported to Guanzhong is only tens of thousands of dan at most, which is a drop in the bucket!" Yiji Lianbode waved his hand and dispelled Di Renjie's fantasy: "Huaiying, of course I know if now Recruiting craftsmen, buying ship materials, and building shipyards by yourself is probably not possible. But Luoyang has these things, right? The Eastern Capital is located in the middle of the world, and the four arks and ships gather together. How can there be a shortage of materials for craftsmen and shipyards? What does the general mean? It’s to place orders for these shipyards!”

"Place an order? What do you mean?"

"Gather the shipyard owners together, publish the drawings to them, and let them all build one according to it. Whoever builds it well will be asked to build the remaining eighty ships. What do you think?"

"This will definitely not work!" Di Renjie shook his head like a rattle.

"Why not?"

"Since ancient times, merchants have been doing errands for the government. They have always avoided and pushed away when they could. When Xiaguan was in Luoyang Mansion, he could still force several companies to come over and deal with it. Now that Xiaguan is no longer an official in Luoyang Mansion, the county magistrate is not as good as now. No matter what, how can those merchants sell off the reputation of Xiaguan? These are eighty [-]-stone ships, and even a shipyard of any size will not be able to handle them!"

"No, no, no!" Ijilianbod shook his head: "What the boss said is not to do errands, but to pay. As long as you are willing to participate and build a prototype ship, you will pay for one ship. If you get an order, you will build it. You get a boat for the price of a boat!”

"Pay?" Di Renjie was stunned: "Are you planning to spend money to let the shipyard build ships for the imperial court?"

"Of course!"

"Pay full price?"

"Yes, in fact, according to the above, it is [-]% to [-]% higher than other ships on the market, because only in this way can the shipyard owners make money and use the best materials to build durable ships. , reduce future water transportation losses!”

Di Renjie looked at Yiji Lianbode in surprise. He couldn't be blamed for this. At that time, it was rare for the government to pay for shipbuilding and road construction. The most common methods were directly levying labor and confiscation. For example, when Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty wanted to attack In order to build naval warships, Goguryeo asked the coastal prefectures and counties in Shandong and Jiangnan to provide several warships.Obviously, with the fiscal and financial level at that time, it was impossible for the central government of the Tang Dynasty to ask the Ministry of Household Affairs to draw up a budget and then allocate funds to a certain prefecture and county to purchase a batch of ships from local shipyards.The local finances of the state and county did not have any extra funds to build these ships. The result was that the local government directly arrested the craftsmen and tied them with iron chains to work on the beach. As a result, half of the craftsmen's bodies were submerged in the water, and many people died. His lower body was rotten, infested with maggots, and countless people died of illness.

Therefore, it is not difficult to understand Di Renjie's reaction when he first heard that he was asked to build [-] canal boats. Officials in modern society were all excited when they heard about the opportunity to participate in the project, fearing that they would fall behind others. That is because of the project It will be followed by either financial allocations or low-interest, long-term loans from banks, which can also provide local employment opportunities and tax revenue. In ancient times, there were no such things. At most, it was just a piece of paper from above, and all the funds were either used as temporary donations and tax apportionments to the people. Either it is forced labor. It would be great to be able to offset the labor service and a few donated officials. Both of these are cruel oppression of the people. If they are not careful, they will cause serious consequences. Officials with a little conscience will be able to reject it. Just push, hide if you can.

"Shangguan! I dare to ask, where does the money for building the canal come from?" Di Renjie asked carefully.

"Have you forgotten?" Yiji Lianbod smiled and said: "If we transport one stone of grain into the pass, we can earn three buckets of grain. In other words, a three hundred stone canal can earn ninety stone for one trip. Grain! With such a profitable business, are you still worried that you won’t have the money to build a ship?”

"This subordinate knows!" Di Renjie said: "But the freight can only be earned after the canal is built, and now the canal is only on paper? Where will the money come from to build the ship?"

"Of course it will be made with money from the future!" Yiji Lianbode smiled and took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it to Di Renjie. Di Renjie looked at it and saw that it was a withdrawal receipt from the largest Zoroastrian temple in Luoyang, with the amount of 20 Wan Guan, this voucher is made of crisp mulberry paper, with very dense patterns on the edges, and the seal monogram is very clear. He knows that the Sogdian merchants are very good at business, and those Zoroastrian temples are engaged in lending and remittance business, making extremely huge profits. , this 20 yuan may be a huge sum of money to others, but it is just a drop in the bucket to these Sogdian Zoroastrian temples. "How's it going? Are you still worried about not having enough money to build a ship?" Yijilenbode said with a proud smile.

"I don't have to worry anymore! I just want to ask boldly. Those Sogdians are very smart about money. They borrowed such a large sum of money. There must be a lot of conditions, right?"

"Conditions?" Yijilianbod smiled and said: "Yes, they do have a condition, that is, they are allowed to participate in the business of transporting grain!"

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When he walked out of the room, Di Renjie felt that his legs were filled with lead and his steps were heavy.The tasks assigned by his superiors filled his heart with anxiety, and he had even forgotten the excitement that the new ships brought to him.He even began to regret his new choice, like a blind man walking on the edge of a cliff. Although he could not see the dizzying scenery below, the chilling sound of wind under his feet was enough to make him frightened.

"Maybe it's not too late to go back now!" Di Renjie thought to himself. He instinctively walked to the stable and chose the strongest horse.

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Luoyang, Fuyin's residence.

"Rare visitor, rare visitor! Why do you think of coming to visit me? Come sit down and talk. It's a coincidence that you came here today. Just now a friend gave me two Yellow River carp. The carp in this season are the most plump, and the fish belly is cut into the meat. Make fish heads into soup, fish tails are grilled over charcoal, eat three of the fish, nothing is wasted, come on, come on, sit down, sit down!”

Wang Fuyin, who had changed into a casual robe, was particularly enthusiastic. He sat down at the dining table and invited Di Renjie to sit down. The smile on Di Renjie's face was a bit forced. He picked up the chopsticks with a forced smile and picked up the chopsticks. I chewed a piece of fish meat without knowing its taste.Wang Fuyin frowned: "Huaiying, do you have something on your mind? Let's talk about it first, right? It tastes like chewing wax when you eat it, but you are wasting this rare delicacy!"

"Yes!" Di Renjie put down his chopsticks and said with a wry smile: "Fu Yin, I want to come back to you!"

"Come back to my place?" Wang Fuyin picked up a pair of chopsticks and asked, "What's wrong? Things didn't go well with the transfer envoy, and the superior officer treated you badly?"

"That's not the case!" Di Renjie smiled bitterly: "Actually, Shangguan treats me very well. Although I can't compare with you, it can be said that I have no doubts about my employment!"

"Why is that?" Wang Fuyin chewed: "Things are too difficult and beyond your ability? But this is not like you. If things are too difficult, you will only come back to ask me for advice. It's not like you to give up!"

"Yin, you are right!" Di Renjie sighed: "Actually, there is only one reason. I think it is because we are not in harmony with each other!"

"The way is different?" Wang Fuyin laughed: "How come the way is different? I remember that they were regulating water transportation over there, right? Why is the way here different?"

Di Renjie gritted his teeth and recounted what he had previously discussed with Yijilenbod, and finally said: "Building new ships and improving water transportation are good things. The general's skill in doing things is also impressive. But when he did this, Whether it is money or personnel, they completely disregard the imperial laws. Borrowing 20 guan from Sogdian merchants, and then letting these Hu merchants intervene in water transportation may be a temporary gain, but there will be endless troubles later!"

"So, you are coming back because of this?" Wang Fuyin asked: "Then what? Are you going to report it to the court?"

"No!" Di Renjie shook his head.

"Oh?" Wang Fuyin laughed: "If you don't follow suit or report it, is it because you are afraid of Wang Wenzuo's power?"

"Maybe!" Di Renjie smiled bitterly: "But not entirely, let's put it this way! I think that although the general and I are not on the same path, it is also beneficial to the country. I will not take his path, but that does not mean Don’t let anyone else go!”

"Yes!" Wang Fuyin nodded: "What you said makes some sense! But if I were you, I wouldn't leave now, at least not until these boats are built!"

"Why do you say that?" Di Renjie asked puzzledly.

"It's very simple. First of all, according to you, your superior treats you very well and trusts you very much. Since our generation of scholars are trusted by others, we cannot let them down. If you kiss your ass and leave now, who will be able to replace him temporarily?" You? The fault for delaying things must be yours, right? "

"That's what the governor said!" Di Renjie lowered his head.

"Secondly? You just said that there will be endless troubles. In the final analysis, it is just your own imagination. No one knows whether there will be endless troubles in the future. Take the enfeoffment of princes after King Wu of Zhou destroyed Shang as an example. Everyone knows about the enfeoffment. The end of the meeting cannot be lost, but if King Wu of Zhou had not divided the feudal lords, I am afraid that soon after his death, the world would return to the hands of the Yin people. It would be great for the Zhou people to keep a small piece of land under Qishan Mountain, and there would be no Zhou people at all. 800 years of the world. Everything in the world will be beneficial and harmful. If it is harmful, don’t do it. Then there is no need to do anything. Promoting benefits and eliminating disadvantages is the best way. If you want to promote benefits and eliminate disadvantages, who can compare with me? Which one is more suitable for you?"