Daming: Mixed in Dangzhi County, Beiping

Lishui County is not far from the capital, so it is naturally very prosperous.

These gentry are also very rich.

The food at the dinner was naturally very luxurious.

It was even more luxurious than the food at Shunde County Prince's Mansion in Guo An.

However, these gentlemen were quite sensible and it was just a normal dinner without any messy people.

Moreover, not only are they very polite, but they also speak nicely.

A very comfortable meal.

Nothing happened all night.

Of course, those gentry who were not invited did not sleep well all night and were full of restlessness.

Early the next morning, the gentry and common people from yesterday were already waiting at the county government office early.

A group of officials from the East Palace and several people from the Maritime Trade Chamber of Commerce were discussing and writing the deed.

By the time Guo An and Zhu Gaochi came over, there was already a thick stack of deeds written by several people.

"See His Highness the Crown Prince!"

"See His Royal Highness the Prince of Shunde!"

After everyone bowed respectfully, Guo An asked: "You have been thinking about it all night yesterday, do you have any regrets or unwillingness?
If so, don’t be afraid, just ask.

Otherwise, once the deed is signed, there will be no chance of going back on it! "

"Return to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Royal Highness the County Prince, and we will never regret it!"

"Exactly, we will never regret it!"

"The villain and others will not regret it!"

A group of gentry and farmers said hurriedly.

"Really not?"

Guo An asked again.

"Your Highness, we really have no regrets!"

The gentry also replied again.

"That's good!"

Guo An nodded slightly, picked up a few deeds at the same time, handed them to Yu Shijiang and other Lishui County officials standing aside, and then handed some to the gentry.

"The person who signed the deed with you is the Railway Department, and the seal of the Railway Department is also used. In the future, both the trains, railways and railway stations will be under the control of the Railway Department.

You all will read the deed carefully. If you think there is anything wrong, you will bring it up and negotiate with me and the Crown Prince.

If there is nothing wrong, write down your name, hometown, address and number of fields, and also the shop!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

All the gentry responded and hurriedly picked up the deed and read it.

As for the old farmers, they all had a look of helpless eyes.

Guo An added: "You are all illiterate, and even if I ask you to read, you can't understand either.

However, the deeds between you and these squires are exactly the same.

Therefore, you can rest assured that these squires have much more land than you, and they are smarter than you, so they will not let themselves suffer.

Just follow them and sign the deed. "

"The king and His Highness the Crown Prince have always done things openly and honestly, and will not deceive you on these matters..."

"Thank you, Your Highness. The villain and others believe in Your Highness!"

All the people responded quickly.

They couldn't help it if they didn't believe it. Who made them illiterate, and what's more, they were facing the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty and the prince of Shunde!

Guo An nodded slightly and handed some deeds to Zhu Gaochi, and the two of them began to read.

In fact, the templates for these deeds were already finalized when the two were in the capital.

Now, they are just checking.

After a while.

All the gentry and officials had finished reading.

Each one of them had a flash of expression in their eyes, and a hint of shock.

All of them are good at playing with deeds, but this is the first time they have seen such a strict deed.

There is no loophole that can be exploited.

However, these deeds are not only strict on them, but also on His Royal Highness the Prince and the Prince of Shunde.

They were relieved too.

All the gentry saluted Zhu Gaochi and Guo An respectfully, "Reporting to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Royal Highness the Prince, the villain and others have already finished reading!"

Guo An asked: "What do you think?"

A gentleman hurriedly replied: "Reporting to His Majesty the Prince, this deed is written more carefully and clearly than any deed I have ever seen in my life, and it is also stricter than any other deed!"

Guo An asked: "Do you want to sign it?"

"Sign! Sign!"

All the gentry nodded.

"Very good!"

Guo An nodded with satisfaction.

"So, this time I, His Highness the Crown Prince, and Yuzhi County will act as intermediaries, and you will sign a contract with the Railway Department!"

"Follow His Highness's orders!"

A group of gentry and officials responded hurriedly.

Guo An said: "You all know what fields you want to occupy, how many acres of fields you want to occupy, and how much you want to exchange for those old farmers...Write it yourself. After I finish it, I and the Crown Prince will read it and confirm it is correct. I will write it today. print!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

All the gentry responded.

Then, he called his butler in.

Calculate the acres of land, negotiate with the old farmers, and then sign the deed.

The entire Yamen was in chaos.

However, with Guo An and Zhu Gaochi sitting on top, no one dared to make any mistakes.

So it took more than an hour before the contracts were signed.

Then, Guo An and Zhu Gaochi began to inspect the deed, and then asked the officials of the East Palace to sign the deed and stamp it with a big seal.

Everything is done.

Guo An asked Zhu Gaochi for instructions, and then said to the gentry again: "Everyone, the deed has been signed, and His Highness the Prince and I can rest assured.

Now, please take me, His Royal Highness the Prince, and a group of old farmers to accept their fields. "

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Highness the County Prince are also going together?"

Hearing this, everyone was shocked.

"naturally!"

Guo An nodded slightly, "Since I, the abbot, have exchanged the fields for you people, I have to go and see it in person, so I can rest assured.

Otherwise, if a slight problem occurs, it will not only damage the friendship between you, but also damage the reputation of this king and His Royal Highness. It is really unnecessary.

It would be better to solve everything at once. "

"Yes Yes!"

All the gentry responded quickly.

Fortunately, from the beginning, because they wanted to maintain a long-term relationship with the train station, they did not do anything to disturb these fields.

therefore.

Those old farmers were very quick and happy when they took over the fields.

Wait until the afternoon.

After all the money that should be given is given, the entire Lishui County matter will be completely over.

Zhu Gaochi, Guo An and others spent the night in Lishui County.

The next day.

After getting up, a group of people headed to Liyang County.

Liyang County is located at the southernmost tip of Yingtian Prefecture and has a larger population than Lishui County.

same.

Before Zhu Gaochi, Guo An and others arrived, guards had already arrived in Liyang County in advance.

Inform the magistrate of Liyang County and summon the gentry and common people involved...just like in Lishui County.

However, Zhu Gaochi, Guo An and others stayed in Liyang County for three days before finishing all these matters.

After that, Changxing, Huzhou, Tongxiang, Jiaxing, Pinghu, and then summoned the commander of Jinshan Guard and the commander of Zhapu.

The Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi and the Prince of Shunde were able to pass all the way through these prefectures, counties and garrison offices. No one dared to obstruct them, and no one dared to violate them openly or secretly.

It lasted for a month before Zhu Gaochi, Guo An and others finished handling all the matters on this line.

Then, he went back.

And within this month, despite Zhu Gaochi and Guo An's instructions, everyone concealed the train and railway matters.

But this incident still spread throughout the Ming Dynasty.

After all, on a road paved entirely with steel, there are still such big steel cars walking on it.

Although they have never seen it, it is even more mysterious when it is rumored.

After Guo An came out of the palace, Li Jinglong was already waiting outside his house.

"I have met His Highness the County Prince!"

After bringing Li Jinglong into the house, Guo An asked pretending not to know.

"Why is Mr. Cao Guo so anxious to see me? But what happened?"

Li Jinglong chuckled, "Your Highness, I heard that you have built an iron cart that is more than ten feet high and dozens of feet long. It can only walk on roads paved with steel.

This kind of iron car can transport tens of thousands of people or goods worth tens of thousands of stones at a time? "

"..."

Guo An stared at Li Jinglong blankly for a long time, and then said helplessly: "Mr. Cao Guo, these rumors are spread by those people, you should lead some people and beat them up.

How big would an iron chariot be, which is more than ten feet high and several dozen feet long?
Who can build it, and how can it be moved? "

A trace of disappointment flashed in Li Jinglong's eyes, "I knew it was those idiots who were spreading rumors to cause trouble. How could there be an iron furnace made entirely of steel and an iron cart made entirely of steel?"

Hearing this, a strange flash appeared in Guo An's eyes, "Didn't Cao Guogong ask His Majesty these things?"

Li Jinglong shook his head with fear on his face, "After His Royal Highness the Crown Prince leaves, His Majesty is not only busy reviewing memorials, but also dealing with the military and political affairs of the Northern Expedition. He is very irritable. I will not get into trouble!"

"I see!"

Guo An nodded slightly.

Li Jinglong also seemed to be relieved. He picked up the teacup, blew on it, and drank heavily.

Guo An continued: "However, His Royal Highness and I are going out this time to build a railway made entirely of steel, and the trains running on it will be entirely made of steel!"

"Pfft...ahem!"

After Li Jinglong coughed violently, he looked at Guo An with a dumbfounded face.

"Your Highness, what those people spread is actually true?"

"No!"

Guo An slowly shook his head, "The train is not that high!"

"Not that high?"

Li Jinglong murmured to himself and then reacted, his expression even more shocking.

"So, does that mean it's that long?"

"Ok!"

Guo An nodded slightly.

Li Jinglong asked hurriedly: "How high is that?"

Guo An said quietly: "One foot tall!"

Li Jinglong opened his mouth wide and began to think wildly in his mind, "One foot high? Tens of feet long? How big is that? How much steel is needed?"

"Your Highness, how much money and steel will it cost to cast such a large iron car and then build such a long railway?"

"I don't know!"

Guo An slowly shook his head.

Li Jinglong asked again: "Then His Majesty will agree to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the County Prince to start construction?"

Guo An continued quietly: "Isn't this already agreed?"

A trace of worry flashed in Li Jinglong's eyes, "If this happens, something big will happen!"

Guo An asked: "What big thing can happen?"

Li Jinglong said hurriedly: "Now, those officials have not confirmed the matter. When those officials confirm the matter, according to the temperament of those officials, they will definitely file a memorial to stop the matter, and even impeach and hold His Highness the County Prince accountable!"

Guo An couldn't help but sneered, his face full of sarcasm, "Why do they stop it, and why do they hold it accountable?"

Li Jinglong said: "Your Highness, this kind of iron car consumes a bottomless amount of money and steel. They are the best at collecting crimes!"

"The money spent is all His Majesty's internal funds. As for the steel, it was all forged using the steel forging method we invented when we were in Peking.

The amount of steel allocated to their various ministries has not been reduced at all.

Even the paving of roads and the occupied fields were handled fairly and justly by me and His Highness the Crown Prince. Why should they impeach me? "

As he said that, Guo An smiled disdainfully.

"If they have nothing to do and want to stir up trouble, then go ahead and impeach them.

Presumably, Your Majesty just needs a chance to vent! "

"This……"

Li Jinglong was stunned for a moment, and then smiled silently.

"So, I'm worrying too much!"

Guo An said quietly, "You are just worrying too much! In this year, the Ming Dynasty's nobles have not yet been ruined, and those civil servants have not really taken control of the court, so why should they dictate things that are beneficial to the Ming Dynasty?

Your Majesty, you will not let them control you! "

"Thank you for your advice, Your Highness!"

Li Jinglong nodded slowly, and then said in surprise: "Your Majesty, does your Majesty still have money in his internal funds?"

Guo An glanced at Li Jinglong and said slowly: "How much money does His Majesty have in his internal funds? How can I know?

Or, who in the entire Ming Dynasty can know? "

"Too!"

Li Jinglong smiled and changed the subject.

"Your Highness, I wonder if you have heard of it. It seems that there is a trend in the court now. Some civil servants want to get involved in the Japanese country!"

"Ok?"

Guo An was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"These civil servants are also crazy. Can they control the current Japanese state?"

If these civil servants went to the Japanese country, what would happen to the silver mines, gold mines mined by the Japanese country, and the Japanese people? Wouldn't it be difficult for Zhu Laosi to do whatever he wanted?
Li Jinglong was thoughtful and wise enough not to ask any more questions.

"Your Highness, after Wei Guogong's northern expedition, there seems to be some changes in the Timur Kingdom in the west!"

"Ok?"

Guo An's expression condensed, "Do they have any thoughts about me, Daming?"

In his impression, there was no war between Timurid and the Ming Dynasty?

Li Jinglong said: "I heard the news from the sea. Since the Hongwu period, the Great Khan of Timur State has been leading troops to attack those countries in the west.

This year, for some unknown reason, Timur's army began to shrink.

Not long ago, after Wei Guogong led his army to the north, the Jinyi guards in Gansu and Liangzhou suddenly discovered that the soldiers in Gansu and Liangzhou had many contacts with Muslims!

Hamiwei also found something wrong! "

"Muslim?"

Guo An was stunned, "Among the Gan and Liang sergeants, there seem to be more Hui and Mongolians?"

"Exactly!"

Li Jinglong nodded slightly.

Guo An asked: "Does your Majesty have any countermeasures?"

Li Jinglong said, "Your Majesty has ordered Changxing Marquis Geng Bingwen to go secretly!"

Guo An asked again: "What soldiers did you bring?"

"Shenji Camp!"

"Shenji Camp?"

Guo An was stunned.

At this moment, Li Jinglong also reacted, with a surprised look on his face, "Your Highness, you don't know?"

...(End of chapter)