big song poppi

Chapter 226 0223 [Learned literary and martial arts and sold them to the emperor's family. 】

The next day.

Early in the morning, Changzhi County faced the cold wind and rushed to Yidu County.

Since it is surrender, the key lies in the word sincerity.

What's more, the treatment after surrender still needs to be fought for.

Therefore, he had to go to Yidu in person.

Nowadays, few people take the official road from Linzi to Yidu. They all take the waterway, going down the river, and it only takes two hours.

Han Zhen also ordered people to expand the Zishui Pier and build a wide, flat road leading directly to the county town.

Departing early in the morning, at noon, Changzhi County rode a carriage into the county town.

He hasn't been to the county town for a while. The last time he came was during the New Year's Eve last year when he came to the government office for a job assessment.

Sitting in the warm carriage, Chang Zhixian opened a gap in the curtains and looked at the changes in the county.

The cold weather did not dampen the enthusiasm of the people.

The streets were full of people, the shop doors were open, and stalls were set up one after another on the roadside.

At the corner of the street, there are occasionally one or two beggars huddled there, with a broken bowl placed in front of them.

Having been a county magistrate for so many years, Chang Zhi County knows very well that if you want to understand the people's livelihood in a place, you don't need to look at the population or the size of the farmland, you only need to look at the mental outlook of the people.

After all, the illusion of prosperity can be faked, but the spiritual outlook from the heart cannot be faked.

Compared with last year, the spirit of the people in the county and city was several times better, and they were full of vitality while laughing and scolding.

The subordinate staff were reorganized, exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes were banned, and the thugs and gangs who bullied the market were gone. Even the bandits who had been entrenched outside the county town for many years disappeared without a trace overnight.

This series of changes made the people of the county feel relaxed from the inside out. Suddenly, more than half of the burden on their shoulders was gone, and even walking was a little lighter than before.

As for the beggar, there is nothing that can be done.

No matter how prosperous and affluent the area, there will always be beggars, because some people are born lazy, do not want to work, do not want to be restrained, just want to get something for nothing, and live a life of being used as a bed.

In fact, Han Zhen had already cleaned up the beggars in the county and city.

People who are elderly or born with disabilities are given leisurely jobs such as sweeping streets and checking for vacant houses.

As for those beggars with able-bodied hands and feet, they were registered as household members, given some food rations and paper clothes, and were placed in the countryside to open up wasteland and farm.

No seeds or farm tools, no problem, the government will lend them to you.

Worried about not being able to afford it?
It doesn't matter, you can pay in installments without charging a penny of interest.

Anyway, it’s just one sentence to make the best use of everything.

Even so, there are still some beggars who linger in the city.

Han Zhen had no way to deal with such a lazy person. He would be of no use except wasting food if he was caught in prison.

He can't just kill them all, then does he still need his reputation?

So I had to let it go and let it fend for itself.

"The county magistrate has arrived at the government office."

Unknowingly, the carriage arrived in front of the government office.

Hearing the driver's reminder, Chang Zhixian came to his senses, responded, opened the door curtain and stepped out of the car.

The cold wind coming towards him made him shiver.

After tidying up his appearance, Chang Zhixian walked to the front of the government office with steady official steps.

The official on duty recognized him and said with a smile on his face: "I have seen Changzhi County."

Chang Zhixian didn't put on any airs and said with a chuckle: "I have important matters to discuss with the county magistrate this time. Please let me know."

"Changzhi County will wait for a moment. I will report it right now."

Said the official, he turned around and walked into the government office to report.

After a while, he turned back and said, "Chanzhi County, the county magistrate invites you!"

"It's work."

Chang Zhixian nodded slightly and stepped into the gate of the government office.

As soon as he entered the lobby, Han Zhen took the initiative to greet him and said with a smile on his face: "Changzhi County, you've been waiting for a long time!"

Changzhi County heard the implication of his words. He lowered his posture very low, bowed and said apologetically: "The county magistrate forgives me, but there are too many trivial matters at home. After I took care of them yesterday, I immediately set off and came here non-stop. .”

Both sides knew exactly what the reason was.

But there are some things that you just need to know in your heart and cannot be said openly.

"It's good if you can come!"

Han Zhen smiled slightly, held his bowing hands, and helped him up.

After inviting Chang Zhixian to sit down, Han Zhen ordered: "Come here, serve tea!"

Soon, a clerk brought a cup of hot tea: "Changzhi County, please have some tea."

After taking the hot tea, Chang Zhixian took a sip and silently sorted out his thoughts in his heart.

Now that the attitude of surrender has arrived, it’s time to talk about treatment.

He, Chang Yukun, is just a mortal, and he also has seven emotions and six desires.

To put it bluntly, if you, Han Zhen, don’t give you any benefits, why would you put your head in your belt and rebel with you?

Is this the reason?

Is Nie Dong doing nothing?

Don't you just think that following Han Zhen in rebellion has a better future than hiding in the mountains to open up wasteland and farm?

Is he, Liu Qi, out of his mind when he leaves the office alone and becomes a rebel with you?
Is it based on passion or the kindness of knowing someone?
All living beings in this world can never avoid two words: fame and fortune.

Learn literary and martial arts, and buy them in the emperor's house.

This word "huo" can be said to embody the essence of Tao.

Han Zhen naturally knew these simple truths.

He spoke first and broke the silence: "Has the family settled down?"

Hearing this, Chang Zhixian put down his tea cup and replied truthfully: "Yesterday, I wrote a letter and sent it back to my hometown. I ordered my wife to sell my property and shops at a low price, and took my family to rush to Yidu day and night. I estimate that it won't take more than half a month." We should be able to make it there.”

"Currently, there is a shortage of official positions. For the time being, I will submit to Changzhi County and continue to serve in Linzi County, and we will make other arrangements after the year."

Han Zhen paused and continued: "In addition, the dividends we agreed on previously are still valid, and there may be more in the future."

Not only the dividends from Changzhi County have not been cancelled, but the dividends from Zhao Ting and Liu Mi have also not been cancelled. Han Zhen has a vague plan in his mind about official corruption.

Changzhi County remained silent, chewing on Han Zhen's conditions in his heart.

After a moment, he stroked his beard and chuckled: "Thank you so much, County Magistrate!"

Han Zhen smiled slightly and added: "Zhu Ji is also a talent. It would be a pity to be a businessman. I plan to let him join the Academy of Commerce."

"I would like to thank the county magistrate on behalf of Yuan Chen."

Chang Zhixian thanked him with his hands, then took out a folding book from his sleeve pocket, stood up and handed it over and said: "Xiaguan has accumulated some connections over the years, and all the people in this folding fold are Xiaguan's close friends. The county magistrate may be able to use it later."

This is reciprocating.

After taking the folder, Han Zhen glanced at it a few times.

The booklet from Changzhi County was extremely detailed. The other party's name, official position, clan power, and resume were all clearly stated.

In addition, there are also the county conditions of the county magistrates he has served over the years, etc.

After closing the fold, Han Zhen looked satisfied and said: "You are determined!"

Chang Zhixian said humbly: "This is what a lower official should do."

"Changzhi County has been working hard for traveling and traveling. Please stay in the county town for two more days and get together with Zhu Yuan." Han Zhen ordered.

"I'll excuse you first!" Chang Zhixian bowed again, then turned and walked out of the lobby.

Watching him leave, a smile flashed in Han Zhen's eyes.

Changzhi County was won, but now there is still one Xie Ding left.

But it is a pity that Xie Ding is different from Changzhi County. He is not only himself. As the head of the Xie family, he also bears the reputation of the world that the Xie family has worked hard for for hundreds of years and generations, so he will never take sides easily.

As for the Confucius family in Qufu...

Oh, when Bingfeng points out, the Kong family will repair the surrender table!

……

……

As the place under his control gradually stabilized, Han Zhen was not as busy as he was at the beginning, and he felt much more relaxed.

In addition to stabilizing the people, Han Zhen spent all his remaining energy and resources on preparing for war.

The entire Qingzhou is like a huge war machine, running at high speed with the support of massive amounts of money.

Carloads of grain and grass were continuously transported from various roads in the south, either by waterway or by land, to the granaries in Linzi and Yidu.

The ordnance workshop built on the banks of the Zishui River was like a giant beast, constantly devouring the pig iron, coal, cowhide, horns, tendons and other materials transported.

Under the constant hammering of water-powered forging hammers day and night, they were turned into pieces of ordnance and transported to the military camp.

The gunpowder workshops are also running at full capacity and running crazily. In addition to the daily training in the military camps in the two counties, more and more firearms are stored in the armory.

Nowadays, the gunpowder workshop has added a lot of manpower, and the original one shift has become three shifts.

The new manpower was the boys and girls Han Zhen had recruited through Xiao Chong.

These boys and girls are all poor people, born with disabilities.

Either mute or deaf... Some are orphans, and some were cruelly abandoned by their parents.

Without Han Zhen's recruitment, I'm afraid their end would have been extremely miserable.

In today's world, people's hearts are evil.

Once you are caught by a gangster and have your hands and feet broken to beg, it is already settled.

Even worse, they will be made into various exotic animals and used as slaves to make money.

For example, the vase fairy is a girl, especially a slender girl under the age of ten, who cuts off her limbs and makes them into a human pig, then stuffs them into a large vase, leaving only one head exposed.

Others would cut out a man's tongue and sew it into the newly skinned bear skin.

Warm bear blood is very sticky. Once it sticks to the skin, it is difficult to take it off. You can only wear the animal's skin for the rest of your life and perform hard for people's entertainment.

Since they were recruited, they have been provided with good food and drink every day, new clothes to wear, playmates to play with, and teachers to teach them how to read and write.

Therefore, these young girls always regarded Han Zhen as a god.

The children selected by Xiaochong were all smart and intelligent. It only took Han Zhen more than two months to teach them how to use Pinyin to communicate in daily life.

One production line will definitely not be able to meet the needs of the war. After these boys and girls are thoroughly familiar with and master the production of gunpowder, Han Zhen will immediately start building a more professional, more formal, and larger gunpowder workshop.

It is for this reason that Han Zhen chose to teach them Pinyin.

From now on, the communication between them will be replaced by Chinese pinyin. In this way, the confidentiality will be improved to a big level.

After all, no one in this world can understand Pinyin except myself.

……

Time flies to November [-], the winter solstice.

In the Song Dynasty, the Winter Solstice was a festival second only to New Year's Day, and everyone from the emperor to the common people attached great importance to it.

"Sui Sui Guang Ji" records: "Since the winter solstice is called Ya Sui, the common people regard the night before the winter solstice as the winter eviction. Most people imitate the sui eviction story, but it is slightly different."

Even poor people will wear new clothes, prepare food, and worship their ancestors on this day.

If you are really poor and have no money left, you will find a way to eat a wonton.

Winter wontons and New Year wontons were customs in the Song Dynasty.

All officials in the government, big and small, will take a rest for seven days.

In the mansion, after worshiping his ancestors, Han Zhen and his family gathered together to eat wontons.

Ma Shuyao also came and specially brought wontons made by herself.

"Husband, try the slave's craftsmanship."

After filling a bowl of wontons with her own hands and handing them over, Ma Shuyao looked at Han Zhen expectantly with her big, spiritual eyes.

Looking at the colorful wontons in the bowl, Han Zhen couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

Seeing his expression, An Niang pursed her lips and said with a smile: "Erlang doesn't know what he's selling. What you make is wontons with various flavors, which ordinary people can't eat!"

After An Niang's explanation, Han Zhen finally understood.

These wontons come in different colors and have different fillings. Each color represents a different meaning. The more colors, the more joy.

There were no food colorings in ancient times, so making wontons of different colors required a lot of ingredients, which ordinary people couldn't afford.

"Yuyou is interested."

Han Zhen smiled slightly, held a spoon and ate a wonton, and immediately praised: "It's delicious. Youyou's skills have improved!"

"As long as your husband likes it."

After being praised by Han Zhen, a smile suddenly appeared on Ma Shuyao's face.

An Niang joked: "Don't be impatient, the Chinese New Year is just over a month away. Once you get your hairpin, you can pass the ceremony."

"Well!"

Ma Shuyao blushed with embarrassment, but she couldn't hide the joy in her eyes.

At this time, Han Zhen said: "By the way, where is Runniang? Let her come and eat some too."

An Niang replied: "We just finished offering sacrifices to our ancestors, and Run Niang is a little tired. She should have fallen asleep now."

Since Han Zhang survived the first three months of pregnancy, her morning sickness has eased a lot, but recently she has developed another problem, lethargy.

Now she has to sleep several times a day. Dr. Zhang was invited to see her and he said she was fine. It was a natural reaction of a pregnant woman. Han Zhen felt relieved.

Han Zhen nodded and said, "Now that she's asleep, I won't disturb her."

"County Magistrate, urgent report from the army!"

Suddenly, there was a shouting from the front yard.

Han Zhen's expression changed slightly, he put down the wontons in his hand and said loudly: "Come in!"

Ma Shuyao and An Niang looked at each other, stood up, and went to the backyard wisely.

As soon as the two women left the hall, they saw a soldier wearing black mountain armor, crossing the hanging flower door and striding into the courtyard.

All the way to the hall, the soldier took out a thin bamboo tube from his arms.

Taking the bamboo tube, Han Zhen first checked the paint, then opened the bamboo tube and took out the note in the bamboo tube.

After reading it, he immediately stood up and ordered: "Come, get your armor and prepare your horses!"

Not long after, two servants laboriously carried a set of heavy black armor to the hall.

This set of heavy armor is the black light armor tailor-made for him by the Academy of Engineering Sciences.

The entire armor has three layers, the innermost layer is a set of chain armor, and besides the chain armor there is a layer of thin cotton armor.

The function of this layer of cotton armor is to absorb shock. If it is hit hard by blunt objects such as heavy axes and copper hammers, it can relieve some of the force.

The outermost layer is the black light armor.

The entire set of armor weighs 82 kilograms. Although it is not as heavy as the infantry armor when fully mounted, its defensive power is almost the same.

(End of this chapter)