Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 189 Changing rice into mulberry

Qingwen frowned and said, "In the twelfth lunar month of winter, you still fly kites in this weather?"

Li Weijian asked the maid about the appearance of the two people, and then he had an idea in his mind, and said, "Night owls come into the house for whatever they want... Auntie and Hongyu haven't come back yet?"

Qingwen said: "When I left the house in the afternoon, I said I had to do an accounting today, so I couldn't come back until I had dinner."

Li Weijian said: "Then let Qianxue accompany you to send those two away."

Qingwen responded and stepped out immediately. Li Weijian didn't sit down either. He simply stood by the window and put his hands on the radiator to warm his hands. After a long while, Qingwen returned and said, "I've met those two girls before in Huifang Garden that day."

Qingwen looked unhappy and looked at Li Weijian suspiciously.

Li Weijian blinked and said, "You also know that I don't like women like that."

Qingwen rolled her eyes at him: "What Fourth Master said... the fragrance on your body has not dissipated yet."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "Isn't it just that one? Do you think I provoked anyone else again?"

Qingwen walked over with her mouth flat, straightening Li Weijian's clothes, and said, "It's hard to say. Those two girls look very different from my aunt. They are stunners in the world. I can't guarantee that Fourth Master Qi will not be tempted later."

Li Weijian was happy: "Not bad, I can use idioms now."

"Fourth Master!"

"Okay, okay, don't talk about this. If they come again, you guys can go and kill them. In short, it has nothing to do with me."

Only then did Qingwen feel relieved. As for the matter between Li Weijian and Si Qi...it's like this for both left and right, and you can't care about it, so let's leave it at that. But if Siqi wanted to be his aunt, Qingwen would definitely be the first to object.

Qingwen brought hot tea to Li Weijian and said beside her, "The second sister and the third sister were a little uncomfortable at first when they saw me. Later, the third sister started chatting with me. They said that distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. , I want to interact with her more in the future. Her thoughts are clear, who doesn’t know?"

"and then?"

"Then he also said that his mother would give birth to a baby in a few days. He invited a theater troupe to come and asked the fourth master to come over and have fun when he had time. After all, they are all relatives in a roundabout way."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "I can't afford it. If you are impatient in the future, you'd better let my aunt and Hongyu take care of it."

Near nightfall, Hongyu and Fu Qiufang returned in a carriage. Nowadays, most of the factory buildings are complete, and there are also back-seat houses and back-houses for the craftsmen to stay. Nowadays, the lost wax method is used to cast and polish various machinery parts. Hundreds of kilograms of iron ingots and coke are needed every day, and the money is spent like water.

Fu Qiufang was doing her accounting today, and couldn't help but feel worried when she looked at the accounts that only showed no money. Because he put his mind to it, he found a few errors and omissions in the accounts, and forced the two stewards to apologize one after another before giving up.

Fu Qiufang went inside, took off her outer cloak, talked about it with Li Weijian, and then started talking about something else.

"Sir, it's already the twelfth lunar month, and the New Year is approaching. This year's shopping must be arranged in advance. There are also relatives and friends who have old friends, and we must always treat each other with courtesy. I must get a charter."

Li Weijian said: "There are only a few companies that go back and forth, Rongguo Mansion has a share, the teacher has a share, the prince has a share, that's right... Zhongjinghou Mansion also sent a share."

Fu Qiufang thought for a while and said: "I just came back. I saw a train from Liaodong, transporting a lot of deer and deer. Our family might as well buy some to give as gifts during the New Year. Then there are silks, satins and cloths imported from South China, which are always needed. Be prepared."

Li Weijian said with a smile: "This is what you discuss with Hongyu and Qianxue. The two of them came from the Rongguo Mansion. They are used to welcoming people and sending them off, so they know what's appropriate."

Fu Qiufang breathed a sigh of relief and said: "I am very nervous... I also know that I come from a small family, so I really don't know what to give as a New Year's gift. Fortunately, Qianxue and Hongyu are helping me, otherwise it would be really difficult." I don’t know where to start.”

Li Weijian took his hand, took him into his arms, and comforted him: "You will understand these things once you have experienced them. No one knows everything from birth, so you don't have to be so careful."

"How could I be careless? Outsiders make fun of me because I am young. If you make fun of me, it will really be my fault."

"Haha, if you are polite enough, people won't call me a nouveau riche?"

Fu Qiufang said: "We have done everything carefully to avoid being picked on for gossiping."

Li Weijian said no more and just played with his hands that were painted with kodan. After a while, Li Weijian explained what had just happened, and Fu Qiufang asked, "What kind of regulations do you have?"

"It's fine if you come forward and politely refuse. The You family is not a good family. I'm afraid they are trying to gain leverage by deliberately making friends with me this time."

Fu Qiufang looked suspicious, Li Weijian smiled and pointed at himself, and Fu Qiufang suddenly became speechless.

That's right, the person in front of me is now a golden turtle son-in-law who is holding a lantern and has nowhere to look for him. Not to mention his family fortune is millions, and now he is also knighted. Not to mention being an outsider, it was a bit unbelievable even for her, the person next to her, to have a dream in the middle of the night.

So he said casually: "Since the master doesn't like those sisters, I'll just turn around and decline."

Li Weijian fell in love with the woman in his arms more and more, because his hands became irregular. Fu Qiufang let him do what he did at first, but when he took advantage of it, he grabbed a pair of strange hands and said: "Master, if you don't care about others, you must... cherish your body and bones... Why don't we talk about it in two days?"

Li Weijian immediately stopped talking. After struggling with Siqi for a long time today, it turned out that the demon was difficult to conquer. Now Li Weijian only had a thief's heart but no courage left.

The next day, Li Weijian went to the Yamen to order the meal as usual. He stayed there until noon and left from the Yamen. Thinking that he had not visited his teacher for several days, he ordered the Ding brothers to change direction and go straight to Yan's Mansion.

Coincidentally, just as he arrived, his teacher Yan Xiyao returned from the office. The two of them entered the study, and a maid served hot tea. Yan Xiyao asked, "Has Fu Sheng read the newspaper recently?"

"What the teacher said was that Huo Huo will be returned to the public?"

Towards the end of the year, Chen Hongmou, the chief minister, has been in charge of the government for half a year, and now he finally takes action.

Seeing Yan Xiyao nodding, Li Weijian took advantage of the situation and asked, "Teacher, what do you think of the return of Huo Hao?"

Yan Xiyao smiled and said: "Taizong once said that in the pre-Ming Dynasty, officials were not hereditary, but officials were feudal. In prefectures and counties, the officials were replaced by their fathers after their fathers died, or they might have received the money and transferred it to others. In the long run, the officials colluded with the wealthy gentry. , the county magistrate is just a superficial person, it is the local gentry who has the final say.

Although our government has repeatedly attacked local gentry, it has little effect. If the imperial court collects one cent of silver and sends it to the subordinates, the officials dare to collect ten taels of silver.

If the imperial power does not go to the countryside, although it saves money, it will suffer for the people. Chen Shoufu's proposal to return Huo Hao to the official position was just a temporary measure. I vaguely heard that Chen Hongmou had other plans. "     Li Weijian could understand what the teacher meant. What's the plan? Naturally, the imperial power is to be sent to the countryside. This is tantamount to fighting for power with the gentry and clans. It's strange that the gentry in the world can let Chen Hongmou go!

Li Weijian couldn't help but praise: "Chen Shoufu has such courage."

Just then, the steward came in and reported that an old friend from the southeast had handed over a name card to invite him to see him. Yan Xiyao took the name card and scanned it briefly before his expression changed.

Li Weijian knew that the teacher didn't want to see this person, so he held his hands and said: "Since the teacher has a guest, the students should stay away for now."

"Well, don't leave after you are resurrected. I'll have someone call you later."

Li Weijian went to Yan Fenzhen's study and waited for half an hour before the person in charge called him back. When I got back to the study, I looked up and saw my teacher Yan Xiyao frowning.

Li Weijian asked: "Teacher, are you in trouble?"

Then Yan Xiyao said leisurely: "This person Chen Hongmou... is a national thief!"

Li Weijian was shocked and asked, "Why did the teacher say this?"

Yan Fengzhen turned around, pointed to the Dashun map hanging on the wall and said: "Half of the world's wealth comes from the southeast. Chen Hong planned this thief to spread the land between farmers and farmers. In order to win over the gentry in the south of the Yangtze River, he actually wanted to change the rice farm into mulberry trees. What happened! Since the Ming Dynasty, the grain production in Jiangnan has been insufficient, and the rice grain transported by canal and ship is bought from Huguang.

Now that rice has been replaced by mulberry, Jiangnan is afraid that the land will be filled with mulberry and hemp, and no one will grow food. I am afraid that the harvest in Huguang will fail, which will definitely lead to chaos in Jiangnan! "

There is no prosperity without work, no life without business, no stability without agriculture, and chaos without food. In any era, food is a top priority. The teacher called Chen Hongmou a traitor to the country. Li Weijian understood in his heart, but did not agree with him out loud. Instead, he stood there thoughtfully.

After Yan Xiyao scolded him and saw that Li Weijian didn't move, he immediately looked curiously at the general coming over.

"Resurrection is thoughtful, but what are your thoughts?"

Li Weijian cupped his hands and said: "Teacher is so worried, must this matter be irreversible?"

Yan Xiyao walked on the sidewalk with his hands behind his hands: "Half of the new party in the court, and this matter is beneficial to the gentry in the southeast, I refute it, but there is nothing I can do. At this time, the saint wants to use Chen Hongmou to eliminate the shortcomings and implement the new policy. I guess he has concerns. , will also hold his nose to recognize it.”

Li Weijian thought about it and said: "In this case, the students have two strategies. One is to move the tenants, landless and small landless people from Shandong and Hebei to outside the customs——"

Without waiting for Li Weijian to finish speaking, Yan Xiyao said: "This strategy has been mentioned in the early years. However, in the bitter cold outside the pass, the people inside the pass have no choice but to go far away. Nowadays, there are millions of people living outside the pass, but the hedgehogs are concentrated in western Liaoning and eastern Liaoning. , further north are swamps and jungles, where many Haixi Jurchens fish and hunt."

Li Weijian paused and then said: "Second, build water conservancy projects extensively. Students know one thing. After it dries up, it is as solid as a rock. It is used to straighten the rivers. Not to mention the waste, the construction period is short. If the rivers in the south of the Yangtze River are to be silted out, If this happens, the new fertile land will be enough to offset the loss caused by converting rice to mulberry."

Yan Xiyao wondered: "Is there such a thing after resurrection?"

Li Weijian said: "This object is similar to Sanhe soil and is not afraid of being washed away by rain. The students have been looking for objects and trying to make it in the past few days. The teacher will know when he sees it."

Yan Xiyao was speechless, and after a long while he said: "That's it, we'll create the resurrection first. The matter of converting rice into mulberry is very important, and I want to come to the palace immediately to see you."

Li Weijian immediately agreed and left.

Dashun inherited the former Ming Dynasty, and naturally suffered as much as the previous Ming Dynasty from the Huanghuai River. Since the Ming Dynasty, the Yellow River has diverted the Huai River into the sea, and then the Si River, which has directly led to siltation in the lower reaches, disorder of the Huai River, and frequent droughts, floods, and disasters.

The sediment of the Yellow River prevents the Yi, Mu, and Sihe rivers in southern Shandong from entering the Huaihe River; the rivers below Huaiyin in northern Jiangsu that enter the sea were flattened, forcing the Huaihe River to enter the river from Hongze in Hunan; numerous tributaries and lakes were silted up or abandoned, and the entire The Huaihe River system was completely destroyed.

In the mid-Ming Dynasty, the Yellow River was artificially diverted to the south of Sishui River and entered the sea together with the Huaihe River. However, as the Yellow River is strong and the Huai River is weak, the sand accumulation in the lower reaches of the Huai River gradually increases, forming an above-ground river.

The Huaihe River is no longer a smooth waterway. In the lower part of the Huaihe River, that is, in the Hongze Lake area above the Huaisi confluence, water first accumulated into a lake. It connected the small lakes before the Song Dynasty and became today's Hongze Lake. .

Li Weijian wants to promote industrialization, but it must be supported by the primary industry, otherwise it will not be able to support such a large industrialized population. Therefore, appropriate siltation and production increase can help promote industrialization.

On this day, Li Weijian left Yan's Mansion and went to the inner palace's warehouse again, asking for some lime, clay, and scrap iron slag. The clerks in the warehouse were so confused that Monk Zhanger couldn't figure out what Li Jue was. What are you going to do?

There is some lime in this warehouse, but clay and scrap iron slag... This is the inner government warehouse, what is the use of storing those things?

However, the prince has already ordered that no matter what Lord Li wants, the warehouse must find a way to get it. At that moment, several petty officials took horses to the mule and horse market, and then went to the blacksmith shop in the city to search, and at least they got the things together.

Li Weijian loaded the things on the carriage, turned around and asked if there were any brick kilns near the capital...

After a few days, maybe the kiln was not warm enough. Li Weijian tried it twice, but the cement he made was not right. Two days later, at least something interesting was built. That day, he hurried to Deyan Mansion and saw Zhan Chong, the imperial envoy of the Imperial Procuratorate, also there.

The three of them went to the study room to talk. As soon as they sat down, Zhan Chong said angrily: "The saint is confused. How can he agree to changing rice into mulberry? Although this move can fill the national treasury, the people's livelihood depends on food. Food is the most important thing." If the production is insufficient, there will be a famine in the south of the Yangtze River next year!"

"This is too absolute." After not seeing each other for a few days, the teacher Yan Xiyao no longer showed the anger on his face that day, but instead smiled and felt confident. After hearing what Zhan Chong said, he said, "Let me ask you, why is the national treasury empty?"

"The top and bottom are greedy, and the court is full of silverfish!"

Yan Xiyao smiled and said: "When silverfish are in trouble, you must avoid their sharp edges. Protect yourself first before dealing with them."

Li Weijian looked at Yan Xiyao and knew it with one glance. The teacher went to the palace to meet the saint after receiving the letter that day. Could it be that he had already made plans with the saint?

Yan Xiyao glanced at him and immediately said to Zhan Chong: "How come you are not as stable as Resurrection at your age?"

Seeing Zhan Chong looking over, Li Weijian smiled and said, "Teacher, please don't praise me. It's obviously nothing to do with me."

As he spoke, he took out two kits from his sleeves and handed them over: "Teacher, this is what they are."

Zhan Chong was puzzled when he saw the kit unfolded. Yan Xiyao first took out a hard stone, and then poured out some gray powder from another kit.

Yan Xiyao picked up the stone and squeezed it. It was hard in his hand, and he immediately called the person in charge: "Go, find a hammer and smash it to see which one is harder than the stone."

(End of this chapter)