The literary giants of the late Ming Dynasty began by copying books

Chapter 179 Women’s Textile Factory

The textile industry is naturally suitable for women to participate, and even in the mechanization era of later generations, women accounted for a high proportion of textile workers.

Wang Wenlong knows that economic status determines social status. As long as the textile industry rises, women can also earn money to support the family, and naturally they will not be regarded as a burden on the family.

Allowing women to participate in more productive labor and show their own value is the way to truly improve the status of women.

Wang Wenlong didn't know much about textile machines and had never seen relevant drawings in his previous life, but he still knew some simple principles. For example, he could invent the simplest flying shuttle, as well as the cotton gin used in cotton spinning. It was just two rollers and a hopper, which was much simpler than the various complex wooden farm tool structures designed by Daming carpenters at this time.

……

A few days later Wang Wenlong ran to the Yamen.

He entered the room and said: "Sir, I have thought of a way to consume the profits of our "Xun Bao"."

Xu Xueju raised his head from his desk, put down the half-read official document and asked curiously: "I wonder what Jianyang has in mind? Do you want to invest in trade or open a bookshop?"

Wang Wenlong explained: "It is neither a trade nor a bookstore. I want to use the money of our chief envoy Si Yamen to solve the problem of doting on daughters."

He explained: "Textile work is not very labor-intensive and even women can do it. I plan to try making these machines first. If successful, I will open a textile workshop to recruit female workers."

After Wang Wenlong explained for a while, Xu Xueju finally understood, and then he shook his head repeatedly.

"Recruiting women in machine workshops? Or investing money from the Chief Secretary's office? Absolutely not!"

Of course, a large number of women participated in the textile industry in this era, but they could only do small textile work at home, or at most they could be self-employed in the market. All the mechanics in large factories were men.

Xu Xueju shook his head and said: "We used the government money to invest in the factory, and many women were recruited into the factory. What kind of words does this sound like? People think we have any intentions!"

Wang Wenlong said: "Sir, women's wages are cheap. If our factory can succeed, there will definitely be textile factories that follow suit and recruit female workers. In the future, if there are more factories like this, women can make money, and there won't be so many." People drown baby girls again. This is something that will benefit the future."

Xu Xueju frowned and said, "Even so..."

Wang Wenlong quickly added: "Have you ever seen the baby tower outside Fuzhou City?"

"A small tower, shaped like a pigeon cage, no higher than the beams. Children's corpses were thrown in one by one. It cost thirty coins to burn each corpse, and it took three days to complete. Burn it with a fire, and the ashes scattered around. There are lush trees for a hundred meters. Their branches and leaves are broken off, and the babies are burned."

In the past two days, Wang Wenlong specifically asked where Chen Huicai's child was thrown, and then found the baby tower outside Fuzhou City. Among the haystacks, he could faintly see the layers of small corpses at the fire mouth, and an old monk underneath. While burning a fire and chanting sutras, the scene gave Wang Wenlong a great shock.

There is more than one such baby tower outside Fuzhou City. It can be seen that there are many drowned babies in Fuzhou alone.

No one even came to claim the bodies of these babies, and there were no coffins. After they were burned, they returned to dust and dust.

After hearing Wang Wenlong's description, Xu Xueju gradually fell silent. He naturally sympathized with those female infants. Daughting girls was also a waste in the feudal era. People with a little knowledge in all dynasties opposed it, but it could not be banned because of fundamental contradictions among the people.

After a long while, Xu Xueju finally sighed and said: "What you said makes sense, but it is difficult for the Chief Envoy Si Yamen to come forward in this matter. If Jianyang really wants to set up a women's textile factory, I will at most make the decision and lend you the profits from the "Xun Bao". "

Xu Xueju could only do so. He would also bear certain risks by lending the money earned by the Chief Secretary's Yamen to a private person like Wang Wenlong. In the end, Wang Wenlong borrowed more than 800 taels from the Chief Secretary's Yamen, which was all the remaining profits of the "Xunbao" in the past few months. In terms of interest, Xu Xueju helped negotiate an annual interest rate of one cent - which was already very loose in this era. , subsequent replenishment of funds can also be based on this interest.

After coming out of the Yamen, Wang Wenlong went to find someone to trial-produce a flying shuttle and a cotton gin. He also sent Wang Pingbao to Nanjing to find craftsmen who could make looms. Wang Wenlong had never seen this thing before. How could he arrange a flying shuttle on a loom of this era? You still need to actually discuss it with the craftsmen.

……

Not long after Wang Wenlong returned home, Li Guoxian came and said proudly: "Brother Wang, I have finished writing the exercises!"

Wang Wenlong took the exercise written by Li Guoxian and looked at it carefully. He saw that it was a piece of drama, probably a story about a talented man and a beautiful woman.

Because of Wang Wenlong's guidance, Li Guoxian added many distinctive characters to the work, and made the emotions and conflicts more intense. The level is much better than the average operas on the market at this time.

With a good story, Li Guoxian's writing skills are also displayed. Her writing style is very delicate and emotional, and her description of the character's psychology is even better than Wang Wenlong's - this is a talent, not something that can be learned through routines.

Wang Wenlong did not hesitate to praise: "This play can already be serialized in the "Xun Bao"."

Li Guoxian is very happy that his work has been praised and that he can rely on his strength to be published in newspapers.

She wanted to be modest, but she couldn't help but boastfully said: "I'm always afraid that it's not quite right, so I had to revise two more drafts to get it right."

"Xun Bao has accepted this manuscript, and I have another subject for you..."

Wang Wenlong had already written a character setting and plot outline, and took out more than a dozen pages.

"Let's see if you are interested in writing this novel?"

Li Guoxian flipped through the outline and said, ""The Legend of Zhen Huan"... what kind of story is this?"

Wang Wenlong said with a smile: "This is a new novel type that I came up with recently. The plot is delicate and not suitable for me to write. If you are interested, you can try to write it and I will publish it in the newspaper for you."

Yes, Wang Wenlong has long been interested in the novel "The Legend of Zhen Huan".

In his previous life, he had never read the original book, but had watched the TV series in order to make a video. Although Wang Wenlong himself was not too fond of the story, he also knew that it was one of the best female-oriented novels in later generations, and he just happened to get the "Xun Bao" Go to serialization above.

The setting background of "The Legend of Zhen Huan" was deliberately blurred by Wang Wenlong, but the plot remained basically the same. The storyline of this book was not considered too heavy in this era. Li Guoxian gradually understood "The Legend of Zhen Huan" under Wang Wenlong's introduction. "This is the first time she has heard such a twists and turns story, including palace battles, love, and the heroine's growth drama.

Li Guoxian was immediately fascinated by the mystery. Before Wang Wenlong finished telling the story, she couldn't help but ask: "Prince Guo...did he end up with Huan Huan?"

Wang Wenlong said with a smile: "The specific plot is in the outline. If you want to create a sense of drama, as the author, you must not be anxious. Although the outline has been written, whether you can tell the story beautifully depends on your ability."

"Brother Wang, I will definitely write it well!" Li Guoxian nodded solemnly. Wang Wenlong wrote such a good story specifically for her, and Li Guoxian felt that he must not let it down.

(End of this chapter)