At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 501: Inside and Outside the Besieged City

After inspecting the steel plant at noon, Zhou Mo invited Yang Xiong to dinner.

After a good meal and a few drinks, Yang Xiong said to Zhou Mo, "The Prime Minister has decided to replace wooden tracks with iron tracks. First, two main lines of railroads will be built in the Central Plains, one vertical and one horizontal. Then, in the next 20 years, iron tracks will completely replace wooden tracks. The production capacity of your steel mills must keep up. The iron used for the railroad tracks is huge. According to the calculations above, one mile of railway will cost a million catties of steel."

Zhou Bo had tasted the benefits of large-scale infrastructure from the Legalists. Xiao He and Cao Shen had originally had a 20-year infrastructure plan. Zhou Bo simply replaced the original iron-clad wooden tracks with pure iron tracks on this basis. Although this increased the cost by more than 20 times, according to the information obtained from the steel mill, using iron tracks can greatly save subsequent maintenance costs. As long as the use time is long enough, years of use time, the cost of using iron tracks and wooden tracks will be cheated. After more than years, iron tracks are more cost-effective than wooden tracks.

Zhou Mo was overjoyed when he heard the good news and said, "I am not afraid of big projects at Bashang Steel Plant, but I am afraid of no projects. If this news is true, I will ask Zhang Lao to study the 70-jin blast furnace to ensure that it will not affect the construction of the imperial court project."

After more than 20 years of development, Dahan's steel industry has gradually fallen into a period of saturation. However, due to the large investment, long construction period, high construction cost and high threshold of the steel industry, ordinary merchants have been restricted from entering this industry.

However, the population of the Han Dynasty was only around 6000 million, and the per capita steel possession exceeded kilograms. Farmers already had the sickles, axes, shovels and other farm tools they needed, and the rate at which these tools were consumed was very slow. If the wooden tracks had not consumed a large amount of steel, overcapacity in the steel industry would have come long ago.

All the managers of the Dahan Steel Industry are very cautious about developing new blast furnaces, because the larger the blast furnace, the higher the cost and the longer the construction period. It can be said that the cost rises exponentially. If the capacity of steel increases by several layers, the construction cost will increase several times, and it will take a long time to level out the cost. Now with this good news, Zhou Mo can rest assured to develop new blast furnaces and expand the production capacity of the steel plant.

Chen Aimin and other minor officials were led by a master craftsman named Zhao Wu to the canteen of the steel plant.

The steel plant cafeteria is very large. In Chen Aimin's opinion, it is even larger than Zhangtai Palace. It is divided into two floors and made of brick, stone and cement structure. The interior is also divided into two parts. Ninety percent of the area is the dining space, which is filled with rows of neatly arranged tables and chairs. The remaining space is a buffet-style store. Each store has more than a dozen dishes, with a combination of meat and vegetables, and the aroma is everywhere.

After Chen Aimin entered, he was shocked by the huge space and the large number of craftsmen inside. He had never seen such a large cafeteria since he was a child.

Zhao Wu smiled and said, "There are 8000 craftsmen in the steel plant alone, plus their relatives, more than people have to eat in this big canteen every day."

"The conditions are simple, please don't mind." Zhao Wu served these people eight dishes and one soup, including five meat dishes, three vegetable dishes, and a kelp soup.

Zhang Yang laughed and said, "Everyone knows that the food in your steel plant cafeteria is the best in the entire Chang'an City. It is said that you have hired several of the Emperor's chefs."

Zhao Wu smiled and said, "This is all for the service of the steel factory. Only when the craftsmen eat well can they work hard for the factory. Besides, after I got an iron pot, I can't be considered a famous chef if I don't know how to fry, stir-fry or stir-fry."

Chen Aimin took a look around and found that the craftsmen who ate here basically had both meat and vegetables. It was obvious that these craftsmen were extremely wealthy, and it was not difficult for them to have meat for three meals a day. So although their meal of eight dishes and one soup was rich, it was definitely not a luxury.

In his heart, he could only sigh that this was truly a place where a single factory could equal the income of an entire county.

After eating and drinking, they chatted with each other. Chen Aimin found that this man named Zhao Wu was about the same age as himself, but he had passed the official assessment of the Han Dynasty and had a formal title of master craftsman. If he was placed in other workshops, he would become the technical core of a factory.

This made Chen Aimin admire him very much and he said: "Brother Zhao is truly a role model for my generation."

This era was influenced by the Warring States Period and valued technology more. With Xu Fan's guidance over the years, skilled and innovative craftsmen could even become aristocrats, and the status of craftsmen was rapidly improved. At least in the Han Dynasty, no aristocrat dared to do such a thing as chopping off the members of the Gongshu family as burial objects.

Zhao Wu said: "I have achieved my current success only because I met a famous teacher."

Zhang Yang said: "Don't look at Master Zhao Wu's young age, but he is Master Zhang's disciple and has made great contributions in the development of converters, so he can become the youngest master in our Han Dynasty."

Then he said with a bit of envy: "Compared to us, Master Zhao Wu has a promising future. Not only does he have a high salary at the steel plant, but if he can come up with some new inventions or some machines that benefit the world, he can become a noble lord."

The Han officials had good welfare benefits and salaries, but that was only for ordinary people and craftsmen. Compared with Zhao Wu, a great craftsman, their salaries were far less. In the Han Dynasty, the salary of a great craftsman was basically on par with that of a county magistrate, and in private factories, the income could be two or three times higher.

Zhao Wu smiled bitterly and said, "It is not easy to make a new machine or a machine that will benefit the world. There are only a dozen or so craftsmen in the world who can be awarded the title."

Chen Aimin said: "Brother Zhao Wu is still young, and there are still decades to come. Not to mention that the old man Zhang you follow is the top master craftsman in the entire Han Dynasty."

Faced with these people's comforting words, Zhao Wu could only smile bitterly. Zhao Wu had been in this business for a long time and he could feel his own limits. He could not make innovative changes like his teacher. It was just luck that he was rated as a master craftsman.

Because the imperial court attached great importance to converter technology, he was lucky enough to be selected as a master craftsman because of his work with this research group. If he continued to develop here, he might be able to become a manager of a workshop, or work as a technician in a small steel plant.

This is not bad, in Dahan, technicians are very popular, he has a monthly salary of 20 yuan, and various salaries and bonuses add up to nearly yuan a year. But such a predictable life is not what he wants.

After lunch, Yang Xiong and others inspected the steel plant and stayed in the steel plant’s guesthouse at night.

Chen Aimin looked at the guesthouse which was no worse than the best inn in the Han Dynasty and sighed, "Is it necessary to do this? I thought it was luxurious enough for those merchants to stay in the Afang Palace Hotel. The steel plant built an inn specifically for their accommodation. In comparison, those merchants are not considered luxurious at all."

Zhang Yang said: "Not only will we live here, but other customers of the steel plant will also live here. This is the facade of the steel plant, so of course they have to build it well."

Just as Chen Aimin and his men were assigned to their rooms, Zhao Wu came over and said, "We have a play at the steel mill tonight, The Legend of the White Snake. I'll take you to the theater to watch it."

After that, Zhao Wu took a few people to a building as huge as a palace. After Chen Aimin entered, he found that the size of this theater was beyond his imagination. The theaters in Chang'an City could only accommodate hundreds of spectators at most, while this theater was more than 10 times larger, but it was already full of craftsmen. Soon the opera started, and soon there were cheers from the craftsmen.

When Shaofu Chen Aimin heard the information, he felt that these large factories were a country within a country. But after experiencing them personally, he felt that these factories were a bit like the paradise in his father's stories.

The craftsmen in the steel plant, like the residents of Taoyuan Village, live a self-sufficient life in the steel plant and don't have to care about life in the outside world at all.

After inspecting the Bashang Iron and Steel Plant, Yang Xiong led his men back to Chang'an City. In the following time, he took Chen Aimin to inspect all the main factories of the Shaofu. He first toured Guanzhong, and then took the train to Shangjun for inspection.

After the inspection team left, Zhou Mo called a meeting of all the backbones of the steel mill and said, "The Imperial Household has informed us that the court has decided to spend 20 years to completely replace wooden tracks with iron tracks. In the future, the Han Dynasty will need dozens or even hundreds of times more steel. As long as we can produce steel, we can sell it. We don't have to worry about overcapacity for decades. Master Zhang, the research and development of the new blast furnace must be accelerated. The sooner it is successfully developed, the sooner our steel mill will benefit."

Zhang Ying said, "Yes."

"Zhao Wu, you are the youngest master craftsman in our steel plant. You are responsible for training new craftsmen. After the production capacity is expanded, our steel plant will also need more craftsmen.

Zhao Wu frowned and said, "Manager, I have never trained any craftsmen."

Zhou Mo said nonchalantly: "Everyone has a first time. If you do it many times, you will naturally gain experience. That's it."

Zhao Wu felt that the manager was targeting him. But Zhou Mo didn't care about his opinion at all and continued to issue orders. The entire steel plant was preparing to expand production capacity.

On the weekend, Zhao Wu, in a bad mood, drove a horse-drawn carriage back to his hometown.

"Awu is back!" Zhao Wu's carriage was discovered by the villagers as soon as it entered Zhaoli.

Zhao Wu smiled and said, "The factory is on holiday."

The village elder said enviously: "You have found a good job. It's close to home and the income is high. Unlike other people, you don't see them all year round." Zhao Wu took advantage of the holiday to return to his hometown. For Zhao Li, even with a golden phoenix like Hu Hai, Zhao Wu is still a young talent. In fact, for many people, Zhao Wu is the best role model.

Those who followed Hu Hai not only had to go to the south, but some even had to go to sea. Now they could only come back once every few years, while Zhao Wu worked in Guanzhong and could come back every weekend. It was also very convenient for Zhao Wu's parents to see their son. They only needed to take a carriage for half a day to see him.

Zhuzi said dissatisfiedly: "A real man should have ambitions to go far and wide and make achievements. What's the point of staying in the village as a farmer?"

Zhuzi stayed in Nanyang for more than three years. He asked Hu Hai for a long vacation and planned to stay here for a while before taking his parents to Nanyang. He had taken his wife to Nanyang two years ago. Now his career is also in Nanyang, and it is impossible for him to return to Chang'an for a long time, so he planned to take his parents to settle down in Nanyang.

"Zhao Wu was able to make great achievements in Guanzhong and take care of his parents. Unlike you, you are staying in the south and don't want to come back." A village elder said dissatisfiedly.

Following Hu Hai, more and more young people settled in Kuaiji County, and many directly settled in the vassal states of Nanyang.

Because in Chang'an City they were just some wealthy ordinary people, but in those vassal states, they were wealthy and powerful merchants. Moreover, the vassal states of the Han Dynasty had fewer restrictions on the power of merchants, their status was higher, and the local princes also paid more attention to them.

The carriage driven by Zhao Wu stopped in the middle of his own yard, and two children aged fifteen or sixteen rushed out, one of them was Zhao Wu's second brother, and the other was his third sister.

"What gifts did brother bring us?" Zhao Wen asked in surprise.

Zhao Wu took the gift out of the carriage, asked his younger brother and sister to hold it, and then followed him into the house.

Looking at the pile of gifts, Zhao's mother complained with joy: "Spending money indiscriminately again."

Then he reprimanded the two children: "You only know how to ask your elder brother to buy gifts, and you don't know how to study hard. You can't even get into college. How can you have a bright future? How can you make a lot of money if you can't get into college?"

Zhao Wen said nonchalantly: "It's enough for our family to have a brother who makes a lot of money."

"You still want to eat your elder brother. If you can't find a job, you'd better prepare to go to the countryside." After hearing this, Zhao's mother chased Zhao Wenda. For a while, the courtyard was filled with laughter.

Father Zhao smiled and said, "You are now over 20 years old and have a successful career. It is time for you to start a family."

After beating Zhao Wen, Zhao's mother came back and said, "It's time to get married. Mother will go find a matchmaker later."

Father Zhao shook his head and said, "What kind of lady can a village matchmaker know? She just knows a bunch of village girls. How can she be worthy of my status? My son is the youngest master craftsman in the Han Dynasty. He has a bright future."

Even Zhao Wen said, "Now my eldest brother is the master craftsman of the steel factory. Even if he wants to marry, he should marry a daughter of an official family. How can he come to the village to find one?"

Zhao's father gained successful experience with Zhao Wu, so he was willing to invest in the education of his two remaining children. Zhao Wen attended middle school in Chang'an City, but to his disappointment, Zhao Wen did not inherit the same learning talent as his brother. The teacher had said that there was a high probability that he would not pass the middle school entrance examination, but he could find a job in Chang'an City after graduating from middle school.

The little girl studied at the No. 10 Girls' Middle School in Chang'an, and her grades were only average, but Zhao's father didn't care. He just wanted her to marry into a good family in the future.

Father Zhao thought for a moment and said, "The most knowledgeable person in our village is Master Zhao. He even knows the big shots in Chang'an City. Let's go find Master Zhao and ask him if there is any lady from a noble family in Chang'an City who is worthy of our son."

Zhao Wu never expected that he would be faced with his parents urging him to get married as soon as he returned home.

Zhao Wu said: "The child is still young, there is no need to rush this matter. It all depends on the eye. When the child likes someone, ask the parents to pay the betrothal gift."

Father Zhao said dissatisfiedly, "You are lying to me again. Although the conditions in your steel mill are good, there is only one thing: there are only rough men around. There are too few women. You have been working in the steel mill. How can you meet someone you like?"

"Master Zhao is well-informed and is also your mentor. Why should you be shy?"

Zhao's mother also said: "Your current achievements are also thanks to Master Zhao's careful teaching. Master Zhao will not harm you."

Zhao Wu said helplessly: "Let the child go, you just stay at home."

Zhao Wu had no choice but to leave his home and walk towards the village primary school.

The village primary school in Zhaoli has been built for more than 10 years and has already experienced the vicissitudes of time. This village primary school evokes many memories for Zhao Wu, as he spent most of his happy childhood here.

“The Master said, ‘Is it not a delight to learn and to practise what one has learned? Is it not a delight to have friends come from afar?’”

The sound of reading aloud in the primary school aroused Zhao Wu's nostalgia. He listened to the sound of reading outside the school.

After Fusu discovered Zhao Wu, he ended the get out of class early and let the students go to the playground to play.

Fusu smiled and asked, "Why are you here?"

Zhao Wu said: "I am confused now, and I would like to ask the teacher for an explanation."

Fusu asked, "What's the confusion?"

Zhao Wu said: "I can feel that I don't have top talent as a craftsman. My current achievement is probably the highest achievement of my life. In addition, the manager doesn't like me. I feel confused about my future prospects."

Zhou Mo had an opinion about Zhao Wu. He believed that without Zhao Wu's instigation, Zhang Ying would not have left Bashang Steel Plant to build a new steel plant in Luoyang City. Although Zhou Mo invited Zhang Ying back later, Zhang Ying was a truly capable man and Zhou Mo had to admire his abilities. If Bashang Steel Plant wanted to maintain its leading position in the steel industry, it could not do without top craftsmen like Zhang Ying.

But relatively speaking, there are not so many important people like Zhao Wu who make Zhou Mo dislike him, and Zhao Wu can also feel this situation, but he has the protection of his teacher and did not explode. However, his teacher is old and it is impossible for him to be with him all his life. If he did not have a teacher, he estimated that he would not be able to stay in Bashang Steel Plant, so he was confused about his future.

Fusu was silent for a long time and said, "This world is changing too fast. Master's experience may not be suitable for you. Follow your own heart and do whatever you want to do. The current emperor once said that nothing is more important than life and death. Now that the Han Dynasty has a security system, no matter how hard you try, you will not starve to death. Since no one will starve to death, then do what you want to do."

Zhao Wu said: "Master, I understand."

After returning home, Zhao Wu told his parents directly that he wanted to resign from Bashang Steel Plant.

This was naturally opposed by Zhao's parents.

"The steel mill belongs to the imperial court. It's their official business. As long as you work at the Bashang Steel Mill, your life will be taken care of. When you get old, the Bashang Steel Mill will even provide for your retirement. You can't find such a good job even if you search with a lantern. How can you just give up like that?" Zhao's father said angrily.

(End of this chapter)