While Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were working hard to train the fifty-six people, Zhang Zhong and Wang Juan were all anxious. The two children ran away with so many people. Hearing from the people who stayed at the foot of Yaowang Mountain that they were going to Fragrant Hill, Zhang Zhong did not go to find them personally. He arranged for someone to bring his own letter over.
After returning to the yamen, Zhang Zhong still did what he was supposed to do. He was not distracted by the fact that the seven counties would send people to establish provincial governments after the New Year. That was a matter of the imperial court and had nothing to do with him. The new provincial governor could not do anything to him. If it was someone who was promoted from other places, they should be thanking him.
Compared to Zhang Zhong's calmness, the people in other places could not continue to be as steady as before. Fast horses ran everywhere in the capital, heading to various places in the Tang Empire. The people on the horses had to report the situation in Xinzhou to various places. There were also people who specially collected some information about the Zhang family and had to report it to their respective masters.
When the Zhang family pushed a county to become a Shang county, it had already caused quite a stir. This time, they even united seven counties to become a province, which was even more shocking. Zhang Wang Clan's maternal family also specially sent people to visit Zhang Zhong and brought many gifts.
The current Zhang Zhong was no longer the person who wanted to elope. He received the people from the Wang family well and had a good chat with them. However, he did not agree to take his family to the capital to have a look. When the people who sent them left, they took many things, including two tricycles.
Li Xun also rushed back. After asking around, he heard that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had gone to Fragrant Hill. He thought that the two of them wanted to go on a winter hunt. After thinking about it, he decided that it would be better to stay by the yamen. If something new were to appear, the Zhang family would definitely look for him. He was also waiting for the propeller to be made so that he could install it on the ship that was currently being modified.
The old man in the Shuiyun Room was not idle either. Ever since he had seen the propeller, he had taken out the copy of the Book of Nature and flipped through it several times. Then, he came to the Academy and asked someone to copy it. He was going to make it a compulsory subject for the students of the Academy.
Even if it was not very orthodox, learning this book could make a propeller. This kind of sharp weapon naturally could not be underestimated. After thinking about it, the old man checked the household register of the students. After finding that there were no people from other countries, he was relieved.
Liu Zhirou did not leave. She took a group of people from the Ministry of Works and studied it there. She had people send over a lot of good steel. She also transferred some craftsmen from the capital who belonged to the Ministry of Works. Many people from the Military Weapons Administration also came.
There were only a few things that looked simple, but it was difficult to understand the principles behind them. He made some parts one by one, and after putting them together, he used some of the oil that was usually used for the axle of the carriage. He found a ship and tested it, and found that it was indeed useful.
"You only know how it is, but you don't know why it is. What is the principle behind this thing?" Liu Zhirou said with a sigh after finding out that the replica propeller was also easy to use.
Liu Feitong also walked around. When he saw that the thing was made, he thought of what he heard the other day. He asked Liu Zhirou, "Uncle, when can I learn this thing? You are such a high official. If you ask the yamen to accept me, they will accept me, right? Also, I won't continue to ask them to pay for the curved plough. "
"Hehe," Liu Zhirou smiled helplessly, "Feitong, not to mention the Zhang family's ability, even if it was an ordinary county magistrate, they would not listen to my words. I will ask Bi Laoshang to write a letter and see if they are willing to let you go. If you really go, you have to be obedient when you get there."
Liu Zhirou didn't have a good idea. This distant nephew of hers was the kind of person who couldn't get along with eight poles. However, he came here to help, and he even brought half of the genealogy book. For her, it was just one more mouth to eat. Besides, this nephew was usually very honest. He would only appear clever when he encountered strange things.
The Zhang family sent a letter last time, wanting to meet with them. In the end, they were politely rejected. If her nephew could go, he could learn something. In the future, he would be able to get into the Ministry of Works and do some things.
Thinking of this, the two of them went to the academy.
*****
When the snow fell, the New Year was in front of them. Two days after the small New Year, almost everyone was preparing for the big New Year.
Shipping had stopped, but people were not idle. Without the ships coming and going, and the ice in the river, especially those who saw the cold storage at the docks to make money, they all had ideas about the ice. At this time, they dug out the ice and put it in the cellar. By next summer, they could sell it.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also brought the people back. They only returned to the yamen on the first day of the new year. The fifty-six people had changed a lot. Each of them had a determined look in their eyes and their muscles were different from before.
At first glance, people would feel that they were not ordinary. The 56 people were really tired. During the day, even if they were in the mountains, they would find a flat ground to practice. In the morning, they would do this. In the afternoon, they would swim. There were many big and small ponds in Xiangshan, and there were also rivers flowing through.
Later on, when the ice froze, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan did not give up on their swimming training. They broke the ice and cleaned it up. They first moved around on the shore, then swam a few laps in the water. They could not stay in the water for so long. In the afternoon, they only needed to stay in the water for an hour.
After the New Year, the training would continue. If they did not practice more, no one would be available at the crucial moment.
In the midst of the festive bustle, the thirtieth day finally arrived. This year, the two families still spent the New Year together. However, they did not return to Zhuangzi. In the yamen, there had to be someone guarding. In particular, there were many firecrackers. If there was a fire, they had to rush over quickly to save it.
The farmers of the two families also knew this. They sent a lot of things and took a lot of things back.
Accompanied by the crackling sound of firecrackers, each family ate their New Year's Eve dinner. Zhang Zhong hurriedly finished his meal, then took the yamen runners to visit some families. In the past half a month, he had not been idle. He brought people to deliver things to the people who were not living well in the county. It had become a tradition to send a bag of noodles, a bag of rice, a barrel of oil, or ten catties of pork.
Zhang Zhong did not forget about the other six counties around him. He had people deliver things to them. As for whether those county magistrates would follow his example and give things to each family, he did not care. In the end, the other six county magistrates followed his example and gave things to the people. In exchange, the people smiled and looked at them with respect, which made them feel different.
"Xiao Bao, when will you be able to leave next year? Do you still need to prepare anything? "Wang Juan asked Zhang Xiaobao, who was eating watermelon seeds, when she was on night watch.
Zhang Xiaobao ate a watermelon seed with difficulty. He thought for a while and said, "About a month. After the New Year, we will be able to leave. This time, the team is not small. We have to take the things we collected from the surrounding counties and sell them along the way. We also have to carry two ships of wheat rice stones. There is a lot of land there, but there are not many people. We can buy some more.
When we get there, we can eat as many bananas as we want. What other fruits are there? I don't know if anyone has brought coffee or something from other places to plant there. "
"I don't think so. Can the seeds of some of our crops be planted there?" Wang Juan had not seen what bananas looked like since she came here. When she heard Zhang Xiaobao mention it, she licked her lips, picked up a walnut, and ate it.
"Who cares if it can be planted or not. Let's bring it over first. Cotton can definitely be planted. The specific place has not been decided yet. We have to wait for that assistant minister to help. Let's see where he will harm my father and what excuse he will use."
A map appeared in Zhang Xiaobao's mind. He pondered over it one by one. What should he do when he got there? He still had to consider some local factors.
Wang Juan also had a picture in her mind. It was not a map, but a picture of her playing on the beach. Sitting under a coconut tree, listening to the sound of the tide, looking at the blue sky and sea, seagulls flying, a red sun hanging in the sky, and eating a lobster with both hands.
"It is said that there is a lot of silver in Japan. When we get there, we can do more trade with them, get the silver back, and sell the things. If we don't sell the things with technology, what else can Japan have? Then we can take a ship to Southeast Asia and bring back some good things, especially corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and what else? Think about it. "
The picture in Wang Juan's mind changed again. The lobster in her hand disappeared and was replaced by a bag of potato chips.
Zhang Xiaobao picked up a melon seed and said, "Those things are not from Southeast Asia, right? It seems to be in Africa. Do we dare to go there? Let's trade with Japan first and see if we can find something along the coast that we don't have. Animals are included.
There will probably be a lot of mess waiting to be dealt with when we get there. Especially with the people living in the mountains over there, we have to coordinate a good relationship. We can't be hostile. We can give them some things first, such as food, and then slowly teach them some knowledge. "
"Is it integration?" Wang Juan gave up the idea of going to sea directly and asked about the ethnic issues. This kind of thing was not easy to deal with.
"It's not integration. It's that we have already regarded them as a family in our hearts. Everyone can live a good life and distribute the benefits as much as possible, so there will be fewer conflicts. They should have a lot of good handicrafts and specialties. We can help them sell them and buy things from other places and sell them to them. As long as we respect their ethnic culture and their totems, they won't care who rules."
Zhang Xiaobao had thought about this for a long time. Under normal circumstances, ethnic minorities were not friendly to outsiders. It was nothing more than a poor use of resources and poverty. Psychologically, they had the idea that outsiders would make them poorer.
First, they would send things to show their friendliness. Then, they would teach them a little bit and let them see the outside world. Naturally, they would be more open-minded and willing to try to live a better life and yearn for a more prosperous place.
Wang Juan also agreed with this idea. "We still don't know what they look like and what kind of house they live in. Food? Let's trick a few more doctors to follow them and see if we can find good medicinal materials. We can also learn from the local people. Some indigenous recipes are more useful. "
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