After bidding farewell to the people of Yizhou and the nearby residents, the Zhang Family and Wang Family raised the flag and began to walk along the winding road to the capital. From here to the capital, it was a distance of nearly two thousand li, enough to take some time.
Walking twenty to thirty li a day was considered fast, but when the road was difficult to walk on, they couldn't move even one step for a long time. In addition, there was a large amount of snow this year. Even Yizhou and Chengdu had light snow, not to mention other places.
Five days later, when Zhang Zhong saw the team carefully protecting the livestock on the road, he found his son and daughter-in-law and said to them, "Xiao Bao, Cuckoo, the road from Jiannan Road to the capital really needs to be repaired."
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan looked at each other blankly, and their expressions changed. The words coming out of Zhang Zhong's mouth were more frightening than asking Zhang Xiaobao to use 50,000 strings of cash to fight an economic war against 400,000 strings of cash, or asking Wang Juan to lead 1,000 people to fight against the Tubo army.
Zhang Xiaobao smacked his lips and asked with concern, "Father, are you tired? Why don't we let someone carry you and go to the bend in front? That way, we can speed up a bit. "
"I'm not tired. Even if I'm tired, it's fine. There are so many people helping each other and resting while walking. But the people are tired. Don't we have explosives and cement at home? We'll use explosives to blow up the mountain and reinforce it with cement. We've already repaired it from Yizhou, and it's still being repaired there. It's just right to connect. "
Zhang Zhong frowned and said with concern for the people. Zhang Xiaobao estimated the cost of repairing the road from Yizhou to Chengdu, as well as the main roads around it, it would cost 600,000 strings of cash. How far would that be? Unless it was done blindly, it would be cheap to use a road that would be ruined in two years.
His father obviously didn't mean to repair the road that only cared about political achievements and didn't care about the people. How much would that cost? If they were to convert all of the assets of the Zhang Family and the Wang Family into money and ask Li Xun to fork out some money, they would be lucky if they could build a third of the road. Furthermore, it couldn't be too wide and they would have to take a detour when they encountered mountains.
There was also maintenance to be done. One was cold, and the other was hot. There was no such technique to lay a foundation, and the sand and soil layers were easily damaged. If there was a flood, how much money would they have to invest every year?
Zhang Xiaobao felt that this mission was too difficult. It was as difficult as ascending to the heavens. If the heavens were good, he could just make a big hot air balloon and go up. How much would that cost?
Seeing that his son was not speaking, Zhang Zhong suggested, "Or you can build a canal. You two have to think of a way."
"Father, it's better to repair the road. We have to wait. When we occupy two more islands overseas, we should have enough money at home. How can we get other merchants involved? If everyone works together, the road will be repaired, and we can even let the merchants who have to work hard to maintain it. "
Zhang Xiaobao first drew a big picture for his father and agreed. They would talk about it later.
Zhang Zhong thought that with his son and daughter-in-law, it would be easy to build a road. Seeing that his son had agreed, he smiled and nodded. He put his hands behind his back and went to look at other places.
Wang Juan nudged Zhang Xiaobao, "Are you really planning to build a road from Xi 'an to Chengdu?"
"That depends on whether the benefits from this road are enough. If the benefits are enough, we will build it. If the benefits are not enough, we will delay it." Zhang Xiaobao did not deny or confirm.
"What benefits can this road bring? Is it just to make transportation between the two places more convenient? " Wang Juan felt that there was no value in building it. At least, they couldn't build it now. The cost was not proportional to the benefits. If it was only for the convenience of a small number of people, it was better to invest the money elsewhere.
If it was because of the military, that was still acceptable. However, this was not her problem, but Li Longji's problem.
Zhang Xiaobao looked around. Seeing that Old Man Pi and the other two were not around, he whispered to Wang Juan, "This road doesn't bring much benefits, but the Silk Road and the Tea Horse Path are. When the demand in the country gradually increases and conflicts become more concentrated, it will be impossible not to expand.
When the time comes, you can lead the army and conquer all of them. I don't believe that the Great Tang, no, the Great Qin, can't defeat the Abbasid Caliphate. Invasion, annexation, plunder, this is the essence of the existence of animals. If someone criticizes us, we will say that we are promoting integration. "
"No one criticizes us. The people of this era are not as bored as we were back then. Even a pig in a cage would object. Are you saying that you don't intend to invest the money to build the road right away?" Wang Juan felt that the people of this era were truly too kind.
"I'm not going to fix it. I want to make the bustling places even more bustling first. Then, I'll drive the surrounding areas to gradually become more prosperous. Chengdu is actually not bad. It's just that the surrounding areas are not good. Doing so will cause many people in remote areas to suffer from a lack of material resources for a certain period of time. But overall, it's more cost-effective than directly investing money in remote areas."
Zhang Xiaobao already had a plan in mind. From an individual point of view, every place and every person had to be taken care of. From a general point of view, even if the remote areas suffered losses, they could use the resources of the flourishing places to supplement them. However, if they invested the money that should be used to make the flourishing places more prosperous, before the flourishing places developed to a certain extent, the efficiency of the money would be greatly reduced.
This was a very unfair method, but he still had to do it.
Wang Juan had no idea what Zhang Xiaobao was thinking about. She considered the matter of the war and said, "It won't be easy. The main problem is the religious and ethnic habits, and the adaptability of the army. The sky over there is very blue, but there isn't enough air pressure. If we send the soldiers from the south there, more than half of them won't be able to hold on.
If we send the soldiers from the Jiannan Circuit, they should be able to hold on a little longer. I'm talking about the people living in the Jiannan Highlands. Then, you have to follow up with your plans. I can't just occupy the entire area without anything to provide me with, including resources and culture. If we really conquer it, I won't have to come back. I'll just play around there with nothing to do. "
"Of course. We're not in a hurry yet. No matter what, we'll have to wait for a long time. That's the land route. The main thing is that we should go back and rest. Give me enough time to carry out a large-scale economic plan. It would be great if we had a corresponding team. The ability of the inner court isn't enough, so I'm going to change the rules of the game of monopoly again.
I'll check the eight generations of the people who are qualified to join the study and research team. These kinds of talents must not be allowed to leave. Let's go, half of the team has already passed. We'll walk in front and take a look at the local environment. If we can make a small investment, we'll arrange it first. "
Zhang Xiaobao talked about his plans for the future, then shifted his gaze back to the present. He wanted to give the people living in places with poor lives a chance. He wanted to invest some money and let the locals try to develop on their own. If they couldn't develop, it would be easier for him to adjust and make targeted plans.
Zhang Zhong strolled around for a while before he found Old Man Pi and the others. He told them about his idea of building roads, implying that he wanted the imperial court to help.
Old Man Pi and the others were shocked. This goal was too big. Although the imperial edict given by the emperor said so, it was fake. Everyone knew that it was fake.
The three saw Zhang Zhong's determined look, so they could only ask Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan.
"That's right, we're going to build roads. Let's wait for twenty years. When we have enough money, we'll build it again. Otherwise, we'll build a little bit here. When we have enough money, we'll build another section. After a few sections, we'll have to rebuild the previous sections."
Zhang Xiaobao gave them a very long time. He didn't want people to keep an eye on the road.
When the three old men heard that it would take twenty years, there was no need to wait. Perhaps they wouldn't be able to wait that long. They shook their heads regretfully and went back to their own business.
The team continued to move forward. The thing that they were worried about finally happened. A heavy snow fell gently. It fell very slowly. There was no wind, and it even gave people a feeling that it was falling vertically.
At noon, the sky was as dark as the evening. It was hard to see anything that was slightly further away.
"It's over. It's finally snowing. How many years has it been since it happened?" Zhang Xiaobao looked up at the sky and reached out to catch two pieces of snow. It was no longer possible to tell that there were six petals. It was like a small pile of cotton quietly melting in his palm.
"Don't say that it's a once in a blue moon situation. Who cares how many years it's been? Hurry up and think of a solution. The strong will not find such an excuse to push the responsibility away. Even if it happens once in ten thousand years, it's a success if it can solve the problem. If it can't, it's a failure. Looking at the situation of the snow, it will be warm today and tomorrow. If it continues to snow, it will be warm for two more days.
But the longer it snows, the worse the road will be. At that time, whether it's warm or cold, it will be difficult to travel. I don't want to analyze the problem. I want the final result. "
Wang Juan pushed the problem to Zhang Xiaobao. Zhang Xiaobao blinked a few times and said, "Why is it my problem? Don't worry. What's a little snow? Our team is strong. Our organization and discipline are strong. We train well and have enough nutrition. Even if it's ice skating and mud, we can still get through.
My solution is to unite, help each other, and charge. "
"That's all we can do. I'll go and mobilize the members." Wang Juan agreed with Zhang Xiaobao's plan. She could only brace herself and rely on the overall quality of the team. Who cares about the snow?
At this time, the road was wide enough. It was just that this was a low-lying area. Usually, a little rain would flow in this place and soak in it. When it was not snowing, they could hide. But when the snow fell for a long time, it would block the potholes, making it difficult to judge.
Fortunately, the snow was heavy and did not melt completely immediately. For the time being, it was not too muddy.
Wang Juan's mobilization order was only one sentence, "Charge. Push with your hands and carry with your shoulders. Charge."
Zhang Family and Wang Family did not hesitate at all. They quickly assigned positions and helped the animals pulling the carts move forward with difficulty.
After an hour and a half, the sky was no different from the night. The people in the inner courtyard lit the torches prepared in advance. They took off their coats and put them under the wheels of the carts. Then, the team continued to move forward.
The people who occasionally passed by on the road were shocked by the scene in front of them. Such a big team, and the road was so difficult to walk on, but there was no chaos at all. Except for the rising and falling sounds of shouting and stepping on the snow, there was no other movement. They moved so fast. Even an army in war could not reach such a level, right?
When a gust of wind blew the drooping flag away, the people who saw the pattern on it finally knew what kind of team it was. It was the logistics camp of Yizhou. No wonder they were so capable.
That was right. Except for the logistics camp of Yizhou, they did not believe that other teams could reach such a level. They were indeed worthy of their reputation.
All the people who knew which team it were looked at the team in a different light, which made Old Man Pi and the other two feel proud. They had to admit that the people of Zhang Family and Wang Family were really good. They cleaned the snow, dug the soil, and padded the clothes. There was only one word to describe them: tacit understanding.
"This is the team spirit that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo mentioned before. It has its own cultural connotation. If you want to defeat such a team, you have to first attack their culture."
Old Man Pi looked at the two cooks who were pushing the carts and were in charge of boiling soup to drive away the cold.
Old Man Yao and Old Man Chang also nodded in agreement. When they lived together, there was not much difference between the servants of Old Man Yao and Old Man Pi and those of Zhang Family and Wang Family. Now that there was an emergency, it was immediately obvious. The servants of the two old men were already working very hard, but they could not cooperate well.
Needless to say, Li Xun's team was a real military team. Li Xun also asked for a training plan from Wang Juan. Usually, they would train together, so their actions were not bad.
Old Man Yao looked for a while and said, "After a while, we have to let the people at home practice more. The gap is too big."
The snow was still falling, and the team was still moving forward. The people who had been watching for a while suddenly scattered. No one knew where they ran to, but they disappeared in the blink of an eye.
When it was really night time, when the team stopped to rest and eat, many people appeared from both sides of the road. They wanted to be discovered by the Seedling Protection Team. After stopping and asking, they were all local people. They held tools in their hands and gathered here. After greeting each other, they ran to the front of the team to pave the road.
The people in the team were stunned. They did not understand why the people were so kind.
Zhang Zhong personally went to the leader to ask. He was an old village chief. The whole village had the same surname, Hao. He was here to pave the road.
Old Man Hao was simple and honest. He said to Zhang Zhong, "We have heard about what happened to you. We also benefited from exchanging old grain for new grain. There are still 22 animals that you have not collected yet. When the snow stops, you can collect them. It will be more convenient to plow next year.
When the army went to Pengzhou, your logistics camp did not let a single soldier freeze or starve on the road from Yizhou to Pengzhou. You did not let them suffer any delays on the road. You also helped us defeat Tubo.
Today, when you go home, we want to learn from you and pave the road for you. When you set off tomorrow morning, I guarantee that the road ahead of you will be smooth and unimpeded. "
Hearing the old man's words, Zhang Zhong's eyes reddened. He pursed his lips and nodded. He did not say anything else. He turned back and repeated the old man's words to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. Then he lowered his head and ate his meal.
At this time, on the road ahead, someone holding a torch ran over. He shouted as he ran, "Village Chief Hao, my village has also started work. 20 miles, we have a good place. Continue to work. Tomorrow morning, we will definitely be able to pave the road. More people are rushing forward. Some people have already run to tell the villages further ahead.
When the time comes, let our logistics camp people also walk on a smooth road. I just want to say, don't worry. Let's go. There is still a shortage of people there. I have to run back. "
After this person finished shouting, he turned around and ran back. Just like when he came, he ran in a hurry. The road was not good and he staggered after a few steps.
Zhang Xiaobao stood up and looked at the busy figures in front of him. He said to the servant girl next to him, "Give me the money box."
The servant girl turned around and went to find Jang Wong Clan. After a while, she came back and handed the money box to Zhang Xiaobao.
Zhang Xiaobao opened the money box and took out a thousand strings of coins from it. He said, "When it snows heavily, the local people will have a hard time. This snow probably won't stop for a while. If people come to pave the road, their houses will be in danger. Also, their animals will be easily frozen to death. In addition, their tools are already old and many of them will be damaged. It will not be easy for them to work tomorrow in the spring plowing."
Speaking of this, Zhang Xiaobao gave the money to his father and said, "Father, give this to each village. Five hundred strings of coins. Give one to two villages. Let them go to Yizhou to buy tools and more animals.
If they can't spend it all, let them stop their work and compensate them with the rest of the money. Let them use the free time to saw wood, cut stones, build a good stable, raise more animals, and pave the road. "
Zhang Zhong also felt that the money should be spent. He took the money and went to find Old Hao.
At this time, Li Xun next to him asked puzzledly, "Since they can pave the road for us today, why didn't they do it before?"
"How do you know they haven't done it before? The terrain here is low. Once the dirt road is built, it will be damaged. How much time will it take to repair the stone road? If they have the time to do some work and earn money to support their families, they will be able to survive. They only lack an opportunity, or in other words, a start-up fund. With this money, as long as they are not too stupid, their lives will gradually improve. "
Zhang Xiaobao understood the inner workings of this kind of poor village very well. As long as others helped them, they could make changes. However, many times, because the contribution was not proportional to the income, or because the return of funds was too long, no one was willing to take out the money.
If the villagers hadn't come to help his team pave the road, he wouldn't have taken out the money to help. After all, he had already given some of the animals to this place. The locals also benefited from exchanging old grain for new grain.
When Li Xun heard Zhang Xiaobao's words, his eyes lit up. He said, "After we pass by these two villages, I will pay for the next two villages. As long as they help pave the road, I will give 500 strings of coins per village. How many villages do you think we will meet along the way?"
"I didn't see, but there should be a lot on the military map. If we all help pave the road all the way to the capital, I don't think our money will be enough. Villages are not only on the side of the road, but also in depth. For example, the Hao family's village is on the south side of the road. Is there a village further south? Is there a village on the north side?
Right now, they are doing this from the bottom of their hearts. They don't expect us to give them anything in return. When we give them money and walk all the way, many people may come from further places for the money. No, I have to tell my father to keep it a secret first. After we leave for ten days, we will take out the money and use it. "
Zhang Xiaobao explained a few more words to Li Xun. Suddenly, he realized something and hurried to find his father.
Li Xun thought for a moment and said to Wang Juan, "Is it because those who do good will not be rewarded, and those who do evil will not be punished?"
"No, absolutely not. Xiao Bao is worried that the money given may not be able to achieve good results. First, we will change the economic conditions of the villages that are willing to help us pave the road. This is a pilot project. If it is successful, we will promote it later. If it fails, we will conduct a specific analysis."
Wang Juan began to worry about money when she thought of this development model. If she only used her family's money to do this, she wouldn't even have enough money for the pilot project.
When Zhang Zhong gave the money to Hao Cunzheng, Hao Cunzheng said that he didn't want it. They came to work voluntarily, not for the money. Hao Cunzheng said to Zhang Zhong,
"You are a good official. Everyone knows that your family led the army to fight for their lives in Yizhou and made a lot of money. But your family didn't keep a single penny. They spent all of it on the people around us. You opened a business with your family's money.
You don't want to help yourself to get benefits, but we can't pave the road for the sake of benefits. "
When Zhang Xiaobao came, the two were still trying to persuade each other. In the end, Zhang Xiaobao said that he wanted to use this place as an experiment to see if it could help more villages to live a better life. When the village was rich in the future, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Family could come to buy livestock or food. The village would give the same price to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Family first.
Only then did Hao Cunzheng accept the money and promise to give half of it to the neighboring villages after ten days. He also said that if they raised more livestock and poultry in the future, they would cut them down while planting them. If they sawed down a lot of wood, as long as Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Family came to buy it, they wouldn't sell it to others even if it was cheaper.
With the support of money, Old Hao immediately had other thoughts. He called people to come over and asked the villagers to look at the time. If there was enough time, they would pave the road wider. He didn't explain the specific reason now, so as to avoid leaking the fact that he had received money.
Old Hao thought clearly. Since he had money to help, he would take advantage of this opportunity to pave the road in one go. It would save him the trouble of doing it a second time.
The next morning, when the team set out, there was still snow on the road. It had fallen at night, so the sky hadn't cleared yet. The women who stayed in the village all rushed over with their children and elders. More than a dozen houses had collapsed, so they were waiting for their own laborers to go back and fix it.
The cooks of Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Family prepared more food for the villagers and then left in a hurry. Once the road was repaired, it was indeed different. The people who swept the snow in front opened the road, so they didn't have to rely on manpower to fill the holes.
Their speed also increased, and it only took them two hours to reach the road in another village. It was also covered in snow, and the road was also flat. After greeting them, they continued to move forward.
Another two hours passed, and a road repair team appeared in front of them again. At this time, the road was still a little unfinished. The news came late, and the villagers were still working hard.
"This is the power of the people's hearts. Just because it's your Zhang family's logistics camp that came over, it made a road that was difficult to walk on smooth. Your Zhang family's flag is very useful."
Old Man Pi followed beside Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan and said to Zhang Xiaobao.
"Yes, we'll leave immediately. My family doesn't want to reach the level of winning the hearts of the people and ruling the world." Zhang Xiaobao curled his lips and replied.
"Don't, don't leave. The logistics camp was set by the imperial court, not your family. It's a good opportunity to let others see how much glory it is to listen to the imperial court, build a place, and lead troops to victory."
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