On the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, Chang 'an celebrated the Lunar New Year. In another four days, other places celebrated the Lunar New Year.
The price of goods in Chang 'an began to rise, and the transport of grain became busier.
The people could not bear to eat food on normal days, but they had to buy it at the end of the year, such as a pork or a chicken …
Those who could afford to make their own caramel candy, and those who could not make it naturally had to buy it.
The children were the happiest this year, as their families were rich.
At the coal shaking field outside the city, a group of people shouted, "Ha! Ha! Oh! Hmph! "
Each of them had one or two tools to make honeycomb coal.
The ones that Li Yi provided were large enough for people to use, but most of them were slightly thinner bamboo tubes.
The craftsmen discovered a secret. As long as there was a hole in the middle, the coal could be burned easily.
Some craftsmen made small pieces of bamboo that were connected together to form a surface.
They directly placed it on a pile of coal and stepped on it. After a few steps, they picked it up and knocked it on the ground, creating a pile of mini honeycomb coal.
There was no need to shake the coal, they could just throw it into the furnace.
The disadvantage was that the tools were easy to break, and the quality of bamboo was far inferior to that of iron.
"Why are there still people shaking coal over there?" After a few days, Pei Yaoqing once again wandered over and asked while pointing to a place.
"There are people in the city who are unwilling to burn small honeycomb coal, so a basket of coal increased the price by two to three copper coins." The bailiff knew the situation.
Pei Yaoqing thought for a while and said, "Can other craftsmen find a substitute to make a portable furnace like the one from the Li Family Zhuangzi?"
"No, they can only use a clay furnace to hold the honeycomb coal. It is heavy, unless it is placed on a carriage. The price of Li Dongzhu's furnace is too high, and rich people may be willing to use it."
The bailiff gave an answer and sighed. Even the bailiff was starting to think for the people.
The most important thing was whether the people could afford to use a new item.
"Fine." Pei Yaoqing could not think of a solution.
"Ming Residence, why don't you ask Li Dongzhu?" The bailiff suggested.
Pei Yaoqing shook his head, "If he can do it, he will definitely say it."
"Not necessarily, Li Dongzhu sometimes can't remember." The bailiff felt that there was no problem that Li Yi could not solve.
***
At this moment, Li Yi was solving the problem of the children.
The children in the village were of different ages. The firecrackers were made.
Every child above the age of eight was given a hundred small straw whips. They were very thin and had charcoal sticks inserted into them.
Her Zhuangzi children were playing with each other, so she didn't whip their hair into braids. Instead, her hair was scattered. Otherwise, she would have to take them apart.
The child with the small whip waved it around. Smack, smack.
The younger children were unhappy. They wanted to play too, but they didn't.
This was not the thing that troubled Li Yi. What he was worried about was why the children were as smart as he was when he was young.
He used his fingernails to pinch the back of the whip, ignited it, and threw it out with a wave of his hand. Some waited for a while before throwing it out, letting the whip explode in midair.
How smart! He knew how to attack from a distance. At the same time, the explosion in the air had the greatest lethality.
"I'll give you a new toy." Li Yi went to the workshop, the firecracker workshop, and adjusted the ratio of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. At the same time, the amount of sand increased.
He didn't pursue the greatest flammability or expansion. He only wanted the sound.
Then, he smeared a paste on a large piece of paper and placed the adjusted things at a distance. Finally, he covered it with another piece of paper.
He cut the paper into small paper cannons according to the place where the materials were placed.
He used the yellow mud to make cylinders with a diameter of half an inch and a height of half an inch. Then, he baked them.
He sandwiched the paper between two pieces of mud, wrapped it with a layer of paper and smeared it with paste.
Li Yi picked up a few and went to the workshop outside. He threw them to the ground and a piece of mud fell. Smack!
"Done. Collect all their small whips. Both the big children and the small children have them. Throw them."
Li Yi was very satisfied. He didn't need to make other chemical materials.
A group of people went to catch the children and confiscate their things.
A group of people helped to make the mud. They didn't have time to dry it, so they directly baked it.
Not counting the labor cost, just the materials alone could make about ten of them for one copper coin.
When it was time for lunch, the unhappy children became happy again.
After lunch, they ran out and threw the mud everywhere.
After they threw the mud, they picked it up. Some of the mud was not damaged and could be used again.
They peeled the paper off the damaged mud and put it in Zhuangzi's garbage basket. The paper was put in another basket. The garbage had to be sorted and the paper could be recycled.
"Brother Yi, Brother Yi, in the football match this morning, many people heard that there would be bone soup and popcorn, so they all sat down. Some people even stood."
Li Chengqi came over to talk about the football match. There were many people.
"Brother Yi, you don't know. The two strongest teams among the four Chang 'an teams played a match. The scene was grand. The audience cheered along …"
Li Chengqi continued to introduce the match.
A match lasted for more than an hour. Including the halftime and the entrance, it was two hours.
In the end, the score was 25 to 28. That was wonderful.
The audience hated that they couldn't play the match themselves and help to shout that someone stole the ball.
"After watching the match, many people talked about going to the shop where I advertised before they left." Li Chengqi said what he cared about the most.
His purpose of playing football matches was to make money and then use the money on the people.
"Congratulations, Brother." Li Yi congratulated him. He didn't watch the match because he didn't have time.
He needed to exercise, practice his medical skills, copy medical books, give lectures, check accounts, and figure out new things.
The most pleasant thing every day was strolling around Zhuangzi and watching the farmers and migrant workers live a good life. He felt a sense of achievement.
Of course, he also gained longevity.
"Brother, there will be a match on the 25th of December at the ice rink. You organize it. I'll prepare the prizes for you." Li Yi found it troublesome and asked his brother to take care of it.
"Okay, it's lively." Li Chengqi was addicted.
"Dongzhu, Mu Chengxi, who came a few days ago, brought cows again. Ten cows. This time, the cows are good."
Song De ran over. He didn't hide the smile on his face.
"I'll go take a look." Li Chengqi trotted to the main road in Zhuangzi.
A group of people came over.
"Li Dongzhu, I brought my family here today. Ten cows. We'll stay here today and take a look tomorrow morning," the old man said to Li Yi kindly.
A woman in her forties stood next to him. The first impression she gave was that she was dignified.
"Not bad. You're pleasing to the eye, young man," the woman said to Li Yi.
A few titles popped up in Li Yi's mind: auntie, auntie, auntie, granny …
In the end, it changed to, "Thank you, Madam Mu."
"Okay." As the woman spoke, she took out a jade pendant from her sleeve. She pulled Li Yi's hand and put it on. "Wear it. You're a good kid."
Li Yi wanted to refuse but found that his hand was held. He could only nod. "Yi Hui, keep it well. Squire Mu and Madam Mu, please come in."
They went to the courtyard arranged for the old man. On the way, they saw children smashing things, making crisp sounds.
"What are the children playing with?" the old man asked naturally.
"Firecrackers for the children to play with." Li Yi said as he waved his hand. A few children ran over.
"Give me a few." Li Yi stretched out his hand. The children took out firecrackers from their pockets.
"Enough, enough. Go play. Don't throw them at the poultry and livestock. Also, don't throw them at the firewood."
Li Yi warned again. He took out a few firecrackers and introduced them to the others.
Each of them threw two. It was quite interesting.
"How much does this cost?" the woman suddenly asked.
"One copper coin can make ten for now. Later, it can make twenty." Li Yi gave two prices.
"The children threw a lot of money?" the woman asked, distressed.
"Just like playing and eating snacks, you have to pay to watch people dance."
Li Yi felt that he shouldn't let the person who gave him a piece of jade misunderstand.
"Is it beneficial to the people?" the old man asked directly.
"Yes!" Li Yi nodded in response.
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