Such a big project in the northern part of Anzhu City naturally attracted the attention of the merchants. Driven by curiosity, the merchants naturally wanted to know why the road was being built and why it cost so much. They didn't even hesitate to stop the construction in Anzhu City to ensure the construction of the road in the northern part of Anzhu City.
A big project couldn't be hidden from people, especially when this project was so close to Anzhu and so close to these curious businessmen. Therefore, the businessmen quickly learned about the situation in the north. The Tang dynasty was going to build a lime mine and a cement workshop twenty miles north.
The businessmen had traveled extensively and naturally had seen lime. They knew that lime was a very white mineral, and the wall in front of them was very white. After being reminded by Ang Lee, they immediately thought of the lime mine twenty miles north. They could basically confirm that the white material on the wall came from lime.
However, they never thought that lime could have such good performance. They had also used lime to paint the wall, but the whiteness of the wall was far less than the new material made by Ang Lee. The smoothness of the wall was even worse than this imitation porcelain paint.
"Yes, the material on the wall in this room is made of lime. It's just that the process is a bit more complicated, so the price is naturally more expensive than ordinary lime. However, the average person should be able to afford it, haha!"
Ang Lee said.
"Oh, it's really made of lime. However, it's really rare to be able to make lime like this. It's really not easy!"
"I just don't know how much difference the cost of painting this imitation porcelain paint on the wall compared to other methods. If the price difference is not big, I can give it a try."
"This thing is so easy to use. Even if the price is a little higher, I can accept it as long as it's not too expensive."
"I said that it's made of lime, so the price won't be much higher. It won't be more expensive than wood, let alone brocade."
"It's a pity that my shop is about to be renovated. I can't use this new material."
"It's okay. The next time you open a branch, you'll definitely need it."
"Opening a branch? It's still early. It's difficult to increase the population of Anzhu on a large scale without a year or so. "
"Yes! It will take about a year for the railway to be opened to traffic. When the railway is opened to traffic, the huge role of Anzhu will be truly reflected. So it will still take some time. It's impossible for now. "
The merchants began to discuss.
At this time, Li An walked to the front of the wall and carefully checked the state of the wall. He touched it casually to test the quality of the wall.
In order to see how porcelain the wall was, Ang Lee even smeared some dirt on the wall and dyed it black.
"The wall has been smeared by this official. Men, wipe it with a wet cloth and see what the effect is."
Ang Lee looked at the crowd of onlookers and ordered his subordinates.
A subordinate immediately took a wet towel and gently wiped the wall. In order to avoid damaging the wall, he wiped it very carefully. He was afraid that if he damaged the wall, he would be criticized by Ang Lee.
"Lime is most afraid of water. If you wipe it like this, it would be strange if the wall didn't break."
"Yes! How can you wipe a limestone wall with a damp cloth? Could it be that this kind of imitation porcelain paint is really as impervious to water as porcelain? "
"Since Assistant Minister Li is so confident, it shouldn't be wrong. It's really a blessing of three lifetimes to be able to see it today."
When the merchants saw this scene, they began to discuss it and looked at the wall with great concern.
"Assistant Minister Li, it's clean."
The subordinate spent a lot of effort to wipe all the blackened walls clean.
Ang Lee took a look. The wall was indeed wiped clean. However, because the damp cloth contained moisture, the area where the wall was wiped clean was in a wet state. It looked different from other places.
If the color of the wall was always different, it would look very ugly. It had to be restored to the same color as the wall next to it.
"This place is wet. The color is still very different from other places. It's still different from porcelain!"
"Lime is lime. How can it be the same as porcelain? It's definitely different. "
"That's right. Lime is afraid of water, but porcelain isn't. After lime is soaked in water, it will change color, but porcelain won't."
"Don't jump to conclusions. After the wall dries, maybe the color will be the same as the wall next to it."
"Yes, after the wall is wet, the color will definitely be different from the dry one. It's just like clothes. After wet, the color will definitely darken, but as long as the clothes are dry, the color will become normal."
"Yes, yes, yes. Let's wait for a while and see if the color here is different from other places after the wall dries."
The merchants began to discuss again.
The reason why Ang Lee took the initiative to blacken the wall was to verify the performance of the imitation porcelain paint he had developed. Whether it was resistant to dirt, and what would happen after it was wiped with a damp cloth, these must be tested. As long as all these experiments were completed, the exact performance of the newly developed imitation porcelain paint could be known.
In order to find out the exact performance of the new material, Ang Lee had to try even if it was a huge risk of making a fool of himself. Otherwise, what was the point of inventing the imitation porcelain paint? If it couldn't even handle the most basic damp cloth, what was the difference between it and ordinary lime?
Lime was very absorbent. At the same time, lime was also a substance that was relatively easy to dry, so it wouldn't take too long for the wall to dry.
"Everyone, the wall still needs some time to dry. If you have something to do, you can go back first. It won't be too late to come back in half an hour."
Ang Lee said.
"Assistant Minister Li, we don't have anything to do."
All the merchants were unwilling to leave. The recent business was just so-so. Most of the newly rented shops had not been renovated, so most of these guys had nothing to do. Anyway, since they were idle, they might as well join in the fun and see the performance of the imitation porcelain paint invented by Ang Lee.
Since the merchants refused to leave, Ang Lee couldn't drive them away. That would be too unreasonable, and it was completely unnecessary.
"Since you have nothing to do, then wait here for a while. I will wait with you."
Ang Lee said with a smile. After a pause, he asked, "How is your business now? Can it make money?"
"Haha! Although it doesn't make money, because the rent of the shops is low and the labor costs are not high, it's not a loss. "
"Although this one lost a little, the amount is completely within the acceptable range. Moreover, I will definitely earn back all the money I lost in the future. That's for sure."
"I'm a small business. No matter where I am, it's impossible to lose money. Of course, it's also difficult to make a fortune."
"We all understand that when the population of Anzhu City increases in the future, no matter what we do, we will definitely be able to make money. We look at the future potential and don't care about the current situation."
Many merchants opened their mouths to answer, while the rest whispered in agreement.
Ang Lee said happily, "This official is very happy that all of you are optimistic about Anzhu City. This official has poured too much effort into Anzhu City. In the future, it will definitely develop into a large city with a population of millions. You all have good eyesight. You are all smart people!"
"Hahahaha!"
The merchants were very happy to be praised.
Ang Lee continued to ask, "What do you think of the Colosseum? Do you think the program is exciting?"
"Wonderful, very wonderful. We have traveled extensively for so many years, but we have never seen such a wonderful program. Villains like pirates should be punished like this. "
"Assistant Minister Li, this one has been to the west and knows that the Colosseum has existed for a long time. The Colosseum there is much bigger than this one and can accommodate tens of thousands of people."
"Many of the Colosseum in the Western Qin Empire have this kind of activity. I heard that it's even more exciting than Assistant Minister Li's. They will let people fight with each other, and they will fight with weapons. This is much more exciting than letting people give puppies empty-handed. That kind of fighting style, every move will see blood. The audience will cheer again and again."
"Our Colosseum should also be played like this. We should let these pirates kill each other, let their blades bleed, and let their own people kill each other."
Several merchants said.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "That's right! You guys know quite a lot! You all know about the Colosseum in the Western Qin Empire. You are really well-traveled people. If you have any suggestions, just say it. There is no need to hide them. "
"Assistant Minister Li, we all support letting pirates kill each other. However, pirates know each other and I'm afraid they are not willing to fight to the death. We must lure them with benefits. The winner will get some rewards."
"Yes, yes, yes. The loser will die, and the winner will get some rewards. This is a very good idea."
"There is a better way. Let the felons fight with the pirates. In this way, they will definitely fight to the death."
"Yes, since a large number of merchants have been stationed in Anzhu City, many thieves have also sneaked in. Haven't we caught a lot of robbers in recent days? For such people, we should let them enter the Colosseum and let them fight with the pirates. If they win, they will be given a light sentence. If they lose, they can only die. This will save the food in the prison and reduce the burden of the imperial court."
"There are also petty thieves who are as hateful as the robbers. They should all be let into the Colosseum. In this way, dozens of people will enter the Colosseum to fight with the pirates. The program will be very exciting."
"The most hateful ones are the thugs who bully innocent women. They must be put into the Colosseum."
"We are just suggesting. As for what should be done, Assistant Minister Li has to decide."
The merchants were all talking at once.
Li An nodded. He felt that what these merchants said was very reasonable. Some of their ideas coincided with his own, but there were also many ideas that were different from his own.
For example, Ang Lee had long planned to let the pirates fight each other to increase the excitement of the game, but he had never thought of letting the arrested robbers and thieves join the Colosseum.
In Ang Lee's impression, robbery was considered a serious crime, but thieves were considered a very minor crime in the later generations. It was not a very serious crime. It was really too much to put them into the Colosseum.
However, since these merchants proposed it, Li An felt that it was also worth considering because if the punishment was too light, these people would not turn over a new leaf at all. But once they entered the Colosseum, they would have no chance to turn over a new leaf because pirates were all desperadoes. They would not be merciful. At that time, they would lose their lives, so how could they have the chance to turn over a new leaf?
This was a dilemma, and Ang Lee fell into hesitation. However, according to the resentment of the people in this era, those who raped innocent women were the most hated. The hatred of the people for them was much stronger than robbers and thieves. It was not on the same order of magnitude.
In this era, because there were places like brothels, a normal man had a way to vent, but there were always some people who did not follow the rules and liked to provoke innocent women. This was what normal men hated the most. After all, in any country, wearing a hat was something that men could not tolerate.
Moreover, in most places in this era, raping a decent woman was a serious crime. The most serious punishment was beheading. Moreover, it was not a straightforward beheading. The perpetrator might be turned into a eunuch first and subjected to an extremely cruel punishment of corruption so that the perpetrator would never be able to commit a crime again.
Therefore, if Ang Lee put these criminals into the Colosseum, it was the most appropriate. All the people would not have any opinions, and it could be carried out.
As for robbers and thieves, it needed to be determined based on the specific situation. For example, the reason for robbery, the means, the consequences, and other factors needed to be considered.
For example, a little beggar who was too hungry and stole a steamed bun when the stall owner was not paying attention. Then, this kind of thing could be forgiven. If it was forced to be sent to the Colosseum, many people would not be able to accept it.
If a person who had the ability to support himself took a knife to rob other people's money and even injured people, the situation would be more serious. This kind of person could be brought to the Colosseum and be left to fend for himself.
The crime of a thief was the smallest. However, if the amount of theft was relatively large, or if the thief specifically stole from the poor, the crime would be more serious. Even so, it was still a bit cruel to send the thief to the Colosseum. Ang Lee thought about it again and again and felt that the thief should be left out.
"This official will consider everyone's suggestions. However, the Colosseum is a life and death battle. Therefore, only those who have committed heinous crimes and cannot be forgiven can be sent in."
Ang Lee expressed his attitude.
The merchants were generally very satisfied with Ang Lee's expression. They felt that Ang Lee's words were very reasonable. Only those who had committed heinous crimes could be sent to the Colosseum. Ordinary people could be left out.
After that, Ang Lee discussed some business matters with the merchants. They were all topics that the merchants were interested in. They only stopped when the wall was completely dry.
"Assistant Minister Li, the wall is completely dry. If you don't look carefully, you won't be able to see any difference from before. It feels the same!"
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