Master Zhang wanted to open up a second source of income for Chang 'an, or rather, the second industry. Of course, it was not to sell wood directly.
Although there were many good trees in the primeval forest of Longling that could produce high-quality wood, the profit was too thin if they only sold raw materials.
If they could process the wood and then sell it, it would be convenient for them to ask for a high price.
Therefore, when Zhang Dongyun waved his hand and ordered tens of thousands of Tang Army soldiers to chop wood together, he also selected people with carpentry skills.
At the same time, other people in the city began to recruit craftsmen from all over Longbei County.
At the same time, they also had the task of breaking the blockade of Eastern Tang near Longbei County.
Before, Eastern Tang had been blocking Qinzhou Prefecture and Longbei County, forbidding people and business travelers from going there.
Due to the rampant corruption of the Eastern Tang, a few fish that slipped through the net were still able to make their way to Chang 'an. But even so, people like Jin Fugui and the others were still surrounded by danger, risking their lives to bring the goods along.
Of course, strictly speaking, they were smuggling.
And now, Master Zhang was helping them turn smuggling into a legitimate business.
The next wood business of Chang 'an would mainly supply Longbei County first, and then slowly expand outward.
Li Yi, Situ Jinsheng, and others were all killed before, which once again deterred all parties in Eastern Tang and made them not dare to act rashly.
To be able to capture Li Yi and the others without letting a single one of them escape, there were only a handful of Clans in the entire Eastern Tang who possessed such strength.
More importantly, there was no news about how Li Yi and others were defeated.
The more mysterious it was, the more cautious others would be.
With this power, Chang 'an could expand its influence.
Chang 'an's fame broke through Longbei County and spread to the surrounding counties and prefectures.
Not only cultivators, but even ordinary people were secretly talking about the mysterious city that suddenly appeared.
The news that Eastern Tang was going to change spread more and more.
Riding on this momentum, Zhang Dongyun's projection, Mr. Dark Cloud, also began to arrange for people to expand his family's information channels to obtain information about the Eastern Tang.
Soon, some news came.
Among them, there was a piece of bad news and a piece of good news.
The bad news was that the Hu family, led by the former head of the family, Hu Yinghua, had been escorted to the Royal Capital Luyang Castle of the Eastern Tang dynasty.
Hu Yinghua's third brother, Hu Yinghao, was rewarded with Eastern Tang royalty for reporting the rebellion and became the new head of the Hu family.
The good news was that King of Tang, Li Xuanxin, did not succeed in killing the leader of the Dahe Longmen, Li Jie.
Although Li Jie was injured, he went all the way north and successfully escaped from the Eastern Tang dynasty's territory. After that, his whereabouts were unknown.
Because of the internal threat of Chang 'an, King of Tang did not go out of the country to kill Li Jie. He was forced to return empty-handed.
However, the foundation of the Dahe Longmen on both sides of the river had been completely destroyed.
The Eastern Tang accelerated the elimination of the Dahe Longmen's influence on the people here.
In Chang 'an, a group of Dragon Gate disciples heard the news from the outside world. They were happy that their leader had escaped danger, but also sad and angry that their hometown had been destroyed.
Some Dahe Longmen disciples wanted to beg Chang 'an to send troops to help them return to the two sides of the river, but in the end, they held back and swallowed their words.
Zhang Dongyun saw all this with his eyes, but he did not pay attention to it.
He was now focused on the construction of Chang 'an itself.
The Dahe Longmen's contributions would be rewarded in the future.
As for the disciples of Dragon Gate, they were now willing to contribute to the construction of Chang 'an, which had taken them in and saved them.
"Shang Jie and Wen Hu both praised your skillful hands."
In Zhang Dongyun's projection, Mr. Dark Cloud was sitting in a side hall of Tianshu Hall.
In front of him was a tall and thin young man.
The young man looked younger than his actual age. His fingers were slender and nimble, and he did not seem to lack strength.
This was the disciple of Dahe Longmen, Chen Yu, whom Wen Hu had mentioned to Mr. Dark Cloud earlier.
Later, Shang Jie had also introduced him to Mr. Dark Cloud.
At this moment, he was facing Mr. Dark Cloud with a calm expression, but there was a hint of uneasiness in his eyes.
"Uncle Shang and Brother Wen both praised me too much," Chen Yu said softly.
"Come with me." Mr. Dark Cloud did not comment. He led Chen Yu out of Tianshu Hall and went all the way to a lumber yard in the mountains.
He casually picked a thick log and threw it to Chen Yu.
Chen Yu practiced martial arts. His talent was average, but he was able to learn martial arts from the Dahe Longmen when he was a teenager. It had been almost 20 years since then, so his foundation was not bad.
As a Fourth Realm Martial Artist, his strength was far stronger than ordinary people. He easily caught the log.
Knowing that Mr. Dark Cloud wanted to test him, Chen Yu said in a neither servile nor overbearing tone, "Please ask me a question, sir."
Mr. Dark Cloud said indifferently, "Anything will do."
Chen Yu listened and thought for a moment. Then, a short knife appeared in his hand.
He held up the log with one hand and used the other hand to slash at the log with a knife.
After a while, he stopped.
The log was originally divided into two parts.
One of the parts looked like a smooth wooden board. Chen Yu only cut it a few times.
However, when the wind blew, the wooden board seemed to undulate like waves.
Chen Yu made a few cuts. The wooden board seemed to turn from a static object into a flowing river. It recreated the surging dragon river that the Dahe Longmen saw every day for many years.
The other piece of wood was processed by Chen Yu many times. Finally, it was turned into dozens of parts. When put together, it looked like a machine.
At this time, a wind blew from the mountains. The wooden machine's impeller was blown by the wind. Then, it was driven by the bearings and rolled on the mountain.
When it reached the uphill, it slowed down and finally stopped. However, it swayed in place and did not slide down.
In Daming Palace, Zhang Dongyun saw this and could not help but laugh.
Mr. Dark Cloud, who was projected by him, looked calmly at Chen Yu. "You used a trick. The wood is all hollowed out. This thing can't carry heavy loads, but it's actually used in the water to improve the sailing of the boat?"
Chen Yu's eyes lit up. "Senior, you have a sharp eye!"
Mr. Dark Cloud's eyes were indifferent.
"However, in the water, for durability, the wood will not be hollowed out.
You deliberately did this because you wanted to use the wind to show the same effect as the water.
It seems that I'm not testing you, but you're testing me? "
He turned to look at the other piece of wood. "It's the same to make this. It looks delicate, but it's actually useless. It doesn't show any skill at all. Martial artists with higher realms who are good at controlling their strength can make it if they practice, can't they?"
Chen Yu let out a long sigh of relief. His expression was both excited and ashamed.
He bowed deeply to Mr. Dark Cloud. "My little tricks can't escape your eyes."
"Yes, you have outstanding talent in this area." Mr. Dark Cloud was expressionless. "But your cleverness made you lose your chance."
Chen Yu willingly submitted. "I'll gladly accept any punishment."
"From today onwards, you can work on your temper in the lumber yard," Mr. Dark Cloud ordered.
"Yes, senior," Chen Yu said respectfully.
Mr. Dark Cloud left, and Chen Yu stayed in the lumber yard obediently. He processed the logs into neat pieces of wood and waited for people to transport them away.
During the process, he was methodical and did not show off his skills. He was fast and accurate. He processed each piece of wood faster and better than all the other workers combined.
Wen Hu came to him with sweat all over his forehead. "Brother Chen, why are you here?"
He thought that even if his senior brother could not pass Mr. Dark Cloud's test and get an important job in the Palace of Heavenly Works, he should at least be able to help in the Palace of Heavenly Works.
But he did not expect that Chen Yu would be punished to cut wood in the lumber yard.
He was working as a coolie with the captives of the Tang Army!
"Senior brother, did you … offend Mr. Dark Cloud?" Wen Hu asked with a bitter face.
"I asked for it," Chen Yu said frankly. "I was frivolous and impetuous. I should be taught a lesson here."
Wen Hu opened his mouth wide. "Senior brother … you should go and apologize to Mr. Dark Cloud."
Chen Yu shook his head. "What's the use of apologizing verbally? Only by working hard can you correct your bad habits."
He smiled at Wen Hu. "Junior brother Wen, you should do your job in Chang 'an with all your heart.
Don't learn from me. I'm just a wretch. I reap what I sow.
This place is much better than the Eastern Tang. Even if the Eastern Tang royalty did not attack our sect and Chang 'an did not save us, I would still say the same thing.
It should be said that it would be better if I came here earlier. "
Wen Hu was a little confused when he heard that.
Chen Yu explained, "Mr. Dark Cloud is not only a person who values practice over luxury, but also a person who understands the principles and thoughts of our generation.
Mr. Dark Cloud is like this. The real owner of this place, the City Lord of Chang 'an, must also be an open-minded person. "
Wen Hu nodded and then said hesitantly, "Senior brother, what if … what if Mr. Dark Cloud makes you cut wood here for the rest of your life?"
"Then I'll work hard here."
Chen Yu smiled. "I've observed that the people here also have time to rest. Although it's hard work, it's not too much work.
I still have time to study and tinker with my own gadgets when I'm not working.
When you have time, you can come here and help me take them away. If you and the others have anything you want me to do, you can also tell me. I'll do it when I'm free. "
Wen Hu smiled bitterly. "There's no time now. Senior brother, you just have to take care of yourself.
Generally speaking, His Majesty and Mr. Dark Cloud are magnanimous. If you sincerely repent, they'll give you another chance in the future. "
Zhang Dongyun knew everything that happened in the city.
He naturally heard the conversation between Chen Yu and Wen Hu, and he knew that Chen Yu meant what he said.
Since that was the case, he certainly would not hesitate to give him another chance in the future.
As he said before, this person was talented in craftsmanship.
The underwater turbine alone was beyond the current level of craftsmanship in this world.
It was after he joined that the Dahe Longmen continued to improve in shipbuilding.
Not to mention, this kid was an all-rounder. He did not hide anything and was happy to teach others.
If he handed the Hall of Heavenly Works to him, Mr. Dark Cloud could be a hands-off shopkeeper in this aspect.
However, for now, he would work as a coolie for a while to polish his temper.
At any time, rules had to be set.
Just like what you said, you have to admit your mistakes and stand at attention when you're beaten.
In the Great Ming Palace, Zhang Dongyun leaned back against the back of a chair.
But then again, the Dahe Longmen were really full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.
Setting aside a special talent like Chen Yu, Sect Master Li Jie had shocked the world with a single brilliant feat on the Great River. He was also a Ninth Realm martial artist.
If King of Tang had not come personally, the Dahe Longmen would not have been hunted down so miserably.
Now that the others had arrived in Chang 'an, Li Jie was separated.
To put it in a more utilitarian way, the most valuable people in the entire Dahe Longmen to Chang 'an were Li Jie and Chen Yu.
One was in the future, and the other might be both present and in the future.
According to rumors, Li Jie was actually quite young.
Now that he had reached Ninth Realm, he was even younger than King of Tang when he had reached Ninth Realm.
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