Uncle Hong Lou Rong

Chapter 195 I'm waiting for you in Shenjing
With the bright moon hanging in the sky and the shadows in the stone forest, a man and a woman sit quietly on both sides of the stone table.Among the maids carrying lanterns not far away, one of the thin ones raised his ears and listened carefully to the conversation between men and women.

Although the voices of a man and a woman were low, Xiao Que'er could hear them clearly even in the silence of the night.After listening for a while, the little girl lost interest, and only looked enviously at the two people at the stone table.

Brother Rong, who raised his head, saw the full moon on top of his head.Kuan Kui persuaded: "It's time to go back."

Xiao Daiyu hummed lightly.Although the atmosphere in the stone forest was like a spring breeze, she felt extremely at ease.A poem was recited softly, but the ignorant Jia Rong couldn't hear the source, and was thinking about it in her head.

I heard Daiyu's voice again. "Brother Rong, return to Beijing as soon as possible. I will wait for you in Shenjing."

"Ok?"

Under the lingering sound, the little man at the stone table left with the lantern.The frail little Que'er wanted to stay and take care of her, but Zijuan coaxed her over, leaving only Brother Rong in the forest.Picking up a lantern in his hand, he slowly recalled the meaning of Daiyu's words just now.

Zicuckoo carrying the lantern and Xiao Daiyu who were traveling through the stone forest laughed and said, "Uncle Xiao Rong may not be able to sleep tonight."

Under the light of the lantern, Lin Daiyu's face was blushing, and the corner of her mouth was smiling, which was still the same sentimental look as before.She glanced back quietly, and saw that Brother Rong was still in a daze, and said with a smile: "It's good that he can't sleep, and he will also experience the pain of insomnia."

Zijuan snickered and said, "But it's a pity, I don't see Uncle Xiaorong throwing red beans."

After hearing this, Xiao Que'er curled her mouth and discussed it with her belly.Looking at Zicuckoo's laughing appearance next to her, suspicions secretly arise in her heart.

The next day.

There was a lot of fighting in Lin's mansion, and Jia Rong was awakened by the sound early in the morning.

The Lin family didn't bring many things to the capital, most of which were books and picture scrolls, and a few gold and stone toys, which made it look less shabby.Brother Rong thought to himself, the Lin family is traveling lightly this time.After waiting for a while, he avoided the figure a little.Seeing all the female family members of the Lin family leaving the mansion, there was a long queue of sedan chairs and carriages outside.

"Master, where are we going?" Xiao Que'er beside him asked.

"The Lin family is going north today, and we will be sent off at the pier no matter what. After sending the Lin family away, it's time to return to Hongze Lake for business."

Jia Rong calculated in her heart.The officialdom in Yangzhou has undergone great changes, and the Lin family has made great achievements and retired, which is indeed the best thing.Apart from the contribution of assistance, what else can I gain from it?What can I do to benefit myself and the Jia family?

Brother Rong was thinking about it secretly, but suddenly he felt someone looking at him.Looking back, there was an old farmer on the side of the pier staring at him closely.

Isn't this the farmer's envoy under the authority of the Holy Church?

Brother Rong pretended not to notice, but suddenly saw the little Que'er next to him looking nervous, lowering his head and saying: "It's important that the uncle is on business, let's go to Hongze Lake earlier."

I see.Jia Rong secretly glanced at the old farmer from the corner of her eye.This peasant envoy's status in the holy religion should not be low, and if he can have his own portrait, then he will definitely recognize the appearance of the Buddha's mother.

The reason why the old farmer stared closely at this place was that he saw Xiaoqueer and the Buddhist mother who had been missing for two or three years.

Brother Rong nodded secretly, and did not want to contact people from the Holy Cult for the time being.Especially in Yangzhou City, who knows if there are any shooting guards from the Jinyi Division on the pier.

He led Que'er to Lin Ruhai's place, said goodbye respectfully, then looked for a carriage and drove quickly towards Hongze Lake.

this day.

Jia Rong and the river officials inspected Hongze Lake, and heard a report from the magistrate of Xuyi County, Fengyang Prefecture, asking to see him.

Brother Rong was also happy to see the old acquaintance, and said kindly: "You came in time, how are you doing these days?"

"After listening to the order to the counties around Hongze Lake to cooperate with the river channel adjustment order, the lower officials also heard that the upper officials are here, so they hurried over." Under the scorching sun, Duan Lang looked embarrassed even though he was sweating profusely in his official uniform.

"There is no need to be too polite. You are different. The other county magistrates obeyed the orders one by one, but you were honest and ran over in person." Jia Rong laughed.

Duan Lang was also quite helpless. As the saying goes, the imperial power does not come down to the county, but only the clan under the county, and the clan is autonomous.Duan Lang has been here for a short time, and he wants to do something serious.Naturally, people in the county are not welcome. The major families in the county are all guys who don't see rabbits and don't scatter eagles, and they may not be on his side.

Duan Lang smiled wryly and said: "My lord has an order, even the lower officials have to come here."

"Good to come here." Brother Rong laughed and invited him to talk in the shade.He laughed and said: "The local situation is complicated, and the imperial court does not have the energy to manage it in depth. This kind of governance depends entirely on you local masters. As long as you are willing to listen to the orders from above, promotion may not be difficult."

Duan Lang's eyes lit up and he was overjoyed.He also felt that his expression was too impolite, so he quickly restrained himself and replied, "Please show me, sir."

"It's easy to say." Jia Rong said politely: "It doesn't really matter if the other magistrates don't come. I see the Huai River crossing your Xuyi County. As long as you come, it will be the same."

"The river course is going to deal with the Xiahuai River?" Duan Lang's expression tightened.The imperial court needs a lot of migrant workers to control the river, and they don't have much wages. This...

Duan Yu next to him saw Duan Lang's expression, and snorted coldly: "Can we still harm you as a little county magistrate? Fortunately, you were sent by Jia Jiaen, and you don't even have this awareness."

Duan Lang humbly apologized, and said bitterly: "It rained continuously in June, and many acres of fields of various ethnic groups in Xuyi were affected. If there is another big movement, this year the land will be taxed..."

Jia Rong said politely: "Don't worry. As far as I know, although the waters of the Jiangnan provinces are well developed, most of them grow mulberry in dry fields and rarely have rice. Although silk is rich in gold, mulberry leaves are planted regardless of good land or thin land. The foundation of farming. Now there is a strategy that not only protects the waters of the Huaihe River in Xuyi from being flooded, but also allows you to rule the people and become an official, so you can naturally get promoted and make a fortune."

Duan Lang was puzzled and asked, "Is there such a good thing in the world?"

"It didn't exist at first, but now I have it." Jia Rong said: "Today, the cement kiln factory established by Ningguo Mansion in Ping'an Prefecture has been produced, and these cement objects will be transported to the south of the Yangtze River for water control in the Huanghuai River. Xuyi in your county is The most important thing is that if we can build dams and reservoirs on various rivers, and open water diversion irrigation canals, we will not only avoid water transfer and storage to avoid floods, but also open up tens of thousands of mu of paddy fields, which will benefit future generations."

Duan Lang smiled wryly. It's easy to say, but hard to do.The north of Xuyi is connected to Hongze Lake, and there is Huaihe River in it.

On this day, several people chatted for a long time.

After hearing the news, local officials in Baoying and Hongxian County showed mocking expressions.

"Treating the Huaihe River? One heavy rain can make all the efforts in vain."

"Even Sizhou City has gone to the bottom of Hongze Lake. It's ridiculous for a Xuyi to still be dying."

"Why do you care about this? Drinking and drinking, when Xuyi is flooded, the rich people in Xuyi County will not be able to escape to us?"

In fact, it doesn't matter whether it is governing Xuyi or the waters of the Huanghuai River.In fact, except for the faction of King Zhongshun, all the officials in the court were not optimistic about it, and even vigorously blocked it.

According to the thoughts of Jia Rong and the governor of the river, water control is divided into three steps.

"First of all, we have to reduce the water potential of the upper and lower reaches of the Huaihe River, and divert the water from the Huaihe River for irrigation in surrounding areas. Second, as the mud and silt in Hongze Lake is increasing day by day, we need to divert the Yellow River into the sea to reduce the pressure on Hongze Lake. At the same time A diversion channel into the sea will be built outside Hongze Lake for irrigation in the Huaidong area.”

Jia Rong laughed, "Although Huaidong has become a saline-alkali land due to the impact of the Yellow River silt, it is not impossible to grow rice. But planting mulberry trees is no problem, and it can even change the saline-alkali soil."

King Zhongshun asked: "You mean to let the silkworm breeding in Huaibei and Huainan be concentrated in Huaidong?"

Brother Rong nodded.

"Silk weaving in the south of the Yangtze River is so developed that many people have converted fertile land into mulberry. Now under the policy of changing drought to water, we take this opportunity to return the original fertile land to paddy fields and let the barren saline-alkali land grow mulberry leaves. It not only ensures the sustainability of silk, Paddy fields have been opened up.”

The Governor of the River Channel also said: "If the water control and the farming are carried out at the same time, it will naturally get twice the result with half the effort. I'm afraid the gentry of the counties will not agree."

"They have been the emperors of the land for several generations... the country gentry and landowners, and now they have the channel to change the drought to water, how can they disagree. I'm afraid that when the time comes, they will rush to change the paddy fields, and there will be a big battle for water irrigation. Jia Rong said contemptuously and sarcastically, "As long as they pay someone to build the canal now, we even draw a plan for them to build the canal. There is no reason to disagree."

King Zhongshun secretly squinted at this kid, and asked, "What is your intention in calling the magistrate of Xuyi County here?"

Brother Rong scratched his head and said shyly, "Everything you say is groundless. As long as Xuyi County sets an example, and when the imperial court sends out official uniforms, which of the major families in other counties will not be jealous?"

The Governor of Hedao and King Zhongshun were taken aback for a moment, but they had never thought about such a simple truth.It's not their fault, it's just that everyone has a different perspective. The river governor only guards the river, and naturally he doesn't care about water conservancy and farming.

Zhongshun's throne is high and powerful, such trivial details are at most ordered to go down and let the people below handle it.Back then, when the academician Shu Bole proposed that he could get an official by changing drought to water, King Zhongshun still stopped him.Naturally, he would not think about that.

King Zhongshun said with a sneer, "It's really nice of you to be the county magistrate of Xuyi."

Brother Rong said with a smile: "It's not our fault, the boy sent a letter to let the masters of the surrounding counties come over. They all looked at our low status, and only the magistrate of Xuyi came over."

Hearing this, Duan Yu rolled his eyes. These guards are considered to be half imperial envoys, so there is no reason why they dare not cooperate.It's not that Brother Rong is playing tricks.

Did he know that when Jia Rong sent the officials of the Hedao Yamen to deliver the letter, he didn't reveal his identity. If the magistrate of Xuyi county hadn't been shrewd and knew that Brother Rong was working part-time in the Hedao Yamen, he might not have come here.

Brother Rong is grabbing people's hearts and manipulating them.

The Thirteenth Lord didn't say anything after hearing the bastard's words, and talked about the follow-up for a while.

Jia Rong said: "It is not enough to open an irrigation canal to the east of Hongze Lake. The sluice gate of Gaoyou Lake into the river needs to be repaired, and the river channel into the river in Yangzhou also needs to be repaired."

The Governor of Hedao smiled and said: "Brother Rong, you don't need to worry about this matter. Our Hedao Yamen has already made calculations. It only depends on when your Ningguo Mansion's natural objects will be delivered. The Hedao Yamen has already made blueprints in various rivers in Yangzhou."

Brother Rong was happy in his heart, and said: "The first ship of celestial objects will be delivered in two days, after that, there will be Ningguo Mansion's ships transporting celestial objects on the canal day and night."

Thirteenth Master poured a basin of cold water on it.He said: "The canal is high and low to store and release water, although it may allow your ships to transport heaven and earth for a while. After a long time, the canal may not be able to withstand it."

Jia Rong also knows the pressure of frequent transportation on the canal, and the canal will have to be dredged and diverted in the future. Heavy objects like cement are really not suitable for passage.He already had a countermeasure in mind, and replied: "Ningguo Mansion has already looked for a site to build a factory in Jinling. With the experience of Ping'an Prefecture, it will not take too long to start production. In the future, Jinling Kiln Factory can produce while at the same time. Expansion to meet the needs of Jiangnan."

money.

It's all money.

Brother Rong was secretly happy.The situation in the Jiangnan River Basin is complicated, and there are many places where cement is used.

The Thirteenth Master looked at him, and said coldly: "I think your Ningguo Mansion may not be satisfied even if you open two more kilns."

Ok?
What does this mean?
Hearing this, it doesn't seem too good.

Jia Rong pretended to be stupid and said, "It should be enough."

The Thirteenth Master didn't ask any more questions after hearing this, and everyone dispersed.

In the evening of that day, Jia Rong received a letter from Shenjing's family.

"Dry!"

"Master? What's the matter?" Xiao Que'er hurried over after hearing the voice.

"Nothing." Jia Rong said depressedly.Looking at the letter in his hand, he felt extremely helpless.No wonder during the day, I always felt that King Zhongshun had something to say.It turns out that all the officials in the imperial court finally decided to put cement on it again.

This thing is too eye-catching, and as it is gradually promoted, it will become more and more eye-catching in the future.

Not to mention Gyeonggi and Ping'an Prefecture in the future, but Jiangnan Province alone has a lot of places that need to use cement.The benefits are really enviable.It's just that he didn't expect that in just half a year, the person who made the decision had already been promoted from a country gentry to a court official.

To be honest, Jia Rong really didn't want to give the cement recipe to the imperial court.

But right now, it's hard not to hand it over.Even King Zhongshun hinted that Lord Thirteen was now on the side of all the officials in the court regarding the cement recipe.The most important thing is that there is the shadow of Emperor Xiande behind him.It's just that the emperor and all the officials didn't want to reveal the truth about the robbery, so they changed the term.

"I knew that Concubine Feng was not good at all, fuck her mother. I didn't expect Baiguan to use another method to force myself with urgent engineering matters. Sigh..."

Xiao Que'er listened to Uncle Rong swearing and wanted to comfort her, but she didn't know what to say.

Brother Rong said intently: "Although Zong Cheng has already produced a grinding machine, there is no fear of competition in terms of output and quality, but Fang Zi can't hand it over so cheaply."

Brother Rong cursed secretly, and asked Xiao Que'er to fetch the paper and write the original cement formula on it.After calculating his speech in his mind for a while, he tidied up his clothes and hurried to the place where King Zhongshun was staying overnight.

"Second-class guard Jia Rong has something important to see Prince Zhongshun."

With a loud shout, the guards' eyes were attracted.

"Brother Rong, what's the fuss? It's getting dark and you're rushing here."

Those who are on duty outside are also old acquaintances.Brother Rong said: "My good brother, can Lord Thirteen rest now? We have something urgent to see you."

"It's over, Brother Yu and Brother Bing have just left."

(End of this chapter)