It is the most basic common sense for farmers to use excrement to fertilize their fields. Not to mention their own human and animal excrement, they also go to the roads and forests to pick up the excrement left by humans and animals on weekdays. As for the densely populated cities and towns, there are few fields for cultivation.

The location has naturally become the "producing area" of excrement. There are goods and buyers, and naturally there are businessmen to make profits from it, so that the goods can be moved and everyone can get what they need.

The merchants who run this business and the clerks they employ, at the end of the day, do not work cleanly, but they make a lot of money. There are also people who make a fortune from this, and even in the early Qing Dynasty, they made a lot of money.

In the novel "Mirror of the World" written by the owner of the pavilion, there is a vivid description of the story of murders caused by robbery of manure pit business in Jiangnan area at that time.

"A massacre caused by a puddle of feces, no, a massacre caused by a puddle of feces."

Thinking of this, Chen Kai couldn't help but smile. Tai Shigong said it well, the bustling world is all for profit; the bustling world is all for profit. Driven by profit, as long as it is profitable, people in this world, whether ancient or modern, Chinese or foreign,

, even dirty and smelly shit can still be played in a variety of ways.

“How much did the poop originally cost?”

What Chen Kaikou originally said was before the business was brought back to the government. Wang Jiang had been prepared for this, and even when the price of one penny per load was revealed.

"...There are also people who can barter, such as food, oil, firewood, etc."

One coin of silver is one tenth of a tael, a figure that Chen Kai had vaguely remembered when he decided to reform the system earlier. At this moment, he nodded, and immediately asked Wang Jiang about the current price.

"Now it has risen to one penny and seven cents of silver."

Seven cents of silver is 1.7 cents of silver. After hearing this answer, Chen Kai was stunned for a moment and blurted out words of surprise: "Pork only costs one or two cents per catty. This is a bit too exaggerated!"

"

Two cents and one tael is the price tag in this period. For example, "Jin Ping Mei" and "Awakening of the Marriage" and other novels in the mid-Ming Dynasty recorded only about one cent and five cents per kilogram of pork. The Longqing switch saw a large inflow of silver.

As a result, the price of silver has fallen, and coupled with today's troubled times, the price is no longer what it used to be.

"Sure enough, the price of pork has now risen to two cents and five to six cents."

Wang Jiang sighed, but Chen Kai was stunned and speechless. The government's policies have a huge impact on people's livelihood. Not only the prices of pork, grain, and vegetables are rising, but in the final analysis, it is nothing more than a chain reaction of rising fertilizer prices. This has already

It lasted for a long time, starting not long after Chen Kai started the restructuring. In terms of the increase, the price increase varies, but according to Wang Jiang, the price increase is still continuing, and the root cause is still feces.

"It's an official business."

Chen Kai shook his head, but Wang Jiang didn't say anything. In the final analysis, the root cause of Chen Kai's move lies in the self-production of saltpetre, which is an essential raw material for gunpowder manufacturing. Importing it not only puts the lifeblood in the hands of others, but also

More importantly, the quantity is too small to support an increasingly large army.

Restoring the situation to its original state is impossible, and there are many ways to do it, such as locking production and imposing strict regulations on the amount of soil and saltpeter that the manure and saltpeter dumps must hand over to the gunpowder manufacturing workshop every month. There are actually tricks in this that can be manipulated.

Yes, but the decline in output can be suppressed. However, this can only suppress the decline in nitrate output, but cannot suppress the increase in grain prices, vegetable prices, etc.

During this time, Chen Kai was constantly imagining solutions in his mind. He looked up at Wang Jiang, a feudal bureaucrat, and thought that if someone else did it, the most brainless way would be to kill people and catch a few "boosting people."

The Manchu spies who paid "the price of feces" were executed in public to deter public morals.

However, Chen Kai knows very well that this is only a temporary relief. Officials at home and abroad in ancient and modern times are tax thieves. Once they have power, they will follow orders. Abuse of power for personal gain cannot be eradicated. Moreover, the root of the current problem is also the market.

The price increase trend caused by the competition mechanism, due to the addition of an available channel for feces, is the price increase caused by the increase in demand. The root of the solution is to increase production and use the increase in production to stabilize the market price. Suppose that if it is forced

If the market price is fixed, it is likely to sideline the official market and encourage the development of the black market, because demand is non-exempt.

The development of the official market can increase taxes, but the development of the black market will only increase gray income and is of no benefit to the government. The problem cannot be solved in this way. After a moment, Chen Kai had an idea in his mind, and the result was a puff of laughter.

Come on.

"Is there a rigid rule that people in Chaozhou's capital city must defecate once more every day?"

Such a joke popped up in his mind, and Chen Kai didn't know how he came up with such a thing. To put it bluntly, this is even more unreasonable than forcibly suppressing the market price. I don't say it is not in accordance with scientific logic. I just say

The organizational power of the feudal government was something Chen Kai couldn't even ask himself, and he almost burst out laughing.

"Jingcheng, what's wrong?"

Wang Jiang looked puzzled, and Chen Kai said, "Nothing, nothing." He just said that he suddenly remembered a joke, and instead of explaining, he asked Wang Jiang for his opinion on this.

"Actually, you already have a plan, so why worry about it?"

Speaking of which, Wang Jiang's confusion was not just about his sudden laughter. He actually had an idea when he came here, but he just didn't have time to mention it. As expected, when Wang Jiang said this, Chen Kai was stunned for the first time.

, and then he suddenly realized it. But after this sudden realization, he still shook his head.

"Water from afar cannot quench the thirst of the nearer."

"But if we don't divert this water now, we will only be so thirsty."

In fact, what Wang Jiang mentioned was nothing more than the compound agriculture that Chen Kai discussed with him earlier. Mulberry fish ponds and fish farming in rice fields can all use fish dung, silkworm excrement, and insect pests to increase production and quality.

Item, a good way to reduce the amount of manure is nothing more than spending more financial, material and manpower on the preliminary operation.

However, these things can only be done during the off-season, and the initial results can only be achieved after a growth cycle of animals and plants in the next year. Now, it is completely insufficient.

"How prepared are you for this?"

Wang Jiang is in charge of farming affairs, and he has been preparing for this for a long time. It can even be said that Wang Jiang has been busy with these things during the months when Chen Kai was away on the expedition. When Chen Kai asked, Wang Jiang immediately said that he had been thoroughly prepared.

If you understand the preliminary preparation required for these things, you will at least have enough reserves at the knowledge level. The only difference is just promotion.

"I will send some students from the quality testing school to help you measure and plan."

After saying this, Chen Kai agreed. The next thing was just Wang Jiang trying to promote the technology. As for major construction projects, he still had to wait until the slack season, at least summer planting and autumn harvest could not be delayed.

Last year, when Chen Kai and Wang Jiang discussed these things, it was already too late. They would rather delay a year than delay spring plowing. This affects people's livelihood and military expenses. It is a matter of principle and cannot be afforded. Now

Wang Jiang mentioned that Chen Kai agreed without hesitation. In addition, Chen Kai also mentioned another matter that was discussed at that time - about sweet potatoes. Wang Jiang also said that he had contacted

He has hired some sweet potato farmers, and as soon as Chen Kai decides, he will purchase them directly and teach planting techniques to interested farmers.

"That's it, I'll just turn my back on you and be the boss."

Saying this with a smile, Chen Kai knew that even if there was an additional way to increase the production of food crops, the results would still need to be seen next year. As for this year, at least there is no need to count on it.

"In that case, let Haiyang County approve a piece of official land. This time, I have to do something disgusting."

………………

Chen Kai left the task of training technical personnel and preparing for compound agriculture to Wang Jiang.

Early the next morning, the governor's office issued a decree, and Chen Kai decided to lock down production. The stipulation was that the production capacity of the manure and saltpeter dumps could only be increased, not reduced, otherwise the officials in charge would be punished.

This is a hard and fast rule. Chen Kai's will is resolute and cannot be questioned in the slightest. Of course, the manure and saltpeter dumps also understand the importance of this. Saltpeter is used to produce gunpowder. This stuff is a raw material for military supplies. Not only Chen Kai

, the Army Lieutenant General, Feng Shenjun from the Ordnance Bureau, and even Zheng Chenggong were all watching. No matter what kind of person they were, they could not afford to offend him.

The pressure of the manure and saltpeter dumps is naturally passed on to the manure pickers. The latter have no choice. Their performance evaluation is handled by the manure and saltpeter dumps. If they annoy these men, they will still suffer the consequences. After all, they are just

The yamen servants under the Haiyang County yamen are similar to helpers in terms of status. The dung and saltpeter dumps are directly controlled by Chen Kai. As long as the words of adding water to the dung bucket reached Chen Kai's ears

, that’s a matter of losing your head.

The dung pickers are under pressure, and the government officials who share the profit behind them do not dare to shoulder the burden, so they have to continue to pass the pressure on to the farmers. The price increase is less compensation, and the trick of "city people drink more water, so they urinate more" applies to those

Farmers are also complaining, and along with vegetable prices, food prices continue to rise.

Prices are still increasing, and Chen Kai is not in a hurry to find a scapegoat. To put it bluntly, it is nothing more than a trump card when the handicap is about to be overstretched, and it is not needed now. What's more, Chen Kai also wants to see what he will do with such a thing.

What else can you do?

The official land in Haiyang County was approved within half an hour. Chen Kai sent people from the governor's office to build the factory and at the same time conducted experiments on his own in the governor's office.

Regarding this, all the servants in the government office were full of surprise and confusion. Only Zheng Xiyuan not only did not say much about the disgusting things in front of him, but instead tried his best to create convenient conditions for Chen Kai.

Taking care of Chen Kai's daily life after work is completely the duty of a good wife.

Things are still going on here, and Chen Kai is not willing to waste any time. With a transfer order, 3,000 Qing troops captured in the two previous defense battles of Lufeng Bastion were directly transferred and shipped to Qiongzhou.

Mansion.

They were used to increase the output of the Shilu Mine. At the same time, Chen Kai also issued an order to Du Hui to assign a part of the soldiers who had undergone basic training and handed them over to Cai Yuan to enhance the strength of the Ming army in Changhua County.

It is used to guard cities and mining areas, deter coolies and other people with ulterior motives, and even suppress riots.

Regarding the mining of the Shilu Mine, Chen Kai was extremely determined, even if the iron ore was changed to a copper mine. After the order was issued, Chen Kai made a special trip to the workshop of the Manufacturing Bureau. After the inspection,

An order was issued to dispatch technical personnel to Qiongzhou Prefecture to manufacture relevant hydraulic machinery.

"Fujun, why don't you transport the iron ore to Chaozhou? There are ready-made hydraulic machines here that can be used."

Chaozhou's convenient facilities include not only hydraulic machinery, but also many local iron factories, both government-owned and private. It is far more cost-effective than starting over in Qiongzhou Prefecture.

At this moment, as the manager of Chaozhou Manufacturing Bureau, Ding Youyi also asked Chen Kai on behalf of the officials, craftsmen and students of the quality inspection school behind him. Because when manufacturing in Chaozhou, political achievements will be clearly written on their

In the credit book, this will be of great benefit to the future. But in Chaozhou, it has little to do with them.

Chen Kai understood this trick very well, and immediately pointed out the freight issue and blocked the mouths of these people. In other words, Chen Kai's determination had been made, and they had no other options.

After leaving the manufacturing bureau, Chen Kai thought about this matter carefully and couldn't help but smile.

From a cost perspective, the location of large-scale steel companies must be either in the production areas of iron ore or in the production areas of coal. There are counter-examples, such as the Hanyang Iron and Steel Works in the late Qing Dynasty, which used iron ore and coal from Daye.

The coal mines in Pingxiang were used. The former was more than 200 miles away, while the latter was more than 800 miles away. As a result, the production from both places had to be transported to Hanyang, which led to an increase in transportation costs.

The reason for this situation actually lies in the political considerations of the person in charge, Zhang Zhidong - as the governor of Huguang, Wuchang is where the government is located, and whether it is Daye or Pingxiang, it is far less powerful than the chimneys of the iron factory belching out in front of his eyes.

Black smoke produces steel. Because this is political achievement!

Chen Kai does not need such flashy political achievements. Now is the time when every penny must be used in practical ways, and he does not bear the risk of increased costs or even losses. However, the existence of Chaozhou Manufacturing Bureau is not

It is useless. A large number of hydraulic machinery has been developed here, and raw materials shipped from nearby counties are also being processed, such as Fujian, and even Chengxiang in the upper reaches of the Han River.
To be continued...