Li Banghua stood by the canal with his hands folded, looking at the busy farming scene around him, he couldn't help but smile and said: "The stream is suitable for fishing, and the river fields are suitable for planting rice. This is the only reason for life, and I am proud of Emperor Xi."
Pang Chunlai stroked his beard and said, "Mr. Meng An, is there any difference between spring plowing here and that in Jishui?"
"Farming for yourself and farming for the landlord are different," Li Banghua said with emotion.
Zhao Han looked at the sky from the side: "It has not rained since the beginning of spring, and I am afraid there will be another spring drought this year. Farmers' associations must be formed. When the spring drought is serious, farmers will help each other carry water for irrigation. Students can also be allowed to go home.
No matter if you use a bowl or a ladle, it will help every point."
Pang Chunlai said: "Other villages and towns are fine. The villages in the north and close to the mountains have only a few small streams as water sources. Once the spring drought is severe, the streams will dry up."
"We still need to continue to build the canal longer," Zhao Han said. "Using water trucks to carry river water into the canal will make it much closer to the villages and towns in the north."
Ouyang Zheng suddenly appeared: "When I was dividing the land in the north, I found that the acres there were relatively barren. Maybe the villagers could be organized to dig a few fields with poor harvests into water storage ponds during the slack season. When it rains, they can be stored.
Water can be used when there is little rain, and it can also be used to raise fish in normal times.”
"This method is very good, so I'll leave it to you." Zhao Han said with a smile.
"It's what you wish for." Ouyang Zheng said, cupping his hands.
Over the past two months, Ouyang Zheng's performance impressed Zhao Han.
A well-dressed young man, a scholar who was born as a child prodigy, can actually get along with the mud-legged man.
Moreover, he works conscientiously, does not complain about hardship or tiredness, does things fairly, and wins the hearts of the people.
This guy is exhausted every day, but he still has the energy to study. He reads by candlelight every night, and writes a poem every now and then to praise the land allocation.
Very good internal affairs talents!
Ouyang Zheng added: "There are many limestones in the nearby mountains, but only the mountains in Yongyang Town have lime kilns. Another lime kiln can be built to burn lime. There is also a lot of dolomite in the local area. I have been to Jingdezhen, where dolomite is also used to make porcelain.
.Why don’t we build a porcelain kiln?”
"There are no porcelain craftsmen." Zhao Han sighed.
Ouyang Zheng said: "There are potters locally, but they can only make pottery pots and bowls. Or you can bring a lot of money to Jingdezhen and call a few porcelain workers here, so that the local potters can slowly learn and improve."
Li Banghua said: "Xianwen takes it for granted that firing porcelain cannot be accomplished by hiring just a few porcelain workers."
Zhao Han praised: "Xianwen's idea is very good, but it needs to be done step by step. The top priority is spring plowing. Once the spring plowing is completed, a farmers' association will be established. The farmers' association will organize the villagers to work together to fight the drought, and at the same time organize the villagers to repair and dig water canals. Jiangxi
Droughts have become more severe year after year, so water conservancy projects are the top priority!"
"Yes, water conservancy is the foundation!" Li Banghua deeply agreed.
The nationwide drought during the Chongzhen Dynasty was both a natural disaster and a man-made disaster.
Since the mid-Wanli period, the central government has not organized much water conservancy projects, relying entirely on local officials to act with responsibility and ethics.
Local officials are getting worse and worse, and water conservancy projects in various places have been abandoned one after another. A small drought will cause disasters, and a severe drought will cause starvation. As long as Zhao Han conscientiously builds water conservancy projects, it will not be affected by disasters, but it will definitely be much better than other places.
.
Huang Shunfu, the mayor of Yongyang Town, said: "The town currently has two canals, both of which are very short and in disrepair. When the spring plowing is completed, the villagers can deepen and widen the canals. Not only will it benefit the whole town, but at least half of the town will benefit.
.”
Liu Fang, a young boy from the south bank of Heshui River, was serving as a supervisor in the General Military Mansion, coordinating the performance evaluation of officials at all levels. This man suddenly said: "The boy comes from Yinkeng Village, where silver is produced, and the money has been mined long ago.
After that, the mountains, forests and slopes are riddled with holes. During the off-season, villagers can be organized to level the barren slopes and wasteland, so that hundreds or even thousands of acres of farmland can be obtained."
Another civil servant named Li Hongwen said: "Every summer and autumn, there are floods in Huanba Village and Lijiaguai. In the past, polders continued to occupy the river, causing the river to become narrower and narrower, and the floods became more and more serious. But in the river
Planting more trees along the river, prohibiting villagers from continuing to polder, and cleaning up the silt in this section of the river may alleviate the annual floods."
"Write them all down," Zhao Han was very happy. "Everyone is adding fuel to the fire. If you have any ideas, you can write them down as official documents and send them to the General Military Mansion. Now that a great cause has been started, there are many wastes waiting to be done. I hope you will work hard!"
"We will do our best!" everyone responded.
Li Banghua could only sigh secretly, this atmosphere was so comfortable.
There are not so many intrigues. As long as you are willing to do something, you can get promoted. If you do things quickly and well, you will be promoted quickly. It is true that people are appointed on their merits and rewarded according to their merits.
Take Liu Fang as an example. He was an ordinary field officer a few years ago, but now he has been promoted to a popular figure in the General Military Office. All official performance review documents must go through this person's hands before being forwarded to higher-ups.
department.
In Li Banghua's eyes, the setting sun of Ming Dynasty is already here, but here it is like the rising sun.
"Headquarters," a soldier rushed over, "Mr. Li's family is here."
Li Banghua was overjoyed when he heard this. He raised his hands and said, "General Town, I will resign first."
Zhao Han smiled and said, "Let's go together."
When everyone went to the dock, Li Banghua felt a little sad when he saw his family members.
There was only one old wife and one old concubine, each with a maid. Li Banghua's parents, children and grandchildren all stayed in Jishui and did not come. Obviously they were unwilling to become thieves.
Since he is no longer a thief, he must renounce his relationship with Li Banghua. Most likely, Li Banghua has been removed from the family, and his son may even be adopted into his uncle's name. This is definitely not safe. If the trouble becomes too big, the clan will also be executed.
"As long as you are here, there is no need to say anything else." Li Banghua put on a smile and comforted his old wife and concubine.
The wives and concubines were all speechless. They were confused because their husbands had turned into thieves for no apparent reason.
Especially the first wife, who had a good second-grade imperial edict, suddenly turned into a thief.
…
But he said that Fei Chun went straight to Qianshan by boat, and on the way he heard that there was a religious riot in Qianshan.
Demon Taoist Ma Liaoyang and Zhang Puwei led their followers to revolt and quickly occupied Shanglu Town and surrounding villages. Not only did they rob the eunuch's banknotes, but they also blocked the commercial waterway leading to Fujian. The eunuchs, gentry and merchants were communicating with the bandits.
"Madam, I'm back." Fei Chun knelt in front of Mr. Lou, always feeling a little awkward. He had not knelt down for a year.
Lou couldn't keep calm and asked anxiously: "Where is Ruhe?"
"Young Master and Brother Han are doing business out of town." Fei Chun handed over two letters, one from Fei Ruhe and one from Zhao Han.
Lou quickly opened the letter. The contents of the two letters were similar. They both said that they were doing business in Ji'an Mansion, and that the business was prosperous and promising, so Lou should not worry about it.
Since her son was not in danger, Mrs. Lou felt a little relieved. She asked, "The fourth master robbed Chaoguan and was wanted by the imperial court. Do you know about this?"
"I don't know, we haven't seen Fourth Master." Fei Chun told half the truth.
Mr. Lou asked again: "What business do you do in Ji'an?"
"Trafficking commercial goods." Fei Chun replied.
"What kind of goods are you selling?" Lou asked.
Fei Chun said: "Selling lacquerware."
Mr. Lou sneered: "Where do you buy the goods from and where do you transport them to? How much does it cost? How much does it cost?"
Fei Chun was confused by the question and wanted to continue making up lies, but felt that he could not deceive Mr. Lou.
Seeing that Fei Chun couldn't speak, Lou sighed and said, "Tell me, you are doing something big, even if it is a rebellion, I can still support it."
Fei Chun could only say: "Reply to Madam, we are rebelling."
Lou's whole body went limp, Yingchun quickly supported her.
After waiting for a long time, Lou said in a trembling voice: "Sure enough, you have done a great job. You are really... How can this be true? How can this be true!"
Fei Chun muttered: "Madam, the Ming Dynasty is hopeless. We can succeed by rebelling."
"You can do it if you say you can? It's you and Zhao Han who led the young master into trouble!" Lou clenched his fists, extremely angry.
Fei Chun simply risked his life, knelt straight and said: "Madam, now we have half the county. Even the governor was defeated and committed suicide. The prefect and the county magistrate were all killed. Even... even Mr. Jishui Li,
Now they are all our people. Mr. Li has been the Minister of the Ministry of War, and he is willing to become a thief. We are not a small group of people."
"That Luling giant bandit Zhao Yan is actually Zhao Han?" Lou asked in surprise. Apparently Zhao Yan's reputation had spread to Qianshan.
Fei Chun said: "Zhao Yaonian, who ranks second in the list of sea arresters, is the young master."
"lady!"
Yingchun shouted anxiously, but it was Lou who fainted.
There was a lot of excitement in the inner courtyard, and after a while, Mrs. Lou finally woke up quietly.
She ordered Yingchun not to talk too much and dismissed the other slaves, leaving only Fei Chun and Fei Rulan.
Fei Chun said: "Madam, once the matter has been done, it is impossible to stop."
Mr. Lou sighed: "You are trying to implicate the Fei family and make the entire Fei family confiscated and exterminated!"
"Madam, Li Shangshu is willing to become a thief, is he also confused?" Fei Chun couldn't help but retort.
Mr. Lou slumped in his chair and said feebly: "Do you still want to change the dynasty?"
Fei Chun said: "I just want the world to be unified."
"The world is unified? Brother Han really has great ambitions." Mr. Lou smiled bitterly, with a sad look on his face.
Fei Chun suddenly said boldly: "Mrs. Haojiao knows that if Brother Han is willing, we can capture Ji'an Mansion at this time. We have thousands of elite soldiers. If the government dares to rebel, half of Jiangxi can be captured!"
"You have become more capable!" Lou said through gritted teeth.
Fei Chun stood up suddenly: "Madam, I am now in charge of money and food, and I am considered the number one person."
"Okay, very good," Mr. Lou laughed angrily, "You are all very good, I really made a mistake!"
Fei Chun cupped his hands and said, "Madam, please wait a moment. Within two or three years, Brother Han will surely take over the whole of Jiangxi. At that time, the Fei family will also be able to take advantage of it. This is not nonsense. Madam also knows Brother Han's temperament. He is not a fool."
These words made Lou calm down a little and start thinking about the pros and cons.
She has only one son, and since her son has become a rebel, Lou has to risk his life.
Any talk of loyalty to the emperor and patriotism is all nonsense, not as important as one’s own son!
After thinking hard for a long time, Mr. Lou asked: "Brother Han is the leader of the thieves?"
Fei Chun knew that he couldn't explain clearly, so he picked up what Lou could understand and said: "Brother Han is like Emperor Taizu, the young master is like Xu Da, Mr. Pang is like Liu Bowen, and Li Shangshu is like Li Shanchang."
Lou asked again: "Is there really nothing the government can do against you?"
Fei Chun said with a smile: "All the officials in Ji'an Prefecture and Luling County were killed, and the governor of Jiangxi was defeated and killed. Unless the imperial court mobilizes armies from several provinces to encircle and suppress, no one in Jiangxi will dare to send troops!"
Mr. Lou believed that Jiangxi had caused trouble before and had mobilized large armies from several provinces to collect troops.
Among them, the Guangxi wolf soldiers were so powerful in Jiangxi that there are still countless legends left, such as that the Guangxi soldiers loved to eat people.
They don’t all have a good reputation. Guangxi wolf soldiers entered Jiangxi, burning, killing, looting and committing all kinds of crimes. County after county was reduced to a wasteland.
As a result, when rebels appeared in Jiangxi later, they tried their best not to let the court know about it, for fear that officers and soldiers from other provinces would come to collect the money.
Lou hesitated and asked, "Li Shangshu has also taken refuge with you?"
"It's absolutely true," Fei Chun said.
Li Banghua was very famous in Jiangxi. Hanzhu Academy tried to recruit him many times, but they were unable to invite him to Qianshan to teach.
Lou felt that Zhao Han and Fei Ruhe were unreliable, but she felt that Li Banghua was more reliable.
Suddenly, Mrs. Lou said to her daughter: "Your brother Han has taken your younger brother to become a rebel. What do you think?"
Fei Rulan's mind was a little confused, and she didn't even know how to speak, so she just stood aside and listened.
"Are you willing to marry to Luling?" Lou asked simply.
Fei Rulan hesitated to speak, she was very confused.
Lou said: "Follow Fei Chun to Luling. When brother Han returns to Qianshan, I will make up for your dowry."
Lou made this choice purely for the sake of his son.
Since her son is a rebel, she can only go to the dark side.
If Lou had one more son, he would not be like this. He should have given birth to a scoundrel.
