At night, the rain stopped and the wind stopped, and the room finally became quiet. Shen Zhenzhu gradually woke up from her intoxication. She lay in Li Ye's arms and said, "I met the third brother today, hey! My hair is a little white."
Speaking of this, Shen Zhenzhu put her arms around Li Ye's neck and said coquettishly: "Your Highness, can't you give my third brother a promotion? You serve you so hard, you don't have enough food at night, and you have to perform morning rituals in the morning."
Li Ye stroked her satin-like hair and smiled: "Your third brother has been an official for more than ten years, how come he is still a county captain?"
"He was already the governor of Jianjiang Province. After my husband passed away, he was demoted to Jinjiang County Lieutenant by Li Fuguo, and he has been there until now."
Li Ye thought for a while and said: "I will go to Liuqiu Island tomorrow, where a county seat has been built. If he is willing to serve as county magistrate, then I will promote him to the governor of Quanzhou in four years.
"Really?"
Li Ye patted her gently behind her, "Who am I? Do you still have questions about what I say?"
Shen Zhenzhu said coquettishly: "Don't you know, little girl, she is willing to be punished!"
"Then what should be the punishment?" Li Ye asked with a smile.
Looking at Li Ye's evil smile, Shen Zhenzhu knew that nothing good would happen next.
At noon the next day, Li Ye took five ten thousand stone ships and set out to inspect Liuqiu Island. Zhang Ping accompanied him, and County Lieutenant Shen Ji also followed. His sister Shen Zhenzhu told him that if he was willing to serve as Liuqiu County Magistrate , four years later, His Highness will make him the governor of Quanzhou.
Shen Ji was very excited. After explaining to his family, he set off with the big ship.
Today we are on a large sea-going ship worth 20,000 stone, but this ship has been renovated and equipped with two pairs of fine steel propellers designed by Wang Zhan.
Paddles are a mature technology that has been around for hundreds of years, but they were previously used on inland river ships and were all made of wood. This is the first time that they have been used on seagoing ships and made of metal.
It was successful a month ago and has been tested out to sea every day. There have been no problems until now and it can be used by Li Ye.
Of course, there are no steam engines yet, but only sixty crew members are responsible for pedaling in the bottom cabin, which shows that the design is very sophisticated and labor-saving. Normally, it would take one hundred and twenty people to pedal, but now only half of it is enough.
This is due to the genius design. The propeller is just under the hull. A hollow groove is designed in the hull, which is suitable for installing the propeller. Not only is the wind resistance very small or almost non-existent, but it can also prevent damage from big waves.
If the propeller is installed directly outside the hull, the wind resistance will be very large and it will have to contend with big waves. In fact, most of the power will be wasted.
"Dong——dong——"
The bell on the pier rang, the departure flag waved, the four oars on both sides turned, the white waves rolled, and the ship began to sail.
Li Ye stood at the stern of the boat and looked at the rolling waves. He suddenly had a clear understanding that it was not necessary to use a steam engine, but could also go on a long sea voyage using human power.
"Has this ship experienced strong winds and waves?" Li Ye asked Wang Zhandao.
Wang Zhan quickly bowed and said: "Reporting to Your Highness, I have experienced this twice."
"Did you find any problem?"
"Other than a slight water intrusion, there are no other problems. But even if there is water ingress, it is only a dozen barrels. There is a reservoir at the bottom of the warehouse. The sea water comes in and is accumulated first. After the sea calms down, a dedicated person will drain the water out."
"How to drain water?" Li Ye asked.
"It's like taking water from a well, lifting it up with a bucket and pouring it into the sea."
Li Ye nodded and returned to the command cabin.
In the command cabin, Zhang Ping stood in front of the sand table, his brows furrowed.
The sand table is from the Ryukyu Island. It is made relatively simple and rough. The places that are not understood are represented by forest cover.
"What's going on? Is there something wrong with the sand table?" Li Ye came over and asked with a smile.
"I realized something was wrong!"
Zhang Ping pointed to the sand table and said, "This is Xiashui Village. It no longer exists. They have all been moved into the city. But there is a red flag on the sand table, which means there are still people living there."
"Go and have a look! Maybe there are old people who are not used to life in the city and have moved back."
"Maybe!"
Li Ye patted Zhang Ping on the shoulder and said, "Shen Ji will be appointed as the magistrate of Liuqiu County soon. Please talk to him more about the situation there so that he can have an idea."
Zhang Ping nodded, "I'll go talk to him now."
Zhang Ping left in a hurry, and Li Ye also returned to the third floor. He hadn't had time to have lunch yet!
Returning to the living cabin, I found Shen Li concentrating on painting at the table.
"What are you drawing?" Li Ye stepped forward and asked with a smile.
"Yeah! You can't look."
Shen Li screamed in fright and quickly covered it with a cloth, but it was too late.
Li Ye could see clearly that a mighty general in armor was kneeling on the ground shooting arrows.
The smile on Li Ye's face became even stronger, this little girl painted herself!
"The painting is good. This must be that night on the Qiantang River!"
Shen Li blushed and nodded, "I have forgotten many things, especially the details of the armor. I can only rely on imagination."
Li Ye smiled slightly and said: "I will put on the armor again tomorrow and let you take a closer look."
Shen Li was so happy that she clapped her hands, "That's great! But it's settled, Your Highness is not allowed to cheat."
Li Ye scratched her nose with his finger and said with a smile: "How could I lie to such a cute little lady?"
Shen Li lowered her head in shame. Li Ye sat down and said with a smile, "I'm so hungry. Hurry up and bring me some food."
"Why!"
Shen Li quickly agreed and ran out happily.
Li Ye stood up again and looked at her portrait carefully. She had a handsome face, sword-shaped eyebrows and starry eyes, especially the eyes. She put a lot of effort into painting the eyes. Her eyes were focused and bright, and the painting was particularly expressive. At this moment, Li Ye deeply felt a A young girl's admiration for herself.
She poured all her love for herself into this painting. It was a happy thing to be liked by a young and beautiful girl.
At this time, Li Ye suddenly heard footsteps, and he quickly sat back at the table.
Shen Li came over carefully carrying a meal on a plate. There was still broth in it, and she was afraid of spilling it.
Putting the food plate under the table, Li Ye held her hand and pointed to the opposite side, "Sit down and let's talk."
Shen Li lowered his head and said shyly: "I'll go and call aunt!"
"No, she's taking a nap! Just stay with me."
Li Ye picked up the chopsticks and started to eat. Shen Li mustered up her courage, picked up the jug and filled Li Ye with a glass of wine. She asked, "Your Highness, where are we going?"
Li Ye picked up the wet towel and wiped his mouth and said with a smile: "Go to a very big island, about three hundred miles away from Quanzhou. A county town has just been built on that island, and Uncle Qin is going to be the county magistrate."
Shen Li held her chin, her big eyes filled with autumn water were particularly bright. She said thoughtfully: "My grandfather said that there are many large islands in Nanyang, all of which are uninhabited. The islands are rich in resources. If the imperial court can send troops Just go and occupy it.”
"How did your grandfather know?"
"Our family has overseas trade, so we naturally know a little bit about overseas affairs."
"I see!"
Li Ye smiled and asked again: "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"
"I have two brothers and a sister. My sister married into the Yu family in Yuezhou."
“Have you been to Chang’an?”
Shen Li shook his head quickly, "I have been to Jiangning County as far away as I can, to accompany my eldest brother to marry the daughter of the Xiao family, my sister-in-law. Then I often go to Suzhou, where my grandma lives, and she likes me the most!"
"Do you know what will happen when you go to Chang'an this time?"
Shen Li's pretty face turned red to the base of her ears, and her head was lowered almost to the level of the table. She said in a voice like a mosquito moaning, "I know!"
Li Ye was so excited that he held her hand, slowly pulled her over, held her in his arms, and asked with a smile: "Do you like me very much?"
Shen Li was held in a man's arms for the first time. Her heart was pounding and she was embarrassed, but there was an indescribable sweetness in her heart. She nodded lightly.
Li Ye pointed to his face, "Then you kiss my face and I will understand what you mean."
Shen Li shyly stepped forward and kissed Li Ye on the face with her lips like a dragonfly touching water.
Li Ye laughed, took out a piece of jade from his arms and put it in her hand, "This is a token for you, I like you very much too."
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
"Go ahead! I'll put on my armor and sit here at night and let you draw."
"good!"
Shen Li stood up and put away the drawing board, looked at Li Ye lovingly, lowered her head and ran away quickly.
Li Ye smiled and shook his head. He liked such a pure girl very much.
Shen Li ran back to her cabin, put down her drawing board, leaned against the window, and looked at the jade pei in her hand. She held the jade pei tightly in her heart and thought of his words again, 'I like you too!'
An incomparable feeling of sweetness came to her heart, and she closed her eyes happily.