Love Lock

Chapter 133 The New Foreman
Han Lei has a portable system that allows her to buy pork at relatively low prices.

Noble people may look down on pork, but for the poor, pork is a rare delicacy that can be enjoyed at the dinner table.

Not only does pork nourish their bodies, but after Han Lei taught them the cooking methods, pork has also become a rare delicacy.

Not only did Zhao Zun and his guards fall in love with pork, but even the nobles of Qingshui County flocked to it.

Thinking of that mouthwatering taste, Zhao Zun actually swallowed.

He walked to the center of the thatched hut and said loudly, "Listen up, everyone! The princess says that starting today, our meals will be improved, and we'll have meat every two days!"

Upon hearing this, the laborers were stunned. After confirming that what Zhao Zun said was true, they all burst into enthusiastic cheers.

To avoid a repeat of the looting incident at Tongfulou last time, Zhao Zun announced the dining rules while Han Lei was making arrangements.

Han Lei found several chefs who cooked, bought several pots of braised pork from the system, and handed them over.

"Let's share this meat with everyone and let them have a good meal."

Seeing the several bowls of braised pork that suddenly appeared out of nowhere, the chef, without a moment of surprise, took the bowls of meat, his eyes welling up with tears.

"Your Highness, you have the heart of a Bodhisattva!"

They had worked for many noble families, but which noble family treated them as human beings?
Then look at the prince and princess in front of them. Not only do they speak to them in a soft and gentle manner, but they also give them double the wages and are so considerate of them.

Everyone secretly rejoiced that coming here to work was the right decision.

The laborers were already sitting properly around the table, their eyes shining as they looked at the steaming braised pork. The sound of swallowing saliva filled the air.

"This meat smells so good!"

A young laborer picked up a piece of bright red meat, took a careful bite, and a satisfied smile immediately appeared on his face.

"Yes, I've never eaten such delicious meat before!" Another laborer nodded repeatedly, his mouth stuffed full.

Han Lei watched them eat with relish and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhao Zun nudged her with his elbow and handed her a set of bowls and chopsticks.

"Let's eat, I'm hungry too."

"Ok!"

Han Lei nodded, and the two of them took their bowls and chopsticks and sat down with the laborers, eating happily just like them.

The sky had completely darkened, and torches were placed on the wooden frame outside the thatched hut.

The miners sat around a simple wooden table, the sounds of clinking bowls and chopsticks, laughter, and conversation creating a lively atmosphere.

Laughter filled the dinner table, and the conversation gradually shifted from the food to the daytime work.

A tall, thin laborer looked up at the thatched hut above his head, wiped the grease from his mouth, and began to show off with a smug look on his face.

"Oh my! You don't know until you compare! Compared to this, the shelter at our mine is much better! This thatched shelter sways in the wind, while ours is as stable as Mount Tai!"

Another short, stocky laborer swallowed the braised pork in his mouth and nodded repeatedly.

"That's right, that's right. We just tried it, and several people shook it, but it didn't budge."

A cement factory worker was eating with his head down when he heard this, so he looked up and stared at them curiously.

"Have you set up sheds at your mine too?"

The short, stocky laborer nodded proudly, "Yes! It was just built today, with corrugated steel sheets. It's impervious to wind and rain. Look at this thatched hut, if it really rains, it leaks like a sieve! It's nothing compared to our shed."

Is it really that good?

The laborers at the cement plant all looked on with envy.

Han Lei and Zhao Zun listened to their boasting and comparing, and they both found it amusing.

But the cement plant was the main base, and these two thatched huts were not only used for eating and resting, but all the laborers also slept fully clothed under the huts at night.

It's alright now, but it would be a real problem if the rainy season came.

Han Lei walked over with a bowl in her hand, interrupting them with a smile: "Alright, alright, stop being envious. After we finish eating, I'll buy some materials, and the miners will help us replace these two thatched sheds."

Hearing that these two sheds would also be replaced with corrugated steel roofs, all the laborers cheered again.

After the meal, Han Lei took out many solar-powered lights and asked the laborers to find places to hang them. Once the lights were turned on, the entire area was brightly illuminated.

The laborers saw so many new and exciting things today, and with Princess Han Lei, this "fairy-like" princess, everyone is gradually getting used to it.

Zhao Zun had Lao Meng and Zhang Ergou select some clever laborers to go to the open space next door to learn how to drive a three-wheeled vehicle.

Start by having a small number of people learn it to keep up with the pace of transportation, and then gradually expand the program to a wider audience.

Han Lei took a measuring tape, walked to the two thatched sheds, and carefully compared their dimensions. Then, she bought enough materials from the system.

The miners already had experience in building and installing equipment, and after Han Lei explained some precautions and key points, she entrusted them with the tools and the construction work with peace of mind.

As night deepened, under the illumination of solar lights, the laborers, whether learning to drive a three-wheeled vehicle or working on setting up sheds, all wore smiles after a long day of hard work.

Although the work is arduous and demanding, they are building a simple yet warm shelter with their own hands in this vast, open mountain wilderness.

When Zhao Zun and Han Lei returned to the house, it was already late at night. The moonlight shone like water on the bluestone slabs, reflecting their tired figures.

The courtyard was quiet, with only the rustling sound of the breeze through the treetops.

However, when they entered the inner courtyard, they saw a soft light shining from the old lady's room; it was the warm glow of a solar-powered lamp.

The old lady was clearly not resting yet.

Hearing familiar footsteps and whispers coming from the courtyard, the old lady put on a thin blouse, picked up the solar-powered lamp, and slowly came out to greet them.

The light shone on her kind face, making it appear exceptionally gentle.

"mother."

Han Lei spotted the old lady at a glance and quickly called out softly, her tone tinged with apology.

"Mother, why aren't you resting yet?"

Upon seeing this, Zhao Zun quickly stepped forward and reached out to support the old lady's arm.

The old lady smiled slightly, her gaze sweeping over the two of them before finally settling on Han Lei's dusty dress, her brows furrowing slightly.

"You two have been busy all day, and I couldn't help you much, so I was just waiting to see if you were back. Look at how dirty your clothes are! Did you go to the cement factory with Zun'er today?"

Han Lei nodded and explained softly, "Mom, it's okay. The cement factory needed some help today, so we went over to lend a hand."

Upon hearing this, the old lady glared at Zhao Zun with a hint of reproach and scolded, "Why don't you care about your wife? You make her run around doing things for you, and she's exhausted like this."

Zhao Zun touched his nose, gave an awkward smile, and didn't reply.

Seeing this, the old lady didn't say anything more, but gently patted Han Lei's hand and said softly, "Go wash up and go to bed, don't tire yourself out."

Zhao Zun then took Han Lei's hand and swaggered back to his room. The servant on night duty had already prepared hot water. Seeing the two enter the room, he came in, placed the hot water down, and then respectfully withdrew, thoughtfully closing the door behind him.

Han Lei looked at the tightly closed door, her lips twitching slightly, a sense of helplessness washing over her.

She turned to look at Zhao Zun, only to see that he had already opened the cabinet, skillfully taken out a set of bedding, and spread it on the floor in front of the bed.

"You sleep on the bed, I'll sleep on the floor."

While tidying the bedding, Zhao Zun spoke without looking up, his tone so natural as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

Han Lei's lips twitched again, and she silently grumbled to herself.

It seems that Zhao Zun's decision to put her in a room and keep the door closed all day yesterday was not a coincidence, but rather a well-prepared plan!
After Zhao Zun finished washing up, Han Lei watched him undress in front of her, and she subconsciously grabbed his collar.

To everyone's surprise, Zhao Zun simply took off his outer robe and nimbly crawled into the quilt on the floor. Then he looked up at Han Lei, who was still standing there without moving.

Seeing that she still looked wary, Zhao Zun couldn't help but chuckle.

"Sleep well, you have to get up early tomorrow."

After saying that, Zhao Zun lay down, closed his eyes, and made no further movements.

After running around the cement plant all day, Han Lei was exhausted, feeling as if all her strength had been drained from her body.

After gently washing up, she glanced at Zhao Zun, who seemed to be asleep, before reluctantly taking off her coat and climbing into bed.

The moment she lay down, she completely relaxed.

She turned off the light, pulled the blanket over herself, felt Zhao Zun's steady, long breaths, and unknowingly fell into a deep sleep.

In the stillness of the night, only the faint silvery glow of moonlight filtering in through the window remained.

Han Lei's breathing gradually became steady, while Zhao Zun on the ground quietly opened his eyes in the darkness.

He propped himself up, gazing tenderly at the figure on the bed, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

The next morning, before the old lady and Zhao Ling'er had even gotten out of bed, Zhao Zun and his companion had already set off in the morning light.

When the two men and one horse arrived at the magistrate's mansion, there were only a dozen or so recruits scattered around the place where Xiao Zhengfei was recruiting soldiers.

Upon seeing Zhao Zun and Han Lei arrive, Xiao Zhengfei quickly stood up and bowed.

"Your Majesty, Princess."

"Hmm! How is it?"

Zhao Zun nodded, glanced at the sparse number of applicants, and frowned.

"Sigh! It's been three days, and we've only recruited a little over three hundred people." Xiao Zhengfei sighed and then explained.

“The Beiguan military camp has already conscripted a large number of young and strong men, leaving mostly the elderly, women, and children in the village. Even if there are a few young and strong men left, it is currently the busy farming season, and they are all busy cultivating the fields. How could they have time to enlist?”

Upon hearing this, Zhao Zhong's heart sank.

He turned to look at Han Lei and saw that she also had a solemn expression. Zhao Zun couldn't help but think to himself: At this rate, when will we ever be able to build a decent army?

He pondered for a moment and said to Xiao Zhengfei, "Let's recruit five hundred soldiers first and start training them. We'll figure out the rest later."

Han Lei nodded and agreed, "That's all we can do for now. Training the soldiers will take time, so we need to hurry."

At this moment, Han Lei suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said to Xiao Zhengfei, "Why don't you recruit laborers and experts in raising pigs and chickens at the same time? Anyway, Zhao Zun is in charge of land acquisition, and Qu Linjiang is nearby. We can start by setting up pig farms and chicken and duck farms and improve everyone's meals regularly."

Upon hearing this, a hint of joy flashed in Xiao Zhengfei's eyes, and he quickly replied, "Alright, let's recruit them together."

Zhao Zun also thought Han Lei's suggestion was feasible, and his furrowed brows relaxed slightly.

"Where do you plan to place the garrison's camp?" Han Lei turned to look at Zhao Zun.

Zhao Zun thought for a moment, then turned his gaze toward the cement plant in the distance.

"Let's settle near the cement factory, including the pig farm and the chicken and duck farm. It's sparsely populated and developing rapidly there. Plus, it's close by, so we can easily travel there if anything happens."

Han Lei nodded.

There's a lot of wasteland near the cement plant, and the projects there will all be under closed management, making it an ideal place for training.

“Zhengfei, we are short-handed right now. You need to recruit a lot of craftsmen and laborers.” Zhao Zun’s words were clearly urgent.

"Yes, Your Highness. I have already sent people to post notices in the nearby villages, and we should have news soon," Xiao Zhengfei replied.

Starting from scratch, finding suitable personnel is the biggest headache for Zhao Zun and Han Lei. Without people, everything is meaningless.

"In any case, we have to speed things up. Zhengfei, you get on your end and, whatever personnel you recruit, get them to report to the cement plant immediately."

Xiao Zhengfei respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Highness."

After communicating with Xiao Zhengfei, Zhao Zun helped Han Lei onto the brocade-eared horse, and then nimbly mounted himself, sitting behind Han Lei.

The two men spurred their horses toward the cement factory. Just then, Gu Changfeng, the magistrate of Fufeng County, rushed out to greet the Prince of Cangzhou, having just been informed by his guards that the Prince had arrived in person…

This large area around the cement plant is now a key development area for Zhao Zun. Whether it's building factories, constructing roads, or training troops, everything starts from this place.

Zhao Zun knew that only by developing this area could they expand to more distant places and lay a solid foundation for their plans.

Upon entering the cement factory, Zhao Zun looked around but couldn't find Yang Qiquan. He frowned and asked a nearby laborer, "Where's Yang Qiquan?"

The laborers stopped working and respectfully replied, "Your Highness, Master Yang's kiln is finished and they are already trying to light it. Master Yang and the others have gone to the mine to repair the road."

Zhao Zun nodded, feeling slightly gratified.

As per Han Lei's work arrangement, Zhang Ergou used a three-wheeled vehicle to take the craftsmen to the mining area to repair the road.

At the cement plant, some laborers were preparing to burn cement clinker, while some farmers lined up in an open space in the distance to learn how to test drive a three-wheeled motorcycle from Lao Meng.

Everything is proceeding smoothly. With Yang Dazhu, the foreman newly selected by Zhao Zun, and two kiln-firing masters overseeing things, there shouldn't be any major problems.

Zhao Zun walked over to Yang Dazhu, patted him on the shoulder, and asked, "Dazhu, how's it going over here?"

Yang Dazhu wiped the sweat from his forehead, pointed to the glowing red kiln, and grinned.

"Your Highness, everything is going smoothly. The first batch of clinker will be successfully fired soon."

Zhao Zun nodded in satisfaction, his eyes filled with approval: "Very good, you did a good job."

Yang Dazhu smiled憨厚ly, his tone carrying a hint of pride: "Your Highness, rest assured, I will certainly live up to your expectations."

Looking at the young man before him, Zhao Zun couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.

Yang Dazhu is Yang Qiquan's son. He used to work for a wealthy family, but his father called him here.

Although his skills were not as exquisite as his father's, he was hardworking and responsible, and he especially loved to study new and interesting things. He was also ambitious.

Therefore, Zhao Zun chose him as the new foreman.