The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 240 Process
Shuozhou County.

At noon.

There weren't many pedestrians on the street, and the shops on both sides weren't doing much business.

The woman was covered in dirt, followed by three children. The two boys were naked, skinny as skewers, and looked like little radishes. Only the seven or eight-year-old girl wore a patched-up garment and had smeared ash on her face.

Upon arriving at the local temple, they quickly found a beggar.

The beggar lay lazily on the ground, not moving for a long time, when the woman kicked him, startling him awake. Upon seeing who it was, he quickly sat up.

"Why are you here?"

"Honey, I heard some news, but I don't know if it's true or not, so I came to tell you."

It turns out they were a couple.

The beggar didn't care much. He had only had one bowl of porridge in the past few days, and he didn't want to waste his energy talking. He didn't expect his wife to bring good news either, and even if there was good news, it wouldn't be their turn.

The beggar complained, "Why don't you take Gou'er and the others to rest more? They've come all this way to find me; how much do they need to eat to recover?"

It's much easier for women to beg with children than for men, so the family separates. The area around the local temple is a market, more crowded, but it's a mixed bag, and the woman and child could easily get into trouble. He's not afraid, except for his own life, so he stays in the market so his wife can easily find him if she gets into trouble.

The wives would take the children to the streets and alleys of the city, where kind-hearted families would give them some food.

Seeing that the children were all safe and sound, the beggar was relieved.

The woman didn't care and excitedly told the beggar, "When I was begging for food outside Huidonglou, I heard the waiter inside say that they were recruiting people to herd livestock outside the pass, and that they would have food to eat if they went there."

"How could there be such a good thing? It must be a scam."

The beggar didn't believe it.

“In our situation, what are we worth scamming?” The woman had managed to beg with her three children until now, without losing a single one. She was strong-willed and had her own ideas.

It is true.

The beggar did not object. More and more people came to the land temple to beg, and fewer and fewer kind-hearted people. If this continued, they would starve to death sooner or later. Since they were going to die anyway, they might as well try anything.

So the beggar, his wife, and their child went to look for it. The woman asked around and, following the address provided by the restaurant waiter, indeed found a shop.

The beggar could actually read; he looked at the sign and read aloud, "Gathering Prosperity."

A crowd had gathered outside the shop. Looking inside, the furnishings were simple, with a few tables set up. Two of the tables were occupied, and the shop assistant was explaining something to a group of people who were dressed in rags and were clearly disaster victims.

Upon arriving at the destination, the woman hesitated and dared not go in.

The beggar told his wife to watch the child carefully, then went inside alone. Many people were staring at him from the doorway, but he remained calm.

Soon a waiter came to inquire, and the beggar told him the truth. The waiter nodded and led the beggar to an empty table. The beggar could already hear people talking about cattle and sheep, loans and the like.

I'm not afraid of borrowing money; I'd love for someone to lend me money, but unfortunately, no one will lend to me, no matter how high the interest rate.

To get a loan, you need collateral, either a house or land, or something valuable. People aren't stupid; they won't let their money go to waste. The beggar became increasingly frustrated.

What exactly is this newly opened business going to do?

"You get work points for working. Once the city is built, you can get low-interest loans. The more work points you have, the more you can borrow."

"They provide meals even though we work."

"Give us no money, just cattle and sheep, and designate pastureland."

"The pastureland naturally belongs to the merchant, how could it be yours? However, we can sign a contract where the title deed is yours and the land title deed is the merchant's. In other words, as long as you graze your livestock, according to the agreement, you can only sell it to the merchant each year. The pastureland cannot be taken back, and you cannot sell it either. No matter what the reason, if you stop grazing your livestock, the pastureland will be taken back into the hands of the merchant."

The shopkeeper explained it many times every day, so it was clear and easy to understand. He was very enthusiastic towards people who came in, afraid that they wouldn't understand. The beggar quickly understood and wondered to himself, "How can there be such a good thing in the world?"

The man was overly enthusiastic, more like a conman, and sounded perfectly reasonable, leaving the beggar hesitant to make a decision.

It wasn't that the shop assistant was being kind; it was just that the business had heavy quotas. They each had a share of the quotas and had to recruit a certain number of people. No one dared not fail to meet their quotas. Seeing the beggar hesitate, the shop assistant became anxious and urged, "Look at you, you're all skin and bones. You might collapse tomorrow. The business doesn't discriminate as long as you're healthy, but we don't want sick people. You'll regret it later."

Everyone should go to the construction site to work and build the city. If you can build a city, you can raise livestock. There's nothing that people can't learn.

The shopkeeper didn't mind the beggar's dirty clothes. In order to complete the business's tasks, the shopkeeper was eager for more beggars to come to the door. These destitute disaster victims were the best targets for recruitment.

Those who were physically weak or not clever enough were mostly eliminated, and the surviving beggars were mostly those needed by the merchants.

"Shuozhou is still too small."

Seeing the results of the past two weeks, the shopkeeper couldn't help but shake his head. Shuozhou was just a small county town in the Nine Border Regions, with a total population of only around 20,000. There were not many refugees in the county town, only about a hundred.

Currently, the central and east-central parts of Datong are not Wang Xin's territory; in fact, the entire Datong area is not Wang Xin's territory.

However, by creating a stir, Wang Xin gained influence over the border areas of the five western prefectures and counties of Datong. Through this influence, he mobilized even more people, and the newly established Juzhongchang mainly recruited disaster victims in the five prefectures and counties.

“The disaster victims in these counties and prefectures mainly come from various parts of Fugu. Fugu suffered severe disasters, and the local people could not survive at all. Most of those who came here have relatives to rely on, and there are not many of them.”

Datong was a poor place. Although there were huge business opportunities, they did not benefit the people. People would not flee to Datong to escape famine.

"Let's open one in Taiyuan."

Taiyuan, Shanxi, is the provincial capital. Opening a branch in the capital would cause a huge stir. However, the businessmen from Datong were not worried. They were bolder than others. They believed that opening one branch in Taiyuan would solve their manpower shortage.

We need to select those poor people from the disaster victims who, even after the disaster year is over, don't expect to return to their hometowns, and make them willing to stay outside the pass to herd livestock for us.

The disaster victims only needed to be fed, and the mud bricks were sourced locally, so the cost of repairing the city was not high.

Thinking of Tu Mao Chuan, a place that can generate nearly a million taels of silver in business every year, the participating merchants wish they could build the new city and distribute the pastureland in a single day.
-
"Bahhhhh."

Wang Xin returned from Weiyuan Pass, and Tang Ping had already stayed there. From now on, he would have to rely on himself. Tang Ping's attitude was fine, and as for his ability, guarding Weiyuan Pass should not be a problem.

The biggest problem at Weiyuan Pass is not the enemy. If it were the enemy, Wang Xin wouldn't be worried about Tang Ping's abilities.

"General."

When Ma Fan learned that the general had returned, he rushed over to greet him.

Wang Xin noticed that more than half of the cavalry in the camp were missing, so he asked, "Where is Zhang Can?"

"They went out with their men to sweep through the area."

Sure enough.

Tu Mao Chuan was difficult to manage and was seen as a burden by the imperial court. However, where there is profit, there are merchants. Wang Xin had even seen Chinese merchants in Somalia, the most chaotic and impoverished region. If Somalia could attract merchants, Tu Mao Chuan would certainly be a better place.

The imperial court couldn't afford it, but the merchants were willing to. With the military expenses resolved, Zhang Can was also pleased and determined to secure a stable supply of Tu Mao Chuan for the merchants.

Seeing the general's expression, Ma Fan asked worriedly, "Is the general dissatisfied?"

Wang Xin shook his head.

Leaving Zhang Can in Chiershan is a matter of whether it's a good thing or a bad thing. It's not that I don't trust Zhang Can's loyalty, but I will leave Chiershan sooner or later. After that, the future of Tu Mao Chuan will be guided by Zhang Can and the merchants.

Zhang Can's bravery, coupled with the greed of merchants, made it impossible for Wang Xin to be sure when the small flame would be extinguished by the wind or spread into a raging fire in the wilderness, all in an effort to solve his own military expenses problem.

In short, the fires must not spread inland.

Wang Xin stopped thinking about it. Whether it was good or bad, he would let it develop as it was, and if it was bad, he would step in to stop it outside the pass. He couldn't help but raise his head and look at the construction site not far away.

The main functions of Zhenlu City were market and defense. Commercial needs accounted for half or even more of the city's needs, so when building a new city, more attention was paid to this aspect, and there were many stables and sheep pens planned in the city.

Built on the north bank of the Hun River, and with the goods traded within the city, it was not afraid of being besieged by the enemy.

With several hundred men guarding the city walls, even several thousand barbarian troops couldn't break through.

Once cannons are installed, even tens of thousands of barbarians will only end up with their heads smashed and bleeding.

There were many soldiers around, but that didn't stop a group of ragged children from running around and playing. The children's high-pitched laughter was particularly loud, and Wang Xin couldn't help but smile.

Among the disaster victims at the construction site, some were fetching water from the river, some were laying bricks, some were stuffing mud into wooden molds, and others were neatly stacking mud bricks on the ground, waiting for the sun to dry them.

The company has extensive management experience, and it carried out such a large project in an orderly manner, which Wang Xin had to admire. This was a skill in itself.

There were sheds all around. In order to improve the efficiency of the workers, the merchants built four places to eat, so that the workers would not have to walk too far. After eating lunch and resting for a while, they would continue to work in the afternoon.

In just one month, some places already have city walls, while others are still empty land, but the basic structure is already visible.

Many businessmen were paying attention, and there were many things to discuss. So, a dozen tents were temporarily set up on the banks of the Hun River. The newly established trading company was called Juzhongchang, and seven trading companies were responsible for voting on major matters. About thirty businessmen participated.

There aren't many things I need to worry about outside the pass anymore; now it's all about efficiency.

It was Ouyanhu who first conquered the various tribes of the Hu people, and then gathered their forces to destroy him. At that time, Ouyanhu was indeed someone he could not deal with. He had always used tricks to deal with the Chanyu, not to fight head-on with strength.

It was better to first secure the Hetao region, then cut off Ou Yanhu's retreat, turning him from a fierce tiger into a stray dog.

Whoever is faster will gain the upper hand, and that will be the key to whether I can defeat Ou Yanhu.

"Has Xue Dongjia returned?" Wang Xin asked.

"not yet."

I had already discussed the matter of casting cannons in Datong with Zhang Wenjin, and Zhang Wenjin did not object at the time. Where should we cast cannons? It certainly wouldn't work outside the Great Wall, not only because of safety issues, but also because the conditions were not suitable.

The terrain of Yanmen Pass is complex and not conducive to the transportation of cannons. The most suitable place is in the Niuxin Mountain area of ​​Zuoyun County.

Niuxin Mountain is just a small hill surrounded by flat land, a rare plain area in Datong. It also has the Shili River and is rich in mineral resources. It is relatively close to Tuanshankou and Weiyuanguan, making it the most suitable place to cast cannons at present.

With the 100,000 taels of silver promised by the merchant, he was not short of silver for a short time, but he lacked cannons.

Xue Yan returned to Yanmen Pass and took the craftsmen he had invited from the south to the Niuxin Mountain area for inspection. Once the craftsmen felt that the location was acceptable, he planned to go to Niuxin Mountain himself to discuss the casting of cannons with the craftsmen.

One task after another, even though Wang Xin felt in good health, he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed; traveling was truly exhausting.

Day two.

Wang Xin had a good sleep and felt refreshed.

This place has abundant water resources, mountains and rivers nearby, and plenty of trees. Otherwise, the Ming Dynasty would not have established Zhenluwei here. Nowadays, people lack environmental awareness and need firewood for cooking and drinking.

Every day, people would come into the mountains to cut down trees. Wang Xin washed his face and ate breakfast.

Shi Ping came in from outside and said, "Shuo Erhui is back."

"Please invite him."

Wang Xin nodded.

Soon, Shuoerhui calmly lifted the curtain and entered the tent. He saw Wang Xin and a group of guards sitting and eating. There was no table; instead, two wooden boxes were put together to form a table, and the boxes were filled with many things.

"Have you eaten?"

Wang Xin laughed.

"No."

"Sit down and eat together."

Wang Xin greeted him.

Shuo Erhui didn't stand on ceremony and squeezed in. A young guard got up to get him a bowl and chopsticks.

During this period, Wang Xin was almost sick of eating meat. He ate only a pot of millet porridge and a pot of boiled wild vegetables with a little salt. Although it was simple, Shuo Erhui ate it with great relish.

"Shuoerhui, you want to be a Taiji, don't you?"

Seeing that Shuo Erhui couldn't drink anymore and slowed down, Wang Xin slowly spoke.

Shuo Erhui was a slave.

Wang Xin could understand his betrayal of the Chanyu, and he was unwilling to join Dabansheng because Dabansheng had betrayed him, which he could also understand, but there was no need for him to work so hard for him.

Shuoerhui originally had four hundred men under his command, all of whom he brought from the Shanyu tribe. With these four hundred men, he could roam freely throughout the entire desert.

In short, bandits.

The reason I was able to kill Ning Longxiong was because Ning Longxiong was unfamiliar with my fighting style and deliberately came to his death. If Ning Longxiong had avoided me in the desert, I would have had no way to deal with him.

No need to be restrained by others, do whatever you want, why should you listen to others?

After much thought, this is the only way.

Shuo Erhui was shocked. He put down his bowl in a daze. He had drunk several bowls by himself. No food was prepared for him. If he ate too much, the others would have to eat less.

(End of this chapter)