Tang Dynasty Little Godfather

Chapter 254 Big Gift
Others are known for their bold moves upon taking office, but Li Lingwen and his group were known for their repeated vomiting.

In an instant, the main hall of the Ministry of Works was filled with a terrible stench.

Wang Maozhong has already shown remarkable resilience by not breaking down yet.

Suppressing his urge to kill, Wang Maozhong immediately ordered people to clean the hall and arranged for Wang Xi and the others to take a bath, while also providing them with some clean clothes.

Once all this is done, it means they will no longer smell bad, and the fathers can get close to them.

Li Lingwen roared angrily, then charged forward, arriving in front of Li Xun. With a thunderous kick, he knocked away Wang Xi and the others beside him. Then, he grabbed Li Xun by the collar and raised his hand to kill him.

If you don't punish him for three days, he will tear off the tiles on the roof.

Li Xun turned pale with fright and cried out in panic, "Father, please calm down! I did all this for you!"

Li Lingwen was taken aback at first, then flew into a rage, "Father doesn't want your excrement."

"Duke of Song, please wait."

Wang Maozhong suddenly stopped him, then asked Li Xun, "Nephew, explain yourself clearly, what exactly happened?"

Li Xun hurriedly said, "That's right. We saw how hard you all work, so we wanted to present you with a big gift."

Li Ling asked doubtfully, "Could it be feces?"

“That’s right.” Li Xun nodded happily.

"what?"

Li Lingwen went completely berserk and unleashed another thunderous kick.

Wang Shuang and Cui Gu'er rushed forward and hugged him, saying, "Uncle Li, please calm down and let us explain."

Wang Xi dared not go forward, and could only call out from afar, "Uncle Li, it's not excrement, it's grain."

"food?"

Everyone was stunned.

"Yes."

Wang Xi nodded directly, "It's grain."

The difference between grain and excrement is enormous.

Cui Shendao asked, "What exactly is going on?"

Wang Xi said, "The thing is, we learned that you uncles and elders are going to the Ministry of Works because we were bullied and they want to stand up for us. So naturally we won't let you uncles and elders fight alone."

So we decided to use Taoist philosophy to present a great gift to all of you uncles and elders. It is indeed related to excrement and urine, but our main focus is on fertilization.”

"Fertilization?"

Li Lingwen then released his grip and casually kicked Wang Shuang and Cui Gu'er away with two kicks.

If child abuse were a crime today, these guys would all be shot at.

Unfortunately, that's not possible, so the only option is to develop a strong physique.

Wang Xi nodded and said, "Last time when I was at the Ministry of Works, I mentioned this matter, but it was ridiculed by many elders. So when we got back, we decided to seriously study this fertilizer."

Since our uncles and elders have come to the Ministry of Works, we've decided to offer this fertilizer to them.

Cui Shendao asked excitedly, "You really figured it out?"

It's no wonder he was so agitated. The Tang Dynasty had a major problem: the grain supply in Guanzhong was insufficient to meet the needs of the region, especially for the metropolis of Chang'an. Grain had to be transported from Jiangnan, but the canal from Luoyang to Chang'an was always blocked, resulting in huge financial losses.

It even forced the emperor and his court officials to flee to Luoyang for food.

If fertilizer quality improves, local grain production will increase. It is no exaggeration to say that for every additional shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain produced in Guanzhong, the imperial court could save ten shi in expenditures.

This is simply unimaginable.

Wang Xi nodded and said, "We have indeed found that some combinations of raw materials can be used as fertilizer, but the price is relatively expensive, so it can only be used as a supplement."

Therefore, we studied manure and discovered methods to improve existing fertilizers and avoid waste, allowing the Guanzhong region to have more fertilizer each year and grow more grain.

Huangfu Sengnian added, "In addition, we are also studying how to build suitable cargo ships for each section of the river to increase the transport volume and save manpower. At present, His Majesty is most concerned about the finances, and the grain in Guanzhong is a huge expenditure in the finances. If we can increase the grain in Guanzhong and reduce the loss of grain during transportation, it will be enough to prove that we are right."

bump!
Wang Maozhong rushed over, shoving Cui Shendao aside. He then put a hand on Wang Xi's shoulder, his face full of a fake smile, and chuckled, "Come, come, nephew, come and tell your uncle in detail what exactly happened?"

He really looks just like a naughty uncle holding a lollipop.

Wang Xike didn't hold back and told him some traditional methods of making fertilizer. It was basically about mixing human and animal excrement, plant residues, wood ash, etc., in a certain proportion, and then doing various operations such as watering to produce a commercial organic fertilizer.

In addition, he also informed Wang Maozhong of the formulas for "inorganic" fertilizers such as lime, gypsum, and sulfur.

Moreover, there is a hidden assembly line operation method involved.

The current assembly line model is not suitable for other workshops. The winery has only made slight improvements, which are not really related to the assembly line model. Previously, Bai Ningsu was the one leading the hard work there because the assembly line requires scale, and it is difficult to develop to the scale required for the assembly line all at once.

Even if your workshop can do it, it's very difficult to do it in terms of supporting facilities and other aspects.

However, fertilizer production is entirely feasible.

If you want to produce fertilizer, you need to do it on a large scale. Small-scale production of fertilizer, whether organic or inorganic, is not very meaningful because the demand for fertilizer is huge.

Either don't build it at all, or if you do build it, it must be done on a large scale.

Using the sound of flowing water on this scale would be just right.

Wang Maozhong was a hard worker, shrewd and capable, and he grasped things very quickly, listening with great interest! At the same time, Wang Xi and the others also told Wang Maozhong their transportation ideas, which was to use different boats depending on the section of the river. This actually contained another layer of meaning, namely, segmented transportation.

However, Wang Xi found it inconvenient to emphasize segmented transportation because it was difficult to relate to Taoist thought. Therefore, he emphasized using buoyancy to build different boats according to the river section. But if he were to do this, he would have to carry out segmented transportation. Since canal boats did not enter the Bian River, it was impossible to do so without segmentation.

This method was created by Liu Yan, the later prime minister, and it did alleviate the food crisis in Guanzhong and some financial difficulties to a certain extent.

Of course, Wang Xi also made some improvements on this basis, mainly in terms of ships, which will definitely be more efficient.

It can be said that this time Wang Xi and his team used all their hidden skills, without holding back any longer.

This move is of paramount importance to their godfather group.

This is the first time they've promoted the fathers of other students, and they've put in eight at once. If this foundation is laid well, it will not only strengthen their power, but also attract more fathers of other students, paving the way for the future.

Of course, the key to nurturing is to inspire the fathers' initiative and proactiveness. So Wang Xi and the others only tell the fathers the methods, and the fathers have to figure out how to do it themselves.

Fortunately, Wang Maozhong was a man of few words and didn't expect these young men to do too much. This was already more than enough. After understanding the situation, Wang Maozhong let the young men go back to rest.

"Your father is so stingy, he won't even give you a meal."

Once outside the capital, Li Xun complained to Wang Shuang.

Wang Shuang snorted, "Isn't your father inside too?"

".!"

"It's just a meal," Cui Gu'er said casually. "Can't we afford it? Come on, let's go, Shuang-ge is treating today."

Wang Shuang was stunned. "Why me?"

Cui the orphan said, "If you don't repay the food your father owes, who will?"

"Alright, alright," Wang Shuang said. "I'll treat you. Brother Que, did you bring any money?"

".roll!"

Wang Xi glared at Wang Shuang, then suddenly looked up at the white-clad young swordsman ten steps away. However, Li Bai's appearance today was somewhat unique, with a white cloth covering his nose. "Brother Li Bai, would you like to have a drink?"

"vomit!"

Li Bai vomited on the spot, without hesitation.

These past few days have really disgusted him. He came here to taste the wine, but instead he's been following Wang Xi and the others around looking at feces every day. It would be strange if he didn't vomit when food was mentioned.

Wang Xi laughed heartily and said, "I think I've found a way to deal with him."

After those brats left, Dou Xiguan asked, "So? Did they say it would work?"

He has never been involved in affairs for many years, and this time he took the initiative to come, entirely because he was provoked by his son. He didn't quite understand what he was saying.

Cui Shendao carefully examined the recipes and methods he had just recorded, and nodded slightly, saying, "They do make some sense. Many of these methods have long been widely circulated among the people, and are even recorded in the Qimin Yaoshu. Those kids have simply integrated these methods together, but they have written the recipes more precisely and provided more detailed manufacturing methods. Hmm, it seems those kids have indeed put in a lot of effort!"

Li Lingwen laughed heartily and said, "I've already come to the Ministry of Works as a minor official, how could they not work hard?"

Dou Xiguan suddenly looked at Wang Maozhong and said, "Maozhong, why aren't you saying anything?"

Wang Maozhong was taken aback and frowned, saying, "I completely trust those brats. They won't lie to us, but the premise for doing this is that all the excrement in Guanzhong belongs to us."

Cui Shendao frowned slightly and said, "Currently, much of the excrement in the city is controlled by those hooligans and ruffians, and some minor officials are also involved. In the countryside, it is controlled by some local tyrants."

In ancient times, excrement was a very important strategic resource. However, nobles were not short of money and naturally would not engage in such business. The transportation of excrement was usually done at night, which many honest merchants could not do, so it was taken over by local ruffians.

Dou Xiguan said with a face full of disdain: "There is only one way to deal with these scoundrels, and that is to be even more scoundrel than them. That's how they stole it too."

Li Ling rubbed his hands together and said, "Isn't this exactly our forte? Hehe."

The older men all seemed quite embarrassed.

Cui Shendao said, "Actually, there's no need to use that method from the beginning. Anyway, we have to send people to collect and transport the goods. Why not recruit some ruffians and scoundrels to our own use? After all, not everyone wants to be a ruffian. Isn't this the only way?"

Guo Peng shook his head and said, "It's no use just saying nice things to deal with these scoundrels. You have to cause them some trouble first, and then talk to them about these things. Only then will they take it seriously."

Wang Maozhong chuckled and said, "These are all minor matters. Let's split up and do our own thing."

Cui Shendao said weakly, "Do we have to be in such a hurry?"

Wang Maozhong said, "His Majesty arranged for us to come to the Ministry of Works, which puts us under considerable pressure. If we don't produce results quickly, who knows what will happen?"

Cui Shendao hurriedly said, "But we haven't figured out how the workshop will operate yet. Should the Ministry of Works handle it directly, or should we find someone else to do it?"

“Of course the Ministry of Works should do it themselves; they can make money that way,” Wang Maozhong immediately said.

That's how his horse administration operated: he did business himself, selling horsehair, horsehide, and horse bones, and then used the money he earned to subsidize the horse administration.

Choi Sin-do frowned. "I don't think we should do that."

Wang Maozhong asked, "Why?"

Cui Shendao said, "This fertilizer is different from horsehide. Only a few people need horsehide, but everyone needs fertilizer."

The Ministry of Works simply doesn't have enough manpower to ensure everyone gets enough fertilizer. If the people can't get enough fertilizer, and this affects agriculture, it will cause the Ministry of Works a huge problem, even if we've done very well.

Wang Maozhong said, "Then what do you suggest we do?"

Cui Shendao said, "It should still be left to the merchants to do. Our Ministry of Works is only responsible for assisting and planning."

Dou Xiguan's eyes darted around, and he said, "If this business can make money, why don't we do it ourselves? Anyway, we'll be the ones sending our own people to compete for those excrement businesses."

(End of this chapter)