My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 149 Of course, it's a restaurant!

Zhang Du led Qu Qiusheng to see the three mines.

Qu Qiusheng knew all three mines. These three were the largest and most productive mines in the county. They had been kept secret as private mines because of their huge profits. The most famous of them was the Anqu Mine.

This was the largest mine in the entire county, with all the necessary equipment. There was even a large estate next to the mine, but it has now been vacated.

Qu Qiusheng was smiling the whole way.

After inspecting the three mines and learning about their current situation, Zhang Du and Qu Qiusheng returned to the large estate of Anqu Mine.

The large manor became empty, and many things were dismantled. These things were all dismantled by Zhang Du and used for his own farm.

The two sat there, and Qu Qiusheng couldn't stop smiling.

Zhang Du spoke up, "Old Master Qu, these mines need to be put into operation as soon as possible, the sooner the better. What are your thoughts?"

Qu Qiusheng pondered for a moment, “Since the Lord is in such a hurry to use them, then we need to gather manpower as soon as possible.”

"First and foremost is this samurai, responsible for monitoring those."

Qu Qiusheng had only said a few words when he suddenly realized, "Hahaha, if Your Majesty doesn't use prisoners, it saves you the trouble of having guards. However, you still need to have people watching over you, to guard against thieves and the like. Even if you hire laborers, you still have to keep an eye on them to prevent anyone from stealing anything."

Zhang Du nodded, "I can send someone to do this. There are many people around you who can read and write, and they can do both bookkeeping and guarding."

"That's great, it saves a lot of expenses. Anqu needs at least twenty people, Xinshan needs eleven or twelve, and Dongmen Mine needs ten. So, we'll need at least forty people."

"Ah."

Zhang Du nodded, "No problem, I can make arrangements when I get back."

“Although the people around Zhang Jun are capable, they may not know how to manage a mine. I have some veterans who have followed me for a long time. I can transfer a few of them to teach them.”

"it is good."

"Then there's the issue of miners. Since the Lord wants to recruit villagers, we'll do as the Lord requests. However, mining isn't an easy job; it's not something you can learn right away. I can send some experienced miners to teach the newcomers."

"As for its scale, if Anqu were to be fully exploited, it could probably accommodate nearly a thousand people. I just wonder about your side, my lord."

"There's no need to use so much at the beginning. We can do it little by little. Lord Junhou just bought these three mines, and his funds are not enough."

Qu Qiusheng looked at Zhang Du in surprise, "You really bought it?"

"Hmm? What does Elder Qu mean by this?"

"Ah, I thought the governor bought it as a gift for you, my lord."

“How could a prefect acquire private property? These were all purchased by the lord himself with money.”

"Then I know what to do. As for the tools and such, I can figure that out."

Qu Qiusheng, being a seasoned businessman, knew exactly what he could and couldn't ask. Apart from the mining, he didn't ask anything else, including about sales.

In the past, after mining iron and copper, they would usually sell them to other places because there was no shortage of these things locally, and the prices were too low. However, in other regions, the prices could rise several times over.

However, Li Xuanba also said that there was no need to rush to sell the goods, so Qu Qiusheng immediately dared not ask any more questions.

There are many secrets among powerful families. As long as the other party doesn't tell him, Qu Qiusheng will pretend he doesn't know anything. Knowing too much would be dangerous.

Zhang Du grew increasingly fond of the cunning old man before him. He negotiated the specifics of the project with him and decided to officially begin mining three days later.

By the time Zhang Du returned to the farm, it was already quite dark.

He went into the tent and reported his mission to Li Xuanba.

"It's good that we can get to work."

"I think the ore extracted can be processed in two batches."

Li Xuanba revealed all his thoughts in front of Zhang Du.

"We can sell half of this stock to cover the recruitment costs of those workers, as well as the cost of tools, taxes, and so on."

"I want to send the other half to Buffalo Mountain."

Zhang Du understood.

When the lord said there was no need to rush to sell the goods, he had some suspicions, and sure enough, it was true.

Li Xuanba said, "The mountains are short of tools and coal. I originally wanted to forge weapons and tools directly and then transport them there. However, the road from here to Wild Buffalo Mountain is not short. I can ensure safety here in Loufan, but if I continue south, I dare not say that I will not be discovered."

"If the transportation of a large number of weapons is discovered, it will cause a major disaster." "Therefore, I think we should simply let the people in the village smelt and forge their own weapons!"

"They can build whatever they want without any worries!"

"It could also support a group of artisans."

"I heard from Qu Qiusheng that they used to transport their goods elsewhere. Perfect, we can use that as an excuse to transport the goods there, sell half, and let the people in the mountains take the other half."

Li Xuanba explained his initial plan, and then asked, "What do you think?"

Zhang Du smiled and said, "Your Excellency's idea is excellent!"

"These are exactly the things that the mountains lack. If we could support a group of craftsmen and have enough iron and coal, it would be much more convenient whether we were cultivating land, building houses, or fighting and killing!"

Li Xuanba nodded, "Yes, and it would be even better if we could get some more horses and cattle."

“All of this requires money, and I can’t keep asking my mother and brother for money. It seems that I need to balance the goods I deliver and the goods I sell. Without money, it’s not easy to do other things.”

Zhang Du deeply agreed.

He thought for a moment, then said, “My lord, I’ve heard that trading with the Turks is very profitable. Horses and cattle are very cheap there, and you can get a lot of goods in exchange for just a little porcelain or something else.”

“The Turks have frequently raided the borders and plundered the people. I do not wish to engage in private trade with them.”

"Here."

Zhang Du didn't say anything more after hearing Li Xuanba's answer.

Li Xuanba stood up. "Let's get these mines sorted out first. In a few days, I'll get the map of this area. Then we can work together to figure out a route and see how to successfully transport the goods to Wild Buffalo Mountain."

"Here!"

"Let's settle the iron and coal business first, then we can talk about cattle and horses. There are quite a few livestock on Buffalo Mountain, but we don't know if we can tame them. The horses here in Loufan aren't expensive. If all else fails, we can buy some nags here and have them transport the goods to Buffalo Mountain. Then we can leave the goods and horses behind."

"By the way, Zhang Tuanzuo, we still need to establish contact with Qingzao Village as soon as possible. Do you have any good ideas?"

Zhang Du frowned and pondered for a long time. "The only way to maintain communication is to set up outposts in the cities along the way, similar to the post stations of the imperial court."

"My lord, let me think of a way!"

"it is good."

The two then discussed many other matters.

Zhang Du also noticed that the Marquis's mentality seemed to have changed. In the past, he only wanted to help more people survive, but now, he was heading towards rebellion. He even began to openly ask himself how to strengthen the power on the mountain and how to accept more people.

It was already dark when I came out of Li Xuanba's place.

Zhang Du stood outside, a cold wind blowing.

But his heart was burning with passion.

Zhang Du had wanted to rebel for a long time.

Not only him, but most of his fellow disciples shared the same thought. If Liu Xuan hadn't suddenly invited them, they would have already become outlaws by now.

Compared to them, the potential of the Lord is obviously many times greater, and the probability of him succeeding in the future is extremely high, which is completely incomparable to their small-scale efforts.

Having studied under Liu Xuan for so many years, Zhang Du also harbored the ambition to change the world.

Most of his fellow disciples were still awake, waiting for him. When Zhang Du returned, they all asked about the mine. Zhang Du answered a few questions and sat down among them. After a moment of contemplation, Zhang Du suddenly asked, "Brothers, if we want to establish contact with the people in the mountains and be able to send orders and exchange intelligence at any time, what should we do?"

Do you have any good ideas?

The group exchanged glances, and one of them suddenly spoke up: "We can only follow the example of the post station."

"Yes, but we can't actually set up a post station."

"Then let's set something else!"

"Set what?"

"A restaurant!"

"Why not just set up restaurants along the road? Restaurants are the least likely to go out of business, and they won't arouse suspicion. Besides, we can gather a lot of information, and with people coming and going, we won't have to worry about being investigated."

(End of this chapter)