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Chapter 1457 Good or Bad?

It doesn't matter if the coal dust is hard to burn. After buying it, just find any shop with a black lantern hanging at the door, spend a few copper coins, and a strong man will help you mix in the right proportion of fine clay and lime, put it into a huge basket, and shake it into round coal balls.

Once dried, coal briquettes burn much better than coal dust, and are also cleaner and more hygienic, preventing a room full of coal ash. They're also easy to store; as long as they don't get soaked in water, they can be stored for months or even a year without affecting the firepower.

The reason these businesses were concentrated inside Deshengmen, like the markets outside Chaoyangmen, was mainly due to convenient transportation. There were also horse-drawn carriages outside Deshengmen, and since coal was transported from the Western Hills and beyond the Great Wall, large-scale transportation was the most economical and fastest method.

With the establishment of numerous coal storage plants, private foundries also opened in the west and north. These small workshops couldn't produce very fine castings and couldn't compete with the state-run foundries. However, they were more flexible in their operations and best suited for manufacturing civilian products, such as cast iron stoves and cast iron pots.

The sun was shining brightly this morning, there was hardly any wind, and the temperature was quite high, making it perfect for going out for a stroll. So, businesses unanimously took their shelves down a little early, hoping for a strong start to the year.

As more and more pedestrians appeared on the street, the merchants quickly sent their loudest voices outside to promote their businesses. As the saying goes, it's better to talk than to do; no matter how good the product quality is, you still need to shout it out.

"Beep beep beep...beep beep beep...tap tap tap, tap tap tap..."

Suddenly, a series of rapid copper whistles and the sound of horses' hooves came from the city gate, and in an instant, a black horse galloped in. The color of the rider's clothes was no longer discernible, as they were completely covered in mud and water; only the high plume on his helmet and the three small flags on his back were still fluttering in the wind.

"Beep beep beep...beep beep beep...ouch...clang...tap tap tap...tap tap tap..."

Faced with this situation, a family of three who were crossing the road were dumbfounded. The father pulled his daughter and tried to run a few steps to the other side, while the wife wanted to back up. The originally wide road was now evenly divided among the three of them.

Then tragedy struck. The rider, seeing the three people on the road, instead of reining in his horse to slow down, stomped his heel against the horse's belly to accelerate, trying to squeeze through the gap between the people.

Unfortunately, the difficult maneuver was not completed due to a thin layer of snow on the road. The horse slipped slightly during a small change of direction, and the little girl, who was a step too slow, was struck by the horse's hind legs. She was immediately thrown into the air and crashed heavily into a tree several meters away. She immediately started bleeding from her mouth and nose and was barely breathing.

At this point, the rider who caused the accident went even further. Without stopping at all, or even turning his head, he continued blowing his copper whistle and sped off towards the Drum Tower. Only the crisp sound of hooves and the heart-wrenching cries of the middle-aged couple remained behind him.

"Bah! They're rich but heartless, they treat human life like dirt, they'll get their comeuppance sooner or later!"

A young man hawking his wares on the street witnessed the entire incident of the galloping horse hitting the pedestrian. Seeing the rider completely disregard the pedestrian's life and continue galloping after the accident, he was instantly enraged. Unfortunately, two legs can't catch four, so he could only curse loudly.

"Oh my, you little devil! You've only been in the city a few days, how could you possibly be so generous? Hurry up, go to the back and prepare the goods, don't worry about this!"

Hearing his shop assistant cursing at the door, the old shopkeeper rushed out, first slapping him across the neck, then pulling and dragging him into the shop.

"Uncle, what are you afraid of? In our county, if you hit someone while riding a horse or driving a car, you'll be sued. This is the capital, right? Is there no law here?" The young man was an honest man, and even after being beaten and scolded, he still refused to give up his sense of justice.

"Bullshit! I told you your mother to send you here to broaden your horizons, because I was always afraid you'd be bullied since you're so young. You're all talk and no action, and now you can't even tell good people from bad ones, and you keep talking about the law."

"You think you can just make up the laws? Remember this: stay as far away as possible from any horse with a flag on its back, or I'll be in trouble if you run it over and kill it. You useless brat, what good is yelling? Take your blanket and cover the child with it, just in case he's still alive!" The old shopkeeper couldn't really pull the young man away, so he let go, but the education was still necessary. This child had only been in the city for less than half a month and hadn't seen much of the world. In this world, having a kind heart isn't enough; you also need to understand the law, otherwise even a saint would be thrown into hard labor.

"Silly boy, you got scolded, didn't you? Don't blame your uncle, he's doing this for your own good. Remember what he says, and you won't suffer any losses!" The young man didn't hesitate. He jumped up and down, pulled the cotton quilt that had just been hung out to dry that morning off the line, and ran over to deliver it.

Unfortunately, he was really timid and couldn't stand the sight of blood. He returned even faster than he left, his face deathly pale and his hands trembling. This scene was witnessed by the old owner of the coal briquette shop next door, who chuckled and chimed in.

"Hmph, anyway, the one who hit someone was in the wrong. If I had been hit, my mother would have cried her eyes out!" Hearing this person siding with his uncle, the young man felt wronged. Looking at the couple crying their hearts out, he felt a pang of sympathy and his own eyes reddened.

"Oh, oh, oh, you don't like listening to this anymore? Uncle sees you're an honest child, that's why I'm willing to teach you what laws are. Nobody knows where that horse came from, but the rider is easy to recognize."

Remember this: anyone with a small flag on their back, whether one or three, is a messenger from the border. Anyone who stands in their way is committing treason. Not only will you be punished for running them over, but your family will also face legal trouble. Even if you run over and kill the county magistrate, the same applies.

The three flags were the most powerful; everyone along the way had to give way to them, and a delay of even a moment would result in hard labor for the entire family. This family was finished. Regardless of whether the child could be saved, they would face legal trouble afterward, and at the very least, they would be banished from the capital, perhaps even exiled to some remote corner of the world for hard labor.

With such a big incident on the street, all the shoppers gathered around. Seeing that business was slow, the coal briquette shop owner simply sat down and stopped hawking his wares, taking the opportunity to give the young people a lesson on the laws of the Ming Dynasty.

"Well...well...this rule is wrong. The child is so young and doesn't understand. What's the harm in letting him have his way?" The word "law" reduced the young man's anger by at least half, but he didn't agree with the law and felt it was unreasonable.

"Hey, to be honest, this is all your mother's fault. Your uncle has been telling you for a long time that you should come to the city to study in the new schools, but your mother just wouldn't have it. If you could go to the new schools, you definitely wouldn't think this way."

Today I'll give you a crash course in the military. Don't scoff. If there had been such rules when I was serving in the border army, this leg might not be crippled.

What is a border battle report? That is a major event for the imperial court. Thousands or tens of thousands of soldiers risk their lives to fight the enemy. Whether they win or lose is not only known to the generals present, but must be reported to the General Staff and the Emperor as quickly as possible.

If everything were as you imagine, with anyone able to block the way and everyone having to give way, how many times would people have to yield along the route from the border to the capital? Little by little, it adds up, and a delay of even a day or two would result in the deaths of hundreds or thousands of people on the front lines.

If your father, brother, or son were fighting on the front lines, would you still say you should give way? The little girl is pitiful, but what about the lives of the soldiers on the front lines? A mistake is a mistake. Sometimes, even if you don't know the rules beforehand, you have to admit your mistake and can't blame others.

Look, look, the Imperial Guards are here to arrest people! Ugh, such bad luck first thing in the morning, it's really unpleasant. Forget it, I'm not waiting any longer. I'll go find someone to drink with in front of the Drum Tower, we'll talk about it this afternoon!

To be honest, the owner of the coal briquette shop was a really nice person. He was willing to take the time to teach a complete stranger who wasn't even in his shop, and he did so very clearly and with good reasoning.

However, everyone has a heart; they can abide by the rules, but they can't bear to see the pitiful people crushed by them. To avoid seeing any more tragic scenes, they simply closed the shop and went away, out of sight, out of mind.

(End of this chapter)