Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 111 Arabian War Horse, Damascus Sword, and Cotton Armor!

In fact, Zhao Shuo did not meet Zardusht until three days later.

There's no way, he's too busy.

First of all, there is the issue of craftsmen.

When the Mongol army conquered Zhongdu, Zhao Shuo divided up 7,000 craftsmen. What about the craftsmen captured during the Hebei campaign? And what about the craftsmen that were divided up among his men by Jochi, Jebe, and Muqali?

In fact, the number of craftsmen under Zhao Shuo has reached more than 11,300.

He left three thousand craftsmen in the three states of Fu, Chang and Huan.

The remaining 8,300 craftsmen followed him to the Hulunbuir grassland.

These craftsmen, together with their families, numbered more than 43,000.

With so many people needing to settle down on the grassland, there are so many things to deal with, and many things need Zhao Shuo's final decision.

Next is Baru Camp.

The number of soldiers in the Baru Camp under Zhao Shuo reached 40,000. He left 10,000 in Fuchang, Huan and Sanzhou, and the remaining 30,000 soldiers in the Baru Camp followed him to the grassland.

The most important thing now is to arrange for Baruking to open up the wasteland.

Zhao Shuo had brought in a large amount of grain from the Central Plains, enough to supply the artisans and the soldiers of the Baru Camp for two years. But what about after that? With a population that had suddenly increased by over 70,000, transporting grain from the Central Plains was uneconomical. They had to find a way to be self-sufficient.

Winter comes early on the grassland, so we must open up enough fields now so as not to delay next year's spring plowing and to have a harvest next autumn.

Yes, the land on the grassland is not suitable for growing crops due to soil and climate reasons.

However, in areas along rivers and lakes, growing some crops is not a problem, as Sun Wei has tried before.

However, Sun Wei was commanding 1,000 soldiers in the Baru Camp at that time, and now the number has suddenly increased to 40,000. Sun Wei's management skills and experience can no longer keep up, and he needs Zhao Shuo's help.

In addition, Zhao Shuo prepared for a rainy day by bringing with him forty Han army officers from the Eight Banners. These officers all had some management experience, could read and write, and were very knowledgeable about agriculture.

Zhao Shuo, Sun Wei, Machibieduwen, forty Eight Banner officers, and twenty herders familiar with the local soil and water held a series of meetings to formulate a rough plan for land reclamation. They meticulously planned the appropriate locations and amounts of wasteland to be reclaimed, the required manpower and farm tools, the number of livestock to be deployed, and how to motivate the Baruk Battalion to produce.

At night, Zhao Shuo rested in the tents of Hulan, Alia and Suna respectively.

It turned out that Alia had been away with Zhao Shuo for over a year without getting pregnant. This was because Zhao Shuo had taken certain measures to ensure that Hua Zheng gave birth to a legitimate son. Later, after Zhao Shuo returned to the grasslands, he primarily spent time with Hua Zheng and less time with his other wives and concubines. This is why Hulan, Alia, and Suna did not get pregnant.

Hua Zheng had just given birth to little Zhao He. Zhao Shuo was worried that the frequent delivery would harm her body, so he took certain measures.

Now she saw that Ogedei had four sons, Jochi had two sons, Chagatai had two sons and one daughter, but Zhao Shuo only had one son. Hua Zheng was a little anxious and asked Zhao Shuo to spend more time with other women and have as many children as possible.

In short, it was not until three days later that Zhao Shuo finally had some free time to meet with Zardusht.

"Zardusht Amir, I greet the great prince consort! I'm sorry, I broke our promise and am two years, seven months, and nine days late."

As soon as Zardusht saw Zhao Shuo, he bowed deeply and expressed his apology.

Zhao Shuo actually didn't care about his apology or not, and said, "So, are all the things I want ready?"

"Everything is ready. Originally, the Prince Consort requested forty Arabian horses, twenty males and twenty females. To express my apology, this time I have brought you four hundred Arabian horses, two hundred males and two hundred females. Not only are they all tall and strong, but they are all around three years old, the most suitable age for breeding."

Four hundred Arabian horses would save Zhao Shuo at least three years of time if they were to be bred in the future.

This Zardusht's apology is really sufficient!
Zhao Shuo was overjoyed and asked, "What about Damascus steel?"

Zardusht said, "This is the main reason why I'm late. Actually, two years ago, I had already managed to get twenty craftsmen, which basically met the prince consort's requirements. But, I realized it was too late anyway. In order to express my apology to the prince consort, I had to do my best."

Zhao Shuo asked, "What does 'best' mean?"

Zardusht explained carefully, "Although Damascus steel is very sharp, it has very poor toughness. It's only suitable for swords worn by nobles, not for the long swords and spears used on the battlefield. If those large spears on the battlefield were equipped with Damascus steel and attacked the enemy's heavily armored warriors, they would likely break directly."

Zhao Shuo had never heard of this before.

But it's not surprising when you think about it. I have the impression that only Damascus knives are very famous, but there seems to be no Damascus guns?

Logically speaking, the amount of steel used on gun tips is far less than that used on knives, right?
If it was because Wootz steel was too expensive and ordinary soldiers were not worthy of using such a good gun, then what about the generals in the army? Wouldn't they be useless too?

Zhao Shuo asked, "And then? What measures did you take?"

Zardusht said, "I've heard that there's a skilled craftsman named Harish who makes Damascus knives that are not only extremely sharp but also very tough. However, the local Indians regard him as a master craftsman and protect him very closely."

It took me a full year to find a way to secretly transport Harish and his family out of India."

"Well done!" Zhao Shuo blurted out.

Zhao Shuo wants to conquer the whole world.

If the Damascus knife is only very sharp but not tough enough, it can only be used against targets with light armor or no armor, or for showing off, then it will be of little significance.

What he really needs most is a skilled craftsman who can make Damascus knives with excellent hardness and toughness.

Moreover, Zhao Shuo obtained a number of craftsmen who were good at iron smelting from Yanjing.

What kind of sparks will these people create with Harish?
I'm afraid it won't take too long before the swords and spears of Zhao Shuo's soldiers become so sharp that they are unrivaled in the world.

Furthermore, despite its name, Damascus knives are actually made in India. While India's city-states are numerous, they are still far inferior to the government in the Central Plains. However, for a foreigner like Zardusht to seize the entire family of a highly regarded local craftsman in an Indian city-state is quite remarkable.

What a talent!

By now, Zhao Shuo no longer cared about Zardusht's arrival three years late.

He was ready to speak and allow Zardusht to sell Hulunbuir's goods to Persia.

Zhao Shuo already had so many artisans, it wouldn't be long before the production of all kinds of goods in his workshops would experience a major surge. Having such a major agent was a good thing.

Unexpectedly, there was a surprise.

Zardusht said, "In addition to Harish, I have also found five cotton processing craftsmen in India. If the Prince Consort needs them, Zardusht would be honored."

"A cotton processor?"

Zhao Shuo was slightly stunned at first, and then a feeling of ecstasy rose in his heart.

Food, clothing, housing and transportation, this is another huge source of income!
The area under the rule of Mongolia now includes most of Xinjiang, where some cotton is grown.

However, in this era, cotton in Xinjiang exists as an ornamental plant. The planting area is very small and it has little practical value.

The reason for this is that people of this era were accustomed to processing long-fiber materials like hemp and silk. Short-fiber materials like cotton could only be processed in very few areas, such as certain areas of India and perhaps Hainan Island.

The reason why he said "maybe" was because Zhao Shuo was not quite sure.

The Huang Dao Po mentioned in history was not born until more than 30 years later. After she grew up, she learned some cotton processing techniques from the Li people and improved them. Only then did cotton officially enter the Central Plains.

Now, Zardusht brought some craftsmen who can process cotton directly to Zhao Shuo from India.

Moreover, although Zhao Shuo did not know how to process cotton, he knew how Huang Dao Po improved the cotton processing technology.

For example, Huang Dao Po improved the hand-cranked cotton gin into a pedal-operated one.

For example, Huang Dao Po improved the one-foot-long slingshot into a four-foot-long one.

For example, Huang Dao Po improved the single-spindle hand-cranked spinning wheel into a foot-operated one with three spindles.

Although the cotton processing techniques of Tianzhu may differ significantly from those of the Li people, the four steps involved in processing cotton are deseeding, deboning, spinning, and weaving into fabric. The principles remain the same.

With these five Indian craftsmen, Zhao Shuo's advice, and the textile craftsmen from Zhongdu... Zhao Shuo's cotton industry line is about to be established.

Cotton is a good thing.

From a purely cost-effective perspective, cotton outshines all other fabrics. Anything better than cotton costs much more, while anything cheaper doesn't produce the same results.

If Zhao Shuo could weave cotton cloth, how big an industry would that be?

And keep warm.

In the Central Plains, to keep warm during this era, the wealthy wore fur coats, while the poor could only wear a few more layers of linen clothing. Even poorer people could only stuff their clothes with kapok "wool" or even reed fluff, which was even less effective in keeping out the cold.

Even if Zhao Shuo only sold seedless cotton to keep people warm, it would still be a considerable business.

Moreover, if the cotton is handled properly, how far away can cotton armor be?

Cotton armor is very easy and cheap to make, and can be easily mass-produced. It also provides strong protection against early firearms.

Firearms had already appeared in this era, and as the intensity of war increased, the power of firearms would inevitably become stronger. Pure iron armor was not very effective against firearms.

Historical records show that starting from the Yuan Dynasty, cloth armor with iron plates inside at key points appeared, which was the predecessor of cotton armor. In the Ming Dynasty, formal cotton armor with iron plates inside and copper nails outside appeared.

The Qing army's cotton armor was originally captured from the Ming army, and later improved by themselves. It was equipped in large quantities and became well known to later generations.

Zhao Shuo produced 10,000 sets of cotton armor, which would give him a key trump card in future wars.

Of course, one must eat one bite at a time and take one step at a time. It would take time for the large-scale promotion of cotton cultivation in Xinjiang to establish Zhao Shuo's cotton industry. Right now, Zhao Shuo was still dealing with Zardusht first.

He said, "Since you have exceeded your quota, I will not pursue the fact that you were over two years late. From now on, your status will be equal to that of all other Mongol caravans. You may purchase any goods from my workshops. However, you may only sell them in Persia."

"Does that include glass products?" Zardusht asked cautiously.

"Of course. However, the profit margin on glass is too high. Right now, our Mongolian caravans haven't even reached Persia. The price you pay for glass is five times what the Mongolian merchants pay."

"Thank you, Prince Consort!"

Zardusht was overjoyed and paid homage to Zhao Shuo again.

At the beginning, Zardusht came to Mongolia and wanted to purchase goods from Zhao Shuo, just because of white salt, white wine, toilet water and other things.

He never expected that when he came to Mongolia this time, he would see such pure glass products in Zhao Shuo's workshop.

You see, Zardusht had always believed that glass was originally green, and that it only changed to other colors when metallic impurities were added. He had never dreamed of glass products so pure, like crystal.

He estimated that by selling these glass products back to Persia, he could make at least double the profit, or even three or five times the profit!

The profits from the glass alone were enough for Zardusht to rebuild his family business and have some left over.

Moreover, where is this?
From Zhao Shuo inventing white wine and white salt, to inventing floral water, soap and glass? It only took a few years?
I believe that in the future, Zhao Shuo will invent more new things and make huge profits.

Zardusht seemed to see a golden avenue appear before him.

It seemed like his trip to Mongolia had been a wise one! Five years of hard work collecting these things for Zhao Shuo hadn't been in vain!
Zardusht secretly made up his mind that no matter what the prince consort ordered him to do, he would do it just like this time, regardless of the hardships and painstaking efforts. Not only would he complete it, but he would do it to the best of his ability.

Unfortunately, the prince consort only asked him to gather some intelligence about Persia after returning, which really left him with nowhere to go!
Ok?
Persian intelligence?
Could it be that Mongolia was interested in Persia?

By that time, wouldn't our Zoroastrianism be able to turn things around? And what would become of our Zardusht family by then?
Although Persia is too far away from Mongolia, this possibility is unlikely. However, the possibility is exciting just thinking about it!

Zardusht felt that he should not only work hard to collect intelligence from the Persian region, but also make some other preparations to deal with that possibility.

A few days later, Zhao Shuo summoned Lu Zibu and asked him what position he wanted to take.

When Lu Zibu first arrived on the grasslands, Zhao Shuo had five divisions under his command: the nomads, the caravans, the workshops, the Black Cavalry, and the Baru Camp. Even if Zhao Shuo was convinced Lu Zibu was a talent, he had no place to place him, and at most he could only serve as his secretary. However, Zhao Shuo had always used Gerile as his part-time secretary, so there was no need for an additional person.

Now Zhao Shuo has a large family and a huge business, but he is in great need of talented people.

For example, the artisans and their families numbered a staggering 50,000 (including Zhao Shuo's original artisans), leaving Sun Wei completely overwhelmed and in dire need of a deputy. For example, the 30,000 soldiers from the Baru Camp, who were reclaiming wasteland, also needed help managing Zhao Shuo's farming operations. Even Zhao Shuo's power had expanded so dramatically that Geerle was overwhelmed and needed someone to share the burden.

However, Lu Zibu shook his head slightly and said, "To be honest, I came to the grasslands because I wanted to serve under your Majesty. But now my mind has changed. Majesty, do you really think that serving under you is better than not serving at all?"

"What do you mean?"

Lu Zibu said, "I've been on the grasslands for four years now, and I know the Mongols a little bit. They're not much different from us Han people. It's just that life on the grasslands is hard. Fighting for pastures, livestock, women, and even the mere supplies to survive, they take up swords, guns, and bows and arrows to fight. This is how it's been passed down from generation to generation, and how they've become so bloodthirsty and fierce."

Zhao Shuo asked, "So?"

"So, I hope to continue doing what I'm doing now. To help children on the grasslands learn to write a few words and understand the principles of life. To help more Mongolians realize that they are actually no different from the Han people. If I, Lu Zibu, can achieve these things, my life will not be in vain."

"very good!"

Zhao Shuo was very satisfied with Lu Zibu's statement.

Wasn't it his plan all along that the Mongols and the Han people would share the world?

Why do Mongolians and Han people share the world?
Do Mongolians recognize it?
Zhao Shuo naturally made various efforts to change the Mongolian people's ideas. However, he still needed more helpers, and Lu Zibu was one of them.

Regardless of whether Lu Zibu's goal was to prevent the Mongols from moving south and killing Han people one day, or whether Lu Zibu guessed Zhao Shuo's intention, what Lu Zibu did was the same.

The first thing to do is to make the Mongols realize that both sides are human beings. Although there may be differences in combat power and customs, there is no essential difference.

The next day, Zhao Shuo took Lu Zibu and headed to Temujin's Golden Tent under the escort of dozens of black cavalry.

When Temujin heard that Lu Zibu hoped that all children on the grassland would understand some Mongolian characters, he was very happy.

Temujin, a man of great talent and vision, certainly understood the importance of education. He had previously issued an order for Tata Tonga to teach the children of the nobility to read and write. Unexpectedly, Lu Zibu directly sought to popularize the Mongolian script among the people of the grasslands.

This is a good thing!
Moreover, after Temujin returned to the grassland, like Zhao Shuo, he learned about what Lu Zibu had done on the grassland and knew that Lu Zibu was a talented person.

Immediately, Temujin appointed Lu Zibu as the "Grand Instructor" and allocated one hundred herdsmen to support him so that he could teach the people to read and write.

However, Temujin only gave the title of "Grand Instructor" and one hundred herdsmen households, and did not give more support.

After all, compared to major military and national events, this matter was too small. It had no significant effect on the strength of Mongolia and could only be regarded as icing on the cake.

Then, Zhao Shuo returned to the Hulunbuir grassland to build a new city.

Yes, it’s the new city.

Zhao Shuo had over 50,000 artisans and their families under his command, 1,100 Black Cavalry and their families totaling nearly 6,000, plus Zhao Shuo's wives, concubines, maids, and over 1,000 female slaves. With nearly 60,000 people living together, it was impossible for him to lead 60,000 people on a nomadic journey, so he needed to build a city.

The city does not need any walls.

Zhao Shuo didn't believe that anyone in this era could reach the Hulunbuir grassland.

Therefore, it is only necessary to build eight districts, including Zhao Shuo's mansion, workshop, residential area, military camp area, trading area, and citizen area.

Well, Zhao Shuo built the entire city based on the Bagua City in Tekes, Xinjiang.

The entire city is circular, with a huge park square in the center where people can rest and hold large gatherings.

The square is built very large and can accommodate tens of thousands of people for military parades.

Around the park square, there are eight streets radiating from the center, dividing the entire city into eight parts. There are no city walls and it can expand infinitely outward.

The eight parts include the Prince Consort's Mansion, the workshop area, the workers' residential area, the military camp area, the trading area, the citizens' area, the nobles' area, the residential area for foreign envoys and merchants, and the cargo storage area.

The construction of the new city was done by craftsmen who were not on duty and their families.

Anyway, in Zhongdu, these people were also doing the work of repairing the city walls when defending Zhongdu.

Moreover, Zhao Shuo was not as stingy as Wanyan Yongji. He not only fed these people well, but also gave them some reward money.

The craftsmen seemed to have come from hell to heaven and worked very hard.

By the way, when the herdsmen on the grassland heard that the prince consort was going to build a new city, many of them came to serve voluntarily.

There was no way, Zhao Shuo gave too much.

During the attack on the Jin Dynasty, Zhao Shuoli made the greatest contribution, so naturally the soldiers got the most spoils.

Even the most ordinary Mongolian soldiers took home property worth about three hundred taels.

The poor Mongolians had never seen so much money!

You can’t make that much money by herding sheep in your entire life!

The looks in their wives and children's eyes made them intoxicated just thinking about it.

Their gratitude towards Zhao Shuo was overwhelming.

Now, I heard that the prince consort wanted to build a new city, especially a prince consort residence. What are you waiting for? Come and serve quickly.

As for what to do at home? Forget it. Working at home for a hundred years is not as good as following the prince consort to rob. What's the point? It's more important to serve the prince consort as soon as possible.

As a result, the entire new city quickly took shape at a speed that even Zhao Shuo had not expected.

It was not until winter came and the land could no longer be dug that these herdsmen returned home.

Although the soldiers of the Baru Camp were unable to reclaim the wasteland, they were still busy. East of the Hulunbuir Grasslands lay the Greater Khingan Range. They journeyed to the Greater Khingan Range to cut logs. These logs would be transported to the new city the following spring, using the water power of the Ergun River.

Zhao Shuo estimated that the new city would be almost completed by next summer.

He named the city Khalkhaguicheng, which means city without walls in Mongolian.

(End of this chapter)