Ming Dynasty: Tanks blocked the door and you said to me, "Long live Ming Dynasty"

Zhu Youxiao shook his head and laughed, "Fair?"

"These two words are the greatest injustice in the world!"

"So, here with me, there is no fairness, only merit!"

"These four were chosen by you, Wu Aiqing."

"You said they are the oldest and best craftsmen in the Ministry of Works!"

“This is their achievement!”

“If others want to follow suit, they can!”

"Show us their achievements!"

Wu Chunfu was stunned, completely stunned!

When Zhu Youxiao asked him to find someone, he never expected this result.

Looking back now, this is no longer just shooting oneself in the foot...

Instead, the emperor gave him an iron hook, and he took it, dug a hole, and buried himself!

He could already imagine the future situation of the Ministry of Industry!

But now that things have come to this, and there is no reasonable explanation to refute it, he can only grit his teeth and accept this fact.

But he is not the most confused one...

The most confused one is Zhu Youjian!

Before in the potato kiln, the reason why he said selling boilers was not a good thing was because in his opinion, it was a very degrading behavior for the emperor to personally come out to sell things!

But I never expected it!

Zhu Youxiao not only wants to sell, but also wants to sell it at a great price!

This completely refreshed his three views!

Zhu Youxiao didn't care about all that. What he wanted was not how much money the workshops could make, but what surprises these four workshops could bring him in the future.

So after seeing Wu Chunfu accepting this fact with a bitter face, he was extremely unkind and rubbed salt into Wu Chunfu's wounds!

"My dear Wu!"

"These four workshops are just being built, so you need to help out as much as possible."

"Also, don't hide those unimportant blueprints and smelting methods. Let the four of them pick a few to take with them."

Wu Chunfu: ........

He no longer knew what to say.

He just hoped that everything today was just a dream, and when he woke up, nothing would have happened...

But the laughter that Zhu Youxiao made as he walked through the lobby of the Ministry of Works reminded him that these were all true.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"

Hearing Wu Chunfu's reluctant farewell, Zhu Youxiao laughed even more happily.

When they returned to the Qianqing Palace, it was already 3:00 p.m. Zhang Yan was still busy looking through memorials, and Wei Zhongxian was standing beside her serving her.

"It's getting late. Baozhu, go back and rest first. I'll review the rest tomorrow."

Zhang Yan wiped the sweat from her forehead, turned around and smiled sweetly.

"I'm not tired. I'm almost done."

"Finish the review as soon as possible and hand it over to the Ministry of Public Administration for distribution, so that the officials below don't have to wait anxiously."

Wen Tiren had been strolling around for the entire afternoon without even expressing an opinion, but at this moment he stood up with great foresight.

"Your Majesty is wise and is a blessing to all the people!"

Zhang Yan was so pleased to hear that and waved her hand quickly.

"What are you talking about, Mr. Wen? I am only trying to do my best for the people."

"You and Brother Xin are helping His Majesty handle all kinds of affairs every day. That's really hard work."

Zhu Youxiao was happy to see this kind of commercial promotion scene.

Zhu Youjian and Wen Tiren followed him for the whole afternoon, so he simply kept them and Song Yingxing together and had dinner in the palace before going back.

When the food was served, Song Yingxing was not polite at all. He picked up the bowl and started to eat.

I didn't eat breakfast.

At noon, I had a bowl of watery egg soup, which was given by Zhu Youxiao.

By this time, he was already starving.

However, the way he ate did increase Zhu Youxiao's appetite.

"Song Aiqing, don't just focus on eating. Come, I'll toast you a glass!"

After eating something to fill his stomach, Zhu Youxiao asked someone to pour him some wine.

Upon hearing this, Song Yingxing quickly put down his bowl, wiped the rice grains from the corners of his mouth, picked up the wine glass and stood up.

"Students dare not, students respect Your Majesty!"

After speaking, he drank the wine in the glass.

Having failed the imperial examinations twice, he is still a juren. Although he has tried his best to be neither humble nor arrogant, he still feels a little insecure.

Seeing this, Zhu Youxiao smiled slightly, put the empty cup back on the table, and said to him.

"Song Aiqing, I actually summoned you back because I have another thing for you to do."

"You should have heard that over the past few months, the Beijing Army has almost eaten up all the meat in the capital. This is a big deal.

"So, in addition to the blacksmith shop that I asked Pan Dan and his team to build this afternoon, I plan to build ten more breeding farms near the capital!"

“Chickens, ducks, pigs and sheep are the breeding objects.”

"If these farms can be built, it will not only increase the source of meat, but also attract more people to grow sweet potatoes."

Song Yingxing's eyes suddenly lit up: "Your Majesty, are you talking about those potato vines?"

Zhu Youxiao nodded: "That's right!"

"People may not know how much sweet potatoes can produce."

"But as long as the potato vines can be exchanged for money, it is enough to attract them."

"When the time comes, I will purchase the dried vines at a price of 100 coins per acre. I believe there will be a good result."

After Song Yingxing thought about it again, he said with a happy face.

"Your Majesty, this method is feasible!"

"After the dried vines are collected, they can be used as fodder for chickens, ducks, pigs and sheep."

"The extra ones can be handed over to the Ministry of Revenue and transported to the nine border areas to feed the war horses."

“This kills three birds with one stone!”

"But isn't the price of 100 coins per mu a bit high? I thought 50 coins would be enough!"

Zhu Youxiao shook his head: "Fifty cents is too little. The people are poor, so don't be stingy on such things."

But Song Yingxing still insisted. He stood up from the table and chair, walked to the center of the hall and bowed.

"His Majesty!"

"The student is not trying to save money for Your Majesty."

"Students are worried that if the profits from sweet potatoes exceed those from staple food, people will no longer value staple food."

"But sweet potatoes can only be used in emergencies and cannot really replace staple food!"

"So, Your Majesty, please think twice!"

Zhu Youxiao had not expected this reason. After pondering for a moment, he turned to look at Wen Tiren.

"What do you think, Mr. Wen?"

Wen Tiren was eating with relish, his old face flushed from drinking. Upon hearing this, he quickly stood up and answered.

"Your Majesty, I agree with what Mr. Song proposed. It should indeed be restricted."

Looking at Zhu Youjian, he had the same opinion.

Only then did Zhu Youxiao smile at Song Yingxing.

"Song Aiqing is indeed worthy of his reputation. Fine, I'll do as you wish!"

"Tomorrow you will go and select a site, and then we will recruit some skilled breeders from the public to help you."

"Just tell me how much money you need later!"

Chapter 209 I beg Your Majesty to put away your nameless anger!

It’s not even the end of the first month of the year yet and the temperature hasn’t started to rise yet.

Neither clearing land to plant potatoes nor starting construction to build a house is a wise choice.

But we can do the preparatory work before officially starting the work.

After Song Yingxing left the palace, he returned to Tongzhou the next day.

The reaction of the local people was similar to what they had guessed in the court. When they heard that the potato vines could be exchanged for money, their enthusiasm instantly rose to a higher level.

It is impossible to use the best irrigated land to grow sweet potatoes. Even dry land must be reserved for growing crops such as millet and sorghum.

So they turned their attention to those barren slopes that were usually ignored.

Use a sickle to cut the dead grass on the slope, leaving a firebreak, and then set it on fire.

This approach is simple, but very effective.

In addition to the fact that the ash from burning wood can be used as fertilizer, the high temperature can also kill pests and pathogens in the soil.

When the flames went out, the ground, which was originally like stone, could be turned over.

The wood ash was blown up by the wind, and the people working in it looked like they had just come out of a coal mine.

But they did not complain at all. Instead, they looked at each other, pointed at each other's painted faces and laughed.

All this was just because Song Yingxing paid them for the potato vines in advance!

I have been farming all my life, but when have I ever seen anything like this?

Not only do you not have to spend money to buy seedlings, the imperial court also exempts them from taxes. As long as you grow something, it is more or less your own.

If the potato seedlings were not limited and some had to be allocated to other states and counties, they would have wanted to keep the entire 20,000 acres in Tongzhou!

There is no longer any obstacle to the promotion of sweet potatoes.

Wherever Song Yingxing went, the people were waiting on the roadside early in the morning with dry food and clean water.

I just hope to hear him talk about how to grow sweet potatoes so that they grow well.

While promoting sweet potatoes, Song Yingxing also selected a site for building a new farm locally.

It is even easier to find people who know how to raise chickens, ducks, pigs and sheep. When they heard that there was money to be made, those who had nothing to do at home all came to sign up.

In the following days, they built houses and fences, and sent people everywhere to buy cubs.

On the other hand, Pan Dan and his other three friends also selected a factory site near the capital.

There are four blacksmith shops, located in Zhengcunba, Gaolizhuang, Qinghedian and Shijingshan respectively.

There is no shortage of water and firewood in these places.

In this era without environmental protection laws, the trees on the mountains around the capital are the best source.

It is better to lose a mountain of gold than a mountain of green. This saying does not apply at this time.

The best way is to develop the Ming Dynasty in the quickest way possible.

While things were bustling outside the capital, things were not peaceful in the court.

On the second day of February, there is a court meeting.