Chinese dining table

Chapter 1231 Dare to be the first in the world

Zhou Xing accelerated the execution of prisoners.

Previously, there was one killing a day, but now, there are five killings a day. This gives many prisoners the precious opportunity to avoid the strong sunlight at noon and become ghosts.

Really, what these prisoners hope for most right now is not to be beheaded at 15:30...

Although Yun Chu believed that many people in the prison deserved to be put to death, he still stopped Zhou Xing's massacre on the third day.

Zhou Xing, who was neither in prison nor in the position of executioner, did not look like a devil at all. On the contrary, his many years of official career had made him an honest and elegant gentleman.

Yun Chu pushed the teacup in front of Zhou Xing and said, "You can't kill them all."

Zhou Xing said: "Kill one less, and don't use the excuse of doing it for my own good to dissuade me, or I will look down on you."

Yun Chu nodded and said, "Indeed, you have no way out."

Zhou Xing stood up, relaxed his chest and laughed, "Thinking about how arrogant and cruel these people were in the past, and watching them drooling and kowtow on the execution platform, my blood is boiling and I can't help but feel happy."

Yun Chu knocked on the table and said, "This is your wonderful time."

Zhou Xing smiled and said, "Even if I die tomorrow, I have no regrets. Come to think of it, can't you give me another five days? You should also know that His Majesty also wants these people to die."

Yun Chu sighed and said, "A genius boy died. I think this is a warning from God against the excessive killing in the Tang Dynasty."

Zhou Xing frowned and said, "Is that Wang Bo, the one who wrote 'The setting sun and the solitary wild goose fly together, the autumn water and the sky are the same color', Wang Zian?"

Yun Chu sighed and nodded.

Zhou Xing said: "If he's dead, he's dead. There's nothing to be curious about."

Yun Chu said: "Now the scholars in Chang'an claim that Wang Zian appears only once every hundred years, and he died at such a young age. This is because God feels that the Tang Dynasty is not worthy of such a talent at this time."

Zhou Xing was stunned for a moment and said, "In my opinion, this man is a criminal. He killed a government slave while serving as a military officer in Guozhou. He should be executed. It is his good fortune that he was pardoned and removed from office. Even his father was exiled to Annan because of his crime. Such a man is a rare talent because he wrote some good poems and composed good fu. So, does the government slave he killed at will really deserve to die?"

Yun Chu smiled and said, "Anyway, Chang'an will soon launch a grand event to commemorate Wang Bo and Wang Zi'an, with poetry and prose being the most important. I heard that the winner will not only have a beautiful woman to sleep with him, but also a gift of a thousand strings of cash."

Zhou Xing took a breath and asked, "How grand is it?"

Yun Chu said: "The whole city will participate."

"So much effort is wasted just to cover up the bloody smell in Chang'an these days?"

"There's nothing I can do. The only thing that can cover up this overwhelming bloody smell is the scent of ink."

“Who started it?”

"Ji Wangshen and other members of the royal family."

"Your Excellency has sent Prince Yong Xianzhi away. Does it look like you are planning to take action against the army?"

"No, I never take part in military affairs."

"So, who's going to take care of it?"

"It's not me anyway!"

Zhou Xing was silent for a long time and then nodded. Finally, he said to Yun Chu, "Don't get into trouble."

Looking at Zhou Xing's departing back, Yun Chu felt that the man in front of him had changed. At least he was different from the man recorded in history books. The man in history books was just a hyena that specialized in eating carrion.

It’s different now. He is a man with a broad mind and a hatred of evil.

Of course, his nature of liking to torture and kill people has not changed.

Lu Zhaolin and Yang Jiong came excitedly to take up the task. Wang Bo fell into the water and died of fright. The most important thing was that not long ago, he had written the famous "Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng".

Such a person is actually no longer a human being, but a specific cultural symbol. The city of Chang'an must commemorate this brilliant cultural symbol and at the same time eliminate some of the murderous atmosphere in Chang'an.

"People throw zongzi into the river in the hope that the fish in the river will not eat Qu Yuan's body. People eat rice balls to remember Dongfang Shuo, rice cakes to remember Wu Zixu, and dumplings to commemorate Zhang Zhongjing. I think that when commemorating Wang Bo, we should eat noodles, which means longevity. What do you think?"

Yun Chu frowned and asked, "The noodle workshop in Chang'an paid the most?"

Lu Zhaolin said, "Not really. Zou's meat-stuffed wontons have given quite a bit of money. There are also people selling yellow steamed buns and dim sum who want to give money. However, their food is not easy to promote and is not durable in storage. Li's noodles have a strong promotion feature and are easier to produce. Although it consumes labor, it can hire more people and give more people job opportunities. Isn't this what our government wants?"

Yun Chu looked at Lu Zhaolin and laughed, "You are from a wealthy family after all. Now, you talk about noodles, wontons, yellow steamed buns, and dim sum all day long. Doesn't your grandfather have any objections?"

Lu Zhaolin smiled and said, "My grandfather is happy to see this happen, but my wife always dislikes me for being too rustic and it's hard for me to get into bed with her at night."

Lu Zhaolin made fun of himself, which immediately made the clerks who came to report official business burst into laughter. Yun Chu looked at Lu Zhaolin with great emotion. In the past, he was also one of the child prodigies of the Tang Dynasty. His official career in the past few years has turned him from a noble young man into a qualified official who can truly bend down and fight for the interests of the people.

Lu Zhaolin waited until everyone's laughter had ended, then continued to talk to Yun Chu, "Your Excellency, dried noodles are really a good thing. As long as they are properly stored, they are the best food for travelers on the road. Just think about it, merchants travel all day, and in the evening, they boil a pot of water, cook a bowl of noodles, and throw in some wild vegetables picked from the wild, and then add a piece of lard and some salt, and then eat a big bowl of hot vegetable and meat noodles, which can comfort them from the travel."

Yun Chu smiled and said, "Noodles are of course a good thing, the problem is that you have bad intentions."

Yang Jiong immediately replied: "The reputation of the Four Great Talents is not good for official careers. If Wang Bo is promoted, we will be forgotten by the crowd. It is a good opportunity for us to pursue a good official career and contribute to the people of the world."

Yun Chu turned around and looked at Yang Jiong and said, "If Wenrou wanted to take you to Luoyang for your career, why didn't you go?"

Yang Jiong said: "I don't like Luoyang."

Yun Chu laughed loudly and said, "I heard that you like military affairs and want to serve at the border. Do you want me to talk to Lao Cao of Anxi Protectorate and let you serve as Protector of the Hanhai? That's a fifth-rank official position."

Yang Jiong said: "I like Chang'an."

Yun Chu suddenly withdrew his smile and said to Yang Jiong, "Don't get involved in the affairs of the Sixteen Guards of Chang'an. There are thunder and lightning rolling there, and few people can withstand it. If you are struck by thunder, you will be shattered to pieces. Even I can't put your flesh and blood together again."

Lu Zhaolin laughed awkwardly and said, "County Master, it's just a piece of noodles!"

Yun Chu said: "Humph, the best thing you can say is just noodles."

Next, the heads of Changan’s key factories reported to Yun Chu one by one on the factory’s operation and development over the past three years. Among them, the most outstanding achievements were those of Changan’s First and Second Textile Factories.

To be honest, materials are still in short supply in Datang today. When these two factories truly opened up their sales channels, their products were in short supply. It seemed that no matter how much textiles they produced, they were not enough for the market to absorb.

According to previous practice, Yun Chu would have invited the heads of the two factories to dine together in the back hall. However, he did not do that this time. For the first time, Yun Chu invited the head of the iron factory to come and dine together.

When he was a street director, Yun Chu knew clearly that the director of a street or village with many heavy industries in the jurisdiction would be much more valued by the higher-ups than a street or village with only light industries.

Although the environment in areas where heavy industry is located is generally poor, when it comes to awards or promotions, the directors of streets, towns and villages where heavy industry is located obviously have more advantages. Generally speaking, important awards and important promotions come from these areas.

The foundation of Chang'an Iron Works came from Changsun Wuji's family.

In Yun Chu's opinion, the iron refined was not even as good as the ground furnace steel of later generations. The iron here was okay for casting iron pots, but it would be too much of a waste to use it to make farm tools and weapons.

Yun Chu got the steelmaking technology from the Western Regions craftsmen. Unfortunately, after so many years, there were still no eye-catching results. Although many magical weapons and sharp blades appeared from time to time, Yun Chu was still very dissatisfied.

The magic weapon can be used to fool the officials and the emperor, but it cannot fool Yun Chu.

A single magic weapon is of little use. What Yun Chu wants is to see a qualitative leap in the Tang Dynasty's steelmaking technology.

Iron and steel are two completely different things. What Yun Chu wants is steel, definitely not a pile of cast iron.

Some things make me angry just thinking about them. The steel-making technology appeared in the Tang Dynasty a long time ago. In the past, craftsmen used iron tools to stir the steel in the furnace. Now, craftsmen still use iron tools to stir the steel in the furnace manually.

The importance of steel to the Tang Dynasty society has become extremely urgent. It is not that the Tang Dynasty’s army needs so much steel to make weapons, but that the people of the Tang Dynasty need more steel to make farm tools in the environment of large-scale land reclamation.

In the county government cafeteria, Yun Chu placed the head of the braised carp on the plate of Wei Wuyong, the manager of the iron factory, and said to him, "Find a way to increase the output of steel. Soon, we will need a lot of steel."

Wei Wuyong looked at the fish head on the plate and whispered, "For military use?"

Yun Chu shook his head and said, "For agricultural use."

Wei Wuyong asked in disbelief: "Agricultural steel?"

Yun Chu smiled and nodded, saying, "Your name contains the word 'Wuyong', which should be taken from the Qian Gua in the Book of Changes, which means 'Qianlong Wuyong'. In the future, you don't need to follow the words 'Wuyong', but should follow the spirit of 'Feilongzaitian' and produce more steel. I'm telling you, the world is about to undergo a big change, and even the spirit of 'Shenlongzaiye' will not be enough to cope with the coming era of mass production."

Wei Wuyong looked around and whispered, "Your Excellency, if too much steel is made, it will become worthless."

Yun Chu smiled and said, "Are iron farm tools comparable to steel farm tools?"

Wei Wuyong said: "The farm tools used in my family's farm are all steel."

Yun Chu raised his hand and slapped Wei Wuyong on the head, angrily saying: "Damn it, good things are only for your own use, right? You can just be so hard-hearted as to watch those farmers using iron blades to cut wheat, and then they get worn out after a few cuts... and you can bear to see them using cast iron hoes to hoe the fields?"

Wei Wuyong whispered, "Your Excellency, they all pull out wheat with their hands..."

Yun Chu also whispered: "If you meet my expectations, I will send you to work in the Ministry of Industry next year."

Wei Wuyong's face turned red in an instant. He picked up the fish head and started eating, not wanting to leave out even the fish bones.

For some reason, Lu Xiu came over with his own plate, sat between Yun Chu and Wei Wuyong, and began to attack the food on the table. He almost ate up the whole fish, then he took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth and asked, "Is there anything that this humble official cannot know?"

Yun Chu said disdainfully: "You could just eavesdrop on me, but you came over to ask and cost me a fish."

Lu Xiu said: "This involves ironware, so I have to ask."

Yun Chu casually pointed at the clear sky outside the window and said, "It's spring now, so follow me and work hard."

Lu Xiu nodded and said, "I am not afraid of working, but the problem is that I heard the county lord and the guard say that they want to make more steel?"

Yun Chu nodded and said, "Yes, next year, Chang'an will need a lot of steel, a lot of steel. We should also take this opportunity to leave a few more heirlooms for the farmers in Chang'an."

Lu Xiu said with a bitter face: "As long as the county lord doesn't want to leave a few more heirlooms for the soldiers of the Sixteen Guards of Chang'an, I will definitely support you with all my strength."

Yun Chu looked at the terrified Wei Wuyong and said, "Be brave. The drought has lasted for more than half a year. If we don't pay attention, no one will be willing to consider the people."

Wei Wuyong gritted his teeth and nodded...

After Wei Wuyong left, Lu Xiu whispered, "For so many years, the imperial court has been suppressing the use of steel by the people. I think the county lord knows about this."

Yun Chu smiled calmly and said, "Let's start with me in iron and steel smelting among the people."

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiu bowed deeply and could not stand up.

I admire Yunchu's noble character and integrity.

What he didn't know was that in Yun Chu's eyes, the imperial court had long been a stinking mountain of shit, a towering mountain of shit piled up by a series of successful or failed policies.

For a long time, no one in the court was willing to use pure steel tools to dig this shit mountain, because as soon as the tools were moved, the shit mountain would burst out with a stench that could penetrate into people's bones. Therefore, all the court could do was to constantly use new policies to cover up this shit mountain. Unfortunately, policies that only treat the symptoms but not the root cause will inevitably become corrupt and as smelly as the shit mountain.

Now, Yun Chu just wanted to dig a shovel on the shit mountain, at least to let the farmers use harder, sharper and more labor-saving steel farm tools.

End the long-standing abnormal policy of the government that would rather suppress steel production than provide farmers with better farm tools.

I don’t know what they are afraid of?
Does it mean that the farmers holding steel hoes and shovels can chop off their heads?

What an oddity.

(End of this chapter)