Iron Dynasty

Your Highness, this winter seems to be colder than before?

In the bedroom, Luluo was holding a black-trimmed sapphire blue satin round-neck robe. The robe was sewn with a layer of cotton, making the clothes look a little heavy.

In the Great Yu Kingdom, the aristocrats generally wore fur in winter, and the cotton and cotton jackets were mostly worn by merchants and common people.

Luluo's inadvertent words made Xiao Ming frown. This sentence seems to be just a common saying, but it proves that an objective fact in history is happening, that is, the Little Ice Age.

According to historical records, the Little Ice Age lasted from 1350 to 1850. In the seventeenth century, the Little Ice Age reached its peak, which was the coldest period.

It is precisely because of this period that the grain production in the Ming Dynasty was reduced, the people were in chaos, and the Jurchen tribes in the north were even short of food and clothing.

Although the Jurchen attacked Daming because of hatred, part of it was for survival.

Such historical events also happened during the Yuan and Song Dynasties. The warm climate in the first half of the time allowed the Mongolians to multiply in large numbers, and the later period was cold, causing chaos on the grasslands. At this time, Temujin unified Mongolia and then went south.

Although each historical event has multiple factors, in Xiao Ming's view, this climate has a huge impact on the ancients who depended on the sky for food.

Last year, a lot of livestock died on the grassland due to the severe cold. This year, another cold winter is coming. If there is a large-scale famine in the barbarians, the only way for the barbarians to obtain food is to grab it.

If the weather continues to be so cold, next year, the year after that, the situation will be more severe.

Thinking of this, Xiao Ming was a little worried. After all, when a race invades another race for survival, the war is not just an invasion, but a battle of life and death.

The victory of the first battle of Cangzhou can be said to be a fluke, and the second battle of the city wall can be said to be Bei Shan in order to preserve his strength.

Xiao Ming knew very well that only relying on powder cans and artillery could not stop the barbarians from attacking. The final result could only be that the soldiers retreated into the city and continued to rely on the city wall to defend.

In the two wars, the loss of the barbarians was basically the same as his. The real barbarians did not lose much, only slave soldiers died, and the slave soldiers of the barbarians were more than the regular army, so the barbarians would not feel distressed.

After all, the countries of the Western Regions are now under the rule of barbarians, and it is easy to capture some slaves and bring them back, and the local residents of Youzhou are also the source of slave soldiers.

Therefore, up to now, Xiao Ming has not been exposed to the real combat power of the barbarians, and this is what he has always been worried about.

In a real field battle, would his army be able to hold back the barbarians?

His Royal Highness, how is it, does this jacket still fit?

Luluo's questioning voice broke Xiao Ming's thoughts.

He shook his head, as if he wanted to put this question aside. At this time, he looked at himself in the mirror, wearing a long gown, but his body became a little bloated than before, which was all supported by cotton.

Well, very good, you and Aster are really good at craftsmanship. Xiao Ming said with a smile.

Being praised by Xiao Ming, Luluo's eyes instantly turned into a crescent moon. She arranged Xiao Ming's clothes and said softly, My maid and my sister are still afraid that His Highness will not like it. After all, His Highness is a prince, and they are afraid that His Highness will dislike it.

How could it be? This king and the people are both flesh and blood. The people can wear them, but why can't this king wear them? And next, this king will also promote cotton-padded clothes and cotton pants in the fief, so that the people can no longer suffer in the cold winter. Xiao Ming said.

Although this year's two seasons of grain harvests have been bumper, the people basically have no problem eating them, but other materials in the six states are still lacking.

After all, it is only one year, there are not many things that can be changed, and Xiao Ming has put his focus on maintaining the stability of the fief, the steel workshop, military workshop, equipment department, cement, printing imitation, glass workshop, fine wine, soap, etc. Part of the industry is prepared to defend against barbarians, some is to buy raw materials for trade to make money, and some is to build city walls, but in general, he has invested very little in the livelihood of the people.

After all, only if the barbarians can be stopped can they continue to develop in the next step, and the textile mill is his further efforts for people's livelihood.

Once the textile mills can produce a lot of cheap cloth, the people will gradually get their food and clothing. Only when there is no problem with food and clothing will the people think about sending their children to study.

Otherwise, Xiao Ming's promotion of education at this stage will only face many obstacles, and the biggest obstacle is the people themselves. After all, they can't eat, so how can the people send their labor to school.

In modern remote mountainous areas, many ordinary people are illiterate, let alone their fiefs.

Wearing a cotton-padded jacket, he turned around in place. Xiao Ming walked out in a padded jacket. The servants of the palace saw Xiao Ming wearing a cotton-padded jacket, and they all showed a knowing smile.

What are you laughing at, isn't this padded jacket good-looking? Xiao Ming asked.

A servant carefully looked at the eyeing aster, and said, His Royal Highness, it's beautiful, it's so beautiful.

Hearing this, Aster showed a smug smile, and a pair of dimples appeared on her face.

Standing in the cold wind and feeling it for a while, I have to say that this padded jacket is quite thick and very wind-resistant. After a while, his body felt warm.

He became more and more satisfied, and said to Aster: How many cotton jackets can a textile mill sew every day?

If it is a fine padded jacket, it will only be ten pieces a day. If it is an ordinary coarse padded jacket, thirty pieces a day is no problem. Xiao Ming said.

Thirty pieces a day? It's still too few. Xiao Ming said: In this way, the textile workshop is now responsible for weaving and sewing cotton jackets. You might as well separate the two, one part is responsible for weaving, and the other is responsible for weaving. , It's winter now, and the people are idle at home, so you can recruit more female workers and pay them a little more.

The textile industry will be the main industry in Qingzhou in the future. This industry belongs to light industry and is non-polluting. It is suitable for vigorous development. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Britain accumulated a lot of wealth through the textile industry.

Xiao Ming has great ambitions. In the future, he will not only occupy the market of the Great Yu Kingdom, but also sell cotton jackets overseas.

However, as a result, the number of female workers needed is large.

Aster nodded when she heard the words, and said, It's no problem, but Your Highness, you have to use your newspaper, otherwise there will be too few people who know about this textile mill, and there are still many people during this time. The female worker asked whether she could weave at home because she was afraid of being criticized.