North and South groceries

At the end of April, Apu and others arrived in Chang'an.

Apu has a good relationship with Goro, and Goro is very happy about their arrival.

The weavers in charge of the cashmere workshop and the towel workshop, as well as the students of Changle Academy, only rested in Chang'an City for a few days, and soon set off again to go to the south of the Yangtze River.Apu and the others stayed in Chang'an City.

This time, besides himself, Apu brought four other people from his tribe, all of whom were smart, capable and enterprising people.

Luo Yong asked them to help out at North and South Grocery first, to learn how to manage the business, and if there is a more suitable place in the future, they will make another arrangement.

The Luo family and Luo Yong's disciples also have a lot of property in Jiangnan and other places in Luoyang, but since Anpu and the others are from Kunlun, it is safer to stay in Chang'an City at the moment.

Although there is still the phenomenon of buying and selling Kunlun slaves in Chang'an City, since it is the capital of the country, the security is naturally better than other places.

Just a few years ago, it was relatively common to buy and sell southern barbarians in the Central Plains. It stands to reason that those are also Tang people, and they could be robbed and sold, not to mention the Kunlun people who originally lived in the Tang Dynasty as slaves.

That night, Luo talked to Xun Apu and asked him if he had any other plans for coming to Chang'an this time.

Apu told the truth that when he came to Chang'an City to donate grain and seeds last time, he met many Kunlun people and had some conversations with them. Many of them still hope that one day they can regain their freedom. Slave again.

"The Kunlun people in Chang'an City are all slaves, and the same is true elsewhere. Many Tang people think that Kunlun people are born slaves. I often worry that my people will also become slaves one day." Apu said to Luo Yong.

Whether it's for the Kunlun slaves in Chang'an City who yearn for freedom, or for his people, or even just for himself, he really wants to change this situation.

"I'm afraid this matter will be very difficult." Luo Yongyan said.

"I know." Apu knew it well.

"Even if you spend your whole life on this, you may not be able to achieve it." Luo Yong said again.

"It doesn't hurt to spend your life," Arpu said.

Luo used it and stopped talking.

The problem of Kunlun slaves does not only involve Kunlun people, it is actually related to the widespread phenomenon of slavery in this society.

As long as the population can still be legally traded in the land of Datang, then anyone can be sold, not just Kunlun people.Even if a person in a high position falls down one day, he and his family are likely to be reduced to slaves.

However, if the upper-class people are asked to give up slavery now, they are absolutely unwilling.

If domestic slaves are no longer slaves, how can their loyalty be guaranteed?How can we prevent them from disobeying their Patriarch?

In the 21st century, everyone will have a bottom line, that is, all people are equal.

Even if this bottom line is often provoked and trampled on, it is always in people's hearts and will not be easily erased by anyone.

But at this time in the seventh century AD, that bottom line did not exist. What existed in the minds of people in this era was another line, that is, the boundary between masters and slaves.

"Slaves and sluts are compared to livestock."

"Since slaves and maidservants have the same property, they will be dealt with by the master. If they marry their daughters privately, they must count the stolen goods of maidservants, and they will be punished as crimes of robbery."

"If the masters beat the trilogy to the death, it will take one year. Those who kill them will be given a higher level. If there are guilty criminals who are punished to death, and those who committed manslaughter, they will be ignored."

"If he had negligently killed those who were above the trilogy of linen and slaves, they are not guilty."

"All parts, slaves and maidservants sue the Lord, and those who are not rebellious, rebellious, or rebellious will be hanged."

"..."

From slaves and sluts to the law of livestock, to everyone is equal, this is a great progress of human civilization, and it is also an earth-shaking change.

What Apu and the others have to do now is to help more Kunlun people and make them free, so as to gradually break the inherent concept that people in Kunlun must be slaves.

Compared with overthrowing the entire slavery system, their goal is obviously easier to achieve. Luo Yong also expressed his willingness to help them if he can.

"In the current situation, what you want to do is like picking chestnuts from the fire. You can only take them one by one slowly. You must not be impatient, and you must not easily collide with others."

The strength of the Kunlun people is very weak. If they are too impatient for a while, some big families in Chang'an City will counterattack, and the conflict will escalate. How many people in the Tang Dynasty will stand on the side of the Kunlun people?

"I know." Apo agreed.

"If you meet someone who is difficult to deal with, you can come to me for discussion. I have also met a few people in Chang'an City these years, and they may be of some help." Luo Yong said.

"I have to cause a lot of trouble with Master." A Pu solemnly bowed to Luo Yong and thanked him.

"Trouble is always inevitable, what should be done, no matter how troublesome it is," Luo Yong said.

Luo Yong used to be very afraid of troubles, but in recent years his nature has changed a bit, and he often has to contend with these troubles to see whether he is more afraid of troubles, or he is more afraid of these troubles.

As Apu's master, Luo Yong was actually very proud when he heard his disciple say that he was willing to spend his whole life doing this.

However, I was afraid that he would suffer a disadvantage, and I didn't want to look at this innocent heart in vain, and finally fed it to the wolf, so I told him carefully:

"You should keep in mind that not all people with the same skin color and the same misfortune as you are not necessarily good people."

"Weakness does not equate to kindness. The line between sympathy and trust needs to be clearly drawn at all times."

"..."

That night, the master and the apprentice had a long talk, and they didn't rest until the sky was getting brighter.

A few days later, on the first day of the new year, Luo Yong had breakfast at home early in the morning, then went out in a carriage, and set off for the court just as the gate of the workshop first opened.

On the first day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, it was already the end of spring in Chang'an City, and it was not difficult to get up early. Moreover, the county lord's mansion where the Luo family lived was not very far from Miyagi, so there was no need to get up very early on the day of the court.

When the carriage drove out of the county lord's mansion, it was about five o'clock in the morning, the gate had just opened, and there were already many people entering and leaving.

The few shops selling food in the market had already opened early, and at this time some shopkeepers in some shops were too busy to touch the ground.

Luo Yong opened the car window and looked at the scene on the street, the spacious concrete road, willows drooping beside the canal, most of the shops facing the street have been opened, and there are many pedestrians and horses on the streets.

As far as I can see, most of the people who come and go are wearing colorful clothes. It doesn't mean that everyone in their workshop is of high birth, but the color of the clothes is no longer cared about by anyone.

Ever since someone mentioned this in the court last time, those new-style cloth shops have indeed stopped for a while, and then the rumors passed, and they all started selling goods one after another.

At the beginning, it was just a very low-key business. Later, seeing that no one was in charge, it let go of its hands and feet. The earliest shops in the past and the new ones opened later, these new cloth shops became active one after another. After a while, the cloth market in Chang'an City became prosperous again.

Now the people in Chang'an, whoever has a little more money, buy machine-woven colored cloth for themselves and their families to make clothes, and the streets are full of people wearing this kind of clothes.

Looking at the scene in front of him, Luo Yong couldn't help but think of a rule about marriage in the Tang Dynasty: "Everyone has his own spouse, and the sex must be the same. Since good and bad are different, how can we cooperate."

The color category here does not refer to people of different skin colors, but refers to clothes of different colors, representing men and women of different classes.

Looking at the world now, and trying to identify a person's identity and origin through the color of their clothes, I'm afraid it will be very difficult.Thinking of this, Luo Yong felt very happy in his heart.

When he got to the palace gate, Luo Yong got out of the car and walked.

During the two major dynasties on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar new year, there were many officials who went to the court. As soon as Luo Yong arrived, he met a colleague who often studied arithmetic with him in the machine workshop. The two greeted each other and went to the main hall of the court together After walking, I met a few acquaintances one after another.

Not long after, they met Xu Neishi who was about to go out of the palace again. He said he was going to buy some things outside the palace. The young eunuch Luo Yong beside him also recognized him. He had been with Xu Neishi for many years. When he was, he still looked like a child who didn't know anything, but now he's grown up.

Xu Neishi was going to buy, and Luo Yong and the others were going to court. The two sides greeted each other and continued on their way.

After walking for a while, Xu Neishi turned his head to look. At this time, the sky was already bright, and Luo Yong and several other officials were walking together on the Miyagi Avenue.

At this time of the year, spring is already deep, and in the palace city, there are majestic palaces and green trees...

"Servant Xu."

"Let's go, I'll leave the palace earlier."

The morning court of this day was still talking about road construction. The west and south roads had to be started at the same time, which required a huge amount of manpower and material resources.

The court discussed for a long time what kind of roads to build on these two roads, and finally decided to build railway tracks on the road in Hexi, and build wooden tracks on the gentle sections of the Lingnan road. As for the steep and difficult sections, they will be built first. cement road.

……

In June of that year, the whole line of Henan Railway was completed.

In mid-June, construction of Hexi Road started.

In early July, Lingnan Road started construction.

At the end of August, the sage toured the east.

At the beginning of December, come back.

In the first month of the following year, Du Ruhui's eldest son, Du Gou, was appointed as the county magistrate of Chang'an, the minister of Luo Yongsheng's promotion department, and the county magistrate of Wannian.