Chapter 292 Deciding to build roads
“Glutinous rice? I have glutinous rice! Although I don’t grow much, I can still eat a few meals.”
In Huang Wudie's eyes, eating is a big deal, how can he let go so easily.
I know you are a rich woman, so there is no need to show off like this.
“But we don’t have it here in Nanxiang. How about we wait until the next time the food is shipped over to discuss this matter?”
It seems that we have to choose a few more servants and women. It is always difficult for Amei to prepare food for such a large group of people by herself.
Feng Yong thought secretly in his heart.
“Speaking of transporting grain, I came to Nanxiang this time just for this matter.” With Feng Yong’s assurance, Huang Wudie did not continue to pester.
"This year's summer grain harvest is almost finished, so Feng Langjun can prepare to transport grain from Nanzheng again. That is not a trivial matter. I came here this time to discuss this matter with Feng Langjun."
Huang Wudie is considered his partner, so Feng Yong naturally cannot let her transport the grain by herself like others.
“Manpower is not a big deal, it’s just the trucks transporting grain…”
Feng Yong was a little confused when he heard about transporting grain. These days, the transportation volume using oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages is really too small.
Not only that, these days the roads are all dirt and the road conditions are not that good.
It would be even more troublesome if it was transported by Han River.
You have to first go from Nanzheng to the Han River, then go all the way down the Han River, and finally you have to walk upstream for a while to get back to Nanxiang.
How big of a circle does this have to be?
The key is that I don’t have a boat.
It would be great if there was a train, but a car would also work.
There is no way. Textile workshops and pastures are places that do not produce food. Food must not be cut off.
Therefore, no matter how high the cost is, we must maintain sufficient food.
At this time, Feng Yongcai deeply felt the helplessness of Zhuge Lao Yao who had no food halfway through the Northern Expedition.
From Nanzheng to Nanxiang, the whole road can be regarded as plains, and grain can be transported by ox carts and horse carts. Feng Yongdu felt that it was a waste of too much manpower and animal power.
When leaving Guanzhong or Liangzhou from Hanzhong, many sections of mountain roads and plank roads are difficult for even cars to pass. I don’t know how Zhuge Lao Yao maintains a ration of tens of thousands or even a hundred thousand people.
"Well, I'll send a message to Huo Jianling of Hanzhong Ye in Nanzheng and ask him to ask Hanzhong Ye's people to build some more cars. Moreover, I got some cattle and horses from Juxian a few days ago and put them in Nanzheng. Zheng’s pasture.”
“When the car is finished, I’ll send some more people over here. The summer grain has come down, so it’s important to transport it as soon as possible.”
There are many serfs who are willing to stand up and sing, so if it is just transporting grain, Feng Tubol doesn't have to worry about the shortage of manpower.
Although the problem raised by Huang Wudie was temporarily solved, this incident also reminded Feng Yong that he finally realized that with the explosive growth of Nanxiang's population, the food problem will become more and more prominent in the future.
If this problem is solved, food will inevitably become one of the bottlenecks restricting the population growth of Nanxiang in the near future.
Agriculture is the primary industry, and this statement indeed makes sense.
It is not impossible to rely on external transportation, but Nanxiang must be attractive enough, so the pace of exchanging grain for cloth must be accelerated.
This matter had registered in Feng Yong's mind, and he couldn't let it go. Early the next morning, he stood at the intersection inexplicably in a daze.
“Brother, what are you doing?”
Li Qiu is a laid-back person. When he saw Feng Yong walking around, he immediately came over and asked.
“Railway!”
Feng Yong said something unconsciously and pointed to the road in front of him, "This road is not good. I want to repair it."
Li Qiu nodded in agreement, "Hanzhong has been in war for a long time, so it is reasonable for the roads to be deserted. However, this official road can still be driven by traffic, which is pretty good."
What a fart! When it rains, it's so muddy that even people, let alone cars, can't walk. What's better?
“How far is it from Nanxiang to Nanzheng?”
Feng Yong suddenly asked again.
“Less than two hundred miles, it can be reached in two hours on horseback, and in two days by walking.”
In other words, less than 100 kilometers?
It doesn’t seem to be very far.
“Brother, what do you want to cultivate?”
“Build roads.”
"here?"
Li Qiu looked at Feng Yong in surprise and pointed at the road in front of him.
“Yes, we will repair to Nanzheng.”
Feng Yong nodded.
“How much food will it cost?”
Li Qiu asked in disbelief.
"It doesn't cost much." Feng Yong shook his head, "It's not like opening a road, it's just repairing it and spreading some debris on it to make it smoother."
The cement produced by Feng Yong was specifically used for shabby projects. That kind of cement was a joke.
Apart from having an advantage in construction speed, it has no merits and is only for temporary emergency use at best.
If you use concrete mixed with this kind of cement to build a building, it will collapse within a few years.
But no matter how poor a concrete project is, it is better than a dirt road, right?
And he also guards a coal mine.
Although this coal mine is certainly pitifully small compared to those large coal mines in later generations with reserves of billions of tons.
But Feng Yong does not use coal to generate electricity, and it has no industrial applications. If it only supplies a few thousand people for heating and fire, it will be enough to last until the end of the world.
More importantly, Nanxiang has the largest gypsum mine in Asia and hundreds of millions of tons of limestone reserves. If we don’t use it, why keep it?
“If we build official roads in Nanxiang County, that’s fine. But if we go out of Nanxiang County, isn’t that appropriate?”
Li Qiu hesitated.
"Is there anything inappropriate?" Feng Yong glanced at Li Qiu, "In the worst case, I'll tell the prime minister."
If you have anything to do with Old Demon Zhuge, who dares to press me?
Don’t even think about the reasons, just tell the truth.
Now that Nanxiang is considered the second largest county in Hanzhong, how could Old Demon Zhuge not agree?
Only the more convenient the transportation, the better we can control the place.
“If you want to get rich, build roads first.”
Feng Yong waved his hand, "That's it."
The key point is that although there should be enough materials on the construction site, the manpower will never be enough, so Feng Tubou will definitely not be stupid and do everything with Zhuge Lao Yao.
The ultimate goal of building roads is for oneself, but objectively it is beneficial to the court.
So Feng Tubao decided to submit a petition to the prime minister of the Han Empire, called "Test of Road Construction from Nanxiang to Nanzheng".
It will focus on the application of the latest materials (tofu dregs engineering cement), and it will also serve as a pilot for the large-scale application of new technological materials in the Han Empire.
Feng Yong, Wei Cheng of Hanzhong Dian Agricultural School, took the initiative to apply for a guest role as a contractor to undertake national highway construction projects.
Feng Tubao believes that for the sake of cement application, Zhuge Lao Yao will definitely agree to his request.
“By the way, I still have to go to Guan Ji for this matter.”
Feng Yong couldn't get the word out, so of course he had to ask Guan Ji for help.
Hearing Feng Yong's words, Li Qiu's face looked a little strange. He coughed dryly and said, "Brother, there is no need to rush. I saw Madam Guan and Madam Huang going out together this morning. They should have gone to find a place to compete in martial arts."
As expected, is it still unavoidable?
Feng Yong looked a little dull and asked Li Qiu, "Do you know?"
Li Qiu neither smiled nor cried, and didn't know what to make of it. "Who knows about the matter of the daughter of the Guan family and the daughter of the Huang family in Jincheng? After all, she was a person who stayed up late at night to fight."
“In our generation, even those who believe in their own bravery, no one dares to speak the word bravery in front of the two women.”
So, you and Huang Chong just pretended not to see me sandwiched between them yesterday?
Do you have any sense of loyalty? ah!
The author is in hospital. He left some manuscripts behind. I helped him distribute them in the past few days. I forgot to distribute them yesterday. I’m sorry.
(End of this chapter)