jdhmnovel Chapter 92 Zhu Biao: Watch carefully, learn carefully
Chapter 92 Zhu Biao: Watch carefully, learn carefully
When Magistrate Yang Shaofeng arrived at the south of the city with Lame Wu, most of the male members of the Liu Hongchang and Geng family, along with other local gentry, were digging and sifting soil under the supervision of a group of yamen runners, while a few other male members were being supervised as they drew lines with lime.
There was nothing that could be done. A heavy rain washed away all the lime lines that had already been drawn, and the soil that had been dug out and sifted was also washed into a muddy mess. Now we had to start all over again.
Seeing that the male prisoners had been digging for a long time without managing to dig even three zhang (approximately 10 meters) wide, Limpy Five finally couldn't help but whisper, "Sir, if a road this narrow is already so difficult to build, imagine how difficult it would be to build a ten-zhang (approximately 3.3 meters) wide road..."
Yang Shaofeng shook his head slightly, "We must build a road that is ten zhang wide. Even if we don't need it now, or even if we don't need it for the next twenty or fifty years, we must still build this road into a ten-zhang wide road."
In his past life, countless cities had set examples to teach Yang Shaofeng that if you build roads but don't widen them, you'll be cursed by the people sooner or later.
Anyway, large tracts of land in Ningyang County are now abandoned, and there are not many people in the entire county. It doesn't matter how much land Magistrate Yang occupies to build roads, so why not occupy land to build roads as soon as possible, so as to avoid being scolded later?
More importantly, if another rainstorm like this one occurs, the ten-zhang-wide road will be available for people to dry their grain after the rain!
Moreover, the road was ten zhang wide, which should have sped up Zhu Laosi's march south.
Magistrate Yang was looking forward to that day, and even more so to seeing Zhu Laosi's reaction upon seeing the ten-zhang-wide road.
Smiling and shaking his head, banishing the image of Zhu Laosi's astonished expression from his mind, Magistrate Yang then led Lame Wu to a shed at the construction site.
Under the shed, several large pots were simmering a kind of wild vegetable porridge that was not known to be in the name. At first glance, there was not only a large pile of messy wild vegetables rolling on the surface of the porridge, but also a large pile of wheat bran mixed in.
To put it simply, this pot of porridge not only looks like pig slop, but it doesn't even smell any better than pig slop from a farm.
Yang Shaofeng turned to look at Limpy Five and asked, "You're just going to make them eat this stuff? Is that even okay?"
Limpy Wu chuckled and replied, "Don't worry, sir. Although this porridge doesn't look very appetizing, it's made with plenty of good stuff. There's at least half a pound of locust powder and fried noodles in one pot. It's a good mix of meat and vegetables, enough for them to eat."
Yang Shaofeng didn't say anything more, nor did he ask Limpy Five to improve their treatment. After all, the food for these prisoners was provided by the county government, and if they ate better, it would mean that the county government would have to spend more money!
After touring the construction site for a while, Yang Shaofeng suddenly looked in the direction of Ningyang County and said, "Brother Limpy Fifth, how many people do you think will be relocated from the nearby counties?"
Limpy Wu scratched his head, wondering why Magistrate Yang would suddenly connect the road construction site to the relocation of people. After pondering for a while, he said, "Your Excellency, I can't say for sure, but I imagine there must be dozens or even a couple hundred households involved."
Yang Shaofeng hummed in agreement, muttering to himself as he secretly calculated, "Several dozen households, that's at least a hundred or two people? And if a few of them know how to build kilns and fire bricks..."
Limpy Wu was slightly taken aback and asked, "Does the county magistrate want to make bricks?"
Yang Shaofeng nodded again, "Brick making is definitely necessary. After all, the Confucian Temple has been in disrepair for many years. If I want the children of the people to be able to study, I must first repair the Confucian Temple."
Limpy Wu felt that his brain was not working properly, and it seemed that he could not keep up with the thoughts of the county magistrate no matter what he did.
After remaining silent for a long time, Limpy Five tentatively said, "Your Excellency, Ningyang County already has enough to do. There are breeding farms, livestock farms, lighter workshops, canneries, artificial lakes, land reclamation, and road construction. We're already short-handed. If we add a brick kiln..."
Upon hearing the words "insufficient manpower," Magistrate Yang couldn't help but frown.
Yes, the biggest problem in Ningyang County right now is the lack of manpower. No matter what they want to do, they have to carefully plan and strategize for ages before they can get anything done. If only they had enough manpower…
Magistrate Yang shook his head, banishing the unrealistic idea from his mind.
Ningyang County is definitely short-handed. Even if people from nearby prefectures and counties were to migrate to Ningyang County, it would be of little use. Firstly, the number of people who can be migrated is too small, and secondly, there are too many places that need manpower. Even if another 10,000 or 20,000 people came, it might not be enough, let alone for a family with only a few dozen or a couple hundred households.
……
Just as Magistrate Yang Shaofeng was racking his brains over the lack of manpower in Ningyang County, Zhu Biao, the Executive Vice Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, was in the capital, lecturing his two foolish younger brothers.
"On this trip to Shandong, we can't just think about having fun; we need to see the sights and think about things carefully."
“Take a good look at the livelihood of ordinary people, see what they eat, what they wear, how they work, and what their harvest is.”
"Think carefully about what you will do when you grow up, whether you have fiefdoms or the opportunity to become officials, so that the people under your rule can live a good life?"
“Then Magistrate Yang of Ningyang is very capable. Under his governance, the people of Ningyang County, while not necessarily very wealthy, at least have land to cultivate and houses to live in, which is far beyond what an ordinary magistrate can achieve.”
"Once you arrive in Ningyang County, you must diligently learn his skills so that you can help me govern the country in the future, understand?"
Zhu Lao Er and Zhu Lao San nodded repeatedly, but Zhu Biao changed the subject and said, "Also, whether you're going to Shandong or after you get there, you must listen to Sister Jin'er and Sister Yu'er. Anyone who dares to be naughty or disobedient will be dealt with by me!"
"Remember to put away all your bad habits and stop thinking you're some kind of noble family, that you're the most important people in the world besides our parents. Otherwise, when our father deals with you, I won't plead for you."
After disciplining his two foolish younger brothers, Zhu Biao cupped his hands to Jin'er and Yu'er, saying, "Sister Jin'er, Sister Yu'er, I'm entrusting the second and third brothers to you and the Chang brothers. If they misbehave along the way, you can hit them or scold them as you see fit. You are their older sisters, so you don't need to spoil these two little rascals."
Under the horrified gazes of Zhu Lao Er and Zhu Lao San, Zhu Biao took a ruler from the guard and handed it to Jin'er: "This is the ruler our father used to discipline us. You can keep it for now."
Then, Zhu Biao turned his gaze to the two brothers, Chang Mao and Chang Sheng: "This time, sending Sister Jin'er, Sister Yu'er, and the second and third brothers to Ningyang County was something I begged for from the Empress Dowager. You two brothers know what to do, right?"
Chang Mao immediately patted his chest and shouted, "Your Highness, rest assured, my brother and I will definitely deliver Sister Jin'er, Sister Yu'er, and the Second and Third Princes safely. If anything goes wrong, we'll answer to you with our heads!"
Zhu Biao nodded and said, "Sister Jin'er and Sister Yu'er are my sworn sisters. Magistrate Yang will be my brother-in-law in the future. You two cannot treat him like an ordinary magistrate. You must not be overly respectful, but at least you cannot be disrespectful in any way. Otherwise, I may forgive you, but Father Emperor will not."
Chang Mao and Xue Sheng exchanged a glance, both of them horrified.
What exactly is this Magistrate Yang's ability that makes His Highness the Crown Prince treat him this way?