Chapter 1,302 Hot Springs

In the winter of Xixia, firewood was a big problem. In order to solve the urgent need for fuel for the army, Su You directly mined coal and iron in Lanzhou, Yuzhou, Yincheng, and Weizhou, and started a coal and iron industry.

Just because the Xia people couldn't make use of these resources doesn't mean that the Song people can't do it now.

Lanzhou has abundant reserves of silver, platinum, lead, zinc, and coal. Shi Yong discovered many platinum ingots that the Xia people regarded as silver ingots in the Xia people's warehouse in Lanzhou.

It is also rich in ferrosilicon, which is an important mineral deposit for improving the quality of steel. The famous Qingfeng Steel comes from high-quality coal and its addition.

Youzhou is rich in coal, salt, and Glauber's salt, which is crucial in leather processing and manufacturing.

Yincheng is even more exaggerated. It is Shenmu, the largest coal county in China in later generations. In addition to coal, there are also iron ore deposits, with an iron content of up to 60%!

In addition, there is also high-grade quartz sand, which can be used to make refractory bricks, porcelain and glass.

The same is true in Weizhou. In addition to coal, there is another place that makes Suyou feel more comfortable - Nuangu Spring.

Zeng Xiaokuan looked at these huge coal storage pits and couldn't help but sigh: "How much coal is this... What is that over there?"

Wang Zhongzheng said: "That is a steam boiler. It can use coal and water as raw materials to generate some power, crush the coal into powder, and then mix it with clay, straw and other ingredients to make..."

Zeng Xiaokuan already understood: "briquet briquettes are used in Bianjing City."

"Uh... it's almost the same, but it's not that complicated. It's more like the kind that kids in Beijing eat... bubble tubes."

"Let's take a look."

In fact, this place is just the roughest place for coal processing, but it already amazed Zeng Xiaokuan.

Steam-powered pulverizers and mixers produce a large amount of formulated pulverized coal at an extremely fast speed. Workers sprinkle water on the pulverized coal and then feed it into the hopper of the coal rod machine. What comes out from the other end is the processed and shaped hollow coal.

Great.

The foreman's blue cloth work clothes looked like the background of the Four Links. He came to greet the two officials. He originally wanted to salute, but his hands were covered with black oil, so he had to deal with it in a perfunctory manner.

Zeng Xiaokuan didn't take it seriously. He just looked at the coal tube that the coal rod machine was spitting out: "How much of this can be produced in a day?"

The foreman returned: "It can produce 17,000 kilograms of coal cylinders a day. After processing the coal into coal cylinders, the gas passing performance in the furnace is better, not only saving coal, but also having a higher calorific value."

Zeng Xiaokuan couldn't help but sigh: "The ability in science and engineering is so great..."

The foreman said: "The Duke said that in order to allow the sergeants to eat stir-fried vegetables and shorten the cooking time, they need fuel that has high firepower and is easy to use..."

Zeng Xiaokuan frowned suddenly: "Is it for stuttering again?"

The foreman was quite clever. When he heard something was wrong, he quickly said: "But later we discovered that it is more economical to use this thing for coking, and the coking coal drum is used for iron smelting, and the efficiency is much better than using coking coal blocks directly..."

This kind of prevarication cannot be fooled by a capable minister like Zeng Xiaokuan: "Then your factory should be built next to the iron smelting industry."

"This..." the foreman blushed and said with an idea: "Well... it's actually better to build it here. The current iron smelting industry in Song Dynasty consumes a lot of water. Boats can be used on the Tuwei River to bring iron ore here.

Production, mineral processing, and mineral washing are all more convenient, and the products can be sent directly to Fenglingdu."

Zeng Xiaokuan sneered: "I will listen seriously and tell Su Mingrun that since he asked me to be the transporter of Jiuyuan Road, he will give me a few more sets of such things."

After speaking, he turned around and said to Wang Zhongzheng: "It seems that Guan has done a lot of civil work."

Zeng Xiaokuan's style of officialdom is "just". When Zhao Xu ordered Zhang Dun to investigate the Yiwu case in Zeng Bu City, Zeng Bu once raised objections, saying that if there was a rift with Zhang Dun, he would definitely not get justice.

Zhao Xu's reply to Zeng Bu at that time was: "With Zeng Xiaokuan here, once the matter is sent to prison, it may not be unjust."

When Wang Zhongzheng heard what Zeng Xiaokuan said, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but then he heard Zeng Xiaokuan say: "I heard that you got more than 70,000 new horses and more than 90,000 cows?"

"No, no, no..." Wang Zhongzheng waved his hands repeatedly: "No... so many, more than 50,000 horses and more than 70,000 oxen."

"Yeah." Zeng Xiaokuan nodded: "Then don't worry about it, just transfer it all to the Transportation Department."

Wang Zhongzheng was dumbfounded. This...is this a clear robbery?

Zeng Xiaokuan looked at him: "What, you don't care, you still want to keep it?"

"No, don't keep it!" Although Wang Zhongzheng and Tong Guan were arrogant and domineering in front of ordinary civil servants and military ministers, in front of big bosses like Su You, Zeng Xiaokuan, and Fan Chunchun, they were as well-behaved as their grandsons.

Eunuchs in the Northern Song Dynasty were, to put it bluntly, the emperor's dogs. Although the emperors repeatedly fought for power for their dogs, the civil servants were not vegetarians.

Wang Zhongzheng and his like seem to have great power, but in fact the emperor wants to govern them, it is just a matter of issuing an edict, and I guarantee that the civil servants will be happy to see it happen.

Therefore, what eunuchs fear most is the minister who holds the power of secret reporting.

Good or bad, now there are new three-way bosses, including Su You.

Zeng Xiaokuan is the initiator and promoter of Wang Anshi's "Horse Protection Law" and "Household Horse Law". He has a unique set of insights into horse politics: "The method of raising horses in Xiangzhou, Hebei is very convenient. With these five

Ten thousand horses, now that we have a breeding method, good forage, and Jiuyuan’s uniquely good pastures, I will introduce the House Horse Law again, so that the Song Dynasty will never be short of horses from now on!"

After saying that, he looked at the knowledgeable Grandma Wang: "Congratulations, I don't care, you can't get a share of this credit."

…

Weizhou, Nuanguquan, Su You, Fan Chunren, and Fan Chunchuan were talking frankly to each other.

It was really honest, because the three of them were soaking in the hot spring pool.

Weizhou is known as the "Pearl of the Dry Sea". Daluo Mountain is to the west of the city and is located in the center of Helan Mountain and Liupan Mountain.

Because the bottom is thick and then suddenly rises into a mountain peak, it is shaped like a large snail, hence its name.

This area is not only rich in water and grass, beautiful scenery, but also has a very pleasant climate. In the Tang Dynasty, the Tuyuhun tribe of Liangzhou was settled here.

Liang Zuo once wanted to follow Li Yuanhao's example and build this place into his own palace, and build city walls, temples, and pagodas in Weizhou. However, before he could build the Nuanguquan palace, the country's situation failed.

As of today, even Weizhou has fallen into the hands of the Song Dynasty.

Fan Chunren is the most knowledgeable person in the Fan family. He is also the elder brother and mother. Li Shi dreamed that a child fell from the moon and was born in a skirt. A genuine Jinshi has the highest status in the family.

After Fan Chunren passed the exam, he refused to take up his post and insisted on staying with his father to take care of him.

Fan Zhongyan had objections to his son's behavior, but he couldn't get over it.

It was not until Fan Zhongyan's death that Fan Chunren truly became an official.

From the beginning of his career, he became a pioneer in opposing Wang Anshi besides Sima Guang.

Fan Chunren is different from Zeng Xiaokuan. His governance style is "tolerant, benevolent and loyal".

In addition to the deeds of opening warehouses in Gyeongju to provide disaster relief and the people returning grain to the warehouses day and night to avoid being investigated by their parents, Fan Chunren's release of "bandits" in Qizhou in the past few years has become a new "anecdote".

The folk customs in Qizhou are fierce and violent, and stealing and looting are commonplace among the people.

Someone once advised Fan Chunren: "The situation in Qizhou cannot be stopped even with severe punishments, and the governor still wants to treat it leniently. I am afraid that the chaos of law in Qizhou will not be exhausted."

Fan Chunren replied: "Tolerance is based on human nature, and cruelty will not last long. Using harsh and unsustainable methods to manage violent and tough people is itself the cause of the stubborn people. Where is the method of governance?"

"

When he arrived in Qizhou, he found that the prison was full of prisoners. Fan Chunren asked the judge: "Who are these people?"

The judge said: "They are all butchers and traders who committed the crime of theft. We are imprisoned here to urge them to make compensation."

Fan Chunren asked: "Why not let them pay compensation after being released on bail?"

The judge said: "If these people are released, they will cause chaos again. The government keeps them here to let them die of disease in prison. This is to eliminate harm for the people."

Fan Chunren was very angry: "According to the law, the crime is not punishable by death, but now we kill them in this way. Isn't this a violation of the law and inhumanity?"

So these "criminals" were called to the government court, admonished and told to correct their mistakes and start a new life, and then they were all released.

A year later, the social security conditions in Qizhou were greatly improved, and the number of theft cases was reduced by most.

Although Fan Chunren is the second eldest child in the family and Fan Chunren is the fourth eldest child in the family, the two brothers are twenty years younger than each other and have almost never seen each other naked in their lives. At this moment, both of them were filled with a feeling - embarrassment.

But Su You was very comfortable, with a handkerchief on his forehead: "I just like to take baths. Everything else in the army is easy to say. Bathing is so luxurious. You don't know how I got here in the past two months."
Chapter completed!