The materials for smelting and steelmaking were presented. Li Zhang thought he would get praise from Liu E, but he was scolded in the end. In Liu E's words, "Why didn't you take out such a good thing earlier?" Then he carefully put away the things offered by Li Zhang and taught Li Zhang that he would present them to the court as soon as possible if he had good things in the future.

Liu E has long been accustomed to the good things that appear in Li Zhang from time to time, such as mirrors, muskets, etc., including information about iron and steel making this time, and she also knew that Li Zhang got it from the plane.

However, Liu E had never asked about the relationship between Li Zhang and the plane, but Li Zhang knew that the story of the soul he had made up before that he had met a god was spread to Liu E through Zhao Zhen, but Liu E had never asked him because Liu E had always kept a distance from such strange powers and chaos, especially Zhao Heng had carried out many years of heavenly books movement, which caused the Song Dynasty's treasury to be deficient. After Zhao Heng's death, all of the so-called "heavenly books" were sent to Zhao Heng's coffin by Liu E for burial.

It was precisely because Liu E had a taboo in her heart that she never asked about Li Zhang and the plane. Li Zhang was happy to pretend to be confused. Besides Zhao Zhen, he never told the third person that story. So in this matter, Li Zhang and Liu E actually maintained a tacit understanding, but now Liu E found that the value of the plane was far beyond her imagination, so she also really hoped to squeeze more good things from Li Zhang.

After the information was presented, there were naturally a special person responsible. Li Zhang was not interested in other things now, but began to prepare to go to the northwest with the musket camp. So after he left the Chuigong Hall, he went to find Zhao Zhen to say goodbye at the first time, and then went home for a few more days, mainly to spend more time with Li'er. When this girl heard that Li Zhang was going to go far, and she had to walk for more than half a year, she cried all the time. It was useless to persuade Li Zhang.

However, it was not the first time Li Zhang went out in the past two years, and his family was prepared. Although Li Er was reluctant to leave, he still agreed later. Li Yonghe also came back from Kaocheng County. Li Zhang originally wanted Li Er and Li Yonghe to live in Kaocheng County, but Li Er was unwilling. She felt that staying at home was more comfortable. Li Zhang thought about it but did not object. Anyway, Li Yonghe was not far away, and Lu Wu and the others were taking care of her at home, so nothing big happened.

"I'll accompany you!" Wild Dog also found Li Zhang at the first time. In this family, the person closest to him was Li Zhang. This time Li Zhang was going to the northwest border again, and conflicts broke out there at any time, and some of them would alarm the court, so Wild Dog also wanted to accompany Li Zhang, so that he could protect him when he encountered danger.

Li Zhang thought about it and nodded, "Okay, then you can prepare too. We will go to the imperial village first in a few days!"

The martial arts of wild dogs have been learned almost all. Lu Wu, Lao Dao and others have said more than once that they have nothing to teach the wild dogs, and the rest depends on the wild dogs' own understanding.

As soon as he sent the wild dog away, Jin Xiaomei suddenly came to the door again, and she came with Mrs. Jin, which made Li Zhang stunned at first, and then understood what they meant.

"Mrs. Jin, you are in poor health and should not travel a long distance. It's better to take a good rest at home!" Before the Jin family and daughter could speak, Li Zhang spoke first and persuaded him.

"Li Zhang, I only have a son like Jinshan in my life. Even if I die, I want to die by his side!" Mrs. Jin said with a firm expression at this time.

"Li Zhang, just promise us. My brother went to Qingzhou alone and was exiled. I don't know what's going on now. My mother couldn't sleep all night long. How could she be in good health if she continues like this?" Jin Xiaomei also wiped her tears and said.

Since they learned that Li Zhang was going to Huanqing Road, the mother and daughter discussed it and finally decided to follow Li Zhang to find Jinshan in Qingzhou. After all, they had nothing to nostalgic to Tokyo. Even if the exile period of Kingsoft expires in the future, they would not be able to return to Tokyo to live, so it would be better to go to Qingzhou together, so the family would be able to take care of them.

"But..." Li Zhang wanted to persuade him again at this time, but when he saw the firm eyes of the Jin family mother and daughter, he didn't know what to say for a while, so he could only nod helplessly and said, "Okay, since you have decided, then prepare for it. Let's go to Qingzhou together in a few days."

A few days later, Li Zhang returned to the imperial village with his wild dog and the Jin family. Hu Yan Shouxin had already received news, and the entire musket battalion was ready to set off at any time, but just before their transfer order was issued, a person was ordered to come to their army.

"Commander Li, I will rely on your care this time!" In the musket camp, a eunuch in his thirties saluted Li Zhang with a smile on his face. The eunuch was named Qin Huaizhi, and he was the military supervisor sent by Liu E.

I don’t know who invented the system of military supervision. In the Song Dynasty, when troops were dispatched, there would be military supervision in the army. Sometimes it was civil officials, and sometimes it was eunuchs. Among them, there were more eunuchs. After all, eunuchs were people in the palace and were more likely to gain the trust of the emperor.

"You don't have to be polite to the Qin generals. The imperial court's order has been delivered. We will set off the day after tomorrow. You must be prepared too!" Li Zhang said with a smile on the surface.

However, Li Zhang did not catch a cold because it is said that these eunuchs who are military supervisors usually ask for money. If they want to cooperate, they must feed them, otherwise they might make trouble for you behind the scenes. After all, although the military supervisor does not have the power to order the army, they have the power to report to you, so the generals in the army dare not offend the military supervisor easily.

"Don't worry, Commander Li, although this is my first time as a military supervisor, I have heard from the seniors in the palace that the military affairs will definitely not be dragged down by you!" Qin Huaizhi was still very tactful and knew that his military supervisor was not likable, so he said very frankly. Of course, the most important thing is that Li Zhang is not an ordinary general. When it comes to the relationship in the palace, people are much deeper than themselves.

When Li Zhang heard this, he nodded, then he was polite to the other party, and then asked him to rest in the army.

Early on the third morning, the musket camp finally set off and left the imperial village as ordered. As for the potatoes here, Liu E had arranged for others to take over. Potatoes will be promoted to the vicinity of the capital this summer. In the first half of the year, Liu E sent many officials to the imperial village to familiarize themselves with potato planting, and Li Zhang no longer had to worry about it.

Huanqing Road belongs to Qingzhou, Huanzhou, Binzhou, Ningzhou and Qianzhou. The jurisdiction is equivalent to the Changwu, Wugong, Xunyi, Liquan and other counties in Shaanxi, as well as the areas east of the Huanjiang and Malian River basins in Gansu. It is quite vast in area. It is also a military important place in the northwest of the Song Dynasty. Conflicts break out from time to time in the Dangxiang in the west, Tubo in the north, and other foreign races on the border.

After Li Zhang and his friends left Tokyo, they first went to Hezhong Prefecture and passed through the Western Capital Luoyang on the way. Compared with Luoyang during the Tang Dynasty, Luoyang had declined a lot at this time. However, Luoyang is still a big city in the Song Dynasty. Some of the styles of the Shendu were also seen from the tall and majestic city walls.

The musket camp marched all the way, and Li Zhang could finally see the situation in various parts of the Song Dynasty with his own eyes. Compared with the scene of various roads in later generations, where trains, cars and other means of transportation were sprinting by, the traffic situation in the Song Dynasty was obviously much worse. Even the roads on the official roads were very average. The main reason was that the dirt roads could not be hardened, and they would become muddy when rained. Vehicles would leave deep ruts on the road, and after exposure to the sun, they would become dusty.

Even in later generations, taking a plane or train for a day would be extremely tired. What's more, in the transportation conditions of the Song Dynasty, Li Zhang originally wanted to ride a horse, but after riding for two days, he found that the inner side of his thigh was worn out. In desperation, he could only squeeze into the ox cart for transporting supplies with Qin Huaizhi, and kept it for a few days before he could walk normally.

As for the Jin family mother and daughter, they also acted with the musket camp. Speaking of them, they were orphans and widows. In the past, they were impossible to go to Gyeongju, and it was not safe on the way alone. Now they are following the army to act together, which saves a lot of trouble.

Li Zhang didn't like Qin Huaizhi as the military supervisor at first, but after spending time together, he found that the other party was not as coquettish as ordinary eunuchs. He ate and lived with the soldiers on the road, and never screamed bitterly. He was also quite good at speaking, especially when he was more familiar with the affairs in the army than Li Zhang, which surprised Li Zhang, and gradually became more friendly with Qin Huaizhi.

After crossing Hezhong Prefecture, the boundary of Huanqing Road went west. At this time, Li Zhang discovered that the more northwest he went, the more desolate the fields were, and the population became less and less. Many wastelands were not reclaimed. It was normal to think about it. After all, the more northwest he went, the less peaceful he was. In addition, famines often occurred in the northwest area in recent years, so many people moved to the Central Plains.

However, although the northwest area is less crowded, the folk customs are quite fierce. Now it is the slack season, so many villages can see some strong men teaching children to practice martial arts and archery. The folks in the Song Dynasty banned crossbows, but they are not banned from bows and arrows. The main purpose is to let the people practice archery techniques, so that there is a foundation for recruiting soldiers, and a little training can become a qualified archer.

Of course, there are also disadvantages for the tough people. For example, there are many robbers and horse thieves here. If the caravans on the road are not protected by the corpses, they may be targeted by these people. The government does not ignore it. It is just that the robbers occupy the mountain and become kings, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The horse thieves wander around, and it is very difficult for the government to catch people.
Chapter completed!