Han Du hurriedly went up to greet me and said, "My father-in-law has worked hard, but I don't know what the emperor's will is."
The eunuch relayed Lao Zhu's meaning to Han Du.
Han Du looked confused. Wasn't he just thinking of ways to make treasure coins? Why did he still press?
Lao Zhu is really impatient. There are people like this who start urging them in just a few days. I also want to make the treasure banknotes quickly, but there is no raw material. If you want to make the treasure banknotes, you must first have the raw materials, right?
Raw materials, you have to wait for the raw materials to be made by yourself first, right?
How could someone start urging me after just a few days?
However, Han Du did not dare to say anything about this.
Who calls Lao Zhu the emperor? He has the final say.
"Please, father-in-law, report back to the emperor. I will keep this in mind and will make the treasure banknotes as soon as possible."
The eunuch smiled and nodded, "With Master Han's words, it will be easier for our family to go back and do business."
Han Du handed over his hand to the eunuch, and a small silver ingot fell into the eunuch's hand without any trace. This treasure was given to Han Du by Sister Yun a few days ago, saying that he could not go out without money.
The smile on the eunuch's face grew stronger, and he turned around and went back to resume his duties. Even Han Du wanted to see him off, but he stopped him with a casual wave of his hand and asked Han Du to stay.
Seeing the eunuch leaving, Xiao Hei came to Han Du.
"Sir, the kiln is installed. It would be appropriate for you to light the first fire."
Oh? It's installed so quickly? Let's burn it quickly. Didn't you see that Lao Zhu is getting anxious?
If you make treasure money as soon as possible, you can get rid of the word "Dai Zui" as soon as possible.
Han Du came to the lime kiln and was about to light a fire when he suddenly discovered that the kiln was filled with wood.
"Sir, please light the fire."
Han Du held up the torch, shook his head, pointed at the wood and asked, "Why use wood and why not coal?"
coal?
The craftsmen looked at each other in confusion, not understanding what Han Du was talking about.
Han Du saw that they were confused, and he was also confused, "Didn't you say that people began to use coal since the Yuan Dynasty? Why is this already in the Ming Dynasty? Judging from their expressions, they have never even heard of it.
?”
Maybe the name is different?
"It's a black, stone-like thing, mined from the ground or mountains, just like limestone. This kind of thing can be used for burning, and it is more resistant to burning than wood." Han Du tried
explain.
The craftsmen were whispering, and suddenly one of them said loudly, "Sir, are you talking about charcoal?"
"Yes, it's coal." Han Du's eyes lit up. Another name for coal is coal. "Do you know where it can be found?"
Han Du looked at a gray-haired craftsman.
The craftsman smiled dryly and looked at Han Du, a little at a loss. "Sir, I don't know where it is. I just heard others mention coal."
"Is there no coal in this capital?" Han Du frowned.
The craftsman shook his head, "No."
"Then what do people burn?" How can there be no charcoal? So many people in the capital make fires and cook every day. Do they all burn wood? Isn't the amount of wood needed every day an astronomical figure?
"My lord, ordinary people naturally burn wood. Those with officials and officials burn charcoal."
Is it true that no one uses coal?
Han Du shook his head and sighed, throwing the torch in his hand to the ground.
You can't do it without coal. In addition to lime, the other raw material for making cement is coal ash. So coal must be used. This is not something that can be replaced by burning wood and fire.
Fortunately, Han Du still remembered that not far to the east of the capital, there was a coal mining area that was discovered in later generations, Jurong.
It should now be called Jurong County and belongs to Yingtian Prefecture.
This coal mining area may not even be ranked in the national rankings. You must know that China is the country with the largest coal reserves in the world, and there are dozens of coal mines with reserves of more than 2 billion tons across the country.
Although this coal mining area is not comparable to those real large coal mines, its reserves are about 100 million tons, otherwise it would not be recorded at all.
Han Du's eyes lit up, he should make a fortune!
Since there is no trace of coal in this huge capital city, it means that this mining area must not have been developed.
If only I could buy it...
Then it is not just a matter of making a fortune for yourself, it is also a matter of generations of future generations having no worries about food and drink.
Buying and selling land was legal and legal in the Ming Dynasty.
Han Du threw the torch on the ground. The craftsmen around him didn't know why, and they didn't dare to come forward and ask.
Finally, Xiong Shi stepped forward and asked Han Du what he meant.
"My lord, what is this?"
Han Du shook his head twice and said, "You can't use wood to burn it. It's too slow. The quality of the burned lime is not good. I'm afraid it won't meet my requirements."
"What should we do?" After hearing this, Xiong Shi had no idea for a while.
After all, everyone uses wood to burn lime. Now Han Du says that the lime made from wood is not good, so it can only be burned with pebbles. But there is no pebbles on the market, so can this lime not be burned?
"I will come up with a solution." Han Du responded immediately, then turned to the crowd and said, "Everyone is tired after working all morning. You should all disperse. Go eat first. I will wait for the matter of burning lime.
We’ll talk about it after we get the coal back.”
Han Du dismissed the craftsmen and left the banknote bureau.
Although the craftsmen were very confused about Han Du's behavior, they even whispered and made a noise for a while.
However, they could not hear the word "eat". At this time, who would think about what Master Tiji wanted to do? Eating was the most important thing.
Since Han Du asked Xiong Shi to set up a canteen in the Second Bureau of Banknote Paper and Banknote Printing, all the craftsmen in the past few days have praised Han Du's approach.
But praise is praise, and dry rice is indispensable. In line with the principle of eating more here and eating less when you go home, although Xiong Shi provides only simple meals, not even meat, the craftsmen still eat
's in full swing.
Some people even don't eat at home in the morning and don't eat when they go home in the evening in order to eat more free food. They just eat one meal a day.
Xiong Shi looked at the lively scene in the canteen. Although the food he was eating was not his own, it still made him very unhappy.
Han Du now has the only official under his command, so Xiong Shi has now almost become the steward of the Baoqian Lisi Department. Seeing that the money from the Baochao Lisi Department was turned into food and eaten by these craftsmen, he didn't even curse.
Good temper now.
According to the rate Han Du is spending money now, he really doesn't know how long the remaining money can last.
One month? Two months?
As for the income Han Du mentioned with red lips and white teeth, he couldn't even see a shadow of it.
Han Du came out of the banknote bureau and ran directly to his home.
As soon as he entered the door, he went to look for his mother, who was sitting and resting with Jing Yun in the patio.
"Mom, how much money do you have at home?" As soon as Han Du came to his mother, he asked for money.
"Why are you asking this?" My mother was curious why Han Du asked her how much money her family had.
After all, Han Du never cared about this before, and in the past few days after he was released from prison, Han Du never mentioned it.
You are fine, why do you suddenly mention how much money you have at home?
"Mom, please don't worry about it. Just tell me how much money you have at home now, and give it all to me."
Seeing that her son's words were mysterious, Mrs. Liu didn't dare to ask any more questions. Anyway, her eldest son was the most successful. The whole family was imprisoned by the emperor, but he was able to turn them over and find a turning point.
Compared with the loss of the family and the loss of the family, a little money is nothing.
"There are almost three hundred taels of silver, more than one hundred guan of treasure notes, and the rest is some dowry for my mother. Do you want them all?"
"Forget about mother's dowry, just give me the silver and treasure notes." Han Du estimated that more than 400 guan would be enough.
After all, the coal mining areas that have not yet been discovered will definitely be barren hills. With more than 400 silver dollars, you may not be able to buy much if you buy fertile land. But if you buy barren hills, you can really buy a few.
People in this era did not realize the value of barren mountains at all, and they could buy a large piece of them for just a few dozen dollars.
Ms. Liu didn't say anything more, she raised her head and motioned to Jing Yun who was standing aside.
Jing Yun muttered and reluctantly turned around to get the money.
Soon Jingyun came to Han Du with a wooden box and said, "Brother, this is treasure money. I can't move the money. What are you doing with so much money at once?"
Han Du reached out and took the wooden box. Seeing that the girl was squeezing it tightly and unwilling to let go, he smiled and comforted: "Don't worry, I won't spend money randomly. If everything goes well, brother, I will earn the next share for you."
How about a big dowry?"
"What dowry? You...you talk nonsense all day long, and there is nothing formal about it." As expected, girls are always very shy when it comes to marriage. Han Jingyun is no exception.
Du Yi said that she still had the energy to take care of the wooden box in her hand.
His hand immediately relaxed, and the treasure banknote was easily put into Han Du's arms.
Han Du was about to leave when he saw Uncle Mu walking over with a few people.
There were three women in total. Except for a fat woman who was in her thirties, the other two looked to be thirteen or fourteen years old. Although they were not very well dressed, just linen clothes, they
The emphasis is on cleanliness, and the two young ones among them are quite handsome.
Uncle Mu asked the three of them to stop and stepped forward, "Madam, according to your request, these three people were carefully selected by the people from Lao Nu Tooth Clinic."
"This is the cook, Mrs. Li," Uncle Mu said, pointing to the fat woman.
"These two maids are both girls from good families. They were introduced by the tooth shop and signed a living contract with us."
After Uncle Mu finished speaking, Han Du looked at him in surprise.
No wonder Uncle Mu was nowhere to be seen early in the morning these days. It turned out that he was on his way to handle this matter.
The Han family used to have servants, and there were quite a few, not only the maids who served the master, but also the bearers who carried the father's sedan chair.