Zhu Ying's order to arrest Shanxi merchants for interrogation will naturally be counterattacked by the Shanxi merchants.
But in the realm of the capital, the forces organized by Shanxi merchants had no chance of taking action and were suppressed directly.
Then the next best thing is to deploy outside the capital.
It is nonsense to say how many manpower a business gang organization needs. All actions can only be carried out in secret.
For them, the only way to effectively attack the current Taisun is to support the rebel forces and to use their reputation and justice to influence him.
This is also their only advantage.
Therefore, he secretly continued to spread rumors that Taisun was a tyrant. He did not care about the life and death of the people and allowed his subordinates to arrest, ransack and imprison him.
If things continue like this, the people will be in dire straits, the country will be exhausted, and everyone will be in danger.
No one knows whether this continuous sitting tomorrow will happen to them.
Especially local forces are vaguely competing with the government.
After all, Shanxi merchants have laid a huge road. The merchants in this province can be said to be spread all over China and abroad. They are also extremely united and have good relations with many forces.
Some of those who were implicated naturally returned to their clans to seek refuge.
According to the current Ming Dynasty, the law does not enter the countryside.
The so-called state-owned laws and family rules are the most realistic portrayal.
In other words, in the countryside, the family laws set by the clan elders and patriarchs must be above the law.
It sounds a bit unbelievable, but that's how the world is.
The government followed the law and searched for him, but the villagers led by the clan elders forcefully stopped him.
Some powerful villages have no fear of the government at all. They usually just keep their peace, but now they have no evidence to arrest people, and they don't bring any face at all.
Besides, strong villages usually have clan members who serve as officials in the capital or other places.
Even if you force your way in today and make trouble later, you won't be rude.
For this reason, Shanxi merchants began to spread rumors among the middle and lower classes about Taisun's cruelty and bloodthirsty, ruining his reputation.
Including doubts about the authenticity of the grandson's identity.
As the spread spread wider and wider and the effect became better and better, this wave of land acquisitions broke out.
This will have a devastating blow to the actions of Shanxi merchants.
In less than half a day, His Highness Taisun's reputation for benevolence and righteousness will spread throughout the capital, and then rapidly expand to the outside.
In the Ming Dynasty Palace.
"Dasun, your move is good. A few days ago, we were planning to have Jin Yiwei take action. Anyone who spreads rumors and slanders will be executed. Now it seems that it is unnecessary."
Zhu Yuanzhang said with a smile.
As for the current situation in Ming Dynasty, after experiencing three major cases and the recent rumor case, it has affected a wide range of people.
Zhu Yuanzhang was not willing to go to war unless necessary.
It's just that the eldest grandson is involved, so he takes such action.
"Grandpa, now that the compensation has been distributed in full, the houses on both sides of Zhengyang Avenue will be demolished within three days, and then Zhengyang Avenue will be paved."
"These are all in the plan. My grandson has good news to tell grandpa."
Zhu Ying pretended to be mysterious and said.
"What good news is it?" Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help asking.
He knew that his eldest grandson was extremely capable, so if it was good news, it must be very good news.
Zhu Ying did not hesitate, and then said: "My grandson bought many craftsmen from Obaro some time ago, and grandpa still has an impression."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said: "Of course they do. Why, is it possible that they have something unique?"
Zhu Ying praised: "Grandpa is really amazing, that's true."
"In the Oparo countries, most of their buildings are stone houses, which are not like our Ming Dynasty wooden houses. Therefore, they have spent many years studying the use of stone."
"When laying the ground on Zhengyang Avenue this time, my grandson has been thinking about whether there is any material that can replace the bluestone bricks. This Zhengyang Avenue is my Ming Dynasty's face, so naturally I can't be careless."
"Oubaluo craftsmen, together with my Daming craftsmen, developed a new material. Because it is mainly made of stone and water, it looks like mud before use. My grandson calls it cement."
"This cement is laid on the rammed ground and is extremely strong. Even if a carriage weighing thousands of kilograms is rolled back and forth over the moon, there will be no movement at all. If it is hit hard with a hammer, there will only be a small gap. Then it can be filled with cement again.
"
"In this way, my grandson decided to use this cement to repair Zhengyang Avenue."
Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but ask: "Is it really so useful?"
Zhu Ying affirmed; "My grandson has gone to inspect it and it is indeed so useful."
After Zhu Yuanzhang received the affirmative answer, he did not show any overly surprised expression, but fell into deep thought.
Naturally, he did not have the slightest doubt about Da Sun's words. At this moment, he was thinking about another possibility.
After a while, Zhu Yuanzhang asked: "How much does this cement cost? Can you estimate it?"
Zhu Ying replied, "I don't have a good guess. The main source of cement is a special kind of gray stone. This kind of stone will have a violent reaction when it encounters water."
"It is then refined and calcined at high temperature, and then produced through the mixing of sand and gravel."
The refining of pebbles described by Zhu Ying is actually coke.
To calcine limestone at high temperatures, coal alone is not enough; bituminous coal must be used for high-temperature coking.
There is also the cooperation of blast furnaces.
The so-called indigenous blast furnace has actually been used as early as the Song Dynasty. The shape of the iron-making shaft furnace is very close to the blast furnace in the early generations, and the appearance is not much different.
With coke to heat it up, it's not much different from a blast furnace.
Of course, there is no need for Zhu Ying to explain these specific things to the old man in too much detail.
Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly got up and paced back and forth in the palace, obviously deep in thought.
Zhu Ying waited quietly without disturbing her.
After a long time, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly asked again: "How long can the road paved by this method last?"
Zhu Ying made some calculations in his mind and said, "There is currently no specific service life, but according to current estimates, it will take as little as three years, or even about five years, and there will basically not be much damage."
"Even if there is damage, it is not difficult to repair it."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded heavily: "Okay!!!"
Then he said: "Dasun, you said that if we want to build a cement tunnel from the capital to Peiping, it can be done."
Hearing this, Zhu Ying's pupils trembled.
In fact, he came to the old man for discussion this time because he wanted to make things straight.
Ming Dynasty has a better material than the current cement, which is Sanhe soil.
After Sanhe soil is formed, it is extremely hard. It can not only withstand huge pressure, but also prevent Feng Shui erosion and last for a long time.
However, the production cost of Sanhe soil is not low, and the process is long and extremely troublesome.
At present, the main use of Ming Sanhe soil is in city defense.
Like the Nanjing City Wall, even if the artillery bombards it back and forth for two days, at most it will lose a layer of skin.
In addition to city defense, coffins and coffins are also used.
For example, the gaps in Zhu Ying's coffin were filled and covered with the best Sanhe soil.
In some films and TV shows of later generations, in the area of tomb robbing, some large tombs have coffins that open with just a push. This is all nonsense.
The seven or eight tomb robbers, without tools such as big hammers, could only look at the coffin and sigh.
Under such circumstances, it is impossible to use expensive Sanhe soil even in official circles.
The current official roads of the Ming Dynasty can also be called post roads.
A standard post road is about one foot wide, and the road surface is paved with similar stone slabs.
The gaps between the stone slabs are not filled with clay, which results in them becoming pitted over time, and making a pinging sound when wheels run over them.
On both sides of this post road, there are paths about two feet each, usually paved with pebbles and sand.
The roads on the left and right sides are several inches shorter than the post road in the center.
This is also the legal road that traveling people and merchants can take.
If ordinary people occupy the stone road while officials are traveling, it is illegal. Depending on the situation, they will be punished to varying degrees.
Those who do something as serious as delaying a military plane will be directly executed or even killed on the spot.
Naturally, if no one notices it, the people will still walk up, which is much easier.
However, when walking on the official road, it is inevitable to be frightened and trembling, and at the same time, listen to the shouts with ears open, and look back at any time to prepare to avoid.
"Grandpa, it's feasible." Zhu Ying affirmed.
Zhu Yuanzhang asked again: "Cement production can keep up."
Zhu Yuanzhang was extremely concerned about this. After all, it was a new thing. Although he heard from Da Sun, he knew that the manufacturing of cement was basically worthless.
All it takes is some labor.
For the Ming Dynasty, especially Zhu Yuanzhang, labor was not valuable.
The only concern now is how long it will take to build a wide concrete official road directly to Peiping.
"Grandpa, don't worry. The blast furnace has been built. Gray Stone's grandson has sent people to consider it. We have it all over the Ming Dynasty. With full power, the output will naturally keep up."
Zhu Ying replied.
If it comes to other minerals, there is nothing we can do.
This limestone is really abundant for the Ming Dynasty. It can be said that it is found in all the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Yuanzhang said with some relief: "If a cement official road can be built directly to Peiping, then Liaodong and Nuergan will be directly under our noses."
"Not only Liaodong, but also military towns in the border areas can also build cement official roads. All parties will work together to make those grassland barbarians dare not offend our Ming Dynasty Tiger Beard."
Zhu Yuanzhang attached great importance to the official road station and was very aware of its deep-seated role.
Anyone who comes into contact with the post station or post road will not be shown any kindness at all.
The current Ming Dynasty Post, whether it is the postmen or other aspects, is very upright and honest. After all, Zhu Yuanzhang brought a son-in-law to sacrifice.
If anyone wants to do anything in this regard, or seek some personal gain, he must first compare his weight with that of his consort.
Zhu Yuanzhang, who had been fighting for many years, only told Da Sun about the role of cement. Zhu Ying didn't need to say anything, and he immediately turned his thoughts to officialdom.
"Grandpa, the distance from Nanjing to Peking is about two thousand miles. If we take a roundabout route and avoid the mountains, it will probably be hundreds of miles more."
"If you want to complete it quickly, you have to go on this road, assuming there are no less than ten factories, so that you can ensure faster completion."
More than two thousand miles, according to Zhu Ying's calculations, means that every two hundred miles, a cement plant must be built.
It starts with simultaneous paving, and then the road connection is achieved.
The only convenience is that there is currently an official road, so there is no need to survey the road. You only need to widen the main official road.
After this year, you can set a point and start directly.
The expansion and compaction of the ground will also take a certain amount of time. At the same time, the cement factory will be opened and put into production quickly.
After Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, he shook his head and said: "Ten factories are not enough. The fertile land of Nuergan in Liaodong is extremely critical. The sooner we cultivate it, the sooner we can produce food. Our army can also gather and arrive faster."
"Not only in terms of food, it is also very critical for the soldiers at the border. At the same time, it can also deter the grassland tribes, including the Mongols and Jurchens in Liaodong, so that they can more or less stay on their own."
"After tomorrow morning's court meeting, Dasun, you will stay and summon all the officials from the Ministry of Industry to discuss a charter and see if it is possible to build this official road this year."
"As long as it can be achieved, no matter how much money or labor is spent, it is worth it."
"Ten cement plants are not enough, so just have twenty or thirty. If you don't have enough manpower, you have to pay to hire them or recruit corvees. No matter how big the difficulty is, you have to deal with it."
"If it can be completed this year, we can start sowing in the spring next year. When the summer harvest comes, it will be completely different for our Ming Dynasty."
"We would like to see who will dare to offend our Ming Dynasty and those prairie barbarians at that time, huh!"
Zhu Ying didn't expect that the old man was so courageous.
In fact, Zhu Ying feels that even if it takes two years to complete it, it is considered very fast.
After all, this is the Ming Dynasty, not later generations. Without mechanical equipment, we can only rely on human power, and the efficiency will naturally be much slower.
As for the recruitment of corvees, it is definitely unavoidable. For such a large amount of work, it is estimated that there are not enough people to recruit.
But at that time, even if it is a corvee, although legally speaking, no money from the government is required, Zhu Ying will pay the same wages to other laborers.
The simplest fact is that once there are too many people, it will definitely affect the income of farmland. Even if there are tax reduction and exemption policies, it will make things worse for many families who are already struggling to make ends meet.
It's just that this amount of money would be too huge if it were all borne by the Qunying Chamber of Commerce.
There are also cement plants, building blast furnaces, recruiting craftsmen, digging limestone, including transportation and a series of expenses.
It can be said that the construction of this official channel is enough to directly bring down the now prosperous Qunying Chamber of Commerce.
However, Zhu Ying still has quite a lot of tricks when it comes to finding ways to make money. You still have to be pretty good at copying the gourd.
"Grandpa, the faster the official system is built, the better, but my grandson once measured that the labor from corvee labor, if you don't work hard, is often not worth the labor of one."
"If there is a subsidy for the same salary, then of course one will have to work harder."
"As for the money that needs to be spent, my grandson does have some ideas."
Zhu Ying said.
Zhu Yuanzhang heard this and asked, "Come and listen to what the great grandson has to say."
Zhu Yingdao: "There is a saying that building a bridge is a way for people to cross the water, and it is the foundation for the road. If you are good at it, it will pave the way for great merit. Building a bridge will have immeasurable merit."
"Since this official system has great merits, it cannot be reserved exclusively for the imperial court. The profits should be distributed to some local landowners and gentry."
"When the grandson was established, every twenty miles, a merit monument was built to record those who had contributed to the officialdom."
"And if you make a donation, and it does not affect the official movement or the army's march, you can enjoy the right to travel on official roads within the three generations and five blessings."