"Your Highness, our thoughts are all on the cotton armor."
Seeing that King Yu looked bad, Fang Quan, the assistant craftsman, immediately said.
"Oh? What should I say?"
"Your Highness, considering that most of the army is used in the north, cotton armor is just right. Everyone in the entire craftsman camp is making cotton armor, and there can be two thousand pairs every month."
"That's not bad!"
Compared with chainmail, cotton armor is more convenient, of course cheaper, and it can also keep you warm.
Zhu Yixi nodded and sighed: "You still have to work hard. It is not possible to continue like this. We must expand production."
Fang Quan couldn't stop nodding his head, respectfully.
As for firearms, regulations have long been established, no more, no less.
There are five red-coat cannons per month, twenty 200- to 300-pound French cannons, and fifty mortar-like Tiger Crouching Cannons per month.
Carrying spears and flintlock muskets, each with a thousand muskets.
For other cavalry muskets, there are 700 or 800 muskets per month.
Therefore, the entire firearms battalion has 10,000 people, and there are 5,000 musketeers and 5,000 artillerymen.
As a result, a craftsman camp of nearly 20,000 people was created, which was large in scale and formed a craftsman city.
The air was dull and choking, and the tinkling sound of hammering was so constant that every craftsman or apprentice had to wear earplugs.
After a while, he had some tinnitus.
At this time, Zhu Yixi's desire to patrol was extremely reduced, and he couldn't wait to leave Jiangcheng.
The wall, which is three feet high and twenty miles long, is almost made of adobe bricks. It looks like a county town. There are workshops near the river, and the living area further back.
They did not leave by boat as they had come, but just wandered around.
Because King Yu wanted to see the first industrial city.
In other words, it is a small town attached to the craftsman city.
After only a few hundred steps out of the city, a town without walls appeared in front of us, bustling with activity.
From a distance, it looks like a tent set up by an army who came here to camp. A large area of simple houses is set up in various directions. There are two streets, one horizontal and one vertical, with densely packed shops.
As I got closer, I saw that the dirt road was very busy, with many people selling things, wine shops, and stalls.
Basically it's all in the service industry.
During the feudal farming era, except for cities, there were few towns with concentrated populations. The population was scattered in various places. Most people made a living by farming. Generally, markets were held at intervals, called grass markets.
Permanent markets in the countryside are rare even in Jiangnan.
Many craftsmen, apprentices, etc. like to come and hang out during their off time. In the winter, there are many people wearing short clothes.
Of course, many people are single and full of passion, so there are naturally many prostitutes, and they can even be found everywhere.
A few tents were surrounded by people, and the sound of beatings could not be heard.
The men and women on the street were all used to it, except for the children who occasionally took a peek and were picked out by the ears.
The assistant craftsman, Shoufang Quan, felt a little unsightly, his face turned red, and his slightly thick neck swelled a little: "Your Highness, there are many rough men in the army who don't understand etiquette."
"There has to be an outlet, right? I understand."
Zhu Yixi didn't take it seriously and looked at it wantonly. Apart from the brothels, the busiest thing was the wine shop. The aroma of a lot of wine wafted around, which cleared up the nasal cavity.
"Mr. Wang is getting older, you need to help him more."
King Yu said calmly.
Fang Quan couldn't understand what it meant. He suppressed his joy in his heart and kept nodding his head: "Don't worry, Your Highness, there will never be any trouble in Jiangcheng."
"Monetary rewards alone are not enough. Craftsmen work hard and there are needs in other aspects."
Zhu Yixi smiled slightly, pointed to these shops and said: "This market must also be classified as a city of craftsmen. It is messy and can easily breed rogues."
"Also, many craftsmen's problems with their mothers-in-law, children's schooling, and drinking water problems must be solved as much as possible so that they can have no worries and can concentrate on their work."
In the first year of Hongguang, His Royal Highness the King of Yu carried out reforms in the craftsman camp, changing the nature of personal dependence and liberating productivity.
To put it simply, it means to remove the craftsman status and no longer be oppressed by the court.
For example, the annual regular payment of free labor money will naturally no longer exist, which is equivalent to exemption from labor; children can take the imperial examination, change careers, etc.
It almost changed the composition of a family.
For the whole of Huguang, after subordinate officials, craftsmen are the second ones exempted from household registration restrictions.
As for military households, they exist in name only.
Fang Quan was shocked, and immediately overjoyed. This was an expansion of power, and he hurriedly agreed: "I hope your highness can rest assured that I will definitely try my best to complete it."
Zhu Yixi nodded without comment.
…
Xiangyang Prefecture, Zaoyang County.
After the autumn harvest in September, just two days after the break, the entire county was plunged into busyness.
"Dong dong——"
There were constant knocks on the door, and Wang Chunqing woke up helplessly. Seeing that the sky was still dark, she couldn't help but cursed secretly, put on her military robe, and washed her face with cold water before she regained consciousness.
"Stop knocking."
Wang Chunqing opened the door, and a delicate wheat-colored smiling face came into view.
"Boss, winter training has started again this year. Go quickly, the county magistrate still has to lecture you!"
Zhou Shangde said with a smile, his slightly delicate face, but there was no hint of eagerness.
"Let's go!" Wang Chunqing raised her knife and stepped on her boots, holding her head high and walking away.
During the Battle of Ruzhou last year, he was transferred from the military camp to the auxiliary army. Due to his diligence in transporting food, many people, including him, were incorporated into the local garrison.
There are two hundred in small counties and three hundred in large counties. They are busy killing bandits, gathering refugees, and suppressing local areas. It can be said that they are busy.
That's all. After the autumn harvest every year, there is still a month and a half of winter training.
As long as all men aged sixteen or above and under thirty are in good health, they must practice military formations, register and undergo the winter training required by the shogunate.
And winter training was actually included in the official exams. Officials also supervise the garrison, so it had to be carried out.
As the captain, Wang Chunqing is his turn to take charge this week.
When he arrived outside the city, there were nearly a thousand people there, many in rags and rags, but all of them had red faces and were extremely excited.
According to regulations, people must be provided with a meal during winter training. In order to save some rations for the family, it is nothing to be tired and suffer.
The boss had a bad look on his face and woke up early in the morning, disturbing his sleep.
The county official didn't show much interest either, so he said a few words and left.
Then Wang Chunqing came on stage, teaching some flag commands, trumpet blasts and other signals, followed by regular operations such as chopping, walking left and right, etc.
In response to the supervision of his subordinates, he brought a bottle of wine and drank to warm himself up.
"Oh, it's hard to make a few hundred pennies a month!"
After sighing, not long after, a big man suddenly ran over and shouted: "Captain Wang, the boss has asked you to go!"
Wang Chunqing was stunned and hurriedly set off.
Immediately, he learned the news: the shogunate would select a team of garrison troops from each county to serve as auxiliary troops.
And he was honored to be selected.
Wang Chunqing was extremely excited: "We are finally going to fight, and I don't even have enough money."