In the afternoon, Lin Jue, Bai Bing and Gao Muqing, led by the little follower Ah Sheng, went to the seaside pier outside Dongcheng to check the situation. Sure enough, sea ice had covered a large area of the sea. The closer to the coast, the thicker the sea ice.
The knot is thick. According to the young man Asheng, the sea ice here has been there since November, and will become thicker as time goes by. When the sea ice first rises, ships can still break through patches of ice.
Ice floes, by the time of the twelfth lunar month and the New Year, the thickest part of the sea ice will reach half a foot, and it will be unshakable. If it snows a few more times, the snow and ice will solidify together, and it will become white like land.
.At this time, the only way for fishermen to catch fish is to dig holes in the ice, and there is no other way.
Standing on the pier, looking at the cascading sea ice in front of him extending to the depths of the sea, Lin Jue was very worried. Even though he was very resourceful, he could not think of a way to solve the situation at this moment.
Ah Sheng said that if you want to go to sea by boat now, you must drag the boat on the ice to a few miles away, where there is sea water. But this is extremely dangerous. The further away from the dock, the more fragile the sea ice becomes, and it is very dangerous.
It is easy to fall into the water. The sea water is cold, and you will definitely die if you fall into the water. Another danger is that in winter, the sea is very windy and there are often blizzards. Even the most experienced fishermen will not take risks at this time. Anyone who dares to go to sea will risk their own life.
Seeking death.
After hearing these words, Lin Jue was even more in a bad mood. Lin Jue prepared for the worst, and if it didn't work out, he would go back the same way and rush back to Funiu Mountain and Luoyan Valley. He would come back to investigate next spring. But Lin Jue still
I had never done such a half-measured thing, and I was very worried when I thought of running for nothing. After I came back, I stopped joining in the fun at the acquisition site. I went back to my room and fell asleep, so I simply didn’t think about it anymore.
The next morning, Magistrate Tian did not show up, nor did he send anyone to tell him any news. Lin Jue was quite disappointed. At noon, Magistrate Tian still did not come. Lin Jue suspected that the man named Tian was up to no good and was afraid that he would
He stopped purchasing, so he delayed the purchase. After he finished collecting the dry goods in Bohai County, he told himself that there was nothing he could do. Then all the dry goods fell into his own hands, and he could only admit that he was unlucky.
But Lin Jue obviously misunderstood. In the late afternoon, when Lin Jue was sitting in his room in a daze, Sun Dayong came in and reported that Magistrate Tian sent someone to tell him to pick up the ship at the east dock of the city. He said that he had helped him get two ships.
The big iron ship is coming.
Lin Jue was so surprised that he hurriedly put on his fur cloak and led everyone to the Dongcheng Pier. However, on the sea in the distance, two large dark ships were riding the wind and waves towards the dock. There were only a few inches of sea ice covered by the bows of the ships.
After crushing and chopping, you can hear the cracking sound from far away.
When the two large ships approached, you could see someone operating a heavy hammer on the bow of the ship to hammer on the ice on both sides of the ship. The principle is to pull the weight up with the machine shaft, then loosen it and drop it. There will be a bang.
Break a large piece of sea ice, and the iron boat can easily crush the ice and sail as usual. These are actually two icebreakers. This method can be used now. If the ice layer is thicker, I am afraid it will not work.
.
An hour later, the two boats drove out of a mile-long passage to the pier and set up on the gangplank. Magistrate Tian got off the gangplank happily. Lin Jue laughed loudly and greeted him, saying loudly: "My lord, the magistrate is still here."
I really did what I said, and I actually borrowed the boat. It’s really surprising.”
Tian Guilin laughed and said: "Fortunately, I did not disgrace my life."
.Fortunately, Mr. Hu, the prefect, has a good personal relationship with me and helped me talk about this matter. Only then did we get these two ships. To be honest, these two ships are old ships, iron icebreakers that were eliminated by the Jing Navy.
The Jing Navy bought new ships, and the two ships were parked at the Binzhou Pier. They could no longer be driven, but I hired craftsmen to repair the masts, reinforce the cabins, and reinstall the icebreakers overnight, and then we drove back.
Already."
Lin Jue nodded and praised: "Hard work, hard work, hard work, hard work. That's it."
Tian Guilin said: "Although the ship is a bit old, as long as it doesn't go to the open sea, it doesn't matter. You are just transporting these dry goods, so there is no need to go to the open sea. And this is an abandoned warship, which does meet your requirements. Soldier
The general will not come with the ship, just treat it as a discarded object. However, the rental price is high, and the dozens of boatmen on the ship that I helped you find from Binzhou will also have to pay money. I don’t think Fang Dong’s family will blame me for doing this.
Make your claim, I've already negotiated the price for you."
Lin Jue laughed loudly and said: "The county magistrate is so considerate. It's too late for me to be grateful. How can I blame you? How much does it cost to rent two ships?"
"Fifty taels a day, and the boatmen's wages are 500 taels a day. Starting from today, it will last until the ship is sent back and the personnel return. It's a bit expensive, I know. But there is nothing I can do. Commander Jing has already given me a lot of face.
, I'm really embarrassed to bargain." Tian Guilin said.
"It's not expensive, it's not expensive, hahaha, that's great. Now I can feel relieved." Lin Jueshu laughed heartily, feeling happy from the bottom of his heart. He didn't expect that God has a perfect path, and this matter was solved like this.
Although the boat is a bit broken, it is obviously usable, and Lin Jue will not demand too much. The price is actually much lower than what Lin Jue thought. These two big boats only cost fifty taels of silver a day.
The rent can be said to be very cheap.
This result made Lin Jue very happy. He wanted to leave by boat immediately for Snake Island, but he knew not to act too hastily, so as not to arouse suspicion. He immediately ordered the goods to be collected overnight today and the dry goods to be loaded onto the ship early tomorrow morning. Originally, Bohai County
After two days of collecting the sea goods, there was not much left, and there was a time limit, so the people seized the time to sell goods. At the second watch of the day, basically everything was collected.
The goods began to be loaded that night, and the people spontaneously came to help. You carried me and I carried them. It took less than an hour to pack all the goods and pack them on the ship. The two large iron ships were fully loaded.
Early the next morning, Lin Jue and others got up early, and the group packed up, checked out, and left. When they left the inn door, the door was dark and filled with local people. Lin Jue asked in surprise, and then he realized that they were actually here to see them off. Lin Jue's heart
I was very touched. The feelings of the people were simple. They regarded Lin Jue and his party's behavior as grace, and were extremely grateful to Lin Jue and others. Therefore, when Fang Dong's family was about to leave, they took the initiative to see them off.
In fact, Lin Jue did give them a favor, and it was greater than they imagined. Lin Jue actually had no use for these dry goods and sea goods. It was impossible to transport these things back to Luoyan Valley. There were a lot of these smelly sea goods.
People don’t like to eat, so they don’t even touch it. Let alone have to travel such a long way to Luoyan Valley. Lin Jue has even thought about it, it’s better to find a place to give these things to him on the way.
.If it weren’t for concealing his identity, Lin Jue would have wanted to keep all these things and not take away a single package. But if he did that, he would
The businessman's identity is exposed and suspicion will arouse.
Surrounded by the common people, Lin Jue and his party braved the biting sea breeze in the early morning and arrived at the pier. After boarding the ship, the anchor had not yet been lifted. Magistrate Tian rushed to the pier with more than a dozen government officials and his entourage, shouting that they wanted to get on the ship.
Lin Jue ordered people to build a gangplank, and Tian Guilin wrapped a pot of wine in his cloak and got on the bow of the boat. He laughed loudly and said, "Fang Dongjia, I'm here to practice it for you. I said I'd like to treat you to a glass of wine.
of."
Lin Jue burst into laughter, cupped his hands and said: "Magistrate Tian is really a man of love and kindness, good, good, good, I'll drink this wine."
Tian Guilin smiled and said: "You and I met by chance, but I feel like we've met you before. Although the future is long, who can predict the events in life? Maybe if we say goodbye today, we will never see each other again in the future. I'm not saying that
You don't keep your word, but you say things are fickle and no one dares to predict what will happen in the future. So, if I don't drink this glass of wine with you, I'm afraid I won't be able to drink it in the future."
Lin Jue nodded and sighed: "It's true, things in the world are constantly changing, and the world is not peaceful. It is indeed unpredictable."
Tian Guilin filled two glasses of wine on the deck, picked up one glass and said, "Here, let's drink this glass. I wish Fang Dong's family a safe journey and a smooth arrival."
"Thank you." Lin Jue raised his glass and drank it in one gulp.
Tian Guilin filled the second glass of wine and said to Lin Jue: "For the second glass of wine, I wish Fang Dong's family good luck, good fortune, and abundant wealth. When he comes to Bohai County again next year, it is best to set up a wine shop in Bohai County.
The shop will be convenient for people to come and go, and it will also be convenient for doing business."
Lin Jue laughed and said: "Magistrate Tian still never forgets to seek welfare for the people of Bohai County. He is really a good official."
Tian Guilin said: "That's natural. I am responsible for the livelihood of the 40,000 people in this county, so I naturally have to do my best for this. This county is not like some officials in my country, who only care about themselves and don't care about the lives of the people. I, my country, are not concerned about the lives of the people.
The reason why it has lasted for hundreds of generations is not because the people support the imperial court. I don't want the people to hate the government, or even rise up because they can't survive. That would be dereliction of duty and shame for those of us who studied in the Zhou Dynasty and became officials.
"
"Well said, done!" Lin Jue praised, raised his glass and Tian Guilin finished the second glass of wine.
Tian Guilin filled two more glasses of wine, raised one and said to Lin Jue: "This third glass of wine..."
Lin Jue said with a smile: "For this third cup, I think we have to think of a good fortune. I think Magistrate Tian is also a person who cares about the country and the people. Although I am just a merchant, I also hope that the Great Zhou Dynasty will prosper and the people will be stable.
.I see, with this third glass of wine, we wish the great Zhou a prosperous national fortune, peace and prosperity for the country and the people, how about it?"
Tian Guilin nodded excitedly and said: "Okay, okay, this is a good word, that's it. Regardless of whether we are officials or civilians, we, the people of the Zhou Dynasty, should work hard to make our country of Zhou Dynasty peaceful and peaceful, and the people live and work in peace and contentment. This
That's the right thing to do. Come on, let's do it."
The two clinked glasses and drank the wine in one gulp. After that, the two said goodbye, and then they said goodbye. Tian Guilin took the people off the boat, and Lin Jue ordered the people to put away the gangplank, raise the anchor and raise the sail, and the ship slowly left.
From the pier, we slowly drove away along the ice path opened yesterday.
It wasn't until the big ship was far away from the shore that Tian Guilin and the people on the shore were still waving goodbye on the dock. When the big ship gradually moved away and became two small black spots, everyone slowly dispersed.
