Chapter 334: First, Let's Build the Ships
Li Daoxuan's mind was full of miniature people piloting ships, and he was thoroughly enjoying the thought.
He then heard Feng Jun shake his head with a sigh, saying, "Although we have the Qichuan Ferry in our county, over the past year, it has almost entirely fallen into disuse."
Li Daoxuan found it strange. "Fallen into disuse? With such a ferry crossing available, merchants should be seizing this opportunity to transport grain from the prosperous Jiangnan region to sell here. Wouldn't selling a single shipment bring a massive profit? Why would it be abandoned?"
Gao Yiye also felt curious and quickly relayed the question.
Feng Jun sighed. "Madam, you may not know this, but last year, when Hu Tingyan was the Governor of Shaanxi and Wu Zhiwang was the Governor of Yansui, they both reported bandit uprisings to the imperial court. Then Wu Zhiwang died of illness, and Hu Tingyan was dismissed. The Emperor appointed Yang He as the Supreme Commander of three border regions. At the same time... the imperial court issued an order forbidding grain shipments into Shaanxi. Consequently, grain merchants stopped coming. Aside from grain, no one wants any other goods right now. As a result, it has been a very, very long time since any merchant ships have docked at Qichuan Ferry."
Li Daoxuan exclaimed, "Damn it!"
Gao Yiye was also startled. Without waiting for Li Daoxuan to speak, she urgently asked, "Why? There's a severe drought, so why won't the imperial court allow grain into Shaanxi?"
Feng Jun sighed, "To prevent banditry!"
Gao Yiye pressed, "What does preventing banditry have to do with forbidding grain shipments into Shaanxi?"
Seeing the distressed expressions on both Gao Yiye and Bai Yuan's faces, he quickly clarified, "This... this is what those above say, not what I, your humble official, say. An official like myself, living in Shaanxi, naturally understands that this is an idea only someone whose head has been clamped by a palace door could come up with."
Li Daoxuan: "..."
Gao Yiye: "..."
Both were speechless for a moment.
Bai Yuan, on the other hand, accustomed to the imperial court's absurd policies, seemed less surprised now. He spread his hands and said, "As long as the bandits can't get grain, they'll all starve to death, and then they won't rebel. Impeccable logic, I must commend them, I truly must."
Feng Jun gave a bitter smile. "This is not something a humble seventh-rank official like myself can resolve. Please excuse my inadequacy."
Li Daoxuan spoke up, "Heyang County, we must help them!"
Once he spoke, Gao Yiye naturally understood. "Venerable Official Feng," she said, "our Gao Family Village happens to have some resources that we wouldn't mind providing a portion of to relieve the common people of Heyang County."
Upon hearing this, Feng Jun was instantly overjoyed. "Truly?" he asked.
Gao Yiye exclaimed, "Ah? Nosebleed! Venerable Official Feng, your nosebleed is suddenly gushing!"
Feng Jun wiped his nose with a hand. The blood smeared across his face in a flash, as if slicing his face in two. But he paid it no mind. Instead, he quickly calmed himself and counter-questioned, "If you give this official grain, what does this official need to give you?"
After the initial burst of joy, he immediately realized that an exchange of benefits was the main theme. This man hadn't let the nosebleed completely muddle his wits after all.
Gao Yiye smiled. "We don't need material goods. We only require Venerable Official Feng to issue a decree to build a few roads."
"Just like the regulations here in Chengcheng County."
Feng Jun let out a surprised 'Oh?' He immediately understood. He had long heard about the extensive road-building projects in neighboring Chengcheng County, though he hadn't known the true scale of their endeavors. Now, hearing Gao Yiye mention road construction, he instantly grasped the situation.
He thought to himself: "No wonder the Chengcheng County Magistrate had the capability to build roads during this year of great calamity. It turned out he had the support of Gao Family Village, which was supplying him with grain."
Since Liang Shixian dared to do it, Feng Jun, of course, dared to do the same.
Building bridges and repairing roads were inherently great acts of benevolent governance. If he hesitated and dared not act even on this, what kind of county magistrate would he be?
Feng Jun declared, "This official certainly has no problem with that!"
Gao Yiye said, "Then it's settled. Venerable Official Feng, you should first go to Xi'an for your official report. When you return from Xi'an to Heyang County, you might as well make another trip to our Gao Family Village. Then we can discuss the details of road construction."
Feng Jun exclaimed, "Excellent!"
His mood instantly lifted. Over the past year or so, he had not only been troubled by Fan Shan Yao, but he had also received no help from the imperial court. Those above had even directly cut off his trade routes, forbidding grain from coming in. He had seen absolutely no hope for Heyang County. Now, suddenly, someone was actively offering to help him. He was truly overjoyed beyond words.
"Oh, by the way!" Bai Yuan said with a smile, "If Venerable Official Feng is heading to Xi'an, you can take a segment of our train. It will save you a considerable amount of time."
Feng Jun asked, "Oh? What is a 'fire-train'? A car that burns fire?"
Bai Yuan chuckled, "You'll know once you've ridden it."
A few minutes later...
Feng Jun boarded the small train from Gao Family Village heading to Chengcheng County town. After a whistle blared, the train carried him, at a speed of sixty kilometers per hour, speeding towards the county town.
It was Feng Jun's first time riding such an outlandish mode of transport. He was excited, screaming... blood gushed from his nose, he lost too much blood, grew dizzy, and collapsed.
Upon reaching the county town, his house servants struggled for quite a while before finally reviving him.
Meanwhile, Li Daoxuan had already begun researching ships.
Although the Yellow River hadn't yet come into view, it was only a matter of time. Ships, as objects, would probably need to be custom-ordered in advance.
He made a call to his old friend Cai Xinzhi.
"Hey, Old Cai," Li Daoxuan began, "it's been a while since I've asked you to customize something. This time, I want to make some cute, kawaii, ship models. I need riverboats, not ocean vessels, okay?"
Cai Xinzhi laughed. "Ship models? I have plenty of those already. Why bother making new ones? Couldn't you just come and pick up a couple from me?"
Li Daoxuan retorted, "I don't want ordinary remote-controlled ship models. I want ship models that can be 'operated' from inside the boat. Riverboats, riverboats, riverboats – I'm saying it three times because it's important."
Cai Xinzhi understood. "Been eating hallucinogenic mushrooms again? I still remember your bizarre solar cars. Tiny cars the size of a finger joint, and you were still adding braking and steering systems to them. I'm truly impressed by your dedication. Now you're dabbling with ships? Alright, what systems do you need this time?"
Li Daoxuan replied, "Steering systems are definitely a must. Power systems are also essential. And transformation—"
The moment he uttered the word 'transformation', Cai Xinzhi roared back, "The first two are fine, but 'transformation'? Absolutely not, absolutely not! Quickly, throw away all your mushrooms! Don't eat them anymore! You'll die, you'll literally die!"
Li Daoxuan argued, "Don't refuse so quickly. Ships are so big. It should be easy to make them into Transformers, right? Toy stores are full of Transformers."
Cai Xinzhi snapped, "Transformation is easy, of course. But after they transform, you'll definitely demand control. Let me tell you, control is impossible. All those Gundam settings where robots are controlled with psychic power and two joysticks are simply impossible to achieve, impossible! Unless Elon Musk's neuralink development succeeds, otherwise, it's absolutely impossible. If you can't control it, mere transformation is absolutely useless."
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