Chapter 574: Pawn Everything We Have to Get It Done |
After the river channel was widened, an unending stream of cargo ships arrived at Jishan County, Jiangzhou.
At the same time, numerous waterwheels were being frantically built along both banks of the river.
These past few days, the heavens had bestowed rain, with showers falling continuously.
But the carpenters were not idle at all; even under the rain, they strained every nerve to build waterwheels.
Jishan was crucial agricultural land. Here, if agriculture thrived, the entire city could flourish. How could the carpenters not strive desperately?
As the Jiangzhou Local Gentry Leader, militia instructor, and the current de facto administrator of Jiangzhou, Mo Xiaopin had also been anxious and worried these past few days. He was organizing the farmers, pushing them to complete the final preparations before spring plowing.
It was already winter of the Year Four of Chongzhen. As soon as the Spring Festival arrived, spring plowing would commence; time was extremely tight.
Just as he was swamped by work, another large ship sailed over.
Mo Xiaopin glanced at the river channel and uttered an “Eh?” This time, the ship wasn’t a cargo vessel, but a passenger boat. The kind wealthy nobles rode while enjoying themselves along the Qinhuai River.
But he understood almost immediately. The ship had neither sail nor oars; clearly, it was another of those strange vessels used by Mr. Bai and his bunch.
Mo Xiaopin took only 0.1 seconds to conclude that surely there must be a very important person on board. He quickly set down his work and hurried to the dock.
The cabin door of the pleasure boat opened, and out stepped a young lady who looked very delicate, very shy, timid and flustered. By her appearance, she was at most sixteen or seventeen—a proper, well-bred young lady.
But the people following her weren’t maidservants. Instead, they were a group of young men. These young men also didn’t seem ordinary; they all looked highly educated, giving off the air of scholars.
Mo Xiaopin thought to himself: All sons of high-ranking officials!
This kind of people was best not offended—heaven knows what official positions their elders held in the court. Offending one could easily lead to the destruction of his family and death.
Thinking this, he quickly stepped forward, cupping his fists in salute: “Young Masters and Mistress, are you here in Jiangzhou for sightseeing? I am Mo Xiaopin; everyone calls me Master Mo. Might I ask…”
The young lady at the head dodged behind the others, clearly not very adept at dealing with strangers.
But surprisingly, the group of young men was quite polite; they didn’t adopt an arrogant attitude but instead collectively and properly returned Mo Xiaopin’s salute: “Master Mo, we come from Gaojia Village, Chengcheng County, Shaanxi. We are chemistry interns.”
“Chemistry interns”? Mo Xiaopin didn’t understand a word of it. He only recognized the word “students” implied learning, and figured he must cultivate good relations. He continued with a salute: “Since you are all newly arrived, if you wouldn’t scorn it, I could guide you on a tour of the area.”
Upon hearing this, the young men turned in unison to look at the young lady hiding behind them.
Mo Xiaopin understood now: that sixteen-or-seventeen-year-old young lady was the leader!
The young men actually turned to her and asked, “Teacher San, it’s your decision.”
So, this young lady was actually the daughter of Thirty-Two—Miss San!
She had been teaching chemistry at the Gaojia Village School and was also the head of the Gaojia Village Chemical Factory. She was highly esteemed within Gaojia Village.
Despite her prominence, she was inherently shy and timid, extremely uncomfortable interacting with strangers. She had just been startled by Mo Xiaopin’s abrupt approach and “taking initiative,” hence she hid behind her students now.
Seeing everyone look at her, she pulled herself together, cleared her throat softly, and said, “We are unfamiliar with this place. Having Master Mo guide us on a tour would be the best arrangement. Shouldn’t you all thank Master Mo?”
The interns quickly cupped their fists towards Mo Xiaopin: “Thank you, Master Mo.”
Having exchanged the greetings, Third Miss finally calmed down, no longer panicked. She cautiously stepped to the front of the group, with a bunch of interns trailing behind her, looking naively curious.
Mo Xiaopin was equally bewildered. Of course it wouldn’t be strange if this young lady was the daughter of a high official and other rich young men whose families held lesser official titles obeyed her. But calling her “teacher” seemed downright bizarre.
Mo Xiaopin said, “Teacher San, your visit here…”
Third Miss’s cheeks flushed red; she was getting stage fright. But she still spoke softly: “Jishan in Jiangzhou is vital agricultural land. It has always relied on agriculture, benefiting from irrigation and transportation along the Fen River. Therefore, it is destined to develop as a key agricultural center in the future.”
Mo Xiaopin: “Hmm?”
Third Miss: “In the future, this place will certainly require massive amounts of chemical fertilizer. Relying solely on transport won’t be enough. It will be necessary to build large local fertilizer factories.”
Mo Xiaopin: “???”
This had completely entered his zone of incomprehension; he couldn’t follow at all.
Third Miss turned to the interns: “The most crucial thing for your practical learning during this visit is to understand how to establish a fertilizer factory from scratch.”
The interns replied together: “Understood, Teacher San.”
Mo Xiaopin: “Uh… uh… What should I say?”
Whoosh! Third Miss dodged behind a student again, peeking out with half her face: “Master Mo, regarding building a fertilizer factory… Rather than us managing it across mountains and rivers, it would be more efficient for us if the local gentry would take charge. Might Master Mo be interested in investing and establishing a factory?”
Mo Xiaopin: “Teacher San, I must be terribly dim-witted. I still haven’t even grasped what we’re discussing yet!”
Third Miss blushed: “Ah! That… I blame myself for not explaining clearly… The main point is…” She truly had difficulty conversing with strangers; she stumbled three times in one sentence.
Completely unable to continue, she waved her hand: “Interns, you explain it.”
A group of students promptly swarmed around Mo Xiaopin, chattering all at once about the issue of chemical fertilizer.
After listening for a long time, Mo Xiaopin became dizzy and muddle-headed. Finally, he grasped the faintest idea: it was something that could make crops yield more abundantly, called “chemical fertilizer.” Something called a “chemical factory” was needed to produce it.
Mo Xiaopin thought to himself: These people are all members of the Dao Xuan Deity Teachings. Just looking at their speech and demeanor reveals their parents hold very high positions in the cult!
Their plan, though he couldn’t understand it and didn’t know if it would even make money… buying a share probably couldn’t go wrong. Even if he lost money, it would be spending it to gain connections.
He needed to broaden his perspective.
Earning goodwill was far more valuable than just earning money.
Mo Xiaopin put on a pleased expression: “Teacher San! Since what you speak of will greatly aid agricultural development and increase crop yields, then it’s undoubtedly something excellent—benefitting the country and the people! I, Mo, would be a fool not to seize such an opportunity! I would pawn everything I have to get this done! Count me in!”