The road in Huanglong County was flat, and the carriage ran briskly on the road for about twenty minutes without being too bumpy. It went around the outside of the county town for a short while, and then arrived at the craftsmen's camp in Huanglong County from the riverside pier.
On the way to the craftsmen's camp, Qian Su did not treat Yan Liqiang as a child who knew nothing. Instead, he carefully introduced to Yan Liqiang the situation of the Huanglong craftsmen's camp where he was, so that Yan Liqiang would have a better idea of the situation.
In modern terms, the Huanglong Machinery Battalion is a logistics equipment agency under the Pingxi County Military Governor's Office, a standard military unit, and the Pingxi County Military Governor's Office is the highest military agency in Pingxi County. There are many units like the Huanglong Machinery Battalion in Pingxi County. Some of their duties are the same, and some are different. The main responsibility of the Huanglong Machinery Battalion is to build and repair military equipment. Qian Su is the battalion supervisor of the Huanglong Machinery Battalion, a formal Feiyang Captain - the battalion supervisor is a specific official position and duty. If it were on Earth, it would be like the title of platoon leader or company commander in the army. In the Huanglong Machinery Battalion, Qian Su is the top leader and absolute authority of the Battalion, and Feiyang Captain is a military rank, which is the rank of second lieutenant, lieutenant, captain, major and other military ranks in the army on Earth.
In Huanglong County, even the county magistrate of Huanglong County had no control over Qian Su. Qian Su only obeyed the orders of the Military Governor's Office. The Military Governor's Office also stationed a battalion in Huanglong County, which was a team of more than 2,000 people. The chief officer of the battalion, the battalion commander, had the rank of Yingyang Colonel, which was only one level higher than Qian Su. The two men belonged to different systems under the Military Governor's Office. Not only did the battalion commander have no control over Qian Su, but he also needed Qian Su's help and support on a daily basis. The two men had a good relationship. As a result, Qian Su lived a very comfortable life in Huanglong County. All parties had to give him some face. Anyone with a little insight knew this Mr. Qian who often went to various restaurants and brothels in Huanglong County.
After hearing Qian Su's introduction of the situation, Yan Liqiang finally understood why Yan Dechang sent him to Huanglong County to avoid disaster. With Qian Su's protection in Huanglong County, there was nothing for him to worry about.
The Craftsmen's Camp is located at the foot of a small hill in Huanglong County. There is a road on the main road that leads directly to the entrance of the Craftsmen's Camp. From the outside, this Craftsmen's Camp is much larger than the National Martial Arts Museum in Qinghe County. Standing outside, you can see many courtyards inside, and behind those courtyards is a hillside covered with lush green forests.
The scenery here is pretty good.
"Go on!" Qian Su, who got off the car, took out some change and threw it to the driver.
"Mr. Qian, how can I take your money, especially so much? You are giving me face by driving my car. Please keep the money, please keep it..." The driver subconsciously took the change that Qian Su threw to him, and then quickly shook his hand to return the money.
"Nonsense, if you don't make money driving the rickshaw, your whole family will starve. Do you think I'm the kind of person who rides without paying?" Qian Su scolded with a smile, staring at the driver, "Don't waste time here. On your way back, tell Yun Xi Lou's boss Song to roast four whole lambs, twenty pepper chickens, and ten jars of Yun Shaojiu for me. Tonight, my brothers in the craftsman camp will have a feast..."
"Okay, okay, Mr. Qian, don't worry, I will definitely convey your words!"
"Hurry up and go. If you delay the feast for our brothers in the Artisan Battalion tonight, be careful or my men will eat you alive..."
The driver took the money, left with a smile on his face, and drove to tell Qian Su the message.
Qian Su took Yan Liqiang directly towards the gate of the craftsmen's camp.
The gate of the Artisan Camp really has the flavor of a military stronghold. Outside the camp there is a gate with three iron plaques of the Artisan Camp with gold foil on a black background. On both sides of the gate are two rows of soldiers standing with guns, giving off a sinister atmosphere.
Seeing Qian Su and Yan Liqiang coming over, the soldiers with guns straightened their backs and chests. An officer in his thirties trotted over from a house next to the camp gate and saluted Qian Su, "Greetings to the camp commander..."
"This is my nephew, his last name is Yan. He's been bored at home these days, so he wants to come to the craftsman camp to play for a few days and see the world. In the future, when he goes in and out of the craftsman camp, tell the brothers to keep an eye out for him, and don't make a fool of yourself by not recognizing your own family!" Qian Su said carelessly.
“Don’t worry, Camp Commander…” The officer carefully looked at Yan Liqiang from head to toe, as if he wanted to remember Yan Liqiang’s appearance completely, and then nodded vigorously. The soldiers around who heard the conversation between the two also looked at Yan Liqiang carefully and remembered Yan Liqiang’s appearance.
"Tonight we will have a feast to welcome my nephew. Brothers can drink as much as they want. Please arrange for the brothers who will be on duty tonight. According to the old rules, the brothers who will be on duty tonight will get an extra pot of wine tomorrow..."
Hearing this, the officer and the soldiers around him all had their eyes lit up and smiled happily.
After talking to the soldiers at the entrance of the craftsmen camp for a few words, Qian Su led Yan Liqiang inside. Before they walked a little further inside, Qian Su grabbed a small leader who stood respectfully beside him after seeing him, pointed to a yard with smoke coming out of a chimney in the distance, and said with a fierce face, "Go ask Niu Danan if this craftsman thinks that the reward he received last month is too much or he is just itching for trouble. The fire in the furnace hasn't been fully boiled yet and the temperature in the furnace is not high enough, but he is still tinkering over there. How much charcoal is wasted in such an hour? Is it that the bellows is broken and he hasn't fixed it yet? If the swords and knives we make here break after a few collisions on the battlefield, I will not forgive him. Tell him that all the things in the ironware yard today will be sent back to the furnace for redoing, and the extra charcoal money will be deducted from his salary this month. If he is itching for trouble, tell him to come to me and I will beat him to death..."
The little leader nodded and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. As soon as Qian Su finished speaking, he hurried towards the ironware workshop.
Others didn't understand what Qian Su said, but Yan Liqiang did, because Yan Liqiang also had a blacksmith father. Those experienced blacksmiths only needed to look at the color of the chimney smoke to know the temperature of the charcoal fire and the condition of the furnace. Some even knew that they could tell the condition of the ironware by just listening to the sound of the iron being hammered, whether it was brittle or soft...
In the craftsmen's camp, Qian Su was like a tiger strolling in his own territory. Wherever he went, people admired him. Seeing this scene, Yan Liqiang also secretly admired him.
Each of those yards was producing different things or carrying out different processes. Yan Liqiang discovered that the main products of the craftsman camp were guns, large guns, which were the kind of guns he had practiced with over the years. They also made other things such as swords and protective gear.
Seeing those huge guns made of ash wood, Yan Liqiang couldn't help but feel itchy. However, he thought that his body had not recovered yet, so he could only satisfy his gaze.
Finally, Qian Su took him directly to the back of the craftsmen's camp, in a yard next to the woods.
There was an elm tree in the yard, under the elm tree there was an old well, and there was also a pool in the yard. Near the house, there was a wooden shed. The shed was divided into several layers, just like the drawers for medicine in a pharmacy. Under the shed were bundles of ash wood drying in the shade. There were two rooms under the house with their doors open. Bundles of ash wood as thick as duck eggs were piled up in the rooms. Even under the eaves, there were bundles of ash wood. In the middle of the rooms, there was a staircase leading directly to an attic above.
Qian Su handed Yan Liqiang two keys and said, "You will live in this yard these days. You can sleep upstairs. I have someone prepare your room..."
Yan Liqiang took the key and looked around again, "Is it such a big yard and I am the only one living there?"
"Well, you live here alone. Gun barrels are piled here. These ash woods are all gun barrels. They need to be dried naturally in the shade before they can enter the next process. It will take more than three months before this batch of ash wood can be used. During this time, no one will come here to disturb you. You can live here with peace of mind. The soldiers of the Artisan Battalion live in the row of barracks not far from here. You have seen it just now. I live in another yard not far from here. If there is any movement here, you can shout and everyone can hear it!"
Yan Liqiang nodded with satisfaction, "Okay, thank you Uncle Qian!"
"When you live here, just remember not to use fire. No fire is allowed in this yard. I will have someone bring you food every day. Don't worry about three meals a day and changing clothes. Someone will do it. The whole mountain here is the territory of the Artisan Camp, a military stronghold. People in Huanglong County know that outsiders generally dare not enter. If you are bored, you can wander around in the Artisan Camp. You can go anywhere you want. Just tell me when you leave the Artisan Camp!"
"Yeah, I remember it!"
"I heard from your father that you were hit by the Iron Sand Palm. Show me your medicine!"
Yan Liqiang untied the bag he was carrying, took out two bottles of medicine from the bag and handed them to Qian Su.
Qian Su took it, looked at it, unscrewed the cap, sniffed it, shook his head, and returned the medicine to Yan Liqiang. "This medicine should be prepared by the county clinic. It's average. I can't say it's bad, but it's not much better either. I'll send you two bottles of good medicine tonight. It will definitely make you get better faster. Go back to your room and rest. I'll have someone call you when it's time for dinner so you can get acquainted with the people here..."
Yan Liqiang nodded, and after Qian Su explained the situation, he left.
Looking at this yard that temporarily belonged to him, Yan Liqiang was very satisfied. He looked at the two keys in his hand, went up the stairs and came to his room in the attic on the second floor.
The room was very large, covering an area of thirty-four square meters. He kept it clean and tidy, with a full set of military blankets spread on a wooden bed. In addition, there was a table and a wardrobe in the room.
After putting down the things in his bag in the room and calming down, Yan Liqiang noticed that there was some light yellow powder in some corners of the floor, and he smelled a strange smell...
He squatted in a corner of the room, picked up some powder from the ground with two fingers, put it on his hand and sniffed it, and found that the yellow powder should be... sulfur...
This is used to repel insects.
Looking at the sulfur in his hand, Yan Liqiang suddenly had an idea...
(End of this chapter)