Yan Liqiang went to the Imperial Capital alone this time. He had been away from home for half a year. The first thing he did when he returned home was naturally to pay his respects to his father Yan Dechang.
Fortunately, Yan Dechang was still awake at this time. Seeing Yan Liqiang coming back, Yan Dechang breathed a sigh of relief. Then the father and son chatted for a full hour in Yan Dechang's bedroom, with the lights on and tea drinking.
Yan Dechang naturally told Yan Liqiang about the situation in Qiyun County in the past few months.
Generally speaking, everything is normal in Qiyun County and Yan'an Fort. The Manufacturing Bureau, the No. 1 Factory in the World, and the Qiyun Protectorate are all in order without any trouble. This also reflects that the officials arranged by Yan Liqiang are relatively reliable and capable. The only change has only occurred in the past two months. Yan Liqiang asked Fang Beidou to bring craftsmen and their families from Dijing City to arrive in Qiyun County one after another. There are more than 100,000 people. There were some minor troubles when resettling these people, but they were quickly resolved. A lot of people were resettled in Yan's family, Huanglong County, the Manufacturing Bureau, and Pingxi City. Some people were directly resettled in an empty military camp. Many of the craftsmen and artisans who came to Qiyun County had some savings and few of them came empty-handed, so as soon as they arrived in Qiyun County, they started buying houses and tinkering with their specialties, making Qiyun County quite lively.
The only problem has only arisen in recent days. Due to changes in the situation on the Gulang grassland, the wool trade between the seven Shatu tribes and Baishiguan has been greatly affected. The wool shipped from the Gulang grassland has suddenly decreased by 80%, the price of wool has begun to rise, and the supply has been greatly reduced. Even the production of the world's number one factory has been affected.
Yan Liqiang also briefly told Yan Dechang about what he had seen and heard in Dijing City and some things that happened along the way. However, in order not to worry Yan Dechang, Yan Liqiang downplayed the dangerous experiences and glossed over them. Yan Dechang felt that during these few months, Yan Liqiang was just like going on a trip.
"What? Even the emperor and the crown prince are dead, not many of the civil and military officials in the court survived, and millions of people in the capital area have turned into cannibalistic zombies. Are those rumors true?" After hearing what Yan Liqiang said, Yan Dechang's face changed and he looked incredulous. His hands shook as he drank tea, and he spilled some tea on the table without noticing. "How... How could this happen... In this case, isn't the Han Empire... Isn't it over?"
Yan Liqiang shook his head. "The court is finished, but the Han Empire is not. I just feel that the next few days will be very chaotic. It may not be as easy to quell the White Lotus Rebellion as before. The situation inside and outside the Han Empire is not optimistic..."
"Two days ago, I heard people in Yan'an Fort that the Gulang Grassland might be occupied by the Black Jie people. The Black Jie people are aggressive and vicious. If they occupy the Gulang Grassland, they will definitely invade the Han Empire, and Qiyun County will be the first to bear the brunt of it. Those people said that our Qiyun County may not be able to be saved..." Yan Dechang looked at Yan Liqiang worriedly, frowning and lowering his voice. "Can our family... survive this crisis? If those Black Jie people really want to invade Qiyun County, the small amount of troops in Qiyun County is not enough to resist?"
Yan Liqiang smiled slightly, "I just met the governor two days ago and made a bet with him!"
"What bet?"
"I will take back the Gulang Grassland within a year and plant the flags of the Qiyun Protectorate all over the Gulang Grassland!"
"Ah, are the Black Jie people so easy to deal with? Liqiang, you..." Yan Dechang looked at Yan Liqiang, speechless, completely unable to speak. If these words had not come from Yan Liqiang's mouth, Yan Dechang might have thought that the person who could say this was crazy, but looking at Yan Liqiang's expression, he didn't seem to be joking...
Yan Liqiang gently took the teacup from Yan Dechang's hand, put it on the table, and calmly poured another cup of tea for Yan Dechang, "Dad, you don't have to worry about the Gulang Grassland. In my eyes, those Black Jie people are just some idiots who are willing to sacrifice their lives. They will never step past Baishi Pass. As the saying goes, times have changed. Many things that were impossible before are now easy to do. Dad, just watch me take back the Gulang Grassland. I have a favor to ask of you!"
"What's the matter, Li Qiang, tell me!"
“I want to build a steel mill!”
"Steel plant?" Yan Dechang was slightly stunned. If Yan Dechang didn't understand this so-called plant before, he now understood it. This plant means a super workshop. A steel plant, as the name suggests, is a large workshop that produces steel. "Li Qiang, you want to build a steel plant?"
"good!"
"Isn't the current production in the Manufacturing Bureau and Yan'anbao workshops enough?"
"Of course it's not enough. It's far from enough. Dad, look at the soldiers in Qiyun County. How many of them can wear armor? In addition to iron pots, kitchen knives, sickles and hoes, ordinary families also have a few iron tools. Even these ordinary things can be kept as heirlooms. Broken pots need to be repaired, broken knives need to be repaired. How can this iron be enough!"
"Isn't this how ordinary people live? It's good enough to find these four pieces of ironware in a family. Speaking of armor, in the army, a lieutenant is considered good if he can wear a half-body fish scale armor. Armor is worn by generals. Where in the world can ordinary soldiers wear armor? The better elite soldiers can wear leather armor, cloth armor, and cardboard armor. Most soldiers just have a set of clothes. If there is a heart guard passed down from their ancestors, it can save lives at critical moments. Where are the armor?" Yan Dechang shook his head. As a senior blacksmith, he certainly has a say in these things.
"If this steel mill is completed, it won't be a problem for ordinary soldiers in Qiyun County to wear armor!"
Yan Dechang was stunned again. "Then the scale of the steel plant you mentioned must be larger than Pingxi City. There must be tens of thousands of craftsmen in it. Otherwise, how can so much steel be produced? Moreover, ordinary soldiers cannot afford to wear this armor. Even if you have two more manufacturing bureaus and the world's number one factory, and use all the money you earn to arm the soldiers, you still can't arm many people..."
Seeing that Yan Dechang still had traditional thinking, Yan Liqiang was not surprised. He just smiled and said, "Dad, you are talking about an ordinary iron smelting workshop. A workshop can't produce much steel in a year. At least tens of thousands of catties, at most hundreds of thousands of catties. The steel plant I'm talking about is thousands of times more efficient than that ordinary iron smelting workshop. The annual steel output must be at least more than 100 million catties..."
"What, 100 million jin?" Yan Dechang was frightened by Yan Liqiang's words. He looked at Yan Liqiang and even couldn't help reaching out to touch Yan Liqiang's forehead to see if Yan Liqiang had a fever, because the number Yan Liqiang said was completely beyond Yan Dechang's imagination.
One hundred million jin is a lot, just fifty thousand tons. In the past, this was just the output of a small township steel plant. In Yan Liqiang's head, not to mention one hundred million jin, he even had the planning and design drawings of a super steel city with an annual output of over one hundred million tons. It's just that the current productivity conditions are not yet available. The production capacity of one hundred million jin is already a relatively conservative decision made by Yan Liqiang considering the actual situation in all aspects of Qiyun County. But even so, this number still scared Yan Dechang, a blacksmith, who thought Yan Liqiang was talking nonsense.
"Dad, what I said is true, not nonsense. In my dream, a god taught me a special smelting method. With this method, we can build a steel plant with an annual output of over 100 million catties..." In order to make Yan Dechang believe, Yan Liqiang had to use his "golden finger" again...
After hearing what Yan Liqiang said, Yan Dechang's expression changed slightly, and his tone became serious. With a hint of curiosity, he asked, "Is there really... a way to produce 100 million kilograms of steel a year?"
"Of course, how can this be false? If this steel plant is built, it will truly be the best plant in the world. Wow, whoever can build such a plant will be remembered in history!" Yan Liqiang said as he picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea nonchalantly.
“It’s just that, Li Qiang… you see… do you think I can do it? I can make iron and steel, and I can forge iron, but this thing you are talking about, I really don’t understand it at all, I… will I mess it up…” Yan Dechang was already somewhat tempted, but still lacked confidence.
"Don't worry, I'll tell you what to do, just take it step by step. With me here, what are you afraid of? With your skills and so many people helping you, recruiting a bunch of craftsmen will definitely not be a problem. You're still young, not old. When this factory is built, you'll be the director of this factory, managing a steel plant that produces 100 million kilograms of steel a year. Who in the world can be better than you..."
Yan Dechang's eyes finally lit up after being told this by Yan Liqiang. He clenched his fists tightly, and his ambition rose. "Then Liqiang, what do you think I should do now?"
"Haha, from now on, Dad, you are the leader of the Northwest Steel Plant project team. Dad, you should have a good sleep tonight. Tomorrow, take a few capable disciples to the Manufacturing Bureau and recruit a group of capable craftsmen. I will ask Uncle Qian to assign a few capable managers to listen to your orders, and then..."
Yan Liqiang spent a full half hour talking to Yan Dechang just about how to start the steel plant project. After he finished, Yan Dechang was so excited that he couldn't sleep, and went to find his apprentices that night. Yan Liqiang then returned to his own yard.
This steel plant is of great significance to Yan Liqiang, and after searching all over Qiyun County, Yan Liqiang found that he really couldn't find a more suitable person than Yan Dechang. Firstly, Yan Dechang understands technology, and secondly, he is his father and has a prestigious position in Qiyun County. He has a green light wherever he goes. It is most appropriate for Yan Dechang to do this and be the project leader of this steel plant.
Sure enough, when Yan Dechang heard this, he seemed to be ignited and burst into great passion.
No matter how old a man is, he still needs to have something to do, dreams and pursuits, so that life can be interesting.
As soon as he returned to his own courtyard, with a cry of "Young Master...", a charming figure suddenly rushed over, hugged Yan Liqiang tightly, buried her head in Yan Liqiang's chest, and her tears immediately wet Yan Liqiang's clothes on his chest...
After not seeing each other for a few months, Yu Qing's figure has developed better. When she hugged Yan Liqiang tightly, Yan Liqiang could already feel the obvious pressure on his chest.
Yan Liqiang was stunned for a moment, then he put his hand on Yu Qing's hair and touched it, "Silly girl, why are you crying? Am I not back?"
"I was scared to death when I heard the news from Imperial Capital City. I thought something happened to the young master, so I wanted to go find him, but I was afraid that if something happened to me when I went out, the young master wouldn't be able to see me when he came back..." Yu Qing cried bitterly... "Young master, can you take me with you when you go out in the future? I can cook for you, serve you tea and water... If bad guys come, you taught me some skills, and I can beat them, and I will never drag you down..."
(End of this chapter)