"I'm passing you a letter from Lei Shushan." Ao Huang said with a wicked smile.
Fang Yun was slightly curious. Holding the official seal in his hand, a wild goose transformed into a letter, which formed black characters floating in the air, and he quickly read through it.
"This Lei Shushan has big ambitions! Not only does he want to compete for the first-class fortifications and agricultural projects, he even wants you, a real dragon, to go to him. Actually, it doesn't matter. You are of no use anyway." Fang Yun deliberately paused here.
Ao Huang rolled his eyes and Nu Nu grinned.
Fang Yun continued, "However, he actually said that I would be attacked by everyone and would not survive the palace examination. Even if I survived the palace examination, my country would be destroyed by the monsters and barbarians. Joining me is the stupidest choice. This is a bit too much. This letter is actually a challenge letter to me!"
Ao Huang nodded desperately and said, "Yes, yes! I also think it's too much. Why not... kill him?"
Yang Yuhuan and Su Xiaoxiao were stunned, then smiled. Ao Huang was a dragon that did not speak according to common sense and was always unexpected. Only Fang Yun could tolerate him.
Fang Yun said: "I have limited energy, and I am hesitating whether to fight for the first-class fortifications. But since he has issued a challenge to me, I can't help but fight. Send him a letter and tell him that I have won the first-class for fortifications and agricultural affairs in this year's palace examination, so that he can stop dreaming!!"
Ao Huang grinned and said, "This is the most powerful guardian of the country in the world! I will send him a letter right away!"
After a few breaths, Ao Huang said, "I have already sent the letter, saying that this year's A-grade in the construction and agricultural subjects must be from you!"
Yang Yuhuan and Su Xiaoxiao suddenly felt helpless. Fang Yun and Ao Huang meant almost the same thing, but one was "I won't let Lei Shushan get it", and the other was "it must belong to Fang Yun", the tones were obviously different, the former was a counterattack, and the latter was a provocation.
Fang Yun glared at Ao Huang unhappily and said, "If you say that, those people will definitely stir up trouble and criticize and accuse me."
“Let them blame you, it has nothing to do with me anyway... Uh, what I mean is, let them blame you, in the end you will definitely get the first place in both fortification and agricultural work, right? Wucuo Novel Network has many words” Ao Huang said with a grin.
Nunu stretched out his little claws towards Ao Huang and scratched at the air, scaring Ao Huang so much that he quickly retracted his neck.
Fang Yun ignored Ao Huang and continued to read the Wen Bao. He found that grain prices in various places had increased to varying degrees, especially in non-grain-producing areas, which had increased by 10%, higher than in previous years. According to the analysis of the Wen Bao, it should be because the Cao Man would go south at the end of the year, and all countries began to increase their grain reserves. Those grain merchants even used all means to hoard grain, which made the civilians suffer.
Fang Yun thought about it and realized that the grain price in Ning'an County was not high at the moment. Because Ning'an County was a strategic location and had a large granary, when the grain price reached a certain level, it could be sold at a low price to hit grain merchants.
"Wenbao" not only records anecdotes of literati, good names and good deeds, but also records many issues, mainly some breaking news, such as the earthquake in Zhengde County, the spring flood in Nanshi County that destroyed the dike, the spring epidemic outbreak in Guangyuan Prefecture, etc.
Other county magistrates or scholars didn't care about these things. But Fang Yun read it carefully and thought about where these things would happen in Ning'an County and how to solve them if they happened.
Through Wen Bao, Fang Yun discovered that there might be hidden dangers in the Yishui River in Ning'an County, so he sent private soldiers with water conservancy experience to lead the workshop officials to inspect the embankments on both sides of the Yishui River.
Ning'an County is located in the north, and the frozen soil melts slowly. If the frozen soil has not completely melted by around February 10, it will affect sowing. The county magistrate will need to go to the holy temple to offer sacrifices, and then use the power of the holy temple to quickly melt the frozen soil in the farmland.
Fang Yun had never participated in the Heavenly Sacrifice, so he decided to gather the scholars and private soldiers to discuss the matter in the evening.
After reading the "Wen Bao", Fang Yun said goodbye to Yang Yuhuan and took Ao Huang to the workshop.
The Workshop is one of the ten departments of the county government. It is just a deserted office in an ordinary small county, but working in the Workshop of a big county like Ning'an is a lucrative job.
Ning'an County's geographical location determined the development of trade and handicrafts. However, in order to avoid looting by barbarians, the large tracts of land north of the Yishui River could not be planted. There were only fields in the south of the city, and agriculture was relatively weak.
Not far to the southwest of Ning'an County is the famous cotton-producing area of Jing State, which makes Ning'an County a major textile county. However, Ning'an County does not produce ramie and cannot raise silkworms, so linen and silk need to be transported from the south.
After Fang Yun entered the workshop, he first chatted with the workshop clerk, and then asked the workshop secretary to lead the way to the county weaving workshop in Ning'an County.
Ning'an County was a strategic location and close to cotton producing areas, so 30% of the gauze, cotton cloth and canvas needed by the surrounding armies was supplied by this county. Most of the 30% was supplied by the county's weaving workshops, and the rest was supplied by private weaving workshops.
This time, Fang Yun did not ride in the Longma luxury car, but just an ordinary horse carriage. However, after all, his special status required too much protection, so he was still followed by twenty demon cavalrymen and twenty barbarian private soldiers.
People on the roadside were whispering and guessed that this was Fang Yun's private soldier, but they couldn't be sure whether the person in the car was Fang Yun himself.
The county's weaving workshop was not located in the city, but on the banks of the Yishui River outside the city. Scholars from the industrial family had long since developed a water-powered loom that was more efficient than a manual loom.
After leaving the east city gate, Fang Yun opened the curtains and saw the Yishui River stretching across the north like a jade belt, and in the distance were rows of factory buildings.
There are not only weaving workshops, but also various mills that can utilize water power, blacksmith shops and other workshops, stretching for dozens of miles, which is extremely spectacular.
The workshop's chief secretary was a scholar in his sixties. He had a very kind smile, but Fang Yun knew that he was notorious for being a heartless person.
"Master Fang, the famous workshop street is in front of us. There are more than 400 workshops, half of which are private workshops, and the other half are royal and county workshops. The number of royal and county workshops is similar. The royal family of our Jing Kingdom treats its people well. If it were Wu Kingdom, the royal workshops would account for at least 50%, the county workshops would account for at least 20%, and the aristocratic families would account for another 20%. Common people can only fight for the last 10%!"
Fang Yun thought that it was not the royal family's preferential treatment, but the decline of Jingguo's national strength. The royal family's control was not as strong as before, so they had to give benefits to the people. Half of the private workshops in Ning'an County, at least 50% of them belonged to major families.
The workshop's general secretary talked incessantly about the current situation of the workshops in Ning'an County, covering every detail and speaking from the heart.
Ao Huang kept staring at the workshop secretary from time to time, always feeling that this person had ulterior motives, and secretly sent a message to Fang Yun, asking Fang Yun to be careful.
Fang Yun didn't take it seriously and smiled. The reason why the workshop manager told him everything was indeed for some ulterior motive.
The first purpose is to demonstrate the profitability of the workshop and arouse Fang Yun's greed. As long as Fang Yun is greedy, he can be easily dragged into the water, and either surrender to Zuo Xiang or be ruined.
The second purpose is to warn Fang Yun that there are big shots behind these workshops. Even the most inconspicuous workshop has a famous and wealthy family behind it. As for the prominent families, they can't get involved at all.
In an ordinary prefecture, there are only two or three famous families, which are enough to make a county magistrate bow his head.
If it was an ordinary county magistrate, the local powerful people in Ning'an County would have joined forces to host a banquet to give the new county magistrate a warning, but Fang Yun was different. They either did not dare to contact him because of their relationship with Zuo Xiang's party, or they honestly handed in a visiting card to ask for an audience. (To be continued...)