After finishing the land survey, Yang Peng began to promote the construction of the irrigation system. On the one hand, Yang Peng began to expand the scale of the dragon tail car workshop. Relying on five craftsmen alone to cast the Dragon Tail Cart was not fast enough. Yang Peng also found 30 copper blacksmiths from nearby prefectures and counties who could cast copper bells, and worked with the gunsmiths to cast the Dragon Tail Cart. Thirty-five people can produce seven dragon-tail cars a day.
The three small rivers that the irrigation system relies on have different depths: in some places, the rivers are not deep, and a single auxiliary truck can be used to lift the river water into the irrigation canal; in other places, the rivers are relatively deep, and two auxiliary trucks are required to pump the water. to the water. Calculated, 90,000 acres of dry land requires more than 800 dragon-tail trucks. Yang Peng needs to prepare 800 dragon tail trucks before sowing spring wheat in February, and the daily production of seven trucks is barely enough.
Of course, Yang Peng's water tanker was not built in vain. Yang Peng planned to charge 30% of the land rent for the land, but the grain Yang Peng had to pay for the land rent was still being sold. The money to build the water tanker could be recovered in half a year. On the other hand, Yang Peng began to organize refugees to build irrigation canals. The irrigation canal designed by Yang Peng is 1.5 meters wide at the top and half a meter wide at the bottom. The cross-section is an equilateral trapezoid. The bottom of the irrigation canal is higher than the ground, so farmers only need to open the canal to divert water from the canal for irrigation. The part of the canal close to the river is higher than the ground, and the side away from the river is relatively low, so that the water will flow farther away.
Each canal irrigates 200 acres of dry farmland, and there are a total of 450 canals, each about 900 meters long. The canal is made of rammed earth. There are no other materials. The refugees only need to work hard to build it. Doing physical work requires a full meal, so Yang Peng stopped the porridge shed and began to provide adequate white rice to these refugees - these poor people were cultivating new fields for Yang Peng, and they could not starve.
When the poor saw that the city lord was willing to take them in and provide them with enough rice, they were all very grateful to Yang Peng. After that, the poor people heard one after another that after the city lord opened up new fields, he would give each adult and strong girl twenty acres of dry land, and they were even more excited. If there is water for irrigation these days, winter wheat growing in dry fields can yield a harvest of one stone per year. A family of two adults growing 40 acres of dry land can produce a harvest of forty stones per year. I heard that the general will only collect 30% of the land rent to repay the food, and this land rent includes the rice grains turned in for farming. In that year, the rice and flour that can be taken into his home will be twenty-eight shi.
If there are five people in the family, they can eat up to 13 or 4 shi of rice and noodles in an open stomach in a year, which will leave 14 shi of food for money. Fourteen stones of rice and noodles can be exchanged for twenty-eight taels of silver. In addition to having enough food for a year, there are still more than 20 taels of silver to spend. What a good life it is? Every household has more than two taels of pocket money every month? Is this a good day for the people of the Song Dynasty? Is this the time of war and chaos?
Compared with the early Song Dynasty, cultivated land was more tense in the Great Song Dynasty: on the one hand, the population increased, on the other hand, water conservancy facilities declined and farmland decreased, and the per capita planting area of the people was very limited. These poor people used to grow their own crops or share the land with pitiful rents. They lived a life of hunger and hunger every year when there was a shortage of crops. When did they ever think that they could live a life of two taels per month? A day with lots of pocket money?
I wouldn't even dream of it. Of course, the financial situation of the tenant farmer's land will be tight in the first year. Now that the first year has passed the winter wheat sowing time, only spring wheat can be grown, and the yield per mu is estimated to be only seven bushels. But the Lord of the City has said that he will only collect 1.5% of the land rent in the first year. In this way, a family can earn more than 20 shi of food by farming 40 acres of dry land. In addition to having enough food, they can also earn 10 shi of more food, which is a discount of 20%. Ten taels of silver.
Twenty taels of silver is enough for the poor to have decent food, clothing, housing and transportation. The family can make new clothes every quarter, buy some oil for cooking, and even eat meat every now and then. Everyone said that their life was good, and they were saved from the Khitan soldiers by the city lord of Dagou. Now it seems that good days are coming.
Thinking of the brothers and sisters who were killed by the Khitan, I feel that they are not worth it. These irrigation canals were built for the poor people's own farmland. The poor people thought about this and worked harder when building canals, fearing that any layer of soil was not compacted well and water would leak. Everyone worked together to make the entire canal project progress quickly and well.
After sending Xu Nan away, Yang Peng secretly said that the situation was not good, so he checked the material inventory again when he returned to Tianjing New City.
He found Zheng Hui and asked: "Has the saltpeter gunpowder been replenished recently?" Zheng Hui replied: "There is enough stock in the library for more than half a year. At the end of last month, I asked a merchant from Cangzhou to buy a batch. , the inventory is now enough to last the Tiger Regiment and the Pioneer Regiment for a year!"
Yang Peng nodded and asked: "How long will the food last?" "The food contains 145,000 shi of rice and 21,000 shi of rice and flour. It is enough to feed the people in the city for two years!" With food and gunpowder, , Yang Peng was no longer afraid of Luo Zhen's attack, and felt at ease. If it doesn't work, one war can last for a year. With these sick soldiers and weak troops in Cangzhou, Yang Peng could occupy the entire territory of Cangzhou in three months.
In these turbulent years, if you have soldiers, there is nothing to be afraid of. Luo Zhen really bullied people too much and forced Yang Peng to give it all. On November 13, just two days after seeing Xu Nan off to Beijing, Luo Zhen took people to Tianjing New City. Luo Zhen held up a banner and led fifty horsemen Ding Hao into Tianjing New City, scaring the people on both sides of the road to avoid them. After entering the city, Luo Zhen looked east and west. He felt more and more that Fanjiazhuang was rich and coveted it.
An aide next to Luo Zhending pointed at the people in Tianjing New City and said: "Look, sir, the people in Tianjing New City have no patches on their clothes, which means they make new clothes every quarter. The teahouses and restaurants are full of people, which means they have nothing but daily routine." There is still money left over besides basic necessities, food, housing, and transportation! Being so wealthy shows how generous the monthly payment given by Yang Peng is, and how profitable Yang Peng’s industries are! If your Excellency takes over these industries, it will not be difficult for you to become the governor!”
Luo Zhen fully agreed with what this staff member said, but he snorted and said nothing. Luo Zhen led a large group of people on horseback and rode all the way to Yang Peng's official hall. He asked the servants and Yang Peng soldiers in front of the official hall to shout loudly: "General Soldier, check! Let your master come out and lead the way!"
The soldier didn't know what was going on and hurried in to report. Yang Peng was notified and secretly thought that Luo Zhen was really anxious. Xu Nan had only left for two days and he took action. How short of money was he? All those words he said categorically in front of Xu Nan were completely forgotten in just two days? Yang Peng was not in a hurry to go out to see Luo Zhen, but gathered the soldiers in the official hall to prevent accidents.
Luo Zhen waited at the door for a long time and was very confused when Yang Peng came out. After arranging the soldiers, Yang Peng changed into his official uniform and went out to meet Luo Zhen with dozens of soldiers. Luo Zhen had already been waiting outside impatiently. When he saw Yang Peng, he raised his eyes and cursed: "Yang Peng, you actually made me wait for a quarter of an hour. What a big show of arrogance!"
Yang Peng said lightly: "Adults are human beings too, so what if we wait?" "You..." Luo Zhen ate a turtle and wanted to have an attack, but was choked by Yang Peng's tough attitude and couldn't. He shook off the sleeves of his official uniform and was about to walk into the official hall, but was stopped by Yang Peng's soldiers. Luo Zhen looked surprised and asked sternly: "Yang Peng, won't you let me in?" Yang Peng said lightly: "I brought so many people here with great momentum. I don't expect anything good to happen. If you have anything to say, I'm here. Let’s talk here.”
Luo Zhen was stunned when he heard this, looked at Yang Peng up and down again, as if he had never seen him before, and said loudly: "Do you know what the crime is for neglecting the peak?" Li Zhi waved his hand and said: "Forcing subordinates is also a crime, sir. Do you know?" Luo Zhen pulled his face down and said loudly: "Yang Peng, you are not going to hand over the secret recipe for glass, are you?"
Yang Peng said: "The secret recipe is a family inheritance. It is passed down from son to daughter, so there is no reason to hand it over!" Luo Zhen sneered and said loudly: "Then don't blame me for using force to search your Tianjing New City. The whole city!" Yang Peng snorted and said loudly: "This is under my jurisdiction, I am not allowed to search!" Luo Zhen laughed loudly and said, "This is not your fault!"
He had already found out the location of the glass workshop. At this time, he left Yang Peng behind and headed towards the workshop area in the south of the city with his troops. Seeing that Luo Zhen was determined to use force, Yang Peng immediately sent people to rush to the workshop area and notified the soldiers of the 100 Selected Front Regiment guarding the workshop area to take action to defend the enemy. By the time Luo Zhen arrived outside the glass workshop, what was waiting for him was a hundred soldiers from the Selection Regiment with bullets loaded and bayonets arrayed. Those soldiers were all veterans of the Selection Corps. They had experienced two wars. Their eyes were determined and their movements were ruthless. They were well-equipped and had a murderous aura about them that was not comparable to the fifty soldiers and generals brought by Luo Zhending.
Seeing the soldiers of the Selection Corps blocking the way, the servant next to Luo Zhen shouted loudly: "Get out of the way, my lord, search Dong Nu's work. Who dares to stop me?" The soldiers of the Selection Corps did not get out of the way and still stood guard outside the workshop area. Seeing that Yang Peng's soldiers were not afraid of him, Luo Zhen was so angry that his face turned red and he shouted in person: "Everyone who knows how to move, get out of my way. It will be a death penalty to collide with my horse!" The soldiers of the selection group looked at Luo After a quick glance, he was still blocked on the road, holding his rifle straight.
The soldiers of the Selection Group were originally die-hard loyalists of Yang Peng, not soldiers of the Song Dynasty. What they received was Yang Peng's personal monthly salary, not the military salary of the Song Dynasty. They had always only listened to Yang Peng's orders. What's more, Yang Peng usually pays attention to educating the striker selection team and always makes the striker selection team understand that their existence is to defend their homeland, not to charge into battle for the Song Dynasty, so the title of General of the Song Dynasty cannot suppress them.
The general will rob the city lord's property. If the city lord's property is taken away, he will have no money to pay the soldiers monthly, and the soldiers will lose the good life that everyone envies. The soldiers all understood this. How could they let Luo Zhen pass? Seeing Luo Zhen's arrogance, the company commander commanding the troops of the Selective Regiment shouted loudly: "Defend our homeland!" A hundred soldiers raised their bayonets and shouted: "Hey!" The company commander shouted again: "Defend your homeland!" Hundreds of people shouted again: "Ouch!" The neat momentum and the murderous intention of fighting for the rest of their lives scared the people on Luo Zhen's side to tremble. Although the servants Luo Zhen brought this year are also veterans who have been trained for many years, they have never been on the battlefield and seen blood, and their aura is not as powerful as the iron-blooded ones of the Selected Front Group. When a hundred soldiers from the Chosen Regiment shouted, Luo Zhen's men were so frightened that they took a few steps back and stopped only ten meters away.
The formation of Luo Zhen and his party suddenly fell into chaos and was in a state of disarray. Luo Zhen was determined to conduct a forcible search, but Yang Peng's soldiers blocked him from entering the glass workshop, which was very embarrassing. He blushed and looked around for a while, sulking there, when he saw Yang Peng coming leisurely on horseback. Yang Peng, disband your soldiers immediately.
How can they be disbanded when they protect the private property of lower officials? Luo Zhen cursed loudly: "Yang Peng, I received a report saying that you are harboring Khitan craftsmen, and I led people to search your glass workshop!" Are you planning to rebel by leading troops to obstruct me? Yang Peng said coldly: "Don't you know that even if you are a porcelain maker, your secret recipe will never be leaked?" What about fired glass? If you, a senior general, don't stay in Cangzhou City, covet my property, and lead your servants to steal other people's secret recipes, are you forcing people to rebel? "
Luo Zhen caught the loophole in Yang Peng's words, laughed and said: "Okay! Yang Peng, you said it yourself, are you going to rebel?" Yang Peng shouted loudly: "It's the officials who have the final say. It’s not you who has the final say. Besides, it’s not something Song Dynasty can control here.”
Luo Zhen said loudly: "Okay! Yang Peng, you have hidden Khitan fine works secretly and disobeyed my inspection, which means you are rebellious. I will go back and mobilize soldiers and horses to bring you to justice! If you dare to resist, It is undoubtedly a rebellion!" Yang Peng was angered by Luo Zhen's unreasonable troubles and cursed loudly: "Luo Zhen, don't bully others too much! Even if you mobilize all the soldiers and horses in Cangzhou, I will not be afraid of you!" Luo Zhen He snorted coldly and shouted loudly: "Let's go back and mobilize our troops!" Then he took fifty horsemen and servants and retreated the way they came from, heading for Cangzhou City.
The next day, Luo Zhen actually led his troops to attack. In the name of refusing to search Yang Peng's secret collection of Khitan masterpieces, Luo Zhen led two thousand regular soldiers and four hundred servants in the general barracks to attack Tianjing New City in a mighty manner. This posture made the entire Cangzhou officials dumbfounded, secretly thinking that Luo Zhen was really cruel. If Yang Peng's resistance is like a rebellion when the soldiers are pressing down on the territory, he will not be able to save the glass workshop, soap workshop, etc. if he does not resist.
The whole of Cangzhou was waiting eagerly, wondering how Yang Peng would deal with such a situation. Various military attachés dispatched night guards to Tianjing New City to observe the progress of the situation. For a time, sentry riders gathered in front of Tianjing New City. When Luo Zhen fought twenty miles outside Tianjing New City, Yang Peng's scouts reported the intelligence of Luo Zhen's attack to Yang Peng. Yang Peng paced back and forth in the general's mansion, making the final decision. Luo Zhen's troops were nothing, and Yang Peng was confident that he could defeat him by sending a thousand men. But what Yang Peng was worried about was that Luo Zhen said that he was rebelling by attacking the government.
Attacking the government's soldiers and horses can be a big or small matter. But if he doesn't fight Luo Zhen, all his secret recipes in Tianjing New City will be stolen by Luo Zhen. Then someone will be able to produce the same soap, glass, and cheap fine cloth as myself, and my income will plummet. If the soldiers of the Selection Corps and Polu Corps can no longer be afforded by themselves, all the capital they have gained to get ahead in this era will fall into the hands of others.
From then on, he will be a mediocre city lord who may be dragged down by other military officers at any time because of his incompetence. I don’t know how many people are envious and jealous. It is said that anything beautiful in the forest will be destroyed by the wind, so it is almost inevitable to be criticized. Yang Peng didn't want to end it like this. While Yang Peng was thinking, another group of scouts ran back from the wild and said loudly: "Sir! The general's troops have attacked ten miles away!"
Finally, Yang Peng made up his mind. This day will come sooner or later, and sooner or later, I will have to rely on my strength to confront the enemy head-on. Yang Peng cannot always rely on bribing senior officials to suppress the pretenders. Xu Nan's personal ethics are very strong, but other high-ranking people may not necessarily do so. Sooner or later, someone will be tough on him and him. Even if he recruits a killer and assassinates a coveted person without being discovered, there will be a second and third coveted person. Yang Peng does not have the ability to assassinate all enemies. As a reborn person, assassination is not Yang Peng's forte.
Yang Peng's strength is the flintlock rifle in his hand. This is Yang Peng's strength. If he didn't rely on his own strength to declare the world, and if he didn't rely on his strength to get through today's level, Yang Peng's rise would be like a mirror. And to say the same thing, if Luo Zhen said he was rebelling, he would be considered a rebel. Even if he defeated Luo Zhen's generals, it would still be up to the officials to judge whether he rebelled. For such a powerful army that has repeatedly made military exploits, is the emperor willing to force himself to rebel? Yang Peng judged that even if he killed the soldiers and officers of the general, he would not be punished in any way.
Nowadays, the Song Dynasty is besieged on all sides, and good generals with strength and loyalty are really scarce. Even the great pirate Gao Huaide, who killed countless officers and soldiers of the Song Dynasty, was not properly appeased in the end, and his career went smoothly. Yang Peng killed the Khitan noble Yeli Hongguang. He had outstanding achievements and was confident that he was more valuable than Gao Huaide, and he would not be easily labeled a "rebel" by the emperor!
Yang Peng made up his mind, put on his Feiyu uniform, a jade belt around his waist, put on a cloak and walked out of the official hall, shouting: "Follow me out of the city to meet the enemy!" The messenger rushed to the military camp and conveyed Yang Peng's order. Go down. Two thousand veterans obeyed the order without hesitation and followed Yang Peng out of Tianjing New City. Eight miles, six miles, four miles away from the enemy. Zhan Jinguo rode beside Yang Peng, looked at Yang Peng's Feiyu suit, and said, "Sir! Then Luo Zhen framed us for rebellion!" Yang Peng asked, "Are you afraid if I rebel?"
Zhan Jinguo's face turned pale and he gritted his teeth and said, "I'm not afraid. Even if you become a thief, I will follow you!" Cheng Shijie rode aside and said excitedly: "If you become a marshal on your own, you will make me a general." Dang Dang!" Zhou Dayong said calmly: "No matter what the city lord does, Zhou Dayong will follow him!" Seeing that his subordinates were loyal and reliable, Yang Peng laughed loudly.
Three miles, two miles, and one mile away from Luo Zhen's troops, the billowing smoke and dust raised by the troops and horses of the general barracks could be seen in front of them. Yang Peng secretly thought that Luo Zhen was looking for death, and shouted loudly: "Load the Selection Group and prepare to fight!" Li Zhi looked through the telescope and saw Luo Zhen's Chinese army flag falling far behind the soldiers in the general barracks. Obviously Luo Zhen He was very afraid of being killed by Li Zhi's cannon and blunderbuss. The coach is so timid, what combat effectiveness does such a unit have?
The distances were four hundred meters, three hundred meters, and two hundred meters. The soldiers in the general barracks did not know that they had entered the shooting range of the selection group. One of Luo Zhen's staff jumped out on horseback and shouted loudly in the middle of the two armies: "Yang Peng has thought clearly. The soldiers and horses fighting against the general are rebelling! That is the act of killing the nine tribes!"
Yang Peng cursed loudly: "If I rebel, the officials will kill me or not. The first person to die is Luo Zhen, who forced me to rebel! And you aides who encourage and advocate!" The aide heard that Yang Peng If so, looking at the Feiyu suit on Li Zhi, his face suddenly turned pale. Yang Peng has repeatedly made military exploits and his strength is here, and the officials also know it, so they have his flying fish suit and jade belt. It was said in the early Song Dynasty that the Nine Clans would be beheaded for rebellion. According to the current situation in the Song Dynasty, even if Yang Peng really rebelled, the officials would probably appease him. But after forcing the powerful Yang Peng to rebel, the commander-in-chief Luo Zhen would definitely not be able to escape the official's wrath. Everyone in Cangzhou saw what Luo Zhen did. In the eyes of the officials, he was just a worthless ordinary military attaché. Engaging in such a big battle would put him in a dead end.
Luo Zhen thought that Yang Peng would not dare to rebel, so he forced him so hard. I didn't expect Yang Peng to be so tough and not even afraid of rebellion. Luo Zhen was just shooting himself in the foot. The aide stopped talking and rode his horse to escape behind. Yang Peng did not let him go and shouted: "Beat him to death!" Ten soldiers from the Selection Corps beside Yang Peng opened fire. Blood splattered on the staff member, who was beaten into a hornet's nest and fell off his horse. Come down. When the general's soldiers saw Yang Peng opening fire, they were all shocked. They shouted loudly: "There are murderers in Tianjing New City!"
"Tianjing New City has rebelled!" "Yang Peng has rebelled!" Yang Peng was annoyed by the helpless soldiers in the general camp and asked the vanguard group to continue to press forward. Only a hundred meters away from Luo Zhen's troops, Yang Peng shouted: "Shoot!" The Chinese army's horn sounded, and the 625 soldiers in the first row raised their muskets and fired at the enemy a hundred meters away. Bullets were fired.
With a crackling sound, smoke spewed out, and six hundred and twenty-five rounds of bullets were fired towards the shivering general barracks. The distance was very close, and the bullets hit nearly five hundred soldiers at once. The front row of Luo Zhen's army fell like thatch blown by a strong wind. The sound of falling to the ground merged into one, and then there were screams. The wounded soldiers who were hit in the hands and feet were rolling on the ground, wailing miserably. The blood spattered from the wound sprayed everywhere, turning the soldiers who were lucky enough not to be hit red.
"Tianjing New City soldiers killed people!" "Escape!" "Escape quickly!" With just one round of shooting, Luo Zhen's general camp collapsed. The battalion recruited by Luo Zhen is all new soldiers, where is the combat effectiveness? Moreover, Luo Zhen was seriously squandering the blood of his soldiers and wasting their pay. The sergeants had no intention of repaying him, and they immediately collapsed as soon as a tough battle began.
Luo Zhen ran faster than the soldiers. Before the defeated soldiers in front could catch up with him, he had already turned his horse's head in the rear and fled to Cangzhou City. Looking at the camp with its armor and flags thrown all over the ground, Zhou Dayong licked his lips and asked: "Sir, do you want to chase them?" Yang Peng shook his head and said lightly: "No more chasing! Go back to Tianjing New City. "
If you want to know what happens next, let’s look at the breakdown in the next chapter.
