When the people from Guoxiang heard his sigh, they couldn't help but frown, and quickly stepped forward and said, "Master Chen, since you know this man's temper, why don't you blame him, but instead help him out?"
"Sixing," Chen Tongpao turned to look at him and explained earnestly, "Ge Xueshi is a noble man. He will definitely not understand what you did. If you blame him for this, he will not only be unable to listen. If they go in, they will doubt our intentions and break away from our team."
The Guoxiang man snorted disdainfully and said, "Then let him defect to the Ye Party! I don't know what use it is to keep such a stupid person!"
"Sixing is very ignorant of the word 'use'." Tongpao Chen lowered his head and said with a smile.
"What?" Guoxiang asked him while thinking carefully.
"We in our generation have always gathered people in the name of Qingliu. We must first show people an upright style in order to gain great righteousness. Ge Xueshi is honest and upright, and is a rare gentleman in the court. If we recruit him and use him vigorously, we will not only win It’s a partisan struggle and a good reputation before and after.”
The people from Guoxiang seemed to understand a little: "You mean, let him act as the front of our Qingliu to win people's hearts?"
Tongpao Chen said with a smile: "That's exactly what it is. It's better that Sixing speaks clearly."
After hearing this, the people in Hunan couldn't help but sigh: "So, he is still a party leader. He doesn't care about so many false reputations. He will promote anyone who can run the New Deal well."
"Actually, I don't care about the false reputation," Tongpao Chen did not change his plain tone, "It's just that if the scholars want to maintain order, ethics and education are the best weapons. That's right, they used the New Deal to kill people, We kill with justice."
After many years of ups and downs, Beitang has not changed much, and the gun factory is still operating vigorously. The original church still remains, but compared to its previous grandeur, it is much more desolate. After Wu Sijing left, the county originally wanted to demolish it, but due to the stubborn opposition of the businessmen of the cannon factory, they only demolished the nondescript buildings, retaining a lobby and declaring that the people were not allowed to believe his incitement. It is a cult that worships Fanyi. Except for Fanshang, outsiders are strictly prohibited from entering, and it has become deserted since then.
There have also been several changes in the number of employees in the cannon factory. Most of them left because of illness, and young and strong people came in. Only the bearded businessman has been sitting here, teaching the younger generations to deal with the affairs here.
Zeng Liang was the most familiar with him, so he invited him to sit in the county government office, and he came happily.
"The common people pay homage to the two adults!"
I saw the bearded man being brought into the hall by the clerk, and he bowed deeply. His beard was all white, and there were a few wrinkles on his face, making him look old.
Ge Mingwei looked at him but had no reaction. Zeng Liangdui stood up with a smile and said: "Old merchant, I heard your name many times in Lu Shangshu's place, and I have admired you for a long time!"
"Are you Mr. Zeng?" asked the bearded man.
"That's right, please meet me. This is Ge Mingwei, a Hanlin scholar." Zeng Liang raised his hand and introduced him.
Ge Mingwei had been staring at him suspiciously, and then he came to his senses and slowly raised his hand.
"I don't know yet, what are you two adults doing in Beitang? If there is a need for me, I will do my best to help you." Fan Shang ate tea and flattered with a smile.
Zeng Liang replied: "The imperial court wants to establish a new contractual agreement with you, so I have been sent here to negotiate. This is a confidential matter, so I cannot reveal too much."
"Oh..." The bearded man glanced at Ge Mingwei secretly and hesitated a little, "That doesn't matter, I'll just wait for you to draw up the contract and we can discuss it together."
Zeng Liang responded with a polite smile: "With your words, Zeng feels relieved. By the way, I also want to ask a few questions."
The bearded man put down his tea bowl and sat down solemnly: "Please speak."
"I wonder how much money it costs per month to run this gun factory?"
Fan Shang raised his eyes and thought for a while, then immediately replied: "According to normal circumstances, it is about thirty taels of silver a month. If you include the materials discarded due to failure in forging, it may rise to forty taels."
After hearing this, Zeng Liang couldn't help but take a breath and thought to himself: "Although this money is not a large amount, once construction begins everywhere as Ye Thief said, it will definitely be a burden to the court in the long run." This matter is supposed to be handled by the Ministry of Industry, but recently they have been unable to collect money and have been asking for more from me, which has made our ministry’s expenses stretched... From this point of view, the Ministry of Accounts has not gained any benefit at all, but has received credit for its achievements. It was all taken up by his Ye Party, what kind of nonsense is this! '
Zeng Liang inadvertently showed a bit of irritability, but the bearded man saw it and guessed that he was angry about something, so he came up with a plan and tentatively said: "Sir, I heard that the court has recently heard that Life is hard, and I won’t have to do it because of it..."
"No, no!" Zeng Liang was still immersed in thinking and responded in a perfunctory manner, "Our country has always built its country on trust and has never acted violently. Your business will continue as usual, so don't panic."
The bearded man nodded and bowed and replied: "It's okay, I am not an inconsiderate person. Heaven has treated me with great kindness and righteousness. I must not ignore it indifferently and want to repay it. I know that the court has difficulties, especially... …Your household department.”
Hearing the word "Hubu" suddenly, Zeng Liang felt as if he had woken up from a dream. He quickly opened his eyes, straightened his body, and listened to him with concentration.
The bearded man smiled knowingly: "If the court needs it, I am willing to make concessions."
How could Zeng Liang not know his intention and immediately said: "To be honest, the imperial court is in urgent need of a group of skilled craftsmen. I wonder if you can negotiate with your country and send a few more craftsmen to serve?"
Fan Shang stroked his beard with both hands and said: "This is simple. There are only two points that are difficult to solve: first, they don't understand the language and are not accustomed to the local environment, so it is not convenient to come here; second, I don't know which department or department these craftsmen take orders from. It still needs to be solved." Discuss in detail.”
"This is not a problem," Zeng Liang waved his hand and said, "You speak the same language as them, and you can completely coordinate, help the court convey orders, and control them; as for who you obey, of course it is the official who is responsible for providing money and effort."
"No!"
Just as the two of them were talking more and more happily, Ge Xueshi, who had been silent all this time, suddenly became angry, clasped his fists at Zeng Liang and admonished: "Since the imperial court asked us to open a military factory, we must do it on our own; why? Want to call in many groups of people to enter the country and cause trouble? Don’t you understand the principle of ‘people who are not of my race will have different hearts’!”
Zeng Liang's face changed drastically, and he shouted sternly: "Xueshi Ge! What nonsense are you talking about? I am carefully considering state affairs, how can I stick to this prejudice? I hope you will step down as soon as possible!"
