Chapter 275: The Ma Family Arrives

"Pah, pah, pah..."

With the blast of firecrackers, Wang Ying, smiling, led the officials of the Armour Department into the South Square District at the south gate of Chengdefang.

After him, some of the old craftsmen and newly recruited craftsmen, apprentices and errand boys of the Armour Department filed in, with a total number of more than 20,000 people.

Zhao Xu had been waiting for Wang Ying and others in the office of the South Square District.

After several days of preparation, the South Square District was officially put into use.

Seeing Zhao Xu, Wang Ying and the officials all bowed.

Wang Ying said: "Your Highness, all the craftsmen and officials of the South Square District have arrived."

Zhao Xu nodded.

Chengdefang is very large, and the South Square District and the North Square District are each as large as a university campus.

So 20,000 people entering the South Square District did not seem crowded.

"I won't say any more nonsense. The purpose of Nanfang District is to expand the production capacity of the Arms Department. Whether it's artillery or flintlock, I've given you the craftsmen and the place. I want to see a significant increase in the output of the Arms Department." Zhao Xu said to Wang Ying.

Wang Ying was still a little stressed.

He knew very well why the King of Yan was so anxious.

The situation around the four counties is not friendly now, and a war is about to break out at any time.

And a very important part of the victory or defeat of the war is the firearms made by the Arms Department.

"Your Highness understands, please rest assured." Wang Ying bowed.

At this time, Zhao Xu looked at the craftsmen again.

This time in Nanfang District, he not only put pressure on the officials of the Arms Department, but also gave motivation to the craftsmen.

In this way, production can be carried out in full swing.

So he walked to the high platform in front of the Bingzhangsi Yamen and said to the craftsmen below: "In the Nanfang District, you have clean houses to live in and there will be a special kitchen to cook for you. You can use all your energy to work."

After a pause, he said: "In addition to the monthly salary promised by the government office, the Bingzhangsi will also count the amount of work you do every day and give you rewards based on the amount. It is not impossible to get two taels of silver every month."

"Two taels of silver." The craftsmen were shocked.

They were satisfied with getting one tael of silver, and they didn't expect to have the opportunity to get two taels of silver.

According to what the King of Yan meant, whoever does more work will get more.

In short, the more you work, the more you get.

Wang Ying nodded slightly.

The King of Yan never mentioned this to him at that time.

He only said that the jurisdiction of the Bingzhangsi would also be formalized in the future.

Perhaps, this is what the King of Yan meant by "formalization."

But the King of Yan really saw the key problem.

During this period, he found that the craftsmen of the Bingzhangsi were still lazy.

No one wanted to do more.

And now, judging from the energetic look of the craftsmen, it seemed that the King of Yan had grasped their weakness.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" After the excitement, the craftsmen saluted Zhao Xu one after another.

At this time, Zhao Xu handed a booklet to Wang Ying, "You should study this jurisdiction system of Nanfang District carefully and promulgate it for implementation."

Wang Ying couldn't wait to open it.

There were a lot of things written on it, such as the curfew in Nanfang District at a few o'clock in the evening.

What kind of punishment would the craftsmen who went out privately receive.

In addition to these systems similar to laws, there is the issue of rewards and punishments for work volume mentioned by the King of Yan.

This work volume is also a new word, but he can understand that it is the amount of work done.

Wang Ying sweated when he handed the thick booklet to the officials around him.

It seems that he has to organize the officials of the entire Bingzhang Division to learn together.

He urged the officials and spurred the generals.

Zhao Xu got up and returned to the palace. After all, if he stayed for one more hour, he would have to delay the production of Nanfang District for one hour.

Wang Ying went back outside the gate of Nanfang District.

Then he heard shouting.

The officials of the Armory first allocated housing to the craftsmen.

Then they asked them to go to the canteen of the Fang District to watch.

Finally, different officials led them to their own workshops.

In the afternoon, white smoke rose from the Fang District.

The entire Nanfang District was in operation.

Someone reported the news to Zhao Xu, and he nodded with satisfaction.

"Just go to Pingcheng again tomorrow." Zhao Xu said secretly.

Before the war, he had to implement all the development plans of the four counties.

In this way, the four counties can operate normally under the war, otherwise they will be delayed again.

At the same time, he went to Pingcheng for another purpose, which was to let Chen Shou build a special building.

This building is particularly beneficial for the construction of warships.

He was thinking, Feng'er suddenly came in and said, "Your Highness, the gatekeeper will report that the Ma family has arrived at the west gate."

"Ma family!" Zhao Xu rolled his eyes and said, "Let them in."

Feng'er left in response.

Soon, a middle-aged general arrived at the palace with his guards.

After removing his sword, his only son entered the palace alone.

"I, General Ma Jin, pay my respects to Your Highness." The general bowed.

"No need to be polite." Zhao Xu waved his hand and recalled who this person was.

When Ma Xuan chatted with him before, he said that he had a cousin.

This cousin was called Ma Jin.

In the Ma family, he was also a very powerful figure.

Thinking of this, he said, "Ma Jin, General Ma, I have heard Ma Zhoumu mention him. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Hearing this, Ma Jin's face suddenly became a little unnatural, and then he showed a sad look, "Your Highness, don't mention my brother. I still can't believe it."

Zhao Xu sighed slightly, "I also feel sorry for it. I admire Ma Han a lot. He is a straightforward person."

"That's true, but the man is gone, what a pity, what a pity." Ma Jin said.

Then he changed the subject, "But in addition to Ma Han, my brother also has an eldest son, who is also handsome and extraordinary. This time, I came here because he asked me to do so."

"Oh?" Zhao Xu pretended not to know, "I haven't heard the governor mention it."

Ma Jin smiled awkwardly, "This boy has always been valued by my brother, so he was sent to study at the Jinling Imperial Academy. Now that my brother is in trouble, he has returned to Xiancheng and inherited the position of the head of the Ma family. He is Ma Chong."

"So there is such a thing. It seems that I am really ignorant." Zhao Xu said.

"He was unknown before, and it is normal that Your Highness did not know about him, but the head of the family has always respected Your Highness. This time, I was asked to come here to discuss with Your Highness about the matter of jointly withdrawing the Xiliang soldiers." Finding the right opportunity, Ma Jin said loudly, "After all, this is also the emperor's order."

Zhao Xu sneered in his heart.

When Ma Xuan was there, he couldn't completely trust the Ma family.

Now he couldn't trust Ma Chong, who he didn't know and who had a thousand connections with the Dou family.

But sadly, he had to cooperate with the Ma family.

This was Zhao Heng's order.

And he didn't want to bear all the losses.

So he said: "The head of the Ma family has just inherited the position of the head of the family and is worried about Jinzhou. He is really loyal, but how can the Ma family cooperate with me?"