Taking You to Get Grain
Lin Shan added, "By the way, Zhou Tong specifically asked me to ask you when the second batch of trucks can be delivered. He's pressing for it urgently; many people are chasing after us to place orders."
Shen Jingchuan waved his hand. "This isn't urgent, let's put it aside for now."
He then briefly explained the current situation in Yuxi Prefecture:
The Huang Household ambushed them halfway, and the Li Household reneged on their debt; Lin Shan explained everything in detail.
After listening, Lin Shan frowned deeply, his expression grave. He remained silent for a moment, then nodded and said in a deep voice:
"Jingchuan, you have many ideas, so you can make the decision. My second brother and I will listen to you and Father. We absolutely cannot back down on this matter. They've already taken advantage of us. If we continue to tolerate this, we'll have even less of a foothold in Yuxi Prefecture."
Shen Jingchuan spoke:
"The most important thing right now isn't doing business. No matter how many carriages we build or how well they sell, the Li Household, Pan Household, and Huang Household families are watching us closely. No one can predict when they might make a move. Rather than passively waiting to be attacked, we should take the initiative."
The people in the room exchanged glances and nodded. Lin Weiyuan voice:
"You're right, there's no way to avoid it. Just tell me your plan."
"Starting tomorrow, passenger car production will be gradually phased out, and all production capacity will be converted to freight carriages."
Shen Jingchuan didn't elaborate on the details:
"Then we..."
The group nodded solemnly in unison in agreement.
Shen Jingchuan then looked at Lin Weiyuan:
"Father-in-law, I need to trouble you with something else. I have to go out on errands during the day, and the manor is full of women and servants. Although Qingyao is skilled in martial arts, she's the only one who can fight, so we're short-handed. Could you send some people over to keep an eye on things and keep an eye on things? I'm usually home at night, so nothing serious will happen."
"That goes without saying."
Lin Weiyuan immediately agreed:
"I'll send ten bodyguards over in a bit, to keep watch day and night. Although they wouldn't dare to kill or set fires in broad daylight on the ground in the prefectural city, it's always better to be safe than sorry," Shen Jingchuan said without hesitation.
After lunch, the group dispersed, each going about their pre-arranged plans. Shen Jingchuan led out Big Black, mounted his horse, and rode alone out of the city towards the Inquiring Goose Pavilion.
Shen Jingchuan urged Dahei to gallop at Big Black speed. The horse's hooves moved so fast they were like a black line, covering the forty li in just one hour. In the blink of an eye, they arrived in front of the Inquiring Goose Pavilion.
Hu Tieniu was drinking tea on the second floor when he saw a black horse galloping towards him on the official road. At that speed, no ordinary horse could run. He recognized Shen Jingchuan at a glance and quickly ran downstairs.
After Shen Jingchuan dismounted, he casually loosened the reins to let Big Black rest on the nearby grass. Hu Tieniu had just run out of the building and stepped forward with a smile to greet him.
"Young master, you've arrived. It's so late in the afternoon. Just let me know what you need."
Shen Jingchuan nodded, took two steps inside, and casually asked, "How's it been here lately?"
"Hi, that's exactly what I wanted to tell you."
Hu Tieniu followed behind:
"Since February, when the weather got a little warmer, people have started coming to the Wild Goose Tomb to pay their respects, and business has picked up. We have guests staying overnight every day."
You didn't see what happened yesterday, but a woman came, knelt before the Wild Goose Tomb, and cried uncontrollably. She stayed for quite a while before leaving.
Before leaving, he left one hundred taels of silver for the man guarding the Wild Goose Tomb, saying it was to thank him for guarding the geese and to provide for his daily life and the maintenance of the Wild Goose Tomb.
I heard they came from afar, specifically because of the poem you wrote. They must be a very loyal and sentimental person."
Shen Jingchuan stopped him:
"Alright, stop thinking about that. Come back to Azure Cloud Stronghold with me; I have something to tell you."
Hu Tieniu quickly agreed, and with four personal guards, he mounted his horse and followed Shen Jingchuan into the mountain valley.
Shen Jingchuan hadn't been here for over a month. Looking along the way, he saw that Azure Cloud Stronghold was already taking shape.
The village is flanked by steep cliffs on both sides, with a sheer cliff behind it. There is only one passageway in front. The village walls are thick and high, made entirely of large stones mixed with cement, making it an absolute fortress that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.
"Young master, the drought is getting worse. We've taken in a lot more refugees lately, bringing the total to 12,000. The village is almost overflowing, and we only have enough food for ten days."
Hu Tieniu followed and reported:
"The strong and capable men you had me select amounted to a full thousand, and the thousand sets of equipment you sent have all come in handy."
"How's the crossbow coming along?" Shen Jingchuan asked.
"We've already produced over 500 sheets. The workshop is working overtime every day, producing a dozen or so a day."
Hu Tieniu said:
"Just as you instructed, we need to gather eight hundred sheets. At this rate, it won't take a month to complete."
As they arrived at the village gate, the guard recognized Shen Jingchuan at a glance, bowed respectfully, and called out loudly, "Young Master."
Most of the refugees in the village recognized him, and those they met on the road would stop and bow in greeting.
Entering the village gate and heading east, there is a large, leveled square where young men are practicing enthusiastically.
Shen Jingchuan glanced at them and almost burst out laughing—these men, just picked out from the refugees, looked no different from laborers working on a construction site, wearing red safety helmets, stab-proof vests, and holding long, sharpened steel pipes in their hands.
Some people lined up to practice bayonet fighting techniques, while others squatted by the shooting range, holding crossbows and practicing aiming.
The leader of the team had sharp eyes and spotted Shen Jingchuan coming from afar. He immediately shouted for everyone to assemble, and the people on the field stopped what they were doing and quickly formed a line.
Shen Jingchuan spoke:
"Practice the attack and defense formation once, let me see."
The captain responded loudly and immediately waved his flag to give the order. Five hundred crossbowmen quickly formed five rows, each holding a foot-operated crossbow, and stood facing a grass target a hundred paces away.
At the command, the first rank of soldiers simultaneously raised their crossbows, aimed, and released the bowstrings, sending out a hundred arrows in quick succession, most of which struck the straw targets.
After firing this round, the first row of men immediately squatted down, braced their feet against the footplates at the front of the crossbow, gripped the bowstring tightly with both hands, and used their waist and legs to pull the string into the crossbow's locking mechanism with a click. They then quickly cocked the bow.
They had barely sat down when the second rank of soldiers stepped forward half a step and fired a second volley with their crossbows;
After firing, they immediately sat down, cocked their crossbows, and the third rank followed closely behind.
Five rows of men took turns rising and falling, shooting, crouching, kicking, and nocking the bow. Although their movements were still somewhat clumsy, they were seamlessly connected, and wave after wave of arrows fell on the target.
After the crossbow formation finished its demonstration, the squad leader gave another command. Two hundred spearmen immediately strode through the gaps in the crossbow formation to the front, forming two rows with their spears pointing forward.
At the command, everyone stepped forward and thrust their spears forward in unison, their movements perfectly synchronized, giving them a real military formation.
Shen Jingchuan nodded slightly. They were all ordinary people who had just been selected from the refugees. It was already quite good that they had achieved this level of skill after not having trained for long. If they actually fought a couple of battles and saw blood, then they would be considered to have truly mastered the skills.
He waved his hand:
"Alright, you guys can continue practicing."
He turned to look at Hu Tieniu: "You're saying the village only has enough food for ten days?"
"Yes, young master," Hu Tieniu replied. "We still have the money, and we're trying to find a way to collect the grain, so you don't need to worry about it."
Shen Jingchuan waved his hand:
"No need, I'll take you to get the grain."
Hu Tieniu was taken aback at first, then his eyes lit up:
"You've delivered grain again?"
Shen Jingchuan smiled.