Chapter 24: Preparing for the Unexpected

  Hu San had a family, unlike Chen Fang and others who were once refugees. What he feared most was migration. Scratching his head, with a bitter face, he asked, "Isn't it troublesome to keep migrating? Why doesn't the master find a place to settle us down thoroughly?"

  "Then where do you plan to settle down?"

  "This..."

  Hu San couldn't answer, he was a honest and simple man. This time, he moved his whole family to our place, at the age of 30, it was still his first time leaving Lujiang, how big is the Han Dynasty, he didn't know, nor did he have his own opinion.

  Zhou Jian knew that this honest man had suddenly left his old home in Anhui, and he was afraid that he would not be able to settle down. If he couldn't calm his mind, he would not be able to do things with a clear conscience. He explained: "In recent years, the people have suffered greatly, everyone has seen it. The court is unjust, the people have no way out, and they will inevitably rebel. If you were in their shoes, if you were forced to live without a way out, I'm afraid you would also want to kill officials and rebel. At that time, the flames of war will rise, and I'm afraid Luoyang will also suffer from the disaster of war, where else can one find a place to settle down?"

  "Impossible! How could Luoyang possibly suffer from war?"

  Chen Fang let out an exclamation of surprise and his face was filled with disbelief.

  The common people were forced to have no way out, and they had no choice but to rebel. It can be said that in recent years, natural disasters and man-made disasters have been continuous, and many people have been displaced. Chen Fang and his more than 300 disciples used to be refugees too, which is understandable.

  But if it is said that Luoyang will suffer from war disasters, it would be somewhat difficult for people to believe.

  For nearly four hundred years, the two Han dynasties have been in power, and their ruling position has long been deeply ingrained in people's minds. How could it be easily shaken?

  Even those famous, far-sighted wise men who could foresee that the world would be in great chaos, could not have predicted before the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out that the Han dynasty would perish.

  Not even thinking about it, after all, in this era, Zhou Jian is the only time-traveler.

  Even the wisest of men cannot predict the course of history unless they are God.

  Luoyang was the capital of Han, not only the center of the great Han court, but also a symbol of imperial power. The capital suffered from war disasters, which is simply a sign that the court will perish. Chen Fang was just an ordinary scholar, how could he believe it?

  Zhou Jian also understood this point and didn't say much more. He said, "This is just my inference, you can just listen to it."

  Chen Fang took a deep breath and hastily said: "I hope you will be more careful with your words in the future, sir, lest trouble arise from your mouth."

  Zhou Jiandao said, "There's no need for you to remind me, everyone sitting here is not an outsider. I just casually mentioned it, and you all listen to it, that's all. In the future, don't go out and speak nonsense, lest you invite trouble."

  Everyone hastily agreed.

  Dian Wei's eyes flashed with a strange light, and Zhou Jian didn't treat him like an outsider, causing a strange feeling to rise up in his heart.

  Zhou Jian said to Hu San, "I've told you so much, it's just to let you put your mind at ease and focus on doing things for me. No matter what, as long as I have food to eat, I won't let you and your family go hungry."

  Husan smiled a few times and hastily said, "Don't worry, sir. I'm just foul-mouthed and speak nonsense. I have no other meaning. Your kindness to me is as great as a mountain. Even if you want me to die, I will not complain."

  Zhou Jian sneered a few times and said, "If you die, who will forge weapons and armor for me? Even if someone has to die, it's not you. Besides, death should have value, my head wasn't kicked by a horse, so why would I want you to die for no reason?"

  "Hehe!"

  Hu San grasped his head and dryly laughed a few times. Truly, the more he spoke, the more mistakes he made. He shut his mouth tightly, not daring to speak recklessly again.

  Zhou Jian said to Chen Fangdao, "Just reading dead books is fine, but if you want to handle government affairs and govern a place, the key is to have experience. Although I am only in charge of one county, there are not a few small officials. Your 300 disciples can be arranged to take up small official positions in the county government and townships, so that they can not only support themselves with their salaries but also quickly become familiar with government affairs and temper their ability to handle matters."

  Chen Fang hastily said: "Thank you, sir."

  In these times, it's extremely difficult for a poor scholar to become an official.

  Chen Fang and over 300 disciples were once refugees, it was already quite fortunate to have survived, now they had the opportunity to serve as officials, although only as small officials who struggled to make a living, but it was already very difficult.

  He instructed: "You must remember to treat the people with kindness, do not be greedy for bribes and bend the law, exploit the good and virtuous, otherwise I will absolutely not show leniency."

  "Sir, rest assured, I understand."

  Zhou Jian nodded and said to Jiang Qin, "Gong Yi and the two hundred and ninety brothers should not idle around either. When Zhou Wu recruits some strong men from the refugees, we can assign the two hundred brothers to serve as squad leaders and platoon leaders, and have them train hard to quickly form an army."

  Jiang Qin did not ask much and answered crisply.

  Zhou Jian turned to Hu San again and asked: "I heard you've taken in thirty or so apprentices, how's their craftsmanship?"

  Hu San replied, "They are all homeless refugees. Only three of them have real skills and know how to ironwork. I had to promise them many benefits and persuade them repeatedly before they agreed to move their families to Yanzhou."

  Zhou Jian smiled and said: "First, I'll give you credit for this achievement, and reward you with 100 taels of silver."

  Hu San said, "Thank you, sir, but I have to give more of the reward money to those few skilled ones. When I promised them a good deal, I wasn't just talking nonsense. If I don't make it happen, then I'll lose credibility."

  Zhou Jian suddenly said, "If there's an opportunity, recruit more talented people... From now on, as long as someone has a special skill, bring them to me, regardless of whether they're a carpenter or a stonemason, as long as they have a craft."

  Hu San was taken aback and said with some difficulty: "This... this little one is unfamiliar with the world, I don't know where to find..."

  Zhou Jian slapped his forehead, "It was my oversight to let you, a blacksmith, help me recruit talent. It's indeed a bit difficult for you. Let's do it this way, Chen Fang, you're in charge of this matter. Don't distinguish between high and low, as long as they are truly skilled or have a special interest in a particular area, find a way to gather them together, I have use for them."

  "Can you give me a specific number, how much?" asked Chen Fang.

  "Zhou Jian said in a deep voice: 'The more the better, if there are tens of thousands, that would be best.'"

  Chen Fang was taken aback and said: "Tens of thousands of craftsmen, what's the use of so many craftsmen?"

  Others were also bewildered and couldn't understand.

  Zhou waved his hand and said: "I won't explain it to you now, you'll know later, just go and invite him."

  "Yes, sir."

  It ended there, and Chen Fang asked no more, bowing his head in obedience.

  Zhou Jian asked Hu San again, "Can fish scale armor be ground out? How many can be ground in a month?"

  Hu San thought for a moment and said, "Although I've hired three blacksmiths, their craftsmanship isn't very good. The apprentices can only do some auxiliary work and aren't of much use. If the refined iron is sufficient, in a month, we can at most make ten pieces."

  Zhou Jian frowned and said: "Too little, can it be increased to two hundred pieces?"

  "With so many, at least thirty skilled craftsmen and fifty apprentices who can barely lend a hand are needed, not to mention sufficient high-quality iron."

  "Go and recruit whoever you want, I'll give you all the blacksmiths I have. If they need money, give them money; if they need land, give them land. I don't care what method you use, as long as you can guarantee that at least 200 sets of iron armor are forged every month, or at least 100 sets."

  Husan hurriedly learned from Chen Fang and cupped his hands: "Your humble servant obeys."

  Zhou Jian patted the treasured sword at his waist and said, "There's also the Ring-Headed Knife. We'll make as many as we can."

  Hu San hurriedly agreed, this was indeed easier to handle than forging fish-scale armor.

  Zhou Jian said: "When forging armor, we must try to improve our skills as much as possible and shorten the grinding time. The hardness and toughness of the war knife can be improved a bit more. Also, if you can teach me 10,000 skilled blacksmiths, I'll find a way to get the imperial court to grant you a marquis title."

  "Ten thousand skilled blacksmiths?"

  Hu San's eyes widened and he almost jumped up.

  Becoming a marquis was an honor beyond his wildest dreams, but training 10,000 skilled blacksmiths was a task no less daunting for Hu San than becoming a renowned general like Han's Wei Qing or Huo Qubing.

  Fame and wealth may be tempting, but one must also have the ability to attain them.

  Jiang Qin and Chen Fang were also stunned, with a look of incredulity on their faces.

  Only Tian Wei's scorching gaze swept back and forth, silent, lost in thought.

  Zhou Jian sneered and said, "You're intimidated by such a small matter? No need to make excuses, I don't want to hear them. The great Qin Emperor of the previous dynasty was able to build the Great Wall of China, and I'm only asking you to train 10,000 blacksmiths, yet you want to back down?"

  Hu San's blood rushed up, and he said with a determined heart: "The little man will obey orders."

  "This is exactly right. Things should be done first, and then difficulties can be discussed. There are no difficult things in the world, only people who are afraid of them. As long as you have the heart to do it, there's nothing that can't be solved. Just go ahead and do it, don't worry about money, food or land."

  "Humble person will do his best and definitely won't disappoint your high expectations."

  Jiang Qin and Chen Fang looked at each other with a hint of deep thought in their eyes, both feeling that Zhou Jian's words made a lot of sense.

  Nothing is impossible to a willing mind.

  Even the Great Wall of China was built by the first emperor of Qin Dynasty, what difficult thing can't be done by human?

  Dian Wei nodded his big head, savoring the words carefully, and the more he savored them, the more he felt that these words were truly reasonable.

  Zhou Jian nodded and arranged everything before asking: "How is Wan County? How is my father?"

  Hu San scratched his head and hastily shut his mouth, unable to come up with an answer.

  Chen Fang replied: "This, Wan County has always been peaceful, and the respected father thinks that everything is fine. However, as for recent events, I have not seen the respected father either, so I don't know much."

  Zhou Jian hummed in response and stopped asking questions.

  However, it's clear that Father Zhou would be furious upon learning about his son's involvement with the eunuchs and buying official positions with money.

  Especially clinging to the eunuch party, this is simply openly offending all parties, belonging to political standing. In comparison, taking money to buy official positions is just a minor matter, not worth mentioning.

  Zhou Shang let him return to Wu County, and Zhou Jian did not dare to go back again.