This plowshare will use about twenty catties of refined steel, so I plan to sell them at three guan per frame.
Fang Er casually stated a number.
"Didn't you say earlier that using refined steel for plowshares might be a waste?"
Li Er asked.
"When the materials are good, the lifespan of the plowshare will be longer. Although the cost is higher, it's cost-effective overall. Cast iron is cheaper, but it's not durable. It easily becomes dull or cracks when encountering hard objects. So, it's not a waste."
Fang Er explained.
"But isn't three guan a bit too high a price?"
"The common folk can't afford this price, can they?"
Li Er heard this and knew Fang Er's reasoning was sound, so he brought up the price.
"I don't know about other places, but the farmers in my Fang Family Village can definitely afford it. However, I don't plan to sell them. Each household will get one directly. After all, they'll be cultivating land belonging to my Fang family, and rent will be due later. Let's read."
Fang Er said with a smile.
Fang Er was quite proud that every household in Fang Family Village could afford a curved-shaft plow, which unknowingly attracted Li Er's attention.
"Holy cow!"
"While other places are suffering from drought, the grain in Fang Family Village is almost ready for harvest. Not only that, but every household actually has surplus money to buy these curved-shaft plows?"
Li Er couldn't help but recall the first time he visited, when the cook in front of the Fang residence was giving whole chicken legs and bowls of braised pork to the children.
Suddenly, he remembered something else.
When he was at the Fang residence, he seemed to have seen a long-haired yellow dog carrying a chicken leg in its mouth?
"Damn it, I, the Emperor, am in the palace, trying to save expenses, eating millet porridge with pickled vegetables every day, and eating worse than a dog!"
Li Er was furious.
"It's getting late, shouldn't we be heading back?"
Empress Changsun looked at the sky outside and walked to Li Er's side.
Li Er nodded, wanting to ask Fang Er, but felt he couldn't bring himself to do it.
As the sovereign of a nation, asking a young kid about civil administration?
He couldn't afford to lose face like this.
"Never mind, I'll discuss it later."
Li Er and Empress Changsun left in their carriage.
Fang Er didn't notice Li Er's unusual behavior at all.
After sending them off, he turned and entered the blacksmith's workshop.
He took out some vegetable seeds from the system space.
He didn't know when these things were supposed to be planted, so he took them all out anyway.
As he took them out, he read the instructions on the packaging.
Finally, he decided to keep only some leafy vegetables and peppers.
He poured all the seeds out and wrapped them in a cloth.
After burning the packaging bags, Fang Er left the workshop.
Niu Liang had found a basin of water from somewhere and was watching the old cow drink.
Fang Er smiled and ignored him, returning directly to the village.
He found the old foreman and asked him to find a piece of land near the village and plant them all.
"Young master, what kind of seeds are these?"
The old foreman asked doubtfully.
He was an experienced farmer and a good hand at farming, but he barely recognized these seeds.
"Well, it would be a miracle if he recognized lettuce,茼蒿, and chili peppers."
"I obtained these by chance. Plant them well and don't let anyone mess with them. There might be a surprise."
Fang Er was already planning to have a hot pot in the winter.
Just thinking about it made his mouth water.
*Slurp~~~*
The next day, a team of ox carts entered the village.
Leading the way was Cheng Chu Mo, followed by a younger boy, who was the eldest son of Changsun Wuji, Changsun Chong.
Fang Er had only mentioned needing iron ore but forgot to specify where to deliver it.
So, Changsun Wuji asked his son to find Cheng Chu Mo.
When Cheng Chu Mo heard it was about Fang Er, he came along.
In the courtyard, Fang Er was polishing a steel ingot, which he intended to use for making tools.
The tools exchanged from the system store were all ordinary household ones. Fang Er always felt they were inconvenient to use, so he decided to make them himself.
"Brother Fang, what good thing are you preparing to make now?"
Cheng Chu Mo's interest was immediately piqued when he saw what Fang Er was working on.
"Go away, go away. These are for my own use, and you won't need them. And who is this?"
Fang Er slapped away Cheng Chu Mo's hand reaching for the steel ingot and asked the person beside him, Changsun Chong. *kan*
"Brother Fang, let me introduce you. This is the son of Lord Changsun, Changsun Chong. Chong'er, this is Fang Anzhi."
Cheng Chu Mo retracted his hand and introduced them to each other.
"Greetings, Captain Fang. My father ordered me to deliver iron ore, and it's already parked at the village entrance."
Changsun Chong bowed to Fang Er.
"Thank you, Young Master Changsun. Shall we go take a look then?"
Fang Er placed the steel ingot on the table.
The three of them went out together.
A line of ox carts was parked at the entrance of Fang Family Village.
Pig iron ingots were not large but were very heavy, so each cart carried only a small number of ingots.
Fang Er had Zhuzi fetch the horses and led the team to transport the ingots to the workshop.
The ingots were all molded, each weighing about twenty catties.
More than a thousand ingots were stacked in half a room.
Cheng Chu Mo's interest was piqued again when he saw the furnishings in the workshop.
"Brother Fang, my father snatched away the spearheads and waist swords you gave me last time. Can you make another one for your brother? I heard you made one for Baolin~"
Before he could finish, Fang Er kicked him and interrupted him.
"Even if I gave you things, you wouldn't be able to hide them. No!"
Fang Er said with a deliberately stern face.
Cheng Chu Mo's face immediately turned grim, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"Hahaha, let's go, I'll take you to see something good."
Fang Er suddenly smiled and pulled Cheng Chu Mo towards another warehouse.
Opening the warehouse door, rows of firearms were displayed inside, and the cannon was placed in the corner.
Li Er already knew about these things, so there was no need to hide them anymore.
"What is this thing? It looks like a fire poker."
Cheng Chu Mo curiously picked up a firearm and asked Fang Er.
Fang Er smiled and didn't answer. He took the firearm out and had Zhao Hu bring gunpowder and bullets.
After loading the ammunition, he said to Cheng Chu Mo, "Look at the target in front."
Zhao Hu and the others had been guarding the workshop all along, practicing their marksmanship when they had time.
The targets on the open ground were made by them.
Fang Er raised the firearm, aimed at the target, and pulled the trigger.
With a "bang!"
The bullet crossed a distance of fifty paces and directly made a hole in the target.
Cheng Chu Mo's mouth was wide open, enough to fit an egg.
"What is this thing?"
"A firearm. Do you want to try?"
Fang Er blew away the smoke from the firing mechanism and said to him.
"Yes, yes! Teach me how to use it!"
Cheng Chu Mo nodded his head vigorously like a pecking chick.
Changsun Chong, being his first time meeting Fang Er, was too shy to speak and just watched from the side.
Fang Er had Zhao Hu fetch another firearm and handed it to Changsun Chong.
This made the boy so happy that he stopped calling Fang Er "Captain" and, along with Cheng Chu Mo, called him "Brother" incessantly.