Chapter 367 The storm is coming
The 42nd year of Jiajing.

The 29th day of March in spring.

The Yan family held a closed-door meeting for the first quarter of this year at their villa in Changping.

All the participants were from the core circle of the Yan family.

The location was on the top floor of the library.

Yunniang was wearing a light blue double-breasted gown and was sitting aside making tea.

Yan Shaoting sat at the top, looking at everyone present with a calm gaze.

"The cotton and silk stocks in the textile mill are running out, and new orders from the imperial court have already been placed. But if we want to achieve the highest production, we have to wait until this year's cotton and silk arrive."

"In the first three months, the textile mills, smelters and other places have achieved 50% profit. At the breeding farm, the remaining adult livestock began to be very few during the Lantern Festival, but it will not affect the Dragon Boat Festival in a while. The income here will not be settled until the end of the year."

"The mulberry trees planted on the mountain are not in good condition. My husband was right before. The north is indeed less suitable for growing mulberry trees and raising silkworms than the south. This is my fault..."

The first person to speak was Lu Wenyan, whose belly was already showing but whose complexion was very good.

With the great doctor Li Shizhen around, Lu Wenyan's pregnancy was basically safe. She didn't have to eat a lot of oily and meaty food every day like ordinary people. Instead, she ate the prescriptions specially prescribed by Li Shizhen.

And after Lu Wenyan finished speaking.

Zhou Yunyi then spoke.

"Spring ploughing has basically been completed. This year, we have reclaimed more than 1,000 mu of mountain land compared to last year, all of which are used to grow sweet potatoes."

"However, because people from Dongguanzhuang moved here, some problems arose. Fortunately, with the Public Security Bureau and the militia team, the problems were suppressed."

"This year's harvest is good. We expect the grain output in Changping to rise to a higher level, with an increase of at least 20%."

Hearing this, Yan Shaoting finally nodded with a smile on his face.

Compared to everything else, food is the most important thing in this era.

When the crops in the fields are strong and the yields are stable, people's hearts will also be stable.

He couldn't help but say, "We can't stop reclaiming mountain land. If we want more food, we have to plant more crops. But we have to be careful not to do it recklessly when reclaiming mountains. We still need to plant more trees in some dangerous places to prevent flooding after summer and cause landslides."

Zhou Yunyi nodded and wrote this matter down in the booklet he carried with him.

Subsequently.

It was Xu Wei who spoke up: "The Public Security Department plans to increase the frequency and intensity of training for the reserve team of the militia this year. Thanks to Zhou Shaoqing's governance, the number of people needed for farming in Changping is much less than in the past, and the remaining people can do other things."

In the absence of an ability to upgrade industrial levels, we can only use the most basic methods to improve productivity to a certain extent.

The improvement in productivity will also free up more people to do other things.

In fact, Changping has been preparing for this since last year.

Yan Shaoting nodded and said, "What about the south?"

Xu Wei has always been solely responsible for affairs in the south.

Seeing Yan Shaoting asking about this in public, Xu Wei glanced at the people present and did not deliberately hide it.

"Our family bought a kiln factory in Jingdezhen through the local government in Jiangxi. At the beginning of the year, the first ship of porcelain was sent out to sea with the escort of the navy warships."

"By the way, in addition to the more than 500,000 taels of guard silver from last year..."

When talking about guarding Silver, Xu Wei obviously paused for a moment, looking hesitant.

After seeing that Yan Shaoting looked normal.

Xu Weicai continued, "Because of this money, except for the 200,000 taels given to the navy to supervise the construction of warships, the rest was used to build new warships and given to the people we recruited to sail out to sea. The latest news is that they have occupied a piece of land in Champa and Luzon, and are in contact with the locals."

I heard that the Yan family had quietly occupied a piece of land in Champa and Luzon overseas.

Lu Wenyan and Zhou Yunyi who were present immediately looked up at Yan Shaoting.

They didn't know this in the past.

Yan Shaoting did not hide it, and took advantage of this opportunity today to say with a smile: "It's just an extra precaution, so that everyone can be more calm in the future."

Although the words were not spoken explicitly, Lu Wenyan and Zhou Yunyi understood the meaning.

This is a way out that the Yan family left for themselves.

Lu Wenyan didn't feel anything.

All the wealthy families in Beijing have left themselves a few escape routes.

However, Zhou Yunyi couldn't help but feel excited. The fact that the gentleman could tell him this in front of him meant that he really regarded him as a member of the Yan family.

However, Yan Shaoting's eyebrows moved slightly: "In terms of military equipment..."

Xu Wei understood and whispered, "Although the emperor originally promised 60 sets of armor and 60 crossbows, there are always 1,000 sets of cotton armor stored in the textile factory warehouse, so that the reserve troops can wear them immediately in case of any unexpected events. The remaining swords and guns are also enough for use, and there are also 500 bows and 30,000 arrows."

The military system of the Ming army has always been based on thirty arrows.

Obviously, Xu Wei stored them according to the principle that each person had a bow and two base numbers of arrows.

And seeing Yan Shaoting and Xu Wei discussing this.

Lu Wenyan showed a trace of worry on her face: "Does your family have so many weapons?"

She knew about the one thousand pairs of cotton armor in the warehouse of the textile factory.

The reason for this storage was originally because the Public Security Bureau wanted to prepare for sudden additional orders from the imperial court.

But only now did Lu Wenyan realize that this was prepared for the militia team of the Public Security Bureau.

But she didn't know about the five hundred bows and thirty thousand arrows.

Xu Wei smiled and looked at Lu Wenyan: "Don't worry, Madam. The court only prohibits crossbows, armor and firearms. These ordinary weapons are not in the mansion, but in the Public Security Department."

Hearing this, Lu Wenyan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Even if the imperial court does not ban it, if these things are kept in the house and get leaked, it would be hard to say what will happen.

But if it is done in the Public Security Department, it is legal.

After all, the Public Security Bureau has money, so it wouldn’t be a big deal to use the extra money to stockpile some swords and guns, right?

Yan Shaoting looked at his elder sister and whispered, "A few days ago, Lan Yongzhen from Xuanfu Town was urgently sent to Beijing. The situation at the border this year is very strange, and we still need to make the necessary preparations."

At this moment.

Lu Yi, who had been silent, also spoke up: "After we finish discussing this year's affairs, I will send my second sister back to Beijing."

Lu Wenyan's heart suddenly tightened.

She looked at Yan Shaoting with some uneasiness: "My dear?"

If there was really nothing wrong, why did Lu Yi say he would send me back to Beijing?

This clearly shows that something is really wrong.

That's why I had to stay away from Changping, a place of trouble, and return to Beijing, which was heavily guarded.

Yan Shaoting glared at Lu Yi.

He had originally planned to wait until later to tell the older sister about this in a different way.

Who knew that this guy would actually say it directly.

Lu Yi also reacted and looked embarrassed.

He looked at Lu Wenyan and said, "Don't worry, second sister. This is just the preparation made by our family. Even if the thieves outside the pass are rampant, there is still the entire Xuanfu Town in front of us to block them. After Xuanfu Town comes, there is also the unbreakable pass like Juyongguan. We will be fine in Changping."

Lu Wenyan glared at her brother and said, "If you have nothing to do, why did you say you would send me back to Beijing?"

After scolding my brother.

Lu Wenyan immediately turned to look at Yan Shaoting.

She didn't say anything, but the uneasiness in her eyes was obvious.

Yan Shaoting had no choice but to change the subject and pretend to be serious: "Madam must also know about what happened at Dongguanzhuang and Nanlu Zen Temple a few years ago."

Lu Wenyan nodded: "Yes, Dongguanzhuang has been relocated now, and most of the monks in the Zen temple are also missing."

Yan Shaoting clapped his hands and said, "It's because the monks in this temple are missing. Madam doesn't know that these monks are involved with the White Lotus Sect. They even set up an altar in the Nanlu Temple and practiced evil methods."

Seeing Yan Shaoting start to scare Lu Wenyan.

Xu Wei quickly explained: "Young Madam, don't worry. It's just that my husband feels that the whereabouts of these evil monks are unknown, and he is afraid that these people will do some evil things in secret. Young Madam is pregnant at this time..." After that, he finished speaking.

Xu Wei's gaze shifted to Lu Wenyan's bulging belly.

Lu Wenyan was immediately startled and covered her lower abdomen with both hands.

She widened her eyes and looked at Yan Shaoting in surprise: "My dear, Mr. Xu means... those monks would do such evil things that harm people?"

Yan Shaoting glanced at Xu Wei.

The so-called evil method naturally does not exist, but as long as it can make the eldest sister return to Beijing obediently, it doesn’t matter.

He nodded heavily, his face full of seriousness: "Don't worry, Madam. I'll just stay in Beijing for a few days. Yunniang is here to take care of things in Changping. If you are worried, you can ask Yunniang to bring the account book back to the city in a few days and explain everything to you."

Yunniang, who was acting as a tea doctor at the side, immediately agreed: "Don't worry, Madam, I will bring your favorite food when the time comes."

Lu Wenyan was still a little worried.

She frowned slightly: "Really?"

Of course, the question was not whether Yunniang would bring her favorite food back to the city, but Yan Shaoting.

Yan Shaoting nodded, "It's absolutely true. Once the Public Security Bureau and Shuntian Prefecture have discussed and found out where those monks are, and have captured them all, Madam can leave the city and continue to stay in Changping."

Seeing Yan Shaoting say this, many people cooperated with him.

Only then did Lu Wenyan feel relieved.

But she still pouted and said, "I won't go back today. Can I go back to the city tomorrow?"

……

The tall buildings are towering.

On the roof of the library, under the outer corridor.

Yan Shaoting stood alone and watched Lu Wenyan being supported by Yunniang as she walked out of the yard downstairs. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

And his eyes also showed a little more uneasiness as he looked towards the northwest.

Over there is the location of the Badaling Great Wall and Juyongguan.

Xu Wei paced out of the building and looked in the direction Yan Shaoting was looking.

"My dear, are you still worried about things outside the border?"

Yan Shaoting nodded: "This time the emperor promised Xuanfu 100,000 taels of silver, and the rest was all used to replenish weapons and military equipment. But Lan Yongzhen asked for an additional batch of horse equipment, which makes me worry."

Under normal circumstances.

The Nine Frontiers are equipped with a large number of cavalry, but if they want to guard against the Anda tribe outside the Great Wall from attacking the border at this time, they will need more powerful weapons such as bows, crossbows and firearms.

Moreover, Xuanfu Town already had sufficient horse equipment.

But at this time, an additional batch was requested, which made things wrong.

Xu Wei also frowned: "Are they worried that once the Anda tribe rushes into the pass, they will need cavalry to chase and blockade them?"

Yan Shaoting hummed: "Apart from this possibility, I can't think of any other questions."

Why do we need so much horse harness? If it is not used to pursue the enemy in the wild, what else can it be used for?

Does it look good?

Xu Wei's brows trembled, and he couldn't believe the question he had just thought of.

A look of deep worry appeared on his face.

Yan Shaoting glanced sideways and saw the expression on Xu Wei's face clearly.

Although the two of them were alone in the high building at the moment, with no one around.

Xu Wei turned around and looked around.

Subsequently.

He lowered his voice and said, "There must be a big problem with the border wall of Xuanfu Town, otherwise they would not have done such a thing!"

After saying this.

Xu Wei became more and more certain of his guess.

He clapped his hands repeatedly, looking increasingly nervous.

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

"Only in this way can we explain why Xuanfu Town is so nervous this time."

Yan Shaoting gradually showed a smile on his face.

Under Xu Wei's puzzled gaze.

He chuckled and said, "How can a border wall remain unchanged for 200 years?"

Xu Wei was stunned for a moment.

According to what Yan Shaoting meant, it is normal for problems to occur on the border wall now.

Thought about it.

Xu Wei showed a helpless smile.

He shook his head, then nodded: "It's the students who are stuck in a rut..."

Yan Shaoting smiled faintly and waved his hand: "The Nine Frontiers are a national policy, and we cannot easily make rash remarks at the moment. Even if something really goes wrong, it will be difficult for us to intervene."

Xu Wei sighed softly: "In that case, our preparations are not enough."

Yan Shaoting nodded: "It's not enough."

What was not enough, he did not say.

Xu Wei turned his gaze and said, "Changping is close to the border, can we open a horse market there?"

Yan Shaoting turned his head and looked at him instantly.

After a long time.

Yan Shaoting nodded silently.

Xu Wei smiled knowingly: "The Public Security Department is in charge of the factories in Changping and is responsible for the military supply of the Ministry of War. Even if the quantity is small, it can be regarded as accumulating horses for the court."

in fact.

This horse is in Changping, but it is hard to say whether it is for Changping or for the imperial court.

But Yan Shaoting obviously no longer focused on this matter.

He shifted his gaze and looked towards the capital.

"There's still no news about the monks who escaped from Nanlu Zen Temple?"

Xu Wei shook his head: "When Lu Tongzhi received the news, he asked Zhu Qi to lead Qi Dazhu and others to search secretly, but no news has been sent back yet..."

Yan Shaoting's eyes turned and he began to ponder.

He always felt that the disappearance of these monks was too coincidental.

especially.

The Nanlu Zen Temple used to be associated with the White Lotus Sect.

What is the White Lotus Sect?
They are a bunch of people who dream of rebellion all day long.

Xu Wei looked at Yan Shaoting and whispered, "My lord, are you worried that if something happens this year, these people will secretly add fuel to the fire?"

Yan Shaoting's brows suddenly frowned, and when he spoke, even his voice had a hint of murderous intent.

"Rebellious ministers and traitors."

"Kill him if you can!"

…………

Monthly PassMonthly Pass
(End of this chapter)