Chapter 70: Hidden Hand
"Great, great."
More than a thousand craftsmen came out of the cabin one after another and gathered on the river bank.
Wang Ying rubbed his hands excitedly. With this group of craftsmen, the military department suddenly had more manpower.
Zhao Xu felt more satisfied than fine wine at this time.
Craftsmen have always been precious resources in ancient times, and they often become the object of competition between enemies and friends in wars.
In modern ancient wars, sometimes foreign races can even plunder more than 100,000 craftsmen when looting an area.
For example, in the war of Nanzhao's invasion of Yizhou in the middle of the Tang Dynasty, after looting Yizhou, more than 100,000 Tang Dynasty craftsmen were looted by Nanzhao.
The arrival of these craftsmen has improved the technical level of Nanzhao.
The same thing happened in Dasong. After the Ningjin Dusi of Yanzhou was broken by Beidi, tens of thousands of craftsmen invisibly improved the military capabilities of Beidi.
If he had abundant craftsman resources under his command, why would he worry about not being able to turn the technology in his mind into reality.
"The one in front of you is His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan. As long as you are willing to serve His Royal Highness, His Royal Highness will not treat you unfairly." At this time, Wang Yanzhong shouted to the craftsmen.
Many craftsmen looked at each other, and the unfamiliar environment made them feel uneasy.
Moreover, they did not know the Prince of Yan yet.
Zhao Xu saw the low mood of the craftsmen.
It is not okay to work in the Armory with such an attitude.
However, this cannot be blamed on the craftsmen, after all, he took advantage of the situation and bought them during the war in Jinzhou.
After thinking about it, he felt that it was necessary to give these craftsmen hope, just like giving hope to the people of Yan County.
Clearing his throat, he said, "I know you sold yourself and became slaves, and you are very uncomfortable, but it is too early for you to be discouraged. Now, I will make you a promise. During your stay in the Armory, you can get a monthly salary every month. Those who perform well can also get rewards. At the same time, the Armory will help you find wives for those who are not married."
"Hehe..."
After Zhao Xu finished speaking, several craftsmen laughed, and the atmosphere was not as dead as before.
Zhao Xu smiled, "In short, except that you cannot leave the Armory without permission, you are no different from ordinary people."
The craftsmen were all refreshed when they heard this.
For them, it is good to have a stable place where they can eat well.
Now there are such generous conditions that are beyond their expectations.
As for whether they can leave the Armory, it doesn't matter.
Where can they go after leaving?
"Okay, Wang, take them back and treat them the same as the craftsmen of the Armory." Zhao Xu saw that the craftsmen were emotional and said to Wang Ying.
"Yes, Your Highness." Wang Ying happily went.
With someone leading the way, many craftsmen followed Wang Ying to the Armory.
Only Zhou Yi and Wang Yanzhong were left at the dock. Zhao Xu said, "You have delivered timely rain this time. I will reward you."
Wang Yanzhong said, "Your Highness treats me as a human being, so I will naturally return my life to your Highness."
"So will I." Zhou Yi laughed.
Zhao Xu noticed a shallow blood mark on Zhou Yi's face at this time and asked, "What happened?"
Zhou Yi touched the scar and smiled awkwardly.
Wang Yanzhong took a look and said casually, "I was chopped by other people in the tooth trade in Jinzhou. Doing this business is like licking blood on the blade. Sometimes you encounter chaotic soldiers and lose your life. It's normal."
Zhou Yi looked at Wang Yanzhong gratefully, "Fortunately Wang Yanzhong reacted in time, otherwise I would have lost my head."
Zhao Xu frowned and cast his eyes on the boatman standing on the boat.
These people all carried swords, and they were all from Wang Yanzhong's escort business.
This shows how dangerous this business is.
After all, in ancient times, merchants needed guards to transport goods, otherwise the escort business would not be popular.
"The accumulation of primitive capital is always bloody." Zhao Xu thought of this sentence.
It is indeed a gray business to collect people from all over Dasong, but he has to do it now.
These people have become the cornerstone of promoting the development of Yan County under his hands, and they will be treated well.
It is much better than starving to death on the way to escape, or falling into the hands of the nobles and never being able to turn over.
Therefore, Wang Yanzhong and Zhou Yi brought more than a thousand craftsmen this time, which made him feel that he needed to give more support to the two.
"Thank you for your hard work. I'm afraid you will continue to live like this in the future, but I have reserved a place for you in the government office. When you retire in the future, you can become an official." Zhao Xu said, this is the way he prepared for the two.
Although the palace has now acquired the escort business, outsiders don't know it on the surface.
I just thought that the pawnshop and the palace were cooperating.
This was also to prevent someone from making a fuss about this matter in the court.
"Thank you, Your Highness. We will not let you down." Zhou Yi and Wang Yanzhong were overjoyed.
This promise made them feel full of energy.
Zhao Xu smiled and nodded, "This time, I will also allocate a large sum of money to you. You can recruit more guards, and the Armory will also provide you with swords and armor. You must expand the pawnshop."
He wanted Wang Yanzhong's pawnshop to grow and develop, and the guards would increase from dozens to hundreds and thousands.
The number of ships would increase from three or five to thirty or fifty, or three or five hundred.
In this way, Wang Yanzhong and Zhou Yi would become another force under the palace.
And because the pawnshop only had a trade relationship with the palace on the surface.
When some things were inconvenient, the pawnshop could be asked to do it for them.
This way, even if others accuse the palace, he can deny it.
After chatting for a few more words at the dock, Zhao Xu asked Wang Yanzhong and Zhou Yi to go back and rest.
After all, the two of them were very tired from sleeping in the open air during this period.
After seeing them off, Zhao Xu prepared to return to the palace under Xu Lie's escort.
Just after getting on the horse, he suddenly saw a pretty woman standing in front of everyone.
"Is it you?" Xu Lie narrowed his eyes.
This person was none other than Huan'er, the maid who stayed by Xu E's side in Tianxiang Tower last time.
Huan'er glanced at Xu Lie, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, and then bowed to Zhao Xu, "Your Highness, my lady invites you to Tianxiang Tower for a chat. I wonder if your Highness can honor you."
Zhao Xu frowned.
Since the last time they met in Tianxiang Tower, there has been almost no movement in Tianxiang Tower during this period.
Now that Tianxiang Tower suddenly looks for him, there must be some news.
Nodding, he said, "Let's go."
Huan'er bowed again, got on a horse and led Zhao Xu to Tianxiang Tower.
Xu Lie saw Huan'er getting on the horse skillfully, and whispered to Zhao Xu, "Your Highness, the women in Tianxiang Tower are probably trained, good at singing and dancing, and probably also good at killing."
Zhao Xu was silent, and a little envious. He didn't know who the owner of Tianxiang Tower was, but the intelligence work was so good.
Thinking that he had only woken up for more than a month, and the other party might have been operating in Dasong for decades, he felt balanced in his heart.
He secretly said that when his Yanwei officially came out, he would definitely investigate Tianxiang Tower thoroughly.