The Most Romantic of the Three Kingdoms

There were two iron officials, one in the negative millet gathering and the other in the camp. Negative millet gathering is located in the southwest of Yangcheng, and the camp is located in the southeast of Yangcheng. The Shen family's private smelter is also in the southeast of Yangcheng, between Yingli and Yangcheng. Xun Zhen planned to go to the gathering first, then to the camp, and finally to the private smelting of the Shen family.

Going all the way, not long after, the sun has risen, and it is like a stove when it rises, driving away the little coolness of the morning. It hasn't rained for days, the trees on the side of the road are wilting, the leaves are dry and curled, and the chariots and pedestrians who are driven towards it are full of dust and ash. Xun Zhen looked up and saw that there were no clouds in the sky, and the sky was shining brightly. He hurriedly lowered his head and rubbed his eyes.

Xiao Xia drove his horse and followed him closely and said, "It's only April, not long after the beginning of summer, the sky is so hot, it's like a fire. In two months, what should I do in May or June? Don't let people get too hot?" He was already sweating not long after he left the city.

"It hasn't rained for half a month. If we continue like this, I don't know if it will be too hot. Xia Zhong will definitely be delayed."

Lixia Planting Valley. Nong Ling said: "After the beginning of summer in April, when the rain falls, millet can be planted, which is called the above time". Common crops such as millet, grain, glutinous rice, winter wheat, flax, soybean, adzuki beans, etc. are all planted after the beginning of summer. Since the beginning of summer this year, God has not rained a drop of rain. If it goes on like this, I am afraid the prefect will come too. Yangcheng, instead of going to the county, went to Songshan to ask for rain.

The summer seed is related to the annual ration, and the farmers are most sensitive to this. Although it is only 90 years old, the fields on both sides of the official road are full of busy figures. Although Yangcheng faces the Yingshui, the Yingshui is not a big river, and there are not too many channels. The irrigation fields mainly rely on shoulders and wells. The farmers involved in the labor include not only the middle-aged men, but also the elderly, women and children.

Some draw water from distant rivers, while others use reels to draw water from wells. The wells are all high in the fields, and there are several stone paths along the edges of the wells. Xun Zhen Zhu Ma watched for a while on the side of the road, and thought to himself: "Heyuan has few wells and many fields. For so many fields, only using hand-held wells and wells to irrigate is afraid that it will be a drop in the bucket to attack gangrene, and the results will not be very good." There was nothing he could do about it. He only squinted and looked at the sky again, praying for God's mercy and raining sooner.

Last year and the year before last, the weather was good for two years. Could it be another year of disasters this year? With such anxieties in mind, he galloped on his horse, and at noon, he came to Tieguan near Neusiju.

...

Tieguan is located in a large depression, surrounded by hills and trees, with tall stone walls and strict access control. Not far to the north, is the ancient city of Wushu. In the pre-Qin period, this place was the border between Han and Zheng, and there were many wars between the two countries. Xun Zhen did not go directly to Tieguan, but drove his horse to a high place, looking down at the scene inside Tieguan.

Tieguan occupies a large area, long from east to west and narrow from north to south, forming a rectangle. It is about three or four miles long from east to west, and one or two miles wide from north to south.

The southernmost end is full of houses, like a residential area, which should be for the officials, soldiers, and disciples of the iron officials. There are earth walls outside the residential area, and rows of trees are planted outside the walls. To the north of the tree is an open space, and after this open space is the workshop area.

From the position of Xunzhen, it can be clearly seen that the workshop area is divided into three parts.

A mine, a char, and a smelter.

The ore storage area is divided into two small parts, one part is raw ore, which is piled up into mountains, and the other part is processed crushed ore. Two or three hundred prisoners in ochre clothes, under the supervision of iron officials, were using hammers, stone anvils, and stone ramming to crush the whole block of ore into pieces.

Charcoal storage is not open air, the charcoal is stored in warehouses. Dozens of prisoners in ochre coats and slaves in green robes were divided into two groups, transporting charcoal blocks on carts, and shuttled back and forth between the charcoal storage field and the smelting field.

The largest in the workshop area is the smelting field, where twelve or three oval furnaces are erected, not counting the convex-shaped rammed earth platform under the furnace, but only the furnace body. many. Each smelting furnace is separated by a distance of two or three feet, and can be regarded as a separate community. Surrounding the furnace body, it is subdivided into various parts of charging, blasting, iron tapping, and water supply.

Xun Zhen took a rough look and saw that there were about a dozen or three ironworkers in a furnace complex. Not all ironworkers were apprentices of iron officials, but there were also commoners who did not wear ochre clothes. Judging from their appearance, they should be craftsmen. There are five or six smelting furnaces in operation now, accounting for almost half of the total. From time to time, a red iron block came out of the furnace and rolled into the big pit in front of the furnace. Immediately, someone took water and poured it on it. The water vapor evaporated and mixed with the black smoke.

This was the first time Xun Zhen saw the iron smelting scene in the Han Dynasty. Although there was only an iron smelting yard and no casting yard in this iron official, he was still shocked and said in his heart: "The layout and work of this iron official are all well-ordered. , I see that the furnace seems familiar, as if I have seen something similar in some pictures, even if this scene is moved to later generations, it makes sense."

After watching for a long time, he got off the horse, whistled, and greeted Xiao Xia, the Gao brothers, who were waiting not far away, and galloped to the Tieguan Gate.

...

There are iron soldiers standing guard outside the door. Xun Zhen showed the seal of the Northern Superintendent of Posts and reported herself to the portal. The iron soldier hurried in and informed the steward.

Not long after, Su Ze and an official with a yellow ribbon and bronze seal came quickly.

Xun Zhen dismounted, and the chief of staff bowed and saluted: "I am under Fan Sheng, I am in charge of this office, I live in the post of Iron Official, and I have seen the rafters."

The rank of Tieguancheng is six hundred shi, which is the same as the rank of the county magistrate, and the rank of Tieguancheng is the same as that of the county magistrate, 200 shi. Xun Zhen returned the salute and said, "Don't blame me for taking the liberty to come here."

"I don't dare, I don't dare." Fan Sheng, the Tie Guan Cheng, didn't know if it was because he had been dealing with fire in Tie Guan all the year round, he was black and thin, and at first glance, he looked like black coal.

He solemnly invited Xun Zhen to enter, sighed, and said, "Why is Lord Shen so confused? Not only is he stubbornly resisting the laws of the country, but he also wants to privately recruit iron officials and disciples into the city. After one of Tieguan’s disciples came out with a saint, the subsequent Tieguan’s chiefs were all careful and strictly guarded Tieguan’s disciples, fearing that something would go wrong. This Shen Jun,…, alas, alas.”

"My accent doesn't sound like a native of this county?"

"Ah? ..., oh, yes. The rafters have good ears. The next person is from Nanyang County. He was originally the chief secretary of Luyang Tieguan. He was transferred to this county Tieguan just the year before." He was promoted to Tieguancheng, either because he had someone above him, or because he had a skill.

Xun Zhen said, "Nanyang Tieguan? It's been a long time since you heard that fine iron is produced in Nanyang. The iron officer in your county is much bigger than the iron officer in this county, right?"

Nanyang Tieguan was much more famous than Yingchuan Tieguan. There are two types of iron officials in the world's prefectures. One is the local iron officials who produce iron, called big iron officials; the other is the local iron officials that do not produce iron, called small iron officials. The iron officials in Yingchuan County are between the two, although they also produce iron, but the amount of iron production is not large. The iron official of Nanyang County is an out-and-out big iron official.

Fan Sheng said: "Speaking of which, our Nanyang's fine iron is famous all over the world because of 'Mother Du'!" 'Mother Du' is Du Shi. Du Shi was the punctuality of Nanyang, and promoted water drainage, which greatly promoted the development of Nanyang's iron smelting industry.

After entering the gate of Tieguan, the powder was flying in the face, and it was not clear whether it was flying dust or stone chips, or both. Gao Bing was looking around enthusiastically, choked his nose, and sneezed two or three times in a row. Fan Sheng turned his face and smiled kindly: "In the iron official, there is a blast of smelting iron, and the stone chips and dust are flying around. It is not as clean as the outside. Please walk a few steps, and it will be much better when you enter the house."

There is a wide road facing the gate, and there are many rut marks on it, which are scattered across the board. Fortunately, there is no wind at the moment, there will be another gust of wind, and the dust will be even greater. A dozen or so unkempt prisoners in ochre robes pushed past them with a few small carts stacked with crushed ore, which were transported to the iron smelting area. Xun Zhen glanced at them and saw that all of them were gray-faced and bony. Three or four of them had short hair. Two of them had iron tongs around their necks. The iron tongs were not light. waist.

Xun Zhen asked, "What crime did these people commit?"

"Those few wounded people with blade fights, one of the two knuckles and pincers was unfilial, and the other was a thief who wounded people to death."

"How many people are there in Tieguan?"

"There are twenty-four officers, two hundred and twenty-three soldiers, one hundred and thirteen artisans, one thousand two hundred and forty apprentices, and three hundred and fifty slaves, making a total of one thousand eight hundred and forty-nine." Fan Sheng came as soon as he opened his mouth, and all kinds of data were not messed up.

Gao Bing said strangely: "Just now, Jun Xun asked you what crimes those prisoners committed, and you said that they were fighting people and thieves wounding people to death. There are six hundred and forty prisoners. Do you know all these people? You remember them all. Their charges? You're not fooling Xun Jun, are you?"

Fan Sheng smiled and said: "Since I have been appointed as the Iron Officer of this county, I have to grasp the situation of the iron officials in this county. I not only know the situation of the iron officials' apprentices in this place, but also the iron officials' apprentices in the smelting workshop in the camp. I know the situation very well.”

"Then tell me, how many people are in the camp?"

"Twenty-one officials, one hundred soldiers, one hundred and ten craftsmen, five hundred apprentices, and one hundred and twenty slaves, for a total of eight hundred and fifty-one."

Gao Bing praised and asked again, "Why are there more than half of the Zuntu slaves here than in the camp?"

"The smelters in the camp only deal with cast iron, not mining, so there are few people."

"Is this smelter still part-time mining?"

Fan Sheng smiled and said, "If you don't mine, where will the iron come from? There are nearly 2,000 people in this field, but only 8 or 900 people actually use cast iron. The rest are mining and charcoal in the mountains."

Xiao Xia interjected: "So that's the case. I said how to hear the Shen family say that there are only one or two thousand people in the two iron officials. It turned out that those who opened the mines were not counted."

While speaking, everyone had walked to the outside of the iron smelting yard. Xun Zhen pointed at the furnace and asked, "I was just looking at the field outside the Tieguan. I saw that there seems to be only a furnace here, not a workshop for making iron tools?"

"There should have been."

"Then why is it gone?"

Fan Shengyao pointed to the opposite side of the iron smelting yard, and said, "Look at the rafters, where was originally a workshop for making tools, but it was just changed last year, and it was turned into a warehouse for storing charcoal."

"Why change it? Is there not enough charcoal warehouses for storage?"

"Not at all."

"Why is that?"

Fan Sheng sighed.

Xun Zhen asked, "What's the matter? What's the secret behind your steps?"

"No. It's all Shen Jun's decision."

"Did Shen Xun stop Tieguan's iron-making tool?"

"right."

Xun Zhen thought about it for a while, and knew that this must be because Shen Tung wanted to monopolize the iron market, so he used his power for personal gain, stopped the iron official's crafting, and when he asked Fan Sheng, it was indeed the case.

Fan Sheng said: "It's not to blame Shen Jun. Iron mining, cast iron, and forging iron are originally the most profitable, but iron mining and cast iron are the most difficult. According to the law, 'Iron miners pay five taxes and one, and their drums are regarded as a perfect tool. Another five taxes and one'. The tax paid for iron mining and iron mining is the same, but the degree of hard work is different. Iron mining is not only tiring, but also dangerous, and often dead people happen. There will also be explosions in the smelting furnace. It is understandable that Shen Jun stopped his own iron mining and cast iron, and specialized in iron forging. "

He seemed to be saying good things to Shen Xun, but Xun Zhen heard dissatisfaction and sourness from it. That's right, if there is no iron forging, the iron officer's income will be greatly reduced. If the income is less, the oil and water will be less, which will naturally damage Fan Sheng's interests.

"What about the original iron craftsmen?"

"They were all summoned by Shen Jun into their own smelting workshop."

Xun Zhen was silent for a moment, then asked, "Can I get approval from the Dasinong?"

"It has been approved."

Xun Zhen knew in his heart that Shen Xun must have followed Zhao Zhong's path, otherwise Da Si Nong would never have approved it.

He thought: "The reason why I want to control Tieguan, 80% of the 100% is because there are enough craftsmen here to make weapons, but I didn't expect Shen Xun to stop the ironsmithing workshop here! But it doesn't matter, Anyway, what he committed this time was a serious crime. Sooner or later, his family's private smelter will be taken as a government-run.... From this point of view, I have to thank him! Thank him for dividing the work of iron officials. Two workshops Full-time iron mining and cast iron, one workshop full-time iron strike, not only facilitates management, but also improves efficiency.”

Outside the iron smelting yard seems to be hotter than other places, and the flames are rising under the five or six smelting furnaces.

Dozens of iron workers, iron officials, and iron slaves stood guard around their respective furnaces. Some push the air bag, sweating profusely, blowing air into the furnace; some stand bare-chested on the raised platform, unloading materials into the furnace; some nervously observe the fire and master the opening time. During the tour of the two small officials, if they saw anyone who was lazy and did not work, they immediately went to beat and scold them.

Xun Zhen thought to himself, "The two Tieguan Yefang have a total of more than 2,000 prisoners and slaves. . If you can really control this iron officer, you will not only get hundreds of craftsmen, but also with a little training, you can pull up a capable army!" He didn't count the "pawn", That's because this "pawn" is not a "soldier pawn", but a "golden pawn", a commoner serving corvée.

He was rather annoyed: "Oh, why didn't I think of Tieguan before?" Even if he thought about it before, it was useless. Although the iron officials are also under the control of the county and county, they are two different systems from the local administrative agencies. If he had to take advantage of this opportunity to kill Shen Xun, he wouldn't be able to intervene. I was fascinated, and my footsteps slowed down.

Fan Sheng winked, but also slowed down and asked with a smile, "Is the rafters thinking about how much iron this furnace can produce in a day?"

Xun Zhen came back to her senses, glanced at Fan Sheng, and said to herself, "In terms of business, this man looks like an expert. Listening to him, he seems to be dissatisfied with Shen Xun. If I want to control Tie Guan in my hands, You can't just rely on Shen Rong." He decided to win over this person, and asked with a smile, "Then ask your step, how much iron can you produce in one day?"

"Like the largest smelting furnace, with sufficient raw ore, fuel, and manpower, it can produce more than 3,000 catties of iron a day. Other smaller ones can also produce 1,000 catties of iron a day." One catty in the Han Dynasty was equivalent to half a catty in later generations. More than a thousand catties is more than a thousand catties, more than half a ton.

Xun Zhen was taken aback for a moment, and his mind turned abruptly. He quickly calculated: "There are nearly twenty smelting furnaces in this smelting workshop. Five or six furnaces are in operation, and more than one ton of iron is produced in a day." asked Fan Sheng, "In the camp How much iron does the smelter produce in a day?"

"Similar to this place."

Two smelters produce two or three tons of iron a day. How much can this be made into weapons and armor? ——However, two or three tons a day, nearly a thousand tons a year, nearly two million catties, and then converted into Han catties, nearly four million catties. Iron officials in one county alone can produce nearly 4 million catties of iron a year? You know, Yingchuan County is not really a big iron official. This number is also too large. Xun Zhen asked, "Can you make so much iron every day?"

"That's not ~www.wuxiaspot.com~ In the case of sufficient iron ore, so much iron can be produced. When the iron ore is insufficient, the only way to stop is to stop. It was a coincidence that a batch of iron ore was just shipped the day before yesterday. There are so many furnaces working."

"How much iron can you produce in total in that year?"

"Is it only Tieguan in this county? The two workshops in Tieguan in this county, together, can produce as little as 50,000 or 60,000 to 100,000 kilograms of iron a year."

This number is much smaller, but it is true. He made up his mind: "100,000 catties is enough for a lot of use. No matter what the cost, you must control the iron officer!" While thinking, he said casually, "It's not easy to produce tens of thousands of catties a day, but it's hard work. Now that Shen Rong has died under the law, Tieguan has to rely on the management of his steps for the time being. It hasn't rained for more than ten days, the weather is dry, and the smelting workshop has been smoldering all day long, and dust is flying everywhere. You must pay more attention to preventing diseases. Ah! Don't fall ill from heat stroke."

Fan Sheng smiled and said, "I have a master's talisman, which is immune to all diseases."

——

1. It hasn't rained for half a month. If we continue like this, I don't know if it will be too hot in May or June, but this year's grain seeds will definitely be delayed.

Guanghe five years, "Later Han Dynasty? Lingdi Ji": "April, drought", "Later Han Dynasty? Five Elements Ji": "Summer, drought".

2. The iron miners are charged five taxes and one, and the drums are sold as finished tools, and there are five taxes and one.

This is a legal provision in the early Western Han Dynasty. Whether it was still collected in this way from the late Western Han Dynasty to the Eastern Han Dynasty is still uncertain due to the lack of written records. The book is temporarily from this law.

3. Like the big smelting furnace, with sufficient raw ore, fuel and manpower, it can produce more than 3,000 catties of iron a day.

The largest ancient smelting furnace unearthed so far is the iron shaft furnace of the Han Dynasty unearthed in Guying Town, 54li, northwest of Zhengzhou. "The effective volume is about 50 cubic meters, ... and the daily iron output is estimated to be about one ton."