Chapter 785: Liancheng

Yu Youyao's heart was heavy: "In short, we have to be careful. It is best not to expose the materials on the ship to others, so as not to cause trouble."

Old lady Xie nodded: "Don't worry, the old lady has arranged people in advance to arrive at Liancheng first, waiting to pick us up. Together with the elite soldiers guarding the hospital on the ship, there are more than 300 people in total. Not to mention refugees, even bandits. Thieves and bandits are no match."

Yu Youyao suddenly realized that there were one hundred elite soldiers of Yin Huaixi on the ship, and the Xie Mansion also arranged more than a hundred martial arts masters to prevent pirates from hijacking the ship when sailing on the sea. This was also the confidence of the Xie Mansion to sail on the sea. Another group of manpower has been arranged, which is indeed very safe.

"We still have at least eight or nine days of travel to Liancheng. Not to mention these," Old Mrs. Xie sighed softly: "I couldn't celebrate the Chinese New Year well before, and I always felt it was unlucky. Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival, and our family will get together. , have a good reunion dinner.”

On New Year's Eve, Xiao Yao'er had a low fever and was not in the mood to celebrate the festival.

The men in the family posted a few couplets on the merchant ship to seek good luck, prepared a table of wine and food, offered sacrifices to their ancestors, and celebrated the festival symbolically.

Later, I was even less in the mood to celebrate the holidays.

Yu Youyao felt a little regretful that she had missed the first year with Xie Fu in such a daze.

The next day came, the Lantern Festival.

Yu Youyao happily took her grandmother and aunt to make Lantern Festival together.

She has always been very knowledgeable about food. She packed the Lantern Festival with osmanthus honey, peach dew, rose jam, etc., and made more than a dozen flavors. Even Mr. Xie, who doesn't like sweets, ate a lot for the first time. , and full of praise.

The Lantern Festival was spent with joy and laughter.

In the days that followed, the atmosphere on the ship finally became less solemn than before.

The days of sailing on the sea were boring, and Yu Youyao had nothing to do. Considering the bitter cold in the winter in the north, she made a lot of cold, damp, and nourishing herbs.

Once you get busy, time flies by.

When the merchant ship stopped again, Yu Youyao suddenly realized that they had arrived in Liancheng, Liao Province.

Yin Huaixi was stationed in the east of Liao Province, and its scope was so large that it included the three major provinces in Northeast China. "The Book of the Former Han·Geography" records: "Liaodong County was established by the Qin Dynasty and belonged to Youzhou, with eighteen counties!"

The original Youzhou included the three provinces of Northeast China and the three provinces of Beijing, namely Beijing, Hebei, and Tianjin.

By the time of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the three provinces of Beijing were no longer under the jurisdiction of Youzhou.

Because the three northwest regions of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Ningxia stretch for 100,000 miles with mountains, the terrain is very complicated, and bandits are often infested. There are also commercial routes there, and they are in contact with Beidi. When the imperial court re-divided the jurisdiction of the state, they included this area. The three places to the north are divided into the northern boundary of Youzhou.

Because of Youzhou's vast territory and special location, the imperial court did not establish a vassal state in Youzhou.

Later, King Zhou Li invited himself to guard Youzhou. This was the first of its kind and he was granted the title of King of Dingbei. This was originally intended to intimidate the generals who guarded the northern border.

Unexpectedly, King Zhou Li himself achieved many great achievements in the northern border.

The Zhou Dynasty did not use counties to govern. Among the eighteen counties in Liaodong, Xiangping was the first county. The ancient city of Xiangping existed since ancient times and was the state government of Youzhou, so it was also called Youzhou City.

Yin Huai's Seal is in Xiangping City.

There is Da'an Mountain between Yu Youyao and Yin Huaixi. It is a resource-rich area in the Northeast. It produces many minerals, such as rare stones, jade, and relatively rare medicinal materials. At the same time, it can pass through the Chengcheng Coastal Port, from The abundant resources obtained from the sea can ensure the strategic supplies of the Youzhou Army to the greatest extent.

The climate in Liancheng is similar to Quanzhou.

There is no severe cold in winter, no scorching heat in summer, and you don’t feel cold even in winter.

However, once you cross Anshan, which lies between Liancheng and Youzhou City (Xiangping City), it is a completely different scene.

There are heavy rains and heavy rains in Youzhou City, and there is little sunshine in summer and autumn. Because winter is very long and the temperature is very low, the spring climate is not obvious. Every year in autumn, winter, and spring, it is also bitterly cold.

The merchant ship stopped at the dock, and Wang came over: "The situation in Liancheng is unknown. Yin San and Jingliu went ashore to find out the news. We will wait on the ship first."

Yu Youyao nodded and asked, "Has the person who responded arrived?"

Wang smiled and said: "After they arrived in Liancheng, they lingered at Liancheng Wharf every day. As soon as the merchant ship arrived at the wharf, they met us. The carriages and freight have been contacted. When Yin San and Jingliu come back to inquire about the news, Let’s discuss how to arrange it. We may need to stay on the ship for two or three days.”

When I first arrived, I brought a lot of supplies with me, which were a bit too obvious. I had to get a feel for the situation in Liancheng before making any next plans.

Yin San and Xie Jingliu were gone for two days.

When he came back, Xie Jingliu got the map of Liancheng.

Maps are prohibited items and are almost always in the hands of the government and some aristocratic families. Even the Xie Mansion who conducts business outside the country follows the route planned by the imperial court and does not dare to explore the map privately.

"I have inquired about it. King Wu Mu has set up nearly a hundred refugee camps in the northern area where supplies are relatively abundant. Liancheng is near the sea and has rich supplies. Camps have been set up outside the city to house the refugees. The government and King Wu Mu have sent troops To guard, to prevent the refugees from causing chaos, we take the family as a unit, and each family provides a strong laborer, and the labor is exchanged for food. If there is no strong laborer at home, you can do some work of sewing military uniforms, and provide a bowl of hot soup and a piece of sweet potato every day."

Yu Youyao breathed a sigh of relief.

No matter how much food there is, it cannot withstand the consumption of a large number of refugees. They are not full but they are not hungry to death, and they have a fairly stable environment. This is the best result for the victims.

Xie Jingliu also had a smile on his face: "When the weather warms up, sweet potato planting will be promoted in all areas of the northern border. King Wu Mu encourages planting tussah trees and raising tussah silkworms. He has contacted local people who are good at raising silkworms to teach the refugees the skills of raising silkworms. Wu Mu Prince Mu's Mansion will come forward and contact some major silk merchants to collect tussah cocoons, silk, etc."

People who have fled are likely to settle down there in the future, but refugees have no land and have left their hometowns. It is not easy to find work locally, and life in the future will be even more difficult.

A large number of refugees gather in one place. If this problem cannot be solved, trouble will definitely occur over time.

Silkworm breeding in the Zhou Dynasty was mainly concentrated in Henan and Shandong.

Liancheng's forest branch is very wide, mainly tussah trees, and has a natural environment for tussah silkworm breeding. However, tussah silkworm breeding is in the hands of local large households, so the output is limited.

If it can be developed on a large scale, it will not only ensure the future life of some refugees who have fled and have no land, but can also promote commerce in the north, with no harm at all.

Tussah silkworms are a good thing. Silkworm silk can be made from silkworm cocoons. Silkworm silk can be used to weave brocade, damask, Luo, silk, etc., which also involves various processes such as printing and dyeing.