The most arrogant in history

"It's okay, I have a solution!"

Ye Kun gritted his teeth and said, "I still have some money from the last time I took down Xiping Mountain. I'll give this money to you and I don't believe that we can't get it done! As for the money to pay off the debt, I'll pay it later."

County Magistrate Wang was astonished: "Pay for it yourself? Lord Ye, you are really willing to do so..."

Ye Kun chuckled and said, "I'll do this when I get back."

After returning to the county, Ye Kun asked County Magistrate Wang for the tax collection books and selected several large villages that owed the most taxes.

Tax officials and soldiers were dispatched to deliver messages to each pavilion chief, village chief, and the three elders of each pavilion, asking them to send civilians to pay off the owed taxes.

Laborers from all over the country only need to bring their own bedding and mountain-opening tools to work in Xiting Mountain.

Ye Kun provides three meals a day, including brown rice and meat soup, guaranteed to keep you full!

A total of two hundred laborers were working on the mountain and transporting the mined limestone to the hillside.

Then, Ye Kun prepared to build a kiln on the spot and burn quicklime.

In addition, Ye Kun paid out of his own pocket and asked all blacksmith shops in the county to speed up the production of mountain-opening tools.

County Magistrate Wang thought Ye Kun was crazy and shook his head repeatedly.

Just for the food and drink of these two hundred laborers, including brown rice and meat soup, they could earn one string of money a day.

County Magistrate Wang calculated that what Ye Kun earned last time in Xiping Mountain would only last him two months.

But Ye Kun is not worried, because in a few days, the fine salt business will be booming, so why should he be afraid of having no money?

That night, Ye Kun handed over all the salt refining matters to Qin Erwu and Xie Dagu, and took Tian Xiaoe and Qiao Yun with him, only responsible for providing the filtration equipment.

Filters should also be replaced regularly.

Because the activity of activated carbon will decrease.

Ye Kun simply kept the filter element technology in his hands and handed it over to Xiao'e and Qiao Yun.

When the county magistrate is away, his wife, Hou, is in charge of the household.

She thought the filter element was difficult to make and would require Xiao'e and Qiao Yun's help, so she readily gave Xiao'e and Qiao Yun to Ye Kun forever.

Thanks to Ye Kun, Aunt Xie became the general manager of the salt refining. She did no work herself, but just commanded the maids to do the chores.

On the South Street of the county town, Ye Kun rented another house, a large courtyard house.

It was used to hide beautiful girls, and Tian Xiao'e and Qiao Yun were arranged to live here.

After get off work in the evening, Jiaojiao also lives here with Yulian and Chunhua.

In the tavern, Ma Fugui and two other women were left behind to work the night shift.

The order to pay debts with work has been issued.

The next morning, the headmen of the pavilions and villages from all over the place sent seventy or eighty people to gather at Ye Kun’s military camp.

Providing meals every day is very tempting for poor people, and it can also offset the taxes owed.

Everyone carried simple tools, mainly shoulder poles, hemp ropes and wicker baskets.

As for the tools for opening the mountain, such as chisels, hammers, etc., there were basically none, only some wooden hammers.

Copper and iron tools are very expensive and the villagers can't afford them.

If you can afford copper and iron tools, you can also pay taxes.

Ye Kun also sighed, and led the team personally, leading these laborers and carrying some tools to Xiping Mountain.

Because cutting through the mountains to build a road is a long-term task, and burning quicklime later also requires a long time and even long-term stationing.

So Ye Kun led everyone to repair the bandit camp in Xiping Mountain first.

In the afternoon, some more laborers came to report.

Ye Kun told everyone to chop firewood first and keep it for later use, the more the better.

In addition, Tian Xiao'e's father Tian Dalong and uncle Tian Erhu were appointed as supervisors, responsible for distributing and keeping tools.

Among the laborers, some had participated in mountain opening labor and were considered veterans.

Ye Kun picked a few old masters and a few literate people to be team leaders and discuss the plan for opening the mountain first.

In ancient times, when mountains were being excavated, there were no explosives or crushers. People could only use fire and water, and utilize the principle of thermal expansion and contraction.

That is, firewood was piled up under the mountain wall and flames were burning.

Make the top of the mountain hot, then pour cold water on it, and the surface of the rock will explode.

Because we have to keep the mountain road open while opening the mountain, we have to dig a hole first.

In this way, if a carriage came, the excavators would hide in the cave and clear the road.

Ye Kun ordered:

"Set fire to the mountain wall at night and dig during the day. One hour after sunrise and before sunset, try not to operate. If you operate, make sure it does not affect the passage of the trade route. If the working hours during the day are not enough, work overtime at night."

In order to experience the difficulty of mountain opening, Ye Kun stayed here for one night.

That night, they collected a lot of dry firewood, piled it under a cliff, and burned it.

Then do the water splash test.

The effect was quite good. The rocks on the cliffs exploded one after another, and some cracks were three or four inches deep.

Ye Kun selected a place and asked the laborers to carry the collapsed rocks to the hillside and pile them up.

The mountain opening project was started in this way.

Ye Kun left Xiping Mountain and went to deal with the issue of recruiting soldiers.

The recruitment rate for soldiers in the Da Ding Kingdom was one in two men.

If there are two men in a family, both aged 15 and above and below 50, one of them must serve in the military.

The population of this small county is not large to begin with, and with conscription every year, the source of soldiers has really been depleted.

Ye Kun spent a whole day riding across half the county to find out the situation from local headmen, village heads, and elders.

All those who meet the requirements must register and be forced to enlist.

Ye Kun also discovered an interesting phenomenon: among the villages below, there are actually men, but most of them are bachelors, like Yao Heifu from Cao Miao Village!

This type of person is strong and idle, but is not included in the recruitment scope.

Some families have many concubines and are very fertile. They raise ten sons at once, and when five are conscripted, they still have five at home!

So, Ye Kun issued a notice that those who were not within the scope of the recruitment but were willing to join the army on their own initiative would be rewarded with 200 copper coins each!

Two hundred copper coins is a lot for a poor person who has no food to eat.

Moreover, Ye Kun guaranteed that as long as they served under him, they would be provided with adequate military rations, an egg and a meal of rice and meat soup every day.

Meat soup rice is actually a scam.

It depends on whether Ye Kun has money.

A pig bone, add a bucket of water, and boil it down, it's called broth.

After a busy day, I returned to South Street in the evening.

Ye Kun suddenly remembered that the night after tomorrow would be the day when he and Jiaojiao would consummate their marriage.

After having dinner at the Lotus Restaurant, Ye Kun took Jiaojiao and Xiao'e back to their rented house to rest.

I've been so busy these days that I haven't taken care of Jiaojiao.

Ye Kun used all his skills and, together with Jiaojiao, experienced the beauty of the great harmony of life.

After the tenderness, Ye Kun hugged Jiaojiao:

"Jiaojiao, I have to go back to Caomiao Village tomorrow. The day after tomorrow morning, I will pick up my mother and Yourong. They should be there for us to consummate our marriage."

He can have women, but Ye Kun cannot hide it from Yourong.

Besides, Jiang Yourong never objected.

"This is what I should do. Don't worry, Brother Kun. I will definitely respect Sister Yourong."

Jiaojiao nodded and asked in a low voice: "Brother Kun, Xiao'e said that you have already accepted her, right?"

"Did Xiao'e tell you?"

"Yes, she said that on your first day refining salt at Magistrate Liu's house, she served you and stayed with you all night."

"Will you be unhappy?"

"No way. Xiao'e is my cousin. She and I are best friends. I wish Brother Kun would accept her and let her stay with me for the rest of her life, never leaving me." Jiaojiao said with a smile.

"Inseparable all the time? Then can we sleep together at night?" Ye Kun grinned.

"Of course, I can call Xiao'e over right now..."

Jiaojiao giggled, really got out of bed, put on her clothes, and went to call Xiao'e.