Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

There are two old locust trees in the printing house, with branches slanting over the wall of the printing house. Although the blooming season has passed, there are still some white flowers on them.

When the wind blew, a few more white flowers fell. Two of them floated into the alley with the wind, two fell beside Shen Zheng's shoes, and one fell on her shoulder.

"Knock, knock, knock—" She raised her hand and knocked on the wooden door of the printing house.

Yu Shizhang's passionate voice suddenly stopped, and then a strange voice came: "Who is it?"

Shen Zheng retracted her wrist and thought about it.

If you answer "I", they may not be able to hear it.

Calling himself "Lord Shen" sounds a bit strange.

"Shen Zheng." She spoke before Hua Duo.

There was a commotion inside, and the wooden door opened. A strange and nervous face said to her, "Sir, please come in!"

She has been busy recently, and Yu Shizhang is in charge of all matters related to the establishment of the printing house. She basically doesn't know anyone in the house.

She is a qualified hands-off boss.

Leading Hua Duo inside, there were dozens of people standing under the old locust tree. Their expressions were the same as the one who opened the door: nervous, curious, and a little...admiration?

The layout of Shangjing Seal Shop is similar to that of Tongan Seal Shop. As soon as you enter the door, you will see a spacious drying yard with many drying racks, but there is no paper on the racks this time.

Looking further inside, you will see the movable type workshop, typesetting room, printing area, and cutting and binding area.

If she guessed correctly, the innermost part should be a warehouse, used to store paper, ink, tools, books, etc.

The familiar feeling that came over her left her speechless for a moment.

"Have you finished your work?" Yu Shizhang walked up to her, opened his arms, and looked as if he was asking for credit. "How is it? Are you satisfied?"

Everyone in the alley looked at each other quietly and made faces.

I've heard that Lord Shen and Lord Yongning have a good relationship, but seeing it today, it's more than just a "good" relationship.

Shen Zheng walked to the drying rack and stroked it gently. The bamboo poles were delicate, and even the knots were polished smooth without any burrs.

She smiled and said, "Nothing is bad if it passes through your hands."

Perhaps because he was being praised in front of so many people, Yu Shizhang's face was flushed. He raised his hand and called everyone over, introducing them to her: "They are all the top students of Master Deng. Too lazy to take the imperial examinations again, they voluntarily joined our printing house. From now on, all typesetting matters in the printing house will be handed over to them."

Everyone's cheeks turned red when they heard this.

It's not that they were too lazy to take the imperial examination. It's obvious that they would not pass even if they took it, so they didn't want to waste their family's money and time.

The printing house's wages are very good, and they only have to pay the cost price when they buy books themselves. And today the cloth shop even sent them some cotton work clothes...

No matter how you look at it, they make money when they come to work in the printing house.

"Greetings, Lord Shen. Thank you for opening the printing house, which provides us with a place to settle down." They saluted in unison.

"It's just that you have talent and the printing house has the space." Shen Zheng smiled and replied: "The printing house and you complement each other, so there is no need to thank me."

After hearing her words, everyone scratched their heads excitedly. Yu Shizhang waved his hand and said, "That's enough for today. Everyone, pack up your tools and go home."

There was a stone table under the old locust tree, and four stone benches around the table. The more Shen Zheng looked at it, the more familiar it looked.

"Is this...the table and stool in your house?"

Yu Shizhang narrowed his eyes and smiled, leading her over, sat down, patted the table and said, "I moved in yesterday, how is it?"

Shen Zheng picked up the locust flowers on the table, put them to the tip of her nose and sniffed them, "Thank you for your trouble."

It was a lot of work to bring such a solid stone table and stone bench from the Yongning Earl's Mansion to the printing house, which was dozens of miles away.

"I see you're busy?" Glancing at her expression, Yu Shizhang pointed in a direction for Hua Duo: "Xiaohua, go and get your master a pot of fresh tea. The water is boiling in the kitchen."

Hua Duo left obediently, and Shen Zheng told him what had happened before.

Yu Shizhang's expression also changed from initial surprise to sighing. "They say that people should have a conscience. I didn't interact with Luo Bizhi much before, but now it seems that he is not a cold-hearted person."

Shen Zheng twisted the locust flowers and asked with a smile, "Do you think so too?"

It seems she didn't think wrong.

"Of course," Yu Shizhang explained. "You might not know this, but the Ministry of Justice is very generous. Previously, whenever they published a book, they hired copyists. With a simple wave of their hand, they could summon hundreds of impoverished students, sign a contract with them, and each copy one or two volumes. In just a few days, they could copy a thousand books. So why are they looking for our printing house now?"

That's a good guess.

"To repay a favor... no." Shen Zheng thought for a moment, "To repay a favor. I gave him the essay, and he thought it would be useful to government offices across the country, so he naturally accepted the favor. Whether he wanted to repay a favor or to establish a friendly relationship with us, it won't do us any harm."

Yu Shizhang agreed: "Before, our printing house printed books for students all over the country. But this time, the target audience is government offices all over the country. After this, the status of Tongan Printing House will naturally rise. In the future, when other government offices want to copy books, they will probably consider us first. And those who want to make enemies with us will have to think twice."

At first glance, this cooperation with the Ministry of Justice is a one-time deal.

But looking ahead, there are only benefits.

"Then let's focus on the Ministry of Justice first." Yu Shizhang made up his mind: "Let's finish this deal first. The bound books you want are already in stock in the warehouse. Let's go and deliver them to him today."

The two men took the letter and left immediately.

The carriage bumped along, and it was dark when it finally stopped outside the Ministry of Justice.

The guard stood at attention. Shen Zheng got out of the car and explained his purpose. The guard said, "Sir Shen, the Minister just left the yamen a moment ago. I wonder if you..."

"It's not a big deal." Shen Zheng took out the book from her sleeve and handed it to him. "Please go to Lord Luo tomorrow and help me give this book to him. I mentioned it to him before."

The officer took it carefully and watched her return to the carriage.

She was riding with Yu Shizhang, and as soon as they sat down, Yu Shizhang asked her, "Are you ready for tomorrow's completion?"

Shen Zheng nodded: "We have completed the initial inspection today. The dam and the gate are flawless. The completion record is also ready. We only need to report it after the completion sacrifice and wait for the inspection officer sent by the court to inspect it."

When it comes to sacrifices, she is actually a little helpless.

The Great Zhou Dynasty really attached great importance to sacrifices. Sacrifices were held at the beginning of construction and at the completion of construction. She was even afraid of the day when the sluice gates would be opened for use, as sacrifices would have to be held there.

Compared with her helplessness, Yu Shizhang was a little puzzled.

"This time, the inspector was kept so secret that no one knows who the inspector is."

In the past, when the imperial court completed river and dam projects, the identities of the inspectors were almost transparent. They were either from the six ministries, Prime Minister Cui, or the Earl.

As for this Huihe River project, it's not that the emperor is holding back something, but to this day, no one has smelled anything...