If she wasn't mistaken, that should be a large birch forest.
Birch wood could be used to build houses and make furniture, but more importantly, it was excellent material for making charcoal.
She had just been wondering where to find raw materials for burning charcoal, and unexpectedly, here it was. It seemed she really needed to walk around and observe more; this mountain range was full of treasures!
She greeted Dong Si and took Yun Chengxuan excitedly to the birch forest.
Upon entering the forest, they discovered that this area was much larger than expected. The terrain was relatively flat; it seemed a logging team could be established.
They could build additional charcoal kilns in the mangrove forest. It wasn't far, and sourcing materials locally would make it convenient to manage together.
At the quarry mountain.
The captives wore shackles on their feet and held distributed tools like hammers and pickaxes in their hands.
The captives who were Qu Zhao servants had a decent attitude. Although they worked reluctantly, at least they were digging stones or hammering large rocks.
The Qu Zhao soldiers, however, were uncooperative, holding their hammers with the intent to rebel.
Yao Ji showed no mercy, shooting the ringleader dead with a single arrow.
The Qu Zhao soldiers were shocked and furious, glaring at Yao Ji. Just you wait! When our Great Chanyu sends troops, he will exterminate you two-legged sheep.
Jiang Jin and Yun Chengxuan arrived right at this moment. After inspecting the birch forest, she had returned to the mangrove forest to instruct Xia Zhong and the others about building more charcoal kilns.
Only after that did she bring Yun Chengxuan here to take a look. She hadn't expected the captives to actually be so defiant. Hah!
Yao Ji was just about to kill these few men when he saw Jiang Jin approaching. He paused his actions and nodded to her, My Lady.
Seeing a petite woman arrive, a captive immediately felt his chance had come. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he hurled the iron hammer in his hand straight at Jiang Jin.
Yun Chengxuan raised his hand and caught the whistling hammer. The gentle smile that had just been on his face turned cold and harsh.
Jiang Jin's eyes were ice-cold. Kill him!
Without a word, Yun Chengxuan took two steps forward and smashed the hammer into the skull of the Qu Zhao soldier who had just attacked.
Instantly, a rain of blood fell from the sky, splattering all over the nearby soldiers who had been preparing to make a move.
Yun Chengxuan had no intention of letting them off. How dare they attack his aunt? He had to beat their brains out.
He swung the hammer again. The shackled captives had no ability to resist in front of Yun Chengxuan.
Bang, bang, bang! Three more heads exploded, sending red and white matter flying through the air.
Such a brutal and bloody scene terrified the captives, especially the Qu Zhao servant captives, who screamed in fright.
They couldn't understand, when did the Han people become even more ruthless than them?
At this moment, they deeply realized that these Han people truly did not value their lives at all.
Jiang Jin scanned the crowd. Those who do not work and do not obey will die!
Under her icy voice, the captives finally lowered their heads and began to dig.
The servant captives moved with incredible agility, terrified that if they were too slow, their heads would be smashed by a hammer. They worked with burning fervor.
Jiang Jin instructed Yun Ce, Keep your distance while they work. Shoot anyone who resists immediately.
The captives wore shackles, so they couldn't run away. The only fear was that they might throw the tools in their hands, considering many of these captives were former soldiers.
Yun Ce nodded solemnly, feeling a bit ashamed. I understand, My Lady.
Jiang Jin had entrusted the task of overseeing the captives' quarrying to Yun Ce. Although he was young, he had been to the battlefield. The main issue was that Jiang Jin was currently short-handed.
However, Yun Ce lacked experience and sometimes couldn't bring himself to be ruthless.
That was why Yao Ji had come to hold the fort. Today was the first time they brought the captives to quarry stone, and he was worried Yun Ce wouldn't be able to control them.
The corpses were quickly disposed of by the soldiers.
Jiang Jin took a look and, after ensuring there were no issues, returned to the county office.
She thought for a moment and asked Liqiu to call over the house-building artisans.
After arriving in Ge Feng, Dong Si was worried she wouldn't have anyone to serve her, so he transferred Liqiu over, along with a maidservant previously bought in Lin County. Following the rules, Jiang Jin bestowed upon her the name Guyu.
The artisans arrived quickly, feeling somewhat apprehensive. This was the first time the Lady had summoned them, and they didn't know what it was about.
Jiang Jin handed over the blueprints in her hand. Take a look. I want to build a barbican at the south gate. Is this blueprint feasible? How much material and how many man-hours will it require?
A total of five house-building artisans had been purchased. The two older ones were named Guo Li and Kang Sheng.
Guo Li hesitated for a moment before taking the blueprint to examine it.
Kang Sheng also lowered his head to look together. Their expressions gradually grew solemn, but their eyes became increasingly bright.
They were artisans who had worked for prominent families building large courtyards and gardens. They could read and understand blueprints to some extent, so at this moment, they were incredibly shocked.
If it was truly built according to this blueprint, this barbican would be extraordinary. It was no exaggeration to say that however many people entered, that many could be wiped out. After all, the corpse pits were already drawn in.
Guo Li looked up and asked, Did you draw this, My Lady?
Jiang Jin nodded. Naturally.
Guo Li and Kang Sheng couldn't help but feel a profound sense of respect. The two lowered their heads to continue studying the blueprint, occasionally asking Jiang Jin questions, such as exactly how large and deep it should be built, and what materials she planned to use for the main structure.
Particularly regarding the specific mechanical operations of the corpse pits, this involved the carpenters. She planned to use wood for the internal baffles and sluice gates.
This couldn't be helped. Although Ge Feng had an armory, there wasn't much iron ore stored inside.
After all, these iron ores were only used to forge arrowheads, so the quantity naturally wouldn't be large.
However, as long as the right wood was used and made thick and heavy enough, it wouldn't be a big problem. Most city gates in this era were made of wood, and with some special treatments, they could be very durable.
Thus, Jiang Jin asked Liqiu to go and call over the carpenters Duan Zhuo and Gu San.
The meeting lasted for two hours, and the general plan was finally finalized.
Afterward, the several artisans went to the south gate for a field inspection, surveying the terrain, measuring locations, and discussing specific implementation plans.
On her end, Jiang Jin summoned the blacksmiths over.
She got straight to the point, Do any of you have experience finding iron ore or black stone?
Black stone meant coal.
She didn't have many soldiers right now, but if she was going to walk that path, the number of people would inevitably increase, and the weapons she had on hand wouldn't be enough.
Moreover, many daily necessities also required iron, such as various agricultural tools and kitchenware.
With iron ore, they would need to smelt and forge it, and for smelting iron, coal was the best fuel.
It had a higher combustion efficiency than charcoal, burned more thoroughly, was more stable, and produced higher temperatures.
Besides smelting iron, coal also had great uses in daily life and could serve as everyday fuel.
The blacksmiths exchanged glances. Sun Yishui hesitated for a moment and said nervously, This servant... I have. I previously followed my master to look for iron ore.
You don't need to call yourself a servant in the future. Although these were slaves she had bought, they were all skilled talents.
Yes, My Lady! Sensing Jiang Jin's gentle demeanor, their nervousness eased a bit.
Jiang Jin looked at Sun Yishui. Then in a couple of days, you will go out of the city to look for iron ore and black stone in the surrounding areas. I will assign a squad of men to accompany you.
By the way, see if anyone in our group has mined before. If so, bring them along.
Sun Yishui hurriedly agreed.
Jiang Jin then looked at the remaining men. Tomorrow, you all will start work at the armory. Forge some machetes and axes as quickly as possible.
Later on, she would need to oversee construction, burn charcoal, and craft weapons like bows and arrows. All of this would require an enormous amount of wood. She couldn't exactly expect people to chop down trees barehanded, could she?
Although the storehouse in Gefeng County held a variety of farming tools, they were in short supply.
The sunset cast a deep red glow, its warm and velvety light bringing a faint touch of warmth to the ancient, dilapidated city.
Knock, knock, knock.
Zhang Ye jumped in fright and asked in a hushed voice, "Who is it?"
