Feng Qingzhu nodded, Rest assured, My Lord, I will handle it properly.
Remembering something, she added, My Lord, the flat glass you asked the glass workshop to blow has been produced. Should we have the carpenters install the glass windows at your place first?
Jiang Jin was very satisfied with the efficiency of Feng Qingzhu and the glass workshop. Good, you have done very well.
Feng Qingzhu straightened her back, speaking with grace, It is all thanks to Your Lordship's excellent guidance, and the craftsmen have also worked very hard.
Jiang Jin smiled and shook her head, You do not need to overwork yourself; just doing your best is enough.
Feng Qingzhu was the most hardworking person on Jiang Jin's team.
Take the glass workshop, for example. Since glass was a new item none of them had ever encountered, and the craftsmen were all novices, they relied entirely on Jiang Jin's explanations to experiment step by step on their own.
Feng Qingzhu would take her notebook of records and research and discuss with the craftsmen, succeeding only after countless failures.
After the glass was successfully blown, she began designing the glass styles herself.
She had some foundation in painting; after all, in the past, to please Emperor Yan, she had to know a bit about the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
Having seen fine things in the imperial palace, she also knew how to be flexible. Based on Jiang Jin's requirements and ideas, she divided the glass styles into practical and ornamental ones, executing both very well.
At the same time, she had to manage the weaving workshop, the garment workshop, the paper mill, the soap workshop, and so on. She was already considered an all-around talent.
Sometimes Jiang Jin felt like a ruthless exploiter. Fortunately, she had now trained a few assistants to coordinate with Feng Qingzhu's work, so she would not be too exhausted.
Hearing the care in Jiang Jin's words, Feng Qingzhu felt warmed and moved, her throat tightening slightly.
So she had always seen her efforts.
She indeed lacked a sense of security, feeling that her worldly experience was inferior to Luo Qingci's, her knowledge inferior to Chen Zi's, and she had neither martial prowess nor medical skills.
She was afraid that if she did not do well, Jiang Jin would despise her.
More importantly, she really liked her current job. She was doing something meaningful; the commoners and soldiers were all using products produced by the industrial zone, and the industrial zone was under her charge.
In Jiang Jin's words, she was creating her own value.
She was no longer a useless woman, nor the harem consort who only existed to please Emperor Yan. With her own hands and as a woman, she was building a great enterprise!
By the way, have all your windows replaced with glass too. Replace all the ones on Qingqiu Mountain, Jiang Jin added.
Feng Qingzhu composed her emotions and nodded, Alright.
Jiang Jin said softly, Once the glass workshop finishes this batch of goods, have them continue blowing flat glass. The windows in the military barracks should all be replaced with glass too. Any surplus glass can then be sold to the commoners in the city.
Based on the current wage levels of the commoners in Gefeng City, quite a few people could afford it. After all, she did not plan to make much money on these necessities, so the pricing would not be too high.
Some relatively struggling families could also choose oiled paper. Gefeng now had a paper mill, making the price of oiled paper relatively cheap.
Feng Qingzhu gave a soft Mm and said, I will have the carpenters prepare more timber. By the way, is the flax almost ripe?
Flax is highly cold-resistant but fears high temperatures. This year's climate was very suitable, so it ripened relatively quickly.
Jiang Jin paid close attention to the crops, so she naturally knew the situation. Yes, very soon. When it is harvested, I will have them send it directly to the weaving workshop for you to handle.
Alright, Feng Qingzhu agreed readily.
Jiang Jin then spoke to her about various techniques and issues regarding fabric dyeing.
Feng Qingzhu picked up her notebook again and jotted everything down rapidly.
After the matters were delegated, Feng Qingzhu left in a hurry. She had to go back and urge the various workshops to produce the goods quickly, ensuring both quality and quantity.
Only then did Jiang Jin start speaking with Chen Xi and Mu Ning.
The two were considered to have business experience, so there was no need for excessive instructions.
After finalizing the route and specific plans, Jiang Jin said to Chen Xi, When you reach Sizhou, do not reveal too much information about Gefeng, especially my identity.
Chen Xi understood her concerns upon a moment's thought. Understood.
Jiang Jin then turned to Mu Ning, This journey is quite long, and you might not be able to return before the new year. See if you want to go personally or have Ding Ying go.
Ding Ying was among the first batch of soldier slaves Jiang Jin had bought. Her performance in all aspects was very good, so Jiang Jin made her Mu Ning's deputy.
Mu Ning thought for a moment and said, I want to go personally.
Jiang Jin nodded, Alright.
Two days later, all the rooms in Jiang Jin's courtyard had their windows replaced with glass.
Looking at the bright glass paired with the authentic wooden window frames, it had a rustic and natural charm that she liked very much.
She immediately brought out the sheer tulle and silk she had stored away earlier and taught Liqiu and Guyu how to make double-layered curtains.
While she was busy, unsurprisingly, the envoy from Quzhao arrived again.
This time the lineup was huge, actually bringing hundreds of cavalrymen. Those who did not know better would think they were coming for a fight.
When Jiang Jin heard this, her eyes flickered. Why did she suddenly feel the urge to keep these people's warhorses?
Was this not practically tempting someone to commit a crime?
She thought about it and ultimately gave up on the idea. She was also too lazy to go look at the envoy's pale face, so she simply let Dong Si and Xie Nanxiao handle it.
Fearing that the world was not chaotic enough, Xie Nanxiao directly called for Luo A'man.
All the way to the city gates, Luo A'man was completely bewildered, not knowing why she had been called out.
However, she was smart enough to keep her mouth shut, ask nothing, and obediently follow along.
The envoy had already been waiting for quite a while. He was already in a foul mood, and now his face was contorted with displeasure.
Gefeng really has a lot of nerve, making us wait so long under the sun. Do you not call yourselves a state of ceremonies and propriety? Is this your way of treating guests?
After being angered to the point of vomiting blood during his last visit to Gefeng, he had recuperated for a long time. What broke his heart was that the Grand Chanyu actually refused to let him return to Wuqin.
He could only continue serving as an envoy in Zhou County, inwardly praying that Gefeng would not stir up any more trouble. He still wanted to live a few more years.
As a result, it was obvious that Gefeng had not heard his prayers.
Because the weather was too hot and the carriage felt like an oven, he had simply ridden a horse out.
However, there was not even a single tree in front of Gefeng. Even with a servant holding an umbrella for him, he was still sweating profusely from the heat.
Dong Si pulled a fake smile. Propriety is for those who are polite. Since you are neither polite nor human, why should we be polite?
The envoy flew into a rage. What is the meaning of this? Are you trying to provoke a war between our two armies?
Xie Nanxiao scoffed disdainfully, No, do you not have any originality when you curse people? It is the same line every time. You are really lacking in this area, your learning is terrible. How about I teach you a couple of lines?
The tuition fee will not be much, just ten thousand taels of gold. And do not complain that it is expensive; after all, with your brain, learning two sentences will be quite difficult, so I will have to put in a lot of effort.
