Chapter 509: The traitorous minister's night revelry
"I didn't expect General Sun to have a daughter..."
As he was speaking, Xia Yu was suddenly stunned. He suddenly remembered that Sun Jian did have a daughter. In the story of the Three Kingdoms, that daughter also became Liu Bei's wife.
"Yes, my father does have a daughter, she is my younger sister. Her name is Sun Shangxiang. She is now 28 years old and it is time for her to get married." Sun Quan explained after hearing Xia Yu's mumbling.
Xia Yu: “…”
That's right. Sun Quan is already in his twenties now, and Sun Shangxiang is a young girl in her twenties, so there's nothing wrong with that.
Fortunately, fortunately, he almost thought that he would have to refine copper. After all, in ancient times, girls basically got married at the age of twelve or thirteen. Although a girl of twenty-eight is a little young, at least she can wait a little longer instead of being punished.
He is not averse to arranged marriages. The reason he is still single is that he was only thinking about gaining a foothold in this chaotic world and did not have much time to think about love affairs.
"Well, let me think about this matter. Zhongmou, you should go and have a rest first. This is a good opportunity for you to taste the delicious food and wine I have here."
Xia Yu did not give an immediate answer, but asked someone to take Sun Quan to rest. He then left the main hall alone and wandered around outside.
It is now around the end of the year, and soon it will be the third year of Chuping.
The third year of Chuping, in the history of the Three Kingdoms, was the time when Wang Yun and Lu Bu conspired to kill Dong Zhuo.
Although the story of Wolong is a magical modification, the general historical trend is not a problem. In the story of Wolong, it was in this year that Lu Bu stabbed Dong Zhuo in the back and stole the elixir that Dong Zhuo had accumulated.
Xia Yu didn't intend to join in the fun. After all, the Fang Tian Hua Ji was specifically designed to stab his adoptive father. Even if he didn't go to help, Lu Bu would probably be able to kill Dong Zhuo smoothly.
Although in the game it was the volunteers who forced Dong Zhuo into a desperate situation, which gave Lu Bu the opportunity to kill Dong Zhuo.
But games are games, and reality is reality. Xia Yu has never regarded reality as a game, and the game plot is just a reference for him.
Moreover, under his persuasion, Hong Jing did not sneak into Dong Zhuo alone, so he had even less reason to go there.
"I have nothing to do today, so I'll listen to some music in the brothel."
After realizing that he had nothing to do for the time being, Xia Yu shook his head and prepared to go out for a drink and listen to some music.
He's been fighting for a quarter of his life, can't he just enjoy himself?
But before he could call the dancer, Zhuge Liang arrived first and said he had something to report.
Xia Yu: “…”
Tsk, this Zhuge villager didn’t come early or late, but came just when he was about to enjoy himself. He really knows how to pick the time.
Although he was reluctant, Xia Yu did not refuse. He still knew the priorities of things.
Soon, Zhuge Liang saw Xia Yu who was unhappy. Although he was a little confused as to why Xia Yu had a sour face, Zhuge Liang did not think much about it, but reported excitedly.
"My lord, the wooden ox and flowing horse have been successfully developed, and this mechanical beast can indeed be used to cultivate the land, greatly saving the need for manpower to cultivate the land."
"oh?"
Hearing this, Xia Yu's face immediately turned cloudy, and he asked excitedly: "Have you experimented with it? Can it be mass-produced? Is the research and development difficult?"
"this……"
Zhuge Liang was embarrassed by these questions. His excitement also slowed down. He replied a little embarrassedly: "I have tested it. The wooden ox and horse can indeed be used to plow the land. They are not inferior to real oxen. They can completely replace oxen. It's just that..."
"only?"
Xia Yu raised his eyebrows, and Zhuge Liang continued to reply: "It's just that mass production is a bit troublesome and inconvenient to manufacture, because there are so many mechanical parts to make the wooden ox and horse. Even for me, it takes half a month to make a complete one."
"Hiss... This is indeed a bit troublesome."
Xia Yu frowned. Even the inventor needed half a month to make a complete one. It was so complicated that it could not be popularized at all.
The wooden oxen and flowing horses was the task that Xia Yu assigned to Zhuge Liang, but unlike the wooden oxen and flowing horses in history, what he wanted Zhuge Liang to make was a real bionic mechanical beast that could replace oxen in plowing the fields.
When he gave Zhuge Liang this task, he had already told him that he should do his best, but if he couldn't do it, it would be fine, after all, that was a bit unrealistic no matter how you thought about it.
Although he said so, Zhuge Liang became very interested because according to Xia Yu, the wooden ox and horse could replace oxen in plowing the land. If they were really made, it could greatly increase grain production.
In ancient times, the most important thing was food production. It was precisely because people were hungry and cold that the Yellow Turban Rebellion occurred.
The same is true in war. Without food, let alone winning the battle, even marching on an empty stomach will become a problem.
Perhaps because the world is different and this world has supernatural powers, Zhuge Liang actually created the wooden ox and flowing horse mechanical beasts that can plow the land.
However, it is quite complicated to manufacture, and it is obviously impossible to truly replace oxen.
"My lord, I will go down first. The wooden ox and flowing horse... it really needs some improvement."
Zhuge Liang had calmed down by now. After realizing that mass production was unrealistic, he immediately wanted to go back and improve the wooden ox and horse to reduce its complicated manufacturing process.
But before he could leave, Xia Yu suddenly called him.
"etc!"
"Um?"
Zhuge Liang turned around . Xia Yu hesitated for a moment, but finally made up his mind and said.
"I have a method, it's called the assembly line method."
"Assembly line method?" Zhuge Liang repeated in confusion. It was another term he had never heard of. His master always said some words that they had never heard of.
"Yes, that is a method to mass-produce wooden oxen and flowing horses. No, not only wooden oxen and flowing horses, as long as this method can be realized, any complicated things can be mass-produced cheaply."
Upon hearing this, Zhuge Liang was a little surprised. After all, Xia Yu’s words were too unbelievable in this era.
Xia Yu was not surprised by Zhuge Liang's shock. After all, this method was equivalent to the arrival of industrialization, and it was indeed a bit ahead of the times for the Three Kingdoms period.
But if he wanted to mass-produce wooden oxen and flowing horses, he really couldn't think of any other way except the industrial assembly line.
After sorting out the words in his mind, Xia Yu explained, "The so-called assembly line method is to standardize the production process of the wooden ox and horse, including the cutting standards and size standards of each part."
"Then we refine each step of making the wooden ox and horse until every part can be made by ordinary people. After all the parts are made, we assemble them one by one in batches according to the steps, so that we can achieve mass production."
"Ordinary people don't need to learn how to make wooden oxen and flowing horses. They just need to learn how to make the parts. In this way, even if the manufacturing process is complicated, mass production can be achieved."
"Besides..."
Xia Yu paused for a moment as he was about to continue speaking, but continued with a complicated expression.
"In this world where even having enough food every day is a luxury, as long as people can have enough food every day, they will do anything."
"Maybe if I make the people work for eight hours just for a full meal, they will be grateful."
Zhuge Liang, who was originally marveling at Xia Yu's brilliant ideas, couldn't help but frown when he heard what Xia Yu said.
"My Lord, although the people are easily satisfied, it is still a bit too much to have to work for eight hours just to have a full meal a day."
"Of course I know, I'm just describing it."
Xia Yu rolled his eyes at Zhuge Liang. He was still young and didn't want to hang street lights for the time being.
However, when he proposed this method, even if he did not have this idea, someone in the future would definitely have thought of it.
"Oh, never mind."
Xia Yu shook his head and stopped thinking about the distant future. At least for now, this was considered progress.
In the following time, Xia Yu and Zhuge Liang discussed how to implement the assembly line and the various problems that might be encountered during implementation.
Although what he said was very good, there is still a long way to go, and it is impossible to achieve it in the near future, but at least there is a goal to work towards.
Time passed again, and it was not until the beginning of spring the following year that the assembly line factory began to take shape.
The first item produced by the factory was the wooden ox and flowing horse that had been improved by Zhuge Liang. With the wooden ox and flowing horse, Xia Yu directly accepted refugees. He accepted any refugees who were homeless due to the war and promised to ensure that they had enough food to eat every day.
Because he knew one thing clearly, that in ancient times, population was the primary productive force.
Of course, the other princes understood this truth, but some of them were short of food themselves. Even if they wanted to rescue the refugees to gain fame for themselves, they were powerless.
Moreover, this is an era of warlords , and everyone is trying their best to expand their own territory, and no one has the energy to care about the refugees who are displaced by the war.
Therefore, Xia Yu's act of accepting refugees also brought him a reputation far beyond that of other princes.
Two months later, news came that Dong Zhuo was assassinated by Lu Bu. Lu Bu suddenly betrayed Dong Zhuo, seized the elixir, and left Meiwu .
After learning the news, the princes had different expressions, but no one cared. After all, after the war against Dong Zhuo ended, the local warlords had long since stopped paying attention to the central government of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
They are already overwhelmed with managing their own forces, so they don't have time to care about these things.
Xia Yu didn't take it too seriously. It was just a matter of stabbing his adoptive father. It wasn't a earth-shattering event. It was just a small matter.
However, when Sun Jian learned about this, he came to him with great interest.
"Hahaha, I didn't expect that guy to live happily for so long, but he ended up falling for his adopted son. He really deserves it."
Sun Jian laughed as he tasted the food and wine that Xia Yu had prepared in advance.
Xia Yu was also drinking with them, nodding in response to Sun Jian's words. The two of them toasted each other and chatted.
At Xia Yu's urging, Sun Jian drank one cup after another. Soon, he fell to the ground drunk and unconscious. Xia Yu had to ask someone to carry him into the room prepared in advance so that he could have a good rest.
"Huh, this General Sun, he really comes to my place for free meals whenever he wants."
After Sun Jian left, Xia Yu sighed tiredly and took a bite of the food. Before that, Sun Jian had been urging him to drink, but he didn't eat much.
"Because the food here is really delicious, father will never forget it. If husband is tired, just lend the cook to father."
Sun Shangxiang, who was standing by, poured a cup of wine for Xia Yu and teased him.
As early as the beginning of the year, Xia Yu and Sun Shangxiang got married in the presence of Sun Jian, and the ties between the Sun-Xia alliance became closer.
Today, the two can almost be said to have divided the southeastern territory equally. Because of the alliance between the two, other princes rarely have the idea of coveting this area.
You can't win by fighting, and if you insist on being stubborn, you might even lose your own territory.
Hearing his wife's suggestion, Xia Yu curled his lips and said, "Forget it. I have trained the chef for a long time so that he can cook the food to my taste every time. If he is really borrowed, I will have nothing to eat."
In this era, seasonings were not as abundant as in later generations. There was not even chili peppers. He could only use dogwood, a native Chinese "chili pepper", as a substitute.
It took a lot of effort to train the chef to the point where he could make meals that suit his taste every time, and he didn't want to lend it to others so easily.
Well, it's decided. After unifying the Central Plains, we will go to conquer and colonize Europe, and try to bring back all the seeds of peppers, corn, cucumbers and tomatoes.
After hearing Xia Yu's reasons for not wanting to lend the cook, Sun Shangxiang was speechless for a moment. After thinking for a while, she said, "Then I will go find the cook to learn from me. When I can cook a table of delicious dishes for my husband, he won't have to care so much about the cook."
Xia Yu shook his head and said, "Forget it. Madam, you are a young lady who has never touched women. If your father saw you, he would probably blame me."
"Forget it, General Sun, you can stay as long as you want. It's just an extra pair of chopsticks. But I don't think there will be enough wine. After all, wine needs time to brew. If General Sun drinks all the wine, I guess he will have to leave."
As he was talking, Xia Yu himself laughed. The wine he had stored here was enough to last Sun Jian half a year even if he got drunk every day.
After all, in addition to being a beverage, wine can also be used for medical disinfection, etc., so the more the better.
In the following days, Sun Jian was drunk every day. Sun Ce was in charge of Jiangdong, and the former Tiger of Jiangdong had already semi-retired.
At the same time, unlike the peaceful atmosphere in Jingzhou, there were endless wars in other places.
Liu Bei succeeded Tao Qian, who had died of illness, as the governor of Xuzhou. Liu Yan, the governor of Yizhou, died of illness, and his son Liu Zhang took over. He broke with Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, and the two sides confronted each other.
Ma Teng, Han Sui and others developed their own forces in Liangzhou and Yongzhou. After defeating Liu Yu, Gongsun Zan dominated Youzhou, but was soon defeated by Yuan Shao.
After Yuan Shao occupied Han Fu's Jizhou, he went on to defeat Tian Kai, Zang Hong, Gongsun Zan and others, and took control of Qing, Ji, You and Bing provinces, dominating Hebei with great momentum.
Cao Cao fought everywhere and recruited about 100,000 remaining men, women and children of the Yellow Turban Army. He selected the elite among them to form the famous "Qingzhou Army". After several twists and turns, he controlled Yanzhou. However, because Lu Bu launched a surprise attack on the important city Puyang, he fell into unprecedented danger.
