usatvline Chapter 1031: Placing the Imperially Built Team [2]
Chapter 1031: Placing the Imperially Built Team [2]
Chapter 1031: Placing the Imperial Construction Team [2]
Huh, Ling Baihu and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
But it was too early to relax.
The villagers didn't dare to squat and watch, but Qin Liupo dared.
She still brought Zhou, Lü, Han and other relatives to see: "See, these are all the items that His Majesty gave to my Qin, Jiang, Xu and Qiao families, even the big gold lacquer ones!"
"Do you know what "Gold Lacquer" is? Grind the gold into gold powder, mix it into lacquer, and stir it, and you get Gold Lacquer!"
"Aunt Qin knows so much." The young men from the Zhou, Lu and Han families complimented Aunt Qin Liupo, praising her so much that her eyes were full of praise and her teeth were not visible.
After seeing Captain Ling, she ran over to talk to him again: "Captain Ling, you've worked hard. Are you used to living in the village? Do you want to stay at the inn in town? The Lu Family Inn is owned by my in-laws, and the Lu family members are over there. If you go, you can stay there for free!"
Then he asked, "Captain Ling looks quite young, have you proposed?"
The children of the Zhou, Lü, and Han families were sweating profusely. The eldest brother of the Han family hurriedly called out to her, "Aunt, what is the significance of the stone lions? We are all curious. You know a lot, please tell us!"
Dad said that I could follow my aunt-in-law to see the imperial construction team and broaden my horizons, but I must not let her get into trouble and I have to keep a close eye on her at all times.
"Tsk, you're such a busybody!" Qin Liupo was impatient, but to save face, she ran back and told her relatives and children, "This pair of stone lions is very particular. Only officials of the fifth rank can use them. Anyone below the fifth rank who dares to use them will be arrested and imprisoned!"
"Keep a close eye on that old woman. If she goes too far, take her out of the village." Captain Ling left two soldiers behind and immediately slipped away to prepare defenses for the ghost village.
The craftsmen were busy building wooden houses for the construction team to live in.
There were more than 500 craftsmen in total, including those from the Ministry of Works in the capital, the Northeastern Provincial Government, and the Dongming Prefecture.
There are enough people to do it, and there is no need to dig the foundation. The foundation of the old house in the west of the village is used to build a large wooden house. They work day and night and are determined to build twenty houses before the village is closed by heavy snow.
Grandpa Qin said, "Captain Ling, the craftsmen can stay in the new warehouses, herbal medicine shops, houses, and the newly completed town school. They don't have to set up tents in the village. It's freezing cold right now, and staying in tents will easily lead to catching a cold and getting sick."
It's almost December, and even if there's no heavy snow blocking the roads in Northeast China, it's the time when your breath turns into white mist.
Captain Ling refused: "Thank you, Captain, but the imperial construction team has rules. During the imperial construction period, personnel are not allowed to leave the imperial construction site without permission. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, it will undermine the majesty of heaven."
There were very few people of good character in the imperial construction team, most of them were craftsmen and slaves, so the rules were extremely strict and they had to get approval before going anywhere.
He added, "Don't worry, Captain. We have plenty of experienced hands, and the wooden houses are simple. We can finish building all twenty rooms and the stove and bed within ten days."
"Okay." Grandpa Qin didn't insist.
He bought twelve fat pigs and had the villagers of Gui Village slaughter them. He also brought five carts of flour and gave them to the construction team, saying, "Building a house is a big deal. Our custom here is to treat the workers to a good meal. These twelve fat pigs, five carts of flour, and a dozen baskets of cabbage and radishes are the vegetables that the Qin family has given to the construction team."
After hearing this, the nearby craftsmen were overjoyed... They were indeed a family canonized by His Majesty, and were even kinder and more generous than the noble families in the south.
But the craftsmen dared not speak and were busy with the work at hand... The rules of the imperial construction team were strict, and if the guards saw them trying to get close to the master, they would be punished.
However, from then on, the craftsmen worked harder and more attentively.
"Thank you, Captain. I'll accept it on behalf of the imperial construction team." Captain Ling shouted again, "But this is just one time, and it won't happen again. We are here to build your residence by imperial order. All expenses have been covered by the court, so your family doesn't need to spend any more."
After hearing this, the construction team put aside their excessive emotions and focused on their work.
"Thank you, Captain Ling." Grandpa Qin smiled and took Captain Ling and two clerks from the Imperial Construction Team to receive the supplies given by the Qin family.
On that day, the craftsmen ate meat and rice, and they were all very happy.
After finishing this task, Captain Ling asked Grandpa Qin to give a few guides to take Old Craftsman Bi and others down the water well tunnel to conduct exploration.
Old Craftsman Bi said, "We need to examine the tunnel's structure. If it's unstable, we need to first stabilize the tunnel's interior before we can fill it in. Only after the tunnel is filled in can we build a large house on top. Otherwise, the house might collapse over time."
The well tunnel in the ghost village has never been filled.
The Imperial Construction Team came here this time with the mission of filling up the tunnel.
The spy's crime has been solved, and Qi Tianshi and his team have also checked the tunnel. This "evidence" is no longer needed and can be buried.
Grandpa Qin: "Hey, I'll let Erjun, Songguo, and Erlang go down the tunnel with you to explore. They've all been down there before and are familiar with it."
This was a big deal, and it took two days to make all the arrangements before we finally grabbed our gear and emergency supplies and went down the tunnel.
Three days later, the survey team arrived. Craftsman Bi drew a blueprint and reinforced four sections of the tunnel before giving the order: "Fill in the tunnel."
Fortunately, this place is close to the mountains, and Mr. Gao from Huangtao Town sent us gravel. There was enough soil and gravel, and it took four days to finally fill the well tunnel firmly.
But it's not over yet...
The bandits and spies had dug many tunnels underground, and there was also a tunnel entrance in the neighboring county. The imperial construction team had to fill up all these tunnels.
And this is an order from the Ministry of Industry.
Fortunately, the twenty wooden houses on the surface had been built, and there were extra people to fill the tunnel.
Grandpa Qin went to see the twenty wooden houses and nodded repeatedly, "As expected of the imperial craftsmen, their skills are impeccable. The gaps in the wooden houses are so well sealed that not even a ray of wind can get in. The craftsmen will be able to spend the winter well."
After building these twenty wooden houses, together with the building materials granted by the court and brought by the imperial construction team, the entire west side of the village, from the entrance to the fields and the back mountain area, was filled with building materials.
Fortunately, large building materials, such as beams, columns, stone piers, glazed tiles for roof lighting, lacquer and other items, are all sealed with seals from the Ministry of Works or the Provincial Administration Commissioner's Office, and no one dares to touch them.
Otherwise, it would be an offense against the majesty of heaven and the person would be executed immediately!
Qin Liupo brought her relatives and children to look at building materials, and even touched a stone lion tied with red silk. She was finally carried out of the village by the soldiers and became a person prohibited from entering the village during the construction period.
Qin Liupo lost face in front of her relatives and children and was almost angry to death, but she did not dare to rush back to question them.
She is not stupid. If she dares to go back and make trouble, Xiaomi will definitely not let her go.
It's just a pity.
"I haven't found out yet whether Captain Ling is looking for a wife yet? If not, I have a great match for him!"
The descendants of the three families of Zhou, Lu and Han did not dare to speak.
To silence her, the eldest brother of the Han family gave her a bag of lotus root candy. "It's from the south, made with lotus root slices and sugar. County Magistrate Kang gave twelve bags of lotus root candy to my uncle's family, and my uncle gave two bags to my family. My family asked me to give one bag to my aunt-in-law to try."
"Lotus root candy? What is that?" Auntie Qin Liu hurriedly took the candy wrapped in pastry paper, opened it, and was surprised: "Oh my, it really is candy made from lotus root. This is fresh stuff. Auntie, you have to keep it and put it out during the New Year so that everyone who comes to pay New Year's greetings can see it!"