Above the desk, there was a stone that had been burned and rotten. Han Feng said that after this kind of stone was smashed, the living water became hard overnight.

Ma Chao knew that this thing was the Han Dynasty version of crude cement. Despite the book tutorials, the craftsmen in the brick kiln still experimented hundreds of times before finding the standard for the proportional mixing of limestone, iron powder, and sand and stone. After this process was laid, the kiln mouth had already entered the stage of mass firing. However, the follow-up work is still complicated, and a certain amount of slag, pulverized coal, gray gypsum and other materials need to be added to enter the cement grinding process before the cement can be made.

In other words, at this time, the stone is nothing more than cement clinker. But even so, Ma Chao was very satisfied. Although it will take some time to explore the follow-up ratio mixing, the early advent of cement has solved a major problem in the construction of the Ma family. The shortest but most significant manifestation of this is: save food!

After Chang'an passed through the Xiongnu entry and two earthquakes, the Ma family had no money and had to stop the restoration of the Chang'an city wall. One of the most important reasons is that in the Han Dynasty, when the city wall was built, glutinous rice was needed to solidify the stones. And now in the territory of Sili, people can't eat enough, where is there any surplus of good glutinous rice for the repair of the city wall?

However, there is also good news that the city walls of Chang'an do not seem to need to be repaired until the cement is fully developed.

Now under the rule of the Ma family, the main enemy of the Chang'an City Wall is the Xiongnu in the north. However, yesterday, the Hun envoys came to help the wind, and Ma Chao really guessed correctly: they were here to show goodwill.

Ma Chao has never ignored the role of beauty schemes. It's just that he didn't expect that Wang Huayu, the niece of Situ Wang Yun and the celebrity of the troubled times who had experienced the catastrophe, would achieve such shocking results in just a few days!

According to the Xiongnu envoy, Wang Huayu obtained the ambition of the Xiongnu king on the first day of his arrival in the Xiongnu tribe. The other Han women, who didn't even see the faces of the Xiongnu nobles, became the stepping stone of Wang Huayu. The next morning, the old king of the Huns issued an order for 100,000 Hun warriors to retreat, and sent an envoy to express his willingness to communicate with the Ma family.

And before the Hun envoy sent out, he also heard the news that the old king of the Huns wanted to establish Wang Huayu as the Yan clan. Even, when the envoy was halfway there, he was caught up by the follow-up messenger, and the number of cattle and sheep and horses dedicated to the Ma family was increased!

The Huns and other people who want to rob the sky, can make such a move, even if it is not the first time in the world, but it is definitely unheard of in a hundred years. It can be seen that the old king of the Huns has even reached the point of obeying Wang Huayu.

And thanks to Wang Huayu's decision to make the Xiongnu retreat, the Qiang people almost heard the news and moved. Taking advantage of Ma Chao's unfinished prestige, he quickly attacked the four counties of Liangzhou.

This time the Qiang Koubian is obviously different from the past. This time, they seemed to have come specifically against the rebels and bandits on the troubled side of the four counties, and except for those who resisted, they hardly harassed any of the people. It's just that the 200,000 troops of the Qiang tribe are eyeing each other, which still makes those shrewd superiors wake up.

Wuwei is the closest to the Qiang tribe, but the Qiang tribe has no offense against Wuweiqiu, and then thinks of the relationship between Ma Chao and the Qiang tribe. Xiping County was the first to react, and first proposed that several counties in Liangzhou return to the Ma family; Zhangye County Taishou and Luan did not obey, and his subordinates Zhang Jin and Du Tong arrested Taishou and responded to the performance; Jiuquan County Taishou Xinji raised troops to resist the Qiang soldiers, was besieged by 50,000 Qiang soldiers, and the head of the owl was displayed to the public, and Jiuquan County fell. Wuwei County has always been mixed with Qiang and Hu, and the Hu people of the three tribes in the county were not restless, so they received a notice from Yan Jun and Zhang Bang to Cheng Ma's house.........

It can be said that since Ma Chao returned to Fufeng, all he has received is good news. The Yan family in Jincheng was completely razed, and Liangzhou will soon be returned to the Ma family; Fufeng people are healthy, prosperous and wealthy, and the benefits of the new deal have gradually emerged; And now the Huns' overtures have made Ma Chao see another dawn.

Yes, Ma Chao will not refuse friendship with the Huns. It's just that he didn't see that Wang Huayu had successfully confused the old king of the Huns, but that he saw the huge market of millions of people in the Huns.

interests are at the forefront, even if Ma Chao is made to bow down, he will definitely not frown. Just because he knows that in ancient wars, it was all about economy and population. And now, the huge and completely unexplored market of the Xiongnu is in front of him, how can he not once again show the Ma family's unique 'economic aggression' tactics?

As long as the waist bag is bulging, the fist will naturally be hard. And the fist is hard, what face, reputation, submission and obedience, etc., are all easy to say.

can cut meat with a blunt knife, Ma Chao will never punch when the Ma family's fists are still soft. And this is the advantage of the people who travel to see the longer than the ancients.

As a result, the Xiongnu envoys came to Fufeng County, completely happy and happy. Not only did he get a beautiful letter of gratitude written by Ma Chao, but he also brought Fufeng distilled spirits, tea, Fufeng paper, purified salt, coal and other Fufeng specialties. Moreover, I also deeply remembered the sentence that Ma Chao said the most when he left:

"Wool! The Ma family buys wool in large quantities! No matter how many there are, the Ma family will accept them as they are! ”

The envoy was surprised by Ma Chao's strange request for a long time. The wool and that thing were almost thrown everywhere on the grassland, and Ma Chao, a dignified Han hussar general, mentioned that kind of pickled thing again and again. After pondering for a long time, the envoy said to himself: "Don't worry, the general, such things, the villain will send hundreds of carts to the general in the coming day to show his gratitude." ”

"No!" Ma Chao shook his head solemnly at that time, and said very seriously: "I said that the Ma family is buying wool, five dollars a catty, and Tong Su is not bullied." And just a few hundred cars are simply not enough! I want all the wool in the whole steppe, how much to collect! ”

The messenger finally watched Ma Chao leave with the eyes of a fool. And Ma Chao, who was smiling and silent, sent the messenger a long distance in the wind, and the sincerity and hope made the messenger feel embarrassed to laugh at Ma Chao.

"Meng Qi, what is the purpose of wool?" Guo Jia tightened the clothes on his body, and after smiling freely, he said bluntly: "You have always been ruthless in your shots, and it is impossible to prevent it. It's just that this time, I really can't think of it, what is the benefit of wool? ”

"My brother didn't know that the Ma Family Arsenal had invented a loom that could spin cotton and wool into clothing. And the Huns are still drinking blood, wearing clothes and hanging fur ........" When Ma Chao said this, his expression seemed to hesitate, as if he was weighing a very important event.

"It's not the Huns, it's our Han Dynasty, when winter comes, it's also a fur to keep out the cold." Fa Zheng interface, he has always known that Ma Chao has some very different methods of this era, and this is the moment to peek into the sky.

"If we buy the wool of the Huns and make it into clothing, which is light and warm, then you say, will the Huns wear that wet and troublesome fur again?" Speaking of this, Ma Chao seemed to be relieved, and after taking a heavy breath, he continued: "Wuwenqian will buy it, and Baiwenqian will sell it to the Huns." And the Xiongnu had a population of at least one million, and with only one piece per person, the Ma family could greatly speed up the recovery process........."

When everyone heard this, they immediately looked at Ma Chao. At the same time, I thought of the special products of Fufeng that Ma Chao specially asked the Xiongnu envoy to bring back: distilled liquor that can ward off the cold, coal for heating in winter, refined and fine white purified salt, and tea indispensable for nomads........ These things, the Huns hardly had the slightest reason to refuse!!

In this way, not to mention ten years, five years, it can even be said that as long as the trade goes smoothly this year, the wealth flowing in from the Xiongnu tribe can completely restore the Ma family!

It is also because of such economic means that Ma Chao controlled the Qiang people to the death. And now it seems that Ma Chao wants to repeat his old skills to the Huns?