The Taiyuan Prefecture Ya in Layue does not have a lot of work. The most important work of collecting taxes each year is concentrated in summer and autumn, and the labor service, which often arises in winter, has not been affected by the war this year because of the relationship of the Montenegrin party.

Although the mourning period of the Empress Dowager has passed the 37th period, it still belongs to the period of state funeral, although the people do not violate the ban on setting off firecrackers, but a series of year-end ceremonies presided over by the government still have to be suspended.

Confucianism emphasizes ritual music, which is a very meaningless ritual in Han Gang's eyes, but it has always been impossible to bypass. Without all this red tape, he is happy to relax. And after the various sacrificial ceremonies, the banquet is indispensable. Han Gang is not a person who likes to drink and feast, and Kou Zhun really can't learn how to drink and feast day and night.

It's just that in addition to the responsibilities of the Taiyuan prefect, Han Gang also has the work brought by the Hedong Economic Strategy.

The venue for negotiations on the demarcation of the national border has been set between Shengzhou and Shengzhou in the east of Liao, in a small basin ten miles north of Liufachuan Daying, which was recently named Jingbian Village by the Son of Heaven, and happens to be where the areas controlled by the two sides overlap. This is a major matter that Han Gang must care about.

After the Battle of Katsushu, the general location of the border had been determined. However, the daily patrol between the horses, large and small conflicts, continued day after day, and it was finally determined that the border negotiations in Shengzhou would be held, and such disputes ended.

Han Gang had only sent people to Shengzhou two days ago to make arrangements in advance for the arrival of the demarcation mission led by Han Jin.

Han Jin is also unlucky, the errand of border demarcation negotiations always falls on his head, and it is still during the Chinese New Year. The last time he was already charged for the Son of Heaven, this time, no matter what the final result is, there must still be people in Qingliu who want to say strange things.

Han Gang entrusted the task of defending the demarcation mission to the first governor of Shengzhou. This Zhizhou was not sent from the DPRK, but a veteran selected from the Hedong Army. is a person Han Gang is very familiar with, that is, Liu Shunqing, who served as the governor of Daizhou a few days ago.

Liu Shunqing is a general, and he doesn't need Han Gang's advice more, so he will naturally handle things well - although he has been guarding the northeastern frontier of Hebei for the past year, there is no room for him to appear in the Battle of Shengzhou.

However, according to Han Gang's speculation, the reason why Liu Shunqing was able to receive this errand was precisely because he did not participate in the Battle of Shengzhou - in the Battle of Shengzhou, the generals who beheaded the most were not lacking in rewards, but many of their dispatches were transferred to the Jinnan Prefectures, and they were transferred before the arrival of the New Year. And in the north of Jin, Daizhou, Shengzhou, and the military states of the Volcano Army have all been replaced by old and serious generals, so it is inconvenient to change the old nest Fuzhou Prefecture of the broken family.

Of course, the so-called old and serious in the eyes of the imperial court is just another way of saying that he is sluggish. Han Gang, as an envoy and commander of Hedong, was very worried about Hedong's defense in the next few years when he met with this group of generals whose average age was close to 60 years old.

Han Gang can barely understand the imperial court's concern that the border ministers are greedy for merit and raise troops, but for this reason, if he is replaced by a group of old fools who have worked hard to get up, then he doesn't know what to say at all. I don't know what the officers and soldiers guarding the northeastern frontier of the river will be mistreated by them, do you really think that you can put Nanshan on horseback?

It's just that Han Gang didn't plan to say anything, on the one hand, it was inconvenient for him to say it now, and on the other hand, at least for a few years, he really didn't have to worry about any big problems. In recent years, it has been impossible for the Liao people to make any big moves on the border, that is, to make some small frictions. But if the small friction on the border cannot be resolutely counterattacked, when the time comes, it is necessary to be prepared to be taken by an inch. Han Gang can say with certainty that Zhao Ji, the Son of Heaven, is definitely not mentally prepared for this. When the time comes, some of them have fun watching.

With the intention of waiting to see the excitement in the future, Han Gang put the personnel arrangements of the border military state on the back of his mind, and prepared to welcome the border demarcation mission in Taiyuan, and in a few days, Han Zhen should arrive. But to Han Gang's surprise, Feng Congyi actually went from Tokyo to Taiyuan at this time, one step ahead of Han Jin.

"It's almost the New Year, why don't you hurry back to Gongzhou." Han Gang was very surprised, "Isn't the end of the year the time to close the accounts?" Not planning to go home for the Chinese New Year? ”

"Third brother, don't worry, the younger brother will go back tomorrow." Feng Congyi said, "Cross the river from Taiyuan to the west, go from Jialuchuan to Yinxia, and you can return to Gongzhou in less than half a month." As for closing the accounts, it's too late to catch up. ”

"Yinxia has just recovered, and the road is not very peaceful, what risk is there to take if nothing happens?"

Feng Congyi smiled and said, "With the third brother here, the younger brother still has to worry about the safety on the road?" ”

Han Gang shook his head, there was nothing he could do. However, from Jialuchuan, turn into the Wuding River, and then enter the Yellow River Valley, although the road is just obtained new land, but because of the demarcation with the Liao, it has been very tightly controlled, and it is still very convenient to walk. With Feng Congyi's identity, coupled with the guards composed of the descendants of the Guangrui Army and the Tubo people around him, he really doesn't have to worry about security.

"Why are you in such a hurry to come to Taiyuan?" Han Gang asked, he didn't believe that Feng Congyi would rush to Taiyuan for the New Year.

Feng Congyi, who is a little younger than Han Gang, is now a wealthy businessman who is important in the Kansai business community. The Yongshang Group, with several large trading companies such as SF Express, as the core, not only controls eighty percent of the domestic cotton cloth market, but also many special products in Kansai are also in their hands. Yongshang is more united than the merchants of Zhejiang and Fujian, and they advance and retreat together in commercial affairs, even in the capital, it is also a great momentum. Feng Congyi is no longer an identity that can run around without trouble.

"There's something I want the third brother to see."

Feng Congyi mysteriously took out a small cloth bag from his cuffs, wrapped it in several layers, and opened it, but it was a crystal clear lens.

Han Gang picked up the lens and looked at his cousin's exaggerated face from the lens, it was a convex lens. When viewed from the side, the transparent lenses reveal a dark green color.

"Is this glass?" Han Gang asked.

In the past, glass was commonly known as medicinal jade, colored glass, and Poli, but because of Hangang, the name of glass has gradually become a name recognized by the world.

"The third brother's eyes are like torches." Feng Congyi praised with an exaggerated expression.

Han Gang ignored his cousin's performance, held the lenses to the book on the table, tested the magnified effect, and asked, "Is it produced in a workshop in Gongzhou?" ”

"How is that possible?!" Feng Congyi shook his head and sighed, "It's still very early for the glass workshop in Gongzhou to make transparent glass, but I didn't hear a sound when I saw the money smashing down." It was the official workshop in Beijing that finally made transparent glass, and the younger brother managed to buy the recipe for the ingredients, and when he returned to Gongzhou, he could let the craftsmen who could only make some waste materials learn from it. ”

Since the price of white crystal has skyrocketed due to the need to make lenses, clear glass, which can replace white crystal, has become the focus of research. At present, the clairvoyant mirror has also been invented, and the need for transparent lenses has reached a new level. It is not easy to create glass lenses that are suitable for polishing and have no pores, but the raw materials are hundreds of times cheaper than white crystal.

Han Gang was in charge of the ordnance superintendent at the beginning, and he arranged for the project to be studied, and there was not a small amount of funds invested. The next few judges who took over Han Gang's work chose to continue the project for various reasons, and the research funds were not reduced. The cumulative investment has been tens of thousands, which is not less than the construction of a blast furnace. It's not surprising that the results are finally here. After all, there are ready-made examples of transparent glass in the big food merchants, and the government-run medicine and jade workshops have always produced transparent glass, but they have never figured out the principle and cannot produce it in large quantities.

Taking another piece of paper from Feng Congyi's hand, Han Gang took a cursory look at it, and saw that there were terms such as white sand, borax, and lead written on it, followed by quantity.

Han Gang held the piece of paper: "How much did it cost to buy this recipe?" ”

Feng Congyi took out two fingers, "Two hundred." ”

"The money that the imperial court invested in the white glass is more than 20,000 yuan." Han Gang shook his head and sighed, "If you buy a craftsman for two hundred guan, you will get the formula of twenty thousand guan." This business is really worth it. ”

Feng Congyi didn't think there was any problem: "After the glass is produced, don't you have to pay taxes according to the law?" The tax money that the imperial court gets in a year will only be more than the money invested. ”

Han Gang returned the recipe to Feng Congyi: "How can it be so simple to make transparent glass just by relying on such a rough ingredient secret recipe?" ”

"The younger brother also knows that it is not easy. The raw materials alone are very troublesome, the soil of Yongdi is completely different from the Central Plains, that is, the iron smelted is different, how can glass be an exception. But with the direction, it is also convenient to change accordingly. After a few more years and tens of thousands of pounds, it will eventually come out. Feng Congyi smiled: "And the little brother doesn't plan for our family to pay for it, several families want to follow this trend." ”

"It's too scary for a family to make money, and it really should be the same as cotton, not in the hands of one person." Han Gang nodded in agreement, and then said, "But I also hope that when the time comes, I don't think about a book of profits, I still think about when to replace the window paper with transparent glass." ”

Feng Congyi turned his head to look at the window in the hall, and said, "I don't know how many years it will take." ”

Han Gang was not anxious, "I have patience for ten years, twenty years, Chinese New Year's Eve, and thirty years, just step by step." ”

Feng Congyi smiled again: "After having glass, the mercury mirror that the third brother said in the past can also be made." It's more profitable than glass. ”

"That's right."

Han Gang still remembers the mirror used to build the microscope, and the tin amalgam on it atomized quickly after coming into contact with air. So he always wanted to cover it with glass. He also used the benefits of the mercury mirror to persuade Feng Congyi to invest money in this, which is a visible benefit.