NFBE Chapter 252 Every Grain is Hard-Earned
Chapter 252 Every Grain is Hard-Earned
Lin Chang'er tidied up the blueprints on the table and handed them to him, "We're talking about shipbuilding!"
Wu Qingfeng took the drawings, flipping through them one by one, his gaze gradually deepening. Finally, he put down the drawings, clasped his hands together, and asked, "Is this a battlefield?"
Lin Chang'er nodded, "I guess so!" She then repeated the core concept she had just discussed with Liu Zi to him.
Wu Qingfeng's eyes lit up, but after a short while, they gradually dimmed again.
Lin Chang'er noticed, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"
Wu Qingfeng looked up at her, his expression gentle, "Your idea is very good..."
Upon hearing this opening remark, Lin Chang'er knew that the following sentence should be a turning point, and said with a smile: "But the coastal areas haven't suffered great losses yet, so the imperial court won't bother to invest a lot of manpower and resources to build this thing, right?"
Wu Qingfeng looked at her, somewhat surprised and puzzled. She knew the reasoning behind it, so why was she still wasting her energy on it?
Lin Chang'er tidied up the blueprints and said casually, "People usually learn from their mistakes, but we coastal residents live on the front lines, so we should know how to be prepared for danger even in times of peace."
"It's like saying that if the coastal defenses are weak, then our people will not resist, but will surrender and let the pirates go unchecked."
"Waiting for the imperial court to cede territory and pay reparations, willingly becoming enslaved by foreign tribes?"
Wu Qingfeng shook his head.
Lin Chang'er: "That's right. When you're in danger, you have to learn to save yourself."
"Furthermore, the pirates won't easily give up such a large piece of meat as Tianqi. Neither you nor I have the power to save the entire coastline."
"If the imperial court continues to ignore this, it will suffer sooner or later. Once it gets a painful beating, it will eventually start moving. My ship is currently only in the theoretical stage. Whether it is feasible, whether adjustments are needed, and so on, just perfecting the blueprints will probably take a lot of time."
After a pause, he said, "If we can avoid war, that would be ideal, but we can also serve as patrol ships to escort merchant ships at sea, which was originally part of our planned business empire!"
Wu Qingfeng was impressed by her optimism and nodded, saying, "You're right. I've never been involved in shipbuilding, but when I was in the capital, I met several craftsmen from the Ministry of Works. Two of them should be of retirement age by now."
"From what I remember, they seem to be from Ninghai Prefecture."
"That's great! Now that's convenient for you, you can look around and see if they're interested..." Re-employment!
Professional matters should be handled by professionals. Although she was exposed to this from a young age, her education ultimately lacked a systematic approach to this.
Furthermore, the level of productivity development today is vastly different from that of later generations.
Later generations had electric welding and screw drilling, but the most widely used method now is the mortise and tenon structure that even she, with her bald head, couldn't understand.
"Okay, I'll go back and have my men search for it."
Lin Chang'er replied, "Okay."
He peeked out and glanced at the sky. "Shall we go back to the county government office?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Qingfeng did not answer immediately. He carefully searched her face but did not see any sign of reluctance from her.
Feeling a pang of disappointment, she asked, somewhat deliberately, "Do you want me to stay?"
Lin Chang'er was taken aback, wondering if she had revealed that meaning.
However, seeing the faint hint of expectation hidden in his tired face, he nodded as he wished, "It's getting late. If there's nothing that absolutely needs you at the county office, stay the night and go back tomorrow morning."
Wu Qingfeng was satisfied and nodded. "County Magistrate Li has already taken his men back. I can look at the files tomorrow morning."
Lin Chang'er smiled at him, "Are you hungry? Want to eat something before you sleep?"
“Okay!” Wu Qingfeng readily agreed.
They are not yet husband and wife, after all, they are exchanging gifts privately and should avoid doing so in front of outsiders.
It's a rare opportunity to be alone, so I naturally can't miss it.
The Gu family had been up all day and were now asleep.
Lin Chang'er and Wu Qingfeng sneaked into the kitchen; one started a fire, and the other kneaded the dough.
Lin Chang'er stood in front of the water vat, kneading dough with the help of the lid, while Wu Qingfeng sat in front of the stove to start a fire.
A glance down or a glance up is enough to see the other person.
It was just an ordinary way for an average couple to get along, but Wu Qingfeng was very happy about it.
He was born into a wealthy and powerful family and lived a life of luxury with many servants from a young age.
I never imagined that one day I could be with the woman I admire like this.
Simple and peaceful, harmonious and beautiful.
He got up, washed his hands, and walked to her side. "I'll help you."
With someone to help, Lin Chang'er naturally wouldn't refuse, "Okay! Then you knead the dough, and I'll make the broth first."
Wu Qingfeng nodded, "Then I'll trouble you, Master Lin."
Lin Chang'er smiled, looked down at the wet dough on her hands, poked it with dry flour, kneaded it into a small ball, and mixed it into the large dough in Wu Qingfeng's hands.
Wu Qingfeng turned to look at her, and Lin Chang'er said in a serious tone, "Every grain is hard-earned."
"Master Lin is right, I have learned a lot." Wu Qingfeng said jokingly, but in his heart he was filled with emotion, for these were indeed difficult times.
The bowl of noodles she had just made could have been a meal for a poor family. In his heart, he felt not only love for Lin Chang'er, but also a lot more respect for her.
Lin Chang'er had already moved to the stove and grabbed a handful of dried clams from the cupboard. "Want to fry some small fish?"
"it is good!"
Lin Chang'er washed the dried clams with clean water and soaked them. Then she grabbed two handfuls of small fish and scooped the water out of the pot.
I scooped up a piece of lard with a copper ladle, swished it around the bottom of the pot a few times until it melted into the pot, then turned around and grabbed a handful of ingredients from the cupboard. When I returned, the oil was just the right temperature, so I poured the ingredients into the pot and stir-fried them until they were fragrant. Then I added the dried anchovies and stir-fried them.
Before long, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of small fish.
Wu Qingfeng kneaded the dough, watching Lin Chang'er busy at the stove with tenderness. Occasionally their eyes met, and the doting affection in his eyes was almost overflowing.
Lin Chang'er simply smiled at him and continued with her work.
After she finished frying the small fish, Wu Qingfeng finished kneading the dough and then went to wash the pot.
Lin Chang'er then used a rolling pin to roll the dough into sheets, and instructed Wu Qingfeng to prepare the broth. By the time she cut the dough sheets into noodles and separated them, the broth had boiled.
I cooked noodles and also fried two eggs.
Wu Qingfeng watched her the whole time, as if he were enjoying it too.
Watching the noodles simmer in the broth filled me with an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.
With gentle eyes and brows, he said to Lin Chang'er, "This is the first time I've known that noodles are made this way."
Lin Chang'er turned to look at him, "So you've remembered that? You do it next time."
"Okay." Wu Qingfeng replied readily, as if washing his hands and cooking was his duty.
Lin Chang'er smiled, quite satisfied with her work tonight, but said, "It's a pity the vegetables in the field have all rotted from being soaked. Otherwise, I could have blanched a few cabbages, and the taste would have been amazing..."
“Everything you make is delicious,” Wu Qingfeng comforted her.
Lin Chang'er was pleased and instantly felt no regret.
Just as Lin Chang'er was serving noodles to Wu Qingfeng with chopsticks, several small heads suddenly peeked in through the kitchen door.
A child's innocent voice exclaimed, "It smells so good!"