Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

Naturally, Li Yuanzhao had no objections to going to Taoyuan County.

After all, as an old tea farmer, he was familiar with the road and couldn't wait to go again.

So, the two of them rode their horses towards Taoyuan County.

As they approached the boundary of Taoyuan County, Li Yuanzhao suddenly shaded his eyes with his hand, looking into the distance.

He was puzzled by the sight of people coming and going in the dusty environment.

Turning his head, he asked, "Old Fang, what's going on in your county?"

"Well, someone bought the wasteland in the county and plans to build houses to sell. These people are surprisingly quick. Your Highness, let's go take a look." As Fang Zheng said this, he lightly tapped the horse's belly and changed direction.

As they got closer, he was suddenly shocked!

It seemed that some of the foundations on the construction site had already been half-dug, revealing a deep pit!

Damn? What efficiency! Could it be that Taoyuan County has excavators now?

Looking around, he happened to see Liu Zhongshun and his brother directing things on the construction site, so Fang Zheng quickly waved to call them over.

When Liu Zhongshun saw Fang Zheng's arrival, he didn't dare to be negligent.

He strode over, his face covered in dust, and said with a simple smile, "Master, construction only started yesterday, and you've already come to inspect it today?"

Fang Zheng stared at the deep pit: "This... how many people did you hire to work? Even if it's fast, it should take a few days to dig this pit, right?"

Liu Zhongshun smiled and said, "Master, I had already found the manpower in the capital in advance. The day you came to find me, I immediately brought people over to start work. There aren't many people now, just a hundred or so, all found from the capital. Giving them a little extra money allows them to work overnight, it's cheap!"

"Also, Lord Ao Chen said the county could sell me a batch of gunpowder. This pit was blasted out with gunpowder."

Fang Zheng suddenly understood.

So that's how it is. He had heard from old workmates that explosives were also used to dig foundations in the past, but they were stopped later for environmental protection.

Even the houses built in the county were built using traditional methods.

He didn't have this awareness in his mind, and his reaction was actually slower than the people in the county.

Li Yuanzhao was also amazed: "Old Fang, is that the gunpowder from guns? This stuff can even be used to build houses?"

"Of course, it can also be used for demolition, opening canals, and mining," Fang Zheng said. "It has a wide range of uses, and there will be plenty to research in the future."

Fang Zheng looked at Liu Zhongshun and said, "You're doing a good job, but you must pay attention to safety issues. Oh... is that cement on your face?"

Liu Zhongshun wiped his face and looked at his hand: "Oh, right! I brought the cement over and let them get familiar with it first."

Fang Zheng nodded.

"Take me to see, I'll give them some pointers."

Li Yuanzhao quietly came closer and asked, "Old Fang, what is cement?"

"It's a good thing, a material for building houses, unique to our county," Fang Zheng said with a smile.

Cement is indeed a good thing, mainly because he, as a former construction site veteran, understood it very well.

The traditional cement is not difficult to make. Simply put, it is made by grinding limestone and clay into powder, and then grinding the calcined clinker with the slag left over from ironmaking.

Of course, the strength cannot be compared with modern cement, it is even worse than 32.5 grade cement, but it is considered very strong at the moment.

He had also thought about selling it to the outside world, but this thing really had no market.

Most houses are not even two stories high, using cement is simply redundant.

The cost of transportation on the road is also expensive, coupled with the short shelf life, it is all produced and used on the spot.

Not far from the foundation, a group of workers were pointing and pointing at the cement pile, their faces full of suspicion.

It was somewhat doubtful that such a thing could build a solid house.

Standing in the crowd was a skilled construction worker from Taoyuan County, who had come to give guidance and was constantly explaining at the moment.

Liu Zhongshun walked in front and pushed through the crowd, Fang Zheng followed closely behind.

After just a glance at the cement pile, he said, "It's dry, add water."

"Greetings, Master!" The skilled worker hurriedly bowed.

Fang Zheng glanced at him and said, "Did you mix this cement?"

"Yes... yes, I mixed it, Master, is there any problem?"

"Is there a problem? The problem is huge! How can you build a house with cement like this?!"

"The slurry is floating, not separating, the slurry and bone are one. How did I teach you before, how long has it been and you've all forgotten!" Fang Zheng said sternly: "Look at what you've mixed! Still teaching people here? It's all stuck together, redo it for me!"

"Where's the supervisor? Did you hire one? Tell him to get over here!"

Seeing Fang Zheng a little angry, Liu Zhongshun hurriedly said, "We hired one, we did everything according to the county's rules, Master, please wait a moment."

After saying that, he ran off in a hurry and brought back a fat supervisor not long after.

When Fang Zheng saw that he was also an old man from the county, he was immediately furious.

He went up and grabbed the supervisor's belly, pointing at the cement and saying, "Damn it! Where did you go, you supervisor? Take a good look at what this cement has been mixed into?"

"Can this be right! How were the construction standards I set back then written? You've grown such a big belly, all you know is eating, drinking, and whoring all day!"

The supervisor trembled and said, covered in sweat, "Master... I haven't done this for too long, the county temporarily assigned me to come, I will immediately have people rectify any problems, please give me some time."

"You keep an eye on it!"

After Fang Zheng said that, he picked up a shovel and personally started mixing the cement.

Although he hadn't done this work for a long time, his skills were obviously not lost at all.

Not long after, the cement was mixed, and Fang Zheng pointed and said loudly: "Everyone, watch carefully and remember clearly! It's only beautiful when it can roll naturally!"

Then he said sternly to the supervisor: "You keep an eye on it, building a house is not a trivial matter, it's a matter of a person's life. Also, keep a close eye on the safety regulations on the construction site! If the quality is even a little bit off, or if someone dies, don't blame me for causing you trouble!"

Li Yuanzhao stared dumbfounded at Fang Zheng covered in dust, and his impression of him was suddenly refreshed.

He originally thought that Old Fang was lazy and didn't know anything about farming, but good heavens, he was so nimble at doing this kind of rough work?

"Your Highness, let's go."

"Ah... okay." Li Yuanzhao came back to his senses and looked at Fang Zheng in admiration: "Old Fang, I really didn't expect you to have this kind of skill?"

Fang Zheng smiled, a hint of pride appearing on his face.

Although he didn't major in civil engineering in college, he had worked part-time on construction sites for half a year and had surpassed many civil engineering interns, perhaps this was talent!

"I don't have any special skills, but when it comes to concrete work, if I say I'm second in the world, no one dares to call themselves first!"

"Admirable! Admirable!"

The two of them laughed and remounted their horses, heading towards Taoyuan County.

As soon as they passed through the city gate, Li Yuanzhao's head unconsciously glanced to the right.

Fang Zheng glanced at him sideways, knowing exactly what he was thinking.

Not far after entering the city, the Snow Moon Pavilion was located on the right side of the street.

This guy... his evil intentions haven't died! Won't the blame be put on my head in the future?

I have to think of a way to correct him.

Putting aside everything else, it's not good to get sick, although the county's sanitation work must be very good, but who knows when this thing will inexplicably cause problems.

Just as he was thinking, he suddenly heard Li Yuanzhao's shout: "Old Fang, look at what's written in that house? Does your Snow Moon Pavilion have a new event again?"

Fang Zheng quickly turned his head to look, and with this look, he was immediately struck by lightning!

Inside the Snow Moon Pavilion, there was a long red banner hanging, and a few words could be vaguely seen from the wide-open doorway.

"Snow Moon Pavilion... Second Annual Inch... Stop Challenge?"