Chapter 19-Road Construction
The first section of the road was built in Qingzhou City, so it attracted a lot of people to watch!
In this era, building roads and bridges was a big project. It was usually organized by the government. Sometimes, it would be organized by wealthy businessmen and landlords who wanted to accumulate good deeds. However, the latter was usually to build a small section of the road.
The roads in Qingzhou City had been in disrepair for a long time. Many places had become dilapidated and potholes.
Usually, it was not uncommon to see a carriage wheel stuck in a hole and only come out after a long time.
This road was always damaged and repaired, but it was never complete. Everyone was used to it.
It was easier on normal days, but when it rained, it was muddy and difficult to walk.
Now that they heard that King Qi had ordered the road to be repaired, the commoners applauded!
This was especially so since there were no taxes or conscription of laborers for this road construction. All the people were hired by King Qi, and all the expenses were paid by King Qi's Imperial Residence. How could the commoners not applaud?
At the beginning, the road construction was still considered normal. The foundation was tamped and the road was built a little smoother.
This section of the road could be considered the main road. After the construction of the Qi Mansion, this road was the first to open. Naturally, it had to be repaired well.
The commoners had been discussing whether they should sprinkle stones or sand on it. However, when the trucks of asphalt were pulled over, everyone was dumbfounded.
At first, carriages came in from outside the city. These carriages were all specially made.
The rear was not a common flatbed, but a cylindrical iron can.
On the side, there was also a chimney. Smoke was drifting from it, and it was a little thicker than the smoke from ordinary people cooking.
There were people who kept adding firewood to the furnace below. As the carriage approached, they could hear the sound of the metal jar rumbling.
When the asphalt was sprinkled on the ground, everyone was shocked to realize that inside the big jar was boiling hot and melted asphalt.
After the asphalt was sprinkled on the ground, the workers quickly used special tools to flatten it before it solidified. Then, the workers at the back scattered fine sand and stone on the surface.
The first layer of asphalt would be poured into the ground and held tightly to it.
After it solidified slightly, it was crushed a second time to make it stronger and flatter.
After that, a layer of oilcloth was laid on it. The oilcloth here replaced the original cloth. The tarpaulin was not complete, but in strips. It looked like a low-quality tarpaulin. This tarpaulin was not used to waterproof, but to replace the tarpaulin to extend the service life of the road.
The asphalt had to be sprinkled three times in total before it was finally rolled into shape.
Although it was nothing compared to the highway in the future, in this era, it was already very luxurious and rare to be able to build a road with such high standards.
There was an indescribable smell on the road. It was the unique smell of asphalt.
In the future, this would inevitably be severely criticized by environmental advocates. However, in the Qingzhou region, it had become a scenic spot. There was an endless stream of people watching every day.
After the first section of the road was paved, it extended to both sides.
Looking at the pitch-black road, the commoners looked at each other. They all felt that it was very novel and strange because they had never seen anyone use this method to build roads before.
"What path is this?"
"I heard from the people of the Qi Imperial Residence that this is called an asphalt road.”
"It can only be passed after it has dried for three days.”
"We can wait for three or two days, but this kind of road seems to cost a lot of money.”
Putting aside the fact that so many workers had to be paid, just the materials used to build the road obviously cost a lot of money.
They might not understand anything else, but how could they not understand the oilcloth?
This thing was not cheap, and King Qi was actually so extravagant as to use it to repair roads!
It was simply unheard of and unheard of!
However, using such a large amount of money to repair the roads in Qingzhou was a great thing for the people in this area.
Looking at the gradually formed sections of asphalt road, everyone was jubilant as they discussed.
The surface of the road was completely black, giving people a very deep and steady feeling. It looked more stable.
The originally unpleasant smell now smelled a little special. Some people from the distant villages even specially came to the city to take a look at the rare asphalt road after hearing the news.
This is the first asphalt road in the Darming Dynasty. There's no other road, only Qingzhou has one!
An inexplicable sense of pride made the commoners straighten their backs when they talked to the people outside!
The commoners who had specially rushed over to see it could not help but boast again after returning to the village.
Although the current technology was limited, Zhu Xiong had exchanged for craftsmen who specialized in road construction from the system to command them. Then, he hired so many employees to complete the workload and improve the quality of the asphalt road by increasing the manpower.
From afar, it looked very flat and smooth.
From afar, one could not see the end, but when one looked closer, it was clean and unstained.
There was no longer that dusty scene!
Marquis Jiangyin had never paid much attention to King Qi's antics. He only knew that King Qi had built a few workshops outside of Qingzhou, but he had never gone over to take a look.
The three breeding farms in the manor were shocked.
However, King Qi had prepared so many chickens, ducks, and pigs. It seemed that he truly intended to be an idle prince and indulge himself in eating, drinking, and having fun.
Although there was no bright future, at least his daughter would be able to live comfortably after marrying into the family.
And now, after a large number of employees came to register, the manor was no longer as lively.
The old man had thought that King Qi had settled down, but his attention was still focused on the construction of King Qi's estate, studying the blueprints every day.
Of course, he was most concerned about the issue of money. As long as the capital did not send money, he would not be able to start construction.
On this day, he thought about going to the scene to compare the blueprints and study them again to see if there was anything that could be changed.
When he came to Qingzhou City again, the first asphalt road had been completed!
This was a main road that extended from the east gate to the west gate.
And now, it had already dried up, and it was time to open it.
This road had always been blocked.
The east and west gates were tightly guarded.
Today, I heard that His Highness King Qi is going to hold a passage ceremony at the eastern gate!
At this moment, the people of the city had all come out of their homes and were standing at the east and west gates. Most of them were at the east gate because King Qi would soon appear there.
King Qi's name had been like thunder in the ears of everyone, and the commoners all wanted to see King Qi's bearing.
There were also some commoners at the west gate. Once the order was given, everyone would personally test the newly paved asphalt road.
Marquis Jiangyin came from the west and was stopped at the west gate.
Marquis Jiangyin jumped down from the carriage and stared at the pitch-black asphalt road with his mouth agape.
The last time he was here, there was no such thing!
How did this path appear?
After a long while, he grabbed the city gate guard beside him and asked,"This, this, this, what's going on with this road?”
"Marquis Jiangyin, this is the asphalt road that His Highness King Qi just constructed. Today, at the east gate of the city, sacrifice to the gods of heaven and earth, and pass through at an auspicious time!”
When Marquis Jiang Yin heard this, his eyes widened.
King Qi's road?
Bitumen…asphalt road?
The city gate guard's reply was like a clap of thunder, exploding in Marquis Jiangyin's mind.
He suddenly recalled the scene when King Qi had been banished to Qi.
At that time, King Qi had spouted nonsense in court and made three suggestions. The first was to lift the ban on the sea, the second was to place importance on merchants, and the third was to rebuild the official road. He had even boasted that if he wanted to get rich, he had to build roads first. Moreover, the roads he built would be impervious to rain!
This kid really came to Qingzhou to repair the road.
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