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"He probably wants to make salt and iron the main industries of Linzi; Lord Xuande gave him his power, and he seems to have used it all at once, even dismantling the original Linzi City to rebuild a new one here, insisting on monopolizing all the convenient transportation. Look back at his planning map," Chen Xi shook his head and said.
Fa Zheng had a sharp mind and had already prepared plenty of plans. Furthermore, given that Sun Qian had previously rerouted provincial and county roads to meet near the old Linzi, Fa Zheng took this into account and naturally had more ideas. Seeing the benefits of the convenient transport, he decided to construct the new city right at the junction of the provincial and prefectural roads.
Since Linzi City was bound to be renovated sooner or later, Fa Zheng’s scheme of a one-stop iron mine and farming tools, which had ensured him a good reputation, allowed him to use his public support to relocate the new city southwards by over a dozen miles. He shifted the entire transit hub to the Inner Linzi City, leveraging great transportation advantages. 𝓷ℴ𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
"Planning map, Xiaoo Zhi knows about this too?" Zhuge Liang’s eyelids twitched wildly. He loathed these complex city planning maps, and especially the detailed versions which always gave Zhuge Ke a headache whenever he saw them.
"He’s extremely skilled at it. The urban planning map for the latter stages of the Inner City of Fenggao was created by him, incorporating defensive structures. That guy has an abundance of imagination in this area," Chen Xi admired and said, "He and Liu Ziyang designed together a drainage facility to defend against water attacks. His hands-on skills are so-so, but his mind is very flexible, unbound by conventions."
Zhuge Liang smirked without a word; he knew that there must be a reason why Fa Zheng was valued by these people, especially since that guy had quite the idiosyncratic personality.
Chen Xi also found it strange. Historically, Fa Zheng hadn’t shown any special ability in urban development, yet in this life, after just hearing some city construction-related information from Chen Xi, he managed by himself to learn and fill in the more detailed parts, essentially self-taught.
"Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore. Let’s go to the post station and rest for the night. I don’t know if Xiaoo Zhi has returned to Mount Tai after being demoted from Governor of North Sea County or if he is still in Qi State," Chen Xi said as he led the Lul Family members towards the station for some rest. Though the New Linzi City wasn’t built yet, due to its prime location, it already had all the necessary facilities.
"It’s most likely Qi State. For some reason, I always feel he has a special sentiment towards the Official Position of Prime Minister of Qi State," Zhuge Liang said calmly after looking around at the bustling crowds.
"Considering it was his first official position earned through his own abilities, it’s no surprise he values it," Chen Xi shook his head and said, "A 2000-stone-ranking officer at seventeen, slightly younger than I was. It would be strange if he didn’t have special feelings for it."
"Hey, Zichuan, Kongming, you guys really are passing through here!" Just as Chen Xi was leading Zhuge Liang and the others toward the post station, Fa Zheng, dressed in a light cyan shirt and slightly tanned, waved and called out from a distance.
"You’re almost like a highwayman setting up a toll booth, the road has been practically annexed by you. How could we not pass through?" Zhuge Liang, habitually irritable when seeing Fa Zheng, had often clashed with him back on Mount Tai. Of course, at first, it was Fa Zheng who often stirred trouble, but Zhuge Kongming was never one to endure hits without fighting back.
"Hengheng, you just don’t get it, do you? I wouldn’t stoop to your level," Fa Zheng, who looked like he had been laboring hard for a while, appeared much improved compared to his previous sharp and provoking demeanor.
"You’ve moved the city here, dare you say you didn’t consider levying a city entrance tax?" Zhuge Liang glanced at Fa Zheng and calmed his emotions before speaking.
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"This is truly unfortunate; it seems your caliber is constantly slipping—ah, the Zhuge Kongming who used to play happily with me is no more~" Fa Zheng said in an extremely frivolous tone. At the very beginning, he actually did consider imposing an entry tax, but then his mind wandered, and he realized there was no need for that!
Lu Lixun watched the slightly dark-skinned youth in front of him with great pleasure. This was the new instructor his master had prepared for him, and he seemed quite impressive.
"What’s going on between you two?" Chen Xi scratched his head, puzzled; he thought he smelled gunpowder. What was happening? It was understandable for Fa Zheng, but Zhuge Liang wasn’t typically like this, right?
"I just feel that Kongming’s standards are continuously declining. The Kongming who once dazzled me on Mount Tai has changed, become mediocre," Fa Zheng said with a look of great pity that made Zhuge Liang feel an urge to punch him.
"You’re the one who’s constantly slipping," Zhuge Liang said with slight annoyance.
"Your vision has diminished to focusing only on city gate taxes, tsk, tsk, tsk. The economic effect brought about by merchant caravans passing through is much greater than what city gate taxes could yield. Your perspective has become narrow, Kongming. The former Governor of North Sea County, Kong Wenju, once said a very true phrase, ’Little wonder in the small, greatness does not necessarily follow in the large.’" Fa Zheng’s mocking tone made Zhuge Liang feel an urge to rush up and hit him; he now understood the meaning behind the words Fa Zheng had said earlier.
"Hmm, not bad," Chen Xi thought for a moment and said. "Xiao Zhi, you do have some insight. But have you already smoothed out the connections with the surrounding provinces and counties and reset the road guides?"
"Henghengheng, with provinces and counties of prefecture level, it’s all about connections—a simple hello is all it takes, and for those at the county level, it’s just a matter of issuing an order," Fa Zheng said nonchalantly, uttering words that smacked of abusing power for personal gain.
"How about that? My strategy isn’t bad, right? As long as I exempt the merchant caravans from city gate taxes for the regular routes of the nearby prefecture cities, then as a large city with complete urban facilities located at the intersection of the main thoroughfares and with convenient water transportation, it will inevitably prosper, favorable for merchants," the more Fa Zheng spoke, the prouder his expression became, and Lu Lixun was equally excited.
"Indeed impressive. It seems you have a promising future in this field," Chen Xi complimented Fa Zheng with a pat, as he couldn’t deny that the fellow had indeed done quite well.
"Henghengheng, of course. I’ve studied these things diligently, and what’s more important—I’ve studied your previous actions closely and finally realized that everything you did was related to the city’s own planning. So, for this New Linzi City, right from the beginning of its urban planning, I specially studied it in detail—drainage, sewage, surface channels, underground tunnels, I’ve designed them all!" Fa Zheng said with extreme pride. "It’s absolutely fireproof and floodproof!"
Lu Lixun’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Fa Zheng. He found that Fa Zheng was obviously very impressive; he had considered everything so thoroughly that even Chen Xi couldn’t find a single flaw. As for Zhuge Liang, he could only stand aside and listen to the other party’s explanation.
"Henghengheng, when I designed this city, I even had Feng Shui Masters check the underground water veins, and I specially drilled dozens of deep water wells!" Fa Zheng continued his explanation. Truth be told, he was striking at Zhuge Liang, making it clear that the old tricks were no longer in vogue, and only pure talent could make the other party feel pressured. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com), and your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
