Chapter 31: Zhen Jiang and Zhen Mi

The construction of the northern outer city is in full swing, with visible progress made every day. While the building of the city walls has been temporarily shelved, the development of various facilities within the city has continued unabated. Furthermore, Lu Tu has lived up to Lu Chuan’s expectations, successfully firing red bricks. Although these bricks lack the strength of those in the modern era, they are more than sufficient for current needs. Lu Chuan immediately ordered Lu Tu to devote all efforts to firing red bricks to fully supply the construction of the northern outer city. This time, Lu Chuan intends to use red bricks not only for the city walls but for all structures within the city.

In this era, buildings are predominantly made of wood, lacking the structural integrity to support anything beyond two stories. However, red bricks change everything. The advent of red bricks will fundamentally transform the construction industry. Fortunately, "The Friend of Dual-Purpose Military and Civilian Talents" contains highly practical construction knowledge. After studying it, Lu Chuan designed stable, three-story building plans that far exceed the stability of wooden structures. Consequently, Lu Chuan decreed that all buildings in the northern outer city be converted to this three-story style.

In the same amount of space, if one could only build wooden bungalows or a few two-to-three-story buildings, the population capacity would be extremely limited. But if all bungalows are replaced with three-story buildings, the population capacity for the same area could at least double. The existing Lu County seat can house nearly one hundred thousand people, and the northern outer city covers more than half as much land again. If fully developed into three-story buildings, the northern outer city alone could potentially accommodate a staggering three hundred thousand people. Once all four outer cities are completed, Lu County will become the first magnificent city in history capable of housing one million residents.

It was precisely because of this that when Lu Chuan handed the newly revised northern outer city blueprints to Lu Tu, instructing him to build strictly according to them, he saw a system notification. His remaining lifespan began to increase at an astonishing rate, jumping from over two hundred years to three hundred years in less than ten seconds. Such a massive gain from just one outer city project—what would his remaining lifespan be once all four are complete?

With the increase in his lifespan, Lu Chuan clearly felt his internal life force and blood energy surge. The intuitive manifestation of this was a significant boost in his strength, reaction speed, and even the sharpness of his mind. Previously, with two hundred years of lifespan, he could suppress Dian Wei; now, with his strength fully enhanced to three hundred years, he could even suppress Lu Bu himself! He had that much confidence.

"Report, my Lord, the Zhen family caravan has entered the city." As Lu Chuan was lost in these thoughts, Lu Jin appeared silently.

"The Zhen family?" Lu Chuan’s lips curled upward. "Have they finally decided to make a move? Who is in charge of the caravan? Have you found out?"

"It has been confirmed. The Zhen family caravan is quite large, with over three hundred people and more than a hundred carriages. The person in charge is a woman named Zhen Jiang, accompanied by a young girl named Zhen Mi."

"Zhen Jiang? Zhen Mi?" Lu Chuan frowned. He was not very familiar with Zhen Jiang, but it was impossible not to know who Zhen Mi was. She was the heroine of the *Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River*, the wife of Cao Pi, and the historical Empress Wenzhao Zhen! Although Zhen Mi is only eight or nine years old now, Lu Chuan dared not be careless. A young girl of that age is at an impressionable stage, and Lu Chuan could not be sure if a single action or word from him might have a profound impact on her, thereby altering the course of history. As for Zhen Jiang, she was less significant. Her historical presence was minimal, and she was unlikely to influence the course of events; thus, while contact with her was fine, he had to avoid excessive interaction with Zhen Mi.

"Keep a close eye on the Zhen family caravan, especially that young girl, Zhen Mi. Report any movements immediately!"

"Yes!" Lu Jin asked no questions, even though he was curious why Lu Chuan placed such high importance on an eight-year-old girl. He only knew that he had to obey Lu Chuan’s orders unconditionally. Regardless of how incomprehensible the orders might seem at the time, history had shown that Lu Chuan’s decisions were always wise. If Lu Chuan had made even one wrong decision, Lu County would never have reached its current scale.

...

Within the Zhen family caravan, Zhen Jiang and Zhen Mi sat in their carriage, peering through the curtains at the scene outside with different feelings. Zhen Mi, being a child, was naturally captivated by the prosperity of Lu County, despite being raised in a merchant family. She was particularly drawn to the sweet and tangy candied haws; had it not been for her older sister, Zhen Jiang, holding her back, she would have bought an entire carriage load of them!

"Big sister! Big sister! It smells so good! Do you smell that?" No sooner had Zhen Mi finished her candied haw than she set her sights on a new target.

Meat sandwiches! Large chunks of meat were stewing in iron pots, the aroma wafting for dozens of meters. Zhen Jiang caught the scent as well, and she couldn't help but salivate—not out of gluttony, but as a natural reaction. While the Zhen family was immensely wealthy—arguably the greatest merchant family in the world—the food she ate at home was not necessarily the finest. Items like candied haws and meat sandwiches did not exist in the Eastern Han period; they were creations promoted by Lu Chuan within Lu County. Because the techniques for making them were simple, they easily satisfied the cravings of the people of the Eastern Han, who were accustomed to a lack of culinary variety.

Zhen Jiang followed the aroma, spotted the shop's sign, and quickly signaled for the carriage to stop. "Shopkeeper, give us two... um, meat sandwiches!"

"Coming right up!" The shopkeeper was enthusiastic. He took two golden-brown buns from the oven, sliced them open with a satisfying crunch, releasing a cloud of steam. He then used a ladle to scoop out two chunks of tender, fatty meat from the iron pot, quickly chopped them with a knife, and drizzled a spoonful of fragrant meat broth over them.

Zhen Mi watched, wide-eyed, her mouth watering. Zhen Jiang was slightly more composed but equally expectant.

"Here you go! Two meat sandwiches, six *qian* in total! Enjoy!"

Zhen Jiang paid and took the sandwiches. Before she could even get a firm grip, Zhen Mi snatched one and took a bite. "Hoo! Hot! It's hot..." Despite the exclamation, she refused to spit it out, leaving Zhen Jiang feeling quite helpless. Could these meat sandwiches really be that delicious?