Traveling to Ancient Times: My Space Contains Weapons

Chapter 132 Mine Arrangements and Construction

"Brother Zhao must be wondering why I categorized them, right?"

Chu Chen looked at Zhao Tianlong, who had a puzzled expression, and said.

"Yes, they're all the same kind. You see, we're sergeants, so we're responsible for protecting the safety of this mine, while they're just mining."

Zhao Tianlong continued to ask.

"Haha, people's ten fingers are of different lengths, and so is that person's. Just you wait and see."

"Once you figure these things out, you will still have to separate."

Without waiting for Zhao Tianlong's reply, Chu Chen walked out of the shack.

At this moment, people below the mountain slowly watched as horse-drawn carriages, loaded with goods, came toward them.

Chu Yi drove the van ahead.

This was exactly what Chu Chen had instructed from the beginning: to transport the building materials such as cement and steel over.

Since we don't know when Ganpu will come to seize it, the wall needs to be erected as soon as possible.

At this moment, Liu Da and Zhu Zi returned after counting the number of people.

He reported the population structure to Chu Chen.

The entire miners' team consisted of 637 people.

Of these, forty-one were over fifty years old.

There were 113 women and girls, 28 children, and 455 able-bodied men.

After hearing the results, Chu Chen felt it was alright; at least there were still over four hundred key laborers.

“Okay, from now on, you’ll be in charge of the elderly, women and children, Grandpa Liu. Please arrange the logistics.”

"Young master, what is logistics work?" Liu Da asked, puzzled.

"Well, logistics work is what happens behind everyone's daily work, such as food, clothing, housing, and transportation."

After Chu Chen finished speaking, he explained the specific details of the job to Liu Da in detail.

Then he turned to Zhu Zi and said, "The remaining 455 people will be managed by you, Zhu Zi."

"The main job is to mine this jade. We work in two shifts, each shift working four hours a day. The remaining four hours are used for rest, summarizing, and holding meetings."

Then, Chu Chen patiently explained the purpose and specific steps to Zhu Zi.

In fact, mining for eight hours a day, which is sixteen hours, is more than enough time for Chu Chen to go around making a mess of things.

Once the construction is complete, LED streetlights and other lighting equipment will definitely need to be installed.

Otherwise, how can we work in the dark?

This is so much better than what they used to do, working from dawn till dusk.

Moreover, the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled did not need to go mining. Everyone ate from the same pot, and a canteen was set up.

Both efficiency and team cohesion will be many times better.

After saying that, he turned to the three men and said, "The biggest task right now is this wall. Everyone, stop mining and focus on construction."

So, under Feng Wu's leadership, all the able-bodied young men and strong women got busy.

The elderly, children, and young women stayed home to cook and do laundry.

After giving all these instructions, Chu Chen called Zhao Tianlong over.

"Hurry up and bring your two hundred soldiers over to assemble."

Zhao Tianlong bowed to Chu Chen, then turned and left.

A short while later, 182 soldiers in armor stood in neat rows in front of Chu Chen.

“Young master, apart from the 20 people patrolling the mountain and the people who went out to purchase supplies, all the personnel have arrived.”

"Okay!" Chu Chen looked around at everyone and nodded to Zhao Tianlong.

“Since His Majesty has bestowed the entire mine and everyone upon me, then everyone belongs to me, Chu Chen.”

"Now, the first thing to do is to collect the weapons."

After speaking, Chu Chen lifted the long sword covered by a cloth on his back and addressed the crowd.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Tianlong immediately stepped forward and came to the front of the group of long swords.

These were weapons that Chu Chen specially selected from his spatial storage after seeing the weapons in their hands.

In addition, there was a crossbow.

The reason for bringing out the crossbow was to let them familiarize themselves with it first, and then see if there were any sharpshooters inside.

We'll select some of them and have them serve as snipers in the observation towers built on the wall.

Zhao Tianlong picked up a knife, and suddenly his eyes gleamed.

As a veteran soldier who had fought for many years, how could he not see the power of these knives?

"Alright, Brother Zhao, you've seen these weapons, what do you think?"

Zhao Tianlong brandished his longsword and said excitedly, "Young master, if you could take over sooner, how could my four hundred brothers have died? With this divine weapon in hand, we will surely deter those Ganpu barbarians from invading us."

"Alright, since that's the case, then I'll also state my requirements."

"You two hundred or so men are nominally my personal guards, but my first requirement is absolute loyalty—loyalty to me personally."

As soon as Chu Chen finished speaking, everyone shouted in unison, "We are willing to serve you, young master."

Chu Chen smiled at everyone.

"Don't speak too confidently. We've only met a few times, and some of them are meeting for the first time."

"Later, after we've spent more time together, you can give me your ambitions."

After speaking, he instructed Zhao Tianlong to distribute all the weapons.

Then he picked up the crossbow from the ground and addressed everyone.

"This thing is called a crossbow. It's more powerful, has a longer range, and is more accurate than the crossbows you usually use."

After saying that, he raised the crossbow, nocked an arrow, and shot it at the earthen mound behind the group.

With a soft "thud," the crossbow bolt struck the earthen slope and embedded itself deeply into the soil.

Even the fletching of the arrow was nowhere to be found.

Everyone looked excited as they saw the powerful crossbow bolts in front of them.

If I owned one of these, what would I have to fear from those barbarians of Ganpu?

Seeing this, Chu Chen summoned Zhao Tianlong and began to instruct him personally in front of all the soldiers.

A moment later, Zhao Tianlong also shot his sword towards the spot where they had just been.

After examining it for a while, he respectfully handed the crossbow to Chu Chen.

"Why are you giving this to me? Take it."

"This, for me?"

"It's not for you, but for you to choose a dozen or twenty people from among your brothers who are good at using this thing."

Twenty? Then the young master must possess many of these items.

Zhao Tianlong quickly nodded, accepted the order, and left.

"Alright, the third thing is to talk about the salary."

"What? There's also a salary, young master? Are you telling the truth?"

“Young master, we are a group of sinners who deserve to die. How can we accept your great kindness?”

As soon as Chu Chen finished speaking, the crowd began to discuss it.

These people are really stubborn. They think that those who are guilty should have died long ago.

The opportunity has arrived, why worry about everything else?

In fact, many of the soldiers had their wives, children, and elderly parents sent to this mine.

Chu Chen was also aware of this situation.

For Chu Chen, this was a good thing. With his family in tow, protecting the mine was equivalent to protecting his loved ones.

They transformed the mines into impregnable fortresses, then promised them benefits and security.

Therefore, these soldiers had no reason not to be loyal to themselves.

If the soldier is loyal to his cause, then the mine will be safe and stable.