Fu Tinghan’s reason for proposing to cooperate by offering the glass formula wasn’t only because glass was difficult to transport, making costs higher.

It was more because Zhao Hanzhang had mentioned that during this period, the north faced constant natural and man-made disasters. Man-made disasters need not be mentioned—though he’d been here less than two years, he witnessed this era’s man-made calamities at regular intervals.

What he cared about were the natural disasters.

If man-made disasters might still possibly be prevented or altered, natural disasters left only endurance. What human power could do was respond to catastrophes.

So after settling the cooperation with Zhu Chuan, he said to Zhao Hanzhang, “If the history in your memory is correct, then for a very long time to come, the north will face not only frequent warfare but also cold, drought, floods, and locust plagues. Productive activities will be destroyed, and the grain the land produces probably won’t support your military activities. So besides stationing troops locally and gathering and pacifying refugees, we should also leave ourselves an escape route outside.”

Zhao Hanzhang asked, “You think Shu is suitable?”

Fu Tinghan nodded. “What do you think?”

Zhao Hanzhang said, “I had originally set my sights on the south.”

She continued, “Huainan, Lujiang, and the two lake regions are all excellent grain storage areas. We don’t need to go to Jiangdong—these few places can develop into lands of fish and rice. Moreover, with both water and land routes, grain can easily be transported to the Central Plains.”

“So as long as we can control Yu Province, we can have grain from the south continuously transported through Yu Province to the north.”

Fu Tinghan asked, “Do you have influence in these places?”

“No,” Zhao Hanzhang said. “I can’t spare the manpower now, but I’ve still had Advisor Ji send merchant caravans there. We’ll develop slowly and open up trade routes. As long as we have good things they don’t have and guide them appropriately, they can provide us with a steady supply of grain and cloth.”

Fu Tinghan nodded. “Then let’s add another route through Shu.”

He said, “For Shu, we’ll use a different cooperation method.”

Zhao Hanzhang glanced at Zhu Chuan in the distance. Though far away, she had heard his conversation with Zhu Chuan earlier. “You’re quite trusting of him—willing to offer the formula to cooperate with him on land development. Aren’t you afraid that once you’re on his territory, he’ll privately seize your formula, kick you out, and play by himself?”

Fu Tinghan asked, “Do you think he’s that kind of person?”

Zhao Hanzhang smiled. “His character isn’t that base.”

Fu Tinghan nodded. “So I’m at ease. Moreover, we’re not without any safeguards. The location of the glass workshop will be determined by us. I’ve decided to choose a place your army can reach for reinforcement, even by a roundabout route. If something happens, you can send troops—it would be a perfect excuse to take that area. Didn’t you say the natural disasters’ impact on Shu would be much smaller?”

Zhao Hanzhang hadn’t expected him to think even this far ahead. She couldn’t help but sigh. “You’re still more thorough in your thinking.”

He’d even found her a reason to send troops. “But why would we want to occupy Shu? There’s such a large area north of the Central Plains.”

Fu Tinghan said, “As a rear garden. If natural disasters strike here, that place can provide some support.”

Zhao Hanzhang thought about it and agreed. She pondered, “As for Shu, it’s easy to defend but hard to attack—not easy to take.”

“So we should still focus on cooperation,” Fu Tinghan also turned to glance at Zhu Chuan. He said softly, “As long as we always have good things they want, this cooperation can continue indefinitely.”

The glass formula was only for some glass products—to Fu Tinghan, it wasn’t worth mentioning. As long as Shu provided sufficient benefits, he could increase investment in this area in the future.

Zhu Chuan was also looking at them, though he was speaking with his steward. “…This matter can be done. Once we separate, you immediately take people and return to prepare.”

“Young Master, such a precious thing as the glass formula—they just give it away like that. Could there be some trap?”

“The workshop will be built in Shu, and they’ll send craftsmen over. What trap could there be?” Zhu Chuan said, “They should be the ones worried I’ve set a trap.”

After all, they weren’t familiar with Shu, while Shu was essentially his territory.

“Then what are they after?”

“They want Shu’s stability,” Zhu Chuan said. “Didn’t you see along the way?”

“What used to be fertile lands for thousands of miles is now all overgrown with weeds. Even Nanyang Kingdom is like this—let alone Ruyin, Yingchuan, and the Liang Kingdom area that suffered heavily from the Xiongnu. From April when General Gou and the Prince of Donghai clashed until now, the common people have been continuously displaced. That means many people not only couldn’t harvest in summer or autumn this year, they completely missed planting winter wheat.”

“Think about it—how much stored grain does Yu Province have to relieve so many people? And the Prince of Donghai and Gou Xi still haven’t determined a victor.” He continued, “The Xiongnu are the same. They lost one battle and gained nothing, while the Central Plains is a piece of fat meat. Anyone would want to take a bite. Once they come again, production will be cut off again.”

“So their cooperation with me is simply because they see Shu is still relatively stable and want me to farm for them.”

The steward felt grain was cheap and couldn’t help saying, “How much money can grain earn? Cloth, lacquerware, even timber all earn more than grain.”

Zhu Chuan glanced at him. “What they need most urgently is grain and cloth. Otherwise, why do you think Fu Tinghan is so generous as to offer the glass formula and have it produced in Shu?”

He said, “He’s helping us reduce the cost of glass in exchange for fixed supplies. So we can only encourage common people around the workshop to farm grain and grow hemp and mulberry.”

The steward asked nervously, “Is the quantity set, or…”

“The annual transaction volume is set, but money will be paid separately. Cooperation is cooperation—their purchasing behavior is their own responsibility. The premise of cooperation is simply that we, the Zhu family, encourage agriculture and sericulture to get more common people farming grain and hemp.”

The steward quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhu Chuan said, “After we part, you immediately take people back. They all saw the glass we brought back before. This thing isn’t just expensive in Shu—it’s also very profitable when taken to the Qiang tribes, the two lake regions, and the Huainan area.”

The steward’s eyes sparkled as he flattered, “Perhaps our Zhu family will produce another Tao Zhu Gong.”

Zhu Chuan’s lips curved slightly upward without objecting.

After the morning meal, Zhao Hanzhang had no intention of lingering. She handwrote a travel document for Zhu Chuan to ensure he could travel unimpeded to Xiping.

Fu Tinghan also wrote a letter by hand for Ji Yuan. This arrangement needed to be discussed with Ji Yuan, and Ji Yuan would need to select people to coordinate with Zhu Chuan.

Zhu Chuan took one document and one letter, standing contentedly by the road watching them depart.

Zhao Hanzhang led her vast procession with the refugees, slowly heading toward Xi’e County.

They weren’t very far from Xi’e County now. Although dragging along a group of elderly, weak, sick, and disabled, they still reached Xi’e County’s boundaries the next day.

After crossing the Xi’e County boundary marker and walking for about two more hours, the Xi’e County yamen finally discovered them. However, Zhao Hanzhang also spotted the checkpoint they had set up on the main road.