Castle of Black Iron

Chapter 1360: Zhang Family’s Heyday (I)

Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem

In July, the sun was as hot as fire. At noon, a black cloud flew over here from the east and covered the sun, casting a huge and dense shadow...

Wherever the black cloud flew by, mountains, rivers, cities and farms would be in shadow. Watching the dark cloud, all the soldiers and commoners of Taixia Country inside and outside cities were dumbfounded.

Even those who had seen the world were also shocked inside by that dark cloud.

That dark cloud was actually a moving, huge group of aircraft which contained over 10,000 huge transport airships from thousands of meters high to over 10,000 m high in a certain formation. These airships were led by one commander-level airboat. These airships were guarded by air cavalries on their flanks and at the end.

Besides that huge shadow, the booms caused by tens of thousands of engines were earth-shaking.

This was the manifestation of power and the will of steel and iron...

Although people on the ground didn’t know what task were these airships and airplanes carrying out, they were all spirited by such an overwhelming scene. They were all conquered by the power of Taixia Country. Numerous people kept waving their arms and towels towards the sky. Some people were even running after that huge shadow and cheering up.

The largest flying range of air cavalries couldn’t match that of huge airships. Therefore, in every hundred miles, some airplanes would land at new airports while the other airplanes which had been hovering over the sky would join in the army of air cavalries.

The huge steel and iron group flew all the way from Kangzhou Province. Wherever they passed by, they would arouse great shocks on the ground.

Since the start of the holy war, some soldiers or commoners might have seen so many airships; however, nobody had ever seen so many airplanes. Actually, nobody had seen so many airplanes in the sky at the same time since the Catastrophe.

At the fore of the airboat ahead of the steel group, a handsome youth in snow-white clothes was watching the clouds, mountains and rivers moving forward while many whims flashed across his mind...

Of course, this youth was Zhang Tie.

In the blink of an eye, Zhang Tie had already returned to the land surface for over 2 months.

In June, all the 138 mu official corn fields in Huanzhou Province, Kangzhou Province, Ningzhou Province and Military Province registered a bumper harvest which shocked the whole world...

Starting from last year, Huanzhou Province, Kangzhou Province, Ningzhou Province and Military Province had been in shortage of grains. Only after serving as the Weiji General for less than half a year, Zhang Tie had already successfully solved the problem of grain shortage in the theater of operations. Starting from June, the news that the four provinces realized a bumper harvest in the western theater of operations had spread over Taixia Country in a few days as if it had wings. Like a dope, it made all the people across Taixia Country thrilled and highly spirited.

Taixia Country and the western theater of operations urgently needed this change. Starting from the catastrophe of bloody figures in the Zhongzhou Province on the 903rd year of Black Iron Calendar. In only a bit more than 1 year, the oriental empire had been constantly facing troubles. Before the catastrophe of bloody figures in Zhongzhou Province was suppressed, the chaos in Xuanyuan Hill had shocked the whole world. Closely after that, the catastrophe of bloody figures completely spread over the country. Before the catastrophe of bloody figures across the country was cracked down, the problem of grain shortage had spread over Taixia Country. When the problem of grain shortage deteriorated, the army of demons started to spread over the provinces and prefectures in the west of the country, involving the country into the holy war completely, leaving no chance for it to take a breath...

Over the past 2 more years, the entire country was like taking a roller coaster. People were singing and dancing to extol the good times yesterday as if the holy war was still far away from Taixia Country; however today the country had been covered with battle flames and smoke while over 10 billion people had been under the control of demons.

Over the past 2 years, everyone in Taixia Country was anxious, ranging from imperial households to commoners in barren lower provinces.

Undoubtedly, the soldiers and commoners in the four provinces in the west of the country were most intense. The four provinces were in the frontline of the war; besides, they were heavily afflicted by grain shortage. Any error would lead to big chaos; especially the problem facing grains, if there were not enough grains, the four provinces would be in total disorder before the arrival of demons.

Since the second half year of last year, Taixia Country had been transporting grains to the four provinces. Even the freight was an astronomical figure, not to mention the cost of these grains.

In this case, the four provinces won a bumper harvest which even broke the record. When everyone was dumbfounded or driven ecstatic, the morale of the theater of operations was stabilized at once. Additionally, being affected by the achievement of the four provinces, even the morale of the neighboring provinces and military regions had been stabilized. At the critical moment, the significance of the bumper harvest in the four provinces would never be overestimated.

Everyone had owed the bumper harvest in the four provinces to Zhang Tie and pushed his reputation to a new height. This was definitely a great military exploit that could stabilize the undertaking of the country in the dilemma.

Honestly, besides Zhang Tie’s meritorious deed, the most important factor for this bumper harvest in the four provinces was the seeds provided by Imperial Land Resources Bureau. Actually, starting from the second half year of last year, the bureau had been providing grains for both the four provinces and the other provinces which had been afflicted by grain shortage. The result was that the four provinces under Zhang Tie’s governance won an unprecedented bumper harvest while all the other provinces and prefectures that received grains from the bureau were dwarfed by Zhang Tie’s achievement. Some places were still suffering from grain shortage. In this case, everyone would completely owe the amazing achievement to Zhang Tie instead of the Imperial Land Resources Bureau.

The bumper harvest achieved by the four provinces aroused the attention of the rest of the world. Such a meritorious deed could never be buried. In this situation, even Xuanyuan Hill and the crown prince had to award Zhang Tie by having an imperial envoy to bring Zhang Tie a golden robe and a waistband being embedded with pieces of jade which implied supreme social status and dignity. The crown prince even assigned imperial envoy to confer “Ms. Rong” on Zhang Tie’s mom and a title of nobility on Zhang Tie’s dad in Youzhou Province...