292: Chapter 292 Bringing the Japanese Lands into the Qin Territory!

After Zhao Fusu handed the research and development work over to these professionals, he also began to attend to his own responsibilities.

The components used for the steam ironship needed to be cast at the Steel Mill and then transported to the Wei River Shipyard for assembly.

These components varied in size; while the smaller ones were easy to handle, the larger ones posed problems from casting to transportation.

Adding new factory buildings at the Steel Mill, along with the issue of how to transport them, was also a concern.

If there were no steam tractors, they would have to rely entirely on human labor.

With steam tractors, one could be used to pull in the front, and another could be used to push from behind, thereby enhancing transportation capacity.

How to plan the transportation routes was also something that needed to be considered.

However, these were not urgent; Zhao Fusu had more important matters to attend to, so he sought out He Zhi.

"He Zhi, what has Xu Fu been doing recently?"

Zhao Fusu asked.

"Reporting to His Majesty the Head of State..."

He Zhi said, "Xu Fu has remained at his residence and has not left."

Zhao Fusu had provided Xu Fu with a residence in Xianyang and had instructed He Zhi to send men to keep watch over him.

"Tell Xu Fu to come see me; I have important matters to discuss with him."

Zhao Fusu said, narrowing his eyes.

"Understood!"

After He Zhi left, Zhao Fusu took out a blueprint, which was precisely the map of the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine.

He intended to dispatch Xu Fu, along with the Louchuan Soldiers general who had captured Xu Fu, Xu Ning, to Japan to incorporate Japan into the territory of Great Qin, while simultaneously locating the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine, mining the silver, and transporting it back to Great Qin.

While Zhao Fusu was deep in thought, He Zhi brought Xu Fu to the Xianyang Palace.

"Greetings to His Majesty the Head of State!"

He Zhi and Xu Fu cupped their hands in salute.

"Hmm."

Zhao Fusu did not mince words and asked Xu Fu, "How many troops are needed to take Japan?"

Xu Fu was startled; he had not expected Zhao Fusu to be interested in Japan.

Although Japan was now called the "Land of Abundance," a very pleasant-sounding name, in reality, based on his dozen or so landings there, it was not a good place at all.

That place was just a long, narrow island with very few plains and many mountains, leaving little farmland available for cultivation.

In the agricultural era, without farmland, it was difficult to attract a dynasty to conquer it.

Due to low grain yields, Japan was also unable to sustain animal husbandry.

Do not think that cattle and sheep only eat grass; without feeding them concentrated feed, such as soybeans, millet, and other nutrient-rich crops, it is very difficult for them to produce meat.

Furthermore, like humans, cattle and sheep also need to replenish salt.

The people of Japan could not even feed themselves, so how could they afford to use surplus grain to feed livestock?

Therefore, the people living in Japan were relatively short.

People with larger physiques could not survive and would starve to death.

The mating criteria for the Japanese also required the partner to be petite, so that they would eat less and be easier to support.

Not only the people who grew up in Japan, but even the wild beasts in the mountains of Japan were smaller than those on the neighboring continent.

The worst part about Japan was the frequent earthquakes, typhoons, and tsunamis, with a large number of people dying from these natural disasters every year.

Death had always accompanied the Japanese people, and they had long since grown accustomed to it.

For people living on stable continental plates, they mostly saw their elders die of old age and were very taboo about death.

In this regard, the Japanese people were very different from the people of the continent.

This was reflected in their aesthetics, as the Japanese people favored a macabre style.

Xu Fu replied, "Reporting to His Majesty the Head of State, ten thousand men will suffice."

"There are only savages in Japan, and they are still using stone tools; it will not be difficult to defeat them."

"If there are too many people, it will instead be impossible to keep up with logistics."

Zhao Fusu nodded slightly; he was going to occupy territory, not to commit genocide.

If he brought too many people and the logistics could not keep up, the soldiers would have nothing to eat, leading to intense conflicts with the locals over food, which would result in a fight to the death.