Chapter 44: The Artifact of the Nation
Yang Qian knew that this concept had been formed for a long time, and that a country's system could not be changed in an instant, and he was not a saint who could turn the tide.
"How was the rent allocated to the Liu family in the past?"
"Forty-six, we are four, they are six, but we need to pay the tax ourselves."
"How much is the sharecropping tax?"
"Ten percent of the tax is one, but it's okay to hide it a little. The owner of the family has always asked us to pay half of the tax." The old man was born in the farm and is proficient in all the tricks there.
Yang Gan was silent for a while. He had never been interested in farming. At this time, the mistress walked outside with a bag of things.
"What do you usually grow? How is the harvest?"
"Most of the farm grows corn and wheat, as well as some mulberry trees, vegetables, melons and fruits. The yield of corn per acre is only a little more than two stones a year."
Yang Gan touched his chin. Unexpectedly, the crop yield in this era was so low that it was almost ninety kilograms per stone. Even one hundred kilograms would be more than two stones.
It is equivalent to more than 200 kilograms, and one acre of land per year is only 200 kilograms. Damn, this is the rhythm of starving to death. No wonder people starved to death almost every year in ancient times.
"Then how do you usually plant?"
The old man smiled and said, "Farming is just that. You just have to do one crop every year, otherwise the land will not be fertile enough."
"anything else?"
"what else?"
Yang Gan's face was full of surprise: "You don't fertilize?"
The old man looked at the two fellow villagers next to him. None of them knew what he was talking about. He raised his hands and said, "General, what is fertilization?"
Yang Gan suddenly realized that no wonder the yield was so low. Although he did not farm, the grain yield was nothing more than fertilization, seeds, and weather. The three factors combined, and the yield was indispensable no matter how small it was.
"Are the straws and other debris from this harvest still there?"
"Returning to the general, some parts of these things can be fed to livestock, and some can be used for heating and cooking in winter after being dried."
Yang Qian thought about it carefully and found that he had almost forgotten many things. Alas, he had promised his grandparents to go back to the countryside to visit them. But now, he will never be able to go back in this life.
"My dear husband, your surname is yours."
"Hahahaha, I dare not call you by your noble surname. I am an old man with a cheap name, Chen Mo."
"Old Chen, from now on, please don't call me Young Master by your official title in the mansion or in the countryside. It feels too harsh."
Lao Chen was overjoyed. He became a mature man with age, and his ability to see people and things was no longer comparable to that of some young men. Since the general was able to lower his status, it meant that he was a good person to get along with.
"As you command, sir!"
"Are there any pigs raised in Zhuangzi? Are they for sale?"
The old man nodded and said, "Yes, but this kind of cheap meat cannot be sold. Unless someone wants to starve to death, no one will touch this kind of meat. We raise pigs just for safety. If the autumn harvest fails, Pork is our lifesaver."
Yang Gan nodded, it will be easier if there are pigs. "Old Chen, you three, remember, when you go back, ask everyone to dig down all the fertile fields to a depth of one and a half inches, then bury them with pig dung and cover them with mud. Burn the straw and the like from the house to ashes, mix it with water and get it to the roots of the farmer, do you understand?"
The three of them looked at Yang Qian blankly. Lao Chen never imagined that a noble man like the young master would say vulgar words such as shit.
"Sir, Master, why is this happening? If all two thousand acres of fertile land are like this, it will consume too much time, and I am afraid of missing the good time for farming!"
"Lao Chen has been farming for generations, why do we need crop rotation?"
Lao Chen said without hesitation, "Crop rotation is to keep the land as fertile as possible. Once the fertile land is not fertile enough, the grain harvest will inevitably decline."
"Then you haven't thought about fattening?"
???
"What's the explanation?"
"The fertility of the field is declining every year, so if we give it more fertility, wouldn't it be possible to increase the grain harvest?"
Old Chen suddenly stood up, his face flushed, "Sir, are you serious about this? How much can you increase production by doing this?"
"I always take what I say seriously. Once the farmers plant it, they can also fertilize it when watering it, and use human excrement and urine to add some river water to water it. The yield will at least double compared to previous years."
This kind of operation is the most common. I used to watch my grandparents do it in the countryside, and the cucumbers that grew out were long and thick.
Lao Chen sat down with dull eyes, and the three of them had a heated discussion, but without exception, none of them felt that Yang Qian was lying.
After all, if grain production decreases, his income will also decrease. Although the Guizhou leaders are illiterate, they still understand the truth.
"Okay, when I go back this time, I will follow the master's wishes. I don't know how much the master's rent will be."
Yang Qian thought for a while. Rent is a matter of thin water and long flow of water. It is not appropriate to kill the goose to take advantage of the weak. "Just like your old employer, the bill will be divided into four and six."
Lao Chen nodded with satisfaction, "Then I would like to thank you on behalf of the folks. Forty percent of the grain is enough to feed and clothe Lao Chen and his family."
Yang Gan shook his head, "I'm talking about four and six. I'm four and you're six. Of course, I'll also go to the government to say hello. You have to pay the taxes yourself."
"thump!"
Lao Chen and two fellow villagers knelt down and kowtowed to Yang Gan repeatedly. "Young Master is so kind and virtuous. I kowtow to you on behalf of the entire estate."
"Get up and do your job for me, do you understand?" Yang Qian did not help them, he could still bear a few ringings.
"By the way, why do you say pork is cheap meat?" Yang Gan was still very interested when he heard about raising pigs. He has never eaten pork since he arrived here. He eats mutton every day, and now he always feels like he smells of mutton.
Old Chen said diligently, "Sir, you don't know something. Pork has a strong smell. Generally, you won't eat it unless you are extremely hungry."
"Oh, this is a trivial matter. As long as the pigs are castrated when they are young, they won't smell like pigs, so they can be eaten with confidence."
"Okay, I will castrate all the piglets in Zhuangzi when I get back, and raise them for the young master to enjoy." At this moment, he will no longer doubt Yang Qian's order. As long as it is what he says, Lao Chen will obey it. 60% of the grain. Yang Gan believed the sun was square even when he said it.
"Xiaosanzi, what are you holding?" At this time, Yang Qian saw Xiaosanzi grabbing a familiar bag and hurriedly walking out the door.
The mistress immediately ran over and said respectfully, "Sir, Krisna asked me to throw this away. She said something bad."
Yang Gan's eyes lit up and he said happily, "How do you know her name is Krisna?"
The mistress seemed to be thinking of something bad and her eyes wandered, "Oh, she said her name was Krisna. Although it was not fluent, she could understand some of it through gestures and gestures."
Yang Gan tilted his head and stretched out his hand to pinch the mistress's face. "Is there an injury on your face?"
It was okay if Yang Qian didn't say anything. As soon as he said it, the mistress immediately burst into tears and cried, "Young master, please do it. Take care of them two when you have time. Ah Fu and I were almost beaten to death."
Yang Qian was happy and took out two silver pieces from his sleeves and threw them to him. "You and Ah Fu go buy some delicious food. Don't mess with them in the future. Open the contents of the bag and show me."
The mistress immediately turned from crying to joy. His family was not in Yuntong City, but there were still several people in the family. If he could save some money, he could send it to his family when he had time. After opening his pocket, he smiled.
"Sir, I've seen it, it's something I can't name."
Yang Gan was stunned when he looked inside, and rubbed his eyes in disbelief, "Holy shit, am I the reincarnation of the European Emperor?"
He took out a few earth-yellow, oval-shaped objects with twigs sprouting from them, and a few yellow-orange spindle-shaped objects from his pocket.
Even though Yang Gan was in his hand, he was still a little unbelievable. He stretched out his hand and rubbed his mouth vigorously. He originally thought that this would be the end of his life, to destroy the Xiongnu and increase the national power.
In this way, he could be a happy young master, but the young master Jie refused to let himself feel comfortable and planned to kill him at some point.
Now that there was such a magical weapon, Yang Qian blushed and kept circling the yard. Countless thoughts burst out from his eyes, and something called ambition quietly grew.
"Master, what's the big deal that makes you so rude?" Old Chen laughed. Looking at Yang Qian like this, it was as if he saw his grandson making a fuss under his knees. He shook his head suddenly. What is the identity of the master? What is his identity? Even thinking like this feels like a sin.
Yang Qian's mouth was about to burst behind his ears. He suddenly came to Old Chen and grabbed his shoulders with both hands. "Old Chen, do you know? These two things are sacred weapons, no, holy weapons. They are important weapons of the country."
Under the shaking of Yang Qian, Lao Chen felt like he was just like a small boat, constantly bumping up and down under the violent wind and rain. A single mistake could destroy the boat and kill everyone.
"My lord, my lord, I am getting old. Please slow down. What is it that makes you so happy?"
Yang Gan said ecstatically, "Do you know? What is in my hand?"
Lao Chen glanced at it without any hesitation: "They are just two crops that I have never seen before."
"A kind of farmer called potato, also called potato, yield per mu~~~" Yang Qian took a deep breath.
"Fifteen stones, even fifty stones, eighty stones."
In an instant, the sound of needles dropping could be heard in the courtyard. The mistress shrank her head, not knowing what the young master was doing. Old Chen's cloudy eyes were blank and he scratched his head, as if he still didn't know where he was.
His two fellow villagers were frightened and fell to the ground. Fifteen stones? They were really not sons of man, and they were bragging too much. What they were thinking at this moment was that the young master had said that the yield per mu would be fifteen stones. If they couldn't grow it, what would happen? It won't kill them.
"Hey, I'm back to life." Yang Gan shook Lao Chen.
"Ah? Oh, sir, although I know what you are telling the truth, we must not mess around with farming matters. If too many fields are planted with the potatoes and corn you mentioned."
"If there is no food, sir, you will only lose a small amount of food income, but our whole family may starve to death."
As expected of a mature man, regardless of whether it is true or false, let me tell you clearly that I will not use too much land to grow these weird things.
Chapter completed!