Chapter 587 A Dream of Youth 119

Almost all the good land around the capital had been divided up, leaving very little for the farmers.

"Do you know how the rent is calculated for the Lin family?"

As for his own rent, Xie Wangzhi did not want to oppress the tenants too much, so he only collected 30% of the rent. If it were someone else, they would have to pay 50%.

Speaking of this, the boy sighed, his tone filled with regret, "My family thought that the Xie family's land would be rented for the same amount as before, and that we would have to do more work for free, so we rented the Lin family's land in advance. They only wanted 40% of the rent and would also give us grain seeds, oxen for plowing, and farm tools."

The little girl was delighted. "But this new Lord Xie is different. If we rent his land and work hard, he not only provides us with seeds and farm tools, but also chickens, ducks, and piglets."

"I went out today to gather pig feed. The adults said that if we raise them well, they'll take half, and the rest is ours."

Therefore, the more they raise, the more they can survive.

"Not only that, the adults also provided us with medicine to treat the chicks. It was medicine from Yunxia Pharmacy. I heard from my aunt next door that the medicine from that pharmacy is the best."

The boy was envious because his family also raised chickens and ducks, but if they got sick, he had to pay for their medicine himself.

Xie Ning didn't know much about agronomy, so he just asked a few simple questions to get a general idea of ​​the situation.

She actually knew all of this because she had been involved in managing the farmland back then. Now that she understood, she just wanted to know if the people below had carried it out seriously.

Now that things have stabilized for a while, she can slowly start introducing new things and go back to her old profession.

After spending three days in the village, exploring the surrounding area, and then visiting Sushan with Xie Qi at his classmate's place, Xie Ning finally returned home.

It was evening, a gentle breeze was blowing, and the weather was partly sunny and partly cloudy, which was very pleasant. The light in the study was still on, and Xie Ning saw the figure standing outside the curtain.

"Father."

Why isn't Bao'er asleep yet?

Xie Wangzhi had just gotten home from get off work. It was already late when he saw the study light was still on. He came over to take a look and assumed that Xie Qi was studying hard by lamplight, but it turned out to be his little daughter studying diligently.

The frustration in my heart also subsided considerably, because due to the drought, the issue of whether or not to abolish the land surveying and taxation system for hidden land had been a hotly debated matter in the court.

Although he wasn't on the main battlefield, he still got annoyed by hearing so much about it.

Xie Ning showed Xie Wangzhi some of his drawings. “Father, I stayed with Mother in the village a few days ago and saw many farmers carrying water to irrigate their land. Although there are hand-cranked waterwheels there, they are small and small. They are fine for irrigating one or two acres of land, but they are not suitable for drought relief and are very laborious.”

When I got back, I tried to modify it a bit, thinking that using a foot pedal might save a lot of effort.

Xie Ning pointed to another drawing and said, "I think this is also good. The pedal still requires several people to work together."

If we switch to animal power, we can add a horizontal wheel here. The animals pull the horizontal wheel, and the rotation of the horizontal wheel drives the vertical wheel, which in turn drives the chain... If there are no oxen or donkeys to pull it, we can remove the horizontal wheel and use human power instead..."

Xie Wangzhi was also aware of these things, and the more he looked, the brighter his eyes became. "Bao'er is really smart."

He was no longer surprised by Xie Ning's drawings. When she was younger, the child would follow her grandfather around watching how to do carpentry. But the child was different from the carpenter in that she was educated, knowledgeable, and had a strong imagination.

She had no experience, but she was able to gain experience from books, and then put what she had learned and thought on paper, and then turn it into a physical object.

Seeing Xie Wangzhi continue studying the blueprints, Xie Ning picked up the tea beside him and took a sip.

The blueprints she presented weren't particularly advanced; she only made a few modifications, increasing the amount of irrigation water and saving manpower. These were actually the wisdom of our ancestors, and she simply made minor adjustments based on the specific environment and terrain.

Perhaps one day someone else will be able to come up with it.

Next are textile machines. Common types of spinning wheels include hand-cranked spinning wheels and treadle spinning wheels, while common looms are horizontal looms and warp and weft looms.

Without exception, these are all handcrafted using natural materials such as wood, bamboo, and animal bones.

In Xie Ning's eyes, such a textile machine was very inefficient.

Unfolding another drawing, Xie Ning turned to Xie Wangzhi and said, "Because I was drawing a waterwheel, I was inspired by it and wondered if we could use water power to drive a spinning wheel."

Xie Ning pointed to a spot on the blueprint and said, "We'll install a rotating wheel here, using a water-driven wheel to rotate the spinning wheel..."

This machine is suitable for processing linen and silk, but not for spinning cotton, because cotton fibers are short and have low tensile strength. However, it needs to fail and then improve.

Xie Wangzhi also began to think about it, but he didn't understand these things very well, so he asked someone to invite his grandfather to take a look.

Looking down at his innocent youngest daughter, Xie Wangzhi suppressed the thoughts that had been brewing in his mind.

He was just thinking about whether to ask someone from the Ministry of Works for help, but by then, it wouldn't belong to Xie Ning anymore, much less the Xie family.

“Bao’er, since you’re so interested, let your mother take you to the weaving workshop. If it works, your father will recommend you for credit.”

This refers to the spinning machine; as for the overturning, he has other plans.