Chapter 60 Hot Topics

Nothing is more important than your own life!

Despite everyone's pressure and confusion, Chu Ci resolutely raised the already unique courtyard wall by another three feet. He also added many sharp pottery shards on top of the wall.

So, after the curved plow and hiring people to reclaim wasteland, the Fan family's courtyard wall became a new hot topic among the people in Jingtian Village.

If we meet on the street and don’t chat for a while, it seems like we are out of touch with the trend.

But that’s not all.

"Go and see, the young lady of the Fan family has planted all the seeds from the three acres of land into a small paddy field!" Wang Po, the famous big mouth in the village, was digging wild vegetables when she rushed into the village in a hurry, not caring that she was holding an empty basket in her hand.

"Isn't this a waste? Why don't the people from the Fan family try to persuade them? No, I have to go and persuade them." Cao Kuan's ancestor once served as Minister of Agriculture. Even though he was later exiled, he was still proud of it.

What I hate most is people wasting seeds and leaving the land uncultivated.

Cao Kuan almost jogged all the way here.

But he was old after all, and when he arrived, a group of people had already gathered around the field, including the village chief.

Cao Kuan's anger suddenly surged. "Village head, as the head of the village, how can you watch someone waste food?"

"Cao Kuan, don't you dislike crowds? Why did you bear to come here today?" The village chief seemed to be unable to see the anger in Cao Kuan's eyes, and joked with a smile.

"Village chief, I'm talking to you about serious matters. This, this, this, isn't this just nonsense?" Cao Kuan pointed at the small paddy field that Chu Ci had specially enclosed for seedling cultivation.

"When the seeds were young, this field could still be maintained. But such close spacing doesn't provide them with the proper nutrients, and it also increases the chances of pests and diseases..."

Cao Kuan was afraid that people would not understand Chu Ci, so he tried to explain it as simply as possible.

Chu Ci's eyes lit up instantly. She had been worrying about where to find a good farmer who knew how to farm, but she didn't expect that someone would come to her door so soon.

"Mr. Cao, I'm raising seedlings. I'll transplant them when they have two to three true leaves."

"Raising seedlings? Transplanting? It's so troublesome. Can it increase the yield of rice?" Cao Kuan saw that Chu Ci was not speaking without purpose, and immediately realized the purpose of Chu Ci's doing so, and asked.

Chu Ci smiled and nodded, "Not only do they need to be transplanted after raising the seedlings, but they also need to be selected and soaked before raising the seedlings."

"I understand the principle of seed selection. The better the quality of the seeds, the better quality rice can be grown. As for the reason of soaking, I hope Madam will be willing to enlighten me." Unconsciously, Cao Kuan had regarded Chu Ci as a senior. After he finished speaking, he bowed and saluted.

Oh, this is too much courtesy. I can't bear it. Chu Ci slightly turned aside to avoid Cao Kuan's disrespect. He explained, "It is to promote germination and filter out the bad seeds that will not germinate."

Seed selection, soaking, seedling cultivation, transplanting—this young lady Fan's planting skills must have already matured. Thinking of this, Cao Kuan became even more excited. "Cao Kuan, I appreciate your instruction. Since ancient times, the wisest have been the teachers. Could you please come and ask for guidance in the future?"

Ah, I finally fooled him.

But Chu Ci did not answer directly, but asked: "Mr. Cao, can you read?"

Although Cao Kuan didn't understand the necessary connection between farming and literacy, he still replied respectfully, "I know a few words."

"That's good. I'm still short of a manager here. I wonder if Mr. Cao would be willing to take on the role?"

Cao Kuan was stunned when Chu Ci said this. He just couldn't stand seeing people wasting seeds, so why did he get himself a job as a manager?

Seeing Cao Kuan hadn't moved for a long time, Chu Ci assumed he was unwilling to do so. He explained, "Although farming is your primary responsibility, your primary responsibility is to observe and record the rice's daily changes in as much detail as possible."

The more Chu Ci spoke, the more anxious the people on the ridge became. They wished they could turn into Cao Kuan and agree on his behalf.

Only the village chief understood that Cao Kuan was not refusing, but was clearly a second Dashan Uncle, so happy that he was almost silly. He elbowed Cao Kuan hard.

Cao Kuan finally woke up. "Village Chief, why did you bump into me?"

The village chief was so embarrassed. If he didn't have Cao Kuan's ability, he would have wanted to do it himself. He could only grit his teeth and remind him: "Hurry up and agree."

Cao Kuan finally realized what was happening and said, "I agree."

Seeing Cao Kuan agree, Chu Ci pondered for a moment, "Work in the fields is different from other tasks. It's tedious and onerous, and being in charge is even more taxing. So, let's temporarily set your monthly salary at thirty coins. What do you think?"

Cao Kuan was naturally very grateful.

But the villagers of Jingtian Village were even more shocked. They earned 30 wen a month, which was 360 wen a year. It didn't sound like much, but this was Yazhou, the most remote part of the Great Zhou.

The famous private school in town only charges twenty cents a month.

No, I can't think about it anymore, otherwise they will be jealous.

So the villagers of Jingtian Village started a new activity. Whenever they had free time, they would go to the Fan family or their fields to help out. Just in case, just in case, they would have the same good luck as Cao Kuan!

One night, the Fifth Prince and Fan Jingrui finally dealt with the affairs of the county government and planned to return quietly to give everyone a surprise.

The closer they got to Jingtian Village, the more excited they became, and their pace quickened.

However, he returned in a hurry late at night, which made the villagers, who had been very vigilant recently, misunderstand. "Why would a stranger appear at this time? Is he here to steal something?"

Without any hesitation, he went to find the village chief.

The village chief was furious when he heard someone had come to their village. "Is it targeting the Fan family? I'll go over first, you go and inform everyone."

After the village chief finished speaking, he picked up a wooden stick and walked towards the Fan family, followed by the others.

But the Fifth Prince was protected by secret guards. After a while, he noticed something was amiss. "Cousin, we're being followed."

"Who is it?" Fan Jingrui asked quietly without panicking.

"The footsteps are heavy, they must be ordinary people." At this time, An Qi had already come behind the two people in the darkness. His ears moved slightly: "More than ten people are coming from behind."

Upon hearing this news, both the Fifth Prince and Fan Jingrui did not hesitate: "Do it—"

At the same time, seeing the man in front suddenly draw his sword, the village chief immediately shouted, "I am the village chief of Jingtian Village. Who are you? How dare you come to our Jingtian Village and act so presumptuously!"

The other villagers cooperated tacitly and surrounded the Fifth Prince and Fan Jingrui in an instant.

After surrounding the group, the village chief felt more confident. "Tell me, who are you? Why did you come to Jingtian Village so late at night?"