Qin San Niang did a quick mental calculation: one shi equals one hundred and twenty jin, so three shi would be three hundred and sixty jin, which really isn't much! In her previous life, the yield per mu of land was at least seven or eight hundred jin. She wondered if it was because the soil wasn't fertile enough!
But the people around them obviously didn't think so. The feelings of Liu and the other farmers were beyond words, and the joy in their eyes and brows was simply too obvious!
Even He Yingyuan, who was usually quite aloof, was shocked. Three bushels of grain?! That's double the yield of a normal farm! If this method were to be widely adopted, it could save countless people from suffering!
Qi Yuchen had no concept of this, but that didn't mean he was completely ignorant. Before he came, Uncle Cai had already taught him that the yield of ordinary rice is about one and a half shi per mu. If it can reach two shi, it means that the soil is quite fertile.
So, if he remembered correctly, the village head had just said that the plots of land belonging to Madam Qin were newly allocated this year and weren't considered top-grade land. For a medium-grade plot of land to produce this much yield was simply unbelievable!
"Hey sir, is there something wrong with your scales?" The constables were also incredulous. They dealt with taxes and grain year-round, so they naturally knew the yield per acre. They weren't heartless either; seeing so many poor people without food or drink after paying their taxes made them feel bad.
But what could they do? They were just lowly village officials, and the weighing and measuring were not things they could decide! Therefore, they were utterly astonished to hear this number! That's why they bypassed the Minister of Agriculture and asked him.
The man being questioned wasn't angry. Someone had already raised doubts about the scale, even though he had just sworn that it was left to him by his great-great-grandfather. His family were butchers and relied on this scale for their business.
You can doubt anything! Just don't doubt his scale! Doubting the scale is doubting his character!
The person who had raised the question earlier quickly apologized, saying that he was just a little surprised by the yield per mu and did not intentionally doubt his elder brother's weight! This calmed him down! However, he himself was also a little unsure. Could it be that he had weighed it wrong?
So everyone quickly sent someone to get a scale from home and weighed it again! This time, it was even better; it weighed two pounds more!
So when he heard the constable ask this question, he hurriedly answered.
"Sir, we've weighed it twice already, there's absolutely no problem! The yield per mu is exactly three shi plus two jin!" the man said proudly. Their scales were flawless! Absolutely accurate!
"That's really good!" the constable exclaimed in astonishment. But, brother, the way you act so arrogantly makes it seem like this harvest belongs to your family!
Qi Yuchen finally understood; the harvest was indeed plentiful. He hurriedly said, "I understand now. This new planting method is indeed effective. I just don't know if any other fields in our village use this method?"
He thought more deeply. Since he was going to report back to the government, the text he wrote in the report had to be reasonable and well-founded. He couldn't generalize from a single instance; otherwise, he wouldn't be trying to gain credit for himself, but rather digging his own grave!
The village headman hurriedly stepped forward. He knew the matter better than anyone else. Some time ago, he often accompanied his uncle on inspections of the village's rice paddies. His uncle should have known the most, but upon seeing the official, he dared not step forward to speak.
Although Chen Sheng was also afraid, he had at least dined at the same table with the Minister of Agriculture, and he was so nervous that he was able to give a fairly coherent report, albeit stammeringly!
"Sir, there are two other families in our village who are using the planting method that Da Wa's mother mentioned."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yuchen's eyes lit up, and she quickly asked him to take her over to see for herself. If those households' rice paddies could also produce such a yield, then this memorial could be written with solid evidence.
Qin San Niang and the others exchanged glances and then went to join in the fun...
"Cheng Shitou, the Minister of Agriculture is here to check on your harvest!" Chen Jincai shouted as he ran along the ridge of the field not far away, his speed almost comparable to a marathon.
The fields are connected by ridges, so Chen Sheng and the others, along with Qi Yuchen, naturally had to take a more winding route. But Chen Jincai wasn't worried about that; he simply hopped from ridge to ridge, crossing the farmland, which saved them more than a quarter of an hour.
Wang Guixiang exchanged a glance with the man. What? Isn't that the village head's eldest son? What's he doing here?
Cheng Shi hurriedly went up to him and asked, "Brother Jincai, what are you doing? What's the matter? Tell me slowly!"
Wang Guixiang also rushed over. Now that Niu Niu is older, she can play in the fields, catching small fish and weaving straw. Their fields had been harvested since the day before yesterday, and the harvest was complete today; they were preparing to take the rice home to dry!
Speaking of this, Cheng Shi and his wife couldn't sleep all night. Of course, they didn't do anything else; they were just too excited to sleep.
Their family has three mu of land. One mu was planted using the method given to them by their eldest son's mother, and the harvest was unexpectedly much higher than the other two mu! As a result, they will have more food to keep this year, and if they add a little more money, they can buy another mu of land!
Chen Jincai didn't waste any time. He told the couple that the Minister of Agriculture was coming, and told them to be prepared so that they wouldn't be speechless and needlessly anger the official.
After saying that, he left quickly without waiting for Cheng Shi to ask any more questions, as he still needed to inform Uncle Chen Geng's family! They had also planted two acres of paddy fields, and they should have finished harvesting by now.
What? The Minister of Agriculture? What kind of official is that? It sounds like a very high-ranking position, not just an ordinary yamen runner!
The couple exchanged a flustered glance. This adult had actually come specifically to inspect their land? What were they going to do? Wang Guixiang felt her hands trembling and her legs buckling!
Cheng Shi: "..."
I don't know what to do either. I've never seen an official before!
But being a man, Cheng Shi quickly gathered his thoughts and comforted her, "Guixiang, you two stay here and keep a close eye on Niu Niu. Don't let the child cry later, or she might upset the adults! I'll come back and tell them in a bit. Didn't Brother Jincai say that Uncle Village Head is with them too?"
Wang Guixiang nodded. At this point, this was the only way! Besides, they were just doing their own work, not stealing or robbing, so what was there to be afraid of? Could the officials really eat people?
Qi Yucheng: You ignorant commoner! How could a handsome and dashing official like me have such a hobby?!
Cheng Shi pondered Chen Jincai's words for a moment, thinking that he probably wanted to know about their harvest, which they had already weighed yesterday...
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