If the seedlings are there, they'll grow!
There's no need to say anything more, just spread the word quickly.
Song Tingzhang soon learned that Xujia Village was using pesticides to spray the leaves of crops to make them more drought-resistant.
Old Song arrived at Xujia Village under the scorching sun. It was still under the same warehouse drying shed, but this time Jiang Zhi had set up a chair for him.
"Chief Song, although this place is a bit simple, it's bright, well-ventilated, and cool!"
Jiang Zhi noticed that Lao Song's collar was buttoned up tightly, and worried that he might faint from the heat. She thoughtfully found him a good spot and arranged for Li Laoshi to fan him from behind.
Song Tingzhang had no time for small talk; he was practically bursting with anxiety. He blurted out, "I heard you have some kind of magic potion that can bring crops back to life?"
That's an exaggeration. Jiang Zhi didn't dare to admit it and shook her head repeatedly: "It's just a little more resistant to dryness than other places. It's not some kind of magic potion or a miracle cure."
Song Tingzhang frowned: "I've already heard and seen it, so stop hiding it and tell me how to use it."
If it were anyone else, he would inevitably throw in some official jargon and moralistic pronouncements, but since he's sitting across from Jiang the shrew, it's more appropriate to speak plainly.
When Song Tingzhang entered the village, he had already inspected the fields along the way. Although the crops were also dried out and curled up, they were generally in better condition than in other places.
The quality of crops on a plot of land is related to the soil and watering. If every plot of land is good, then it has an effect.
Song Tingzhang was anxious not only for the sake of the people under his jurisdiction, but also because he himself owned dozens of acres of land.
Because Xujia Village was a little late in selling its green sorghum and corn, the grains were still in their growth stage; they would wilt and then revive.
The corn on Song Tingzhang's dozens of acres of land was in the heading stage; if it was left to dry, the harvest would be completely lost.
The farmhands worked tirelessly day and night to fetch water to save the seedlings, without a moment's rest. Several of them were nearly exhausted.
Now that we have this method, we have to use it, whether it's useful or not.
Seeing his eagerness, Jiang Zhi stopped being mysterious and said directly, "This is a new medicine made in my pharmacy. It can be diluted with water and used to water the roots and leaves, which can increase production and income!"
Although Song Tingzhang was somewhat skeptical, he still wanted to try: "Alright, give me a hundred catties first."
Jiang Zhi nodded: "That's no problem. I'll send someone to your area to teach people how to use it. It's just that the cost... we still need to calculate it!"
Song Tingzhang was stunned: "You're still going to charge me?"
Jiang Zhi smiled and said, "Making medicine is not easy. I can only charge the cost price, but Old Song still has to pay a few coins for the hard work of the farmhands in the hot summer."
Here we go again, always calling her "Old Song." This shrew is utterly rude!
Song Tingzhang was seething with anger but had no way to vent it, so he could only say to Li Laoshi, who was fawning over him, "Alright, stop fanning me. Don't make me feel cold, or I'll have to give you a reward."
With one Song Tingzhang, there's a second Su Xiucai, and then some other big manager. They all have to pay everyone's money, and Jiang Zhi isn't going to tolerate this group.
Although willow bark is worthless, intellectual property fees still need to be paid.
So, agricultural technician Xu Genyou followed the mule cart loaded with 200 jin of concentrated willow bark juice.
Jiang Zhi had already made an agreement with Song Tingzhang. Considering that he was the head of the pavilion, the cost of the medicine would be halved to five hundred coins, but he would send his own technician, who would need to be paid one hundred coins a day.
Hearing that the "miracle water" he was given was buy one get one free, Song Tingzhang felt pleased; this was what a subordinate should do.
As for paying the technician 100 coins, that's a small matter. All that's needed is for his farmhand to learn the skills, and the technician from Xujia Village can come back. It won't cost more than 200 coins in total.
After Song Tingzhang left, another scholar from Pear Blossom Town arrived soon after, also asking for a hundred catties of concentrated liquid.
This time, Jiang Zhi demanded the full price of one tael of silver, which Su Xiucai was reluctant to pay. He directly pulled out Er Rui's official status to argue: "Your son is also an official and needs to care for the people..."
Jiang Zhi retorted directly: "Even as an official, he needs to eat, drink, and relieve himself. If he wants to care for the people, he should first care for his own wife and children. Besides, he can't interfere in my affairs."
Scholars who farm don't have to pay grain taxes; this person is unwilling to pay any at all.
When Su Xiucai saw that Jiang was about to act tough again, he obediently paid the money, but when he was hiring the technician, he negotiated the price and was only willing to pay fifty coins.
Jiang Zhi was straightforward; fifty coins it was, you get what you pay for, so she sent Stone Monkey over.
When Su Xiucai saw that it was just a teenager, he immediately became angry: "I paid money, how can you send a teenager to send someone away!"
Jiang Zhi chuckled: "Don't underestimate these children. They were personally taught by Scholar Xia, and they can all read and do basic arithmetic."
It would have been fine if Xia Xiucai hadn't been mentioned, but as soon as Xia Xiucai was mentioned, Su Xiucai's expression immediately changed.
They say comparing yourself to others will only make you miserable.
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, in the guest room of the post station, all of them were covered in dust and dirt in front of the county magistrate over a chair, while only Xia Xiucai was praised for teaching children to read.
Now, this teenager can read and write and go out to work as a technician.
The stone monkey was also clever. He bowed respectfully to Su Xiucai and said, "Our teacher taught us that among three people walking together, there must be one who can teach me! I know how to use the magic water and know more than others, so I can naturally be your teacher."
Su Xiucai was speechless for a moment, then took out a tael of silver: "Alright, Shi Houzhi, go and pack the medicine I asked for."
The stone monkey originally didn't have a formal name, so Scholar Xia naturally didn't call him that. Instead, he changed the name using a homophone of the stone monkey's name, which the stone monkey liked very much. He always addressed others by his formal name.
This time, Scholar Su didn't bring his own cart, so he had to hire two rickshaws from the village to transport the medicine away.
Several more people arrived throughout the day, all wanting the medicine, and Jiang Zhi fulfilled their requests one by one.
The decoction in the pharmacy never stopped, and on the other hand, Tian Gui had already led people to cut willow branches, so the medicinal liquid was produced continuously.
Although the willow trees suffered an unexpected disaster this year, saving the lives of other creatures is a great merit in itself.
Jiang Zhi was busy with her work, while Xiao Man and Wu Yang kept using a cart to transport medicine into the village, and Li Laoshi was notifying everyone in the village who would be the technician.
Those whose names were called went happily, while those whose names weren't called could only wait patiently, preparing their wooden buckets in advance, lest they displease Village Chief Jiang and miss out on even a drop of soup.
Being a technician is so easy, even a child could do it.
All you need to do is mix one bucket of medicine with six buckets of clean water, then use a bamboo tube (like the kind children play with) to sip the water onto the roots of the crops, and spray the leaves a few more times. That's it.
Faced with this extra income, the villagers of Xujia Village were less worried about the reduced grain production, and laughter filled the air.
At this exciting moment, some people are not happy.
Ten days after the funeral in the village, Xu Changshou and his son received the news and immediately brought their family back to attend the funeral.
Two years had passed since we last met, and when we met again, he was nothing but a handful of dust.
Xu Changshou wept bitterly at Xu Lao Er's grave.
If someone who didn't know the situation saw this, they would only think it was a deep brotherly bond, and that they were reluctant to part.
Having missed the seventh day after his death this time, Xu Changshou said directly that he would not leave until he had finished paying respects to his dear second brother for forty-nine days.
So, Xu Gensheng had just lost one of his grandfathers when another one came along, and this one was particularly troublesome.
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