Chapter 26 'Weeds'
Next, Gervis inspected another village. The situation was similar to the mountain village by the sea, but this village was not close to the sea. Instead, it was located at the foot of a mountain. The population was the largest among the three villages, with about four to five hundred people. The serfs in the village basically made a living by growing crops, and only two hunters made a living by hunting in the mountains.
When Gervis arrived, the hunters of the two hunters had already gone into the mountains. Gervis originally wanted to meet them, but failed.
The guards still had to make the opening remarks.
However, when the villagers heard that Benny and the other two were arrested by the lord's order, they reacted very strongly, and the entire village was shocked.
Because the girl who was raped by Benny and his men lived in this village, the villagers looked at Benny's men tied to the carriage with murderous eyes, wishing they could snatch him away and beat him to death.
However, due to the presence of the lord, although everyone was filled with hatred, they did not dare to do anything out of line.
Gervis asked the village chief and learned that the girl's parents were also present, so he gave them five silver coins as compensation.
Although Gervis had not yet taken office when Benny committed the evil, the gold coins that Benny dropped when he escaped were found by Gervis. It was only right for him to take out five silver coins to compensate them. It was not that Gervis was stingy and did not give more, but that if he gave too much, it might harm others.
After doing these things, Gervis learned from the mistakes of the seaside mountain village and only asked about some basic conditions in the village.
Because he had realized that when he asked the question of whether they could have enough food, he had posed a big problem to the serfs. No matter how they answered, it would be wrong. Even if they did not answer, they would be charged with the crime of contempt for the lord.
After leaving the second village, Gervis and his guards rushed to the third village without stopping.
Just by inspecting two villages, Gervis deeply felt the poverty of the serfs in this world.
Both the original owner and the current Gervis originally only imagined that serfs just worked harder and were exploited more, and as long as they worked hard, they could always live a good life.
But now it seems that he was too naive.
When Gervis and others arrived at the third village, Gervis unexpectedly discovered a plant that made him happy.
That was garlic. When Gervis and his companions rode their horses and passed the dirt road outside the village, there were several cultivated fields beside the road. The serfs were pulling weeds in the fields. Because Gervis and his companions rode their horses slowly and the serfs were bent over and working very attentively, they did not notice the arrival of Gervis and his companions.
Seeing that the serfs were working enthusiastically, Gervis waved his hand to stop the guard who was about to shout to remind the serfs.
Then he stopped the horse and observed the field carefully. The field should be planted with wheat, the staple food of this world. The wheat grew sparsely and not densely, which was completely different from what Gervis had seen on Earth.
Gervis had never planted wheat, and he didn't know whether the wheat in this world was the same as the wheat on Earth.
But just looking at the sparse density of wheat in the field, you can tell that such a field will not yield much even if there is a bumper harvest.
Just as Gervis was thinking, a serf in the field, perhaps feeling a little tired, straightened up and rubbed his lower back with both hands.
Suddenly, when he looked at the roadside, he saw Gervis and his group, as well as the guards dressed in uniform. He was so frightened that he trembled. Without waiting for the guards to call out their identities, he knelt down with a plop and shouted, "My lords, I am damned for not noticing your arrival!"
He couldn't help but be afraid. Gervis and the others were all riding horses. Except for Gervis, they were all wearing leather armor and hanging long swords on their waists, dressed like guards. Not to mention the person who was tied to a cross stake in the carriage and was already dying.
Especially since they stopped by the roadside and looked at them. If they were just passing by, it would be fine, but now that they stopped here, the serfs thought that this noble lord was up to something bad.
"Sir!" The other serfs also reacted and quickly knelt down to salute.
"Don't be nervous, everyone, get up! I was just passing by and saw you working. I was a little curious, so I came to take a look!" Gervis had been numbed by the serfs' startled expressions. After seeing them, he no longer had any emotional fluctuations. He just waved his hand and said to them.
Several serfs were a little skeptical and didn't dare to stand up. The guards behind them shouted loudly: "This is Lord Baron Gervis, the new lord of this territory!"
Then the guard repeated what he had been shouting all the way, and several serfs relaxed a little and stood up.
"What crops are you growing in your fields?" Gervis pointed at the fields and asked the serfs.
"My lord, this is wheat!" the serf answered cautiously.
"Oh." Gervis understood. It was indeed wheat, the staple food of this world. No wonder people were not able to have enough food. With such a high density of planting, how much land would be needed to reach the production level on Earth?
"Why is the wheat planted so sparsely? Why not plant it more densely so that you can have more harvest!" Gervis immediately asked the question in his mind.
He is a layman when it comes to farming. If he wants to develop his territory, food must be the top priority. Only with food can people be full. Only when they are full can people have more energy and time to work, instead of spending time in the fields every day and going hungry.
"My lord, if wheat is planted too densely, it will not grow well, and there will be many empty husks on the ears of wheat. It will also be more difficult to plant next year. Only by planting it like this can the wheat grow well, and it will grow well next year as well." The serf answered seriously, although his words were a bit difficult to understand.
"Oh!" Gervis nodded. He probably understood what the serf meant.
In fact, it is because the soil fertility is not enough. If the wheat planting density is high, many wheat ears will not be full or even empty due to insufficient fertility. It will also affect the soil fertility next year, creating a vicious cycle.
Gervis had never learned how to farm, but he knew the common sense that the fertility of land would gradually decrease after years of cultivation. There was fertilizer on Earth, so there was no need to worry, but there was none in this world, and the serfs seemed to have no idea about fertility, otherwise they would not have worried about affecting next year's farming.
Gervis didn't know how fertilizers were made, but he knew that human and animal feces could be used as the most primitive fertilizer. Although the effect might not be as good as chemical fertilizers, it was definitely suitable for this world.
So Gervis kept the idea in mind and decided to experiment with it when he returned. If it was effective, he could promote it vigorously.
In fact, Gervis had a plan in mind. His territory was plundered by orcs every year, and there were very few serfs. He wanted to develop trade or handicrafts.
However, he still doesn't know where to start. When he saw oysters and other seafood in the first village, he was thinking about whether he could start a seafood industry first. After all, they taste so good and have great market prospects. However, due to preservation issues, his plan has been shelved and he has to continue looking for other ways.
Gervis was lost in thought when he suddenly saw a serf holding a weed he had just pulled out of the ground. He was stunned for a moment, then quickly dismounted and jumped from the dirt road into the field.
The guards and serfs were shocked by Gervis's actions. Laurie, Audrey and the guard who was responsible for shouting also jumped off their horses quickly and came to the field to stand on both sides of Gervis. Only the guard in charge of the carriage needed to guard the carriage, so he stayed on the dirt road.
The serfs in the field were even more frightened and trembled together. Gervis came to the serf, pointed at the plant in his hand and asked softly: "What is that in your hand?"
It was not that Gervis intended to scare everyone, but he saw that the serf seemed to be holding something very familiar in his hand, and in a moment of excitement, he got off his horse and jumped into the field.
"My Lord... My Lord, these are weeds..." The serf was so frightened when he saw Gervis coming to him that he could only raise the thing in his hand and answer Gervis' questions honestly.
"Oh, let me see it."
After Gervis finished speaking, the serf immediately handed a handful of weeds in his hand to Gervis respectfully.
Gervis couldn't wait to take the weeds handed to him by the serf, picked one of them, and threw the rest on the ground.
Gervis picked up the 'weed' in his hand, broke open the roots of the weed, took one of the seeds, and then put it to the tip of his nose and smelled it. When he was sure that it was very similar to the thing he knew, Gervis became excited, peeled off the outer coating, gently bit off a little with his teeth, and savored it carefully.
"My Lord, this weed is not... inedible." Gervis had just sniffed the plant, and although the crowd didn't understand why, they weren't surprised. But when Gervis put the thing in his mouth and took a bite, the guards and serfs were a little stunned.
The serf in front of Gervis was almost crying. He could never have imagined that the baron in front of him would eat the weeds he had just pulled out. If something bad happened to him, he would definitely be in trouble. So he bravely reminded Gervis in a low voice.
"Hmm." Gervis savored it for a while, and after hearing the serf's reminder, he nodded to him, and then spit out the 'weed' he had just bitten in his mouth.
"Do you have a lot of this here?" Gervis raised his hand and presented the plant in his hand to each serf.
"My lord, there is a lot of this in the fields." The serfs answered one after another.
"Very good, then help me pull some right now, the more the better, and remember not to damage the roots. I will pay you later." Gervis was very happy to get the serfs' affirmative answer, and then he said to several serfs seriously.
"Yes, Lord." Of course, the serfs had no objection. Even if Gervis didn't pay them, they had to find this plant for Gervis. Although they were all wondering why the Lord liked to eat such weeds, the smell of this weed was choking and unbearable.
(End of this chapter)
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