Chapter 786 Young General vs. Rich Lady 89
Oh my god, the weather is still very good. Although it is still not raining, the clouds in the sky are gathering again.
Yan Changfeng carried out artificial rainfall for two days in a row, and the rivers and streams in Pingyang City finally accumulated water. The dry land was moistened, and the crops that were originally half-dead came back to life. The fields also became green, grass sprouted, frogs jumped everywhere, and cicadas chirped in the lush green trees.
Nature has tenacious vitality. During a severe drought, more than half of the people died, but as soon as it rains, the mountains and fields return to their vibrant appearance.
The people received the seeds given by the gods in front of the goddess temple.
Men, women, old and young worked in the fields together. The Huo family soldiers were also given holidays to go back and help with family work, especially the new recruits, who were all native to Pingyang City and were the rare strong laborers in the families. If they didn't go to the fields, there would be no one to farm the land.
The adults did the heavy work, carrying heavy stones and turning the ground. Their sweat fell to the ground and broke into pieces. It was really hard work.
But no one complained about being tired. As long as they had land to plant and food to eat, they were content. If the gods had not given them seeds and sent them rain, they would not be able to plant at all.
The children took the seeds and buried them in the ground. Their hands were black as they filled the soil carefully.
The women carried shoulder poles and two buckets of water and walked along the ridges of the fields to water the newly planted seeds.
The people and their families all joined in the effort, fearing that they would miss the time for sowing. They protected the seeds and sowed hope for the year.
The Huo family soldiers whose families are not in Pingyang City also have a place to go.
Too many people died in Pingyang City. Even the county magistrate was killed by Huo Xiao. There were many vacant fields, so Huo Xiao marked out a large piece of land as military land.
However, the focus of the military fields is not how much grain can be grown, but to use them as experiments. Different grains are planted in each plot, using different planting methods and even different amounts of water. The purpose is to see under what conditions these seeds can survive and grow, and how much grain can be harvested in the end.
Yan Changfeng was wearing a straw hat and a green official uniform with a pattern of golden wheat ears on his chest. He was wearing waterproof rain boots.
He stood on the ridge of the field and shouted, "Not bad, not bad! Everyone has worked hard! This prince will reward each of you with a bottle of iced Coke tonight!"
Yan Changfeng followed them out in the sneak attack and made great contributions. He also gained some reputation in the Huo family army, and the Huo family army already treated him as one of their own.
Someone said with a smile: "No Coke, beer!"
"I don't want a drink, I want a small cake, my daughter likes it!"
"I need shower gel. If I don't wash myself, I'm going to get lice."
"Oh, when did you become so particular, you old man? Are you interested in some young lady or young wife and want to show your affection to her?"
"Go away! What's it to you? I just like me. I don't like people like you!"
Everyone was laughing and making a lot of noise. Yan Changfeng stood with his hands on his hips, looking very proud.
"Everyone has food, drink and daily necessities! I am now a person who has a say in front of the gods. Whatever I want, the gods will deliver it the next day. Oh, there is so much that I can't use it all."
The guard Wu Yong ran over and bowed to Yan Changfeng, "Sir, the general is here."
The great general refers to Huo Xiao, who was newly appointed as the great general defending the country. Since he has the imperial edict in his hand, he can act under the title of the great general.
Yan Changfeng raised his eyebrows, "I've already told you not to call me the prince outside, call me Minister Yan! I'm a minister appointed by the gods themselves!"
Wu Yong was speechless. It was because the other generals were busy that the prince was left to take charge of the farming business. At first, the prince was unwilling to farm, but after being fooled by the gods, he became proud of it!
Wu Yong changed his words and said, "Yes, Minister Yan, the general wants to see you."
Yan Changfeng walked to the Ministry of Agriculture with his hands behind his back.
The former county government office was requisitioned and a sign of the Ministry of Agriculture was temporarily hung on it. The space inside is large enough to store a lot of things.
Ji Yunhuan was just speaking casually, but Huo Xiao really set up a Ministry of Agriculture, with Yan Changfeng as the minister, and even made official uniforms and seals.
Yan Changfeng took up the office excitedly. Of course, he knew no farming, so he found some experienced farmers in the city to help him, and some literate scholars to study the books given by the gods together. In this way, a makeshift team was set up.
The Ministry of Agriculture was responsible for distributing seeds to the people, and after the seeds were grown, it collected one-tenth of the tax.
This tax is only based on the output of grain, not on the population or the amount of land. Given the current situation in Pingyang City, no other taxes will be levied. However, labor service is still required, after all, there is a real shortage of people!
Huo Xiao had already arrived at the warehouse with the bronze mirror.
In the blink of an eye, the warehouse was filled with iron boxes.
Zhuo Zhantu took out a hoe and with two bangs, he was able to knock a hole in the hard floor tiles.
"What a good iron! It's still a little bit inferior to the swords we use, but it's already very good iron. I think the swords used by the Northern Rong are not as sharp as this one."
Peng Haichang found an iron plow, about half a person's height, with a wooden handrail and sharp iron plates underneath. He had been farming since he was a child, so he knew what it was used for as soon as he got it in his hand without having to read any instructions.
"This thing is great! The land in Pingyang City is uneven and has many rocks. It takes a lot of effort for the people to turn the land. They can't cultivate more than a few acres of land even if they work themselves to death. With this, it's different. Just push it over and you can turn over a large area!"
"A hoe is also easy to use. You don't have to worry about hard rocks. You just need to dig them out. In this way, those unwanted wastelands can be developed to grow crops."
Zhao Hai opened all the other boxes and saw the curved sickle. He waved it excitedly in his hand, "This is a bit like the Beirong's scimitar, but it's not very convenient for killing people. Is it used to cut grass?"
Zhao Shan said, "It can also harvest rice and wheat. It's definitely much faster than pulling them by hand."
Hoe, plow, sickle, rake, shovel, spade...
Ji Yunhuan bought everything he could think of, several thousand pieces of each, enough for the farmers in Pingyang City.
"There are also some protective gloves, straw hats for sun protection, and waterproof rain boots. These things are not expensive, so I bought a lot of them."
"These are nothing. I plan to buy some excavators, harvesters, tractors, seed drills and the like, and send them to you when the time comes. That way, farming will be faster!"
"The terrain in Pingyang City is undulating and winding, and there aren't many places where large machinery can be used. But you can learn first, and you'll always be able to use it in the future."
Yan Changfeng became excited when he heard this. He had long been envious of those larger machines. The excavator was too small and he was tired of playing with it.
Peng Haichang was more pragmatic and asked respectfully, "I wonder if the gods can give us oxen for farming. The livestock in Pingyang City have either died or been eaten. Now there is not a single ox left."
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