There wasn't even a cloud in the azure sky.
Although the sun has set, the temperature has not dropped at all.
"You have to hold an umbrella, or you'll get sunburned quickly."
"Master, you don't even hold an umbrella, so how can I, a servant, hold one?"
"Young Master is different from you. He is a man. Men are more manly if they are darker. If you get tanned, how will you get married in the future?"
Chunxiu's face, already red from the sun, turned even redder. "I'm not getting married. I want to serve the young master and mistress for the rest of my life."
"Don't talk nonsense. If you see someone you like, tell me. No matter who it is, I will make the decision for you."
…
Su Mo listened and watched with great interest. Now he believed that this young man was indeed different from others.
If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have fought with that guy Bai Yulian.
Fu Xiaoguan was very happy to return to the fields. He seemed to have returned to the small village of his previous life, back to the time when he herded cattle, raised pigs, chickens and ducks.
He even started singing.
Walking on the country road
The old cow returning home at dusk is my companion
The blue sky with the sunset on my chest
Colorful clouds are the clothes of sunset
…
Su Mo and Chunxiu didn't understand what the melody was, but... it sounded pretty good. Chunxiu felt very proud as she watched the young master walking in front of her. Su Mo smiled for the first time as he looked at the young man in front of him.
There are farmers carrying dung buckets by the fields, either checking their own seedlings or pouring dung water on their fields.
It is about to bloom, and the rice fields need fertilizer especially at this time.
Wang Er and his son Wang Qiang were also in the field at the moment. They looked up and saw the young master walking on the ridge of the field.
"Why is the young master here? Come up quickly."
Wang Er and Wang Qiang came out of the field in a hurry, not noticing that they were covered in mud.
Fu Xiaoguan also saw them and raised his hand to greet them.
Wang Qiang was very excited. He had always told his father that the young master seemed different from others, and this moment further confirmed his opinion.
So he waved his straw hat and shouted: "That's the young master, the young master is here to see us."
The farmers in the nearby fields straightened up and looked at the young man walking through the fields.
Young Master?
That's a precious body!
How could you possibly come to this filthy place to look at us peasants!
"It's really the young master. I just met him. He is different from others." The speaker was Zhao Yishan, one of the farmers who went to the Xishan Villa.
Everyone was immediately surprised and wondered what this noble young master was doing in such a hot sun.
Wang Er washed his hands by the field, hesitated for a moment holding the teacup, and Fu Xiaoguan had already walked up to him.
"Just taking a look. Actually..." Fu Xiaoguan wanted to say that he could actually take care of these crops, but he didn't say it out loud. Instead, he said, "The growth looks good, but the plants seem a little too dense."
Wang Er was stunned. He didn't know much about plants, but he understood the meaning.
"If the plants are thinned out a bit, the yield per plant will be slightly higher, but if calculated on the basis of the entire acre of land, it will be lower."
"Oh, now we should plant it according to your experience."
He was referring to the present. Wang Er paid no attention to the word. He pointed to the field and said, "This year is the best year ever. I estimate that this one acre of land will produce 10% more than in previous years."
Fu Xiaoguan sat down by the edge of the field. Chunxiu was shocked, Su Mo was stunned, and Wang Er and Wang Qiang found it even more unbelievable.
"How much land does your family cultivate?"
Wang Er and Wang Qiang also sat on the edge of the field. Wang Er replied, "My family cultivates a total of 32 mu of farmland and 8 mu of land. We have four laborers. My wife is also a good farmer, and there is also my second son. A few days ago, Feng Laosi, the stonemason in town, said he had taken on your job to find a group of people to go into the mountains. I thought he was not too busy now, so I sent my second son to go. He is paid 20 cents a day. It is a good profit, all thanks to you, the young master."
Fu Xiaoguan smiled and asked, "How much do these fields produce in a year? How much does it ultimately bring home?"
Wang Er thought about it and was about to put the cup down, but Fu Xiaoguan took it and took a big sip without any expression on his face.
Wang Er was stunned again, thought for a moment, and said, "The wheat harvest this year is pretty good, about 140 kilograms per mu. As for grain, last year the harvest was about 220 kilograms per mu, and this year I estimate it will be around 260 to 280 kilograms."
Fu Xiaoguan held the cup and took another sip, calculating in his mind.
My father said that the tenants got 20% of the profit. Wang Er's family harvested a total of 1,400 kilograms of wheat, so this 20% was 280 kilograms.
Based on last year's rice harvest, Wang Er's family harvested 7,000 kilograms of rice, and 20% of it is 1,400 kilograms. This seems to be enough to eat.
“How many did you sell?”
"We'll keep most of the wheat, and sell most of the rice—after all, we need to save some money. My two sons are getting married, so we need to build a house. Let's build the eldest son's first. He's already married to a woman from the Zhang family in the east end of the village. They're going to get married by the end of this year. Then we'll save some money. My youngest son is sixteen now, so we'll have to find him a partner in two years."
These words sounded a bit heavy to Fu Xiaoguan's ears, but he still asked in great detail.
"Is the remaining food enough to eat?"
"My wife is quite good at managing the household. She cleared some wasteland and, in due season, she grows sorghum, pumpkins, radishes, and other things. She also raises two pigs and some chickens and ducks. Our life is much better now than before. This is all thanks to the blessing of the master and the young master. Now we have something to look forward to."
Su Mo looked at the backs of the young man and the farmer in the sunset. With this countryside as the backdrop, it was a wonderful painting. The young man in the painting did not look abrupt, but rather harmonious. He really blended into the painting, no different from the old farmer next to him.
Afterwards, the two chatted about some farming matters. Fu Xiaoguan listened with great interest. When he said goodbye, he left a message, saying that when Wang Qiang got married, he should let him know. If he was not in the West Mountain Villa, he should let Zhang, the housekeeper, pass on a message.
Wang Qiang was of course very happy, but Wang Er felt that as the young master, it was unlikely that he would attend his son's wedding.
The young master is a man who does big things, and he may not care about such a small matter in his own family.
Standing up and brushing the dirt off his butt, Fu Xiaoguan said goodbye to Wang Er and his son, waved goodbye to the farmers in the fields, and walked towards the villa.
The setting sun hung over the western hills, stretching his shadow very long.
Fu Xiaoguan didn't say a word on the way back. When he arrived at the villa, he lay on the lounge chair and looked at the still blue sky, still without saying a word.
Chunxiu was a little worried. She handed over the tea and asked, "Master, is there something bothering you?"
Fu Xiaoguan took the tea, shook his head, and said, "Actually, I can do more for them..."
Su Mo looked at Fu Xiaoguan, and heard him say, "To increase their harvest, we must liberate them from the fields. This involves a series of projects later on—I originally wanted to play around, but...!"
A sigh.
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