Distributing sweet potato seedlings
Chapter 81: Distribution of Sweet Potato Seedlings
In April, Chu Huaibei planted all the sweet potatoes. In early May, when the seedlings grew to about 30 centimeters, he began to cut the seedlings and sent them to the Qin and Xue families first.
May is the wheat harvest season in the north. Every family is harvesting wheat. If they are quick, they can finish harvesting and plow the fields within half a month.
Chu Huaibei started with the military settlements. He gave one acre of potato seedlings to every family that harvested wheat.
Someone was sent to put up a blackboard at the entrance of the military settlement, which stated the planting methods and yields of sweet potatoes, and the cooked sweet potatoes were cut into small pieces for people to taste.
Everyone thought the yield of 2,500 kilograms per mu was just a fantasy, but they also felt that the prince had never lied to them. In addition, everyone liked the taste of sweet potatoes, so the collection of potato seedlings was proceeding in an orderly manner.
Chu Huaibei also sent Chen Sinong to preside over the popularization of sweet potato planting and the collection of potato seedlings. Within a month, everyone in the Sinong Institute lost weight through running around.
In order to prevent people from taking advantage of their power to bully others, Chu Huaibei assigned a centurion to follow each person in the Sinong Office. The centurion led a hundred soldiers to that station, and their imposing manner scared away some people with bad intentions.
This time when Chu Huaibei distributed potato seedlings, every family, whether they were from aristocratic families or common people, could get one acre of land. It was truly fair and just.
Of course, Chu Huaibei could guess what the aristocratic families were thinking, but in the face of war, she just wanted more people to survive.
You always have to be prepared. When the whole city is under siege, the more food and supplies the better. The battlefield is unpredictable and you may have to fight a long-term offensive and defensive battle.
It’s not that Chu Huaibei looks down on the imperial court, but it will be a problem whether the reinforcements and military supplies can be delivered to the northern border in time.
Chu Huaibei insisted on planting now because he wanted to harvest the sweet potatoes from this acre of land by the end of September or early October, and it would not delay the subsequent wheat sowing, thus killing two birds with one stone.
Chu Huaibei sent letters in advance to the noble families he had dealings with, stating that the palace had harvested all the wheat this year.
He also asked his mother to collect 500,000 dan of grain in the south, secretly sending the grain to the north in batches and storing it in various warehouses.
Originally, the concubine did not agree to collect so much grain. After all, there was still some grain stored from last year. It would be a waste if too much grain got moldy.
Chu Huaibei didn't want to tell his mother directly that there would be a tough battle to fight this winter. He only said that there had been no movement in Mongolia in winter for three consecutive years, and he was afraid that something unexpected would happen this year, so he should prepare in advance.
After hearing this reason, which she didn't know whether it would happen in the future, the concubine looked into Chu Huaibei's eyes and agreed to it.
The concubine did not explain to Chu Huaibei that the palace's large purchase of grain from outside would attract the emperor's attention.
But seeing that her son had a serious face and was so busy this year that he didn't even attend Hengheng's birthday, all the signs showed that she was very sure that Mongolia would attack the northern border this year.
The concubine gritted her teeth and decided to do it first. If war really broke out, the emperor would probably not hold her accountable. Even if he did, she could use her military achievements to offset the responsibility. After all, there was no more title to be given to the Zhenbei Palace.
In September, kerosene catapults, heavy crossbows and Zhuge magic crossbows were installed on the city walls of the six northern states overnight.
Since Xue Zhan took over the training of crossbowmen two years ago, the selection and training has never stopped.
Now all the well-trained archers are assigned to the six states to be responsible for the operation and use of this batch of heavy crossbows and Zhuge magic crossbows.
As for the operator of the kerosene delivery truck, he was selected and trained by Chu Huaibei himself.
The use of thunder bombs was also included in the training, and this group of people was only selected from Chu Huaibei's own personal soldiers.
First, ensure their loyalty.
Although the selected kerosene soldiers sometimes did not understand the prince's unnecessary actions, they subconsciously obeyed the prince's orders and did whatever was required.
In early October, the people had a bumper harvest of sweet potatoes planted in May, with the worst yield being 1,600 kilograms per mu.
The people treasured the sweet potatoes very much. They kept most of them as seeds and only ate a small portion to satisfy their cravings.
The wealthy families also put sweet potatoes on the table and studied all kinds of ways to cook them, making sure they tasted the best.
Of course, when Chu Huaibei distributed the potato seedlings, he sent 100 kilograms of sweet potatoes to Fengjing and also gave the planting method to the emperor.
As for what the emperor would do with this batch of sweet potatoes, it was not within Chu Huaibei's consideration, and she didn't have time to think about it.
By mid-October, all the wheat in the northern border had been planted, and the people were looking forward to the harvest next year. This year, every household had seen an increase in yield per mu, but it was just a matter of who got more and who got less.
Nowadays, the people in the northern border may not know the emperor’s title, but they must know the name of the King of Zhenbei, Chu Huaibei.
The atmosphere in the military camp was becoming increasingly serious, and even the thick-bodied Jin Hongye could feel it.
In the past, people in the military camp would play around when they had free time, but now they are either practicing in the training ground or resting in the tents when they are tired of practicing.
Xue Zhan and Qin Feng basically never leave Chu Huaibei's side at the same time, one of them always stays behind.
That day, while Chu Huaibei was returning home, Sun Mingsi took out a piece of gold-thread soft armor, tried it on Chu Huaibei, and asked Chu Huaibei to wear it every day from now on.
To be honest, it was the first time Chu Huaibei had seen such finely crafted armor, and she had underestimated the craftsmanship of the ancient craftsmen.
This soft armor is made of dark yellow metal. From a distance, it looks like a round-neck vest made of yellow satin. Under the light, it has a subtle satin-like luster.
A closer look reveals that it is made of metal stretched into thin filaments and woven using a special technique. It is soft to the touch and can be bent or rolled up at will with the movement.
The entire piece of soft armor did not feel heavy in the hand. Chu Huaibei weighed it in his hand and found it was only about four pounds, which could be considered very light.
Just as Chu Huaibei was studying it carefully, Sun Mingsi spoke.
"Huaibei, you've been so tense over the past year that I couldn't accompany you to the war. This soft armor was left to me by my father. I'm giving it to you now. I hope you'll be safe and sound."
"Huzhi, I cannot accept such a valuable soft armor. Besides, it was left to you by your father."
"Chu Huaibei! You!"
"Listen to me, this soft armor is temporarily lent to me. I will return it to you when there is no more war in Daxia. Are you willing, Hu Zhi?"
When Sun Mingsi heard these words of love that were equivalent to a promise to be together till old age, the stars in his eyes could no longer stay there, and they flashed across his porcelain-white face as fast as a meteor.
Chu Huaibei was rarely artistic, but he was shocked by the other party's reaction. How could it have backfired?
Putting the soft armor aside, he walked forward and hugged the beautiful woman who was crying silently. He put his left hand around the back of the person's head and gently rested his head on his shoulder.
He gently patted his back with his right hand, trying to ease the emotions of the person in his arms.
But it obviously didn't work, she could feel that the clothes on her right shoulder were wet with tears.
Oh no, are her love words so harsh?
She gently distanced herself from Hu Zhi, held his face in her hands, and kissed away all the tears in his eyes.
"Huzhi, don't cry. Your tears are salty and bitter. If I said something wrong, I apologize to you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
Sun Mingsi stretched out his hands, stroked the back of Chu Huaibei's neck with his left hand, pressed the back of her head with his right hand, and kissed her red lips that said sorry, using almost all his strength.
He wished so much that he could grow old with her, but he didn't know how long his body could last. He couldn't keep her promise, he couldn't do it.
They didn't separate until both of them were almost out of breath.
"Huaibei, I'm so happy. You don't have to say sorry."
Their lips were pressed against each other, and every word Sun Mingsi said stirred Chu Huaibei's heartstrings.
"Okay, I won't say any more. Do you want me to try the soft armor on for you now?"
"want!"
Chu Huaibei took off his outer garments, leaving only his underwear, and put on the soft armor. This soft armor was very close-fitting and did not hinder his movements, which was quite perfect.
"It fits perfectly. You can wear it every day from now on, okay?"
"Okay, I'll listen to Huzhi."
After taking off their soft armor, the two of them went into the clean room to wash up. During this time, they played in the water like mandarin ducks, which is not something to be told to outsiders.
The next day, Chu Huaibei simply entrusted all the people in the palace, young and old, to Hu Zhi.
"Huzhi, I have a bad feeling. If the Mongolian army attacks the city, please take good care of everyone in the palace. If something unexpected happens and the city is breached, please lead everyone in the palace to flee south. Don't look back for me. Only when you are safe can I focus on fighting. Do you understand?"
"Okay, Huaibei, don't worry. I will definitely take good care of you. However, I require Jin Jiu to Jin Shisan to stay by your side every day from now on to protect you."
"No, if they leave, won't you have no one around you?"
How could Chu Huaibei agree to this?
"I'm going to recruit Jin Sanshi and the others today. You don't have to worry about me not having enough manpower."
Chu Huaibei stared into Hu Zhi's eyes, and seeing that he did have someone he could use, he stopped insisting and nodded in agreement.
Chu Huaibei is more familiar with Jin Jiu and Jin Shiyi. The other three usually follow behind him with a low presence, but their skills are not worse than those of the two.
Chu Huaibei had some idea about Hu Zhi's identity.
In the military camp, people were just a little curious about the five extra people behind the prince, and no one discussed it too much. It was normal for the Zhenbei Palace to have a few powerful palace soldiers, wasn't it?
Jin Hongye has been having a quarrel with his master recently. He has been in a bad mood and has been going to the training ground less often.
Chu Huaibei didn't mean to eavesdrop, he just happened to pass by his tent that day.
Simply put, Jin Hongye felt that there would definitely be a war in the north, and wanted to send his advisor back to Yangzhou, but his advisor refused to leave.
During the quarrel, Chu Huaibei vaguely heard Jin Hongye calling him uncle, and he could understand Jin Hongye's feelings very well. His loved ones were by his side, and he was a man who had experienced the battlefield. He definitely didn't want his relatives to stay in the barracks without any martial arts skills.
If any accident happened, no one could escape the scimitars of the Mongolian army.
Forget it, he will pretend that he doesn't know about this. It would be best if he can go back to Yangzhou. If he refuses to go back, then the worst that can happen is that he will be sent to the palace.
The only person in the barracks who had never fought against the Mongolian army was the newly arrived General Gong. It must be said that this man handled the military affairs in an orderly manner as soon as he took over.
However, Chu Huaibei had seen him sparring with others several times in the training grounds, and honestly speaking, he was no match for any general in the current military camp. He hoped that he would have better luck and save his life.
Gong Que thought he was pretty good. He had served under the Marquis of Zhennan for a period of time and had won several battles with him.
After Li Guyan left, Lord Zhao handed the remaining people over to him, so whether it was handling military affairs or matters requiring manpower, Gong Que did a pretty good job.
During this period, the court's military rations were delivered on time, still escorted by Wei Zeng, and there was not a single ton less.
Cotton-padded clothes were also delivered to the military camp before winter.
As November approached, Chu Huaibei was in a state of high tension. After making so many preparations, he only wanted to succeed and not fail.
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