Chapter 408 Benefits

Chapter 408 Benefits
The days passed by.

The imperial army was besieging Xin'an City, and many were killed and wounded. Wang Mi, however, held his ground and did not come out. It seemed that he was waiting for the imperial army to become exhausted before attacking in one fell swoop to see if he could gain some results.

While the city of Mengjin Ferry was still under construction, Shao Xun began to reorganize the young men and women into laborers and make plans for the future.

He did not intend to give this important place to the imperial court as he was worried that the emperor would act recklessly.

On June 20th, the heat was unusually severe.

Wang Yan came, empty-handed.

Shao Xun glanced at him, ignored Lao Deng, and continued to work in the fields.

It was dinner time and the aroma of steamed corn rice wafted from the side.

Wang Yan sniffed and said with a smile, "I have to bother Quanzhong with a meal."

"I've finished eating." Shao Xun threw away the hoe and said unhappily.

Cai Cheng took cucumber seeds and threw them into the holes to help Shao Xun plant cucumbers.

"Growing vegetables is a good business." Wang Yan said with a smile.

"What? Commander, do you also want to come to Shazhou to grow vegetables? Welcome. I'll build you a thatched cottage so that you and I can live next to each other. How about that?" Shao Xun walked to the river, washed his hands, wiped them on his robe, and said.

"I just happened to bring some seeds." Wang Yan shook a small cloth bag in his hand and said with a smile.

"What?"

"I begged it from Shuzhong, and it's called 'dwarf melon' in the local area."

Shao Xun didn't quite know what it was, but after taking it, his expression improved a lot and he said, "Let's eat."

The personal guards brought a low table. The dishes were simple: two bowls of corn rice, a stewed carp, and two plates of pickles.

Wang Yan didn't hesitate to sit down and started eating, and he enjoyed his meal very much.

Shao Xun devoured the food like whirlwind and finished it in just a short while.

"If everything is fine, General, you can go back now." After resting for a while, Shao Xun came to a temporary warehouse and said while checking the linen.

Wang Yan followed casually with his hands behind his back, saying, "Hey, this cloth is nice."

Linen is also divided into different grades. High-quality linen is very comfortable to wear and inexpensive, making it very suitable for the common people.

"Yushanwu sent a total of 300 pieces of white linen. What do you think, Commander?" Shao Xun asked, holding up a piece of white linen.

Wang Yan took it, looked at it carefully, touched it, and said, "It's fine and durable, not bad."

After that, he continued, "I heard earlier that you had people transplant mulberry trees in Xuchang, and I was worried that you had taken the wrong path. Now it seems that it is not so bad. Although it is always said that the foundation of life is farming for food and mulberry and hemp for clothing, in fact, hemp is the foundation."

"The best strategy is to develop silkworms, mulberry trees, hemp and cotton at the same time," Shao Xun said.

What he was talking about here were actually three kinds of cloth, namely silk, linen and ramie.

Among them, the output of silk is not the largest. At present, the silk produced in Changshan, Zhongshan and Zhaojun in Hebei has the highest quality, followed by other places in Hebei and Henan. The technical level of Jiangdong is not as good as that of Guanzhong - yes, Guanzhong and even Youzhou have sericulture industry, and the scale is very large.

The output of linen far exceeds that of silk, and it is the main raw material for daily clothing for the general public.

The output of Kudzu cloth is the smallest and is mainly located in the south, and the northernmost is in the southern part of Yuzhou and along the Huaihe River.

There are also some other fabrics with local characteristics, but their output is extremely small and can be ignored.

"Mr. Chen is very courageous." Wang Yan said with a smile, "However, we should be practical in everything. It is better to start with linen."

"There's something else behind what the commander said." Shao Xun asked in confusion.

Wang Yan laughed and said, "What a coincidence! I saw your uncle Liu Gong sending people to transport linen cloth northward outside Jianchun Gate, so I went home to get a book."

After saying this, he waved his hand, and a servant came forward and took out a thin booklet made of yellow paper from the package.

Wang Yan handed the booklet to Shao Xun and said, "Why not take a look?"

Shao Xun took it and looked at it, and almost laughed out loud. There were only three words on the cover: Planting pockmarks.

"In the Strategies of the Warring States, there is a record of what Lu Zhonglian said to Mengchangjun. Lu has not been rich in forests and marshes since ancient times, but the land is small and the population is large, which is because of the mulberry and hemp industry." Wang Yan continued: "My family has lived in Langya for generations, and I have some experience in mulberry and hemp. I wonder if this book is worth reading?"

"Not bad." Shao Xun read half of it and put it away carefully.

These are all practical techniques and tips for growing hemp, which are very helpful for improving yield and quality. Even modern people, unless they are in this industry, may not understand this knowledge. After all, many people can't even tell the difference between leeks and wheat seedlings.

These days, advanced productivity is still in the hands of aristocratic families.

Damn it, we have to dig it out.

"Taiwei, please take a seat." Shao Xun asked someone to bring a Hu bed and said with a smile, "I wonder why Taiwei came to Heyang?"

"I didn't come here empty-handed." Wang Yan said.

"Of course I didn't come empty-handed."

Wang Yan nodded. It was useless to beat around the bush with the man in front of him. He was the kind of person who would not do anything until he saw the rabbit. It would be better to talk to him about practical benefits.

So he said, "The court has no grain, no money, and not much silk. But there are still some weapons, which can be distributed as appropriate. If Mr. Chen wants them, I will find someone to supervise this matter."

"It won't be enough just relying on a few tools." Shao Xun said dissatisfiedly, "I've been here for twenty days and have only obtained 100,000 hu of millet. Now I'm transferring 50,000 hu of grain from Xinzheng, which is only enough to last until August. What's more, so many people are still building the city..." "The court has already distributed the grain for building the city," Wang Yan corrected.

"Okay, let's get this over with." Shao Xun said, "Meizi can guarantee that there will be food delivered in July."

"In July, there were only 100,000 hu."

"Okay, I believe the commander." Shao Xun continued, "But the Xiongnu are stationed on the river in large numbers, attacking day and night. Where are the rewards and relief?"

Wang Yan was a little annoyed and asked, "You only recognize this thing?"

Shao Xun said calmly: "I like beauties, not money, but I can't resist the love of my men. If I don't have money to reward, who will work for me?"

"Only three thousand pieces of silk." Wang Yan said.

"Thirty thousand."

Wang Yan almost fainted. Is this how you bargain?
After seeing Shao Xun's resolute expression, he sighed: "Quanzhong, the state affairs are difficult, we should endure for the country."

Shao Xun carefully observed his expression and found that he really couldn't squeeze out any more money, so he asked tentatively: "Captain, I heard that Luoyang has various craftsmen sent from various states to serve, do you know?"

Hmm? Wang Yan looked at him doubtfully.

Shao Xun saw that there was a good chance and immediately smiled and said, "For example, the book "Growing Mazi" is very good. If the court has any craftsmen, can some be transferred to Yuzhou? Anyway, they are idle now..."

"The blacksmith is still very busy." Wang Yan said, "From morning till night, the furnace is burning, making equipment for you. Do you know how difficult it is to make a set of iron armor? If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never believe that it takes thirty or forty people to spend more than half a year to make a set of iron armor..."

"If the blacksmith can't do it, other craftsmen should be able to do it, right?" Shao Xun said.

He is now mainly responsible for solving the food and clothing problems of the people in his jurisdiction.

People who are not directly engaged in agricultural production, such as blacksmiths, merchants, and scholars, generally need a large surplus of agricultural products to support a large area. The so-called industrial revolution first needs to solve the agricultural revolution.

It is good to have a blacksmith, but if not, other craftsmen such as weavers and dyers or other craftsmen will also do, preferably those closely related to agricultural production.

"I will go back and discuss this matter with someone." When Wang Yan heard this, he found this condition acceptable.

"It's a deal then." Shao Xun said happily.

The spread of technology in ancient times was very slow, and even those who mastered the technology had no intention of spreading it at all.

Just like the flower-shaped steamed buns that He Zeng had eaten, such a trivial eating technique was made mysterious and only circulated among a few aristocratic families. It was too outrageous.

This time, we have to pay a lot of money from the imperial court to seek benefits for the people in Yu and Yan states.

They now trust me very much and are willing to fight for me, so of course I have to give back to them.

"How is the situation in Yu and Yan states now?" Seeing Shao Xun like that, Wang Yan also became curious and asked.

"Yanzhou is not that good, but Yuzhou is OK." Shao Xun said, "After the autumn harvest this year, I plan to have people plant winter wheat."

Wang Yan nodded slightly.

The promotion of winter wheat in Sizhou was once one of his major political achievements, which earned him a lot of reputation, and he had a very good impression of this plant.

After Shao Xun governed Yuzhou for several years, the local situation had gradually stabilized.

Especially last year's Gaoping battle, where we defeated Liu Hanzhong's guard Jin Zhun. At the time, it was just an ordinary thing, but now, thinking about it, the impact of this victory is becoming more and more far-reaching.

This year, the Huns probably will not go south to the two states of Yu and Yan. This is the biggest achievement of the Battle of Gaoping.

As the Huns did not move south, Shao Xun had a chance to catch his breath, and he became bolder and bolder, and even thought of planting winter wheat. He was not afraid that the Huns would gather tens of thousands of cavalry again, rush south across the ice of the Yellow River, and completely destroy his crops.

If he succeeds in this, the food shortage will be greatly alleviated during the summer harvest in May next year, and then he can continue farming...

Given Henan's natural resources, by that time, the people would probably have surplus grain. As the saying goes, "three years of farming will provide one year's food." Even if there was the burden of Yanzhou, at least there would not be a large-scale famine.

It’s really amazing!
If you can win the battle, you can fill your stomach. Reality is really an education.

"After you go back, I will allocate 5,000 pieces of cloth and silk to you. There is no more. The emperor is also preparing to reward the meritorious officials in the Battle of Xin'an." Wang Yan said.

"If Wang Mi doesn't come out, Xin'an won't win." Shao Xun said, "The court might as well recruit him."

"I tried to persuade him, but it didn't work." Wang Yan sighed.

After sighing, he pointed at the river and asked, "Are you sure you can hold it?"

"The Huns are not yet capable of taking over the South City and the Central City. When we build the North City, there may be a major battle, but not now." Shao Xun said, "There are fewer sneak attacks at night now. The Central City will be roughly built in August or September, and the South City will probably be completed by the end of October."

To be honest, he didn't want to stay with He Zhu anymore. It was too boring.

Instead of spending this time, you might as well go back to Yanzhou to see your children, or go to Xuchang to inspect the fields.

"I feel relieved when you are here." Wang Yan said, "What do you think of the battle of Xin'an?"

"The court and Wang Mi are fighting a stupid battle, there is nothing to say." Shao Xun said: "I heard that the Liangzhou soldiers miss home after being stationed for a long time? Let them finish this battle before leaving. The Cavalry and Liangzhou Cavalry are drawn out and lie in ambush on the retreat route. If the Imperial Army is defeated, the Cavalry can charge out and perhaps gain some gains. At worst, the Imperial Army can be allowed to withdraw safely to Luoyang."

"I believe you." Wang Yan always trusted Shao Xun's military advice without a second thought.

"Guard this place well, I will leave tonight. If the three cities of Heyang are successfully built, it will be your great achievement." Wang Yan said: "Then the war of the governor of Sizhou will be a natural outcome, remember this."

(End of this chapter)