1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 792
On October 1663, 10, Nandu Prefecture, Jiangling (now Geelong City in southern Australia), Shimen Village.

During this period, no matter in the Eastern China Continent or the Western European region, most of the farm tools used by farmers were made by blacksmiths or carpenters in the local villages, and some of the crude farm tools were made by the farmers themselves.

However, within the territory of Qi State, whether it is the mainland of Hanzhou or several nearby overseas territories, almost all the agricultural tools used by farmers, including those relatively large agricultural equipment, are all provided by several industrialized Qi State factories.Even the iron farm tools used by the natives of the Tubang Kingdom in the entire Nanyang region were mostly supplied by Qi State.

Although these kingdoms have been more or less exploited and squeezed by merchants from the Qi State, it is undeniable that their agricultural cultivation level and technology have obviously been improved to a certain extent after the industrially standardized agricultural tools provided by the Qi State. Progress, agricultural output, has also improved to some extent.

As a plow for spring plowing, for nearly 1000 years, in ancient China, it has always been at the leading level in the world.High-efficiency plows equipped with curved iron plowwalls had been used by the Western Han Dynasty, and the plows had basically been finalized.In addition to the curved surface of the plowboard, good structure is also a factor that makes Chinese plows superior to various plows from other countries in the world.Especially Chinese plows use adjustable rods to change the distance between the plow blades and the plow beam, which can precisely adjust the depth of plowing.

In India, Persia and Arabia, plows with plow walls were not used in ancient times.Chinese plows with curved iron plowwalls were introduced to Japan in the Tang Dynasty and had a long-term impact on Japanese agricultural production.For a long time, Europe only knew to use the wooden plow wall facing directly. The wall and the plow cannot be tightly combined, often entraining grass and soil, and dragging is laborious. It was not until the beginning of the 18th century that it began to use curved surfaces due to the influence of the introduction of Chinese plows. Iron plowwall.

Traditional European plows were inefficient because of their wide base, heavy wooden wheels, and large wooden moldboards, which created a lot of drag.In addition, the plow wall and the plow share cannot be closely attached to each other, and weeds and soil will be caught in the gap. When plowing, the plower has to stop every few minutes to remove the soil and weeds on the plow with a stick.Efficiency is far less than that of traditional plows in China.

As for sowing tools, the three-legged columbine passed down from the Han Dynasty is still the most advanced sowing machine in this period.It perfectly completes the four processes of ditching, planting, covering and compacting in succession, saving time and effort.You know, until the end of the 17th century, the only method used for sowing in Europe was sowing.Moreover, for a long time, sowing has been the only way for European farmers to sow seeds, which is not only inefficient, but also a waste of seeds.As a result, in arable land, there may be more than ten times more seeds in the sunken places, and there may be few or no seeds in the higher places.This inhomogeneity reduces the effective number of seeds, because the space packed together by fifty seeds is not as much as the yield of one seed.In places that are too close together, the plants cannot get enough nutrients at all.

With the development and progress of Qi's industry, and in order to solve the shortcomings of domestic manpower shortage, several local agricultural machinery manufacturers have spared no effort to research and improve the production efficiency of agricultural machinery since more than ten years ago.

Based on the descriptions of agricultural equipment and machinery in "Nongzheng Quanshu" and "Nongshu", as well as a large number of graphics and instructions, the master craftsmen in the factory not only completely copied and produced a large number of agricultural machinery and tools, but also Various agricultural tools such as plows, cogwheels, and field cultivators have been upgraded to make them more efficient for farmers to use.

In a large field on the east side of Shimen Village, Li Chengsheng took the reins and carefully controlled the horses behind him to make the horse-drawn seed drill move at a more uniform speed, while his father Li Detian followed behind the seed drill, carefully Check the status of wheat sowing.

Both the seed drill and the horses were rented from the agricultural support station in the village. It cost [-] cents a day, and they also had to bear the cost of feeding the horses during the rental period.

The drill can be adjusted to sow the vast majority of different seed sizes.Some special drills can even spread manure and artificial fertilizers.Two people and one horse can sow five to eight acres of arable land every day.This is more than twice as efficient as the columbine carts that were commonly used in Daming.

"Sheng'er, it's getting late, it's time to call it a day and go home for dinner." When the drill machine reached the ground, Li Detian handed a water bottle to his eldest son, and then wiped his sweat with the cotton cloth hanging around his neck.

"Hey!" Li Chengsheng took the kettle, raised his neck, and gulped down the water.

"Sheng'er, what do you think of the girl who was prime minister in Dongyu Village a few days ago?"

"Ahem..." Li Chengsheng choked on the water when he heard the words, his face flushed red, "Father, I... I'm only 16 years old. Wait a few years before thinking about it..."

"Sixteen years old, already considered an adult." Li Detian glanced at his son, "Back then, in the land of Daming, there were not a few people who married their wives at the age of thirteen or fourteen. Isn't it also stipulated in our country that men and women reach the age of 16? You can marry whatever you want. I was thinking, after you get married, I will help you for a few more years, and then give you a little property, and you can also start your own business. Your remaining brothers and sisters, I rely on the land. Forty acres of land can raise them one by one."

"Father..." Li Chengsheng showed a trace of hesitation on his face, "Father, I want to go to sea and go for a break."

"What sea?" Li Detian glared at his son immediately after hearing the words, "You don't know, going to sea will kill you! Back then, your father traveled all the way from Daming to Hanzhou, and there were 400 people on the big ship. There were a lot of people, and ten people died. Just like that, there was no result of any storm... When you went to the county seat, didn't you hear the sailors who ran the boat say that when there was a storm at sea, the whole boat would die? To be swallowed by the Sea Dragon King, not even a single bone will be left!"

"However, as long as you go out to sea for a year or two, you can earn more than ten years' worth of food!" Li Chengsheng said, "Besides, even if you go to sea, you don't necessarily have to run a boat on the sea. Listen to those The folks at the Handong Trading Company said that many of the island’s commercial bases also need manpower. Moreover, as long as they are from our country of Qi, they can become local masters!”

"What do you know, kid!" Li Detian said with a stern face: "You think you can easily become a master in the local area? That is to fight with the natives on the island with muskets and knives! Although those The natives are ignorant and backward, but if one is not careful, they will be plotted against by others, and their lives will also be lost. You child, after studying for several years, you have lost your heart! Listen to what your father says, so you are born Farm in Hanzhou, then marry a daughter-in-law, have a few children, and continue the blood of my old Li family!"

"..." Li Chengsheng was still dissatisfied, but seeing his father's sullen expression, he had no choice but to shut up, hold his head sullenly, lead the horse, and walk towards the village.

Back home, it was already evening, and several younger brothers and sisters happily greeted them out of the yard, surrounded the plow horse with more than a dozen children who had followed along the way, chattering non-stop, and kept having little hands. Reach out and try to touch the horse.

Li Chengsheng was upset, he didn't carry his two younger brothers to the horse to play like yesterday, and pushed away the children blocking the horse one by one with a tiger face.

"What's wrong with this child?" His wife, Qu Fangying, held her daughter under the age of one in her arms, and watched Li Chengsheng walking towards the side room without saying a word, "Are you pissing him off? With such a big child, it's time to throw a temper tantrum , if it’s okay, don’t say a few words.”

"Why did I hate him?!" Li Detian walked sideways towards the house, "Sheng'er wants to go out on a boat, and I dissuade him from going out to take risks. If not, he will show his face to me."

"Let's go to sea!" Qu Fangying frowned when he heard this, "The sea is extremely dangerous. Maybe at some point, the ship will sink and fall into the water....What is this kid thinking?"

"Who said it wasn't?" Li Detian washed his face after entering the room, and changed the sweaty clothes on his body. "In the first half of the year, this kid wanted to be admitted to the Naval Academy, but he failed. I guess it was affected by those in the county. The sailors who ran the boat were bewitched and wanted to go to sea to make a fortune. Tell me, is the overseas gold and silver so easy to earn? Although our Qi State’s warships and armies are invincible, we recklessly went to overseas islands , if we are injured by those ferocious natives, wouldn’t it make us cry for a long time.”

"Yes." Qu Fangying nodded, "The climate here is suitable and the land is fertile. Although we can't earn much money, we can still eat enough. After a few years, when we have enough money, we can buy a few more cattle and sheep." If you keep it, you can spend more money every year. Compared with Daming, this day is like heaven."

"That's not right!" Li Detian reached out and touched the face of the baby in his wife's arms, and said with a smile, "The greatest luck in my life is to board our emigration ship from Qi State, leave Daming, and come to Hanzhou When it comes to buying some cattle and sheep, I think that in April and May of next year, the money accumulated in the house will be borrowed from the agricultural bank in the village, and I should be able to raise five or six sheep. There are meadows and pastures everywhere here. It is a natural breeding ground for livestock.”

Before the middle of the 18th century, in addition to nomadic areas where a large number of livestock could be raised, in traditional farming areas, including Eastern China and Europe, it was not easy to raise livestock, and people could only raise a small amount—and those inferior breeds—of livestock.Because, the farmers of this period lacked two things: enough feed for their livestock and enough manure for the crops that came with it.As a result, crop yields were poor and livestock and livestock products were seriously inadequate.

In addition, in livestock breeding, the biggest difficulty is how to increase the supply of livestock feed in winter. It was not until the middle of the 17th century that alfalfa and turnips began to be sporadically planted in the vast area between Antwerp and Ghent in the Netherlands, giving a small amount of Livestock provided winter fodder but did not spread throughout the European region.By the 18s, alfalfa and ryegrass began to be planted on a large scale in various European countries, which was able to increase the scale of livestock breeding at that time.

In the Hanzhou continent, except for the western and inland desert areas and the virgin forest areas in the northeast where livestock cannot be raised on a large scale, the north, southeast coast, both sides of the Dadong Mountain (now the Great Dividing Range in Australia), and the southwest area are everywhere. pasture.The government of Qi State, which attaches great importance to agricultural production, has trained thousands of agricultural experts in the past ten years. In addition to guiding farmers on the ground in various counties and towns, it also vigorously promotes and helps farmers raise livestock. , to increase the supply of meat and fur in Qi.

Originally, Li Detian immigrated to Hanzhou for [-] or [-] years. He should have raised some livestock in addition to farming to increase family income.But who let the children in the family be born one after another, which greatly consumed the extra energy of the family.Today, in addition to the unfortunate death of two babies in the early stage, the couple have given birth to a total of six children so far.

Now except for the eldest brother Li Chengsheng who is 16 years old, the younger brothers and sisters are from five to sixteen to thirteen or fourteen years old. They can already help the family raise some livestock while studying in elementary school.But considering the large number of people in the family, the burden is still very heavy, so Li Detian doesn't really want the boss to go out to sea.In addition to the risks at sea, there is also the sudden lack of a labor force to set up a family at home, which is somewhat difficult.

"Father, I don't want to eat dried fish." Five-year-old Li Chengping couldn't help muttering as he looked at a large plate of dried salted fish on the dining table.

"Don't eat dried fish? Then eat dried steamed buns!" Li Detian said angrily: "Little bastard, you have never been hungry! When you have a meal, you still pick and choose, and some are good." .At that time, your father was in Daming, and he almost starved to death. Don’t talk about dried fish, even wild vegetable roots, you can’t get a piece of it!”

Mother Qu Fangying saw her youngest son pouting aggrievedly, gnawing on the steamed buns one by one, feeling distressed, so she quietly pushed the bowl of poached eggs in front of her, motioning him to eat one.

"Don't feed him! You're not a child of a wealthy family, how can you pamper him?" Li Detian saw him, and moved his wife's bowl over, "You gave birth to a sixth child, and your health has never been very good. repair."

"I eat poached eggs every now and then, and my mouth feels a little tired." Qu Fangying smiled, and picked an egg for Lao Wu with chopsticks.

"...to kill a chicken tomorrow, and let everyone eat some meat." Li Detian took a big bite of steamed buns, lowered his head and muttered, and picked up the sweet potato porridge on the dinner table with his hands.

"Alright, I've been busy with spring farming for more than half a month, so it's time to reward your father." Qu Fangying's face was somewhat satisfied.

In other words, more than 20 years ago, in the countryside of Huaibei, because the family was poor and did not have much food, they only ate two meals a day, one dry and one thin, and a lot of bran, wild vegetables, and grass roots were mixed.Even if this kind of meal is eaten, only the adult males in the family can eat at the table. She, her mother, and a few younger sisters can only watch from the sidelines, and only pick up the rest when they are full. Cushion your tummy.

In fact, Qu Fangying's family was not the only one in Daming.Years of wars, natural disasters, various collections by the government, oppression by the landlords, and the production and life of the people everywhere have long fallen into extreme poverty.In the homes of countless ordinary people, there are rules for eating. The young labor force in the family eats first, and when they are full, it is the turn of the children or the elderly to eat, and finally the women eat.Only in this way can the young men have the energy to work and earn money to support their families.Often in the end, women can only scrape the wooden barrels to have rice.

Sometimes when the harvest is not good, the people have to sell everything they have if they want to live. If they can’t pay the taxes, they sell their land, their labor force, and their wives and children. Without wives and children, they can only beg for a living.Under such a vicious circle, some unimaginable laws of life have been born.

It seems that since he can remember, Qu Fangying has never been full, and he is hungry every day. In the fields, or in the fish ponds and forests, whatever can be eaten in his stomach, no matter what it is, he just stuffs it into his mouth.Voles, grasshoppers, birds, and even some insects crawling in the soil can become her food.

Her husband just said that the greatest luck in this life is to come to Hanzhou and live a good life with enough food and clothing.For a woman like her, isn't this the greatest luck in her life?
(End of this chapter)