Water Margin people

On a snowy day, Sun Lei, dressed in formal attire, brought along civil and military officials and hundreds of selected farmers to an experimental field west of the lake.

"Greetings to Your Majesty!"

Those selected old farmers kowtowed to Sun Lei. They were all very prestigious elders in their respective counties.

"We invited you all here to witness a high yield. These grains will be promoted nationwide after the spring!"

Sun Lei looked at the group of elderly people and said.

Hearing about the auspicious sign, these old men began to whisper to each other. In their opinion, auspicious sign had little to do with ordinary people like them, and auspicious sign was something only the emperor could enjoy.

But when they heard it was about grain, these people's faces became solemn again. They were experts in farming, and if the court got involved, it would most likely cause trouble, because these officials did not understand farming at all.

"Your Majesty, spring ploughing is a big deal. It's related to the food supply of the whole country. Should we take a look at these new grains?"

An old man with a white beard but full of energy spoke up. From his dark and wrinkled skin, it was clear that he was an expert in the fields.

The others also nodded in agreement. Since ancient times, farming has been about paying attention to the season, and spring ploughing is the top priority. If the wrong crops are planted and the harvest is poor, the result will be thousands of starving people.

  In the eyes of these old men, Sun Lei, the young emperor with fair skin and no beard, knew nothing at all. Even weeds would not grow in the dead of winter, so how could there be any grain to be harvested at this time?

Sun Lei did not refute these people. He understood the concerns of ordinary people. Ordinary people had a weak financial situation and no ability to resist risks. Food was scarce and no one was willing to take risks.

"Everyone, hearing is believing, seeing is believing. I invite you all to come here to bear witness. There are not many seeds, and it will take time to promote them nationwide. If you are not satisfied by then, I will not force you!"

Sun Lei looked at those people and said that even if he spent a lot of money on greenhouse planting, it would still be impossible to promote a batch of seeds to the whole country at once.

When everyone heard that they would not force it, their reaction became much less intense. It would be fine as long as they refused to do so.

When they came to a greenhouse, the old farmers shook their heads when they saw the huge greenhouse surrounded by tung oil cloth, thinking that it was a waste of good things.

Entering a greenhouse, what comes into view is a neatly arranged field of land covered with withered and yellow stems and leaves, with the stems lying on the ground.

"Everyone can check it out first."

Sun Lei said to those people that they were all old farmers who had been farming for a lifetime and could definitely tell the authenticity of the land.

The old farmers were curious and looked around. Some even reached out and grabbed the soil to make sure that it was not shoveled out temporarily.

"Your Majesty, these have no ears or pods. Are they harvesting roots?"

Someone immediately looked at Sun Lei and asked, those withered and yellow stems and leaves looked inedible.

Sun Lei smiled and clapped his hands, and the guards brought some shovels and hoes.

"Everyone, you can see that I am not good at farming, so I'd better trouble you to harvest the crops!"

Sun Lei smiled and stretched out his hand. His fair and delicate hands showed that he was not someone who could endure hardship.

The old farmers did not refuse. Harvesting crops was their strong point, so they took hoes and shovels and started digging the soil and harvesting.

"Master Gongsun, Tao Zongwang, I leave this place to you. Let's go have a drink."

Sun Lei greeted them with a smile. They couldn't help much here. Compared with himself as the emperor, Gongsun Sheng, who had a fairy-like appearance, was more suitable for offering auspiciousness. "Yes, Your Majesty!"

Gongsun Sheng and Tao Zongwang saluted and said, Gongsun Sheng today was not wearing official clothes, but a crane cloak and holding a whisk, looking like an immortal.

The old farmers were very efficient when they started working. They wielded hoes and shovels like the wind. The soft soil was quickly dug up, revealing golden potatoes.

There were bursts of exclamations, and the old farmer's sharp eyes confirmed that these were not buried, because the rhizome had roots growing in the soil.

“So many, so big!”

Those old farmers could hardly believe their eyes. They had harvested crops before, but never such a high yield. One plant could produce more than three kilograms!

Sun Lei just smiled when he heard the exclamations behind him. These were just potatoes. When he saw the other old men, they would be scared to death. By then, they would probably beg him to give them seeds for spring farming.

"Brother, is this thing so good?"

Lu Zhishen asked nonchalantly. He knew nothing about farming. The only time he had managed farming in the vegetable garden of Daxiangguo Temple in Tokyo, he just watched over it at that time.

"You have such a big appetite, it seems you have never been hungry. Although we have minimized the impact of the conquest and have not brought any burden to the people, the country is exhausted and the people are very poor. The money we give out cannot flow into their hands!"

Sun Lei sat down in the small pavilion nearby, where his followers had already prepared a banquet.

"We have distributed more than 100 million yuan in the past two months, but in fact, it is all in the hands of rich people, concentrated in and around the prefecture and county. Ordinary people in the villages can hardly get enough to eat, so how can they exchange money? I heard that some places are still bartering."

Sun Lei sat down and looked at everyone.

"Isn't this great? Exchanging things for things?"

Qin Ming asked doubtfully, both sides get what they need and neither suffers a loss.

"That's not the case. Barter seems fair, but it also has serious shortcomings. First, the types of goods are severely limited. Second, it is easy to be forced to lower the price. In the end, merchants get richer and ordinary people lose out."

Xiao Jiasui said that the existence of currency has its meaning.

"What should we do then? Give out the money directly?"

Lu Zhishen touched his bald head, and the only solution he could think of was to give money.

"That sure seems like something you could come up with!"

Sun Lei looked at Lu Zhishen seriously and said, this is not to despise Lu Zhishen, but this is how Lu Zhishen should be.

"Master Lu, distributing money can only solve the problem temporarily, but it cannot solve the fundamental problem. Your Majesty's solution is to increase the output of the land. The people no longer have to worry about not having enough food. They can also sell the surplus food. After they no longer have to worry about food, they can grow vegetables, fruits, and raise pigs, cattle, sheep, chickens, ducks, etc. in their spare time!"

Wen Huanzhang said that this was a decision that made him see the light. All dynasties knew the crux of the problem, but no one tried to solve it, and no one could solve it.

The people seemed to never be truly full. Those who were dressed in silk and satin were not silkworm breeders. This was the reality. The people who worked hard on the land could rarely eat a meal of white noodles and white rice in a year.

But all this will be solved soon. They watched the high-yield crops grow little by little with their own eyes. They are very clear about the yields. The worst corn yields up to 1,000 kilograms per mu, and potatoes and sweet potatoes yield more than 2,000 kilograms per mu. With these, there will be no more famine in the world. (End of this chapter)