Nongmen Fu girl group’s daily favorites

Chapter 395 Cotton Field
Xiao Yichen sat upright in the main seat, motioned for everyone to sit down, and then said calmly: "Master Qin, do you know how much cotton is planted in Yi County?"

Qin Guoqing was stunned: "Excuse me, Your Highness, what is cotton?"

"Cotton is Jibei." Shen Jia added.

Wei Dayong once said that they called cotton "Jibei". Shen Jia was used to calling it "cotton" in his previous life, and he couldn't change it, so he simply gave up.

Qin Guoqing suddenly realized, "As far as I know, ordinary people in Yi County have planted at least one mu of land. This year, the rich have planted even more, some have planted hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of mu. The specific data needs to be investigated in detail."

Xiao Yichen raised his eyebrows and looked at him: "Cotton is the best thing to keep out the cold, why don't you report it?"

Qin Guoqing said helplessly: "Your Highness, cotton has only been in Yi County for six years. At first, only one or two families planted it. After everyone knew the usefulness of cotton, more and more people planted it. The people of Yi County can grow it and sell it to other places to increase their income. Moreover, cotton is only used to keep warm. I don't think it is necessary to report it."

His underlying meaning was that the common people paid land taxes, and the cotton grown was used to keep warm and increase their income, but it was not something edible like grain. Even if it was reported, it would not bring much credit. Why should the common people here reduce their income for that little bit of credit?
What he said made so much sense that Xiao Yichen was speechless.

Fan Shiqing looked at Qin Guoqing deeply. There was a reason why this man had been the county magistrate of Yi County for seven years.

Anyone with a bit of tact wouldn't be so blunt.

Fortunately, His Highness and the Princess are both broad-minded people. If they were petty people, they would have been punished for disrespect.

However, Shen Jia felt that Qin Guoqing had a sincere heart. The northwestern border area was already bitter and cold, and it was not easy to grow good things to keep out the cold, so naturally he would first give priority to the people under his jurisdiction.

If he was an official with evil intentions, he could just buy more farms and hire people to grow cotton, and then sell it to other places in the Great Zhou.

Officials are not allowed to do business, but it does not say that wives and daughters cannot run their own dowry shops or farms. There is a lot of knowledge involved here, right?
The fact that Qin Guoqing could resist temptation shows that he has good character.

Shen Jia thought that the Northwest, with its vast territory and sparse population, unique climatic conditions, large temperature difference between day and night, and abundant sunshine, was most suitable for growing cotton.

They can hire the people of Yi County to go to other parts of the Northwest to teach how to grow cotton. In this way, it will be just a matter of time before the Northwest becomes a major cotton-producing province.

Thinking of this, Shen Jia slowly said: "Master Qin, you don't know that cotton can be spun into cotton thread and woven into cotton cloth. Clothes made of cotton cloth are no worse than silk. We plan to make the northwest a major cotton province, open a textile factory in the northwest, and sell the spun cloth to all parts of Da Zhou..."

The amount of information revealed in Shen Jia's words was so great that all the officials present were stunned for a long time.

After a long while, Qin Guoqing finally found his voice: "Your Highness, Princess, what do you need me to do?"

A hint of smile flashed across Xiao Yichen's eyes. This guy was just a little straightforward, but he was not stupid.

"Send the yamen runners to notify the heads of the villages and ask them to come to the county yamen early tomorrow morning. When they arrive at the county yamen, you do this..."

Xiao Yichen explained his request in detail, and Qin Guoqing nodded frequently while listening.

"I understand."

Seeing that he understood, Xiao Yichen stood up and said to Fan Shiqing and others: "You go to the inn first, the prince and the princess will go out for a walk."

After saying that, he pulled Shen Jia out. Now was the season for picking cotton, and since they had nothing to do anyway, they might as well go take a look at the cotton fields.

Several officials were left looking at each other in bewilderment.

Tan Guoqing asked weakly: "Sir Fan, I will arrange accommodation for you right away?"

Fan Shiqing waved his hand: "No, you should quickly arrange your men to do what His Highness ordered! Otherwise, if His Highness blames me, I won't be able to protect you."

Fan Shiqing had been in contact with Xiao Yichen and Shen Jia for some time, and he understood their personalities and how to get along with them. He also understood that they were practical people, and when getting along with them, he didn't need to read their expressions, flatter them, beat around the bush, or quote scriptures. He just needed to do the things they asked him to do well, and he could raise different opinions in person, and they wouldn't blame him even if he was wrong.

Similarly, they cannot tolerate any sand in their eyes and will not care about minor mistakes, but once they break the law and infringe on the interests of the people, no matter who they are, they will be severely punished.

Such a capable and courageous future emperor and empress is their blessing and also a blessing for the Great Zhou.

There were still many elderly people wandering outside the county government office. When they saw Shen Jia and Xiao Yichen come out, they curiously glanced at them and then lowered their heads. A big smile appeared on their dark faces, stretching all the way to the back of their ears.

Shen Jia waved to them with a smile as a greeting, then he and Xiao Yichen mounted their horses.

On the way to Laiyi County, they saw people picking cotton in the cotton fields, but the area was not large, so they decided to go somewhere else.

The two men rode their horses along the official road in another direction. About a quarter of an hour later, what came into their sight was an endless cotton field, which looked like a white ocean from afar.

The two men dismounted and stood close to the cotton field to watch. The white cotton looked like clouds from the sky falling into the fields.

A breeze blew, rippling the white waves, and Xiao Yichen and Shen Jia couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

Their figures soon attracted the attention of people picking cotton in the fields, and a middle-aged man who looked like a manager walked over quickly.

"Gentlemen, what brings you here?" the middle-aged man asked with a bow.

Xiao Yichen pointed at the cotton field and asked, "Is this cotton field yours?"

The steward shook his head and said, "This is the land of my master, and my master is the landlord Cao."

Shen Jia's eyes flashed. This piece of cotton field should be tens of thousands of acres! Landlord Cao planted so much cotton because he saw business opportunities. This person has such a keen eye for business opportunities, it's worth meeting him.

"Is your master home?"

The butler looked at them suspiciously and nodded slowly: "Yes"

"Take us to him."

The butler didn't dare to make a decision on his own, "I have to ask the master before I can take you in to see him."

"No problem!"

The housekeeper led them to the door of the landlord's house and said, "Please wait here for a moment, my two lords. I will go in and report to the master, and then I will invite you to see him."

"Go for it!"

After he entered the gate, Xiao Yichen asked, "Jia Jia, why is this?"

"This landlord has a good business sense. We want to open a textile factory and a winery in the northwest, so we have to deal with the merchants here. Now that we have met one, let's see what kind of character he has. Let's see if he can accept this huge fortune."

Xiao Yichen agreed with this and praised: "To vigorously develop the Northwest, we need a lot of talents in various fields. Jiajia is able to see the big picture from the small details. I am ashamed of myself."

Shen Jia raised his chin slightly and said proudly: "Of course, I am Shen Jia, the one and only Shen Jia in the world." He added secretly in his heart: I have been the Dark King for twenty years and I am an old monster who has lived two lifetimes.

"Yes, yes, yes, Jiajia is the best." Xiao Yichen smiled dotingly.