Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 200 Anchor Point
The Spring Festival of the eighth year of AD arrived, and Luoyang was bustling with traffic and extremely congested.

Si Jiuba sat in the pavilion, watching the flock of people outside like sheep, warily observing the men, women, old people, and children approaching his stall.

Many people peeked inside the pavilion out of curiosity as they passed by, but after meeting Si Jiu Ba's unfriendly gaze, they quickly looked away.

There were also teenagers and little boys who couldn't help but sneak glances at the strange girl with her odd hairstyle, her hair tied up and sticking out at the back of her head, and her hair hanging down on both sides of her cheeks.

498 is a beautiful girl, the kind of girl who is beautiful in both appearance and temperament.

While eighteen or nineteen-year-old girls may be beautiful, they are less attractive to men of the same age than mature women.

Seven- or eight-year-old boys can't appreciate how cute seven- or eight-year-old girls are, and twelve- or thirteen-year-old teenagers can't perceive the beauty of their classmates. If given a choice, they would choose the older ones.

When I was in my twenties, I actually preferred adult women in their twenties and thirties.

As people get older and gain more experience, they tend to prefer younger people.

The young girl was oblivious to the fact that her older sister was beautiful. At this moment, she and her sister were sitting in the same bed, their bodies squeezed together against the wall, their four feet resting on a hot water bottle that was less than a hand's length long.

"Sis, why are there so many people today?"

Today, Xiao Gua sold newspapers with her sister. They had only been sitting inside for less than two hours when the number of people outside suddenly surged like a flood.

While keeping an eye on the stall, Si Jiuba explained, "The last three days in the city this year are open to everyone. No need for a letter of introduction or checks. People from more than twenty nearby counties can come to the market to watch the fireworks."

Xiao Gua noticed that many people passing by were looking in his direction, and many younger children were also curiously staring at him.

"Fireworks are for watching at night, why are you all here so early in the morning?"

498 casually said, "How would I know? Don't sleep with Hu Yan all night. Let me tell you, when you get married, you should find someone with a large family who can help you."

Suddenly, the conversation turned to Xiaogua's matter again.

Academic performance is not important at all. 498 doesn't care much about academic performance. Anyway, he has a guaranteed job and is not worried about not being able to find a job in the future.

As long as it doesn't interfere with newspaper sales, everything else is minor.

Xiao Gua shyly moved a little further away and said apologetically, "No."

Si Jiuba doesn't care about his brother's chastity, nor does he care about Hu Yan's chastity.

"Let me tell you, that kind of woman is a headache! You should find an honest girl. There are plenty of honest girls around here. You've eaten well and slept early since you were little, and you're already 1.5 meters tall. Don't be silly like a child all day long. If you're going to find someone, find someone whose family is registered!"

Little Gua was annoyed by his older sister's nagging, so he quickly fell asleep and left the newspaper-selling business to his older sister.

During the Lunar New Year, Sijiuba didn't want to argue with Xiaogua, and since people were buying newspapers, he got busy again.

The year 9 AD was approaching, and the people of the world had been eating their fill for about seven or eight years.

For many six- or seven-year-old children, they have never gone hungry since they were born.

Abundant food not only increases fertility rates but also survival rates.

As long as you can eat your fill, your body will become healthy, and neither cold nor poverty will seem so serious.

On this day, all the rice and grain shops in the city sold rice, millet, barley, and wheat at a 30% discount.

The fried dough sticks at the breakfast stall were being fried non-stop, and baskets of them were being bought up by customers.

At the entrance of a secondhand clothing wholesale shop, a group of people were pointing at various secondhand clothes across the counter and buying them.

The city's traffic was paralyzed, and public carriages could not pass through and had to detour around the city.

Outside the pavilion of the Imperial Palace, a group of people stood watching a scene in the distance.

After looking through the binoculars for a while, Beijiwu gave way to his sons who were standing nearby.

The children happily jostled and pushed each other for the telescope.

Arctic Hydrogen looked at Arctic Martial and said, "Dad, there are a lot of people outside."

Beijiwu nodded. "About 500,000 people entered. Fortunately, Luoyang has removed a lot of obstructions in recent years, so it wasn't completely overcrowded."

After exchanging a casual chat with his son, Beijiwu looked at the row of people standing nearby.

Standing beside Beijiwu were not only court officials, but also envoys from various countries.

The King of Goryeo personally came to pay tribute, wearing traditional Goryeo noble attire.

Beijiwu looked at the King of Goryeo and casually asked, "Why aren't you wearing peasant clothes?"

Wang Qin felt that Beijiwu was talking to him, but because he didn't understand Chinese, he could only remain awkwardly silent.

This awkwardness and embarrassment was shared by the nearby Fusang envoy, who was also not wearing mountain farmer's clothes.

The envoys from other nearby countries all wore peasant clothing, including those from the Western Liang Kingdom, the Indian Kingdom, and the Nanzhao Kingdom.

These envoys are no match for the Shan Nong Kingdom, which has a population of fifty million.

With four million births annually, Shan Nong Kingdom could create a Goryeo Kingdom in a single year.

Before arriving in this land, everyone's first impression of the Mountain Farming Kingdom was that it was warlike!
A country is destroyed in a single day, and millions of lives are trampled into dust wherever the horses' hooves go!

The king of Shan Nong Kingdom could destroy a country in a single day, and reduce a nation with a population of five million to only five hundred thousand in a month.

The Mountain Farm Kingdom has more than ten provinces, and the warriors of just one province destroyed dozens of other countries.

In many people's minds, this place should be a barbaric and warlike country, full of the corpses of the weak, where kings and nobles like to eat human flesh and drink the blood of young girls.

However, upon entering the Mountain Farmer Kingdom, what they saw was unimaginable prosperity and bustling activity, and incomprehensible abundance.

From the farmers working in the fields to the merchants everywhere, everyone gives off a sense of being unguarded.

After gaining a deeper understanding and learning about the Mountain Farmer Kingdom from various social strata, everyone came to a common understanding.

powerful!

Their military strength is extremely powerful, and they never worry about foreign invasion.

Their financial strength is extremely powerful, requiring no taxation from farmers and urban residents, and they continuously provide financial support to these large yet vulnerable groups. Their cultural influence is also immense; the mountain farmers possess many unique ideas and cultural traditions, prioritizing practicality and revering outstanding individuals.

Their industrial technology is extremely advanced, capable of creating moving torrents of steel. They possess steel weapons far superior to those of this era and are so wealthy that they can use the fine iron armor that can arm two million knights to harvest wheat from the fields.

It has immense potential, vast tracts of land available for development, four million newborns every year, and a powerful monarch who is only twenty-seven years old.

The political system was extremely advanced. King Wu, as the monarch, had established a succession system in advance, and also established three systems: the imperial examination, the internal recommendation, and hereditary succession. These three systems accounted for 91% and 10% of the total, respectively. Hereditary succession did not occupy official positions, and nobles without inheritance rights could become officials through the imperial examination and the internal recommendation.

The imperial examination did not care about one's background. As long as one had not committed a serious crime, one could participate. Even if one was the son of a farmer, it didn't matter. Perhaps one day the exam would test one's knowledge of agriculture.

To both the people of Shan Nong Kingdom and those outside of Shan Nong Kingdom, this was an extremely powerful nation, one that could not be defeated.

They couldn't even conceive of fighting against it; they had absolutely no chance of winning.

As the King of Goryeo, Wang Qin was terrified at this moment.

Fortunately, his envoy immediately replied, "Today we have come as a vassal state to celebrate His Majesty's birthday, so we are wearing our own country's attire."

Beijiwu smiled and said, "Since you're here, there's no need to worry about those differences. From now on, it's up to you whether you grow your hair or not. Just change into the mountain farmer's clothes. I'll do the same. When we have formal conversations, we'll all wear the same clothes."

The envoy Li Changrong replied, "Since we all wear the same clothes, it is difficult to distinguish our identities. We dare not wear the same clothes as His Majesty."

Beijiwu insisted, "It's alright. The mountain farmers like to share their joy and culture. Of course, they won't force you. Just like city people, most men cut their hair short because it's inconvenient to work and they always lose hair, not because they follow the mountain farmers' customs."

"It is precisely in pursuit of convenience that the mountain farmers have evolved various rules and regulations."

"If getting a haircut every two months were more troublesome than hair loss, inconvenient washing, and unsightly hair, then we wouldn't have come up with this rule."

"If your culture finds long hair more convenient, you can continue to keep it. However, you can wear our uniform clothes and shoes in winter, which will be warmer."

"I will have someone give you some clothes and boots similar to mine. You can have them tried on by your king when you get back, or you can have someone make a similar set."

Li Changrong politely replied, "Yes!"

The King of Goryeo, standing nearby, still didn't understand what had happened. He only saw that Bei Jiwu was speaking gently and didn't seem angry, so he breathed a sigh of relief.

Goryeo was a notoriously bad place, lacking food, iron, silver, and bronze tools, and even its own currency.

What's the point of occupying a territory if it doesn't yield any returns in the long run?
The fact that the Mountain Farming Kingdom was willing to accept the Goryeo Kingdom's offer and transport grain to it was already an act of charity.

In an era of food shortages, it was a groundbreaking act of sainthood for conquerors to distribute food to the conquered for free.

Beijiwu said to the children, "Don't run around. Play for a while and then go back to eat."

"Yes!" the children happily agreed.

Only then did Beiji Wu lead the envoys inside to worship Buddha and visit the palace of the previous dynasty.

The Mountain Farmers Kingdom does not believe in Buddhism, mainly because the Arctic Warriors do not believe in it.

But I don't object either.

Arctic Martial Arts doesn't object to ordinary people believing in this.

Nowadays, the monks outside are either eunuchs or monks who are willing to take a stable job, and they have helped Arctic Martial Arts recover a lot of money every year.

Even so, the Arctic Army promotes a unique mountain farmer culture, such as the idea that the world is round and that people stand on the ground because of gravity.

No matter which direction you go, as long as you keep walking, you will eventually return to your starting point.

Fusang is the anchor point established by the Arctic Wuding. As long as the Western Expeditionary Army advances westward and reaches Fusang, east of Donghai Province, then the world will be round.

After worshipping Buddha, Beiji Wu and the envoys told him what they needed to do.

"I will send an envoy from Donghai Province eastward to the western countries. He is expected to arrive within the next year or two. If any of your country's coastal nobles encounter my envoy, please treat him with courtesy. My envoy is very willing to share his knowledge and wisdom."

The crowd replied in unison, "Yes, Your Majesty!"

The Fusang Kingdom was no match for the Wu Dynasty and chose to surrender.

The Shan Nong Kingdom was not a barbarian state, nor was it a bandit state that disregarded culture and integrity. Rather, it was a group of ancient nobles with a profound heritage in construction and creation.

The mountain farmers killed only barbarians, and treated the orthodox Central Plains rulers and kings and nobles with preferential treatment. The throne was given to them by the crown prince of the previous dynasty, and the south was also given to them by the later emperor. They legally inherited everything.

Japan and Goryeo had close ties, and merchants also interacted with the Southern Dynasty. It was clear that the people of the Southern Dynasty were always thinking about associating with the mountain farmers rather than resisting them.

Furthermore, the Shan Nong people were indeed powerful, and the neighboring Goryeo had completely submitted and remained quiet and unchanged after surrendering.

Apart from some commoners going to the Donghai Island to fish, build houses, and trade, the nobles and members of the royal family did not suffer much loss.

The newspapers of the mountain farmers also continued to reach the Japanese royal family. A benevolent regime that allowed whoever surrendered to continue as king naturally won the favor of many people.

Like Manhu and the King of Goryeo, if the Fujiwara clan, who were in power in Japan, did not surrender, then the next ruler would surrender with the Emperor and use troops to eliminate the rebels!

This is what everyone is afraid of.

The Mountain Farming Kingdom will indeed lend troops to quell the rebellion, and once the matter is resolved, they will return without interfering in local affairs.

When everyone was about to leave the meeting, the Japanese envoy respectfully said, "Your Majesty, our regent Fujiwara clan wishes to present Your Majesty with a daughter of the Fujiwara clan."

Arctic Martial knew this was for self-preservation.

The eastern Liaodong region represented by Yelü Poluo, the Wan family represented by Consort Wan, and the Wen Dynasty's power were all well preserved.

It can't be called a marriage alliance, because the two sides are simply not on the same level.

"That's possible, but I want a woman who understands Chinese culture and can have normal conversations. She can't be too fat or too thin, and she shouldn't have been married before."

"Background doesn't matter; we don't care about that here."

Arctic Martial Arts doesn't rule out recruiting more "tools" (human agents), as it will eventually influence various places and encourage people around the world to learn about the culture of the Mountain Farmer Kingdom, which would be a good thing for Arctic Martial Arts.

Moreover, as the emperor of the Mountain Farming Kingdom and the ruler of the world's strongest empire, it is only right that he accepts tribute from other countries.

Tribute included not only gold, silver, jewelry, and local specialties, but also resources like beautiful women and talented women—renewable resources.

(End of this chapter)