Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 217 The Spirit of Mountain Farmers

In Luoyang City, Si Jiuba and Wu Yue are taking their afternoon nap.

In early June, the sun was still scorching.

Wu Yue took a nap on a cool mat. The windows, side doors, and windows of the newsstand allowed for ventilation, and the ginkgo trees planted in the first few years provided shade along the roads on both sides.

The sun isn't always in the sky; large clouds drift by from time to time, bringing a refreshing coolness to those on the ground.

Si Jiuba was washing clothes, specifically the pajama bottoms that Wu Yue had soiled by wetting the bed, when two children floated over.

Two boys, around fourteen or fifteen years old, ran over on skateboards.

"498!"

Si Jiu Ba looked up, saw the two teenagers, and smiled, saying, "Mu Niu, Mu Zhu, are you looking for Wu Yue?"

Niu'er and Zhu'er were originally Ai Dake's children. Ai Dake was criticized for his poor performance and his place of origin was revoked. However, Beiji Wu did not hold a grudge against the children and still allowed the two children to inherit the hereditary title.

From one household with ten thousand households, it became two households with a thousand households, and the surplus was given to Ai Dake's other children.

Only by passing down the throne from generation to generation can a stable system of succession be established.

The Arctic Warriors not only ensured the hereditary succession of their own throne, but also allowed others to inherit it, otherwise they would not be able to cultivate a community of shared interests.

The honorary title of "Mountain Farmer" cannot be inherited. Because of this insistence on not allowing hereditary succession, and the intention to continue to treat the concept of "Mountain Farmer" as an honor rather than an ethnic group, the hereditary status of Han people is a necessary foundation.

Those without stable property lack stability of mind. Most people are willing to risk their lives not only because they are forced by violence, but also because they are inspired to risk their lives for their families and for the greater good.

Hereditary land and titles also represent generations of loyalty and obligations.

Although he didn't take his anger out on the child, Beijiwu was really furious with Ai Dake and forcibly changed Niu'er Zhu'er's surname.

It just so happens that the two of them had played with Mu Lin since they were little and had become sworn brothers, so they were given the surname Mu.

Mu Niu and Mu Zhu are no longer the little kids who climbed over the wall to find their mother. The two brothers have been well-fed and clothed since they were young, thanks to Beiji Wu.

They are rarely seen in Arctic Martial Arts, but teams within the Arctic Martial Arts system take good care of these two children.

Because they were labeled as King Wu's own people, the two brothers received a lot of care and did not witness the many wicked things in people's hearts.

The only ones who would be bad for them are Ai Dake and his new wife and concubine.

Especially after Ai Dake had a new son, he stopped paying attention to his two illegitimate sons whom he didn't raise much, and would beat and scold them when he occasionally saw them.

Not daring to scold King Wu, nor the mother of his children, he could only vent his anger on his two sons.

The two brothers grew up in the group. Back then, both the men and women of Beitian Village looked down on Ai Dake, which resulted in Ai Dake's reputation never being good.

After Ai Dake died, the two brothers were so happy they couldn't sleep. They had finally gained their freedom from that good-for-nothing man who should have died long ago.

Now the two brothers are enthusiastic and cheerful, and at a young age they have inherited the title of commander of a thousand households. One is in charge of security at the train station outside the city, and the other is guarding the gate and patrolling inside the city.

Mu Lin is a little older, and since his father is still alive, he cannot inherit the title. He is currently still studying.

Mu Niu got off the skateboard and handed a basket to Si Jiu Ba.

"498, this is the fruit His Majesty asked me to give you. Inside is Wu Yue's apprenticeship gift to you."

Si Jiu Ba hurriedly got up, wiped his hands on his waist, and looked curiously at the flower basket that didn't look very big.

"I had completely forgotten about this." Si Jiu Ba reached out and took it with a smile, saying, "It looks quite heavy, weighing more than ten pounds."

Mu Niu said, "It's packed with fresh lychees from Anzhou. The train took a whole day and night to arrive, and we got a share too."

498 opened the white cotton cloth covering the top, revealing a pile of white ice blocks underneath, and in the middle of the ice blocks was half a basket of bright red lychees.

Mu Zhu was in a hurry to get back and quickly said, "I've given you the things. I still need to deliver lychees to Wuqing. I'll be going now."

"I'm leaving too." Mu Niu also had other things to do.

498 happily said, "Okay!"

In the past, when the 498th Army met with commanders, they were very careful and afraid of those commanders who were considered their own people.

But those patrolling commanders never treated her like one of their own...

However, after getting to know Wu Yue's family, I felt that everyone around me became kinder and my life became better and better. Whether they were military officers or high-ranking officials, they were all very approachable.

This is a treatment that many people crave but cannot obtain; to this day, most areas south of the Yangtze River are not considered part of their own people.

The imperial court's favors rarely reached that area, and it consistently ignored them.

Although hundreds of people had just been killed in the Lingnan region, the Emperor's grace was boundless, and the light of the Holy Way shone on this land. The millions of people in Lingnan were moved to tears.

The people of the mountains and fields really want a master who can take care of their lives, especially when that person is the emperor, they are even more excited.

Si Jiuba had no idea how much Beiji Wu had done. Seeing a basket of lychees, he happily went inside and sat down.

Wu Yue was still sleeping. Children eat and sleep a lot every day, and they are forgetful.

Si Jiuba took out an iced lychee, pinched it with both hands and peeled off the shell with a little force.

The bright red lychee shell opened, revealing the crystal-clear, jelly-like lychee inside.

These aren't the expired, powdery white lychees, but rather lychees that look very white, tender, and moist.

Sijiu couldn't resist eating one himself first.

This was meant for her, so it's fine for her to eat it.

After a sweet and icy lychee entered his mouth, Si Jiu Ba happily squinted his eyes, savoring the delicious taste on his mouth and tongue.

Before I knew it, Si Jiuba had eaten his second one.

At this moment, Wu Yue, who was taking a nap, suddenly opened her eyes.

Wu Yue's eyes didn't have the usual dazed look she had when she was woken up; instead, they held a strange kind of clear-headedness.

"Get up. Your father sent over some lychees as a gift for your apprenticeship. Try them, they're so delicious you won't be able to stop eating them."

Si Jiuba said with a smile, and quickly reached out to eat more lychees.

Wu Yue reached out and took a lychee. Since she had never eaten lychees before, she didn't know how to eat them.

After seeing Si Jiu Ba peel and eat a lychee, Wu Yue simply took her chipped tooth and easily bit into the lychee.

The sweet taste on her tongue quickly brought Wu Yue back to normal, and her face returned to the gluttonous and silly look of a child, making her seem less clever than before.

After eating one, Wu Yue started eating with both her mouth and hands non-stop.

Four or five pounds of lychees were devoured in less than ten minutes by the two gluttonous girls.

"It's all gone..." Si Jiu Ba looked at the last lychee in Wu Yue's hand and said helplessly, "I was planning to leave a few for Xiao Gua and Xiao Ya to try, but look, you ate them all."

Wu Yue retorted, "Don't wrong a child! I've only eaten a few! Just a few lychees! Lychees aren't tasty at all. My dad gives me so many delicious things, I wouldn't be greedy for these lychees."

After Wu Yue finished speaking, she looked at the last lychee in her hand and, without any hesitation, stuffed it into her mouth.

498 had long seen through this child's habit of lying all day long, but he didn't bother to argue with her.

"Okay, I know your dad is amazing. There's not much business today, you can go home now. I heard from Muzhu that he delivered lychees to your house. Please tell your mother for me that the lychees are delicious and ask her how much they cost per pound."

After Sijiuba learned that the lychees were from Anzhou, he knew that once the train line reached Luoyang and Anzhou, it would become much more convenient to eat lychees.

Some time ago, merchants were allowed to buy monthly and annual passes, and in the future, merchants will definitely come from Lingnan to sell lychees.

498 looked through old newspapers and found that there were no advertisements for selling lychees at all.

"They're all watermelons, grapes, pears, apples, and melons..."

498 shouldn't be too expensive, considering it can be transported by train in a day, which is closer than traveling from Chang'an to Luoyang.

"Where is Lingnan? It feels so close, it only took a day and a night."

"It takes half a month to transport goods from Luoyang to Chang'an by horse-drawn carriage."

***
After Wu Yue ran home quickly, she saw that everything in her family was normal.

"Where's Mom?" Wu Yue asked when she saw her younger siblings playing in the yard.

My sister replied, "I'm cooking. We're having stir-fried chicken today."

Wu Yue had something on her mind, so she went straight into the main room.

Everything in the large room where we usually eat and chat is spotless.

Wu Yue had something on her mind, and her eyes were also darting around. She walked towards the inner room and saw several older women sitting on mats, fanning themselves and reading.

Upon seeing Wu Yue return, Ma Tuchai asked, "Wu Yue is back. Was 498 busy today?"

"Not busy." Wu Yue's eyes darted around.

Upon seeing this, Ma Tuchai asked, "What are you looking for?"

"Lychees!" Wu Yue quickly gestured with her hands, "Red, white, and sweet! Si Jiu Ba said my dad saved some lychees for me! For me!"

Wu Yue was mostly unaware that she was lying, spouting complete fabrications.

The most crucial point is that they always believe what they say is true and have great faith in their own beliefs.

"Didn't you already eat at 498? We only had two boxes at home, and we each only had two or three before it was gone. We didn't leave any for you because we were worried you'd get a sore throat from eating too much."

Ma Tuchai casually dismissed the young girl.

When Wu Yue heard that the lychees her father had saved for her had been eaten by the unreasonable old woman, she felt wronged and burst into tears, her sad tears flowing uncontrollably.

Ma Tuchai looked at her with a smile. Gao Qiuyue, who was standing next to her, found it annoying and called Wu Yue's mother over.

Soon, her biological mother came over, grabbed Wu Yue's shoulder, and kicked the child in the bottom. She quieted down in a few moments. She was still feeling aggrieved while eating, and she was also fighting with her siblings who didn't care about her for food. If she was too slow to pick up food with her chopsticks, there would be none left.

After finishing her meal, she ran away from home and began to rely on Sijiuba for survival.

Beijiwu's family never worries about their children getting lost. They know everyone in the neighborhood, and they can find out where their children have gone just by asking around.

There are too many children in the Arctic family, and Wu Yue doesn't receive special care at home. Only here in 498 can she enjoy a truly special life.

There are countless princesses; just a few days after Beiji Wu left, several more princesses captured from the west entered the palace.

After handling some official business, Bei Jiwu went out for a walk. In the evening, he could see the sunset in the Imperial Garden. The evening breeze was neither too hot nor too cold, and it was still a bit warm.

There were many palace maids off duty in the garden, as well as beautiful women of all ages lining up to play on the swings and slides.

There were female officials, as well as princesses, empresses, concubines, and so on.

"Your Majesty!" The palace maids who were chatting idly on a bench saw Beijiwu and quickly knelt down to pay their respects.

Beijiwu casually asked, "How many lychees did you get today?"

The young palace maid replied, "Your Majesty, we each received three."

Beijiwu nodded and walked to a bench to sit down.

"The rest of you can do whatever you want. You guys keep me company and chat for a bit. Come and sit down."

"Yes!"

Several palace maids happily walked over to Beijiwu and sat down. Two sat beside him, two stood behind him, and three squatted in front of him.

Beijiwu naturally embraced his women, though he didn't know their names, it didn't affect his ability to use them.

"The day before yesterday, 20,000 catties of lychees with branches and leaves were loaded from Lingnan, 3,000 li away. The train took more than 30 hours to reach Luoyang."

"I don't know the exact number of lychees from the more than 20,000 catties, but there are currently 70,000 women, 5,000 eunuchs, and 1,000 guards in the palace. If each person can take three, there must be more than 200,000 lychees."

"The officials in the court and the general households did not receive any. They already receive quite a lot normally. This is a royal exclusive supply, so it is naturally only for the royal family."

Beijiwu, with his arms around two young women, asked with a smile, "Where are you from? Do you have any good food or fun things to do?"

Several palace maids answered happily.

"This servant is from Tongzhou."

“This servant comes from Luoyang.”

"This servant is from Chang'an."

"This servant is from Sichuan, and the loquats from Sichuan are delicious!"

“This servant is from Jizhou. I can’t think of any good food. There are so many delicious foods in the palace. No place in the world can compare to the palace.”

As the group was talking, the palace maids and female officials who were off duty nearby also gathered around to listen to what Beijiwu was saying.

When Beijiwu saw that there were many people, he said, "You can all do whatever you want. Tell them not to come over and bow to me anymore. When they see me on their days off, they can just bow. They don't need to kneel or speak. If they are more than ten meters away, they can just do their own thing. I will let them know if there is anything."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" the women all replied with smiles.

The palace maids in the palace worked nine days on and one day off. Because there were so many people, it was always very lively no matter which day they were off.

Arctic Martial also noticed this.

“There are many more people lately, and you can’t move around freely in many parts of the palace. You have nowhere to go on your days off. Tomorrow I will have someone build a Royal Clubhouse, a six- or seven-story building that can accommodate three thousand people. That way you will have a place to go when you are off work.”

The women exclaimed happily, "Thank you for your great favor, Your Majesty!"

Whether it's lychees or other perks like leisure and entertainment, Arctic Martial Arts Academy always prioritizes its own people.

The women who accompany you are naturally considered your own people.

Although he didn't value them or think they were that important, Beijiwu, who had more money than he could spend, wasn't stingy with his money.

As long as Arctic Martial considers someone one of their own, they will definitely receive the best treatment.

***
News of Beiji Wu eating lychees quickly spread throughout the country.

Li Tangqing of Xiacheng and Li Chengren of Guancheng, among others, were looking at the map and pondering King Wu's strategy.

I couldn't sense it or guess it before.

The imperial court's southward strategy is now very clear.

Previously, it was thought that the strategy would be to connect with Jiangnan via the Yangtze River from Xiacheng, and then gradually move south to control Jiangnan.

Looking at Arctic Martial's strategy now, we can see that this southward movement is a genuine southward movement, not a southward movement towards the Jiangnan region.

From Luoyang, they marched south to control Xia City, and from Xia City, they marched south to control the Lingnan region, while also extending their influence to Annam and the South Seas, thus achieving a grand ambition that no previous dynasty had been able to accomplish.

Prime Minister Li Chengren looked at the latest map of the Shan Nong Kingdom.

"The court's focus is now clearly on the west and south! Whether by sea or land, the goods will definitely be heading towards the conquered Southeast Asia and western territories."

“Jiangnan is a remote corner of the country, and its tea and mulberry trees have not yet fully recovered. The mountains and hills are also not suitable for the agricultural and industrial development of the mountain farmers.”

"To the east lies either the sea or impoverished, barren land; it seems they've completely abandoned those people..."

Although many high-ranking officials in the imperial court are from the south, the emperor's current policies are all geared towards developing the west and south.

In particular, if the mountain farmers who possess core technologies are unwilling to go to Jiangnan, then the people in Jiangnan will not receive technical and financial support.

***
On the fifth day of the sixth month, the Northern Army issued an imperial edict to inform the people of the world.

Arctic Wu: In recent years, many people have impersonated Shan Nong people to deceive the people. As the chief of the Shan Nong tribe, I have conducted a thorough investigation. Shan Nong people only live and work in Luoyang, Shan Nong Province, and Pingyuan Province. Apart from the production teams in various places, anyone who goes out alone is not a Shan Nong person.

Among the farmers in the mountains, there are good people, hardworking people, bad people, and lazy people.

In order to uphold the honor of the Shan Nong people, all those with public household registration, hereditary households, hereditary prefects, and ordinary soldiers are all Han Chinese and cannot call themselves Shan Nong people. They are even less allowed to say things like "you Han people and Hu people" all day long, which is a provocation.

All previous Mountain Farmer certifications have been cancelled. Regardless of whether they are Hu, Yue, Korean, or Tibetan, all people with Mountain Farmer household registration are now Han Chinese. Outstanding individuals who have made contributions to the country's agricultural industry can obtain lifetime Mountain Farmer certification.

Even if the current status of a Shan Nong person is revoked, those who are truly Shan Nong people will always be Shan Nong people and will naturally receive Shan Nong person status certification.

True gold fears no fire; only through hardship and trials can the hidden mountain farmers among the masses be discovered.

Each year, applicants can apply to the public household production team and local governors, and outstanding individuals will be selected for mountain farmer certification.

Only 500 people are certified each year, and I, the emperor, personally select and certify them, awarding them the Mountain Farmers' Honor Medal.

***
Arctic Wu abolished all mountain farmers' ethnic groups except for himself...

If it were any other ethnic group, there would definitely be problems, but unfortunately, the mountain farmers never existed to begin with, and the Arctic warriors held too much power and were the masters of everyone.

Whether they were palace maids, high-ranking officials, or military officers, they were all servants of the Northern Martial Army.

Cancel it if you want... No mountain farmer can withstand the test, and no one has ever dared to call themselves a mountain farmer in front of Beijiwu.

Everyone knows it's fake...

From then on, being a mountain farmer was no longer just about bloodline, but about spirit and honor!

(End of this chapter)