Chapter 2218 Gui Zi Juan instillation and sowing
The waves of wheat are swaying gently, and when viewed from a distance, there is a strange golden beauty. This is a symbol of harvest and a sign of hope.
More than a dozen riders came running slowly along the river bank, kicking up a cloud of yellow dust.
The farmers who were resting on the field looked warily into the distance until they saw several horsemen wearing official robes, and then they felt relieved.
The harvest is about to begin, so we must not be careless at this time. Although the bandits in various places have been almost wiped out, and the remaining ones have fled to the east of the river, who can tell clearly?
In case of chaos at this time, this hard work for half a year, when you see food, you can enter the warehouse, and you have to pay the east. The farmers are naturally nervous.
Shaanxi has been experiencing drought for several years. Even the Guanzhong Plain can no longer withstand this kind of torment. The farmers are looking forward to a year of stability so that everyone can take a breather, especially since the government has exempted them from drought for most of the past six months. Taxes have been paid, and relief has also been opened, which has also brought peace to the local area to a certain extent. It is this expectation that makes everyone eager to have a good year this year.
A good year needs to start with the summer harvest. The summer harvest can lay the foundation for the year, but the autumn harvest is even more critical. If the summer harvest is not good or is delayed, forget about the autumn harvest.
The two-year and three-crop system has good weather and irrigation requirements. Even in the Guanzhong Plain, it still depends on the weather.
"This year's situation is pretty good, Jun Yu, you've had a good year. If you had come last year, you would have been in trouble." Feng Ziying reined in the horse and looked at the wheat fields along the Wei River, "But this is not It means you have less work to do, and good weather means that the requirements for Xi'an government will be higher. It is estimated that the court may no longer exempt Shaanxi from taxes next year, so you have to make good use of this year."
"I didn't plan to live a good life when I came here." Lian Guoshi also laughed, "With you here, will you let me live a good life?"
Everyone around them laughed. The governor and the magistrate are close to each other, which is a good thing for everyone. The negotiations between the two yamen will be much easier on the matters involved.
"The hard days are more challenging, and the hard work makes you more fulfilling. Then sitting in the chief envoy's office and living your life leisurely is not your temperament, Jun Yu." Feng Ziying responded. : "Xi'an is the best in the province, and it should be a vanguard. It must act like it is the best in the province. This year, the situation in other prefectures and prefectures has improved, but it is not enough. Xi'an also has to make contributions."
Lian Guoshi understood the implication of Feng Ziying's words and nodded: "I will do my best, but don't push Xi'an too hard. We have to let people take a breath and live next year."
"How about Hancheng and Huayin?" This is also a question that Feng Ziying is concerned about. To achieve a new situation, agriculture alone is not enough. We must also vigorously develop industry and commerce. However, the resource endowment of Shaanxi is different from that of Beizhi. Ability to adapt measures to local conditions.
"The conditions in Huayin are more suitable. The Fan family is planning to start mining in Huayin. However, the preliminary preparation and investment will still take time, but it is now on the right track. In addition, the Fan family plans to co-operate with the Cao family in Xianyang. A cement factory, the Cao family plans to open a separate cement factory in Weinan, and the Cao family is also preparing for the iron ore and iron smelting factory in Hancheng, and the investment scale is not small."
Lian Guo Shi is quite satisfied with the Cao and Fan families. At least they have proved their sincerity and determination with their investment. The capital invested by both families is more than 300,000 taels, which is not a small amount for the Shaanxi area. .
"Well, currently both the Cao and Fan families are only willing to invest in the Guanzhong Plain. I suggest that they consider Yan'an Prefecture, but they still have some concerns. They feel that the investment cost is too high and they are worried about insufficient returns. These businessmen are too concerned about profit and loss. ." Feng Ziying shook her head slightly.
"Ziying, that's pretty good. The mining and construction of the two iron mines alone will employ thousands of people, and this is a long-term operation. This means that at least thousands of families can make a living from this, just like the cement factory. There are thousands of people again, and hundreds of people are also needed for transportation. According to the so-called industrial chain you calculated for us, this is scary, and all these things will have to support the livelihood of tens of thousands of people."
"Well, Jun Yu, I'm relieved if you think so. Although the Guanzhong Plain is rich in land, it is narrow and densely populated. Moreover, if there is no major famine or war, the population will grow very fast. As local officials, we are the largest Our responsibility is to ensure local stability, but the population growth will almost double in 20 to 30 years. Under such circumstances, we can foresee how the people on the Guanzhong Plain will make a living in the future."
Feng Ziying's words slightly surprised Lian Guoshi, "Ziying, do you think that vigorously developing industry and commerce can feed this growing population? But if the food supply does not increase, it will be difficult to live on the iron and cement produced by these industries and commerce alone. Yes."
"You can't look at it that way, Jun Yu. The Guanzhong Plain is known as the land of abundance, but in fact we can all see that there is still a big gap in water conservancy facilities. Many irrigation canals are in disrepair, and water seepage and loss are very serious. But if cement can be widely used, irrigation can The effect of canals can be greatly improved, and more irrigation facilities can be better built. In addition, if iron materials can be used cheaper and more widely, transportation costs and farming costs can be reduced, which is equivalent to the same With human investment, food production can yield more harvests. This is just the most basic and simple truth..."
Feng Ziying talked eloquently, facing the people from the governor's yamen and Xi'an government yamen, and taught them a lesson.
“The invention of iron, cement, and even more new things can greatly improve the production efficiency of our various industries. For example, carriages can be made lighter and run faster, and ships can be made larger and more resistant. There are winds and waves, more goods are loaded, and some new technologies are developed, and more grains are produced per acre. For example, we introduce new crops, and even create some new medicines, and diseases that cannot be cured before can be cured. Already..."
The whole group listened thoughtfully.
The governor's idea is very beautiful, and it feels like a painting, but the changes brought about by potatoes and sweet potatoes are huge and real. This is the most typical example.
They have all eaten potatoes and sweet potatoes themselves, and some of them have eaten them for two or three days in a row, just to test whether the potatoes can withstand hunger, whether they can be full, and whether they feel any abnormality after eating.
The results are true. Sweet potatoes are very sweet and refreshing, especially when steamed or roasted. Potatoes are equally delicious when steamed and roasted. They are quite filling. Some people even think they taste better than corn.
Several officials from Xi'an Prefecture went to Yan'an Prefecture to conduct on-site inspections of potato and sweet potato cultivation, and then sent a group of people to study, and then came back and started trying it in several prefectures and counties in Xi'an Prefecture.
Although it is an experiment in name, the scale is much larger than the experiment in Yan'an Prefecture. It often covers thousands of acres. Xi'an Prefecture is so arrogant, and the corner areas are even more dozens of areas. The experiment was carried out on dozens or hundreds of acres. Of course, this was the result of Feng Ziying's huge guarantee.
"Take potatoes and sweet potatoes as an example. This is the credit of Mr. Xu. He devoted several years of research in Tianjin Wei to localize the cultivation and cultivation of these crops introduced from the Western Yi, and selected varieties suitable for our cultivation in Central China. , and also summarized a set of optimal planting techniques and taught them to everyone. I was thinking, for our poor place in Shaanxi, there is nothing more important than filling the stomachs of the people. If there is Isn't it a great thing that such new crops and new technologies are constantly being introduced to meet the needs of more people? Like cement, it is extremely widely used and has great demand, and it can also greatly improve roads and water conservancy facilities. For the sturdiness and durability of city defenses and buildings, shouldn’t we develop more such items?”
"Then should we pay more attention to this type of agriculture and engineering? If those scholars who are reliable and hopeless can put more thought into this aspect, maybe they can make a breakthrough?" Feng Ziying paused. After a pause, "But in order to attract these people to study this kind of thing, we must give them some ideas. For example, we can set up some official positions in the yamen, and for example, we can provide some financial and food subsidies,..."
Feng Ziying talks endlessly and freely.
He knew that he could not stay in Shaanxi for too long. Among the dozen or so people present were counselors from the Chief Envoy, officials from his own government office, and officials from the Xi'an government office. They would all continue to stay in Shaanxi in the future. If they go on, then whether they don't listen to your words or they do, at least a seed is sown in their hearts, and maybe it will sprout at some point.
In addition to instilling these ideas among these officials, Feng Ziying also plans to exert influence in the government schools to let more young scholars know about these situations and to show her support attitude, that is, to influence them from different angles. Promote the popularization of various sciences.
Although I don’t have this ability now, I have finally done my part. Some people will benefit from or gain insights from it, and that will be worth it.
Moreover, I will no longer be in Shaanxi in the future, and people like Lian Guoshi and Zheng Chongjian can still play a role and continue to promote their "unfinished business".
(End of this chapter)