No matter if you are a human or an immortal, you can still farm for me after traveling through time!

Ji Qingyue had no idea that the Li family was in panic. He had nothing to do now. After finishing the last bite of cake, he clapped his hands and decided to break the jar.

As the saying goes, there must be a road before the car reaches the mountain, and the situation couldn't be worse.

After eating the cake, he went to the vegetable garden as usual. He didn't expect the rice seeds to grow at such an amazing speed!

In just two days, all six seedlings sprouted, and the two-inch-high green seedlings grew straight.

As we all know, rice must grow in paddy fields. Does he need to open up another paddy field, or can this magical land save him from this step?

The project of opening up paddy fields is still a bit troublesome for him. Paddy fields must be able to easily divert water into the fields and be able to store water.

There must be enough water when the rice is heading. If there is no rain in the painting as a way to obtain water, we can only rely on the stream in front of the thatched cottage. However, it is impossible to scoop water into the field bit by bit, so we have to choose a place close to it. On the land near the water, dig a ditch to connect the creek and the paddy field. Blocking the downstream stream slightly will raise the water level, and the stream water will naturally flow into the field continuously. Just block the ditch when no water is needed.

If you say do it, do it immediately.

Where is the best place to choose paddy fields?

Ideally, the paddy field should be chosen in the large open space in front of the thatched cottage. If it really succeeds, there will be a yellow rice field in front of the thatched cottage, and he will harvest one crop after another. Now just think about that Seeing the scene, Ji Qingyue already felt in a bright mood.

But the vacant land cannot be developed yet. Once changes are made, people outside will notice it.

So Ji Qingyue took a closer look, and finally settled on the open space on the left side of the thatched cottage. The open space was not very big, so it would not take much effort to open it up. It was not far from a stream, so digging a trench did not need to be too long.

Before starting, Ji Qingyue was a little worried about the quality of the soil below. If the soil is not sticky enough, water will easily seep into the ground and it will be difficult to store water. The vegetable field behind the thatched cottage has sandy soil, which is good for growing vegetables but not good for growing rice.

Concerned, Ji Qingyue picked up the pointed stick he used as a shovel and came to the small clearing.

From a visual inspection, this open space can probably be cultivated into a paddy field of 70 to 80 square meters, which is about one point of land.

Ji Qingyue marked out the paddy fields in the open space. Now it is just a trial planting. There is no need to cultivate all the land. The cultivated land only needs to be able to accommodate a dozen rice seedlings.

The divided land was only three or four meters away from the stream. He planned to dig a pit of about two to three square meters in the designated area in order to determine whether the soil quality below was suitable for paddy fields. Otherwise, once the water is stored, the water will always flow. If it seeps in too quickly, it will fail.

Ji Qingyue first dug a hole about thirty centimeters deep and observed the dug soil. It was indeed sandy soil at the beginning. As the hole was dug deeper and deeper, the soil gradually became sticky. Ji Qingyue could feel relieved. This is a good sign.

This kind of clay is easier to retain water, and the water seeps in slowly, so the fields can retain water.

After confirming that it is feasible, Ji Qingyue will start digging paddy fields. First, he cleaned up the dead branches and pine needles in the open space. He had made a three-pronged wooden fork in his spare time, which could quickly sweep the pine needles into a pile and store them behind the thatched cottage.

After the cleaning work is completed, the next step is to loosen the soil. Unlike digging a vegetable field, digging a vegetable field only requires loosening the surface layer of soil. To store water in a paddy field, a pit must be made and dug downwards.

Ji Qingyue kept busy until the sun set in the west, and finally loosened a piece of soil to a depth of thirty or forty centimeters, digging into a deeper layer of clay soil.

The last step is to dig trenches and divert water into the fields.

These physical tasks do not require any skills. Before the sun went down, Ji Qingyue dug the ditch. Although the stream was relatively open, and he couldn't get to the other end, he couldn't block the entire stream, so he could only pile up half of it diagonally with stones. Stone blocking walls allow water to flow into ditches and then into fields.

Soon, the paddy fields were filled with water, and the lumps of soil were obviously not suitable for growing rice. Ji Qingyue walked around the fields over and over again with bare feet, mixing the soil and water together with his feet, thinning the soil, and pounding the soil. Into a mess.

After the preparations for rice planting were completed, Ji Qingyue dug out three precious seedlings and planted them in the paddy fields.

After doing all this, Ji Qingyue leaned on the wooden shovel, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and looked at the seedlings in the water with a kind face like a newborn child.

You should strive for success and grow up well.

As the sun sets in the evening, farmers in the fields return home carrying their farm tools.

Li Sanlang finally returned home, and what was waiting for him was his worried family. It turned out that after he heard the news about the South, he went to the home of his classmate and friend to inquire about the situation in the South.

Li Aniang smiled easily and comforted her tired son: "Sanlang, let's have dinner together. We are all waiting for you. If you have anything to do, we can talk about it after eating."

The whole family is waiting for him, and there is hot rice and soup at home. There is no difficulty that the family cannot overcome.

Everyone finished the meal calmly, Aunt Li and Xu Qing cleared the table, and Li Sanlang gently called to them: "Auntie, Auntie, I have something to say to everyone."

Everyone understood what Li Sanlang was going to say, and Li Erlang had already given a general outline when he came back.

Everyone sat down, with straight faces. The two elders, Li Aweng and Li Ainai, sat at the head of the dining table. Li Aniang and Xu Qing, who had already stood up, sat back down.

"We suspected something was wrong when prices rose, but we didn't expect the involvement behind it... to be so serious..." Li Sanlang clenched his fists, "Mom, you also know that I have a classmate named Du Yuan, and he does some business at home. I just asked him for the news. Unfortunately, he didn't know about the lack of mulberry in the south. He only told me that several big cloth shops in the south were raising the price of silk in the cloth mills under their joint branches. The reason is not clear yet. The key point is. Yes, the government has taken action to suppress it, and the price of silk has basically been fixed, and is now stable at around 450 yuan. Now that the government has taken action, prices should not rise anymore."

Du Yuan has been Li Sanlang's classmate and friend since childhood. He lives in Zhuangzi, two villages away from Shangli Village. His family has merged many fields and leases them to farmers. They mainly rely on grain rent for business, which is one of the best in the neighborhood. The big landowners have some channels with local and distant caravans, and they can get more information than ordinary people.

"Du Yuan's father heard that there are some rumors circulating in the south, saying that silk shops raise prices because the local mulberry trees die in patches after autumn. If mulberry leaves can't be found, next year we will start spinning in the south. No silk can be produced, this should be what Manager Zhang said, 'no mulberry trees can be produced.' I don't know if these are rumors, but if true, I have never heard of mulberry trees dying in large numbers."

Grandma Li is a silk weaver who has been weaving silk for decades. Naturally, she has witnessed the mysterious death of mulberry trees, and she also knows that there are several reasons for the death of mulberry trees. "The reason why mulberry trees die in large tracts is simply because of water, soil and insect pests. Unsuitable water and soil will make the mulberry trees sick and wilted. Too much drought or waterlogging can cause the mulberry trees to wither."

Li Erlang tilted his head: "But I haven't heard of drought or floods in the south this year."

Li Sanlang was lucky. Fortunately, it was not because of drought or floods. If it was really a drought or flood, not only the mulberry trees would be damaged, but also the grain during the harvest period would be devastated. The noise that would be caused would not only be an increase in the price of silk. So simple.

Li A'nai said: "When I was a child, there was a disaster in the north where mulberry trees died in tracts. Hundreds of acres of mulberry fields withered in a very short period of time. Large tracts of mulberry leaves withered and fell, even if they were about to die. It didn't work to uproot the mulberry trees to protect the ones that were not withered. The remaining mulberry trees still withered and died, and there was no way to stop them. In desperation, the county magistrate ordered that all the mulberry trees be eradicated and replanted."

Li Sanlang had never heard of this incident. He calculated that what happened when Ah Nai was a child was at least fifty years ago. "Fifty years ago, when Emperor Hui was dividing the grassland with foreign enemies?"

Grandma Li recalled: "I still remember that when the Uighurs came over from the grassland, my father and mother took the whole family to hide in the mountains. Later, the Li army came and fought the Uighurs back. In those years, the two sides fought for each other. Chasing water and grass, they kept pulling back and forth, and finally the Gobi line was used as the dividing line, and the Uighurs were driven into the Gobi, and the war temporarily subsided. In those years, the war destroyed almost all the mulberry fields and grain fields, and the mulberry trees broke out again a few years after the reconstruction. Everyone said that the death disaster was caused by the Uighurs poisoning the mulberry fields, and they poisoned our mulberry trees."

Li Erlang: "But after so many years, we still have constant friction with the Uighurs, but trade has not been interrupted. But how did they poison the mulberry fields far to the south?"

The south is different from the north and is less tolerant to outsiders than the north. Seeing a foreigner on the road in the south is more likely to make people wary. Not only the common people are suspicious, but foreigners walking on the street will be called to question by patrolling officers. Fifty years have passed, and Uihe and Dali have been in constant friction. The other side often harasses our border and takes the opportunity to snatch supplies. They are a thorn in the side of Dali.

No matter how you think about it, it is extremely difficult to poison the mulberry trees quietly without being discovered and poisoning the mulberry trees that can cause the price of silk to skyrocket.

Is there really such a strange poison in the world?

Grandma Li sighed: "Whether it was before or now, what the common people hear are speculations circulating in the streets, and the official has not confirmed it. Whether it is what Erlang heard or what Sanlang inquired about, or whether the south is really true. If you don’t give up, you can’t fully believe it.”

These words provided a new direction for thinking for the two brothers. Everyone was stunned after hearing this. Young Li Sanlang did not have the experience of dealing with things like Ah Nai, so he did not dare to clearly doubt the truth of what everyone said. sex.

"Although the silk production in the north was far less than it is now, local wars and the withering of thousands of acres of mulberry fields meant that the price of silk never soared like it does today. It is indeed a fact that the price of silk in the north and south has soared, which shows that the price of silk in the south has soared. The matter must be very serious. But it doesn’t make sense, and it’s even more outrageous. No matter how little information we have, we won’t have no news at all about what happened in the south, right?”

These words shocked everyone and left them speechless.

What Grandma Li said was something they had never thought of.

Li Sanlang keenly understood the meaning of Ah Nai's words: "Ah Nai, you mean that someone deliberately manipulated the price of silk to rise, and the south is not going to stop producing mulberry at all?"

Grandma Li sat calmly, clasped her hands on her thighs, and said with a serious expression: "Erlang Sanlang, I just want you to see more and think more whenever you encounter trouble, and don't be confused by one-sided phenomena and stop thinking. Things in the South are not simple.”

Both brothers expressed that they had been taught a lesson.

Although the elderly are old, they are not stupid. The most valuable thing is their experiences and insights.

Inspired by Li A'nai, Li Erlang began to think: "In this case, A'nai, Sanlang, the price of silk usually rises only eighty or ninety cents to the sky. It is not surprising that the price of grain rises by two or three cents. Now the price of silk has stopped at four." One hundred and fifty coins, how much does corn cost?"

Li Sanlang: "I asked Du Yuan today that the price of food in the county is set at twenty-five cents."

"Sanlang, have you ever thought about it? After paying the silk tax, an ordinary farmer will only have one or two horses of surplus, and the profit from selling silk will be only one or two taels. As for corn, after the ordinary family pays the grain tax, the surplus will be enough for the future. The rations are enough for one and a half to two years. If you are not rich, you can save enough for next autumn harvest."

"A bushel of corn is twenty-five cents. If our family is not considered rich, we can still spend two to three hundred bushels of surplus grain. We can get ten taels by selling silk and grain. This is a big deal, and the income from selling grain is Big head. When the price of silk comes down, the price of grain will also drop. Then you can use the money from selling grain to buy more grain." Li Erlang's eyes were clear. When he mentioned the remaining amount of silk cloth, Aniang Li and Xu Qing both nodded. , according to their daily spinning speed, after paying the silk tax, there are indeed only one or two pieces left. "Is it possible that the purpose of deliberately raising the price of silk in the South this time is to increase the price of corn and lure more people to sell grain. Saburo, have you noticed..."

Li Sanlang took over: "The rising price in the market is usually the selling price marked by the store. Although the receiving price will also rise, it is often less than half or even half the selling price. In this way, it will not be easy to sell when the price falls. Losing money.”

"Yes, but now the receiving price of grain and silk is not much less than the selling price. If you buy it at such a high price, it doesn't matter if you get silk, but the grain is also bought at a high price? Based on this analysis, the purpose of this wave of price increases It is not difficult to find that there is more likely to be a food problem in the south."

"..." Although this inference was more convincing, Li Sanlang couldn't calm down anymore. A problem with silk was better than a problem with food. However, this did not affect his sigh at all: "It's really wonderful to attack the east and the west like this. The price of silk has increased so much." The price difference of a few hundred cents attracted most people's attention, but the increase in food prices was actually covered up. No one noticed the strangeness in food prices and would not think that something was wrong with the food."

Li Aniang understood what her sons said and guessed: "Is such a big deal a strategy of the government? After all, if they want to hide it from the government and drive up the price of silk, they dare to do it without the government's permission. How courageous are they?" It’s too big.”

Li Erlang agreed with his mother's words and pursed his lips: "Does the official want to use the food from the north to fill the south?"

Once he figured it out, Li Sanlang's ideas continued like spring water: "There is a huge difference in food between the north and the south. Rice is mostly grown in the south, and many places are not used to eating corn. The major cloth shops in the Jiangnan region joined forces to affect the price of silk in the north. Our place is so remote and the impact is so great, let alone other places. After all the effort to purchase so much corn, the only thing that needs to be filled is the military barracks or the government grain depot. Supplementing grain can only hide people's eyes and ears, but it cannot completely solve the problem. .”

Xu Qing listened with great interest and couldn't help but follow their thoughts and guess: "Is there going to be a military rebellion? Is it because of the south that my father-in-law and husband were recalled early by the military government this time?" Military chaos has been her lifelong nightmare. I don’t want to experience it again.

The northern border is long and a large number of troops are stationed on the border. You must know that the whole country of Dali was divided into fourteen roads, and there were more than 800 Bingding Mansion distributed on the fourteen roads. Each soldier's mansion is equivalent to an independent military region, and each soldier's mansion has nearly a thousand soldiers.

The number of soldiers in the soldiers' mansion is fixed, but the number of soldiers' mansions arranged on each road is different, some are more and some are less. Taking Hexi Road where they are located, Hexi Road is an important border defense area. Nearly half of the soldiers' mansions, that is, nearly 400 soldiers' mansions, are located in Hexi Road. These soldiers' mansions are stationed along the long border, and the north and south defenses To defeat the enemy, defend Tuyuhun in the south and Huihe in the north to protect the narrow trade route.

The army uses corn as its staple food. The price of this wave of grain purchases is higher than usual. Privately, farmers can be subsidized. If there is a war, farmers have money in their hands and will not panic in the short term. They will wait until the government collects the autumn grain. Once the storage is in place, the court can order the grain store to release rice, and grain prices will fall.

Li Erlang didn't understand again: "Is what Manager Zhang said about 'not being a mulberry' really a cover-up?"

Is it such a big turn to collect extra grain?

Using the excuse of not producing mulberry to raise the price of silk, thereby raising the price of grain, and then harvesting grain wantonly to use it for the soldiers to fight?

"It's hard to know..." After all, the distance is far, and the officials seem to be intentionally blocking the spread of news.

Li Aweng said: "Whether there is a war or there is no mulberry or food in the south, we must take care of the family affairs and be strict with ourselves. Erlang, you must keep the keys in your hands well. In order to prevent disasters from happening, everyone in the family must be careful." The amount of food eaten per day may be reduced as appropriate. Today’s events cannot be reported to outsiders. Do you remember that?”

Major decisions are made by the elders.

As the anchor of the family, although Aweng Li usually doesn't talk much, now that Aunt Li is gone, he is the soul of the family.

Everyone responded: "Remember."

Li Aweng was thoughtful and said: "Daqing, let me remind you that their family is marrying a wife for three sons. They don't have much land, and their food storage is definitely not as good as ours. If something really happens in the future, they must plan in advance to borrow food." , You can’t make your eyes roll, and you can’t chill your own people’s hearts.”

After discussing this, everyone went back to their rooms to rest.