The patter of spring rain is like a sad cry.
Sitting in the second hall of the county government office, Gu Zhengchen asked the county government officials. They had no useful opinions on how to increase the yield per mu. He also invited the elders to ask questions, but they only plowed the land carefully, weeded and watered, and finally added that they were resigned to fate.
Gu Zhengchen was bitter and thought about how to increase rice production.
Many production experiences of later generations can be used, such as choosing high-quality seeds. For the common people, many people also know that good seeds will bring good yields, but unfortunately there are not enough good seeds at home, so they can only supplement them with lean seeds.
There is a lot of grain in the Jurong government granary. Grains can be selected through sieves and exchanged with the people in equal weight.
The treatment of seeds is also a problem. There are no pesticides now. Although some classics record the use of arsenic as a pesticide to mix grain seeds, this is Shanxi's method. If it is brought to Jurong, the people may not approve it. If arsenic is purchased in large quantities, Lao Zhu Do you think too much that if people eat food produced from arsenic seeds and have diarrhea, wouldn't they themselves become sinners?
fertilizer!
This is a big problem. If you want to increase the yield per acre, fertilizer is the key. It's just that there are no phosphate fertilizers, urea and the like now, and they can't be found in chemical plants. It seems that the only choice is retting fertilizer.
"Retting, you always know, right?"
Gu Zhengchen asked Luo Shao, Zhou Mao and Yang Liang, then looked at Elder Zhang, Elder Liu, Elder Ge and others.
Ge Qilao moved his crutches and nodded repeatedly: "We know about retting."
The so-called retting fertilizer refers to fertilizer that has been retting, fermented, and decomposed. The most typical one is manure.
Retting appeared in the Southern Song Dynasty, and was first seen in Chen Min's "Nongshu".
However, the Southern Song Dynasty was not long-lived, and this set of techniques was not carried forward. During the Yuan Dynasty, retting technology began to appear: "For the home of the garden, a deep and wide pool is dug under the kitchen stack, and the fine porcelain prevents leakage. Every spring The rice is soaked with grain husks and rotten grass leaves, and is soaked with fertilizer water and dripping sediment from the washing machine. The rice will rot by itself over time. Three or four times a year, dung taro will come out. Because it is fertilized with mulberry, the longer it lasts, the better it will be. Mao…”
What the Yuan Dynasty had, the Ming Dynasty inherited.
Gu Zhengchen smiled: "Then apply retting fertilizer to the fields. If you add more retting fertilizer, the land will be fertile and the yield per mu will increase."
Elder Ge Qi looked at Elder Zhang with a troubled look on his face.
Although Mr. Zhang Qi was a little embarrassed, he still said to Gu Zhengchen: "County Master, this retting fertilizer is really useful for our families. Every household has dug a manure pit, but the amount of manure is limited. Even one acre of land is not enough. At home, But there are seven or eight acres of land..."
Gu Zhengchen thought for a moment and said seriously: "If there is not enough fertilizer, find a way to add more fertilizer!"
All the senior citizens were stunned.
Old Liu Qi's Adam's apple moved, his skinny face looked ugly, and he said tremblingly: "Well, how can we increase the amount of fertilizer? For a family of five, he, no matter how hard he tries, he can't get enough fertilizer for eight acres of land. "
Elder Ge and Elder Zhang nodded repeatedly.
County Master, you can’t make all the old men squat in pits every day in order to increase fertilizer. This will make your legs numb from squatting. How much should it be or how much...
Gu Zhengchen was very depressed. Looking at this group of old men who misunderstood him, he explained: "Retting fertilizer is not only manure, but also green manure."
"Uh, what is green manure?"
Zhou Mao asked doubtfully.
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said: "When crops grow, they absorb nutrients from the soil. Manure contains nutrients that crops need, such as weeds, leaves, fresh shrubs, and even water reeds, water lily and green duckweed." etc., can be made into green manure and used to fertilize fields.”
"really?"
Luo Shao, Zhou Mao and others were pleasantly surprised.
You must know that Jurong has mountains, water, and vegetation. If weeds, leaves, etc. can also be turned into fertilizer, it will be a great thing for the people of Jurong.
Gu Zhengchen nodded heavily: "It is indeed possible. Not only that, I also plan to build a large-scale soybean oil workshop in Jurong."
"Soybean oil workshop?"
Luo Shao didn't understand. Elder Ge Qi asked: "County Master, why build a soybean oil workshop? There are no small workshops in that township, and everyone is not short of this little oil."
Gu Zhengchen pointed in the direction of Jinling and said calmly: "There is no shortage of people in Jurong, but Jinling has a large population, so there is no need to worry about selling the soybean oil. Of course, the reason why I want to do this is not entirely for the soybean oil." , still for fertilizer.”
“What does soybean oil have to do with fertilizer?”
Elder Zhang was confused.
Gu Zhengchen stood up, picked up the teapot, and poured tea for Mr. Zhang himself: "Mr. Zhang, after extracting soybean oil from soybeans, there are still bean dregs and oil dregs. The bean dregs can be made into bean cakes. This bean cake is a good fertilizer. A piece of such a big bean cake can be Fatten an acre of land.”
Elder Zhang looked at Gu Zhengchen's gestures, which seemed to be the size of a moon disk, and excitedly grabbed Gu Zhengchen's hand: "Is that so?"
Gu Zhengchen smiled and patted Elder Zhang's skinny hand: "I don't bully others."
"Then do it."
Elder Zhang supports Gu Zhengchen.
Elders Liu and Ge also expressed their opinions.
Elder Ge Qi’s crutch banged on the ground: “Master, if we can really solve the fertilizer problem, I don’t think Jurong will have a good harvest this year.”
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said: "When there is a good harvest, I invite everyone to come and congratulate me."
"sure."
Elder Ge and others took their leave.
Gu Zhengchen arranged for someone to send it to his home, and then planned the matter of green fertilizer and bean fertilizer.
Bean cake was widely used as fertilizer in the late Ming Dynasty, and I can mention it to the early Ming Dynasty.
There is no shortage of soybeans. Even Cao Zhi knows that "cooking beans burns bean sprouts", not to mention there are people selling tofu. The problem of raw materials is easy to solve, and it is convenient to purchase in large quantities. There is no material problem.
The only thing that needs to be solved is the efficiency issue. We always rely on manual grinding or squeezing. This efficiency is really low. Use a waterwheel. But except for the rivers in summer and autumn, the rivers in Jurong are almost as calm as lakes on weekdays. If you don’t look carefully, There is no visible flow, and the waterwheel is temporarily out of service.
Regardless, the fertilizer problem must be solved.
Considering that it was unrealistic to rely on the people to solve the green manure problem on their own, Gu Zhengchen posted a notice with a stroke of his pen.
Withered grass and dead leaves became things with a price, four cents per hundred catties.
The county government also collects milkvetch, wild rice, pea and other straw including the roots, and the price is eight cents per 100 catties.
In addition, there are also rat grass, mountain beans, pigeon peas, leucacia, water peanuts, water rhododendrons, water lilies, green duckweed, etc., and they are all priced according to a hundred pounds.
Four or eight cents of one hundred catties is already considered a high price. You must know that nowadays a load of firewood weighs one hundred catties and is only worth forty cents. But how much strength and fatigue is required to cut firewood, weeding, trimming dead leaves, and planting seedlings? How much effort does this take? Besides, the child can’t chop wood or help, but the child can cut grass...
Zhang Xiwan looked at Gu Zhengchen, who had returned from exhaustion, with stars in his eyes, holding a tea bowl and asked: "I have been to the tailor and weaving compound. I heard that many things were improved by my husband. I am a scholar, how come I don't even have weaving utensils?" So understanding?"
Gu Zhengchen took the tea bowl and said with a smile: "What, do you admire your husband?"
Zhang Xiwan nodded her little head, her face glowing red: "Ms. Sun, Madam Wu, Madam Zhang, and many others all praised my husband for being so wonderful. I have seen it, the transformations are ingenious and the assembly line design is great. The strange words also came from my husband, right? How could your husband know so much?"
Gu Zhengchen took a sip of tea, put down the tea bowl, and sat on the chair: "I know more just because I have seen more. Many of the transformations come from the ancient books and experiences of our ancestors. Some of them are the achievements of our ancestors, but they have not been implemented. .”
Zhang Xiwan put her hands behind her back and leaned over to look at Gu Zhengchen: "The sensitive cart, the ingenious bunk bed, the tight arrangement one after another, and the backpack that can hold many items, are they also from the book? Husband, please don’t deceive me because I don’t have enough education. These things have never been seen in books, nor have they ever been seen in previous dynasties.”
Gu Zhengchen took Zhang Xiwan into his arms, stretched out his finger and touched Zhang Xiwan's eyebrows: "What, now you want to find out about your husband's secret?"
Zhang Xiwan couldn't break free, and her warm red lips pursed slightly: "I'm just curious."
Gu Zhengchen looked at Zhang Xiwan's affectionate and beautiful Qiu Shui eyes. For a moment, he really wanted to tell her the reason, but when the words came to his mouth, reason defeated the emotion: "If you are curious, then stay curious for a few more years. When the time is right, My husband will naturally tell you."
Zhang Xiwan scolded: "What does it mean when the time is right?"
Gu Zhengchen helped Zhang Xiwan up and stretched his sore shoulders: "Some things are better not to know."
Zhang Xiwan walked around behind Gu Zhengchen and gently squeezed Gu Zhengchen's shoulders: "You are my husband. If you don't want to tell me, I don't care. But if one day, my husband feels that the time is right, please tell Xiwan." "
Gu Zhengchen closed his eyes and whispered, "Okay, I promise you."
Zhang Xiwan smiled and rolled her eyes, then said: "Today, I went to ask the women who came out of the guardhouse. Most of them are willing to work in the tailoring and weaving courtyards. Bunk beds are being installed in the two courtyards and they are no longer needed. They can move in in two days, but there's just one problem..."
"what is the problem?"
Gu Zhengchen asked.
Zhang Xiwan suppressed her smile, lowered her head and said in Gu Zhengchen's ear: "They are widows, but they shouldn't be widows all their lives. Husband, can you help them so that they can finally have a family and start over as soon as possible. Women It’s hard to survive with a child in tow.”
Gu Zhengchen rubbed his brows and sighed: "My husband, I have forgotten about this incident. It's just that they have a large number of people to take care of, so this matter is a bit difficult to handle."
Zhang Xiwan whispered: "Maybe this matter will be easy to handle."
Gu Zhengchen turned his head and looked at Zhang Xiwan. He felt that it was a difficult problem. Could it be that she had a solution?
"Jurongwei."
Zhang Xiwan whispered.
Gu Zhengchen slapped his thigh, how could he forget about this group of people.
The guards in the early days of the Ming Dynasty were different from those in the middle and later periods. The biggest difference was that in the early days of the Ming Dynasty, there were many widows and many bachelors.
There are many widows because many soldiers died, and there are many bachelors because they have been fighting all year round and have not had time to marry a wife...
