lovenovelstory Chapter 16 Spring Planting, Put Your Shoes On!
Chapter 16 Spring Planting, Put Your Shoes On!
The fleet docked, and Yu Fengzhu led the way down, with Lu Xingzhou going to meet them.
"Second Brother, didn't you say it would be ten days? Why are you here several days early?"
"The Xiliao River thawed early this year, and I was worried you wouldn't have enough supplies, so I brought people over as soon as it became navigable!"
Lu Xingzhou held Yu Fengzhu's hand tightly. "Second brother is a good person to be around!"
The crew and laborers on and off the ship began unloading the cargo. Lu Xingzhou quietly placed two boxes of bullets in each ship's hold, then pulled him back to the main hall to rest and chat.
Yu Fengzhu accepted the hot tea offered by Lin Fengyi with both hands, and thanked her with a smile: "Thank you for your hard work, sister-in-law! By the way, I also brought the nice fabric that you asked Fengzhi to find. You can take a look and see if it suits you later."
Lin Fengyi's face was full of joy: "Second Brother, please don't be so polite with me."
Then, she glanced resentfully at Lu Xingzhou, turned around, and went outside to pull Wen away to look at the cloth.
The wind was quite strong on the river. After warming himself up with a sip of hot tea, Yu Fengzhu began to talk about the situation in Zhengjiatun.
"Uncle Wu is back from Fengtian. He asked me to tell you to visit him when you have time."
Zhang Zuolin, Wu Junsheng, and Yu Wendou were sworn brothers, so Wu Junsheng was Yu Fengzhu's second uncle.
These uncles and grandpas really love forming sworn brotherhoods and godparenthoods.
"Yes, I'll go see him after I finish spring planting."
Yu Fengzhu didn't talk much. The two chatted for a while, mainly Lu Xingzhou asking him about the recent changes outside.
At the beginning of the Republic of China, the political landscape was constantly changing.
Unsurprisingly, Yuan Shikai refused to go to Nanjing, citing the Beiping mutiny as the reason, forcing the revolutionaries to accept his inauguration as provisional president in Beiping. This demonstrated the revolutionaries' weakness and foreshadowed the failure of the First Republic.
With numerous political changes occurring in various provinces and regions, the future leaders of the Beiyang clique and the 17 southern provinces have already begun to emerge.
In contrast, some of the previous generation of leaders also chose to retire gracefully.
"I heard that Commander-in-Chief Yuan has been delaying in approving Zhao Erxun's resignation to return to Qingdao to retire, but has arranged for a new military governor to take office in Fengtian. It's truly laughable!"
When Yuan Shikai was mentioned, Yu Fengzhu's face was full of sarcasm. The honest and simple man had the utmost contempt for such opportunistic and fickle individuals.
Lu Xingzhou knew that Zhao Erxun was a capable official who had done a lot of good things for the people and the country during his tenure in Sichuan and Fengtian, and was highly trusted by Zhang Zuolin.
But his problem is that he's not on the side of the Democratic Republic.
From last year to February of this year, he killed two to three thousand revolutionaries, his hands stained with blood.
Lu Xingzhou said, "Whether it's out of personal resentment or the enmity he's incurred with the revolutionaries, he can't continue in his post; otherwise, his life would be in danger!"
"Hey~ That's right! Although Zhao Erxun hasn't left yet, our Governor Zhang Xiluan is already impatient to take office and implement policies, otherwise Second Uncle wouldn't have been so angry that he went back to Zhengjiatun!"
Lu Xingzhou shook his head and chuckled.
This guy, who doesn't understand the situation, is probably going to have a hard time getting into trouble with the Fengtian clique led by Zhang Zuolin.
After discussing the changes outside, Yu Fengzhu inquired about his safety.
"My sister told me about the dangers of you opening a business here before you came. Be careful no matter what."
Lu Xingzhou then took the opportunity to vividly recount the good deeds he had done on the road.
Upon hearing this, Yu Fengzhu's head was buzzing: "Brother, do you think you can just casually knock over a red kiln?! You, you... sigh~~~!"
"I have to keep my promise to Uncle Yu! Besides, Second Brother doesn't need to worry too much about me."
Lu Xingzhou then assigned Zhu Chuanwu as the gunner, and five strong young men to sleep and train during the day and keep watch at night as full-time gunners.
All able-bodied men had to practice shooting for half an hour after dinner, as was the case with the less capable men who couldn't break through the encirclement.
Yu Fengzhu was slightly relieved.
"Hey, you little rascal, you really know how to cause trouble!"
Honest and upright, he couldn't understand Lu Xingzhou's reckless style.
After all the items were unloaded, there wasn't enough room in the enclosure, and Yu Fengzhu couldn't stay any longer anyway, so he prepared to take his men back.
Lu Xingzhou told him to wait a moment and went back to his room to write down the requirements for supplies.
After this round of supplies is delivered, he'll have to pay for everything himself from now on.
He was asked to buy more cheap chickens and ducks next time, and he promised the farmhands that they would eat meat at least once a month, and he couldn't break his promise.
Finally, he handed a letter to Yu Fengzhu: "Please trouble your second brother to send this letter to the capital."
Yu Fengzhu glanced at the envelope: "To Sister Xiuzhu herself? And who is this...?"
Lu Xingzhou made no secret of it.
"The eldest daughter of the Bai family in the capital. We were very close when we were in the United States. Now that we've settled down, of course I have to let her know I'm safe and sound."
Yu Fengzhu's expression changed, and his eyes swept over Lin Fengyi, whose face seemed unchanged but whose hands were clenching the hem of her clothes. The fire of gossip in his heart burned fiercely.
Even honest people can't help but show a mischievous grin on their faces.
"So you're the eldest daughter of the Bai family? Don't worry, brother, I'll definitely send the letter!"
He then handed Lu Xingzhou a palm-sized Browning M1906 pocket pistol.
"This is for self-defense; you can keep it for yourself."
Lu Xingzhou declined, saying, "I don't need it. If you're so kind, Second Brother, you'd be better off helping me find a few more good dogs!"
"I'll find you a good dog, and you have to take the gun too!"
He insisted, so Lu Xingzhou accepted the money and watched the fleet leave.
This shipment included seeds, rations, heavy stone rollers, and bulky firewood and coal. It was only thanks to the repair of a warehouse that the supplies could have been stored.
With ample supplies, the morale of the farmhands was further boosted.
After a spring rain, Zhu Kaishan, who had investigated the ground temperature, came to find Lu Xingzhou.
"Master, the wheat and soybeans can be planted, and it's time to start cultivating rice seedlings."
This is where the value of Zhu Kaishan as the head of the village lies.
Despite Lu Xingzhou's eloquent explanations of high soybean yields and rice pest and disease control theories, he knew absolutely nothing about the number of people needed for wheat, soybean, and rice seedling cultivation.
"Uncle Zhu, time waits for no one, let's start spring planting!"
"All done!"
Zhu Kaishan, a seasoned farmer, felt no sense of urgency and even had the mood to joke around a bit.
"Master, this time you'd better stay on the sidelines and watch over things instead of going to the fields. Letting the young women and wives get so tired and confused prevents them from working properly, that would really cause problems! Hahahaha!"
Lu Xingzhou was quite speechless: "Fine~ can't I just watch from the side?"
It was only natural for landlords not to work in that era, and he had already proven himself, so that was enough.
Before the morning mist had dissipated, the fields, which had been quiet for just two or three days, were once again bustling with activity.
Dozens of farmers rolled up their trousers above their knees, went barefoot into the soft, cool soil, and dug holes with hoes.
The wife behind him planted the seeds and filled the soil, and finally the young boy followed to water them; everything was done in perfect harmony.
The entire field was filled with the rhythm of hoes rising and falling, footsteps moving, and seeds being planted, like a giant drum skin trembling and breathing slightly, full of primal and powerful energy.
Lu Xingzhou, who was used to mechanized farming, was still amazed by the vibrant and dynamic scene.
Especially now that the temperature is only around ten degrees Celsius, even with his body, he shivers from the cold when he walks barefoot on the ground.
All the farmhands, including the young boys, acted as if nothing was wrong, burying their cracked feet in the cold mud, which made him admire these resilient farmers even more.
While they were resting, Lu Xingzhou pulled Chen Damangzi aside and asked, "Aren't your feet cold on the ground?"
"cold."
Humans are made of flesh and blood, how could they not feel cold? Chen Damangzi stretched out his feet, which were red from the cold. Through the thick calluses, Lu Xingzhou could still see traces of unhealthy blush.
Obviously, even the thickest callus cannot prevent freezing.
"Then why aren't you all wearing shoes?!"
Honest and simple-minded Chen Damangzi spoke concisely: "Useless shoes."
"..."
Lu Xingzhou sighed in relief: "Sigh... From now on, I'll take care of everyone's bedding, clothes, shoes, and socks for two seasons a year, so everyone can have shoes on!"
Zhu Kaishan came over and tried to persuade him, "Master, these straw sandals will wear out after being trampled and crushed in the fields for just a few days. You're saying that they can't last for two seasons? Nobody can bear to part with them!"
"I'll arrange for Sanjiang Water to go to the county and buy a batch right away!"
The chilling coldness travels up from the soles of your feet and into your internal organs. You can tough it out when you're young, but it will leave you with a host of health problems when you get old.
Zhu Kaishan was not a man of integrity who would be a scab, but upon hearing this, he still gave a negative opinion.
"I can see that you are a very good person, but you can't grow mountains of gold and silver in the fields. It's not a long-term solution to keep spending more than you earn."
The treatment Lu Xingzhou offered was already incredibly generous. As long as he could maintain this business, he would be a benefactor to all those suffering. Giving him any more would be like draining the pond to catch all the fish.
Lu Xingzhou didn't plan to exert too much effort in the first year, but considering the price of grain and the amount of silver he had, he could support ten times more people.
Zhu Kaishan's earnest advice was not without reason, so we had no choice but to harden our hearts for the time being.
"Okay, let's leave it at that for now!"
Although the deal didn't go through, the farmhands who overheard their conversation felt their feet in the mud weren't so cold anymore.
Eight days later, the sowing was nearing its end.
Zhu Kaishan quietly found Lu Xingzhou.
Lu Xingzhou, who had already applied the Heaven and Earth Source Qi to 1800 mu of soybeans and 100 mu of wheat fields, said in a low voice, "I have taken measures to protect the seedlings, so don't worry, Uncle Zhu."
Zhu Kaishan smiled knowingly and made no fuss.
With spring plowing now over, the farmhands who have been working continuously for over a month can finally rest and catch their breath.
Before transplanting rice seedlings, I can finally get a few days of rest.
Unfortunately, it happened very early the next morning.
Zhu Chuanwu found Lu Xingzhou, shattering his carefree fantasy.
"Master, there were shadowy figures moving around on the west side of the enclosure last night. It was too dark to see well, so I didn't go out rashly. This morning, I took some men to check the traces there, and it seems someone is watching us!"