In Fengtian County, a cavalry team of 3,000 people was marching mightily on the official road, flags fluttering, and a great momentum. It was early September, the autumn air was crisp, and the weather was pleasant. It was the best time for autumn outings.
There were dozens of carriages in the procession, fully loaded with Chen Qing's family members and more than a dozen senior officials and their families, coming for an autumn outing on the banks of the Gan River in Fengtian County.
The banks of the Gan River are one of the most beautiful scenic spots in Guanzhong. You can see large forests and pastures everywhere, green fields, clear water, and sparse population. There are dozens of large manors on both sides of the bank. It has been the territory of the nobility from the Sui and Tang Dynasties to the Song Dynasty.
, even in the puppet Qi Kingdom, this place is still occupied by high-ranking officials.
Even if Chen Qing occupied Guanzhong, he did not destroy the scarce attributes on both sides of the Gan River. These manors were distributed to his generals and important civil servants. Chen Qing himself also had a manor covering an area of 3,000 acres here. There was no farmland in the manor.
There are large areas of woods and pastures scattered among mountains and rivers, raising thousands of sheep and more than a dozen horses, and more than two dozen farmers living in the manor.
This autumn outing was arranged in Chen Qing's manor. Soon, the mighty autumn outing team entered the manor. The thousand soldiers who arrived earlier had already set up hundreds of large tents, with an average of three tents per family.
There are banners of each family on the top tent, and the luggage sent in advance is also put into their respective tents.
More than 20 people from Chen Qing's family came to protect the servants, wet nurses and female guards. There were three big tents in total, two of which were used by the servants and wet nurses. The main tent was very special. It was a
The entrance to the split tent is a large disc tent. The disc tent is just the living room. There are three small doors inside, which can enter the three smaller sleeping tents.
During the day, everyone moves around in the large circular tents, and only goes into their sleeping tents when they rest. These tents are double-layered, with six female guards hiding in the mezzanine.
The carriage stopped, and dozens of children rushed to the grassland cheering. The boys ran and rolled on the grass, while the girls picked flowers and made garlands.
Their parents went to their respective tents to pack their things.
People in the Song Dynasty were very particular about their autumn outings. Ordinary families basically took one-day tours, mostly around Qujiang Pond. Rich families went further afield. They brought tents, took carriages, and their servants and wives followed them, and stayed there for three to five days.
, and even worse, it took more than ten days before returning home.
Chen Qing's autumn outing with important officials and family members was expected to last for five days. Chen Qing originally planned to visit Fengtian, and it happened to be autumn, so Chen Qing simply led a large group of people for the autumn outing.
"Husband, let Ji'er go on a patrol with you tomorrow!"
Lu Xiu smiled and suggested: "It's not far anyway, you can come back the same day!"
Chen Qing thought about it and it made sense. Let his son experience animal husbandry in practice. It was better to go and see it in person than to talk about it a hundred times.
Chen Qing touched his son's little head and asked with a smile: "Go to Desertui with dad tomorrow!"
Chen Ji raised his head and asked, "Dad, is Moshui far away?"
"It's not far, only thirty miles from here!"
"I'm going with daddy!"
Before dawn the next day, Chen Qing took his son on the road, followed by more than a hundred cavalry guards. It was already cold in the early morning of September, and the chill was permeating. Chen Qing held his son's thin body in his arms and held it with his hands.
The cloak wrapped him tightly, and he spurred the horse, and the horse ran westward along a valley, followed by more than a hundred cavalry.
At dawn, they arrived at the Moshui River. Chen Ji slept for a while in his father's arms. When he just woke up, his little face came out of his cloak and asked: "Dad, is this river the Moshui River?"
Chen Qing smiled slightly and said: "Yes! This is Moshui. Fengtian County is twenty miles to the north. If you go south along Moshui, you will reach Chencang County. Moshui flows into the Wei River in Chencang County. We are now exactly two
Between counties, it’s closer to Fengtian County.”
"What are we patrolling for?"
It was rare for Chen Qing to have such patience to explain to his son in detail. He smiled slightly and said, "Look at the grass planted by the river. Is it different from other places?"
Chen Ji nodded, "My master said that this is alfalfa, which is the favorite pasture for cattle, sheep and horses!"
"That's right. In the past few days, we have planted a large amount of alfalfa and vetch on Shaanxi Road, Xihe Road and Sichuan Road. Vetch is also another kind of pasture. When famine occurs, its beans can be eaten as food. Last year in Hebei
There was a severe drought, and the government of the Jin Kingdom was not able to provide disaster relief. We donated hundreds of thousands of wild peas to major monasteries in Hebei through several major monasteries in Guanzhong. The monks ground them into powder and made cakes to help the people. The effect was very good, hundreds of thousands
People can survive.
"My child understands, we will not deal with the Jin government!"
Chen Qing laughed loudly, "That's right. It's obviously our contribution, so why do we let the people thank the Jin government?"
"Then what? Let's look at the pasture!"
The son's thoughts were very careful and would not go off topic. Chen Qing nodded and said: "We have planted alfalfa along rivers everywhere and let local farmers develop animal husbandry. It has developed very well in the past two years. Why is mutton so cheap in our market?"
, the river valley played an important role in raising livestock.”
"Since alfalfa is grown everywhere, why did dad go to Moshui to inspect it?"
"Good question! Dad came here to inspect because there is an initiative in Fengtian County. They have established ten agricultural and livestock cooperatives in the county. Farmers who raise more than ten sheep must participate. Each agricultural and livestock cooperative recommends a few highly respected people.
Elders as mediators.”
"The role of the agricultural and livestock cooperative is to mediate conflicts?" Chen Ji asked.
Chen Qing nodded, "Don't underestimate raising livestock. There will be many conflicts. Because the carrying capacity of the river valley is limited, it is impossible to raise sheep without restraint. Some people are greedy and raise hundreds of sheep, and the sheep eat up all the pasture."
, but families that raise few sheep stop doing it, and conflicts arise. It is common for pasture fights to happen. Let the government take charge. The government does not have that energy and cannot control it at all. Farming and animal husbandry cooperatives are different. Who raises how many sheep?
They know very well that they will limit the number of sheep that each family can raise. If they don't obey the restrictions, the government will come to arrest people and sheep.
Then in autumn, they will mobilize all farmers to cut grass together, and then distribute them uniformly. When selling sheep, the farming and animal husbandry cooperatives will be responsible for selling them together, so that they can sell them at a good price. Otherwise, farmers will fight alone and compete with each other, and basically all will be lost.
It was sold at a low price, so after the establishment of the Farming and Animal Husbandry Cooperative in Fengtian, it not only became the county with the most sheep in Guanzhong, but also the county with the fewest sheep-raising lawsuits, and the selling price was also very good."
"Dad, I understand, kid, where should we go first?"
"Let's go to a random village to understand the situation first, and then go to the county to listen to the report from the county officials!"
They walked for a while, and a group of sheep appeared in front of them. They saw an old sheep farmer squatting on a big rock, drinking water and eating dry biscuits.
"Just ask him!"
Chen Qing turned over and dismounted, and took his son off the horse. At this time, several soldiers invited the old man over. They said they were inviting, but in fact they were a bit forced, which made the old man very nervous.
"Don't be nervous old man, we're just passing by here to have a few words with you!"
"As long as you don't steal my sheep."
After a pause, the old man said again: "You can sell it, the price is just the same!"
Even Chen Ji rolled his eyes. This old man is too shady. The master said that a fat sheep in the market only costs 500 yuan, but here it costs the same amount.
The old man looked at Chen Ji for a moment and said with a smile: "Officer, is this your son?"
Chen Qing pressed his son's shoulders and smiled: "That's my son!"
The old man sighed, "He is very handsome, but a little thin. If you raise sheep like this, it only takes one year. You are guaranteed to grow black and strong, and you will eat two big bowls of rice at one meal."
Chen Qing laughed and said, "He is still studying! He doesn't have time. When he grows up, I will let him raise sheep!"
"Come! Baby, eat the cake."
A piece of dry biscuit was forced into Chen Ji's hand, "This is a biscuit made from good wheat. It's delicious!"
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[I went to the hospital today to see a doctor. There were only two chapters. Alas! Both blood sugar and creatinine exceeded the upper limit. I need to take very careful care of myself.]