At this moment, on a field ridge outside the town, stood a young man who craned his neck to watch. His eyes were wide open, his face was full of shock, and his worldview was greatly impacted.
The lively spring plowing scene at Manor No. 9 in front of him made it difficult for him, who was dressed in a green robe and a scholar's crown, to maintain his gentle and scholarly demeanor. He could no longer hold his nerve.
Especially the buzzing and rumbling sounds of those steel monsters in the paddy fields that were spitting out black smoke made him feel as if he had seen terrifying gods and ghosts, and his delicate and handsome face turned even paler.
"Uncle, what kind of mythical beast is that monster that spits out black smoke? How can it be tamed by mortals and help farmers cultivate the land obediently?"
Fang Yizhi asked Fang Chengxiu, the clan elder beside him. He was only twenty years old this year and had very limited knowledge. He couldn't understand why such dead steel objects could move. He could only think of gods and ghosts.
"Oh, that's Xujiazhuang's tiller. It appeared a few years ago, so don't make a fuss about it."
Fang Chengxiu said calmly, with a look of dismay on his face. He would not say it at all. He visited Xujiazhuang two years ago and saw the tiller working for the first time. His performance was even worse than that of his nephew Fang Yizhi.
, I almost abandoned the sage's teaching of "respect ghosts and gods at a distance", and I had to kneel down on the spot when my legs went weak.
Fortunately, someone else helped him and protected his face.
Seeing his nephew's performance today, he couldn't help but feel a little proud secretly.
"This is a divine beast, clan uncle. One can be worth at least a hundred strong oxen. If the people in this world can use this kind of divine beast, they will no longer have to worry about famine. The prosperous age of three generations ago will definitely appear in this world.
In front of me, I see such auspicious beasts, but no one reported it to the court, and my nephew only saw it today."
Fang Yizhi said excitedly, although he is a son of a wealthy family with hundreds of hectares of fertile land, and he would not care too much about the people at the bottom, but he is a son of a saint who has been taught by orthodox Confucian saints. He cares about the world and the country.
People, with benevolence, righteousness and the common people in their hearts.
It has the three correct views of scholars of this era.
Therefore, he was moved in his heart, and the other party Chengxiu said: "Brother, I wonder if I can buy one of this sacred beast called a 'tiller' with silver? Let Mr. Yushan (Qian Qianyi) dedicate this sacred beast to the court.
, and then spread it to all people in the world, its merits will be immeasurable, and hundreds of millions of people will no longer have to worry about hunger."
"My dear nephew, you think too simply."
Fang Chengxiu shook his head noncommittally: "Not to mention whether Xujiazhuang is willing to sell such a sacred object as a tiller, even if it is willing, it can cost as little as one hundred thousand taels per head and as many as one million taels per head. How can ordinary people afford to buy it?
The families of the gentry and landlords can only buy one or two cows, but a tiller can be worth a hundred strong cattle or six hundred cattle. Once the landlord has a tiller, he does not need to hire too many tenants.
Hundreds of tenant farmers have been driven out of their farms and become refugees. As a result, food production has not increased much, but the number of refugees has increased. Do you think this is a good thing or a bad thing?"
Buzz.
Fang Yizhi was stunned for a moment. After thinking about it carefully, his expression suddenly changed.
The common people will never be able to use it.
Landlords will increase the number of refugees if they use it.
Unexpectedly, if a sacred object like a tiller is really vigorously promoted, it will cause more harm than good.
In fact, this is also the true view of the ancient ruling class on science and technology. It is not that they cannot see the benefits of improving production efficiency of many tools and machinery, and it is not that they do not understand that the benefits are not small. But after weighing the pros and cons, after all, it is
If it falls into the category of "strange and obscene skills", it will be difficult to be promoted.
After all, compared with the stability of governance, the improvement of production efficiency is not important.
Figured this out.
Fang Yizhi suddenly became depressed. The divine object was placed in front of him, and it could indeed bring huge benefits, but it was difficult to promote its use. This feeling of powerlessness was really uncomfortable.
"My dear nephew, take the 300,000 taels of silver I borrowed from you and take some people to the capital to do some activities and try to manage all the ministers in the court. As long as all these taels of silver are spent, Qian Muzhai will be restored.
If you look at the lines with your palms behind you, you will definitely succeed."
Fang Chengxiu reminded him, hoping that he would not forget the most important business.
"Uncle, I want to visit Xu Village and meet the owner of Xu Village."
Fang Yizhi was silent for a moment, and then said: "You said that there are many high-yielding seeds in Xujiazhuang, especially potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn. The yield ranges from a thousand catties to ten thousand catties. If these high-yielding seeds are taken from Yu
I would like to present Mr. Shan to the imperial court as auspicious omen to His Majesty. I think Mr. Shan will be more certain of his recovery...so I want to go to Xujiazhuang."
Directly using a huge sum of 300,000 taels to bribe the ministers of the DPRK, not to mention doing such a stupid thing, even thinking about it, he, who considers himself a disciple of a saint, felt irritable on his face and very repelled in his heart.
If he could donate high-yielding seeds and speed up the promotion of these seeds in the Ming Dynasty, which would help Mr. Yushan recover and benefit the country and the people, he would be very willing to do it, and it would also greatly alleviate his inner disgust.
.
"Okay, let me write a greeting note for you. Then Mr. Xu can be regarded as my son-in-law. With my greeting note, he should take the time to see you."
Fang Chengxiu nodded, feeling a little dissatisfied.
His cheap concubine has been married to Xujiazhuang for a while, and that wild girl just doesn't come back to visit him. Even the owner of Xuzhuang, whose own daughter is his, doesn't know how to come and see him.
The father-in-law had never met each other, and Fang Chengxiu still didn't know what the cheap and cheap son-in-law looked like.
Think of this.
Fang Chengxiu said again: "Forget it, I'll go with you. As my father-in-law, he won't turn away the door after all, right?"
"Okay, thank you uncle."
Fang Yizhi bowed his hands and showed joy.
…
afternoon.
Fang Chengxiu and Fang Yizhi each sat on the back seat of a Phoenix bicycle, with a dedicated and strong driver driving in front. They drove on the weedy road in the countryside. Although it was a bit bumpy, the speed was much faster than riding in a sedan. Even
It is faster than a carriage, and has more endurance than a horse. It is easy to travel a hundred miles a day, and some people have even set records of four to five hundred miles a day.
"Uncle, this bicycle is really convenient. It's not slower than riding a horse, and it's not very bumpy either." Fang Yizhi couldn't help but sigh.
"Naturally, this kind of bicycle sells for ten thousand taels of silver, which is a hundred times more expensive than a horse. When ridden by one person, the speed is not slower than that of a horse, and the endurance is not worse than that of a horse. There is no need to feed or take care of too much. It is really easy to use and save trouble.
, if it can be sold cheaper, it will definitely sell well all over the world."
Fang Chengxiu said proudly, but his Fang family only had these two cars, and they were taken from the concubine's gift. It would be a very shameless thing to own a few more cars, not to mention bringing more convenience. It is said that nowadays
In cities such as Nanjing and Yangzhou, one of the indicators for comparison among wealthy families is how many bicycles they have at home.
There have even been many incidents of rich kids riding bicycles in the city, causing injuries.
"This Xujiazhuang is so magical. There are endless exquisite things, which is eye-opening. I really wonder what a great husband the owner of Xujiazhuang is?"
Fang Yizhi became more expectant and curious, wishing he could spread his wings and see Master Xu immediately.