When Yu Fan heard that Liu Xin had a way to solve Jiangdong's problems, he quickly asked: "I wonder what wonderful method my lord has, so that the people of Jiangdong can live and work in peace and contentment from now on?"
Liu Xin did not answer immediately, but waved to Jushou, asked him to come closer, and whispered a few words in his ear. Jushou smiled and walked out in a hurry. Liu Xin then turned to face
Yu Fan said: "Zhongxiang, if you want to make the people rich, you must increase their income. And if you want to increase your income, it is definitely not enough to just grow food. You must find ways to use all those hills and mountains."
"Utilize the hills and mountains?" Yu Fan didn't understand.
Liu Xin said affirmatively: "Yes, the hills and mountains must be utilized. The climate in Jiangdong is humid. In addition to cultivating tea trees, it can also plant a large number of mulberry and raise silkworms."
Tea has been discovered and used by people as early as ancient times. It is said that "Shennong tasted hundreds of herbs, encountered seventy-two poisons every day, and got tea to cure them." Although tea was discovered and used very early, at that time, tea was mainly used as a
As a herbal medicine, although some people have begun to drink it, it is only limited to a few areas in the south. Planting mulberry and raising silkworms is also very common in Jiangnan.
Hearing that Liu Xin's idea of making people rich was to develop tea and sericulture, Yu Fan was disappointed and said: "Although tea has the effect of detoxifying, it is not needed for daily use. Although sericulture can be woven into silk, it cannot be used to make silk.
Full belly. I think it is a bit difficult to make the people rich by relying on these two things alone."
Liu Xin laughed and said: "Zhongxiang, regarding tea and sericulture, you only know one, but not the other. To be honest, I have appointed Jia Xu as the general manager of Liangzhou, responsible for pacifying Xiliang. When Xiliang settles down,
Next, I will restore the Western Region Protectorate and rebuild the Silk Road. By then, do we still have to worry about having no way out for sericulture?"
After a pause, Liu Xin continued: "If tea is only used for medicinal purposes, it will naturally not be needed much. However, if the status of tea is raised to be equal to that of food, the situation will be completely different."
Ever since he saw the topographic map of Liangzhou hand-drawn by Jia Xu, Liu Xin started thinking. If we want to make the country and the people rich, it is difficult to only focus on the country. However, developing foreign trade is a shortcut.
If you want to make a lot of money in foreign trade, you must have a competitive product. If you can do something that no one else has and I have it, that would be great.
Although Liu Xin came from a later generation and was used to seeing many high-tech products, he did not aim too high. Because he understood that in this era dominated by handicrafts, no matter how advanced scientific theories are, it is difficult to transform them into productivity. Take artillery as an example.
From the day the institute was established, he and Ma Yun made the development of gunpowder and firearms a key project. Ma Yun even provided the gunpowder ratio of "nitrate, disulfide, and charcoal". However, such
Years have passed, and progress is still very slow. Therefore, when it comes to choosing which products to use for foreign trade, Liu Xin did not hesitate to set his sights on his ancestors.
Throughout the dynasties of China, three products have long been in a monopoly position in foreign trade, namely silk, tea and porcelain. In Liu Xin’s impression, it would take hundreds of years for the technology of sericulture and silk reeling to be introduced to Europe, and it was deeply
The silk fabrics favored by European nobles could only be obtained from China through trade, so the trade routes passing through the Western Regions were called the Silk Road. As for the technology of growing tea and making porcelain, it was more than a thousand years later that it was introduced to Europe.
That's it. These three things eventually became necessary luxuries for European nobles and upper class society. As long as they are manipulated properly, they will bring endless wealth to the Han Dynasty.
Yu Fan also understood that as soon as the Silk Road was opened, planting mulberry and raising silkworms would naturally bring more wealth, but how to make tea rise to almost the same status as food, he racked his brains and couldn't imagine it. Moreover, he racked his brains and couldn't imagine.
, Yu Fan had another bigger worry, and couldn't help but raise his hands and said: "My lord, even if these two things are done well, it can bring a lot of wealth to the people of Jiangdong, but if there is not enough food, the people will
If you can’t even eat enough, what’s the use of having more money.”
Liu Xin put her hands on her hands and smiled and said: "That's right! Sir, you have really thought it through, which is what I will mention below. Regardless of whether you develop tea or sericulture, you can only use hilly and mountainous areas and some low-yield fields, and you must ensure the cultivation of food. Just right,
Gong Yu is back, let’s see what he brought us?”
When Yu Fan heard this, he turned around and saw Ju Shou walking in with a smile, carrying a cloth bag in his hand. The cloth bag was opened slightly, and inside was yellow rice. Yu Fan picked up a grain of rice and couldn't bear it.
He let out an exclamation of "Huh".
The rice in the cloth bag was obviously much fuller than the rice that Yu Fan usually saw. He grabbed a handful and held it in his hand, feeling heavy.
Jushou smiled and said: "Zhongxiang, have you ever seen rice like this? The yield of this kind of rice is much higher than that of wheat in the north. If a large amount of rice like this is planted in Jiangdong, do we still have to worry about food problems?
"
A look of excitement flashed across Yu Fan's face, and then he said worriedly: "My lord, it would be great if we could have this kind of rice. But this kind of rice is so precious, where can we get so many rice seeds? Common people
How can we afford these rice seeds?”
Liu Xin stood up, patted Yu Fan on the shoulder and said: "You don't have to worry about this. All rice seeds will be provided by the government for free. At that time, the people will only need to pay 10% more grain. I will also let
People cultivated some farming fields in the Jiangdong area and improved these rice seeds to adapt to the local climate and environment and obtain higher yields."
These rice seeds have been cultivated by the research institute after many years. The yield per mu can already reach more than 300 kilograms. If the cultivation is more intensive, the yield can continue to increase. The yield of more than 300 kilograms of rice per mu may seem pitiful now.
, but it was already a great progress at that time. At that time, the yield of rice was even less than that of wheat, and the wheat yield in the north was only a little over one hundred kilograms per mu. Don’t underestimate the wheat yield of more than one hundred kilograms per mu. It is precisely because wheat
Its yield was higher than that of corn, which led to a substantial increase in population during the reign of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty.
In fact, the conflict between population and land was not yet prominent at that time, and needs could be met by reclaiming a large amount of wasteland. However, since Liu Xin took charge of Jingzhou, he has been committed to increasing grain yields so that the same land can support more people.
population. Because Liu Xin, who comes from a later generation, understands better than anyone else that the consequences of over-cultivation are soil erosion and ecological damage, which in turn will make a large amount of land unsuitable for human habitation.
Of course, Liu Xin also knows that there are several crops that can grow on barren land with surprisingly high yields, namely potatoes and sweet potatoes, but they exist just like corn and peppers, and they are all far away in South America on the other side of the ocean. Liu Xin
I estimate that I will never be able to eat them again in my life, so I can't count on them. The only way is to work hard to increase the yield of existing crops.
In terms of increasing grain yields, the institute has indeed made great efforts. In addition to improving rice seeds, it has also conducted many experiments in improving agricultural tools and farming methods. You must know that at that time, people still used a relatively extensive method of farming, and the yield
It’s not surprising that it can’t be improved. As for fertilization, it’s good to just sprinkle a few handfuls of plant ash. Not to mention chemical fertilizers, even farmyard manure is rarely used. In Jingzhou, due to the large number of pigs, chickens and other poultry and livestock,
It also adds a lot of very good fertilizers to farmland. Therefore, in Nanyang and Nanxiang counties, the wheat yield per unit area is much higher than in the northern states that are more suitable for wheat growth.
When Yu Fan heard that Liu Xin could provide this high-yielding rice seed to the people for free, he immediately bowed his head to the ground and said, "My lord, this will definitely benefit the people of Jiangdong. The people can have enough to eat and make money. Even if
If you have a minor illness or disaster, you can now seek medical advice."
Liu Xin smiled and helped Yu Fan up, and said: "Why do you have to wait until you get sick before seeking medical advice? Why can't you nip it in the bud? The reason why people in Jiangdong are prone to getting sick is because of the humid weather.
Sitting on the floor will cause moisture to invade. Zhongxiang, the thing you just sat on is called a chair, and there is a simpler thing called a stool. Using this kind of thing as a seat means you don’t have to sit on the floor anymore, and you will be away from the moisture on the ground.
Naturally, you won’t get sick easily.”
Yu Fan reached out and slapped his head hard, and said angrily: "Oh, why didn't I think of such a simple thing?"
Jushou said with a "haha" smile: "Not everyone wants to get these furniture, but my lord invented them after thinking hard."
When he said this, even Liu Xin became embarrassed and said modestly: "It's nothing, it's just a flash of inspiration, it's nothing. You don't have to worry too much about the health of the people in Jiangdong, Zhongxiang, please listen.
Did you mention the medical school in Xiangyang?"
Yu Fan admired Liu Xin so much now that when he heard Liu Xin's question, he hurriedly raised his hands and said, "My subordinates have heard about the name of Xiangyang Medical College when they were in Kuaiji, and the miracle doctor Hua Tuo and my subordinates are also old acquaintances."
Liu Xin nodded and said: "Zhongxiang, since you know Hua Shen's medical skills, you should know that he has superb medical skills. The medical school not only has Shenhua Hua, but also Zhang Shenyi, but no matter how skilled the two doctors are, there are only two of them.
, even if he stays awake, how many patients can he cure in his whole life? The purpose of Liu establishing Xiangyang Medical College is to have successors to the medical skills of these two miracle doctors. Over the years, Xiangyang Medical College has successively trained many doctors and doctors.
Now most counties and counties in Jingzhou and Yizhou have hospitals established by the government. Soon, these hospitals will also be opened in all counties and counties in Jiangdong. With these miraculous medical disciples treating illnesses and saving lives, the people of Jiangdong will no longer have any minor ailments.
, do you still need to worry?”
In fact, in addition to cultivating a large number of medical experts, the medical school also trained many emergency rescue personnel for the army. This time Zhu Ding was seriously injured in the battle, and it was the doctor from the barbarian army who first treated him and then transferred him to
The hospital in Zoke County was sent to Xiangyang after some bandaging. Otherwise, Zhu Ding suffered such a serious injury and it was in such a hot season. Not to mention excessive blood loss, just a small infection would be enough.
It could take his life.
But now, after Hua Tuo and Zhang Ji's careful treatment, Zhu Ding's face has regained some color and his energy is much better. However, when his daughter heard the footsteps outside the room, she couldn't help but ran over to look around.