In the afternoon, the county official Zheng Man came to Shangyuan with another group of cattle, farm tools and grain seeds.
"W-what's going on? What did I miss?"
When he saw garrison leader Zhou Changming leading many rural soldiers diligently digging ditches in the fields, Zheng Man suddenly opened his eyes in surprise.
Did he remember Zhou Changming's disgust and resistance to Li Tai and his party yesterday? Why did he come to help so enthusiastically and proactively only one day later?
Li Tai was not in the mood to answer Zheng Man's questions. When Zheng Man arrived and had no time to receive supplies, he first pulled the man aside and asked in a deep voice: "How much does Zheng Zhi know about Zhao, Shi and other wealthy households in the countryside?"
"The Zhao family is a long-standing large family in the township. Most of the villages in the west of the original area are occupied by members of the same clan. The family is the most prosperous and has been the party leader here for generations. The surname of Shi is Hexi Hu, and it has been two generations since he moved here.
The Jingzhao branch is the most powerful, having served as prefecture and county officials in the early years. The Wuxiang branch was also led by this branch and occupied the post of county captain in the county."
Zheng Man replied after hearing this, and then asked nervously: "Are these two families making things difficult for you?"
"They incited the villagers to provoke, so I taught them a lesson. Because the Zhou garrison chief came to apologize in person, the matter was revealed, and I will no longer pursue it."
Li Tai pointed to Zhou Changming, who was leading the crowd to dig trenches in the distance, and explained briefly.
"So that's it."
Zheng Man also noticed several injured villagers lying in the camp, and guessed that there should be a fight between them. Li Tai's side obviously won.
"There are several big families in this area, but the Zhao family is still in ruins, and their prestige has not left the countryside. It is best for the historians not to make enemies. His family has a strong and evil nature, and their influence stretches across the state and county. In the early years, they dug caves to create statues, and even the state and county officials had trouble with them.
Li Lang, a talented person from a well-known family, is not the same as this local tycoon. Too much entanglement will damage Qing Wang."
Zheng Man comforted Li Tai with a few words, and then said: "Zhou Changming is not a wealthy person in the countryside. In the third year of Datong, the bandits invaded the territory in the east, and all the powerful people in the countryside retreated to Luoxi. Only Zhou Changming led the righteous people in the countryside to occupy Baoshangyuan, so he seized
He was promoted to garrison commander. Although he is not well-known for being rough and arrogant, he is fair in dealing with matters in the countryside and often acts as an arbiter. If there is any trouble in the countryside in the future, Li Lang can punish him."
Li Tai nodded after hearing this. After the previous negotiation, he had changed his view of Zhou Changming a lot. When he saw him again, he kept his word and led the village soldiers to help dig trenches. He felt that this man was a rare village righteous man.
Skipping this topic, Li Tai pointed to Luoshui in the distance and said: "It is now the flood season, and the villagers are about to finish their farming. Why is there still not enough water in Luoshui?"
After the previous rural fight, Li Tai also realized that river water is also one of the basic elements of farming, so he rode his horse to Luoshui to have a look, only to find that the amount of water in Luoshui was not large, and large rocks were exposed in many places.
Beach river bed.
Putting aside the basic needs of farming, the large water-spinning spinning wheel required for the farming plan he conceived is also powered by water flow. I originally thought that the manor is close to Luoshui, so it should not be difficult to use water. But looking at the amount of water in Luoshui, even if it can be settled
Nearby, the power of the water flow is not enough to drive the spinning wheel.
Zheng Man glanced to the northwest, and then sighed: "The reason why the Luoshui River is not abundant is because the water source of the meander in the upper reaches is blocked by people. There is the Manor of Hussar General Zhao Gui in Luoxi, and Liang Chunyuan in the east of Luodong."
Both of them are members of the Taiyuan Yuan Dynasty, and each has thousands of fans. The locals dare not fight for courage, so they can only tolerate..."
When Li Tai heard this, he couldn't help being a little dumbfounded. He thought that by leaving the city and farming in the countryside, he could avoid personnel disputes in the Western Wei Dynasty, but he didn't expect that living in seclusion in the countryside would also lead to suppression and sanctions.
He thought that by building a large water-spun spinning wheel, he would be able to weave and print money at full power. It seems that he took it for granted.
The large water-spun spinning wheel was invented in the Southern Song Dynasty. The water resources in Guanzhong are naturally no better than those in the water towns of the south of the Yangtze River. The occupation and monopoly of limited resources has always been the privilege of the powerful and powerful. When the villagers resist and reject it, they all start with the water source. It can be seen that water power
The preciousness of resources is deeply rooted in people’s hearts in Guanzhong.
It seems that even if you want to be a big landowner in Guanzhong with peace of mind, you must have the protection of power from the top!
Needless to say, Zhao Gui, Liang Chun is also a general who leads the army among the Beizhen warriors, and is obviously not someone that Li Tai can afford to offend now.
Regardless of their future power, for now, if these two people dare to directly build a dam to block the water, the villagers can only pinch their noses and endure. And before Litai Manor has been reclaimed, the big families in the village are inciting the villagers to ban them.
With water, it is clear which one is stronger and which one is weaker.
It seems that large-scale water utilization is no longer necessary.
In order to avoid accidentally provoking someone he couldn't afford, Li Tai asked if there were any other manors of powerful generals nearby, only to learn that almost the entire Wuxiang County was divided up by powerful nobles.
Separated by a mound to the north of the original is the manor of Yu Jin. To the east of the original is the territory of the Duguxin family. If Paul Poyantou had taken a bigger step yesterday, the boundary stone might have been planted into the Duguxin family.
.
After learning this, Li Tai couldn't help but sigh that Guanzhong is really shallow and there are so many idiots. Especially near Huazhou City, the nobles gathered to enclose their land. If it weren't for Yu Wentai's care for Gao Zhongmi, they would have wanted to win in Zuojin Township.
It is also difficult to gain a foothold.
But no matter what, you should make peace with what you have achieved, and you can never give up on Lu's dream just because others are tyrannical.
Li Tai calmed down and looked at the production materials sent by Zheng Man. When he saw five cattle, his eyes suddenly lit up, thinking that the power of cattle drives a spinning wheel.
Although it is not as low-cost as hydraulic power, it is far more efficient than hand-operated pedals. It is nothing more than adding a few axle structures and changing the direction of force. Even if you only have a junior high school mechanical knowledge level, you can complete such a transformation.
"Excuse me, Zheng Zheng, is there any other cattle power that can be rented in the county?"
Hearing Li Tai's question, Zheng Man then said: "There is a surplus of cattle for farming in the county. The number of households receiving land in He County is only a few thousand, and even fewer are willing to rent cattle for farming. Especially not during the busy farming years.
To collect rent, we have to recruit high-ranking households in the county. The tax on cattle is very expensive. The five cattle I brought are enough for Li Lang Manor to farm this season. Adding more will be just a burden."
Wuxiang County should have been regarded as the core area under the rule of the Western Wei Dynasty, but the average land per household was only over a thousand households, which shows the seriousness of the population in Guanzhong.
Li Tai had no time to worry about the people's livelihood and finances in the Western Wei Dynasty. After hearing this, he asked: "How much of this batch of loaned animal power materials will need to be returned after autumn?"
After hearing this, Zheng Man took out a calculation book, and after doing the calculations, he said to Li Tai with some embarrassment: "Everything rented out will need to return 1,700 stones of millet in the autumn. If the miscellaneous items are broken into grain, it will be returned."
We need to add another 300 shi, and transport a total of 2,000 shi in grain to eliminate the debt."
"so much?"
Although Li Tai knew that officials were better than bandits, he was shocked when he heard this figure. Five cattle, various farm tools, and various grain seeds that were less than a hundred shi, just for a few months on credit, turned out to be so much.
It’s a rental fee of two thousand shi of grain!
No wonder the government forcibly allocates sub-rents for such important production animals as cattle. How can ordinary families afford it?
Although he knew it was impossible, Li Tai still held on to the illusion that things would be safe and asked again: "Can these rental fees be converted into money?"
Zheng Man sighed with a complicated expression and avoided talking about it. He just said: "This season's rent collection is indeed a little heavier than in previous years. It's just because of the defeat of Mangshan and the huge consumption of materials. After the autumn, Daxingtai will have to gather people again.
In the Great Yue, Wuxiang is located in this city. After the autumn, the army needs to lose 30,000 shi of food. From the palm of the government office to the next, everyone is worried about this..."
"If one household can transfer two thousand stones, it will not be difficult to make up the number!"
Li Tai said in a low voice that it was quite late for him to enter the countryside, and he was still in doubt whether he could harvest two thousand dan of grain this year.
"So I advise Li Lang to save his animal power and use it as much as possible. There is really no need to rent more property."
Zheng Man also said with some embarrassment that the households in the countryside were reluctant to rent cattle, and Xungui Manor had sufficient livestock power, so Li Tai's demand here could definitely be regarded as a big customer.
Zheng Man returned home last night and was highly praised by the county magistrate. He was ordered to serve this big business from plowing to harvesting, especially after autumn, he must harvest enough to return the lost crops as soon as possible.
Li Tai stood in the field, and for a moment he felt ill will coming from all directions. In such a short time after entering the countryside, the villagers resisted and rejected him, the nobles occupied the land and dominated the river, and the government wanted to increase rent and extort money. It was not going well at all.
After a moment of silence, he spoke again: "Even if we get this defeat, the annual income of the government should be far less than that of the Daxingtai Governor, right?"
Zheng Man sighed: "To be honest, the daily maintenance of the county office has its own expenses. The rent and transfer of land equalization is a constant amount. Large households cannot go out and enter the official warehouse. Even if public land and various miscellaneous harvests are added, compared with the governor's order
We still owe nearly 10,000 stones. The county magistrate and all the princes have discussed it, but I will ask the big households after the autumn. If the big households don't show mercy, I'm afraid I will be punished and resigned!"
"If I say that I can help the county equalize this number, how can the county general benefit me?"
Seeing Zheng Man's gloomy look, Li Tai felt that it was not easy to be an official in the Western Wei Dynasty. It was frustrating to have to look at the faces of the powerful people under his rule.
Zheng Man's eyes widened immediately after hearing this. He stepped forward and grabbed Li Tai's wrist and said with a trembling voice, "Does Li Lang mean what he said?"
Li Tai was worried about the return of two thousand dan, and was not sure. He said that he would make up for the food gap of nearly 10,000 dan, which was just bragging. But he seemed to have the air of not being afraid of being bitten by lice. He would owe it anyway, so why not
If you want to owe money to a large country, it is best if your creditors treat you with respect.
"There are enough animals in the county, and there should be enough soldiers and manpower. There is a shortage of these types of work, and the power cannot be exhausted, so the harvest in the government office is poor. You might as well rent these to me, and I will return and make up the amount."
It had been a while since he came to this world, and Li Tai also realized that using public weapons for private purposes was not a serious taboo in the Western Wei Dynasty.
In order to achieve performance goals, even county magistrates have to go to the countryside to beg for big business. Packing and renting out the county government's surplus human and animal power can maintain dignity and achieve goals, so why not?
"It's not that I can't trust Li Lang, but the matter is very important..."
"I understand that I won't let you take the risk, Zheng Zheng. I have my own strategy to convince the county magistrate!"
As Li Tai spoke, his eyes fell on the farm tools sent by Zheng Man, such as long-column plows, short-coiled pears, etc. Then the next step is to summon the curved-column plow!