Fenghou

Chapter 941
January is the winter break season, and there are many festivals for the common people to relax and play. On the second of February, it is She Day. All festivals are arranged for agricultural production activities, which is the characteristic of farming civilization.

This year’s snowfall is less than last year, only one heavy snowfall. After entering February, the ice and snow melted, everything recovered, willow branches sprouted buds, a few birds stood on the branches and chirped happily, and groups of ducks in the river were splashing and swimming. , both sides of the river turned green, and there were vibrant scenes everywhere.

On the north bank of the Weihe River not far from Xianyang County, Chen Qing came down to a high point surrounded by a group of officials, surrounded by wilderness, and to the north was a large wheat field. The winter wheat was growing vigorously, and the farmers were busy fertilizing and weeding the fields. .

On the south side is the river beach close to the river bed, which is nearly one mile wide. There are no crops, but now it is full of the best quality pasture alfalfa. This is a major event that Chen Qing has been paying attention to in the past two years. After he drew up the plan, he handed it over to the Internal Affairs Hall for discussion. Once the Internal Affairs Hall approved it, it must be implemented. The year before and last year had been implemented for two years. The year before last was to start the war in Shanzhou, Hedong Road and the northern part of Shaanxi Road. Last year was a busy visit Lin'an and the war in the north of Hedong Road, so they have not paid attention to the matter of planting alfalfa.

But this year, Chen Qing was reminded of this matter because he was considering planting cotton. It coincided with the beginning of spring, and when he was inspecting the spring plowing, he came to check the progress of pasture planting in person.

"Zhang Zuosi, I remember that this side was full of weeds before!" Chen Qing pointed to the river beach and smiled.

Zhang Zuosi is Zhang Xiao. He has just returned from Hedong and continues to serve as the counselor of the Internal Affairs Department. His specific position is the Governor of the Left Department of Government Affairs. This is also a reform that was carried out only this year. The jurisdiction of the Department of Government Affairs is too wide. Jiang Yanxian really can't bear it. Therefore, under Jiang Yanxian's suggestion, the Department of Government Affairs was divided into two, the right department of government affairs was responsible for criminal law, education, imperial examinations, population, civil affairs, diplomacy, epidemic prevention, etc., and the left department of government affairs was responsible for industry, commerce, agriculture and animal husbandry.

Jiang Yanxian continued to serve as the governor of the right department of government affairs, and Zhang Xiao was appointed as the governor of the left department of government affairs.

Zhang Xiao was a staff member of Xianyang County Magistrate, so he knew the situation in Xianyang very well. He said with a smile: "Your Highness is right, I have never considered the development of animal husbandry before, I always think it is a matter of grassland, and the riverbanks on both sides of the Wei River are useless. , let it go, the natural weeds are overgrown, and now it is different. In just two years, the riverbanks on both sides of the bank are full of alfalfa. Not only can you raise sheep, mules, donkeys, cattle and horses, but you can also raise ducks and geese. , and the beans grown in autumn are ground into flour, which is still good feed for pigs.”

Another official added: "Alfalfa can also fertilize and strengthen the soil. If it is widely planted along the Yellow River in northern Shaanxi, it can reduce the amount of soil being washed into the Yellow River. It is said that it can also be used as medicine, and even the tender seedlings can be eaten as wild vegetables. .”

Chen Qing smiled and nodded, "It has many functions, so I decided to promote it vigorously. We have a foundation for the development of animal husbandry. Bing designated it as a place for raising sheep, and planted a large amount of alfalfa, and now it has become the largest place for raising sheep in Sichuan and Shaanxi.

But what is interesting is that the grain production in Wonju is not low. Even if you get the Sichuan Road, the annual grain production can be ranked in the top five. Why?Wonju uses alfalfa grown in river valleys to raise sheep, and sheep dung is the best fertilizer to improve soil fertility. Although it was Jin Bing's unintentional move, we discovered a way of grain production, breeding and animal husbandry by accident. parallel paths. "

Shi Yuan'an, order of the Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, said: "Your Highness is right. Yuanzhou's grain production surpassed that of Qinzhou last year, and ranked second only to Huangzhou among the Xihe Road prefectures. It is so surprising."

At this time, Chen Qing saw a shepherd boy grazing a flock of sheep by the river. There were more than a hundred sheep in the flock. Chen Qing walked up, and the officials quickly followed.

The shepherd boy had never seen so many officials and was a little frightened. Zhang Xiao comforted him for a while, and then he gradually calmed down. Zhang Xiao brought him in front of Chen Qing.

"What's your name, where are you from?" Chen Qing asked.

The young man timidly said: "The villain's name is Wu Ping, from Xiaowu Village in the south of the city."

"Have you ever read a book?"

"Read it for a year."

"Then why don't you read on?"

The young man shook his head and said, "I can't read it. There are more than a hundred sheep and ten cows at home. Daddy and elder brother are going to farm. I can only feed the cows and sheep."

"A lot of people raise cattle and sheep in your village?" Chen Qing asked again with a smile.

"A lot of them. Almost every household raises them. There are several surrounding villages. Now there are sheep grasses everywhere, and cattle like to eat them. Dad said that there are too many people raising sheep now, and they don't make as much money as before."

This is the effect Chen Qing wants, so that mutton can also be served on the tables of ordinary people, improve the dietary structure, and greatly enhance the physique of the people.

Chen Qing turned to Zhang Xiao and said, "It means that we are on the right path, and we will vigorously promote it this year. There should be enough seeds in the two directions of Shaanxi Road and Sichuan Road!"

Zhang Xiao nodded, "The seeds weigh hundreds of thousands of catties!"

"Okay, let's keep promoting!"

Leaving the north bank of the Weihe River, Chen Qing checked the spring plowing all the way. Winter wheat and corn were planted in the Guanzhong Plain, and they were harvested three times in two years, so the spring plowing was a little easier. The main tasks were to take care of the wheat seedlings, weeding, loosening the soil, and fertilizing. vehicles, dredging ditches, etc.

Passing through a large wheat field, Chen Qing entered Xianyang City, and came to the third district of Xianyang located in the northwest of the county. The local people call it Dajiangfang. Dajiangfang occupies a large area. It was originally the warehouse area, military camp and Chenghuang Temple. It is completely in the city. Surrounded by high walls, the warehouses, military barracks, and Chenghuang Temple were all demolished. Nearly [-]% of the land in the county town was vacant, and the military built more than a thousand houses inside.

There are more than [-] internal guards standing guard in front of the gate. Everyone who enters and exits must check the badge. Of course, Chen Qing's convoy does not use it.

More than a dozen carriages entered the Great Craftsman's Workshop, and they appeared neatly and identically in front of them. More than a thousand yards were square and neat, and they were all built exactly the same. , there is no house number and no sign, and the craftsmen live in a mixed place. One family is a gunpowder maker, and the next door may be a crossbowmaker.

If enemy spies sneaked in to arrest people, they couldn't find the target at all, so they could only ask one by one, waiting for them to be arrested by internal guards.

This kind of protective measures is not surprising at all. Throughout the dynasties, those highly skilled craftsmen have always been the important objects of government protection. On the one hand, it is protection, and on the other hand, it is also control, preventing them from being lured by the enemy's money and fleeing.

The Great Craftsmanship is managed by the Armaments Department of the Military Department, and the security is in charge of the internal guards. Zhao Changsui, the commander of the Arms Department, introduced to Chen Qing: "There are vegetable markets, restaurants, teahouses, bookstores, shops, and schools. Almost everything is available, it is a small closed county, and has almost nothing to do with Xianyang County."

"What's the biggest problem right now?" Chen Qing asked.

"Reporting to Your Highness, the biggest problem at present is that the artisan workshop is full and cannot accommodate newcomers."

"How many newcomers are there?"

"Since the year before last, the number of Class A craftsmen has been increasing. Among the refugees who fled from the Central Plains last time, there were [-] Class A craftsmen. They were basically the master craftsmen of the Qi State Military Armament Supervisor. Concentrate on making bows and crossbows, making knives and shields, all of which are extremely skilled and rare.”

Chen Qing asked: "Then how did these craftsmen end up?"

"Currently, it is located in Gaoling County. The only counties that have the conditions to build a big craftsman's workshop are Gaoling County, or Jingzhao New City. The Department of the Military Department is considering building a second craftsman's workshop."

Chen Qing thought for a while and said, "Let's put it in Jingzhao! Jingzhao also needs people, but there is no need to build artisan workshops. I mean to live together, but there is no need to build workshop walls to separate them."

"Understand, what about here, or keep the status quo?"

Chen Qing nodded, "Because there are craftsmen from the Firearms Bureau here, they are craftsmen who are under the watchful eye of Jin Guo, and they must be strictly protected, so I will come here today to inspect, and the management and protection measures must not be weakened, but must be strengthened! "

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[It's still two more shifts today, Rong Laogao took a breather. 】

(End of this chapter)