Water Margin people

Chapter 1673: Competition between Manpower and Machinery
I have to say that the old farmers are really good at farming. They held the plow and cracked the whips, but the whips never hit the cows. The cows were also moving forward with all their might, and the plow heads quickly turned over the soil.

"Look, there's no need for training, the areas have already been divided."

Sun Lei smiled and pointed at the farmers who were tilling the land. These people were really smart. Each team divided the land into ten parts and tilled the land on their own, which was very efficient.

“Is this what it means to specialize in a particular field?”

Xin Qiji said in disbelief. He didn't expect the farmers to be so smart. If someone didn't know, he would have thought they had been trained long ago.

"Brother, I don't think you can win!"

Lu Zhishen smiled and said that although he had seen the power of agricultural machinery, it was hard to say whether he would win against ten old farmers at the same time, after all, the people who operated these machines did not know much about farming.

"I think your majesty will definitely win!"

Wu Song smiled and said that Sun Lei never fought an unprepared battle, and the most important thing about this competition was to promote mechanized farming, and they could not lose at this time.

"Then let's take a gamble?"

Sun Lei looked at Lu Zhishen with a smile.

"I don't..."

Lu Zhishen really wanted to say that he had not been fooled by Sun Lei. He had never won a bet with Sun Lei in all these years.

"Just tell me whether to gamble or not!"

Sun Lei asked with a smile.

"Bet! I bet!"

Lu Zhishen could not stand the provocation, he felt that he had nothing to lose.

"it is good!"

Sun Lei said with a smile.

On the tractor side, the plowshares had been hooked up and the steam engine began to roar, emitting white smoke.

Everyone looked at the tractors. They wanted to see how powerful these machines were.

"what!"

As the tractor moved forward, the intellectuals who still wanted to watch the fun were stunned, each of them looking as if they had seen a ghost.

Although those tractors did not move fast, every time they moved forward, the plows would turn up two meters of land behind them.

"How is it possible! Impossible!"

Those old Confucian scholars seemed to have gone insane, and their last chance was gone.

These scholars are not dressed like this today just to look pitiful. The Spring Ploughing Ceremony is different from other ones. It is to worship Hou Tu and Shennong, so simplicity is required.

“This is the power of machinery!”

Kong Ruiyou's face was also filled with shock. He had read a lot of books but had never heard of this kind of machine. In thousands of years of culture, farming was done with livestock and manpower. Now the power of machines could be used and even better. This overturned his cognition.

The farmers who came to watch the ceremony had solemn expressions on their faces. They were all representatives from various villages and knew a lot about farming. But now this tractor overturned their understanding of farming.

"This thing can actually turn the soil, and it's so fast!"

The farmers were full of confusion. They couldn't understand how the cars moved and where the power came from.

Just when everyone was puzzled, a group of children walked into the crowd. These children were farmers' children, sons and grandsons of these old farmers. They explained the principles of the steam engine in detail to their elders.

"Boy, you said burning coal and wood can make that big guy move? Is it the same as burning it?"

It was the first time for everyone to learn about steam engines. They were very surprised. They were familiar with boiling water, but they could not imagine that boiling water could drive all these things. But they were afraid. They did not understand and could not understand. The knowledge here was not something they could master quickly.

But their children understand. They have learned this knowledge in school. If the children understand, that means they understand; if they can do it, that means they can do it. Since they understand and can do it, what is there to worry about?

The farmers who were working hard in the fields were sweating profusely at this time. At first, they were dismissive of the machines because these things were dull, slow and inflexible. They thought winning the competition was not a problem.

But as time passed, their leading advantage disappeared. They are flesh and blood, and both humans and cows are sweating profusely. The cows even have white foam in their mouths, which is a sign of fatigue.

The farmers did not whip the oxen. They could feel that the oxen were not slacking off and that they could not withstand the continuous and rapid plowing.

But the tractor on the opposite side did not react at all and continued to plow the land at the same speed.

"Failed! Defeated!"

Some people have already given up. They clearly feel the gap between the two sides. As the farming progresses, they have no chance of winning.

Of course there were some who persevered and held on to the end, but when they finished plowing, the machines had already finished.

"It looks like the winner has been decided!"

Sun Lei said with a smile.

"You already knew the result!"

Lu Zhishen was very angry as he had lost again.

"Of course I know. When have I ever made a bet that I wasn't sure of?"

Sun Lei laughed.

After leaving the pavilion, Sun Lei came to the old farmers who were watching the ceremony with a smile. The protagonists this time were these old farmers. He needed to make them accept agricultural machinery and let them help promote it.

"Your Majesty, we lost!"

The old farmers who participated in the competition saluted to Sun Lei and said that they accepted the defeat sincerely. Farming has never been an easy job, but those machines can run tirelessly, which means they are invincible.

"I believe you also know the convenience of machinery. These things will become your new farm tools to help you farm. You can easily cultivate hundreds of acres of land by yourself, and you will no longer feel powerless."

Sun Lei looked at the farmers with a smile. With the absolute strength and the explanation behind him, they had no reason not to accept it.

"Your Majesty, can we really use these machines?"

The farmers looked at Sun Lei in surprise. They had never thought that they could use such powerful artifacts. In their opinion, only His Majesty the Emperor was qualified to use them.

"The purpose of researching this thing is to create new agricultural tools. Since it is an agricultural tool, of course it should be given to you who are the best at farming. After today, I won't touch a hoe once a year. You don't expect me to farm, do you? If I farm, who will manage such a big country?"

Sun Lei looked at the farmers and made a joke.

"Haha."

The peasants all laughed. The emperor's joke touched their hearts. They knew very well that this Spring Ploughing Ceremony was just a show. The emperor was busy with all kinds of affairs and had to manage the country. How could he have time to farm? Moreover, the emperor had said long ago that he didn't know how to farm.

"Your Majesty, rest assured. With these machines, we will be able to cultivate more land and grow more food!"

The farmers said happily.

"Haha, then I'll be waiting for your good news!"

Sun Lei smiled and said that he didn't know how to improve the varieties and increase the yield. The process was too long, year after year, when would it end?

He only knew that if he conquered as much land as possible and used the most advanced machines to cultivate it, he would be able to grow enough food. If it was not enough, he would just keep conquering.

(End of this chapter)