Datang: What's wrong with my fief being a billion points larger?

Chapter 152 Lingnan in the Eyes of Cen Wenben and Wei Ting

Cen Wenben and Wei Ting were very familiar with the situation in Chang'an. It was precisely because of this that they were particularly surprised by the scenes they saw here.

Ning Chun and Xie Shufang looked at the few people without explaining. Now they just wanted to take Cen Wenben to see all of this again. Especially Xie Shufang, he knew how shocked the few people were because he also knew what the situation was in Chang'an.

The few of them continued walking forward and soon saw a clothing store opened by Yang Qingwan. Cen Wenben and Wei Ting stood on the street and saw a woman in the store using a machine they had never seen before and tinkering with a piece of cloth.

Because they were curious and had never seen such an object before, they stopped and looked at it. After a while, the woman unfolded the cloth in her hand, and under the surprised gaze of Cen Wenben and Wei Ting, a piece of clothing was made.

The woman in the store also noticed Ning Chun and others outside the door and walked out immediately.

"Governor Ning, General Xie, why are you here to inspect in person today? Please come in and have some tea. The princess has just woven some clothes. Come and see if there are any you like. Pick two to take home and wear. I will tell the princess about it. It's okay."

Ning Chun immediately refused with a smile.

"We have distinguished guests coming today, and we are here to greet them. You can go and do your own things, and don't worry about us. You don't have to be picky about clothes. The princess gave you a lot of them, and there are still several sets at home."

The woman was also quite considerate. When she saw Cen Benwen and the other strangers, she walked in immediately. Then she brought her husband and two children to serve tea to everyone before leaving completely.

Wei Ting drank the tea in his hand and suddenly felt it was so sweet. Although he was powerful and rich, he had never enjoyed such good treatment from the people. Cen Benwen was better off. When he was governing Jingzhou, he also drank the tea handed over by the people.

"Mr. Ning, can we go in and take a look?"

Ning Chun smiled and walked in with a few people. Looking at the various kinds of clothes inside, Cen Wenben and Wei Ting were both surprised. Generally, fabric stores only sold fabrics, and they had never seen one that directly sold clothes.

Several people were very confused. This time Wei Ting did not ask, so Ning Chun started to speak.

After explaining the reason clearly, Cen Wenben and Wei Ting immediately looked at the sewing machine that Ning Chun mentioned. Both of them had hot eyes, as this was another item that was not even available in Chang'an.

"Can we try?"

Wei Ting looked at Ning Chun, who nodded and then called the woman who had just come over to teach them how to use the sewing machine. When the two of them used the sewing machine to weave clothes in a short time, the looks they gave the sewing machine became even more intense.

"A magical object, it really is a magical object! I never thought the King of Qi was so talented. Back in Chang'an, we looked down on him. This sewing machine will benefit future generations!"

After using it, Wei Ting and Cen Wenben understood the function of this sewing machine very clearly. It is a magical item that is very convenient for the people and for everyone. Even in the military, they also need clothes. With this sewing machine, they can save a lot of manpower and it takes less time.

The two of them gently stroked the sewing machine, as if afraid of breaking it, and their eyes were extremely gentle.

Then a group of people walked out of the clothing shop and continued to move forward. After a while, most of the people in the city were seen walking out of the city with sickles, baskets, sacks, etc. Wei Ting immediately asked Ning Chun.

"What are they doing?"

Ning Chun smiled and said, "It's autumn harvest time now. The autumn harvest here is earlier than in the Tang Dynasty. It's not so bad here. The autumn harvest in Guangzhou and Yazhou is even earlier. They can grow two seasons of rice there, but here we can only grow one season. We still can't catch up for the second season."

As Ning Chun finished speaking, Wei Ting and Cen Wenben's eyes suddenly turned red. Two seasons of rice? Two harvests a year?
Cen Wenben and Wei Ting were really jealous. You know, the price of grain in the Tang Dynasty is gradually rising. Some people can no longer afford to eat grain, and they can't even afford to buy it. The imperial court doesn't have much grain for disaster relief.

Those grain merchants and wealthy families have been constantly raising the price of grain, and the imperial court is also very helpless. The official grain is not enough now, and every time it is released at a low price, it is bought up by those people. The amount of low-priced grain that the people can buy is very little.

In the end, Li Yuan had to reiterate his orders again and again, but the price of grain in Chang'an has now reached fifty coins. Now in the Tang Dynasty, the court and the people are seriously short of food.

But here, there is grain that can be harvested twice a year. No wonder they saw that the people in the Tang Dynasty in Shaozhou and Guangzhou were migrating to Lingnan. At this moment, they suddenly understood something.

"Ning Yuanshi, please take us to see the farmland here. I have heard that there is not much farmland in Lingnan, but after the arrival of the King of Qi, the wasteland has been reclaimed vigorously. Can you take us there?"

Ning Chun then looked at Xie Shufang, only to see Xie Shufang wave his hand and someone immediately brought a horse, which obviously had been prepared long ago.

"Angel, the cultivated land outside the city is a bit far, so we will go there on horseback."

Cen Wenben nodded in agreement, and everyone mounted their horses and went out of the city again. After leaving the city, a team of cavalry followed and guarded everyone.

Walking out, Cen Wenben and others were surprised again, because the road surface was still a cement road. They followed Xie Shufang and Ning Chun to the village. The cement road did not disappear but continued to extend forward. Cen Wenben was amazed at Li Yuanji's generosity for a moment.

Everyone was riding on the road, watching the people start to harvest rice, but Cen Wenben was the first to dismount and go to a farmland to observe the rice.

After watching closely, Cen Wenben found that the rice was growing very well. Ning Chun spoke up immediately upon seeing this.

"These rice crops are all thanks to the waterwheel invented by the king, which can bring water from the river to the farmland through the canals built at low altitudes. The canals that crisscross the farmland are used to bring water for irrigation and to bring water out when the water level rises.

It is precisely because of the waterwheel that the crops are growing very well today.”

Cen Wenben reluctantly put down the rice in his hand and immediately looked at Ning Chun.

"Take me along the canal to the waterwheel. I want to see it."

When it comes to people's livelihood, Wei Ting is not good enough because he has no contact with these things. But Cen Wenben is different. He is very familiar with them. He has governed an area himself and has visited the people deeply.

Ning Chun was stunned for a moment, then he laughed. He really didn't expect that the angels sent down from the court would actually care about these basics of people's livelihood and attach so much importance to them.

"Angel please follow me."

Ning Chun led Cen Wenben and others along the canal and came to the river. The waterwheel was still running. Cen Wenben stared at the waterwheel with his eyes fixed and his breathing began to become heavier.

"Angel, this is the waterwheel that the king improved. In fact, it should be said that it was created. The old waterwheels must have been known to Angel. Today's waterwheels do not need to be driven by manpower. They can rotate by themselves as long as they are in a slightly turbulent part of the river. The wooden canal next to the waterwheel is used to guide water into the canal. Now is the harvest time, so a piece of it was taken down. There is no irrigation water entering the canal. When needed, we just need to reconnect it and it can be used normally."

Cen Wenben looked at the waterwheel with fiery eyes.

"Great, great! The King of Qi is truly a reincarnated immortal. He was able to create such a wonderful thing. With this waterwheel, the people of the world will be blessed. As long as the canal is dug and the water is diverted through the waterwheel, as long as the river does not dry up, the crops planted in the farmland will not be afraid of encountering a severe drought again.

With numerous canals, excess water in the cultivated land can be drained in time. Unless a major flood occurs, there is no need to worry about the crops being drowned. This waterwheel is really great!
Ning Yuanshi, I will definitely report this matter to the saint. The King of Qi has made great contributions to the country and will benefit future generations!"

Cen Wenben was really excited. He really didn't expect that coming to Lingnan would give him such a big surprise. When he was in Jingzhou, he knew very well that the people were having a hard time. Whether he could get a good harvest from planting crops in the fields depended entirely on God.

Now that we have waterwheels, many difficulties can be overcome, and the grain harvest will only be better.

After admiring the waterwheel, Ning Chun brought a few people to the land reclamation site. Even though it was harvest time, the land reclamation work continued without stopping, but the number of people was much less than usual.

Cen Wenben watched these people who were reclaiming the land talking and laughing, and taking a rest when they were tired. Although he was surprised, he had been surprised enough today, and now he was able to treat it calmly.

In front was a team of land reclamation workers, and behind was a team using oxen to pull a curved plow to turn the soil. As oxen were scarce, some teams had two men in front holding a hemp rope, with a man behind pushing the curved plow.

For such heavy work, any young man who is capable of doing it will do it shirtless, but their bodies are still wet with sweat. However, no one complains of being tired, and no one stops.

Cen Wenben watched this scene and finally set his sights on the curved plow. He soon discovered the difference of the curved plow. It was very different from the ones he usually used, and it was easier to plow the land, but the plowed land was not shallow at all.

Cen Wenben immediately looked at Ning Chun.

"Ning Yuanshi, why is that plow different from the usual ones?"

Cen Wenben, who had originally planned to only bring eyes and ears, now no longer cares about these things. These things really distracted him too much.

Ning Chun responded immediately.

"Angel, this is a curved plow, also created by the king. It is easier to use than the previous plow.

When he first arrived, there was a serious shortage of oxen, and there were not many oxen here. It took the king several days to make this curved plow.

With the curved plow, turning the soil has become easier and faster than usual. Originally, when there were no oxen, several men were needed in the front, but it was still very strenuous. Now with the curved plow, only two people are needed in the front when clearing wasteland.

If it is plowing, one person can go in front, even a woman, and she can pull it with some effort. Farming has become much better than before, and the efficiency has been greatly improved.

But the need for people to pull the carts in front won’t last long. The king has built a breeding farm to raise oxen. In two or three years, we’ll have enough oxen to supply.”

Cen Wenben listened to Ning Chun's words, but he didn't pay much attention to the rest of the words. When he heard about the curved plow, Cen Wenben was shocked again. It turned out that a plow could be made in this way, making it easier to turn the soil.

If you want to grow crops on arable land, turning the soil is essential. Cen Wenben knew this well, so he attached great importance to it. Now, looking at the curved plow, Cen Wenben wondered why he didn't think of it at the beginning.

When he was in Jingzhou, he also faced such difficulties. There were not enough oxen for plowing, so he had to use people to pull the plow.

This curved plow does look very simple, but it only looks simple. If you don't see it, it's actually quite difficult.

Cen Wenben went straight to the freshly turned land. When he saw three people sitting down to rest, he immediately walked over quickly. He wanted to try out the curved plow himself.

Wei Ting and others also followed behind. Seeing this, Ning Chun and Xie Shufang followed with a smile.

The man who was resting obviously noticed the arrival of several people. When he saw Ning Chun, Ning Chun waved and signaled them to go down first. The three of them then retreated with a smile.

Cen Wenben didn't pay attention to these. He walked to the curved plow and reached out to touch it. Although it was covered with mud, Cen Wenben didn't care at all.

After looking for a while, Cen Wenben felt unsatisfied and immediately took off his outer clothes.

"Ning Yuanshi, how do you use this curved plow? I want to try it."

Ning Chun immediately began to explain to Cen Wenben. Xue Wanche acted as the plowing ox in front, and the hemp rope on his back was pulling the rope. Cen Wenben used it for a while and then stopped. He was very excited.

"This curved plow is truly a magical object. With the curved plow, the people of the world, even if they don't have oxen to plow, don't have to worry about ploughing the land.

The King of Qi is truly an ingenious craftsman. I don’t know how to praise him for such a magical object. It is a blessing for the Tang Dynasty and the people of the world to have the King of Qi!”

Not only Cen Wenben, Wei Ting was also shocked. He didn't know much about farming, but that didn't mean he didn't understand the role of these things. At this moment, Wei Ting suddenly realized that the influence of King Qi was so great.

Once these news spread, Li Yuanji's reputation would probably be higher than Li Jiancheng's. At this moment, Wei Ting suddenly felt heavy in his heart.

He didn't know what Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji were thinking in private, but in his eyes, even if Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng were good friends, once Li Yuanji's reputation surpassed Li Jiancheng, there would probably be a change in who would be the leader.

Originally, he came here just because of Li Jiancheng's order, but now Wei Ting really wants to stay and take a closer look.

Cen Wenben felt the same way. Although he had just arrived in Lingnan, based on what he had seen so far, Cen Wenben knew that he should stay here and assist Li Yuanji.

The Lingnan and Haikang he saw today gave him a unique feeling. He knew that this was Lingnan, but in his eyes, this was the most prosperous place in the Tang Dynasty and the most paradise on earth.

All the novel things seen by the people here constantly impacted his heart, making him feel that Chang'an was not even as good as here.

(End of this chapter)