Late Qing Dynasty Executioner

Chapter 53 Production Development
After having a feast with his brothers in the mountain stronghold, Chen Gu returned to the city and prepared to transport a batch of grain to the mountain stronghold.

As the saying goes, food and fodder must be prepared before an army moves. If you want people to work, they must first be well fed so that they have strength.

Considering that buying grain directly in the city would require too far to transport, Chen Gu planned to purchase it locally.

Longhua Field belongs to the Twelve Cities and is the sphere of influence of the Diao Family. However, one family is not strong enough to completely occupy a city, and the reality does not allow it. Not to mention that other big families will not agree. You can't drive away all the other small families in the territory, or take them all as slaves, right?

It just so happened that the Chen family of the sour scholar was in Longhua Field. And not only in Longhua Field, the Chen family had clan members scattered throughout the Twelve Districts, making it the second largest family in the Twelve Districts.

This may also be one of the reasons why Suan Xiucai and Liu Er have a close relationship.

So after a snack, Chen Gu went to Chen's house to study and brought back a silver note worth one thousand taels.

The sour scholar should be in a good mood today, with a more relaxed expression, unlike his usual stern face. If others don't know, they might think that Chen Gu owes him a lot of silver.

After the lecture, Chen Jue put away his notes and did not leave as usual. Suan Xiucai could not help but ask, "What's the matter?"

"Disciple does have something to ask you!" Chen Gu nodded and put the notes into the cloth bag.

"Disciple will give it a try!" Chen Gu said affirmatively.

"A pickaxe with one tooth can't dig the ground, so just change it to one with two teeth. A rake with five teeth can dig out thin mud, and a rake with two teeth will definitely have no problem digging hard soil." Chen Gu said.

However, the iron smelting technology was already very advanced during the Qing Dynasty. The price of a hoe was only over 100 coins. Although a two-tooth hoe was heavier, it was easier to forge and its value should be about the same.

"How do you dig the ground with a pickaxe?" asked the sour scholar with some amusement.

The sour scholar sighed and explained, "You can't pick up all the pebbles like that. It's not like no one has thought of this before, but the number of pebbles increases every year.

The weather was getting warmer, and it was not only uncomfortable to stuff a stack of papers in his arms, but it was also easily soaked by sweat, so Chen Gu sewed a cloth bag for himself. The style was the same as the school bags that elementary school students used in the 1980s and 1990s, and the size was just right for holding pens, ink, paper, and inkstone.

After a year of farming, not only is it more laborious, but most of the harvest is spent on the hoe, so there is no profit at all. Over time, no one will open up the land full of pebbles anymore."

The wear and tear of a two-tooth hoe is not that great, and it is definitely worthwhile to use it to cultivate land with pebbles.

"This~!" The sour scholar frowned and thought for a while, then said, "Maybe it's possible. Do you really want to take the risk and try it?"

In fact, it was not just a try, because this thing has been successful in later generations. Chen Gu didn't know why people in the past didn't do this. Maybe it was due to the limitations of iron tools.

"During the day, I went to the mountain village in Longhua Field and found that the terrain behind the mountain is flat and can be turned into fertile fields. Although there are many pebbles on the ground, we just picked them up."

"A hoe is thin and will naturally cause a lot of wear and tear when digging the ground. If you use a pickaxe instead, the wear and tear won't be that great. As for the stones, you can just pick them up every year." Chen Gu said with a smile.

"Just tell me if you have anything to say!"

The sour scholar thought about it and did not dissuade him anymore. Instead, he asked, "What do you want me to help you with?"

"Disciple needs food. I hope you can purchase some for me nearby!" Chen Gu said as he took out the silver note and handed it over with both hands.

The sour scholar took a look at the amount of the banknote and said with a smile, "You are willing to invest. Go to your eldest brother for the purchase of grain. He is more familiar with Longhua Field. As for making the two-toothed hoe you mentioned, you can go to your second eldest brother. There are many craftsmen in the area south of the city that he inspects." The three members of the sour scholar's family, father and son, were all on duty in the yamen.

Although the sour scholar was only a coroner and his two sons were just ordinary clerks, their salaries were barely enough to make ends meet and even support their families, but the three of them could find a lot of extra income from their jobs.

The most important thing is that the jobs of these three people can provide a lot of convenience to the Chen family members, so every year they can also receive some money and food from the family, which is better than ordinary people.

But on the other hand, they will also infringe on the interests and rights of some ordinary people.

This kind of people were later called county Kshatriyas, which means county aristocrats. They are the people you will find it difficult to catch up with even if you study hard for ten years.

Of course, Chen Gu is the beneficiary now.

After getting the consent of the sour scholar, Chen Guan came to the door of the first room in the east wing after class and knocked on the door, "Big Brother, Guan wants to see you!"

After a while the door opened and Chen Tao walked out.

With a square face, medium height and a gentle smile on his face at all times, Chen Tao in casual clothes does not look like a yamen runner, but more like a modest gentleman.

"Is there anything wrong, Prajna?" Chen Tao asked with a smile.

"I do have something to ask of you, Senior Brother!" Chen Gu told him about the grain purchase and added at the end: "I have already consulted you on this matter!"

"Since father has done the same, it doesn't matter!" Chen Tao said with a smile.

Then Chen Gu handed the silver note to Chen Tao.

Chen Tao looked at the amount on the banknote and asked in surprise: "Do you need to buy so much food? How do you allocate the types?"

“As for the specific species, after Senior Brother goes to Longhua Field, he can discuss with Scar and Roadblock of the mountain stronghold and tell them that not only do they need to reclaim wasteland, but they also need to renovate the houses. In addition, they also need to raise more pigs, cattle, sheep, horses, chickens, ducks and geese.

Therefore, this one thousand taels of silver is just an initial investment, and I will add more silver in the future. Big brother can find a few clansmen to help, so as not to delay the work of the yamen. At the same time, they can also help me keep an eye on some livestock, poultry, bricks, stones, wood and tiles.

You can buy any suitable one!" Chen Gu said with a smile.

Now that he has formed a cooperative relationship with the Bian family and has reached a compromise with the Bai family, Chen Gu can invest more money in Jiangjin to develop some industries.

It is not necessary to just develop military force and pursue expansionary development. In fact, production development is the right path.

In fact, what Chen Gu did was exactly what all the major clans in Jiangjin wanted to see. The development of production would benefit everyone, and with more supplies, the strength of the entire county would be enhanced.

Once Chen Gu develops his military power, all the major families will probably lose sleep.

"The yamen's work is not urgent. Jiangjin has been peaceful for a long time. There is nothing important in the yamen. Your matter is more important, Prajna. Don't worry, I will go back to Longhua Field tomorrow and send you a batch of food to the mountain stronghold for emergency use on the same day!" Chen Tao said with a smile.

The initial investment was one thousand and two taels of silver, which was already a huge amount of money, and after the matter was done, the Chen family would definitely benefit from it. Faced with such a huge benefit, Chen Tao had to work harder.

(End of this chapter)