Ming Zhengzhi, I am Zheng Kezang

April is the rainy season in the south of the Yangtze River, but in Taiwan it is the golden season with less rain, less typhoon and more sunshine. On such a refreshing day, Zheng Kezang started his first tour of Taiwan.However, Zheng Kezang has neither the interest in the white dragon fish suit, nor does he want to disturb the people, so although he is easy to follow, the guards and accompanying officials are also indispensable.

"Master Liu, why haven't I seen barley (that is, corn) planted during this journey?" Sitting in a four-wheeled carriage made by craftsmen from England, Kezang, while admiring the scenery of the plain outside the window, Zheng Kezang asked Liu Chongxi, a foreigner from the household department, inquired. "Is it possible that today's Taiwan is still dominated by multi-planting of rice and wheat?"

"What the grandson said is not bad." Liu Chongxi, who was sitting opposite Zheng Kezang, was a little apprehensive. Of course, this was not because of Zheng Kezang's majesty, but because he felt that sitting face to face with Zheng Kezang was a bit presumptuous. But this was Zheng Kezang's request, and he had no choice but to hold on even if he felt uncomfortable. "Taiwan is humid, and barley is often plagued by diseases, so each household only planted a small amount of one or two crops, and basically multiplanted rice and wheat."

Zheng Kezang nodded, which seemed to solve a doubt, but he and Liu Chongxi did not know that a considerable part of the diseases and insect pests suffered by corn was caused by wheat scab. Of course, the relative annual average of ~85% in Taiwan Humidity is also a further cause of disease infestation.

"Taiwan's mild and rainy climate is not worse than that of Qionghai." Zheng Kezang asked again after a short pause. "Then why Qionghai can grow three-season rice, but Dongning seems to have never heard of it?"

"Three-cropping rice sounds more productive than multiple cropping of rice and wheat, but in fact it is limited." Liu Chongxi explained. "If the average yield of early rice is one, the second crop will be halved, and the third crop will be halved from the second crop." Liu Chongxi seemed to feel that his explanation was not clear enough, so he added further. "Rice and wheat in various parts of Dongning can produce two and a half stones per mu and nine buckets of rice per mu in one year, while the average annual yield of three-season rice is only four stones per mu, and it is labor-intensive and damages the soil, so it is naturally discarded."

"Taiwan can now guarantee a yearly yield of two and a half stones of rice and nine buckets of noodles?" Liu Chongxi said rice noodles instead of wheat, which means that the weight of the bran has been removed. Looking at China in this era, this The output is definitely at a fairly high level. "Is this still equal birth? Master Liu is right?"

Seeing that Zheng Kezang didn't seem to believe it, Liu Chongxi immediately patted his chest: "Grandson, Dongning soldiers and civilians have been reclaiming wasteland for more than ten years, and the fields have already matured. Apart from anything else, just from the official land, the household department has already done it for six consecutive years. A similar harvest in the middle of the year should not be bad, of course, the people who have recently established the platform have not cultivated for a long time, and it may take some time to reach this number."

Seeing what the other party said, Zheng Kezang closed his eyes and calculated for a while. Taiwan's current five taxes and one tax are calculated based on the reclaimed area of ​​450 Sijia (about 2684 acres) before the real Taiwan. The income from Yingpantian (note: the common people labored to cultivate it, but all proceeds belong to the public land) and Dongning’s total tax income in the land tax in one year is only 15 shi for rice and [-] shi for surface. .

"Chen Zongzhi is really not easy." Zheng Kezang sighed, the fault is that Zheng Jun still has a huge sea trade caravan, otherwise such a weak economic level really can't support tens of thousands of troops to fight abroad all the year round. , obviously my father-in-law didn't just pay for it with sweat, and it is not too much to describe it as exhausted. "The people are suffering too!"

"What Jian Guo said is true." Liu Chongxi echoed, but his tone seemed a bit weird to Zheng Kezang's ears, obviously there must be something inside that Zheng Kezang didn't know or didn't think of. "The people in Taiwan are still poor, but in order to fight against the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty, they can cut down on food and go hungry."

"That's right, if this vassal doesn't fight over, the Tartars will come over. The father and the king have worked so hard to fight outside, and he is also eating outside because of food for the enemy." Zheng Kezang's words made Liu Chongxi stunned, and he obviously noticed that there seemed to be some It was not right, but before he could figure out why Zheng Kezang's attitude suddenly became cold, he saw Zheng Kezang knocked on the door twice, and the carriage stopped immediately. "Lord Liu followed Yu to get out of the car and walk around. I'm very aggrieved here."

Aggrieved?While pondering Zheng Kezang's words, Liu Chongxi hurriedly followed Zheng Kezang out of the car.The motorcade stopped at a corner of the official road. Due to Zhu Jin’s expedition to the west, Taiwan’s public utilities were abandoned halfway, so the so-called official road was just a wide dirt road, and only a few sections were paved with gravel. A thatched gazebo for shelter from the rain, a group of people walked in that direction.After entering the pavilion, Zheng Kezang took a look around, seemed to find something, and then walked over.Liu Chongxi and a group of guards did not dare to neglect, except for a few who stayed behind, the rest all chased after them.

"What are you doing!" Just as Zheng Kezang was fiddling with a leaf at the top of the field and watching carefully, a loud roar sounded not far away. Everyone looked up and saw a middle-aged man with a naked upper body fucking The rake rushed over, and while running, the man was still yelling. "The thieves over there are going to be trampled." But the farmer's yelling soon stopped abruptly. Obviously, he saw the situation clearly. There were a lot of people and many of them wore swords and swords. They were obviously men in disguise. , it is definitely not him who the common people can call and drink. "That son, I was reckless."

Seeing the bewildered farmer singing to himself, Zheng Kezang had a smile on his face, and he didn't think the smell of the field was bad, so he reached out his hand to ask: "This elder brother doesn't need to apologize, in fact, it's Yu Cai who should be said to be reckless, But since the eldest brother is here, please come over and talk, I still have some things I want to ask the eldest brother."

The farmer who was scratching his head was in a difficult position. He thought for a while and was about to walk over, but saw the guard with the knife staring at him coldly. His subconscious steps must have been confirmed, and then he felt blessed, and hurriedly put away the agricultural tools in his hand. Only then was he able to walk in front of Zheng Kezang, and bowed his head again to salute.

"The villain has seen this young master," the farmer Xu Shi regarded Zheng Kezang as a rich family official who didn't know how to farm, so although his attitude was humble, he never flinched. "I dare not ask for advice. If you have anything to say, you can just ask, and I will tell you what I know."

Zheng Kezang, who didn't know and didn't care what he thought, pointed to the plant he found: "Is this sweet potato?"

The farmer was confused by Zheng Kezang's question. He scratched his head and thought for a while before answering: "Gan, I don't know what sweet potatoes are. This is the sweet potato brought back from Luzon by Mr. Chen of Changle. There’s a variety in every piece.”

"Yuanzi!" Because he did not dare to reveal Zheng Kezang's identity in front of ordinary people, Liu Chongxi used a title that did not attract attention. "The so-called sweet potato is actually sweet potato. There have always been two sayings that sweet potato was introduced to China from Fujian and Jiaozhi from Guangdong. Among them, the first person who brought sweet potato to China from Fujian was Changle Chen Jinglun and Chen Zhenlong. Governor Jin Gongxue once urged the people to plant it widely, so some people call it golden potato."

"So it's actually the same thing." Zheng Kezang nodded to express his understanding of the difference in terms of appellation. China has always had a vast land and abundant resources, and it's normal that there are different sounds in ten miles and different customs in hundreds of miles. Zheng Kezang continued to ask the farmers. "Brother, is this sweet potato delicious? How about the harvest in one year? Do you usually use it for rice or cooking?"

"Back to my son, sweet potatoes are very sweet to eat. On weekdays, mothers-in-law and aunts like to steam them and then dry them and slice them. They can be eaten as vegetables. Our farmers can't afford sugar, and children often bring them with persimmons. Eat it as fruit, and if the season is bad, chop it up and steam it with rice, which can save a little food.” It can be seen that the farmer is very organized, and Zheng Kezang can answer whatever he asks. What he answered was not an ordinary person. "Besides, planting sweet potatoes yields a huge harvest. One acre can produce seven or eight stones, but officials don't harvest them, so we generally only plant them on the ridges of the fields."

"It's a life-saving food." Zheng Kezang sighed. In fact, he knew that the yield of sweet potatoes was high, but it was just a concept in the past. It is only in this era that he realizes that this high-yield crop is very important for ordinary people who only want food and clothing. is how important. "Then brother, do you know how to use sweet potato starch to make noodles?" The farmer shook his head. In his impression, only white flour can be used to make noodles. As for the starch in Zheng Kezang's mouth, he was even more confused. "How do you know that the young leaves of sweet potatoes can be used for cooking." The farmer shook his head again, so Zheng Kezang looked back at Liu Chongxi. "It seems that we Dongning people don't know treasures in Baoshan." Liu Chongxi didn't know what kind of medicine Zheng Kezang sold in his gourd, so he could only falter and smile apologetically, and let Zheng Kezang ask again. "How many pigs and chickens are raised at home? Are there any cattle?"

Hearing this obvious Shangguan tone, the farmer became more and more respectful: "There is only one pig in the family, and it is used to eat meat during the Chinese New Year. There are more than [-] chickens and a dozen ducks. I rely on eggs and duck eggs to change some oil, salt, and needlework, but there is a small stream beside the place where I live, and the little cubs can sometimes touch some fish and shrimp, which can be regarded as seeing meat, but the farm cattle are no more than six heads, and the farming is busy. You can only wait for others to use it before borrowing it.”

"Without cattle, big brother will have to work hard." Zheng Kezang frowned. The shortage of cattle is a big problem in Taiwan's agriculture, but because Lei Qiong's situation has reversed, Zheng Kezang has no way to solve it immediately. "However, we still need to raise two more pigs. Whether it is to eat meat or sell it for cloth and salt, it is always good." The farmer hesitated to speak, but Zheng Kezang could understand. "Are you worried that there is not enough pigweed?" The farmer nodded. "Yu told you, the young leaves of this sweet potato can be used as vegetables, and the rest of the leaves can be eaten by pigs. Pigs grow fast after eating them."

The farmer acted submissively but obviously did not believe Zheng Kezang's words. This is also true. He had long regarded Zheng Kezang as a noble son who was not diligent, so how could he believe that Zheng Kezang could understand farming.

Liu Chongxi obviously also saw this point, in order to flatter Zheng Kezang, no, it should be said to protect Zheng Kezang's dignity, Liu Chongxi immediately glared at him: "Bold, how could the descendants deceive you into a commoner! "

As soon as Liu Chongxi said the word grandson, the farmer was startled. How many people in Taiwan can be called grandchildren? No, Zheng Kezang is the only one. Fell on the ground, Zheng Kezang glanced at the meddling Liu Chongxi, and helped the farmer up with his own hands: "There is no need to be formal, if it weren't for your hard work, how could the father sleep peacefully in the mainland? If you don’t believe me, you can try it when you go back.”