Chapter 148: Resting under the Grass
In just a few days, the news that Lu Sen was going to release 'Yuan's Immortal Rice' spread like wildfire.
It has even spread to other areas.
In the streets and alleys of Hangzhou, in public places or private clubs, people are almost always discussing this matter.
As people in Hangzhou disliked the word "Giant Rice", they automatically changed it to "Yuan's Fairy Rice".
Although a small number of people are skeptical about this matter, most people are willing to believe it.
Or rather, want to believe.
The climate in the Northern Song Dynasty is still good, and the crop yields are acceptable. It is normal for one acre of land to produce about 300 kilograms of rice, but this does not include how much surplus there is after paying the grain.
The wages of landlords are generally very high.
Generally speaking, farmers in the Northern Song Dynasty had a shortage of food.
And the situation is gradually becoming serious. The main problem is land annexation.
This was also one of the reasons for Fang La's uprising later.
In fact, there was no shortage of sober people in the Northern Song Dynasty, or rather, most of the scholars (intellectuals) actually saw this point , but few were willing to point it out.
Because they are the immediate beneficiary class.
Now, a high-yield rice seed has emerged that will definitely alleviate this situation.
This is something far-sighted officials would like to see.
Ordinary people's senses are more direct, and no one will ever complain about having too much food.
After more than half a month, almost all the dignitaries in Hangzhou City knew about this matter.
The Bitian Pavilion even posted the items required to redeem Yuan's Giant Rice.
Yes, this time Yuan’s Giant Rice is not sold in an auction mode, but in the form of exchange.
No money needed, just some rare materials.
For example, a hundred-year-old ginseng can be exchanged for one hundred kilograms of rice seeds, a meteorite from outer space can be exchanged for ten thousand kilograms, and so on.
At first glance, it seems that only high-ranking officials can change it, and ordinary people have no chance.
This also made those wealthy merchants and nobles who considered themselves superior to others very happy.
These are divine objects from heaven and immortal rice brought down by Master Lu. How can a common man like me enjoy them?
In addition, the Bitian Pavilion also clearly stated that the giant rice comes from the catalysis of immortal power, so it only works on the first generation of seeds. The rice produced by the giant rice, when used for germination, is almost the same as ordinary rice seeds.
When people saw this explanation, they also found it reasonable.
After all, just because the father is capable doesn’t mean the son will be capable as well. This also applies to rice.
In the city of Hangzhou today, the rich and high-ranking officials are in high spirits. They generally own a lot of land, so they are eager to purchase goods that can be used for exchange.
Ordinary people can only sigh.
But they didn't have any objection to this practice, they were used to it. After all, he was indeed the "master" and they were just good citizens.
In the Hangzhou government office, Lu Huiqing was handling government affairs with his chief clerk.
Both of them were smart people, and they seemed very relaxed while correcting the books and chatting at the same time.
"Prefect Lu, why do you think Master Lu did this?" The master is also quite young, but compared to Lu Huiqing, he is more worldly-wise: "In the past, he always sided with the people, but this time, he actually set such a high threshold for exchange, completely excluding ordinary farmers!"
As he spoke, the master's expression looked somewhat lost, as if he had felt disillusioned with his idol.
"You are totally wrong if you really think so." Lu Huiqing smiled proudly: " The real intention of Master Lu's move has been almost hidden from most people in the world, but there are always a few smart people who can see it clearly."
The master was stunned for a moment, then he clasped his fists and asked, "Please teach me, magistrate."
"If you take a close look at the land register in Hangzhou, you will understand."
The lawyer frowned, still not quite understanding.
"Seven or eight out of ten of the fertile fields outside Hangzhou are in the hands of more than a hundred wealthy families." Lu Huiqing laughed, his expression a little cold. "If you count carefully, there should be more than a hundred thousand tenants attached to the farms of these wealthy families. In other words, although Master Lu's exchange requirements are very high, seven or eight out of ten people can actually get immortal rice to plant. The remaining small farmers will not have the problem of having no food to eat without immortal rice."
The master understood, and his eyes gradually brightened again: "In other words, Master Lu is robbing the rich to help the poor?"
"Robbing the rich is natural, but helping the poor is not necessarily the case. Master Lu is not poor."
The young master nodded and smiled happily: "Master Lu is naturally not poor. Judging from his past in the capital, he is a good man who is willing to help ordinary people. These things that were robbed from the rich will surely be returned to the world one day."
When Lu Huiqing heard this, he was quite shocked: "Well... this is a point of view I haven't thought about before. It is indeed possible."
The words of Master Lu Huiqing made him even happier.
In the cave, Yaoyao and Kunkun are now a little worried.
Because a month has passed, Lu Sen has not really taught them anything. He just let them practice on their own and did not say much.
He doesn't seem to care much.
But it doesn’t seem like Lu Sen doesn’t care about them.
Because when Lu Sen eats out, he always invites them to the table together, and he also chats with them every day, asking about their moods, progress, and experiences.
Anyway, it gives them a somewhat contradictory feeling.
Not like a normal Master.
For example, when they were being taught various skills by the mothers in the brothels, they followed behind them all the time, and not only were they taught seriously, but they also explained everything clearly.
If there was anything wrong with the painting, they would be beaten or punished.
The methods used are very strange and tricky. They will not leave any scars on their bodies, but they are quite painful.
But here with Lu Sen, they live an extremely easy life. They even feel that as long as they eat and sleep, and then sleep and eat again, they will be recognized.
"Sister Ringo, maybe Master doesn't like us."
Yaoyao stood next to Ringo and said carefully.
In their opinion, perhaps Lu Sen still cared about their skinny horses' identities.
Ringo was practicing archery. Hearing this, he turned around to look at the two girls who were two years younger than him, put away his bow, wiped his sweat with a white towel, and said, "Let's go to the pavilion and talk to you."
The two girls naturally would not refuse.
Although Ringo was nominally a maid, the twins didn't dare to think so.
In the past month, both Kurozhu and Ringo ate with the head of the family, and the three ladies did not say anything, which seemed normal.
Of course, both of them can also sit at the table to eat.
In an ordinary wealthy family , which servant or maid would dare to do this?
It would be strange if he wasn't beaten to death.
Therefore, Yaoyao and Kunkun really didn't dare to treat Ringo as a maid and order her around at will, and they even had to call her "sister" obediently.
"Although he is a land immortal, he is always humble and kind. Since Brother Heizhu and I are his servants, he never treats us as outsiders. He is the best person in the world. You don't object, do you?"
The two beautiful girls, Yaoyao and Kunkun, nodded repeatedly.
Of course it’s good. He’s so handsome, and he saved them from the dire situation. It would be absolutely a lie to say that the two girls didn’t have any extramarital affairs.
It's just that they are both too young.
In the eyes of those perverts who like You Ling, the two of them are already a feast for the eyes.
But in Lu Sen's eyes, that was a fucking crime.
So Lu Sen always looked at them with pure eyes.
Who dares to say that this man, who is consistent in appearance and heart, so handsome and clean, is not the best person in the world? Yaoyao and Kunkun will definitely fight to the death with each other.
"Since you all think that Langjun is the best man in the world, will he hate you? Will he pretend to value you? There's no need."
Yaoyao nodded repeatedly. She felt that what Sister Ringo said made a lot of sense.
But Kun Kun still asked timidly: "Why is the master unwilling to teach us? If we don't do something well, he can punish us severely. It's better than the current uncertainty."
When Ringo heard this, she covered her mouth and chuckled. She remembered that when she first arrived at Aishan, she was also so worried. She was always afraid that this wonderful life was just a dream. She always wanted to do something to make up for her insecurity, and she was afraid that if she did nothing, she would be driven away by her husband one day.
Seeing Ringo smiling, Yaoyao and Kunkun both felt a little nervous.
Then Ringo said, "When I first followed Langjun, I was just like you..."
It took Ringo half an incense stick of time to explain Lu Sen's personality and behavior to the two girls.
"That is to say, Master has always been like this." Yaoyao patted his chest and breathed a sigh of relief.
"I've also heard a saying that a master can lead you to the door, but it's up to you to practice." Ringo said, "You two have obtained the master's 'Taoism', which is something that even ladies don't have the luck to obtain, so there's no need to rush. Just like what my husband said, you can slowly understand your own Taoism, and there's no need to think too much."
At this time, Yaoyao and Kunkun were both repeating the words "The master leads you to the door, but the practice is up to you."
Then they began to understand that the master had already pointed out the core of their "cultivation" and figured out what the "Taoism" in their minds meant.
So next, the two of them began to experiment with the formula and used the system functions to test what they had in mind.
Fortunately, the recipes they both obtained required materials that were relatively easy to collect.
As a result, some strange objects appeared in the cave.
Some are very useful, while others are just for fun.
The two girls screamed continuously, and they were happy but also jumped up and down in fear.
Lu Sen was very satisfied to see that they took the initiative to explore the functions of the system.
For many things, those learned through self-exploration are much more firmly remembered than those learned through being taught by others, and it is easier for them to come up with their own ideas and experiences.
In this way, three months passed in the blink of an eye.
It rarely snows in Hangzhou in winter. It is spring again and there is only one month left before spring ploughing.
It was at this time that Bitian Pavilion finally opened the door to exchanging fairy rice.
A large number of wealthy people and nobles rushed into the Bitian Pavilion, holding rare treasures in their hands.
In addition to local celebrities and dignitaries in Hangzhou, wealthy businessmen from surrounding areas also came over.
Because Bitian Pavilion had hired a large number of people in advance, the exchange was very smooth. In just one month, all the giant rice seeds in the warehouse were released.
"Did you see those fairy rice seeds? They have golden husks, are large and plump, and are obviously top-quality grains."
"Need I tell you? My master gave me five pounds of seeds. I have already put them in the stream to soak. They will sprout tomorrow."
"I don't know if it's really as rumored, that there's no need for fertilizer, just water and a few fish, and it will grow tall and big on its own."
"It is said that rice plants eventually grow taller than people."
"Just wait and see."
Because the number of seeds synthesized by Lu Sen this time was not too large, mainly because he was afraid that ordinary people could not accept such an exaggeration, so he underestimated the landlords' enthusiasm for new grain seeds.
Now only most of the fertile land outside Hangzhou and some land in the two surrounding cities are planted with giant rice.
Moreover, when the rice was planted, it attracted the attention of almost everyone around.
Both growers and those who are on the sidelines.
Some people even did an experiment, planting giant rice and ordinary rice seeds on the same day, both in about one acre of land, separated by a ridge of soil.
This way it is easy to judge whether the immortal rice is as promised by Master Lu. It is very extraordinary.
Then the comparison results are very obvious.
Starting from the second day, the growth rate of giant rice was obviously faster than that of ordinary rice seeds.
It is also obvious that the leaf stems of the fairy rice are thicker and larger, and even the green color is much darker.
A month later, ordinary rice had just grown to the height of an adult's knees, while the height of the giant rice seedlings was almost to the navel of a normal man.
It's not just the one acre field that's like this, but all the fairy rice seedlings are like this, growing very fast.
By this time, most people's doubts have been dispelled. What remains to be seen is whether the yield of the fairy rice can reach 1,000 kilograms per mu when it is harvested.
Two months later, Lu Sen and his family took a boat to the capital.
Along the river bank, there are tall rice fields, taller than people, and they are already in ears of rice. It is estimated that they will soon be ripe and ready for harvest.
The July sun is already very hot, and in the fields of giant rice, the sound of frogs is heard.
The rice in Hangzhou is usually harvested in late August or early September. The giant rice is almost ready and is expected to be harvested in early August.
When the river breeze blows, you can see green waves swaying on both sides of the river.
The children were running and shouting under the tall rice plants. From time to time they would catch a fish, then run to the side to gather some dry branches and leaves, build an earthen stove with mud and stones, then they would gut the fish, put them on skewers and roast them to eat.
At the same time, many farmers sat under the shade of the rice fields, looking at the heavy ears of rice and smiling happily.
They now stay nearby every day, guarding the rice for fear that it will be stolen or destroyed by wild animals such as wild boars.
"Enjoying the cool under the rice plants." Lu Sen sighed softly, "Finally I get to see this scene."
"This is all thanks to you, sir."
Lu Sen shook his head: "It's not my credit. It was done by an old man who truly cares about the world and the people. I'm just a porter."
