Chapter 7

Yue Laifu and Shunbao, father and son, stood in front of the living room, respectfully gazing at Yueyang who was seated inside.

Especially Shunbao, whose eyes were filled with admiration and respect as he looked at Yueyang. Shunbao had grown up with Yueyang since childhood and knew his character very well. Originally, Yueyang was extremely gentle and kind to his servants, which made him a good master but not necessarily a good estate owner and leader.

However, Shunbao was surprised to find that since Yueyang had been knocked unconscious by a heavy blow to the head in Yingzhou City, he had changed greatly. Shunbao had witnessed the fight today with his own eyes. Although Yueyang's performance in the fight was not entirely satisfactory, he did not back down when faced with the aggressive second son of the Wang family. Not only did he dare to order the tenant farmers of Wulizhai to attack, but he also shouted, "If anyone dies, it's on me!" This was not just ordinary bravery; Shunbao himself would not have dared to say such a bold and powerful statement.

Yue Laifu respectfully bowed to Yueyang and said, "Young Master, what do you need me for?"

Yueyang looked at Yue Laifu and his son with interest, then pointed to the chair beside him and smiled, "Uncle Yue, you're here, please sit down!"

Yue Laifu did not accept Yueyang's offer, "Young Master, you're too kind. Etiquette cannot be neglected. How can I sit in front of you, Young Master? I'll stand and listen to your instructions!"

"You guys!" Yueyang shook his head helplessly, "Alright, as you wish. Anyway, I want to ask, since there has been a drought for the past two years, and many good fields have been abandoned due to lack of water, why don't we dig wells or even build canals? Wouldn't that help alleviate the drought?"

"Ah, so that's what you want to ask!" Yue Laifu explained, "The method of digging wells to alleviate drought has been around since ancient times, but Young Master, you may not know that digging wells is a time-consuming and labor-intensive task. In our Shanxi region, although there is water underground, it is buried quite deep, often requiring digging hundreds of feet to reach water. Even with good luck, it would take about a hundred feet to get water. This means that digging a well would require at least thirty strong laborers, take three to four months, and cost hundreds of taels of silver. More importantly, Wulizhai has tens of thousands of people and tens of thousands of acres of land. If we were to rely on well water for irrigation, we would need hundreds of wells. Wulizhai is a harsh place, and it does not have the financial resources to complete such a difficult task. Therefore, every time there is a water shortage, the Sanggan River becomes a highly sought-after resource for the Wang, Li, and Lin families in Wulizhai."

"Oh, I see!" Yueyang nodded, finally understanding that in this era, digging wells was such a difficult task. Not only was it time-consuming and labor-intensive, but worse still, without effective exploration methods, even if you worked hard, you might not get results. Sometimes, after months of hard work and significant investment, you might not even get water. Therefore, large-scale groundwater extraction in ancient times was unimaginable.

At this point, Yueyang thought of another question, "Housekeeper Yue, I have another question. What crops are mainly grown in Wulizhai, and what is the yield?"

Hearing this, Yue Laifu looked at Yueyang with surprise. The current Yueyang was only focused on reading books and had no interest in these matters. He probably didn't even know what the five grains were. However, Yueyang's change was something Yue Laifu was happy to see.

After some thought, Yue Laifu replied, "Young Master, in Yingzhou, we mainly grow millet, wheat, and a small amount of rice. Unlike the fertile regions of the south, our yield per acre is not high, only about three dan and two dou."

"Three dan and two dou per acre?"

Yueyang thought for a moment. Having been here for a few days, he naturally knew that "dan" was the main unit of measurement in this era. In the Ming Dynasty, one dan was about 97 catties. This means that the grain yield per acre was only about 300 catties.

Hearing this, Yueyang was taken aback and exclaimed, "Housekeeper Yue, that's too low! Only 300 catties per acre?"

"Ha ha..."

Yue Laifu couldn't help but laugh bitterly. This young master really didn't understand the world. Grain yields have always been like this. However, since Yueyang was the master, he had to patiently explain, "Young Master, the yield I mentioned is only under favorable weather conditions. If there is a disaster or drought, the yield will be even lower, and in severe cases, there might be no harvest at all!"

"Wow..."

Yueyang drew in a sharp breath and exclaimed, "Is that really the case?"

"Of course!" Yue Laifu said firmly, "Therefore, although our Yue family estate nominally owns tens of thousands of acres of good land, we have many tenant farmers who depend on us for their livelihood. In recent years, the weather has been bad, so the old lady reduced the rent from 60% to 50%. Even so, many tenant farmers still can't make ends meet."

"Is that so?"

Yueyang's brows furrowed deeply. Calculating by the two-crop system, one acre of land could produce 600 catties of grain per year. After paying half the rent, that would leave 300 catties. For a family of four, they would need at least 1,500 catties of grain per year, meaning they would need to cultivate at least ten acres of land and pray for good weather to avoid hunger. It was clear that the lives of the common people were very hard. No wonder he had seen so many farmers, young and old, looking pale and malnourished during his walks in Wulizhai. Life for farmers in this era was truly difficult.

"What can we do to help them?" Yueyang fell into deep thought...

The next morning, Yueyang brought the Linglong sisters and Shunbao to the old lady's courtyard to pay respects. Seeing Yueyang, who had recovered and was full of energy, the old lady was very pleased. Even his younger sister, Yue Ying, ran over to cling to him and pester him. Yueyang, who was fond of his cute and obedient sister, picked up Yue Ying and spun her around several times, making her laugh heartily.

Seeing the happy scene between Yueyang and his sister, the old lady was also pleased, but she still said to Yue Ying, "Ying'er, your brother has just recovered. Don't cling to him so much."

Yueyang quickly reassured her, "It's fine, Grandma. I've fully recovered, and I'm not that fragile. Otherwise, I wouldn't have driven Wang Chenglin away yesterday!"

"That's right, Old Lady. Young Master was very impressive yesterday. He led everyone and thoroughly defeated the Wang family, making sure they won't dare to eye our Sanggan River again!" Shunbao, as a servant, naturally had to flatter Yueyang and embellished the events of the previous day.

Although the old lady had already heard about the fight from reports, she was still pleased to hear someone praise her grandson. She said to Yueyang with satisfaction, "Good grandson, remember, our Yue family does not bully others, but we also cannot let others trample on us. Remember, the Sanggan River is the lifeline of Wulizhai. If anyone dares to touch it, we must fight back resolutely. Do you understand?"

As she said this, a fierce look appeared on the old lady's usually kind face, which surprised Yueyang. It seemed that the old lady was not someone to be trifled with. Despite her usual gentle appearance, she could be fierce when her bottom line was crossed.

Yueyang thought for a moment, looked around, and hesitated before saying to the old lady, "Grandma, I have something to tell you in private. Do you think..."

The old lady smiled, "Oh, it seems my good grandson has grown up and has something to tell me in private. Alright, everyone, go out. I need to have a heart-to-heart talk with my good grandson!"

Hearing the old lady's words, Shunbao, the Linglong sisters, and several maidservants all left the room. Yue Ying, who was pouting, was finally carried out by Yu Ling and the door was closed.

After everyone had left, the old lady smiled, "Grandson, now you can tell me what you want to say, right?"

Yueyang looked around and then whispered to the old lady, "Grandma, these past few days, I've noticed that the past two years have been very bad. Our Yue family estate is not as well-off as the Wang, Li, and Lin families, who have other industries to support them. We rely entirely on rent to support the thousands of people in the estate. If this continues, our Yue family estate will be swallowed up by them."

The old lady sighed, "I know, but what can we do if the heavens do not show mercy? However, you don't need to worry. As long as I am still alive, I will protect this estate and not let anyone take it away!"

Seeing the white-haired old lady say this, Yueyang felt a lump in his throat. At that moment, he felt a strong sense of family warmth, something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Yueyang sniffed and said to the old lady, "Grandma, I need some gold to buy something."

"Oh, gold?" The old lady's originally cloudy eyes narrowed, and a sharp light appeared in them. She looked at Yueyang seriously and said, "Good grandson, why do you need gold? Can you tell me the reason?"

Yueyang knew that convincing this seemingly frail but actually sharp old lady would depend on his eloquence. He took a deep breath and began to explain...

PS: Still shouting every day, new book needs recommendations and collections!

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends