Spring comes to the desperate place

Chapter 251 Fertile Field

Aunt Zhou immediately screamed and threatened to go find Zhou Ning to settle the score, but was stopped by Grandpa Zhou and Grandma Zhou.

Although the two old people did not like their grandson Zhou Ning very much, they also knew that Zhou Ning was not the kind of person who spoke without thinking. In addition, the fact that Zhou Daya was having a mistress was a scandal for the Zhou family. If this matter was really exposed, not only Zhou Daya, but also the reputation of other unmarried girls and boys in the Zhou family would be affected. In serious cases, the future marriages of grandsons like Erniu might be in trouble.

Previously, because the Zhou brothers forced their nephew to be buried with them, the Zhou family already had a bad reputation in the surrounding villages. Now, if the news of their daughter being a concubine got out, their entire family might be expelled from the village.

"Just stay at home and don't go out all day. I'll tell my in-laws. Just take good care of Daya and the kids. If I find you gossiping with others outside, I'll tear your mouth to pieces!"

Grandma Zhou warned her daughter-in-law fiercely, then picked up a knife to kill a chicken, preparing to nourish Zhou Daya.

The Song family deliberately waited for Zhou Ning and the other person to come back before having lunch. The family tacitly did not mention the Zhou family, and Zhou Ning would not take the initiative to talk about it, because in his heart, the Zhou family and he were already strangers.

Gu Fengyun only stayed at the Song family until the third day of the Lunar New Year and then went back. However, Gu Fengyue did not leave, so Song Chunlin took him to inspect his family's fields.

The two walked along the ridge of the field and met many villagers who were also out to check on the fields.

Song Chunlin greeted these people, his face almost broken with laughter, before he walked to his own field.

When Song Chunlin was not at home, Song Dazhuang bought more than ten acres of paddy fields, which were right next to Fu Nian and his family's fields. The fields of those two people were the same as Song Dahao's, both of which were rented out to villagers for cultivation. The annual rent was enough for the two of them to live on, and the Song family often sent them food, so the two of them didn't spend much money.

Song Chunlin made a awning with his hands, looking at the stretch of fields, feeling very proud, so he suddenly got a little carried away, pointed at the field and shouted to Gu Fengyue:

“Look, this is the field I laid out for you!”

Gu Fengyue expressed her incomprehension, but she cooperated very well.

"Gu, thank you very much, Young Master Song. I wonder if you are willing to go on a trip with me?"

"I don't want to!" Song Chunlin laughed and ran away. Gu Fengyue could only chase him helplessly.

The two men came to the wasteland at the foot of the mountain. Seeing that there was no one around, Song Chunlin immediately took out a small shovel and began to dig the soil.

Gu Fengyue squatted beside him and watched him digging holes frantically on the ground. The good piece of land was dug into pits and holes by him.

"Chunlin, why are you digging a hole?"

"Ah? I'm checking the soil. My father said he's going to grow watermelons on this land. It's his first time growing watermelons and he doesn't have much experience. He said the fruits aren't as many as described in the book, so I'm here to see if it's a problem with the soil."

So that's how it is. Gu Fengyue suddenly felt that farming is indeed a science. But seeing Song Chunlin digging with his butt sticking out for a long time, he didn't seem to find any other problems.

“Is there something wrong with this soil?”

Song Chunlin straightened up, put away the shovel, and shook his head.

"It's not a big problem, but the soil is very hardened. It seems that we can't grow watermelons here this year. I'm thinking of growing some mung beans."

"Growing mung beans? If it's not suitable for growing watermelons, then why grow mung beans?"

"Mung beans can fertilize the soil, and they are not picky about the soil. The yield of my seeds is higher than the current one. Even if it is not high, this is originally a wasteland, so it is not a loss if I can grow something here."

Gu Fengyue was very surprised when he heard for the first time that mung beans can fertilize the soil. He always thought that all plants grow by absorbing nutrients from the soil. This was the first time he heard that there was something that could fertilize the soil when planted.

Song Chunlin: "Hehe, it's amazing, isn't it? Mung beans can not only fertilize the soil, but also reduce soil diseases and insect pests. I grow them in rotation with corn and rice. I don't know if they can be grown with watermelons. If not, we can apply more farmyard manure in the second half of the year."

Speaking of farmyard manure, the two of them started talking about building public toilets in the city. Gu Fengyue frowned, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Building a public toilet is not difficult, but the difficult part is the location. The city is different from the countryside. There are too many residential houses. When people heard that we were going to build a toilet around it, they all objected. Not to mention the sewer pipes and septic tanks you mentioned, which are obviously a big project. These things were originally the responsibility of the Ministry of Industry, but the Ministry of Households is unwilling to allocate funds. It will probably take several more years for this to be completed."

Song Chunlin expressed his disdain: "Your efficiency is a bit low."

"It is indeed low. But regarding the matter of holding the imperial examination that you mentioned before, my brother has mentioned it to the emperor once, and he has already let the people of the Hanlin Academy do it. However, once the imperial examination is held, although it will provide a way for the children of poor families to climb up, those aristocratic families will definitely not give up."

Officials of the Da Jing Dynasty were generally appointed through recommendations, or were directly granted official positions after being noticed by those in power. This official system resulted in almost all officials having the support of aristocratic families. If children from poor families wanted to become officials in the court, they had to either go through connections themselves or be appreciated by others in some other way.

But how could the noble families easily give opportunities to those below them? If those commoners entered the court and became officials, wouldn't it be a slap in the face of the noble families?

Song Chunlin could guess with his toes that it would be very difficult to promote the imperial examination system.

"So your brother means that we should start a papermaking workshop first?"

Gu Fengyue nodded: "Yes, let's solve the paper problem first. If there is enough paper, the price of books will drop slightly. This will give the lower-class people the opportunity to learn to read. Even if there are only a few people willing to read in the end, at least it's a start."

Song Chunlin thought, even if we had paper and movable type printing, what about ink?

Pens, ink, paper and inkstone. Ink was also very expensive in ancient times. It seems that there is still a long way to go before everyone can afford to read.

The pit in the field was almost dug, and then Song Chunlin took Gu Fengyue home. Along the way, they were stared at by the villagers for a while. When they got home, Song Chunlin rubbed his face and felt that his face was about to freeze from smiling.

"No, I must wear a mask next time I go out. My face is going to rot after greeting so many people along the way. Why didn't so many people recognize me before?"

Gu Fengyue was still frightened. Ever since the imperial decree granting the marriage came down, he felt that his popularity in the village had increased a lot. Almost everyone could guess who he was when they saw him standing with Song Chunlin.