met free Chapter 184 Distributing Sweet Potatoes
Chapter 184 Distributing Sweet Potatoes
"Of course, that's what I originally planned. It's my wish to ensure that the people have enough food and warm clothing. But there's not much cotton this year. If we want to promote this nationwide, it will probably have to wait until after the cotton harvest next year."
"Where does this cotton come from? Can we buy some more?" County Magistrate He asked hurriedly.
Shen Wanning shook her head. "I happened to come across this cotton from a merchant. It's just that no one knew about this crop, so I was able to buy these cotton seedlings at a bargain price."
"That's such a pity, but it's better to have something than nothing. By next year, sweet potatoes can be promoted on a large scale, and the year after that, cotton can be planted on a large scale. There's no need to worry about our Great Xia not becoming prosperous!" County Magistrate He sighed again.
Before leaving, County Magistrate He returned the few cotton flowers to Shen Wanning and said, "Keep these for now. Send some to the county government office later. I will report to the emperor about your contribution to the people."
"Thank you, County Magistrate. All I do is to help the people live a better life, without asking for anything in return."
County Magistrate He nodded without saying anything, and led He Zhenzhen into the carriage.
He Zhenzhen turned around and looked, but she wasn't seeing Lin He. She was a little disappointed, but being able to eat the sweet and soft sweet potatoes made up for it.
Seeing County Magistrate He leave with most of the sweet potatoes, the villagers and refugees were extremely envious.
But they had no choice. After all, these were Shen Wanning's, and she could give them to whomever she wanted. Moreover, the discovery of sweet potatoes had to be reported to the court.
After the county magistrate left, Shen Wanning talked to the village head and summoned all the villagers to the old locust tree at the entrance of the village.
"Village head, what's going on today? Why are you suddenly calling everyone together?" asked the confused villagers.
"It's not me who has something to say, it's Wan Ning. You just listen to what she says later." The village head replied.
This time, Shen Wanning stood on the big rock and announced, "Everyone has seen the sweet potato production. In addition to the sweet potatoes given to the county magistrate, I have also kept a thousand kilograms. These sweet potatoes are for our own people in Daqing Village to breed.
However, considering that some families had already planted sweet potatoes, to ensure fairness, those who did not plant sweet potatoes and were willing to plant sweet potatoes could register with the village head. Each household was limited to receiving five kilograms of sweet potatoes and twenty sweet potato vines.
As for how to grow seedlings using sweet potato roots, I'll tell you later. "Don't take too many, there will only be more and more sweet potatoes in the future," Shen Wanning said loudly.
Finally, the village head stepped forward and said, "Every household has not yet harvested their sweet potatoes. Once they are all harvested, I hope everyone can donate their extra sweet potatoes so we can plant them together and achieve common prosperity. My family is willing to contribute the majority of our sweet potatoes."
The remaining villagers responded, "We are willing to do so too. We are willing to donate most of our sweet potatoes."
Some were reluctant at first, but seeing how enthusiastic everyone was, they had no choice but to follow suit and said, "We are also willing to contribute most of our sweet potatoes."
The village head nodded with satisfaction. "Okay, okay. I believe that all our efforts will be rewarded! Don't let this little profit get you in the head. There are even greater benefits waiting for us in the future!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd erupted in warm applause. Now the refugees finally understood why life in Daqing Village was so good.
They work together, no one is selfishly thinking about themselves, and as they work together, their lives naturally get better and better.
Shen Wanning walked over and said to them, who were still standing there in a daze, with a smile, "Why are you still standing there? Don't you want to plant sweet potatoes anymore?"
"Us? We can also get sweet potatoes?" said a refugee, pointing at himself.
Shen Wanning pretended to be sad. "It's been several months. Can't you still integrate into our Daqing Village? We already consider you one of our own. Do you still want to go back to where you came from?"
The man really thought Shen Wanning was sad, and waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No, no, no, Miss Shen, I didn't mean that. I didn't expect that Miss Shen would be so kind to us and even willing to share such a precious thing with us."
Chen Zihao then smiled bitterly and said, "Miss Shen has been so kind to us, and I will never be able to repay her in this lifetime. But Miss Shen, we don't have any land in Daqing Village. Even if we had sweet potatoes, we wouldn't have anywhere to plant them."
"There's still a lot of land unsold in Daqing Village. You can buy some and start farming first. As for the house, you don't have to worry. By next year, when the fruit trees are bigger, you'll be able to do more work. I believe you'll soon earn enough money to build a house."
Shen Wanning thought for a moment and continued, "If you're worried about your household registration, or if you don't have enough money, I can discuss with the village head. You can rent some land to grow sweet potatoes first, and then buy some land when you have enough money."
Chen Zihao and the refugees behind him were delighted and expressed their gratitude repeatedly, "Thank you very much, Miss Shen. We cannot repay your kindness. We will definitely take good care of the fruit trees on the mountain and the wheat in the fields. We will not be lazy."
Those who reacted quickly had already squeezed to the front and registered their request for sweet potatoes with the village head.
After the villagers dispersed, Shen Wanning and Aunt Zhang went to find the village head again.
"Uncle Village Head, I have an idea, but I wonder if it is feasible." Shen Wanning said straight to the point.
The village head sat up straight and listened to her slowly.
"There are still many abandoned fields in our village. Today, almost all the refugees came to register to claim sweet potatoes. I was thinking of renting out the unsold fields to the refugees, asking them to pay a small rent and use them to grow sweet potatoes.
This way, at least they won't lack food next year. If they work harder, they might be able to save enough to build a house and buy land," Shen Wanning suggested.
The village head thought for a moment and said, "First-class land is three taels of silver per mu, second-class land is two taels of silver per mu, and wasteland is five hundred coins per mu. How about this, we rent them one tael of silver per mu per year."
The annual rent for second-class land was 700 wen, and for wasteland 170 wen. If they could rent the land for three consecutive years, they would be considered to have purchased it. By then, their household registration documents would be ready, and the land could be transferred directly to them.
Of course, if the lease is only for one or two years, the land will still belong to the public. Even if it is renewed for another year, it cannot be considered sold to them. What do you think of this method?"
Before Shen Wanning could say anything, Aunt Zhang clapped her hands in agreement, "The headman's idea is great! It's completely tailored for these refugees. It's brilliant!"