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Chapter 211 – 209【Agronomy Enthusiasts And Travelers】

Chapter 211 209 [Agriculture Enthusiasts and Travelers]

Xu Xiake came to Jiangxi this time, and his mother’s will still needs to be fulfilled.

During the Yongle period, Zhang Zonglian was demoted to be the Tongzhi of Changzhou. Because of his honesty and integrity, he rescued the people, and when he died of illness, thousands of local people went to the funeral in plain clothes, and raised funds to build the “Zhanghou Ancestral Hall” for him.

Two hundred years have passed, and the incense has continued, and the kindness is still remembered.

Xu Xiake’s mother’s 78th birthday was supposed to be a birthday celebration, but all of it was donated to rebuild the collapsed Zhanghou Temple. After the repairs were completed, Xu Xiake was told by his mother that he would visit Zhang Zonglian’s descendants in the future and enshrine Zhang Zonglian’s portrait, relics and calligraphy.

In history, he directly approached his relatives, that is, Xu Fusheng, the prefect of Ji’an, for help, and soon learned about Zhang Zonglian’s descendants.

But now, Xu Fusheng is already dead, and Zhao Han stabbed him to death when he cheated the city!

Xu Xiake walked around Qingyuan Temple and felt that Zhao Han was not a villain. As for Xu Fusheng’s big vendetta, he didn’t bother to pursue it, anyway, his relationship with Xu Fusheng was not very close.

“Jiangyin Xu Hongzu, please see Mr. Zhao.” Xu Xiake came to the General Military Mansion and asked to see him without any psychological burden.

Suddenly, another scholar came with two servants: “De’an Chen Xisong, here to present the “Nongshu”.

The guard quickly said: “Mr. Chen, please come in.” Then he said to Xu Xiake, “Mr. Xu, please wait a moment, I have to report first.”

Zhao Han had already ordered that those who offer water to turn the spinning wheel can be led directly to the General Military Mansion.

Chen Xisong was brought into the living room, and not long after, he saw a young man approaching.

Or, more like a teenager.

Zhao Han cupped his hands and said with a smile, “My humble Zhao Yan, it’s a pleasure to meet you!”

“Mr. Zhao…Mr. Zhao?” Chen Xisong was quite surprised, and hurriedly bowed, “Meet Mr. Zhao.”

“Please sit down,” Zhao Han asked with a smile, “Sir, come from De’an?”

Chen Xisong replied: “Exactly, the late born came from the Chen family of Yimen, and has settled in De’an since the Tang Dynasty.”

Zhao Han really didn’t know what the Chen family was, so he only praised politely: “It’s a child of a famous family, so I’m disappointed.”

During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Yimen Chen family grew so strong that the imperial court feared it. Wen Yanbo, Bao Zheng and others suggested forcibly separating the family.

How did you score in the end?

The imperial court dispatched special officials to supervise and divide the properties of the Yimen Chen family across several provinces into 291 shares, and then broke up the Chen family’s children into 291 shares. Then, Chen’s property in Jiangxi was further divided into 47 shares.

Yimen Chen family is divided into 338 families in total!

It’s a pity that Zhao Han had never heard of it, so he asked directly, “Sir, can you build water and turn a spinning wheel?”

Chen Xisong asked the servant to open the box, took out a thick stack of ancient books and said: “This is the “Nongshu”.

“Wang Zhen Nongshu” belongs to the works of the Yuan Dynasty and was finalized in Yongfeng County next to Qianshan Mountain. It includes 5 episodes of Nongsang Tongjue, 11 episodes of Gu Pu, and 20 books of Agricultural Equipment Atlas. Hundreds of years later, the original can no longer be found, and only part of the content can be found in the “Siku Quanshu”, which was compiled and adapted into 22 volumes.

Xu Guangqi’s “Nongzheng Quanshu”, many contents refer to “Wang Zhennongshu”, and some contents are even directly copied.

At this moment, “Nongzheng Quanshu” only has the manuscript, which has not been edited by Chen Zilong.

Therefore, the “Wang Zhen Agricultural Book” in front of Zhao Han is the only existing agricultural book that takes into account the dry fields in the north and the paddy fields in the south of the Yangtze River!

“Let’s watch Mr. Zhao.” Chen Xisong took out one of the episodes.

Sure enough, there are rich pictures and texts, and Zhao Han can understand the principle at a glance. It consists of four parts: spindle, adding twist, water wheel and transmission device, but the details have to be done by craftsmen.

The large water-turning spinning wheel is actually a hydraulic spinning machine, but it can only spin long fibers such as ramie and silk. If you want to spin short-fiber cotton, you must improve it.

Zhao Han continued to read other content. This book only has 20 episodes of farm tools, and the water spinning machine is also classified as a farm tool.

These “farming tools” include simple machinery such as levers and axles, as well as transmission and speed change mechanisms such as gears, cranks, sheaves, and connecting rods.

Zhao Han flipped through an article casually, frowned and said, “Why don’t farmers in Jiangxi use such a sharp weapon?”

Chen Xisong looked over his head and explained: “This is a seedling horse. Although it is convenient, it may crush the seedlings. Nowadays, most of the paddy fields in Jiangxi are cultivated by tenants, and one person can’t occupy much of the field. It’s superfluous.”

The seedling horse is similar to a small boat with raised sides. Farmers can ride on it. When transplanting rice seedlings, they can press the front end without bending over.

Moreover, you can also put the seedlings in the boat and take them at any time, which saves labor and trouble.

Zhao Han decided to turn his 100 mu of land into a special experimental field, and set up a “persuading farmer” to restore, improve, and develop agricultural tools. At the same time, research on planting technology, research on the optimization and improvement of crops.

For example, this kind of seedling can be promoted again by officials.

Zhao Han put “Wang Zhen’s Agricultural Book” back into the box, and said with a pleasant face, “Do you know about farming, too?”

Chen Xisong replied: “I know a little bit. Wansheng has a manor, and he likes farming. In his spare time, he also planted seedlings by hand and recruited craftsmen to make some farm tools. A few days ago, after seeing Mr. Zhao’s notice, Wansheng rushed to present “Nongsheng Book”.”

This person’s hometown is De’an County, which is not far from Nanchang Prefecture. It is obvious that he came to invest in advance. The millennium family is very good at observing the direction of the wind.

Zhao Han asked: “I want to set up a farmer’s office, would you like to be the head of the farmer’s house?”

“Don’t dare to ask your ears, but stick to your wishes.” Chen Xisong said happily.

Zhao Han exhorted and stated his request, then sent someone to temporarily settle Chen Xisong down.

With the pattern of “Wang Zhennong Shu”, the water spinning machine can be made soon, because he has found a craftsman who can make a water mill.

Water conservancy mills were not uncommon in the Ming Dynasty, but they were often in the hands of the powerful and wealthy.

For example, the German kings of all dynasties occupied the mill in Jinan City. The government built a sluice on the moat of Jinan, and used the water level drop to drive the mill to work. King De even occupied the entire sluice, and the people were not allowed to use the sluice to irrigate the farmland.

Zhao Han recruited his secretary, Fei Yu, and ordered: “The Book of Agriculture will be handed over to the bookstore for engraving and printing. Three hundred sets will be printed first, and distributed to officials at all levels for study. After the book is printed, the engraving will be kept for future use.”

Fei Yu took the order to leave and went to work immediately.

For books that must be printed many times over a long period of time, it is better to use engraving, not to mention a large number of farm tool illustrations.

Until now, Xu Xiake was finally brought in.

Xu Xiake’s reaction to seeing Zhao Han for the first time was similar. He didn’t expect the thief Zhao from Luling to be so young. He quickly clasped his fists and said: “Xu Hongzu in Jiangyin will visit famous mountains and great rivers to remember. My late mother ordered me to search for the descendants of Zhang Gong, Zonglian, the incorruptible minister of the Yongle Dynasty, and to search for the relics of Zhang Gong to enshrine in Zhanghou Temple in Jiangyin. “

Xu Xiake?

It looks different from the portrait in the textbook.

Zhao Han smiled and said: “Mr. Xu asked me to help find someone?”

Xu Xiake replied: “I only know that Mr. Zhang is from Jishui, so I ask Mr. Zhao for help.”

“Okay, you can write down this person’s name and official position,” Zhao Han changed the subject, and asked curiously, “Where is Mr. Xu going to travel?”

Xu Xiake replied: “First in Jiangxi, then to southern Hunan, then to Guangxi and Guizhou.”

Zhao Han can only express his admiration. The army is in chaos, and there are bandits all over the place. Xu Xiake is lucky not to be killed by the gangsters.

This man slept in a cave for eight consecutive days, gathering wild fruits and vegetables to eat raw. I was also robbed by bandits, found old friends in different places, and mortgaged the property to get money.

In the end, both legs were crippled, and I don’t know if it was because of illness or being bitten by snakes and insects. The servant took the opportunity to steal away the belongings and ran away. Fortunately, the local chieftain helped him and sent someone to **** him home. He died of illness within a year after returning home.

Zhao Han summoned a guard, took out the leggings and said, “This kind of leggings is wrapped around the legs. It won’t hurt when you go up the mountain, and it can also prevent snakes and insects from biting you. All the soldiers in my army use these leggings in battle.”

“Thank you for your kindness,” Xu Xiake said, pointing to his legs, “I’ve been wearing leggings for mountain climbing, and this thing is really useful.”

Xu Xiake lost his way while visiting Yandang Mountain, surrounded by cliffs on all sides. He and his servants escaped by taking off their leggings and making ropes.

Zhao Han reminded: “There are many bandits on the border between southern Hunan and Jiangxi, so be careful.”

“Remember.” Xu Xiake thinks this rebel is very good, he is a very kind rebel.

Zhao Han suddenly smiled and said: “Mr. Xu visited the mountains and famous rivers, and he can write more about the local minerals. Copper, iron, gold, silver and tin, as well as saltpeter, sulfur, and coal, can all strengthen the country and enrich the people. This legacy will benefit future generations. move.”

Xu Xiake thought carefully: “This is also possible.”

Zhao Han felt that it was necessary to subsidize and ask someone to withdraw five taels of silver: “I don’t have much money, so let’s use it, Mr. Xu.”

A rebel who occupied several houses actually said that he didn’t have much money.

Xu Xiake saw that Zhao Han did not seem to be a fake, and he immediately respected him: “Thank you!”

The two chatted about various experiences. Xu Xiake traveled fifteen times, covering all parts of the country. Many customs and customs were very useful to Zhao Han.

After chatting for an hour, Xu Xiake left the General Military Mansion.

In the future, the servant who will take away all the belongings asked: “Master, this Zhao thief is not harmful.”

Xu Xiake sighed: “Oh, it’s more than not harming people. I have traveled all over the world, and from what I have seen and heard over the years, only Zhao Yan’s rule is the most stable. Given time, Zhao Yan will win the world, this is definitely unmistakable.”

The domestic servant was surprised: “Why did the master say that? Is the Ming Dynasty going to perish?”

“You don’t know, you will know if you go to the north more often.” Xu Xiake didn’t bother to explain that the servant who traveled with him before died of illness, and now this servant is re-selected.

I originally chose two, but the other servant ran away halfway, unwilling to follow Xu Xiake to his death.

Back to the inn, Xu Xiake immediately wrote a diary, admiring Zhao Han.

Of course, it only involves character and virtue. He dare not say in the text that the rebels will conquer the world.

Zhang Zonglian’s descendants were quickly found, and they lived a decent life. Although a large amount of land was taken away, they still kept the shop business.

The Zhang family whispered bad things about Zhao Han, and Xu Xiake was inconvenient to say more, just thinking about the situation in his own family.

Alas, children and grandchildren should have their own blessings, and it doesn’t matter whether they will divide the fields in the future.

Zhao Han’s side is busy building roads, printing agricultural books, making large waterwheels, developing farmers’ associations, researching and developing agricultural tools and agricultural technology, and officials at all levels are working at full speed.

The Ming court is discussing how to deal with the Luling Zhao bandits.

Zhu Xieyuan must be sent to prison…

(end of this chapter)