Under the scorching sun, Seni Dali was walking by the river bank wearing a straw hat, checking the growth of the wheat ears.
After nearly four months of planting, the wheat is now basically mature.
At first glance, the endless wheat fields looked like a golden ocean. The ears were thick and plump. The number of caryopsis not only doubled, but they were even bigger than any spring wheat he had ever seen before. Without having to wait for the harvest to be weighed, Seni knew it was going to be a bumper year.
There is no doubt that this must be the work of the witch.
He has been planting the land with his father for ten years, and naturally he knows what ordinary wheat should look like. A wheat plant is divided into one to three ears, and each ear can produce twenty or thirty fruits. Whether the soil is fertile or not does affect the size of the wheat kernels, but directly doubles the caryopsis produced by the wheat ears? He couldn't think of an explanation other than a witch.
There are many other changes like this, such as the towering water towers in small towns. He has observed those behemoths up close. It is impossible to carry a large iron bucket to an iron frame higher than a residential building by manpower alone, not to mention that they are almost All were built overnight. The townspeople living in the community now rarely need to carry their own buckets to fetch water. As long as the faucet is turned on, cool well water will pour out of the pipes.
The same is true of the "island" in the middle of the Chishui River. Ever since His Highness held the award ceremony and took Miss Nana to the stage, the use of witches has become more and more undisguised. To make a piece of land emerge out of thin air on the empty river surface, this is obviously only a witch can do.
He once asked Barov, the head of the city hall, about this, and the answer he got was that he didn't care, His Royal Highness Roland had his own ideas.
Well... Anyway, the royal family always loves to fight against the church. Even if the latter sends an army to attack His Royal Highness, they have to win the First Army before they are qualified to speak. Otherwise, the western border can only be the western border of Roland Wimbledon.
Isn't the Duke of Lane the best example.
"Sir, you're here," the two serfs who were weeding in the field saw Seni Dali and immediately came forward, "Look, this wheat field will be ready for harvest soon, so, that's why I want to ask you …”
"Want to ask if what the lord said before is valid?"
"Yes, yes," the serf rubbed his hands nervously, "Can we really be promoted to freemen?"
As the head of the Ministry of Agriculture, in addition to recording the best planting methods and statistics of harvests, Seni also has another important responsibility: to communicate with the serfs and to promptly preach the policies of His Royal Highness and the City Hall to them. Although he didn't like these mud bumpkins, the knight's self-discipline allowed him to do his job.
"See those slogans?" Seni pointed to the banners on the edge of the farm.
"Sir, I... don't understand..." The serf smiled awkwardly.
"Work creates wealth, and labor changes destiny," he said. "That is to say, as long as you work hard to cultivate, you will have the opportunity to be promoted to a free citizen. This is the promise made by His Highness, and it will definitely be fulfilled."
"Yes, yes? That's great!"
"In addition, after becoming a free citizen, you can live in the center of the town, have your own brick house, and get the right to receive primary education. You don't have to ask me what these slogans mean in the future." It was repeated.
"Yes, my lord." The serf nodded excitedly. "The weather is hot, do you want to sit in my shed and drink a glass of cold water?"
"No, go get busy." He waved his hands, watched the two bow their heads and thanked them for a long time, before returning to the fields to resume their previous work. This is the question that Seni has heard the most in the past month. No matter how he preaches, they will always take the trouble to ask again, for fear that the lord will cancel the policy in the blink of an eye.
After walking too far, someone else gathered around, "Hello, Lord Seni, after the wheat is harvested and dried, do you really only need to pay 70% of it?"
Phew, he sighed in his heart, this problem is second only to the promotion of freedmen, ranking second, "This is true in the first year, and it will only become less and less in the future. If you become a freedman, you only need to turn it over. 20% is enough, this is what we have repeatedly emphasized.”
"It would be great if I could be promoted," said one of the tall men, rubbing the back of his head. "The remaining 30% of the wheat, can we do it?"
"It can only be used to sell to His Royal Highness, to eat, or to keep seeds." Seni clapped his hands and asked them to call all the serfs around, "Listen carefully, Border Town prohibits private food sales, whether it is for sale. Selling it to local townspeople or selling it to out-of-town traders violates the laws of Border Town. If you do this, not only will your income be confiscated, but you may even be imprisoned."
"What if the lord only offers a very low price?" the tall man muttered.
"Of course there will be no such situation. The purchase of grain by His Highness will be carried out at a stable market price. Whether it is a poor harvest or a bumper harvest, there will be no major changes. So you don't have to worry about selling the wheat and not being able to buy food, nor do you have to worry about it. Too much harvest leads to unsold or low prices." Saini emphasized, "In the entire border town, there is only one place where food can be sold, and that is the convenience market, and the manager of the market is our city hall."
"Then the price is... ?"
"Rest assured, His Highness will announce it to you in person before the acquisition."
Looking at the serfs scattered in twos and threes, he licked his dry lips and continued to check the condition of the crops. I don't know how many of these people will keep their words in their hearts, but Lord Barov has clearly conveyed His Highness's strong will, and those who smuggle food will be severely punished.
At this moment, a young serf broke away from the crowd, turned around and turned back, "Sir," he gasped, "I want to ask you one more question."
"Um?"
"Do you know where Miss May and Miss Erin have gone?" He hesitated. "There has been no drama in the square lately. I want to… ask you about their current situation, are they… sick?"
This is a fresh and interesting question, and the corners of his mouth can't be lifted. If he hadn't happened to see them go through the formalities at the city hall, he really couldn't answer, "They're going to Changsong Fortress."
"Ah," the other party showed a disappointed look, "don't they plan to stay in Border Town?"
"It's just a performance at the Fortress Theater," he shrugged. "And it's so hot now that you can't bear to see them standing in the sun and sweating? In the fall, they'll continue to come back to the square for new plays. ."
"Yuan, that's how it is... Thank you, sir!"
Seeing the back of the young man leaving contentedly, Seni couldn't help but think of his journey from a knight to a prisoner, and then from a prisoner to a city hall official. The experience of these few months can be described as ups and downs. He didn't want to go back to the Benlang family's territory, where there was nothing but dilapidated houses and fields of wheat. To be a knight was just to get rid of the life of following his father and planting the land for the rest of his life.
Not every knight can be as beautiful as the dawn, or have the best territory and squires like a duke knight, and now his annual salary is more than when he was a knight, and there is still room for improvement. Maybe it's time to bring your parents to town, marry a girl, and enjoy life. (., Your support is my biggest motivation.)