The three-year-old fruit trees of the Yang family produced even fewer fruits. One tree could be sold for about eight kilograms, and the profit of one thousand taels was actually a return on investment. The main reason was that the price difference between a three-year-old fruit tree and a five-year-old fruit tree was more than double. The price of a three-year-old fruit tree was three taels of silver. The Yang family bought 2,200 trees and gave away more than 100 of them. In addition, the Yang family had a high survival rate, so 2,000 of the trees survived. The total investment was more than 800 taels of silver, and they made more than 100 taels of silver.
Some people in Lizhou City followed the trend of growing apples and made money while others did not. But everyone saw the profit, so they were happy even if they did not make a profit.
Zhou Shuren also harvested the fruits. The largest number of people in Lizhou City now are fruit merchants. Zhou Shuren originally ordered three-year-old fruit trees. Some farmers received two to plant in the yard, and some received one. Because they planted few and the whole family took good care of them, except for those that died, basically each fruit that could be sold weighed about ten kilograms.
After deducting the money paid to the government for the fruit trees, the people who planted two trees could have 400 coins left, and those who planted one tree could have 200 coins. Moreover, if they paid back the money for the fruit trees this year, the money from selling the fruits next year would be theirs.
There were a lot of cars coming and going in Lizhou City, waiting for all the apples to be processed.
Zhulan noticed that Zhou Shuren had lost weight again, "You've lost all the weight you worked so hard to gain."
Zhou Shuren, "Mr. Chen and I have been traveling around the counties recently, and we have been busy checking accounts and have lost weight. Don't you see that Mr. Chen was already thin, and now he is so thin that he can't even hold up his official robes."
Zhulan rolled her eyes in her heart. Zhou Shuren could barely support his official robes, yet he still had the nerve to criticize others. "Now that the fruits have been sold and the pigs have been killed, you can take a good rest."
Zhou Shuren was indeed relieved. All the money that the yamen had lent out was recovered, and the yamen's accounts finally looked better.
Although the pigs were not very big, after deducting the money paid to the government, the pig farmer could still have more than ten pounds of pork left. Whether the meat was sold or kept for food, the people earned it.
Zhou Shuren thought of the smiles on the people's faces and the innocent words of the children, and he also smiled, "The apples and pork sent to the capital will leave tomorrow."
Zhu Lan sighed, "The people are really honest. Not to mention that your government office has received apples and pork sent by various towns, our family has never been without people these days, and we don't even have to buy pork at home. As a result, Steward Ding took people to go to the villages to give money. If they really didn't want to accept money, they would give them grain. Even if they didn't accept it, some people even sent it back. There was nothing I could do. I had to persuade the people to accept the money and grain in person."
Zhou Shuren also had a headache. "The officials in the government office also give money everywhere. Their legs have become thin from walking around these days."
Zhu Lan hugged Zhou Shuren's neck and smiled, "This shows that you are a good official. The people recognize you very much. I am proud of you."
Zhou Shuren felt that he was also very remarkable. He asked each village to sign a contract with the merchants. The sales of fruits in the next few years were guaranteed, and the vermicelli recipe was also given to the merchants for free. The only thing they needed to do was to sign a contract and only accept sweet potatoes and potatoes from the state. He was not afraid that the people would give up growing crops and plant fruit trees.
Apples are indeed valuable, but there are risks as well. In case of natural disasters such as drought, or if the fruit trees die of disease, it is still safer to have food.
Sweet potatoes and potatoes are high-yield crops. Lizhou City has been planting sweet potatoes for a long time and has a lot of experience in planting them. It is guaranteed that one mu will yield 800 catties. Even if it is sold at one cent per catty, it is still 800 cents, and a lot of money can be saved after paying taxes.
And if a natural disaster really happens, we can have food to survive with sweet potatoes and potatoes.
The people of Lizhou City have experienced hunger, so they are more willing to grow crops.
Moreover, the price of fruit trees will definitely increase next year, and ordinary people still cannot afford it. Zhou Shuren felt more at ease thinking of this.
In the palace, the emperor was waiting for news from Lizhou City, and the prince did not leave. Well, actually, the emperor did not let the prince leave.
The reporter finally delivered the memorial. The emperor read the summary at a glance, put it down and laughed: "Okay, okay, Lord Zhou left two guarantees for Lizhou City."
The prince has read a lot of reports from Lizhou City this year. Since the granary in Lizhou City finally had food, he breathed a sigh of relief and has been waiting for today's news.
The emperor handed the memorial to the prince and said, "Take a look at it."
The prince quickly read through the letter. Because it was an urgent message, it took only a few days to reach the capital. The news in the letter said that all the pigs adopted by the people were killed. The prince curled his lips and said, "I was worried that the people would grow apples instead of grain. I was also thinking about whether to write a letter to my father to set rules for Lizhou City. Before I wrote the letter, Lord Zhou had already considered it. Lord Zhou set up the vermicelli business district in Lizhou City. In the future, Lizhou will not only be the apple state, but also the vermicelli state."
The emperor's eyes were full of smiles. This was the best news he had heard this year. In the second half of this year, Lizhou attracted a lot of merchants. With more merchants, the tax revenue was also very gratifying. When Lizhou was at its best, the tax revenue was at the bottom. This year, there was indeed something to look forward to. "Our Lord Zhou is very good at utilizing local resources."
In the past, the land in Lizhou was not fertile, and most of the crops were sweet potatoes. After the harvest, winter wheat was planted. Unfortunately, the yield of winter wheat was still pitifully low.
There were too many sweet potatoes but no one wanted them, and we couldn't collect much tax. Now Zhou Shuren has solved the problem based on the land. I have a really good vision.
The prince no longer wore his mask. It was indeed a great event. "The apples and pork sent by Lord Zhou to the capital should have been on their way."
The emperor stroked his beard and said, "This year's rewards for the ministers in the court are ready. Everyone will get a share."
The prince stopped smiling, knowing clearly what was going on. His father was not only trying to save money but also to warn the ministers. Not to mention that his father hoped to have more ministers like Lord Zhou, he also hoped that as long as the court recovered, the problem on the northeastern border would be completely solved. His father founded the country, and he also had ambitions to expand the territory. Well, that was on the premise that he could still remain in the position of prince and ascend the throne safely.
In Lizhou City, Chen Chen was filled with emotion. He had never received gifts from the common people before. Although it was not as much as what Zhou Da's family received, Chen Chen was still shocked.
Chen Chen sighed, "I have been an official for so many years, and I have been cautious and focused on climbing up. This year I finally understood the meaning of the official robe I wear. I have lived in vain for so many years. I am completely convinced by Lord Zhou."
Hua Shi couldn't understand it so deeply, "Master, don't be sentimental. It's getting late. You should rest."
Chen Chen: "... Yeah."
The next morning, the convoy from Lizhou City to the capital set off, and Zhulan also received a letter from her hometown.
Zhou Laoer arranged everything for the family and also collected a lot of mushrooms and other mountain products.
After reading the letter, Zhulan counted the days. Based on the speed of the letters, Zhulan estimated that the second brother's family would arrive in half a month.