sjar Chapter 1016 Return to the North
Chapter 1016 Return to the North
"This is outrageous. We are making a fool of ourselves! There are guests here. What are you doing? Be quiet!"
Seeing Zhou Guo, he smiled and said, "Mr. Zhou is here, would you like to have a seat at home?"
Zhou Guo shook his head. "No, Village Chief. I just came to see how everyone's spring farming is going and the new crops are. I have to go to other places and won't be here for long."
Since the village chief is here, she won't bother anyone else and can just ask about the situation in the village.
The village chief took her around the fields and explained the general situation of the village.
Zhou Guo nodded repeatedly after listening to this, knowing that more than 90% of the acres of new grain were planted in the village this year, and the remaining 10% would be almost the same next year.
After three or four years, the new grain seeds began to bloom in the northern land, which she had not expected before.
She turned around, said goodbye to the village chief, and led her people to the next village.
I visited more than ten villages in a day and the situation was similar everywhere.
She spent eight days traveling around three counties.
Then he set off north and returned to Chengding.
When we arrived at Chengding, Hu Zi came out to greet us and walked three miles to meet us.
When he saw her, he said, "Master, you are finally back. Did you have a smooth journey?"
Zhou Guo nodded, "It's going pretty well. How's the spring ploughing going? Have you seen everything down there? Have you been up to the farm?"
She was mainly concerned about several farms and those salty and bitter lands. They would start planting crops this year, and it was the first year, so they couldn't be careless.
Hu Zi said, "It's only been two days since the spring ploughing started. Judging from the grains sold in the shop, they are pretty good. I have visited several counties and found that the spring ploughing has already begun. The ploughing started earlier in the farm because the land is larger."
Zhou Guo nodded, "Have you selected the seeds?"
"I've already chosen it, and everything is ready. It's just that horse bones are hard to find, but this is enough."
This thing is necessary.
Zhou Guo said, "Don't worry, I'll find a way to get the horse bones. Let's go to the farm first."
Along the way, Hu Zi briefly recounted the situation in the north during this period.
Mountain products are the same in winter as in previous years, but because the prices have dropped a bit, they are even more popular than in previous years.
Last year, grouper fish sold very well, especially in several restaurants, which received orders every day.
In winter, there are as many as sixty in Baoyue Tower every day, and the number of restaurants combined is more than that.
We sold a lot of grouper.
Cheng Ding's dim sum shop is not bad. Although it cannot be compared with Yunzhou's, it is not bad either. It can earn more than ten strings of coins every day, and sometimes as much as thirty strings of coins.
Hu Zi also said: "Master, can we open a braised duck shop in Chengding? The demand for braised duck in Yunzhou is increasing every day, and the supply is insufficient to meet the demand. Sometimes it is sold out before noon.
Business is so good, Cheng Ding will open one too. Several farms are big enough to raise ducks, and the villagers below can also raise ducks. Raising ducks can make a lot of money in a year."
Just look at the villages near them.
Although we have been able to go up the mountain to pick mushrooms every year in recent years, there are too many of them and they cannot be sold in the north, so they are gradually becoming less valuable.
The annual income is not as much as it was at the beginning, but they can still make a lot from the duck eggs and ducks they sell every year. These ducks are enough to provide a family with food and clothing. If they raise dozens of ducks, they don’t have to worry about not being able to sell them.
Zhou Guo knew his temper. If he could say something like that, it meant he was ready. "Have you found a shop?"
"I've found it." Hu Zi nodded. "Chengding's shop is not as hard to find as the one in Yunzhou. This time I found a bigger one than the one in Yunzhou, but it doesn't have a backyard. But the room inside can be used as a kitchen."
Zhou Guo said, "Okay, I'm thinking of opening one in Chengding too. In the fall, we'll try out a few more recipes and sell several flavors together. I think the business will be even better."
She was counting on the chili peppers in autumn, but she didn't know if they would be spicy. If not...
I can only look for it again.
……
Several pieces of salty and bitter land are large.
This year half of the crops are planted with rice and the other half with wheat.
The old man thought it was too much trouble. "One paddy field and one dry land. The management of the two is completely different. Can't you just plant one?"
Zhou Guo said, "I want to see which crop grows better on these plots of land. Besides, the land is so large that planting only one crop is bound to be too monotonous. By alternating wheat and rice, we can stagger the days a little and make some time for spring planting so that we won't be late."
The land is vast. If we only plant wheat and if we don't recruit enough people, the seeds in the front may have sprouted but the seeds in the back may not have been planted yet.
The busy spring plowing has already begun in several fields.
Hu Zi said: "There are enough people this year, but some people are still looking forward to renting their own land and planting it soon."
Zhou Guo was surprised and said, "Didn't they divide the land themselves? The salty and bitter land below was distributed to them. Why do they want to rent the land to grow crops? Now they come to find a job, and all the money they earn is their own, and they don't have to bear any costs. If they rent the land, they will be responsible for more, and they may not even earn as much as they do now."
Hu Zi said, "They heard from those who came back from Yunzhou that there are already people renting land in Yunzhou. Each acre of salty and bitter land can produce nearly three stone of grain. As the land grows better and better, the harvest will definitely get better and better."
How could they buy so much grain with the money they earned from the farm every year?
Moreover, Zhou Guo promised to collect only 40% of the rent. This 40% rent alone is already higher than all the landlords in the North, and they don’t even have to pay taxes.
Zhou Guo thought for a moment and said, "It won't work this year. Maybe next year. After we harvest this year's grain, we'll let them rent the land themselves. They can rent as many acres as they want. Everything will be the same as in Yunzhou. Are there many people who want to rent the land?"
"A lot." Hu Zi nodded. "After all, we only have to pay 40% rent, no taxes, and the grain is high-yielding, so we can save a lot every year."
This was also what Zhou Guo promised them at the beginning. If it weren't for this promise, the water conservancy project on the salty and bitter land would not have been completed so quickly.
She nodded, "Then we'll start from next year. This year is the first year, and we'll bear the risk ourselves."
Since last autumn and winter, some people in the north have wanted to rent land. The news was sent to the south, and she agreed. However, she didn't know how many people wanted to rent the land or how many people had rented the land.
Many people in the village knew Zhou Guo. After all, when the water conservancy project was being built, she would wander around the village whenever she had time. Her attire was in stark contrast to that of others, so it was hard for people not to notice her.
When they saw her come back, many people came up to say hello.
"The boss is here."
"Hello, sir."
Zhou Guo nodded one by one.
Someone who was brave enough asked Zhou Guo directly, "Boss, you said that you would rent this land to us after it was ready, and you would only charge us 40% of the rent. Does that still count?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd fell silent. Some were frightened, while more were waiting for Zhou Guo's confirmation.
Zhou Guo said: "Of course it counts. I won't lie to you. I believe you already know the situation in Yunzhou. But if you want to rent it, you have to wait until next year. Not this year."