The road to wealth of a peasant widow

Chapter 170 Summer Harvest

As summer was approaching, the rain gradually became more frequent, coming from time to time. People were very happy, thinking that there would be no drought this year and the harvest would definitely be better than last year, so they had some hope.

However, when it was almost time to harvest the wheat, the rain continued to fall and was getting heavier, so the farmers began to panic again.

This rain is really not coming at the right time. It should have rained after the wheat was harvested and the grain was stored in the warehouse. Why is it raining now?

Some experienced farmers noticed that the weather was not right and there might be a flood this year!

There was drought last year and flood this year. This is going to kill the farmers!

If there is a drought, as long as there is water in the fields and wells, there is always a way to water the crops. But now it is time to harvest the wheat, and if it rains continuously, all the crops in the fields will be ruined.

The wheat ears were wet by the rain and lacked sunlight, so it was difficult for them to grow full, which would inevitably reduce the yield. Not to mention that they needed to be dried and crushed after harvesting. If the rain didn't stop, these tasks would be impossible!

Farmers in Longnan area are in tears and worried about how they will survive this year.

Fortunately, God was merciful. During the Dragon Boat Festival, the rain finally stopped and the sun came out.

The farmers, who had been waiting impatiently, rushed into the fields and hurried to harvest.

Even if the wheat is wetted and the yield is reduced, it is better than nothing.

The same thing happened on Chen Cui's farm. She hired twice as many people as in previous years to harvest the wheat on more than 100 acres of land, but the yield was still reduced by 40%.

After paying taxes, less than 40% is left. After deducting the cost of seeds and labor, this season's work has been in vain.

Fortunately, she doesn't rely on growing crops for a living, so she can afford the losses. Ordinary people don't know how much they would lose.

Chen Cui thought of her fellow villagers in Liujiaping. She didn’t know how the harvest was going, and she guessed that their lives were not going to be easy.

She wrote a letter back to tell Liu Youcai that if anyone in the village wanted to borrow grain, he could lend it to her. If it was not enough, she could ask her brother Dahe to transport it back from the county town.

She also said the same thing to Dahe in a letter, and told him to tell her father that if the villagers from Chenjiagou came to borrow grain, as long as they were not lazy and cunning, she would lend them out, and if it was not enough, she could borrow from her farm.

Her family is now a celebrity in Liujiaping and even Shangde Town, and the Chen family has also become a wealthy family in Chenjiagou. If they don't take the initiative to lend a hand when their fellow villagers encounter difficulties, they will definitely be criticized.

Liu Youcai and Chen Dahe quickly replied, saying that they would definitely do as Chen Cui said.

Her ability was limited and she couldn't help more people, but at least she could help the villagers in the two villages get through the difficult times. Even if all the food was lent out, it wouldn't be a big loss for her, but for those who suffered from the disaster, it was the hope of survival.

Mr. Ma, the governor of Longnan, was worried about the reduced production in summer. Taxes had to be collected, but how the people would live after collecting the taxes was a big problem.

According to data reported by various counties, the production reduction in most places is around 30% to 40%. It is still okay for those who have a lot of grain stored at home, but for small households, there is not much surplus grain, and the remaining grain after paying taxes is unlikely to last until the autumn harvest.

If too many people cannot survive, the people are living in poverty and the people flee, then his tenure as prefect will be over.

Lord Ma had no choice but to submit a memorial, explaining the weather conditions in his jurisdiction over the past two years and the amount of grain production reduction, hoping that the court would reduce some taxes to help the people get through the difficult times.

Wang Hengzhi was also worried about this. He frowned when he was eating at home and put down his chopsticks after taking a few bites.

"Master, even if you don't eat, it won't solve the problem. You still have to take care of your body so that you can better serve the people."

Zhang Ruomei advised.

"I can't eat it. Sigh, it would be great if people could grow corn next season. The total yield is high and the soil is not picky. Regardless of whether the weather is good or not, the yield we get in the end will definitely be much higher than other grains."

Wang Hengzhi found out that corn is currently being grown in some imperial farms in the suburbs of Beijing and northern Zhili, but the overall scale is not large, and it has not been promoted to more provinces, which makes him very disappointed.

Although he wanted to get promoted and climb the career ladder, he was also truly ambitious and wanted to do more practical work. He felt very unwilling that the new grain seeds he had presented with great hope, which would benefit the people, had been buried in such a way!

However, he was only a fifth-rank Tongzhi. What could he do in the face of this situation?

"Oh!" Wang Hengzhi let out a heavy sigh.

Wang Hengzhi was not the only one who had this idea. Chen Cui even had the urge to take out the corn seeds in the space and plant them, but she finally held back.

When it was first presented, it was said that all the corn was given away and nothing was left. If it were to be taken out now, it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor.

The crime could be serious or minor. In the lighter case, the whole family would be convicted. In the heavier case, the whole clan would be implicated, and the people in Chenjiagou would also be in trouble. Even Wang Hengzhi and Zhang Ruomei would be implicated. Chen Cui did not dare to take the risk.

But she also hated the imperial court deeply. Why didn't such good grain be promoted as soon as possible? If only the surrounding cities could grow it, she would take the grains in her space and let people grow them so that everyone would not go hungry!

Because of this, she was a little annoyed, and although she tried her best to suppress her emotions, the children still noticed it.

After Sui Sui discovered that her mother was a little unhappy, she first reflected on herself and recounted her recent behavior. She should not have made any mistakes recently, so why was her mother so unhappy?

The child was cheerful and generous, and was close to Chen Cui, so he asked, "Mom, are you unhappy about something? Why don't you tell me, maybe I can help you!"

This was the tone Chen Cui often used when talking to her. She imitated it intentionally, making Chen Cui burst out laughing.

"Mom is fine. She is just a little worried because there have been droughts and floods in the past two years and the farmers' harvests have not been good."

Chen Cui did not give a perfunctory response, but spoke out her true feelings, concealing her dissatisfaction with the court's unfavorable promotion of corn.

Suisui was a little confused. Other people were suffering from a disaster, but it had nothing to do with their family. Their family still had enough food and drink and was not affected. Why was their mother so worried?

Chen Cui couldn't explain to her her sense of mission as a modern time traveler. Since she came to this world, she has been burdened with an inexplicable sense of responsibility. She wanted to use her limited power to change her life and then change this society.

She remembered the simple economics courses she had taken before, so she started by explaining the basic principles of economics to her daughter. Farmers' harvests are related to the economy of the entire country and also to everyone.