Chapter 481 - Autumn Levy (Part 36)
But she knew the young master from that landlord family would never look at her. Hers was among the poorest families in the clan—little land, surviving on the sacrificial rice distributed from the ancestral hall. Naturally, there would be no dowry to speak of... and she was taller than many of the young men... So this seventeenth-century young woman had naturally resigned herself to fate. After all, the Australians ate and lived better than the wealthiest people in the county. Marrying Chief Xun might not be so terrible after all.
Their eyes met briefly, then darted away. Xun Suji, as always, couldn't conjure a new topic of conversation. Liu Meilan could only leave in disappointment.
Xun Suji returned to the rattan chair by the threshing floor, continuing to sip cool tea while watching the operation of the threshing machines and windmills, occasionally correcting improper usage habits. His secretary Jin Xishan held an umbrella to shade him, now and then casting a tender glance at the "Chief."
While things with Liu Meilan weren't progressing, Xun Suji's personal life had actually undergone quite a transformation.
This subtle change had happened one night. After Xun Suji had conquered an H-dating-sim game and successfully won over the final heroine, he browsed through the CG album recording his glorious history one more time. With a satisfied feeling and hormones coursing through his body, he was about to retire when he heard a woman panting outside his window. It turned out Jin Xishan was still out there, diligently pedaling the charging generator—he had forgotten to tell her to finish tomorrow.
Pity, surprise, guilt, and hormones combined to help Xun Suji break through his two-dimensional aesthetic constraints. He finally stopped being "worse than a beast."
Thereafter, Jin Xishan worked even harder and became attentive to him to an unprecedented degree. She even followed him when he went to the countryside for agricultural work, just to serve him.
Liu Meilan sat not far away, staring idly at the basket of teapot and cups on the ground. Although Liu Guangbiao kept creating opportunities for them to meet and spend time together, Xun Suji adhered to the otaku characteristic of lacking practical experience in pursuing three-dimensional women. Liu Meilan's figure and appearance occasionally stirred romantic thoughts in him, but he still hadn't made any move to pursue her.
At the moment, his gaze drifted between Liu Meilan and the farmers threshing grain. Liu Meilan was slightly fairer than the local indigenous women he usually encountered, and tall—which suited his taste. Jin Xishan, though she came from a laboring background, had grown up in a wealthy household and naturally understood such matters. She knew the Chief fancied "Miss Liu" and was already thinking about how to play matchmaker for him.
The three of them, each absorbed in their own thoughts, were exchanging glances when Liu Guangbiao hurried over to summon Xun Suji.
Xun Suji already knew what Liu Youren would ask—the Executive Committee had recently briefed all transmigrators on the land tax clarification issue, instructing them on the unified talking points for external contacts. Agricultural technicians like Xun Suji, who frequently visited major grain households, had received specialized guidance.
Liu Youren was quite forthright, cutting straight to the point: what exactly were the Australians' intentions in surveying the land?
Over the past few months, their cooperation had been pleasant. Liu Youren had deliberately cultivated the relationship, and Xun Suji had done his work conscientiously. The two had developed a rapport. Liu Youren's directness carried the implication of "treating you as one of us."
"...If your distinguished company is short of grain or money, we grain households are all willing to increase our reasonable burden by some amount. This land surveying and tax clarification business is time-consuming and labor-intensive. What exactly is your purpose?" Liu Youren spoke with evident sincerity.
Xun Suji thought: just as Ah De predicted. But he wasn't interested in such matters and couldn't quite remember the specific talking points from the guidance meeting. After thinking for a while, he said:
"I'm just an agricultural technician. I don't know much about this." Seeing Liu Youren's look of disappointment, he felt a twinge of guilt—he had been very well treated with excellent food and lodging these past days. So he added:
"Even if the land is surveyed, as long as you've joined the Divine Society, you won't lose out. Just look at how much more you're harvesting per mu!"
These words struck like a thunderbolt. Liu Youren and his nephew exchanged glances. This was true!
Looked at this way, even if they reported all their land, as long as they could continue receiving Divine Society services and increase their yield per mu, they wouldn't actually be losing out.
Liu Youren was momentarily at a loss for words as his mind raced with anxious calculations.
Fu Buer's wife had finally stopped complaining. Though the woman was sharp-tongued and stingy, full of doubts about the Divine Society, the rice in the fields had given her ample proof—the beatings she had received from Fu Buer over the years had been entirely justified, correct, and reasonable.
In the fields where the Divine Society had provided seedlings for sparse planting, the rice not only produced more ears but also dense, full grains. The superiority over the rice in neighboring fields was obvious at a glance.
This harvest hadn't come easily. From the moment the rice began filling out, Fu Buer's heart had been lodged in his throat—he had never seen late-season rice grow so well. But this also made him nervous, fearing that weather or pest damage might suddenly destroy all hope of a bountiful harvest.
Yet the various disasters that typically struck during rice cultivation were all resolved one by one by Wan Lihui. Fu Buer went from simple blind obedience to genuine, whole-hearted admiration. Nothing seemed to stump the man. When moths had plagued them during summer—previously, all they could do was let nature take its course—Wan Lihui had visited the Divine Society once, and the very next day, many wooden buckets arrived filled with a foul-smelling emulsion: tung-urine-incense.
Under Wan Lihui's guidance, the Fu family's farmhands mixed the emulsion with water at a ratio of one part emulsion to one hundred fifty parts water, then scattered it manually in the fields. The results were remarkable. After several applications, the rice borers, leafhoppers, and planthoppers that had been rampant in the paddies decreased significantly.
Wan Lihui explained that this miraculous substance was called "pesticide," manufactured by the Australians specifically to combat rice pests and diseases—this year the pesticide was free, but from next year there would be material fees.
"Yes, yes, it's wonderful stuff!" Fu Buer was so excited he could barely speak. "Let me buy some more right away!"
"No need. Your fields aren't infested anymore—buying more would be useless. It loses effectiveness if stored too long."
Wan Lihui knew that the main components of this crude pesticide were human urine and tung oil. Tung oil was easy enough, but fresh human urine was difficult to collect and couldn't be stored for long periods. The pesticide factory only made what was needed when it was needed, so production wasn't high. Beyond their own use, supplies were allocated only to Divine Society clients.
This response changed Fu Buer's mind: next year he would continue participating in the Divine Society. While obtaining seed grain from this year's harvest was certainly valuable, the "pesticides," "compound fertilizers," and other supplies that had played such a crucial role in the growing process were only available to Divine Society clients.
Standing at the edge of the freshly harvested paddy field, reflecting on the trials of the past few months, Fu Buer felt an irrepressible surge of excitement—it was miraculous! Though the late-season rice planting area had been reduced by half, the total yield was still ten percent more than last year. If he could plant all his land this way, wouldn't he get rich? Not to mention the broad beans grown on the fallowed land had all been purchased by the Australians. The purchase price for broad beans wasn't high, but it was still income. And circulation coupons could be used to pay for various Divine Society services—killing two birds with one stone.
The Fu family had also bought a threshing machine and windmill. His wife was now standing by the threshing machine, curiously watching this novel contraption knock grain off the stalks at astonishing speed. The children in the family had gathered around as well, mesmerized by the first machinery they had ever seen in their lives.
Lately, her attitude toward Wan Lihui had completely transformed. Gone was the vigilant, suspicious gaze. She had become more like a normal woman. To express her simple gratitude, she had even made several pairs of cloth shoes for Wan Lihui.
Fu Buer's success had caused a sensation throughout Meiyang Village. Those who had previously made Fu Buer the butt of their jokes had now fallen silent—it was perfectly clear who the joke was now. Those who had mocked him were now competing to claim they had always seen potential in Fu Buer, eager to demonstrate their "foresight."
The seemingly crazy behaviors Wan Lihui had exhibited during the busy farming season had now all become models for the villagers to imitate. A fever for composting had swept through the village. Meiyang Village had suddenly become cleaner than it had ever been—no one threw garbage in the village anymore. Some followed Wan Lihui's example of venturing into the wild to collect grass, dredging mud from the river to make compost. The small river outside the village was soon dug so clean and clear that the muddy stench had completely vanished.
Every time Wan Lihui came to the village for inspections, many people came to ask him all sorts of technical questions—how to compost, why they should fallow half their land to grow beans... Wan Lihui turned no one away, offering simple explanations. He took the opportunity to promote the benefits of joining the "Divine Society"—though this sales pitch was often rudely interrupted by the Fu household's mistress. Wan Lihui couldn't figure out what the woman was thinking.
"What's she thinking? She wants to keep others from joining the Divine Society." Fu Xi told him with a giggle when she came to clear away his dishes after hearing his question.
"Is that so!"
"She wishes every family in the village would sell their land to our family. If everyone joined the Divine Society and learned your farming methods, there'd be no chance of that..."
"That doesn't seem right." Wan Lihui said. "Common prosperity is the main direction—"
"Hee hee, common prosperity indeed. You people are so strange!" Fu Xi said. "Coming all the way to this remote backwater to teach everyone your skills! I heard at school that any single craft could make a fortune in the Great Ming! 'Teach your apprentice, starve your master'—don't you know that saying?"
"If a master only ever knows that little bit, of course he'll starve. But our knowledge is as vast as the sea!" Wan Lihui made a grandiose gesture.
"Whatever you say." Fu Xi said. "When are you leaving?"
"What, trying to get rid of me?" Wan Lihui looked at Fu Xi with a smile—he had become quite familiar with this household girl of the Fu family. They had developed mutual affection, and their conversations had grown much more casual.
(End of Chapter)