This time, the Months of the Demons lasted for nearly five months. When the dark clouds dissipated and the warm sunshine reappeared over the Western Region, spring was already half over.
An urgent task was placed in front of Roland.
That was spring plowing.
Launching a war to conquer the Southernmost Region during the Months of the Demons, when other forces found it difficult to move forward, would save a lot of time and enable them to carry out the unified strategy with ease. However, it would also consume a lot of food.
Due to the rapid population growth, the Border Area's granary was empty for the first time. Roland secretly felt lucky that the first thing he did after annexing Longsong Stronghold was to hand over the "Golden Ones" seeds cultivated by Leaf to Pérot and order him to promote the improved crops. Otherwise, the Months of the Demons would be really difficult.
The cement ships that traveled between the Border Area and Longsong Stronghold formed the lifeline of the First Army. A large number of wheat-ground pancakes were distributed to the soldiers fighting in the front line by shipping.
Therefore, the day after the "Victory Day" celebration, Roland held a spring plowing operation conference.
Not only the Ministry of Agriculture, but also the entire City hall, including the second-class officials of the Longsong Area, the district governor Pérot, and the Fallen Dragon Ridge governor Spear were all summoned to Neverwinter Castle. Among them, Spear Passi was flown here directly by Maggie. When she landed, her cheeks were pale, and when she saluted Roland, she complained a lot.
Carr Kant, the Lord of the Northern Region, was represented by his daughter, Edith, and his second son, Cole. Roland did not know if it was an illusion, but he felt that the Pearl of the Northern Region, who had just returned from the Great Snow Mountain, was more radiant than before, while Cole, who was behind her, seemed much weaker. And that outfit... was it a little too neutral?
Anyway, the conference had gathered representatives from all over Graycastle. Except for the Eastern Region, which had not yet surrendered, and the Central Region, which had not yet established the City hall system, this could basically be regarded as a national conference.
He looked around the hall with satisfaction and then knocked on the table.
Everyone quietened down and looked at the King.
"I know you must be wondering why the word 'war' is used on the banner," Roland said, pointing to the red cloth banner hanging on the wall behind him. "Because this is a war. It was not only related to the successful implementation of this year's strategic plan, but also determined the validity of Neverwinter's rule! When I first roped in the refugees, I promised them that as long as they were willing to work hard, they would never go hungry. "
"I've done this in the past three years, expanding my territory from a remote border town to more than half of Graycastle. There's no reason I can't do it this year. The kingdom will only be stable if the people don't have to worry about food and water. Therefore, I ask everyone to take spring plowing seriously and complete this year's plowing according to the regulations and sowing manual formulated by the Ministry of Agriculture. " He paused for a moment. "From this year onward, agricultural work will be subject to a special assessment, including the reclaimed area, the number of farmers, and the agricultural output. These will be the criteria to determine whether you are suitable to be a governor!"
Looking at the bewildered faces of the participants, Roland could not help but smile. "It doesn't matter if you don't know what these assessment items are. Later, the Minister of Agriculture, Sirius will spend a day explaining them to you in detail. In short, if you can't meet my requirements, it means that your ability is limited and you are no longer suitable to be a governor. "
Although no one said anything, it was obvious from their expressions that they were obviously nervous.
This was the effect Roland wanted. Abolishing the aristocratic system, apart from being able to take back the feudal power, also meant that the officials of the territory would no longer be hereditary. He did not mind these people enjoying the benefits, but he would not allow them to hinder his development plan.
And the agricultural assessment was just the beginning.
Roland lifted a curtain behind him, revealing a number written in big red letters. "In the first year, other standards can be relaxed, but in terms of agricultural output, I want you to meet this number!"
Everyone sucked in a breath of cold air. "Fifty thousand?"
Roland was not surprised. After all, according to the average level of this era, the annual harvest of an ordinary city was about 10,000 kilograms, and the harvest of an important town like the old king's city could reach 15,000 kilograms. When Border Town used the Golden Ones for the first time, they had only collected a little more than 7,000 kilograms, which was already an astonishing harvest at that time.
Of course, the actual harvest of each region was closely related to the area of farmland and the number of farmers. Unlike Border Town, which developed high-yield agriculture, big cities relied on the barbaric cultivation of tens of thousands of farmers in the surrounding villages and small towns to obtain so much food. That was why Roland included these two items in the assessment.
After all, the fewer the farmers, the more workers the factories could accommodate.
Roland gestured for everyone to quiet down. "In fact, when you see the experimental field of Golden Twos, you'll realize that this goal is not just a fantasy. After Leaf's repeated tests, the unit yield of Golden Twos can be more than twice that of Golden Ones, and the ears of wheat in the field can crush the stalks. "
This time, it was Pérot's turn to exclaim, "Your Majesty... can it really be more than twice that?"
Among the officials from other cities, he was the only one who was deeply impressed by the amazing yield of Golden Ones. During the war of the Months of Demons, the Longsong Area had provided more than 50% of the First Army's rations because there was a large amount of surplus food after Golden Ones were planted. If it were ordinary wheat, it would not even be enough to feed a city.
"That's true, but Golden Twos aren't completely flawless." Roland looked at Leaf and said, "Miss Leaf of the Witch Union, please explain its characteristics in detail."
Leaf nodded and bowed to Roland. She walked up to him with a bag of ripened wheat and began to show Golden Twos to everyone. "It's different from all the wheat you've seen before. It can only be planted once, so you have to come to Neverwinter to get new wheat seeds every year. I've also greatly strengthened its root system so that it can absorb nutrients from deeper underground. However, it consumes a lot of fertility and needs to be fertilized. Otherwise, we'll have to divide three plots of land and let them rest. And... "
Looking at Leaf, who was a little reserved at first but became more and more fluent in her speech, Roland stroked his chin in satisfaction. Golden Twos were a new type of wheat with its own Jinkela. Its root system could extend four to five meters underground and its ability to absorb fertilizer was enhanced. Except for the fact that it could not reproduce continuously, it was better than Golden Ones in all aspects.
The only disadvantage was actually an advantage for Neverwinter. The fact that it could not keep seeds meant that once other cities started to plant Golden Twos, they would have to rely on the supply from the new king's city. At the same time, other low-yield wheat would be squeezed out of the market. This was a great advantage for Roland to monopolize the food market and put this resource under the control of the state.
Roland believed that no farmer would go back to planting ordinary wheat after trying to plant Golden Twos.
As long as this improved seed was popularized throughout the country, it would greatly alleviate the food shortage in various places.
With food... it would naturally be able to accommodate more people.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
