Chapter 81:
Alan, the future Count of Princia, his future territory is Princia, which is said to be very close to Sardinson.
Wei Wei looked on the map, and soon saw the name of Princia on the edge of Stroh County, which was indeed very close.
This made her think of a new question.
"I remember you said you wanted to cooperate with Allen. Doesn't Princia have a dock, so it doesn't matter if you build a dock in Stro?" If the
two docks are too close, it will inevitably affect each other's business exchanges.
Felix had already thought about this.
He also clicked on the map of Stroh County and said: "Although Princia has a seaport the scale of its seaport has not developed. At present, there is only one dock for ships to dock and other supporting facilities. But there are very few, it can only be regarded as a ship supply point, and it is the kind that foreign fleets are not willing to stop."
His fingers moved from Princia to the left, which is the west of the map, and stopped at a place.
"This is the largest royal seaport of the Prady Empire, close to the capital, and the surrounding areas are also the richest noble territories of the empire, the final destination of foreign merchants. From Princia to this port, it takes at least Ten days, but no more than two days by sea or land."
Although Princia itself is considered a rich territory, compared to the capital and surrounding areas where the rich and noble gather, its richness is completely unrecognizable, and foreign businessmen are They are here to make big money. Naturally, they want to send the goods to the place where it is easiest to sell and make big money.
"So Princia's port is usually mainly for their transportation, and most of the trade is mainly domestic merchant ships." And most of them are grain merchants who come here to harvest grain, so in addition to the autumn harvest season, other The pier season is deserted most of the time.
"And if Sardinson has its terminal, our trade with Princia can greatly shorten the transportation time, and with the products we have here, it is entirely possible to attract many foreign businessmen to Sardinson. Yes, there will inevitably be some fleets willing to stop at Princia at that time, whether it is for business or rest, it is a good thing for Princia, after all, we are close."
According to Sardinson and Princia It takes two or three days to travel by land, and the waterway may take half a day to get there, and Strow is even closer, and the dock that can be built with the situation along the coast of Strow cannot be that kind of large port, at most small and medium-sized. To the extent that if there are too many ships coming to Sardinson in the future and the dock cannot be docked, then the diversion to Princia is inevitable.
What's more, the cooperation between Felix and Allen has been confirmed. Felix also has the intention to bring his friends, and everyone will get rich together. By then, Prince will also develop. Are you worried about the possibility of attracting foreign fleets?
Therefore, Felix has every reason to believe that their construction of a wharf in Stró will not only not affect Prince, but will stimulate local development.
What he said was straightforward, and Wei Wei couldn't help but nod in agreement. At the same time, her eyes lit up, thinking of another benefit: "If the pier is built, and we go to the capital in the future, we won't need to ride in a carriage for so long. !"
They went to the capital by horse-drawn carriage before, but they did not walk in a straight line. Although the landscape of Europe is generally dominated by plains, some many hills and mountains cannot be browsed by horse-drawn carriages, so people at this time repaired The roads go around the mountains, which leads to longer journeys and longer delays.
The sea and land are different. As long as there are no disasters such as storms, it is unimpeded, and the danger of ships travelling along the land is also less, and the speed of the boats with the wind and the water can be faster.
"Yes, if you take a boat, you can reach the Royal Seaport in three to five days."
Wei Wei was puzzled: "Why didn't we take a boat from Prince to the capital before? Why bother going back and forth for so much time."
Felix coughed, and helplessly reminded her: "Prince doesn't sail in winter, and there are regulations for ships going to sea, so women can't get on board." Wei Wei
heard the words, and her chest was immediately blocked.
Yes, wasn't that why she didn't force the system to send her to Huaxia?
Although she has known this for a long time, she is still gloomy when she hears this feudal superstition again: "I can't just walk along the coast for a generation? It's not going to go to sea, and you think women will have trouble getting on the boat?"
Seeing her unhappy, Felix went around the table, put her in his arms, and comforted them softly: "Of course, I don't think so. When we have our boat, you can sit on whatever you like."
Others felt that women couldn't get on the boat and go to sea, He can't control it, but he can let whoever he likes sitting on his boat.
He didn't even believe the claims that women would bring bad luck on board. If something happened, would Wei Wei still appear here? If she hadn't been on the boat and gone to sea, with the distance between the two places, it would be impossible for her to meet her in her entire life.
Therefore, he didn't believe in the way of the sailors. Life at sea was changing rapidly, and anything could be encountered. No matter whether there were women on board, disasters would still come.
Wei Wei was comforted by him, and her mood finally didn't get worse.
However, it is inappropriate to talk about the topic of the wharf again. Anyway, this is still a matter of no consequence, so I will simply continue to return to Sloth's ownership.
A recipe for beet sugar, for a piece of territory, is indeed a good deal.
As soon as he said it, Felix took out a pen and paper and began to write the letter. Wei Wei helped him to polish the text. The two worked together to write a letter to the king, explaining that he wanted to exchange the formula for sugar for Stroh. the meaning of.
Wei Wei: "This time by water, the letter will be delivered very quickly."
She was still a little worried about the previous things.
However, the waterway is indeed much faster, and this is naturally the sooner the better, so of course, he listened to her.
After the letter is sent, it takes a lot of time before the reply is received.
And Sardinson's spring ploughing has begun.
This year's spring ploughing, the residents of Sardinson County have used new-style agricultural tools. The biggest change is the plough. In the past, they used light ploughs and heavy ploughs. Fertility is not optimally utilized, so crops grown on lightly ploughed fields tend to grow mediocre.
The heavy plough is suitable for ploughing sticky land and forest land, and the deeply ploughed land is also suitable for crop growth, but the heavy plough is not only expensive, but requires a few cattle to pull it in use, and even if it is a light plough, you need to have ploughed land. Only two or more farm animals can pull it.
As for the average farmer, let alone several cows, one is considered a wealthy family. Therefore, several families often get together to form a team and take turns to farm, and disputes often arise over who farms first. If you don't pay attention, you will delay the spring ploughing.
But this year, a curved plough appeared in Sardinson County. This is one of the drawings of farm tools that Wei Wei handed to Felix last year. Although it was not used last year, Felix has always summoned carpenters and blacksmiths in the territory. Build together and, hoard for a year, the number is very considerable.
Compared with the previous plough that required a few cows to pull it, the curved plough that can be pulled by only one ox or a horse can hardly be more convenient, and the depth of the ploughed field with the curved plough can be completely controlled freely. There are two kinds of diamonds and V-shaped can also be replaced to meet different needs.
The most important thing is that most of the structure of the curved plough is made of wood, and only the ploughshares that break the ground must be made of iron. In this way, its price can be greatly reduced, not to mention that every household can afford it. At least most people are fine.
The curved plough prepared by the craftsmen can not only meet the needs of the people but also sell some outside.
Therefore, once the curved plough was launched, it caused a great upsurge. The poor people in the family rented the curved plough with a little grain, while the wealthier people directly asked the carpenter to make the plough frame and then the blacksmith to buy the ploughshare, and bring it by themselves. It's ready to use when you get home.
Although foreign businessmen are very interested in this new type of farm tool, they will not buy it, because the Quyuan plough can know how to do it just by looking at it. If you have fields that need to be cultivated at home, you will still buy some and take them back. After all, if you make a custom order, you can't wait, and spring ploughing can't be delayed.
Therefore, the extra Quyuan ploughs are going to be sold to the nobles around Sardinson County. He has only negotiated cooperation with those nobles before, and now the family sends a few ploughs, which can be regarded as a relationship.
In addition to the new-style plough, the new-style horse yoke is also a good thing. The ploughing animals include not only cattle but also horses, but people used to be very careful when using horses to plough the land. The yoke of the horse is tied around the neck of the horse, which not only easy to cause accidents to the horse, but also not easy to exert force, but now that it is set on the shoulder of the horse, there are not so many concerns.
So this year's spring ploughing did not require a few oxen to pull a plough, and a horse-drawn plough was added. The speed of ploughing the land was several times faster than in previous years. One-third of the fields have not been completed yet, but now I have saved so much time, and I don't think it's so beautiful, I think it's worth the money.
And while the rest of Sardinson County started planting as planned, the new cellars built in Sardinson Castle last year were also dug up.
The baskets of sweet potatoes and potatoes that were stored last year and other seeds that needed to be stored at low temperatures were taken out, all sent to the villa, and placed in the villa's cellar for temporary storage.
For the next period, Wei Wei and Felix both lived on the side of the villa. She directed carefully selected slaves to plant the crops planted in March into the fields, including corn, sweet potatoes, potatoes and wheat.
Most of the crop slaves have never seen it, but they live in the castle, and they naturally know that the Countess once opened up fields in the castle's garden to plant crops brought from the Far East, and these seeds are what they want.
It's just that everything else is fine. They know wheat seeds, but this time isn't the time to plant wheat, right?
The selected slaves are big and small, but they are all hardworking and honest. Now that Wei Wei wants to grow wheat, she still can't hold back her mouth and tell her that it is not suitable for wheat at this time.
"Honorable lady, if you plant it now, it will not bear ears of wheat."
This is not an alarmist, but the experience left by the ancestors. It is not that no one wants to plant wheat in a warmer spring, hoping that the warmer climate will improve the wheat. However, those who did this did not succeed. The wheat planted in the spring would only continue to branch in the summer and would not produce ears at all, so let alone an increase in yield, those who tried it ended up with almost no harvest.
So after that, no one tried it again.
Wei Wei smiled back at the slave's kind reminder: "Yes, wheat planted in winter is not suitable for spring planting, but these wheat seeds are not wintered wheat, it can only be sown in spring and harvested in autumn. , they will freeze to death."
Is there such a difference?
Felix, who was standing on the side, noticed these seeds that he had neglected before, and suddenly said, "Can this wheat be grown in a colder area?"
The wheat they are now planting needs to overwinter to grow well Yes if it is a country further north than Sardinson, even wheat will freeze to death in winter, and if it is planted in early spring, it will not bear wheat ears, so the northern regions and other countries do not grow wheat.
But if there is such wheat in Wei Wei's hands, is it possible to grow wheat in the north?
Just as he was thinking, he saw Wei Wei nod and said, "Yes, this type of wheat in my hometown is the variety grown in the north. Although it cannot survive the winter, the temperature in the spring and summer in the north is just right for it, and the constant is also Higher than the wheat you are growing now."
She didn't say how much it was, but Felix thought of corn, potatoes and sweet potatoes, which are extremely high-yield crops, and knew in his heart that this number would not be small, otherwise, with the high yield and deliciousness of those crops, they would still Do anyone have a rare breed of wheat?
When the slaves were sent away, he couldn't help but ask Wei Wei about the specific output of this wheat.
Wei Wei motioned for him to come over and whispered, "The minimum yield per mu is 500 catties if managed properly. I heard that if you plant a good plant, you can have 700 to 800 catties, and even a thousand catties are possible." The
yield per mu, this Felik Si knows that the land of the Silk Country is calculated by mu, and one mu of land is only one-sixth of one acre.
Converting it, Felix couldn't help gasping.
I thought that the three high-yielding crops of corn, potatoes and sweet potatoes were the biggest surprises, but I didn't expect that there were hidden easter eggs.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Wei Wei said innocently: "You didn't ask, and you didn't dare to be interested when you harvested the wheat."
He didn't dare to be interested because he thought it was ordinary wheat, and Like a slave, he felt that the wheat planted in the spring might not grow well in the end. Even if it was heading, it was mostly empty shells. At that time, he was busy with the autumn harvest. The increase in the production of crops in the territory was a good thing, but it also made it difficult. He was busy for a while, but Wei Wei didn't say anything, so he naturally forgot.
He asked helplessly: "Apart from these, do you have any crops with high yields that you haven't told me about?"
Wei Wei thought for a while and said, "The same varieties, I planted have higher yields than yours? In addition. on, although it is not food, some seeds before fruits, vegetables and spices, some are not suitable for the climate of Sardinesburg, if they can be planted in more suitable areas, they are high-yield varieties."
"...you say It surprised me, are you sure it's all varieties?"
"Of course, my seeds are all optimized varieties, good seeds that are very rare in our place, otherwise why would I bring them."
Felix thought of Wei Wei's sturdy and living plants that did not bloom or bear fruit: "Then do you still have seeds? Those in the castle may not grow well."
"Of course," Wei Wei said: " Those are just real varieties, and knowing that the weather in Fort Sardinson is not suitable, how dare I use them all, not to mention that there is not so much space in the experimental field."
She has 100 kinds of seeds on hand, and the back garden is just that big. She tries to plant as many kinds of seeds as she can to make sure the climate is suitable. Only a small part of the experiment was taken, and the rest of the seeds were kept. Although it may affect the germination rate for a long time, it is better than the whole army being wiped out.
Speaking of this, she was still a little proud. If she had spent all the seeds last year, she would not cry to death when he found out that Melk, a town in southern Sardinson County, could grow some thermophilic crops.
Therefore, when all the crops that should be planted on the villa side are planted, they have to make a trip to Melk. Although Wei Wei has never been there before, Melk originally belonged to Felix, and he recovered some rent before. The field that went out was prepared for Wei Wei.
Compared with the high-yield grains before, Felix was not too interested in other seeds, even the expensive spices, because Sardinson was so big, it was impossible to grow everything, and he felt that the grain was the only one. the foundation of the territory.
But he doesn't mind Wei Wei cultivating crops that are not food. Growing vegetables can enrich the table, and spices are also consumables, so it's always good to grow some.
If those plantings are all high-yield seeds, then they can give the seeds to other suitable territorial nobles for cooperative cultivation in the future. They provide seeds, and the price is only a part of the output or directly exchanged for coins. Wouldn't it be good?.
No matter how you think about it, it's a very lucrative thing.
But since these seeds are also very productive, the land on Melk's side needs to be protected, such as building a fence or something to prevent it from being stolen.
"It's better to open a farm over there, recruit people to plant the land, and it will be convenient to expand the scale of production in the future." Wei Wei suggested: "Not only in Melk Town but also in Uke Town. Is there a large grassland? It is suitable to build a pasture to raise livestock."
Speaking of this, Wei Wei thought of the piglets she and Chef Bob fanned before. Only two pigs in the first batch of fanned pigs did not survive and died. The rest of the pigs quickly healed their wounds. Not to mention the tameness, the appetite has also increased, but in a few days, it is much faster than other sows of the same age.
"Let's just start raising a pig farm in Uke Town. In the future, the expansion of the meat sauce factory will require a lot of meat. We can't always rely on buying it. It is cost-effective to raise it ourselves."
Moreover, among the three towns, Uke Town was originally based on animal husbandry, and the land for cultivation was relatively small. Opening a pig farm could improve the economic development of Uke Town.
The price of today's pigs is very low and can't even go to the table of the nobles because of the smell of meat. To be delicious, a lot of spices must be used, and the cost is too high. Therefore, the meat sauces make use of mutton. If you can raise a lot of pigs with no fishy smell, you can replace them with cheaper pork.
When it came to Piggy, Felix couldn't help but twitch at the corners of his mouth. There was no other reason. After the first batch of instigated Piggy survived, Wei Wei set his sights on all Felix's in Sardinia. Pig, she went directly to the person in charge of the slaughterhouse and asked him to convene people to hone his skills, and then instigated most of the little piglets in the manor, leaving only some of the strongest pigs for breeding.
Most of this order includes those pigs raised by serfs, and only the pigs raised by freemen may be able to escape temporarily because of their status as masters.
Although this order has not started because most of the pregnant sows have not yet been produced, it is conceivable that when the slaughterhouse starts to operate, everyone's eyes on Wei Wei will be as tangled as the knights around him.
But no matter what, since what Wei Wei said was reasonable, Felix would listen to it, so the farm in Melk Town and the pig farm in Uke Town began to select land for construction at the same time so that the territorial people who had ended the spring ploughing earlier could resume the construction. More places to work.
And when they left the villa and ran to farm in Melk Town, a letter from the royal capital was also delivered.
As Felix expected, the king was very interested in his proposal. Sugar, a condiment, was a very expensive commodity at this time. If he mastered the method of making sugar, it was equivalent to owning a golden mountain, especially when Felix also It is famous in the letter that the raw materials needed for the sugar-making method he provided are available in the Prady Empire, especially in the king's territory, which is also very suitable for cultivation, and the king will, of course, be interested.
And all he asked for was a piece of territory that others didn't want, and how shrewd the king was, as soon as he said he wanted Stroh, he knew that he was interested in Stroh's suitability for building docks, and Sardinson County It is not only the merchants and nobles who are attracted by the products of the King, but the king also likes the special products here, not only for their value but also for their function.
He also uses the perfume and flower lotion produced by Sardinson to eliminate body odour and breath. The combination of pasta and meat sauce is often seen on the king's table, not to mention the woollen sweater and woollen trousers, which makes him wear them. A winter warmer.
And now it seems that there will be a lot of good things in Sardinson County. His Majesty thinks that if there is a waterway, then the transportation of these things will be much more convenient in the future. If there are any good things, he doesn't have to wait too long. Long.
So, with the sugar recipe and self-satisfaction, the king gave Stroh to Felix with a swipe of the pen.
So this letter is not just a reply, the messenger who sent the letter also brought a territorial appointment letter, that is to say, from now on, Felix is not only the Earl of Williams but also the Earl of Stroh.
But at the end of the letter, the king also mentioned something, something they had forgotten.
He handed the letter to Wei Wei and said, "Your Majesty is asking when we can deliver the promised cosmetics." Wei Wei was stunned and said angrily, "I forgot."
Yes, she had promised Wang The noble ladies of the capital put the production of cosmetics on the agenda as soon as they came back, but they were so busy with things after they came back that they forgot.