Above the mage!

Chapter 357: First Plenary Session

In the light snow, Grant, wearing a fur hat, walked between the ridges of Jinhui Farm, checking the growth of wheat ears.

More than half a year has passed since the first Northwest Barley No. 1 was planted.

At first glance, the wheat fields, either green or yellow or a mixture of green and yellow, are connected into one piece with no visible end, like an ocean.

Compared with ordinary barley, Northwest Barley No. 1 has an extremely advantageous feature, that is, it only requires extreme cold and low temperature to grow. The ice element replaces sunlight and becomes essential for its growth.

In the North, both extreme cold and ice elements exist permanently.

This means that Northwest Barley No. 1 can be planted on any day of the year, 360 days a year.

This is a unique advantage.

Therefore, the planting area of ​​Jinhui Farm expanded very rapidly.

Grant walked to a golden wheat field, which was a wheat field that had been planted early and was about to mature and be harvested.

He squatted down and checked the barley in the field. The ears of wheat were thick and full, and there were so many of them that the ears were even larger than the barley he had seen before.

There was no need to harvest and weigh the wheat, Grant knew that this wheat field would definitely have a bumper harvest.

All of this is thanks to Minister Flora.

Thanks to her efforts, the iteration of Northwest Barley No. 160 has been continuous and rapid, and now the yield per mu has increased to 180- kilograms.

Compared to the beginning, the yield per acre has almost tripled.

The area of ​​reclaimed land at Jinhui Farm has reached 300,000 acres.

Although many fields have only been cultivated and have not yet been planted, it is only a matter of time.

Before my king ascended the throne, the only farmland in Phoenix, that piece of volcanic land, did not produce enough food for the Iceborn mages in the tribe.

Such a big change has happened in just eight months.

When Grant thought of this, he felt as if it were a dream, so exaggerated that it seemed unreal.

As his mind was wandering, he suddenly heard a burst of noise and commotion.

Grant stood up in surprise and looked towards the source of the sound.

Then, he saw a familiar figure that had not appeared for a long time. He was riding on his pet snow wolf and heading towards the city, accompanied by Elder Gain.

Grant was stunned for a moment, then he was surprised.

My king is back!
Phoenix City Hall.

The first thing Gaode did after his return was to hold the first high-level plenary meeting of the Zhenbing tribe here.

Although they are all senior executives, there are actually not many of them.

War Mother Sunaifah, two ministers of the Ministry of Agriculture, two deputy directors of the Public Security Bureau, three fourth-ring elders of the Zhenbing Tribe, plus Damon.

Damon is not considered a high-ranking official.

However, as the Ministry of Education is one of the only three municipal departments in Phoenix, and Gao De himself is the minister, it does need someone to be present to report on the specific teaching situation of the No. 1 Middle School during the two and a half months that Gao De was away.

The sunlight on a snowy day shines through the window into the conference room.

Gao De and Sunaifa sat in the main seats. He glanced around the whole audience and frowned slightly. The biggest feeling in his mind was "We are really short of people!"
With just a few people like these, not only is it far from what Gao De had imagined a qualified city hall should look like, it can't even be called a makeshift team.

A makeshift team is still a team after all.

If we want the city hall to take shape, the most important thing is the educational work of the Ministry of Education.

This is also the reason why Gaode has already entered the Ministry of Education.

"Everyone, please report the recent situation of each department," Goder said slowly when he saw that everyone had arrived, "Let's start with Damon."

"Yes, Your Highness." Guardian Damon quickly stood up and saluted, his expression still somewhat stiff and awkward.

After all, judging from his identity and status, he could never have squeezed into this meeting. He just took advantage of the fact that the Ministry of Education currently has no talented people.

He unfolded the paper roll he had prepared long ago. The paper roll had become somewhat brittle and hard due to the cold weather in the North. He unfolded it carefully and reported earnestly:

“Phoenix No. 39 Middle School currently has 3569 Level teachers, offering three basic courses: Common Language Reading and Writing, Ace Language Reading and Writing, and Elementary Mathematics, with a total of students.”

“Two teaching campuses have been completed and put into use, which can accommodate more than 8,000 students. A new campus is also under construction.”

"The main problem of No. 39 Middle School is the severe shortage of teachers. It is roughly estimated that there are more than school-age children in Phoenix, but with only teachers, the current number of students is basically close to the upper limit. If the number of students increases further, the quality of teaching cannot be guaranteed."

"The other thing is the common language reading and writing course. Currently, I am the only one teaching it, and I can't even meet the needs of the existing students."

"However, I have organized other Level 2 teachers to learn the common language from me at night. Since everyone has mastered the [Language Proficiency], the learning progress is very fast. It is expected that in one to two months, they will be able to teach." Damon added.

Due to the limitations of teacher resources and teachers' own qualities, the courses currently offered by Phoenix No. 1 Middle School are mainly general education.

Needless to say, reading and writing common language and Ace language are the most basic literacy courses and the foundation of education.

As for elementary mathematics, the textbook was compiled by Gao De himself, which includes basic knowledge of weights and measures, as well as Arabic mathematics reading and writing and simple calculations.

The content is very simple, because if it is difficult, the teacher will not know it.
Gao De pondered for a moment, tapping the table with his fingers, making a crisp sound, and he slowly said:

"The construction of new campuses continues, with the goal of accommodating 100,000 students for the time being, ensuring that as long as there are enough teachers, children of school age can be immediately organized to attend school."

"As for the teacher issue, I will find a way. Also, Damon's move of organizing other teachers to learn the common language independently is good and deserves recognition." He nodded slightly, not stingy in praising Damon.

To be honest, the current student-teacher ratio at Phoenix No. 1 Middle School is seriously unbalanced.

There are 39 teachers to teach 3569 students, so the teacher-student ratio is close to one to one hundred. However, the number of courses is relatively small and the teaching content is relatively simple, so it is still manageable.

But this is definitely only temporary, and the next mage education and skill education must be put on the agenda.

Before that, the teacher problem must be resolved as soon as possible.

We are short of people. We are short of people.
Gao De sighed again.

This was the case in the early stages of construction, with a lack of available personnel everywhere. After reporting on the situation at Phoenix No. 1 Middle School, Damon left on his own accord.

Next comes the real high-level meeting.

"What's the situation at the Ministry of Agriculture?" Gao De glanced at the little man floating in the air, sitting cross-legged in the air, and said with a slight smile.

"My king, I will report on the situation of the Ministry of Agriculture."

Grant glanced at Flora, then stood up and volunteered - although Flora was the backbone of the Ministry of Agriculture, she couldn't remember those complicated numbers.

"Jinhui Farm currently has 31 mu of cultivated land, and thanks to Minister Flora's efforts, the yield per mu has increased to 160 kilograms to 180 kilograms."

When she heard Grant mention her name, Flora remained calm on the surface. There was no change on her delicate face, but the pair of small and exquisite wings behind her opened slightly as if out of control.

Not only Goder, but everyone present noticed Flora's joy, but they all tacitly understood and kept silent, and continued to sit upright.

"With such a high yield per mu, the current amount of farmland can fully meet the food needs of all the people in the tribe, but there are still nearly 31 mu of the mu of farmland that have not been planted."

"Because although the number of farmers in Jinhui Farm has reached 20000, it is not enough to cover such a large planting area."

"However, with the support of the War Mother, we are continuing to expand our numbers, and we expect to expand our numbers to 40,000 within two months."

"The Zhenbing tribe currently consumes about 25 kilograms of barley a day. The average daily barley output of Jinhui Farm is about 21 kilograms. We should be able to have a surplus soon."

Grant spoke slowly, but each word was clear and powerful.

"In addition, as per your request, we are also expanding the area of ​​Jinhui Farm to prepare for the tribe's future food trade and expansion."

"My king, do you need to arrange a fallow plan?"

"Very good. The yield per mu has doubled compared to the beginning. Thank you for your hard work, Lady Flora." God first praised Flora before getting to the point:

"Northwest Barley No. 1 can be planted at any time of the year. What we need to do now is to continuously expand the planting area. There is no need to arrange fallow for the time being. Crops have never been planted on the snowfield land, and the fertility is sufficient. There is no need to worry about this problem in the past few years."

"In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture has two more tasks to accomplish."

Gode ​​paused, then continued, "The first is to build a grain warehouse to store grain, and the second is to build a mill. Barley tastes rough and needs to be ground into flour. The north is cold and windy all year round, so it is perfect for building a windmill."

"My king."

Deputy Minister Grant hesitated for a moment, a look of embarrassment on his face, but he still raised his question: "No one in the tribe has the technology to build a windmill, and the wood needed for the construction of a windmill is not available in the North for the time being."

"I know," Goder nodded and said slowly, "You choose the site first. I will find the craftsmen and wood needed to build the windmill. You can start building the warehouse now."

"Okay." Since Goder said so, Grant naturally had no other doubts.

The next person to give a report was Caitlin.

She stood up with an upright posture, her eyes revealing determination and competence.

"Your Highness, ever since Northwest Barley No. 1 spread, there have been more and more rats in Phoenix and near Jinhui Farm."

"As you said, we mobilized the people to help us conduct the investigation, and we did catch many rats. However, due to limited manpower and too many places to be taken care of, it is inevitable that some fish slipped through the net."

"In addition, six small tribes have merged into our Zhenbing tribe in the past half month. These foreign tribesmen have had several conflicts with our Zhenbing tribe members."

"Although we arrived in time to prevent the conflict from escalating and punished both parties, it was ultimately only a temporary solution and not a fundamental solution."

Godard narrowed his eyes slightly.

This was expected.

First, the cultural customs and even traditions among different tribes are different. For example, in university dormitories, roommates from all over the world will have all kinds of conflicts due to different habits, let alone between tribes?
The second is the issue of identity. The indigenous people of the Zhenbing tribe will instinctively have a certain sense of superiority when facing these small tribes that have just joined. At the same time, they will also feel that these outsiders have taken away the tribe’s resources for no reason and feel dissatisfied with them.

Outsiders, on the other hand, lack a sense of belonging, which leads to estrangement.

But the problem was not difficult to solve. Gao De thought for a moment and made a decision: "When the Ministry of Agriculture expands the scale of farms, it will give priority to recruiting young and strong people from these newly joined small tribes and let them participate in the labor.

After growing food, they will naturally develop a sense of belonging, and the people of our Zhenbing tribe will no longer think that they are here to eat and drink for free."

As for the issue of cultural customs, it can actually be easily resolved once the teacher issue is resolved.

At that time, children from different tribes will go to and from school together, and their relationships will naturally begin to integrate.

"Is there anything else to report?" Goder noticed that Caitlin did not sit down.

"The current staffing of the Sheriff's Bureau is only 50 people, which is far from enough," Caitlin hesitated for a moment, and finally said, "If possible, I would like to apply to expand the staffing of the Sheriff's Bureau to 200 people."

"Okay." God didn't hesitate and nodded to approve Caitlin's application.

He was even somewhat happy in his heart. At least someone had begun to put forward their own ideas based on the actual situation at work and improve the municipal system, instead of blindly waiting for his orders: "You submit the application first, and then discuss the specific plan with the war mother."

"Thank you, Your Highness!" Caitlin said happily, and then saluted again, "My report is complete."

"Well done, thank you for your hard work." Gao De clapped his hands twice to show encouragement.

The saint who was once the guardian of the snowfield seemed to have completely adapted to her new identity and began to devote herself to the construction of Phoenix.

This is an excellent example.

"My king," Sunaifa thought for a moment, and said, "Since I took the initiative to send out the signal of my willingness to accept other tribes to join us half a month ago, I have already absorbed six small tribes. At this moment, there are envoys from three small tribes and one medium-sized tribe in the city, expressing their intention to join our Zhenbing tribe."

This was obviously good news, but Sunaifa was somewhat worried. "My king, are you really going to gather all the Ace people who are willing to join the True Ice Tribe?"

"Why not? The food pressure can be solved soon." Gao De smiled.

"The food pressure can indeed be solved, but there are too many tribes, big and small, in the North. If this continues, it is estimated that by the end of this year, the population of Phoenix will soon increase by 200,000 or 300,000. This has seriously exceeded Phoenix's current capacity."

"I'm not afraid of too many people, I'm afraid of not having people come," Gao De said without any worries, "Besides, my next step is to prepare for the re-planning and construction of Phoenix."

"Spread the word. Before the end of this year, all tribes hoping to obtain stable food and shelter can report to the Zhenbing Tribe and apply to join. Special emphasis should be placed on this time point this year." He thought for a moment and added.

The reason for adding a time node is not really to set a limit, but to make the whole thing more credible and give people a sense of urgency.

It's like if pie falls from the sky, few people would dare to eat it, fearing there is a trap, but if you need to get up early and queue up to get the pie, the line will be full of people.

(End of this chapter)