A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 146 A Plow for an Earl

East of Chang'an City,

Outside Chunming Gate is Xiannong Altar.

Li Yi rode on horseback and followed the emperor's carriage out of Chunming Gate. This middle gate of the three east gates of the city was very busy. Merchants, officials and civilians who entered Chang'an through Shangshan Road had to pass through Chunming Gate to enter the East Market.

Outside Chunming Gate, the emperor has one acre and three mu of land, which is located at Xiannongtan.

Every spring, the emperor would hold a spring plowing ceremony here to worship the god of agriculture and pray for good weather and a good harvest.

There is a viewing platform in Xiannongtan, and there is one and a half acres of farmland in front of the platform.

This one-third acre of land was cultivated by the emperor himself.

In fact, the Xiannongtan Temple is not only in Chang'an, but also in all counties and cities across the country.

Each government land in the eastern suburbs should be selected as clean and fertile, and four mu and nine fen of land should be used as plowing fields. Behind the plowing fields, an altar for the gods of agriculture should be built, and the officials in charge of the land should lead their subordinates to perform the plowing and plowing ceremony according to the system of the nine ministers.

Every spring, the emperor in Chang'an leads all the officials in holding a grand spring plowing ceremony. I personally till the land, being the first in the world.

The emperor held the whip and the plow, the prime minister led the ox in front, the ministers supported the plow beside him, the minister of civil affairs carried the green box on his back, and the assistant minister of civil affairs was in charge of sowing.
The field was plowed three times, and then the three dukes and nine ministers joined in the plowing, and the queen also came to deliver meals.

It is said that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian, once plowed an entire acre and three mu of land in one breath, attracting tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians in Chang'an to watch.
Even before the annual spring plowing ceremony, Yang Jian would practice several times in the imperial garden.

Li Yuan ascended the throne and became emperor only this summer.
He has never presided over the spring plowing ceremony, but when he was the Duke of Tang, he also held the plow in his own manor to show his importance.

After seeing the short curved plow presented by Li Yi in the palace, Li Yuan also realized at a glance that this plow was extraordinary.

At least it looks much lighter at first glance.
I haven't tried it though, so I can't be sure if it really works that well.

Li Yuan tried it himself in the Imperial Garden and thought it was quite good. However, he felt that the ploughing land in the Imperial Garden was too small to fully demonstrate the performance of the plough. So he enthusiastically took the prime ministers Pei Ji, Chen Shuda, Dou Kang, and Xiao Yu with him.
He insisted on going to the one and a half mu of land at Xiannongtan outside Chunming Gate to try plowing.

Arrived at Xiannong Temple,
Li Yuan first offered sacrifices to the God of Agriculture,

Then he asked the officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to bring the oxen for plowing.

"I just plowed a furrow, but it wasn't satisfying. This time I'm going to plow a few more times."

Pei Ji smiled and said that he wanted to lead the ox for the emperor, while Dou Kang said that he wanted to hold the plow for the emperor.

Xiao Yu didn't say anything, but kept looking at the plow, and glanced at Li Yi from time to time. He was originally working, and was a little unhappy when the emperor called him to look at the plow.

But I heard a lot of amazing things about the plow along the way, and I became a little curious.

However, Chen Shuda smiled and said that he would carry the green box and let Li Yi sow the seeds.

"Today, let County Master Li enjoy the treatment of a Minister of Civil Affairs."

Li Yi helped Li Yuan put on the plow, put it on the ox, and adjust the depth of the plow.

Li Yuan, dressed in purple uniform, excitedly whipped the whip a few times, causing the strong bull to move its hooves immediately, and Pei Ji sighed several times.

"Help me calculate the time and see how fast it is."

Li Yi said at the side: "I suggest that we bring another ox and use a long straight plow to plow the field nearby. This way we can see it more clearly."

"Okay, Li Yi, you plow a ridge next to it."

So, the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture immediately found another similar strong ox and a long straight-shaft plow.

Li Yi took the whip and held the plow.

An old man in a red robe helped him lead the cow.

"Thank you,"

The old man smiled and said, "Wu Shiling, Shaoqing of the Sinology Temple, your plow really looks good."

The director of the Shanglin Office helped to hold the plow.

The emperor shouted,
Crack the whip and start first,
Li Yi followed closely behind.

The traditional long straight-beam plow was clumsy and heavy, but fortunately the castrated bull was strong and tall, and it moved very fast with the plow on its neck.

Li Yi's plowing skills were average, but fortunately the ox was very skilled and he didn't need to do anything.

The emperor's movements were much more skillful than his.
Soon, the emperor reached the end of the ridge, lifted the plow and swung it lightly, then turned around and started plowing back.

At this time, Li Yi had only plowed a little over half of the ridge.
It’s not that the plow is so different, but his poor skills are holding him back.

When the emperor finished plowing three times,

Before Li Yi finished plowing two times, Li Yuan put down the plow, went up to the plowing viewing platform, and watched Li Yi finish plowing three times with great effort.

"It's obvious this kid has never farmed before. He's way behind,"

Li Yuan smiled and asked the Ministry of Agriculture to send out two more teams of skilled farmers to have a real fight.

Li Yi was covered in dirt and sweat. Li Yuan asked him to go up to the farming platform and waved to him to stand beside him.

"Your plow is indeed well modified. It is light and flexible and saves a lot of effort."

Sun Fujia also took the opportunity to say that it should be promoted vigorously.

"Well, Li Yi presented this treasure, which is truly a national treasure. What reward do you want?"

"I eat the emperor's salary and share his worries. As a minister, I am the county magistrate bestowed by Your Majesty, and I do my part for the court. This is all my duty."

"Hahaha," Li Yuan laughed, stroking his beard.
"You always surprise me in every way, and I won't let you down. Today, I will promote you to the title of Founding Earl of Qianshui County."

"I will also reward you with ten oxen and horses, ten male and female slaves, one hundred thousand coins, and one thousand pieces of silk."

"I thank Your Majesty. Long live the emperor." Li Yi quickly accepted the order and expressed his gratitude.

"Don't worry, I haven't finished rewarding you yet. I will reward you with another thousand acres of land and appoint you as the Deputy Supervisor of the Imperial Palace and the Plowsmith. You will be responsible for the casting and promotion of this new plow."

The imperial court was to manufacture the new plows themselves and distribute them first to military and government settlements throughout the country, while also promoting them to the general public. Li Yi was the plowsmith.

Li Yi didn't expect that he would be granted another thousand acres of land. Li Yuan was such a good emperor and very generous.

However, when Li Yuan saw Prime Minister Pei Ji standing next to the emperor, he immediately granted him 100,000 acres of land and 40,000 pieces of fabric.

"Why don't you thank me quickly?" Sun Fuga reminded him.

Li Yi was distracted, but he didn't know what the official position of the deputy supervisor of the palace garden was.

"Your Majesty, may I ask what the position of the Deputy Supervisor of the Palace Gardens is?"

Sun Fujia told him, "The Palace Garden Supervisor is in charge of garden and pond maintenance, planting, poultry, fish, and fruit trees. The Deputy Supervisor is the assistant to the Palace Garden Supervisor, a sixth-rank official, and is affiliated with the Sinong Temple."

Li Yi thought, isn't this the deputy chief steward of the royal gardeners?

It's obvious from the sound that he is not a serious official. He feels a bit like Sun Wukong going to heaven to work as the Horse Keeper.

Li Yuan said with a smile: "Why, are you going to refuse the official position again?"

"Your Majesty, I don't understand palace gardens, let alone flowers, birds, fruits, and trees. I'm afraid I'll make mistakes."

Li Yuan smiled and said, "So I asked you to be the deputy supervisor, but not the general supervisor. Just give you the title of deputy supervisor of the palace garden, which is lower than the sixth rank, and it will also be convenient for you to enter and leave the palace."

Being responsible for the promotion of plow casting is a job, not an official position.

Li Yi didn't know that the position of Palace Director may seem insignificant, but it is usually held by the emperor's confidants. For example, Fan Fang, a former servant of Li Yuan, was originally an official of the Sui Dynasty and a classmate of Li Yuan. Later, he was convicted and enslaved, and was rewarded to Li Yuan.

Fan Fang and Fan Shixing followed Conglong and started an uprising.

Now one is the General of the Right Guard and the other is the Director of the Palace Gardens.

In history, when Li Longji launched a coup, he found the palace director Zhong Shaojing in advance and wooed him over. It was with the support of Liu Youqiu, Zhong Shaojing and others that
Li Longji was able to enter the palace garden under the jurisdiction of Zhong Shaojing at night.
Zhong Shaojing also brought more than 200 gardeners, gardeners, masons and other people under his command, and cooperated with Li Longji with weapons to attack the Taiji Hall, kill Empress Wei, and support Li Longji's father Li Dan to ascend the throne as Ruizong.

Zhong Shaojing, who was originally in charge of the palace gardens and greening for the emperor, was also regarded as a meritorious official because of this. He was promoted to the position of Zhongshu Shilang and participated in the mechanical affairs. The next day, he was promoted to Zhongshu Ling and was appointed Duke of Yue.

The director and deputy director of the palace gardens should both be close ministers of the emperor.

In fact, if you grasp it well, this is a very important position, just like the leader's driver or nanny, and should not be underestimated.

"I know you're used to a life of idleness, so I won't give you any real job this time. You'll just be in charge of this deputy supervisor of the palace gardens. You won't have to worry about anything else. Just focus on the new plow."

"Of course, you will not be short of the salary and official land that you deserve."

When Li Yi heard this, he thought it was quite suitable for him.

"Your Majesty, I think that in order to quickly promote the new plow, we must first have a resounding name. I think this plow can be named Wude Plow.

Then, after copying the production method and drawings, they would be distributed to all prefectures and counties throughout the country, and local officials would make them public. This way, the Wude plow could be quickly promoted and the people could use it more quickly.

Wude Plow,
Li Yuan liked this name.
As for sending the blueprints to the states and counties and letting everyone make them, that's fine too. This isn't some secret weapon.
Anyway, after it's made, you can understand it after just a few glances.

"Can,"

However, Li Yi was still responsible for supervising the production of new plows for use in military settlements, official settlements, and royal estates, and for rewarding his ministers.

Only after seeing the people from the Ministry of Agriculture plowing and sowing the one and a half acres of land did Li Yuan return home satisfied.

Li Yi also laughed all the way.
The reward for presenting the plow this time was even more generous than expected.

"Congratulations, Uncle Qianshui!" Sun Fujia said with a smile.

"I also want to thank you, Senior Brother, for helping me to kowtow to the emperor."

"That's because your plow is really good, a good thing that benefits the country and the people."

He got a plow, was promoted one level in nobility, and was also appointed as the sixth-rank deputy supervisor of the palace gardens, not to mention twenty oxen and horses, twenty slaves, a hundred strings of cash, and a thousand pieces of silk.

He married Du Shiniang and emptied his family's wealth.
Hiring long-term workers and buying ox-plows were all done by borrowing Xu Xiuzhi's money. Now, the money was recovered in an instant.

He happily took the imperial edict and went to the Taifu Temple and Taipu Temple to receive the reward.

After receiving various rewards, Li Yi was still a little worried about the ten new horses. He already had seven horses at home, and he wouldn't need ten more now. Horses are particularly good eaters, and the cost of raising one horse is enough to support the cost of several people.

Maybe I could consider selling some horses and using the money to buy some cattle.

The newly granted 1,000 mu of land was located in Yijun County, Yizhou. This place was located north of Sanyuan County, not particularly far away, but a major battle had broken out there just last year.

The Jihu, also known as the Buluo Jihu tribe, are descendants of the Xiongnu. They retreated into the valleys in northern Shaanxi and Shanxi, with a radius of seven or eight hundred miles west of Lishi and east of Anding, intermarried with the Han people, and their tribes prospered.

In April of last year, the Jihu tribe attacked Fuping from the south and almost reached the north bank of the Wei River. Shortly after being repelled, they organized a coalition of 50,000 Jihu tribesmen and made a comeback, attacking Yijun.

Dou Gui led his troops to fight against the enemy at Huangqin Mountain. At first, he was defeated. Later, Dou Gui killed fourteen officers in a row, promoted fourteen brave junior officers to replace them, and personally led hundreds of his personal soldiers to supervise the battle. Only then did he turn defeat into victory.

More than 20,000 Jihu men and women were captured in one fell swoop.

Although the Jihu did not dare to march south in large numbers again after this battle, small groups still came to plunder from time to time.

This year, the imperial court separated Yijun, Tongguan and Huayuan counties from Yongzhou and established Yizhou.

Yijun is located at the junction of the Guanzhong Plain and the Loess Plateau, more than 200 miles away from Chang'an. Next to it is Luochuan County, the famous Luochuan apple producing area in later generations. It is mountainous and has many dryland terraces.

The emperor rewarded him with a thousand acres of land because after several raids by the Jihu people in the south, the population here dropped sharply and a lot of land became barren.

It was also a troublesome matter for Li Yi to take the thousand acres of land.

Even if we want to rent the land locally, it is difficult to find someone to rent it out. It seems that we can only recruit disaster victims to build a farm and cultivate it.

One thousand acres requires recruiting at least twenty households.

Fortunately, I now have a reward money, which is enough to hire people, buy cows, plows, hoes and shovels, and seeds to build a farm.

(End of this chapter)