Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 185 Stripping
The sky is green and the fields are vast.

Beijiwu rode his horse across the vast Huanghuai Grassland, followed by hundreds of male and female knights.

The Huanghuai Grassland was not an agricultural area that was once covered with arable land. After realizing that it would not be able to use so much arable land, some of the arable land was neatly planted with pasture.

Wheat is still grown in the central region, while the west has abundant water resources. The eastern region, which is prone to flooding, consists of vast grasslands.

It's like putting a green wreath on a bald man; it's green in spring and yellow in summer.

Arctic Martial quickly stopped; there was a deer about a hundred meters ahead.

Why are there deer here?

Dressed in white riding attire and wearing a white fur hat, Yelü Polu replied, "Aren't there deer on the grasslands of the Central Plains?"

Adaihai smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it's still grazing there. This must be prey that Heaven has given you."

Beijiwu did not raise his bow, and casually said, "This grassland is what I am leaving to my descendants. I will develop this place when the soil fertility of other farmlands declines, or when there is not enough food for the population in the future. For this reason, I have planted pasture grass and bean grass here to strengthen the fertility."

"Too many animals would ruin my plans. Only cattle, sheep and horses can graze; any more would be a disaster."

“Kill this deer, and then send people here regularly to shoot rabbits and mice, and drive chickens and ducks here regularly to get rid of pests.”

Arctic Martial didn't know which clever person had driven the silly deer over, but as long as he didn't kill them or ask questions, such incidents would naturally decrease.

This is Arctic Martial Arts' territory, so naturally Arctic Martial Arts has the final say.

At the same time, Adaihai, Yelü Poluo, and others raised their bows and shot at the deer.

More than ten arrows were fired at the same time, and the unfortunate deer was shot by several noble ladies who knew how to hunt.

"I hit the target!"

A woman wearing leather pants and a bright red cloak shouted happily.

The other women were somewhat displeased upon hearing this.

Beijiwu asked, "Which family's young lady are you?"

The woman excitedly put down her bow and arrow. "Your Majesty, I am Wang Minghui, the younger sister of Wang Daoji, the Duke of Zhao of Tianzhou. I am twenty-two years old this year. I met Your Majesty once at Zijing Pass six years ago."

Beijiwu had no recollection of this minor character; he had absolutely no impression of him.

"I just learned that Miss Wang is also skilled in horseback riding and archery."

Beijiwu looked at the deer that had run away a hundred meters away. The deer had been shot with an arrow and could not have run far.

Wang Minghui was able to participate in the games of a group of princes and nobles mainly because of his family's status as a duke.

A family's prosperity is shared by all, and their loss is shared by all.

“My brother is ten times more skilled than me. Over the years, he has been diligently practicing martial arts in his fiefdom, working and training alongside the soldiers.”

Wang Minghui took the initiative to speak up for Wang Daoji. The Northern Army strictly forbade women from interfering in politics, and whether or not one could enter the palace depended mainly on luck and one's maternal family background.

"Well, let's send him to conquer the southwestern barbarians this time and see if he can be of any use."

Arctic Martial Arts has given us an opportunity, but currently, most of our personnel are skilled in internal affairs, and we have very few people available for combat.

However, once the fighting begins, a number of talented individuals will naturally emerge based on battle reports and the battle lines.

Wang Minghui exclaimed excitedly, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Everyone else was incredibly envious.

This is the advantage of being an official in the capital; it's good to have a powerful patron.

If one remains within their fiefdom and does not venture out, how will the emperor remember them, and how will they ever have a chance to rise in the ranks?

The best things in Shan Nong Kingdom are given priority to its own people. Everyone accompanies King Wu on his outings to get closer to him.

Bei Jiwu continued his horseback ride, inspecting the Henan pastures he intended to leave to future generations.

At the current rate of population growth, this vast, lush grassland, where horses can roam freely, will disappear in thirty or forty years.

The fallowing policy is not limited to parts of Henan; it is also being implemented in the Loess Plateau of Northwest China.

Starting this year, the main grain-producing areas will shift southward.

So many people in the south are idle anyway, they should still farm.

In the Central Plains region, enough grain is needed to feed twice the population. In the Northwest region, the main focus is on farming in areas with abundant water resources, while the remaining areas are used for afforestation to strengthen the soil.

The plains are mainly Youzhou and Jizhou, or the northern and southern Jiangsu regions. Anyway, these places will no longer be farmed after industrialization, so it doesn't matter if the soil fertility is depleted.

In the future, all arable land in hereditary territories will be designated as land red lines and permanent basic farmland.

Beijiwu didn't need to lift a finger; his male and female noble servants would take care of cleaning up small animals like rabbits and field mice.

There are no tigers, but you can see wild dogs.

They set up tents to rest at night, and the accompanying noblemen and women were obligated to serve them. However, Beijiwu was not interested in men, and he was also very restrained in his pursuit of women.

He could casually indulge himself in the company of any attractive woman from the Western Regions inside the tent.

Compared to the female poets and ladies sent by the Southern Dynasty, Beiji Wu preferred healthy women with athletic figures.

After spending a few days playing on the grasslands in winter, Beijiwu led his men back to the imperial palace in Luoyang, which was seven hundred miles away.

The noble servants returned to their homes, while some went to the palace to change clothes and continue to serve.

"Your Majesty!"

Consort Wan knelt on the ground to greet Beiji Wu. Her height of just over 1.4 meters appeared even smaller after kneeling.

Xi Dan and Jiang Cao were helping Bei Ji Wu change his clothes. The two girls, who were only in their teens, were serving as his personal maids, not as concubines.

Beijiwu looked at the woman kneeling on the ground and responded in a tone devoid of emotion.

"what's up."

Consort Wan carefully lay on the carpet, raising her head to look at the handsome man who wasn't looking at her.

Consort Wan, who was in her twenties, had been following Beiji Wu for several years. As the daughter of the former emperor, she had also interacted with princesses and concubines from the previous dynasties, as well as princesses and concubines from various countries that had been destroyed by Beiji Wu.

The Northern Emperor was quite kind to people, allowing elderly concubines or empress dowagers to leave the palace for short trips without restricting their freedom.

They also give me some money every month for retirement, so I can go out and spend some money to change my mood.

Or perhaps you could chat with acquaintances or meet up with people from the previous dynasty.

Interfering in court affairs is one thing, but Beijiwu never sees these people, and even princesses like Consort Wan, who are sent to marry foreign rulers, are rarely seen.

"Your Majesty, Empress Pan's elder sister has died and she wishes to leave the palace to visit her."

Beiji Wu didn't know who Empress Pan was, and he couldn't figure it out even after thinking about it.

"Who is this?"

Consort Wan knelt on the ground and replied, "She was captured when Wen Chao destroyed Qin Prefecture. At that time, she was already the Empress Dowager. She was over fifty years old when she was captured and brought into the palace. Now she is seventy years old."

Before the Wen Dynasty, there were many small states, some of which had been passed down for several generations, so empresses and empress dowagers were as cheap as wholesale.

Empress Pan's husband had died long ago, and her sons and grandsons were all killed by Wen Chao to prevent further unrest in the region.

Killing the men and sparing the women was a normal practice when a country was destroyed. Considering that Emperor Wen was already in his sixties when he died, it's hard to say whether anything happened after capturing Empress Pan. Beiji Wu suddenly remembered that the Wen Dynasty was actually very short-lived, and when it usurped the throne, it also killed the men and spared the women, leaving the former dynasty's imperial concubines, princesses, empress dowagers, etc., while killing all the male members of the imperial family, regardless of age.

"Granted." Beiji Wu said casually, "From now on, all those who were empresses or empress dowagers will be given 6 taels of silver per month to support them, while concubines, princesses, and county princesses will receive 3 taels per month, which can be added to the wages of palace maids."

"The older ones shouldn't work anymore. Those with daughters, daughters-in-law, or granddaughters can live together. Those without can live with friends, four people to a room. There are hundreds of thousands of people in the palace now, and housing is a problem. We'll wait until the apartment buildings are completed."

"Take some people to count how many noblewomen, such as imperial concubines and imperial dowagers, are still alive. Those who are older should focus on writing books, books, and memoirs. I am more interested in the affairs of the previous dynasties and countries. Also, I would like to take this opportunity to train the palace maids and concubines and teach them the skills to become empresses and favored concubines."

"For those who don't want to work hard, six taels a month is enough for food and drink. For those who are willing to serve me, even in their old age they can enjoy the same wealth and honor as before, eat sweet, soft and fragrant food, and have a separate residence and toilet."

Consort Wan replied happily, "Yes! Your Majesty, I obey!"

Beijiwu then asked, "What other major events have been reported in the newspapers these past few days?"

I'm basically out of the picture for half a month. I don't need to worry about small things in the government, but big things will usually make the news.

Beijiwu was too lazy to read the newspaper in detail, so he went straight to the summary.

Consort Wan replied, "They are all trivial matters. There are three important matters, but they have all been dealt with."

"The first thing was that the prefect of Ezhou was killed. After killing the prefect, the rebel leader Wang Zhen'e did not attack the city at all. He checked and copied the prefect's silver and treasury records and sent them to the capital. Then he returned to his village to continue farming."

"The son of the governor of Ezhou went to the capital to appeal for help. Sang Yang'an, the rotating commander of ten thousand households, appointed him as the governor of Ezhou, but then sent him back."

Beijiwu found it interesting; ever since the Yongzhou incident of killing officials and resisting taxes, many other places had followed suit.

The imperial court's attitude was indeed indifferent; as long as no one else was harmed, both sides were free to negotiate.

However, Wang Zhen'e's ability to maintain strict organizational discipline and not commit any offenses caught the attention of Arctic Martial Arts, who also remembered his name.

Sang Yang'an's handling of the matter was not wrong; he followed the same approach that Beiji Wu had taken with Yongzhou. However, because he did not have the authority to cancel the hereditary title and reclaim the territory, he did not dare to overstep his authority.

No one understands why the Arctic Army is unwilling to reclaim its fiefdoms and strengthen its centralized power.

Despite not understanding, Sang Yang'an, as a servant of Beiji Wu, prioritized his own needs, trying his best not to make mistakes or take risks.

The repossession of fiefdoms has a huge impact, not only on whether others are willing or not, but also on the wages of millions of people in tens of thousands of territories across the country.

If everyone is paid by the government, it's not just a matter of food; it also involves issues of power and wealth.

"The second thing is that a fire in the city killed more than 20 people. Now the control has been strengthened and the dilapidated houses have been quickly cleaned up. Those who died were shop assistants and their families, not mountain farmers."

"The third thing is that the army has arrived in Lin'an Prefecture. In accordance with the Emperor's order, more than a thousand unscrupulous merchants and corrupt grain officials were beheaded and drowned in the river."

Beijiwu also felt that there were too many people in Luoyang, especially the hundreds of thousands of palace maids and eunuchs in and around the palace.

Fortunately, the royal family and nobles had contributed a large number of houses and residences, which temporarily housed some people.

"Okay, I understand. Jiang Cao, go and call the civil official on duty."

"Yes!"

Jiang Cao quickly went out to call for help, and as soon as she stepped out, she started to jog.

Although it's slow, they are definitely getting things done.

After finishing his meal, Bei Jiwu summoned Lin Luming, the Luoyang Prefect on duty, to his study in the Guanyin Hall.

"I know about what happened in Ezhou. Forcing the people to rebel is a death sentence. His descendants will be demoted to military households, and the governorship of Ezhou will no longer be hereditary. However, his son will continue to serve as the governor of Ezhou, with his salary paid by the imperial court."

"To prevent such things from happening again, we will give another six months' salary to the thousands of households in various places who have no salary. Ten percent of the output of the land will be reserved as disaster relief grain. This portion is the tax they gave me. Anyone who embezzles or causes trouble here will be waiting to die."

“I will buy the rest of the output at market price and pay them cash. Their land is wealth, not a shackle.”

"Allow thousands or tens of thousands of households in various regions to reduce their military personnel. The number of households to reduce should be calculated based on the capacity to support them. If they can all support themselves, then they should continue to support them."

"A bunch of good-for-nothings who don't fight hard and run away when things get tough, how did they get to where they are today? Did I force them to do it?"

"If there is a mutiny, I will handle it!"

Lin Luming respectfully replied, "As you command."

Beijiwu added, "There are too many people in the palace. Let's take stock of whether there are any unmarried adult men in Luoyang. Then we can send some palace maids out to be married off."

Lin Luming bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I checked this when I was doing the population census this year. Nowadays, every married mountain farmer has at least two women, and even Han people have found wives."

“Except for the disabled and those who are too unfit, all the men in the 56 teams of the 28 counties of the 7 prefectures of Luoyang Prefecture have married or had children at an early age. Even many of the children in their teens have been betrothed.”

The Arctic Warriors abducted many women from the Western Xia and Western Frontier regions, in addition to the many female relatives and palace maids of princes and nobles they had previously sent back.

Although the high-ranking officials in the capital city could not sell their former maids and servants to brothels, no one cared whether they sold them to ordinary people.

Luoyang City already had a large male-female ratio, and many people died in several battles. In addition, the Arctic Martial Arts constantly brought back resources from the outside world to share, resulting in a huge gender imbalance.

Another reason is that mining, sand mining, and metal smelting are all done by men, and the mortality rate was very high in the early stages. Arctic Wu also advocated that the household registration should be kept for children and that widows should remarry.

Beijiwu frowned and thought for a few seconds, then quickly gave up the idea of ​​sending the woman away.

"The city is now overpopulated, and to prevent fires from spreading, some of the unemployed people will be relocated."

“Some people without government jobs will be relocated back to their original hometowns to make room for their descendants. The people who maintain the daily operations will mainly be from the four nearby counties. They will work in Luoyang and rest in Luoxian.”

"Scholars who travel to study and move to Chang'an are not allowed to support their families and have children unless they are officials. Official families in Luoyang are not allowed to have more than five servants and no more than five family members."

"Those who remain in their original hometowns are not allowed to enter the capital."

"The non-mountain farmers who were originally from Luoyang moved to Huaixi."

"Special cases will be handled specially. Officials and artisans may recommend talented individuals to work in Luoyang. From now on, Luoyang will not support useless people! Anyone who comes to the capital without doing anything within seven days must leave!"

"To set an example, I will move half of my family members back to the rural area of ​​Wuzhou Mountain. The rest of you should leave within a month! Anyone who disobeys the management will be sent back to their original place of residence according to their household registration! They will be demoted!"

Lin Luming could not resist this decree, so he could only agree while thinking about how to persuade his sons, daughters, wife, concubines, and elderly parents to return to their hometown in Ganzhou to live a life of poverty.

For the sons of officials who were accustomed to the prosperity and convenience of Luoyang, returning to their hometown of Huangtu Village on the frontier from the capital was like being exiled to the army.

But no one could defy King Wu's orders; most of them came from small mountain villages, and their success was entirely due to King Wu.

For the sake of his official position and future prospects, he had no choice but to forcefully send his wife and children back to their hometown.

Intellectuals are incapable of rebellion; at best, they can only seize power.

Seizing power in the Arctic is more dangerous than plucking a tiger's whiskers.

If you provoke a tiger, only one person will die; but if you provoke an Arctic warrior, countless people will die.

Even if all the warriors united, they would not dare to rebel.

The Arctic Army quickly evacuated a million people, and the once bustling city of Luoyang began to become deserted.

Even a city of 500,000 people like Luoyang wouldn't be too deserted.

Beijiwu left only a few of his older sons in the outer house, where they were cared for by Li Hong, Li Bing, Ma Tuchai, and Gao Qiuyue. The older Jiang Rong and Gao Conglian took their daughter and children back home.

Xianglan and Xiulan are both employed women; one works at a pharmacy near their home, and the other sells newspapers at a newsstand near their home.

The other four women's jobs were to take care of the children, cook for them, supervise their schooling, and discipline them in various ways.

I used to dream of entering the palace all the time, but now I'm content to stay in Luoyang.

(End of this chapter)