Accidentally dressed as an empress

Chapter 216 Reclaiming Wasteland

In mid-February, the weather is still cold.

Yunxiu successfully gave birth to a healthy and lovely daughter.

In order to free up energy to deal with the many affairs of Yunyin City, Yunxiu wanted to unload the goods as soon as possible.

When she was seven months pregnant, she took the initiative to let the system protect her and give birth to a premature baby. Fortunately, the baby is safe.

During the confinement period, Zhong Yi took good care of the mother and daughter.

After finally coming out of confinement, Yunxiu began to think about things. She looked at the earth gradually reviving outside the window. Yunxiu planned to take advantage of this beautiful spring weather to prepare for the spring plowing in Yunyin City.

The morning light was just breaking, the sky was turning pale, and the soft light was sprinkled on the earth, casting a faint halo on this barren land.

Yunxiu stood there with an upright posture, her eyes slowly sweeping across the wasteland in front of her. It was covered with sand and gravel and overgrown with weeds. It was a barren land that urgently needed to be reclaimed.

The common people recruited by the prefectural government through notices came one after another, some carrying hoes, some carrying baskets. They were standing in groups of three or five, their faces showing expressions of confusion, expectation, or anxiety.

Some were whispering to each other, discussing whether this piece of wasteland could be successfully transformed; some were silently sorting out the simple farm tools in their hands, their eyes revealing a hint of helplessness and confusion about the future; and some looked up at Yunxiu, waiting for her to speak.

An old man, leaning on a cane, stepped forward and said with a worried look on his face, "Sir, this wasteland has been untouched for years. Can it really be reclaimed and used to grow crops? It would take a lot of effort. What if it all comes to nothing?"

Yunxiu's eyes were firm, and he smiled and said, "Master, don't worry. I believe I have a way to grow crops."

A simple-minded girl nearby scratched her head and asked, "Sir, we don't have many tools. What are we going to do? With only these few hoes, it will take forever to finish the cultivation."

Yunxiu patted her shoulder and said, "Let's use whatever we have. Use the hoe to turn the soil, pick up the rocks with our hands. There will always be a way. There is strength in numbers. As long as we don't give up, we will gradually make progress."

Everyone started working, wielding hoes and shouting slogans: "One more drop of sweat today, one more grain of rice in the future!"

A woman wiped her sweat and said, "Sir, if this land is reclaimed, what crops should we plant?"

Yunxiu straightened up, thought for a moment and said, "With the soil here, we should first plant some salt-tolerant rice and beans. When the land becomes more fertile, we can plant some fruits and vegetables."

"Rice? Beans?" Everyone looked at each other in surprise. They had never heard of them. The prefect was indeed very powerful.

At this time, several children also came to help. They asked curiously, "Sir, will we have more food after we cultivate the land? We haven't had a full meal in a long time."

Yunxiu smiled and replied, "Yes, children, when the crops grow, we won't have to go hungry anymore. We will have fragrant rice and sweet fruits."

There was an old man in the crowd, his hair white, but his eyes still bright and spirited. He said, "Listen to the great governor, let's work harder and cultivate this piece of land. Then we can plant seeds and we will surely have a good harvest next year!"

Yunxiu raised the hoe high and plowed the ground vigorously. The people were encouraged to see Yunxiu plowing the ground himself. For a while, the sound of hoeing could be heard one after another on the wasteland.

Young and strong men and women bent over, their hoes vigorously turning the soil. Fine beads of sweat kept appearing on their foreheads, sliding down their cheeks and dripping onto the ground beneath their feet. They didn't bother to wipe them away, but instead worked hard to cultivate the land, wanting only to take advantage of this favorable time to hoe the ground more easily.

The children helped pick up stones and grass roots. They laughed and played, but did not forget to pile their "trophies" in a designated place.

As the sun gradually rose higher, everyone's clothes were already soaked with sweat and stuck tightly to their backs, but no one complained and no one stopped what they were doing.

Under Yunxiu's leadership, the originally barren land was gradually turned into soft and flat land, and the ridges of the fields were neatly arranged. The people looked at the fruits of their hard work with satisfied smiles on their faces.

As the sun rose higher, the air was filled with the smell of soil and sweat.

Just when everyone was working hard, a dark cloud suddenly appeared in the distant sky and pressed down heavily.

The strong wind whistled up, sweeping up the sand and dead grass on the ground, making a "woooo" sound, like the roar of the wilderness.

Yunxiu was startled by what she saw, but remained calm and shouted, "Fellow villagers, don't panic! Put your tools together and find shelter." Upon hearing this, the villagers sprang into action. Young men helped the elderly and women, and children followed closely behind.

Everyone hid in a sheltered valley, watching as dark clouds covered the sky and raindrops as big as beans poured down, hitting the newly cultivated land and splashing mud.

Lightning flashed like silver snakes, piercing the darkness. Thunder roared with deafening force, as if it was about to tear the world apart. Some people looked worried, whispering in low voices whether the rain would destroy the fruits of their hard work.

Yunxiu looked determined and comforted, "Don't worry, everyone. Although the rain is heavy, it can make the land more moist. As long as we repair it in time after the rain stops, it won't have much impact." With Yunxiu's comfort, everyone's emotions gradually calmed down.

The rain came quickly and went away quickly. Soon, the dark clouds dispersed and the sun shone again.

The land washed by rain exudes a fresh scent.

Yunxiu led the people back to the fields. Although the land became muddy, no one retreated.

They picked up their tools again, cleared the ridges that had been washed away by rain, and dredged the ditches that were filled with water.

After some effort, the fields returned to their neat appearance and even became more fertile due to the rain.

The sun rises higher, but the work continues.

A lean man wiped the sweat from his forehead and panted, "Sir, after we reclaim this land, how can we bring in water? Without water, the crops won't survive."

Yunxiu stopped what he was doing and pointed to the valley not far away. "Brother, do you see that valley? We already have a canal there. If we dig a ditch to connect it to the canal, we can definitely get water to flow into our fields."

As they were talking, an old lady came over with a water jug ​​in her arms and greeted everyone: "You must be tired, come and drink some water and rest your feet." Everyone gathered around and took the water gratefully.

The old lady looked at Yunxiu and said distressedly, "Master Governor, you are busy with everyone. You should also take care of your health and don't burn yourself out."

Yunxiu took a sip of water and responded with a smile: "Auntie, I'm fine. As long as I can turn the wasteland into fertile farmland and let everyone live a good life, I'm not tired."

After a short rest, everyone returned to the work of cultivating the land. A middle-aged man said sullenly, "Sir, what if the crops are attacked by pests and diseases after we plant them?"

Yunxiu patiently explained while hoeing the fields, "Uncle, this is indeed a difficult problem, but we can plant some insect repellent flowers and plants on the edge of the field and pay more attention to the growth of the crops. If there are really pests and diseases, we can work together to find a solution. We can use some traditional methods or go to the neighboring villages to ask for advice. There will always be a way."

At noon, Zhong Yi's shouts came from the edge of the field. Yunxiu straightened up, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and saw Zhong Yi and several villagers walking towards them.

Zhong Yi smiled and said, "Wife, are you exhausted? We are here to bring you food."

Yunxiu responded, "I'm not tired. I need to hurry up and do this job. What delicious food did you bring today?"

Zhong Yi walked forward, placed the large food box on the edge of the field, opened the lid, and said, "It's all your favorite food. There's rice and your favorite braised pork."

The villagers following Zhong Yi, some carrying water bags and some holding small stools, were talking and laughing, adding a bit of liveliness to the quiet field.

Yunxiu looked at the full box of food, a flicker of surprise and satisfaction in her eyes. She washed her hands and sat down on the edge of the field. Zhong Yi quickly handed her chopsticks.

Yunxiu picked up a piece of food with chopsticks and passed it to his mouth. Zhong Yi took a bite and said, "I've eaten. My wife has been working hard recently, so she needs to eat more to replenish her body."

After Yunxiu finished her meal, she wiped her mouth with satisfaction and stood up.

Seeing this, Zhong Yi hurried forward to help clear the dishes and said, "Wife, you just finished your meal. Take a break before you continue."

Yunxiu shook her head and replied with a smile: "No, the time for spring plowing is urgent and we can't delay for a moment."

After that, she picked up the hoe again and walked towards the land that had not yet been hoeed.

Zhong Yi looked at Yunxiu's back, feeling both admiration and heartache. He gave a few instructions and then led the villagers out of the fields. Yunxiu and her men continued to work diligently in the fields.

Half a month later, the wasteland was reclaimed and the irrigation ditch was dug. Yunxiu brought in water and used it to wash the saline-alkali soil several times. Then he dug a large pond downstream of the paddy field and drained the water into the pond.

The salt here can be collected and refined into salt. Yunxiu handed over the management of the salt pond to local salt merchants.

Yunxiu also asked Ren Li to negotiate a cooperation with salt merchants to collect potassium salt that the salt merchants did not want to use to refine saltpeter.

Yunxiu warned Ren Li that one should not try to make money from everything, as trying to make every last penny would only lead to disaster.