dognovel Chapter 39 No, is Xu Da out of his mind?
Chapter 39 No, is Xu Da out of his mind?
When Limpy Wu hurried back to Ningyang County, Yang Shaofeng was lying on a deck chair next to the artificial lake construction site, enjoying the cool air.
At this point, the artificial lake was gradually taking shape.
It is about fifty feet long and thirty feet wide. The area closest to the edge has been dug down to about three feet, while the area closest to the center has been dug down to a full seven feet.
Based on the current progress, in just over half a month, the deepest part of the artificial lake will be dug to a depth of more than ten feet, and even near the edge, it will be dug to about seven feet.
With this artificial lake, people can draw water for irrigation during droughts, and they won't have no harvest in the fall—as long as there is food, there is still hope.
Such a small artificial lake certainly cannot meet the irrigation needs of the people in the eight communities and sixteen villages of Ningyang County, but a certain performing artist from a big city once said, what more could you ask for?
Besides storing water, artificial lakes also serve another function: raising fish, shrimp, and turtles.
As the famous decadent writer Xun Ge'er once said, "Eat one more bite of fish, and you'll eat one less bite of grain."
The more grain saved, the greater the hope that the people will survive the drought, and perhaps more wasteland can be reclaimed after the autumn harvest.
Lame Wu dismounted and ran quickly to Yang Shaofeng's side: "Your Excellency, I'm back!"
Yang Shaofeng got up from the recliner, pulled Limpy Wu to sit on the small stool next to him, and personally poured Limpy Wu a bowl of cold boiled water: "So, do Prime Minister Xu and Chang Pingzhang agree to exchange the fat pig for the lighter?"
Limpy Wu gulped down the cold boiled water, then wiped his mouth hard with his sleeve and laughed, "They agreed! Prime Minister Xu agreed to exchange the fat pigs for the lighters, and he'll even give us a batch of cattle and horses. Chang Pingzhang even said he'll send people to Jiangnan to find a batch of fat pigs and chickens and ducks for the county magistrate."
Yang Shaofeng was overjoyed. He laughed heartily twice and then patted Limpy Five on the shoulder: "Good! Excellent! Originally, I was just thinking of getting a few big fat pigs so that the able-bodied men in Ningyang County could also have some meat. I never expected that we would get an additional batch of cattle, horses, chickens, and ducks. This is truly an unexpected delight!"
If more cattle and horses are brought in, the people will be able to share more. Originally, ten households might have to share one cow, but once there are more cattle and horses, it might become five households sharing one cow, which will greatly improve the efficiency of farming.
While the extra chickens and ducks may not improve the efficiency of farming, the increased number of chickens and ducks will result in them consuming more insects.
If a locust plague does occur after the drought, these chickens and ducks can rush to the fields to eat the locust larvae before the locusts become a plague. Even if they can't eliminate all the locusts, they can at least reduce the harm caused by the locust plague, right?
Damn it, I'll gather all the kids in Ningyang County together, give each of them a piglet and a few ducks, and send them to the fields to herd pigs and ducks!
If all else fails, all the old men and women should be mobilized for this county magistrate. Those who should release pigs should release pigs, and those who should release chickens and ducks should release chickens and ducks. No one can be idle!
Seeing the constantly changing expression on Yang Shaofeng's face, and the somewhat eerie smile on his lips, Limpy Five couldn't help but shrink back and whisper, "County Magistrate? County Magistrate?"
Hearing Limpy Five's shout, Yang Shaofeng snapped out of his daze and chuckled, "What's wrong?"
Limpy Wu chuckled and said, "Your Excellency, I have gathered the eggs and flour you asked me to collect. They will be transported back from Yanzhou Prefecture in the next few days."
Yang Shaofeng was even happier.
With the batch of eggs and flour that Limpy Five collected, they should be able to last until Xu Da and Chang Yuchun send over the fat pigs.
When the time comes, the fat will be rendered into oil and mixed into the wild vegetable filling buns. We'll also add some diced meat to the buns. This will give the young and strong more energy. Moreover, meat buns are much more filling than vegetarian buns. Originally, a young and strong person would need to eat ten vegetarian buns to be full, but with meat buns, they might only need five. This will even save on flour!
"Great, great!" Yang Shaofeng poured another bowl of water for Limpy Wu. "Brother Limpy Wu has really helped me a lot this time, and he has also helped more than two thousand people in Ningyang County!"
Limpy Wu drank the cold water in the bowl in one gulp again, but the expression on his face became a little strange: "Your Excellency, Prime Minister Xu also asked me to pass on a message to you."
Yang Shaofeng said "Oh," and asked curiously, "What did Prime Minister Xu say?"
Limpy Wu said, "Prime Minister Xu said that in addition to the fat pigs and cattle, he will also send two more cows to the county magistrate this time."
Yang Shaofeng nodded: "This is a good thing. With two oxen, the people can save some effort."
Just as he finished speaking, Yang Shaofeng had a sudden thought and asked, "Could it be that there's some significance to these two cows?"
Limpy Wu chuckled and said, "Yes, Prime Minister Xu said that these two oxen are for the county magistrate to eat, and that the magistrate must find someone to slaughter them and eat the meat, and not allow them to be distributed to the people for farming."
As Limpy Wu finished speaking, Yang Shaofeng was completely stunned.
No, is Xu Da out of his mind?
Wow, amazing!
Instead of distributing cattle to the people for plowing, they specifically request that the county magistrate slaughter them for his own consumption.
Besides, these are two cows, and you want me to eat two cows?
Fuck you!
While cursing Xu Da in his heart for being a bad guy, Yang Shaofeng said with a dark face, "Did Brother Limpy Fifth say something to Prime Minister Xu? Otherwise, why would Prime Minister Xu suddenly think of letting me eat two cows?"
The lame man shrank back and said with a sheepish smile, "I told Prime Minister Xu about how the county magistrate distributed oxen to the people, instructed them to dig an artificial lake, and yet he himself was reluctant to eat or dress properly. Prime Minister Xu said that since the county magistrate had the people in his heart, the court should not let him down, so he said he would give the county magistrate two oxen separately."
At this point, Lame Wu puffed out his chest again and said confidently, "But don't worry, Your Excellency, I already saw them when I was in Prime Minister Xu's army. Those two oxen are old and can no longer work in the fields. Otherwise, Prime Minister Xu wouldn't have told Your Excellency to slaughter them for meat."
Yang Shaofeng hummed in agreement, but secretly began to make plans in his mind.
This is not normal!
Is it permissible to kill oxen used for plowing?
Can't kill.
In any dynasty where agriculture was the primary means of production, slaughtering oxen was a serious crime. Apart from the ox dying on its own, the only legal and legitimate way to slaughter an ox was to report it to the government and confirm that the ox could no longer work in the fields due to age, injury, or illness before it could be slaughtered.
Moreover, this order is directed at ordinary people.
Even with the most compelling reasons, a county magistrate like Yang Shaofeng would never allow the slaughter of draft cattle.
The logic is simple: if officials are allowed to slaughter oxen because they are too old or because of injury or illness, then they have a thousand ways to make the oxen old or sick.
Just like in a certain textbook on time travel, the oxen in the household of a certain duke in the Tang Dynasty always had a bad temper and would often fall and kill themselves.
Therefore, the slaughter of oxen by officials was a tacitly agreed-upon prohibition in officialdom, a bottom line that could not be crossed.
Regardless of what wicked thoughts Xu Da had in mind, and regardless of whether Xu Da simply felt that Yang Shaofeng was a good official and therefore specially rewarded him with two oxen, these two oxen must not be killed, much less eaten!
Having made up his mind, Yang Shaofeng said with a smile, "Since Prime Minister Xu has given me these two oxen, they are my oxen. As for whether to kill them for meat or what to do with them, that should be up to me."
The lame man cried out urgently, "Your Excellency!"
Yang Shaofeng chuckled and said, "Brother Limpy Fifth, there's no need to persuade me. I understand Prime Minister Xu's good intentions, but the people of Ningyang County need these two oxen more than I do."
Lame Wu shouted, "Two old oxen! Your Excellency, those are two old oxen that can no longer work in the fields. If you don't slaughter them for meat, you can only raise them until they die. Even if they die, you'll still have to eat them."