"This kind of plough can only plough shallow soil, and it is simply useless when it encounters land that needs to be turned deeply; This kind of horse harness, once the horse uses too much force, it will slide to the neck of the horse, which will not only hurt the horse, but also greatly reduce its effectiveness; Looking at these agricultural tools, they are all 'antiques' left over from centuries ago, which are not suitable for large-scale farming, nor are they suitable for intensive cultivation by private farmers. Gawain actually squatted in front of the princess and Agnes, commented on the farm tools one by one, and said the truth.

Then he looked at Anna, who had a somewhat surprised expression, "I also ran a small farm in the land of Varyag before, and I have some experience and insight into livestock and farm work, which is a trivial specialty. ”

Hearing this, Agnes also walked over, held up two of the farm tools and looked at them for a while, agreeing with Gawain's opinion, and said to Anna, "It is true that these farm tools are in poor condition, and many parts should be replaced, but they are in disrepair. ”

At the same time, Gawain tugged at the head of a threshing flail, and almost the chain was about to loosen, and knocked twice on Agnes's head, "Look, it should be very difficult to threshing like this." ”

Holding her head, Agnes dared not speak in anger, and immediately shrank down beside Anna.

"Tell me, why do the nobles of Dondonait lack money to buy farm tools?" Anna was a little confused.

Gawain stood up, ignoring the embarrassed expression of the farmhouse steward over there, and raised three fingers at Anna, "When I was in Bari before, I used to see cane sugar imported from the Levant and Egypt. The crop is sold in large quantities on various landmasses connected by the sea, and the profits are staggering. But want to grow it. There must be large and sophisticated agricultural cooperation, so the Crescent Sect is in this regard. They did not hesitate to spend blood, and their water conservancy, boiling tools, agricultural tools, and plows were all striving for first-class. But why did this group of Imperial Jinat not care about these at all? Now that the answer is revealed, let me ask you the first question, if eighty percent of the output of a field is attributed to you, who do not work at all, will you have the motivation to run it? ”

Anna and Agnes both thought for a moment and looked at each other. Liang Jiu shook his head.

Yes, if a meritorious landlord can take eighty percent of the tenant farming for himself without any effort, then he must be not interested in agricultural management. What is too easy to come by, you will not cherish at all.

"The second question is, do you care about the harvest of your field and find a way to improve it?"

Anna continued to shake her head, for the staggeringly large Jinat. They will only be satisfied with the total output, and they will not bother to think about how much more or less they can harvest on a piece of land. If the unit land is insufficient, he can make up for it by "extensive" means: either to occupy more land, or to increase the exploitation of tenant farmers.

"The third question. Then you will also wonder if you should use the excess barley with hops and workshops to make wine. to get more and bigger benefits? ”

"There shouldn't be any extra wheat, and it's usually given to the housekeeper. Sell it outright. Then the money earned is then traveled to the market town or city. Buy a wide range of fine wines directly. Even Agnes answered this question, and only now did she understand how many nobles lived their lives as they wished.

"Even if the investment required to grow hops and build a workshop is not worth mentioning compared to the income from brewing beer and selling it to the port, Gawain said, "Even if the surplus wheat is also superfluous, this group of Jinat can't think of it at all and bother to do it." You might as well expect pigs to climb to the poplar trees to give birth, and even in poor harvest years, when they feel that they have less money to buy silk, jewelry, and wine, the first thing that comes to mind is why they don't raise more taxes on the tenant farmers, and why don't they increase the free labor days of the tenant farmers by two weeks? Then Gawain pointed to the river land below the valley, "You see, the upper reaches of the Sallev River were originally from the Taurus Ridge, what a good source of water, but there were no artificial irrigation canals on either side of the river—only two, which are probably remnants of old times, and now they have fallen into disrepair, so these farms have slowly moved to the slopes of the mountains under a long period of inertia, because there are more and cheaper mountain springs here." But no one thinks or wants to put it into practice, that is, if a few irrigation canals are cultivated, the land in the valley can produce several times as much as on the hillside, and can feed more labor. ”

In the wind, Anna and Agnes held their cheeks and listened quietly to what Gawain said, especially Her Royal Highness the Princess, although she had read several agricultural books, but Gawain's fundamental opinion, she had heard for the first time, the connotation of many of the previous imperial agricultural laws was covered in vague theological language, making it difficult to discern. But now Anna is convinced that the existence of the Jinat estate is actually a huge obstacle to the improvement of agriculture.

At this time, the twilight began to dissipate, and Gawain prepared to leave, "It is very late, this is the end of today's inspection, we will go back to the barracks outside Seleucia to rest, and tomorrow we will go to the area of the Alahan Monastery." ”

"Why bother to go so far, isn't it so close to the Paulicians? It's the distance of crossing a river. Anna's skirt was swirled in the wind, and she pointed to the woodlands and settlements on the other side of the mountain, and Agnes laughed knowingly, "Yes, so that we can find a place to rest before the evening." ”

Then Xiao Nizi's eyes were a little sharp, looking at Gao Wen, who pretended to look up at the road, "weak heart"

Gawain did not answer, but called several butlers in front of him, and then quietly took out a few large gold coins from the money box just now, and regardless of the other party's false resistance, he enthusiastically pulled the two back and forth, stuffed them into the other party's pocket, and then whispered, "Tell your master about this inspection, and say that General Stratigos has finished asking for tribute, so that he will not be disturbed—and on the day when the barley is sold, many war horses will contact Seleucia City and need these fodder, At that time, the agent's fees are negotiable. ”

The butlers had all accepted the gold coins, and each nodded in approval, and Gawain smiled mysteriously, stepped on horseback, and led Anna and the whole team down the hill towards the Paulinees.

On the way, Anna still hadn't lost her curiosity, "Why did you divide part of the money from Sogon to bribe the housekeepers, and ask them for something?" Could it be that this group of inferior people still has the power to adjudicate the affairs of the Mutter Valley? ”

Gawain laughed, "Anna, do you and Agnes really think that the so-called 'inferior people' of the housekeeper deacons are slaves who are completely driven by the nobles of Ginate?" You are wrong, they are the true uncrowned kings of this land, although their virtues are not worthy at all. (To be continued.) )