Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest
Chapter 215 - 20: Sense of Belonging

Chapter 215: Chapter 20: Sense of Belonging

Roman had to deal with a multitude of affairs each day.

Now Sige Town was in the throes of savage development.

No one knew the direction its future development would take.

Roman had to watch over them, lead them, and ensure everyone was on the right path, lest they stray.

Because straying meant wasting time.

And development could not afford to wait!

...

The Wood Factory had a total of more than 300 carpenters.

Ninety-five percent of them were apprentices last year. After a year of grueling training and learning, they had become capable of completing most manufacturing tasks.

Their secondary task was to continually produce various kinds of furniture to fill usage gaps.

Tables, chairs, benches, beds.

These pieces of furniture were essential.

The efficiency of standardized division of labor was extremely high.

Especially after the introduction of the pedal-driven lathe, each carpenter worked at the lathe to complete cutting and processing, no longer relying on the clumsy method of filing everything by hand.

Some dismantled the logs, some were in charge of planing table legs, some only planed bedposts, and others were responsible for table tops and bed planks.

All components were ultimately assembled into a table or a bed.

The manager of the Wood Factory, Vic, led the experienced carpenters in their primary task—making various types of military equipment.

Currently, crossbows were out of consideration, with too complex components, a shortage of skilled workers, high logistical demands, and an inability to equip on a large scale.

While the manufacture of individual longbows was straightforward yet complex—Roman had a simple method for making them.

But making arrows was somewhat difficult.

With the lathes, an apprentice carpenter could only produce thirty to fifty arrow shafts a day.

The output was incredibly high.

But in Roman’s last war, he had used up over thirty thousand arrows, depleting the stockpile, with most wasted and only about three thousand recovered after the battle.

The infantry’s daily training also caused wear and tear.

And more arrows would be needed for future wars; three hundred woodworkers were nowhere near enough.

Among the population Roman had recently subjugated were woodworkers with their own skills, and he had added a hundred new apprentices, raising their number to five hundred.

It wasn’t hard to train traditional craftsmen.

But starting from scratch with new types of craftsmen was necessary.

Such as oil pressers.

Last year’s soybeans still had about two hundred thousand jin left.

Fifteen thousand jin of that became seeds, and Roman intended to use the remaining fifty thousand jin of soybeans for oil extraction.

Previously, the cooking oil in Sige Town was all animal fat, and the soap brought in by traders was so expensive that it could only be supplied to Origin Manor.

Roman intended to keep his army spick-and-span, and living standards had to be abundant.

The most foul odors shouldn’t be detectable on close approach.

How unseemly!

Animal fat couldn’t meet Roman’s demand for soap; they had to turn to vegetable oil.

He had been so busy these days that he found a highly perceptive Angel Envoy and, using the power of an inferior Blue Gemstone, passed on the knowledge of oil extraction.

After all, it was just physical pressing, a matter of equipment and procedure. But with Roman’s guidance, the Angel Envoy caught on immediately.

In relative terms, this matter wasn’t important, so Roman turned his attention to other pressing issues.

Cloth and grain were two items even more valuable than metal coins.

Summer had arrived.

It was time to distribute social welfare to those blockheads!

...

"I need a lot of cloth!"

"Isn’t this enough?" Albert asked cautiously.

Cloth merchant Albert.

He had a round face and a corpulent figure.

He came upon hearing Roman’s reputation and got an audience with him.

For his ship carried cargo of various hemp materials worth nearly a hundred Gold Coins.

Some were flax, others were nettles and hemp.

The most abundant and valuable among them was flax, of which the fabrics Albert brought were enough to weave clothing for seven thousand people.

"Not enough! Hemp cloth, cotton, wool—I want as much as you have," Roman said calmly.

Albert swallowed hard. He had heard that there was a lord in these parts who scattered gold coins like seeds, so he came to try his luck.

But now it seemed that it wasn’t just scattering coins—it was scattering them like mad.

That posture, that tone, truly too generous, too captivating.

"What do you need all this fabric for?"

"That is not for you to ask. Can you meet my demands or not?"

Even if he couldn’t, he had to make it possible!

This was clearly business knocking at his door!

"The flax production of the Rose Domain isn’t enough. The Rose Domain’s lord won’t allow everyone to plant inedible flax. Wool is still manageable, but cotton will be somewhat difficult. Our land cannot grow cotton; even now, some people believe cotton is sheep’s wool... It’s only in the Hot Summer Islands, Amber Court, the Free City, and the even more distant Platinum Country that you’ll find it," Albert said with a troubled expression.

"But as you know... The world is in such chaos right now..."

Roman abruptly asked, "How much more do I need to pay?"

"Five times the price!"

Roman looked at him intently, his crimson eyes filled with focus, his expression cold: "Merchant, don’t mock me; you will regret it. I assure you! I will give you three times the price, and I don’t just want cotton—I also want seeds from other crops, as many varieties as possible."

Albert felt the pressure, and while nodding with a difficult expression, the joy in his heart did not diminish in the slightest.

...

After Albert left, Roman quickly found people to sew the fabrics into clothing and distributed them to everyone.

Roman was especially generous when it came to welfare, lavishing it upon them, wishing he could give everyone a house, all the furniture, and a set of winter and summer clothes every year.

But how did the residents see it?

The houses were free, the furniture was free, and so were the clothes.

All were gifts from the lord.

Did that mean... these things were now mine? Had they become my property?

Not like the free meals, which were gone once eaten, something they took for granted.

But clothing and furniture can be used for a long time; the sense of ownership when possessing these items was very strong.

In the past, after toiling for a month, they could barely save enough for a bed or a table.

What do you think property is?

Property is not just land and houses; it also includes the tables, chairs, pots, and pans at home.

Even a pair of shoes in these times is a valuable asset—old peasants wouldn’t even wear shoes to work the fields if they had them.

Roman awarded these items to them, and they were treasured as precious personal property.

From now on, they would not only be fighting for Roman but also to protect their own property.

When you own nothing and receive something that belongs to you on foreign land—that’s the foundation of a sense of belonging!

...

While Roman was busy with oil extraction and textile manufacturing,

The spring planting tasks were mostly completed.

Ten thousand mu of winter wheat, five thousand mu of spring wheat—each mu infused with two thousand jin of peat and manure to improve the soil and for planting a variety of crops.

By autumn, they could expect a bumper harvest.

But Roman did not allow them to stop working.

This time, it was about clearing new land!

Continue to clear land for more planting.

Plant fodder crops, plant vegetables.

Plant anything and everything, as much as possible.

Because Roman needed to expand his military, of the original five thousand farmers, about four thousand were left tilling the land—some of the new soldiers were prisoners of war.

They were draining all the young labor force.

Those now cultivating were generally aged over 25.

Training such people into soldiers was extremely difficult.

But they were accustomed to hardships, with immensely rich farming experience.

Once well-fed and attuned to the rhythm, they did better than anyone.

This was an enormous force not to be ignored; there was no reason to let them idle.

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