Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 372 Knocking_1

Chapter 372: Chapter 372 Knocking_1

In the third year, the Yang family’s fruit trees bore even fewer fruits, with each tree selling for about eight catties, earning a total of One thousand taels that not only covered the cost but also made a profit. The main reason was that the price of fruit trees that were three years old and those that were five years old differed greatly. Three-year-old fruit trees cost three Silver Coins each, and the Yang family purchased two thousand two hundred plots. They even gave away over a hundred trees. Coupled with the high survival rate of the trees, two thousand of them survived. With an investment of over eight hundred Silver, they made a profit of more than one hundred taels.

Following the trend in Lizhou City to plant apple trees, some made profits while others didn’t break even, yet all saw the potential for gain and were happy regardless.

Zhou Shuren also harvested his fruits, and now fruit merchants were most abundant in Lizhou City. Initially, Zhou Shuren had ordered three-year-old fruit trees. Some farmers took two and planted them in their courtyards, others took only one. Due to planting a smaller number, and the careful attention from the whole family, with the exception of some that died, most could sell for about ten catties each.

After deducting the payment for the trees given to the government office, residents who planted two trees could keep four hundred wen money, and those with one tree could keep two hundred wen money. Moreover, now that they had paid back the money for the fruit trees this year, the money from selling the fruits next year would be all theirs.

Lizhou City was bustling with traffic, waiting for all the apples to be dealt with.

Zhulan noted that Zhou Shuren had slimmed down again, "You’ve lost the little weight you finally gained."

Zhou Shuren replied, "Recently, Mr. Chen and I have been touring the counties and busy reconciling the accounts, which is tiring and has made us thin. You’ve seen Mr. Chen, he was slim before, now he’s so thin he can hardly fill out his official robe."

Zhulan rolled her eyes inwardly. Zhou Shuren himself was barely filling his official robe, yet he had the nerve to talk about others, "Now that the fruits are sold, and the pigs slaughtered, you can finally take a good rest."

Zhou Shuren did breathe a sigh of relief. The Silver that the government office had put out was recovered, and the government office’s ledgers were finally looking better.

Although the pigs didn’t grow very big, after repaying the government office, the pig farmers could still keep over ten catties of pork for themselves. Whether sold or kept for consumption, it was profit for the people.

Zhou Shuren thought of the smiles on the faces of the people and the innocent words of the children and smiled, "Tomorrow, the apples and pork destined for the capital will set off."

Zhulan remarked with a sense of wonder, "The people are truly sincere. Not to mention the government office has received apples and pork sent from various villages. Our household hasn’t had a shortage of visitors offering gifts these days, and we haven’t needed to buy pork. So much so that Steward Ding has led people to the villages offering Silver Coin and food. Some who really wouldn’t take Silver were given grain instead, and still, it was not accepted. Some even returned the gifts; there was no way until I personally spoke to persuade the people to accept the Silver and grain."

Zhou Shuren also found it troublesome, "The government officers from the government office are also all over the place distributing Silver Coin, wearing out their legs in the process."

Zhulan hugged Zhou Shuren’s neck, her eyes curving into a smile, "This shows you’re a good official; the people truly appreciate you, and I’m proud of you."

Zhou Shuren felt quite remarkable about himself as well. He had arranged for the villages to sign contracts with merchants, securing the sales of fruits for the next few years. Moreover, he had freely provided the merchants with the recipe for glass noodles, asking only that they sign a contract to buy sweet potatoes and potatoes exclusively from Lizhou. He wasn’t worried anymore about the people switching to fruit tree farming and abandoning grain cultivation.

Apples were indeed valuable, but they came with risks, such as drought or other natural disasters, or the trees dying from disease. Grains, on the other hand, were a reliable fall back.

Sweet potatoes and potatoes were high-yielding crops, which Lizhou City had always cultivated and had extensive experience farming. An output of eight hundred catties per mu was guaranteed; even if sold at one wen money per catty, it would yield eight hundred wen money. Paying taxes would still leave a considerable amount of Silver Coin,

And in case of natural disasters, having sweet potatoes and potatoes would ensure there was food to last through the difficulties.

The people of Lizhou City had experienced hunger before and were more inclined to grow grains.

Moreover, the price for fruit trees was sure to rise next year, and ordinary people still wouldn’t be able to afford the investment. With that in mind, Zhou Shuren felt even more at ease.

The Palace, the Emperor awaited the news from Lizhou Prefecture City, and the Crown Prince hadn’t left either. Well, actually, it was the Emperor who didn’t let the Crown Prince leave.

Finally, the person delivering the report brought the Zhezi, and the Emperor, with an eagle eye, read through the summary. Putting down the Zhezi, he laughed heartily, "Good, good, Mr. Zhou has left two guarantees for Lizhou Prefecture City."

The Crown Prince hadn’t seen any less of the Zhezi from Lizhou Prefecture City this year, and since their granary had finally stocked grain, he had let out a huge sigh of relief and had been awaiting today’s news.

The Emperor handed the Zhezi to the Crown Prince, "Take a look."

The Crown Prince skimmed through it quickly; it was urgent news that didn’t take many days to reach the capital. The report said the pigs that the people had raised were all slaughtered, and the Crown Prince, with a smirk, said, "I was actually worried that the people would all plant apples and neglect the grain. I even considered writing a Zhezi to the Emperor to set some rules for Lizhou Prefecture. Before I could write the Zhezi, Mr. Zhou had already considered it, and he has encircled the vermicelli trade within Lizhou Prefecture. In the future, Lizhou will not only be the state of apples but also the state of vermicelli."

The Emperor’s eyes twinkled with mirth; it was the best news he had heard this year. In the latter half of this year, Lizhou had attracted quite a number of merchants, which pleased him seeing how their increase also meant pleasing tax income. Lizhou’s taxes had always been the lowest, but this year there was indeed something to look forward to, "Our Mr. Zhou truly knows how to utilize local resources."

In the past, the land of Lizhou wasn’t fertile, with the bulk of the crops being sweet potatoes, followed by the planting of winter wheat after harvest, unfortunately, the yield of winter wheat remained pitifully low.

With an excess of sweet potatoes no one wanted, tax collection wasn’t substantial, but now Zhou Shuren had solved this problem according to the conditions of the land. The Emperor’s own discernment indeed proved commendable.

The Crown Prince wasn’t disguising his emotions either; it was truly cause for joy, "The apples and pork that Mr. Zhou sent to the capital should have already started on their journey."

The Emperor stroked his beard, "Now we have the rewards for the Imperial Court ministers for the year, each of them will get a share."

The Crown Prince stifled his laugh, well aware that the Emperor intended not only to save Silver but also to admonish the ministers. It wasn’t just the Emperor who hoped for more ministers like Mr. Zhou; he, too, wished for that, as long as the Imperial Court recovered. The problems of Dongbei’s borderlands could then be fully resolved. The Emperor had ambition when he founded the nation, and he, too, had aspirations—to expand the borders. He hoped, of course, to safely ascend the throne, remaining steadfast as the Crown Prince.

However, the Crown Prince looked at his father with a touch of melancholy; his father was truly robust!

In Lizhou Prefecture City, Chen Chen was filled with emotions. He had never before received gifts from the people—gifts that they insisted on giving, impossible to refuse—even though they did not match the abundance of Mr. Zhou’s household. Chen Chen was truly shaken.

Chen Chen reflected, "Having served as an officer for so many years, I’ve always been careful and eager to climb higher. Only this year did I understand the meaning of this official robe; I’ve lived this many years in vain. I’m completely convinced by Mr. Zhou."

Lady Hua didn’t feel as deeply as her husband, she was simply tired, "My lord, no need for reflection now, it’s getting late, we should rest."

Chen Chen, ".... Yes."

Early the next morning, the caravan from Lizhou Prefecture City to the capital set off, and Zhulan also received a letter from her family.

Zhou Er had made arrangements for the home and had also gathered plenty of mushrooms and other mountain produce to bring along.

After reading the letter, Zhulan counted the days. Based on the speed of the letter’s delivery, she estimated that Er and the others would arrive in just over half a month.