Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 38 Sowing
On March 1626, 3, after continuous farming by more than 28 people in Shixing Fort, more than acres of farmland had been reclaimed and leveled.

At the same time, the supporting irrigation project for the planting area is also being accelerated. A canal hundreds of meters long has been drawn from the stream that flows through Shixing Fort, leading to both sides of the farmland, providing sufficient water for the entire agricultural area.

On a spring morning, the breeze blows across the fields, bringing the fragrance of the earth.

The golden sunlight shines on the renovated land, illuminating the resolute faces of the workers.

They waved their hoes and dug holes in the fields. Their clothes were soaked with sweat, but they were filled with the joy of sowing hope.

A group of people followed closely behind, carrying wooden baskets full of seeds and carefully sowing the seeds.

Rafa Mir stood on the edge of the field, frowning, watching several Chinese people casually throw a handful of corn seeds into the pit, then dig up the soil with their feet, cover it up and stomp it firmly, then continue to move forward, throw seeds, and cover it with soil again.

It's obvious that these people don't know how to farm at all!

According to strict sowing requirements, no more than three or five seeds can be scattered in each hole, and the soil above the seeds cannot be compacted with feet.

If too many seeds are scattered, the seedlings will compete for nutrients during their development, making it impossible for the seedlings to grow.

Even if the seedlings break through the soil, the leaves will block each other due to excessive planting, affecting photosynthesis, resulting in poor crop growth and development, and ultimately reducing crop yield and quality.

If the soil covering the seeds is too thick and solid, the seeds may have difficulty germinating due to lack of air permeability, and may even cause the seeds to rot.

As an experienced farmer, Rafa Mir wanted to yell at these pirates who knew nothing.

Farming in this way will not only waste a lot of seeds, but the yield will also be very low when harvested in the fall.

But he held back and kept his mouth tightly closed.

Damn it, if it weren't for these pirates, he and his family should be farming and sowing on his own land, enjoying a peaceful and tranquil life, instead of watching them "making trouble" like now.

Oh, look at that plowing ox, which once belonged to him. He raised it from a weak calf into such a strong bull.

Damn it, they actually whipped its back with a wooden stick in an attempt to make it pull the plow behind it.

The fields over there were said to be for planting wheat. Most of the scorched earth had been turned over. The pirates were laughing and chatting while working, and they didn't seem to take the serious spring sowing work seriously at all.

Oh, yes, they are pirates, so they make a living by plundering. Farming is just their side job, probably to deal with emergencies.

This time, they estimated that they looted more than 1 farengas (a Spanish unit of measurement, 55.5 farenga equals kilograms) of food from the town, which was enough for them to eat for a year.

Even so, they still wanted to reclaim wasteland and cultivate land, working hard to produce their own food.

It has to be said that this group of pirates really had a "forward-looking" vision. They knew that blindly looting would definitely not meet their permanent needs, and they knew they had to be self-reliant.

Thinking of this, Rafa Mir couldn't help but reveal a mocking smile.

"Mir?" A sudden call came from behind, which scared him.

Looking back, he saw a pirate leader walking towards him with a warm smile on his face.

"Mir, I heard that your child is only five years old?" Li Xianqing said, "This is the time for growth, so you must strengthen nutrition. Well, let's do this, from now on you can get an egg and a bowl of goat's milk from Lorenzana every day to supplement the child with some protein. Oh, that is, nutrients, which are beneficial to the child's growth and development." "Thank you, sir!" After listening to the words of the pirate translator next to him, Mil looked at the other party in surprise.

What? Are the pirates trying to win people's hearts?
"Our conditions are still very difficult, and supplies are scarce. We may not be able to provide for everyone individually." Li Xianqing squatted down, grabbed a handful of soil from the ground, and squeezed it hard. "But I believe that with the hard work of each of us, everything will get better."

"In the future, each of us will have a spacious and comfortable manor house, herds of cattle and sheep, stretches of fertile farmland, and factories with tall chimneys."

"Each of you will be the creator and pioneer of all this, and the founder of a powerful new nation. Everything you do now will be rewarded with the most generous rewards. Believe me, we will create a miracle here!"

"..." After hearing this, Mil stood there for a while, staring at the pirate leader in a daze.

They actually have such a grand "wish"!
"Of course, you may still have doubts about what I said." Li Xianqing shook his head at his expression and said with a wry smile, "But you must keep these words in mind. Because, as long as each of us has immense confidence, we will eventually achieve everything I just said. In our Chinese civilization, there is a very philosophical saying: Where there is a will, there is a way!"

Li Xianqing said, throwing the dirt in his hand onto the field. He stood up, patted Mir on the shoulder, and said gently, "You are a very experienced farmer. You must guide the spring sowing and farming here. In the fall, how much we can harvest depends on you."

After hearing this, Mir stood on the edge of the field and remained silent for a long time.

Then he sighed and walked towards the field.
-
"Big boss..." Lin Afu walked beside Li Xianqing, the corners of his mouth moved, as if he wanted to say something.

"Don't call me Big Chief." Li Xianqing said with a smile, "You make us look like a bunch of real pirates. From now on, just call me Director."

"Master?" Lin Afu was stunned for a moment, his face showing a very conflicted expression.

You are the master, so I should be your servant?
Why is my status suddenly lowered?
"It's not the master, it's the director, director!" Li Xianqing said unhappily, "It's the leader who oversees the task arrangements. It's called director. ... Uh, it means leader, right?"

After the decision-making committee was established in Shixing Fort, Luo Zhenhui served as the director of the committee and he served as the deputy director.

However, the time travelers still referred to him by his position on the "Breaking Waves" and did not often call him "Director".

The captured Spanish sailors respectfully addressed them as "Sir", while Lin Afu addressed them as "Big Chief", clearly regarding the time travelers as a group of colonists and pirates who had come here from afar.

"Oh, yes, yes... Director, Director!" Lin Ahfu hurriedly bowed and agreed, "This title is really good. It's much more elegant than the title of Big Chief."

"Do you have something to say?" Li Xianqing didn't fall for the flattery and asked directly.

"Captain... Oh, no, Director..." Lin Afu said quickly, "It seems to me that these barbarians captured from Mexico don't really want to be our allies. They're working shabbily and underhandedly, not exerting their full potential. If that's the case, the development of Shixing Fort will be significantly delayed."

"We took them from their homes like pirates, and you still expect them to immediately surrender?" Li Xianqing said with a smile, "When you were tricked onto the Spanish ship, were you willing to do so?"

"No matter how unwilling we are, we have to work hard under the whips and sticks of the Western barbarians!" Lin Afu shuddered in his heart when he thought of the days on the boat.

Damn it, life on the boat is simply not a human life!
"Lin Ahfu, do you mean that we should also take up whips and sticks to force those Spaniards to work seriously?"

"Yes, yes!" Lin Ahfu nodded repeatedly. "Look at the faces of those Western barbarians. Most of them are working without putting in any effort, and their faces are filled with resentment. People like them should be whipped to let them know who is the master here and who is the slave who is doing the work!"

“…” After hearing this, Li Xianqing looked at this “ancestor” of the Ming Dynasty in surprise.

Are you trying to turn serfs into masters?
I don’t know what kind of seed has been planted in you.

(End of this chapter)