Cornflower Witch

Chapter 33 Luanshu Village

a new day.

Wearing a long black dress and carrying a suitcase in one hand, Hilti stepped onto a small wooden stool and boarded the waiting carriage.

The coachman shook the reins, and soon the sound of wheels turning filled the air as the six carriages rolled over the slightly undulating stone road and headed out of Jiaoshi City.

Inside the carriage, Hilti, Komia, and Karen sat together, with a lot of luggage placed there.

Did the teacher say where we're going?

As she asked the question, Hiltiya bit the white hair ribbon with her teeth, then reached behind her head to tie her hair up to prevent herself from moving around inside the carriage.

“I heard them say they’re going to Luanshu Village,” Komia replied after thinking for a moment.

“I’ve been there once before. It’s not far from Jiaoshi City. We should be able to get there by noon.”

"The village is built next to a grove of goldenrain trees, and there is a small river around it. The scenery is very nice."

"It seems to be Viscount Schefeng's direct territory. Every year he would send servants there to buy chickens, ducks, cattle and sheep as a food supplement for the castle. Occasionally he would also take his family there for sightseeing and horseback riding."

“So, the environment must be very nice.” After tidying her hair, Hilti lowered her hands and tied her hair into a high ponytail, revealing her beautiful neck and the profile of her face.

"Yes." As she said this, Komia looked at the girl for a long time.

"You look so beautiful, Tia." She tugged at Karen beside her as she spoke.

"Karen, look at Tia, doesn't she look much better like this?"

"Yes, I look much more energetic after changing my hairstyle." She could also see the difference.

"Huh? Did I look really that颓废 (颓废 is a difficult word to translate directly, but it implies a state of listlessness, apathy, or apathy) before?" Siltiia tilted her head.

"Perhaps it's too plain and lacks vitality," Komia thought to herself.

"Let's wear our hair like this from now on, Tia~" She gave a thumbs up, and Karen thought for a moment and followed suit.

"Hmm, that won't work. It's just that it's only the three of us today, so I'm a little more relaxed." The girl blinked.

"Why not? It looks really good."

"It's because it looks good," the girl replied with a smile.

"It will be quite troublesome." She looked out the back window. The carriage the three of them were riding in today was a cargo van, not the kind of box-type carriage specifically for carrying people.

“Because of Miss Iona, the noble students often fight over her, and I’m a little afraid of that kind of life. It’s better to live a peaceful life now.” As she spoke, she placed her hands under her legs and watched her calves under her skirt sway gently back and forth, as if playing on a swing.

The two, who had originally intended to offer advice, suddenly felt that seeing Hilti's serene and contented appearance, that she truly deserved to live such a peaceful and uncontested life, and so they kept quiet.

"I guess I'll like this kind of life in the future, but right now I still have a lot of curiosity and impulses," Komia said, stroking her chin thoughtfully.

"Where's Karen?" she suddenly turned to ask the other girl beside her.

“Me?” Karen pointed to herself.

"I don't want much, just to become an excellent hunter, have my own wooden cabin in the forest, raise two dogs, go hunting occasionally, trade with villagers, and live that kind of life."

"Wow, Karen's goals are so clear. I have no idea what kind of life I want to live in the future," Komia exclaimed in surprise. "Because Komia has many possibilities," Karen occasionally said something surprising.

"That's true. I have a free-spirited personality, so it's hard for me to stick to one goal for a long time," Komia replied, resting her chin on her hand, her eyes opening and closing casually.

"I'm determined to have a great time in Luanshu Village this time; that's my goal right now."

The three of them sat in the creaking carriage, chatting and laughing all the way, and before they knew it, it was noon.

……

The carriage stopped, and the three of them bent down and jumped lightly off the carriage, then stood on the grass.

Not far away, a peaceful and tranquil village came into view.

There are about fifty households scattered along the main road of the village, and then there are large square wheat fields stretching out. A lot of the wheat has already been harvested, and there are stacks of bundled wheat piled up in some fields.

"Put your luggage on the carriage, and the driver will take you directly to the village. The teacher will lead us on foot and tell us some things." Yero informed the students one by one. Although he was a bit fat, he was exceptionally agile on the country road.

“Okay, we understand,” Tia replied, and then Yero walked towards another group of students.

Soon, the students gathered around Mathematician Hyde to listen to his teachings.

"Is everyone here? Great, let me begin." He turned around and introduced himself to the students behind him.

"This is Luanshu Village, located about 20 li northeast of Jiaoshi City. It is famous for the goldenrain tree forest surrounding the village." He led his students down the hillside path.

"As you can see, wheat is the main crop grown here, along with some flax. Do you remember what I taught you before? How flax is made into thread and spun into cloth. Today you can visit the villagers' homes and see how they do it."

"Although linen is rough, it is exceptionally strong and durable. Moreover, flax grows quickly and can be grown in various places, which makes it relatively inexpensive. It is the preferred clothing fabric for many farmers. A coarse linen garment can sell for about 70 copper coins, while a custom-made, carefully tailored garment can fetch 150 copper coins."

As the Hyde Scholar walked along the route, he introduced the crops to the students and explained the impact of local climate, rainfall, fertility, and other factors on various crops.

“Generally speaking, you can’t cultivate the same land for too long, as this will lead to soil depletion. So you can see that the fields here are roughly divided into four plots for rotation,” he explained again.

“Food production is of paramount importance, whether you are a nobleman who manages a territory or an ordinary farmer.”

“You may not fully understand that you can’t survive without food, but I, as an old man who has lived through two cold, foggy seasons, have seen far too many tragedies caused by hunger in the dead of winter.” He stopped in front of a wheat field, leaning on his wooden cane.

After consulting with the villagers in Hetian, he brought his students to the fields that had just been harvested.

He picked up the scattered wheat stalks in the field, counted the grains on the ears of wheat, and then rubbed the grains off with his fingers to observe whether they were plump or shriveled, analyzing the local soil fertility.

"This wheat field is not bad; it can probably produce 60-70 jin of wheat per mu," Hyde estimated.

"Teacher, is 60 jin of wheat a lot?" Some of the elite students didn't know much about this.

"Not too much, not too little, a pound of wheat can sell for about 1 copper coin, and an acre of wheat is worth about 60 copper coins." Scholar Hyde put the wheat grains into his small cloth bag, preparing to take them back as samples.

“Come on, the village is just ahead, and your lodgings should be ready.” He clapped his hands, shook off the dirt, and then stepped forward.

The group stepped into the picturesque village with curiosity.

　Thanks for sticking with Alicia
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(End of this chapter)