The Story of a Destitute Noblewoman Farming

After the drawing of lots, the farm needed manpower to plant all the vegetables that could be grown in winter.

After the previous owner of the farm was about to leave, the servants had no interest in farming, and the land was left idle.

Lu Linlang gave all the vegetable seeds she bought from the capital to Lu Manjin, and asked him to be in charge of the affairs of the farm. Of course, his wages were different from those of ordinary farmhands, and were more than twice as high as theirs.

Lu Manjin memorized the names of all the vegetable varieties. Many of them were not available here. Lu Linlang wrote down the planting methods of each vegetable variety and handed them to him. She naturally claimed that she knew all this in the capital, but only she knew that it was a memory from modern times.

The first trick Lu Manjin learned from his father was to listen to his boss. He did not argue when he did not understand the planting method, but just thought to himself that if he did not grow it in the end, he would do it according to his own guess.

Lu Linlang was very satisfied with his ability and obedience. She gave Zhuangzi to him because she believed that people should not be employed if they are doubtful, and people should not be doubted if they are employed.

Lu Linlang also plans to plant two crops of rice next year. She told Lu Manjin her idea that they should plant rice earlier next year. When Lu Manjin heard her mention two crops of rice, his mind skipped a beat. He had indeed never heard of such a method of planting rice.

"Boss, isn't this too risky? I'm worried that this is our first time planting rice. If there isn't enough rice by the time the season comes, will it have an impact? Why don't we just use half of the field and plant it the same way we did before?"

He was also nervous. This was his first time doing such a thing. If he didn't do it well, the shame would be the least of his worries. But if Lu Linlang's losses increased and the grain harvest decreased, that would be a big deal. So he didn't recommend taking such a risk.

"Alright, then we'll do as you say, half and half. After we harvest the first crop, we'll know what to do with the rest. Winter is almost here, so we can plant more vegetables. I plan to sell them in the shop, so we can make some money."

"Okay, let's do it. Don't worry, boss. Leave the vegetable planting to me. I will definitely lead everyone to grow all the vegetables."

In the evening, Lu Linlang went out to digest her food and sent the Dahua sisters home. On the way out, she saw many children in the village playing.

"Take it away quickly, my grandma said it's poisonous, don't play with it." A little girl's voice came. Lu Linlang looked over and saw several boys playing with something. It looked like a bumpy and round object, and the children were pushing it with wooden sticks.

"Dahua, where did they get that thing?"

"Sister, that's the poisonous one. Everyone calls it konjac. They say it sucks people's lives like a demon. The old people say it's best not to touch it with your hands. I heard that a man was very hungry and went to the mountains to dig some and eat it. After washing it, he took a bite and his whole body went numb. He vomited and had diarrhea. Fortunately, he went to see a doctor, who induced vomiting and saved his life.

From then on, everyone knew that konjac was poisonous and they didn't dare touch it anymore. There were a lot of them in the mountains behind us, and they also grew in the fields. We dug them up when we saw them, but there were still a lot growing on the mountains, and we didn't dare touch them.

Dahua remembered what the old people said and held Lu Linlang's hand, fearing that she would get poisoned.

"It's okay. This thing is indeed poisonous, but it needs special processing methods to make it non-toxic and delicious. Besides, it's more filling than eating wild vegetables. When you're hungry, it can be a kind of food."

"Really? This thing is actually edible?" Dahua was a little surprised. It wasn't that she doubted her sister's words, but she thought that if they had known it earlier, they wouldn't have been hungry.

"Well, take me to dig some tomorrow morning. I want to make some myself to try." Such a fresh dish will surely increase the popularity of the newly opened shop. According to Dahua, this thing is very common, but not many people know how to process it, so the cost is naturally reduced.

Just as the two finished talking, an old lady came over with a stick, pointing at the boys who were playing with konjac and scolding them. She mainly said that they did not listen to advice and dared to play with konjac. The children scattered, and the konjac that had been broken into several pieces was pushed aside by the old lady with a stick, scolding the children as she did so.

Seeing this scene, Lu Linlang smiled knowingly.

The next day, Dahua remembered what her sister said yesterday and brought Lu Linlang to the back mountain. There were many konjacs here, covering a large area. The villagers also said that this place was called the konjac forest. Of course, these konjacs were not as tall as adults, but some could grow taller than Dahua.

Their stems are purple, and some have green patterns, which look very strange. In people's impression, things with such bright colors are generally poisonous, so everyone automatically stays away from it.

Lu Linlang took a hoe and dug out a few herself. Although Dahua was a little scared, she still helped her sister dig.

On the way back, they happened to meet Xiaolan. When Xiaolan saw them, she was so scared that she quickly turned around and didn't dare to look at them. When the two saw her hiding, they pretended not to see her.

After Lu Linlang and the other person passed by, she looked at the konjac in their baskets from behind a tree. She thought of how her parents had not even had a chance to work yesterday because she had offended Lu Linlang and the clan leader.

Her face was full of struggle and hesitation. Finally, she came out from behind the tree and said, "Hey, what are you doing digging that? It's poisonous."

"We dug out the useful ones, why are you suddenly pretending to be kind?" Dahua turned her head and saw her kind reminder, then remembered what Xiaolan had said to her before, and said proudly.

"Hmph, it's none of your business. It's none of my business if they're poisoned to death." Seeing that they didn't appreciate it, Xiaolan turned around angrily and walked to the other side.

Lu Linlang watched her walk away and thought that this child was not completely vicious.

Seeing that she apologized reluctantly that day, Lu Linlang decided to keep a close eye on their family. She didn't want such a bad apple to cause trouble in her current layout in the village. If their family held a grudge because of this incident and wanted to take action secretly, she would definitely not tolerate it.

However, after observing for a few days, she found that Xiaolan's family only fought and scolded the children at home, while outside, Xiaolan's parents behaved very quietly. It was obvious that the expulsion of the clan mentioned by the patriarch that day was a very important punishment for them.

As long as they don't continue to make trouble, Lu Linlang won't go to the point of killing them. The relationship in the village has always been like this. It is normal for two families to quarrel, but if one of them really kills the other, then they become mortal enemies.

The two of them ignored Xiaolan's behavior today. When they returned home, Lu Zhan and the others were resting. When they saw the konjac they brought back, they were a little curious about it. The stems looked strangely beautiful, but the roots were very ugly.

"Sister, what the hell is this thing? Why did you bring it back?" Several people gathered around.

Erhua recognized this thing and told them about it immediately.

Lu Zhan, who was originally trying to dig at it with a stick, jumped three feet high when she heard that it was poisonous: "Sister, please get out of the way! It's poisonous!"