Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 357: The Dying...Tree?
Pumpkin fields, tomato fields, corn fields, potato fields, peanut fields...
The next day, when Zhang Shou finally had enough time, he sent Zhu Ying to take Zhu Hong and Zhu Yi to "sightsee" at Wanghai Temple on Maliu Mountain - in fact, of course, they were going to check out the place - and he took Ah Liu to take a good look at Lao Xianyu's large-scale vegetable garden. He couldn't help but marvel that this was actually a genuine secret plantation that encompassed a variety of American crops!
However, when he walked past the vegetable fields planted with the familiar fruits and vegetables and saw the half-acre of lifeless cotton field, he discovered that there was a small seedling about a foot tall that looked out of place in the vegetable garden and looked wilted as if it was about to die at any time. He couldn't help but take a few more glances at it, but the more he looked, the more he couldn't help feeling.
The cotton field was not planted well, which Lao Xianyu had already admitted. And this seedling could be planted anywhere else, but here... What kind of seedling is it? It can't be what he imagined, right? Impossible, remember that it can only be planted in the south and Southeast Asia, how can it survive in Cangzhou? The winter in the north alone can freeze this seedling to death, right?
Could it be that it was planted this spring? Thinking of this, Zhang Shou took a deep breath and pointed at the lonely seedling and said, "Could this also be something you and those barbarians brought back from overseas?"
Old Salty Fish didn't expect Zhang Shou to see the sapling at first sight. His face immediately turned bitter: "Don't mention it, Dr. Zhang. Together with the batches others brought back from overseas, there must be at least a box of tens of thousands of seeds in total, but only this one was planted!"
"It was the dying elder who was almost revered as a prophet who told me that the rubber tree is like a cow producing milk. If you cut it with a knife, milky white juice will flow out. The juice is sticky, like glue, and can be made into black elastic balls. It seems that it can also be used for some other important purposes, but he didn't have time to tell me. As a result, several batches of my seeds turned out like this... I'm so angry!"
"Most of them don't sprout at all after the spring, and some of them sprouted but died soon after... I've asked Zang Hai to water them desperately... Well, come to think of it, the local rainfall is abundant and the weather is hot, not unlike Cangzhou where there is not much rainfall. If there wasn't plenty of water near Zang Hai's Lower Courtyard, and those Hai Dongyi people were also watering them desperately, maybe not even a single tree would have survived."
Zhang Shou could understand Lao Xianyu's frustration. No matter who it was, if they had brought something back from overseas with great effort, and then spent a lot of effort to plant it, only to see that it didn't survive, they would be discouraged no matter what. The problem was that, just like cotton, their efforts were really put in the wrong place...
Thinking about what Ah Liu overheard last night, he thought that since the so-called prophet Mu Lao had a very high status among the local Yi people, it was unreasonable that he didn't even understand such a simple transplanting principle. It was very likely that he only had time to tell Lao Xianyu and Zang Hai about the value of corn, potatoes, tomatoes, cotton, rubber, etc., but didn't have time to talk about transplanting breeding.
Zhang Shou glanced at Lao Xianyu with a strange look on his face. "Before you brought these seeds back from Haidong, did you have any farming experience? I mean, have you ever grown grain or vegetables?"
Old Salted Fish was suddenly a little embarrassed. He looked around and saw that Zang Hai had perfectly avoided his call for help. He could only touch his nose and whispered: "My family has also fallen into poverty. We used to be a family of scholars. Later, I became fascinated by going out to sea. Of course, I have never farmed..."
He suddenly glared at the disloyal Zang Hai and said angrily, "But this guy volunteered that his ancestors were farmers and he knows the most about farming. Otherwise, why would I hand over this place to him to manage? Besides, those barbarians used to grow and take care of these things over there. Who would have thought that with them around, cotton and rubber trees would still be grown like this!"
Zang Hai finally couldn't help it this time, and immediately cursed: "How dare you say that? It was you who used sweet words to trick me into taking on this task, causing me to stay in the lower courtyard of Wanghai Temple and cook vegetables... Otherwise, with my ability, I would have made a name for myself in Cangzhou, and why would I have to smile at those monks in Wanghai Temple!"
"Yeah, make a name for yourself... and then what? When General Mingwei comes this time, isn't he here to fill the gap?"
Zhang Shou saw the two of them staring at each other, mocking each other, and couldn't help but laugh and cry. It turned out that Lao Xianyu and Zang Hai didn't know anything about planting, and they were too cautious to ask those experienced farmers for advice, so they led a group of seemingly professional Haidongyi people... and rushed in directly!
So, he coughed, then sighed and said, "If you plant this rubber tree the way you do, this one tree will probably die soon. Since you said that its growth environment over there is hot and rainy, then if you want to transplant it successfully here, of course it must be in a hot and rainy environment. At least, in Cangzhou, it is often covered with ice and snow in winter..."
"You can't grow any rubber trees there."
Seeing the innocent look on Old Salted Fish's face, Zhang Shou sighed and said, "Besides, transplanting is always very demanding. It's the same even for transplanting local saplings, not to mention things from overseas? You don't know much about how to preserve seeds. Let alone bringing back a few boxes of seeds, even if you bring back dozens of boxes, you'd be lucky to grow one!"
He still remembered seeing information that when rubber trees were transplanted from America to Southeast Asia, people had experience, and only 2,000 seedlings were grown from 70,000 seeds, a shockingly low probability. If it were these two laymen, hehe...
Sure enough, after hearing what he said, Lao Xianyu and Zang Hai looked at each other in bewilderment, and then the former rolled his eyes at the latter, and then he muttered awkwardly: "I don't really understand, but those Yi people in Haidong have at least taken care of rubber trees..."
"I think they have it everywhere. Is it necessary to plant it specially? Is it necessary to water and fertilize it specially? What they call care is probably what you said, tapping the rubber regularly, right?"
Zhang Shou said this, and seeing that Old Salted Fish was finally speechless, he said calmly: "I understand why you plant here. In the Ming Dynasty, all land under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people are his subjects. In addition, most of the land has owners. Even your vegetable garden came from Wanghai Temple Pit. As for the south, you are unfamiliar with the place, and it is probably impossible for you to go there with a group of barbarians to plant crops."
"What a pit, Dr. Zhang, you said... That was something Cang Hai got from the monks of Wanghai Temple with his own ability. Anyway, they can't control it... As for going to the south, the people there are cunning, and I'm afraid I'll be sold out if I'm not careful."
As he said this, Lao Xianyu's eyes rolled around, and the flattering smile on his face became more attentive: "Dr. Zhang, you are very knowledgeable, do you know how to grow this rubber tree?"
"I'm not a god, and I've never been to a place where this thing is planted, so how would I know!" Zhang Shou rolled his eyes at him seriously, and then said calmly, "But the so-called transplanting is nothing more than breeding and raising seedlings. But I have to remind you that, firstly, this thing shouldn't be planted here, and secondly... how many years do you think it will take for this rubber tree to grow to the point where it can be tapped?"
Without waiting for Lao Xianyu to answer, he gave his own answer: "I'm not trying to discourage you, but I think it may not be possible in three to five years, but it may be possible in ten to eight years."
"Ten or eight years..." This time, it was Cang Hai's turn to be in a dilemma. He kicked the old salted fish viciously, "After ten or eight years, how old will I be? You flatter me a few times and then leave these things to me, while you brag about it all day in the city! Today, I will beat you, the old salted fish, into a dead fish first!"
Seeing that Zang Hai chased after the man without saying anything, Lao Xianyu refused to admit defeat and retorted with punches and kicks. The two of them ran away while fighting. Zhang Shou couldn't help but sneer, thinking that the two guys must have gone to a distance to discuss countermeasures while fighting each other. At that moment, he simply came to the only remaining sapling and took a closer look.
After seeing this, his original guess turned into certainty.
He was not sure what kind of rubber tree this was. He was not one of those experienced rubber farmers. He had guessed it before rather than seeing it. But now he could see that although he didn't know what kind of luck it was that allowed this seedling to grow, it was indeed not far from its death.
He squatted down and looked at the dying little thing. He thought that even when all kinds of artificial rubbers were everywhere, the demand for natural rubber was still huge. But nowadays, let alone various advanced applications, even finding a solvent that can dissolve the rubber is not so easy... Could it be that he really had to learn from the Native Americans and make a ball with natural rubber to play with as a football?
Taizu's technology tree is all about weapons, and his technology tree is even more crooked, with a hammer here and a stick there. He can remember most of what he has seen, but the problem is that he hasn't seen much, and he has never come into contact with many technologies...
Just when Zhang Shou was in a daze, he heard Ah Liu's voice from behind him: "Is this tree useful?"
"Whether it is useful or not depends on whether it can be used. Unlike the ingredients that Lao Xianyu had before, this thing won't be useful for a while. Moreover, if it is grown in the south, it will be transported here if there is demand in the north, and the road expenses will be very huge. If it is to be promoted, the people will not grow it if they can't see the benefits. Most importantly, no one has ever seen the glue they are talking about."
Ah Liu behind Zhang Shou raised his eyebrows immediately: "Then the young master doesn't believe them?"
"Believe, why not?" He could already say the word rubber tree, and the saplings were planted like this, how could he not believe it? Zhang Shou thought to himself, and then laughed, "It's useless for me to believe it alone, it takes people's trust. If it's really like what I said, it will take ten or eight years to plant, how many people can endure the wait and loneliness?"
"I can."
Zhang Shou was slightly stunned, until Ah Liu repeated these three words again, he stood up, then turned to face the boy, and suddenly reached out to rub his head. Seeing that the boy did not dodge at all, he smiled and said: "You don't want to leave the capital and go to the south alone to plant rubber trees, do you? Besides, everyone has their own expertise, you can't do this."
Seeing that Ah Liu didn't look frustrated at all and nodded as if it was a matter of course, Zhang Shou knew that the young man only had the simple concept of "can I help?" in his mind. Once he knew that he couldn't, and couldn't advance to being able after trying hard, he would give up very simply.
It's just like when Ah Liu first looked at those math problems and found he couldn't accept them, so he immediately ran as far away from them as possible.
After comforting Ah Liu, Zhang Shou felt a little sad. Although there were many new crops in America, it was not easy to find them all. Especially some crops often grew in areas with different latitudes. He really didn't know how long the so-called migration of the barbarians led by the prophets lasted, how far it lasted, and whether it really lasted for decades...
Moreover, he did not think that the court would admit that Emperor Taizu was exiled overseas. Even if the people sent by Emperor Taizu secretly were exiled overseas, no one would admit it. Of course, the current emperor was an exception. He had already experienced the willfulness of the young emperor. It was not surprising that the emperor would do anything weird!
After he strolled around the rubber tree area and looked at the cotton field, the dishevelled old man reappeared in high spirits, but he was alone, with the attitude of a winner who had defeated an obstacle. He patted his wrinkled sleeves, then buttoned his collar nonchalantly and walked forward with a smile.
"Dr. Zhang, listening to your words is worth ten years of study." He said this in a literary way. Seeing Zhang Shou looking at him leisurely, he thought about how he really hadn't read any books in these years and couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed. He quickly changed the subject and said, "What I mean is that I can't hide my knowledge from you. Can you use your influence to promote the rubber tree in the south?"
"Just like you promoted this new type of textile machine in Cangzhou and Xingtai? Even if it's just to live up to those people who are stranded overseas?"
Zhang Shou nodded, but then shook his head: "Of course you can, but the world is bustling with people, all for profit. For ordinary people, it is not enough to endure the loneliness for ten or eight years. After ten or eight years, the rubber trees can really be tapped, but what is the value and benefit of the rubber liquid?"
Seeing that Lao Xianyu was startled, he said softly: "Of course, I will try, but I need someone to help me."
Unexpectedly, Zhang Shou poured cold water on him at first, but then he opened up a possibility. Old Salty Fish was immediately delighted. He had thought before whether rubber trees must be planted in the hot and humid south, but he was hoping for the best. After all, how could they go to the south to enclose land and plant trees when they were unfamiliar with the place? Besides, his previous experience with some local tyrants in the south was too bad, so he didn't dare to take any risks.
It's true that it's easy to get things done when there's someone in the government! Old Salted Fish sighed in his heart, then bowed to Zhang Shou sincerely, and then agreed: "If it's really possible, Zang Hai and I have some friends who should be able to help. Well, even if it's just to do something for the elder who has been stranded in Haidong and has never been able to return home in his life."
"Well, I'll think of a solution with the emperor." Zhang Shou promised casually. Seeing that Lao Xianyu seemed overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly, but his eyes did not show much respect, he did not expose his fault. Instead, he said with a half-smile, "Having said that, I have already recommended you to the emperor. You can choose not to be a doctor of agronomy if you don't want to. If you don't have enough weight... make up for it with something else!"
