The Yang family’s three-year-old fruit trees yielded even less fruit, selling for about eight catties per tree. The initial income of one thousand taels actually broke even. The main reason was that the price difference between three-year-old and five-year-old trees was more than double. Three-year-old trees cost three qian of silver. The Yang family bought two thousand two hundred trees, received over one hundred as a bonus, and thanks to their high survival rate (two thousand trees survived), their total investment was over eight hundred taels of silver, resulting in a profit of over one hundred taels.

In Lizhou City, some who followed the trend of planting apples made money while others didn’t, but everyone saw the profit, and even those who didn’t break even were happy.

Zhou Shuren also harvested his fruit. Lizhou City was now full of fruit merchants. Zhou Shuren had initially ordered three-year-old fruit trees; some farmers received two trees to plant in their yards, while others received one. Because they planted fewer trees, the whole family took good care of them, and aside from the ones that died, each tree could generally sell for about ten catties.

After deducting the money owed to the yamen for the fruit trees, the villagers who planted two trees would have 400 coins left, and those who planted one would have 200 coins. Moreover, having repaid the fruit tree money this year, the money from selling the fruit next year would be theirs.

Lizhou City was bustling with activity, with carts coming and going. Once all the apples were sold, Zhulan noticed that Zhou Shuren had lost weight again. “You’ve lost all the weight you finally gained.”

Zhou Shuren replied, “Recently, Lord Chen and I have been traveling to various counties, busy checking accounts, and I’ve lost weight from exhaustion. Didn’t you see that Lord Chen was already thin, and now he’s so thin he can’t even fill out his official robes?”

Zhulan rolled her eyes inwardly. Zhou Shuren was also almost unable to fill out his official robes, yet he still had the nerve to criticize others. “Now that the fruit has been sold and the pigs have been slaughtered, you can finally take a good rest.”

Zhou Shuren did indeed breathe a sigh of relief. The silver that the yamen had issued had all been collected, and the yamen’s accounts finally looked better.

Although the pigs weren’t very big, after paying back the money to the government, the pig farmers still had over ten catties of pork left. Whether they sold it or kept it for themselves, it was all money earned by the people.

Zhou Shuren smiled as he thought of the smiles on the people’s faces and the innocent words of the children. “The apples and pork to be sent to the capital will set off tomorrow.”

Zhulan sighed, “The people are truly honest. Not only has your government received apples and pork from various villages, but our family has been receiving them nonstop these past few days. We haven’t even had to buy pork. Steward Ding had to take people all over the villages to give them money. If they wouldn’t accept money, we gave them grain. Even then, some people still wouldn’t accept it, and some even brought it back. I had to personally persuade them to accept the money and grain.”

Zhou Shuren also had a headache. “The officials from the yamen are constantly delivering money everywhere. Their legs are worn thin from all the walking these days.”

Zhulan hugged Zhou Shuren’s neck, her eyes crinkling. “This shows you’re a good official. The people really respect you. I’m proud of you.”

Zhou Shuren felt he was quite remarkable. He had even had each village and merchant sign contracts, guaranteeing the sale of fruit for the next few years. Moreover, he had given away the vermicelli recipe to the merchants for free. The only requirement was to sign a contract that they could only buy sweet potatoes and potatoes from within the prefecture. He wasn’t worried that the people would abandon grain cultivation and plant fruit trees.

Apples were indeed valuable, but there were risks. In case of drought or other natural disasters, or if the fruit trees died from disease, grain was still a safer option.

Sweet potatoes and potatoes were high-yielding crops. Lizhou City had always grown sweet potatoes and potatoes and was very experienced in their cultivation. They could guarantee 800 catties per mu. Even if they sold them for one wen per catty, that was still 800 wen. They could save a lot of money after paying taxes.

And if a natural disaster occurred, they could survive on sweet potatoes and potatoes.

The people of Lizhou City had experienced hunger and hence preferred to grow grain.

Moreover, the price of fruit trees will definitely rise next year, and ordinary people still won’t be able to afford to invest. Thinking this way, Zhou Shuren felt more at ease.

In the palace, the Emperor was waiting for news from Lizhou City, and the Crown Prince hadn’t left either. Well, actually, the Emperor hadn’t allowed the Crown Prince to leave.

The messenger finally delivered the report. The Emperor skimmed through the summary, put it down, and laughed heartily: “Good, good, Lord Zhou has left two guarantees for Lizhou City.”

The Crown Prince had read many reports from Lizhou City over the past year. Ever since the granaries in Lizhou City finally had grain, he had breathed a sigh of relief and had been waiting for today’s news.

The Emperor handed the memorial to the Crown Prince. “Take a look.”

The Crown Prince quickly skimmed through it. Because it was an urgent message, it arrived in the capital in just a few days. The memorial reported that all the pigs adopted by the people had been slaughtered. The Crown Prince smiled. “I was worried that the people were all planting apples instead of grains. I was even thinking of writing a memorial to Father Emperor to set rules for Lizhou City. Before I even wrote the memorial, Lord Zhou had already considered it. Lord Zhou has brought the vermicelli trade to Lizhou City. In the future, Lizhou will not only be the apple capital but also the vermicelli capital.”

The Emperor’s eyes were full of smiles. This was the best news he had heard this year. In the second half of the year, Lizhou attracted many merchants, and with more merchants, the tax revenue was also very promising. At its best, Lizhou’s tax revenue was at the bottom. This year, there was indeed something to look forward to. “Our Lord Zhou is very good at utilizing local resources.”

In the past, the land in Lizhou was not fertile, and most of the crops were sweet potatoes. After the harvest, winter wheat was planted, but unfortunately, the yield of winter wheat was still pitifully low.

There were too many sweet potatoes, and no one wanted them, so taxes weren’t being collected much. Now Zhou Shuren has solved the problem based on the land; my judgement is truly excellent.

The Crown Prince no longer wore a mask; it was indeed a joyous occasion. “The apples and pork that Lord Zhou sent to the capital should have set off by now,” the Emperor said, stroking his beard. “The rewards for the court officials this year have also been given; everyone will receive a share.”

The Crown Prince’s smile faded. He knew perfectly well that his father wasn’t just trying to save money, but also to put pressure on the officials. He didn’t just hope for more ministers like Lord Zhou; he hoped that once the court recovered, the northeastern border issue could be completely resolved. His father, too, had ambitions when he founded the country; he wanted to expand the territory—well, provided he remained securely on the throne as Crown Prince.

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

In Lizhou City, Chen Chen was filled with emotion. He had never received gifts from the common people before; they were practically begging him to accept them. Although it wasn’t as much as what Lord Zhou had received, Chen Chen was still deeply moved.

Chen Chen sighed, “After so many years as an official, I’ve been scheming and climbing the ranks, only this year have I truly understood the meaning of my official robes. All these years have been wasted. I’m utterly impressed by Lord Zhou.”

Madam Hua didn’t understand as deeply as her husband; she was exhausted. “Master, don’t sigh. It’s getting late, you should rest.”

Chen Chen, “Mm.”

The next morning, the caravan from Lizhou City to the capital departed, and Zhulan received a letter from her hometown.

Second Zhou had arranged everything at home and had also gathered a lot of mushrooms and other mountain produce.

After reading the letter, Zhulan calculated the days. Based on the speed of the mail, she estimated that Second Zhou and his party should arrive in about half a month.

(End of Chapter)

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