Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest-Chapter 324 - 30: Hoping for a Good Harvest This Year

Trade privileges were a special right granted by the Black Iron King to certain business conglomerates and merchant caravans.

However, very few could obtain such royal authorization.

Roman now had abundant manpower and could develop in multiple areas.

He had to farm, but he also needed to pursue other developments.

He was preparing to assemble a caravan to thoroughly reap the resources of the land.

At this time, trade privileges became critically important.

As long as he could obtain the trade privileges from the Black Iron King,

he could essentially be exempt from all the commerce tax, customs duty, and tolls brought about by trade activities throughout the Black Iron Land.

Moreover, by virtue of his special status as a Conqueror Lord, he could extend his business to the Earth Countries.

For instance, Wandong, the Plateau, Cangyue, and even the Free Trade City States and Hot Summer Islands to the west of Divine Mysterious and Dust Serpent.

But Damian dared not agree to this matter; it had to be discussed with the Black Iron King.

There were not many, but also not a few groups that had trade privileges in these lands.

Yet Roman appeared particularly unique.

A Lord maintaining the Conqueror Order, an ambitious River Valley King, a burgeoning power in a period of rapid expansion—you grant him trade privileges... can anyone else even compete?

Because of a clear understanding of development and productive capacity, Roman saw the third layer of implications.

But Damian could still think of the first layer.

The influence was too significant; it required careful consideration.

Damian, along with the envoy group, left Fertile City, claiming they would give Roman a reply as soon as possible upon departure.

Roman was in no hurry; he knew that the matter would have to go through political wrangling within the Black Iron Court.

He only needed to focus on doing business, but the Black Iron King had much more to consider.

...

Without external disturbances, Roman began his daily farming routine once again.

In Origin City, Roman’s planting model was wheat in the first half of the year and legumes in the second, with a biannual harvest system.

The sowing of spring wheat in Fertile City was delayed by a month and could only be harvested in late summer; it was too late for planting legumes, allowing only a single harvest per year.

However, the pity was not for the single annual harvest.

What was truly pitiful was that the land had to be left fallow after each annual harvest.

Only fertilizer could ensure soil fertility, allowing for successive years of cultivation.

This was also why Roman was determined to transport ten thousand tons of peat from Origin City at all costs.

The land in Origin City received two thousand pounds of fertilizer per acre, a quantity which was reduced by nearly eighty percent in Fertile City due to time constraints.

Roman could only rely on furrow-fertilization to farm the land, maximizing the efficacy of the peat.

Deep plowing and intensive tilling could also release the fertility of the deeper soil layers.

Therefore, after the harvest of spring wheat, Roman could still plant a round of vegetables with a short growth cycle.

By the time the last patch of cultivated land had its seeds and fertilizer buried, it was already March.

During this time, Roman was responsible for overall planning and coordinated management.

Seeing the spring planting come to an end, he finally let out a sigh of relief.

He quietly looked out over the land.

I hope Fertile City will have a good harvest this year.

Roman’s army also breathed a sigh of relief with him.

After working like oxen and horses for over a month, no one could bear it any longer; all the soldiers had slimmed down.

With a grand wave of his hand, Roman gave everyone a five-day holiday and had Jet arrange their breaks in shifts.

Subsequently, a thousand soldiers who had been arranged to rest returned to Origin City with Roman.

They came to see their families.

But Roman was somewhat uneasy; he had to personally check the status of Origin City to prevent any mishaps.

...

Seth came to welcome him, and Roman said to him, "I will spend most of my time in Fertile City this year. You will be in charge."

"Yes, my lord," Seth answered meticulously.

Seeing the serious wrinkles on the old deacon’s face and his somewhat tired eyes, Roman took a blood gem out of his pocket, "This is a trophy from the battlefield. Wear it on you, and take care of your health."

A blood gem is an excellent quality ruby with attributes such as abundant energy. It adds luster to the robustness of a warrior, but for an elderly person whose body is starting to decline, it is like sending charcoal in snowy weather, significantly extending their working hours and ensuring they do not become fatigued.

Roman personally handed it to him, and Seth’s face showed a hint of warmth, "Your safety is the most important. When we left Dragon Castle, the Grand Duke entrusted me to assist you well and make decisions for you. But you managed things on your own very early on, and I did not dare to interject too much. I can only remind you to be more careful, for there are many overt and covert threats out there."

Roman was momentarily stunned, feeling a hint of melancholy when he mentioned Alster.

Seth tidied his collar and cuffs, making him look neat and tidy, "My lord, you should also make an appearance to stabilize the people’s hearts. Some have quite the forgetful nature." freewёbnoνel.com

Roman nodded, and then he inspected the entire Origin City.

He found that everything was within the development plan.

Follow the plan step by step, communicate immediately if there are problems, and if everyone has work to do, there will be no chaos.

Origin City was particularly busy this year.

Roman transported a significant amount of labor and materials to Fertile City, but it did not mean their production efficiency would decrease.

Take for example, ten thousand people could only do so much work within a set time; Roman allocated two thousand people to be porters and carriers, yet the remaining eight thousand could still finish the same amount of work in the same time frame.

It just means that with more people, you cannot push them to their limits.

Origin City’s population was already overflowing.

With the return of warmth in spring, those who were hiding indoors by the fire stove could now come out to bask in the sun.

Water conservancy needed to be built, storage ponds needed to be dug, drainage machines had to be made, and river dams had to be constructed.

Roman focused the main labor force on these areas.

From last summer to this year, tens of thousands of people came time and time again, having cultivated seven thousand acres of paddy fields.

But the further back they went, the more difficult it became to cultivate new paddy fields.

They had already organized all the usable marshland; expanding further was not possible unless they converted dry land into paddy fields, but for now, that was it.

Their main crop was the rice variety from the Gwivelle No. 1 seeds.

Last year, about fifty acres of experimental fields yielded around fourteem thousand kilograms of rice seeds, enough to meet the seed needs for more than half of the paddy fields, while the rest of the paddy fields with poor soil or poor environments were planted with ordinary rice varieties.

Roman used a wet nursing method; the Gwivelle No. 1 rice variety first grew in nursery beds, then the well-developed seedlings were transplanted to the main fields, commonly known as transplanting seedlings.

This practice was very labor-intensive.

However, Origin City did not lack manpower; as long as it increased grain yield, even if the process was several times more complicated, Roman was determined to send people to do it.

Many people were transplanting for the first time and were not proficient, but they were extremely careful with the seedlings in their hands. Sometimes, they would fall but instinctively protect the seedlings. It did not matter if they got injured, but the seedlings had to remain unharmed.

They had all seen the scene of rice harvest last year and eaten rice a few times. Any farmer who had planted fields cherished the young seedlings.

Two or three thousand nimble farmers were carefully transplanting in the fields, slow in movement and cautious in attitude.

Healthy seedlings were neatly arrayed in the paddy fields, pleasing to the eye.