plumnovel Chapter 6 The Cornerstone of Food
Chapter 6 The Cornerstone of Food
As the train passed through Changtu, snow began to accumulate in the fields on both sides of the railway.
Lu Xingzhou's homesickness was finally completely soothed.
People from Northeast China often say: Once you cross the Shanhaiguan Pass, you'll be home.
But for him, who can only go home for a few days during the Chinese New Year, his hometown is more than just a place.
It also includes goose-feather snow, icicles, thick cotton-padded coats, double-layered cotton-padded trousers, sticky rice cakes, and sauerkraut stew with vermicelli.
Without being able to see the endless white snow outside the car window, I always felt something was missing – a sense of intimacy.
Early in the morning.
The rusty Siberian wind, carrying snow, swept across the Zhengjiatun Station platform.
Groups of travelers, chatting and laughing as they hurried along, exhaled wisps of white mist that meandered and flew into the sky, instantly dissipating into nothingness in the cold wind.
Everywhere you look, you can see the logo and slogans of the South Manchuria Railway Company, as well as arrogant bow-legged Japanese men who use Japanese to direct the bowing and scraping Chinese employees of the South Manchuria Railway Company.
Lu Xingzhou, who had pulled his collar tight to ward off the chill, didn't want to see these incongruous scenes any longer, so he led the others away from the station and found the Yu residence.
The grand and luxurious gates of the Yu residence were not easily accessible to just anyone.
After handing the letters from Marshal Zhang and Marshal Sun to the doorman, Yu Wendou finally brought him into his home twenty minutes later.
"I believe you. I've seen it. You'll get your 14 silver dollars. Let's start the feast, father and son, and chat while we drink!"
"Mr. Yu, there's no need for you to spend money."
Yu Wendou feigned displeasure:
"Hey~~ Call me 'Grandpa'! Make yourself at home here, or I won't be happy to be treated like a stranger!"
"Alright~ I'll do as you say, sir!"
The two took their seats.
Faced with this lavish feast, which was considered quite sumptuous in the resource-scarce Northeast, Lu Xingzhou abandoned his usual practice of getting Wu Junsheng and the others drunk under the table.
Over the past decade or so, COFCO's subsidiaries have honed more than just their drinking skills; their ability to read people and situations is equally impressive.
Grandpa Yu's health is visibly weak; forcing him to drink heavily to build camaraderie could easily kill the old man.
The two chatted over drinks, discussing overseas politics and economics, exploring the domestic power structure, and occasionally talking about business, which turned out to be quite a spectacle.
Yu Wendou liked it very much at first sight.
What's even more commendable is that he saw in Lu Xingzhou a quality that even his in-laws didn't possess—insight that surpassed that of everyone he knew!
Yu Wendou, who was quite discerning in judging people, harbored some resentment towards Wu Junsheng.
In the letter, he recommended a young talent to himself, but only praised his drinking capacity, martial arts skills, and character. How shallow!
His desire to find a talent scout was irrepressible.
"A grown man of seven feet tall, skilled in both literature and martial arts, wouldn't it be a waste of his prime to return to the village to farm? My dear nephew, if you are unwilling to serve under Yuting and Xingquan, how about I help you start anew?"
Today, the Northeast region is an excellent stage for talented individuals to showcase their abilities.
Yu Wendou felt that this child's future achievements might not necessarily surpass those of his in-laws.
Lu Xingzhou could see that he was sincere, but if he wanted to enter officialdom, why did he have to come to such a cold and harsh place as the Northeast?
The Yi Yang Ding is considered all-powerful but also has limitations; its effects vary greatly depending on whether the object is a living or non-living organism.
The Heavenly Origin Qi, which can cure 30 acres of corn leaf blight and improve the physical fitness of 10 Quarter Horses by 5%, can only be used to make a single bullet.
Clearly, agriculture is his destiny.
In addition, given his existing agricultural knowledge, his decision to pursue an agricultural career will not change.
After gathering his thoughts, he said:
"Xingzhou believes that although the Nationalist government appears to have overthrown the imperial system, the fruits of the revolution have actually been stolen by Yuan Shikai, and war between the North and the South is inevitable. The next few decades will certainly be a chaotic period of warlords extorting money and fighting each other, and the republic will be a long way off. This is the internal worry."
"Foreign countries, especially the Japanese and Russian devils, are attempting to split China and then invade it by force. Their wolfish ambition to destroy China is obvious. This is an external threat."
"With internal and external troubles combined, a devastating war affecting 400 million people and far exceeding expectations is inevitable. At that time, social unrest, massive displacement of people who will not engage in production, and widespread starvation are not hard to foresee."
"I believe that food is the foundation of a nation's survival, and I should dedicate myself to agriculture so that everyone in the world can have enough to eat!"
Numbers don't lie.
In China, where early marriage and childbirth are traditionally valued and many children are considered a blessing, the 1930s or so of the Republic of China era were enough for three or even four generations to be born.
Based on the natural population growth rate at the time, the population should have increased from 4.1 million to 5.1-5.4 million.
However, after the war ended, the actual population was only 4.6 million!
Of these, the official statistics state that no fewer than 3500 million died directly from the Japanese invasion.
The number of people who died from displacement, starvation, and freezing due to warlord conflicts and wars of aggression is conservatively estimated at at least 50 million, and some scholars believe it may even exceed 100 million!
One hundred million people will freeze or starve to death!
The idealized Republic of China as envisioned by some public intellectuals was, in reality, extremely cruel to ordinary people.
Now that Lu Xingzhou is here, we must bring this number down no matter what!
These words were utterly treasonous, especially given that the Qing emperor had just abdicated and the nation was joyfully welcoming the republic.
However, Yu Wendou, who was in the grain business, knew that this was not a fabrication.
The image of nine out of ten houses being empty filled his mind, his fingers gripping the wine glass turned white, and his whole body trembled.
"Sir, Sir Yu?! Did Xingzhou's pessimistic remarks make you uncomfortable?"
It seems that at this time, the talk of the Republic of China's decline is still too sensational.
Yu Wendou snapped out of his reverie and sighed, "I underestimated you!"
Lu Xingzhou modestly replied, "These are just drunken ramblings; please just take them with a grain of salt."
"Hey~ Your ambitions are even greater than Yuting's!"
Yu Wendou knew that his father-in-law's constant talk of winning the hearts of the people was nothing more than a ploy to become the King of the Northeast and seek wealth and glory for his family and clan.
The young man in front of me didn't mention the will of the people at all; he just wanted people to have enough to eat.
It appears that one is above and the other is below, but in reality, one is above and the other is below.
If he succeeds, he will sever the very foundation of the Republic of China!
Yu Wendou, who was well-versed in human nature, did not know that Yuan Shikai would become emperor, but he also knew that people like Yuan Shikai were not people who would speak up for the people, and that such remarks could easily lead to his death.
He then changed the subject: "Don't ever tell anyone about these lofty ambitions again! Let's talk about something more pressing."
Lu Xingzhou readily agreed: "This junior understands, sir, please speak."
Having grown up in Northeast China, he had heard about Yu Wendou's act of distributing his farmland to farmers for free in his later years. He knew that Yu was a man of great principles and that his political stance was not as ambiguous as that of Zhang Zuolin and others; otherwise, he would not have spoken of it.
"I have over 3,000 mu of good land east of the village. You can take it and farm it. Don't go to the remote source of the Liao River."
The fertile black soil that makes people in Guanzhong drool is now available for sale in a whopping 3000 mu!
No wonder he's the richest man!
The Yu family has verifiable land holdings of no less than 200 million mu, and there are also stories of them donating land to farmers, so Lu Xingzhou was not surprised by their generosity.
But I can't accept it.
Zhengjiatun was a crucial point for the South Manchuria Railway, and he didn't want to die before his mission was accomplished.
"Please forgive me, sir, but I just want to buy land in Erdaohuzi to fulfill my late father's wish."
Yu Wendou voiced his concerns.
"Nephew, do you know why, from your grandfather's generation to now, more than a dozen villages have been built along the source of the Liao River, but none of them have survived. To this day, hundreds of miles of fertile land are left to lie fallow with few people cultivating them?"
Is nobody around? That's great!
Lu Xingzhou perked up: "Please speak, sir."
"That place is far from anywhere, and in winter the river freezes over, making it a flat, indefensible area. If you get targeted by the bearded man, you're basically doomed."
"Years ago, I sent people to cultivate more than 2000 mu of land there and made money for several years thanks to the convenient water transport in summer and autumn. Unfortunately, three years ago, a bearded man called 'Grasshopper' broke through the fence, killing more than 20 farmhands, and the land was abandoned ever since."
Yu Wendou spoke calmly, but Lu Xingzhou could understand the hatred beneath the calm.
More than 20 lives lost; few normal people can ignore that.
Banditry.
It is the heaviest burden on Northeast China in this era.
The vast and fertile Northeast Plain contains large areas of uninhabited land, partly due to the presence of bandits.
The number of bandits from various ethnic groups, including Mongols, Manchus, and Han, who were openly and covertly supported by Japan and Russia, once reached as high as 100,000, and towns were often looted.
The Fengtian Army, which had its sights set on the world, never stopped its efforts to suppress bandits, but with little success.
Lu Xingzhou wanted to test whether he could do it!
He declared boldly, "If we can't even defend our own small grain reserves, how can we, Xingzhou, have the face to discuss saving the world with you, sir?!"
"Have you thought this through? Even the grandest ambitions can only be realized while you're alive!"
Lu Xingzhou said decisively, "Sir, there's no need to persuade me any further!"
Yu Wendou's eyes sparkled with wonder.
"If you have ambition, how could I not support you?! I'm selling you all the 2700 mu of paddy and dry land I've cultivated, plus the surrounding 13 mu of wasteland and the dikes that just need a little repair!"
"How much? Just name your price, sir."
Before coming here, he had researched land prices and was willing to pay up to 18,000 silver dollars for 130,000 mu of contiguous land in Fengtian that was suitable for development.
But Yu Wendou calmly extended his index finger.
"Ten thousand silver dollars?!"
Lu Xingzhou was overjoyed; this was his own uncle!
Yu Wendou shook his head in dissatisfaction: "If I ask you for so much money, won't you embarrass me later, Uncle Wu? I meant one silver dollar!"
"Taking away the young master?!?"
Lu Xingzhou was unaware that Yu Wendou, whose health was deteriorating like the country itself, did not only think of giving land to the people to cultivate before his death.
He'd actually be willing to give the land away for free, but he needs a silver dollar to clearly define the property rights and avoid future problems.
His support certainly went beyond that.
For Lu Xingzhou, who was new to the area, the biggest challenge in starting his business was actually recruiting people.
"Spring plowing is just around the corner, so I'll help you recruit another group of farmers and give you some livestock and farm tools!"
Human resources cannot be immediately converted into cash just by having money. Delaying spring planting means that no matter how much money you have, it won't turn into seedlings in the soil.
Lu Xingzhou, who knew that farming was a complex subject, had a sudden inspiration.
This gift is far more valuable than any land gift!
He pressed further, "Can even the village elder deliver it?!"
Yu Wendou burst into laughter:
"Hahaha~~ You're lucky, kid. You happen to have a top-notch estate manager temporarily staying at my house. If you can win him over, I guarantee your granaries will be overflowing year after year!"
Lu Xingzhou couldn't help but wonder, who exactly is this powerful manor owner?