Another bleak autumn arrived. Through various planting methods such as intercropping and crop rotation; through means of enriching the soil and preserving fertility with Plant Ash, human and animal manure, and the like; through the continuous investment of manpower and resources into major irrigation works to ensure farmland could be watered; through the technical support of the agricultural doctors at Wenchang Pavilion, who tirelessly studied cultivation and bred improved seeds; and through the united labor of soldiers and civilians alike.
Above all, under the leadership of the wise and mighty General Wang, Liaodong enjoyed its sixth great harvest in the autumn of the first year of Chuping.
It was not only Liaodong. The newly occupied territories of Linyu, Guangning, and elsewhere had also seen good harvests this year, for many reasons.
The farming methods, fertilization measures, irrigation projects, and dedicated agricultural doctors conducting research were one reason. More importantly, however, was the rare stability and peace under General Wang's rule.
No one sabotaged production or seized the means of production, thus ensuring the grain harvest. Moreover, after the land was re-surveyed and redistributed, people farmed far more land than before. Though they worked harder, the harvest belonging to their own families was also greater. Overall, even if the soil was not as rich as Northeast China's fertile fields, it still counted as a bountiful harvest.
And this peace was precisely what many commoners had long hoped for. They brought their families into Wang Yan's territory, while nearby villagers came to invite the stationed armies to move forward a little farther.
As time passed and news spread, people learned how General Wang's soldiers dealt with wealthy households and landlords, how they redistributed land, and—most importantly—that agricultural taxes were only one-tenth. Who did not want more land? Who did not want to