Inspecting Spring Plowing, the King's Ideal

In May, the tropical migratory birds stopped flying north and built their nests in the mountain forests of the lake region, living and breeding there, singing and winging about in delight.

The songs of the flocks carried beyond the mountain forests. Tens of thousands of Purepecha farmers were busy in the fields. They worked hard with stone-and-wood Lei and Si, breaking new ground and sowing maize seeds. And on the best fields of the villages, Tread Plows operated by two people could be seen faintly, slowly and powerfully turning over the soil. In the Lake Kingdom, metal farming tools were expensive and limited in number, kept uniformly by the village priests and given priority for cultivating the fertile land by the rivers.

Along the riverbanks, newly dug little channels led the flowing water, slowly soaking the nearby farmland. Rare small Human-powered Water Pumps stood by the river. Several able-bodied men, drenched in sweat, were working beneath the blazing sun, taking turns without pause to tread the pumps and draw precious river water into the channels. Water was the foundation of agriculture, and the key that determined the harvest! Providing an ample water source while the crops grew could effectively secure the yield for the year.

At the edges of the fields near the villages, a few grass sheds had been put up here and there. Inside the sheds were two shoulder poles and several large barrels filled with brine. During breaks from their busy farming, the peasants could come here and drink a few mouthfuls of cool well water with salt added. As for why salt had to be added to the water? Naturally, it was because "salt is the Main God's grace, granting vitality to the faithful beneath the scorching sun."

Under a large tree in a corner outside