Chapter 2162
Gaoxie Village currently has more bayberry groves than rice-growing farmland, and the planting and picking of bayberry is no longer a "sideshow" for local agricultural production, but has gradually become a major income-generating project for Gaoxie Village and even the entire Baiquan Town. .
The scale of planting in Gaoxie Village is increasing year by year, and the local labor force is no longer enough during the picking season every summer. After all, after these bayberry fruits are picked, they must be processed within a short preservation period, otherwise they will easily spoil and lose their value. Therefore, a large amount of manpower needs to be concentrated during the picking period to complete the work.
In addition to mobilizing the whole village, young and old, Wang Dagui has also invited many helpers from neighboring villages to complete the picking work with low technical content. As for "free helpers" like Xiunian, Wang Dagui would naturally use them in vain if he took the opportunity.
Xiunian was also curious about the deep processing of bayberry, so she took the initiative to ask Wang Dagui that she wanted to see the processing place. Wang Dagui felt that Xiunian was an official sent by the town government, so he didn't think there was anything wrong with this request. After finishing the things at hand, he took him to the village.
Xiunian noticed that almost all the houses in Gaoxie Village were tile-roofed houses, and there were even some brick houses that were rare in rural areas, which showed that the economic situation here was indeed not bad. He then asked Wang Dagui whether new immigrants would have such living conditions in the future.
"According to the regulations from above, the village must provide basic housing for new immigrants. Our standard in Baiquan Town is a unified thatched house. The place has been selected and will be built when the busy days are over. They only need to work hard and earn one or two In a year, you can spend some money to renovate it into a tiled house. As for the brick and tile house and the big yard, the cost of building it will probably take a few more years. "Wang Dagui did not hide it and said happily. He told Xiunian the actual situation.
In fact, there is no need for Wang Dagui to lead the way. As long as you follow the cart transporting bayberries, you will find a place for processing bayberries. This place is a row of large tile-roofed houses. The picked bayberries will be sent here to be concentrated. After cleaning, they will be processed into different products and then sent to different rooms for storage. In a few days, businessmen will come to the village to deliver. The money was picked up.
Because the labor intensity is relatively lower than picking work, almost all the people working here are women. They clean the freshly picked bayberries and then carry out further processing according to different uses.
"Let me take you to see how bayberry cans are made! This is a high-end product exclusively for the capital!" Wang Dagui proudly pulled Xiunian to one of the processing points and explained the production process to him. Xiunian didn't know what the can was, and was very curious at the moment.
Farmers remove the branches and leaves from the bayberry fruits, wash them with clean water, and then soak them in light salt water for the duration of a stick of incense. After that, put the bayberries into a steamed jar, add boiled sugar water, screw on the iron lid, put it in a steamer and steam it for a stick of incense, take it out and keep it warm. Tighten the towel again and that's it.
"After these cans are made, they are placed in a cool place to dry. When the iron lid collapses on its own, it means it is sealed. But we usually turn it upside down to see if there is any water leakage. As long as there is no air leakage, If the lid doesn't bulge, the can will last at least half a year, enough to be sent from Zhoushan to the capital for sale." Wang Dagui introduced the production process in great detail.
Of course, he did not understand the various scientific principles involved in this production process, but this was a "secret method" taught by agricultural technicians. If Xiunian was not from the town office, he would not explain the details to Xiunian. .
Of course, although Xiunian could see and hear clearly, like Wang Dagui, he also knew what was happening but did not know why. He did not understand the principle of preserving the freshness of the canned bayberry. However, Xiunian noticed that there were two types of containers for the can, one was a clay pot, and the other was a completely transparent, luxurious-looking glass jar. She then curiously asked Wang Dagui what the significance of this was.
"The clay pot is made locally in Baiquan Town. There is nothing unusual about it. However, this glass jar is a high-end product shipped from the south. It was specially customized from China because of General Shi's favor. This glass jar is of the highest quality. The number of bayberry fruits is limited each year, and they are not available on the market." Wang Dagui said, giving Xiunian a "you know" look.
But Xiunian really didn't understand, and then asked: "Such high-quality things can definitely be sold at a good price, so why not sell them on the market?"
"This is a special offer, a special offer!" Wang Dagui could only shake his head and express contempt for Xiunian's shallow knowledge: "This is for the dignitaries in the capital to enjoy. Without that status, even if you have money, you can't eat it!"
"That's it!" Xiunian suddenly realized.
In fact, similar things are not uncommon in Hirado. Some high-end goods imported from foreign countries, such as high-end silk products from the Ming Dynasty and glass handicrafts from Haihan, are given priority to the capital or Edo for the upper class in society. Enjoy. This is a manifestation of class differences in material life, and no country is exempt.
Of course, not selling in the market does not mean that there is no income from these high-end agricultural products. In fact, these high-end products that are not sold publicly bring much higher income to Gaoxie Village than ordinary products, because these products are all imported from Sanya. The logistics department ordered it specifically for the enjoyment of time-travelers, so they only looked at the quality and did not consider the cost at all. In addition, Shi Diwen also deliberately strived for some conditions for the local industry, and the profit margin of the processing fee was still very considerable. of.
Similar product grading methods also appear in other deep-processed products. Dried fruits, jams, and fruit wines are all divided into several grades and supplied to different markets and consumers.
This relatively mature agricultural product development and experience model is far ahead of the social development of this era, and Haihan is unique in this field. These operating methods simply opened up a whole new world for Xiunian, who had some business knowledge before.
"Village Chief Wang, may I venture to ask how much of the income from the processing of bayberry fruit accounts for the income of the people in Gaoxie Village?" Xiunian thought about it for a while and then asked a bold question. He estimated that since he was an official, Wang Dagui would not blame him for being too abrupt.
Sure enough, Wang Dagui only hesitated for a moment, and then he answered his question readily: "It's hard to say what the percentage is. The rice grown in our village can barely be self-sufficient, ensuring that all villagers will not go hungry. As for income, it basically relies on Planting bayberry." Seeing that the other party was willing to answer, Xiunian asked again: "Then the output of each family must be different, how should it be distributed?"
"The bayberries in our Gaoxie Village are public property. How much they sell each year is divided equally according to household registration, so every person in every household who can work has to contribute." Wang Dagui paused and added Said: "Part of the fields where grain is grown is privately owned, but when it's bayberry harvesting season, you have to finish the bayberry business before you can take care of your own fields."
Like most overseas colonial areas in Haihan, agricultural production in Zhoushan is still dominated by collective farms. Although naturalized immigrants can also be allocated private land, they still have to give priority to completing corresponding labor for collective farms in order to enjoy the benefits of being Haihan citizens. As for the twenty Japanese immigrants who were assigned to Gaoxie Village yesterday, they are not yet qualified to obtain private property. Even if the houses built for them by the village are public property, they can only wait until later. Only after naturalization can it be assigned to an individual's name.
There have never been large-scale plantations or farms with private capital in Gaoxie Village. This is thanks to Shi Diwen's control over the local agricultural development process in Zhoushan. Some people have long thought about planting projects with stable profits like Gaoxie bayberry. However, as Wang Dagui showed off, the variety of Gaoxie bayberry is suitable for the soil and water environment. The entire Zhoushan Island only covers the hillside near Gaoxie Village. can produce bayberry fruits of this quality. Businessmen who want to set up bayberry plantations have the only option to contract the local forests.
However, Shi Diwen considered that this kind of agricultural product with local characteristics is one of the few special commodities in Zhoushan, so it cannot be allowed to become an industry controlled by individual businessmen, so as not to affect the stability of the annual supply to Sanya. sex. Therefore, although the bayberry grove in Gaoxie Village is well-known, it is not anyone's private property, and local farmers can also rely on the production of this fruit grove to obtain huge profits.
Of course, the people below may not know the reason why Shi Diwen did this, but the actual benefits brought by it can be felt by everyone. Although ordinary people are not very good at expressing themselves, they know exactly what they should do. As long as they follow the arrangements of General Shi and the government, they will be fine.
Xiunian had just arrived and didn't know much about the agricultural development model and the government's power structure in the Zhoushan colonial area. Naturally, she couldn't empathize with the people of Gaoxie Village. However, from what he saw and heard in Gaoxie Village, Xiunian realized that Haihan was not a reckless man who only sent troops to fight. Even in areas governed by military attachés like Shi Diwen, agricultural production was going on vigorously, and Closely integrated with the maritime trade that Kaihan is best at, this is a development method that he has never heard of in the Hirado Domain before.
However, what made Xiunian feel a little regretful was that Wang Dagui did not invite him to taste these attractive-looking bayberry products. According to Wang Dagui, these semi-finished products in the process of production are not in the best condition, but Xiunian thinks that he should be worried about money and does not want to continue to spend these good things in vain.
Xiunian's idea was obviously a little bit like a villain's heart. After visiting the bayberry processing plant, Wang Dagui took the initiative to invite Xiunian to stay for dinner, and also claimed to let him try the local bayberry wine.
Xiu Nian thought that she could save a few steamed buns that she brought from the town, but you must not drink this bayberry wine. You have to go to the next village today. If you drink too much at noon, you will definitely miss something. Fa went back to revive Jiang Zian.
You can rely on the mountains to eat the mountains, and the sea to eat the sea. Gaoxie Village is located in the coastal plain, and the ingredients on this table are mainly seafood. Xiunian already had the idea of returning to secular life before she left Seogwipo, so she no longer had to avoid eating meat and fish, so she could eat as much as she wanted. However, he firmly declined Wang Dagui's offer to drink, which made Wang Dagui think highly of him.
"Monk, for those people who came to Gaoxie Village yesterday, just rest assured that they will starve to death and not freeze here. I still count on them to work, and I will definitely make sure that they have food and housing without worries. Don't you say that we will be here in the afternoon? Are you going? After dinner later, I will take you to the ancestral hall where they are temporarily staying to make you feel at ease.”
After hearing this, Xiunian quickly thanked Wang Dagui, thinking that he had successfully completed his errands in the first village he came to. The village chief was also easy to talk to, so he seemed to be quite lucky. Immediately he asked: "Village Chief Wang, I am going to the nearby Fuqiang Village in the afternoon. Can you tell me about the local situation?"
Wang Dagui nodded and said: "Fuqiang Village is very close, just over three miles southeast. The people who came to pick fruits today are helpers from Fuqiang Village. Just find someone to take you there later."
"In Fuqiang Village, most of them, including the village chief, are immigrants. Their village chief is an immigrant who escaped from Shandong Province. He used to make pottery. So in addition to farming, Fuqiang Village also learned the village chief's crafts and specialized in making pottery. Jars and jars. The various pottery jars and jars you saw just now where bayberry fruits are processed are basically produced in Fuqiang Village.”
Xiunian said: "In that case, Fuqiang Village has followed Gaoxie Village in getting rich!"
"That's not necessarily true!" Wang Dagui did not take advantage of Xiunian's flattery. He shook his head and said, "The pottery made in Fuqiang Village is not only supplied to our village, but is also sold outside, and the pots and jars are of no choice. It is in season and can be made and sold all year round, so their business is better than selling bayberries in our village, and there are more wealthy households than our village.”
Every village has its own industry! After hearing this introduction, Xiunian couldn't help but feel a little emotional about Haihan's agricultural development model. He remembered that when he was in Pinghou, farmers seemed to have no other work except taking care of farmland. If they had any free time, they had to complete it. The government's corvées may even be drafted as peasant soldiers if there is any trouble, but farmers in Haihan can still have the energy to run some profitable side businesses.
"Village Chief Wang, don't all the villagers have to do corvee service?" Xiunian couldn't help but ask.
Wang Dagui responded: "The fields and fruit trees we usually cultivate are owned by the public, so we are already performing corvee service! We also usually dig canals, mend roads, and build some public facilities, which are also performing corvee service. I know you want to ask What, a corvee is a corvee, but it usually doesn’t hinder everyone’s ability to work and make money. Otherwise, do you think that such a big Dinghai Port in the south can just appear out of thin air?”
(End of chapter)