BXBX NOVEL Chapter 168 - 122: Enrollment_1
“Master?”
After waiting for a moment and seeing that Wuhua remained silent, Liang Xiao couldn’t help but call out again.
It was then that Wuhua finally turned his head around and looked Liang Xiao up and down, “Your Highness, are you still planning to proceed?”
“This…”
At these words, Liang Xiao was also hesitant, “What’s wrong, Master?”
Wuhua shook his head slightly and said solemnly, “This place is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, and I’m afraid my Cultivation is not enough to ensure your safety, Your Highness!”
Only then did Liang Xiao understand his meaning, becoming more hesitant, but after considering his own situation and everything he had seen and experienced along the way, he finally gritted his teeth and said, “We’ve come all this way, it would be unreasonable to leave now without further ado!”
“Alright then!”
Upon hearing this, Wuhua no longer tried to persuade him and simply said to the coachman, “You must not injure anyone recklessly after this.”
The coachman did not speak, only waiting for Liang Xiao’s reaction.
Liang Xiao also spoke firmly, “The Master is right, with so many hidden dragons and crouching tigers around, we must not take any rash actions unless we’re at a juncture of life and death!”
“Yes!”
The coachman then nodded in acknowledgment.
“Let’s go!”
The three of them got back into the carriage and continued onward.
Liang Xiao also opened the academy’s rulebook, comparing it with the outside world while introducing it to Wuhua.
“Master, the place we are currently in is still the outskirts of the Guo Bei Academy.”
“The outskirts, aside from the official roads, are mostly fields.”
“The fields within North City are now all owned by the Guo Bei Academy.”
“The Guo Bei Academy has allocated them, mainly for the peasantry to cultivate, thus the fields are divided into three types: fields for the commoners, fields for the students, and fields for the academy!”
“The commoners farm their fields, which yield eight hundred per mu, seventy percent goes to the academy, and thirty percent to the farmers, and no other taxes or labor are imposed.”
“Students till the student fields, which yield a thousand catties per mu, and due to the nourishment of Cultural Qi, some reach as much as fifteen hundred. All harvests go to the academy, but the cultivating students receive academic credits.”
“The academy tills the academy fields, which yield three thousand per mu, and also produce Spirit Rice, belonging to the masters, but students can also exchange it for academic credits.”
Liang Xiao looked at the booklet in his hand, his expression growing more and more animated.
“A yield of three thousand per mu, with Spirit Rice too, this…”
He finally ran out of words, uncertain how to express himself further.
Wuhua also frowned lightly, his prayer beads gently turning in his hand, remaining silent.
Seeing this, Liang Xiao did not dare to speak further, only continuing to flip through the handbook.
The carriage moved slowly forward, and in just a short time, a great number of peasants appeared in the paddy fields on both sides of the road.
They were harvesting the rice, with many carts and horses parked on both sides, several of which were already filled and ready to be transported away.
Liang Xiao looked over and furrowed his brow, “Why aren’t there people harvesting the outer layer of commoner fields? Could it be that these fields differ, with varying maturity times?”
“If that’s the case, speaking of quality, shouldn’t the lowest quality commoner fields mature first?”
“No, that’s not right, you can’t calculate farming like that. Commoner fields are of lower quality, so they mature slowly and are harvested later, while student fields are of higher quality, mature quickly, and are harvested earlier.”
As he spoke, Liang Xiao’s pupils dilated with shock, “If that’s the case, aren’t the academy fields the ones that produce the most and are of the highest quality?”
“A yield of three thousand per mu, how many harvests per year?”
Liang Xiao quickly flipped through the booklet in his hands, but he couldn’t find any relevant information, which made him increasingly anxious.
Seeing this, Wuhua also sighed, “With this agricultural technique, the land of North City can sustain tens of millions of people.”
“No wonder in recent years, Guo Bei Academy has been opening its doors wide, recruiting a large number of students, and even openly taking in refugees and relocating people from disaster-stricken areas. Now, the population within North City is probably not less than a million!”
“With a million people as a base, even if one in ten is conscripted, with a single command, North City could muster a hundred thousand elite troops!”
“Add to that various other incentives, students from all directions who come because of the academy’s fame, the number of students at Guo Bei Academy, the number of Cultivators…”
“Provisions, with such provisions, even if Cultivation is difficult, a path can still be forged!”
“The path of Cultivation is based on faith, and a million people can provide how much faith.”
“No wonder Guo Bei Academy, as well as the two temples Mingxiao and Yin Mountain, have developed so rapidly in recent years.”
“This is the foundation for an emperor, as well as for the Daoist tradition!”
Wuhua’s words were eerie, leaving Liang Xiao heavy-hearted, momentarily at a loss for what to say.
After a while, he snapped back to reality, “That’s not right, even if there’s no lack of provisions, how can a single county accommodate a million people, not to mention maintaining so many fields? Where would people live…”
Before he could finish, he realized something startling and, no longer concerned about his appearance, he lifted the curtain and stuck his head out.
He saw in the distance, at the end of the official road, a continuous spread of buildings.
Tall buildings stood in clusters, with bustling traffic, but no city gates in sight.
As a prince, born in the palace and accustomed to the splendor of the capital, Liang Xiao thought that aside from famous mountains, great rivers, and Cave Heaven Blessed Lands, there would be no other scenery that could move him.
But now, at just a glimpse into the distance, he felt an indescribable shock.
While he was still lost in amazement,
A man rode past on a horse and then stopped, “Put your head back in, you’re too old for this sort of thing, don’t you know it’s dangerous?”
Liang Xiao:
After half a day, the carriage entered the city, North City.
It was even more dazzling, with everything new and exotic.
The three of them parked the carriage and walked into a tavern.
The waiter came to serve them, providing a booklet, “What would you gentlemen like to eat? Our establishment has milled rice, medicinal wine, Spirit Fish, and rare meats supplied by the academy, quality guaranteed, honest to all ages!”
Liang Xiao looked at the booklet in his hand, “What is this?”
The waiter smiled, “It’s the menu, with pictures and descriptions, created by the talented hands of the academy’s students!”
“Oh?”
Liang Xiao opened it and saw that each dish was vividly illustrated and described.