Wei Zheng, having plowed a furrow with Village Chief Zhao, clapped his hands, his eyes sparkling as he stroked the curved-beam plow.
“This curved-beam plow is excellent! It goes deeper into the soil and requires less effort. The ox isn't even that tired!”
Wei Zheng observed the ox’s condition again and finally reached a conclusion.
The Tang Dynasty had just been established, and it was a time when the land was vast and the population sparse.
Such a tool, capable of saving manpower and yielding more grain,
If His Majesty knew about it, he would surely be overjoyed.
If only the treasury wasn't so depleted, lacking sufficient money and grain.
Would His Majesty have to endure the increasingly rampant actions of Shuli, making countless concessions?
Then, Wei Zheng's brow furrowed slightly as he thought of a drawback.
Plows, in peasant households, could be considered as large items like beds and cabinets.
The significance of a good plow to a farmer was self-evident.
But crafting a plow required a considerable price.
Ordinary families, where every single copper coin was carefully calculated and stretched as far as possible,
If they wanted to promote the use of plows within a short period, it would be difficult to implement.
“Master Chen, could you tell me how much it costs to make this plow?”
“You’re asking the wrong person, Wei Sir! You should ask the carpenter!”
Chen Fan didn’t answer directly but instead looked at the village chief.
The village chief immediately understood and turned his head to shout.
“Old Wood, come here, I have something to ask you!”
Soon, an elderly man wearing a coarse linen short-sleeved shirt and a young man hurried over.
After learning about the situation, the elder directed the youth to lay the curved-beam plow flat.
He then inspected it, examining it from every angle, quickly reaching a conclusion.
“This curved-beam plow uses mostly thick, old wood. The process isn't complicated. It’ll take about three days to craft one. If you provide the materials, it’ll cost one hundred and fifty coppers. If you don’t supply materials, it’ll be six hundred coppers, no less! Oh, and the plowshare is made of iron; you need to provide that. If you don’t want it made of iron, I can do it, but it will wear out faster!”
Old Wood, the carpenter of Zhao Village, gave a straightforward answer.
Wei Zheng’s eyes dimmed upon hearing this, his mind pondering how to resolve this issue.
Since there was something good, Wei Zheng naturally wouldn’t hide it.
But if he simply reported it, ultimately, the only ones who would benefit would be the great aristocratic families.
Compared to ordinary commoners, aristocratic families had the capital to quickly replace their plows.
With such efficient tools, the manpower accumulated by these families could be freed up.
Then, the families could quickly encroach on wasteland and expand their landholdings.
This was something Wei Zheng was absolutely unwilling to see happen.
“Hmph, that’s a lot!”
Village Chief Zhao looked at the curved-beam plow in front of him with a pained expression, his eyes filled with reluctance.
It was not cheap to craft such a plow.
Even if they provided the materials, the iron used to make the plowshare was not cheap either.
Chen Fan’s curved-beam plow required at least three pounds of iron for the plowshare.
And even ordinary iron cost fifty coppers per pound.
Adding the cost of crafting the plowshare, it was unimaginable!
Village Chief Zhao thought that his family’s wealth was substantial, but he still didn’t dare to craft a new curved-beam plow.
“Looks like I’ll have to burden His Majesty!”
Wei Zheng contemplated in his mind, wondering how much money was left in the Emperor’s private treasury.
Moreover, if the Imperial Craftsmen were commissioned to craft them, the cost could be further reduced.
Furthermore, the Imperial Treasury’s purchase of materials would surely be cheaper than the market price.
At this moment, far away in Chang’an City, Emperor Taizong suddenly shivered!
“Hmph, the weather’s a bit chilly?”
Li Shimin looked up at the sky, and the eunuch serving him quickly fetched a cloak.
“We can’t let this curved-beam plow fall into the wrong hands. This is a tool for opening up wasteland.
How much money can you make by crafting it slowly, Old Wood? I’ll tell you. You take my techniques and go to Chang’an City with that high official, teaching the craft. Set up a class, charge ten guan per student. We’ll split the profits fifty-fifty!”
Chen Fan raised his eyebrows at the old carpenter, and Wei Zheng’s face turned black.
He was still trying to figure out how to reduce costs, and Chen Fan was already raising the price.
However, Chen Fan was the creator of this invention.
With Wei Zheng’s integrity, he naturally couldn’t coerce or entice Chen Fan, so he advised.
“Master Chen, this item is already expensive to make. If you raise the price, commoners might not be able to afford it!”
Chen Fan’s eyebrows shot up, and he smiled, replying to Wei Zheng.
“Ordinary peasants are too poor. Even if I don’t raise the price, will they buy it?”
Wei Zheng’s mouth twitched, and he gritted his teeth, whispering to Chen Fan.
“Master Chen, don’t worry, I can persuade His Majesty to use funds from his private treasury to craft a batch. We’ll then distribute them to impoverished households in the countryside. Once wealthy farmers see the benefits, they will start making their own.”
Chen Fan’s mouth twitched, and he looked at Wei Zheng as if he were a devil.
Wei Zheng, no wonder Li Shimin often wanted to chop you up.
If it were any other Emperor instead of Li Shimin,
You’d have been chopped up long ago for playing like this!
“Wei Sir, how much can His Majesty’s private treasury hold? How can it satisfy all the peasants in the land? This thing is not difficult to learn. Simply buy one, and skilled carpenters can craft it. Why not sell it as a technique, and then use the money earned to modify the straight-beam plows?”
Chen Fan said confidently, his tone full of assurance, as he had been preparing for this for two years.
He couldn’t have failed to consider this issue.
“Modify?”
Wei Zheng was puzzled. He then saw Chen Fan call for someone to bring a straight-beam plow. Then, under Chen Fan’s guidance, his eyes suddenly lit up.
“Wei Sir, look, the curved-beam plow and the straight-beam plow differ only in the lower part. Just modify that lower part a little, and we can even swap out the plowshare. Old Wood, have a look. How much would it cost to do this?”
Hearing this, Old Wood stepped forward again, even starting to make adjustments.
Soon, Old Wood looked up and nodded.
“If we modify it like this, we can modify one in half a day. It’ll cost fifty coppers. If there are enough, more than ten, I can reduce it to forty coppers. However, this modification will likely result in a function that’s only eight-tenths of the curved-beam plow’s capability.”
Wei Zheng, upon hearing this, trembled with excitement. His voice shook.
“Enough, enough. Master Chen, you are truly a genius. Wei Zheng, on behalf of the people of the land, thanks you for your great kindness!”
Wei Zheng raised both hands in front of him, thumbs clasped together, and bowed to Chen Fan.
And at the moment the curved-beam plow touched the earth, within a space shrouded in black mist,
A golden light blocked the mist.
Within the golden light, a towering archway inscribed with the three characters “Huoyundong” stood tall.
Inside the cave, numerous caves, thatched huts, palaces, and various other buildings of different styles stood.
In the palace at the very center, nine individuals with imposing presences sat facing each other.
The one at the head had a handsome face, his eyes as if they were twinkling stars.
“My fellow cultivators, a great sage has been born in the human realm!”