Transmigrating into a peasant family to fight against the best, leading my parents to earn gold and

Chapter 168 Persuading the Village Head to Plant Turmeric

On the way back to Guihua Village, Shuisheng expressed his concerns.

"Brother Qingchuan, Xiaotang, the villagers can easily guess about our profit margin if they think about it carefully. What if they're afraid we'll make money and refuse to switch to growing turmeric?"

Lin Xiaotang waved her hand and said, "Uncle Shuisheng, as long as we can convince everyone that they can make more money growing turmeric than rice, they will definitely switch. They are just envious of our high earnings, but what they care about most is whether they can make more money themselves. These days, everyone is dirt poor, who would turn down money?"

Yes, as long as people believe that turmeric yields a higher harvest and can be sold for more money than rice, they will definitely be willing to grow it.

“Yes, Xiaotang, you’re right. If we can persuade the village head to switch to this crop, everyone else will definitely follow suit.”

The three of them drove the carriage to the village head's house as fast as they could. The village head was threshing rice with his sons in the yard. He was sweating profusely and covered in dirt.

Seeing how capable the village head was, Lin Qingchuan admired him even more. The village head was only a few years younger than his father and had been the village head for many years. His family was much richer than the villagers, yet he still worked so hard. He was many times better than his father.

He greeted them as soon as he entered, "Uncle Village Head, are you busy?"

When the village head heard voices at the courtyard gate, he immediately looked up and saw Lin Qingchuan, his daughter, and Shui Sheng. He put down the stick he was using to thresh the rice and got up to greet them.

"Qingchuan, Shuisheng, what brings you here? Is there something you need from me?"

Lin Qingchuan and Shui Sheng exchanged a glance and quickly nodded to Li Zheng, "Uncle, we really have something important to discuss with you. We'll take up a little of your time, but please listen patiently as we tell you."

The village head washed his hands and invited them to sit down. His sons smiled at Qingchuan and Shuisheng and continued banging.

"Okay, I'm a little tired right now. I can rest for a while before continuing. Just tell me what's wrong."

Lin Qingchuan took out a bag of turmeric he was carrying and spread it out in front of him.

"Village head, you must have heard these past few months that Shui Sheng and I planted turmeric this season. Why don't you take a look at the turmeric and see how it is?"

The village head raised his eyebrows slightly, his eyes full of surprise. He reached out, picked up a piece, examined it carefully, and then smelled it.

"Qingchuan, this turmeric looks just like ginger at first glance, but you can tell the difference if you look closely. It smells different too, and it's bigger than ginger, with fewer branches. What price can this turmeric fetch?"

When Lin Qingchuan saw the village head asking about the price, he immediately felt confident. He quickly said, "Village head, the difference between turmeric and ginger is not just what it seems. Let me tell you the truth: turmeric is actually a medicine for stopping bleeding and healing wounds. Shuisheng and I bought some from Feng's Pharmacy. One tael of turmeric can sell for one wen and nine fen."

The village head was stunned. He quickly calculated in his mind that one tael of turmeric could sell for one wen and nine fen, and one jin of turmeric could sell for nineteen wen. The newly harvested rice from the villagers only sold for eleven or twelve wen per jin of refined rice. That's a difference of seven or eight wen per jin. Turmeric is more valuable than grain!

He suppressed his excitement and immediately asked, "Qingchuan, turmeric is more expensive than polished rice. Can an acre of turmeric yield more than rice?"

If turmeric yields higher than rice, then such a high price is certainly worthwhile. However, if turmeric yields lower than rice, then the high price alone warrants careful consideration and comparison.

Shuisheng, eager to speak, said, "It yields more, more than rice! Village head, Brother Qingchuan started planting turmeric last season. Back then, he didn't have enough turmeric seeds, so he planted half an acre among the corn, so none of us knew. Before this season's planting, he had extra turmeric seeds and shared some with me. Our two families planted together. Others may not know the harvest, but I know it very well. An acre of rice yields at most 200 jin, while an acre of turmeric can yield 500 to 600 jin. Not to mention the price difference, the yield weight alone is two to three times different. Planting turmeric is the most cost-effective thing."

The village head was so shocked that his mouth dropped open. Even his sons, upon hearing this, dropped their sticks and ran over to sit around the table.

The eldest son, Shen Che, was excited. "Brother Qingchuan, Shuisheng, is what you're saying true? Can turmeric really have such a high yield? Not only is the price much higher than rice, but the yield is also two or three times higher. It's so profitable! We'll take care of the planting, we really will!"

The second brother quickly chimed in, "That's right, high yield and more money to be made. Such a good deal is hard to find even with a lantern."

The village head came to his senses and looked at Shen Qingchuan with a half-believing and half-doubting expression, asking him for confirmation with a serious look, "Qingchuan, is what Shuisheng said true? You didn't lie to me, did you?"

Lin Qingchuan said, "Village head, we are telling the truth. We are not lying to you. We villagers rely on farming to make a living. The land is our life. How can we joke about everyone's lives?"

The village headman grinned instantly, his emotions running high. "My God, if what you're saying is true, and our Guihua Village grows turmeric from now on, won't our village become rich?"

His sons nodded in unison like chicks pecking at rice, all extremely excited.

Shen Che grinned so wide his mouth almost reached his ears. "Dad, since growing turmeric is more profitable, let's grow turmeric next season too. It's a good thing that Brother Qingchuan and Shuisheng came in time. This season's grain has just been harvested, and the fields haven't been plowed and planted yet. If we plant it now, we'll have to wait another season."

The village head nodded in agreement, but he still had doubts in his heart.

"Qingchuan, Shuisheng, since growing turmeric is so profitable, why did you two suddenly come to tell me?"

Lin Qingchuan laughed and said, "Village head, you want to ask me why I don't make money quietly, but instead tell everyone so that they can know, right?"

Li Zheng blushed slightly and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Yes, we country folk are poor. If others have a way to make money, they try to keep it a secret, afraid that everyone will find out. But you two are different. You actually came all the way here to tell me. Don't overthink it, I just haven't... I haven't planted it yet. Just listening to you two talk about it makes me really unsure."

Shui Sheng continued, "Uncle, Qingchuan and I have already been to Feng's Pharmacy. We each sold a sackful. This is true. If you're unsure, you can go to Feng's Pharmacy and ask for yourself. It's 1.91 taels of silver. We definitely won't lie to you."

The village head felt a little relieved. Since the two children had already gone to Feng's Pharmacy to sell their medicine, he could indeed take his son to inquire. If the situation was true, he could consider planting one or two acres next season to try it out.

Once you actually plant them yourself, you'll be able to verify just how much yield you can achieve.

Seeing that the village head remained silent, Shui Sheng immediately pressed, "Uncle, what's your decision? Will you plant turmeric next season?"