Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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Another girl was also staring at Xiao Shiliu.

After saying that, the two of them passed by the five people on this side without saying another word.

All five of them were taken aback. Height, appearance, and even strength were secondary. What really surprised them was that Mandarin accent. Not to mention foreigners, many Chinese people don't speak Mandarin so fluently. For example, Bai Yang in their group spoke with a slight Cantonese accent.

The foreigner and the girl who walked past were naturally Astrid and Yang Nian. The reason Astrid glanced at Little Sixteen a few more times was because this little girl was a Destiny Transformation type, as was her good friend Ina, and her goal to surpass Aunt Dinia. She was too familiar with this kind of aura.

As for Yang Nian, she thought of her deceased adoptive mother, Yang Huaien, who was also a member of the Transformation System.

After this little incident, the five of them went into the teahouse and went up to the second floor.

We ordered quite a few sweet and soft dishes, which the kids love.

This is also one of the important reasons why Guo Hanlu chose a teahouse; she also has a five-year-old daughter to take care of.

The tea wasn't particularly good, but it wasn't bad either. The snacks weren't exactly exquisite, but they had a unique flavor and tasted quite good.

That's to be expected. Teahouses themselves evolved from street-side tea shops. They started by selling tea, and later, I don't know who first started selling snacks to small vendors, errand runners, and artisans. These people valued cost-effectiveness; the food couldn't be too expensive and it had to taste good. Later, everyone followed suit, and now we have these large teahouses. Some businessmen with some wealth will meet at teahouses to discuss business.

Chapter 939 The “Former” Grain-Growing Area, That Brat, Is He Really Going to Rebel?

Unlike Ronan's original timeline, in this world and in this era, the Pearl River Delta is still Guangdong's main grain-producing area. In Ronan's original timeline, the Pearl River Delta was an economic center, grain-producing? Don't be ridiculous.

At that time, the main grain-producing areas in Guangdong were Maoming in the southwest and Meizhou in the northeast.

In that era, Shunde was still a land of fish and rice. Hundreds of years later, the fish were still acceptable, but the rice was not. At that time, Shunde's grain output was among the lowest in all districts and counties of Guangdong.

At this moment, Guo Mingli, Guo Hanlu, Xiao Shiliu, Bai Yang, and Dong Liu are on their way to Shunde.

The reason is simple: Shunde has the only pilot farmers' association in the area.

The pilot program was chosen here because Foshan is Luonan's stronghold, and Wang Pingzhen, who is in charge of the Farmers' Association Bank, was originally the head of the Agricultural Administration Department. In Shunde, his word was law.

"Unfortunately, those merchants didn't know where the farmers' association's office was either," Guo Mingli sighed.

The matter of the farmers' association was also a hot topic among the merchants in the teahouse. They had overheard the conversation at the next table and went over to ask. However, those merchants were not very clear about it either, and even the fact that the pilot program was arranged in Shunde was already inside information.

Guo Hanlu didn't take it seriously, "Why don't we just ask the locals?"

“I’ll ask him then, but you all shouldn’t speak up yet, Wangshan Gong,” Bai Yang said.

Unlike city dwellers who can communicate with merchants from both the north and south and understand Mandarin, farmers only understand Cantonese. Moreover, they are especially wary of outsiders, so only a local like him can handle things.

If Guo Mingli and his group were to speak, the local farmers, upon hearing that they were outsiders, would likely turn around and report them to the authorities, and they would be surrounded in no time.

After resting for a night, the group arrived in Shunde County the next day. Since the farmers' association was not in the county seat, the group went to the town instead. Once in the town, they did not ask around. After looking around, they found no government-looking buildings and went down to the countryside. Soon, they arrived at the village that was part of the pilot program.

Guo Mingli and the others stayed outside, while Bai Yang went alone to ask the locals for information.

It's late April now, which is also the busy farming season.

Because Foshan, Guangdong has been growing double-cropping rice for a long time. It is sown at the end of March and harvested at the end of July. After the harvest, the land is immediately plowed and then late rice is planted. It is harvested again in November. The yield of double-cropping rice is not as high as that of single-cropping rice, but the total yield is much higher.

With the Haidi people's already highly advanced breeding techniques, and the support of the Ship Country's centuries-old indoor agricultural black technology, after a year of research and experimentation...

Last year, the new rice variety was officially promoted.

In Shunde, one mu of paddy field can now yield 1,000 jin of double-cropping rice a year, which is an incredible number, almost double the yield of the past. It's only because Luo Nan was a foreigner that a shrine was erected in his honor.

Besides these, some fields are used for wheat and soybean rotation. Although the climate and soil in Guangdong are not very suitable, these are newly cultivated fields that are not ideal for rice cultivation, so having something to grow is better than nothing. In some slightly less suitable areas, corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes are grown.

The key point is that Ronan also lowered the tax rate. Although the tax rate is lower, the amount of tax paid is still much higher than before.

It's fair to say that in the nearly three years since Ronan arrived, Shunde has truly become a land of plenty.

Of course, the farmers didn't know that many years later, much of their land would be converted into commercial and industrial land.

"Uh, kid, can you stop talking about how big the rice ears are, what Lord Wang, Mr. Luo, and corn and potatoes? Talk about the farmers' association." Bai Yang finally couldn't help but interrupt the dark-skinned little boy in front of him.

This little boy came to help with the work, but he was intercepted by Bai Yang on the way. That's how it is in the countryside; once a boy is seven or eight years old and has a little strength, he can't be idle anymore.

The little boy looked puzzled. "But roasted potatoes are really delicious! Sweet potatoes are good too, and you can even feed pigs sweet potato vines."

"Talk about the farmers' association, talk about the farmers' association, and I'll give you candy." Bai Yang tried to tempt you.

“If you didn’t have candy, you would have taken it out already,” the little boy said.

"You..." Bai Yang was both angry and amused.

“I’d rather die than tell you. I’m telling you, my family has joined the farmers’ association. We’re not farming for the landlords anymore, we’re farming for the government.” The child said. He didn’t understand the farmers’ association and thought it was the government, the government under the rule of a just and upright official. “I just gave the signal. Even if you kill me, you won’t get away. The officials will avenge me. That golden-haired foreign woman, one of her can beat ten of you, no, a hundred.”

After saying that, the child pretended to pick his nose, but his hand was shaking.

Bai Yang sighed. He knew the child was bluffing, but could he really use tricks on a mere mortal child?

In the blink of an eye, Bai Yang had disappeared without a trace.

The little boy collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. He hadn't given a signal and didn't know Elena. He was known for his boldness and cleverness, but he was still just a child. Thinking back, he felt a chill of fear, a deep fear. He didn't know where he got the courage to fool that person who could have easily killed him with a single finger. His linen clothes were soaked with sweat.

However, he was not an ordinary farm boy who lacked knowledge. He had already been to school for a year and had successfully entered the second grade. It was at that time that Elena, this foreign woman, came and brought each of them a bucket of soybean oil and a large jar of salt. That was oil and salt.

Getting into the second grade was no easy feat. The school, which offered free lunches, eliminated two-thirds of the students in each grade. The course lasted three years and only taught literacy and arithmetic. Out of a hundred students, only ten would graduate. He was determined to graduate from primary school, then go on to secondary school, and eventually become a manager in the farmers' association.

Outside the village, Guo Mingli listened to the report and couldn't help stroking his three long strands of beard. "Ronan is truly an extraordinary man."

“He also relied on that magical seed, and besides, that kid might be bragging,” Bai Yang said.

“Why would a farm boy like him boast about increasing yield per mu? Does he want to pay more taxes?” Guo Hanlu thought it was impossible.

Guo Mingli wasn't concerned about that. "What I'm saying is that Ronan has only been here for two or three years, and he has already organized the farmers here."

"To be able to gather cattle and horses like this, it seems they're really planning a rebellion," Dong Liu interjected.

The consensus among most extraordinary individuals is that mortals are inferior to cattle or horses, or even less than cattle or horses.

But no matter how much you mess with your cattle and horses, they will still eat grass, have calves, and stay in the pen. But it's different for people. People can stop having calves and will try to run to someone else's pen.

Thanks to the absolute military suppression of superhumans, this world has never seen any large-scale peasant uprisings. However, mortals are thinking animals; if oppressed to the point of having no way to survive, they will either simply self-destruct or try every means to seek refuge with others. Therefore, every few hundred years, there will always be superhumans leading a group of superhumans and countless ants in rebellion.

"Wangshan Gong, what should we do next?" Bai Yang asked.

Guo Mingli put his hands behind his back and replied, "Let's go back to town and stay there first, and observe the situation. Although that child was bluffing, he might still alert the farmers' association. If someone comes looking for us, we'll react accordingly. If no one comes looking for us, we'll investigate again tomorrow."

Chapter 940 It's just around the corner. To find out about the farmers' association, you can go to Elena.

Back in town, Guo Mingli and his group checked into a hotel.

Staying at a post station was of course impossible; they were pretending to be merchants. Only civil servants could stay at post stations, and besides, the conditions at small rural post stations were very poor.

Only major post stations at key points along official roads offered excellent service.

Originally, they didn't want to stay in a hotel and preferred to camp outside. Who knew that there was such a "luxury" hotel in the town? Compared to other crowded and noisy hotels, this hotel was very spacious and clean. These two points alone made it a luxury hotel in the town.

No one came looking for them that night, but Guo Mingli and his companions had mixed feelings because they had unexpectedly learned some news while chatting with the hotel staff.

It turns out that the Farmers' Association's office was located in this town. They had seen it before; it was a row of small bungalows in the middle of the town, between two main roads. Apart from being a bit cleaner and tidier, it didn't look much different from the houses of the surrounding townspeople, and there wasn't even a signboard hanging outside.

It's true that you can't find anything without wearing iron shoes, and it doesn't take any effort to get it.

It's truly unexpected that the Farmers' Association, which has driven veteran brokers in Guangzhou to such frenzy to join and has been the subject of much discussion among businessmen, has such a rudimentary office.

"Let alone extraordinary individuals, would even an educated mortal really want to work in this place?" Coachman Dong Liu couldn't help but wonder.

This town isn't small, and it has some shops, but its conditions are far worse than those of the county seat, let alone compared to Guangzhou and Guangzhou.

“As long as there is a future and money, people will definitely be willing to come,” Bai Yang said. “Moreover, in the future, many of the people in charge of the farmers’ association will be farmers themselves.”

"How so?" Guo Mingli asked.

“Wangshan Gong, I was confused before. That child spoke very fluently, with a string of words, which is definitely not the behavior of a farm child who has never been to school,” Bai Yang said. No matter how clever and quick-witted a farm child is, if he has never been to school, he cannot speak so fluently. He must have come into contact with educated people, and not some proper scholars.

Bai Yang guessed correctly. The people who came to teach the rural children were all "white paper fans" (a derogatory term for corrupt officials) in the dock gangs. Could they be decent people?

This was Ronan's deliberate act. If the managers of the farmers' association were only cultured, but not cunning or ruthless enough, how could they manage the farmers and make them obedient? Did they really think the farmers were simple and honest? How could they be qualified to collude with the association bosses who were originally large landowners and oppose the wealthy merchants and the government?

Those who successfully graduate from elementary school and enter secondary school for further study will be given extraordinary talents by Ronan, making them extraordinary individuals.

"I'll see if I can get in touch with the farmers' association tomorrow and ask them for some information."

Guo Mingli stroked his beard as he spoke.

The next day, Guo Mingli took Bai Yang directly to the Farmers' Association office. After registering and checking, the two were allowed to enter smoothly. Bai Yang claimed to be Guo Mingli's subordinate, while Guo Mingli was a wealthy merchant from the north. They had originally come to Foshan to buy some iron pots to sell, but they happened to hear from Foshan merchants that there was a good type of soybean there, so they came specifically to ask if they could sell some of the improved seeds to them.

Actually, it wasn't something Bai Yang heard from the merchant, but rather something the child told him yesterday. Bai Yang was quite quick-witted, so he simply made up this excuse.

"Not for sale." The person in charge refused decisively and clearly.

“We can get a lot of cheap salt,” Bai Yang said. Of course, this was nonsense, but they hadn’t intended to do business; they just wanted to take the opportunity to find out more about the farmers’ association.

The manager laughed directly, "It seems you really are northerners. We in Guangdong have no shortage of salt, and the price of salt is very cheap. In the south, we have sea salt from Qiongzhou and sea salt from Fujian."

During the previous dynasty, the salt-making technology was already quite advanced. Hundreds of years ago, the brine-leaching and salt-making techniques required boiling, but now, by making full use of sunlight, the consumption of firewood has been eliminated.

Qiongzhou is sunny and an island, which makes it very convenient. There are no salt merchants in Qiongzhou who dare to raise prices, so there is cheap salt available in Guangdong.

“We can also offer silver, a lot of silver.” As Bai Yang spoke, he deliberately winked, implying to the other party that he could give him benefits privately.

"Not for sale," the manager said, repeating the same thing.

First of all, he didn't want to do that kind of thing. He had a bright future ahead of him, and if he did well, he might one day gain talent and become an extraordinary person.

Moreover, the farmers' association has a very strict supervision and reporting mechanism.

More importantly, he couldn't sell them even if he wanted to, because the cultivation techniques for those seeds were entirely in the hands of a special group of foreign devils. Weren't there people who used their superhuman strength to come and steal seeds, or who used money to get farmers to sell them seeds privately? Of course there were, but not so many. The seeds they got wouldn't be good after a generation or two.

"Fine, then don't sell. But what's the deal with this farmers' association? I've never seen anything like it anywhere else."

As Bai Yang spoke, he unconsciously sat down.

He was just there to chat and get information out of people.

"So that's what you wanted to ask after all this time." The person in charge smiled. "Well, I'm not afraid to tell you..." He then began to talk about the farmers' association.

Lord Wang instructed that if anyone inquired about the system of the farmers' association, they should feel free to ask.

This is actually Ronan's point: can farmers' associations be learned so easily?

First, we need technology to use fertilizers and improved varieties to increase crop yields. If crop yields are insufficient, farmers will have difficulty even feeding themselves, so how can we talk about agricultural commercialization?

Secondly, there must be banks to expand the market using "debt" as a means of commercializing agriculture, which will then promote the emergence of industry. Otherwise, such commercialization will not only harm farmers at the bottom of society, but will also be of no benefit to the economy.

Even if you learn it, so what?

Ronan was eager for everyone to follow his example; if they followed the peasant association, they would be rebels on the same side as him.

In the past, the so-called imperial power did not extend to the countryside. The central government actually delegated power to the countryside, but it was not in name only. However, the peasant association system delegated power in name only. Moreover, it did not distribute the power to individual villages, but rather united the villages together to form a force that could negotiate with large merchant guilds and even the government.

This is no longer an ordinary rebellion; it's an attempt to overthrow the system that has existed for the past thousand years.

Anyone who learns from Ronan is helping Ronan.

"...That's about all I know. The most important thing in our farmers' association is that bank, but I don't know much about it," the manager said. He was just an executor and didn't know much about farming, let alone banking.

"Besides that Lord Wang, who else knows about banking?" Bai Yang asked, casually taking out some silver. "We'd like to try our hand at this business too."

The steward waved his hand and refused the money, but replied, "Of course it's Mr. Luo's concubine, that Mrs. Elena." He wasn't exactly greedy; he was just deliberately instigating these suspicious people to provoke Elena. If these guys really weren't good people, he might get credit for it later.

"Where can I see her?" Bai Yang asked again.

"I heard she's at that temple in Foshan, but judging by the dates, she should be coming to the farmers' association in a couple of days," the manager replied.

"Thanks, buddy," Bai Yang said, expressing his gratitude.

"You're welcome," the manager thought to himself. "I should be thanking you."

Chapter 941 "Transformation," "Education," Let's have some fun!

Foshan has a history dating back to a thousand years ago when a foreign Buddhist monk named Sanzang came here and built a temple. The temple was later abandoned. Several hundred years ago, during the reign of Emperor Qianlong, Buddhism flourished. People dug up the ruins and rebuilt the temple, which is how Foshan got its name.

The name Foshan truly became widely known during this dynasty. In the early years of the dynasty, due to the need to support naval logistics, a piece of land was carved out from Nanhai County to establish the Foshan Coastal Defense Sub-Prefecture. This temporary military logistics department later became a special administrative agency, even governing several surrounding counties and becoming a special zone. The official in charge was a Tongzhi, a fifth-rank official, above the county magistrate and below the governor.

Bai Yang recounted the history all the way until they were almost at their destination before finally stopping.

Sanyuan Temple, originally built in the previous dynasty, is an ancient temple with a history of more than two hundred years. The lady they wanted to visit was here.

Elena was discussing the use of human resources with the abbot at that moment.

Luo Nan has been in Foshan for several years, implementing numerous new policies and measures. Although he's always been adept at creating a vested interest group to fight against the old forces, there are always some die-hards within those old forces. Can a new policy truly be considered a new policy if it doesn't face opposition?

Later, when all else failed, Ronan had no choice but to physically destroy them. But as the leader of the old forces, he naturally had no shortage of followers.

Ronan was always a man who respected the law, but he lacked the legal means to deal with these lackeys.

Therefore, the only option was to have these people undergo labor reform in temples—or rather, to repent.

In the Buddhist temple, besides the monks, there are many non-mainstream extraordinary individuals. Suppressing them is more than enough. Among these vassals are also extraordinary individuals, whose labor capacity is truly outstanding.

At this moment, Elena was discussing with the abbot that recently there had been more people, and they wanted to get these people to work in the mines.