"With a plan, things will be simple. As long as you can do this business well, I believe it won't take long for all the people in this entire Neihuang County to be grateful to you!"
"Your Excellency is joking. I'm just a merchant, how can I be called grateful..."
Praised by Han Mo like this, even Feng Yuanbao felt a bit embarrassed.
"You don't need to be modest about this. Have you calculated how many mushrooms an acre of garden can yield?"
Since a method for large-scale cultivation had been found, Han Mo's primary concern was now yield and price.
For ordinary people, the taxes in the Great Song Dynasty were primarily the summer and autumn taxes. The summer tax mainly targeted wheat, while the autumn tax targeted rice and millet.
Following this were the exemption fees collected by the imperial court, and in the past few years, various miscellaneous taxes levied specifically to maintain high military expenditures.
As for the common folk in the city, the commercial taxes they needed to pay were more complex.
However, regardless of the type of citizen, at this time, they were all struggling on the brink of poverty.
Perhaps those with better family circumstances could afford to go a few fewer meals hungry.
For those with poor family backgrounds, or if someone in the family was ill, the entire family might have to eat wild vegetables...
Of course, even under such a stringent taxation system, growing vegetables at home to supplement family expenses was, by regulation, not subject to taxation.
However, this situation had a limitation: it could only be done within one's own courtyard, not in a vegetable plot.
The tax revenue in Hebei Road had been increasing year by year. The people of Neihuang County as a whole were now truly suffering from hunger and cold.
Why else would Han Mo have them do this if not to find a way for them to make a living?
If the yield of this item couldn't be increased, its practical application would be of little significance.
"Based on the few hundred seedlings from before, in this weather, it takes about ten to twenty days for a harvest. Calculated per mu of garden, each harvest yields about one hundred to one hundred and twenty catties!"
"One hundred to one hundred and twenty catties?"
Upon hearing this, Han Mo immediately began to calculate silently.
An acre of garden yielding a hundred to a hundred and twenty catties each harvest, and assuming each oyster mushroom plant can be harvested four times, that would be about four to five hundred catties.
Even taking the lowest estimate of four hundred catties, at a price of eighty wen per catty, that would be close to thirty-odd strings of cash!
Han Mo's eyes lit up. If it was like this, this business was indeed feasible.
"I will handle the production issues for you, and I will mobilize the people. As we discussed before, each household that agrees to plant will receive four strings of cash in advance. As for sales, do you have any leads on that now?"
After all, this item was a fresh product and could not be stored for too long. Otherwise, in the current weather, it would spoil completely within three days at most.
The most crucial aspect at this time was naturally the sales problem.
"That should be manageable, but there are some official channels involved..."
Having spent so much time in Bianliang City, Feng Yuanbao naturally had good relationships with the Seventy-Two Main Restaurants.
Mushrooms were already highly favored in the Great Song Dynasty.
If this item could truly be delivered to Bianliang City, as long as the government didn't set up checkpoints along the way, it would hardly be enough for the million strong military and civilians in Bianliang City.
If each of the Seventy-Two Main Restaurants took some, along with the numerous smaller and medium-sized eateries, even more of this item wouldn't be enough to feed the million strong military and civilians.
"Official channels?"
Seeing his troubled expression, Han Mo immediately understood. After all, he himself could not appear in Bianliang City, and dealing with bribes was indeed a bit troublesome.
"Which part are you referring to? Is the commendation from Grand Commandant Liang sufficient?"
Regarding the livelihood of the people of a county, Han Mo naturally asked directly.
"Sufficient, sufficient, of course! If Grand Commandant Liang can be persuaded, with just a word from him, the passage along the way will naturally be smooth!"
"Then I'll take care of this matter as well. However, I have just one request: regardless of whether you make a profit or a loss on this business, the people's money must not be delayed!"
Although Han Mo knew that this fellow shouldn't dare to play tricks on him at this time, he still stated the unpleasant truth upfront.
"Your Excellency, rest assured. As long as they grow this item, I can directly pay in advance at a price of one hundred wen per catty. I will absolutely not let them lose money!" Feng Yuanbao quickly said upon hearing Han Mo.
"I'm relieved to hear you say that. Then, let's proceed as you wish! I will write a letter to Grand Commandant Liang upon my return. It will take at most 10 days, and I will definitely get this commendation for you!"
"Thank you, Your Excellency!"
With Han Mo's assurance again, Feng Yuanbao became excited.
A portion of his business originally involved fresh fruits, so Han Mo didn't delve further into the intermediate transportation routes and methods.
He was only concerned with the potential problems during specific planting and their solutions.
He had initially thought these matters might stump him, but unexpectedly, the old farmers he had hired with great expense were able to answer each of them.
Although there had been no actual experiments, Han Mo was not sure if their proposed methods would work.
However, seeing their confident demeanor, Han Mo was already 80% convinced.
After all, everything these people had learned was summed up from practice.
After chatting for over two hours, Han Mo finally returned to his carriage, fully satisfied.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something wrong with me today?"
While in the courtyard, Han Mo's mind was entirely on the old farmers and Feng Yuanbao, so he naturally hadn't noticed Lü Ying's strangeness.
But upon returning to the carriage, he realized that this young man had been staring at him all day, and his expression was indeed very peculiar.
"Your Excellency, you seem different from other county magistrates..."
Lü Ying hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Oh, how am I different? Aren't we all just two shoulders supporting one head?" Han Mo said with a light chuckle.
"Among all the officials I know, only Your Excellency truly cares about these common people..."
Lü Ying said this with a wry smile. It was indeed ironic.
For the sake of the common people of the world, for the ancestors and the empire,
These words were basically on the lips of those high-ranking officials every day. However, among all those in court wearing purple robes, which one was truly working for these causes?