Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest

Chapter 49 - 49 18 At the Time, I Thought It Was Just Ordinary

?49: Chapter 18: At the Time, I Thought It Was Just Ordinary 49: Chapter 18: At the Time, I Thought It Was Just Ordinary “Today marked Roman’s thirtieth day in Sige Town.

Sige Town was greeted by a heavy rain.

In the past month, there had been three or four rain showers in this land, but those were light rains, only enough to dampen the ground, with little impact on farming and labor, which was within Roman’s acceptable range.

Farmers were used to working in the rain.

But today’s downpour was substantial, covering the entire world in a layer of misty water haze.

The continuous spring rain, as fine as flower needles and cow hair, was dense and persistent.

It had been raining for half a day with no sign of letting up.

Roman enjoyed a rare chance to sleep in.

For the past month, he hadn’t rested at all; his daily schedule had been packed.

If he wasn’t tilling the land, he was chopping trees, or cutting vegetables, an enormous amount of labor that kept him thoroughly engaged, making him feel as if he had endless energy.

However, it was only an illusion; this body of flesh and blood still needed rest eventually.

When Roman woke up, he did a quick rinse and headed straight to the hall.

Today’s lunch menu included baked cod, roast suckling pig, stewed wild rabbit, buttered bread, onion soup, cheese, and dried fruits.

Aaron and Green sat in their chairs, looking bored, with little appetite.

The continuous drizzle affected them too, and unusually, they hadn’t exercised or practiced martial skills.

Gwivelle, however, was not influenced by the environment.

She stood on her tiptoes, stretching her little arms to rip the crispy, charred skin off the suckling pig.

Aaron quietly pushed the large plate of roast suckling pig towards her, finally allowing Gwivelle to grab it.

She ripped off a large piece of crispy skin, narrowing her eyes and eating it with delight.

Seeing Roman approaching, this girl immediately ran over and offered the crispy pig skin in her hand as if presenting a treasure.

Roman merely patted her head, sat in the main seat, picked up a piece of buttered bread, and stuffed it into his mouth.

He handed a glass of milk to Gwivelle beside him, “Drink more milk.”

Gwivelle nodded, picked up the milk cup, and took small sips.

Roman had planned to improve his “Breeding” skill.

Breeding was the main approach to increasing the production of meat, eggs, and milk.

The Moor family owned two dairy cows.

After Roman arrived, Moor quickly delivered a large amount of wheat and other supplementary food to Origin Manor, along with a dairy cow and livestock like pigs and sheep, which was why Origin Manor didn’t lack milk.

But in Roman’s view, just meeting the needs of a few people couldn’t be considered not lacking in milk.

Improving the “Breeding” skill was not difficult; it only required feeding the cattle and sheep with pasture and tending to their daily lives.

However, “Breeding” and “Planting” were both long-term industries, which wouldn’t produce immediate results and needed a long time to develop.

Roman was currently short of funds.

He needed to acquire a large amount of money quickly.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to continue drawing cakes for those ignorant people.

He estimated that based on the infrastructure speed, it would take at least half a month to level the road before beginning the extraction of rock salt and refining salt.

The road reinforcement work would not be completed until two months later.

The lime produced now was far from enough to pave this road.

Roman had no choice but to find other ways to bridge the financial gap during this period and also keep himself busy.

After lunch, Roman gave the leftovers to the male slaves and maids.

Then he said to Aaron and Green, “If you have nothing to do now, come over and help me with something.”

Green commented, “You really can’t stay idle for a moment.”

He had thought the spring rain would dampen some of Roman’s enthusiasm.

“It’s very simple.”

Roman took the two of them and gathered all the containers they could find, then fetched several hundred pounds of wheat from the granary.

He placed the wheat in wooden basins and barrels for washing and soaking.

“Lord Roman, what are you doing?” Gwivelle bent over, resting her hands on her knees, looking curiously at Roman’s actions.

Roman laughed, “Making something to eat.”

“Can I eat it?”

Roman replied with a smile, “Depends on how you behave.”

“Then I’ll help…” Gwivelle said, and suddenly slipped, bumping right into Aaron, who was squatting to wash the wheat.

Aaron, squatting on his toes, was struck in the back, causing his knees to hit the ground, and he plunged headfirst into the wooden barrel, splashing water all over Roman.

Green moved to distance himself but inadvertently kicked a wooden basin that popped up and hit his knee, catching him off guard and causing him to fall backward.

Plop!

Gurgle~

The wooden basin spun around and then clattered to the ground.

The atmosphere in this place instantly froze.

Gwivelle looked at the series of mishaps she triggered, too scared to move, showing a look of tension and fear.

She glanced at Roman with a guilty expression.

Roman tried to keep a straight face as he said, “…Well done, taking down three knights easily.

I’ll reward you with candy in a few days!”

He didn’t intend to laugh.

But seeing Aaron pull his head out of the barrel, his hair covered in water droplets and grains of wheat, and Green posing like a toad on its back, Roman couldn’t help it, and burst into laughter.

“Hahahaha!”

Green sat up from the muddy ground and seeing how embarrassed they all looked, he first chuckled, then joined in the laughter.

Aaron tried to maintain a serious and composed face, suppressing his trembling shoulders, but in the end, he failed and had to laugh along.

They seemed like three silly clowns, but inside, there was only joy and comfort.

Outside, the drizzle continued, slanting across the sky, but from this granary came hearty laughter that carried far away, dissipating in the swaying wind and rain…

No matter how many years passed, Gwivelle remembered that spring rain and those laughs.

*All the panic and fear silently vanished, and she couldn’t help but curl the corners of her mouth and smile along.*

…

The spring rain was astoundingly persistent.

After three full days, it finally cleared, and the air was fresh and invigorating.

This spring rain brought a strong vitality to the land, soaking the soil, with plants thriving vigorously, and the fields’ crops changing daily, nourished by the fertilizer.

Seven days later.

Roman poured the filtered, somewhat turbid syrup into a large iron pot.

Gwivelle continued to throw firewood into the stove, while Roman constantly stirred the concoction in the pot; the syrup simmering for nearly two hours.

Finally, a thick, pasty substance gradually took shape.

Roman used a wooden spoon to store the paste into wooden barrels prepared in advance.

Then came the second batch… the third batch… the fourth batch…

On this day, the air over half of Origin Manor was filled with a rich and pleasant aroma.

Roman used two to three hundred pounds of malt and several hundred pounds of barley starch, ultimately boiling down more than six hundred pounds of maltose in large pots, storing them in twenty 30-pound wooden barrels.

The remaining maltose amounted to several dozen pounds, which he preserved separately for Origin Manor’s use.

When cooled naturally, the maltose, initially somewhat runny, became thick and viscous.”