Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest-Chapter 289 - 25: Can’t Afford to Gamble

Every summer, this place would be greeted by torrential rains.

But that was a good thing.

If there were no rain in summer and more rain in winter, with the hot and rainy seasons not coinciding, that was what truly caused Roman a headache, as no matter what was planted, the yield would not be high.

According to Moor, the torrential rains in previous years would only last intermittently for a day or two.

Last year, there were only two instances of torrential rain.

That was even better.

It brought enough moisture while not destroying the crops.

Roman stood in front of the manor’s great hall, staring at the storm clouds in the sky, as huge raindrops pattered down.

The rain was pouring!

Roman felt a sense of unease.

Because there would be torrential rain tomorrow as well.

He had spent months developing the marsh, but only reclaimed a few hundred acres of land, most of the labor having gone into the construction of a good drainage system to cope with the torrential rains.

There should be no problem!

Roman told himself this in his heart.

He was different from before; in the past, he would pace back and forth during torrential rains, somewhat indecisive.

But now, with Origin City having a foundation, a torrential rain should not be taken into account by him, it couldn’t shake his foundation.

Just to be safe.

Roman, wearing a raincoat, went to check the situation on the rice fields.

Countless raindrops slammed into the accumulated water, kicking up thick mist, rendering visibility very low.

From a distance, Roman saw the Ministry of Agriculture’s team braving the rain to drain the water.

He had taken the Agricultural Officer with him, tirelessly teaching the rice planting methods, using the power of the Blue Gemstone to instill the knowledge, so the Officer had caught on immediately.

But for the others, this was their first time planting rice.

Previously unheard of, how could they know how to plant this thing? Each of them could only follow the Steward’s instructions to work.

The grand master had put a lot of effort into planting rice, saying that rice would yield even higher than wheat in the future.

Therefore, no one questioned it, and all were secretly looking forward to it.

The grand master was always right.

"Master, why have you come?" Covered in a raincoat, the Agricultural Officer Moor came to meet Roman.

"Checking on the situation."

"You can rest assured, we will stay here until the torrential rain stops, the crops in the fields won’t suffer any damage..." Moor said obsequiously, rubbing his hands.

"Ensure the drainage work is done well," Roman instructed.

Moor always took his words seriously, wiped the rain from his forehead, and followed him around for half the day.

Roman only returned after ensuring everything was fine.

He had taken a day off today.

In the afternoon, the rain subsided.

By evening, it started raining again.

Roman did not dislike rain, but he disliked not being able to do anything.

He listened to the rain outside the window as he fell asleep, hoping the heavy rain would pass quickly.

...

After some time had passed, the sound of the rain still drizzled outside.

Roman awoke from his dreams.

His biological clock was very regular, usually getting up at five o’clock.

The first thing he did every day upon waking was to check the weather for the next day, to facilitate the arrangement of Origin City’s work tasks.

Then, Roman’s pupils shrank suddenly, and the remnants of sleepiness vanished in an instant.

He bounced up from the bed.

Grabbing his clothes in the dimly lit room, he rushed out of the room, dressing as he went.

"Seth!!"

Roman’s voice startled half of the manor.

Soon, many maids and manservants were awake.

The old deacon, Seth, appeared in front of Roman remarkably quickly, his gray hair unusually disheveled, not having been properly combed.

He was clearly startled awake.

"Master, what’s the matter?"

"Flooding may be coming! Follow me, we need to find people to fight the flood!" Roman said.

...

Twenty minutes later.

Several horses dashed out of the manor, galloping in all directions, issuing a call to arms throughout Origin City.

By this time, dawn should have broken, but the sky remained a chaotic blur. freeweɓnovel.cøm

The drizzle had gradually turned into a heavy downpour.

For the various residence points in Origin City, this was supposed to be the most leisurely time.

They had not received notice to resume work, so they had nothing to worry about.

But when the urgent hoofbeats came from the stone pavement, even the heavy rain could not hide the swift passing figures.

Like some kind of signal, it swiftly awoke one residence after another.

And then one person after another stepped out from their residences.

...

Two hours later.

Hundreds of laborers had been assembled.

More people kept arriving in waves.

Most of them looked bewildered, unable to understand what was happening, creating a noisy confusion all around.

Each residential area was like a small village with something similar to a village head acting as a proxy. They held no real power but were salaried, mainly serving to assist in public management, usually taken by those who were physically strong or of high moral standing.

Roman gathered the administrative officers to explain the current situation, which was simple and easy to understand now.

The administrative staff then relayed the information to the village heads of each residential area.

And the district chiefs of those residential areas began to clarify the situation to the farmers.

The message cascaded from level to level, quickly reaching everyone.

Under the rain, the farmers heard the unsettling news, showing a mix of emotions: bewilderment, surprise, doubt, fear, anxiety, and lament...

But they had no time to think too much about it now.

...

Things were different now than before.

Sige Town used to have fewer than two thousand people, guarding tens of thousands of acres of cultivated land. If there was a heavy rainstorm, some of that cultivated land would flood, but that was the extent of it.

Moreover, the reduction in production wouldn’t be too severe.

That standing water would not take long to dissipate.

They could grit their teeth and tighten their belts; they’d get through it eventually.

In the past two years, Roman had not taken the rainstorms seriously either.

Although he wanted to build irrigation systems, any such project had to proceed step by step.

Besides, the area of cultivation used to be smaller, merely ten to twenty thousand acres, and according to past experiences, heavy rain was supposed to pose no significant threat to him.

This year, the effective cultivated land area of Origin City had doubled.

Though it totaled only thirty to forty thousand acres, the rainstorms had become more violent.

Roman was like a cat with its fur puffed up in agitation.

Against natural disasters, without proper organization, tools, or flood control methods, it meant having no response plan at all.

In such a backward social organization, even if the rainstorms toughened you up, you still had to endure them.

But could Roman endure this?

To manage local disasters, a strong government, enough organizational power, and a ruler who could command the trust of all were needed.

This disaster had to be blocked!

...

In the morning.

The rain had weakened a bit, but the downpour was incessant.

Seven thousand idle laborers each received a piece of bread and a bowl of hot porridge at the big kitchen.

No one saved any of it, swallowing it down in the rain, to prevent the wholemeal bread from becoming a mush soaked by the rainwater.

After eating.

They carried shovels and hoes, forming a mighty long procession.

They were going to dig channels to drain the floodwaters.

Although after the rain of yesterday and last night, the water level downstream had visibly risen quite a bit, they had yet to see even the shadow of a flood.

But that’s what the master had said.

They could only go with some doubts and do it.

The great master was always right.

More importantly, there was no joking with agricultural production.

Even if it was a false alarm, they had to treat it as real.

Roman was not sure if there actually would be a flood.

But it is always good to take precautions before an event.

Now, food security was too important for Origin City.

If the flooding really turned severe, not to mention all the cultivated land, just a quarter of the land being underwater would be an unbearable consequence.

He could not afford to gamble.

...