During this period of winter in Yale City, the streets were almost devoid of people.
Most people hid in warm indoors as the thin clothes on their bodies didn’t support them to head outdoors at all.
One couldn’t imagine what one would do if there wasn’t enough food.
Thankfully, Yale City made it through the entire winter rather peacefully.
As the temperature turned warmer, Wang Lun woke up at dawn for the first time.
After tidying the room, he pushed open the door and walked out.
“What great weather!”
Wang Lun looked up at the sky and caught a glimpse of the marble white color of the dawn sky.
The rays of the sun had begun to shine.
The sun is definitely going to shine brightly across the land today.
Wang Lun didn’t stay for too long. He lifted his feet and headed out.
Winter was over and this meant that the trivialities of Yale City were going to occupy him again.
He made an appointment with Bran. However, it was too early and there was no one else in the city hall except for some servants.
Wang Lun rubbed his stomach and a bout of hunger came. “I shall grab something to eat; hopefully the chefs are already at the kitchen, waiting for breakfast orders!”
Wang Lun prayed to have hot food in his belly soon.
“My lord, why are you so early today?”
A servant was carrying a bucket of water and when he saw Wang Lun, he came to a halt, just in time for him to take a break.
“The chefs are there, right?” Wang Lun asked.
The servant shook his head and said, “Yesterday the head chef, Oliver, went to purchase food. He may take a little longer today so breakfast may be delayed.”
Wang Lun nodded. “That’s not good. I’m famished!”
“Do you need some compressed biscuits, my lord? I still have some here.”
The servant took out several packs of compressed biscuits from his bag.
Wang Lun waved his hand and said, “No, keep them. I’ll go and check out the dining hall now.”
Wang Lun said nothing more to the servant, turning around and heading to the dining hall.
When he arrived at the dining hall, he was surprised to find that he wasn’t the only one waiting for the chefs to serve the meal.
“Hey, Bran!” Wang Lun saw the man clearly from afar. “It seems I’m not the only one who woke up much earlier today!”
Bran heard Wang Lun’s voice and turned around to see him approaching in large strides.
Bran immediately bowed and said, “My lord, you’re finally here! I’ve been waiting!”
Wang Lun paused, frowned and said, “You were waiting for me? Weren’t you waiting for the chefs?”
Bran spoke with a smile. “Winter is just over and you see, the sun has shone over the land again. Everything is back to normal and there are many things waiting for your approval.”
From the front fold in his clothes, Bran took out a pile of yellowish paper that wasn’t parchment.
This pile of paper was made using the paper-making techniques Wang Lun taught them. Not only was the paper used in Yale City, but it was also used to trade with outsiders.
Wang Lun flipped through the papers and put them back into Bran’s hands, saying, “These are trivial. I believe you can make the right decisions. I’ll leave them to you.”
The day became brighter as the sunlight splashed across the ground.
Wang Lun finished his breakfast, made a trip to Earth, and returned with some purchases again.
The previous purchase of seeds had been completely used up. This time, Wang Lun increased the amount he bought. Not only that, but he also procured additional cotton seeds.
Bran knew most seeds, but still had no concept of this new type of seeds.
“My lord, is this a new type of crop?” Bran asked as he looked at the new seeds.
Wang Lun shook his head and said, “They aren’t crop seeds.”
“Then what are they?” Bran was eager to hear the answer.
“Cotton seeds!”
“I’ve seen cotton seeds before, but they don’t look like this!” Bran reacted with blazing eyes and said. “Oh, I know! My lord, you must’ve brought back an even better type of cotton seed!”
After being with Wang Lun for so long, Bran’s knowledge had also increased a lot.
Wang Lun nodded and said, “Yes, this type of cotton will not only increase our yield, but the quality is also several times better than ordinary ones.
“The next winter will be even colder. We need to plant enough cotton seeds to make cotton clothes in order to withstand the cold when it comes. With cotton clothes to keep our people warm, they will not need to waste the entire winter doing nothing.”
“In that case, I will distribute the seeds and have the people plant them into the fields.”
Wang Lun brought back more than a handful of seeds, so it was impossible for them to be transported by hand.
Bran asked a few residents who owned carriages for permission to use them to transport the seeds out of the city hall. Thereafter, the residents who provided the carriages were paid accordingly.
Now that Yale City had become more developed, crop seeds were no longer given to the residents for free. On the contrary, they had to purchase them at the price merchants sold them for.
Of course, merchants were also allowed to purchase the seeds directly from the city hall.
The whole industrial chain could not be chaotic.
Now that the crop seeds were replenished, Wang Lun was also looking to import poultries.
There had to be a balance in the food consumed, so simply consuming soil-grown food wasn’t acceptable.
Although the merchants purchased some meat from outside the city, residents with lower income simply couldn’t afford them.
Wang Lun found the time to drive the carriage out of Yale City with a few guards.
The carriage driver was no longer Hallmark since he became the commander of the soldiers in Yale City.
Although Hallmark requested to follow Wang Lun, the latter instructed him to continue training the soldiers.
Wang Lun and Robinson agreed beforehand to meet in a city not far from Yale City.
Robinson estimated the time of Wang Lun’s arrival and prepared to welcome him.
“Hey, my friend! You’ve been waiting here for a while, huh!”
Wang Lun entered a restaurant and coincidentally spotted Robinson sitting at a corner table.
Robinson had been staring out the door and noticed Wang Lun as soon as he came.
Robinson stood up and hugged Wang Lun. But at the next moment, Robinson frantically took a step back as though he were pricked by a needle.
“Oh, how forgetful of me that you’re a city lord now!”
Robinson thought that his behavior was inappropriate.
Wang Lun airily waved his hand and laughed. “It’s still the same, isn’t it? Having a pair of eyes and a nose makes me an ordinary person. There’s no need to stand on ceremony. Besides, we’re not in Yale City, my friend!”
The two of them looked at each other and burst into laughter.
After sitting down, Wang Lun spoke. “The batch of goods I asked for are ready, right?”
Earlier when Wang Lun contacted and asked Robinson whether he owned any cows, sheep, or poultry, the latter hesitated with his answer.
It was at that moment that Wang Lun knew that Robinson didn’t own any. But later on, Robinson took the initiative to contact Wang Lun again, expressing that the animals were ready for his inspection at any time.
Wang Lun knew that this fella must have bought the animals off from someone else at a low price, just to sell it to him at a higher price. But so what if that was the truth? Robinson was still a legitimate business partner, after all.
Robinson also wasn’t in a hurry. After their meal, he took Wang Lun and the guards to inspect the animals.
Not only were there the cows and sheep that Wang Lun wanted, but there was also poultry meant to be cooked as food.
As usual, Wang Lun happily traded with Robinson using items from Earth.
After Wang Lun returned to Yale City, he established a specialized farm to produce milk and wool.
The edible poultries were likewise kept in captivity, improving people’s living standards.