Chapter Forty-Three: Earthworm

Zheng, the village chief, relayed Wei Renshi’s words to the villagers, and everyone was astonished. Earthworms, after all, were usually used only as bait for fishing or, occasionally, as medicinal ingredients for the local apothecary. Yet Wei Renshi was offering money to buy earthworms from them, a motive none could fathom.

Though perplexed, the villagers saw no reason not to take part; digging up earthworms for money was a task anyone could do. Children, usually running about aimlessly, were taught to hunt earthworms, and in a single day, they could collect plenty. It kept them occupied and out from underfoot, bringing in extra coin—a blessing, really, and one that required no labor from the adults or interference with their manure spreading.

In the village, the chief’s word was as good as a guarantee; if spoken by Zheng, no one suspected deceit. So, all at once, children scampered through the fields, older ones leading the younger in a lively search for earthworms.

Wei Renshi, unconcerned with their speculations, busied himself and his hired hands with erecting fences around his own fields. The fences were peculiar: the lower part was nearly the height of a man, tightly woven from bamboo so that the gaps were minimal; only the upper portion resembled the usual village fencing.

To set such a fence, a narrow trench nearly as tall as a man had to be dug along the field’s edge, into which the fence was placed and then buried with soil. His fields spanned several acres, and the work required many hands: cutting bamboo, splitting it, weaving, digging trenches, setting and burying the fence—all demanded labor, and labor meant wages, quickly costing another string of coins.

His wife and Xi’er lamented the expense, but Wei Renshi was grateful for the cheap workforce. In the sweltering heat, the fence was necessary to keep the earthworms from burrowing away—a sizable project, yet the laborers received only fifty coins each for a day’s work, which they considered generous, almost hesitating to accept.

Wei Renshi saw no reason to shortchange them; it was hard, hot work. He went himself to the lower village to buy wall frost from the Taoist priest with the alchemy furnace, made ice, and prepared iced water for everyone, earning their heartfelt gratitude. Such honest, simple folk, he mused.

Within days, the strange fences were finished. Zheng brought his people to turn the soil and spread manure. Since Wei Renshi had promised to build a device to spare villagers from fetching water for irrigation, his fields were now tended collectively by Zheng and the villagers, and none objected.

The weather was fair, with blazing sun, so after the soil was turned and dried, the manure was mixed in. Wei Renshi had collected several large baskets of earthworms, and soon, his workers scattered them, soil and all, across his fields.

In addition, he fenced off a separate plot and emptied the remaining earthworms there.

“Master Wei, why are you spreading so many of these creatures in the fields?” Zheng asked, resting after the work.

Wei Renshi ladled a bowl of iced water and handed it to him. “Uncle Zheng, drink first to cool off,” he said, then addressed the others, “Don’t be shy, there’s plenty of iced water in the jar—drink as you please.”

“Thank you, Master Wei!” cried the workers, delighted. Someone remarked, “Master Wei is truly a good man—working for him means iced water and generous pay!”

As the crowd gathered to drink, Wei Renshi sat beside Zheng and asked, “Uncle Zheng, do you wish to lead everyone in Chang Valley to prosper, to become wealthy?”

“Of course I do. I’m a son of Chang Valley, and its chief. If everyone could live well, I’d wish for nothing more,” Zheng replied, then asked, “Does this have to do with the earthworms you’re spreading?”

Wei Renshi nodded. “Earthworms, though lacking claws or sharp teeth, possess great strength. They feed above ground and drink from the earth’s depths… They are truly marvelous creatures.”

“Medicinal use is real, but otherwise, what good are they?” Zheng questioned.

Wei Renshi laughed. “Next, I’ll raise chickens and ducks in these fenced plots, and cattle if possible. The rest will be for crops.”

“This is connected to earthworms?” Zheng asked.

“Indeed. Earthworms turn the soil, making it loose, and their castings enrich the fields. Chicken and duck manure feeds the earthworms, and any surplus fertilizes the fields. Chickens and ducks feed on earthworms, growing plump and flavorful, laying better eggs. Excess earthworms can be sold to the apothecary. The worms, fed on poultry manure, thrive. Thus, each part supports the next; nothing is wasted, and each yields value. You see, compared to mere farming, the harvest is far greater.” Wei Renshi smiled at Zheng. “Moreover, earthworms can improve barren land, turning wasteland into fertile fields—an extraordinary thing.”

“What?!” Zheng was astounded, pausing before he asked, “Leaving aside the rest, did you just say earthworms can turn wasteland into fertile fields?”

“Especially in the salty lands of Longyou,” Wei Renshi said. “Of course, other methods are needed; earthworms are only one part.”

“So, you know how to improve saline soils?” Zheng’s expression grew solemn.

Wei Renshi nodded. “I know a bit.”

Zheng seized Wei Renshi’s sleeve. “Uncle Zheng, what are you doing?” Wei Renshi asked, puzzled.

“Master Wei, you must tend this land well!” Zheng swallowed. “You must! If you truly have a way to turn salty land into fertile fields, Master Wei… you could earn a noble title!”

“My fields aren’t saline, though,” Wei Renshi pointed out.

“That doesn’t matter!” Zheng’s eyes were wide as Wei Renshi had never seen. He asked again, “Master Wei, do you truly have a way to improve saline land?”

Wei Renshi nodded. “I do.”

“I spent years in the army in Longyou… There’s endless saline land!” Zheng said. “Fuchang has saline land, too—nothing grows there. If you really have a method, I’d risk everything, even lose face, to petition the county office on your behalf!”

“Uncle Zheng?” Wei Renshi was startled by Zheng’s passion.

“When I served, we tried to farm—vast tracts of saline land, nothing would grow. My brothers and the locals starved, died in waves…” Zheng gritted his teeth. “And the superiors blamed us for failing to farm… The locals still had to pay taxes, families ruined for lack of grain!”

Zheng’s words moved Wei Renshi. He did indeed know some methods for improving saline soils.

If, as Zheng said, these methods worked and could earn him a noble title, Wei Renshi would not mind testing them first on Fuchang’s lands.

The prospect of nobility was alluring to Wei Renshi, not for anything else, but for the rank itself.

In this twilight of the great Tang, anything could happen. Politics would only grow more tumultuous, society more dark. In such times, a noble rank would be a shield for himself and his family.

“Let’s try, then,” Wei Renshi decided. “No need to petition the county office yet, nor speak to them now. I can fund it myself and work with you, Uncle Zheng. Let’s buy those wastelands first and experiment. If it fails, we risk nothing.”

Zheng thought it over and nodded. “Master Wei is thorough indeed! Don’t worry, I’ll pay.”

“No need. Even if the land can’t be improved, I’ll find a use for it. Uncle Zheng, buy as much as possible. Once I have enough funds, I’ll pay you back with interest, and these fields will belong to me.”