Chapter 606: Xuanyuan's Assist

Xuanyuan did not need to think much to know that this was a very favorable matter for him. His own tribe had enough surplus labor; every day they could only do some simple tasks, and then the tribe provided them with food to sustain them. In winter, the food they could obtain was even more pitifully scarce. If the tribe's harvest was sufficient, they might have a chance to survive the winter; otherwise, they would not even make it through.

Now that Baifeng said he wanted to hire his tribespeople to work and could provide food—not only giving food during the time they worked, but also leaving them with a surplus—it would at least allow them to have an easier time during the winter.

Most importantly, this way there was no need to worry about increasing the population of Huaxia, avoiding future troubles. Thus, Xuanyuan very readily agreed to this matter with Baifeng and said, "If you need people now, we can prepare them for you as soon as we return."

Baifeng, however, waved his hand and said, "There is no need to be so anxious about this. Because in order for us to continue doing this in the future, some measures must be put in place to avoid misunderstandings caused by accidents, which would affect subsequent cooperation."

Xuanyuan also felt that Baifeng's words were reasonable: "Fine, but since we already have many matters of cooperation, shouldn't we sign a contract? Then we can set off and start preparing to get these things done."

Although Xuanyuan felt that he had gained a great harvest here in Huaxia and that these collaborations were indeed very important, he was currently very worried about the harvesting. Although it is called the Autumn Harvest, wheat is basically harvested in the summer; it is the hottest season when harvesting begins. At the same time, he also noticed here that the grain in Huaxia grew much later than that of his own home. He was also considering whether the yield and quality of the grain were related to the planting time, and whether he should push back next year's planting to be at the same time as Huaxia.

Baifeng swept a glance at Qingyun and Jinyun with his peripheral vision. Next, Baifeng intended to discuss the final matter with Xuanyuan, which was also the most difficult one to bring up, because he could not let Xuanyuan know that he was aware that Qingyun and Jinyun were the ones in the Xuanyuan Tribe who studied Heaven. He truly could not explain this, and it would instead make Xuanyuan suspicious again.

Just as Baifeng was thinking about how to bring it up to Xuanyuan, he did not expect Xuanyuan to directly ignore the previous question and suddenly ask: "Baifeng, I have a question. Can you answer it for me now? I am quite confused."

Baifeng suddenly looked up and then made a gesture of invitation with his hand: "What question? Ask away."

Xuanyuan really wanted to point at the farmland outside to ask, but since it was too far away, he could only describe it with his hands: "Is the growth of grain also related to time? The wheat of our Xuanyuan Tribe is already ready to be harvested, but your wheat is still green and has just grown ears. If it is planted later, will the yield be higher? Of course, if this is a planting technique of your Huaxia that cannot be spoken of, you don't have to say it; I can spend time trying it out."

Baifeng was secretly delighted in his heart; it was truly Heaven helping him. This way, he could naturally discuss the observation of Heaven with Xuanyuan.

Baifeng pretended that nothing had happened and said with a serious face: "That is no problem, I can tell you, but this might be quite profound and complex. It is related to the movement of the sun and the moon; you might not necessarily understand it."

The eyes of Qingyun and Jinyun both lit up; this had hit the area they were most familiar with. Thus, they leaned their bodies further toward Baifeng. Xuanyuan also understood these things very well, but he still did not understand: "What does this have to do with the movement of the sun and the moon?"

Baifeng explained very naturally: "The sun, it rises in the east and sets in the west, but it changes with time, moving closer to and further from this land. The height at which it rises also changes. When the sun is closest to the earth and rises the highest, that is when summer arrives; conversely, when it is furthest away and rises the lowest, winter arrives."

Xuanyuan was still puzzled: "This, is there any problem with this? Isn't the sun just like that?"

Baifeng smiled and continued to explain: "It is precisely because the sun moves like this that there are four seasons. But, how can people determine on which day the sun will make the earth truly reach summer or reach winter?"

Xuanyuan was already able to measure this; it was nothing more than measuring shadows. "However, what could this matter possibly have to do with planting?"

"Of course it has to do with it, and it has a lot to do with it. Summer is the hottest, and there is also a lot of rain; it is the most suitable time for Wild Rice to grow. When summer arrives, the Wild Rice should be in the state of heading, which allows the Wax Seed to become fuller. Wheat, however, should be at the time of harvest, because wheat does not need that much rain, nor does it need to be that hot. If there is too much rain, the wheat might even mold and sprout."

"As long as we master time, we can know when to plant wheat and when to plant Wild Rice. But every year, the time when summer and winter arrive is different. If we could divide the whole year, that is, the cold and heat, into four seasons, and then divide the four seasons into days, and be clear about when each season arrives and when it leaves, wouldn't we be very clear about it when we plant?"

Once Baifeng finished these words, it instantly enlightened Qingyun and the others. They had always been observing these things, but they did not know why they needed to observe them; they had only discovered the patterns out of pure curiosity and had never thought there would be such a use for them.

Xuanyuan asked excitedly: "Then have you already calculated it? The planting time of your Huaxia seems to be very different from ours."

Baifeng shook his head with a slightly disappointed expression: "Alas, it is still far from enough. I have only discovered a tiny bit of the pattern. I don't know how long it will take to fully calculate Heaven. As for the reason why we plant later than you, well, this..."

"It is hard to say. Anyway, it is related to the sun. You did not plant it wrong; you don't need to have the same time as us. Haven't you noticed that it is slightly cooler here than where you are, and the winter is also colder than yours?"

"Is it?" Xuanyuan looked at the others in confusion. The others also shook their heads. This slight change in temperature did not have a very obvious difference for them. In this era, there were no thermometers, so there was no way to talk about the level of temperature.

Seeing the people of the Xuanyuan Tribe like this, Baifeng could only helplessly say: "Fine, fine, it is like this. Anyway, it is that your tribe is further south than our Huaxia, so spring comes early, and summer also comes early. Therefore, you should indeed plant grain earlier than us."