novelSusiti Chapter 149 Spring Ploughing
Chapter 149 Spring Ploughing
Chapter 149 Spring Ploughing (Part 1)
In early March of 1183 in the Julian calendar, the air in the Jordan Valley was filled with the dampness of early spring.
Lyon rode on horseback, followed by Jacob and Jocelyn, as well as a royal guard of more than fifty men.
They traveled down a winding road from Jerusalem, at an altitude of 800 meters, to Jericho, which is nearly 300 meters below sea level.
The further east you travel, the more the scenery changes. The rugged cliffs of the Judah Mountains gradually fall behind, and a vast oasis, nourished by the Jordan River and the northern end of the Dead Sea, suddenly unfolds before you.
The hot wind, carrying the scent of sand and dust, swept over us, but it also carried the fragrance of moisture and plants.
"We've arrived in Jericho, the world's oldest city!"
Jericho, located in the West Bank of the Jordan River in Palestine, is the oldest city in the world, with human settlement dating back to 10,000 BC.
Because Jericho was located in the Jordan Valley, with abundant water resources and fertile land, and was only six leagues from Jerusalem, it only took four hours for nobles to travel on horseback.
Therefore, since the establishment of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Jericho has been the summer palace and royal estate of the Jerusalem royal family.
"We are stepping into a living history, Your Highness," Jacob explained with great interest, his eyes gleaming with a scholarly light as he gazed at the gradually clearing greenery before him. "Jericho, or 'Jericho,' in the ancient Canaanite language, means 'City of the Moon,' named after its original inhabitants who worshipped the moon goddess."
He rode alongside Lyon, pointing ahead to the faintly visible boundary between the ancient city ruins and the lush oasis.
"According to the Book of Joshua, when our ancestors crossed the Jordan River, the first great Canaanite city they faced was Jericho. The city walls were high and strong, seemingly insurmountable. But Joshua, following God's instructions, led the people to walk around the city every day. On the seventh day, the priest blew the ram's horn, and the people shouted in unison—and the city walls collapsed in response."
Jacob's voice carried the solemnity of recounting sacred history: "This is not only a military victory, but also a symbol of the opening of God's promise in this place. The call of faith can destroy the strongest secular barriers."
He paused, then pointed towards the shimmering Jordan River in the distance.
"Centuries later, the story of the prophet Elisha gave this land a healing significance."
The Book of Kings recounts that the waters of Jericho were so bad that the land could not produce fruit. Elisha came to the city, sprinkled salt into the water, and proclaimed this to the Lord: “I have healed this water; it will no longer cause death or leave the land barren.” And so the waters remain healed to this day.
Jacob's gaze swept over the now crisscrossing canals, flowing with clear spring water: "Look, Your Highness, the water flowing beneath our feet may very well be the very spring that was healed by the prophet. It has never failed Elisha's promise, nourishing this city of palm trees for thousands of years, making it a bountiful island in the desert."
“Closer,” he said, turning to Lyon, “our Lord Jesus was tempted in the wilderness here for forty days and forty nights before he began his ministry. The devil took him up to a high mountain and showed him the splendor of all the kingdoms—that mountain, traditionally believed to be the rugged mountain range near Jericho, overlooking the border between this oasis and the desert.”
"Here, the Lord overcomes temptation by saying that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." This reminds us, "Jacob looked meaningfully at the farmers working in the distance and the brand-new farm tools, "that while material abundance is certainly a gift from God, what truly sustains a kingdom is a belief and order that transcends material things."
Accord's seamless explanation of science imbued the oasis before him with a sense of timelessness and grandeur.
Even the usually pragmatic Jocelyn listened intently, making the sign of the cross.
"And this is the most vivid embodiment of the land flowing with milk and honey in God's promise," Jacob concluded.
"That's true." Lyon nodded.
As he looked out, the layers of date palm leaves shimmered with a silvery-green luster in the sunlight.
Closer up, the fig trees' broad leaves already conceal the first fruits, grapevines climb the newly erected trellises, and large tracts of newly cultivated fields trace neat geometric patterns on the ancient alluvial soil.
Further away, the Jordan River meanders and rushes on.
"Truly a gem left behind by God in the desert." Accord wiped the sweat from his brow and couldn't help but continue to praise it.
As the Royal Colonizer, Robert was already waiting at the entrance to Jericho's estate.
"Your Highness! You've arrived just in time! Look over there—"
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He pointed to a newly renovated terrace in the northern part of the estate.
There, three new "Roman-Arabian" type plows are working simultaneously.
Unlike Jericho's traditional lightweight but shallow-tilling wooden molds, these new ones feature adjustable iron molds and a more robust frame.
Two strong oxen pulled the plowshare from the front, allowing the farmer supporting it to focus more on controlling its direction rather than exerting all his strength to suppress the plowshare's head. The plowshare cut deep into the reddish-brown soil, moistened by the winter rain, turning over furrows as deep as an adult's forearm.
Several boys followed behind, quickly picking up the large stones they had shaped and placing them on the pile of stones by the field to build up the field ridges or reinforce the irrigation ditches.
"Deep plowing! Real deep plowing!" Jocelyn exclaimed excitedly, witnessing this for the first time. "In the past, not only in Jericho, but in almost all farmland, plowing could only turn over a palm's width of soil. The compacted layer underneath couldn't be broken, and the crop roots couldn't penetrate, causing them to wilt in drought. Now, this new type of plowing can do it deeply, allowing the roots of wheat and beans to reach deeper into the earth and absorb more nutrients!"
Lyon dismounted, walked to the edge of the field, squatted down, and grabbed a handful of freshly turned, damp soil.
The clod of earth crumbled easily in his hand, its texture fine and rich in humus, and several plump earthworms quickly burrowed back into the dark depths.
"Is the irrigation keeping up?" he asked.
"Of course! Jericho already has abundant water resources, and with the new water storage method, it's like adding wings to a tiger!" Robert led them toward the newly dug network of irrigation ditches along the edge of the field.
Although Jericho has two main springs, Elisha Spring in the east and Quilt Creek in the west, irrigation in the past was extensive and water was wasted.
As early as when Robert's assistant Theodore was in charge of the Holy Land's business, he had already built a three-tiered reservoir system based on the terrain.
The highest point of this water storage system is a large main reservoir built using a natural rock depression, which collects the abundant water gushing from the spring.
Below the main pool, water is directed to several medium-sized distribution pools at different heights via ceramic pipes and stone-lined open channels.
Finally, countless smaller earthen channels branched off from these water distribution pools, precisely delivering water to the furrows of every field like capillaries.
A farmer is using a wooden gate to regulate the flow of water into his wheat field.
The water flowed gently and evenly, soaking the dry furrows without overflowing or stopping.
"It saves water, at least half of it," Robert calculated. "Jellico used the saved water to irrigate an extra twenty acres of newly cleared slopes, which he planted entirely with chickpeas and lentils. As mentioned before, these beans are not picky about soil, grow quickly, and can be harvested in the summer, just in time to plant autumn wheat."
They continued their inspection. In a date palm grove, Lyon saw rows of spinach and onions interspersed under the date palms.
Robert explained, "The palm leaves are tall and don't block the sunlight from reaching the ground. These vegetables have a short growing season, and by the time the vegetables are harvested in the hottest part of summer, the shade of the palm trees is denser, which helps to conserve the soil's fertility."
In the manor's workshop area, blacksmiths were busy crafting new, replaceable iron molds and parts, while carpenters were making standardized waterwheel blades and gate components. Everything seemed busy and full of hope.
"What a vibrant and thriving scene!" Lyon exclaimed, then turned to Jocelyn and asked, "Count, have you calculated Jericho's agricultural output before? What is your estimate for this year's harvest?"
Jocelyn had already taken a thick ledger with a sheepskin cover from his attendant.
He quickly turned to the marked page, his fingertips tracing the dense lines of Latin numbers.
"Your Highness, please allow me to provide details. The Jericho royal estate, excluding the date palm groves, vineyards, olive groves, and other economic forests, has approximately 600 Roman acres (about 135 hectares) of arable land and vegetable plots. In previous years, when cultivated using traditional methods and in years with favorable weather, we could generally harvest about 1,800 modes (about 58 metric tons) of winter wheat and barley."
Seeing Lyon raise an eyebrow slightly, Jocelyn realized that His Highness might not be familiar with the Roman unit "Modi," and added, "Approximately two thousand one hundred Saracenquarts."
"As for various beans and vegetables, the output fluctuates greatly, about three to four hundred modes, which are used for the plantation's own consumption and partly supplied to the royal court."
"Then there's the fodder, which can support about forty cattle and horses through the winter and for their spring plowing needs."
"This output is already more abundant than that of many earldoms in the kingdom, and with the new water storage system we have today," he closed the ledger, looked up at the neat fields and efficient irrigation canals before him, and calculated, "According to my observations and estimates, if there are no major abnormalities in the spring and summer climate, the increase in output at harvest time will be quite considerable."
"The output of Jericho alone, after deducting the expenses for supporting the entire estate and paying the established tithes to the church, can provide an additional food reserve for Jerusalem and the surrounding towns, which will be nearly a thousand motes more than in previous years!"
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