GBP Chapter 298 No acquaintance without fighting
Chapter 298 No acquaintance without fighting
The women of the nine tribes were not idle either. Because the original sickles were installed on the sickle handles, which were not easy to use, the installed sickles were dismantled and restored to the style of ordinary sickles.
They squatted down, grabbed the grass with their left hand and took the shovel with their right hand. They coordinated their hands and continued to mow the grass, piling the mowed grass beside the edge of the field.
On hot summer days, they ignored the stuffiness in the thatched grass, their clothes soaked with sweat, and the sharp leaves of the grass that mercilessly scratched their faces and arms, leaving hot cuts on their faces with their sweat dripping down.
But these women were so enthusiastic about mowing the lawn that they all rushed to do it and refused to be outdone.
Although we cannot burn the land now and the tall and strong thatch has to be left to cover the roof, it does not mean that we will not burn the land.
They surrounded the wasteland and cleared a buffer zone at least 20 meters wide on the south, north and west sides, except for the east side next to the river.
When the tall and strong thatch grass has been cut down with the sickle, the field will be plowed deeply with the curved plow.
At that time, the grass roots that were turned out, the shrubs that were cut down before, the tree roots that were dug out, and the short wild vegetables and weeds will have to be burned.
Since the thatch has already been cut, why do we still have to burn the land?
In fact, burning the land has many benefits. For example, the soil in many places is acidic, and the ash from burning is alkaline, which can neutralize the pH and improve the soil.
A big fire can also burn and kill a large number of grass seeds and insect eggs, which can reduce the growth of weeds and pests during the planting process next year.
The high temperature during the burning process will also make the soil fluffy after being burned, which is conducive to the growth of the roots of planted plants.
But in Daqing, in addition to strictly adhering to the time stipulated by the court, burning the wasteland also requires crop rotation. That is to say, if you burn the wasteland one year, you have to wait another year.
Of course you can continue to grow crops, but the roots of corn, wheat, or rice planted this year cannot be burned in the fields.
You can only wait a year until thorns, bushes and weeds grow on the ground again, and then burn it again in the same way before sowing, and repeat this process.
This shows the wisdom of the ancient people. Although they did not know what environmental pollution was, they knew that frequent burning would lead to soil impoverishment and soil erosion, thus affecting the growth and yield of crops.
In fact, strictly speaking, there is a difference between land reclamation and burning. Land reclamation is to turn wasteland into arable land and plant crops every year.
That is, the fields that have been cultivated for many years, such as those on the east side of the river in Tangjia Village.
The reason for burning the wasteland is that the harvest is small due to extensive planting. Some people have little land and no flat land to reclaim, so they can only burn the wasteland in the wild mountains.
When there is a shortage of labor for large-scale planting, people just cut down the thick thorns and shrubs roughly. After the autumn harvest or before the spring, when the grass leaves turn yellow, they can just light a fire and burn the wasteland cleanly.
The ash from burning wasteland also becomes fertilizer.
Some crops can be harvested as long as the seeds are sown, while others can grow just by loosening the soil a little and sowing the seeds. Of course, the yield of such rough planting is definitely not high.
Shen Zhiqiu chose to deep plow and then burn the land because the west side of the river was a wasteland, and just clearing the land would not get rid of the insects and grass roots buried deep under the soil.
The old ladies and girls from the nine clans at home were not idle either. In addition to making steamed cakes and jelly, they also had to boil water, wait for it to cool down from time to time, and then add some jam and take it to the west. They were the strong backing of this group of people.
But just around noon, someone came to the door.
"Hey, are you home?"
Cui Fen'er put down the bucket in her hand and shouted as she walked out, "Who is it? Yoyo is not at home today. She went to the county town."
As a result, I was dumbfounded when I arrived at the door. Several girls who came to learn cooking yesterday were standing outside the door, and the key point was that there were several women standing behind them.
Cui Fen'er muttered to herself, "Why do they look so familiar? Oh, now I remember, aren't those the ones who had a fight with them yesterday?"
Her expression changed immediately: "What are you doing? Are you here to bully me?"
The voice was so loud that it called out Grandma Hua who was busy making paogao and Li Jingshu who was making jelly.
Li Jingshu: "What's going on, Tang Xin, you're looking for Yoyo, but Yoyo isn't at home today.
Cui Fen'er: "Niece-in-law, look at those two. They are here with us after we had a fight yesterday."
Li Jingshu looked over and found that the women did not seem to be there to cause trouble, as they all had a hint of embarrassment on their faces.
It was a strange woman, who was smiling and holding Cui Fen'er's arm:
"Oh, Auntie, didn't our daughter learn to cook from you yesterday? I was just thinking about how to thank you. Here are some mushrooms that you guys picked in the woods. They are all common species and not poisonous. I'll bring them over for you to try."
Tang Xin seemed rather reserved today, her face flushed. She had only heard about the quarrel between her mother and Youyou's group during dinner last night, and now she felt a little embarrassed.
"Auntie, I..."
Before she could finish, Tang Xin's mother, Mr. Tang Sanye's eldest daughter-in-law, slapped her thigh, and with a basket on her other arm, she walked forward and took Li Jingshu's hand.
"Big sister, I'll call you Big Sister. I was wrong yesterday. I heard that people from other villages are refugees from famine and are not easy to get along with. Sometimes they even steal things from other people's yards."
When Tang Xin heard this, she coughed, "Mom, why are you talking about that?"
But Tang Xinniang's EQ was not very high. She didn't understand what her daughter meant and continued to nag: "Look, I was misled by those people. I had a quarrel with you yesterday. I am here to apologize to you."
Li Jingshu understood what he said, but she didn't feel anything. After all, who can know someone's temper before meeting them?
He also patted Tang Xinniang's hand and said, "Sister-in-law, it's okay. We can say that we didn't know each other until we fought."
When Tang Xin's mother heard that the other party was just as her father-in-law said and was generous and didn't hold it against her, she also breathed a sigh of relief. After all, the favor she owed to someone she had just fought with was really uncomfortable and she felt guilty. She couldn't even sleep well.
She carried her basket and said, "Here, here is a Sichuan pepper tree growing on my mountain. My son went home yesterday and told me that you guys didn't have any, so I'm bringing you some."
My goodness, Li Jingshu knew the price of Sichuan peppercorns. It should be said that all the nine clans knew it, because Shen Youyou had asked about the price before, but just couldn't bear to buy it.
Li Jingshu quickly pushed back and refused: "Sister-in-law, you can't accept this, it's too expensive."
Tang Xinniang insisted: "They are grown on my own mountain. The good ones have been sold for money. The rest are for you to eat or give to the villagers. They are not worth much. Take them quickly. If you don't take them, you won't forgive me."
Tang Xinniang had already taken action. The other young wife who had quarreled fiercely with Old Lady Hua yesterday also hurried forward and said, "Auntie, my girl made some ground vegetables when she went back home. They are really delicious. Look at me..."
Old Lady Hua muttered to herself, "Oh my, you are such a coward. You were fighting with us before we even taught you how to grow vegetables, but now you're so hostile after we've taught you how to cook."
But she certainly couldn't say that, so she patted the young wife's hand and said, "It's okay, it's okay. My third daughter-in-law has already said that we didn't know each other until we fought."
In fact, the old lady had already seen the eggs in the young wife's basket, about ten of them.
Don't underestimate these ten eggs. In ordinary rural areas, when someone gets married or has a child, giving ten eggs is considered generous. Some people will even pick some vegetables grown in their own yard and come to the guest's house for a feast.