Chronicle of Farming in Muxianfu

Chapter 54
"Have you picked out all the rice seeds?" Mu Ai poured two cups of tea, and handed a cup to Chun Equinox. The feeling that the two of them were buried in books across the table reminded her of the library in college .

"It's all picked out, there are two big boxes, and the linen bags to be used have also been sewn." Chun Equinox put down the manuscript in his hand, took the tea cup with both hands and drank it in one gulp, and picked up the pen and ink on the table. It is estimated that the time has come, and it is time for the autumn equinox to prepare meals for the wife.

"That's good. Pick a sunny day in a few days and let it dry before you can start processing the seeds. You guys have worked hard these days. Let's bring the food over and eat together. I can't eat too much in the autumnal equinox." How much." Mu Ai stood up, twisted her neck, and waved the cultivation book into the space.

"Mrs. Xie, then I'm going to serve dinner in the big kitchen." Chun Equinox followed Mu Ai out the door.

Sure enough, the summer solstice and autumn equinox had already set up dinner, and when the spring equinox came back with the regular dishes, the four of them ate at the small table by the window.How many times did Muai ask them to go to the table to eat with her, but they refused desperately, saying that there was a difference in dignity and inferiority, so she didn't force her, and every time she set aside half of the food on the table, and it took a long time. I'm used to it.

Five or six days later, the sun had just climbed into the sky, and in the hall of the east wing, Mu Ai was instructing Ouyang and Mu Wu to pour the rice seeds into two super large wooden basins, and poured enough warm water to start soaking the seeds. Seeing the small bubbles constantly popping up on the water, Mu Ai also murmured in her heart, although she didn't cheat with spiritual water this time, but the seeds were produced by space, and it shouldn't be too difficult to germinate.He asked Qingfeng and Mingyue to take good care of it so that the temperature in the room would not be too low.Mu Ai has always treated them like children, and once told the housekeeper not to let them do heavy work, so on weekdays, the two of them mostly run errands and deliver things.Today was the first time I received a task personally ordered by my wife, so I was very happy, and I almost patted my chest to promise.

Looking at the sun, before it was time for lunch, Mu Ai led a few people out through the corner gate of the third courtyard, thinking of going for a walk in the field.

Once out of the gate, Mu Ai saw the experimental field that had just been converted into a seedling field.The terrain is flat, facing the sun and leeward, which is a good location.It's a pity that there is no plastic film in this time and space. If you want to quickly raise the ground temperature, let the land completely thaw, ensure that the seedlings will not be damaged by freezing at night, and can be exposed to sunlight during the day, these three conditions are really difficult for her.After discussing with the vernal equinox, Steward Guo, and Wen Bo several times, they reluctantly decided to try it with linoleum.One mu of land was divided into more than 60 small rectangular squares with a width of [-] meters and a length of [-] meters, which were covered with linoleum. In the middle, branches as thick as a child's arm were inserted into the ground at both ends to support an arched shed, which was covered with linoleum. , and buried tightly with soil on all sides.The linoleum is black, which absorbs the heat of the sun during the day and keeps out the wind and cool at night. In just a few days, the soil layer in the shed has melted deeply.

As soon as Mu Ai squatted down, Ouyang raised her hand lightly and lifted up a corner of the shed. Mu Ai nodded slightly to express her gratitude, then she put her hand in and felt it. in the field.

Steward Guo is leading people to dig the foundation on the east side of the field, and is planning to build a pigsty for ten pigs and a chicken coop for two hundred chickens in accordance with the blueprint she gave yesterday, and three rooms for people to live in. small house.This position was finally determined by Mu Ai after several revisions.According to the habit of the village, the pigsty is usually built on both sides of the gate or behind the house, but she can't accept this habit, especially the third yard is where she plans to live in summer to cool off, so it is really built next to it. She was afraid that the pigsty would smell bad every day.After several considerations, I thought that rice fields and vegetable fields also needed guards, so they were built on the edge of the field, and the chicken coop was also built in the same place, and they could be raised around a grass field in the future.

Seeing his wife coming, Housekeeper Guo hurried over, saluted and said hello, and explained the progress in detail, Mu Ai just listened but didn't say much.Half a month ago, Housekeeper Guo came to ask what kind of fertilizer to spread when digging the land, and whether he would go to the village to buy some cars.She stopped abruptly, and opened her mouth to say, "Do you need to fertilize the land?" As soon as she said the words, seeing Steward Guo's astonished expression, she was suddenly very depressed. After going to the field to break a few sticks of green corn, she has never planted the land with her own hands. Even if the seeds are sprinkled in the space, everything will be safe. The crops will not get insects, diseases, and fertilizers are not needed, so she has never thought of this. question.Only then did she realize that she really wasn't even good at talking on paper, and she didn't even understand the need for fertilizer in farming, so what kind of land was she planting.The spring equinox observed the situation and knew that the madam was out of her depth. After thinking about it for a while, she suggested that Wen Bo should be very experienced in planting crops for decades, so he could ask him.In the end, the old man was really an expert, and he spoke clearly and logically. Cow dung, horse dung, pig dung, etc., each have different uses. Hearing that Muai was dizzy, he simply sent him to assist Guo Huai in preparing the fertilizer, and then it was resolved. The base fertilizer problem of my eight acres of land.From now on, the feces produced by the family's two horses, one cow, and even the pigs and chickens to be fed will be treated according to the old man's requirements.Winning Madam's trust, Wen Bo was in high spirits, and his legs and feet were agile. As long as there was nothing to do in the concierge, he would often run into the field, and indeed gave Guo Huai a lot of good ideas.

Mu Ai was depressed for a few days, so she had to comfort herself that she doesn't know how to farm, but she can learn, she has accumulated experience, and she has a group of capable helpers under her command.

After wandering around, it was time for lunch. Mu Ai ordered the work to be dismissed, and led a group of people back to the mansion. Then she went to the big kitchen to see everyone's lunch, and told Aunt Guo not to be reluctant to part with food and meat. It's all hard work, and everyone must be full before returning to their own yard.

On the second day, Mu Ai changed into a black cloth dress that was resistant to dirt and was convenient for work, wrapped her hair with a green cloth handkerchief, ordered the vernal equinox to make a record, and began to direct the summer solstice, autumnal equinox, and winter solstice to work together to harvest rice. Fish out the seeds, control the water, and then pack them in burlap bags and lay them flat on the wooden floor.Forced to watch the breeze and bright moon all night, go back to rest, and then start to add firewood to burn the geothermal heat, keep the heat on the floor at [-] degrees at all times, turn over the bag every two hours, and pour water with a copper watering pot specially ordered from the city .Food and lodging are also settled in the inner room next to it, and Chun Equinox sleeps in the outer room.Apart from taking care of Mu Ai's food and shelter, Qiufen and the other three also occasionally help out with some chores within their capabilities. In this way, even though it's only been a short day, both the master and the servant are visibly haggard.

(End of this chapter)