Rebirth Farmhouse

Chapter 6

Mrs. Zhang led her third sister to cook and wash at home, and was also responsible for feeding the chickens.The family was poor and couldn't afford livestock, so they lost the whole package of work in the barn.

In fact, Mrs. Zhang asked Xiuxian to cook at home, but Xiuxian was too annoying and didn't have the patience to do housework. If she was asked to dig wild vegetables with her second aunt and third aunt, she would think that the two women muttered all day long. Good words, so I would rather follow the men to do the work in the field.

Xiurong is different, she actually knows that it is brisk to go out to mow the grass, two baskets a day, one big basket for adults, and one small basket for villains, but she is afraid of the wind and sun, afraid that her skin will become thick, dark and ugly, so she tried her best to mow grass. Way to stay at home.

Of course, the Qin family also leased and planted the official land and the private land of the big family, plus the few acres of their own family. Once the farming season came, the whole family would go all out, and there would not be so much division of labor.

This early in the morning, Xiurong followed Mrs. Zhang to cook porridge. The so-called porridge was just millet porridge with tightly packed black dough balls in it.

Mrs. Zhang saved up black noodles and mixed them in, and also cut up and washed wild vegetables last night and prepared to put them in.

Qin Dafu led the two boys to clean up the new soil that had been sun-dried in the pigsty, and let the pigs step on it to make fertilizer.

Ergui was in charge of fetching water, Sanshun pulled a stool and sat under the eaves to fill a bag of dry cigarettes for his father, and then smoked happily.

Liu and Xiuqin cleaned the yard and fed the chickens. The second aunt and the third aunt led the girls to fetch water to wash their faces. While washing their faces, the girls started arguing again. Xiuting called out to Xiumei: "I don't want to use your leftover water. !" Xiuli called Xiuting: "You got wet on me!"

All of a sudden, there was a lot of noise in the yard, and Mrs. Zhang reprimanded loudly when she heard it: "Quick, noisy, noisy, you will be full, don't eat anymore."

The courtyard immediately fell silent, and the girls only muttered and bickered silently.

As for Dafang, Xiurong thought of a way to pour a basin of water several times, and the two of them used it once, so that the water would not be too dirty and the people behind would not want to wash it.

This scene fell into Xiuyao's eyes. She stood at the door and watched slowly, which really opened her eyes.

It’s really an authentic farmyard. The pigs are humming in the pen, the chickens are rattling in the pen, the bellows are drumming in the main room, and the smell of the unappetizing food is also wafting. Live, bumps and bumps but also laugh loudly.

Outside the east window, a Chinese toon tree shrank its new shoots in the chilly morning wind, and the wind rustled the grass felt on a small haystack outside the west window. The spinach in a small vegetable bed next to it was big and green. One is a leek bed covered with some chicken manure and plant ash.

At this time, the sky is clear and the clouds are light, and the smoke from the kitchen is billowing. If she ignores the lack of food and clothing and the whining, she really thinks it is quite good.

It's really good, I can't go back anyway, of course, I have to ignore the soaring smell of pig manure in the pigsty...

In fact, there was not so much time to make noise in the morning, and under Mrs. Zhang's yelling, they hurriedly ate and went to do whatever they wanted.

Originally, Xiuyao was going to dig wild vegetables with her, but Liu Shi said that she had just been frightened and couldn't handle it quickly, so she asked her to help the mother do some work at home.And when all the men left, Xiumei and Xiuting, who were about to leave over there, became unhappy again, comparing Xiuyao not to dig wild vegetables, and then Xiujuan and Xiumei murmured that Xiurong was brisk at home.

Without waiting for Mrs. Zhang to reprimand, Xiurong smiled and said: "Oh, I can finally relax, hurry up and change with me, I am exhausted every day. You don't know, I have wanted to change for a long time, but I am embarrassed to say so that you don't Said that I was lazy and picky. Now you are picky, and it happens to be cheap for me."

As she said that, she went to grab Xiumei's little basket, but Xiumei immediately refused when she heard it. At home, she was called and drank by her mother, and she was not good at using the fire scythe, and she was beaten and scolded at every turn. I have to collect pig food, sweep the floor, feed the chickens and pigs and clean the chicken pens... a lot of work, how can I go out and dig wild vegetables?

When she quit, Xiujuan stopped arguing and hurried out with her mother with a small shovel.

As soon as they left, Xiurong sneered, clapped her hands, and said sarcastically: "You guys are more tender than me."

Xiuyao is sweating coldly, she is only a little old, but she is only nine years old, but her mind is comparable to that of an adult.

Xiurong watched her sister look at her, and smiled, "Yaoyao, my sister will teach you how to make a fire."

Not everyone can use the fire scythe of the Qin family. If you want to cook with a fire at home, you must at least be proficient in using the scythe.Although flint can be picked up in the river ditch, it is not so simple to make tinder and huomizi. They are all made of at least three-year-old wormwood, which is very easy to use.Mrs. Zhang is proud of it, and often says that although she came here from a poor stall in the hands of her mother-in-law, she is also worthy of the old Qin's family, and let them have enough food. Although the family has no money or land, others can't do it so well. Huo Mizi.

So how could Mrs. Zhang do harm to others casually, and she would be so distressed to death if she failed to ignite the fire a few times in vain.

And because of Xiurong's ingenuity, she was able to light the fire in the shortest time and please Mrs. Zhang, so she was able to cook at home.Xiujuan, Xiumei, Xiuting, etc., all of them couldn't light the fire for a long time, and they couldn't blow out the fire after finally drawing it out. They wasted the fire broom for nothing, and Zhang's anger, scolding them for being clumsy, don't harm things, and they are not allowed to touch the fire scythe. .

Xiuyao heard what the third sister said, nodded after thinking about it, and followed the third sister.

Mrs. Liu was cleaning the pots and pans after breakfast, and she had to add pig food later, watching Xiuyao come in and ask her if she was feeling better.

Xiuyao smiled and said, "Mother, I'm much better. The third sister wants to teach me how to use a scythe." As she spoke, she sat on the grass mound made of wheat straw in front of the stove.

Xiurong ran out of the window and listened, Mammy was stealing eggs for Yang Yang in Xili room, she curled her lips and ran back to teach her younger sister how to use a scythe.

Liu Shi glanced at her, but said nothing.

Now that Xiurong is in charge of the fire, she has the right to carry a scythe with her for convenience.

She untied the scythe around her waist, dragged a small bench to sit, and said to Xiuyao: "I'll show you a demonstration, you study hard, I never teach others."

Xiuyao smiled and said that she would study hard.

She saw that the third sister took out a palm-sized small bag, which looked like a wallet.Xiurong took out the flint and tinder from the small gourd on one side, wrapped the flint in the tinder, clamped it with her left hand, and then pinched the fire scythe with her right hand, with a "da" force, the fire scythe crossed the flint, sparks flew everywhere, and the tinder It burned.

She hurriedly cupped her hands and gently blown the air, turning the dark fire into an open fire, then reached under the stove and lit the soft and flammable straw, the fire flickered up and shone on her face, alternating hot and cold , Xiuyao couldn't help shivering.

Xiurong said proudly: "How about it, I can light the fire in one go now, I'll give you some time, if you can light it a few times, it will be much more dexterous than those of Er Niangniang and Sanniang's family."

Liu couldn't help but twitched the corners of her mouth, "Your nanny will beat Yaoyao later, and you will replace her."

This girl Yaoyao is obedient and clumsy, even if she uses up all the tinder, she might not be able to get angry, but Liu Shi also wants her to learn from her, even if her children can't make a lot of money, they still need to know the housework that they should know.

Xiurong smiled at Mrs. Liu, "Mother—"

Mrs. Liu shook her head, rubbed her hands on the apron, and then went to Xilijian to trip Mrs. Zhang, so that the two girls could get away with it.

Xiuyao looked at the scythe, and it was sewn with a piece of broken leather. The flint looked like the pebbles picked up at the bottom of the river when she was a child and was smashed. Tinder——she smelled it, and it smelled like mugwort. It looks like moxa moxa for moxibustion. Looking again, there is a small bamboo tube hanging on one end.

She twisted it and pulled it out to have a look, Xiurong hurriedly slapped her, "Hey, study hard, what are you playing, it's Huomizi."

Huomiaozi is something useful for lighting fire, right?Xiuyao was puzzled, searching for some knowledge she learned in her previous life.For a while, she was very fascinated by those antiques. Wherever there were customs and cultural relics exhibitions, she would go to see them, check the information when she came back, and even wrote some manuscripts.

She knew about the fire scythe, flint, tinder, etc., and when she was a child, there was such an antique in her grandfather's house, but she and her brother lost it.

Xiuyao smiled and said, "I'll give it a try."

After she had finished posing, with a "click", sparks flew everywhere, but she didn't draw it well, and the smug look on her beautiful face was even stronger. Naturally, she was the most capable and smartest in the family.

There was another "click", Xiuyao stared at the thing intently, and said to herself: "This kind of velvet is not very well made." After saying that, she threw the scythe and flint and held the pinch of velvet to blow gently. Then, when the open flame came together, she leaned under the pot and lit the kindling grass.

"Hehe, it's easy." Xiuyao laughed, her big black eyes were crooked, and her eyelashes were particularly long because of her thin body.

Xiurong snorted, suddenly felt a little shameless, and had a better idea in her heart, she patted Xiuyao's little shoulder, "It's my sister who taught me well, you light the fire for me, I'm going to insert pig food."

As she said that, she got up and poured the dishwashing water into the pot, and added some more water, until the pot was almost half full, then covered the pot and let Xiuyao light the fire.It's not difficult to make a fire. When I was a child, I used to burn a big pot at home. Xiuyao sat on the grass mound and burned it slowly.

Xiurong yelled at her from time to time, "Don't fill in so much grass, let the nanny see you and beat you." Then imitating Zhang's appearance, she put her hips on her hips and stared, "You little prodigal hoof, save me some use." As she said that, she giggled with Xiuyao.

The eldest sister heard it and reminded: "Don't just know how to be happy, no one will take care of you when you are beaten."

Xiurong stuck out her tongue and made a grimace. Seeing Xiuyao sitting there obediently lighting the fire, she suddenly felt that she also had an extra helper who could direct her, and a sense of accomplishment spontaneously arose.

(End of this chapter)