Lychee seeds, after being dried and ground into powder, can be taken with warm water, or decocted with other medicinal materials, for stomach pain and hernia caused by cold stagnation and qi stagnation.

Beside her, Qiaoyun was only interested in admiring the new bracelet on her wrist, which was made of lychee pits strung together with a red string.

These were lychees that Errui brought back for her, left over after she ate them.

She thought lychees were delicious, and their pits were smooth and shiny black. Her mother said that they could also be used in medicine, so she strung them together and wore them as a plaything.

Actually, it had been three days since the lychee was picked from the tree in the sweltering heat. Jiang Zhi gave the lychee she brought back to Grandpa Xiaoman, so that even if he couldn't eat it, he could at least look at it.

Unexpectedly, Xu Errui also brought back lychees that had been ripped open and were already discolored and even starting to spoil.

Seeing that the part covered by the shell was still pale yellow, the young couple shared the small piece that was edible.

Needless to say, the taste was amazing; Qiaoyun found it particularly delicious, sweet to the core.

After the wheat is harvested, it still needs to be carried back along with the stalks for threshing.

Among the people on the mountain, Xu Dazhu could sit and harvest wheat, but he couldn't carry it on his back, so he and Grandpa Xiaoman were busy planting cotton.

Last year's cotton management was not quite up to par. After all, Jiang Zhi had only watched her parents plant cotton when she was a child, and it was only when she actually did it herself that she discovered many problems.

For example, if the topping time is too late, and the cotton plants grow almost up to your shoulder before you realize something is wrong, fortunately, you can correct the side shoots and apply fertilizer later, and the cotton harvest is still okay.

But those few dozen kilograms of cotton made Grandpa Xiaoman extremely happy. He said he hadn't lost out, as he could learn how to grow cotton in his lifetime.

This year, he did everything himself, starting with seedling cultivation.

Since there is land at the foot of the mountain to grow grain and fill our stomachs, we will plant cotton on this entire slope, so that we can also provide our grandson and granddaughter-in-law with a few new quilts.

On the other side, Jiang Zhi and Chun Feng tied the wheat piled up by the field into large bundles with rope, then carried them home on shoulder poles.

Ahead of them, Peppa Pig, carrying a large bundle of wheat stalks, ran very fast, humming and hawing.

Even without Xiaoman and Errui, a few elderly people, women, and children can still harvest several acres of wheat.

Grandma Xiaoman and Qiaoyun had already cleaned up the yard. The harvested wheat was too big to fit in the pile, so most of it had to be stacked on the tree trunks outside.

This year's soil is fertile, and the wheat is piled up like small mountains, making Xiaoman Grandpa smile with joy, but also worry in his heart.

There is too much wheat, but not enough threshing ground on the mountain to thresh it all at once.

Because there's no way to dry them, the harvested wheat grains will heat up and sprout if piled up for even a day, resulting in significant losses.

The wheat can only be harvested and piled up in a sheltered place, covered with straw mats, to prevent it from getting wet in the night rain, and there is no need to rush to thresh and dry the wheat.

In the future, each time a portion of wheat straw can be taken out and laid out on the ground to dry. Then, a flail made of tree branches and bamboo poles can be used to thresh the grains, sift out the chaff, and store them in the sun before preparing the second batch.

The peas on the terraced fields have already been harvested by Xu Dazhu and his wife, and even the soil has been turned over and dried. Now they need to irrigate the fields.

Without oxen to pull the plow, leveling the fields was hard work, so Errui and Xiaoman returned.

The land in their village was handed over to Tian Gui for management, and he would be paid in rice and grain in return.

Tian Gui was overjoyed to take over. He was no longer afraid of having too much land. As long as he could support his children and wife, he would do anything.

Besides, my wife is pregnant, so we should harvest more grain.

This time, the artificial hybrid rice that was specially developed last year was planted in a separate field, and we won't know how well it will turn out for several months.

With two fresh hands, the less than one acre of paddy field was quickly planted.

After finishing the farm work, Xu Errui suddenly discussed with Jiang Zhi, "Mother, I want to send some more things to Scholar Xia!"

Jiang Zhi asked, "Did Scholar Xia receive an extra portion of the grain this time?"

Xu Errui is now taking over from Jiang Zhi in managing miscellaneous affairs in the village.

Xu Errui nodded: "They gave it to us. As Mother instructed, Scholar Xia received ten more catties of flour and a jar of oil than the other families!"

Every household had to repay the grain they borrowed, but Jiang Zhi personally subsidized Xia Xiucai so he didn't have to repay it.

"Then why did you send some things?" Jiang Zhi felt that it was rare for Xu Errui to have his own thoughts, and wanted to find out.

Xu Errui hesitated and said, "Mother, the busy farming season is almost over, and I want to learn to read from Scholar Xia!"

The characters he knows now were learned from the names of the medicines Xu Dong used; he's still far from being able to write anything substantial.

Jiang Zhi had long planned for the village children to learn to read, but they had no roof over their heads or beds to sleep on, and all the children were gathering firewood and farming.

Everyone is busy making a living and has no time to read or write.

Jiang Zhi counted on her fingers, listing the things that needed to be done one by one.

Summer downpours are coming, and the village is full of makeshift shacks that will leak when it rains heavily. We need to urge the villagers to reinforce them as soon as possible.

He could lend grain to the villagers so they could have enough to eat and farm, but he would not give them money to repair their houses.

Magistrate Zhang repeatedly emphasized that people's livelihood was the top priority, and that since returning, he had been considering how to help villagers overcome their difficulties in a principled way without fostering a habit of "waiting, relying, and demanding"...

Thinking of this, Jiang Zhi narrowed her eyes: she was still in the habit of using the system of civilized society to restrain her behavior.

This is not a place to promote the "Five Stresses and Four Beauties".

It is said that political power grows out of the barrel of a gun, but good people also emerge from under the whip.

Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Anyone who dares to utter a sound will be punished by the group and given a beating. If they still disagree, they will be sent to Magistrate Zhang for further training.

Having made up her mind, Jiang Zhi began to assign tasks.

"Errui, there's no rush to teach Xia Xiucai to read. Distribute the tools you bought in town and have everyone cut down trees for my family."

Each person is paid thirty coins a day, and once the tree is cut down, a spacious house is built.

Hire craftsmen if necessary, not necessarily the best, just sturdy mud floors and wooden walls that can withstand wind and rain! Like the kind of warehouse you saw at the Huo family's house.”

"With a big house, it will be easier for you to learn to read, and I won't have to use that 'dry toilet' shed anymore."

Most importantly, in case of a heavy rainstorm, the villagers need a place to take shelter!

Jiang Zhi explained to him the priorities of the matter.

Xu Errui knew how severe the rainstorm would be; the village's shacks would definitely not be able to withstand it. If there were a sturdy house, the villagers could take temporary shelter from the rain.

“Okay, Mother, Uncle Tian also said that he would cut down trees first to build a house for my family.”

Xu Errui put aside his desire to learn to read and decided to focus on his work first.

"In addition, the village children and women also used it, digging up dandelions, loaches, and wild geese, and picking out the clean ones for one coin per pound of dried goods!"

Let Xia Xiucai help with the bookkeeping, and let his mother check it. If they collect a lot, they'll pay Xia's mother-in-law her wages.

Xia Xiucai's wife was skilled at embroidery, had a quiet personality, and did not interact with others; only Xia's mother could do such a thing.

"Yes, yes, I'll go down the mountain and tell them tomorrow." Xu Errui nodded repeatedly, as he was also helping Xia Xiucai's family.

Jiang Zhi had already thought about these things, and now she brought them up all at once.

Thinking that his mother would repair the storeroom first, Xu Errui became excited: "Mother, are we going to make medicine?"

"Let's get started! It won't cost much anyway!" Jiang Zhi didn't deny it.

It's too early to talk about making pharmaceuticals; we don't have the necessary resources yet. Right now, we need to stockpile raw materials.