Chapter 343 Auspicious Snow Heralds a Good Harvest
In this way, time passed quickly in the busy process.
In the blink of an eye, autumn passed and winter came, and the weather turned cold.
The north wind was howling, and everyone felt cold. No one wanted to go out unless there was something to do.
However, on this day, the villagers happened to catch the workshop on break, so they all went to the fields to dig potatoes together.
Even though the weather was a bit cold, everyone was very excited.
"I've eaten potatoes before, and I still remember how delicious they were. Now I can finally dig some potatoes home."
"Yes, with potatoes, we have something to eat in winter. Chicken stewed with potatoes is delicious."
"Yes, potatoes are stir-fried. They taste just like meat. They are delicious."
When Shen Yueyao invited everyone to a banquet before, everyone had tasted the taste of potatoes.
Although it has been several months, everyone still remembers the taste.
In the summer, everyone borrowed some potatoes from Shen Yueyao and planted them in the fields. Now they were ready to harvest, and every household took their farm tools to the fields to dig potatoes.
Many people pushed carts and carried sacks. When the time came, they would put potatoes into the sacks and push them back home on the carts.
Many people have already thought about what delicious food to make in the evening after harvesting potatoes.
"It's really delicious to sit on a warm kang and eat potato dishes at night."
Now every household in Liuhe Village has heated kangs, so when winter comes and the weather gets cold, no one looks afraid.
Not afraid of winter, not afraid of freezing in winter.
During the break, everyone stays at home and does not go out. Some villagers who like to stand on the street will still stand on the street and chat together when the sun is better at noon.
The children don’t care whether it is cold or hot, they still have a lot of fun playing in the village streets.
Running around and playing, I felt warm and didn't feel cold.
Of course, now that every household is well off, they all make thick cotton-padded clothes to wear instead of the thin clothes they used to wear.
The children wore light and comfortable new cotton-padded clothes, which kept them warm and comfortable. They did not feel cold when playing. Some of them ran faster and felt even warmer.
Even the adults wore cotton coats.
We also bought new thick quilts for the bedding at home and prepared for winter early.
There is also firewood. Now that everyone has nothing to do, they will go to the mountains to chop firewood and prepare it early.
The wheat stalks, corn stalks and corn cobs harvested from the fields will also be used for burning.
In the past, we would cook with fire, and then stop cooking after the food was cooked. But now that we have heated kangs, if there are other people at home, especially the elderly and children, we will burn more firewood and cover the bed with quilts. This way, when we get home, we can get on the kang and cover ourselves with quilts to warm up quickly.
In the workshop, Shen Yueyao would buy some charcoal to make sure the workshop was warmer.
This way everyone won’t get cold while working in the workshop.
Fortunately, when the workshop was first built, Shen Yueyao asked Lin Hong and his team of craftsmen to add several more layers of wall.
This way the wall is thick and keeps it warm in winter and cool in summer.
The north wind was blowing and the villagers were digging potatoes in the fields.
"Oh my god, there are so many potatoes connected under this stem?"
There is a pile of potatoes under each string, and each potato is quite big.
After everyone dug it out, they were all shocked.
"With just one acre of land, we can eat potatoes all winter without going hungry."
"The output is definitely high. It turns out that it's right to listen to the boss."
"Yes, that's right. Fortunately, I borrowed some extra potatoes and planted more. We have a big family with several children. The half-grown ones are just at the age when they can eat. So I thought of planting two more acres of land. Looking at these potatoes, I am so excited."
"Yes, this is a great harvest."
The villagers looked at so many big potatoes and started digging them excitedly.
Looking at so many potatoes and the great harvest, everyone became motivated to work and used farm tools with great effort.
I didn't feel cold even though the north wind was blowing.
Instead, everyone had a smile on their face and a light in their eyes.
The children had nothing to do, so many of them followed their families to the fields to help, and the half-grown boys helped in the work.
The younger ones watched from the side and helped pack the potatoes into sacks.
"Slow down, don't shovel the potatoes accidentally."
"I've grown crops and vegetables before, but I've never seen anything like potatoes. There are so many potatoes growing in such a small area. It's a delight to look at."
Every household was busy, and soon several sacks were filled with potatoes.
"We need to select the big and good potatoes we borrowed before and return them, and keep some for planting next year."
"Of course. If the boss hadn't told us about potatoes, how would we know about them? Besides, even if we knew about them, if the boss hadn't taught us how to grow them, we wouldn't have known the exact method."
Indeed, potatoes are grown differently from other crops.
Lin Hong took that big scale and weighed it once when the sack was full, and then weighed it once when the sack was full.
He calculated that the yield from the one-acre land was fourteen dan.
When the head of the village heard about the output of Shi Sidan, he was shocked.
"Boss, you're not mistaken, are you sure it's the 14th Dan?"
Lin Hong smiled and said, "Dad, I calculated it based on the yield from this one acre of land. It's indeed this much. You're right. Look at how many sacks we've packed. My second brother just pushed some home in a cart, and there's still this much left."
"If you don't believe me, the other acre of land hasn't been dug or weighed yet. You'll see for yourself when you see it weighed."
Li, the wife of the village head, was both excited and thrilled. "Oh, your father doesn't just not believe it, he just finds it hard to believe. Think about it, when we used to grow wheat, how much wheat did we harvest from one acre of land? The best land, if prepared well, only yielded four dan, and normally it's only around three dan. But the potatoes have doubled in size, not to mention they're so delicious."
The village head said with a smile: "I am just happy, happy."
The village head was indeed happy. Liuhe Village had undergone tremendous changes in the past year.
It directly transformed from a poor and remote village into a wealthy and large village.
This year, many young men from different families got married, mainly because their family conditions had improved and girls from other villages were also willing to marry the young men from here.
I no longer dislike Liuhe Village.
Furthermore, the villagers have good conditions. Not only does every household have something to do and earn money, but the key is that the crops grown in the fields also have a good harvest.
It's amazing that these potatoes have such a high yield.
If we just eat these potatoes, no one in the village will starve to death.
This is all thanks to Shen Yatou.
Miss Shen is the benefactor of their entire village.
Some people also laughed happily.
"So many potatoes! So many! I'm so happy! Haha..."
There was a man with a rough personality. He laughed happily on the spot, knelt on the ground with so many potatoes in his hands, and was so excited that he almost cried.
There were also sentimental people whose eyes were red.
Many people rubbed their eyes to make sure they saw it correctly. There were indeed so many big and good potatoes growing in the field.
"Now we don't have to be frugal with potatoes anymore. We can eat as much as we want."
"Yes, we are going to have chicken stewed with potatoes tonight."
"We'll make a stir-fry of potatoes."
"Stir-fried spicy and sour potato shreds, a good side dish for drinking. I'll probably go to the winery and get some wine."
When talking about wine, the villagers couldn't help laughing.
Now that there is a winery in the village, it is much more convenient for everyone to drink.
As long as the wine is ordered by villagers or people from the workshop, the price will be 20% off, and of course the quantity is limited.
This is to prevent someone from buying wine at the internal price and then reselling it.
So the 20% discount is only available when you drink it yourself.
Even so, it is still very cost-effective.
It is mainly because after drinking the wine from Chen Yueyao Winery that everyone knows what good wine is. It is really delicious and leaves a lingering aftertaste.
Moreover, some liquors have low alcohol content and some have high alcohol content. People who cannot drink can buy low-alcohol liquor so that they will not get drunk easily.
Some of the wines ordered by Shen Yueyao were cheap, while others were expensive.
Of course, the cheap wine tastes very good and is incomparable to the wines on the market.
Since the winery started selling wine, countless people have come to buy it.
Many businessmen come here specifically to buy wine, and they all think the wine is really delicious.
Now the winery has opened another workshop, so there are two wineries now.
The wine produced by a winery is actually not enough to sell, as so many people are rushing to buy it.
The most important thing is that the boss also has to supply goods to her brother's store.
Everyone has also heard that the boss's brother has opened many barbecue and hot pot restaurants, and they are said to have opened them in the provincial capital, and the business is booming.
Many people initially went there for the barbecue hotpot, but after the hotpot restaurant introduced these wines, some people went there specifically for the drinks.
"Yeah, not to mention we like to drink it, a lot of relatives come to visit, and they also like this kind of wine, haha."
"It's just right that I have two days off. I drank some wine tonight and got more sleep the next day so that I don't miss work in the workshop."
Everyone works five days and rests two days.
Not only did many people in Liuhe Village grow potatoes, but several nearby villages also grew potatoes. Everyone went to harvest the potatoes and was happy and excited.
In the afternoon, many families took out the big and good potatoes they had picked and returned them.
There will be no shortage of weight, and a few more will be put in.
Everyone was grateful to Shen Yueyao in their hearts.
The head of Liuhe Village and his family helped with weighing and collecting.
When the family who has handed over the potatoes has enough weight, they will put a check mark behind their name to indicate that they have returned the potatoes.
In many villages, the villagers are responsible for collecting and sending the crops here.
Everyone said gratefully, "Brother Lin, thank you so much! Our villagers have harvested these potatoes. One acre yields 13 or 14 days of harvest. We are so happy! We have all saved a lot of potatoes and plan to plant more tomorrow."
Liuhe Villager Zheng smiled and said, "It's all due. Farming is not easy for everyone. We didn't have enough to eat before. Miss Shen is thinking about everyone. If it wasn't for everyone, she wouldn't have borrowed potatoes. Such good things can be sold at a higher price per pound, and no one would say a word."
"That's right. Everyone remembers Mr. Shen's kindness. This year, the villagers are living a much better life. Take the warm kang for example. Everyone is not cold anymore. They are well fed and warmly dressed."
Everyone in the village was sighing.
"In the past, villagers didn't even dare to think about having enough food and clothes. They just wanted to avoid freezing to death or starving to death. Now, they can really eat a full meal every day, and even have enough white flour and rice."
"That's right. Today everyone harvested potatoes and said they'd go home to eat potato dishes tonight. My wife even killed a chicken and prepared to stir-fry the potatoes with the chicken. She also made pancakes. We couldn't have such good things during the New Year before."
Everyone said this with a smile on their face.
Now that life is better, everyone looks good and feels relaxed both physically and mentally.
When I meet someone I know, I stop and talk to them.
While everyone was talking, someone saw snow falling outside.
They were all excited and said, "Oh, it's snowing."
When they heard that it was snowing, everyone looked outside and saw snowflakes floating in the sky.
"This is the first snow of this winter."
"It's good to have heavy snow. It means next year will be a good harvest. Auspicious snow means a good harvest."
"That's right. In the past, I also hoped for heavy snow in winter, hoping for a good harvest next year. But I was also afraid that the weather would be too cold and my body couldn't stand it. Now that we have heated kangs, we don't have to worry anymore."
"That's right. On weekdays, when we work in the workshop, the boss is considerate and has a stove, so we don't feel cold at all. At home, I sit on the kang during the day and peel corn and peanuts. It doesn't affect my work and I don't feel cold."
Now everyone can smile when seeing the cold weather and the cold wind, because they know that they won’t be cold when they return home.
"It looks like the snow is going to get heavy. Brother Lin, I won't stay any longer. Let's go home quickly."
"Yes, yes, hurry home and chop more firewood so that you can heat up the kang more at night."
Everyone went back chatting and laughing.
Of course, many people go to the winery to buy some wine before returning home.
Even when the winery is closed, there are people taking turns to guard it.
…
Mrs. Lin's house in the village
Old Mrs. Lin used to be in poor health and depended on her two grandsons and one granddaughter for support.
They were not well fed and clothed. At that time, her eldest grandson Lin Dazhu was 18 years old. Because the family was poor, she had not yet found a wife for him. Now her grandson is married and his wife is pregnant, so old lady Lin’s face is always full of smiles.
Old Mrs. Lin’s eldest grandson, Lin Dazhu, took his younger brothers and sisters to the field to harvest the potatoes.
When he came back and told his wife and grandmother about the harvest, the whole family was very happy.
Mrs. Lin said, "Mr. Shen is a very capable man. With these potatoes, we can have something good to eat during the winter and nourish Xiaoqiu."
The Qiu Niang that Old Mrs. Lin was talking about was her eldest granddaughter-in-law Ma Xiaoqiu.
Ma Xiaoqiu was also excited when she saw so many potatoes.
She never thought that she could harvest so many potatoes from one acre of land.
Lin Dazhu carefully supported his wife and said, "Xiaoqiu, it's snowing outside. Don't get cold or tired. Go back to the house and sit down. I'll do the chores."
Lin Dazhu now works as a manager in a winery. He receives a good salary and bonus every month, and his family's life has improved.
There is a kang at home, so it’s not cold.
Ma Xiaoqiu came from a village in another county.
After coming to Liuhe Village, she realized that there was no comparison between her hometown village and this village.
Lin Dazhu treated her very well, and she could eat well and have enough meals every day.
“I heard potatoes are delicious.”
Mrs. Lin smiled and said, "Of course not. This is a rare item. Mr. Shen said it's not available anywhere else."
"Oh, right, it's a good time to kill a chicken and stew some potatoes to nourish Xiaoqiu."
Ma Xiaoqiu said: "Grandma, no need, I eat well every day."
Mrs. Lin said, "You don't have to be frugal. Eating more is good for the child."
Lin Dazhu carefully helped Ma Xiaoqiu back to the house and let her sit on the kang.
"It's a good thing the house was renovated, otherwise the wind would be so cold in the winter."
He still remembered that the houses used to be drafty in the winter, but now they are denser and much warmer with firewood burning.
Liuhe Village is not just home to them.
Behind the village, Mrs. Lin and her daughter were also harvesting some potatoes in the yard.
They only came to Liuhe Village a few years ago and had no land there.
In the past, I relied on raising chickens, ducks and sheep to earn some money to supplement the family income.
It was also because of goat milk that Lin and Lin Daying got to know Shen Yueyao.
After that, Lin and Lin Daying went to work in the workshop.
Now Lin is the manager of the lipstick workshop, and Lin Daying is still in charge of the chili meat sauce workshop.
The mother and daughter also saved a lot of money.
Lin Daying was stunned when he dug out potatoes from the yard. "Mom, I didn't expect that we would have so many potatoes just by growing them in the yard."
Lin smiled and said, "I heard from the boss before that the potato yield is high, and it is true."
Lin Daying asked, "Mom, can we eat potatoes tonight?"
"Of course, we can eat whatever you want. We have tomorrow off, so we can go to the farmer's market and buy some meat."
The farmers' market that Lin was talking about was the farmers' market on the Shen Yueyao Commercial Street.
There is a large shed in front of the shops on both sides, with stalls inside.
Many people set up stalls there to sell things.
There are a lot of people in Liuhe Village now. People don’t have to go to the town to buy vegetables, meat or daily necessities. They can buy them there.
Many small vendors in the town and some idle farmers have also set up stalls there. It is very lively with people coming and going every day, and it seems that business is good.
Some people also rented shops on both sides of the commercial street.
At first, Shen Yueyao rented the house to everyone for free, and only started collecting rent in the second year. The monthly rent was much cheaper than in town.
Many people saw the business opportunity and rushed to rent it.
However, Shen Yueyao doesn't rent to just anyone. She will investigate and audit to ensure that the owner of the store has good character and that there is nothing wrong with the things sold.
Of course, Shen Yueyao also hopes that everyone can buy a full range of things in the commercial street.
Therefore, only one store is allowed to sell products of the same category.
Therefore, the shops on both sides of the commercial street sell a wide range of items, including groceries, daily necessities, snacks, buns, etc.
Everyone can buy a lot of things here.
The entire Liuhe Village has a traffic flow of several thousand people, so the shops opened in the commercial street are also doing good business.
The children were very excited to see the snow.
Running on the street.
“It’s snowing, it’s snowing…”
Shen Yueyao was counting the accounts at home. Seeing the excitement of Dabao and Erbao, she couldn't help but smile and shook her head.
Time flies so fast, and winter is here in the blink of an eye.
Everything is back on track, both at the workshop and on Zhuangzi's side.
During this period, Su Xueyi still went to study at the academy outside.
But Su Xueyi will come back when the weather gets cold.
Shen Yueyao looked at the weather and wondered when Su Xueyi would come back.
Seeing Dabao and Erbao running excitedly in the yard, still thinking about going to the street to play, Shen Yueyao said helplessly: "It's snowing, don't go out to play, stay at home."
The two babies looked a little unhappy and looked like they really wanted to go out and play.
Shen Yueyao looked at them with amusement and said, "Mom just drew a new picture book for you and told you a story. When it snows heavily, we can go out and build a snowman, okay?"
Although Shen Yueyao wants the eldest and second children to play more and enjoy the happiness of childhood, she will not slack off in their education.
She draws picture books whenever she has time.
Now Shen Yueyao has drawn more than 20 picture books for her eldest and second children.
If she painted more, she felt she could set up a children's study at home.
As soon as Dabao and Erbao heard the fairy tale book, they came back from outside.
Shen Yueyao picked up picture books to show them and told them stories.
Just when Shen Yueyao was busy, the sound of a carriage was heard outside.
"Sister, sister..."
Hearing the excited voice of her fourth brother, Shen Yueyao walked out of the house and saw her fourth brother coming over with a carriage full of things.
"Fourth brother, why are you here on a snowy day? Is the road a bit slippery?"
Shen Shaojing smiled and said, "It hadn't snowed when I came here, but it started snowing when we got to the village. Although it's a bit cold, the down jackets you made for us are not cold."
"By the way, I came this time to bring you some wool. You said you wanted some wool before, so I saved up a lot. I had it washed, dried, and sent to you."
Although he didn't know what his sister used wool for, Shen Shaojing remembered everything his sister said very clearly.
When she heard about wool, Shen Yueyao naturally became excited.
"Thank you very much, Fourth Brother. I really need these wools."
"If you have more wool, please send it to me, Fourth Brother."
Shen Shaojing said cheerfully: "Don't worry, there is plenty of wool over there. Mainly because I have opened more than ten barbecue hot pot restaurants, which require a lot of ingredients and have accumulated a lot of wool."
"But, sister, what exactly are you going to do with wool? Are you going to make a down jacket or duvet like chicken, duck, or goose feathers? It's actually quite warm."
Shen Yueyao asked the embroidery workshop to make down jackets and down quilts in advance for her own use first.
During this period, she also asked the embroidery workshop to make some down quilts and down jackets, but not in large quantities.
She plans to sell them in a garment store after some time.
Shen Yueyao walked into the room and took out a long knitting needle from the drawer. She said, "This is a knitting needle that I specially asked the blacksmith to make. You can use this to knit wool into a sweater. In winter, you can wear a sweater and trousers inside and a down jacket outside to keep warm."
Looking at the hair needle, Shen Shaojing couldn't believe it.
"Sister, can you make clothes with this?"
Of course, he couldn't believe it, but Chen Shaojing believed his sister and knew that she could do whatever she said.
He just had a hard time imagining how to get it out.
Shen Yueyao said: "You will know when I weave it out."
Shen Yueyao thought about knitting sweaters for her family first, and then she could knit scarves, hats and gloves.
She looked at Dabao and Erbao. The two little guys didn’t feel cold in winter and liked to go out and play.
It’s better to knit them gloves, hats and socks so they won’t be cold when they wear them.
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