Chapter 52 Inspecting the Farm You don't grow grapes, so what are you doing here? ...
The day after Chen Mian returned to Wumu City, she rested briefly before setting off to investigate the business models of various farms.
She wasn't the naive fresh graduate she once was; she knew that starting a business wasn't easy, so she wanted to do some "market research" first.
She learned this word from her younger sister.
Just like a farmer planting for the first time, he has to first look at the land and ask the people around him what crops will yield the best harvest and how to plant them most suitable.
Ji Yu was worried, so she took two days off from work to go with him.
Wumu City is sparsely populated, and the farms are even more deserted in the spring. Neither Chen Mianmian nor her mother can drive, and they don't look like locals, so it would be too dangerous for them to go out.
"What's there to worry about? I'm not going to steal or rob; I'm just going to visit and exchange experiences."
"What could possibly happen?" Chen Mian waved her hand, feeling that she could handle it herself and didn't want the other person to accompany her.
Ji Yu frowned slightly: "The farms are so far apart, how will you get there by yourself?"
Chen Mian came prepared: "I borrowed a bicycle from Aunt Yu, so I can ride there."
Ji Yu thought it over and over, but still felt uneasy. She pleaded, "Just let me go with you. I can drive fast, and you can visit more places in a day."
"Besides, I've already applied for leave, and my boss said that even if I don't take the approved leave, it won't count anymore."
Seeing that Chen Mian remained silent, Ji Yu was about to tell her a few classic cases of girls being murdered while traveling alone, but then she saw Chen Mian finally nod in agreement.
"Mom, Mian has agreed. Please prepare some food and drinks for us so we can eat on the road."
Ji Yu's eyes instantly lit up with a smile as she looked up and called out to the kitchen.
“I heard you,” Yu Xiaoyue replied loudly, “I must have owed you something in my past life.”
After saying that, he deftly pulled out a bag and put a few steamed buns and fruit inside for the two of them.
After thinking for a moment, I took out a piece of cured meat from the wall and stir-fried two dishes. They were probably going to be out all day, so it was good for them to eat a little more in the morning.
After breakfast, Chen Mianmian and Ji Yu set off.
The trip was supposed to be to investigate the experience and models of different farms, but in reality, there are only so many common crops in Wumu City. Chen Mian has already personally learned about the goji berry and cotton farms.
Now there are only a few nearby farms left that I haven't visited.
Yu Xiaoyue had given Chen Mian a general overview of the situation beforehand: Kurban's family grew walnuts, Aman's family grew cantaloupes, and Liu's family grew grapes.
The growth cycles of these three crops are different. Walnut trees need to go through a seedling period of three to five years before they can enter the fruiting period in the seventh year, and the yield increases year by year.
Production will stabilize around 15 years later, and can remain at a high level for more than 30 years.
Therefore, the locals jokingly say that Kurban's walnut orchard is an heirloom.
Starting with Kurban's father, his family had been planting walnut trees on a large scale. It wasn't until Kurban's son was born that their walnut trees began to generate considerable income.
"Oh dear, don't mess with your scissors! You've ruined my Yang Ake!"
When Chen Mian and Ji Yu entered the walnut farm, Kurban was directing the workers to prune the branches of the walnut trees.
"Be careful, you need to cut off all the dead branches at the top of the tree, and cut off all the dense branches that are blocking the sunlight below."
Kurban, with a water bottle slung over his shoulder and hands on his hips, paced back and forth on the farm, muttering to himself. This time of year was always the most worrying for him, fearing that some worker might damage his precious saplings.
Ji Yu beckoned him over, "Adasi, I'm Ji Yu from the goji berry farm next door. My friend is also interested in contracting the farm and would like to ask you about some things."
"You want to grow walnuts too? You'll have to wait until your grandson is born to make money." Kurban walked over, looked at Chen Mian's small frame, and shook his head.
"However, I can indeed teach you some things. In the entire city of Ebony, I dare say that my family's walnuts are the best-tasting, and our walnut oil is the most fragrant!"
Kurban was clearly very proud of his farm, and he wasn't afraid that Chen Mian would learn the skills and take his job away from him.
After all, walnut trees can't flower and bear fruit overnight.
Chen Mian couldn't help but chuckle at the other person's words and explained, "I'm not here to learn how to grow walnuts from you. I have other things I want to grow. I just want to know how your family acquired so much land."
How is the work arranged during the harvest season each year?
Kurban understood Chen Mian's question now, but "where did the land come from?"
“The land was provided by the government. Our family has lived here for generations. When the land was distributed, we were given a lot of land. Later, as our walnuts grew better and better, the government allocated a large area of land to us for rent.”
Kurban scratched his head and continued, "As for the harvest season, we have some regular foremen who come in groups from nearby areas every October."
Tasks like pruning branches and cultivating new seedlings in the spring are done by the whole family plus some temporary workers.
"Do you know which organization outsiders should contact if they want to contract land?" Chen Mian thanked Kurban for his introduction and then asked a new question.
Kurban: "You can ask the comrades at the Agriculture Bureau. They are all very enthusiastic. It was the comrades from the Agriculture Bureau who came to tell me about pruning the walnut trees."
"They say it's called something like... ventilation to let the sunlight in, it sounds so literary, I can never remember it."
“But it really worked! Our walnut yield increased by ten percent after pruning! Those intellectuals are really capable; they know everything about what’s happening in the fields,” Kurban exclaimed.
At Kurban's warm invitation, Chen Mian and Ji Yu toured most of the farm with him before finally leaving.
Before leaving, he warmly invited them to come to the farm at the end of July to taste the tender walnuts, saying, "These are a delicacy that only lasts for half a month. You'll regret it for a whole year if you miss it."
Ji Yu started the car with a smile, "How about we come and try it together at the end of July?"
Chen Mian sighed helplessly, "Why did you follow his example? I've eaten tender walnuts before, okay? There are several old walnut trees in my hometown village."
Every summer vacation, children's hands get all yellow from peeling walnuts.
Seeing that she had been rejected, Ji Yu continued to invite her, "But I haven't eaten here yet, so please have pity on me."
"Well, poor kid, your childhood must have been really boring," Chen Mianmian sighed.
Ji Yu chuckled and continued driving, without telling the other person that the Northeast, where she grew up, was also a vast and resource-rich region, and she often went to play in the mountains with her friends.
After arriving in Xinjiang, there was an endless supply of fruits and melons to eat...
Hami melon farm.
The two walked around the farm for a while, but the land was barren and there wasn't a single person in sight.
Ji Yu had no choice but to drive back and search around the farm before finally spotting Aman's family.
They were having lunch when Ji Yu came in, and they thought something big had happened.
"Nothing much, I just wanted to ask you about the farm," Ji Yu said, giving a brief introduction.
Chen Mian wasn't shy at all. After sitting down, she got straight to the point and asked, "Why is your land so barren? Aren't you planting cantaloupes this year?"
After hearing Chen Mian's question, Aman chuckled and said, "Girl, why don't you eat with us and talk? We'll have to give you a proper explanation of your problem."
"Officer Ji, your friend wants to open a farm, but he'll need to study for a few more years," she said jokingly to Ji Yu.
Chen Mian looked puzzled, unaware that she had asked a silly question. She only realized her mistake after Aman explained.
It turns out that cantaloupes, like watermelons, need to be replanted every year. They take out the high-quality seeds that they specially saved from the previous year at the end of March and cultivate them in the greenhouse. Only after the seedlings have grown four or five leaves will they be transplanted to the ground to continue growing.
It's only February now, so the fields are obviously barren.
For this reason, their family also needs to hire workers once in the spring.
As for how the farmland came about, Oman and Kurban gave similar answers: it was allocated to the locals when the land was distributed.
Aman had no idea how outsiders contracted land, but he remembered Aunt Liu next door who grew grapes.
"Perhaps you could ask her how she acquired her land."
After thanking Aman, Chen Mian and Ji Yu set off again, this time heading to the Liu family's grape farm.
Aunt Liu has been in Wumu City for decades. All people know is that she came with her two children, but they don't know anything else.
Aunt Liu's son and daughter are now married and have children, so she doesn't have much to do and spends her days tending to her vineyard.
This time they learned their lesson and instead of foolishly going to the farm to look for people, they went directly to the courtyard.
After Chen Mian knocked on the door, it was Liu Da Niang's son who came. "Are you looking for my mother? She's in the greenhouse. The grapevines need to be propagated soon."
Chen Mian and Ji Yu exchanged a helpless smile. "Let's go, we still have to go to the fields."
Liu Da Niang herself saw the idea of growing grapes in greenhouses on TV; her son didn't want to bother with such things.
What you see on TV might be fake. What if you lose all the money you've spent?
Aunt Liu, however, felt this was a good opportunity; what if what they said was true?
"He's just like his deadbeat father, his brain is as dull as a board, he doesn't dare to try anything new, he's not even as good as an old lady like me."
Aunt Liu was not at all reserved. As soon as she started talking to Chen Mian, she began complaining about her good-for-nothing son.
If Chen Mian hadn't stopped her, I would have liked to tell her all about how she raised her two children and even bought them a house in the city.
"It's all thanks to my excellent farming skills." Aunt Liu waved her hand, looking proudly at the empire she had built.
“Young lady, grapes are not so easy to grow, they are delicate. I see you are quite efficient at your work. If you are willing, I will take you as my apprentice. If you learn from me steadily for three to five years, you will be able to graduate.”
Chen Mian carefully planted the grapevine she was holding, and explained with a smile, "Thank you, Auntie, but I have my own plans. When I want to grow grapes in the future, I will definitely come to you for advice."
"If you don't grow grapes, why are you coming to me?" Aunt Liu straightened up and wiped the mud off her hands and clothes.
Chen Mian: "I wanted to ask you how people from other places can contract large areas of land like you?"
Upon hearing this, Aunt Liu's face changed. She spat and said indignantly, "It's all because of that damned old man of his! If it weren't for him, I would have been enjoying a life of luxury long ago!"
Aunt Liu was overjoyed to receive a letter from her husband and happily brought her two children to join him in enjoying a comfortable life with the army.
But to her surprise, when she arrived at the military base, she was told that her husband had sacrificed his life to save several people who had been robbed.
The military leaders took turns visiting her to express their condolences, gave her a large sum of money, and said they would send people to escort the martyr's widow and children back to their hometown.
Just like now, Liu Qiaofeng stood with her hands on her hips and cursed, "Everyone in the village knows that I came here to enjoy life with a man. What kind of situation would it be if I went back like this? I'm not going back."
But what can we do if we don't go back? A dead man can't be brought back to life.
Finally, the military granted Liu Qiaofeng this piece of land as a special arrangement.
And so she stayed in this land with her two children...
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Author's Note: Special thanks to "Fingertip Green Vine" for this chapter! Without her new comment, I wouldn't have been able to update tonight, haha.
I was so touched that I wrote a chapter for her right then and there!
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