"No, I'll help you pick soybeans tomorrow." Chunxiao finished his meal quickly, told his family that he wanted to watch over the wood that was drying, said goodbye and went back.
Chunxiao returned to the end of the village and looked around the yard worriedly. The wood was still there and no one had taken it. Only then did she feel relieved.
What she had to do now was to prepare for the charcoal burning later. There was dry grass, piled up like a small hill on the side. When the wood was dried, it would be moved into the straw shed, and some of the dry grass would also need to be moved there, otherwise it would rain and everything would be ruined. The most important thing now was to dig some more loose mud and pile it in the backyard.
Originally, there were quite a few piles of earth in the yard, but they were all leveled. Fortunately, there was mud everywhere outside, and the slope was easier to get, so it was naturally not a problem.
She marked off an area in the backyard and moved a lot of dead grass into the yard. Since she didn't have a hoe, she used an axe to chop the dirt. The axe worked well, and it seemed she would have to buy one later.
After transporting the soil to the yard, she found seven or eight pieces of wood that were almost dried in the sun, and buried part of a piece of wood that was deliberately left long in the soil in the yard. Then she piled the remaining pieces of wood against that piece of wood into a circle, then covered the pile with a layer of dry grass, and finally smeared a thick layer of mud on the pile to wrap it up completely.
A large hole was left at the top of the firewood pile, and eight fist-sized holes were evenly spaced underneath for ventilation, providing oxygen to the interior of the charcoal kiln. After Chunxiao finished all this, she lit the fire from the large hole left at the top. Green smoke began to rise from the top of the firewood pile. Great, it was lit, the firewood was dry enough.
The entire firing process required a human presence. Chunxiao sat on a stool nearby, enjoying the sunny day like she was sitting in the courtyard. The mud outside the firewood pile would crack as it burned, and it had to be patched with wet mud to prevent air leaks. The mud couldn't be too thick, or it would collapse and all her work would be in vain. This wasn't really a proper charcoal kiln. A proper kiln would require a large excavated space, making it impossible to build at home, and the noise was so loud she couldn't explain it to anyone who asked. However, as long as the firing process was done properly and with a bit of attention, the resulting charcoal would be good.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
