Back at their home, Jiang Zhi and Qiao Yun ate some corn porridge, and then everyone started working separately.
Qiaoyun stayed home to peel the green fruit, and then ground more powder every day to share with Xiaoman's family.
Jiang Zhi carried a machete and hoe, and slung a basket over her shoulder as she went out.
She needed to find some firewood and, incidentally, began to explore the surrounding mountains and forests.
Although we moved almost half a month ago, I've been busy these days either repairing the house or building a kang (heated brick bed), or picking oak berries in the woods near my house. I haven't even walked fifty meters yet.
There is a charcoal kiln not far from the new house.
Jiang Zhi had seen this most primitive method of charcoal burning; it was a basic skill that wilderness survivalists had to master.
Simply place neatly chopped wooden sticks of uniform length and size into the kiln pit, cover the outside with yellow mud leaving ventilation holes, then light the fire from the side and below to ignite the firewood inside. Once the moisture has evaporated, seal the pit with soil and smolder to carbonize it.
In the past, rural families would often build their own kilns to seal the ground in winter, but these have been banned due to severe pollution.
The charcoal kiln here hasn't been used for three years. The sides of the kiln walls have collapsed due to rain erosion, and there are discarded wooden sticks and branches scattered around.
Exposed to sun and rain, all the branches of the miscellaneous trees had rotted away, only the trunks of the oak trees remained sturdy.
Jiang Zhi gathered up the usable firewood, intending to take it back to cook.
The charcoal kiln is located on a relatively gentle slope, where, apart from low shrubs, it is covered with all sorts of withered grass.
As Jiang Zhi cut down the shrubs and weeds, she picked up countless pebbles of all sizes from the slope and put them together. These stones were not trash; she would use them later.
This is a piece of wasteland that Jiang Zhi had long ago chosen. Now it has been cleared and tilled for future use. Once the rains come, it can be planted.
After clearing away a section of withered grass and shrubs, she would dig a shallow ditch on the slope, place the stones she had just collected in the ditch, and pile them up in order of size to form a two-foot-high embankment.
Then, the soil above the slope is dug up and spread out, and as you look around, you immediately see layers of flat terraced fields.
Simply leveling the slope isn't enough to cultivate the land. This is a rocky mountain with thin soil, and the water and fertilizer can't meet the needs of high-density crop growth.
Moreover, the newly reclaimed soil is raw soil, which has not been fertilized or watered. It is full of roots and stems of miscellaneous trees and weeds, and crops will not grow well in the first few years.
This is also why few people were willing to reclaim wasteland in ancient times.
Without sufficient base fertilizer, the land will only grow weeds after it has been cleared.
Moreover, the government collects taxes based on the number of acres of land, regardless of the harvest, so farmers who reclaim wasteland often lose more than they gain.
Unless a great decree is issued to encourage land reclamation, a three-year tax exemption will be granted.
Jiang Zhi had a solution: she collected topsoil from other places and poured it into the newly built terraced fields, which not only deepened the soil layer but also increased fertility.
The topsoil is mostly composed of fallen leaf humus, which is well-aerated and permeable, making it excellent soil for planting.
Unfortunately, this method can only improve a limited area of land, much like growing vegetables on a rooftop; it cannot be used to cultivate several acres or even tens of acres of mountain land.
Dream Map
Five terraces were built here, and Jiang Zhi went back to help Qiaoyun finish grinding the oak powder.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law chatted for a while, dreaming about a bright future, and then their busy day passed by.
After a simple dinner, she washed her face and feet and lay sprawled on the warm earthen bed, feeling as if all the bones in her body had relaxed.
well!
An acre of land, an ox, a wife and children on a warm kang (heated brick bed), and a full stomach and plenty of water after physical labor—that's the most relaxing thing.
Simple happiness is what people instinctively pursue; it's certainly true!
Jiang Zhi thought to herself, feeling comfortable and relaxed, and quickly drifted off to sleep:
...She then saw "herself" still reclining on the large sofa cushion.
On the coffee table, my favorite little chrysanthemum lamp is still lit, and next to it, the AI reading voice on my phone is still reading the novel at a leisurely pace.
The pet cat Mimi rolled over and lay on her back with her paws in the air, seemingly having a dream, her little paws kicking...
Am I dreaming, or am I in a book?
This time, Jiang Zhi was no longer surprised. She calmed down and tried to hear clearly what the AI robot was saying.
As soon as I thought this, the previously muffled reading voice suddenly became clear, and even images appeared, as if I were there in person.
It turns out it was the same male-oriented novel that I had transmigrated into.
"...Xu Pingmao, the village chief of Xujia Village, led a team of dozens of people toward the prefectural city, where there were sturdy city walls."
Yuzhou Prefecture is 400 li away from Xujia Village. Normally, it would take men seven or eight days to walk there, but now, with their families in tow, they have only traveled 20 li in almost a day.
Either the chickens at this house flew away, or the sheep at that house butted someone's butt, or the carrying pole came undone, or the basket spilled oil.
Xu Pingmao angrily cursed, "I told you to kill the chickens and ducks and bring them along. How are we supposed to raise these live animals?"
The villagers didn't take it seriously and joked with the village chief, Xu Pingmao, "Uncle Village Chief, don't worry, the chicken will lay an egg and we'll deliver it to your house later."
In the group, Nie Fantian carried his pack on his back and walked silently.
He had just quietly touched the package; inside, besides the clothes, there were a few flatbreads and boiled sweet potatoes, as well as a bag of hard, dried sweet potatoes.
Sweet potato chips are steamed and then dried, so they can be stored for a long time without worrying about spoiling.
What surprised him most was that, without him noticing, a string of coins had appeared in his bundle.
One string of cash is equivalent to a thousand coins, or one tael of silver, enough for him to eat his fill on the road.
Nie Fantian was furious and puzzled: this string of cash was probably half of his family's savings. What trick was that old woman playing? Why was she giving him money?
Is it like before, where they deliberately frame me for stealing and then drag me to a crowded place to beat me up?
The thought of his wicked aunt made Nie Fantian feel uncomfortable.
But now that my aunt is no longer around, and can no longer scold me, why would she still give me money?
This question was far too complicated for a sixteen-year-old like him, so he could only keep his doubts to himself.
The villagers around him were making a ruckus. When he stopped to rest and have something to eat, the migrants by the roadside gathered around him.
In fact, they encountered several groups of refugees when they left the village, but the people of Xujia Village were a large group, and the refugees stayed far away and dared not approach.
Those who tried to snatch it were scared back by a few shouts, which is why the people of Xujia Village were able to leave so easily and happily.
But this time, the refugees they encountered were clearly not afraid, or rather, the food offered by the people of Xujia Village, especially the clucking chickens, was too tempting.
The group of people were all disheveled, as thin as sticks, with sallow complexions, and exuding an aura of death.
Upon seeing the people of Xujia Village, they pounced on them like hungry wolves seeing fresh meat.
Village chief Xu Pingmao shouted, "Take something and fight back! Fight back now!"
The refugees also took out sticks.
The road was thrown into chaos, with people fighting and frightened chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep also becoming panicked.
Nie Fantian, who was thin and looked very weak in the crowd, had nowhere to vent his anger. He pulled out a kitchen knife and rushed into the melee.
He moved like a cat demon gliding through the night; the blade flashed, blood splattered, and a disheveled head flew high into the air…
"Ah! Murder!" The villagers of Xujia Village and the refugees screamed in terror.
Just then, a scream in her ear startled Jiang Zhi so much that her heart almost stopped beating.
"Mother! Mother!"
Xu Errui shouted at the top of his lungs outside the makeshift door, "Mom, get up quickly! The village down the mountain is on fire again!"
Jiang Zhi was still in shock, trembling all over, the image of the gleaming knife splitting open her head still vivid in her mind's eye.
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