Chapter 9
After most of the things were transported here, Wen Yi asked a group of children to stay here, and he and two people who were able to work disassembled all the usable things and transported them to the cave and the center of the village, and the rest of the people would transport them over.
Although the remaining stock was small, it was enough to supply them for the time being. Most of the usable, undamaged pottery jars and rattan baskets were also transported here.
Despite this, many children and even adults lost a lot of weight in just a few days. They couldn't even eat the porridge they saw. Instead, they put down the pottery bowl and went to work. It seemed that only constant labor could stop them from thinking about what had happened.
Amu played a very important role in this.
Despite her initial confusion and sadness, she quickly recovered. Perhaps because Shu and Wen Yi were still there, she didn't quietly find a corner like before. Instead, she waited for a few still-frightened children, who were wearing thick clothes and searching for useful wild plants or dead branches nearby.
There are not many snakes, insects, rats or ants in the mountains in winter. The hibernating animals that are occasionally found are placed far away from people's activities.
Finally, a few people worked together to carry back a stone slightly wider than the entrance from a nearby place. After everyone entered, they used a hemp rope to drag it to block the entrance. There were still gaps around the stone, but they would be covered by new branches in the spring, so they could wait until then to go out.
Hopefully, by then, the bandits would have left the area, after all, that was where they were born and raised. No one mentioned what would happen if the arable land had already been taken away by others.
The village head stood behind the crowd, watching the light at the entrance being gradually swallowed up, and sighed.
"Let's go, let's go back."
The weather in the mountains was better than outside, and with the scraps we found and patched together, we were able to gather enough clothes for everyone. If the weather was cold, we would stay in the cave and climb to higher ground when the sun came out.
The path from this valley to the surrounding peaks was relatively flat, unlike the steep terrain outside. If Wen Yi hadn't already been there, he would have thought this was a whole mountain range.
It is certainly not possible to live in a low-lying cave with heavy moisture for a long time. These days, when everyone is free, they go out in groups of three or four to find a place suitable for temporary residence and where they can get some sun exposure.
Unbeknownst to them, several groups of thugs armed with blood-stained weapons had indeed returned here, completely destroyed the remaining traces, took away everything that could be burned, and cursed the guys who came to raid between their two visits.
They did not suspect that the remaining people took it away themselves. In their view, these fools would only guard the land and food. Even though many of them had some combat capabilities due to their military service, they were no match for them.
"You're really not picky." A soldier wearing torn leather armor spat. Normally, there would be a foul smell here, but now there is not a single body left. He guessed that the group of looters who were short of food and clothing must have taken them away.
Although these things were openly prohibited by the higher-ups, many low-level soldiers didn't care about that. Even some nobles kept muttering about something mysterious and joined the ranks of cannibalism.
The soldier was obviously disgusted by this, but it never occurred to him that his previous behavior was not fundamentally different from that of those guys.
They all plundered and killed.
*
Wen Yi and others finally agreed to rebuild the house on the slope on the north side.
Although it is called a slope, it is actually quite flat, with a few huge rocks slightly exposed in the area with a gentler slope.
The platform here is located at a higher elevation, making it less susceptible to flooding during the flood season and still receiving sunlight in winter. A nearby boulder, cleaned and suitable for drying food, provides a good spot for drying crops. Even if the environment remains unstable and further planting is needed in the canyon, there is still room for drying crops.
After clearing the rocks on the side close to the mountain wall, Wen Yi and his companions used shovels and stones to level and compact the land. The excess soil was temporarily piled aside for future use. Then they used copper and iron shovels to dig on the slope.
Wen Yi saw a glimpse of the city of that era on the leather the village head had brought. It was said that the royal capital was even more prosperous, with high platforms so high that one could barely see the top. However, the buildings themselves weren't very high, which was probably one of the reasons they were used to kneeling. The thatched huts they had lived in before weren't very tall either, so everyone was used to sitting in the courtyard.
However, when rebuilding, Wen Yi chose relatively tall trees nearby to serve as support poles. The height of the new residence had to be at least one to eight meters, otherwise it would feel very depressing inside.
After the sprained and injured area healed, Shu joined in the excavation of the cave, while Wen Yi freed up his hands and cleared a piece of space beside the stream, preparing to try to make mud bricks.
The excavated soil is mixed with water to form mud. A layer of dry soil is poured into the wooden mold, followed by filling with mud. Finally, it is flattened and piled on the rocks on the river bank to dry.
Once the formed mud blocks have dried thoroughly, they are carefully removed and stacked in a yellow mud stove. Firewood is continuously fed through the holes below, and the firing progress is monitored from the vents above. Once the fire is burning strongly, the gaps between the bricks are filled with combustible materials, and the vents are sealed with mud to reduce heat loss. Once the fire is extinguished, the top of the kiln is broken open and the fired mud bricks are removed.
Many of the bricks were broken after being fired, but Wen Yi did not throw them away. Instead, he mixed them with yellow mud and built a larger, reusable brick kiln.
The new cave was quickly dug. Several trees were cut down on the river bank to serve as pillars inside. Then the inside was coated with yellow mud, sand and broken grass stalks, and finally baked with fire to make the surface hard and dry.
The outside of the entrance and exit is temporarily surrounded by wooden fences to prevent wild animals from approaching the residence at night, although this area seems to be safe at present.
The fired mud bricks were carried into the fence in rattan baskets, and Wen Yi knocked down a lot of limestone, which would be burned with coal.
The fired stones were shoveled into a pre-built pool filled with stream water and then carefully placed in it. After waiting for the heat to end, crude lime was obtained.
The main components of modern cement, in addition to lime, are silicon, aluminum, iron, etc. After high-temperature calcination and cooling, other materials such as gypsum need to be added before grinding.
Wen Yi naturally didn't have the conditions at the moment. Perhaps after she found gypsum, she would try to make stronger materials. What she made now looked like a semi-finished product - which was indeed the case. However, as a brick adhesive, it was still much stronger than yellow mud.
Some of the lime and sand were transported to the side of the fence, and Shu and the middle-aged woman began to build a cooking stove, while the man named Zhong Ji and Wen Yi continued to make molds and bake on the river bank.
The original square brick kiln was reinforced with yellow mud. Wen Yi and the people around him said:
"The other utensils can be burned together. Are there any other containers we need?"
Zhong Ji thought for a while. His feet were a little sloping. It was not noticeable when he walked slowly, but it was very obvious when he jogged. This was also the reason why he was not drafted into military service at this time. He didn't know whether it was lucky or unfortunate.
"Let's make two more plates and pottery jars." Zhong Ji whispered.
Wen Yi nodded, pounded the dug clay, and set it aside to rest for a while before making pottery.
The disc-casting method is still used today and was a common method before the invention of the embryonic casting machine. It is also possible to shape half of the piece in a pre-made mold and then join the parts together, scraping off the joints.
However, for now, we are trying to make small objects, so we can just mold them directly. Wen Yi called the three little kids who were looking over and asked them to mold the small things they wanted.
Although the technical content and cost of pottery products are not high, children nowadays rarely have the opportunity to participate in such play activities. In addition, because the temperature of the fire is very high, the three children simply do not go out to play and stay here for several days.
Wen Yi placed three or four pieces of mud under the air-dried embryo as a support, brushed a layer of wood ash solution on it, and then placed it in a small kiln next to it, fired it for a few hours, and waited for it to cool overnight before taking it out.
Perhaps it was because the clay here had a low iron content, the resulting vessels resembled primitive porcelain. Mu cheered, then he and his two friends picked up their creations and ran toward the mountainside.
"You're running too fast. Take these things upstairs first. I'll watch the fire here." Wen Yi carefully stacked the baked bowls and plates in a wicker basket separated by hay, and signaled Zhong Ji to take the things upstairs.
The burnt and cracked ones could barely be used, but Wen Yi piled them aside and would smash them to use as filler when construction was needed.
After repairing the cave and the supporting wooden structure halfway up the mountain, everyone descended to the flat ground. The village head, after consulting with three other experienced farmers, decided to reclaim a less densely populated area nearby for planting next spring.
Even the village head picked up a machete to help chop the branches, but he told Wen Yi that she didn't have to call him village head, just call him by his real name, Shan.
The old man smiled bitterly, "I have become a refugee. I no longer receive food from the county government, and there will be no village head anymore."
But sometimes people still say it wrong, and maybe we will get used to it after a while.
Cut the weeds from the land to be reclaimed, dig deep to uncover the grass roots, and remove dead trees and rocks. Clear a firebreak around the edge, level the combustibles, and then light a fire in the middle.
Wen Yi wanted to say something several times, but compared the number of people and the scope of the planned land reclamation, he finally suppressed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
The ash from the burning is turned directly into the soil using farm tools. The best time to do this is when the vegetation is lush and lush. It's impossible to completely remove the roots and seeds now, so the process will be more laborious next year, but without the drying step.
There are fewer birds in the mountains in winter, and many trees still have fruit hanging from them. The sweetest ones are mostly left for the birds to pick, but people still pick them and use them as a supplement to the scarce fruits and vegetables in winter.
Wen Yi also discovered several jujube trees and wild apricot trees. She selected a few dwarf jujube trees with dried fruits hanging on them, dug them out with the soil, transported them to the middle of the mountainside in frames, and transplanted them to their current yard.
Zhongji took over the baking job, and his skills improved rapidly. He even used a small stove to bake a large, crack-free pottery pot. This was also thanks to the fact that there was no shortage of dead branches and wood in their current area.
Wen Yi was about to start building a kang outside the excavated cave, which would be connected to the newly built stove.
First, clean the ground outside and mark the lines with hemp ropes. Then, wet the previously fired mud bricks and use raw cement mixed with lime and sand to build a rectangular frame of the required length and width.
The smoke inlet was filled with burnt sticks plastered with mud. Then the wind tunnel was built back at the smoke outlet, and both sides were plastered with raw cement mixed with chopped straw.
On his first attempt at lighting a fire, the smoke didn't come out of the chimney, but instead flowed back into the smoke inlet. After much experimentation, Wen Yi realized he needed a ramp to lift the smoke. After several attempts, he managed to create a semi-finished product.
After confirming that the smoke could really spiral under the earthen kang in a snake-like shape and then leave, Wen Yi breathed a sigh of relief, laid the brick and stone slabs that had been prepared in advance on top, and then sealed it with yellow mud.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
