Chapter 360 Hatching of Scolopendra subspinipes
Seeing Tian Yan coming in, Lin Heng smiled and said, "Ah, what brings Teacher Tian here?"
Tian Yan looked at him and said, "I came to see Xiulan, to see the two babies, and to tell you two things."
"What's the matter? Come in and sit down." Lin Heng stepped aside and invited her in.
"I'll tell you later." Tian Yan waved her hand, walked to the kitchen and said, "It smells so good, Xiulan, you haven't even finished your confinement and you're already working."
Xiulan smiled and said, "This isn't a hard job. You can play for a while and then eat something when the stewed food is ready."
Caiyun also said, "Yes, Mr. Tian, today we are stewing bear and roe deer meat."
"Then I'm in for a treat." Tian Yan said with a smile, "Take me to see the twins. I heard their names are Lu Ming and Du Heng. These names are very cultural."
"The name was found by Lin Heng. We chose it together. The child should be asleep in the bedroom now." Xiulan said as she led her over. Although she didn't want the child to sleep too much during the day, she didn't mean to forbid her from sleeping at all.
"This name is very good, neither vulgar nor ostentatious." Tian Yan smiled. She used to think that Lin Heng was an uneducated second-rate person, but after getting to know him more in the past two years, she found that this person was just low-key and had read even more books than her.
Especially since I discovered that this person actually read the obscure Das Kapital, I think it’s even more amazing.
"I think so too." Xiulan opened the door with a smile and took her into the house to see the child.
Looking at the two sleeping children, Tian Yan exclaimed in surprise: "What cute little ones!"
Xiulan chatted with her for a while while looking after the children. After that, Tian Yan took out two red envelopes from her pocket and placed them next to the two children.
Xiulan did not stop the children from receiving festive red envelopes and thanked them with a smile.
When the two came out, Lin Heng had already fixed the leather door curtain and lit the fireplace, and the temperature in the room suddenly rose.
Tian Yan looked at Lin Heng and said, "I suggest you get a wooden or iron shelf to separate the fireplace. Children at home may get burned easily."
Lin Heng nodded and said, "I'm going to go to the city to get an iron rack and bring a tractor of coal up. The coal will burn longer and we won't have to get up all the time to add more firewood."
Wood is good, but it needs constant addition of energy. I didn’t realize this before, but after using coal in the city for a while, I felt that wood was not as fragrant anymore.
"That's good." Tian Yan sat down with a smile, and Xiulan poured her a glass of brown sugar water.
Lin Heng packed up his tools, sat down, looked at Tian Yan and asked, "What are the two big things you mentioned?"
Tian Yan took a sip of water and said, "The first thing is that I will go to the city to teach when school starts this year. I won't be able to come here to teach Xiaoxia how to read and write. You don't have to fulfill your promise to donate 1,000 books to the village primary school."
"Did you get a promotion?" Caiyun asked in surprise.
"Not really, I just changed schools and still changed teachers." Tian Yan shook her head. She was still a little upset and angry because Lin Hai was angry with her and didn't want her to go to the city.
"Congratulations. Even if you are a teacher in the same situation, you will have better prospects in the city than in the village." Lin Heng said with a smile, and then said, "As for donating books to the village primary school, you don't have to feel guilty. I was half joking when I said that I would donate books only after you taught Xiaoxia. I will donate no matter what."
Xiaoxia can now draw her own simple sketches and write her own name and a dozen simple Chinese characters. Tian Yan also has a lot of credit for this.
"Thank you then. If you need me any help later, just let me know." Tian Yan said with a smile.
"It's a small matter." Lin Heng waved his hand and asked, "What about the other thing you mentioned?"
Tian Yan replied: "The second thing is what my father asked me to bring. He said that when you have time, he wants to talk to you about the cooperative."
"Oh, I'll find some time to go look for him in the next two days." Lin Heng thought for a while and nodded.
He was a little curious about what Tian Dongfu was going to say.
"Okay." Tian Yan nodded, and started chatting with Caiyun Xiulan again, and went to the kitchen together to marinate the meat.
There were two pots in the kitchen, one was used to boil bear oil, and the other was used to stew vegetables. Xiulan put a few pieces of lean meat in the pot used to boil bear oil, and they had turned brown after being fried in the bear oil.
"Try it, this is roe deer meat." Xiulan scooped it out and said with a smile.
Lin Heng took a piece, blew on it and put it in his mouth. Although he kept breathing out air, he still couldn't help chewing it. The burnt aroma was so strong and the taste was super good. He liked it very much.
"The ones fried with bear oil seem to be more fragrant." Caiyun said in surprise. She had eaten the ones fried with lard made by her mother, and they were obviously inferior to those fried with bear oil.
Tian Yan ate the meat and said enviously, "Xiu Lan and Lin Heng, you two are so good. One is a great hunter and the other is a delicious cook. You complement each other perfectly."
She really envied Lin Heng and Xiulan more and more. Their family was so happy, but her love was already caught in a painful tug of war.
Xiulan looked at her in confusion and asked, "What's wrong with you? You're so emotional even when eating meat. Are you having a quarrel with Lin Hai?"
Tian Yan shook her head and smiled: "No, I just simply envy you."
Xiulan did not ask further questions, but said: "Then help us, let's get a meal."
“Wow wow wow…”
As they were talking, they heard a child crying from the bedroom.
Lin Heng took the initiative to say: "I'll go, it should be time to change the diaper."
When I entered the bedroom, I found that it was Lin Luming who had defecated. I endured the stench and took a lot of effort to fix it.
After finishing, he carried the two little ones to the living room and put them in the stroller he bought in the city. Now the main room was also warm.
Lin Heng looked at his watch and said, "Xiu Lan, you guys prepare the meal. I'm going to go to Hongfeng Mountain and will be back soon."
Xiulan waved her hand: "You go ahead, I'll take care of the child."
"Dad, I'm with you."
Xiaoxia, who was tired of playing with the puppy, ran over and said.
"Let's go, and take your scarf with you." Lin Heng looked at her and said.
Xiaoxia turned around and took the scarf and asked Lin Heng to put it on her. Then she put on the hat, leaving only her pink little face exposed, which looked 70% like her mother.
Lin Heng took her little hand and walked out. Outside the yard, the river wind was strong and it was extremely cold. The sky was also dark and it seemed like it was about to snow.
Xiaoxia didn't want to leave after walking for a while, and hugged Lin Heng's thigh coquettishly: "Good daddy, hug your good daughter, it's so cold."
She is now even better at acting like a spoiled child, looking up at Lin Heng pitifully with her little face tilted back.
"Oh well!"
Faced with this request from his lovely daughter, he couldn't refuse, so he held her in his arms and walked forward.
"Thank you, Dad. I love you so much~"
Xiaoxia kissed Lin Heng on the face, happily put her arms around his shoulders and looked at the scenery ahead.
Lin Heng and Xiaoxia quickly arrived at Hongfeng Mountain, opened the gate and went in. The ponds were covered with a thin layer of ice. From a distance, they could see the red-maned horse Hongzao eating grass on the hillside outside the cowshed.
"Dad, we haven't picked eggs for a long time." Xiaoxia said, looking at the chicken coop on the hillside.
"I guess there aren't many eggs recently. Let's go ask your grandma." Lin Heng looked at her and said, these free-range chickens don't lay many eggs in winter.
"It doesn't lay many eggs. I only picked up two eggs in three days. I don't think there will be any today." Lin's mother came out and answered. She had heard Lin Heng's voice a long time ago.
"Grandma, I miss you." Xiaoxia said coquettishly when she saw Lin's mother.
Mother Lin immediately happily carried Xiaoxia into the house and said, "Come, let grandma hold you. Let's go into the house and get you your favorite dried sweet potatoes."
Xiaoxia followed Lin's mother. Lin Heng went to the warehouse to see his father who was installing shelves. He had already assembled two shelves and was assembling the third one.
"Why are you coming here when you're not at home helping take care of the kids?" Father Lin looked at him and asked.
"Come and take a look at the plum fish and study its hatching and breeding techniques." Lin Heng explained that unlike ordinary fish, the breeding period of plum fish is from February to March, and the best breeding time is when the water temperature for spawning is below ten degrees.
"Can plum fish breed now?" Father Lin was a little surprised.
"Yes, it's a cold water fish." Lin Heng nodded.
Father Lin stopped what he was doing and asked, "Do you need my help?"
Lin Heng thought for a moment and said, "Let me take a look at the situation first. I'll call you if I need you."
"Okay then." Father Lin lowered his head and continued to work.
Lin Heng turned and went out, and his mother came out with Xiaoxia and a small bag of dried sweet potatoes.
Seeing her father, Xiaoxia trotted over, took a handful and said, "Dad, this is for you."
"Thank you, sweetie."
Lin Heng took a handful and ate while walking, thinking about the technical difficulties of breeding plum fish.
He doesn't need to understand the principles like a scientist. He just needs to create a suitable environment for fish reproduction, or artificially breed them, and then explore ways to raise the fry and finally sell them.
The living characteristic of the smelt fish is that it likes low temperatures and turbulent water with high dissolved oxygen content.
Lin Heng walked into the hatchery and first thought about how to transform the hatchery pond into a mullet hatchery.
Water can be drawn from the mountain. The current water temperature is about four or five degrees, which is very suitable for the breeding of smelt fish. Then, it can be done by using a water pump to continuously form a strong impact flow of water.
It didn't seem that difficult to build it by taking advantage of the geographical location, so he decided to give it a try in the next two days.
There is also a simpler method, which is to use natural streams to allow the fish to reproduce naturally, and then he can wait for the fry to grow up and catch them.
However, this method is too inefficient, and artificial breeding is more efficient.
Breeding fish fry is only the first step. How to feed them and what to feed them are other big problems. These all need to be studied slowly, and Lin Heng does not expect to succeed in one go this year.
After taking a look at the incubation pool and deciding on a general renovation plan in his mind, Lin Heng headed up the mountain with a scoop net, a bucket and a small bowl.
"Dad, wait for me."
Xiaoxia saw him going up the mountain and wanted to follow him.
"Let your grandma hold the reins, I'll wait for you." Lin Heng stopped and said.
After waiting for his daughter for a while, Lin Heng took his daughter and mother to Hongfeng Mountain. He hadn't been there for a month.
During the dry season in winter, the water flow from the overflow of the small dam is already very small, a stream about the thickness of a small bowl rushing down like a white ribbon.
The water droplets splashing around formed clusters of ice flowers on the mountain wall, which was extremely beautiful.
Lin Heng took a look, walked to the overflow outlet of the dam and fished out the leaves and branches piled up in the wire mesh, and then went to check on the fish in his cages.
In winter, the water has less green algae and is clearer. You can vaguely see traces of the activity of the carp in the net cage. They are clearly heading upstream and are much more active than other grass carp and carp.
Lin Heng took the scoop net and took a lot of effort to scoop out two fish. He took a look and said, "Lucky, both of them are female."
Female mullets are larger, have a bigger belly, and have ovaries on both sides, so they can be recognized at a glance.
"Dad, do we want to have fish for lunch?" Xiaoxia was drooling at the sight of the fish in the bucket. This was her favorite fish.
Mother Lin looked at her and said, "Don't eat this fish for lunch. Eat crucian carp."
Lin Heng fished for a while before he found a small male fish. After catching both the male and female fish, he got a small bowl, filled it with half a bowl of water, and then grabbed the female fish and gently pressed on its abdomen.
If the fish eggs are ripe, they will come out with a light press. He tried the first one but failed. When he tested the second one, a large amount of golden fish eggs flowed out with a light press, filling half a bowl in a short while.
"This is much less than grass carp." said Lin's mother.
"This fish lays few eggs." Lin Heng nodded, then he grabbed the male fish and pressed it a few more times. This time it was successful at once, and a white liquid flowed into the bowl in a thin line.
After putting the fish back, Lin Heng stirred the water in the bowl, and the fish eggs were fertilized.
"It seems that the fish I caught are all sexually mature big fish." Lin Heng nodded and took the fish eggs to the stream above the dam. He chose a small puddle and poured the fish eggs into it, letting them hatch naturally.
Because his hatchery has not been renovated yet, he can only hatch in the open air.
After making sure that the breeding fish he caught were fine, Lin Heng felt relieved and could then focus on renovating the hatchery pond.
Then he went to see the cabin again and bought paint this time, but he didn't have time to paint it yet.
There were no wild boars in the ginseng garden, and the bees were all alive and well. The cattle and sheep had grown bigger, and the rams in the sheepfold were very agitated. After eating the grass, they would clink their horns together, and the sound of them butting horns could be heard from far away.
"It's time to fan these sheep. They make a lot of noise all day long." Mother Lin said to Lin Heng.
"Wait until the temperature rises at the end of March and start fanning the sheep." Lin Heng nodded. The sheep are just the right size for castration now.
After looking around, Lin Heng had a brief discussion with his father and decided that they should find an opportunity to renovate the hatchery in the next two days and then try artificial breeding of mullet.
"This is the wild big crucian carp I bought specially. You can give it to Xiulan. It helps with milk production." When Lin Heng left, Lin's mother took out five or six big golden crucian carp weighing about one pound from the house and said.
"Don't buy any more after we finish this. I'm going to go fishing." Lin Heng said while holding the fish. Buying fish was a bit insulting to a fisherman.
"I don't want to buy it yet." Lin's mother spread her hands and said.
"Son, let's go fishing together next time." Father Lin said with a smile. He now likes fishing a little.
(End of this chapter)
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