The next day.
Li Waishan was so excited early in the morning that he included sugarcane harvesting in his daily work tasks. The twenty acres of sugarcane fields were growing well, and the harvesting task was arduous, but also particularly joyful.
It was only today that many people knew that the village was going to start making brown sugar. Previously, the village chief had secretly planted a large area of crops that they did not recognize, and because there were people patrolling every day, no one dared to do anything.
The sugar factory in Shanghe Village was located in the canteen where people used to eat in a big pot. It was large in size, and there were four large iron pots on the earthen stove alone. Several old women who worked in the village, as well as Xie Li, followed Su Li to learn how to cook.
It is still unknown how much brown sugar can be produced from one acre of sugarcane, as sugarcane is a rare commodity in the countryside.
Li Waishan almost immediately transferred all his people to the sugarcane fields, fearing that harvesting the sugarcane would delay the sugar-making process. There was one group of people to harvest the sugarcane, another to wash the sugarcane, and another to transport the sugarcane. The team used tractors, ox carts, and flatbed trucks, as well as someone who specialized in cooking.
Two large water vats were polished to a shine and were used to store sugarcane juice. The two wooden barrels next to them were used to pour the sugarcane juice into the iron pot on the stove. Everything was arranged perfectly.
Everything else is easy, but juicing is the key step. Su Li has a juicer in his space, a large one, and it can also be purchased on the Pinxixi platform. However, Shanghe Village has no electricity, and there is only one wire in the team office, which definitely cannot be used. The villagers are not willing to pay for the electricity bill.
Su Li knew that in ancient times, sugar was made on a millstone. Two wooden stakes, one long and one short, were inserted into the round holes on the top of the two millstones as rotating shafts. The oxen pulled the curved wooden stakes to make the "millstone" turn like a gear. Sugarcane was put into the millstone between the two millstones, and the sugar juice squeezed out by the gears flowed out along the grooves.
The sugarcane juice that has flowed out is put into a pot and boiled to evaporate to a certain concentration. Then it is taken out and placed on a straw mat to cool down naturally. When it clumps together, it is crushed into powder to become brown sugar.
Sometimes, because the millstone was too heavy, the cattle often refused to pull it because they thought it was too heavy. The only way was to cover their eyes with black cloth before they would pull hard.
This method is labor-intensive, unhygienic, and has extremely low yields.
She wanted to imitate the ancient people's pedal water wheels, so she modified the juicer in the space and made two simple juicers.
It does look shabby from the outside, but the rotating shaft and movement inside are all modern people's wisdom. As long as you keep pedaling with your feet to drive the turbine, it will be like a waterwheel.
This method is more labor-intensive, but the last thing country folks lack is strength.
Sugarcane fields,
The men were sweating profusely as they cut sugarcane. One by one, they picked up the sugarcane and pulled it for washing. The comrades assigned here were all women, so washing the sugarcane was easier. However, they were still given 6 work points, which was much easier than working in the fields.
Li Waishan's wife and a few others were working and chatting.
"Auntie Li, Su Li urged the village chief to grow this sugarcane. Why didn't you stop him? Look at this thing. Can it really be used to make brown sugar?"
Mrs. Li really hated Su Li. She hadn't done such tiring work for many years. She originally wanted to learn how to make sugar, but her husband wouldn't let her. She was afraid that she would cause trouble for that little bitch, and no matter how she made a fuss, it would be impossible. She didn't want to come, but she was unwilling to give up. She had to see what this bitch could do. "I don't know. If I knew, would I not stop her? What can the third brother Xie do? It's a waste of my husband. It would be best if she could make sugar. If not, I will tear her mouth."
There was a woman who tried to curry favor with the village head's wife. "Tearing her lips off is a minor offense. She must be beaten up, paraded through the streets, and given a yin-yang haircut. It's because she came up with such a bad idea that so many people followed her. If she can come up with brown sugar, everyone will be happy. If not, just wait for her."
"Isn't it? I heard that more than a dozen men in the village have been guarding this piece of land day and night. If she can't make it, let's see how she ends up. Don't let those men listen to her just because she looks like a foxy girl, hehe..."
"Hello, Grandma Miao, you are such a shameless old woman. Your son and daughter-in-law have lost their son since they offended her. How dare you say that about her? Be careful if she finds out, she will punish you."
Thinking of her son's thin and haggard appearance after he came out of the police station, Granny Miao shrank back, then put her hands on her waist and glared, "What? I just said a few words, what law did I break? If that little bitch dares to arrest me, I will hang myself at her doorstep with a rope, humph!"
The person who had just advised him was silent and just worked hard on the task in his hands. No matter whether the sugar could be made or not, he would get work points for his work. Moreover, he would get six work points for washing sugarcane in the past few days. He was so old that he always got six work points for his work before. There were not many opportunities like this, so he must work hard.
Widow Liu rolled her eyes secretly when she heard the discussions of the people around her. She and Su Li had always been at odds with each other, but now she felt that Su Li could accomplish this.
She has two sons and one daughter. Since her husband died, her mother-in-law has been bullying her more and more, but she dare not resist. She will not go to her parents' house, and if she goes to her parents' house, she will have to give up her children and remarry.
Her mother-in-law meant that as long as she took care of the child obediently, the Liu family would always have her as a supporter. She wanted to protect the family business left by her husband for the child. As long as she dared to leave, all the things in the house would be divided among her uncles and younger brothers-in-law by her mother-in-law, and there would be no place for her child.
Ever since Pan Zhaodi left, she started to become quiet. Su Li's incident made her reflect. She used to only know how to eat, drink and have fun, chasing chickens and scolding dogs, but now she can actually help the village make sugar.
Seeing Su Li living a prosperous life, she felt warm too. She had a child, so she had to stand up for herself. Instead of getting angry and criticizing others, she might as well do her job well and live a good life.
Xie Zhenghe was supervising the harvesting of the sugarcane fields. He followed Mrs. Li and the others who were responsible for cleaning the sugarcane fields on the sugarcane cart. He heard their conversation clearly, but he did not act rashly. He let them talk and waited for his brother and sister-in-law to make brown sugar before settling the score. All he had to do now was remember these people's names.
The harvested sugarcane was washed clean by the women. Each piece was washed three or four times. The washed sugarcane was placed on the oxcart, with previously washed snakeskin bags placed underneath.
The sugarcane on the oxcart alone weighed about 600 to 700 kilograms. The person in charge of driving the oxcart was Uncle Xie. He looked very reluctant, watching the oxen he had raised groaning with exhaustion, and he was so angry that he was about to smoke.
Except for some old women who disliked Su Li and liked to gossip, everyone else in the production team was very excited.
The main reason is that everyone knows that if this thing can really be used to make brown sugar, their lives will be much better. They are also particularly looking forward to whether this bamboo pole-like thing can really be used to make brown sugar.
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