Yu Hai's eyes lit up, and he was the first to understand: "Do you really have a way to grow vegetables at this time?"
Yu Xiaocao patted her chest and said: "I can assure you, there will be absolutely no problem! Father, mother, don't worry!"
The next day, Xiaocao bought two oxcarts of straw from a family with a lot of fertile land in another village for 20 Wen, and taught Yu Hai and Liu's how to weave grass thatch. Although Xiaobutianshi has repeatedly assured that the vegetable seeds soaked in Lingshi water can withstand the severe cold in early spring, Yu Xiaocao is still worried. Grass thatch was commonly used to keep vegetables warm in greenhouse farming in previous lives, so be prepared!
With the help of the skeptical Liu Shi, Xiaocao scattered the vegetable seeds soaked last night in the plowed vegetable field. The fifth portion of the land in the front yard is all planted with short-growing cabbage, spinach, and mustard greens, trying to earn the first pot of gold back home when no other vegetables are planted in the ground.
After sowing the seeds, Mrs. Liu took Xiao Lian to turn over the backyard and the land along the edge of the pond. Mrs. Mao, who was raising ducks by the pond, saw them and reminded them: "Have you started digging the ground so early? It is not easy to grow crops by the pond, and it will be flooded when the rainy season rises in late spring."
Although Mrs. Mao was not forgiving, his heart was not bad. Mrs. Liu smiled at her and said, "I'm going to plant some small cabbages and mustard greens, and I will harvest them before the water floods."
Mrs. Mao nodded and said, "Then you have to use fences to enclose the vegetable field. My ducks are all raised in the pond. I won't pay you for eating your vegetables!"
Sure enough, Mao's mouth is not likable, it is obviously a good word to remind, why is it so annoying when it is said
Mrs. Liu said with a good-tempered smile: "Thank you, Mrs. Qian, for reminding me. I'll raise the fence tomorrow."
In the evening, Xiaocao and Dad made about a dozen grass thatches in one afternoon. Yu Hai has woven mats before, and straw mats are much easier to make than mats, and they don't need to be too meticulous. He got started very quickly, and he has made two more mats than Xiaocao.
Together with Mrs. Liu, Xiaocao spread the grass thatch on the vegetable field, like covering the vegetable garden with a layer of quilt. Little Shitou also helped, he asked with some concern: "Second Sister, can this keep the vegetables warm?"
Xiaocao stroked his little head, and said with a smile: "In cold weather, if you cover the quilt, will you be warm? In the same way, the ground absorbs the sun's heat at noon, and if you cover it with a grass thatch, the heat will not go away at night." Let it out, won't the vegetables be afraid of the cold?"
The little guy nodded suddenly, and said: "So we are covering the vegetable field with quilts! But those places that are not covered with grass thatch, will be frozen?"
"It's okay, the rapeseed has just been sprinkled in, and it hasn't germinated yet, so it won't be damaged by the frost. Let's weave more grass thatch tomorrow, and cover the vegetable fields in the front and back yards with quilts. The baby vegetables will sprout and grow soon." Big!"
Looking at the six-year-old little stone, Xiaocao suddenly thought of her younger brother in the previous life. When the younger brother was so old, he was not so well-behaved. At that time, his parents were still there. As the only boy in the family, he was still acting like a baby in his mother's arms...
It took three days to reclaim all the land in the front and back yards. The land beside the pond, when the water swelled, accumulated a lot of black mud, and it was a good fertile field after reclaiming. It's a pity that every year when the rain increases at the end of June, the water in the pond will rise up, and it is impossible to grow long-term crops.
There are still four months before the water rises, so Xiaocao planted wax gourd, beans, eggplants and kidney beans that grow for two to three months on the nearly one-acre poolside. In the backyard, leeks, cucumbers, garlic and peppers were planted. I also ordered loofah and pumpkin on the edge of the wall.
The family worked overtime and worked for three whole days before weaving all the grass thatch needed for the vegetable garden. Even small stones can weave small grass thatch. Just use it.
In the past few days, the food at home has always been coarse grain bread, bean soup, and only cabbage, radish and pickles. The thick noodle cake must be chewed carefully. When you swallow it, it is so thick that you scratch your throat. The bean soup has a beany smell. If you are not very hungry, you will not be able to eat it at all. Boiled vegetables that lack oil and seasonings make Xiaocao get a headache when it's time to eat.
With the current living standard of Xiaocao's family, even such meals have to be calculated in terms of portions. I am afraid that if they cook more, the existing food will not be able to support the vegetables when they are harvested, and the family will starve.
In addition to helping with the laundry once every three days, Mrs. Liu also took on embroidery work in an embroidery shop, embroidering with lamps and cooking oil every day. Yu Haiyang followed Zhao Oriehu, who lived at the foot of the West Mountain, to help cut some bamboo, made bamboo baskets and baskets, and put them in the grocery store in the town for consignment.
After the vegetables were planted in early spring, Xiaocao was free, and Xiaolian, who was able to do housework, almost did all of the housework, and she was not allowed to intervene. Xiao Shitou followed the youngest son of the Qian family next door, running up and down the mountain and down the river, but he didn't just play, sometimes he brought back a few bird eggs, and he brought back two bundles of firewood sensiblely every day.
Qian Wu, the youngest son of the Mao family of the Qian family, is eight years old, and unlike his elder brother Qian Wen, he is not interested in studying. He has an active temper, and he doesn't go home until lunch time every day. He often hears his mother Mao calling him to go home for dinner: "Xiao Wuzi, where did you go, go home for dinner..."
Mao's two sons, one quiet and one moving, have completely opposite personalities. The big Qian Wen is a nerd, holding a book everywhere he goes, and sometimes he gets lost in reading while walking, and he doesn't know when he hits his head against a tree. Xiaocao once saw him, walking while reading a book, and even accidentally fell into a ditch. Fortunately, there was no water in the ditch at this time, or the idiot would have to be frozen to death.
On this day, Xiaocao carried a basket and took a small shovel to see if there were any wild vegetables nearby to dig. At this time, she had the impression that wild shepherd's purse should come out. In her previous life, she liked digging shepherd's purse the most, and when she came back, she made shepherd's purse soup or made steamed buns, which were delicious.
Walking along the path in front of the door, all the way to the west mountain, Xiao Shi bouncingly followed behind, feeling very happy: the second sister said that she would make shepherd's purse dumplings for him, and the products produced by the second sister must be high-quality goods, and the taste must be good . Although the season for digging wild vegetables is not right, it is also good for the second sister to go out for a walk.
Xiao Shitou rejected Qian Wu's temptation to go up the mountain to dig out bird eggs, and volunteered to play the role of protecting the second sister. As long as Xishan doesn't go deep into the mountains, there will be no danger. He is afraid that his second sister, who doesn't go out often, won't find her way home.
Qian Wen, who was resting at home, slowly walked out the door with a book in his hand. Xiaoshitou greeted him warmly: "Brother Xiaowen, go up the mountain to read again!"
The Qian family raised more than a hundred ducks, which were constantly quacking and noisy. When Qian Wen was resting, he liked to take books to the foot of the mountain and choose a quiet place to read. I didn't expect to meet him when I went out today.
Eleven-year-old Qian Wen has a fair complexion, delicate features, and gentle manners. He is a fair and handsome young lady. Even if it was the second time we met, Xiaocao still found it pleasing to the eye.
Hearing the voice, Qian Wen raised his head from the scroll, saw the Xiaocao siblings, and greeted them with a smile: "Yes, find a clean place to read, what are you siblings doing?"
Little Shitou said: "Second Sister said she wants to come out to see what wild vegetables are there, dig some and go back to make soup."
Qian Wen glanced at Xiaocao, he thought she was Xiaolian. I have long heard that the second daughter of Uncle Hai's family is weak and sick, and the doctor said that she couldn't support her when she was born. She thought she was a little girl who was so sick that she couldn't even get out of bed. When I saw her today, she lost a little weight. He has a ruddy complexion, walks vigorously, and doesn't look weak at all.
"If you want to pick wild vegetables, I'm afraid it will be March. At this time, the river water has not thawed much, and it's not the time to pick wild vegetables." Qian Wen reminded in good faith.
The corner of Yu Xiaocao's mouth twitched into a faint smile, and said, "It's okay, I'm just looking for a chance to come out for a walk. You are busy with your work, don't delay your reading."
Qian Wen learned from his gossiping mother that Uncle Dahai's family separated. If it wasn't for the help of Yue's family and villagers, the house would be leaking everywhere at this time! At this time, I went out to look for wild vegetables, I am afraid that there is not much food at home.
Qian Wen patted his mother in his arms, afraid that he would be hungry after studying, so the dry food specially brought him was steamed buns made of white flour mixed with millet flour. He opened his mouth, but did not speak after all.
After all, it was only the second time for him to see a little girl, and he gave away steamed buns for no reason, and he was afraid that it would give people the feeling of "cheap food". Forget it, let's get acquainted in the future, and find a chance to help one or two.
The weather in February (lunar calendar) was still cold, and a gust of northeast wind blew by, Yu Xiaocao couldn't help shivering. The jacket on his body was worn out, and the old cotton inside was also stuffed into the cotton-padded jackets of his younger brothers and sisters after being worn by his elder brother. It was so hard that it was almost clumped. Not only is it uncomfortable to wear on the body, but the warmth retention effect is also much worse. When you have money, why didn't you think of buying some new cotton and sewing it into your jacket
Xiaocao held her little hands that were sore from the cold, and carefully looked for familiar plants on the edge of the roadside ditch. The little stone was jumping and running all the way, full of vitality. Seeing that his elder sister shrank her neck and looked very cold, he took the second sister's hand with her warm little hands, smiled and said with crooked eyes: "Second sister, I have great firepower, I will warm your hands for you!"
Xiaocao moved him into her arms, and kissed his pink and tender face. The little guy's face turned red immediately. The ancient people's way of expressing their emotions was more reserved. Even his parents hadn't kissed him.
Xiaoshi shyly shook off the second sister's hand and ran away quickly. Xiaocao followed behind, trotting, exhausted and out of breath, but couldn't catch up with him, her body was hot.
"Wait! Brother, I saw shepherd's purse!" By the dry river ditch, small gray-brown plants grew close to the ground. The jagged leaves were the wild shepherd's purse she was familiar with.
Xiaoshi turned around, took a look at it, and said, "Second sister, shepherd's purse is not like this. Its leaves are green and long, and there are small white flowers in the middle."
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There is a problem with the network at home, and I run the unit update every time. It's not easy to go back and forth for ten kilometers!
Near the end of the new year, I have to visit relatives and friends at home. The young man who just got his driver's license was arrested and acted as a driver. There are traffic jams everywhere... It really tests my skills and kills me!