The large gate was propped under the eaves of the house. The box was also moved onto the kang inside the house, and Su Yuanyuan picked a lot of vegetables for him to take back. The road was too difficult to travel, so he didn’t stay to rest.
The pigs at ho were already squealing from hunger.
Su Yuanyuan didn’t have ti to wallow in sadness. She imdiately boiled water to feed the pigs.
By the ti she finished, it was already past four o’clock. She didn’t feel like working today. She had once thought of giving the old man so Spiritual Spring Water, but in the end, she didn’t.
She wasn’t that much of a Holy Mother; if this secret leaked out, she would be dood. She wouldn’t even have to seek her own death; she wouldn’t live much longer.
The oppressive mood lingered until the evening when she finally felt a little better.
Life had to go on as it should.
As September rolled in, Su Yuanyuan made two trips a day to the fields to check.
The corn ears from her own fields were noticeably larger than the neighbors’.
Now they were already old; she hadn’t considered eating boiled corn, as there were plenty of sticky corn and sweet corn in the space. She was afraid that if she picked them, they would be stolen.
By early October, the corn should be ready to harvest. She still needed to make a trip to the county to buy new wheat seeds.
This month, she made a trip to the county and hauled back a hundred pounds of wheat seeds. Then, she started tilling the soil.
By the ti it was ready for the autumn harvest, she had already accumulated two thousand five hundred earthen embryos.
"Yuanyuan, your corn is ready to be harvested. When do you want to start?" Hu Chunhua asked.
"Aunt, we’ll start harvesting tomorrow."
"Okay, our family will co to help you."
"Thanks, Aunt." Su Yuanyuan did not decline, as she would also help their family with their autumn harvest. Besides, their crops still had a few days before they were ready.
It was only two acres of land; with Yang Minggang and his family of five joining in, they could get the corn ears hauled back ho in a day.
Yang Minggang and his wife were uprooting the corn stalks. They knew this girl wanted to plant wheat, so the land needed to be cleared quickly.
The three sons from Yang Hongwen’s family also ca to help; they were responsible for bundling the corn stalks and hauling them back to Su Yuanyuan’s ho.
They all knew how to work; the corn stalks were still wet, and knowing she had sheep, they all stuck them up.
With the help of two families, the two acres of land were all cleaned up by the afternoon of the next day.
"Aunt, your corn still needs a few days, right?"
"Yes, another three or four days."
"Then I’ll start planting wheat tomorrow."
"I’ll give you so seeds, and let Xue and the others stay ho to shell the corn."
Su Yuanyuan was truly not reserved. This way, they could finish planting the wheat within two days and then help the two families.
The next day, she still got up at four o’clock. But today she didn’t lift the earth cage.
She pushed the wheat seeds, taking the ewe to the field.
The corn stalks in the field were dug up with a small pick, so the ewe found it quite easy dragging the crop.
The wheat seeds were soaked in diluted Spiritual Spring Water yesterday. They would surely grow well, just like the corn, at least yielding twenty percent more than others.
By the ti Hu Chunhua arrived, Su Yuanyuan already had two-tenths of the land dug up.
"Yuanyuan, did you soak the wheat seeds?"
"Yes, I heard soone say that soaking the wheat seeds makes it easier for them to sprout."
Hu Chunhua didn’t say anything more. The furrows that the sheep made were small, fitting just right next to the furrow, much better than the larger furrows made by big livestock, with the spacing just right.
All of them were seasoned farm workers, so sowing seeds was no problem at all. Hu Chunhua worked with speed and precision.
By nearly nine o’clock, the eldest son of Yang Hongwen’s family drove the cart over. Seeing a little girl planting over half an acre of land was truly unbelievable.
He was there to pull the harrow, with the livestock pulling the harrow. Standing on the harrow behind the livestock would allow them to cover the soil.
"Girl, should I also plow the ground?"
"Big Brother, no need. Just look at the spacing of the furrows; it’s perfect. Besides, tomorrow before noon, we will definitely finish planting."
"All right, I’ll try guiding the sheep with the furrow."
Su Yuanyuan handed it over to Yang Xiubo with a smile. He walked back and forth four tis and then handed it back to Su Yuanyuan.
He still had to pull the harrow.
By noon, the three of them had done an acre of land.
"Big Brother, you don’t need to co too early in the afternoon."
Yang Xiubo nodded with a smile. Su Yuanyuan didn’t manage to invite them for a al; it was too busy today, so she would find a way to make it up later.
"Yuanyuan. Co eat at my house. Your sister has surely prepared lunch."
Su Yuanyuan shook her head, "No, the livestock at ho need to be fed too. Aunt, you should rest for a while, no rush, it’s too hot today."
"Okay, you have a rest, too."
Su Yuanyuan hurriedly pushed the cart ho. The pigs were already squealing with hunger; she had cooked their feed in the morning, so all that was needed was to mix it with water and feed them.
The ewe was very tired today. Su Yuanyuan individually gave it half a cup of diluted Spiritual Spring Water, this way it would still be energetic for the afternoon work.
She opened the chicken coop, and the ducks and geese ford a line to leave. In the morning, she hadn’t managed to release them, and she hadn’t gathered the eggs either, so after counting them, she felt much better.
She also fed the chickens before finally washing up and going inside to eat.
After lunch, she only rested for ten minutes before hearing Hu Chunhua’s voice outside.
"Aunt. Why so early? Why didn’t you rest for a while?"
When there’s hope in the work, one just wants to finish it quickly.
"Yes, exactly."
This ti, Hu Chunhua was pushing the wheat seeds, and the mother and daughter were coordinating in the fields.
When Yang Xiubo ca to the fields after a nap, the two of them had already planted over three-tenths of an acre.
This ti, he didn’t wait to pull the harrow together; it was too hot now and feared the freshly planted wheat might dry out.
The three of them worked until dark, finally planting the two acres of land.
When Su Yuanyuan returned ho, the ducks and geese were lying at the door. She counted them; none were missing.
By this ti, the chickens wouldn’t eat even if fed. So today, the chickens had to miss a al. By the ti she lay on the kang, it was already past nine o’clock.
She was truly exhausted. It felt as if she had been sunburned.
Because she was so tired, she didn’t get up at four the next day.
Only at six did she get up. After releasing the ducks and geese, she finally fed the pigs and sheep.
After settling everything, having had her fill, she thought about setting the earth cage, leaving miscellaneous fish for the pigs and chickens, and dividing the rest for the two families.
This wasn’t to repay a favor; it was just to improve things a bit for the two families.
Just as she lifted the carrying pole, Hu Chunhua and her three daughters arrived.
"Aunt, why didn’t you rest today?"
"We hurry to shell the corn, to prevent them from sprouting."
"Aunt, then you’ll have to work first while I go set the earth cage, and we’ll split it among our three families."
Hu Chunhua was no longer reserved; she nodded, and the mother and her three daughters all ca with their own small stools.
Today’s earth cage contained so fish that weren’t fresh, but later they would have to pick them out. The two carp from the space were also taken out, with one given to each family.
When she returned, she spread plastic sheets on the ground and picked out the ones that weren’t fresh.
"Sister, go ho and handle the fish, I’ll shell the corn later."
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