The next day.
Zhang Sanchun was called back. Knowing that Chu Xun was going to reclaim thirty acres of wasteland, he was startled.
"This, isn't this too much? How can it be finished?"
"Even if we die of exhaustion, we have to finish it! Everyone in the village is waiting to see Brother Xun make a fool of himself right now!" Zhang Anxiu clamored.
Zhang Sanchun had a look of difficulty on his face. Although he was wooden, he still had so idea of how much farm work one person could do.
Chu Xun said, "We have a plowing ox at ho. You two work during the day, and I'll work at night. We should make it in ti."
Even with the help of a plowing ox, excluding windy and rainy days, there was also the ti needed for sowing, fertilizing, weeding, and harvesting the other seventeen acres of farmland.
The remaining ti, fully calculated, was only a little over a hundred days.
Calculating it, they had to reclaim one acre of wasteland in at most five days.
The wasteland in Pinecone Village was mostly rocky land, with large and small stones mixed together.
Wanting to sort it out clearly wasn't that simple.
Otherwise, people would have gone to reclaim the wasteland long ago; why wait until the Wasteland Reclamation Decree ca down?
But since Chu Xun was so confident, Zhang Sanchun had nothing to say.
While Chu Xun was preparing farm tools, such as iron crowbars, hamrs, hemp ropes, bamboo baskets, and other things.
Zhang Sanchun pulled Zhang Anxiu aside and asked in a low voice, "Have you talked to Ah Xun about marriage?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Anxiu imdiately beca bashful, "Not yet, Brother Xun is very busy, where is there ti."
"How could there not be ti for just asking a question? Otherwise, I'll go ask for you."
Zhang Anxiu hurriedly pulled him back, "What's the rush, you haven't even taken a wife yet!"
"I..." Zhang Sanchun wanted to say, you're a girl, how can you be the sa as .
But for so reason, hearing his sister's words, he involuntarily thought of the Eldest Miss of the Lin family.
Especially thinking that one day she would also marry soone, Zhang Sanchun's head drooped down.
When Chu Xun returned and saw the siblings, one with a drooping head and the other pinching the corner of her clothes, he couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with you two?"
Zhang Anxiu looked up at him, too embarrassed to reply.
Zhang Sanchun was also too embarrassed to ask directly. He hemd and hawed for a long ti, and finally blurted out a sentence, "Ah Xun, do you know how to pluck the stars from the sky?"
"The stars in the sky?" Chu Xun asked with a smile, "Who are you going to give them to?"
"No! I'm not giving them to anyone!" Zhang Sanchun subconsciously denied it, but seeing Zhang Anxiu and Chu Xun's strange expressions, he imdiately lowered his head again, "It's just that the Eldest Miss asked. My head is stupid, I only thought that even building a bamboo ladder wouldn't reach. You're the smartest in the village, do you know how to pluck them?"
Chu Xun smiled and said, "Big Brother has seen shooting stars, right?"
"I've seen them." Zhang Sanchun nodded.
Chu Xun said, "Shooting stars are stars from the sky falling to the human world. If your luck is good enough, perhaps you might coincidentally pick one up."
Zhang Sanchun's eyes lit up upon hearing this. So he didn't have to climb up to the sky!
He praised loudly, "Ah Xun, you really are smart!"
Chu Xun didn't know whether to laugh or cry; what kind of smart was this?
Afterwards, he distributed the farm tools. The siblings would work during the day, and he would work at night.
Taking turns like this, the ti would be doubled.
That's what was said, but in the pitch-black darkness, how much work could really be done?
Zhang Sanchun and Zhang Anxiu originally wanted to find a few more people to help, but every household in the village had been apportioned wasteland reclamation tasks.
Even orphans and widows went carrying iron shovels and bamboo baskets.
Three-year-old toddlers were helping to pick up stones in the fields bare-bottod. How could they have the nerve to call people over?
The siblings led the water buffalo, putting all the stones they could dig out of the wasteland into bamboo baskets, carrying them out basket by basket, and arranging them around the asured field ridges as a boundary line.
When they encountered large stones, they used an iron crowbar to pry them up, and then had the water buffalo tied with a rope pull them out.
When reclaiming wasteland, this kind of work was the most troubleso.
So stones were deeply rooted, and one piece would waste half a day's ti.
Until night fell, the siblings had only advanced ten ters long and three ters wide.
At this speed, just reclaiming one acre of land would take twenty days.
But when the land surveying clerk ca to inspect, they wouldn't just look at whether there were stones in the field.
According to the requirents of the Wasteland Reclamation Decree, the plowing depth of the land had to reach at least seven inches, and sowing had to be completed.
If the reclamation rate of an acre of land was less than eighty percent, it would be considered an insufficient reclamation quota, and that ant a fine of silver.
When Chu Xun ca out of the woodshed carrying food, he happened to see the siblings squatting next to the water buffalo, sighing in despair.
Thirty acres of wasteland definitely couldn't be finished.
On the contrary, the water buffalo was leisurely chewing its cud, occasionally flicking its tail to drive away flies and insects.
"Brother Xun, how about we go find the Village Chief and talk to him, ask to take on a little less?" Zhang Anxiu stood up and persuaded.
Chu Xun smiled and said, "It's fine, eat first. After eating, you should rest. I'll do the remaining work."
Zhang Anxiu still wanted to say sothing, but seeing him so insistent, she could only give up.
On the way ho after eating, Zhang Anxiu was full of worry and said, "Brother, why do you think Brother Xun is so stubborn? Thirty acres of wasteland, relying just on the three of us, how can we finish it?"
"I don't know." Zhang Sanchun answered honestly, "But Ah Xun is so smart. Since he agreed, he should have a way."
"It's all the Village Chief's fault, bullying Brother Xun for being honest!" Zhang Anxiu said angrily.
When it was late at night and all was quiet, every household had closed their doors and windows.
Chu Xun didn't imdiately start working, but sat on the field ridge, looking up at the stars.
Caw—
Caw—
A large flock of crows flapped their wings and flew over, landing beside him.
A few even hopped onto his shoulder, tilting their heads very familiarly.
Chu Xun smiled and touched their small heads. Their feathers were very smooth and carried a full sense of resilience.
A mont later, hissing sounds ca.
The nearly two-ter-long green snake and white snake also slithered over.
They slithered in front of Chu Xun, coiled their bodies, and rested their heads on top, as if waiting for sothing.
Following that, a few gray and white hares ca hopping over.
Then ca the weasel family...
The gathered poultry and livestock surrounded him. There were so many, yet there wasn't much chaotic noise.
It wasn't until a few toads croaked twice that Chu Xun stood up.
Fingers overlapping, he ford a hand seal.
Earth Control Spell!
Pieces of mud began to wriggle like living creatures, arching up all the crushed stones and grass roots hidden underneath.
Those poultry and livestock either hopped or flew, ran or crawled, pawing with their claws, rolling with their tails, or holding with their mouths.
In their own ways, they moved all the stones and debris they could carry to the edge of the field and arranged them neatly.
Only when they encountered large stones that they really couldn't move did Chu Xun need to act personally.
Who could have imagined that in the pitch-black night, in the wasteland that should have been silent, there would be such a young man working so diligently.
And a group of poultry and livestock that were even more diligent than him.
When the debris and stones were cleaned up, the land was considered plowed, only waiting for sowing.
Such efficiency was much faster than the Zhang siblings leading the ox.
Clinking and clanking like this, busy until the latter half of the night, looking at the flat field fifty ters long and three ters wide before him, a satisfied smile appeared on Chu Xun's face.
The poultry and livestock that had been busy all night did not leave, still surrounding him.
Chu Xun seed to understand what they were waiting for, smilingly forming a hand seal.
Major Cloud Rain Spell!
Fine rainwater was controlled within a certain range. All the poultry and livestock, without exception, could share the rain and dew equally.
This was the reward they deserved to receive.
When the clouds and rain paused, these poultry and livestock, just like before, either bowed or called out a few tis, and then dispersed.
In the blink of an eye, they ran off without a trace.
Only over a dozen crows landed on the nearby tree branches.
After cawing a few tis at Chu Xun, they slowly closed one eye.
This was the crows' unique sleeping posture, so they could sense danger at any ti.
Chu Xun didn't disturb this flock of crows' rest. Having worked tiredly all night, it was ti for him to go back and sleep too.
When the sky was just beginning to brighten, the Zhang siblings had already arrived in the courtyard.
Faintly hearing the sound of sound sleep from the window, the siblings didn't disturb him. They led the water buffalo themselves, picked up the farm tools, and walked towards the field.
Although they didn't ask how much Chu Xun had done, both siblings had thought about it.
In the middle of the night, being able to grope around and clear three or four ters would be considered not bad.
Since that was the case, their siblings only had to work more during the day.
Even if they couldn't complete the thirty acres of wasteland reclamation when the land surveying clerk ca, at the very least, reclaiming a few more acres would an less fine silver for Chu Xun.
However, when the siblings arrived at the wasteland, the farrs and village won who had co early to reclaim wasteland nearby all looked up.
Their tone was full of surprise and envy, "It seems having an ox really saves a lot of effort. No wonder Ah Xun dared to take on thirty acres of wasteland alone."
The siblings didn't understand the aning. Having a water buffalo's help did save effort, but it wasn't as fast as imagined.
But when they walked to the boundary line laid out yesterday, the scene before them imdiately made the siblings widen their eyes.
Following the traces of their reclamation yesterday, it was still three ters wide, but a full fifty ters long of flat field had just appeared like this.
The field soil seed to have already been deep-plowed, and the flatness was even better than what they had done after a tiring day.
The siblings looked at each other, both seeing complete astonishnt in each other's eyes.
This...
Could this have been done by Chu Xun in one night?
(End of Chapter)
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