For the children of the gentry, this day is the summer of the first year of Taixing, and it is about to enter midsummer. For the most basic farmers and women in Guanzhong, this day is a day of repetitive work, to cultivate their own fields.
The day, month and year have no other meaning at all to these farmers and women.
This is a farm near the official road. There are about twenty households scattered around the small village. They didn't know each other at first and their accents were different, but now they have become members of the same village.
Near the east end of the village and relatively close to the official road is the field owned by Lao Niutou's family.
The surname of Lao Niutou and his family is not Niu, and they don’t know what their surname is. It seems that when registering as refugees, Lao Niutou and his family were given a wooden sign with an engraved Niu head on it. When asked about his name, Lao Niu Tou would only point to the wooden sign.
Then the petty official casually tricked the Niu family...
Because of this, there were many farmers and women in Guanzhong who were unknowingly changed to the Niu family, the Ma family, and the Yang family.
Of course, in the official household register, Lao Niutou is recorded as Niu Sixia, because his family came to Guanzhong in the summer of the fourth year of Yanping. After Sixia, there is another number, Si Qian Si Bai Qi
12.
Niu Sixia originally had a family of seven, but now there are only four left.
The first two old people to die were the two old people. Strictly speaking, they did not die on the road to escape, but one night, the old couple quietly supported each other and walked into the forest and never came out again...
…
In Niu Sixia's heart, her parents should probably still be living in the mountains and forests, or they might have become elves under the mountain god's throne, free from worries, pain, illness and suffering. Only in this way can Niu Sixia comfort and numb herself at night.
Close your eyes.
Later, the youngest child also died.
That child, who had no name, was called Shi Dan from the day he was born, because at that time, the family was so poor that they even wanted to chew stones on the road...
In the countryside, no one would give their children any good names, not only because the farmers and women could not read, but also because the chance of death for children was too high. If you call them Gouzishidan or something like that, they really wouldn’t survive.
After coming down, maybe I thought in my heart that it was just a dead dog and a stone thrown away, so it wouldn't be that painful.
Just like Niu Sixia replaced Shi Dan's body with a meat lotus root, it seems that there is not much grief, only numbness. That is, relying on this root
Meat, Lotus, Vegetables, Niu Sixia and the remaining four people made it to Guanzhong.
Early in the morning, all four members of Niu Sixia's family got up. Early in the morning, when the sky just showed a faint light, for most nobles, the so-called dancing after hearing the chicken should be praised and praised.
For Niu Sixia's family, this is already the most common time to get up.
Then Niu Sixia took his wife and eldest son out of the house, ran directly to his own land, and started busy, and continued until the sun rose to the treetops.
Although the hussar general of the Han Dynasty was kind and issued some farming tools, Niu Sixia was reluctant to use them. After all, even iron tools would be worn out during use, so unless it was really necessary, ordinary
They all work with wooden and stone tools, wooden shovels, stone axes...
If you can save something, just save something. It’s not that wooden shovels and stone axes cannot be used. At most, they just take a little more effort and a little more strength. And for Niu Sixia, strength is the least valuable thing.
of.
"Father..." The eldest son gasped heavily, pointed feebly at the top of the tree, then held his waist and continued to pant, "...take a rest...the sun has arrived...it has reached the tree..."
Because of working bent over for a long time, Niu Sixia couldn't straighten up at all. She just raised her neck, supported it with the wooden shovel in her hand, glanced at the sun on the treetops, and then glanced at the sweating big head.
Son, then lowered his head, without stopping his hands: "...you, you should rest first...let your mother take a rest...I will work for a while...today, today...I am going to remove the grass in the field..."
...Everyone, everything is eliminated..."
Niu Sixia's wife did not listen, nor did she stop. She also bent over and worked silently. She did not say anything. Perhaps she was too tired to say anything, but she still moved forward step by step, moving the village.
Dig out and pull out the weeds that grow between the grasses.
The eldest son was stunned for a moment, then took a deep breath and bent down again...
In summer, after a rain, these weeds pop up from all over the land like crazy. These fields have been deserted for a while, and the grass roots are buried deep in the soil. In addition, because of the new fertilization farming method,
, after the rain has moistened it, if you are not careful, the entire field can grow in three days!
Must, must finish weeding today!
Niu Sixia was cruel in his heart, but he only dared to be cruel to himself.
I have to take three to five days to go to the mountains to cut wood to build my own wooden house. The original straw shed is really not able to withstand this winter. If I build a wooden house early in the summer, I can get some help from some neighbors, otherwise I will wait until autumn.
Who's available?
Also, you need to make a fence, and then you can raise chickens and ducks behind the house. First, ask the government to raise them on credit. After a year, half of the chickens and ducks born will be your own! Then the chickens will be born.
You can also exchange some eggs and chickens for some salt and iron at the market, so that you can raise all your own farm tools without having to rent them from the government...
Then I will open one or two more vegetable plots, then build a few shelves and plant some melons, so that the melons and vines can cover the entire wooden shelf, just like in my hometown...
Therefore, we must, we must finish weeding today!
Niu Sixia gritted his teeth and moved forward like a cow. It was not until his little daughter, who was like a piece of paper, swayed and reached the ground holding the earthen pot that she dragged her steps and creaked all over.
With my joints cracking, I sat down under the tree at the head of the field and let out a long breath.
Niu Sixia's little daughter was as thin as a piece of paper. Was she six or seven years old? Even Niu Sixia's wife couldn't remember. When her parents and brother went out to plow the fields, the little daughter
You can't sleep in, so you have to get up, fetch water, and cook on the fire. You even have to take the time to clean your straw shed and drive away those insects that are not afraid of people at all...
The earthen pot is not big, and there are not many wild vegetables in it.
Niu Sixia's wife first used a wooden spoon to scoop out the soup in the earthen pot. She gave Niu Sixia a bowl of thick soup, and then gave her eldest son a bowl of thicker soup. The soup paste in the earthen pot was already
I had bottomed out, and finally I slashed up and down around the pot, gave myself two spoonfuls, looked at my little daughter huddled together with her legs in her arms, swallowed a mouthful of saliva, shook her hands, and there was only one spoonful left.
Just a little bit, I asked my little daughter to take it back.
The younger daughter was still too young to work in the fields, so after the family had finished eating, there were still some pots and earthen jars left that had not been cleaned. Adding some water to them was enough for her to eat for the day.
Niu Sixia squinted her eyes and leaned against the tree trunk. This was a rare rest. After less than half the time of burning incense, she opened her eyes again, stood up, held the wooden shovel, and saw her wife under the tree.
He and his eldest son also stood up.
Although we are tired and suffering, hope is in our hands, so no matter how hard we are, what does it matter?
"Today, this grass will be removed."
Niu Sixia said, as if speaking to herself, as if speaking to his wife and son, and then walked down to the field without looking back, like an old soldier who has stepped into the battle formation, a soldier who can no longer fully
The warrior who straightened up...
…………__┌(￣￣ヘ)__…………
A group of carriages and horses walked slowly along the official road.
The vehicle is larger than an ordinary carriage, boxy, and more like a small house.
After a period of testing and debugging, the independent steering shaft can already provide steering while driving, so the two-wheeled carriage can be upgraded to a four-wheeled carriage.
Four-wheeled carriages are not completely absent in China. However, because China's terrain is changeable, four-wheeled carriages are relatively large and their center of gravity is difficult to control. Therefore, they are not suitable for long-distance travel except in plain areas. Therefore, even though there was a time in history
There have been traces of four-wheeled carriages, but they are still dominated by two-wheeled carriages.
It's just that this time Huang Yueying came down from Pingyang all the way from Hedong to Guanzhong, which was already a mature official road, so for the sake of comfort and convenience, it was natural to take out the four-wheeled carriage and use it...
The little Mo Dou has gradually grown a little now, and her little chest is bulging, as if she is hiding two little rabbits. She is sitting at the window of the carriage, teasing the little Feizhen in her arms, pointing forward and saying:
"Mom, there seems to be a village ahead..."
"Village?" Huang Yueying was thinking about an instrument in her hand. She didn't pay much attention to it and said casually, "That's good. I'll find an old farmer later..."
The sound of wheels was loud, and soon they arrived at the side of the village. The leading cavalry saw Niu Sixia's family working not far away, shook the reins, rode the horse diagonally to the head of the field, and shouted loudly:
"You! Follow me! The noble man wants to see you!"
"Ah?!" Niu Sixia couldn't react.
"You! Come here!!" the cavalry shouted.
"Ah, ah ah, yes, yes..." Niu Sixia walked over tremblingly, not sure whether it was because of fear or because her feet slipped, she staggered and almost fell on the field.
"Where are your clothes?!" The cavalryman frowned and looked down at the shirtless Niu Sixia.
Summer is getting hotter and hotter, so most of the farmers working in the fields are shirtless and just use a piece of cloth to cover their lower body. This was the case until the Tang and Song Dynasties, and even spread overseas...
Although the cavalry also knows that most farmers are like this. In addition to being afraid of the heat, they also have reasons for being reluctant to part with the cloth. I understand it, but if you want to meet a noble person, it is inevitably inappropriate to do this.
"Ah? This...this, in the village..." Niu Sixia sipped.
"Well... forget it!" The cavalryman pulled out a piece of linen cloth from behind the saddle, then pulled out his sword, then directly poked a hole in the piece of linen cloth and threw it to Niu Sixia, "Put it on! I'll give it to you.
It’s time! Hurry up! Follow me!”
Although this piece of cloth is not good, it is just a piece of cloth equipped by the cavalry to cover the horses at night. It is basically not washed. It is inevitably stained with some grass and even some dirt and horse manure, but Niu Sixia heard it
I only said two words to him, but I was so happy that I quickly put it on my head, put it on, and hurriedly followed the cavalry to the front of the carriage.
Xiao Mo Dou jumped down from the carriage, then pulled out two sticks from the carriage, and dragged them to Niu Sixia, "Here, use them both, and tell me which one is better!"
If asked about other things, Niu Sixia might not be able to tell, but using farm tools is the only thing he is good at in his life. He immediately lowered his head and tried his best to focus on the two handguns on the ground. He took the first
He dug up a huge clod of soil on the land beside the road, then smashed it into pieces...
Then he changed the handle again.
Xiao Mo Dou stood aside, watching Niu Sixia try almost two of them, and then said: "How? Which one is easier to use? And, why is it easier to use?"
Niu Sixia looked at the two guns left and right, hesitated for a moment, stretched out a finger, shook it, pointed at the one on the left, and said: "This one... is better... this... is easier...
"
"This one?" Xiao Mo Dou frowned, "Then why is this one bad?"
"Ah? This..." Niu Sixia was startled. Did she say something wrong? She quickly added, "This one is good, everything is good..."
"Ha!" Xiao Mo Dou was immediately confused and his eyes widened, "Which one is better?"
Niu Sixia was even more flustered. She didn't know what she should say. She seemed to be unhappy if she said that was good, "Ah, ah... this, this..."
"Okay, Little Mo Dou..." Huang Yueying said calmly through the door curtain in the carriage, "Let him pick one, it's a gift to him... Then let him go..."
Xiao Mo Dou watched Niu Sixia struggle for a moment, then chose one of them and left. After returning to the carriage and continuing forward for a while, he suddenly figured it out, clapped his hands and said, "I got it! I got it.
!The choice is better, right?”
Huang Yueying hummed, but she couldn't figure it out.
The one that the old farmer chose is heavier than this one, but the old farmer thinks that the heavier one is more useful?
Shouldn’t the heavier ones take more effort?
Or maybe the old farmer has also considered the focus of the fawn?
However, the center of gravity of the head is too large. Although it is helpful to penetrate deeper into the soil, doesn't it also make it more laborious when leveling?
Or is there anything else that needs to be improved?
Xiao Mo Dou watched Huang Yueying fall into deep thought again as usual, and couldn't help but sigh. He was about to continue holding Xiao Feizhen in his arms, but saw Xiao Feizhen holding a piece of Luban lock wood in one hand and working hard.
Want to get together...
"Eh, eh..." Little Mo Dou suddenly shouted, "My dear, my dear, look, look!"
"Hey..." Huang Yueying saw this and smiled slightly, then took the wooden strip of Luban Lock from Xiao Feizhen's hand, and slowly demonstrated it in front of Feizhen, "Hey... like this, then like this, and finally,
