"You guys have a cup of tea and something to eat here first, and eat later."
Ah Qiu said, picking up the teapot and pouring three cups of hot tea for them, while he held the wine jar and sat across from Lin Xiao.
"Aqiu, you don't have to be polite, and you don't have to always call me a benefactor. I'm sorry. My name is Lin Xiao."
Lin Xiao waved his hand and said.
"I'm not being polite, I'm really grateful to you, thank you for helping our rice seedlings, and thank you for letting us no longer have to worry about taxes this year. I'll drink wine instead of tea, and do it first as a token of respect!"
After saying that, Ah Qiu picked up the wine bowl, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp.
Lin Xiao smiled slightly and drank the tea in the cup.
Lin Xiao put down the tea cup, clapped her hands and said:
"To be honest, I'm not just here to check on your rice seedlings, but I also want to ask for your help."
"What's the matter? Lin En, just ask, as long as I can do it, I will fully cooperate!"
Ah Qiu said cheerfully.
Lin Xiao was very pleased with his straightforwardness.
Lin Xiao told Aqiu the purpose of his trip.
Ah Qiu raised his eyebrows:
"Lynn, are you serious? Although I don't know what kind of melon you want to plant, but it's already autumn. Isn't it too late to plant it now?"
Ah Qiu's words are true. According to the season, the autumn harvest is coming soon. Planting watermelons at this time is indeed not a wise move.
Moreover, the weather in the Daxia Dynasty was different from that in modern times. There were four distinct seasons. It was not ambiguous at all when it should be cold, but there was not enough heat when it should be hot.
For watermelon seeds to germinate, the temperature needs to be around 30 degrees Celsius. The current weather is only a little over 20 degrees Celsius at most. Even watermelon seedlings cannot grow in this level of weather, let alone transplanting watermelons!
Lin Xiao said calmly:
"Don't worry about this. As long as you agree, I can grow watermelons even in winter."
It was the first time Aqiu heard about melons that could be grown in winter, and he suddenly became interested:
"Lin, the melon you mentioned is really powerful. It can actually withstand the cold."
"It's not that melons are great, it's my clever tricks that are great."
Lin Xiao said mysteriously, with a proud look on his face.
Ah Qiu became more and more interested.
Lin Xiao continued:
"If you can successfully grow watermelons, I firmly believe that you will become the melon king of the Great Xia Dynasty in the future!"
Although I don’t quite understand what Melon King means, I feel like it’s very powerful.
Ah Qiu felt excited when she heard:
"Lynn, I listen to you, I will plant whatever you ask me to plant!"
"Okay, you follow my instructions and clear a piece of space first. I see that your backyard is quite big. It would be a waste to leave it empty. It can be used to grow watermelons. You can do this first..."
Lin Xiao briefly told Aqiu about the modern greenhouse idea, and Aqiu was amazed when he heard it.
"Aqiu, you must keep this matter a secret. When my new variety matures, you can promote it to the villagers. Once the promotion is successful, the villagers will definitely fight for it, so you must not let other villagers know!"
At the end, Lin Xiao did not forget to warn.
She did this not because of selfishness, but because everything is unknown. If she fails, the villagers who follow the trend will suffer, so it is better to be cautious.
Ah Qiu nodded solemnly, keeping Lin Xiao's instructions in mind.
Early the next morning, Aqiu tidied up his backyard.
Lin Xiao was not idle either and asked the driver to take her to a nearby town to buy materials for building a greenhouse.
This trip cost her a lot of money, but she didn't feel bad at all.
Because what she wants is not money, but effects and results.
Several people worked from morning to evening, and the greenhouse was finally completed.
Lin Xiao carefully inspected the greenhouse and confirmed that there was no problem, then began to germinate the watermelon seeds inside.
If it were left to modern times, the seeds would be sterilized with diluted disinfectant water before germination to ensure the germination rate.
But now in ancient times, this step can only be omitted.
She buried the watermelon seeds that had been soaked in water for a whole day one by one in small pits.
The reason why Lin Xiao chose Aqiu's backyard as the experimental field was not only because the experimental field was close to home and easy to take care of.
More importantly, she found that the weeds in the backyard were extremely lush, which proved that the soil in the backyard was very fertile.
According to normal procedures, germinated watermelon seeds need to be planted on land fertilized with decomposed farmyard manure.
Now, this step can be skipped, which greatly saved Lin Xiao a lot of time.
Blessed by thick grasses and thatch, the temperature in the greenhouse rose suddenly, and soon everyone inside was sweating profusely.
"Phew! It's really strange, why it suddenly became so hot!"
Ah Qiu wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and muttered.
The same was true for Lin Xiao and others. Their faces were flushed with heat, and sweat slid down their cheeks and dripped on the ground.
"Master, why is it so hot? It's almost summer."
Lan Lian asked puzzledly.
Lin Xiao smiled with satisfaction and said:
"This is the power of the greenhouse, Ah Qiu. In winter, you can bring your family to the greenhouse to spend the winter. It will definitely be more comfortable than you at home."
When Ah Qiu heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up.
This is a good idea, why didn't he think of it?
"If there is still open space by then, Aqiu, you can grow some vegetables in the greenhouse, and you will be able to eat them in the winter."
Lin Xiao said with a smile, his face full of hope.
Ah Qiu's eyes widened in disbelief.
Green vegetables?!
Can you still eat green vegetables in the cold winter?
Lin Xiao's suggestion shocked Aqiu greatly.
He looked at Lin Xiao in front of him and felt that he was an immortal who had walked out of the fairyland.
The temperature in the greenhouse was getting higher and higher, and Aqiu and others could no longer bear it. They all exited the greenhouse and ran outside to breathe in the fresh air.
Lin Xiao continued to be busy with the work at hand.
She poured water on the land where the watermelon seeds were buried and checked the condition of the soil again.
After confirming that there was no problem with the soil, Lin Xiao stood up and walked out of the greenhouse.
At this moment, her clothes were already soaked with sweat.
Lan Lian quickly handed her the tea and cloth with concern in her eyes.
"Lynn, it's so hot inside, can the seeds sprout?"
The temperature inside the greenhouse is already comparable to mid-summer. Generally, crops will wither when exposed to this kind of temperature.
But now Lin Xiao is putting watermelon seeds in it to promote seedlings, taking risks no matter what.
Lin Xiao took the towel and tea, drank it all in one gulp, and then said:
"Don't worry, it should sprout in two days."
Lin Xiao's confident look made Ah Qiu feel relieved.
Three days later, the watermelon seedlings sprouted from the soil.