Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 57 Autumn Plowing

In the evening, Beijiwu carried the two buckets of fertilizer from the outhouse to the farmland.

The two buckets of fertilizer contained not only wood ash and green manure, but also proteins from various larvae.

Although it smells pungent and unpleasant, it is an indispensable fertilizer in this era.

Two buckets are definitely not enough, but fortunately, there are more than just two buckets a month.

Arctic Martial had prepared some manure in advance, enough for a year's worth of fertilization for these twenty acres of land.

"Fertilizers can't all be concentrated during autumn and spring planting. In the future, we should let the land rest for a while so that there will be a place to put the manure."

"We can rotate the planting of wheat, hay, soybeans, and millet."

"Millet is more drought-resistant than wheat, which is a clear advantage in mountainous areas like this. However, if irrigation facilities and fertilizers are provided, the yield of wheat will be far higher than that of millet."

"In the future, we will continue to grow wheat on fertile land near water sources, and millet on poor land. We will also leave some land fallow and plant wheat straw."

There's no rush for autumn plowing; just turn the soil over once before winter.

There's no need to race against nature to harvest the crops, nor to work yourself to death trying to plant new ones.

Autumn is much more peaceful than spring and summer. When Beijiwu went to the river to clean his manure bucket, he saw two women washing clothes by the river.

It was Aunt Song, my neighbor, and her daughter-in-law.

When Aunt Song saw Beijiwu, she politely greeted him, "Clan Chief."

Beijiwu said, "After you finish washing your clothes, scrub this latrine bucket and take it back to me."

"Yes, clan chief!" Aunt Song said with a smile, "Just leave it there, I'll help wash the clothes after I'm done washing them."

Arctic Wu put down the manure bucket and went home easily.

Not only did my body feel lighter and my steps lighter, but my mood also became lighter.

"All the beautiful women in the village are my women. If this were the West, I would at least be considered a lord."

After walking easily for more than a hundred steps, they saw Xiulan, Li Bing, and others working near a stone mill.

Jiangcao and Xidan were filling baskets and burlap sacks with wheat, while two older girls were grinding it.

Upon seeing this, Beijiwu walked over and looked at the nearby river.

The area for washing clothes is unlikely to be too steep, and Arctic Martial discovered that it would be difficult to use water for this stone mill in this location.

The nearby mountains are mainly concentrated on the edge of the fields, and the original houses were all near the farmland, so the area was quite flat.

Flat terrain is a good thing; it makes irrigation and farming easier, and its proximity to the village saves a lot of effort.

The mountainous area is barren; finding a thousand acres of fertile land is already quite an achievement.

Beijiwu walked to the stone mill and looked at the several women who were grinding.

"Get back to work now, I'm heading home."

Beijiwu said something and walked past the four little girls and children who were working.

Several girls, all of whom were minors, were happily working. "Yes, sir!"

After doing a little work, one feels relaxed all over and has inexhaustible energy.

When he got home that evening, Beijiwu ate an extra bowl of rice.

Aunt Song, Li Bingxiu, and others returned one after another, bringing back the cleaned manure buckets and the ground flour.

The flour ground from wheat isn't very white, so the steamed buns are still yellow, but they're still called white flour buns, not whole wheat buns.

Whole wheat flour needs further processing to get white flour from yellow flour, and only then can it be made into white flour steamed buns.

White flour steamed buns are common in big cities, mainly for wealthy families in the city, while ordinary people eat coarse flour and mixed flour.

If they want to eat white flour steamed buns, the Arctic Army must send one or two more people to make white flour.

There simply aren't enough people available right now. Autumn plowing and water conservancy construction are more crucial, as they directly impact next year's harvest and are related to food security.

After finishing his meal, Beijiwu called out to the main room, "Conglian, come here."

Gao Conglian quickly walked out of the house and took small steps to stand in front of Bei Jiwu.

"Sir." Gao Conglian swallowed the crumbs of the steamed bun she hadn't finished eating, covered her mouth with one hand, and lowered her head to wait for Bei Jiwu's instructions.

Beijiwu asked, "Where have you put all the bones we've eaten recently?"

Bones can be ground into powder and used as fertilizer to fertilize fields.

Gao Conglian replied, "They give them to the children to chew on for teething, and they can also be used to add flavor to cooking."

Arctic Wu originally planned to collect the bones to increase fertilizer, but he didn't expect the utilization rate of the bones here to be so high. People were reluctant to part with the bones they had eaten for several days.

It's true that ground bones can be used as fertilizer, that's beyond doubt, but the question is where to find bones.

Nowadays, it seems that fertilizer can only be obtained from manure, so we can only try to find solutions from seeds and irrigation facilities.

“Okay, I’ll go plow the fields tomorrow. After that, I’ll go to the county. You can see what you need and think about it when you’re free these next few days.” Gao Conglian nodded quickly and said happily, “I need some sewing tools for making clothes, but everything else is fine.”

Beijiwu waved his hand, "Okay, let's go eat."

Gao Conglian left with a sense of joy, thoroughly enjoying this comfortable life where she had no worries about food and clothing and could always look forward to something new.

Compared to the weak Ai Dake, Gao Conglian prefers the young, strong, and powerful real man who dominates her like a bull.

The acre of scallion field has been cultivated and is now lush and vibrant. After returning home, I picked up the pork bone in my bowl and sucked on it with gusto. I savored the flavor and found it to be incredibly delicious.

At night, Beijiwu stayed up late practicing his archery skills, and shot and killed two weasels and a fox that were trying to steal chickens.

These small animals will hide from people, but they will also come in to steal food and prey on poultry and other small livestock.

Beijiwu's home is located at the westernmost end, in an area of ​​about 500 acres between this place and the mountains to the northwest. It belongs to the families who are excluded from the area.

The small village is surrounded by mountains on three sides, with only roads in the northeast. However, most wild animals come from the mountains and prioritize getting close to Beijiwujia.

As Arctic animals continue to slaughter various carnivores, the probability of encountering carnivores is becoming increasingly smaller.

After the autumn plowing began, the entire village, young and old, worked together, using manpower and livestock to cultivate the land.

Because of the lack of rain, the land became dry and hard, making it difficult to cultivate with human and oxen.

Beiji Wu also personally went to work in the fields, using his brute strength to pull several women and the plow forward quickly in the field.

Others would have one person pulling an ox, another person holding the plow, and one or two children pressing down on the ground to help with deep plowing.

Plowing is much easier than harvesting wheat. First, it doesn't require as much rushing, and second, you only need to walk in a straight line without bending over or doing repetitive work.

The weather is also suitable for working at this time of year, unlike the tiring conditions of summer.

One cow can plow thirty mu of land during the autumn plowing season. The three cows in Beijiwu, plus the two cows from the original village, can plow two hundred mu of land in a few days.

If the oxen get tired, there are horses. There are currently more horses than oxen in the village. Although they can't work as hard as oxen, they can still do a little work without any problem.

If there are no oxen or horses, then people will take their place.

We will continue to work the same way we did in previous years.

This is the same every year, so there's no need for Arctic military personnel to worry too much.

During the lunch break, Beijiwu and the villagers went to the canteen for lunch.

While everyone else had mixed grain steamed buns and porridge, Beijiwu's table was laden with wine, dishes, pork, eggs, fruits, and vegetables.

This is the treatment that top-notch laborers deserve; the production team's best male donkeys also enjoy the same treatment of not having to work.

During the meal, Old Zhang from the neighborhood and several male laborers sat at a table together.

"The clan chief alone pulled two plows to till the land, with five women standing on top of them. He was as strong as two oxen!"

Uncle Song nodded after hearing this, "No wonder he managed to cultivate more than ten acres of land all by himself last year!"

Old Zhang said happily to the others, "The children born to the clan chief will definitely be strong!"

Everyone nodded, thinking that the child born to Beijiwu and the woman would definitely be a good farm worker!

The men were discussing this, and the women who were eating together nearby were also glancing at Beijiwu from time to time, thinking about the good things that would make him feel warm inside.

People from the lower classes who survived the war did not value things like chastity. They believed that having a good son would not only benefit the family, but also prevent them from being bullied in the future.

If Beijiwu's parents were still alive, who would dare to bully them?
After finishing his meal, Mu Chuanliang walked to Beijiwu's table and looked at the pile of meat and bones that Beijiwu had already finished eating.

"Clan leader."

Beijiwu ate quietly, and after a few seconds he said, "What is it?"

Mu Chuanliang quickly lowered his head and said, "This year, apart from the rain during the wheat harvest, it hasn't rained at all. If it snows in winter, it will be fine, but if it doesn't snow, I'm afraid next year will be a disaster year."

Beijiwu casually said, "We live in a mountainous area, and it snows every year. We're just worried about heavy snow blocking the mountains. We don't need to worry about it not snowing for now."

"If it doesn't snow in winter, I'll take you to the north to find a place to settle down in early spring. With my abilities, we can settle down anywhere."

Mu Chuanliang felt relieved after hearing Beijiwu's words.

"This year the land has clumped together and there has been a drought. That's why I've been thinking a bit more. With the clan chief's blessing, next year will surely be a bumper harvest."

Beijiwu thought for a moment and continued, "Today I will finish cultivating my own land, and tomorrow I will take the carriage to the county to buy some things. We can talk about anything else when I get back."

"The cattle in the village are used in a prescribed order. Whoever has more work points gets priority. If the work points are the same, the family with more members gets priority."

"No fighting, and no causing trouble or resorting to violence. If anyone gets injured in a fight, I will punish them severely when I return. Those who deserve to die will be killed! I'll teach you all a lesson!"

Beijiwu coldly looked at the tables of villagers nearby.

"Everyone go to work in the public fields tomorrow. My women will be in charge of supervising. If anyone disagrees, I'll make them agree!"

Beijiwu gave his women the power to supervise other people's work, even though these people were other people's daughters, wives, and children, but it didn't matter.

Whether they work or not, Beijiwu doesn't really care.

(End of this chapter)