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Chapter 97 Nick’s Career 2
As time went by, the material conditions of the farm gradually improved. Nick's horse breeding career also began to flourish. The farm rebuilt permanent stables in accordance with the requirements for horse breeding, established a water supply system exclusively for horses, and also circled a small piece of land as a horse fence for horses to move freely.
In order to solve the problem of concentrated feed, he went to the Planning Commission several times and got permission to include the purchase or collection of oats, alfalfa and other legumes and grains in the purchase list. Wu Nanhai also promised to include these feed varieties in the plan when planting. Throughout the winter, he struggled to find suitable feed for the horses. In order for them to breed in the spring, the stallions and mares had to be fattened - feeding grass alone could only keep the horses alive.
Fortunately, after the capture of Goujiazhuang, the large amount of grain seized contained a lot of miscellaneous grains. Nick felt like he had found a treasure, so he went to Ma Qianzhuang's place and soaked it for a whole day. Finally, he got all the beans except soybeans, mung beans and adzuki beans - including the bean dregs left over from making tofu in the future. He also told Wu Nanhai that it should be used in horse feed.
"I still want to feed the pigs." Wu Nanhai felt it was a pity.
"Feeding horses and pigs is a waste. There are few dishes that can be cooked now, so I will make fried bean dregs for everyone to eat, which is also a dish." Aunt Tian, who is in charge of the canteen, said.
"Forget it." Wu Nanhai said, "It would be weird if I didn't scold everyone to death."
"It's not unpalatable. Fry it with mutton fat and large oil, and add some green garlic. It will be fragrant." Aunt Tian gestured, "Snowflakes"
"If there is a lack of meat and oil, then the food relies on oil to enhance the flavor. Otherwise, who would eat the dried bean dregs?"
Nick said: "Pigs can't pull carts, and we don't need pig cavalry."
"Okay, I've convinced you." Wu Nanhai gave in, "It's yours."
Thanks to the supplement of grains and tofu, the horse herd was in good condition throughout the winter - and the horse herd has expanded. Through purchases and seizures, Nick's stable now has twenty-five horses. Most of them are already capable of daily tasks, whether they are pulling carts or driving animal-powered machinery.
Although Wu Nanhai is average in every professional field, he is indeed a good leader. Nick thought that at least he would listen to everyone's opinions and ideas and would not ignore anyone - including the long-term foreman on the farm.
The gate to the fence outside the stable was closed, and inside there were several teenagers in gray military uniforms taking care of the horses. Seeing Nick coming back, these half-grown men gathered around him.
"Chief Ni, why doesn't this horse listen to me?"
"I want to wash the horse's hooves, but what should I do if the horse doesn't scratch its hooves for me?"
"How to clean the hair on a horse brush"
"Chief, the horse kicked me" and some people were "honorably injured".
They wear the red collar badge of the artillery team and are students of the artillery team. According to regulations, the artillery trainees of the Army must take turns to serve in the stables of the farm one day a week: washing horses, learning to trim hoofs, shoeing horses, walking horses, etc. These apprentices have greatly reduced Nick's burden, allowing him to focus on horse training, establishing pedigrees and breeding management.
"Don't be anxious, speak slowly."
Nick comforted everyone and asked a boy working in the stable to take the big iron back to the stable first. Nick is always in high spirits when it comes to horses.
"To wash horses' hooves, you need to have the skills to grasp the horses' hooves." Nick said, "Little Tartar, come and brush Cy Young's hooves."
These horses collected from this time and space are named after the processor names of Intel and AD. It's just that the natives can't figure out why a good horse is not called Tiger Racing or Dragon Racing, but insists on being called "Sheep Racing". Are all Australian sheep running very fast?
"Yes" Little Tartar agreed resoundingly and brought "Cai Yang" over.
The little Tatar famous name Dashi is not Mongolian. According to himself, his hometown is Henan. After the disaster in his hometown, he wandered all the way to Guangdong. Just because his hair was a little curly, he was nicknamed this by his fellow students.
The little Tartar was short. He followed Nick's instructions and raised the horse's front legs to its mid-waist. He gritted his teeth and raised the horse's legs with both hands. I didn't expect it to be completed so smoothly. Just as Nick demonstrated, he grasped the horse's hoof with his left hand and placed it on his knee. But as soon as he let go of his hand, the horse's hoof suddenly slipped off his knees. The little Tartar jumped away quickly, with an expression on his face that he was worried about being kicked.
"Don't be afraid," Nick reminded him, "you are grabbing the horse's hoof the wrong way. Try it in the opposite direction."
He tried to grab it in the opposite direction, and it turned out that he could grab it much more firmly than before. He held a brush in his right hand to brush off the dirt inside the horses' hooves. Every time the brush touched the horse's hoof, the horse would move its legs from time to time. Every time at this time, the little Tatar's face became nervous. Finally, he pulled over an iron bucket filled with water and used a brush to clean the soles of the horse's feet.
"Remember to hold the horse's leg firmly when you are washing it. If you let go, it will step on your foot or get angry."
After washing the horse's feet, he applied hoof oil to the horse's hooves according to Nick's instructions. It took Nick a long time to apply for the hoof oil from Wu Nanhai.
"Okay, now wash the hind feet too." Nick said.
The little Tartar hesitated for a moment: "Will you kick me? A kick from the hind legs of a horse will kill someone."
"Don't be afraid. I'm watching." Nick comforted him
The hind feet are scarier than the front feet. The little Tartar grabbed the left leg of the hind foot with both hands and tried to pick it up but failed, but the horse did not kick him, which reassured him a little. So I hugged her hard again, but this time I picked her up very easily.
But cleaning was still very laborious. Whenever the horse's hoof was about to slip off his body, he would try hard to lift it up again. Finally, he cleaned all four horse legs. The little Tartar was already covered in sweat.
"Good job." Nick agreed, although it took a little longer.
"A horse is a very precious and useful animal. If you want it to serve you, you must take good care of it. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Chief" the future artillerymen replied in unison.
Nick then gave some instructions to other people, and then checked whether the horses moving in the pen were in normal condition before returning to the stable.
The high stable is one of the landmark buildings of the farm. Not only the local indigenous people were amazed when they saw it, but also the people who traveled through it were full of curiosity about this building. The entire building is made of brick and wood, long and has a high spire. Ventilation and lighting are very good. The floor of the double-row stable is entirely made of compacted Sanhe soil. The bedding is changed every day to ensure the cleanliness of the stables - they lack veterinary medicines, so they must strengthen cleaning measures to ensure that the horses do not get sick. Yang Guogui also sprinkled lime on the ground at the entrance and exit of the stable every day as a simple disinfection measure.
Since the increase in horses, Nick's men have also increased. He despised the fact that the people Wu De found from the indigenous immigrants who had horse breeding experience were quite ignorant, and many of their horse breeding experiences were completely wrong. So just don't want any.
“Correcting a mistake is more difficult than starting from scratch with a clean slate.”
So Nick only selected two fourteen-year-old and fifteen-year-old brothers named Shengbao and Laibao from the children of employees assigned to the farm to help. These two children have gone through literacy classes and are now officially His apprentice.
He asked Shengbao to fetch water and add feed to "Big Iron". Breeding stallions need semen collected twice a day. Therefore, rich nutrition is particularly needed. For this reason, he obtained special feed rations of eggs and millet from Wu Nanhai. Eggs are used to supplement protein. As for millet, they have a good effect on improving the quality of male horses' sperm and semen.
Lai Bao brought water from outside, and Nick taught him step by step how to clean "Big Iron"'s genitals, especially washing the testicles with cold water - this was taught to him by Yang Guo Bao, and it is said to be beneficial to semen secretion.
"Big Iron" is a stallion they have high hopes for. As a draft horse, it has the blood of many of the world's best stallions. Including Ardennes, Anglo-Norman, Bethlehem, Anglo-Arab, etc. It is an excellent draft horse. It is of extremely important significance to the future of agriculture, military and road transportation for travelers. In addition to breeding it with the Tieling mare, Yang Guogui is also preparing to breed it with the Yunnan mare.
After cleaning the "big iron" and taking care of the apprentice's attention, Nick quickly returned to the house and prepared to rest for a few hours. He has been really exhausted recently: he gets up at 3 a.m. to feed the horses, and feeds the last fodder until 21 p.m. There is almost no free hour between serving the horses, teaching apprentices, collecting and processing feed, and doing administrative work.
There was a lingering smell of horse manure in the house, but Nick didn't mind it at all. Because he was too tired and didn't want to take a shower, and was afraid of staining the sheets, he made a straw bed at the door of the house and slept directly on it, separated by Just change it. Wu Nanhai joked that Nick looks like a horse now.
He woke up after sleeping for less than two hours. There are many things going on during the breeding season, so he usually doesn't dare to sleep too much. I looked at my watch and saw that it was almost noon. My stomach growled with hunger. I got up and dusted the grass stems on my body, poured some water from the earthen pot and washed my face in the basin. Get ready to go to the cafeteria for lunch.
Suddenly the phone rang, it was Yang Baogui.
"Come to Lotus Root Pavilion for lunch, Wu Nanhai treats you."
The Lotus Root Pavilion is a special place in the demonstration farm. There is a small lake next to it. Now it is full of lotus roots, and everyone is calling it open.
“Why do you treat guests for no reason?”
"I'm not inviting you, I'm asking you to be my guest. By the way, this matter has a lot to do with your horse breeding business. You must come." Yang Guoguo said and hung up the phone.
It has a lot to do with horse breeding, and Nick couldn't figure it out.
When I came to the Lotus Root Pavilion, I saw that the person invited was Wu De, the People's Commissar of Civil Affairs. As soon as they started chatting at the table, Nick realized that Yang Guobao had Da Meicun's idea.
It sounds like this idea has been around for a long time. After several months of horse-raising practice, Nick also knows that the overall climate and environment in Lingao are not very suitable for the life of horses. Moreover, the site is too narrow. Currently, only the open areas on both sides of the Wenlan River are suitable for grazing horses. However, this area has either been reclaimed into farmland or included in the future reclamation plan of the agricultural department. It is impossible to reserve large areas of land for horse breeding - planting is after all a top priority, and grain output is directly related to the scale of horse breeding.
Although barn feeding and the extensive use of silage and concentrate can raise horses at a high density in the existing space, the climate conditions here are too hot and humid, which is very detrimental to the health of horses in summer. Moreover, the long adaptation period for sensitive animals like horses to unfamiliar environments is also troublesome. Horses that feel unpleasant and uncomfortable will obviously not have much "sexual interest" and their natural reproduction rate will be low. This is why Yang Guoguo is eager to engage in artificial insemination.
Yang Guogui visited the Gaoshanling area several times after the Chinese New Year to see if he could open up mountain pastures there in the summer. The mountainous areas have lush vegetation, a cool and pleasant climate, abundant natural feed, and clean water sources, making them ideal for horses and other large livestock. A suitable place to spend summer.
The most ready-made place is naturally Damei Village. This small village was built on the ruins of Goujiazhuang and is firmly controlled by the time-traveling regime. There is a water source near the village, and there are nearly a thousand acres of valleys and slopes that can be used for grazing and growing feed.
But this matter requires the nod of Wu De, who controls all civil affairs.
"I have no objection to establishing a ranch in Damei Village." Wu De said, "It's just that the road to Damei Village passes through the county seat. Will it affect you?"
"That's true," Yang Guogui disagreed. "If you want to put it this way, Bairen City is only a few kilometers away from the county seat. And aren't the surrounding areas of the county seat now under our surveillance?"
"That's not bad." Wu De nodded, "But after establishing the ranch there, you will lack strong protection. Damei is more than ten kilometers away from here, and the roads have not been hardened, just simple roads. What happened It will take at least half an hour for reinforcements to arrive after the incident. You must rely on the militia of Damei Village to protect the ranch."
"Xi Yazhou personally took care of the political establishment and militia training in Damei Village, so it can't be too bad."
"No matter how good they are, they are just armed with broadswords and spears. Besides, there are only twelve militia members who have been strictly trained." Wu De drank a glass of wine. "There are fifty households in Damei Village, two hundred men, women, old and children. Sixty-one. There are sixty-four men between sixteen and fifty." He had a good memory and could count very accurately. "You have to know that Lingao is a place where banditry is very serious. If you are in the United States, Raising dozens of horses and sixty-four men may not be able to stop a large number of bandits - wealth and silk are so attractive."
"That's an exaggeration. Just twenty or thirty horses -"
"It's not an exaggeration." Wu De said, "You know how much a horse sells for in this time and space."
"One hundred taels",.
