After the Mid-Autumn Festival, villagers began to plow the land and prepare for sowing winter wheat.
The root system of winter wheat is relatively weak, so it requires deep plowing and careful cultivation. Before sowing, the soil must be tilled carefully to remove stones and weeds in the soil, and break up the caked soil, so that the winter wheat can grow better. Inside the soil, more nutrients are absorbed, thereby promoting the rooting and germination of winter wheat plants.
Moreover, before sowing, decomposed organic fertilizer must be added to the soil to improve the fertility of the soil. The manure and wheat rhizome straw that have been retted in advance during the summer harvest will come in handy at this time.
Ma Renli had rich theoretical knowledge, but little practical experience. Wang Zhong only had much more theoretical knowledge than Ma Renli. The various agricultural books handed down in ancient times were basically in Wang Zhong's mind, and he was deeply moved by the love of mountains and seas. In the dungeon, I also ran a boss's farm. I worked on it myself and opened hundreds of acres of land. I accumulated a lot of experience in the Gobi Desert in Yuquanying.
Although Yuquanying is far in the northwest, it also grows winter wheat. The time is slightly different from that in Maixiang Village, but the management of winter wheat is almost the same.
In addition to the prestige that Wang Zhong had accumulated previously, several people in the mutual aid group, although they were all veterans of farming for many years, still farmed according to Wang Zhong's methods.
After all the wheat seeds were planted, the first phase of the water diversion and irrigation project officially started. Wang Zhong took Lao Ganbang, Blind Lao Yin and several carpenters to rush to the water truck and the overturned truck. Part of the wood was scraped together by the villagers. Some of them came from Zhou Yihu and Wang Wanchun who went to the county to seek help from the leaders.
After the county leaders heard about the water diversion and irrigation project in Maixiang Village, they sent people who knew about water conservancy to come down and provide guidance.
The excavation of irrigation canals and weir ponds is not too difficult. Wang Zhong and Ma Renli have already calculated the route, slope, and trend a while ago. The villagers only need to be responsible. Under Ma Renli's command, Qiancun 890 It took a total of twenty days, including several days of rain and rest, before Ma Renli led the villagers to build the canals and weirs in the first stage and the roads leading to all the fields in the first stage. The irrigation ditch has been dug.
Fortunately, Wang Zhong and Lao Ganbang, blind Lao Yin and others were in charge of making the waterwheel before the autumn sowing. Wang Zhong's mutual aid team was also the first to complete the autumn sowing. As soon as the autumn wave was over, Wang Zhong just took Lao Ganbang with him. Let’s continue preparing the materials for the waterwheel.
Lao Ganbang's craftsmanship is still a bit poor, and some of the fine parts are not up to standard, but simple tasks such as wooden troughs are not difficult for him. In addition to Lao Ganbang, there are a few people in the village who can do carpentry work. When it comes to the irrigation project of the whole village, everyone naturally has to use all their efforts.
All in all, it took more than a month. It had been three or four days since Ma Renli and his people started digging for the second phase of the project. The wheat in the ground had sprouted. Wang Zhong's six-meter-high The waterwheel was finally completed.
Seeing that the waterwheel was fixed properly, Wang Zhongcai led everyone to install the tripods and fixed the aqueduct that had been completed. After connecting it to the canal, he installed the last horizontal groove parallel to the waterwheel. The water from the waterwheel fell into The horizontal groove then flows into the aqueduct below the horizontal groove, and then flows into the trapezoidal ditch that has been dug.
The walls on both sides of the trapezoidal ditch at the bottom have been hammered and compacted, which can ensure the service life of this rough soil ditch to the greatest extent and reduce the cost of later maintenance.
"There's water! There's water!"
Looking at the gurgling Maixiang River water flowing through the canal, the villagers were extremely excited. However, the first weir pond about a hundred meters away from the waterwheel is two meters deep, five meters square, and can store eight or nine cubic meters of water. about.
Drinking water flows from the ditch into the weir pond. When it is almost full, it will flow from the outlet along the ditch leading to the ground. As you watch, water begins to accumulate in the weir pond. At first, the river washed away the soil, and the water It becomes turbid, but as time passes, the murky water will eventually become lighter.
Although they knew that it would take time for the water to accumulate in the weir and pond, the villagers gathered around had no intention of leaving. They stood or squatted one by one, waiting at the edge of the weir and pond, watching the water in the weir and pond rise higher and higher. It didn't feel boring at all, but I started to feel nervous and excited, and my heart became more and more looking forward to it.
Seeing the water in the weir pond accumulating higher and higher, the villagers became more and more excited.
When the water line of the weir pond was higher than the irrigation canal, the water finally flowed along the ditch toward the fields. The villagers' faces were full of excitement, and they subconsciously followed the water canal and followed the water all the way to the fields. go.
Seeing that the first phase of the project was successfully completed and the water from the Maixiang River smoothly reached all the planned fields, the entire Maixiang Village couldn't help but revel in the excitement.
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This means that in the future, villagers no longer need to use their shoulders to carry water from the river to the fields. It also means that even in seasons with drought and little rain, as long as the water level of the Maixiang River does not dry up, Maixiang Village can always be watered with wheat. Fragrant river water.
The successful completion of the first phase of the project shocked the leaders of the county. The top leaders of the county came down to inspect the project in person. After seeing the first phase of the irrigation project in Maixiang Village, they immediately gave a thumbs up to Wang Zhong and Ma Renli. The designer gave high praise and verbally rewarded the two leaders of Maixiang Village, Zhou Yihu and Wang Wanchun, and said that they would be credited with merit.
With the completion of the first phase of the project, the villagers showed unprecedented high emotions towards the second phase of the project. The second phase of the project is more complicated and more difficult than the first phase of the project, but none of the villagers complained about being tired. Everyone showed an unprecedented high mood, and it took less than a month to complete the second phase of the project in late October of the lunar calendar.
The production of a rollover car is much simpler than that of a waterwheel, but the only disadvantage is that the rollover car cannot use water power to achieve automaticity like a waterwheel. The rollover car must be pushed by external force.
Now that the autumn plowing has ended, all the cattle in the village have been idle, which comes in handy.
With the successful completion of the second phase of the project, under the unified arrangement of the village and the farmers' association, in just five days, basically all the remaining wheat fields in Maixiang Village were irrigated, except for a few scattered ones that were particularly remote and affected by the location. The limited ground ditches cannot be passed temporarily.
But Wang Zhong and Lao Ganbang had already made small wooden troughs, set up troughs to divert water from the canals, and successfully completed winter irrigation.
With the successful completion of the first and second phases of the water conservancy project in Maixiang Village, Wang Zhong's prestige in the village has reached a new level. The villagers praised him, and everyone gave a thumbs up when talking about Wang Zhong.
Even Ma Renli, a son of a landlord, has received a lot of goodwill. The attitude of the villagers towards Ma Renli has changed greatly. They no longer have the same prejudice against him as before. They will also take the initiative when encountering him. Say hello to Ma Renli.
Ma Renli was so happy that he found Wang Zhong with two bottles of Laobaigan and got drunk until he fell unconscious.
Not just Maixiang Village, the top leaders praised Maixiang Village and Zhou Yihu, Wang Zhong and others at several meetings in the county, asking the villages and towns below to learn from Maixiang Village. However, in just a few days, Wang Zhong and Ma Renli's The name followed the name of Maixiang Village and spread throughout the country.
People come to Wang Zhong and Ma Renli for advice every day. Wang Zhong knows well that in this era, reputation is important to him, and this kind of thing is beneficial to others but not harmful to himself. Wang Zhong and Ma Renli naturally treat the visitors He knows everything he knows and speaks everything he knows.
But what Wang Zhong didn't expect was that among the people looking for him, there would be a girl.
She has two big braids hanging in front of her shoulders, a floral cotton jacket and a pair of cotton trousers. She has an oval face and a bit of delicate eyebrows. She looks smart and capable, and speaks very crisply, but she seems to be vaguely mean.
"Hello! Are you Comrade Wang Zhong?"
Wang Zhong looked at the neat and capable little girl in front of him and nodded: "I am Wang Zhong."
"My name is Han Meili, from Jixian Village next door!" Han Meili grinned and extended her hand to Wang Zhong generously.
Wang Zhong shook hands with Han Meili and immediately let go: "It turns out to be Comrade Han. Hello, hello. I wonder what Comrade Han wants to see me for?"
"I came to Maixiang Village to visit your water diversion and irrigation project and ask Comrade Wang Zhong for advice and learning experience."
Wang Zhong said: "So that's it, no problem, let's go and see it in person?"
Han Meili was a good person at the beginning, crisp and capable, and had the demeanor of a strong woman when doing things, but she was not so domineering and cold, so she was still very likable.
As for the later stage, it’s a matter of opinion.
He led Han Meili from the waterwheel to the irrigation canal, looked around from beginning to end, and briefly introduced the principles. The rest was mostly chatting.
For example, Han Meili curiously asked: "Comrade Wang Zhong, how did you and Comrade Ma Renli come up with such a big project?"
Those bright eyes were filled with admiration.
Wang Zhong smiled and replied: "Our ancestors invented the waterwheel more than a thousand years ago. Not to mention the south, let's talk about the north, Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei and Shandong. , in fact, there are waterwheels in most areas. Because the terrain is different, the size and structure of the waterwheels are also different. When I was fleeing famine in the early years, I went to many places, learned several skills, and saw many water diversion and digging projects. As an example from Qu Guan, Ma Renli worked as a librarian in Yanjing. The two of us would do it one by one and the other by theory. It would be enough if we added it up."
"Why haven't you seen Comrade Ma Renli today?" Han Meili asked.
Wang Zhong said: "It's not a coincidence that you are here. Ma Renli just went to the county town today. I don't know when he will come back."
The two of them talked as they walked.
Han Meili suddenly pointed to the overturned car at the weir pond with curiosity and asked: "Then why don't we use waterwheels driven by water power here, but use this kind of overturned car that requires external force to drive?"
The water wheel and the overturning car were both introduced to Han Meili by Wang Zhong just now.
Wang Zhong smiled and said: "The waterwheel is indeed good, but the amount of water we bring up from the Maixiang River is not large in the first place, and we have to consider the direction and slope of the canal. Naturally, the speed of the water flow cannot be fast, and it is such a large river. The specifications of the high-speed waterwheel and the waterwheel must not be small. The larger the waterwheel, the stronger the thrust required. The small amount of water we bring up is not enough to drive such a large waterwheel in terms of speed and volume. For the time being, we can only use rolling over instead."
"So that's it." Han Meili said.
"I heard that Ma Renli is the son of a landlord. His father, Ma Datou, is the biggest rich man in Maixiang Village. Most of the land in Maixiang Village belongs to his family. Since Ma Renli knows so much, why didn't his family think about it before? How about making water trucks and digging canals?”
Han Meili is a serious person.
Wang Chong said with a smile: "At that time, Ma Renli hadn't gone to Yanjing to study. Although Ma Datou's family had a lot of land, his education was not high, and Ma Datou didn't have to work in the fields by himself at that time. Watering is all done by us poor farm laborers. Even if we grow food, most of it is taken away by Ma Datou. The villagers wish they could grow in the ground all year round, so how can they spend so much time and thought on it? These things."
"Whether it's digging canals or building water trucks, it's not a job that a few people in a family can do."
"But it's different now. There are dozens of households in Maixiang Village, with a population of more than 100. Every household has been allocated land. As long as they pay enough taxes on the food they grow, the rest is theirs. Everyone is holding back a thought in their hearts. As for the energy, building water trucks and digging irrigation canals is to provide crops with water and increase food production in the fields. The villagers have a steelyard in their hearts, knowing that this matter will only benefit us all, and will not cause any harm. So everyone can work together as a rope, use all their strength in one place, and everyone works together, which is naturally different from before."
Han Meili suddenly understood, with a bright smile on her face, and said a lot of praise for the organization and policies.
Wang Zhong also deeply agreed with Han Meili's words.
If there was no organization, people like them living at the bottom, their children and grandchildren, would probably be exploited and oppressed.
Wang Zhong treated Han Meili to a lunch of yellow steamed buns made with stick noodles, scrambled eggs with leeks, and a plate of bean sprouts. After the meal, he sent Han Meili away.
When Han Meili left, she also said that when she had time later, she would definitely come to consult with Wang Zhong more often and learn from Wang Zhong.
It's getting into the middle of winter, and I don't know when it started. Snow gradually started falling in the sky, and the weather became colder and colder. If the villagers were fine, they would stay in their homes, sit on the Kang, or go to a few houses to visit and sit. On a kang, close the doors and windows, talk and chat.
The same goes for women. During the off-season, they have to mend clothes, knit sweaters and trousers, make shoes, and clean the house. The more diligent hands always have endless work to do.
At this time in previous years, Lao Ganbang would smoke and chat with others, but this year was different. The people who wanted to order Wang Zhong to make windmills and threshing machines had long queued up until the end of the year. Lao Ganbang had breakfast every day at dawn. He rushed to Wang Zhong's house, and then he stopped working and went home when it was almost dark.
Most of those who came to Wang Zhong to build the windmill threshing machine came from one village to another, and the wages were paid in grain, either wheat, corn, or soybeans.
At first Wang Zhong wanted to split the profit with Lao Ganbang 30-70, but Lao Ganbang was unwilling to do so. Wang Zhong was just teaching him a craft and taking care of his two meals a day. There has never been a precedent for starting wages, and the jobs were all taken by Wang Zhong. Without Wang Zhong, Lao Ganbang would not have been able to take these jobs.
But Wang Zhong said, now we are liberated, it is a new era, and we can no longer use the old ideas. If we don’t pay wages, then Wang Zhongguo will be the same as Ma Datou. In the end, the two of them fought over each other. After pulling it off, Lao Ganbang reluctantly agreed to a 19% share.
Even though they only received 10%, the windmills the two of them built this year also allowed Lao Ganbang to earn a lot of food, allowing him to live a prosperous year.
On this day, it was snowing outside, and the two of them huddled in the big room on the south side of the west wing, working and chatting. With more than half a year of hard training and Wang Zhong’s careful and unreserved guidance, Lao Ganbang’s craftsmanship was fierce. Progress, now it is possible to make windmills and threshing machines independently, but large waterwheels are still a little behind.
Wang Zhong asked: "Lao Ganbang, how old are you this year?"
Lao Ganbang said: "Twenty-nine!"
Wang Zhong said: "At twenty-nine, it's time to find a wife."
Lao Ganbang blushed: "I'm so old, how can any girl like me?"
"Now that you have skills and fields, no girl can look down on you!" Wang Chong said with a smile: "And now that you have enough skills to make windmills by yourself, the division between us should also change. Once changed.”
"No!" Lao Ganbang refused with one mouthful!
"Listen to me first." Wang Zhong said earnestly: "With your current skills, there is no problem even if you take over the job of making windmills for others, but after all, one person can't do it as fast as two people, and when assembling it, two people can't do it quickly. It’s easier for me personally, and the windmill and threshing machine are not disposable items. We have enough materials for both, and the workmanship is good, so it won’t be a problem to use them for decades.”
"Let's not forget what we did before. From the time the irrigation canal was completed to now, we have built a total of three windmills and two pedal threshing machines. I do more work than you and I am faster than you, so let's press As I said before, it’s divided into three and seven, you three and I seven.”
"Big Chong, I..." Lao Ganbang wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Wang Zhong raising his hand.
"Listen to me first. What I just said has been delivered. Let's make a windmill. The labor cost is ten liters of wheat. A threshing machine requires twelve liters of wheat. If it is packed with rice and soybeans, , you need more, let’s make it simple, I’ll count the wheat for you, three windmills is thirty liters, three three is nine, three is nine liters, two threshing machines is twenty-four liters, Thirty percent is almost seven liters, so if we count seven liters, it adds up to sixteen liters."
"Sixteen liters? No, no, it's too much!" Lao Ganbang's voice suddenly rose, and he refused again and again. His expression was sincere and definitely not fake.
"Nowadays, it's not the past. Every household has been divided into fields. We worked for almost two months, and you only got sixteen liters, which is only about thirty kilograms, which is not much."
"No, no, why not break it in half!" Lao Gan said.
Wang Zhong sighed, patted Lao Ganbang's arm, and said: "Lao Ganbang, you are already twenty-nine, and you are the only one in your family. Things are getting better now. You If you don’t marry a wife, will you be worthy of your parents’ souls in heaven?”
"Don't you feel ashamed when you go to visit the graves of your parents and ancestors during the holidays?"
If it's not soft enough, add something harder.
Sure enough, as soon as Wang Zhong said these words, Lao Ganbang's face changed, and he lowered his head with a look of guilt on his face.
Wang Zhong walked to Lao Ganbang, patted him on the shoulder, and said: "The most important thing for us now is to find a wife for you as soon as possible. It is best to get married this year. At this time next year, we will give birth to a big fat boy. , to pass on the family lineage to your family and continue the incense."
Lao Ganbang raised his eyes and looked at Wang Zhong and said: "Dachong, I know you have good intentions, but haven't you yourself not married yet?"
Wang Zhong smiled and said: "How old am I? How old are you? Moreover, I have both skills and strength, and I can take care of the land well. I must choose slowly and find a handsome and virtuous wife to be my wife." , Besides, I got much more than you did."
"But you are already twenty-nine. If you turn over the year, you will be thirty. Before you reach thirty, you are still young. Hurry up and find a young girl to be your wife. Otherwise, in a few years, you will find another girl. It’s not that easy for a yellow-flowered girl.”
Lao Ganbang was extremely conflicted. In his heart, Wang Zhong taught him the craft and led him to work, just like his master. Although Wang Zhong was younger than him, in Lao Ganbang's heart, he had already regarded Wang Zhong as his benefactor. A teacher every day and a father all his life, Lao Ganbang was kind-hearted, upright and simple in temperament, so he naturally did not want to take advantage of Wang Zhong.
But what Wang Zhong just said really spoke to his heart. In the past, he had no conditions. His poor family looked down on him and could not be considered a wife. Now that he has a field, his family is not short of food, and he has learned from Wang Zhong. After mastering craftsmanship, marrying a wife and carrying on the family line can naturally be considered.
Looking at the tangled expression on Lao Ganbang's face, Wang Zhong knew what Lao Ganbang was thinking: "I know, you must feel that you have taken advantage of me."
Lao Ganbang looked at Wang Zhong and said sincerely: "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have had the chance to earn this wheat."
Wang Zhong smiled and said, "But without your help, I wouldn't be able to earn so much food by myself."
"So, don't worry about it. I'm teaching you the skills so that you can get started quickly. Let's make more windmills and threshing machines, earn more food, and hone our skills on the way. Maybe next year someone will come to us to build a water tanker!"
Lao Ganbang suddenly bent his knees and was about to kowtow to Wang Zhong. Wang Zhong, with quick eyes and quick hands, supported Lao Ganbang.
Wang Zhong said with a reproachful look on his face: "What are you doing!"
Wang Zhong's strength was incomparable to Lao Gan Bang, so he could only choke and say: "Big Chong, I'm a stupid person, I don't know how to thank you, but you are so kind to me, teach me my skills, and help me talk about my wife." , all I can think of is kowtow to you."
"Brother Youdao!" Wang Zhong stopped calling Lao Ganbang, "As the saying goes, distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. I am alone and have no relatives to help me. If you really want to thank me, please take care of me more in the village in the future. Take care of me and practice your skills carefully, and we can earn more food together."
"Don't worry, I won't let you down!" Lao Ganbang and Niu Youdao gritted their teeth and said firmly.
Wang Zhong let go of Niu Youdao and said with a smile: "Brother Youdao, remember when Niu boldly went to Yang Deng'er's house to propose marriage, the betrothal gift was only three liters of wheat. Of these sixteen liters of wheat, you take out ten liters and add ten more Eggs, pull a few feet of cloth on them, use them as betrothal gifts, and then hire a matchmaker..."
"By the way, I haven't asked you yet, what kind of girl do you like? Pretty? Slim?"
Niu Youdao blushed slightly: "With my conditions, I don't dare to have any requirements. It doesn't matter if you are handsome or not, as long as you are honest and hardworking."
Wang Zhong nodded and said: "Then look for someone who looks upright, has big breasts, a round butt, and is easy to have children."
Niu Youdao giggled: "..."
