Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 19 Farming and Collecting Rent
We chatted idly along the way and soon arrived at the destination.

The tenant farmer asked if he could give them a ride to the neighboring village, but Tan Huaike refused. She and Pei'er got off the ox cart and walked less than a mile before they saw the Shentu family's farmland around noon.

Tan Huaike eagerly searched for her land by following the deed. It said it was east of Baifu Village and south of Hongsha Village, which she could understand. But she had no idea where it was west of Xiaolinjia Creek and north of Sanlan Sheep Pen. She couldn't rush, so she had to ask the local villagers.

The farmers had all gone home for lunch, so it was not a good idea to disturb them. Tan Huaike took Pei'er to the Shentu family's house to settle down. The house was small and located in Hongsha Village. The servants said that a middle-aged couple lived there. They were responsible for guarding the house and helping to count the harvest for rent.

The courtyard gate was not closed, so Tan Huaike and Pei'er walked straight in.

The couple was having dinner when they didn't expect anyone from the host family to come. When they saw Tan Huaike, they didn't quite recognize him. They stood up in a panic, not knowing how to greet him: "Who, who is this lady..."

Pei'er said, "This is Madam Shentu, she's here to look at the fields and collect rent."

The two men wiped their hands and faces clean. The man hadn't reacted yet: "Madam? Which madam?"

The woman quickly nudged him with her arm and whispered, "Madam! The eldest son's new wife..."

The man blushed with embarrassment and lowered his head to find a clean straw mat, mumbling incoherently: "Oh! Madam! Madam, please take a seat! My last name is Zhong, just call me Old Zhong, and this is my wife... No, we didn't know you were coming, we didn't prepare anything, and the food we cooked wasn't enough..."

Madam Zhong greeted Tan Huaike with a smile: "Excuse me, madam. I'll go make some more food right away."

"No need, Madam Zhong, please sit down. Uncle Zhong, you should sit down too. Just finish your meal and don't worry about us." Tan Huaike took out two large pieces of toasted naan and a small can of side dishes from his bag. "We brought our own dry food."

"No, this won't do. It's dry and tasteless." Madam Zhong held her back. "How can we let the master eat this? Wait, I'll be back soon."

The Zhong couple were very warm and generous, and they prepared a table of hot meals for them.

Tan Huaike didn't hesitate to eat everything with Pei'er. It was a rare opportunity to enjoy such fresh and plentiful roast meat and stews, and he couldn't help but praise Madam Zhong's cooking skills.

Compared to the exquisite and dull Shentu Mansion, Tan Huaike prefers this kind of life with a broad world and rich flavor. He does not have to be cautious in everything, does not have to please others all the time, and can even put aside those burdens that are beyond his ability for the time being and do something that he really wants to try.

Here, she seemed to be able to become the Caizhuer she used to be.
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The Shentu family owned a large piece of land, and most of the village were tenant farmers. Two of them looked after Tan Huaike's fields. One was surnamed Lin, and the ditch that marked the boundary was right next to his house. The other was surnamed Ge, and they were Mrs. Zhong's cousins.

Tan Huaike finally saw his five acres of fertile land.

Two acres of millet, nearly three acres of sorghum, and a plot of scallions. It's busy farming season, and the two acres of millet have just been harvested. The sorghum ears are already drooping, but the seed coats haven't turned black yet, so they can be harvested for another two days. The scallions grow quickly, and they were just harvested a few days ago and are waiting to be turned, dried, plowed, and harrowed, so they can plant another crop.

Next, while waiting to collect rent from the tenants, Tan Huaike would hang around the fields every day watching people farming.

At first, the tenant farmers from the Lin and Ge families thought she was there to oversee their work and were intimidated by her presence. They didn't dare answer any of her questions, fearing their clumsy words would offend the master. Fearing she would catch them doing something wrong and use it to raise the rent, the Ge family devised a plan: they had their eight-year-old child lead the two of them around to play.

The child's name was Xiao Jizi, and he was a famous naughty boy in the village. After receiving instructions from the adults, he took Tan Huaike to climb trees to take bird eggs, go to the river to catch loaches, and run around all over the mountains and fields.

Xiao Jizi didn't expect that the lady from the master's family was so tough and smart.

He was careless while trying to get bird eggs and nearly fell from the tree. It was the old lady who quickly climbed up the trunk and pulled him down unharmed. Then there was the loach catching. At first, the old lady couldn't catch any; the loaches were too slippery and would slip away in her hands. Later, she made a basket out of branches and millet stalks, and she was sure to catch one every time.

Later, Xiao Jizi looked at Tan Huaike with shining eyes, and wanted to pester her to take him out to play.

However, Tan Huaike gradually realized that something was wrong. After playing around for three or four days, the millet was almost harvested. He still had a lot of knowledge about farming to understand, so he immediately calmed down and ran back to the fields to wander around.

When Xiao Jizi came to see her again, she took the child's hand and went to the Ge family's parents and said to them frankly: "I'm not here to cause trouble, nor to raise the rent. I'm just here to learn how to farm. Please don't send me away again."

The Ge family lord apologized repeatedly, saying with a blush, "We are being mean. No one in the master's family has ever been so interested in farming... Well, please don't be offended, madam. If you want to know anything, just ask us." Then Tan Huaike asked them, "Why is this year a small year? I think the crops are growing well."

The Ge family said, "This year's harvest isn't very good. Last year's ears of corn were heavier than this year's. Don't get me wrong, ma'am. It's not that we haven't worked hard. Farming depends on both the weather and the land. Hot or cold weather, more or less rain, all have an impact. Also, if the crops grew well one year and yielded a large harvest, the soil often won't be fertile enough the next year, so there are good and bad years."

"Well, that's probably because we lost too much last year..." Tan Huaike asked, "We can't control what happens in the sky, but if the land isn't fertile enough, is there any way to improve it?"

"Yes, then use manure to fertilize it."

"manure?"

After listening to their explanation, Tan Huaike understood. She remembered that when she was grazing in the past, the feces of cattle and sheep were very nourishing to the water plants. It should be the same principle.

However, the tenant farmer added, "Applying manure doesn't always work. We don't know why. Sometimes, after applying it, the seedlings grow even thinner and weaker. If we're not careful, they'll all burn to death, significantly reducing the harvest. So, we don't apply manure unless it's absolutely necessary."

"Sometimes it works, sometimes it backfires." Tan Huaike thought for a moment and said to them, "Isn't that leek field still empty? Don't rush to plant it yet. Let me try how to apply the manure fertilizer."

"Ah, madam, are you here to spread the manure? That smell..."

"It's okay, just let me try. It's my land anyway, so if anything goes wrong, it's my responsibility."
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After Shentu Zhuo returned from his business trip to Dunhuang County, he rushed home in a hurry.

After entering the house, he didn't even have time to drink a sip of water before going to the side yard to look for someone: "Tan...Auntie? Auntie!"

The room is empty.

What about people?

Shen Tuzhuo went to ask Ah Shuo and Ah Hui: "Why isn't the eldest lady at home? Where did she go?"

Ah Shuo replied, "I heard she went to Rude County. Didn't the lady give her five acres of land? It's harvest time now, so the lady must be going to calculate the rent."

"When did you go?"

"About ten days ago," Ah Shuo recalled. "The day before yesterday, the tenant farmer who brought grain home brought a message saying that the lady would wait until the harvest was finished over there before returning."

"How long did she take?" Shen Tuzhuo suddenly thought, "I used all the carriages at home, how did she get there?"

"I don't know about that." Ah Shuo guessed, "Lude County is quite far away. He probably went to the post station to rent a carriage."

"The lady was very careful with her money and took the tenant farmer's ox cart." Ah Hui, who had been listening, interrupted at the right time.

Shen Tu Zhuo nodded: "That's perfect, I'll pick her up."

After saying this, he drove a carriage and hurried to Ruth County.

Shentu Zhuo found new clues about his brother's death during his trip to Dunhuang. All the clues and inconsistencies were swirling, intertwining, and suppressing in his mind...

I was so angry and resentful that I could only confide in her.
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　Next chapter: Which is more important?

　　【Double update in progress, scroll back.】

　　
　
(End of this chapter)