After fleeing famine, I have thousands of acres of fertile land

Li took out the cotton seeds, dried them, put them in bags, and placed them in the cellar.

The weather has been very good recently, so Zhou no longer goes to the riverbank. Instead, she picks wheat seeds at home and chooses those with full grains to dry and keep.

The harvest of lobsters is getting smaller and smaller, and there are almost no snails left. In late summer and early autumn, it starts to get a little cool in the mornings and evenings.

There was no rush to work on the farm, and Ye Qing started to think about digging a well. There were many parasites in the river, and the water had to be boiled before drinking.

"Dad, there's not much work to do at home recently, so let's dig a well. It's too cold in winter, so we don't have to go out to fetch water."

Boss Ye had thought about it several times, but never had the time. "I'll go ask your uncle Mu. Your uncle Mu learned how to dig a well from the master."

"I didn't realize Uncle Mu had this skill. Why haven't I seen him digging a well before?" Ye Qing was very confused.

"In the past, there were several wells in our village that were passed down from our ancestors. The water was sweet and delicious. Later, no one dug wells anymore, and your uncle Mu went to other villages to help."

Only then did Ye Qing know the reason why Ye Mu went out so often in the past. He always thought that he was doing odd jobs outside.

Boss Ye did not waste any time and went to Ye Mu's house. The two houses were not far away from each other, with only two houses in front and back.

"Is Brother Mu at home?" Boss Ye called out from outside the door first.

"I'm at home, come in." Ye Mu took off his coat and was chopping firewood at home.

"There is so much firewood at home, and we still need to chop it. We can use charcoal in winter."

"Brother is here. I have some time these two days. Let's clean up the house and prepare to find a place to dig a well." Ye Mu did not stop what he was doing.

"I came here to talk to you about this matter. My family also wants to dig a well. Are you free?"

Ye Mu finished chopping the last piece of firewood, stopped what he was doing, put on his shirt, and pulled Ye Lao Da to sit down and chat.

"Brother, are you going to dig deeper or shallower? Your home is close to the riverbank, so you need groundwater."

"Since we've dug it, let's dig it deeper so it can last longer." Boss Ye thought that the well would last for several generations, so he had to dig it better.

"What about the well wall? Is it made of stone? If it is, it won't collapse." Ye Mu looked at Boss Ye.

"Use stones. The village used to use stones to build it. It has never broken in all these years." Boss Ye has thought about this problem in his mind.

Ye Mu flipped through the family almanac and checked the date. "Brother, the day after tomorrow is a good day, how about we start work early in the morning?"

"Then it's the day after tomorrow. Is there anything else we need to prepare?" Boss Ye didn't quite understand.

"Prepare incense, candles, firecrackers, and offerings, and call a few people to help dig the well." Ye Mu is very experienced.

"Then I'll leave first and go back to prepare." Boss Ye got up and left.

Boss Ye did not go home, but went to Zhou's house first.

"Dad, my family is planning to dig a well the day after tomorrow. Big brother, are you free? Please go and give me a hand.

"Since your eldest brother is free, I will ask your other two brothers to go as well, and bring your older nephews with you, and go there early the day after tomorrow morning." Old man Zhou agreed readily.

Boss Ye didn't stay long and even asked someone to help him carry the stones.

Boss Ye called his second brother and his uncle's brothers and drove the ox cart to Tushan.

There are a lot of stones on Tushan, but some of them are not of the right size. We need to find some smaller and straighter stones to build the well wall.

The few of them searched along the mountain for several times before they found a suitable place.

Ye Qing was not idle either. He helped clean up the front yard at home and also prepared food. He provided meals for everyone who came to help.

The Ye family planned to dig a well that was fifteen meters deep. This depth would provide sufficient water, so fifteen meters was considered very deep and would require about five carts of stone.

Several people worked until the evening and finally pushed two carts down. There is no rush, we can push them after the well is dug.

The next day, after delivering eggs and lobsters and buying firecrackers, Boss Ye took his men up the mountain again.

Some time ago, the villagers took away a lot of leaves for composting, and now it is much easier to walk on the mountain.

We went a little faster today and found two and a half cars, which is almost enough. If it’s not enough, we’ll find out later.

Soon it was time to dig a well, and Ye Qing was very curious about the ancient well-digging ritual.

Ye Qing stood behind Old Man Ye, watching him lay out the six offerings. He burned incense and led his family members to pay their respects. Finally, he prayed that the well god would bless him, that the well digging would go smoothly, and that his family would be healthy and happy.

After seeing Old Man Ye complete the ceremony, Boss Ye started setting off firecrackers in the yard.

Ye Mu just started to look for water source with tools, and Ye Qing looked at him in amazement.

Watching Ye Mu walking here and there, he stopped after a while.

He then took a long pointed tool and hit the pole hard with a hammer, and soon only a small section of the pole was left outside.

Boss Ye and several others helped pull out the tools. Ye Mu touched the soil they brought up and found it was very moist. He nodded and said it was suitable.

Ye Mu drew a circle with a branch to mark the location of the well.

Boss Ye grabbed a rooster, cut the chicken's neck with a knife, and walked around the circle with the bleeding chicken in his hand.

The ceremony was finally completed. Boss Ye dug the first shovel of soil, and several uncles also started to work.

Ye Qingchen now knew how much faith the ancients had. If the immortal had not told him in his dream, he would have been caught and burned long ago.

These people are good at doing the work, but Ye Mu will have to direct how to dig specifically.

By evening, after digging about two meters, there was still no trace of water.

Ye Qing helped prepare dinner. There were many people today, and it was physical work, so he prepared eight dishes.

Boss Ye bought pork specially for him, and Zhou cooked a few meat dishes. There were also some green vegetables and beans, and the amount of food was quite large.

The dry food is also multi-grain steamed buns, each about the size of an adult's fist.

Old man Ye also took out his treasured wine and gave two glasses to each person. After eating and drinking, everyone left the Ye family and continued to work early the next morning.

Ye Qing was tired after a whole day and didn't want to move at all. After washing up, he lay down on the bed and fell asleep.

After working for six or seven days, the soil in the well became more and more moist. Ye Mu went down to the well and took a closer look, and then he was sure that water would soon come out.

The space in the well was limited, so two people were digging at the bottom, and several people were carrying soil outside. They also had to push the excavated soil outside.

The diggers became more and more careful and their speed slowed down. Finally, on the afternoon of the seventh day, water gushed out, mixed with yellow soil, and soon became turbid.

"The water is coming out, the water is coming out." Ye Dalang's excited voice came out.

The few people who were resting upstairs also quickly walked to the well and looked down. After a while, there was already a lot of water at the bottom of the well.

Ye Qing also heard it. She had never seen water coming out of a well before. She threw away the beans in her hand and ran over.

Zhou was laughing at what she saw. He was still a child and found everything new to him.

After a while, Ye Qing ran back, carrying the bucket and ladle from home.