Traveling through ancient times, storing supplies and not fleeing famine

"When will the work start? How many people are needed? Just come and tell me.

There are many people in our village who can build houses. They usually go out to do odd jobs and join other teams in building houses.

But if there are no experienced craftsmen, you have to go to the town to find a professional!

There is a craftsman named Liu Changsheng on Zhendong Street. He has been doing this for decades and his skills are pretty good.

He was the one who took the lead in building my house, and he also led the construction of the Ma Kui family and Mr. Qian's family.

Another option is Da Chen on West Street. He has a team of craftsmen of his own and they will help you buy materials for building houses so you don’t have to worry about it yourself. He is also good at building houses and my eldest son has followed him to work there a few times.

You can go and ask around later to see which family is suitable."

Xia Shengsheng was worried and didn't know what to do.

Village chief Ma helped her find the way.

"Thank you, Uncle Ma. I just didn't know who to turn to. Fortunately, you are knowledgeable and experienced."

“I just lived a few more years and met more people.

Take these back and give them to Ercheng and the other kids."

Village chief Ma was surprised when he heard that Xia Shengsheng was going to build a house, but then he thought that the house Xia Shengsheng and his friends were renting now was indeed in disrepair, and if they didn't build a new house, they would have to completely renovate it.

Otherwise, it will collapse if it rains a few times in the summer.

As for where Xia Shengsheng got the money to build the house, it was not his concern.

There are many idle people in the village now. Those who can stay at home can find some work and bring more income to each family!

So as the village chief, he is happy to see this kind of thing happen and is willing to help.

"How can I take something back after I've taken it out? I made this vermicelli myself, it's not worth much, and I caught the rabbit in the mountains. If the village chief doesn't want to take it, how can I have the nerve to ask him for help again?"

Since Xia Shengsheng has already taken the things, there is no reason for him to take them back. Besides, if he does things in the future, he will inevitably cause trouble to the village chief. Once or twice is fine, but if it happens too many times, who would help for no reason, not even the village chief?

Everyone in Ma heard Xia Shengsheng say that the noodle-like thing she brought was called vermicelli, and it was made by herself, which was very novel.

“This is called vermicelli? I’ve never seen it before!

There was also the big bowl of chicken that Sister Xia sent over last time. There was a kind of yellow food in it that was also very delicious.

It's just that the core in the middle is a little hard. If you ask me, the Xia family girl is just clever and can't do anything."

Oh my god! Last time, I forgot to ask Ercheng and the others to tell everyone how to eat corn?

Did the Li family and Dr. Zhao also eat the corn cobs?

"Sister-in-law, you're joking. When it comes to being clever and deft, no one is as clever as you.

Last time, Hui Niang wore a pair of embroidered shoes with butterflies on them. The butterflies were lifelike and the color combination was very beautiful.

After asking, I found out that it was embroidered by my sister-in-law.

If it were me, I would be lucky enough to be able to embroider a few simple flowers."

Hui Niang is Ma Da’s daughter. She is 12 years old this year and one year older than Liu Yiyi.

Boss Ma has one son and two daughters. The eldest son is 14 years old this year and attended a private school for two years.

The two daughters are 12 and 8 years old.

Ma Er's family has four children, only the eldest is a daughter, and the other three are boys.

The youngest one is two months younger than Bi Sicheng!

"Look at what Sister Xia said. I can only embroider a few flowers and insects. If you think it looks good, I will teach you later."

After being praised, the Ma family couldn't stop smiling. The women in the farm families would make a piece of clothing and embroider a few simple flowers.

However, almost no one can do things that are too complicated, and no one has the leisure to learn them.

When Ma was still a girl, she learned embroidery from an older sister from the same village for several years, so her embroidery skills are much better than those of ordinary people.

But most people don't care about this, so she is rarely praised. Now when she hears someone praising her, she is so happy.

"Forget about my clumsy appearance. Let me ask my two children to ask my sister-in-law for advice. I hope my sister-in-law won't despise me when the time comes."

Xia Shengsheng thought that girls should always know something about needlework.

Her skills were average, and she couldn't teach the two children much! If she really needed someone to teach them, Ma Da, who was good at embroidery, would be the right person.

"Don't despise me, don't despise me. Your two daughters are the cutest. Let them come and play with Hui Niang and Xue Niang when they have nothing to do. I will teach them when I have nothing to do. It would be best if the children are willing to learn."

Village chief Ma was waiting for the two women to chat about family matters. He tried to get a word in for a long time but couldn't, which made him very anxious.

"Old man, can you go and see if the water is boiling?"

"It should be soon. I'll go check it out."

Village chief Ma looked at his eldest daughter-in-law who went to the kitchen and sighed.

I thought: He finally left. If he hadn't left, we would have talked until dark. Finally, it was his turn to speak.

"Xiao Xia! What did I want to ask you?

What is that thing your sister-in-law just mentioned? It tastes really good, but I've never seen it before. Does it grow on the mountain?"

Village chief Ma cares a lot about edible things. Having more food can save more food, and then every family will live a better life.

“It doesn’t grow on the mountain, it’s called corn, and it’s a kind of grain.

I bought it from a passing merchant when I went to the capital this time. I also bought some corn seeds, which I have planted in the field now. "

"Food? Why do they look more like vegetables to me?"

“When corn is still tender, it can be stewed with potatoes, beans, etc. and eaten as a dish.

But the core in the middle cannot be eaten, only the outer grains can be eaten.

Corn cobs can be ground and fed to pigs or chickens and ducks.

When the corn grows old and the kernels are dry, you can rub the kernels off and grind them into cornmeal. You can then steam cornmeal buns and bake corn pancakes.

It also has a name that is more popular in the north, which is called corn."

Village chief Ma listened carefully. Having lived for most of his life, he was very sensitive about food and immediately asked the key question.

“What is the yield per acre?”

Xia Shengsheng lowered the yield a little according to the modern level. After all, modern technology was not developed in ancient times, and the yield per mu could not reach the current level.

"The corn yield is high, about 600 kilograms."

"Six hundred?"

At this time, the per-acre yield of rice and wheat is between 200-300, and the black noodles that every household eats are produced when the wheat is just ground for the first time.

There are more wheat husks in black flour, and one acre of land can produce about 100 kilograms more, but its yield is still not as good as corn. Even if 100 kilograms more are ground, it is still around 400 kilograms, and it tastes bad and is particularly irritating to the throat.

The village chief Ma ate the corn that day. It was soft, sticky and very sweet.

Although I don’t know what the corn would taste like if it were dried and ground into flour and made into cakes or steamed into buns.

But he could imagine that cornmeal must be a hundred times more delicious than black flour.

The most important thing is that corn has a high yield, and the extra yield can feed more people.

"The yield is so high? Are you sure? Do you have any seeds left? Have you planted them all?"

A series of questions made Xia Shengsheng not know where to start answering.

“Its production volume can basically be determined, but the specifics will only be known after testing.

The seeds I bought have been planted in my family’s two acres of low-quality fields. Corn does not have high requirements for soil and can be planted even on reclaimed wasteland. It’s just a matter of yield.

You will see the effects by autumn.

The village chief can go to my field and take a look. If he thinks it is suitable, we can promote it on a large scale in the village next year."

Village chief Ma stroked his beard and felt that what Xia Shengsheng said was very feasible, but he would have to wait and see the harvest in the fall to know what the specific results would be.