Pig Killer

Da Chong and Li Nu stopped pumping the bellows, and ran over, looking at their uncle eagerly.

Tie Feng poured some water on the long table, dipped his index finger in the water and began to draw. "The wooden box outside is clearly visible, so I won't talk about it. The most important thing inside is the plug." While drawing, he said, "Brother Liu made two kinds, one is a wood chip, and the other is a grate. Let's try the effects of the two. Which one is more durable."

"How is it fixed? Both sides are slippery." Shen Hui'e said with concern.

"A small planer was used to 'carve' out a slight arc on the wooden boards on both sides of the bellows. The box body is slightly bulging outwards and concave inwards. You have to look closely to see it." Tie Feng looked at them with his dark eyes and said, "Brother Liu tried several times on the scraps before he dared to start working on both sides of the bellows."

"Really? Uncle Liu is so thoughtful." Da Chong said in surprise, "He doesn't look like him at all."

"Don't judge a book by its cover, and don't judge the depth of the sea by its depth." Shen Hui'e flicked her finger on his forehead and gave him a slap.

The big bug stuck out his tongue playfully, "It doesn't hurt."

"You thought I was really going to hit you!" Shen Hui'e looked at him with amusement, and then her eyes fell on Tie Feng and said, "Will it fall off after using it for a long time?"

"Wouldn't it be better to make it dead?" The cat slave asked, looking at him with her big, bright eyes.

"We thought about making the plugs in front and behind the bellows solid, but then we thought that over time, due to the nature of the wood, the plugs will inevitably shrink slightly." He raised his hand and pointed to the beam and said, "This little shrinkage is insignificant. But since it's a bellows, we must ensure that it is sealed to prevent air leakage. If the plugs shrink and deform, tiny cracks will inevitably appear, and the blowing effect will not achieve the effect we want." He took a deep breath and said, "If the deformation is serious, the bellows will be useless." Looking at them with a smile on his face, he said, "So the front and back plugs are inlaid with mortise and tenon joints, which bite into each other and fit tightly. The next step is to use them with all our strength to see which one has a longer service life."

That must be the teeth of the comb, which will last for hundreds of years without being deformed, and the bellows is airtight and can be used by several generations.

Da Chong ran to the bellows, pointed at the small window on the lever and poked his finger in, "Uncle, uncle, this?"

"This is the small tongue that blocks the air vents from the front and back of the bellows. When the lever is pulled, the small tongue opens and closes and collides with the air vents, making a clacking sound." Tie Feng looked at them with a smile and said, "This should be made thinner on the top and thicker on the bottom, so that the small tongue can close better and make a clearer sound when colliding."

It is thin on the top and thick on the bottom. Under the influence of gravity, although they don't understand physics, they can use it.

"Uncle, will mice crawl into this vent?" asked the raccoon with innocent eyes.

"When we were making it, we thought about it. We were afraid that mice would get in and damage the bellows, so we embedded wooden strips at the air vents." Tie Feng said happily, "To prevent those bad guys!"

"A mouse gets into a bellows and gets squeezed from both ends." Shen Hui'e remembered this Chinese proverb.

Tie Feng was stunned when he heard this, then he smiled and said, "It's really a vivid image."

"Will the mouse get in?" the big insect asked, looking at him worriedly.

"They should be able to drill in." Tie Feng looked at them with his dark eyes and said, "Because the chicken feathers used to make the feathers in the bellows were not cleaned up, there must be some meat particles. The mice came here after smelling the smell. The mice tore the chicken feathers and took them back to the nest to keep warm. However, the mice could not get in because of the wooden bars, so they had to retreat."

"So! This master is not easy to steal." Tie Feng said proudly with his chin slightly raised, "The appearance can be imitated, but there are tricks inside. Otherwise, the wind power of the bellows made is small and cannot achieve the effect we want, or the pull rod is stiff and not smooth to pull, and it is difficult to use. Brother Liu has polished the places that need to be polished very smoothly! It can be used for a few more years, otherwise it can only be chopped and burned as firewood."

"Is the wind strong?" Shen Hui'e looked at him with her deep and clear eyes and asked, "Have you tried it?"

"I've tried it. It can blow down adobe bricks from three feet away." Tie Feng looked at them with his dark eyes wide open. "My jaw and that of Brother Liu were almost dropped. We didn't expect such a strong wind."

"No wonder the fire was so strong when we came in." Shen Hui'e said in surprise, looking at the bellows beside the fire.

Only with strong wind can the fire heat up quickly, and in the future this brother-in-law will be more adept at forging and hammering.

"Use it hard and see how long it can last." Shen Hui'e said with a smile on her face.

"Don't worry! The queue for making iron pans is three months later, so this bellows will never stop working." Shen Yun'e looked at them with her almond-shaped eyes and said, "It can withstand such frequent use, which proves that this bellows is well made."

"We came here today just for this bellows. It looks like you are very satisfied with the work." Shen Hui'e stood up and said, "We will go back now and not disturb you anymore."

"I'll take you there." Tie Feng said with a smile.

"No, no, go ahead and do your work!" Shen Hui'e declined with a smile.

"Brother Tie, please go ahead and do your work! I'll take my second sister there." Shen Yun'e said as she stood up.

"Okay then!" Tie Feng watched them leave, turned around and started puffing and pulling the bellows, full of energy.

&*&

"Brother has been in Hedong County for half a month and hasn't come back yet." Shen Yun'e stood under the shade of the tree, looking at her with starry eyes and asked, "He's been gone for quite a while."

The mottled sunlight fell on Shen Hui'e, and his deep and penetrating eyes looked at her, "She should be back soon! If you go there by foot, it will take a lot of time on the road."

Actually, it’s not that far, but the transportation is not good enough!

"Anyway, everything is fine now. After a spring rain, I see the seedlings in the field have sprouted, all in one row and green." Shen Hui'e looked at her with eyes as gentle as jade and said.

She often goes to the countryside to collect pigs, and she knows very well what is happening in the fields.

The germination rate is very good, and it seems there is no need to replant.

When they were first planted, they didn't sprout, which made her very anxious. On the way to the countryside, she went down into the fields and used a small wooden stick to dig them up and take a peek.

Shen Hui'e told Huang's mother about her concerns.

Huang's mother was so happy that she bent over when she heard this. "It takes seven or eight days for the seedlings to sprout. Sometimes it takes half a month when it's cold!" She smiled and shook her head, "You really have never planted a field before!"

"I have planted them! But after planting them, I never paid attention to them again. When I saw them again, the seedlings had grown very tall." Shen Hui'e said without blushing or panting. This was the truth.

Shen Hui'e looked at her with clear eyes and said, "I will be going to the countryside every other day, so of course I am anxious."