Spring comes to the desperate place

After withdrawing his mental power, Song Chunlin returned to the space. He didn't know how many rounds of corn he had planted in the space. The corn that had been watered with spiritual spring water had not only grown three ears, but also four, five or six ears. However, the number was very small, and Song Chunlin felt that it was still not stable.

It was a rare occasion that all three waves of corn were ripe today. Song Chunlin worked hard to harvest all the corn and then selected the plump seeds one by one. After he had finished planting all the corn, he was surprised to find that it was already dawn.

Song Dazhuang started working in the fields at the age of sixteen. Of course, he could not rely on the twenty acres of land alone. In order to make it easier for him, Song Chunlin insisted on hiring two temporary workers. Otherwise, with only one strong laborer, it would take him a long time to plow the land.

Song Dazhuang knew that the farming season could not be delayed, so he did not refuse. He went to the village chief's house the next day and found two hardworking men to come over.

It took three people and a horse five full days to turn over the twenty acres of land. The newly turned soil could not be used for planting directly; it had to be exposed to the sun for two days to kill the bacteria in the soil with ultraviolet rays.

Song Chunlin prepared some wood ash for Song Dazhuang, which can kill bacteria and fertilize the soil. Song Dazhuang spread the ash evenly on the soil. The spring sun was not too strong, so he kept it shining for three days. Then Song Dazhuang turned the soil over again, which meant he had completed all the preparations.

The way the Song family farmed this time was a little different from the past, and also a little different from the farmers next door. Those people just turned the land over and sowed seeds. They were not like Song Dazhuang, who dried the soil and spread wood ash.

Those people thought Song Dazhuang was a fool. An old man who had been farming for decades was even more angrily scolding Song Dazhuang, saying that he was wasting his time. While he was plowing and drying the soil, other people's seeds had already sprouted. By the time he was ready to sow the seeds, he had already fallen far behind others. Wouldn't this delay the harvest?

Song Dazhuang turned a deaf ear to the man's scolding, although he felt a little guilty, so he went home and asked Song Chunlin when to sow the seeds.

Seeing his father's anxious look, Song Chunlin slowly dragged out the large basin in the kitchen. In it were wheat seeds that had been soaked overnight. These seeds were stockpiled by him in his previous life. Song Chunlin was afraid of starvation at that time, so in order to prevent himself from depleting his savings, he collected all the seeds in the seed wholesale market. Therefore, now he had enough seeds to sow not only 20 acres but also 200 acres of land.

"Dad, these seeds have been germinated. You can plant them in the field tomorrow."

"Germination? What does germination mean?" Song Dazhuang was totally confused and stood at a loss as to what to do around the large pot of seeds.

Song Chunlin patiently explained to him: "Why do we turn the soil, dry it, and then turn the soil again?"

Song Dazhuang answered quickly: "To kill the external evils and insect eggs that are invisible to the naked eye."

"That's right!" Song Chunlin looked like a teachable boy. "After a winter, the soil contains many invisible bacteria and insect eggs. If we don't deal with these two things, the crops next year will easily be affected by diseases and insect pests, which will result in a reduction in yield at best and a total loss of crops at worst."

"In order to make the food grow better, this step is necessary and cannot be skipped, but time waits for no one, so there are germination and seedling raising."

Song Dazhuang just learned about germination, and Song Chunlin threw out another idea of raising seedlings.

"Seedling cultivation means planting seeds in a warm place in advance, and transplanting them into the ground only after the seedlings grow to the height of chopsticks. This way, unqualified seedlings can be screened out in advance, and spring ploughing will not be delayed."

Song Dazhuang woke up as if from a dream. Since his son said it was okay, he felt relieved.

So the next day, Song Dazhuang planted the wheat seeds that had sprouted. Song Chunlin added a drop of spiritual spring water to the water used to soak the seeds, so the seeds sprouted soon after being planted, and their growth rate was no less than that of the fields next to them.

When it was time to plant rice seedlings, the entire Song family went out to the fields, even the youngest son, Song Xiaobao, was brought to the fields. Song Qin tied her son under a tree with a rope. Song Xiaobao watched the family members around him busying around, but he didn't make any noise. He just amused himself with a few wooden toys.

It was the first time for the Song family to grow rice. After planting one acre of land, everyone was so tired that they could not straighten their backs. Looking at the remaining acres of land, everyone felt pain in their waists.

The older Grandpa Song and Auntie Song were the first to surrender. They supported each other and walked under a tree to rest. As it was almost noon, Auntie Song asked everyone to come back and have lunch first.

In order to save time, the Song family ate pancakes wrapped with braised pork. The pancakes were made by Song Qin, and were thin and soft, filled with braised pork and cucumbers. The cucumbers were from Song Chunlin's space, and were rolled in the pancake so that no one could see them, which was just right for relieving the greasiness.

In addition to the braised pork rolls, there was also a large pot of porridge. The porridge was very thin and had only a few grains of rice. They drank it as water to quench their thirst. As usual, Song Chunlin added spiritual spring water into it.

Drinking a big bowl of porridge can not only quench your thirst but also relieve your fatigue.

Grandpa Song pounded his still sore waist, feeling that he was really old and couldn't bear it after doing such a small piece of work.

Seeing him rubbing his waist, Amao Song asked him if he was hurt.

"No, I'm just getting old and my physical strength isn't as good as it used to be."

Song A-mo chuckled: "You're already a grandfather, but you still think you're a young man?"

"That's right. Chunsheng has grown up so fast. He will have to find a wife in two years. Time is merciless."

After school, Song Chunsheng went straight to the fields. Seeing his family busy working in the fields, he took off his shoes and socks, said hello to Song Qinshi, and went to the fields.

Song Qin quickly asked him to go back: "Go and look after Xiaobao, be careful not to let him get bit by insects, this is almost over."

It was Song Chunsheng's first time planting rice and he felt very curious: "Mom, just let me do it. I don't think there are many left."

Seeing that she couldn't persuade him, Song Qin followed him, but her hands moved much faster.

There weren't many seedlings left to begin with, and it was quickly finished after Song Chunsheng joined in. The family casually wiped their hands, packed up their things and went back.

On the way back, Song Dazhuang persuaded Grandpa Song and Grandma Song not to come tomorrow. There wasn't much land left anyway, and the couple would probably be able to finish the work in one day tomorrow.

"Little Daddy, you guys should stay at home with the two kids tomorrow. Ask Brother Lin to bring lunch to the field. Make more. I want to eat."

"Okay, then I'll make you some rice and braised pork tomorrow. The roast goose that Chunlin brought last time was pretty good, so I'll give you half of it. You're tired from working, so you need to eat more meat to have strength."