The whole family traveled through ancient times with their house

When Wang Xiaolang returned, Jiang Yan's eyes were still filled with the boy's pure and honest smile.

At dawn the next day, Jiang Yan heard some noise outside. She opened the gate and saw Wang Xiaolang sitting on the fallen tree trunk outside, waiting.

"Come so early?"

"Well, my grandpa said, the early bird catches the worm."

"Yes, your grandfather is right. Come in."

"Eh."

When Wang Xiaolang entered the yard, he first spread out the oilcloth, and then spread out the rice with a wooden shovel.

Jiang Yan was cooking in the kitchen. Occasionally, when she looked up, she would see the young boy working in an orderly and methodical manner.

Especially after seeing him spread out the rice, he picked up the broom and started sweeping the yard.

Jiang Yan nodded secretly, her eyes full of life.

For breakfast, Jiang Yan added some water to the sorghum rice porridge left over from last night and sprinkled a handful of multi-grain flour, and that was it.

It’s really not a good time to cook new rice in the morning.

The dish is even simpler, just boiled potatoes, peeled and mixed with soybean paste.

Even with such a simple meal, Wang Xiaolang ate it with gusto. No one knew that this was one of the better meals he had ever had.

But he only ate one bowl and then stopped.

Jiang Yan looked at the black stoneware bowls at home. She figured the boy could eat at least two bowls. Why would he stop after just one? What was going on?

When Wang Xiaolang saw Aunt Jiang looking at him, he lowered his head in embarrassment, and after a while he spoke out his thoughts in a voice as soft as a mosquito.

"Aunt Jiang, I only eat one bowl of rice for breakfast and lunch. Can you give me two bowls of rice for dinner so I can take them home?"

In Wang Xiaolang's opinion, the rice porridge at Aunt Jiang's house was very thick. If he took it home and asked his grandmother to add two scoops of water and boil it, it would be enough for their family of four to have a meal.

After hearing what Wang Xiaolang said, Jiang Yan felt sad. They had never seen such a scene before they traveled here.

"Aunt Jiang~"

"Okay, I'll do as you say!"

"Thank you, Aunt Jiang."

Jiang Yan smiled and didn't say "you're welcome". She knew that this was not popular here.

After breakfast, Jiang Yan went to the fields and pulled a bunch of beans, the pods still green. She asked Wang Xiaolang to shell the beans while she watched the rice, and she would cook them when she returned at noon.

Jiang Yan also knew that peeling green beans would hurt fingers, so she took out a pair of scissors for him to use, and reminded Wang Xiaolang to peel them slowly so as not to hurt his hands.

Wang Xiaolang agreed, but secretly made up his mind that he would finish peeling the beans before Aunt Jiang came back at noon.

After instructing Wang Xiaolang, Jiang Yan took her daughter out.

She went to the rice field first. She wanted to see what the field had become after being turned over by the children.

After seeing it, she was surprised to find that the rice fields looked like they had been plowed and leveled.

Looking at the rice field, Jiang Yan suddenly had a new understanding of these children.

"Mom, we can't grow a second crop of rice." This is Yi Chen's only regret.

"Not necessarily." Jiang Yan bent down, picked up some rice stubble that still looked alive, and put it into the small courtyard of her home.

"Wow, mother..."

"Hush, let's get to work."

"whee."

For dinner, Jiang Yan cooked sorghum rice porridge as usual and fried a large bowl of bean paste with lard and green beans.

Smelling the delicious aroma coming from the kitchen, Wang Xiaolang felt his mouth constantly secreting saliva.

Seeing that the food was ready, Jiang Yan packed a separate portion for Wang Xiaolang.

Wang Xiaolang's lips trembled as he looked at the sorghum rice porridge in the clay pot and the whole small bowl of bean paste.

"Okay, take it back and eat it quickly."

"I'd better help Aunt Jiang put away the rice."

Jiang Yan did not refuse, and she and Wang Xiaolang piled the rice together and covered it with oilcloth.

Tonight, long-lost laughter was heard from the Wang family's house.

Old man Wang smiled and said to his grandson, "This bean paste is delicious."

"There's plenty of stuffing. Look at the lard in here, it's so greasy and looks delicious. If we can't finish it tonight, it will definitely solidify when it gets cold."

As Mrs. Wang spoke, she looked at the old man and his two grandsons eating porridge with bean paste bit by bit, and her heart felt sour and bitter.

Fortunately, they met Madam Jiang in the most difficult time, otherwise she was really afraid that the old man would fall down and never get up again.

Jiang Yan and her daughter didn't know yet that their kindness brought hope to the Wang family.

...

In the Xishan Hundred Households Office, Captain Dong was having a headache because of the quarrels between the twelve small flags under his command.

"Master, we heard that the rice grown by Lao Zhang and his small flag was a bumper harvest."

"Yes, Captain, if the Thirteen Banners can grow rice, we can grow it too."

"Can you grow it?" Captain Dong saw these guys who were even more noisy than old women, and he wanted to kick them ten feet away.

"Well, Master Baihu, please don't look down on me."

"I look down on you." Captain Dong looked at the big men in front of him with red faces and thick necks, and did not give them any face at all.

"Isn't that stubborn Xia awesome? Awesome, right? But in the end, he was still defeated by the rice planted by Madam Jiang, and had to leave in disgrace."

Captain Dong became excited whenever Xia Wan Gu was mentioned. "After all these years, I've finally gotten to hold my head high in front of Xia Wan Gu. Two acres of land, just two acres, and Madam Jiang grew 1,485 kilograms of rice for me. And that's even with the remaining amount. Can you guys do it? If you can, step up and show me yourselves."

Captain Dong glanced at the group of cowards, leaned back, and then asked, "Who among you can guarantee to me that you can grow 740 kilograms of rice per mu of paddy field next year? No, 700 kilograms, or even 500 kilograms. As long as you can guarantee that you can grow it, I will give it to you."

There was a circle of heads gathered in front of Captain Dong, but no one dared to say that he could guarantee anything.

Because they all knew that Dongshan Baihu had been growing rice for many years, and the best year was last year, when one acre of land produced 280 kilograms of rice.

"Last year, Xia was so stubborn that he boasted to everyone he met, saying that his East Mountain Hundred Households Division was unrivaled in rice farming. But what happened this year? He got slapped in the face by our West Mountain Hundred Households Division, right? Smack on the face."

When it comes to slapping Xia Wan Gu in the face, Captain Dong can talk for three days without getting tired.

"Not only did the rice that Madam Jiang planted slap Xia Wan Gu in the face, but even the corn and beans that Madam Jiang planted were so strong that they couldn't catch up even if they rode their horses."

"Master, what can you make out of this corn?"

"What's this? I'll show you something special." Captain Dong said as he took out two corn cobs from under his table. "Here, everyone, take a look. This is the corn grown by Madam Jiang."

"Just look at the pulp and you'll know how long the corn cob is."