Traveling through time as a peasant girl to turn things around

"Grandpa," Little Naibao whispered to Chai Zhen, "Guoguo has a piece of land with lots of crops. Grandpa, carry her and take her to the barn." Chai Zhen wrapped her up tightly and carried her to the barn. Little Naibao's little hands shook her, and the crops were piled up on the ground, one layer higher than the other. On one side was white flour, on the north was rice, on the south was yellow flour, or cornmeal, and on the east was soybeans. The barn was full. Little Naibao said, "I'll give some to the villagers for the New Year. I've also taken out a lot of corn to plant. I'll also share it with everyone." She put the peanut oil in the new house, a whole room. Vegetables were placed in the whole room. Pigs and a few sheep were released, tied up in the yard first, and a nest will be built tomorrow to be slaughtered for the New Year.

She wanted all the children in the village to have good food. Seeds filled the room. Grandma took out several boxes. Her children drank. The chickens were still alive, but they hadn't sprouted yet. Little Grandma said, "Grandpa, I'll build a chicken coop tomorrow. I'll let the chickens out tomorrow. I've thrown the fish into the pond."

Chai Zhen carried his baby back to the west room, warmed up a bag of milk, and fed the little one. After the child finished eating and fell asleep, he covered him up and checked on his things before going back to sleep. He would sleep in the new room tomorrow.

As soon as the sun rose, Chai Zhen got up, went to the new house, and swept it briefly. There was a fire in each corner of the room. His room had a large kang (kang bed), and the fire pit had a hole in it. The fire was small, so he could use it to heat a small pot and cook for a few people. He placed sweet potatoes around it and roasted them. He brought his quilt, but there was no kang to cover it, so he went to get straw to cover it. He asked Hongying for a large sheet to cover it, and then a quilt. There was only one fire wall through the kang hole. The smoke escaped through the wall, and the exit was upward. The windows were clean, dry, and comfortable. The kang heated up in a short while. Sweet potatoes and peanuts were placed on the fire pit. The doctor came in, smelling the fragrance, and started eating. Chai Zhen took out two bags of milk and warmed them by the fire pit, "You, drink it when it's hot." The doctor had been living in heaven during this time. He woke up from a sweet dream every day. The delicious food and drinks made him forget the hardships of the past. In his spare time, Chai Zhen would sort out his medicinal herbs and study his medical skills. He thought that since Huanhuan didn't want to go to school, why not learn medicine from him and become a doctor? After the New Year, he would also let Huanhuan go to school to learn to read.

It was time for dinner. Doctor, sweet potatoes, milk. Full. Chai Zhen went to the main house to eat. At the table, he said, "After dinner, Ping'an will build a pigpen at home, and I'll go make a chicken coop with sorghum stalks. Jiahe will do the carpentry, and Jiaxing and Jiayu will go pick the hemp stalks. The women will go tear the hemp. Ma Xiaohong also came over to tear the hemp. Old Lady Li said, "Sister, go inside and twist the hemp rope or make shoe soles. Don't stay in the yard." The four women from Chai Xin's family also came to tear the hemp. There was some that had been dried but hadn't been torn yet, so now that they had some free time, they would do it.

Li Guang was clearing wasteland, plowing the soil in his yard with a hoe. He was mowing grass and burning it. The yard was only eight or nine acres. He had plowed it early, leaving the soil to rest. Li Dong was a carpenter. He was making a ladder, two meters high. The Chai family had their own ladders. Once he was done, he would build bookshelves, tables, and chairs. He was wearing the gloves his grandfather had given him; he and Jia He each had a pair.

Chai Zhen saw Li Guang tilling the soil and walked over to him and said, "Just cut the grass and rake it away. When you have time, the oxen will plow the fields." "Okay." "Save time for other things. Build a pigpen, a chicken coop, and a sheep pen. In the northwest corner. It won't smell bad if you live here. Go back to your hometown sometime and bring your things back. Let the fourth child go with you." "Then tomorrow." "Yes." "Tell everyone if you have anything. We are all family." "Uncle, I understand." "Yes." Chai Zhen went to the village chief's house and stayed in the square. The children in the school were still in class. Chai Zhen waited for a while, watching as the walls around the courtyard needed to be leveled. And some small stools needed to be made.

After a while, the village chief finished his get out of class and Chai Zhen came in and sat down. The village chief poured him a cup of tea and handed it to Chai Zhen, saying, "Second uncle, is there something going on?" "Yes." "Recently, everyone in the village has been busy working, no one asking for money. We're like a family, yes, a big family. We went to the county a few days ago and bought some food to give to everyone. It wouldn't be much use for us to keep the money, so we thought of giving it to everyone. After thinking it over, we decided that eating would be the most economical way. Let everyone know tomorrow morning, and we'll distribute it here." "Okay. This is a good thing." "I'll bring it here tomorrow morning in the name of our village. You go ahead and do your work. I'm leaving now." Chai Zhen said, and he stood up and left. The village chief saw him to the door.

Sun Gui thought, "The Chai family has prospered, but they haven't forgotten the villagers. I'm not as good as them." He turned back and went back into the room. Standing in the lecture hall, he found his place. He wanted to teach these children with all his heart.

Early in the morning, Chai Zhen drove an oxcart, accompanied by Jia He, Jia Xing, and Jia Yu, to the square to unload the grain inside the house for distribution by the village chief. Each family received a bag of white flour, a bag of yellow flour, a bag of rice, a bag of soybeans, a small bag of potatoes, and a pot of oil. With that, the four members of the Chai family departed.