Traveling through time as a peasant girl to turn things around

After everyone finished eating, the women cleared the dishes and headed home. Old Lady Li asked them to keep the two baskets. "Go home and eat," she said.

Old Mrs. Li went to Chai Zhen and said, "Dad, kill another pig. There's not much meat left." "Okay, I'll go right away." Chai Zhen hurried to find Sun Gui. Anyone could buy a pig for six taels of silver.

Little Naibao watched everyone harvesting wheat and wondered what other families would do when they threshed the wheat that evening. She thought, "We need a small wheat thresher, and a corn thresher in the fall. We need both, and a flour mill." Thinking of this, she said, "Grandma, let's go home." "Okay, okay, let's go home," Old Lady Li said as she carried her back. Guoguo, why didn't she watch? "Grandma, I need to make sure the people can thresh their wheat, and that requires a machine." "I'll go home and draw the blueprints. I'll figure out how to make it." "Grandma's sweetheart, you're always thinking about everyone. I'm sorry you're so young, and I worry so much about you." "It's okay, Grandma." Old Lady Li went home and carried Guoguo to the east room, to Guoguo's room. Guoguo sat on a stool while Old Lady Li ground some ink. Guoguo said, "Grandma, no need. I have a pen." With a flick of her hand, a pencil and a ruler appeared, and Old Lady Li was surprised. Even though she'd seen this before, she was still surprised. Little Naibao's drawing on the white paper was serious and well-crafted. Old Lady Li looked at her beautifully; it was hers. Old Mrs. Li stayed here with the little girl for the whole morning. She drew the picture carefully, marking the size, thickness and materials clearly.

It was noon, and Grandma Li said, "Guoguo, it's time to rest and eat." "Grandma, you go eat, Guoguo has to finish painting." "Then sit down, grandma will cook for you." "Okay."

Mrs. Li’s lunch was usually prepared by her daughter-in-law and niece-in-law, so she cooked for Guoguo. She steamed a bowl of egg custard and fed it to Guoguo while she sat by the side and watched the child.

In the fields, it was noon, and Chai Zhen told everyone to go home for lunch. A group of children followed him back, laughing and joking. Everyone chatted and laughed. "Today's lunch will definitely be good." "Of course." "Even if we do something else, it'll be good." "I've never skipped a meal." "Let's go," the children shouted as they ran.

Hot water was brought out by the family. After washing, they sat under the shed to drink tea. Baskets of apples and pears were freely available. Children, laughing and joking, came in groups after school, saying, "Hello, Grandpa! Every Chai family eats well. All the children in the village are welcome to eat." Chai Zhen greeted them, holding apples, saying, "Whoever has washed their hands, come and take some." He handed out apples one by one. "Hello, Great-Grandpa." Someone else said, "Hello, Great-Grandpa." "Okay, good children, take some and eat." More than twenty children arrived, but none of the older ones. Soon, the meal was served. The large pots and bowls of dishes were filled with meat, the oily aroma of the dishes was palpable. There were fried potatoes, eggplant, fried tofu, cilantro, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil. The taste was truly enticing. Bowl after bowl was placed on the table. Chai Zhen said, "Steamed buns, scallion pancakes, whatever you want, have it." "The children set up two large tables." There was no room under the shed, so some carried the food up to the tables under the eaves. They went wherever it was cooler.

Some people ate two large bowls of food, but no matter what, everyone was full and well-fed. After the meal, the women cleared the table, served tea, and chatted and laughed. They rested for a while. The children, bound for school, finished their meals and ran off. The women ate last. Sun Gui and Chai Zhen sat together, talking about going to check on the land they had built tomorrow. The rice was almost ready and would be harvested in a few days.

By afternoon, the harvest was complete before dark. Everyone piled the crops into piles. Everyone sat down to rest. Chai Zhen asked everyone to take their tools home. After washing and eating, a few people stayed behind to watch. The fourth brother drove out the ox cart, loaded it with sacks, and headed to the fields.

Little Milk Bag had finished the drawings, marking dozens of them with serial numbers. There were even disassembly and assembly diagrams. "Let's go, Grandma, to the fields." When they arrived, only Chai Zhen, Lao Si, and Jia Le were left. Little Milk Bag stretched out her tiny hands and called out to Grandpa, "Hold me." "Everyone, go to the edge of the field," she said. Chai Zhen carried her to the center of the field. With a wave of his hand, the wheat vanished. Chai Zhen carried her to the next pile. With another wave of his hand, another pile vanished. Little Milk Bag's consciousness entered her dimension, opened the thresher, and said, "Daddy, take the bags and put the wheat in." Lao Si and Jia Le held the sacks, and Grandma Li handed them over. Soon, the threshing was complete. Lao Si and Jia Le tied the bags.

Chai Zhen came to the next pile of wheat. Little Milk Bag waved her little hand and disappeared again. Chai Zhen held her and collected all the wheat in the field.

"Daddy, catch the seeds." "Okay." The fourth child and Jiale held the sacks, and the wheat spilled down Little Milk Bag's hands, clean and plump. "Grandpa, we don't have enough bags." "Wait a minute, send it back and come back." "Okay." Little Milk Bag turned off the machine and said, "Daddy, Third Uncle will take it back. We won't thresh it now. We'll load it up at home tonight." Chai Zhen said, "How much do you estimate?" "Grandpa, a sack weighs 180 jin (approximately 1.5 dan) when dried." The fourth child and Jiale counted the bags. "There are eighty bags." "About 14,000 jin (approximately 14,000 jin). We'll weigh it after it's dried." "Let's load it onto the truck and haul it in several trips." "Grandpa, we're going back. We'll find someone to haul it." "Yes, Guoguo is right." Old Lady Li... Guoguo called out to her grandmother, and then she woke up from her dream. "Okay." "Let's go home." Jiale and the fourth child loaded the truck and tied it.

Back home, Chai Zhen ordered Jia He and his bodyguards to drive the ox carts to the fields to collect grain. Old Lady Li came home blindfolded. She sat down without saying a word. Li Ru brought her food, and she ate. It wasn't until Little Milk Bag came to her for a hug that she came to her senses. "Guoguo, my dear granddaughter. You can't leave Grandma." "No. Guoguo will stay with Grandma." Li Ru brought Little Milk Bag millet porridge, and Old Lady Li fed her. Only then did Old Lady Li regain her composure.

After a while, two ox carts came back with full of grain and unloaded it in the east yard. The east yard was clean and easy to dry. It took two more trips to finish the work. The last two carts were taken to Li's house, as Chai's house could not dry the grain.