Daily life of farming and supporting a family on the ancient Loess Plateau

That day, under the bright sun, everyone spread out the harvested rapeseed to dry in the yard. Yang found a few round sieves, poured the dried rapeseed into them, and shook the sieves repeatedly to remove the impurities until only shiny black rapeseed remained before pouring it into bags.

Ji Yongling remembered the sieve she used when making moxa wool before, and said to Yang, "Grandma, we can hang this sieve up and sift it like we did last time when we made moxa wool, so it won't be so heavy and tiring to carry around."

Hu Xirong, who was standing to the side, stopped playing the sieve and said as if she had just realized something, "Yes! Oh dear, how come I didn't think of that? You kids are really smart."

Jia Ronghua had just finished breastfeeding Ji Yong'an and came out of the cave dwelling. She said, "Fourth Aunt, you shouldn't keep praising Yongling. Babies can't take praise. If you praise them too much, they'll grow up crooked and eventually become as dense as a block of wood, unable to understand anything."

Hu Xirong said dismissively, "What's there to be afraid of! Some things about people are predetermined at birth, like this brain. A clever one can't be called a dim one, and a dim one can't be called clever."

Ji Yongling had already found the wooden frame used to make moxa wool last time. He used two hemp ropes to pass through the gaps on both sides of the round sieve and tied them to the two crossbeams of the wooden frame.

Then use a wooden shovel to shovel the rapeseed into the round sieve, and shake it back and forth. Soon, the clean rapeseed will fall through the round sieve, while the impurities will remain in the sieve. Then, flip the round sieve over from one side and pour the impurities into the cage next to it.

After watching for a while, Jia Ronghua and the others unanimously agreed that this method was simple, convenient, and saved both effort and back strain.

Ji Yongling thought that if there were a windmill, it would be much easier, as it could directly blow away the impurities. Since Ji Manchuan was able to teach himself to make a wind turbine, making a windmill shouldn't be too difficult, right?

As Ji Yongling packed the clean rapeseed that Jia Ronghua and the others had sifted out into burlap sacks, she asked, "Mother, can we send these rapeseeds to be pressed for oil?"

Hu Xirong chuckled and said, "Ling'er has her moments of greed too. She's still just a baby. She may look tall and mature, but she's still quite young."

As Jia Ronghua shook the sieve, she said, "How could we, the farmers, bear to eat these rapeseed seeds? At most, each family will keep a little to press for oil. We'll use a little bit when cooking, which is better than eating hot pot and more cost-effective than buying lard. Fortunately, our family still has some income this year. Other families are still hoping to sell the rapeseed to get money to buy things for the winter."

Indeed, we cannot use the thinking of later generations to measure current production. In later generations, many rural families grew rapeseed to make oil for their own consumption. But now, people grow rapeseed just to exchange it for a few copper coins. It's true that every household has no other way to make money, and their entire livelihood depends on those few acres of land.

........

Gyeongju Prefecture.

In the Taoist temple outside the city, Jin Hehua asked Huang Daopo with a puzzled look, "Master, we've been in Qingzhou Prefecture for several days now. When are we going out to do our work? It's very uncomfortable to stay here all the time."

Huang Daopo, who was meditating, slowly opened her eyes, stood up, and said, "What's the rush? Wait for the right opportunity and sell at the right price!"

At this moment, Yin Qiuju walked in and said to Huang Daopo, "Master, the son of the shopkeeper in the city you mentioned is indeed like the child you cured before. He has white spots on his face like tinea, some small white spots on his fingernails, and he often has stomach aches, which make him roll on the ground."

Huang Daopo smiled and nodded. She already knew this when she came to Qingzhou Prefecture before the New Year. Now she was just confirming again that the child had not yet been cured.

Yin Qiuju continued, "I heard that the shopkeeper of that general store has seen many doctors, but the child's illness just won't get better."

Huang Daopo flicked her sleeve, put it behind her back, and said, "Let's go and treat this child's illness."

Upon hearing this, Jin Hehua immediately went to get her things and followed Huang Daopo out the door.

The master and apprentice arrived at the general store in the city and saw the shopkeeper's son squatting on the ground at the entrance of the store, holding a large "iron ox" (longhorn beetle) in one hand and trying to pry off the iron ox's long antennae with the other.

Huang Daopo waved her whisk and sighed softly, "Such an adorable child, suffering from a stubborn illness, it's truly heartbreaking."

The child looked up at Huang Daopo, then continued to play with the iron ox.

Huang Daopo had clearly seen the white spots on the child's face, and she was even more certain of her diagnosis.

The shopkeeper heard someone talking to his son and hurried out. He saw it was a wandering Taoist priestess, nodded to her, and then turned to go back into the shop.

Huang Daopo called out to him, "Shopkeeper, wait a moment!"

The shopkeeper stopped and turned to look at Granny Huang, asking, "What advice does this nun have for me?"

Huang Daopo bowed and said, "I have no instructions, but I have noticed that you, my child, have a stubborn illness, which is very pitiful and regrettable. I happen to be able to cure this kind of illness."

Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper immediately turned around and asked, "Can the Taoist nun really cure my child's illness?"

Huang Daopo stood up straight, her back ramrod straight, and said, "Your child just has a stomachache, right? I'm not bragging, but after this bowl of my magic water, your child will at least be half better, do you believe me?"

The shopkeeper looked at Granny Huang with some suspicion and asked, "How much does that nun's bowl of 'miracle water' cost? My child has seen doctors all over the city, but none of them have helped. Ordinary medicines are ineffective."

Granny Huang looked up at the street and laughed, "What money? If the child gets better, you can give him whatever you want. If he doesn't get better, then naturally you don't need to give him anything."

Seeing Huang Daopo's confidence, the shopkeeper rolled his eyes, thought for a moment, and then cupped his hands and said, "Then please, Daoist nun, have mercy and give my child a bowl of magic water. If it works, I'm willing to offer five taels of silver. If it doesn't work, I won't blame you."

Golden Lotus, standing behind Granny Huang, stepped forward and said with dissatisfaction, "My master's elixir is something others might not be able to obtain even if they spend ten taels! And you, you only want five taels to cure your child!"

Granny Huang raised a hand to stop Jin Hehua and said with a smile, "Please forgive me, shopkeeper. My apprentice is young and impulsive, and speaks bluntly. Please don't blame her."

The shopkeeper hurriedly said, "I dare not, I dare not. If the Taoist nun can really cure my child, I...I...I am also willing to pay ten taels." He said the last half of the sentence through gritted teeth.

Huang Daopo asked the shopkeeper to bring her a bowl. She poured half a bowl of water from the tap in her sleeve and had the shopkeeper's son drink it.

"Shopkeeper, after you finish this medicine, don't feed the child anything for half an hour. If white worms come out or the child vomits, then the illness is cured," Granny Huang instructed, before leaving with her apprentice.