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

Upon hearing this, Niu Gensheng immediately went out into the yard and instructed his eldest son, Niu Guangquan, "Guangquan, go to our house and bring all the tofu we exchanged yesterday to Wenping."

The other people in the courtyard asked why they were serving tofu.

Niu Gensheng simply repeated Ji Yongling's words, and everyone felt that this family was too pitiful.

Someone sighed and said, "Back then, I was wondering if Wenping's illness was caused by hunger. When I was little, my father worked as a day laborer for a rich man harvesting wheat. After finishing a harvest, he couldn't get up, and his vision was so blurry that he could see double. The doctor said it was a case of cravings, and that eating meat would cure him..."

Ji Manchuan chimed in, "This isn't a craving, it's clearly a hunger pang!"

Shuanzhu shook his head and agreed, "We poor people are just prone to getting sick!"

The people in the courtyard sighed upon hearing this. Some said they would go home to get food for Meng Wenping, while others clamored to go get things as well.

Seeing that Ji Manqing was about to go back to get the chicken soup, Ji Yongling instructed, "Fourth Uncle, pour some more honey over, and also have my father bring over a pot of our family's boiled water."

Ji Manqing scratched his head and asked, "Why do we need to bring over boiled water?"

Of course, it's because they added multivitamins to their water.

Before Ji Yongling could even speak, Old Master Ji had already begun to scold: "I asked you to fetch something, and you still have to ask all sorts of questions. Look at Wenping now, who will fetch water for the family!"

"Oh, oh!" Ji Manqing skipped out of the cave dwelling in two steps.

Meng Wenping's wife sobbed, "Uncle Ji, Aunt Ji, with the family in such a state, I can't be polite with you. I thank you in advance, and I'll find a way to repay you when Wenping gets better." After saying that, she immediately knelt down and kowtowed three times.

Yang quickly pulled Meng Wenping's wife up and said, "What are you doing? As long as Wenping gets better, everyone will be happy."

Before long, Ji Manqing and his brother came over carrying chicken soup, honey, and a ceramic pot filled with water. Niu Guangquan followed closely behind with a plate of tofu. Other villagers came into the courtyard, some carrying potatoes, some carrying eggs, some carrying steamed buns...

For a time, the deaf grandmother's courtyard was bustling with activity.

Meng Wenping's wife helped the deaf grandmother, while Ji Yongling helped Meng Wenping off the kang (a heated brick bed) and into the courtyard.

When the deaf grandmother saw the food in everyone's hands, she burst into tears and couldn't speak. Although the summer harvest had just come, no family was well-off, but now, everyone had brought them the best food they had. This was a profound expression of their kindness!

Although Meng Wenping was blind, he could hear everyone talking. He groped his way to kneel down in front of everyone, but Niu Gensheng stopped him: "What are you doing? We're all from the same village, we can help with this little thing! Hurry up and heal your eye sockets, this family is counting on you."

"That's right, that's right, as long as you get better, that's all that matters," the villagers echoed.

Meng Wenping was crying uncontrollably, her lips trembling, unable to speak.

After offering a few words of comfort, the group left some food and departed.

Grandpa Ji and Niu Gensheng stayed behind to discuss how several families would take turns helping to dry the wheat that Grandma Deaf's family hadn't finished drying before storing it in the granary.

As Ji Yongling left, he turned back to look at the deaf grandmother and her family standing in the courtyard. He couldn't help but sigh. The old were old, the young were young, the weak were weak, and the blind were blind. No one wanted to hire them, and he didn't know where to begin to help them.

work?

She suddenly realized that if she were to make peppermint and mugwort ointment, she could hire Meng Wenping's two older children as "child laborers." They couldn't do other chores, but picking mugwort and mint would surely be helpful.

Having made up his mind, Ji Yongling asked his grandfather after returning home, "Grandpa, should our wheat be ready after another day of drying tomorrow?"

Grandpa Ji took a puff of his pipe and said slowly, "If the sun is strong tomorrow, we can bag them and put them in the warehouse by noon."

There's an old saying: "Pack beans cold, wheat hot, and buckwheat when lukewarm." Wheat must be bagged and poured into the granary while it's still warm from the sun. The older generation believes that bagging it while it's hot will kill any insect eggs inside, making it less likely for wheat weevils to grow and allowing it to be stored for a longer time. Therefore, the wheat in Niujiatun is only harvested and bagged when the sun is at its strongest around noon after it has been dried.

In this era, with food available, you can sell it or eat it. Having food at home gives you peace of mind, and you can do anything with confidence.

Ji Yongling nodded and said, "Grandpa, after I finish loading the wheat tomorrow, I'd like to go to the county."

Grandpa Ji looked up at her and asked, "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

"I want to go check on how well the peppermint and mugwort balm I made last time, the cooling balm, is selling. If it's selling well, I want to make more while it's hot and the mugwort and peppermint are growing well."

"Alright, I'll have your dad go with you."

The next day, Ji Yongling went to Xu's Pharmacy. As soon as she entered, she saw Xu Shirong checking prescriptions. She smiled and asked, "Uncle Xu, are you busy?"

Xu Shirong looked up and saw Ji Yongling. He put down the list in his hand and smiled, "Oh, Yongling and Manchuan are here. Come in and sit down. I was planning to go to your house to look for you, but I was thinking that everyone is busy with the wheat harvest these days, so I didn't dare to bother you."

"Really, Uncle Xu? Looks like you have some good news to share with me."

Xu Shirong nodded and said, "Look, the cooling balm you sent last time has been well-received by passing merchants, and they're all happy to buy it. These traveling merchants, who live a life of hardship, are used to it, but they're still willing to spend a little money to relieve their itch and pain. It's just that you brought a little less last time, and the box wasn't good enough, so people felt embarrassed to buy it as a gift."

Indeed, no matter the era, the most important factor when giving gifts is appearance.

Ji Yongling smiled and said, "Uncle Xu, I came here today to ask about this matter. If you still want more, I'll make some more."

Xu Shirong invited Ji Yongling and his daughter to sit down and said, "Hurry up and make more while it's hot. Also, remember what I told you last time, put some in a rouge box and I'll send someone to Manager Wang, do you remember?"

Ji Manchuan rubbed his hands sheepishly and said, "Has Manager Wang written to us recently? About these medicinal herbs... and these medicine pouches too..."

Xu Shirong said gently, "Brother Ji, don't worry. A couple of days ago, Manager Wang sent word that before the batch of medicine pouches even arrived in Songjiang Prefecture, a batch was ordered by the wives of high-ranking officials who heard the news. However, Manager Wang said that our original intention was for the refugees in the disaster area, so we only gave a portion of it."

Considering that in this day and age, transportation relies entirely on livestock and human labor, it is truly remarkable that messages can be transmitted from thousands of miles away. Ji Yongling nodded: "Master Liang and Manager Wang are both kind-hearted people."

Xu Shirong agreed, "Indeed, Master Liang actually took his eldest son to Songjiang Prefecture in person."