usatvline Chapter 36 Sisterly Love
Chapter 36 Sisterly Love
After the electric fan was banned, Xue Li settled for the next best thing and bought a palm-leaf fan from Jiang Yu's place.
As the temperature rises, farm work in the fields becomes more and more demanding.
The weather this year was good, with plenty of rain, so the rice matured a few days earlier than in previous years.
Jiang Yu looked at the rice ears swaying in the wind and squinted his eyes.
The rush to harvest has begun.
In order to cope with the busy period, the new educated youth in the backyard resumed the collective dining system, with groups of two taking turns to leave work early and go home to cook.
Jiang Yu was waving a sickle as he shuttled through the fields, beads of sweat the size of beans dripping down his cheeks onto the ridges of the fields. All the people harvesting rice were doing the same. They bent over as they moved forward, their clothes soaked with sweat and then dried by the sun, and this cycle repeated over and over again, leaving yellow stains of sweat on their white sweat shirts.
Because it was a collective rice harvest, Xue Li could not escape this disaster.
During the break, she followed Jiang Yu with tears in her eyes, dragging her stiff waist and struggling to sit on the ground, she was so tired that tears fell.
Chen Jinghan quickly handed over the kettle and a warm handkerchief, "It's clean. I'll put it next to you with the kettle. If you get it wet, wipe your face with it."
Xue Li sniffed, took his handkerchief and kettle, and thanked him quietly, "I don't want to be lazy, I'm too tired, my waist is so sore..."
Chen Jinghan sat down with her and comforted her softly, "It's okay, we are new here, it's normal that we can't adapt. Look, even the old educated youth can't handle it, they don't even cut as much as you, you are already great~"
Xue Li followed his words and looked at the old educated youth in the distance. Guan Wenbin and Fang Qianqian were working together. They cut for a while and rested for a while. It was obvious that they were not trying their best and were just slacking off.
"So don't worry, we should rest for a while and adjust our condition before we continue to work hard, right?" Chen Jinghan comforted her gently and helped her get the kettle to wet the handkerchief. She watched her sob twice and then wipe her face obediently, and her heart softened.
The little girl is only 16 years old. She should have been living a carefree life on campus, but now she has to go to the countryside to harvest rice and do farm work. It is very good that she can hold on until now, and no one will ask for too much.
Of course, if someone really showed up with a seizure, Chen Jinghan would definitely knock out that person’s teeth immediately to prevent him from saying anything outrageous.
At noon, Fu Biao and Wu Aiqing came to bring them lunch.
In order to ensure that they have enough energy to finish the farm work in the afternoon, they ate dry rice, potato rice, covered with beans and egg sauce, and a bowl of cold mung bean soup. At the end of the day, they could only take a breath when eating and sleeping.
Jiang Yu finished her meal quickly, then ran to Yaoer Mountain and came back with a straight wooden stick. Amid the exclamations of the villagers nearby, she cut the handle of the sickle shorter, asked Zhuang Shouren who came over for a hemp rope, tied the sickle and the wooden stick together, and after tying them firmly, she went to the field and swung the sickle in circles at the upright rice, and the rice around her fell down.
Of course, this effect is mostly due to her great strength, and the effect would definitely be worse for others.
However, it is very suitable for newcomers like Xue Li who are not used to bending over for a long time.
"Wow!!"
Jiang Yu adjusted the distance and swung the sickle again.
The blade of the sickle used here is not that long. It is better to modify this standing sickle. The blade should be long enough, have a curvature, and the blade should be thinner.
"Hey, that's great! This way you don't have to bend over all the time." The old hands saw the advantage of this sickle at a glance. Almost everyone who has been working in the fields for a long time has back injuries. Whether it's hoeing the fields or harvesting, it's hard not to have problems if you have to bend over for a long time.
Zhuang Shouren also saw the advantages of this sickle and started discussing it with the old masters.
Jiang Yu handed the sickle, which he had used and felt was still okay, to Xue Li, "Don't cry, this is for you. Be careful when using it, don't turn around and cut your legs."
Xue Li held the stick in a daze. Her calm emotions suddenly surged. Her eyes were red. She dropped the sickle with a wow and threw herself on Jiang Yu, crying, "Jiang Yu! Wuuuuu... Jiang Yu, you are so nice! Wow..."
Chen Jinghan gripped the chopsticks tightly. Seeing this scene, she suddenly felt that her staying here was a bit redundant.
The other three men, holding their bowls, looked at the girls hugging each other, then looked at Chen Jinghan who looked depressed, and bluntly started to mock him, "Hahahaha! Big brother, look at you, you've been outdone again, hahaha~"
The villagers were only concerned about the new sickle thrown on the ground, and they all looked at Jiang Yu with approval.
Although this is not a very remarkable invention, at least people have the idea to make some changes, which is worthy of recognition.
Before starting work in the afternoon, the experienced farm workers tied the sickles to wooden sticks themselves. They were reluctant to cut off the old handles, but after trying, they found that they were indeed prone to tripping. They had no choice but to knock off the original handles, tie short ones on, and then tie them to the long wooden sticks.
Get started!
A few days later, the rice was almost harvested, and Jiang Yu joined the rice transport team. She and Fu Biao were responsible for transportation, while the others were responsible for bundling.
After that, it is dried in the sun and then husked. The newly harvested rice has a special fragrance. Cooking a bowl of new rice is enough to satisfy your appetite.
The new educated youth all bought some new rice from the village, not a large amount, because the villagers gave it to them because they saw that they had never tasted it.
That night, a few people got together to steam rice and stir-fry seasonal vegetables. Although there was no meat, it still tasted delicious.
"People say that the rice in Northeast China is fragrant, but I never felt that before, until I ate this bowl of rice!" Xue Li put the rice into his mouth. It was springy, slightly sticky, and had a fragrance that was a taste he had never tasted before.
Jiang Yu ate so much that he didn't even raise his head. He decided to buy a piece of land in the Northeast and grow rice! It was so delicious!
Chen Jinghan agreed with Xue Li's words, while the brothers around him seemed like starving ghosts, eating fried eggs and rice, finishing a bowl of rice in a few bites.
At the end of the month, there were three sudden heavy rains and the temperature dropped sharply.
Everyone went up the mountain to pick mushrooms wearing long-sleeved shirts they took out from the closet.
"Chicken stewed with mushrooms, here I come!" Xue Li was full of energy. He took Jiang Yu's arm and rushed out of the educated youth compound, and walked towards Yaoer Mountain with the aunties who had become familiar with him at some point.
"There are a lot of hazel mushrooms on Yaoer Mountain. If you want to eat something else, you can go to the outer part of the mountain behind." The old lady explained to the two female educated youth, "Hazel mushrooms taste good. They can be dried and stored. When you want to eat them, just soak them in water. They taste very good. If you like them, pick more. You can add them to your dishes in winter."
"Okay! But Auntie, we don't really know how to tell them apart. Can you teach us later? Are those mushrooms edible?" Xue Li blinked his almond eyes, looking eager to learn.
The aunt smiled at her and nodded in agreement, "Then you guys come with me, and we'll look for others after we get to know each other."
"Thank you, auntie~" Xue Li smiled sweetly.
Jiang Yu followed obediently without interrupting anyone and just listened to what others said. Because she had nimble hands and feet and sharp eyes, she picked mushrooms very quickly and was praised by the aunties for being capable.
Xue Li looked proud and smug.