Chapter 116.2
Gu Jiao opened up the mountain to cultivate medicinal fields and dug a fish pond as well as a ca.n.a.l. The ca.n.a.l channeled water to the village from the fish pond, which was being supplied with water from the waterfall.
Under this dry weather, the waterfalls on the mountain were a bit exhausted, but it was enough to irrigate the farmland in the village.
Xiao Liulang cast a deep look at Gu Jiao.
"Really? We were only away for two months, but you’ve even dug up a fish pond?" Feng Lin had no idea about Gu Jiao"s purchase of the mountain, but he was surprised by Gu Jiao’s resolute and prompt work.
Luo Li, who was right in front of Gu Jiao, said, "By the way, I went to see the carpenters in the village to make the wooden machines for threshing and winnowing crops that you told us last time, but it can’t be finished in a short time. They also told me to ask you which kind of wood is better to use?"
Gu Jiao thought for a moment before answering, "Red pine, aspen, ailanthus and ba.s.swood are all fine, they have high hardness and are not easily deformed."
"Good! Then I"ll go first!" After saying so, Luo Li turned to face Xiao Liulang and Feng Lin and congratulated them in advance, wishing them to be on the list of successful examinees for the provincial exam.
"Wooden machines for threshing and winnowing crops? What’s that?" Feng Lin asked curiously.
Gu Jiao explained, "It’s a tool that can separate the grain from the rice ear, and another to sift out the chaff and leave only the normal grain."
"Is there such a thing?" Feng Lin expressed doubts.
Although he couldn’t tell the difference between wheat fields and rice fields, he still knew how to separate grains from the stems or stalks.
That was, grabbing a bunch of rice and beating it on the ground with brute force. Only, even after taking a lot of trouble smashing it, you still might not be able to take it off cleanly, and the rice ears that hadn"t come off had to be picked off carefully by hand.
When he was a child, he would pick off grains for people for half a copper coin a day.
As for the separation of chaff and normal grain, the grain would usually be dried first, and then pick a windy day to raise the grain and throw it in the air. The normal grain was heavier and would fall to the ground while the chaff was lighter so it would be blown away by the wind.
Threshing came first, followed by winnowing.
In principle, the winnowing machine that Gu Jiao asked people to make was the same as manual winnowing. It could separate blighted grain from good grain, as well as grain from chaff. Only, the winnowing machine was more efficient, more labor-saving and did things cleaner and more thorough.
Originally, Luo Li didn’t believe that there could be such a useful thing in the world. But after seeing Gu Jiao dig ca.n.a.ls and make a waterwheel for the villagers, Luo Li was convinced of her ability and character.
Gu Yan’s group of three younger brothers didn"t get home until evening.
Little Jing Kong"s eyelids had been twitching since noon. When he entered the room, he saw his bad brother-in-law and finally understood why his eyelids had been twitching all afternoon!
He walked into the room and looked at his bad brother-in-law solemnly.
En, hadn’t thinned down.
JiaoJiao shouldn"t worry now.
He pulled Xiao Liulang to the backyard and asked Xiao Liulang to pick some jujube from the tree for him.
Xiao Liulang looked up at the branch and said, "It"s almost the ninth month, where are the jujube fruits?"
Little Jing Kong"s eyes were fixed on the top of Xiao Liulang"s head. He had carefully recorded the height of his bad brother-in-law before which barely reached the first branch. Now his bad brother-in-law was taller than the branch!
His bad brother-in-law had grown taller!
As a matter of fact, according to his close observation over the past two months, it wasn’t just his bad brother-in-law who had grown taller, but also his Brother Gu Yan and Brother Xiaoshun, and even JiaoJiao.
The only ones that hadn"t changed in the whole family were him and Grandaunt.
JiaoJiao said that it was because he was still too young.
But Gouwa was even younger than him, and yet Gouwa had also grown taller!
Little Jing Kong pulled a long face!
"What"s the matter with you?" Xiao Liulang looked at him and asked.
"Oh, nothing, let’s not talk about me." Little Jing Kong sighed like an adult and solemnly looked up at Xiao Liulang, saying, "Let’s talk about you! How was the exam this time? Are the questions difficult? Are you certain you will pa.s.s? If you fail, the family will have to raise you for another three years!"
Xiao Liulang never expected to successfully escape Dean Li just to be lectured by the little monk...
Just what"s with this little monk’s tone?
"You even know that the provincial exam is held every three years?" Xiao Liulang rubbed his buzz cut head in anger and amus.e.m.e.nt, and then handed him the jujube fruit he had picked off. "Here, take it and go play."
Little Jing Kong stared at the shriveled jujube in his hand and pouted his mouth.
Who wanted to play? Childish!
Xiao Liulang brought presents home for the whole family. The elderly woman received some sesame candies and soybean cakes.
The elderly woman was happy!
Gu Jiao confiscated the sesame candies, and instructed that only one piece of soybean cake could be eaten a day.
The elderly woman was not happy!
Gu Yan received an inkstone made of jade, which was round in shape. He liked round things, especially those made of jade.
Gu Yan: "Thanks brother-in-law."
Little Jing Kong was given a Chinese rings puzzle. [1]
Little Jing Kong took it with a haughty look on his face and said, "What’s this, so childish." Then he turned to hide in the west room to secretly solve the puzzle!
Xiao Liulang brought Gu Xiaoshun a few pieces of first-cla.s.s wood materials for carving. These days, Gu Xiaoshun had no shortage of tools, the only problem was the lack of good wood.
"Brother-in-law, what wood is this? I’ve never seen it!" Gu Xiaoshun asked as he held a dark piece of wood in his hand.
"Ebony." Xiao Liulang replied.
This ebony wood wasn’t from the State of Zhao, but shipped from the State of Qing. He was lucky enough to meet a caravan halfway.
Several people were satisfied with their gifts.
Finally, it was Gu Jiao"s turn.
Gu Jiao thought he shouldn’t be giving her a brush this time around. As a result, Xiao Liulang really didn’t give her a brush, but a stack of paper.
Gu Jiao：“…”
This wasn’t the coa.r.s.e paper sold on the market, but the very valuable watermark paper. The paper would display a pattern once against the light, be it bamboo pattern or other decorative designs, so it was also called patterned paper.
Patterned paper technology was complex in process and expensive in cost. Even the prefectural cities didn’t have them. You could only find them in the provincial capital.
In the State of Zhao, sending a patterned paper was about the same as sending flowers.
It was an ideal present for a couple in love.
However, Gu Jiao"s smile gradually froze.
The elderly woman, who was deprived of sesame candies, cackled with her body rocking back and forth.
This was also another kind of romance, alright. But probably only Liulang would find it romantic!
Feng Lin also brought them several large pieces of smoked donkey meat and a bottle of Shao Daozi wine, which was given by the store.
Gu Jiao hadn"t drunk any ancient wine before. After judging that the smell wasn’t too strong, she drank two mouthfuls of it. At dinner, she didn"t seem to have any abnormal reaction, but when she was washing the dishes, the wine started kicking in.
Xiao Liulang first sent Feng Lin out of the village, and then came back to give Little Jing Kong a bath. When he walked to the kitchen to find Gu Jiao, Gu Jiao had already thrown the half-washed bowl into the pot and sat on the threshold of the back door.
She turned her head back and glanced at Xiao Liulang, then raised her head to look at the starry night sky.
Xiao Liulang walked over and asked, "What are you looking at?"
Gu Jiao slowly turned her head, her expression dull and wooden. Her face was flushed and her large eyes were glistening wet.
She didn’t look like her usual cold self. Instead, she seemed to resemble a child in an instant, her expression looked very innocent.
"Looking at the stars." She answered.
Her voice was soft and lingering, carrying a slight trace of youthfulness.
Xiao Liulang took a deep breath to calm himself down before saying, "Go back to your room, it"s getting dark."
"I won’t." Shaking her head, her little mouth mumbled with refusal.
Good, this was how Little Jing Kong usually acted.
She obviously didn’t drink much, who knew that was enough to drink herself to the point of resembling a three-year old.
Gu Jiao continued to look up at the stars.
"Liulang." She suddenly opened her mouth.