Bianshanhan [farming]

At first Ma Yongjiang thought that Li Qingfeng was just talking casually, but he didn't know he was serious until he saw him start packing his things.

"Father, I want to go out with Big Brother Jiang and the others." Li Qingfeng squatted outside, holding the wooden board with both hands.

The last time he went out to look for tributes, Li Qingfeng was reluctant to come back. If he didn't go out this time, there would be a lot of work in the fields, and he might have to wait until winter to be free.

Li Maoxian was sawing wood and making two shelves for his youngest son. He stopped and said seriously: "They are not going out for fun. Not only are there wild beasts, but they may also encounter enemies, so they have to use knives and guns."

"Then fight and see who can beat whom." Li Qingfeng said: "If you can't beat, run away."

Hearing "run" from his mouth, Li Maoxian smiled, "Just know what you have in mind, remember not to be brave, follow Jiang Cong and the others closely, and don't get hurt."

As soon as he heard this, he knew that he agreed. Li Qingfeng was very happy. He had inquired about it. This time, he went out with a lot of horses and sledges. He will definitely be able to get a horse to ride with all his efforts.

During the New Year's drinking, Zhou Fengnian reminded him that this year's patrol may have to go further north, and the farming may be delayed, so that they don't have to hand in the food, and the camp will distribute the food, and they will definitely be indispensable.

Li Qingwen knew that they had been away for a longer time this time, so he hurried to the kitchen after practicing calligraphy.

We had dinner together a few times, and now he is familiar with this group of people, so he will come here directly if he has something to do, and Lao Xingtou doesn't have to run around anymore.

Wheat was planted here last year, and all the exiles handed in. If you want flour, you have to find someone to change it.

I heard that he wanted to exchange a few hundred catties, but the kitchen staff couldn't decide, so I went to ask.

They have no shortage of wheat, but grinding noodles is time-consuming and labor-intensive.

The leader readily agreed, and they sent out two people to help Li Qingwen move the flour back, and watch him make new food by the way.

It's not a short time outside, and there are sleeping bags and tents to keep warm. There is no major problem for the time being, and then we eat.

The syrup in the jar was poured on the wooden board outside, and within a short while it was frozen solid. Guo Dayong led people to smash the sugar cubes.

Jiang Cong and Li Qingfeng were ready to smash the fried hazelnuts one by one, pick out the nuts, and then cut and crushed the pot of nuts.

Brush the pot clean, boil it dry, add oil, put the flour in and stir-fry, while Li Qingwen is frying, he breaks up the big and small gnocchi, and then pours the crushed nuts into the pot.

The flour changes color slightly, the aroma is slightly stronger, stop the fire, and fry it for dozens of times with the residual heat in the pot, scoop it out and put it on the board, use a rolling pin to flatten the noodles inside, and then grind the powdered syrup Pour over and mix well.

This kind of fried noodles is very suitable for making dry food on the road. It can be eaten dry, and the taste is more sweet when soaked in boiling water.

In addition to the sweet taste, Li Qingwen also rolled out some salt particles. The second pot did not put sugar, but salt, which was salty.

This frying is not troublesome, it just takes effort.

Flour is easy to paste, so I dare not stir fry too much at a time, and only put a few catties at a time. This pot has not done anything except this from morning to night, and only a few bags will be fried.

Fortunately, it's so simple, Li Qingwen only fired the first few pots, and other people took over later.

In addition to fried noodles, Li Qingwen also took off the bacon and cooked it, all sliced ​​into thin slices, it heats up quickly...

No matter what, I want them to be able to eat well and be full outside without much effort.

After the day of the patrol was confirmed, these rooms began to get busy. Ma Yongjiang grabbed Li Qingfeng's shoulders and was very excited, "From now on, you will be my brother!"

Li Qingfeng said: "I don't lack younger brothers. Besides my relatives, there are dozens of people in the village who call me brother."

"From now on, I will leave all the delicious food to you!" Ma Yongjiang said, "Don't worry, I will feed these sheep at home to make them fat and big!"

Li Qingfeng nodded in satisfaction.

Sun Yonghao came over with his newly made leather boots.

None of the men in these houses knew needlework, so they gave the skins to the Sun's family and asked the women of his family to help sew gloves and leather boots.

"I told you that you can keep the rest, what else do you want to do with it?" Lao Sun took the boots and stuffed the remaining leather into his hands.

Sun Yonghao said: "You have given too much, more than enough to sew three or five leather robes."

"Isn't it possible for us to call here?" Old Sun said, "I heard that your father went to the warehouse to help keep the accounts. Although he is overqualified, it's good not to have to go out and suffer."

Sun Yonghao nodded again and again, "I have to thank Mr. Chen and Mr. Zhou for this matter."

The bookkeepers in the camp were rotated back, and most of the officers and soldiers did not know Chinese characters. Sun Changfu, a scholar, got this job. After he did a good job, he would no longer have to farm and patrol. For the Sun family, this was a great blessing.

"That's because your father has the ability..."

The two were talking, and Sun Yonghao saw Li Qingwen practicing calligraphy, and looked at it for a moment, "I have made progress, and I have worked hard this winter."

"I'm afraid I won't be free after the beginning of spring." Li Qingwen stood up and stretched his body and said, "Brother Sun, don't worry about going out to patrol. If you need anything, just let your sister come over and call."

Sun Yonghao responded repeatedly, and he had to go back to pack his things, so he didn't stay long.

When he left, Li Qingwen filled him with ten catties of fried noodles in oil.Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors. They and the Sun family are considered neighbors here.

Two days before the dispatch, a lot of pickled radish and ginger were sent over from the kitchen, and asked them to take them as dry food.

Li Qingwen pulled out all the vegetables grown in the house next to the stable, washed them, put them in a basket, asked them to take them with them, and ate two slices of them every day.

After not eating fresh vegetables for a long time, many officers and soldiers began to rot the corners of their mouths. There are not enough green vegetables, so they can supplement vitamins if they can.

This time Li Qingfeng was going too, surrounded by Li Maoqun and Li Qinghong to explain things, he couldn't stop nodding.

"Fourth brother." Li Qingwen watched him try on the new boots, and said, "Brother Jiang and I traded the leather for a pony. It's still young, and we can probably ride it next year."

"Where is it?" Upon hearing this, Li Qingfeng quickly kicked off the shoe he had just put on, and hurriedly took out the old shoe.

There are more horses than people in the border town camp. In addition to defending against the enemies in the north and east, they also raise horses for the imperial court, because the place here is large enough.

The breeds of war horses here are all selected, and one or two hundred good horses are bred and sent to the capital every year, and those that are slightly worse will be kept in the camp or sent to the northwest.

The officers and soldiers in charge of the horses were familiar with Lao Xingtou and Jiang Liping, and they were very easy to talk to, so they exchanged things happily.

War horses belonged to the camp and belonged to the government. They could not be exchanged by anyone who wanted to, but there were loopholes that could be exploited. Li Qingwen could not know about the things involved.

Li Qingfeng ran to the stables and saw that the pony was not as tall as him, the smile on his face froze, "W-when can I ride this?!"

"Don't look at this horse as small, but its pedigree is extraordinary." Li Qingwen quickly explained to him, "Its ancestors all made contributions in the battlefield..."

Li Qingwen didn't lie to him. This horse's pedigree is indeed good, but it was born a little thin. Generally, a foal can stand up right after it is born. It took three days to stand tremblingly. was left behind.

"Old Xingtou asked several people to look at it, and said that there is nothing wrong with this horse, and it looks very majestic when it is raised..."

Staring at the little pony's big eyes, Li Qingfeng said reluctantly: "Okay, then keep it."

Although he looked dissatisfied, Li Qingfeng still took care of his pony seriously, and told Ma Yongjiang that he would look after him after he left.

Ma Yongjiang naturally agreed.

Jiang Cong told Li Maoxian, don't get tired of planting as many species as you can grow in the land.

Li Maoqun and the others felt that what they said was useless. If the farmers saw that the land was empty, they might not be able to sleep at night.

On the day of departure, there were obviously more people than last year, and most of them were in a panic. They were frightened by the cold and snow here when they first arrived in the border town.

Jiang Liping and the others went there once, and Li Qingwen couldn't say that he was relieved, but he was not as worried as the first time.

When he got outside, Jiang Cong took what was in Li Qingwen's hand, looked at him, and told him not to read for too long.

Li Qingwen stepped on his feet and hugged his neck, "Brother, you have to be careful outside."

Jiang Cong bent down and hugged him tightly.

Li Qingfeng looked at Li Maoxian, "Father, did you pick up Zier from Lao Jiang's house in Hongzhou?"

"Nonsense!" Li Maoxian scolded with a smile.

Jiang Liping and the others laughed, Li Qingwen felt embarrassed, let go and hugged Li Qingfeng again, "Little fourth brother, be careful in everything."

"Boy, Chu Shi Shi Ni, you have to take care of yourself." Li Qingfeng was still thinking about this, "My arrow skills are getting better and better. Compared with Brother Jiang, I am only short of a magic bow and arrow."

Li Qingwen nodded, he never forgot.

When the officers and soldiers started to move, Li Qingwen and the others were sent out along with other family members of the exiles.

Jiang Cong rode alone on the horse, lagging behind, and took a deep look at Li Qingwen, "Go back, it's cold outside, brother and your little fourth brother will be back soon."

Seeing Jiang Cong go farther and farther, Li Qingwen's nose was sore, he ran a few steps forward and shouted, "Next year I will go out to patrol with you too!"

Jiang Cong tightened his grip on the whip, and said, "I'll talk about that later."

Li Qingwen: "..." These words are too perfunctory!

No matter what, those who should go have to go, Li Qingwen didn't continue chasing them, and watched them leave.

After Jiang Liping and the others left, only a few members of the Li family and Guo Dayong were left here. Guo Dayong discussed with Li Maoxian about farming.

The first time they ate together, Chen Wen promised them that they would open up wasteland and farm the land. The farm tools could be borrowed, and there were enough seeds left.

Li Qingwen took out all the seeds he brought, soaked what should be soaked, and buried what should be buried.

Seeds and seedlings are related to the livelihood of a year or more, and there should be no sloppy. Li Maoqun and his father all slept in the room next to the stable, burning kangs and fire walls at any time,

There are probably three kinds of things that Li Qingwen wants to get—medicine seeds, rice seeds, and tree seeds.

With Zhou Yao's help, the disposal of the medicinal seeds was faster.

The rice seeds are first dried outside for three to five days, and they are all picked out at home. After drying, they are placed in salt water. Not much floats up. Take them out and put them aside. three times.

The washed rice seeds are soaked in water, and the seedbed is also drenched with water.

Compared with the first two, there were many and miscellaneous tree species, and some Li Qingwen didn't know what to do with them, so he took out some of them first, like birch seeds.

In any case, birch, pine, and hazel trees all require careful care.

The place where they are stationed is too open. When the wind blows, there is not even a shelter, and the wood is scarce. If you want to make something with wood, you have to go to a long distance to cut it. It is really inconvenient. Planting trees is imperative.

There are countless uses for birch trees, and Li Qingwen can't wait to plant them all over the place. Of course, he is just thinking about it now.

After a few days of busy work, a new exile arrived in the border town.

Li Maoxian was busy, and Lao Xingtou led two busy servants over, and the servants said they had something for him.

Li Maoxian, who was covered in muddy water, was stunned. Who would give him something for thousands of miles?

"Brother!" Li Qinghong ran over excitedly.

Li Qingwen also came out, and handed the dry cloth to Li Maoxian, "Father, wipe your hands."

The guard took out a square bag, "This is what we got from Liushan County. It was given to you by a man named Li Qingrui. It should be full of letters."

Li Maoxian took it carefully after drying his hands, opened it, and there was a letter inside, there were about a dozen of them, and the names on each cover were different, and the one on the top was Ma Yongjiang.

Before he could ask, the guard said first, "He said that you would know what's going on after reading his letter."

Li Maoxian quickly nodded his thanks, he originally wanted to go back to the house to take a closer look, but saw the two officials standing still.

From a pile of letters, he found the one with his name written on it, and carefully opened it. Li Qinghong and Li Qingwen tilted their heads to look at it from left to right.

Li Qingrui's letter was not long. It said that everything was fine at home, and many people helped in the autumn harvest. Five or six came from the second uncle's house. Don't worry about Chunzhong. The other letters were all from Hongzhou, so they were sent to him Let's entrust the officials to carry it to the border town...

At the end of the paper, Li Qingrui said that the messengers worked hard to deliver the letters, and there were extra furs, so give them a few.

He didn't say much, and Li Qingwen probably guessed that it took a lot of hard work to bring things here from Liushan County, and the family's money was not too much. I'm afraid the officials were not very satisfied, so the elder brother promised them to fetch furs in the border town.

Seeing this, Li Maoxian quickly put away the family letter, went to the nearby shed, and picked out some furs for the guards.

After seeing it, the guard finally nodded in satisfaction. Before leaving, he told him that they would leave in two months, and if they sent a letter back, they could help.

A few months later, Li Maoxian would probably be going back soon, and he would not bother others anymore, so he thanked the guard repeatedly.

Now, the three of you put down the work at hand, took the letter to the house, and carefully read Li Qingrui's letter several times.

After they left, nothing happened at home, Jiang's body was stable, and Chen's waist didn't hurt...

Last year's autumn harvest, the villagers helped Li Qingwen's family to reclaim the land. Li Benshan's sons and Chen Dingxin and his brick-burners all went there. many.

The harvest of sweet sorghum was okay, and the matter of squeezing the straw was not left behind. Every household collected hundreds of catties of syrup, and made candy cubes using Uncle Qin's method, and some people had already sold them.

At first the price was okay, but later, the surrounding villages all sold it out, and the price of sugar in the county fell very fast. Li Benshan and the chiefs and patriarchs of each village were discussing ways to find out.

Just after Ma Yongjiang finished feeding the horses and sheep and entered the house, Li Qingwen picked out his letter, raised his hand and said, "A letter from your family."

He heard it clearly, but Ma Yongjiang didn't react. He took the letter and realized it. He screamed and was a little excited when he tore it, almost tearing the paper inside.

Ma Yongjiang is literate, and his family is better than others. He was hammered and kicked by his parents to learn. When he read the letter, his mouth kept moving, and his eyeballs moved up and down extremely fast.

His eyes were wet, he kept sniffling, halfway through, he was startled suddenly, and murmured: "My father is so confused, why did he say he received my money, where can I earn money for him?" He, more than ten taels... Even if I'm still a soldier, my annual salary is not that much..."

As he said that, the tears that had been swirling in his eyes fell, and he couldn't help crying: "Father, what's wrong with you, do you want to start daydreaming about your son..."

Li Qingwen was still thinking about the sugar price. Hearing his miserable cry, he came back to his senses and said, "Your father is fine, we brought the money over. The ganoderma and fur we picked last time were sold in Fanyang City." A lot of silver was divided equally on the spot, and it was sent back when the letter was delivered."

"Ah?" There were still two lines of tears on Ma Yongjiang's face, he stared blankly at Li Qingwen, "You, you divided up all the money?"

"Well, everyone has a share, Uncle Maoqun, Brother Jiang, Brother Jiang, and our family." Li Qingwen also looked blank, "I didn't say this?"

"You, you, you didn't say anything!" Ma Yongjiang wiped the tears from his face vigorously, "Anyway, I haven't heard a word from you about this matter."

Li Qingwen thought about it carefully, but he didn't have any impression, so he said, "Maybe I forgot, it's not too late to know now."

"No wonder you are reluctant to buy some ointment. It turns out that the money in your hand is divided..." Ma Yongjiang now recalled, thanked him again and again, and then looked down, saying: "My father didn't believe that I was exiled. Being able to make money, I thought it was my mother who wrote a fake letter to appease him in order to lie to his peace of mind, and angrily quarreled with my mother..."

As he said that, his tears fell again, and he cried as he said: "When I was disobedient at home, he said that sooner or later I would be pissed off by me. Now, now, I can't be pissed off even if I want to... "

Before he finished speaking, he burst into tears again.

Li Qingwen was really upset when he heard it. After staying here for a few months, he couldn't help thinking about his family. Ma Yongjiang and the others were farther away from Hongzhou, and they had no freedom. They were all arranged by the officers and soldiers. Not even a glance, the pain in my heart can be imagined.

"Don't cry." Li Qingwen comforted: "Earn money hard and make up for the loss of the tribute, and you will be free again."

Hearing this, Ma Yongjiang cried even louder on the kang, "More than 20 taels, my uncle's family is the richest, and he can't even make up a few thousand taels. of……"

"The things I sold last time were several hundred taels of silver." Li Qingwen argued with him, "I can sell more in the future. The herbs haven't been planted yet. Candles, yes, and that ginseng!"

I don't know if he was infected by Li Qingwen's determination, Ma Yongjiang calmed down slowly, and continued to read the letter with tears in his eyes.