Lin Yuelan said to little three and the others, “you guys go and scatter the ash evenly in the field.”
Little Three, Little Six, and Little Twelve grabbed the pans to fill them with ash and scattered the ash in the field.
Lin Yuelan pointed at the two wooden basins and said, “put some grass ashes in these two basins and mix them evenly with water. They will be useful later.” She handed the basins to Jiang Zhennan and Guo Bing.
The two of them didn’t say anything and went to work.
Lin Mingliang, who was standing at the side, was stunned. He couldn’t understand what this girl was doing.
‘Aren’t we here to plant seeds? So where are the seeds?’ He didn’t see any seeds but pulled seedlings. His heart ached.
He asked, “Lan ‘Er, why did you pull these seedlings out? Isn’t this a waste?”
Lin Yuelan shook her head and said, “uncle Mingliang, you’ll know soon.”
Then, Lin Yuelan unwrapped the dry grass around the seedlings one by one. Then she tied one end of the rope to the edge of the field and pulled it to the other end. Lin Mingliang looked at her and quickly stepped forward. He said, a little embarrassed, “Lan ‘Er, what can I do to help? You see, everyone’s busy, and I’m the only one watching. How embarrassing!”
Lin Yuelan smiled and said, “uncle Mingliang, please rest for a while. I have work for you to do in a while.”
Jiang Zhennan and Guo Bing quickly returned with the basins.
Jiang Zhennan handed his to Lin Yuelan for a look and asked, “Miss Yue ‘Er, is this okay?”
Lin Yuelan looked at the ashy mud and nodded. “Yes.”
There was a touch of joy on Jiang Zhennan’s cold face. He then asked, “what should I do next?”
Lin Yuelan pointed at the field and said, “I need you and Brother Guo to stick the bamboo pieces along the rope.”
Jiang Zhennan and Guo Bing followed Lin Yuelan’s instructions.
After a while, little Three and the other two came over.
Everyone gathered together, and Lin Yuelan demonstrated, “You need to plant the seedlings along the bamboo pieces. Make sure that they are about half a foot and two inches apart from one another. Plant them too close, and they will fight for nutrients and sunlight. Plant them too far, and it’ll be a space of field space.” Lin Yuelan demonstrated planting for one row and left the rest to them.
As Lin Mingliang watched and listened, he was confused. He had no idea what was happening. He was used to throwing the seeds into the field and leaving them be. He had no idea so much knowledge was involved.
The forefront question on his mind was, ‘How did Lan ‘Er know so many things?’ However, despite his confusion, he didn’t ask anything. He had always been someone who worked more and talked less. He followed the other’s example.
Lin Yuelan was responsible for setting up the rows with the rope. To save time, she pulled Lin Mingliang to help her too.
Lin Mingliang followed Lin Yuelan’s instructions. After measuring the distance with a wooden stick, he would insert a bamboo piece along the rope.
The others followed the bamboo pieces and planted the seedlings after soaking the roots with the ashy mud.
As they became more and more familiar with the process, they became more and more motivated and excited.
In less than half a day, all the seedlings had been planted. This was much faster than Lin Yuelan had expected.
Of course, Lin Yuelan didn’t expect to get Lin Mingliang’s help.
Lin Mingliang looked at the seedlings that had already been planted in the field and asked suspiciously, “Lan ‘Er, won’t these seedlings die?”
Lin Yuelan smiled and said, “They won’t.” Then, she explained, “Actually, the method I used is similar to the transplantation of tree saplings. It’s just that the growth cycle of the trees is longer, so people don’t notice that transplantation can make the planting process a lot easier.
“These rice seedlings will take three to four months to grow. No one thought of using the transplantation technique to maximize the usage of field space and thus maximize the harvest. But I still wanted to give it a try.”
Lin Mingliang still didn’t quite get it. However, he understood the last sentence. This was an experiment for Lin Yuelan too.
Lin Mingliang frowned slightly and said worriedly, “Lan ‘Er, what if the seedlings die? If you miss this planting season, there’ll be nothing to harvest.”
Lin Yuelan shook her head and said, “uncle Mingliang, we have to be innovative. There’s no telling if something will work if we don’t give it a try, right?”
Lin Mingliang was a straightforward man who liked to be straightforward. He was a little confused by Lin Yuelan. But since he had voiced his concerns, he kept quiet.
Jiang Zhennan looked at the green seedlings that had been planted in the field, and a hint of joy appeared on his cold face. He asked, “Miss Yue ‘Er, I didn’t expect that there would be so much knowledge involved in rice farming.” There were fertilizers, nutrients, and arrangements to ensure that the seeds got enough sunlight.
Lin Yuelan looked at the planted rice field and said, “There is knowledge to be found anywhere in the world. The world is a book.”
Guo Bing nodded and clapped. “Well said!”
Indeed, a lot of knowledge could be involved in something simple, like cooking and farming.
“Miss Lin, I didn’t expect that you would be able to understand the mysteries of the world and the ways of the world at such a young age. I’m really impressed!” Guo Bing praised without any hesitation.
Lin Yuelan’s mouth twitched, and she felt a little embarrassed.
Lin Yuelan coughed a few times and said, “that’s enough flattery. I’m just a farmer’s daughter from the countryside. Let’s quickly pack up and go home.”
Lin Mingliang was even more confused by the exchange of words and maxims. To his knowledge, Lan ‘Er wasn’t a literate person.
In any case, as long as Lan ‘Er didn’t commit murder, arson, or endanger the village, he was not worried.
