The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 399 - 388: Also Very Busy

Chapter 399: Chapter 388: Also Very Busy

The family got a new cow, so it was certain they needed to build a cowshed.

Old Zhou wandered between the two courtyards for half the day before finally choosing the thatched hut that Silang and the others had temporarily lived in, which now served as a storage room.

He instructed his sons to clear out the room and dry the dampness with fire before bringing in a great deal of straw to spread out, creating a clean and warm space for the cow. And with that, the cowshed was ready.

This was even better than the cowshed that Zhou Hu’s family had paid someone to build.

Proud and content, Old Zhou circled the cow and then tenderly stroked it, saying, "It’s cold now, so living in a room is warm and won’t make you sick. Come summer, I’ll have the boys drive away the mosquitoes for you, I guarantee you will sleep sweetly inside."

Old Zhou spoke affectionately to it: "So you must eat well and work hard, alright?"

When Old Zhou stepped outside the Zhou Family home again, his face was serene with a hint of smugness.

The villagers, having listened for any signs of Old Zhou beating his children all night and hearing none, could only abandon their excitement for drama. The next day, when they saw Old Zhou, they asked about the matter of buying the cow on credit.

"Uncle Jin, from what I hear, it sounds like you’ve got quite a bargain from the County Governmental Office."

Old Zhou spat and said: "If you think it’s such a bargain, why don’t you take advantage? You think I can easily afford the interest of thirty-six wen a month?"

The villagers just chuckled and asked in a whisper, "So your family really kept the cow?"

Old Zhou couldn’t help but roll his eyes and said, "If not kept, could it possibly be returned to the government? This is official property."

That was indeed the case.

"So how long do you plan to let this debt ride? The interest for one month isn’t small."

"The Land Officer didn’t say anything about not allowing a day or two’s credit, did he? Just take the money and pay it off yourself, and consider it a large addition to the household. At least we won’t lose interest, right?"

"It’s really something, how Manbao didn’t discuss such a big matter with you adults?"

"Wasn’t Zhou Er with her? It’s not something Manbao could decide on her own, is it?"

Old Zhou, annoyed by their fussing, said, "My Manbao said, ’Our family won’t lose out by buying this cow on credit.’"

"How is that not losing out?"

"How would I know? I can’t understand all those long strings of numbers and calculations," Old Zhou declared confidently: "As long as we don’t lose out, that’s what matters."

"And you won’t pay back the borrowed silver?"

"Nonsense, that’s the government’s money, how could I not pay it back?" said Old Zhou. "But I don’t have the money right now. It would be best if you could lend me some. If not, I will have to wait till next year."

Everyone immediately fell silent for a moment, then they all started talking about being poor. "Yeah, last year was tough for everyone. Not many families had surplus grain, let alone surplus money."

Old Zhou had anticipated this. He had a vague feeling that his family’s savings could not claim to be the third largest in Qili Village, but they definitely ranked within the top ten.

If even he hesitated to take out money to buy a cow all at once, it went without saying that other families wouldn’t lend him money to pay off debts.

It wasn’t a matter of life and death.

After having their fill of gossip and learning what they wanted to know, everyone bid farewell and went home.

On her way home from school, Manbao just happened to see them dispersing and couldn’t help but suggest to a few families she was on good terms with: "While there are many still hesitant, you should go to the County Governmental Office and get a cow on credit too."

The families provoked: ...They weren’t fools.

Manbao looked on regretfully as they left, and Old Zhou dragged her back home, saying, "Don’t talk nonsense. What if they actually go and get a cow on credit and can’t pay it back?"

"Huh?"

"Stop ’huh’-ing," Old Zhou didn’t bother explaining too much to his daughter about the matter, changing the subject instead. "Didn’t you say before the end of the year you wanted to plant Ligustrum seeds up in the mountains? Have you got all the seeds and everything ready?"

"Didn’t you complain that it was too much effort and might not even be successful, and told us not to plant them?"

"Back then, there was too much work to do in the fields, and there was no time to dig holes and plant Ligustrum. But now we have a cow, don’t we?" Old Zhou said. "Go get your brothers, let’s head into the mountain now and cut off branches from that tree. From what I’ve heard, you just have to stick them in the ground, right?"

Manbao said, "It’s called hardwood cutting, I’ve asked around, and most of them should survive."

"As long as they live, that’s good enough. Go on then."

Manbao raced off to find her brothers.

Zhou Dalang and the others were busy piling up manure. This morning, their father had said that since they had a cow now, they should devote more effort to tending several acres of land. As a result, to ensure they didn’t run out of manure, they had to pile up another batch.

Zhou Dalang felt that the branches on the mountain were nearly stripped bare by them.

Thus, hearing Manbao’s words, Zhou Dalang and the others had a sense of inevitability. Even the usually diligent Zhou Sanlang couldn’t help sitting down, tilting his head back, looking at the sky, and sighing, "I have a feeling that having a cow hasn’t really saved much effort."

Four, Five, and Six nodded in agreement and squatted on the ground as well.

Despite their reluctance, the next day Zhou Dalang led his two younger brothers up the mountain to dig holes.

In the opinion of Zhou Dalang and the others, the Ligustrum was essentially a wild tree, so if they were to plant it, there was certainly no need to clear the mountain for it.

Even if they wanted to, Old Zhou wouldn’t have allowed them to expend that effort.

So they just found a spot behind Zhou Dalang’s house on the mountain with relatively thick and softer soil, cut or dug out the nearby thorny plants, then dug a hole and cleaned up the wild grass around it.

Then they stuck in the Ligustrum branches they had snapped the evening before, poured some water, and that was almost it.

Manbao just threw a small handful of farm fertilizer on them; after all, she didn’t have any of the nutrient solutions that Doctor D talked about.

Anyway, that was just to speed up germination, so she wasn’t in a hurry. She’d let it sprout slowly.

It took Zhou Dalang three days to dig about thirty holes on the mountain and plant the thirty-two sections of Ligustrum branches.

It wasn’t that they were slow, but the mountain was full of miscellaneous trees and undergrowth. Even just digging a hole and clearing around it took quite a bit of time.

And the harsh cold spell had also come to an end. With a night of spring breeze, the next day Manbao switched out her cotton clothes and went off to school with her small book box. By noon, a light spring rain had started to fall.

Upon seeing this, Manbao said, "It’s time to sow the rice seeds."

At the same time, Ms. Qian was also watching the spring rain. She turned and instructed Junior Ms. Qian, "Find all the rakes, and let’s go to the fields this afternoon to check. It’s about time to sow the rice seeds."

Old Zhou also said, "I’ll deal with the fields along with Eldest and the others. You take care of selecting the seeds again with Dalang’s family. After the rice seeds are sown, it’ll be time to plant the bean seeds."

Ms. Qian agreed.

Old Zhou took out his tobacco pipe, but didn’t smoke. He looked at Zhou Dalang and said, "Let’s go, let’s take a look at the wheat fields."

That would be their summer grain!