With the arrival of the cabbage, the sixty-five people no longer needed to continue training. They were called back to the yamen by Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. On the way back, Wang Juan asked people to quickly go back and prepare a large vat. A water vat would do. Also, prepare stones two sizes smaller than the mouth of the water vat, a millstone, and a large amount of salt, not the thin and white kind.
Li Xun didn't know why Wang Juan was giving orders. When they arrived at the yamen, the crabs and prawns sent by the old man had also arrived.
"Just in time to use prawns to stir-fry cabbage. The staple food is cabbage dumplings, and the soup is dried tofu cabbage shredded soup. Make sweet and sour cabbage, steamed crab meat cabbage buns, soak sea cucumber, and make vinegar cabbage head. It can also be used as a cold dish …"
Wang Juan muttered as she walked into the yamen. She liked to eat cabbage the most. There were various cooking methods. As long as there were enough ingredients, she could make dozens of dishes in one go.
Zhang Xiaobao didn't think so much. He was satisfied as long as there was pickled cabbage, especially the pickled cabbage that was stewed with meat. It was not greasy and tasty, or he could eat it raw. He had always eaten cabbage as a fruit. At this time, he was holding a cabbage core in his hand. It was crispy and sweet, and it reminded him a little of the past.
Li Xun was also hungry. Zhang Xiaobao was eating too happily. He watched Zhang Xiaobao eat the cabbage core and didn't throw away the remaining one. He asked, "Have you seen Bai Song? This one can't be eaten. "
"No, who said this one can't be eaten? It can be made into pickles, just like the melon slices. I'll tell you how to make it later. These methods are not important, just think about it. What's important is the vat. As long as it's done, this dish can be kept until summer. Even if the taste changes, it's better than nothing. "
Zhang Xiaobao was already preparing to take the cabbage seeds to the south. Other than the cabbage, there were also small cabbages. It was good to make soup, and it could also be eaten with sauce.
Li Xun paid attention to this matter. If it could be put in the summer, that meant that people could eat dishes on a normal day. Even if it was a time of shortage, he decided to take a good look at how it was done.
When he entered the yamen, everything was already prepared. In fact, it was very simple. He brushed the water tank clean, put the salt in the cabbage, and put them into the tank one by one. Then, he put a millstone on top of the cabbage. After a few days, he added a few more cabbages in. When it was about time, he changed the water and the pickled cabbage would be ready.
Li Xun memorized the entire procedure and asked Wang Juan, who had stopped commanding, "That's it?"
"It's not over yet. After a few more days, we'll see if there are any bubbles in the water …"
"You want to change the water? I know. I thought it was a big deal. Others have already done it. When it was done, it tasted sour in my mouth."
Li Xun said proudly to Wang Juan. He finally had something he knew.
Wang Juan didn't expect that someone had already done it. Since Li Xun said it, she didn't say anything else.
Zhang Xiaobao also didn't say anything. At least there were many different ways to eat it. For example, he wouldn't tell him about the pickled cabbage hot pot.
After a while, crabs, shrimps, and the newly brought cabbage were made into a table full of dishes. The two families and Li Xun sat around and started eating.
When they were almost done eating, Zhang Xiaobao said to Li Xun, "Do you have any idle people? Lend me some for work. "
"When do you need them? When you receive the rice, you can have some. The Li family has people in Zhuangzi. "Li Xun replied.
"Then it's too late. I need it now. Pluck the cotton, which is the White Fold Cotton. After it blossoms, it will grow fluffy. Get someone to pluck it. I have use for it. When the time comes, I'll give you some benefits."
Li Xun remembered that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had bought a lot of Baidizi in the capital and planted them in Old Shangshu's nephew's field. There were about eight thousand of them. Originally, there were ten thousand of them, but some died later.
"Xiao Bao, what are you going to do with them? If there's no other way, you can get the prefectural soldiers to pick them. There aren't many, less than nine thousand. There are about eight thousand or seven hundred. They'll be gone in a while. "Li Xun felt that there weren't enough Baidizi in that field.
"Then forget it. I'll find someone to pick them myself. It'll take two to three months. When the cotton blossoms, I'll go and pick them. I don't know how much they'll be able to pick. Let's see how much they'll produce first." Zhang Xiaobao suddenly had his own thoughts. He thought about the ten mu of cotton and didn't need too many people. Three people to one mu. They could slowly pick them.
After the meal, Li Xun returned to the courtyard he bought. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan sat together to discuss.
"Xiao Bao, did you buy too little? There are more than eight thousand of them left. How much cotton can there be? How can there be eight thousand catties? "Wang Juan felt that it was a little too little.
Xiaobao shook his head vigorously and said, "A thousand catties? Let's plant seven hundred plants in one mu of land. If we plant eight thousand catties, then one mu of land will yield seven hundred catties. Here, one catty is six hundred and forty grams. Then, one mu of land will yield nine hundred catties. The best cotton seeds we had back then were sixteen hundred catties per mu. A hundred years ago, it was three hundred to four hundred catties per mu. That was already pretty good. How much do you think we can get here?"
How can we get so much? "" It doesn't seem like much. At that time, we were specifically thinking about how to plant them. The seeds were also improved countless times. With all kinds of supplementary fertilizers and pesticides, we should be able to get fifty catties per mu, right? Twelve mu is six hundred catties. "
Wang Juan immediately weighed down the weight. Zhang Xiaobao continued to shake his head. "I estimate that we'll get forty catties per mu. That's a success. In total, it'll be five hundred catties. If we synthesize it, it'll be more than seven hundred and eighty catties. Let's make do with it. Let's see if we can get eight hundred catties. It'll be enough to make some quilts."
Wang Juan sighed and suddenly thought of something. "I estimate that we can only get seven hundred and fifty catties, or even less. We still have to remove the seeds. After that, it'll be even less." "That's right.
We still have to make tools for removing the seeds and a flower-tying machine. Tomorrow, we'll get someone to keep an eye on one mu. I estimate that it'll take two people a day to harvest one mu. It's still because we don't have enough cotton balls. It seems that we have to think of ways to cultivate in the future. We can't just look at the flowers. What we need is cotton. We'll make a flower-tying machine in the evening. "
Zhang Xiaobao also thought of this matter. He was getting more and more uncertain. They had occupied twelve mu of land, but they only got six hundred to seven hundred catties of cotton. How much would they need to sell it to be comparable to farming? There was no other way. The cotton plants were too tall, and the space between them couldn't be small. Later on, they cultivated short plants. They were densely planted, with many branches and many fruits. A single cotton flower could reach seven catties.
This was just an ornamental thing. Who would specially think of cultivating it? They could only cultivate it themselves. There should be such people in the Si Nong Temple. They should think of a way to find them. If that didn't work, they could also get some information.
The two of them discussed and came out to find someone to make a flower-tying machine. This thing was simple. They just had to find a way to let the cotton wool pass through while leaving the seeds. It was the most primitive kind. There were two sticks, one big and one small. The gap in the middle was adjusted according to the size of the cotton seeds. If they made a slight improvement, they would step on it. When one side stepped on it, the other side would move. They just had to remove a few gears from the fan and adjust it.
"This is a great invention. In the future, people will remember our name. It'll be called the Bao Juan Flower-Tying Machine. Oh, it needs to be engraved with the name of the craftsman or the unique mark of the craftsman." Zhang Xiaobao stepped on it a few times and said proudly to Wang Juan.
Wang Juan nodded, "Xiao Bao, you're really a good person. You know to share some of the glory with the craftsman."
"Of course. If one of them breaks while using it, it's obvious that the quality is not good. I have to find the craftsman. If I don't leave my mark, how will I know who made it?" Zhang Xiaobao finally told the truth.
"I take back what I said just now. It's really not bad." Wang Juan didn't care about the flower-tying machine anymore. She turned around and left after saying that.
*****
Early in the next morning, Zhang Xiaobao, Wang Juan, and Li Xun set off for the cotton field with about ten maids and twenty male servants from the inner courtyard.
At noon, the old man's nephew was already waiting at the dock. When he saw them coming, he arranged a meal first. After a quick meal, they came to the cotton field. Originally, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan thought that with more than 8,000 cotton plants, they could take up 12 mu if they planted them according to the length of one meter.
In the end, they took up 11 mu. But wasn't this mu too small? The cotton plants were close to each other. The sunlight was always blocked, so the cotton did not only grow on the top, but also on the lower branches. Taking a closer look, as expected, there were not many cotton plants that had grown on the lower branches.
"Picking means plucking them. First, put them in your pocket. If there are too many, put them in the sack." Zhang Xiaobao waved his hand, and more than 30 people rushed over. They had never done this kind of work before, so they were really unfamiliar with it. With one hand in their lapels, they used the other hand to search for the cotton stalks, picking whatever they saw.
"Young Master Li, this, this year's production is a little low. I can only give you five sets. A set with pillow covers, mattresses, and quilts will cost about five catties. No, it's more than eight catties. There are only five sets. When you go back home, you can give them to whoever you like."
Zhang Xiaobao calculated the production even lower. In the end, they could get about six hundred catties of cotton. If they only made the quilts, they could make about 130 to 140 sets. If they made a full set, they could only make about 70 to 80 sets. They still had to cut some materials.
Li Xun didn't know what Zhang Xiaobao was talking about. He didn't think much about it and nodded. He didn't care what Zhang Xiaobao gave him in the end. He would just take it.
Wang Juan was also worried. "I still have to make clothes. Give me three sets."
"That's fine. Young Master Li, I said I would give you three sets. I'll give you something else." Zhang Xiaobao felt that it was right. He still had to make clothes and shoes. He couldn't make all of them into a quilt. He then discussed with Li Xun.
"Any amount is fine." Li Xun didn't have many requirements. To be precise, he didn't care about what Zhang Xiaobao gave him. It was just a quilt. How bad could it be?
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan heard Li Xun's answer and sighed in relief at the same time. Then, they looked at the people picking cotton.
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