The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 373 Opening up wasteland

a few days later.

A group of teenagers were shouting and hawking throughout the sanatorium.

"Come and see the excitement! The first batch of bricks has come out of the kiln!"

"Grandpa Xia is crying while hugging the blue bricks."

Some curious onlookers poked their heads out of their dugouts and asked:

"Why is the old man crying? Did the bricks burn out?"

"What's there to cry about? The clay we dug up last year was piled up like a mountain. If one kiln isn't good enough, we'll just fire a few more!"

Young boys don't have time to stop and explain things in detail.

After shouting a few times, he disappeared in a flash.

Those who enjoyed watching the excitement followed behind and ran towards the brick kilns downstream of the river.

After walking outside the encirclement and listening intently for a long time, I finally understood.

It turns out that the first batch of bricks they fired was quite successful.

Those few cries were tears of joy.

Right now, Grandpa Xia is beaming as he directs a group of people to soak freshly fired bricks in a water tank.

This is the final step in the entire brick-making process: cooling.

While giving instructions, he also explained to the people inside the encirclement:
"Bricks that have been soaked in water have the best adhesion and toughness. They will not crack when exposed to cold or heat. Houses or city walls built with such bricks can last for hundreds or even thousands of years!"

"Grandpa, blue bricks are so nice. If the Ang family bought a blue brick courtyard, wouldn't it be enough for seven generations to live there?"

"What are you dreaming about! How many people can live in one courtyard? Your father had three sons and two daughters, and you and your two older brothers each had three sons. After your three sons get married, how will you live in this courtyard?"

The courtyards planned to be built in the new town won't be enough for another ten years!
so.

The work at our brick kiln is so long that it could take eight or ten years to finish.

Speaking of brick kilns, this was also one of the industries of the garrison.

Within half a month, Grandpa Xia recruited more than 500 old men, most of whom were veterans over 45 years old.

Their physical strength is not as good as that of young adults.

Or perhaps they were injured or disabled.

But none of these things affect the work in the brick kiln.

Playing in the mud isn't too strenuous.

The key is that you can also earn a wage.

That's how it happened.

We divided up the work.

The elderly were firing bricks, while the young and middle-aged laborers were farming.

The farm tools that the ironware workshop had stored for half a year finally came in handy at this time of year. From Hami City, cartloads of hoes, iron sleds, sickles, rakes, and other tools were being hauled to the various garrisons.

Compared to other garrisons deep in the desert or Gobi, Ganluchuan was truly blessed by heaven.

The terrain is flat.

The rivers are abundant.

It can be used for both farming and animal husbandry.

The newly sprouted mulberry branches and leaves are lush and green.

On the withered grassland, fire raged.

Where the fire spreads.

Wherever there is barrenness, it will be cultivated.

In just three days, more than 30,000 mu of land were burned.

More than 20,000 people would require far more than this amount of work, but General Gan clearly had a different opinion.

Manager Zhu, entrusted by a group of soldiers with extensive farming experience, inquired about Gan Minglan's situation:

"Master, the General has assigned each person a task of ten mu, and these thirty thousand mu are probably not enough!"

Gan Minglan was full of confidence:
"The foreign merchants said that the seeds they sell to us are the best. They say that the average yield of ordinary wheat seeds is no less than four shi per mu, which is more than enough to feed an adult!"

Manager Zhu was so shocked that his jaw dropped, and he couldn't help but raise his voice several decibels:
"Four bushels?! That's the yield of even the most fertile fields in Jiangnan! And this year we're using barren land."

“There is no shortage of water in the Ganlu River area. The ash from the burning of the grass and wood over the past three days is so thick and black. With sufficient fertilizer, even wasteland can be turned into fertile fields.”

Therefore, as long as the grain grown from these 30,000 mu of land is enough to feed the people in our garrison, that will be sufficient.

"The task is to allocate 10 mu per person, with half of the land used as pasture. The remaining 30% will be used to grow rice, grapes, melons, cotton, and vegetables."

There is no shortage of water here.

The conditions are fully met for growing rice.

After eating noodles for a long time, I sometimes crave a change of pace.

Steward Zhu: "Alright, alright! Okay, okay!"

General, you are the head of Ganluchuan.

You have the final say on all matters concerning the garrison.

Even if production decreases, I believe the general will be able to buy more grain.

After the order was given, sand and dust flew everywhere in Ganluchuan.

The advantages of having many horses were evident during the land reclamation process.

Horses are stronger than oxen of the same size, and they can plow fields about 30% to 50% faster.

Horses are more intelligent than cows and are better able to understand human commands.

They pulled the plow and ran very fast.
(End of this chapter)