Shuangling: Braving the Rapids

For the past two weeks, Yue Chuan has been busy handling walnuts every day, while Qin Aimin has also been busy studying many books on chrysanthemum cultivation. It seems that he is determined to develop a mountain chrysanthemum project.

Aimin's idea was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. He had studied at Zhong'an Agricultural and Forestry University, and his graduation thesis was titled "Breeding and Cultivation of Mountain Chrysanthemums." In addition to his interest, he was also influenced by some entrepreneurs who returned to their hometowns to start businesses, and he was determined to apply the agricultural knowledge he had gained in the ivory tower to the fields.

Aimin, who has formal training, values ​​methodology, works meticulously, and has a clear mind.

First, purchase a batch of chrysanthemum seeds with extremely high medicinal value;

Secondly, Shuangxitian, which is near a water source, was selected as the experimental seedbed;

Finally, he contacted his friend Chen Yun, who works at the Shangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and commissioned her to analyze the seedbed soil.

After obtaining parameters such as moisture content, soil water potential, and pH value, Aimin immediately began to improve the soil. Judging from this situation, it wouldn't be long before he could sow seeds and start seedling cultivation.

As soon as the rooster crowed that day, Aimin pushed his manure cart out of the courtyard gate.

The vehicle has an extremely simple structure. It has no steering handle or brakes. It consists of a long wooden pole about the thickness of a calf, which is placed on two iron axles. When it is unloaded, you can move it by holding the end of the wooden pole. But if it is full of manure buckets and you can still push it steadily, that depends entirely on your skill.

But how could a schoolteacher have ever done such a job?

Aimin was bent over, his arms bulging with veins, but the manure cart seemed rooted to the spot and wouldn't budge. To make matters worse, the manure bucket at the rear had started to wobble, and it looked like it was at risk of tipping over at any moment.

Aimin's movements were so clumsy that they attracted a crowd of villagers. Some offered genuine advice, while others were simply there to watch the spectacle. Among them, the old bachelor Qin Ergou was the most outrageous, stroking his mustache with a look of schadenfreude.

"Tsk tsk tsk, come and take a look! Look, even this great scholar is starting to pick up manure!"

"Hey! A pale-faced scholar carrying manure in the village? That's a novelty!"

……

Qin Ergou was making jokes, which made many people burst into laughter. Just then, Aimin's hand trembled, and the manure bucket at the back of the vehicle crashed to the ground with a "bang".

The villagers who were watching quickly pinched their noses and backed away, while Aimin gripped the handlebars tightly. Even though he tried his best, the dozen or so buckets of manure remaining on the wooden pole were still teetering on the verge of falling.

"Make way!" A dark-skinned, short-haired woman squeezed through the crowd, gripping the handlebars with her iron-like hands, while instructing Aimin, "Aimin, don't rush, move the middle bucket towards your sister-in-law!"

Aimin dared not delay any longer and quickly made adjustments as the woman had suggested. Sure enough, the entire manure cart became balanced.

"Aimin, are you going to Shuangxitian to irrigate manure? Perfect timing, let's go together. Come on, I'll help you push the cart!" The short-haired woman's name was Ma Xiangju. Her husband was born with a cleft lip and was lame. In the past, he had received a lot of help from Qin Yunhai, and she remembered this kindness. Otherwise, how could a woman like her go out of her way to help someone else?

"Sister Ma, thank you. Let me push the cart..."

"Don't be a show-off! If you keep pushing the cart like that, you'll shake all the manure off when you get to the field. Besides, our fields are next to each other, it's not like it'll be any trouble at all. Just listen to your sister-in-law..."

Ma Xiangju was indeed efficient; she adjusted the direction of the manure cart while speaking.

Just then, the cheeky Qin Ergou jumped out again, "Hey! Xiangju, you're so capable, how about you do all the manure shoveling for our family from now on?"

Ma Xiangju came from the Northwest and married into the family. As an outsider, she had suffered a lot from Qin Ergou's temper. Over the years, she has developed skills that are enough to deal with this annoying old bachelor.

"Qin Ergou! You bastard! Get out of the way! If you utter another word, I'll shove manure down your throat!"

The Shaanxi accent mixed with the unique swear words of Shuangling area drew laughter from the villagers watching. Qin Ergou was embarrassed. He wanted to talk back but was afraid of angering the other party, so he rolled his eyes, scratched the back of his head, and left...

The little incident had passed, and Ai Min and Ma Xiang Ju soon arrived at Shuangxi Tian.

After unloading the truck, Aimin sincerely thanked her, saying, "Sister-in-law, thank you so much for your help today."

"Don't be so polite with your sister-in-law!" Ma Xiangju replied crisply, then stared at the seedbed at her feet and said, "By the way, Aimin, I haven't asked you yet, what are you planning to plant in these two acre irrigated plots?"

"Those who grow chrysanthemums, these flowers are beautiful to look at and can be used to make tea, they're wonderful!"

"Wild chrysanthemums are everywhere on the mountain, why bother with all this trouble?" Ma Xiangju asked in confusion.

"It's different!" Aimin explained with a smile, "This is a medicinal variety. It can be dried and used in medicine. Once the experimental field is established, planting chrysanthemums in Shuangxi will be more profitable than growing grain!"

When it came to cultivating chrysanthemums, Aimin became very interested. He not only explained the economic value of chrysanthemums to Ma Xiangju, but also explained the seedling cultivation process step by step.

After patiently listening to the entire process, Ma Xiangju couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, everyone says you intellectuals are cultured! This is the first time I've ever heard of these things. If you succeed, I'll start planting it with you!"

"No problem, I'll save some seeds for you once we get to the mass production stage..."

Aimin was sincere in saying this. He understood that the agricultural sector emphasizes economies of scale. After all, there are no profits without scale. In any case, once the experimental field is successful, it will be promoted on a large scale. So why not bring people on board in advance?

The two chatted as they worked, unaware that Qin Ergou was squatting on the edge of a distant field, keeping watch. This idle old bachelor was full of bad intentions, and he would surely spread rumors about Aimin and Ma Xiangju in the village again. He was the best at stirring up trouble and doing such shameless things!

Starting a business in rural areas is fraught with difficulties. The challenges Aimin faces are not limited to technical aspects; some are also hidden in the interpersonal relationships and customs of rural society.

The schoolteacher clearly underestimated the risk. He didn't see anything wrong with working with Ma Xiangju, and even wanted her to cooperate in chrysanthemum cultivation.

In this remote and isolated mountain village, Aimin's ideas were absolutely unconventional, which provided material for those with ulterior motives to spread gossip.

Indeed, that's how things unfolded. After returning to the village, Qin Ergou frequented various gossip spots, vividly recounting the scandalous story between Aimin and Ma Xiangju.

One was a refined and cultured schoolteacher, and the other was a fierce woman from out of town. This combination immediately attracted a lot of attention. Most villagers just listened to the jokes for fun, but they couldn't resist Qin Ergou's repeated fabrications. After a while, some fools actually believed his nonsense!

Starting a business in such an environment would probably be extremely difficult.