It's really hard to just farm peacefully.

Chapter 250

In mid-May, a rain fell in Dongshan Village. Although it did not replenish the water volume in the stream, the wet ground gave Jiang Yan a glimmer of hope.

Soon this glimmer of hope was completely shattered.

By the end of May, the two small streams in Dongshan Village and the pond on the back mountain had dried up. The only two wells in the village had water, perhaps thanks to the manhole covers made in advance by Jiang Yan, and the water in the wells had not completely evaporated, leaving a shallow bottom.

Some shallow-rooted plants in the back mountain have turned yellow, and Jiang Yan's crops are also showing signs of drying up.

As dusk was falling, Jiang Yan came to the field carrying a small can of replacement spoiled water.

Holding a small spoon in her hand, she poured a small amount of water into the cracks beneath the crops that looked slightly fuller and greener.

Jiang Yan has been doing this for two weeks. It's the critical period for wheat, corn, and beans to grow and mature. Before, they could just pump in yellow mud water to barely replenish the water, but now they can only select the best plants and save every one they can.

She had previously thought about digging a karez to protect the water source, and also tried to bury thin bamboo tubes with holes drilled in the ground to imitate drip irrigation technology to save water. However, she realized that these were not advisable after trying it for only one morning.

She cannot complete all of the above tasks by herself in a short period of time. It not only takes up her time to store water, but also makes her miss the important opportunity to grab water to irrigate crops, which is not worth the loss.

Jiang Yan stood up and pounded his stiff and sore lower back, thinking about what Aunt Jiang Lu had said when she hurried over that morning.

She had to finish watering the fields as soon as possible while the energy was still there, draw half of the well water for storage, and then go to bed early because there was a tough battle tomorrow.

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The drought outside is far more serious than in Dongshan Village.

Rongcheng County has two main water sources, one flows out from Qinshan Mountain and converges into a river, and the other flows in from Rongyang County.

Due to the drought, the water source from Rongyang County dried up due to diversion, and the remaining river also ran out of water a few days ago.

Not long ago, many conflicts broke out in the county town and villages outside for the purpose of irrigating land, resulting in many casualties. Jiang Lu's village, Hezhou Village, was also forced to be involved in the conflict.

With no water left in the river, the people began to search the depths of the Qinshan Mountains in droves. The lucky ones found drinking water, but the unlucky ones were robbed on their way home or killed by wild beasts in the mountains.

Dongshan Village once again benefits from its remote location, and so far no outsiders have come here.

But it won't be safe for more than two days. Soon the nearby villagers will come to their senses, or there will be too many competitors in the forest and the resources will be exhausted, and someone will always come looking for us.

Yesterday, Jiang Lu returned to Dongshan Village. In addition to being worried about Jiang Yan's lack of water and no one to take care of her, he also greeted Jiang Yan with the intention of moving his family here.

However, there are several acres of wheat in the field that need to be dried for a few more days before being harvested, and my husband's family followed the villagers to the mountains to find water. After moving here, they will no longer have this convenience, so I am still hesitating.

Jiang Yan heard Aunt Jiang Lu's dilemma and after thinking about it, she suggested that they go into the mountains to look for water first. If they found one successfully, their lives would be better for a few days.

During the drought season, wild animals will most likely go deeper into the mountains and forests in search of water. As long as Jiang Yan doesn't go too deep, he is confident that he can return safely.

In her heart, Jiang Lu didn't really believe that Jiang Yan had this ability, and the words of refusal circled on her lips for a few times. But then she thought of what Jiang Ju had secretly told her about Jiang Yan's experience of venturing into the mountains alone, and she gritted her teeth and agreed.

With her by my side, it's always good to have more people contributing.

At dawn the next day, Jiang Yan sat on a big tree at the entrance of the village to pick up Jiang Lu and two familiar aunts from the same village who she brought with her.

Aunt Yu's husband, who is a little older, is an expert at digging wells. Over the years, Aunt Yu has been helping him out and has secretly learned many basic skills in identifying water sources.

Aunt Bai has a good relationship with Jiang Lu and Aunt Yu. She is tight-lipped and has a lot of strength.

Jiang Lu took two steps behind and whispered to Jiang Yan, "They are both reliable and capable. It would be more reliable if they come to help."