21 When I returned to the mill, it was already noon, Zhou Dao and the guys did not go home, they brought two cows back, which was "let" to him by Pan Ye, and Pan Ye took away a cow and a donkey.

Everyone was tired all night, and at this time they sat on the ground and waited for the mother-in-law to cook, and the kitchen had not yet been ignited.

Zhou Dao stood by the stream, staring at the wreckage of the mill in a daze. "Only one of them was not burned, and the millers turned around and told them to disperse! The salary should be settled, and if it is not enough, it can only be owed, and it can be repaid slowly if there is a mill open. The miller has to keep a few handy, Xu Wa'er has to keep it, but the salary has to be talked about, it has to be lowered, I can't afford it, look at him... There is also the price of rice milling, each load can only be counted a little more money and grain, and now there is no scale, and the cost of just relying on a mill cannot be amortized. There won't be so many people coming to mill the rice, and there won't be long queues. Hey... He sighed and thought, "This mill is to be rebuilt, and we have to wait until the winter water selling period, when the water potential is smaller, and it is very early, where will the money come from?" There are so many that you can't get credit. Let's see, it would be nice to be able to eat now, alas! Other? Let's take it one step at a time. Zhou Dao thought wildly.

Everyone ate in silence, each with their own thoughts. In the past, when the meal was the most lively, the rice in the Zhou family's mill, as long as you are working, don't need money, eat openly. Everyone commented on the food, exchanged their opinions, and men and women joked about the combination of meat and vegetables, or chewed the root of their tongue. Right now, the bustle has turned into silence. Loose meals are not delicious.

Before the meal was finished, Carpenter Chen came, and he brought two apprentices. "Lao Chen is here. Zhou Dao put down the dishes and chopsticks and stood up, he still owed more than a dozen times to Carpenter Chen, "Old Chen, can you slow down the salary first, I don't have that much in my hands." Zhou Dao's voice was low and hoarse. Carpenter Chen looked at the ruins in front of him with a serious expression, and they all burned down.

He turned his head to look at the silent crowd eating. "Put the bowl first, come with me." Everyone looked up at Carpenter Chen, and some people looked at Zhou Dao again. Zhou Dao nodded "go". Everyone followed Carpenter Chen to the nearest ruin, and Lao Chen pointed to "dig, move these away, and dig to the end." Zhou Dao stared at Lao Chen, said "get" to everyone, and went to lift the beams and pillars that burned the ground, and everyone followed suit.

In less than half an hour, the ruins of a mill were almost cleared. Lao Chen squeezed into the middle and picked up the ground, looked down from a small hole, and put his hand into the vertical hole of the grinding shaft and tried to grope for it, rubbing his head and face full of black ash. Then he stood up, wiped a handful of his face, and said, "You're lucky, the connecting rod is broken, the spindle is fine, it seems that you have to be busy." Zhou Dao's heart has been hanging, "Lao Chen, do you mean that this can be repaired?" His eyes widened and he asked eagerly.

Lao Chen didn't answer him, and said to himself, "Dog's melon goods!" I can't even set fires, I see them dry and grinding, and they follow the donkey every day, and they become stupid! He glanced at Zhou Dao, who was stunned, and said, "Water grinds water grinding, half of it is in water, how can it be burned?" If there is water rushing, you can't drain the oil! "Didn't you say that this water can only be repaired when it is crushed to the season of selling water? It's only July! "It's building, it's new, it's not repairing. When selling water, do water distribution, make sluices, lay foundations, and install roulettes, which cannot be done when the water is too big. Now is it to build a house on the shore, install a grinding wheel, or sell water during the flood season? "What's that?" Before Zhou Dao could ask, he was interrupted by Lao Chen, "You go to find someone, at least twenty, and do miscellaneous." As he spoke, he called two apprentices and began to speak.

Zhou Dao didn't ask any more, and if he asked again, it was estimated that Carpenter Chen would classify him as a "melon goods". "Lao Chen, thank you!" "Thank me for what? If you don't fix it, when will you pay me back. Let me start by saying that all these days of work have to be counted as wages, even today. After that, he continued the discussion with his apprentice and ignored him again.

Zhou Dao walked away silently and stood by the stream. He held his breath and closed his eyes, and after a while, he suddenly bent over and bent his legs, pulled and bent his arms downward, puffed out his biceps, and the strength of his whole body immediately exploded "Ah! "Ahh He roared at the stream! The people around him stopped and looked at him in amazement. Zhou Dao glanced back, patted the black ash on his body casually, and left.

Looking at his back, his shoulders twitching slightly, he raised his hand and wiped his face with his sleeve as he walked. There was wind, and the fine sand was blind.