Hu's shack is where the Eighth Route Army's First Military Division Headquarters in Northern Henan is located. The reason why this place is called Hu's shack is because it is close to the lake, and local fishermen built many shacks here as a temporary habitat after landing.
In fact, the so-called lake here in the Hu family shack usually does not have a large water area, so it cannot be called a "lake" at all.
This is a low-lying land, and the surrounding rivers basically gather here. The water level here is usually not high. Thick reeds grow in the high places of the low-lying land, and there are patches of water in the lower parts. It is actually a large swamp. Only during the flood season in summer and autumn, the water level here rises, and the small areas of water in the low-lying land finally connect into a vast expanse. At this time, it can be called a "lake".
It is precisely because of the seasonal fluctuations of the lake water that only reeds that survive water can grow on the lake beach. It is absolutely impossible to grow crops. As for the fish and shrimp in the water, because the water surface is usually not large and the water is deep and shallow, the fishermen¡¯s harvest is not big. Grain cannot be grown, and income from fishing is very limited. Therefore, although the surrounding people are very hardworking, they have always been in extreme poverty.
For the lake formed by this depression, surrounding farmers both hate and love it. They hate it because the ebb and flow of the lake water makes it impossible for people to grow food, but they love it because the vast swamp provides the necessities of people's lives.
"However, this year is different from previous years. This lake that everyone hated and loved in previous years has given unlimited hope to the surrounding farmers.
This is a depression, and almost all the surrounding small rivers converge here. And because of the spring drought this year, the water level in the swamp is much lower than in previous years, and there are many more exposed beaches than in previous years.
Low-lying land has the advantage of being low-lying. Not only surface water gathers here, but also invisible groundwater. Although the drought is severe in other places, there is still no shortage of water on the lake beach. After spring comes, lush weeds grow on the exposed lake beach as if overnight.
The drought is very serious this year. The farmers were naturally anxious, and some thoughtful farmers became interested when they saw the weeds on the lake beach.
As farmers, they naturally know that grass can grow where there is water, and where grass can grow, crops can generally be grown. The time for spring plowing was about to pass, and some farmers who were unable to sow seeds were anxious. Some people began to bring their livestock and farm tools to the lake beach, and they began to clear up wasteland and sow seeds on the lake beach.
Since ancient times, no one has grown food on the lake beach. When a local farmer planted seeds, the others talked about it as a joke. Some people also sneered at those who plowed the fields and planted them. When spring passes day by day and the long-awaited spring rain has not fallen, and when the first batch of crops appear green on the lake beach, those watching the excitement can't help it anymore, and more people come When we arrived at the lake beach, a large number of wasteland appeared on the lake beach within a few days, and seeds were sown in all the wasteland within a few days.
Naturally, the farmers' spontaneous reclamation of lake beach land could not be hidden from the Eighth Route Army stationed here. Liu Zhenghong knew about it almost immediately.
The First Military Division of Northern Henan, which had just been hit hard, is now in a period of rest. Because the early personnel losses were too large, Liu Zhenghong urgently requested support from his superiors.
The difficult situation in the Northern Henan Military Division. The Eighth Route Army headquarters is aware of this. Precisely because this place has been a bitter cold place since ancient times, it is basically a no-care zone. For the Eighth Route Army, the mass base here is very good, and it is the best area to open up a new base area.
After hard work. Liu Zhenghong and the others have already created a new world here. Even if there are some difficulties at present, the Eighth Route Army will not give up on this area. The rear area urgently transferred more than 20 military and political personnel from the old base area to supplement them a year ago. During this period. Liu Zhenghong filled these military and political cadres from the rear into urgently needed positions.
Liu Zhenghong is very busy during this time. On the one hand, he must hurry up to restore the rural political power that was destroyed by the Japanese and puppet troops. On the other hand, he is also worried about the supply problem of the troops.
This is not a food-producing land. The food produced throughout the year was not enough for the local people. Now that so many troops have been added, food naturally needs to be transported in from outside. The Eighth Route Army's military expenditures have always been pitiful. If you rely on this little money to buy food, the troops will be hungry for at least ** months. Therefore, "self-reliance and hard work" are the pillars for the survival of every army.
This year¡¯s spring drought is a foregone conclusion, and a reduction in summer grain production is inevitable. Liu Zhenghong must not only consider the food supply for the army, but also consider the survival of local people. But this food problem is really not that easy to solve. Liu Zhenghong has no money now, especially when the recession hits, and food prices will rise. Liu Zhenghong really can't think of any way to tide over this difficulty.
When the crops on the beach were green and green, Liu Zhenghong also came to the beach to see them.Take a look. The lake beach was connected by reclaimed wasteland. Looking at this piece of green, Liu Zhenghong was refreshed. This piece of green gave him infinite hope.
"What a wonderful land. If a cofferdam is built here, it will turn into a large area of ??fertile farmland." Lao Liu, who was beside Liu Zhenghong, suddenly said.
Lao Liu is a cadre sent from the old base area to strengthen the strength this time, and came to the First Military Division to serve as deputy chief of staff. Lao Liu is a veteran cadre, a veteran of the Red Army who came from the Jiangxi Soviet Area to Yan'an during the Long March.
Lao Liu, who comes from the south, is naturally very familiar with cofferdams. Cofferdams are very common in southern water towns. In order to expand the farming area, the ancients used dikes to enclose low-lying land so that they would not be flooded during high water seasons, and the former swamps in water towns would become good farmland for cultivation.
"How much manpower is needed to build a cofferdam? How long does it take?" Liu Zhenghong asked.
Lao Liu said: "It depends on the size of the project. If the cofferdam is large and the dike is high, it will take a lot of people and a long time." Lao Liu replied.
Liu Zhenghong pointed to the reclaimed wasteland and asked: "Based on the current area, the dike is about six feet high. How long do you think it will take?"
Seeing Liu Zhenghong's serious question, Lao Liu looked at the scene carefully, then made an estimate in his mind and said: "This depends on the number of workers and the distance of the soil extraction location. If there are a thousand people every day If the work is started and the soil is nearby, a temporarily usable polder can be built within two months if the soil is collected quickly. However, a polder built with sand cannot withstand heavy floods and needs to be reinforced every year. Woolen cloth."
Liu Zhenghong's eyes lit up and he said: "This is a lake area. When the water rises, the water level is only this high. There will not be a large flow of water. Taking advantage of the current season when there is no water, we will take charge of this work and strive to do it within two months." We will encircle this area within a few months. As long as we can transform this large area of ??fertile land, we will have much less pressure on food in the future."
Having said this, Liu Zhenghong waved his hand and said with great enthusiasm: "We will expand the scale of reclaiming land from lakes in the future and strive to solve the food problem of the military and civilians in the region within three to five years."
As soon as he said it was done, Liu Zhenghong immediately held a meeting and conveyed the decision to start reclaiming land from the lake. At this meeting, Liu Zhenghong announced on behalf of the Eighth Route Army that everyone participating in the construction of the polder embankment would bring their own tools and dry food, and the fertile land would be divided according to the amount of work done.
Chinese farmers are the most eager for land. As long as they can have their own fields, they are willing to suffer no matter how great it is. The call of the Eighth Route Army immediately won the support of farmers. Many people did not even need cadres to mobilize, and they took the initiative to sign up to reclaim land from lakes.
After a long drought without rain, the lake water was low. This situation was just right for building a cofferdam. The beach near the Hu family's shack immediately became a large open-air construction site. Under the leadership of organizations at all levels of the Eighth Route Army, a vigorous land-building movement began. Lao Liu was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the project by Liu Zhenghong, and half of the troops who were resting took turns going to the construction site to participate in the construction of the cofferdam.
The lake water is only two meters deep at its highest point every year, so the cofferdam does not need to be built very high. As for the problem of soil acquisition, it is easier to solve. It only needs to transport the silt from the periphery.
The soil required for such a large project is naturally indispensable. As more and more soil is taken, deep pits appear in places where the lake used to be silt. These pits are slowly filled with water seeping in. When these pits are connected, After coming together, new water surfaces were formed, and this water became a source of water for irrigating crops. In addition to this benefit, once fry are put into these deep water areas, fish and shrimps will be produced here.
Due to financial and manpower constraints, the land reclamation project that Liu Zhenghong was able to launch was limited to the Hu family's shack, but there were more than that many farmers who wanted to acquire land. People in other areas were inspired by the Eighth Route Army's encirclement of lakes to create farmland, and some people began to use their brains. Some large families mobilized all their young laborers into the swamps. They selected some highlands and began to transport lake mud up there. These so-called highlands are exposed during the dry season, and are only covered by shallow water during the flood season. As long as they are raised with soil, they will inevitably become a platform above the water. At the very least, this will be another area for planting. Vegetable land.
The people are very poor, many families do not have enough to eat, and the training of the troops is also very tense. However, the desire to obtain land made everyone enthusiastic. After continuous construction, two months later, a considerable-scale cofferdam was actually completed!
When the cofferdam was completed, the crops in the reclaimed farmland were not affected by the spring drought and have now grown to half a person's height. The silt on the lake beach has been accumulated for many years. This silt is very fertile. These so-called wastelands that have just been reclaimed are actually the best fertile land!
Looking at the green eyes?, Liu Zhenghong¡¯s face almost turned into a flower with laughter! In any case, this large area of ??fertile land can solve a huge problem for the military and civilians. More importantly, it was such a large and gratifying crop that gave the people in the base area great confidence. The base area had just been destroyed by the Japanese and puppet troops, and the Eighth Route Army suffered heavy losses. Under the current circumstances, nothing is more precious than confidence. (To be continued)