Interstellar to 80s: A Scientist's Farming Mission

An Ning found Sun Dazhuang. After collecting her tools, she didn’t get to work. Instead, she stood to the side and watched him.

Sun Dazhuang wasn’t sure why, but he got the message.

"Liu, you get started on your own for now."

With that, Sun Dazhuang went over to An Ning’s side.

"What’s up? Go on, tell me."

An Ning’s eyes sparkled, and the corners of her mouth turned up.

"I wanted to ask... with this drought, what’s our next step?"

Sun Dazhuang fanned himself with a straw hat. He spoke with a world-wise air, "I knew you were after something the second I saw you looking at me."

He’d learned that from past experience with her.

"This damn weather... If it doesn’t rain in the next couple of days, our only choice is to haul water to the fields. We can’t afford to go without water at a time like this."

Sun Dazhuang was worried too, but what could they do? Their livelihoods depended on the weather.

An Ning gazed at the distant fields and continued, "The groundwater should still be fine, right? Could we dig a well?"

Her family had a well of their own, which used negative pressure to draw water up from the ground.

"Ah, An Ning... not many people in our village even have modern wells. A lot of folks still use water from the river, or haul it from the modern well at the edge of the village. Where would we get the money to dig a well for all the fields?"

Sun Dazhuang’s words took An Ning by surprise.

’So my family is actually one of the wealthier ones in the village. That’s new information.’

"Chief, I’ve built a manual water pump. We can have people use it to draw a continuous stream of water from the river and direct it into the irrigation canals or temporary ditches."

Sun Dazhuang stopped fanning himself with his hat, his eyes fixed on An Ning.

"A what? A ’bump’?"

"A water pump. It just requires someone to keep cranking a handle. It’ll draw water up from the river in a continuous stream."

An Ning felt a bit embarrassed as she explained. She hadn’t expected the first machine she ever built to be completely non-electric.

"Something like that actually exists? You... how’d you make it?" Sun Dazhuang couldn’t quite believe it. This sounded like something completely beyond the world of a simple villager.

"I read some books, took a look at the modern wells, and figured it out."

Sun Dazhuang looked like he was constipated. ’You can build one just by looking?’

’He looks at them every day, so how come he never figured it out?’

"Right, An Ning, I have to see it. Where is this... pump of yours?"

"At home."

An Ning led Sun Dazhuang back to her house.

They walked back quietly. Once they arrived at the An family’s home, Sun Dazhuang saw the water pump An Ning had described.

"An Ning, I’m not an educated man, but... no matter how I look at it, this contraption doesn’t seem like it would work."

"Besides, it’s all in pieces."

’In pieces?’

An Ning looked at the unassembled parts scattered on the ground and explained, "I need to make adjustments based on its position at the river, so I have to assemble it on-site."

"Oh... and here I was thinking it was broken."

An Ning grabbed a carrying basket from her house and loaded a pile of parts into it. She then took another simple basket and packed the rest.

Sun Dazhuang helped carry some of the parts, and the two of them headed for the river.

Being familiar with the area, Sun Dazhuang picked a spot that was perfect for pumping water, a location from which the terrain would allow them to irrigate a large area.

"Right here, Chief?"

"Yep, this is the spot. Go ahead and set it up."

Sun Dazhuang took a few steps back. He was completely in the dark about how this worked; in fact, he still didn’t think it would succeed.

Still, he had a good feeling about this kid, An Ning. He decided to let her tinker with it for a while. If she realized it wouldn’t work, she’d give up on her own.

An Ning was completely unaware of Sun Dazhuang’s thoughts. She simply nodded and began to assemble the pump.

At first, Sun Dazhuang didn’t think much of it, but as the contraption grew larger and more complex, he found himself paying closer attention.

He couldn’t make sense of the other parts, but he recognized the crank handle. It looked just like the one on a tractor.

About half an hour later, An Ning had it assembled.

It was about four feet long and three feet high. It looked a lot like the front of a tractor, with a crank handle sticking out one side and a belt on the other. It stood on four legs, which were planted firmly in the ground.

Underneath the machine, a hard plastic pipe extended directly into the river. A flexible plastic hose was attached to the front, its direction easily adjustable.

An Ning had paid for both pieces of plastic out of her own pocket. She’d even fashioned the flexible hose herself from a large sheet of plastic, since there was nothing like it for sale yet.

"All done? It can draw water just like that?"

Sun Dazhuang stepped forward, craning his neck to get a better look. He didn’t dare touch it. Whether it worked or not, what would he do if he broke it?

"It’s ready. Let me give you a demonstration, Chief."

An Ning placed a hand on the crank and gave it a powerful turn. The whole machine rumbled to life with a buzzing sound, much like a tractor, only this one used no fuel at all.

After An Ning had turned the crank about twenty times, she heard Sun Dazhuang shouting, as excited as a child.

"Water! It’s coming out!"

"Holy cow, it’s really pumping water!"

Sun Dazhuang was as restless as an ant on a hot pan, his head whipping back and forth between the gushing water and the machine. In his excitement, he’d stomped the ground beneath his feet soft.

An Ning stopped cranking, and the flow of water slowly ceased.

Sun Dazhuang was so excited he was at a loss for words. It took him a moment to compose himself before he gave An Ning a big thumbs-up. "Incredible! Absolutely incredible!"

Those were the highest words of praise he could think of.

An Ning just gave a brilliant smile, but then asked with a hint of concern, "With this, will the crops’ growth still be affected?"

"Not anymore! This isn’t a severe drought. See? The river level hasn’t dropped at all. We’ve just had a dry spell. Once that’s over, things will be fine."

Hearing Sun Dazhuang say that, An Ning finally relaxed. ’That’s good.’

"Chief, when do we start irrigating?"

"Right now! I’ll go get the others. You stay right here, don’t go anywhere."

"Chief, I’m not tired—"

Before An Ning could finish, Sun Dazhuang cut in, "It’s not about you being tired! You have to watch the machine. This thing is precious! Don’t let anything happen to it."

With that, Sun Dazhuang scurried off in a hurry.

An Ning stood there for a moment, thinking. The scene that had just played out felt strangely familiar.

An Ning stayed behind to watch the machine while Sun Dazhuang went to get help. Before long, a large crowd of people carrying shovels came rushing over.

"Where is it? Let me see!"

"Where’s the machine?"

"It can really pump water!"

The villagers scrambled over each other, eager to get a look at the machine, but Sun Dazhuang blocked them all.

"Back up, back up! What are you looking at? What if you break it?"

"Chief, just looking at it won’t break it. It’s very well-made."

An Ning interjected disapprovingly. Sun Dazhuang, who had been wearing a look of annoyance, immediately switched to a crinkly-eyed smile, his voice softening.

"Not you, not you! You did a great job. It’s them—they’re too rough."

"An Ning, why don’t you run it for everyone? Let them see for themselves."

An Ning had no objection. She started cranking the handle again, and as water began pouring from the hose, the villagers stared in astonishment.

"It’s really pumping water!"

"Oh my god, that’s amazing."

"Isn’t this just like one of those modern wells?"

"An Ning, you’re incredible!"

"This is unbelievable!"

"The An family’s ancestors must be smiling down on them."

The villagers’ praise was simple and heartfelt. To them, An Ning was some kind of genius, so brilliant that even their ancestors were basking in her glory.

The members of the An family felt the same way. They knew An Ning had been tinkering with something, but they never expected her to create something so incredible.

For once, a rare hint of embarrassment appeared on An Ning’s face as she listened to the praise.

’All I really did was build a big, modern well.’