Changes in precipitation and drought are major threats to rainfed wheat production in drylands. Understanding the impacts of precipitation fluctuations on wheat production can provide insight into future crop production under climate change. We conducted an eight-year field experiment to estimate the effect of tillage (no-tillage, NT; deep tillage, DT; subsoiling, SS) system on the soil water consumption and nitrogen translocation to the wheat grains. Furthermore, we accessed the variation in wheat yield according to the wet, dry, and normal precipitation years in the Loess Plateau, China. The tillage improved the soil water content, N remobilization, and grain yield in comparison to NT. The soil water storage was significantly higher in 0–300 cm depth under DT than NT and SS. The changes in soil water content were highest in the years which received higher precipitation. The translocation and accumulation of N were higher in the normal years than the dry and wet years and more under DT and SS than the NT. Furthermore, pre-anthesis N translocation contributed more to grain N, whereas post-anthesis N accumulation did not significantly vary with the years and tillage. Thus, increasing soil moisture or precipitation rate compared to normal does not increase the soil water storage, N accumulation, and grain yield. Therefore, tillage proved beneficial in increasing yield by improving the soil water storage and N availability.