81-90

Chapter 81 Chill

On the other end, Wu Laoer, maybe we should call him Village Chief Wu. The old Village Chief has already said that he will not care about anything in the future, and that everything will be decided by him.

He said goodbye to the three families headed by Aunt Liu who expressed their gratitude to him, and walked home with great satisfaction, feeling secretly proud of his success in persuading both parties.

It seems that he, the village chief, was right on his word for the first time. Fortunately, he persuaded the gang no matter what. As he took office as a new official, no one in the village could be a thief, and he had to leave a real legacy to the county magistrate. Good impression.

They are all honest people in Shangxi Village. It is better to turn these big things into trivial matters.

As soon as I stepped into the house, my brother, Boss Wu, was waiting.

"How are things going?" Boss Wu was also paying close attention. He seemed to have seen a conflict between his younger brother and the old village chief just now. This is not okay. The old village chief should be more respectful.

Village Chief Wu smiled lightly and told his brother the whole thing in a few words.

"You! You're stupid!" Boss Wu slapped his thigh in anger. He had a falling out with the old village chief and left several disasters in the village. What should we do?

"Brother," Village Chief Wu frowned, "I am now the village chief of our Shangxi Village. There must be no thieves in our Shangxi Village. Otherwise, how can I explain to the county?"

"How can you think so?" Mr. Wu was surprised. He asked his younger brother, "What happened to the thief? He should be dealt with. As the village chief, he protected the thief and stayed in the village. Have you thought about other people?"

Village Chief Wu shook his head with a cold face, "Our village is the only one that is clean. Only if I am clean will the county see how good I am as a village leader."

After saying that, without waiting for Boss Wu to reply, he turned and walked out of the house.

Boss Wu was about to say something, but Mr. Wu's figure flashed beside him. He smiled bitterly, "Brother, stop trying to persuade him, he won't listen."

Ever since he got the approval of the old village chief to become the village chief, his man has slowly grown He seemed to be in a daze, thinking about him as the village chief all day long, but he forgot that he was also the head of the family, the father of the baby and the baby of the village.

There were some signs when he was on the mountain. People in the village were quarreling and pushing. He just wanted to calm things down quickly, but he didn't care who was right or wrong. The head of a village didn't even want to distinguish between right and wrong. How could he face the big and small people in the village? What about trivial matters? The man became the village chief. He smiled on the surface, but actually felt a chill in his heart. The person next to him... seemed a little strange.

Here, Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing didn't know that there were differences of opinion between Village Chief Wu and his brother, and they were still mumbling something.

Tang Jiang came to pick Brother Zhi back and quietly pulled Gu Shiqing aside, "Our village chief Wu is very arrogant."

"Oh?"

"Do you know why he didn't tie the three of them to the county?"

"Not yet . For the end-of-year assessment."

The words awakened the dreamer.

Yes! Gu Shiqing suddenly realized that there were assessments at the end of the year. For example, while the county magistrate was being assessed by the higher level, he also had to assess the village chiefs under his jurisdiction. Among them, whether the people in the village were innocent and whether they had done anything similar to thieves is also a very important part of it.

No wonder Village Chief Wu wants to let this matter go gently. It turns out that he, as the newly appointed village chief, will get an "excellent" in a few months. It is a good way to let the two parties take the initiative to reconcile. This Village Chief Wu is quite shrewd. "It's a pity that he is too shrewd," Gu Shiqing sneered.

"Sir," Lin Mu lay in Gu Shiqing's arms at night, playing with his black hair and sighing softly, "Brother Zhi told me a lot of things in the afternoon. Why do I feel that the current Village Chief Wu is not as good as the old Village Chief?" What?"

The old village chief was a little confused about small things, but he had never made any mistakes on such a big matter. Now that Village Chief Wu was denying the old Village Chief's opinion, he felt a chill in his heart. Can such a person really manage Shangxi Village well?

I think so, but I still have to get through life.

Lin Mu, Zhi Ge and his wife went to the mountain to move some livestock together. After they were busy, the two of them didn't stop, thinking of going to the county to open the shop again.

Tang Jiang poured cold water on him, "It's already almost October, and it's going to be cold in less than two months. Why do you two have to go and suffer?"

"Zhizhi, I'm responsible for the money at home. Don't worry about it."

Lin Mu thought the same thing. It's cold in winter, so it's better to think of new things at home and make plans next spring. Lin Mu said this, so Zhi Geer naturally agreed.

The things on the mountain have been moved down, and what is left is the things in the fields that need to be busy.

The next day, Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing got up early and took Zhou Xiaozi and Zhou Fulang to the fields. The cooking work at home was temporarily left to Brother Nian and his sister.

After returning from the mountain, the three children were originally supposed to be sent to Wang Xi's place. Lin Mu took the initiative and kept them. The family was not short of food. Mr. Zhou and his family were extremely grateful and took the initiative to offer their monthly money. Lin Mu didn't agree to the reduction by half. He just said that the children would only need food and accommodation, and that when they were older, they would let Mr. Zhou go out and find work on his own.

No, Zhou Xiaozi is a kindhearted person. He was about to rake the ground with a plow. Gu Shiqing stopped him, "The soil has been flooded for so long and is already soft enough."

Let's plant garlic. He also did other things. I don't understand, but after soaking in water for a long time, there must be more bugs in the ground. Planting garlic will kill it so that you can continue planting food next year.

Garlic is called garlic leaves here. Lin Mu listened to his suggestion and nodded, "Okay, let's go to the county to buy seedlings." Neither he nor Gu Shiqing thought about storing this stuff, but there were baskets of peeled garlic heads!

Gu Shiqing went to the county to buy seedlings and came back. He saw Wu Laoer talking to Lin Mu in the field. He had a smile on his face, but Lin Mu had a pretty face and was slightly angry.

"What's wrong?" Gu Shiqing approached.

"Sister-in-law!" Lin Mu rolled his eyes happily, turned to face Wu Lao'er, and then turned cold, "You don't need to worry about the village chief, my husband-in-law and I are very good!"

Wu Lao'er smiled slightly. , nodded to Gu Shiqing and left, looking a little uncomfortable.

"What did he tell you?" Gu Shiqing was surprised. If he said it was his husband, that would be fine, but how could Mumu and Wu Laoer have anything to do with each other?

"Ha!" Lin Mu sneered, "He came to apologize for those who wronged us. He said it was an apology, but the truth is that we two have no relatives in the village to help us. Don't worry about it, otherwise we will still suffer." "

He How dare you say that!" Gu Shiqing narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists, "I'll go find him!"

"Don't," Lin Mu stopped him, "Why should we stay away from him? We can just live our lives."

As he said that, he reached out and gently touched Gu Shiqing's back. Gu Shiqing's heart slowly calmed down. "Okay, I'll listen to you."

The two of them called for Zhou Fulang and Zhou Xiaozi to help. , a lively scene.

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Chapter 82 Busy

Brother Xiao Le was pouting early this morning, with a sad look on his usually cheerful little face. He only took two sips of the porridge and then put down the bowl, staring down at the corner of the table without saying anything.

Lin Mu actually didn't say anything? Gu Shiqing was surprised and gestured, "What's wrong with the child?" Don't tell me, he's not used to the lack of Little Le's snoring voice at the dinner table.

Lin Mu pulled Gu Shiqing's sleeve, turned sideways and whispered, "Mr. Wu went back to the county today."

No wonder! Xiao Lele has always had a good relationship with Tuan Geer, so she was surprised to be so listless today.

There was nothing Lin Mu could do. Mr. Wu and his family originally lived in the county. Wouldn't it be logical to move back now? He comforted himself that children are forgetful and will get better after some time.

As soon as he put down his chopsticks, Brother Xiaole raised his head and looked at it eagerly.

Lin Mu said helplessly: "Let's go, I'll take you to see Brother Xiaotuan."

As he said that, Gu Shiqing picked up Brother Xiaole. As soon as the three of them opened the outer door, a carriage happened to "kick, kick, kick "The ground stopped at the door.

The curtain was lifted open by a pair of hands.

Brother Xiaole immediately struggled to get off Gu Shiqing's arms, "Tuantuan! Tuantuan!"

Brother Xiaotuan was also much more lively than when we first met, and he couldn't wait to get off the carriage. He had short legs and was very timid. He was too young to dare to jump off, so he walked along the front of the carriage, his little eyebrows knitted together, feeling extremely anxious.

Boss Wu in front quickly picked up brother Xiao Tuan, and brother Xiao Le rushed over. The two brothers held hands and talked affectionately.

In this carriage, Boss Wu also jumped out of the carriage, held his hands in his hands and thanked him with a smile, "Brother Gu, Mr. Gu, our family is indebted to you two."

"It's nothing." Lin Muyun smiled lightly.

Seeing the two younger brothers getting along well, Wu Boss suddenly sighed, "Hey, the second brother and I were inseparable like them when we were young. Now, now..." He shook his head, "I won't mention it anymore." The younger

brother said. He doesn't listen to others' advice and insists on going his own way. As his elder brother, he can't discipline him like he did when he was a child. It's better to keep an eye out of sight.

After thinking for a while, he said apologetically: "Liu Bufan is the second son who can't stand up to the villagers. I hope you will bear with me."

Gu Shiqing said nothing.

After a long while, Lin Mucai said: "It's impossible to talk about it. I just hope they don't waste the village chief's thoughts and live a good life in the future."

He actually called Wu Lao Er like before, and Wu Lao Er didn't even want to call him Big Brother. Nothing was said.

The two parties waited quietly for the two little brothers.

After a while, Boss Wu finally said he wanted to leave. The two brothers parted reluctantly and agreed to play together again in the future.

Seeing the carriage carrying Brother Xiaotuan getting smaller and smaller, Brother Xiaole looked glumly.

"Let's go feed the lambs." Lin Mu held his hand. A few days after coming down from the mountain, a curly sheep gave birth to two lambs. They are now almost a month old, tender and tender, and they look like boys every day. After milking the goat, Lin Mu took Brother Le to feed the lamb.

Hearing that he was going to feed his beloved lamb, Brother Xiaole smiled so much that his tiny teeth showed.

Gu Shiqing separated from them and went to the fields. The garlic leaves have been planted for a month, so it's time to pinch the tender leaves and fry them. Looking around, their fields were green and green. Many people still rushed to plant wheat, but it didn't grow well. Fortunately, everyone knew it well and didn't have high expectations.

Gu Shiqing took off a thin jacket and carried a large bag of young garlic leaves back to give to Mr. Zhou. He was going to eat fried garlic leaves at noon today!

Lin Mu carefully packed the clothes of the three people in his family this month, and also dug out some fabrics for Mr. Zhou to make two clothes for his children. It was the time when his children were growing taller, and the winter was over. , don't be careless when wearing it. There is no shortage of fabric in his house anyway, so it doesn't hurt to give some.

At night, the windows were not closed tightly, and the cold wind seeped into Lin Mu's neck, "It's cold, sir, it's cold..." He closed his eyes and muttered in a low voice, and crawled into Gu Shiqing's arms. Gu Shiqing subconsciously hugged Lin Mu tightly. I felt the source of heat, hugged and rubbed it, and then quietly stopped moving. The next morning, Lin Mu opened his eyes in a daze. Oh, today I made an appointment with Zhizhi to pick fruits on the mountain.

He woke up immediately, opened the quilt and got out of bed. A cool breeze made him shiver. Why was he feeling cold? Subconsciously, I picked up the thin jacket at the end of the bed and put it on. I reached out and touched my pants. They were single pants. After being stunned for a while, I went to the closet and took the top pair of trousers with some cotton on them and put them on.

When I opened the door, I felt a chill. Isn't it only October? Lin Mu was stunned. In the past, it was enough to put on his coat and trousers at this time? Why does it seem to be getting colder this morning?

Unable to think of a reason, he went to the stove and picked up a jar of Mr. Zhou's warm water and went to the yard to wash himself.

"Husband," Zhou Fulang looked at Lin Mu's thin figure and couldn't help but tell him, "It's cold today, and it's probably even worse in the mountains. Wear more clothes."

"Yes, I understand." Lin Mu smiled gently.

Looking back, Gu Shiqing came over with his shoes, "Tsk! It's a lot colder today than yesterday."

"Yeah," Lin Mu stared at his bare heels and kicked him, "Go put on your socks. "

The two of them finished breakfast, packed their things and went up the mountain with Zhi Geer. Gu Shiqing was worried about the cold forest, so he took a robe that was outside and put it in his backpack.

The autumn wind blows, and the leaves in the mountain forest rustle.

Lin Mu and Zhi Geer walked in front, carrying large baskets on their backs, scanning where there was fruit.

"Hey! There! There!" Brother Zhi pointed to Lin Mu, "It should be a sour fruit."

Lin Mu stood up on tiptoes and reached out to pick one. It was a round, yellow fruit that was bigger than an egg, and he tore off the outside. The skin, the shell teeth gently bit, "Hiss! It's sour fruit!"

The two of them let Gu Shiqing and Tang Jiang pull the branches, and picked the plump fruits one by one into the baskets on their backs.

Stop and go, and when we descend the mountain in the evening, we have gained a lot. One person picked half a basket of sour fruits, dug up a whole basket of sweet roots, and also picked a lot of plump wild vegetables such as bitter tea and gray green vegetables.

After returning home with a smile on his face, Lin Mu put down his backpack and motioned to Gu Shiqing to put all these things into the space without worrying about how to store them. This was why he even dug so many sweet roots with confidence.

For several days, the four of them were busy going up and down the mountain. Tang Jiang accompanied Zhi Ge'er because he didn't need to walk escorts these days, and Lin Mu simply wanted to stock up on things for the winter.

He felt that this year's autumn was colder than previous years, and he had a vague feeling of bad premonition. Just as I was thinking about it, the village actually announced the harvest of autumn grain.

"Harvesting autumn grain?" Lin Mu was surprised. In previous years, wasn't harvesting done in mid-November? Why is it half a month early this year?

Although I was doubtful, I had no choice but to queue up.

The first thing Gu Shiqing looked at was the government servant he had talked to last year. He turned around and took some meat buns and tried to get close to him.

Lin Mu paid the tax and stood waiting for him.

"What do you say?" Seeing Gu Shiqing saying goodbye to the yamen servant, Lin Mu stepped forward and asked.

The two of them walked back slowly. Gu Shiqing looked a little grim, "He said that the county magistrate was worried that it would be cold and snowy in winter, and it would be inconvenient to delay, so he wanted to collect it early."

The work of harvesting autumn grain can indeed take a long time. With so many surrounding villages, half a month and a month is not a long time. However, even if there is some snow in previous years, it will melt in a few days, so it is not a delay. .

Why are you in such a hurry this time?

Unless... Lin Mu thinks carefully, unless the county magistrate thinks there will be heavy snow this winter! Only in this way can the autumn grain harvest be delayed.

"You are right. I'm afraid the county magistrate doesn't know where he got the news." Gu Shiqing nodded. There is no weather forecast here, but it should not be underestimated. What if someone can calculate it?

"Ah?" Lin Mu then realized that he had spoken out what was in his heart, "Ms. sir, do you think so too?"

"Yes!" Gu Shiqing nodded, "I don't think this Magistrate Qian is a fool. It's really possible."

"Let's make some preparations," Lin Mu said worriedly, "I'll make some thick clothes when I get back."

"Don't be nervous," Gu Shiqing stretched out his hand to smooth his frown. What we have is enough. If we can't cope with the cold winter, I don't believe there is anyone in the whole village who can."

After saying this, the two went back and checked again. Needless to say, they ate well. You don't have to worry about being vegetarian; there are kangs in the side rooms on both sides, so I slept warmly last winter and didn't feel cold at all. The kitchen room is on the same wall as the side room. There is a charcoal pot burning in the room and the kitchen room is also warm. In addition, the kitchen room already has a stove for burning fire. As long as there is firewood, you can keep warm. The other side room is adjacent to the bathroom and toilet. Last winter, we used charcoal pots to burn hot water for bathing. Plus, the walls were warm and it didn't feel too cold. There were charcoal pots placed in the corners and under the table in the main room.

Then, that's all that's left. Gu Shiqing looked at the empty yard and fell into deep thought.

Judging from the worst-case scenario, if it is cold, it will definitely be cold in the inner courtyard. If Brother Xiaole wants to play, or they want to kill pigs and sheep, there will be no shelter.

How about...

Gu Shiqing walked out of the main room and walked all the way to the door of the inner courtyard. It's such a long journey, why not build a shed?

He walked back and forth a few more times, took a measuring tape and measured it for a long time, and the idea gradually took shape.

He pulled the forest tree and pointed to him, "Just from here to here, use wood to build a shelf. This high will be enough. Cover it with some straw to block the wind. It can be easily dismantled next spring."

"How about it?" "

I think it's good." Lin Mu smiled brightly and whispered into his ear, "You can also put the water tank in.

Then I'll chop wood with Zhang Hanzi ." "What can I do? "

Lin Mu is not someone who relies on his husband for everything.

"Hmm... are you going to collect some straw?"

Every year's straw in the village is piled into straw piles. Many families use it to make fires. They don't need to pay for it, and they don't require as much effort as firewood. They are very popular. This time we need a lot of straw, and I'm afraid I have to give some money to get it back.

"Okay!" Lin Mu agreed and went.

Gu Shiqing went to the outer courtyard to find Zhang Hanzi and asked him to hand over the livestock to Zhou Xiaozi in advance and help him build a wooden frame.

Zhang Hanzi readily agreed without asking why.

On the other side, Lin Mu took advantage of the fact that many people in the village were still queuing up to hand over food. He followed up and asked a few families who were friendly with him, and decided on the matter. He just waited for the wooden frame to be set up to transport the straw and spread it on.

The top plan was planned, but there was no straw around. Lin Mu planned to weave straw curtains and sew curtains if the weather got cold. So he took a donkey cart and brought a cart full of straw, and sat in the yard to weave the straw curtains. , Gu Shiqing and Zhang Hanzi were splitting wood at the other end.

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Chapter 83 Burning Charcoal

Gu Shiqing and Zhang Hanzi were quick with their hands and feet, and Gu Shiqing dragged the wood directly from the space. However, it took two days to chop the square wooden bars of the same size and length. This morning, Gu Shiqing I went to invite Tang Jiang, and the three men built a wooden shed together.

Brother Zhi also followed, "Mumu, what are you doing at home?" He looked at the piles of wood in the yard and couldn't help but ask.

Lin Mu gathered up his clothes and handed him a bowl of sweet water boiled with sweet roots cut into pieces, "My husband is afraid of the cold in winter, so he plans to build a wooden shed to block the wind."

Brother Zhi frowned lightly, "It's cold. It's cold. It's only coldest for a few months. Just stay indoors."

Lin Mu shook his head, "I'm afraid it won't be good this year."

"What's the point?" My son is in high spirits.

Lin Mu whispered softly, "Those who harvest autumn grain in the county say they are afraid of heavy rain and snow. It is half a month earlier than in previous years. My husband and I are a little worried."

"Mumu, did you listen to what those government officials said? "

My husband will go and find out. It won't be wrong."

"Then it will rain and snow a lot this year," Zhi Geer murmured. "It rains so much in the summer. It won't snow again in the winter." "Oh! No !

" Brother Zhi jumped up, "Mumu! I'm a little scared too!"

Lin Mu quickly reassured him and pulled him to the side. He sat down and said, "Let me ask you, does your family have enough food to eat?"

"Of course this is enough. Not to mention three years or two years, there is nothing to say for half a year. You know that our family can make a lot of money and pay taxes directly every year. You need to pay money, but you don't have to pay for it with food."

"Then let me ask you, do you have enough thick clothes? Have you stocked up on firewood?"

"I do have thick clothes," Zhi Geer said with an embarrassed smile. ..."

This means that there is no shortage of fabrics at home, but they are not cut into clothes!

Lin Mu glanced at him lightly and nodded his forehead, "I say you should do it. Even if it is a warm winter this year, you still need to prepare a few changes. Your family is not the one who can't afford to wear them."

"It's settled. Bring the materials to my house in the afternoon, and there will be a sewing machine for you to use."

"Yeah!" Brother Zhi nodded again and again, "There is also firewood. Tang Jiang will go to the mountain to chop it when he is home."

"That's right," Lin Mu teased with a smile, "Can your Tangjiang family be without your firewood? But I still want to go up the mountain to cut some more. My family already has enough, but this wooden shed uses some." "

Okay . Okay, if you go up the mountain and ask us to join you

, Lin Mu suddenly remembered something.

"It's the one you praised last year for being comfortable. Last year you said you would let Xianggong teach Tang Jiang this year. As soon as the flood interrupted it in the summer, I forgot about it."

"I forgot too!" Zhi Ge'er said quickly, "Yes, yes, yes. !" He pointed at Gu Shiqing and Tang Jiang who were busy in the courtyard, "After we finish building the kang, we will let you teach Tang Jiang! After finishing the kang, we will go up the mountain to chop wood!"

He looked very anxious, and the forest trees screamed. He laughed out loud, "You're not afraid of tiring Tang Jiang!"

"What's the point!" Zhi Ge'er shook his head, "How can a man do anything if he doesn't take care of his family? Let me tell you, Mumu! A man who doesn't work is not a good man! Regardless, The men in my family are not good men!"

"Your family name is Gu."

"Ha!" Lin Mu was so funny, "Don't laugh at me! How many men do you know? Did you learn it? "

Zhizhi didn't dare to talk to those boys when he was a child. Where did he get these principles? Could it be that he got them from Tang Jiang after he got married?

Gu Shiqing didn't know that in Zhi Ge'er's heart, he could only get the evaluation of "barely". He was also talking to Tang Jiang about the bed-kang, and he also made an appointment to help their family with the bed-kang after the wooden shed was built. There were two kangs, and he also thought about helping Zhang Hanzi and Zhou Fulang, the heads of the family, to also make kangs for the two empty rooms in the backyard. If the weather was really too cold, he would let them move into the backyard. The outer courtyard is still too open, and it's probably even colder.

"Okay!" Gu Shiqing got down from the top log and looked at the empty wooden frame in front of him. Below, Mumu had woven straw curtains and hung them around to block the wind.

The three men worked hard all day long, sweating profusely, to put up the strong wooden frame. Fortunately, Mr. Zhou knew that they had worked hard to stew the fat elbow today.

The next day, Lin Mu made an appointment with Gu Shiqing to go to Zhi Ge'er's house. There was not much time, and he did not let Tang Jiang bother to find materials. He transported the remaining materials in the space by donkey cart.

Zhi Ge'er's home also has a layout of one room on two sides. Both side rooms have a Kang, so he and Tang Jiang will be responsible for one, and Tang Jiang will watch his actions first and then do it himself.

The four people moved the green bricks from the donkey cart to the ground piece by piece. Gu Shiqing went to the wall near the kitchen to take a measuring tape and measured the size. The green bricks were pasted on the wall and the ground one by one.

In the yard, the trees were mixing water and yellow mud. To lay a layer of blue bricks, a layer of mud was required. Brother Zhi took two small wooden buckets and filled them with a bucket of mud each for the two of them.

The surroundings of the kang were set up, and Gu Shiqing sprinkled it with stones, broken pottery shards, sand, etc., and then covered it with blue bricks and stones. The top layer was thickly plastered with mud in two layers. Tang Jiang followed and looked at him. Focus, follow the same pattern, and the two kangs will be ready.

Not caring about rest, the four of them returned to Lin Mu's house. Tang Jiang was not very skilled yet, but the advantage was that his hands and feet were nimble, not much slower than Gu Shiqing. Brother Zhi also learned a little from the side and followed him to help.

After another day of busy work, the kang was coiled up, but the two of them could not straighten their waists. I have been bending down constantly throughout the day, but I am so exhausted!

Gu Shiqing lay on the bed and screamed "Ouch, ouch". Lin Mu took out the medicinal oil from the cabinet. Seeing him like this, he was so angry that he poured some medicinal oil into the palm of his hand and poured it on his waist. Wipe it and rub it vigorously, "Let you show off! I told you to take a rest this afternoon, but you still don't listen! You're better now!"

When looking after him, Qing grinned and tried to escape from his hands, but Lin Mu said sternly: "No. Move! I won't care if you move again! "

How fierce!" It hurts! Thinking this in his heart, Gu Shiqing really didn't dare to move, and just waited for Lin Mu to rub his stiff muscles.

"Husband," after a while, Gu Shiqing turned around and looked at Lin Mu aggrievedly, "you don't love me anymore."

Lin Mu glanced at him.

"It's not that I don't listen to you~ We were there in the afternoon. How could I take a break if Tang Jiang didn't take a break? I'd be laughed at~"

"What are you two arguing about?!" Lin Mu laughed angrily and didn't want to pay attention to the two of them. The man had boring thoughts and rubbed his hands fiercely and refused to relax. Gu Shiqing felt sore, painful and spicy. Seeing Lin Mu's cold face but not daring to make a sound, he silently swallowed his screams in his stomach.

The four of them had planned to go up the mountain together on the second day. Unexpectedly, Tang Jiang did not come early in the morning. Only Zhi Geer ran over and said angrily: "I was tired yesterday, so I insisted on not saying anything. I still want to come today." , I might put him on the bed to rest. Mumu, let's not go today."

Lin Mu couldn't laugh or cry, "I was planning to talk to you about this, too." He stretched out his hand to support him. On his forehead, he looked like he didn't want to talk any more.

"Oh! Zhizhi! You go first into the main room! Shi Qing still wants to go, so I'll go see him first." Lin Mu said, walking quickly back to the side room, he saw Gu Shiqing sitting on the edge of the bed, supporting his waist. , stretched his feet to reach the shoes.

"Get on the bed!" Lin Mu stepped forward and moved Gu Shiqing's legs onto the bed, and covered him tightly with the quilt.

"Hey? Mumu, what are you doing?" Gu Shiqing was still leaning on the bed and trying to sit up.

"I'm not going! Tang Jiang is also tired and has to rest at home."

"Oh~ What else do I think! He's not better than me~" Gu Shiqing looked happy and lay leisurely on the bed. Shouting to get out of bed.

"I really don't know what you two are fighting about!" Lin Mu put his hands on his hips and had nothing to say, so he shook his head and went out.

The two men were lying on the bed to rest, and Lin Mu gave instructions to Man Zhang about reinforcing the cowshed and sheepfold.

Brother Zhi brought fabrics and borrowed a sewing machine to cut clothes. As for Lin Mu, he moved a wooden stool and sat next to him to weave a straw curtain. Brother Nian and Brother Xiao Le stayed with them obediently. They chatted with each other from time to time, and the two days flew by.

Gu Shiqing and Tang Jiang are in full swing again.

"Are you really okay?" Lin Mu asked Gu Shiqing again. They made an appointment to go up the mountain to chop wood tomorrow. How about your husband's body? You should rest now, right?

"Of course!! Mumu! How can you doubt me!"

"Okay, okay!" Lin Mu stopped asking.

After more than a month, the four of them came to this Xishan Mountain where they had lived for several months.

"Let's get started." Lin Mu interrupted everyone's thoughts.

It seems to be getting colder these days. Lin Mu wore a thin jacket and a robe outside. In the howling autumn wind, he didn't feel hot at all! He thought it would be better to hurry up as the straw curtains hadn't been woven yet!

Everyone had already cooperated in the task of chopping wood. When we went down the mountain in the evening, piles of wood were piled on the dirt.

"Mr. sir? Shall I move first?"

"Goodbye first." Gu Shiqing waved his hand, and he suddenly thought of an idea.

They spent a lot of effort transporting the wood down the mountain last time. Just now while he was chopping, he was calculating in his mind how many pieces of firewood he would need to burn the charcoal basin at home for a day. He suddenly thought that the wood would take up space and be difficult to transport, so it would be better to build a kiln on the mountain. Burn it into charcoal?

As soon as he thought of this, he quickly signaled Lin Mu not to act yet and explained Charcoal to everyone in detail. He only knew that the method had not been implemented in practice. Should he maintain the status quo or take some risks?

"Mr. sir, is charcoal the same as coal at home?"

"No, it's not as good as coal, but it's cheaper than just burning wood."

"Then do it!" Brother Zhi was the first to speak. Why hide something new? With?

"Ms. sir, I also agree with burning charcoal!"

"Okay!" Gu Shiqing smiled and nodded.

"Then let's go down the mountain first. I'll go back and think about it in the evening!"

After dinner in the evening, Gu Shiqing went back to the house, lit a candle, spread the paper, chewed the end of the pen, and began to think about it. He would write and draw on the paper from time to time, and sometimes wrinkle it. He frowned deeply and sometimes smiled in his eyes.

Lin Mu sat quietly by the bed and waited to sew a little hat for brother Xiao Le without disturbing him. It wasn't

until Gu Shiqing folded the paper on the table and put it into the pocket of the robe he was wearing outside that he stepped forward and said, "Have you thought about it?"

"Not bad!" Gu Shiqing nodded and would go up the mountain to try it out tomorrow. try!

The author has something to say:

Waist... Gong with a bad waist...

Don't laugh at him...

Chapter 84 Done

Early the next morning, Lin Mu packed up big white soft steamed buns, meat pie filled with meat fillings and other dry food, and went up the mountain with Gu Shiqing.

The husband said that he had to try that method today to see if it would work, but he didn't know how long he would stay on the mountain. Lin Mu thought as he rummaged through and found two thick quilts, he might be staying on the mountain tonight, but he couldn't be careless!

When they arrived at the mountain, before Zhi Geer and the others came, Lin Mu tied the horse to a nearby tree and put everything neatly in the carriage.

"Ms. sir, what do you want to do?"

Gu Shiqing took out the paper from his pocket, read it carefully, and made a decision in his heart.

"Mumu, before they come, let's separate the wet wood that we chopped yesterday."

To burn charcoal, you need to use wet wood. Normally, you don't care if the trees are wet or dry, and you take them all back to the yard in one go. When splitting, the wet ones are taken out to dry. This is a more particular family. People in the village don't care about dry or wet firewood, straw or wheat straw, as long as they have something to burn.

"Okay!" Lin Mu agreed and took action together with Gu Shiqing. The two squatted down and carried the wet wood to the bottom of the big tree on the other side.

When the wet wood was piled into a small pile, Zhi Geer and Tang Jiang also came.

"Mumu! Mumu! You are all busy now!" Zhi Ge'er, with a smile on his face, pulled Tang Jiang, "Let's come too!"

Gu Shiqing stepped forward, "I forgot to mention it yesterday, use wet water for burning charcoal. "Firewood, Mumu and I just picked out the wet wood. Tang Jiang, I'll try to build an earthen kiln later, and you can chop some more wet wood?"

"Okay!" Tang Jiang agreed.

"It doesn't matter what size it is, as long as it doesn't exceed this size." Gu Shiqing took a wooden branch and pressed it on the ground to make a circle.

After Gu Shiqing finished speaking, he turned around. Zhi Geer refused, "What about me? Is there anyone who can help?"

"Zhi Zhi, please join me in splitting these wet wood into different sizes." Lin Mu answered.

On the way here, Xianggong had already briefly talked about how to burn charcoal. It was actually not difficult, just put the wet wood in an airtight earthen kiln and burn it for a while until the wood turned into black pieces. However, the husband said that he was not sure about the time and the size of the firewood, so Lin Mu thought that he should split the firewood into different sizes and burn them together.

"Okay, okay! I'm with you!" Zhi Geer took Lin Mu's hand and the two of them went to the tree.

Gu Shiqing turned around and walked far up the mountain for five minutes, when he happened to see a small piece of flat land. It's not big, not as big as the open space outside his house, but it's enough to make a small earthen kiln. If the experiment succeeds, he plans to secretly use the space to transport some soil back at night and build ten or eight of these in the yard. burn!

He first used a wooden branch to draw a circle on the ground that was almost as big as a square table at home. He stretched his feet up and stamped the soil flat and firm. Then, he dug a hole the size of a wooden basin in the ground next to it, poured half yellow mud and half black mud into it, poured some water in and stirred it vigorously with a long wooden branch.

When he was done stirring things up, he poured some bricks out of the space and put them aside. He went to the nearby forest to pick up some dead branches and leaves. When he came back with a handful of dead branches, Lin Mu and Zhi Geer also followed him. The sign has come.

Lin Mu was carrying a large basket on his back, and his left and right hands were holding a large wooden basket. Gu Shiqing quickly put down the things in his hands and took the wooden basket carried by Lin Mu.

"Mumu, didn't you tell me that I would move? You're not tired, right?"

"Mr., it's okay, it's not heavy." Facing Gu Shiqing's concern, Lin Mu responded with a smile.

Before he got married, he would go up the mountain to cut firewood alone. My husband was too careful!

Thinking this way, Lin Mu still felt warm in his heart.

"Okay, then stay and watch me build the kiln?" Gu Shiqing said, taking everything in their hands and putting them aside.

He carried the bricks to the circle, "You try to pile the firewood as neatly as possible in the circle, and I will put the bricks in a circle outside."

Lin Mu nodded, and Zhi Geer brought the big wooden basket, and they split it. There were three sizes of firewood, the smallest one was about the size of a palm, the longest one was as long as an arm, and one was half an arm long. The longest one was piled at the bottom first, and the smaller ones were piled on top. After a while, it became a sharp pile. A small pile of firewood, with some dead branches mixed in the middle.

Lin Mu's side was ready, and Gu Shiqing was almost done too. He first painted a layer of soft mud on the circle he drew, and then laid a layer of green bricks on top. Then, like building a wall, he laid a layer on top. Mud, one layer of blue bricks, a total of three layers of blue bricks, but the mud in the middle is much thicker than the one used to build walls. After all, the cost of blue bricks here is not small. If we really build ten or eight clay kilns, Real bricks are too expensive.

There are small holes left on both sides of the bottom and east, and the same is true on the top. The outside is painted with a layer of soft mud.

"Bah bang bang." Gu Shiqing patted the muddy water on his hands, "It's set up, and you can start burning."

As he said that, Gu Shiqing used a wooden branch to take the fire from the fire beside it and lit it. The wooden branches were thrown into the earth kiln, and after a while, wisps of black smoke came out.

"Really? When will it be healed?" Lin Mu held his breath and looked carefully, until the black smoke came out, he happily asked Gu Shiqing, he felt that this earthen kiln was not difficult, he would be able to do it after just one look. , you can help your husband next time!

"I don't know, I have to give it a try. This kiln is not big. I plan to open it tonight and have a look." He planned to open the kiln again after twelve hours and try again.

As he said that, Gu Shiqing lay down on the ground and saw the firelight inside through the small hole. He took a broken brick and stuck it into the small hole. The same was true for the top one. He also brushed a layer of you on the outside of the hole to ensure There will be no air leakage in the gaps between the bricks.

"It's all over now," Gu Shiqing smiled and rubbed Lin Mu's with his dirty hands, "Mumu, are you ready? Ask me if there is anything else you don't know."

Lin Mu was not annoyed, but held his hand . Gu Shiqing's clay hands said, "I understand! Sir! Let me do it next time!" His tone was full of joy.

"Okay!" Gu Shiqing's eyes were also full of smiles.

The kiln was finally set up, and the three of them went to meet Tang Jiang and chop wood together.

In the evening, Lin Mu asked Zhi Ge'er and the others to go down the mountain first. They could just stay for the night. Zhi Ge'er refused, and he was eagerly looking forward to it. Now he was itching to go down.

Anyway, the two of them used a donkey cart to carry the unused dry wood down.

"Mumu!" Gu Shiqing roughly estimated the time, and when it was almost time, he and Lin Mu got out of the carriage and went to the Tuyao together. Unexpectedly, the bright torch reflected Zhi Geer's happy face.

"You're back again?" Lin Mu was surprised. He watched helplessly as Brother Zhi and Tang Jiang went back!

"That's right!" Brother Zhi chuckled, "Why am I missing?"

"Okay." Lin Mu was speechless.

"When will it open?"

"Almost." Gu Shiqing rubbed his hands, looked at Tang Jiang's expectant eyes, and decided to open the kiln now.

He stretched out his hand and put it against the outside of the earthen kiln, it was still warm.

Lin Mu and Zhi Geer held up torches to give him light. He squatted down, touched the marked hole, and gently used a hammer to knock out the last broken brick. A stream of heat filled the cold air. Coming to the shop at night, Gu Shiqing stretched out his hand to explore, thinking that it must be ready?

He reached out and knocked out a circle of bricks around the small hole. He had marked these bricks when he was building them. After knocking them out, they could be installed again next time. It was recycled, which saved time, effort and money.

When these bricks are knocked, the holes will become larger.

"Have a look, okay?" Brother Zhi asked anxiously.

"No, be careful of burning." Tang Jiang reminded Gu Shiqing.

Of course, Gu Shiqing would not forget this. He picked up the wooden branch that he had already grasped and stretched it into the hole to pull it.

Why! Enough!

Gu Shiqing felt even more excited and pulled out all the things inside at one go. He looked at it with a torch above his head and saw a pile of black lumps!

"Is this charcoal?"

"Yes!" Gu Shiqing nodded and pulled out a piece with a wooden branch. He reached out carefully and touched it. The temperature dropped, so he took it in his hand and twisted it carefully a few times. Black powder fell on it. On hand.

"That's it! It's more resistant to burning than wood!"

"Zhizhi, would you like to take some back and try?" Lin Mu stretched out his hand and pushed the pile of black lumps toward Zhi Ge'er.

"Okay!" Brother Zhi didn't refuse. He went up the mountain at night just for this reason. He reached out and put the black lumps into the basket on Tang Jiang's back.

"If it's useful, we'll burn it at home too!"

"Yeah!" Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing took the rest away.

In the next few days, the young couple Lin Mu and Zhi Geer were very busy.

As a result of the first charcoal burning, the palm-sized piece of wood was completely burned in six hours, while the other two were slightly worse. After two more attempts, the longest one took twelve hours. So, after the forest was settled, the wood was split into these two types and burned in two kilns respectively.

Each of the two families on the mountain built five earthen kilns. Lin Mu's family had a large yard, and Gu Shiqing also wanted to build a few in the outer yard. The two of them debated where to put it for a while, and finally Lin Mu decided to put it on the land where chickens and ducks were raised.

Their family had a lot of wood stored, and it would take some time to slowly burn it in the earthen kiln. Lin Mu thought that the chickens and ducks were small, and there was a warm air around the kiln. Wouldn't it be just right for the chickens and ducks to stick together and keep warm? Moreover, chickens and ducks are also weak, so they will not be damaged by a kick from the kiln. If it were replaced by a cow, he would be really worried!

In the meantime, everyone in the village had handed in their autumn grains one by one, and Liu Bufan and the others had been informed of the theft. Maybe, as Wu Laoer had planned, he, the head of Shangxi Village, could be given a gift next spring. The word "good" is there!

For this reason, Wu Laoer was always cheerful these days when he went to have dinner with people in the village who were getting married or having babies.

Of course, some people who had been stolen from before could not stand it. They listened to what Wu Laoer said last time. Liu Bufan and the other three have been honest these days, so it is not easy to settle old scores again.

Of course, the Lin Mu family also went to have a feast. The men were busy on the mountain. Lin Mu and Zhi Geer went hand in hand with some small gifts. They sat for a while and ate something, then came back and did not stay for a long time.

Looking coldly at some young men gathered around Wu Laoer to flatter him, Liu Bufan was still among them. Wu Laoer didn't want to see him at all. He smiled and drank a bowl of wine in return of the two brothers. Lin Mu felt a sudden thought, What does it mean that the village chief is working with Liu Bufan and the others?

What happened before is still before our eyes!

Everyone in the village who had eyes saw it, but because of the majesty of the village chief, he didn't say anything. He still went back and forth like this, and he was afraid of chilling people's hearts!

Sure enough, when I turned around and looked around, I saw several villagers staring at that area with anger in their eyes, probably because they couldn't bear to see Wu Laoer giving Liu Bufan and the others face like this.

Brother Zhi also muttered a few words. Lin Mu shook his head and signaled him to stop talking. They couldn't care about other people's dealings if they had any opinions.

"Let's go." There are still things at home.

The author has something to say:

Chapter 85 Cold

"Hiss...it's cold, cold!" Gu Shiqing trotted back from the West Mountain, rubbed his hands and entered the side room. A stream of heated pavilion came in. Lin Mu quickly reached out to cover his cold hands, his big eyes were full of worry, " You're not freezing! You refused to wear a pair of cotton gloves."

Gu Shiqing laughed dryly. He just thought of putting his hands in his pockets. Who knew that the cold wind outside was blowing through the gaps in his clothes.

"No!" Lin Mu saw how he was shrinking, "It's better to get on

the kang to keep warm." As he said that, he quickly reached out and took off the big cotton-padded jacket Gu Shiqing was wearing. Gu Shiqing was stunned, and he was already warming himself up. Under the covers.

When it was just dawn, Gu Shiqing went up the mountain. His family had been burning charcoal these days, and the earthen kiln at home was also working diligently. The two of them planned to stop the five kilns on the mountain. . But you can't just leave it alone. This morning, the last charcoal was fired from the kiln. Gu Shiqing woke up from sleep and went to the bathroom. The cold wind outside blew, and he suddenly woke up.

Come on, don't stop sleeping. He went back to the house and told Lin Mu to go up the mountain in a hurry. He collected the charcoal and smashed the earthen kiln. He picked out the bricks that could still be used and put them into the space.

"Ah..." Gu Shiqing breathed a sigh of relief, finally feeling warm. Looking at Lin Mu's slightly reproachful eyes, he chuckled and suddenly sat up and pulled him. The two of them fell onto the bed, Gu Shiqing. He quickly took off Lin Mu's outer clothes, hugged him and got into the quilt together.

When Lin Mu reacted, he was already tightly hugged by his arms.

"What are you doing? I'm up." Lin Mu pushed his back.

"I don't care, just sleep with me for a while." Gu Shiqing said ruthlessly.

Well, Lin Mu stayed quietly in his arms, and the two of them chatted little words.

"Have everything been put away?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Don't worry." Gu Shiqing closed his eyes and chirped on Lin Mu's face.

Starting from the strong wind, it suddenly became cold outside.

On this November day, I actually put on a big cotton-padded jacket. In the past, at this time in Shangxi Village, there were still people making winter clothes!

This time, many people were caught off guard!

Not long after the autumn grain tax was paid at this time, several lively weddings were held in the village. The poor families were living a frugal life, waiting for the men to go out to work and save money before winter!

It's better now. I have to sew and mend the old clothes. The thick ones can be worn by men who go out to work. Husbands and aunts take turns to pick up firewood and dead branches and leaves to burn back. It doesn't matter who's clothes are, they wear them randomly. . There is nothing we can do. We don't have all the clothes or firewood at home! I thought I would have a few months to slowly pick it up, but who knew that after the wind blew this year, it suddenly became freezing to death!

Life for the Lin Mu family was much easier.

There is no shortage of food, clothes, and firewood. No, I even killed a sheep today!

Now, in addition to Zhang Hanzi taking care of the livestock, Lin Mu or Gu Shiqing also went to check it again in the morning, mainly to see if there were any sluggish ones, and to kill those who were sluggish, so as not to keep them sick and unable to eat. Fortunately, Zhang Hanzi is good at taking care of livestock. It was just a few days ago that the first sheep was not used properly. He said that he couldn't see anything and it didn't look like a common problem. If it didn't work today, Gu Shiqing decided to kill it!

The woolen trees had been shaved, and basins of scalding hot water were placed nearby. In the outer courtyard, Gu Shiqing and Zhang Hanzi worked together to finish the slaughtering in a short time.

The sharp knife slid through the meat and cut off a large piece of lamb leg.

"I'll give this piece to Zhizhi." Lin Mu cut a straw rope, put it through the hole poked in the meat, tied a knot, and held it in his hand.

"It's cold outside, put on your big sweater." Gu Shiqing washed his hands in the basin next to him, then went back to the house and brought a wolfskin robe and tied it carefully for Lin Muzai.

"Yeah!" Lin Mu looked up and looked at Gu Shiqing who was tying his clothes carefully, feeling warm in his heart and raising the corners of his mouth.

With the whistling wind roaring in his ears, Lin Mu walked quietly to Zhi Ge'er's house. There was no one on the road in the village. Only when he passed by the window of someone's house did he seem to hear the low voices in the house.

At this time of year, except for those who work, no one comes out to walk. It's so cold! You can eat less and save some food by staying at home quietly!

"Brother Lin! How can such a big piece of meat be divided into pieces?"

Lin Mu was about to knock on the door when Liu Bufan jumped out of nowhere.

Lin Mu tilted his head, "Bang bang bang!"

"We are all from the same village. Don't be stingy. Your family has meat to eat, and you also help us who are hungry!" Liu Bufan smiled shyly and reached out to come. Enough straw rope.

"What are you dreaming about!"

The door opened, and Zhi Geer pulled Lin Mu in with a cold face and closed the door with a bang.

"Bah!" Liu Bufan spat and left bitterly.

Little brother, why are you dragging me here? If you weren't the boss in your family, I would sooner or later!

Brother Zhi closed the door and hurriedly pulled Lin Mu into the house.

The main hall of their house was warm, and there was a charcoal basin placed under the table at the door. "Mumu, this charcoal is really durable. A few pieces can burn it for a whole day!

" Lin Mu poured a cup of hot water and scooped a few spoons of sugar from the small jar next to it.

Lin Mu took a sip and it was really sweet to his heart.

"Today we killed the sheep, you took the lamb legs and stewed them to warm yourself up."

"Okay! Thank you very much! Mumu! I won't be polite to you anymore. When the weather gets warm, I will go to the county to buy you delicious food. Pastries!" Brother Zhi chuckled.

Mutton was very rare, but Brother Zhi also knew that Lin Mu cared about him and did not refuse.

After the two of them talked, Zhi Geer urged Lin Mu to go back, "I won't keep you anymore. Your husband-in-law must be waiting eagerly at home!"

Gu Shiqing really waited for Lin Mu at home.

He and Zhang Hanzi cut the mutton into pieces and froze it outside. Zhou Fulang picked a few large bones to stew in soup. Gu Shiqing also picked a firm piece of mutton, washed it, cut it into palm-sized pieces, and served it with onions and ginger. , spicy chili and other seasonings, then put the charcoal pot under the square table in the hall to the table. On it was an iron piece turned out of the space, and the mutton pieces were brushed with oil and grilled sizzlingly!

Little Lele twisted his little nose and sniffed the fragrant smell of mutton in the main room. He pouted and asked, "Lele really wants to eat this meat! Can I give Lele a taste?"

He was already so hungry! It can only be good if you eat slices of meat!

Gu Shiqing turned the mutton piece in his hand and looked at the brown color. He knew that the outermost layer was ready to eat! On the table, a shiny knife is also ready.

But, "No." He still shook his head and said to Brother Xiao Le, "Let's wait for your uncle to come back, okay?"

"Okay." Brother Xiao Le agreed, shaking his little feet wearing small cotton shoes, "Give it to uncle first."

As soon as Lin Mu entered the main room, a piece of fragrant roast mutton was stuffed into his mouth. Unknowingly, he was fed several pieces before he had time to speak.

"Don't feed me, sir! You and Lele should eat too!"

Gu Shiqing sliced ​​the mutton with a knife and put it in his mouth, "Well, I'm eating it! Lele, I guess I can't eat anymore." He smiled and motioned to Lin Mu to look.

Brother Xiao Le's mouth was full of oil. There were also a few pieces of mutton from Gu Shiqing in the bowl. He was stroking his belly and frowning at the mutton slices in the bowl. When he saw this, he was full. Still want to eat.

Lin Mu smiled and brought Little Lele's bowl over. Seeing him staring blankly at the bowl, he touched his little head and said patiently, "If Lele can't eat it, can you give it to uncle? Let's bake Lele more next time." Eat some!"

"Okay." Brother Xiaole responded in a low voice.

A family of three, together with Mr. Zhang and Mr. Zhou, they ate mutton and felt warm in their stomachs. Mr. Zhou touched Brother Nian's head and said, "My boss is kind-hearted. Do you know that you have to take good care of the young master?" "

"Um! "Brother Nian nodded obediently. Dad was busy cooking and cleaning. He is small and can't help much. He must stay with little Lele. Moreover, little Lele is also very cute. Thinking of his fleshy little hands, he is so tight. Catching himself and the fragrant chirp on his face, Brother Nian couldn't be more satisfied with his father's arrangement.

Under the gloomy sky, some husbands and aunts in the village were still picking up wild vegetables and mushrooms at the foot of the Western Mountain. An aunt sighed thinking about her little boy. If you work hard, you can fill your stomach with some wild vegetables, but the little boy is just getting stronger, so the chickens he raises are left to lay eggs and cannot be killed. They haven't seen any meat in half a month.

Hey, the old man at home is good at catching fish, but how can he stand being in the river in this cold weather!

Damn it! You can just freeze the river! You can still catch some fish to replenish your health

Chapter 86 Fish Fish

This aunt's complaint turned out to be true!

After the fierce cold wind howled for two days, frost-white ice actually appeared on the river in the village!

"Old man, old man! Hurry! Go and have a look!" The aunt went out early in the cold wind to pick a basket of dry wild vegetables. When she came back, she pushed the old man awake in bed, with an uncontrollable expression of excitement on her face.

"What's up!" Old Man Qian asked while putting on his big cotton-padded jacket.

"The river is freezing!" Aunt Qian opened her eyes wide.

"It's frozen?! ​​Is it thick?" Old Man Qian stared closely and asked, "No, no, I'll go and have a look!" He muttered, and he was looking forward to it. He was a good fish catcher when he was young. , before the fish hid at the bottom of the river and refused to come out, but now the river is frozen and a hole has been dug, and the fat and tender big grass carp can be easily caught. He has to hurry up and take a look, lest he be beaten first!

He was anxious, but he was still wrapped tightly in many clothes. Old man Qian took the fish basket, fishing net and harpoon, etc., and carried them on his back at random and headed outside.

As soon as he went out, the biting cold wind blew out half of the fire in his heart, and the remaining half supported him to walk quickly to the river.

Good guy!

There are already men digging holes on the river!

Since there are people, there is no need to even try whether the river is frozen solid. The first one on the left and right must have stepped on it.

Old man Qian immediately found an ice surface with his things on his back. He was not far away nor close to several other men. This way, he would not argue over the fish that jumped up, and he could call for help if anything happened. He felt small in his heart. Feeling proud, he put down his backpack, wrapped a layer of washed and faded cloth around his hand, and went to grab the axe.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!" The sound of banging on the ice sounded, as did several men around him.

Old man Qian stared at an ice surface and knocked dozens of times. "Crack!" A crack appeared on the smooth ice. He was shocked and continued to work. It took him a full quarter of an hour to carve out a water tank. A slightly smaller circle of jagged holes comes.

Ignoring the shock to his hands, old man Qian quickly opened the fish basket, covered it with a fishing net, and carefully stayed away from the entrance of the hole. He held his breath and patiently stared at the biting river water under the ice.

"Clatter, crash, crash!" The sound of water sounded, and old man Qian stared at the entrance of the cave intently, and a grass carp jumped up in a daze!

He quickly threw out the fishing net, caught the fish in one fell swoop, quickly turned it over and threw it into the fish basket. The biting ice water splashed on his face, but he didn't feel cold and was still smiling.

This big fish can feed you for three days!

Old man Qian felt proud and turned around to see if others had caught such a big fish. This was a big surprise! When did so many people come? There were many young men on the river, and many of them, like him, were chipping away at the ice with axes.

He was trembling in his heart, but he had to hurry up, otherwise they might catch all the fish!

Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing were also among the crowd. When they got up in the morning, as soon as they finished eating the hot lamb soup noodles, Zhi Geer came running over wearing a big cotton-padded jacket.

"Mumu! Mumu! It's freezing on the river!" Brother Zhi's nose turned red from the cold, and he looked really excited, "Let's go catch fish! I just came here and saw that someone had already caught it on the river! "

"What a big, fat grass carp!" He also gestured with his hand.

"Okay!" Lin Mu also cheered up. There was no shortage of food in his family, but who doesn't like fresh fish? They were busy some time ago, and the children were bored at home all day, so they happened to take Brother Xiao Le out to play for a while.

"Let's go!" Lin Mu turned to Brother Lele, "Lele, are you going out to play with your uncle?"

"I want to go!" Brother Xiaole finished sucking the last noodle and drank a big mouthful of mutton soup. , wiped his mouth with the little pocket he wore, and couldn't wait to jump off the stool.

"Lele, come here, don't worry, uncle will wipe your face." Gu Shiqing waved to Brother Xiaole and took out a small dark box from his jacket pocket.

Opening the small box, there was sheep fat inside. Gu Shiqing specially cut the sheep fat, washed it and boiled it into a white paste. He stretched out his fingers to pick a little and put it on Brother Xiaole's tender face. He came closer. You can still smell a faint orange fragrance. This is because Gu Shiqing was afraid of the greasy smell of sheep, so he mixed some orange juice in it.

Brother Xiao Le obediently stood with his mouth pursed while Gu Shiqing wiped his face and hands. Smelling the delicious fragrance, he couldn't help but smile with his eyes narrowed.

"What is this?" Brother Zhi asked closer.

Lin Mu also had some in his hand, so he took out the box in his pocket and showed it to him, "Mr., I made it with mutton fat and added fruit juice. It's better than the lard we used to use, and it also smells better! Later, You have to wipe it on your face and hands when you go out, be careful of the wind blowing it!"

Lin Mu reached out and handed it to Brother Zhi, who took a small piece and spread it on his face and hands, "It really smells good! Even if I don't have suet at home! Next year, I will have to add fruit juice to the lard like you do!"

As they were talking, Gu Shiqing came closer to Lin Mu and leaned up, "Mu Mu, I want to apply it too! "

Brother Zhi chuckled and looked left and right. Lin Mu glanced at Gu Shiqing, but he reached out and dug out a large piece, rubbed it in his hands to warm it, and applied it carefully to him.

Gu Shiqing felt Lin Mu's soft palms brushing across his forehead, bridge of nose, and chin, and felt warm in his heart. He thought to himself, this pure natural oil is really good! It just doesn't have preservatives and can't be stored for a long time, but it doesn't matter, I will make it for Mumu every year in the future! I'll add a different flavor next year!

"Okay!" Lin Mu reached out and tapped Gu Shiqing's forehead. He was so stupid that his eyes closed as he applied it.

"Lele, come here, little uncle will help you get dressed. Don't run around when you go out. You must follow uncle closely."

Gu Shiqing suddenly opened his eyes, looked at Lin Mu's red ears, and grinned.

Lin Mu asked him to wrap a wolfskin coat over his big cotton-padded jacket, and then they took the fish catcher Shi out together. They were afraid that Brother Xiao Le would freeze in the middle of the journey, so they drove the carriage and put a charcoal basin inside.

There were already some people on the river. Lin Mu deliberately chose a place farther away, "Let's dig a hole here?

" strength.

The ice was slippery, and Lin Mu didn't dare to let Brother Xiao Le down to run, so he hugged him. Even so, Brother Xiao Le was already very satisfied watching the lively scene. He pointed his fingers with a smile and saw the cave. A big fish jumped up and said "Wow"!

Brother Zhi stretched out his hand to straighten his little hat, "You're so happy today, aren't you?"

"Yeah!" Brother Xiaole nodded hurriedly, fearing that he would take him back with him if it was too late.

Lin Mu and Zhi Geer were amused by his serious appearance.

"Mumu! Okay!" Gu Shiqing straightened up and said to Lin Mu, "What's going on, are you okay?"

"Okay! You're the best!" Lin Mu looked at the pot that was as big as the big iron pot on the stove at home. At the entrance of the hole, he said helplessly: "It doesn't need to be so big, how tiring it is!"

Gu Shiqing shook his head, he was not tired, he and Tang Jiang exerted their strength, their bodies were warm, and they stretched out their hands to take Brother Xiaole, "I'll hold him while you wait. A fish will probably jump out soon."

Lin Mu stretched out his hand and pinched his arm, "Can you still hold him?" Brother Xiao Le is not light.

"What's the point?" Gu Shiqing held brother Xiaole in his arms. He was a husband, so it was only a small thing to hold a child.

Lin Mu followed him, and Zhi Geer stared at the entrance of the hole closely. After a while, a big grass carp weighing about two kilograms jumped up. Zhi Geer reached out and grabbed the slippery fish and threw it into the fish basket. .

The great fish catching event only lasted for more than an hour. Perhaps there were more and more people catching fish, and the fish under the ice became more and more clever. Lin Mu and the others only caught two large grass carps and six small willow fish, which was no better than the others. Many families had a good harvest.

But everyone is satisfied. There are few flowers to play in winter, and you can also drink fresh fish soup. Isn't it wonderful?

In the evening, in addition to the big grass carp being marinated, the three small squids turned into milky white fish soup.

Brother Xiao Le took a sip. The fish soup was delicious and fragrant. Lin Mu took a sip of the tender fish meat, which was intoxicating.

The villagers also had a lively night. The family gathered around the table and savored the rich fish soup. As the great hero of the family, Mr. Qian was allowed to pour a glass of water to quench his thirst. Taking a sip of water and wine and a sip of fish head, old man Qian smiled and narrowed his eyes, as if the coldness of the winter had gone away.

Three days later.

The cheerful atmosphere in the village gradually died down, and the cold came quietly.

Gu Shiqing was harvesting the new season of rice in the space. He put the rice into the sacks he brought in. He would get up tomorrow and work with Lin Mu to slowly shell the rice with a millstone.

Lin Mu was waiting for him under the covers with his eyes open. Ever since he learned about the space, every time he looked back at Shi Qing's work in the space, Lin Mu had to watch him go in and out to feel relieved, even if it was later than they usually go to bed now. An hour.

"Okay?" Another quarter of an hour later, Gu Shiqing emerged from the space in a flash.

"Well! Go to sleep." Gu Shiqing looked at Lin Mu's drowsy look, kissed his forehead lovingly, held him in his arms skillfully, patted his back gently, and Lin Mu fell into a deep sleep.

Gu Shiqing had just gained strength, but he wasn't very sleepy and was still thinking about it.

We have just harvested so much rice, and there are no machines here. How long will it take Mumu and I to shell it with just our hands? How about not planting rice and planting sweet potatoes next time?

Thoughts are racing.

hiss! Why is it so cold! Gu Shiqing came back to his senses and reached out to touch the kang under his body. The heat had dissipated. It was nothing. They always stopped burning after getting on the kang. They could sleep comfortably with the remaining warmth. Sleep.

Why! Forget it, let's burn it again.

Gu Shiqing sat up resignedly.

As soon as I touched the outside of the bed, my body trembled!

wrong! It's just getting cold!

Gu Shiqing felt excited!

The author has something to say:

Chapter 87 Snow Snow

not good! Isn't there something bad happening with the weather?

Feeling the temperature drop in the house, Gu Shiqing hurriedly put on Lin Mu and his own big cotton-padded jacket, tucked Lin Mu in, quickly opened the large wardrobe and dragged a soft quilt from the top floor to spread it on top.

"Mumu, Mumu," Gu Shiqing gently shook Lin Mu awake, "Is it cold? Is it cold?"

"Yes... it's a bit." Lin Mu was still a little confused, and stretched out one hand from the quilt, "Hiss! "Mr.

sir! It's suddenly so cold!"

"That's right!" Gu Shiqing nodded solemnly. This was not an illusion. The temperature had indeed dropped rapidly, even in the room. He took out two more sets of large cotton-padded jackets and trousers from the big closet, "Mumu, wear more clothes to see Lele. I'll burn the kang here and then go to the outer courtyard to have a look."

"Okay!" Lin Mu nodded, He took the clothes from Gu Shiqing's hand and quickly put them on, stuffed his feet into his cotton shoes and opened the door.

As soon as the door of the house opened, the two of them were shocked to see the scene outside.

The goose-feather heavy snow fell one after another, and the whole world turned into white.

The courtyard walls, courtyards, and corridors are all covered with pure white.

Gu Shiqing swore that he had never seen such heavy snow in his entire life!

"Quick!" He had a bad feeling in his heart.

Lin Mu quickly came to his senses and ran toward the side room through the snow.

Gu Shiqing shivered from the cold and immediately closed the door, but there was still cold wind seeping in through the cracks.

He first burned the kang, then took out a basket of charcoal from the space and placed it at the door. There was no charcoal basin in the room. He walked through the snow to get two charcoal basins from the main room and placed one in the center of the room. One leaned against the kang head and lit the fire. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw faint red sparks in the black coals.

"Mr. sir! Mr. sir!" Lin Mu opened the door with a frightened look on his face. He held a big cotton-padded jacket in his arms and held brother Xiao Le. Brother Xiao Le closed his eyes and hummed softly, "Cold...uncle...ok... " It's cold..."

"Get on the bed and get in bed!" Gu Shiqing immediately reached out and tucked Brother Xiao Le into the quilt, then pushed Lin Mu, "You come in and warm yourself up, I'll make some ginger soup!

" He was young and frail, and his face turned pale from the cold. Gu Shiqing frowned. Their house was strong and even had a heated kang. They couldn't handle it. Couldn't other families?

"Ms. sir! Mr. Nian! Brother Nian! Brother Nian is still in the house!" Lin Mu suddenly shouted. He just had no time to carry Brother Xiao Le back, but Brother Nian is still in the house!

"Okay! I'll bring him over right away!" Gu Shiqing turned around and went to the side room over there. Brother Nian was lying on the kang alone, curled up. Gu Shiqing wrapped him in a quilt and carried him to the forest. here.

He turned around and was about to go to the kitchen to make ginger soup, but Lin Mu called him, "Mr. sir! I remember that we didn't finish the last time we cooked it?"

After Lin Mu's reminder, Gu Shiqing also remembered the ginger soup. There are still some in the space! A hot pot of ginger soup was placed directly on the wooden cabinet beside the bed, and he also grabbed a stack of bowls and spoons from the space.

"Mumu! I'll leave the house to you!" After saying that, he opened the door and walked into the snow-filled yard.

Walking quickly through the yard, Gu Shiqing endured the cold wind and woke up Zhou Fulang and Zhang Hanzi. There was no kang in their room, and they were all huddled in the quilts with their eyes closed, shivering. Gu Shiqing ordered them Wear thicker clothes and go directly to the backyard storage room to burn the kang and light the charcoal basin. Don't be stingy with charcoal, it's available in the storage room. For ginger soup or something, you have to slow down and cook it yourself.

Zhang Hanzi's lips were trembling, and he wanted to go see the livestock with Gu Shiqing. Gu Shiqing saw that his face was pale from the cold, so he shook his head and refused.

He checked the cowsheds and sheep pens one by one, and they were all not very good. The animals all looked wilted and lacked energy. The chickens and ducks were good, and they were obediently surrounding the warm earthen kiln. Gu Shiqing reached out to touch them. Call.

After checking several places, there was nothing frozen to death. Gu Shiqing immediately put down the straw curtains around the cowshed and sheepfold. Originally, only the straw curtains were waterproof, but the forest trees were afraid of the cold in the past few days. I was surprised to add another layer of cloth curtain outside, but it came in handy unexpectedly.

Gu Shiqing placed charcoal pots around and in the center of the sheepfold. The charcoal was burning brightly inside. After a while, the sheepfold felt warmer, and restless lambs stretched out their hooves to rub against him. Gu Shiqing knew that this was because the animals had also recovered, so he poured water and added fodder directly from the space. He felt relieved when he watched the little curly sheep pick up a piece of purple grass and chew it slowly. . The same procedure was followed in other livestock dens, except that the fish in the large water tank were frozen along with the water. There was nothing that could be done about it. Gu Shiqing could only mourn for them.

He came out of the house in a hurry and didn't wear a raincoat. An hour later, after walking around for a while, Gu Shiqing realized that the outer layer of his cotton-padded jacket was wet.

Opening the door to the side room, a warm feeling hit my face.

"Ms. sir! Come quickly!" Lin Mu was sitting on the kang wearing a big coat and waving to him. When he came over, he peeled off the outer two layers of the big coat and buried Gu Shiqing, who was still wearing inner clothes, under the quilt. .

Brother Xiao Le's face returned to rosy, he blinked his big eyes energetically, and put his little lotus-like arms around Gu Shiqing's neck, "Uncle Gu, your face is so cold, Lele, come and help you cover it~"

" Lele, don't mess around!" Lin Mu took Brother Xiaole from the quilt to sleep with Brother Nian, "Be obedient, and sleep well with Niannian."

Brother Xiaole sniffed and got in. Brother Nian nuzzled him in his arms, and Brother Nian hugged him, with a trace of sadness hidden in his brows and eyes.

I heard from my husband that it's very cold outside. I wonder how Dad and the others are doing?

But I heard Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing talking about this matter.

"I've set up everything outside, and Mr. Zhang and Mr. Zhou have settled in the two rooms in the backyard."

"The cattle and sheep are all fine. I've lighted the charcoal basin. I have to add charcoal tomorrow morning."

" It's snowing hard outside. I'm afraid we have to clear the snow tomorrow."

Lin Mu hugged Gu Shiqing tightly and nodded gently, "Thank you, sir."

"It's not hard." Just as Qing was about to lower his head and kiss Lin Mu's black hair, he saw Brother Xiao Le and Brother Nian staring at him with big eyes.

Uh... Lele couldn't do anything she wanted to do. Gu Shiqing felt embarrassed inside and said with a tigerish face, "You two go to sleep!" He said to Lin Mu in a soft voice, "Mumu, you should go to sleep too. "

Lin Mu nodded and was about to fall asleep in the warm embrace, "Wait a minute!

Brother Zhi! Brother Zhi and the others!" Brother Nian and Brother Xiaole looked worried again. The kang was not lit. When he went to see Brother Xiao Le in the side room, his face turned pale from the cold. He didn't know whether Zhizhiji remembered to burn the kang.

It's all his fault, why didn't he think of it earlier! It would be nice to go to Zhizhi's house earlier. Lin Mu bit his lips guiltily and sat up from the kang. "No, I have to go and have a look!"

"Mumu!" Gu Shiqing stretched out his hand to stop him, saying that whether he was cold-hearted or cold-blooded, he really didn't want Lin Mu to go to Zhi Geer at this time. In his heart, Mumu and his children were the most important. of.

"Don't worry. They have kangs and charcoal pots for heating just like ours. They have better conditions than many other families in the village. They will be fine, okay?"

Gu Shiqing hugged him and persuaded him for a while. Lin Mu finally nodded and said dullly, "Then I'll get up early tomorrow morning to see Zhizhi."

"Okay, I'll go with you." Gu Shiqing Qing reached out and held him in her arms.

Just as Gu Shiqing thought, Zhi Geer and Tang Jiang were not sad, they were comfortable!

The Lin Mu family stopped burning the kang as soon as they got on it, but Zhi Geer was not like that. It was his first time to burn the kang, and it was still fresh. In the past few days, he put several pieces of charcoal down every day and kept burning until morning. He and Tang Jiang lay in the warm bed. Hugging each other under the quilt, we can sleep until dawn every day!

Little did he know that it had been snowing outside all night, and he was afraid he would be shocked when he woke up in the morning!

Lin Mu had something on his mind this time and slept uneasily. However, he woke up two hours later. As soon as he moved, Gu Shiqing seemed to have noticed something and opened his eyes. His voice was hoarse, "Mu Mu, "Where are you going?"

"Get up and watch Zhi Zhi go. I'll ask Mr. Zhou to come and look after the two brothers. You can also get up and tidy up." As he said that, he put on a thick sweater and a small bed under the trees by the quiet candlelight. He put on his coat and a large cotton-padded jacket and cotton trousers, put Gu Shiqing's clothes on the bedside, and said softly, "I'll put your clothes here."

He went to the backyard, called Mr. Zhou, and gave instructions. For others, Gu Shiqing had already finished washing when the two came back, and even boiled two eggs for Lin Mu to warm his hands.

"Let's go over after eating."

The two quietly took the steamed white flour buns from the space and ate them. They put the eggs in their pockets, put on their raincoats, and opened the door to the outer courtyard.

Chapter 88 frozen

What a great white land, so clean!

Gu Shiqing looked at the snow-covered village outside and sighed in his heart. How is this different from being flooded by huge floods in summer?

Since he came here, he has a close friend and a child, but the years of disaster have not been eradicated.

When the cold wind blows or the snow falls, the life of the villagers may become difficult again.

Lin Mutou was wearing a cotton hat and a scarf around his neck. Only his bright eyes were exposed. He pinched Gu Shiqing's sleeves and pulled them. What was the husband doing when he stopped at the door? Why aren't you leaving yet?

Gu Shiqing felt the cuffs of his sleeves move slightly. He turned around to see Lin Mu looking at him with open eyes and doubts. He nodded affirmatively, grabbed his hand that was shrunk in his sleeves and put it into his pocket. The two of them braved the wind and snow to walk toward Zhiqing. Go to my brother's house.

Brother Zhi was at home looking at the kang below him as if he were looking at a treasure. He wore a small jacket, leaned in Tang Jiang's arms and patted the kang surface proudly, "Mr. Sir! It's a shame that we had a kang, otherwise we would have been there last night. I have to wake up from the cold!"

When it was about to dawn, he put on a coat and got up at night as usual. As soon as he opened the door, the wind blew into the coat. When he went to the latrine, he was freezing cold. It took a long time to warm up.

"I'm afraid it's more than that," Tang Jiang looked solemnly at the charcoal pot burning in the room. When he was out escorting, he once heard an old escort mention that when you go to the mountains to rest in winter, you must keep the fire burning day and night. , otherwise you have to be careful if you fall asleep and you won't wake up because of the cold weather. He just left the house and took a look. He always felt that it was much colder than yesterday. It suddenly became cold overnight. If, if there was no kang under him, he and Zhi Brother...

Tang Jiang can't imagine it.

Seeing Zhi Geer's arrogant little appearance, he thankfully placed a gentle kiss on his forehead.

Brother Zhi suddenly stopped moving and his face turned red.

Tang Jiang chuckled lightly, put on his clothes and got off the bed, "I'll go take a look at the stove."

"Huh? Oh!" Zhi Geer responded blankly.

Not long after, the door of the house was pushed open, and a gust of cold wind blew in.

"Zhizhi, who do you think is coming?"

"Mumu!" Zhige was about to come down excitedly, but Lin Mu quickly held him down, "No, it's cold outside, just stay on the kang without putting on any clothes."

After saying that, Lin Mu reached out and took off his robe and hat, and said with a smile: "Zhizhi, I'm relieved that you're okay."

"What can happen to me?" Zhi Ge'er was surprised and smiled again. He pulled Lin Mu to the edge of the kang, "Speaking of which, I have to thank you for this kang. It's a lot colder today. Without this, I would have been woken up by the cold at night!"

"Who wouldn't be?" Lin Mu added with a frown. A hint of sadness, "You don't know, Lele didn't burn the kang. He was so cold that his face turned pale last night, but it was heart-wrenching. I held him in my room and warmed him on the kang for two whole hours, and drank a lot. A bowl of hot ginger soup will help!"

"That's it!" Brother Zhi covered his mouth with his hand.

"No, I'm still scared when I think about it now!"

"So Lele is fine now?" Zhi Ge'er nervously grabbed Lin Mu's hand.

"It looks like before, but I don't dare to let him come out with me. He's still in the house."

"Yes, yes! Don't let him come out to cool off." Zhi Geer agreed.

Lin Mu took a bowl of warm water handed over by Gu Shiqing and took a sip, "Be careful. If it's inconvenient outside, I won't come to see you every day."

The two whispered for a while, and Lin Mu told him Brother, you must pay attention to wearing more clothes, eating well, and don't be stingy with charcoal. If you are short of charcoal, go home to get it. He also has some at home.

In this room, Tang Jiang cupped his fists and thanked Gu Shiqing, "Thank you very much for the kang."

I thought it was just to make life more comfortable, but after this experience, I'm afraid, I'm afraid it can save my life!

After a trip to Zhi Ge'er's house, Lin Mu's mental arithmetic fell into his stomach. Looking at Zhi Zhi's rosy face, he must have not suffered any sins, and Tang Jiang was also reliable.

The two of them braved the wind and snow and returned to the house, both breathing a sigh of relief.

It's cold snow and wind outside, but it's warm inside.

"Eat the pot!" Gu Shiqing slapped his thigh!

This weather is perfect for eating hot pot!

Seeing Lin Mu blinking, he laughed, "I'll prepare it, husband, just wait!"

It's said to be preparations, but in fact, many of them are ready-made, a large yellow-brown copper pot is filled with oily local chicken soup Bubbles bubbled, the copper pot was placed on the charcoal basin, the mutton and pork were sliced ​​into thin pieces directly from the space, and the wild mushrooms and wild vegetables roasted in the summer forest were soaked in water and cut into pieces. What was left on the plate was the sauce. There was definitely not as much sauce here as before, so Gu Shiqing simply used the doenjang that every family in the village ate as a base, adding vinegar, green onions, ginger and chili peppers, etc. Of course Brother Xiaole's bowl is not spicy.

Everything is ready and ready to eat.

Through the lingering white mist, munching on tender meat slices, crispy wild vegetables, juicy wild mushrooms, and dipping them in fragrant sauces, the four people around the table all showed smiles of satisfaction.

Eating a hot pot in winter makes your body and mind feel relaxed all of a sudden.

Of course, Lin Mu, the other people in the backyard of the family, did not forget to bring over several plates of meat and vegetables, as well as the aniseed ingredients prepared by Gu Shiqing, so that they could enjoy it together.

Lin Mu's family spent a few comfortable days in the house. He was afraid that the cotton shoes he wore when going out would be soaked by the snow, so he sewed four pairs of animal skin shoes using the candlelight in the house and the snow light outside. They were different from those in summer. , these are not made of straw rope, but are made of two layers of animal skins wrapped around the cotton shoes they wear. They are warm and not afraid of snow, but they just look a bit thick.

Brother Xiao Le refused to wear the animal skin shoes this time.

"Lele, if you want something nice, wait until it gets warm and uncle will make it for you. If you don't wear this when you go out now, you may freeze your feet!"

"If your tender little fingers fall off from the cold, you won't be able to get them back!" Lin Mu deliberately said with a smile. Face scare him.

Brother Xiaole frowned, pursed his lips and reluctantly responded, "Okay, Lele will just wear it."

The snow fell for three days before it stopped, and the wind also stopped.

As soon as the whistling sound in his ears disappeared, Lin Mu was really not used to it, and he put down the animal skin in his hand in a daze, "Mr. sir, is this outside, has it stopped?"

Gu Shiqing responded and went out to take a look and came back: "Yes.

Lin Mu's face showed joy, "That's great, it would be better if the weather clears up." Gu

Shiqing reached out and touched his head, "Yes, I'll go out and take a look at the earthen kiln."

While he was talking, he went out. Came back again, "Mumu, Aunt Li is knocking on the door, should I ask her to sit in the main room?"

Aunt Li?

"Okay, I'll come." Lin Mu agreed and went to the main room.

Aunt Li was leaning on the chair in the main room with a haggard face. When she saw Lin Mu pitifully said, "Brother Mu, Brother Mu!"

Her eyes were red, and Lin Mu hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Auntie, what happened?"

He and Aunt Li was not very familiar with her, she was from the same village. He had heard from his brother that this aunt was very smart and capable, and she was the one who told the truth at home. What happened now?

Aunt Li covered her eyes with her hands and choked, "Old man, he's gone!"

Huh? Uncle Li?

"He, he died so miserably," Aunt Li couldn't help but whimper as she said that. "That night when it snowed, I hugged my little grandson to sleep with me. In the middle of the night, I woke up from the cold and shivered. Put on your clothes, go to the kitchen to get firewood and light a fire, then turn around and look back, the old man, he's out of breath..."

"He's freezing to death! " "Aunt Li cried loudly.

Lin Mu was shocked, he was freezing to death? !

Seeing Aunt Li's miserable look, Lin Mu also felt sad, "Aunt, my condolences." He poured a cup of sugar water and gave it to Aunt Li, "Warm your hands."

Aunt Li took it, with a dark light flashing in her eyes. , picked up the bowl and drank it in one go.

Putting down the bowl, with a look of sadness on his face again, he said, "Brother Mu, what will happen to the grandson now that the old man is gone? How can I, an old woman, support myself!"

Lin Mu felt confused, " Auntie, sit down, I'll be back soon."

He turned around and left the main room, opening the door to the side room.

"What's wrong?" Gu Shiqing asked.

Lin Mu shook his head, "Uncle Li froze to death that night."

Frozen to death? ! Gu Shiqing was also shocked. At that time, he was only afraid that the child would develop lung disease due to the cold, but he didn't expect that he would really be able to survive it! Then I thought about it. In the past, there were hot weather days where the elderly couldn't bear the heat.

"Then let's go along with the gift, right?"

"Well," Lin Mu nodded, "We are not close to his family, we just follow the village customs, but I can't bear it, and want to double the amount. "

Whatever it is, just say it," Gu Shiqing said with a smile, "We still have this in our family."

Lin Mu went to the kitchen and got a small wooden basket, which contained ten eggs and two kilograms of white flour. To Aunt Li, "Aunt, please give me some thoughts."

Aunt Li took it with eyes shining, took the basket and left.

"Mumu! This snow is terrible! Something big happened in the village!" Brother Zhi entered the main room and wanted to take off his coat.

"No!" Lin Mu pulled him into the side room, "It's warmer here. The charcoal pot has just been lit in the main room."

"Did you just say what happened in the village?" Lin Mu took his clothes and patted him.

"Many people died!" Brother Zhi paled, "Aunt Zhao from the east end of the village, Old Man Li from the west end of the village, and the grandson of Grandpa Zhang's family... I heard that there are more than a dozen people in total. "It's very quiet outside now!"

"More than a dozen?" Lin Mu suddenly stood up, "I know that old man Li in the west of the village froze to death, but what about the others?"

"I heard that some people froze to death inside." Cold and hungry." Brother Zhi shook his head.

"Hey..." Lin Mu also sighed.

The two brothers lowered their heads and remained silent for a while, their hearts heavy.

"Mumu? How do you know that Mr. Li froze to death?" Zhi Geer suddenly remembered and asked.

"Oh, Aunt Li came here just now," Lin Mu explained. "The crying was quite heart-wrenching, so I just left ten eggs and two pounds of white flour with her. It wasn't easy for her either."

"What about you? Did you come like the others in the village? "

Oh my God!" Brother Zhi opened his eyes and shouted.

"I just said why she came faster than me, Mumu! You were deceived!" Zhi Geer snorted.

"Lied?" Lin Mu was stunned.

"That's right!" Brother Zhi nodded seriously, "The village chief said we won't bother this time. We all can't afford it, so how can we hold a banquet?"

"Then Aunt Li..."

"She's afraid. I came here for your gift, so I took it away before you knew it. If you knew your temper, would you come back if you didn't want to eat?"

"Don't believe it!"

Lin Mu looked hesitant, Brother Zhi said. Is your guess true?

Just as he was talking, Mr. Zhou knocked on the door outside, "Husband, there is Mr. Zhang at the door who wants to come in."

The author has something to say:

Chapter 89 Chilling

Mr. Zhang followed Mr. Zhou into the main room. He was wearing thin clothes and huddled up. He looked at Lin Mu and Zhi Geer and cried pitifully.

Lin Mu frowned lightly, and Zhou Fulang led him to sit down. Zhi Ge looked at Lin Mu with a somewhat unbearable look, and opened his mouth to ask a few questions patiently. Zhang Fulang choked and fumbled a few answers, Zuo was just The breadwinner of the family is dead, old and young, young and old. It's freezing outside and there's really no way to survive!

As he spoke, he secretly glanced at Lin Mu's expression.

Lin Mu's heart sank. Is it really what Brother Zhi said?

He couldn't believe it.

Are they just here to catch the autumn breeze?

Are those tears, those cries sincere?

He thought blankly.

On the other side, Mr. Zhang became a little anxious when he saw that Lin Mu had not responded. On the way here, he clearly saw Aunt Li leaving the Lin family with a proud look on her face, carrying a small basket, right? Lin Mu must have given her something good. Why is Lin Mu pretending not to understand now?

He had no choice but to break the story.

Mr. Zhang wiped his tears and turned to look at Lin Mu, "Brother Mu, if there is nothing I can do..."

"Stop talking," Lin Mu suddenly stood up with no expression on his face, "I understand, just sit down for a while. Sit down."

After saying that, he turned around and opened the door and went out.

Why! Why! Brother Zhi seemed to be sitting on the stool calmly, but in fact he was so anxious that he almost jumped up!

Silly Mumu! You won't go get food again! People think you are being taken advantage of! I can't even bear to say a word of borrowing, saying that I just want your things for free! So many people, what if they all heard the news and came to fight against the autumn wind!

Brother Zhi looked left and right, but he didn't want to meet Mr. Zhang's eager eyes, and he didn't want to leave him alone in the room with the charcoal basin still burning! What if he was accidentally taken away? Brother Zhi frowned.

On the other side of the forest, I went to the kitchen. Thinking of Mr. Zhang's three-year-old brother, who smiled timidly every time I met him, I sighed, took five kilograms of white noodles, put them in a small wooden basket, and carried Return to the main room. He handed the small wooden basket to Mr. Zhang, ignored his brother's glance, and said with a slight smile: "Brother Zhang, my condolences. I won't go to other people's homes. I ask you to take good care of them so that they don't come to your door. This It's freezing outside."

Mr. Zhang's attention was attracted by the small wooden basket and he just nodded.

After hearing what Lin Mu said, Brother Zhi also stopped talking.

"Mumu, let me tell you, they came here just because they thought you had a good heart!"

As soon as Mr. Zhang left, Brother Zhi couldn't wait to yell at Lin Mu not to be deceived, and he stupidly handed out things without saying a word.

Lin Mu smiled and took Zhi Ge'er's hand and returned to the test room, "I know, Zhi Zhi, don't worry. How can I take care of so many people on my own? I can't, I know it well."

" Okay." Brother Zhi nodded dullly.

After seeing Brother Zhi off, Lin Mu got on the kang and held Brother Xiaole in his arms, thinking silently, Lele, thank you for being so good. What would my uncle do if something happened to you?

Just as he was thinking about it, Gu Shiqing opened the door and came in. He was wearing a big cotton hat on his head and a scarf stuffed around his neck. Only his nose, which was red from the cold, was exposed.

"Ms. sir!" Lin Mu hurriedly got up and helped him take off his big cotton-padded jacket and stuff, and then put him on the kang.

Gu Shiqing's feet and hands were all red from the cold. Lin Mu held his hand and put it in his arms, frowning, "Mr. sir, how long will it take to sweep the snow? Let me do it tomorrow.

" Shi Qing shook his head, "We have to go in the afternoon. Many people don't have much rice and noodles, so they can't have a big pot of rice at noon. Wu Laoer asked everyone to come back and eat by themselves."

"Okay! Then I'll let Mr. Zhou prepare it and wait for the warm weather ." Let's have lunch when it's warm." Lin Mu said and was about to get off the bed.

"No, I told Mr. Zhou when I came back that you should stay with me for a while." Gu Shiqing reached out and took Lin Mu into his arms.

There was silence for a moment.

In the morning, someone came to notify each family to send men to sweep the snow. Gu Shiqing went out and followed the team with a broom to sweep the thick snow piled on the village road into the field next to it. He worked for more than a day without stopping. It's time, now lying in the comfortable bed, I can't help but feel a little sleepy.

When Lin Mu shook him awake, his eyelids were almost glued together.

What Mr. Zhou made today was chicken noodle soup. The soup surface was shiny with yellow oil, and the chewy noodles were plated in a bowl. Gu Shiqing took a sip, which really made him feel physically and mentally comfortable.

"Ms. sir, how about going to the village in the morning?" The two of them were eating noodles and drinking soup. Lin Mu also wanted to ask about the situation in the village.

"No," Gu Shiqing shook his head, "Many families probably don't have enough rice and noodles to eat, and even the men don't have the strength to look at it."

At this time, the food in the village was given to the men who put in the effort first. Since the men looked at it, They all look a little hungry, and I'm afraid the situation of the wife, children, and children at home is even worse.

"Maybe it's too cold outside, and people inevitably look a little lackluster." Gu Shiqing added.

"Mumu, our family is not short of rice and noodles. Don't worry if you get hungry at home while I'm out." He rubbed Lin Mu's hand and said teasingly, "I feel sorry for your husband if you lose weight due to hunger."

Lin Mu snorted. With a cry, he withdrew his hand, and with a serious face told Gu Shiqing what happened to Brother Zhi and Mr. Zhang after Gu Shiqing left in the morning.

"You don't even say thank you?" Gu Shiqing's face looked a little ugly. It was fine that there were families in the village who were in trouble. He didn't say anything even if they gave him a few kilograms of rice noodles, but he couldn't take their family for granted!

If it was an honest IOU, he would feel that they were somewhat responsible!

Lin Mu was not very happy either, "Ms. sir, I told them not to come, but, but, wouldn't it be too ruthless?"

He refused, but he was still a little uneasy in his heart.

"No, it's not that you are heartless," Gu Shiqing took Lin Mu's hand and looked into his eyes and said seriously, "Mumu, we have a family, but it's not enough to support so many people? There are many people in the village who are short of food. , I went to clear the snow today and saw someone pulling wild vegetables under the snow! "

"Mumu, if you give one, you will get the second. This is not our burden, we cannot afford it."

"Yeah." Lin Mu nodded slowly.

He knew everything his husband said, but he was just afraid that he would not be cruel enough.

However, it is true that he and his husband are just ordinary villagers, and they really cannot bear the burden of rescuing the entire village.

There are Mr. Zhou, Zhang Hanzi and others at home, and there are Zhi Geer and his family, Wang Xi and others outside. It would be good if they can help each other.

Lin Mu looked at Gu Shiqing in front of him, and Brother Xiao Le who had finished eating and was playing on the kang, and smiled softly.

In the afternoon, Gu Shiqing went out again wearing a large cotton-padded jacket and trousers.

Lin Mu checked all the earthen kilns at home. One of the earthen kilns was cracked, and the burning wood inside was piled together wetly. It would definitely not be possible to build a new kiln now. The mud might freeze together before it is evenly mixed. Lin Mu had to gather the broken bricks together and pick out the wet wood to wait for burning in other kilns.

After everything was tidied up here, Lin Mu asked the two children, Xiao Le and Nian, to stay in the house obediently. He put on his big sweater clothes and newly made animal skin shoes. There was hot chicken soup in the earthen pot. Wrapping his old cotton-padded jacket outside, he put these in his arms and stepped on the snow to find Gu Shiqing.

The husband said that he had already swept to the ancestral hall in the middle of the village. As Lin Mu walked, he saw a scattered group of people bending down.

"Ms. sir!" Lin Mu walked over and pulled Gu Shiqing aside, dusted off the snow on his body, and said distressedly: "You are tired, drink some chicken soup to warm yourself up." With that, he opened the arms like a treasure The earthen pot covered by the old cotton jacket is still very hot!

Lin Mu handed the jar to Gu Shiqing in surprise. Gu Shiqing took it and took a big sip, feeling warmth flow into his heart.

Lin Mu smiled slightly, hugged Gu Shiqing's waist, and the two whispered.

Even though Gu Shiqing drank it quickly, the delicious taste quietly spread out, tickling the hungry heart in this cold winter.

"That person named Gu is really lucky." A man curled his lips.

"No, after sweeping the snow for a while, someone kept bringing food."

"It smells so good!" Someone sniffed and said, "It smells like chicken soup."

"How is that possible?!" The person next to him was surprised. , he can hardly open the pot at home, and Gu actually still has chicken soup to drink? !

"My family is rich!" The man next to me said enviously, "Aunt Li took a basket from his house this morning, and she kept it secret from others."

"Really?! Then I will let my family go too tomorrow . Go, Mr. Li!"

"That's right! The old Li's family is so slick that it's easy for us to keep it at home."

"No! I heard that they raise a lot of sheep! Why don't we let him take some of them and share them with us in the village?" A man with a sinister eyebrow rolled his eyes.

Seeing that there was still a man hesitating next to him, he kept encouraging, "His family is considered a big family in our village. What happened to his sheep when such a big thing happened to the village?"

"That's right," a man next to him said, "The worst thing is next year. Qiu Shang gave him a few kilograms of rice and noodles!"

"I'm afraid you can't afford my sheep!" Lin Mu looked at the man who spoke with a frosty look.

He didn't even know that while he was delivering soup, someone was actually thinking about the good sheep at home!

Chapter 90 Secretly

Lin Mu was so angry that his chest couldn't help but rise and fall.

Gu Shiqing hurriedly patted his back, "Mumu, don't be angry for these irrelevant people, it's not worth it."

Lin Mu turned to look at Gu Shiqing's worried eyes, paused in his heart, and his tone gradually became smoother. .

My husband is absolutely right, but you can't get angry because of their greed.

Lin Mu smiled slightly, "I have the final say on my sheep, it's not your turn to worry about it! Instead of thinking about things that aren't yours here, it's better to finish sweeping them early and go look for food!"

It also saves his husband-in-law from being burdened too!

Those four or five tall men were so tall that they didn't dare to say a word when they heard the scolding of Lin Mu, a younger brother who was thinner than them!

It can be seen that they are all evil-minded but not courageous!

Gu Shiqing raised the corner of his mouth contemptuously, "Mumu, let's ignore them. I'll sweep one more section and we'll go back."

He knew in his heart that if he swept another section, he would definitely be worthy of those sneaky people!

The two of them swept the road for about a hundred meters together, and then Gu Shiqing led Lin Mu back home. The men behind him did not dare to say anything and even complained to each other.

"You were scolded in the face by a little brother, but you didn't say a word. Are you still not a man?"

"Hmph! You still have the nerve to criticize me? Do you have the ability? Do you have the ability to shout at him? Look at that Isn't the guy named Gu an easy guy to get along with?"

"Forget about the guy named Gu, I'm just a friend of my brother's husband who works as an escort in the county. I've offended those big and powerful escorts. Can you beat me?"

"You can't beat me, but if someone in our village can't survive and asks for something from his family, the outside world can't help him, right?" The sinister-looking man smiled proudly. When he got up, he might have thought of some good idea.

In the evening, the man said goodbye to them and quietly came to a dilapidated house in the east of the village.

"Brother Liu! Brother Liu!"

"What are you yelling about!" The door opened, and it was Liu Bufan.

"Brother Liu, I have encouraged a few people today, but those two seem to be a tough nut to crack!" He narrowed his eyes and looked troubled.

I had never looked at this little brother in the eyes before, and I didn't expect that he still had a bit of toughness about him.

Liu Bufan sneered, "You tell me! I don't know?"

"Brother Liu, don't be angry. I have an idea. Please give me some advice." The man quickly went up and smoothed Liu Bufan's chest.

"What can I do?"

"I think their house has a lot of good things. If we talk to the village chief about sending some people to live in the house because of the cold weather, then we don't have to get to know the yard thoroughly? Besides, There are only two or three kittens in their house. As soon as we enter such a big yard, we will deal with the few against each other. Once the door is closed, we will keep asking them to bark every day.

"If they know what they are doing, we will take it quietly!" I just need some things to get through this winter, my wife and children are still waiting for dinner! Can you see it today? That big cotton-padded jacket is much thicker than mine! "

You are naughty," Liu Bufan smiled, "Let me think about it, this method will not work for us alone." "

Maybe the village chief will have to put pressure on him!

He has been getting along well with Wu Laoer recently, but I don't know if he will agree to doing this blatantly.

"Hey! Why! Brother Liu, there are still some big families in the village, why did you choose his family? "The man didn't quite understand.

"Why? Liu Bufan nodded at him, "Because their family has the weakest foundation!" "

The man looked suddenly enlightened and walked away.

Liu Bufan turned around and closed the door, his eyes sparkling. It was true that he had the shallowest foundation. Several landowners in the village had large fields a few generations ago. With them, The families in these villages are different. There are more than a dozen servants and maids in the family. The young master in the family is devoted to studying and testing for talents, but he is kind to poor people like them. He doesn't take any airs and doesn't care about the affairs of the village. He also knows the officials in the county. , He didn't have the guts and didn't want to mess with them.

It's just the Gu family. Liu Bufan sneered in his heart. If they hadn't caused trouble last time, how could he have been embarrassed in front of the whole village

this time ? It was impossible to control them with Wu Lao Er's power!

Let's not talk about how Liu Bufan would discuss it with Wu Lao Er. When Lin Mu and Gu Shiqing returned home, Brother

Xiao Le was already tired of being on the kang.

When can I go out to play?

"Well... Lele, it's cold outside, and uncle is afraid that you will get cold. " "Lin Mu was a little reluctant.

"I'll take him out. If he doesn't go anywhere else, just take a few steps on the walkway outside. "Gu Shiqing looked at Brother Xiao Le's expectant eyes and couldn't help but say.

The child has been on the kang for several days, "It's time to do some exercise.

"Okay." Lin Mu gave Brother Nian a big cotton-padded jacket from outside to wear, and Gu Shiqing packed Brother Xiao Le up nicely, and the four of them opened the door together.

The sky was overcast and the corridor was dark.

The trees lit up the candles on both sides, and it was blocked by two layers of curtains. It was still much colder than inside the house.

Brother Xiao Le jumped off Gu Shiqing, grabbed Brother Nian's hand and ran and jumped, curiously touching the ice surface of the frozen water tank. The biting cold made him shrink back immediately. He took off his hands and ran back and forth a few times, and his body became warm.

Lin Mu reached out and touched his back. Fortunately, he didn't sweat. He nodded and agreed with Gu Shiqing to take him to see the lambs he was raising.

The thin, white lamb was huddled next to the haystack and moving lazily, but Brother Xiao Le was very interested. He also wanted to see the chickens and ducks at home. He usually didn't pay much attention to it, but now it became interesting.

After wandering around for half an hour, the four of them returned to the house. Brother Xiaole's face was red, he was excited and hot.

In this case, Lin Mu took off his outer coat, drove Gu Shiqing into the main room, and took a bath together. Brother Xiao Le stood in the big wooden bucket and splashed the water with his hands. Brother Nian, on the other hand, was obedient and coaxed him not to cry while Lin Mu washed his hair.

After taking a bath, nourishing mutton soup was waiting for them. After eating the spicy mutton soup, I was sweating slightly.

They had a good sleep, but the snow fell quietly again under the cover of the night.

This time, it lasted ten days without stopping.

The village became quieter and quieter.

If it weren't for Mr. Zhou, Zhang Hanzi and others at home, Lin Mu almost thought that only the husband and the children were left in the whole village.

Brother Zhi walked over the snow with Tang Jiang on the second day after the snow stopped.

Tang Jiang and Gu Shiqing went out to the main room to talk, while Zhi Geer was on the kang with Lin Mu.

When he took off his hat, he had a fair complexion and rosy cheeks. He looked in high spirits, and it seemed that he was living a good life.

When he opened his mouth, it was with a bit of sadness.

"Mumu, Tang Jiang said he would follow them up the mountain."

"Up the mountain?"

"Yes," Brother Zhi nodded, "life is difficult now. I heard that many people don't have enough firewood and don't have much to eat. When the snow stopped, some men made an appointment to go hunting and felling trees together in the mountains."

"You . If you don't have enough, come and get it from my house!" Lin Mu said generously. It's not easy to walk up the mountain now. If others don't tell him, he will definitely have no problem taking care of Zhi Ge and his wife.

Brother Zhi shook his head, "My family has enough. You burned a lot of charcoal alone, but..." He reached out and tugged at the hair on his outer robe, feeling a little embarrassed. "My mother's family doesn't have enough. I've been borrowing some from my house these days." Go back to Baimian and Chaihuo."

"Tang Jiang is not willing?"

"No, no, no," Zhi Geer waved his hand quickly, "I don't know what to do if he is willing."

"He said he was worried that my mother's family would not have enough money. I want to help go with you, but I..." Brother Zhi frowned.

Oh~ Lin Mu understands, knowing that brother is worried about his parents' family and reluctant to let go of Tang Jiang.

What can be done? Brother Zhi couldn't just watch his mother-in-law's family freeze to death and starve to death, so he had to help. It turned out that it was enough to support the two of them, plus other things... Tang Jiang had already planned to go with him.

Lin Mu could see it clearly, so he advised: "We have gone back and forth so many times up and down the mountain. We can go up with our eyes closed. Don't worry. Tang Jiang is out and about, and it will be safer for him to follow him."

Alas, Brother Zhi sighed. tone.

While Lin Mu and the two were talking about this, Tang Jiang was also talking about this with Gu Shiqing.

When he went up the mountain, he wanted Brother Zhi to stay at Lin Mu's house.

"It stands to reason that he should leave it to his mother's family," Tang Jiang said helplessly, "However, I still trust you two more, and I have to leave it to you."

Tang Jiang was more alert than Brother Zhi, and he was also a bystander. After the summer flood, when he failed to introduce Zhi Geer to the escort agency, he felt that their brothers were a little unhappy. Later, they found a job on their own, and during this period, they came to the house several times to borrow food and firewood. Man, he always felt that something had changed about them, some... were more concerned about money and more concerned about money.

In the past, when he went out as a escort, no one would be reluctant to help with the farming or help Zhi Geer go back to eat. At that time, he knew that Zhi Geer had to rely on his parents' family at home alone, and every time he came back, he would give big and small packages to the Yue family. Zhi Ge'er's mother-in-law's family also welcomes her gifts.

But this time, they only went back to their parents' home once since summer. They were busy at that time, so Zhi Geer didn't take it to heart.

However, he always felt that something was wrong, so after thinking about it, he entrusted him to Lin Mu.

Gu Shiqing didn't care about the reason. He knew that Lin Mu would definitely agree, so he readily agreed and let Tang Jiang go with peace of mind.

On the afternoon of the second day, the two of them packed some things and arrived at Lin Mu's house with two big bundles.

Tang Jiang was going up the mountain early tomorrow morning. Brother Zhi burst into tears and said goodbye after a while before letting Tang Jiang go out.

Lin Mu had packed up for Brother Zhi yesterday and lived in Brother Xiaole's side room. The kang was already very hot. Lin Mu helped Brother Zhi put away the clothes he had brought and pointed at the kang, "You can sleep however you want. You can sleep with Lele, Niannian or me!"

"Then I will. You need to freshen up." Brother Zhi wiped his tears with his hand and returned to his smiling look, "Lele, sleep with me every year, I won't rob you! I'll sleep with you tonight. I'll sleep with you tomorrow morning. You kept the jar of vinegar and kicked me out!"

"What nonsense are

you talking about?" You don't need me to remind you!"

"Zhizhi!" Lin Mu said angrily.

"Okay, okay, no more." Brother Zhi smiled and waved his hand.

Zhi Ge'er's first night at Lin Mu's house passed peacefully.

I thought it would continue like this until Tang Jiang came back, but unexpectedly something went wrong the second night.