This winter has been an extraordinary one for many people.

After the start of winter, small groups of enemies would launch surprise attacks every now and then. Yanmen Pass was impregnable, but these attacks came from other border lines. Border patrol soldiers often encountered these attacking enemies. War always brings casualties, and Zhang Zhaoci suddenly became very busy.

After intensive construction, the underground granary and city walls were quickly completed. Even the city gates on the north and south sides were reinforced. Moreover, Wei Lang assigned more people to patrol. No one expected that a group of Northern Di people would cross the border and sneak into the interior of Daliang.

Many years later, Xu Zhi still remembers those terrifying nights.

After the people of Zhangjiazhuang learned about the benefits of greenhouses, they actually built one at the village head's house. However, they needed to consult Xu Di on how to manage it. The village head brought people to personally invite Xu Di, and Xu Di went to the village with the village head without saying a word.

Xu Rao was on duty at the yamen. Yanmen Pass was fine, but news had already spread from neighboring units that many places had been attacked by small groups of grassland troops, and there were reportedly casualties on all sides. Yanmen Pass was under martial law, and Hexi was naturally under martial law as well. The south and north gates were closed, and guards were stationed on the city gates. The east gate was usually open, but entering and leaving the city required the seal of the village head. The whole county was on high alert, and even Xu Zhi, who rarely went out because of the cold weather, could feel the tense atmosphere in the air.

On the Winter Solstice, the family made dumplings, but Xu Di didn't have time to come back. Zhang Zhaoci sent a lot to Xu Rao and Xu Rao's colleagues. The dumplings were filled with cabbage, pork, and scallions, and they tasted very good. Xu Zhi thought they were the best dumplings she had ever eaten.

After eating dumplings, Qingmiao and Qingsui lit the kang (heated brick bed) in every room of the house. Xu Zhi lay on the warm kang and watched Granny Lu sew a cotton-padded jacket for her under the oil lamp. The cold wind outside made the bare branches of the trees whistle and make a heart-palpitating sound, but Xu Zhi felt very at ease and safe in such a warm house.

Looking at the smiling young girl lying in bed, Granny Lu said with a smile, "Ninth Miss, it's getting late, hurry up and lie down to sleep."

Xu Zhi said, "Granny, I'm not sleepy right now. Shall we talk for a bit?"

Looking at the little girl's serious expression, Granny Lu smiled and asked, "What does Ninth Miss want to say to Granny Lu?"

Xu Zhi asked, "Grandma, how did you meet my great-grandmother?"

Granny Lu thought for a moment and said, "Oh dear, that's quite a long story. Back then, I wasn't much older than you. I was working in the Empress's palace, which is now the Empress Dowager's palace. Because I hadn't learned the rules well, I was scolded by my aunt. I was sad, so I went to the small garden to cry. Your great-grandmother happened to be going to the palace to pay her respects. She saw me crying and offered a few words of comfort. That's how we became acquainted."

Hearing what Granny Lu said, Xu Zhi felt very sorry for her and said, "Granny, you have to leave your parents and family to work in the palace at such a young age. It must be hard for you."

Granny Lu was surprised that Xu Zhi's focus was on this. Her heart softened, and looking into Xu Zhi's bright eyes, she felt as if her heart was soaking in a pool of clear blue spring water. A gentle breeze rippled through her heart, making her feel comfortable and pleasing to the eye.

The old woman bit off the end of the thread and said, "I always manage to meet good people and have an easy life. I was thinking that when I got old, I would have no one to rely on, but I came to Hexi with our family. I feel so comforted. Ninth Miss, I will teach you all my skills and make you a noble lady that the whole capital envies, okay?"

After listening, Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Granny, I think as long as we can live peacefully, that's enough. Other people's envy is just empty talk."

Upon hearing this, Granny Lu was quite surprised and said, "How could Ninth Miss think like that? If we learn the rules well, we will have a better image in the future. When we go out to meet guests, they will say that Ninth Miss of the Yongning Marquis's Mansion is a well-mannered person."

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhi covered her mouth and laughed, her little body swaying back and forth. Granny Lu adored Xu Zhi's girlish behavior. Just as she was about to say something more, she heard a sound coming from afar, like someone vigorously hitting an iron basin with an iron spoon. Moreover, the sound seemed to be coming from the county government office.

Xu Rao had repeatedly instructed that if they heard such a noise, it meant that someone was coming to launch a sneak attack, and everyone should hide quickly and wait for the next notification. Granny Lu knew that if they heard a whistle after they had hidden, it meant that the conditions for evacuation had been met, and they should quickly go to the designated location and wait for the unified evacuation.

Before Granny Lu could even get dressed, Qingmiao pushed open the door and said anxiously, "Granny, someone's attacking! Let's hide right away!"

After winter set in, the Xu family conducted several drills with their members, all so that they could make the right choices in time to save their lives should danger strike.

There was a cellar in the backyard of the mansion, originally used for storing things. It was a relatively secluded place, which Xu Di dug later in the backyard. He simply used that cellar as a temporary hiding place. Later, inspired by Xu Rao and Wei Lang's underground granary, Xu Di had people dig tunnels in the cellar. There wasn't just one tunnel, but several. Each courtyard had a room with a tunnel leading to the cellar. Moreover, there was an exit of one of the tunnels in a courtyard outside the county government office. Xu Di had already bought that courtyard. Since it concerned his life and safety, Xu Di couldn't afford to take any chances.

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