Now that the coal has been bought, Zhou Xiang wants to try what it feels like to burn the coal in a pit.

Waste paper, dead leaves, kindling, branches, firewood, broken honeycomb coal, put them in one by one. After a few minutes, the broken honeycomb coal burned red and the kang began to get a little hot. Continue to add broken honeycomb coal. The water in the pot started to boil. Pour it into the thermos and continue to add cold water.

Zhou wanted to surround the red coal blocks with broken honeycomb coal and then seal the stove mouth and close the chimney smoke plate.

Father Zhou sat on the kang when it started to get hot, and now it is even hotter.

"My daughter, this kang is so nice and warm." Father Zhou was reluctant to get off.

"Don't you see how much I spent? The materials alone are over 180. We'll have to burn coal every day and keep the fire going. If the fire goes out, we'll freeze to death. And this is made of cement. Do you want to build a kang too?"

Father Zhou hesitated. Not to mention the cost of materials, he didn't even know how much coal he would burn this winter!

"First we'll see how much coal you burn this winter, and then we'll decide whether to build a kang next year."

Zhou Xiang nodded and wanted to calculate the cost.

Ling Ran also sat on the kang, which was really warm. He saw that the stove was sealed and there was no smoke coming out of the room. The kang should have been built successfully.

"Zhou Xiangxiang, it seems that there is no smoke in this room at the moment, so we still need to put a basin of water next to the kang at night."

Zhou Xiang nodded. Although there was a large water tank in the corner of the west wall, he still had to be careful.

The room became warmer after the big fire just now. The wall between the stove and the kang was built hollow, forming a fire wall, and the temperature in the room rose quickly.

Ling Ran decided to bring his mother to see it, but he didn't care whether she was willing to build it or not.

Ling Ran went home carrying the cloth bag Zhou Xiang had given him. Ling's father and mother, who were cooking in the kitchen, saw the bright smile on their son's face and looked at each other. Was he being forgiven?

"Mom and Dad, I thought about giving you some fruit."

"Oh! Okay, I'll be right out." Ling's father came out to support his son. He had a gloomy face from last night to this morning. Now it's sunny, but the weather can't change.

Seeing the fruits Ling Ran took out one by one, Ling's father was stunned. The apples and pears last time were acceptable, but where did these big peaches come from in such a cold day?

"Where did you get the peaches?"

"She went to the city, found it, and bought it back."

Father Ling looked at his son, who believed everything he thought about. However, it was true that such a little girl didn't buy these peaches, but stole them. I just don't know who is so powerful as to get the fruit in winter.

When the food was ready, Ling's mother came out of the kitchen and was surprised to see Taozi.

"Put it away quickly, otherwise it will freeze if left outside." Ling's mother had a different focus.

Then she found some newspaper, wrapped each piece of fruit in it, and put them in the straw cardboard box that Ling's father had prepared.

"Mom, are you going to check on Xiangxiang's kang this afternoon? It's ready to be heated. We heated it for a while this morning and the room is warm now."

"Okay, let's go take a look after lunch. If it's good, we'll build one at home too." Ling's mother nodded.

"good."

After Ling Ran left, Zhou Xiang quickly cooked with his father, stewing pork and radish, stir-frying cabbage, and making scallion and egg soup.

However, Zhou's mother came back with an angry face.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Xiang asked.

Zhou's mother said angrily, "We all said you got first place by cheating."

Zhou Xiang smiled, "Mom, don't be angry, this must have been done by Zhong Ling. During the exam, she reported me to the teacher for cheating, but the teacher didn't find anything and scolded her.

She actually put a note under my desk to frame me. I caught it early and threw it away. If anyone accuses me of cheating again, just ask them how I got a perfect score. Did I copy someone else's? Definitely not. No one scored higher than me. I turned in my paper early.

Then ask him if he suspects that the teacher and the school missed some questions? See if the person who said that dares to answer.

After hearing this, Zhou's mother's mood immediately brightened up. "Okay, if anyone spreads this rumor again, I'll ask them the same question. If they're not convinced, go to the school and argue with them."

Then he saw the meat on the table and was stunned for a moment, "Who bought the meat?"

Zhou Xiang rushed to answer: "My dad bought it a long time ago."

Zhou's mother felt that the sun had risen from the west today. Usually, Zhou Quan would call his friends to buy meat and fish, even though he hadn't received his salary! He didn't have much money, but buying meat for himself and his mother was the first time he had ever done so.

Seeing his wife's look, Father Zhou said in a rough voice, feeling guilty, "Why? My daughter bought me a watch, so I can't buy her some meat to nourish her?"

As he spoke, he picked up a piece of meat and put it in Zhou Xiang's bowl, "Daughter, eat more, you are too thin."

Zhou Xiang's eyes were red. "Thank you, Dad. Mom, you eat too."

After putting a piece of meat in each of his parents' bowls, Zhou Xiang lowered his head to eat, and at the same time, he tried hard to hold back the tears that were about to overflow from his eyes.

After dinner, Zhou's mother realized that the family had bought a lot of coal, and the temperature in the kitchen had also increased a bit.

When he heard Zhou Xiang say that he had to buy New Year's goods tomorrow, he planned to give money to his daughter, but was stopped by Zhou Xiang.

"Mom, I'll buy the New Year's goods this year. I made a lot of money this time. Besides the things I bought yesterday, I still have a lot left."

Mother Zhou smiled tearfully and nodded, "Okay, my daughter is capable and can earn more money than her parents."

Zhou Xiang raised his head and said, "Of course I am awesome!"

Mother Zhou rubbed her little head.

In the afternoon, after lunch, Zhou Xiang originally planned to go directly to the unit with his mother, but Ling Ran brought Ling's mother with him, so he had to accompany Ling's mother to look after the kang first.

Zhou's mother hurriedly said hello to Ling's mother and went to work.

Ling's mother entered Zhou Xiang's kitchen. Although the house was a little smaller and lower than an ordinary tiled house, it was clean and tidy inside, making it look bright.

To the west is the outer room. In the south corner is an old stove, a small dining table, and a standing cupboard. In the north corner is a large water tank.

The east room was the inner room. Beneath the small window on the south wall was a wooden bed. Beneath the window on the north wall was what was probably the kang (bathbed), which was also attached to the wall at both ends. The partition wall inside the room was probably built later, clearly new bricks, and the other half was still made of reed slabs. The temperature inside was clearly several degrees higher than outside.

Ling Ran pulled his mother to sit on the kang, which was still made of cement with nothing on it.

The warm temperature spread throughout my body, and suddenly, I felt that all the coldness in my body disappeared.

I touched the kang with my hand and it felt warm and comfortable.

"Aunt Ling, this is the sealed temperature. If you don't feel it's hot enough, you can turn it up a bit."

As he said this, he opened the stove and prepared to light the fire.

"No, no, this temperature is just right. I just want to feel it and see if there's any smoke in the room. This kang looks good now."