As soon as the demolition began, all you could hear outside was a whoosh of noise.

Before anyone could react, Zhao Qinghuai had already leaped up from outside, jumped over the newly erected wooden planks, and run into the house.

The others looked at each other, also thinking the house had collapsed, and all ran inside.

Upon entering, one sees Lin Ying standing on the kang (a heated brick bed), while the floor is covered with dark sorghum stalks, dried-out dead rats, and rat droppings.

They instinctively looked up and saw that the roof of their house had been ripped off.

"It's alright, it's alright."

Zhao Qinghuai glanced at Lin Ying, who was wrapped up and only had an innocent look in her eyes, and thought for a moment: "Should we get all of this done?"

Lin Ying nodded.

Zhao Qinghuai went outside and found some tools, and quickly scraped off the roof inside.

After that, they removed everything from the ground.

Only after confirming that Lin Ying was safe did they go back to work.

Lin Ying stuck out her tongue, found a wooden stick, tied her homemade broom to it, and began to thoroughly clean the roof and walls.

After finishing, Lin Ying swept the kang (a heated brick bed) and cleaned out the dust.

The house itself was almost empty of furniture. So, everything was swept out.

Afterwards, Lin Ying lit some incense to ward off plague. Then she lit another stick of incense to repel mosquitoes and rats. Only then did she feel at ease carrying the things inside.

There was no cotton at home, so Lin Ying thought for a moment, then spread a layer of wheat straw on the kang (a heated brick bed), and then put a bed sheet on top. On top of that, she put another quilt sheet. Sure enough, it wasn't prickly anymore.

As for the blankets, all we could do was stuff straw into the sheets.

Lin Ying couldn't help but laugh when she saw the bulging, slightly prickly blanket. But it would only last for one day; she would naturally need to buy some things when she went to the county tomorrow.

Given the current state of Old Zhao's family, they certainly won't be able to leave anytime soon. They still need to get some of the necessary things done.

The people outside all brought their own tools. Soon, the corner of the wall was dug out.

After that, formwork was erected, mud was mixed, and mortar was poured in. The exterior walls were built quite quickly.

To Lin Ying's surprise, they not only fixed the exterior walls, but also rebuilt the outhouse using the relatively intact earthen walls.

Even the outhouse was cleaned.

In any case, it's at least much cleaner now.

Each person gave one dollar, and the five people left happily.

Lin Ying cooked vegetables with hot pot ingredients. After the two ate, Zhao Qinghuai said he had something to do and went out.

Less than half an hour later, Zhao Qinghuai returned with one or two buckets and a bath tub.

Lin Ying looked at him in disbelief: "You, where did you get this?"

Zhao Qinghuai smiled and said, "What Brother Zhang just said is true. There's an old man at the village entrance who's very skilled at carpentry. Every household needs these things. He's too old to do farm work, so the village chief has him do these things so he can support himself."

Zhao Qinghuai pointed to the water vat and said, "Heat all the water in the vat. I'll go fetch some. I'll let you take a good bath today."

Lin Ying smiled happily: "Okay!"

That night, as the two lay on the somewhat uncomfortable kang (a heated brick bed), Zhao Qinghuai felt guilty again: "I've made you suffer."

Lin Ying said, "No, it's quite a unique experience. By the way, your father's illness requires him to take baths in a tub. I was originally thinking about how to get one. Since someone in the village knows how to make one, I'll order one tomorrow."

Zhao Qinghuai nodded: "Okay, I'll go tomorrow. Is there anything else?"

Lin Ying said, "We don't have a washbasin at home, so we need to get one."

"good."

The next morning, the two went to the team to get a certificate, and Zhao Qinghuai borrowed an oxcart from the village and the two went to the county town.

Considering they wouldn't be staying here permanently, the two of them didn't buy a cotton quilt, but instead bought two towel blankets.

Afterwards, they bought plenty of oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and grain. Most importantly, the two found the county pharmacy and bought the medicinal herbs Zhao Daming needed. Lin Ying carried her own medical kit with her; she didn't need to prepare anything else.

Fortunately, they had national food coupons; otherwise, they would have had no way to exchange them for these.

Of course, I didn't forget to buy a pastry.

Back home, Zhao Qinghuai delivered the gifts and the oxcart, and then the two of them went to Xiaxi Village together.

Xiaxi Village appears to be poorer than their village, with many households living in thatched huts.

After making inquiries, the two arrived at the home of Wang Li, Zhao Qinghua's sister-in-law, in Xiaxi Village.

After exchanging pleasantries, greeting the elders in the family, and leaving some pastries, the two left Xiaxi Village.

Back home, Lin Yingcai said, "The child doesn't look like anyone in their family."

Zhao Qinghuai's eyes darkened slightly: "I will investigate this matter thoroughly."