Are you tired, Qin Xiaoxiao?

I'm so tired, I don't even want to talk. Every night after dinner, I lie on the kang (a heated brick bed) and don't want to get up. I even want to take a bath. I can fall asleep instantly.

Qin Xiaoxiao felt that all the work she had done in her life combined was not as tiring as these few days, but the joy of the harvest turned this tiredness into a kind of glory. She could proudly tell the villagers that she, Qin Xiaoxiao, was not useless, and that she could be very capable.

November arrived in the blink of an eye, and the cabbages in the fields would be ready for harvest in another half month. Qin Xiaoxiao didn't have many cabbages in her own plot, but the Qin family had planted quite a few.

Qin Xiaoxiao decided to go to the Qin family's vegetable garden and dig up a few more cabbages to make pickles for winter.

Moreover, her private plot of land can no longer be left uncultivated next year; she can plant it entirely with Chinese cabbage and make more kimchi for the whole family to eat together.

Sunflowers can also be planted around the courtyard wall, and in the fall she will have plenty of sunflowers to harvest, so she won't have to go up the mountain to find them anymore.

To be honest, too much mulberry is quite heavy. Carrying it down from the mountain and back home is not easy. It's more convenient to plant some in the yard.

After more than half a month of eating meat, Qin Xiaoxiao's face finally started to show some flesh, but she was still very thin, all bones when pinched, and she didn't even want to pinch herself when she took a shower.

Qin Xiaoxiao's plan to go to Cat Ear Mountain failed to materialize. Old Madam Qin absolutely refused to allow it, and without the Empress Dowager's permission, Qin Ye dared not take Qin Xiaoxiao up the mountain on his own. Thus, the plan to catch pheasants and rabbits on the mountain was shelved.

Qin Xiaoxiao was unwilling, but seeing the old lady Qin's red eyes from crying, she couldn't say anything about wanting to go up the mountain. Instead, she was chased and beaten by Qin Aiguo.

This time, Grandma Qin didn't help; she just turned her head away, unable to bear watching.

Of course, Qin Aiguo didn't treat Qin Xiaoxiao as badly as he treated Qin Ye. After all, she was his granddaughter, delicate and frail. What if he hurt her?

After being given a mild but firm reprimand, Qin Xiaoxiao behaved herself and never mentioned catching pheasants at Cat's Ear again. There was basically no work to do in the team after autumn, and Qin Xiaoxiao was so bored that she almost farted. So Qin Xiaoxiao started preparing dishes for winter again.

Steam the green beans (kidney beans) in a pot, then dry them in the sun for two to three days before storing them in the freezer. In winter, take them out to make braised pork with green beans, which is very delicious.

Since there's no refrigerator, Qin Xiaoxiao stored all the dried green beans in her space. When it gets cold at night, she can leave a small portion out as decorations, and they won't spoil.

Split the long beans in half, thread them with a needle, and hang them under the eaves to dry in the shade. The long beans dried this way are crisp and green, with a bright color, and taste great even in winter.

Pickled mustard greens are preserved with salt, and then stewed with tofu and fatty meat in winter, making another delicious dish.

In order to have more different kinds of ingredients, Qin Xiaoxiao also asked Qin Ye to build a grill in the yard, where green beans, potatoes and sweet potatoes can be grilled.

Roast the green beans and then soak them. Stew them with braised pork belly. The aroma is so enticing that you'll want to swallow your tongue. If you add some wide rice noodles, the taste is so exquisite that you wouldn't trade it for gold.

After hearing Qin Xiaoxiao's description, Grandma Qin thought that this way of storing green beans was quite good, and she should also make some to eat in the winter.

So the next day, Old Mrs. Qin had Qin Ye bring over a basket of green beans and let Qin Xiaoxiao take care of them herself.

After Qin Xiaoxiao finished preparing the green beans for Grandma Qin, Aunt Liu and Aunt Song came over, also wanting Qin Xiaoxiao to roast some green beans for them.

Since they were all members of the gossip squad, essentially family, Qin Xiaoxiao naturally wouldn't refuse and spent two days getting everything sorted out for them.

Then, within two days, everyone in Qinjiagou knew that green beans could be stored this way, so they all came to Qin Xiaoxiao to learn how.

Qin Xiaoxiao didn't hold back at all; she taught anyone who came, from how to set up the oven to controlling the heat when roasting green beans. She didn't share anything and taught everything clearly.

As a result, Qin Xiaoxiao received another wave of praise in the village, who lauded her to the skies. So embarrassed, Qin Xiaoxiao didn't dare leave her house for three days and even refused to eat at the Qin family's house.

In mid-November, the Chinese cabbage harvest began. Some of it was sent to the purchasing station to supply the county town, while the rest was distributed to the villagers.

Each family received at least a thousand kilograms of cabbage, which seems like a lot, but in reality, a thousand kilograms of cabbage is only a little over a hundred heads, not even enough to go through the trouble of pickling sauerkraut.

Like the Qin family, Qin Feng had many work points, Qin Ye was capable, and Qin Aiguo and Ma Dahua were not idle either. In addition to Qin Xiaoxiao's own work, they received nearly 3,000 catties of Chinese cabbage this time. Apart from keeping a small portion to store in the cellar for winter, the rest would be pickled into sauerkraut for storage.

Qin Xiaoxiao asked Grandma Qin for twenty cabbages to make kimchi. When Ma Dahua found out, she came to help. The next day, the Qin family ate kimchi made by Ma Dahua herself.

The salty, spicy, and savory kimchi was an instant hit with the whole family, and Mrs. Qin immediately decided to make another fifty heads to pickle.

Although it requires a lot of seasonings, it tastes delicious and goes well with rice. It's also easy to pickle and can be eaten in two days. Considering all these advantages, fresh kimchi is naturally more popular.

Thanks to Grandma Qin's tireless efforts in spreading the word, the whole village learned that cabbage could be eaten in this way, and the next day, the educated youth compound once again welcomed many villagers.

Qin Xiaoxiao rolled up her sleeves and became a teacher again, personally demonstrating how to make kimchi and providing a whole head of kimchi for everyone to taste.

Qin Xiaoxiao's selfless dedication once again earned the villagers' recognition and praise, and their eyes were full of love when they looked at her.

Qin Xiaoxiao, overwhelmed by the praise and recognition, went to the warehouse to borrow a shovel and went up the mountain to dig some traps to catch rabbits and pheasants.

"Hey? Isn't this Teacher Qin, the most popular teacher in our village? What brings you up the mountain today? Aren't you going to teach us how to make kimchi?"

Qin Xiaoxiao was working hard when she heard teasing laughter coming from behind her.

Qin Xiaoxiao turned around and saw an old acquaintance.

Qin Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes inelegantly. "Why did you come up the mountain too? It's a miracle that someone as lazy as you could even make it up here!"

Su Lu walked up to Qin Xiaoxiao with a smile, "I just love creating miracles, so what? You don't like it?"

Qin Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes. "You're coughing and you're acting like you're wheezing."

Su Lu didn't care about being scolded. Over the years, the villagers had talked about him a lot, and he was used to it. Moreover, he didn't feel any malice from Qin Xiaoxiao; on the contrary, she mostly teased him.

Su Lu laughed so hard her eyes disappeared. "Did I say something wrong? It's just going up a mountain, why are you saying this to me?"

Yes, I rarely work in the fields, but I also...

Although I can't earn work points, I can earn money; all the grain my family grows comes from selling.

Qin Xiaoxiao was stunned by Su Lu's shameless remarks.

Damn it! Could you be any more shameless?

I feel sorry for Grandpa Su for having a son like you.

These days, it's not easy enough to have enough to eat, and you still have the nerve to say that you've sold all your family's grain.

I just want to ask, if you've sold all your grain, what will you eat and drink? Will you starve?