"Dinner is ready, come wash your hands and eat!" Xu Han called out to Grandpa Zhao and Mu'er.

"I'm here," Grandpa Zhao replied.

When Mu'er heard her mother calling, she ran over excitedly.

"Mu'er, Mother made you salt and pepper shrimp today. Go wash your hands quickly, or you can't eat it," Xu Han said to Mu'er.

"Okay, wash your hands, let's eat shrimp!" Mu'er quickly ran to Lu Chuan to help her wash her hands.

It's just that I'm wearing too many thick winter clothes, making it inconvenient to wash my hands. Otherwise, I might accidentally get my clothes wet, and my mother would scold me again.

After washing her hands, Mu'er obediently climbed into her little high chair and waited for her mother to feed her.

"Everyone, come and try today's new dishes and see if they're good," Xu Han said.

"So delicious~ The shrimp is so delicious." Mu'er was the most enthusiastic, saying indistinctly.

"It's quite nice, I like it too," Grandpa Zhao said.

"From now on, I'll cook different dishes for you every day," Xu Han said happily, seeing that everyone enjoyed the food.

"Hahaha, that's great! I can look forward to eating here from now on. It's a pity that the Taoist priest won't be able to eat here for a while," Grandpa Zhao said.

"Haha, if the Taoist priest heard this, you two would definitely start arguing again," Lu Chuan laughed.

“Life is so boring without the Taoist priest here. I really miss him,” Xu Han said.

“Speaking of which, the Taoist priest has been gone for two or three months now, he should be back soon,” Lu Chuan replied.

"It's still early. This trip will take at least six months, if not a year," Grandpa Zhao replied while eating.

Seeing this, everyone fell silent, somewhat worried about the Taoist priest's current condition.

However, good news always comes so suddenly. The group had just finished lunch when they received a letter from the Taoist priest.

Lu Chuan eagerly opened the letter and read it aloud to everyone.

The letter was roughly a New Year's greeting to everyone, and it also recounted some of his experiences in Beijing.

However, he missed the others the most and told them that he would come back as soon as he finished dealing with things there.

He also specifically told them that they could go out without worry in the near future, as the situation outside was good.

The group was delighted after reading the letter. With spring just around the corner, they could finally relax and enjoy their time in the mountains.

Then Grandpa Zhao helped write a reply to the Taoist priest and also sent him a portrait.

To my delight, I received another letter from Yunhua in the afternoon.

The letter explained that Yunhua was helping to find fruit seedlings and various flowers, which would be transported over once collected. It instructed the group to prepare planting sites at home.

Xu Han was overjoyed to see Yunhua's letter; she could finally begin to take action.

And so, the group spent the first day of the new year filled with anticipation for the future.

The next morning, it was the second day of the Lunar New Year, a day when people should be visiting relatives, but none of them had any relatives to visit.

There was still a lot of work to be done in the field, so Lu Chuan and Xu Han began to busy themselves with the many matters concerning the wasteland.

Grandpa Zhao was left at home to help take care of the children and to give Mu'er her early education.

After breakfast, Lu Chuan and Xu Han went to the hillside next to their house.

The two planned to cut down the big trees on the hillside today, then drag them home to the open space next to the house to dry them, and then use them as firewood.

Because this hillside is intended for growing fruit trees and nuts, all the surrounding large trees need to be cut down to prevent them from blocking the sunlight.

It has to be said that this place is a really good location for planting fruit trees. The hillside, like the house, faces south and is sunny, so the sunlight must be great, which is suitable for the growth of fruit trees. The key point is that it is also very close to home.

There are too many big trees on the hillside. It's really impossible to clear them all in one day. Not only do we have to cut down the trees, but we also need to dig out the roots of the old trees to replant fruit trees. Otherwise, the roots will grow too deep and sprout again later.

The two of them spent the whole day working on the hillside. At noon, Grandpa Zhao prepared lunch and called them home for a meal.

After finishing her meal, she immediately returned to the fight, and by the end of the day, Xu Han was completely exhausted.

Having not worked for a long time, it's really hard to get used to doing heavy work all at once.

However, compared to Lu Chuan, Xu Han didn't do much work, after all, there was still Ze'er at home.

Ze'er is still breastfeeding, so Xu Han has to go home to feed her from time to time. She runs back and forth like this and doesn't do much work.

However, if you don't work for a long time, you will inevitably experience back pain the next morning.

Xu Han massaged her shoulders as she walked out of the room.

When they came out, Grandpa Zhao saw them and said, "Xiao Han, you should stay home and take care of the children today. It's too much trouble for you to run back and forth like this. I'd rather do it!"

"I'm fine, Grandpa Zhao. It's just that I haven't done it for a long time, so I'm a little out of practice," Xu Han explained.

"How about this, you do the work in the morning while I stay home and teach Mu'er, and I'll do the work in the afternoon. That way, you can also tidy up the house in the afternoon," Grandpa Zhao suggested.

Xu Han thought about it and decided that it was a good idea, so she nodded in agreement. "Then I'll have to trouble Grandpa Zhao."

"Oh, it's nothing serious, why are you saying it's troublesome?" Grandpa Zhao said.

After breakfast, Lu Chuan and Xu Han went to the hillside to continue cutting down trees.

As before, they first cut down the big tree, then trimmed it and transported it home.

"Let's cut down the trees for the next few days, and then start digging up the roots. While we're digging up the roots, we can also clear away the bushes and weeds around them," Lu Chuan said as he chopped down the trees.

“Yes, this is for planting fruit trees, so it doesn’t need to be perfectly level. We can do it slowly when we have time later. It’s impossible to do it properly in a short time,” Xu Han agreed.

"Yes, the fruit trees have been planted and are being prepared gradually. Spring plowing is more important, and we can't delay it."

“We can start preparing for seedling cultivation once the temperature rises in a few days. The weather is still cold now, so even if we plant them, they won’t sprout,” Xu Han replied.

“You’re better at this than I am, so just do what you think is best. Just tell me what you need me to do,” Lu Chuan said, plopping down on the ground after he was tired from chopping down trees.

Seeing this, Xu Han quickly took out a bamboo tube and handed it to Lu Chuan, saying, "Drink some water and rest first. Don't work too hard, your body can't take it."

Then he continued, "We don't necessarily have to plant them all this year. If we don't have enough space later, we'll plant one side first and then transplant them next year."

Besides, Yunhua might not be able to bring back many fruit trees. Our health is the most important thing; let's take it slow, there's no rush.

"Don't worry, I know," Lu Chuan said quickly when he saw that Xu Han was worried about him.

(My darlings, the famine is over! Let's look forward to the wonderful life ahead! Feel free to tag me if you have any opinions or thoughts. Love you all, muah!)