"Old Xu, if you like it, eat more."
Seeing the tears welling up in Xu Huayun's eyes, Lu Fangfang didn't know what to say. This person was really having a very hard time.
Seeing that the water in the teacup was gone, she took it inside and poured a new cup of water.
"Whoa~"
"Comrade Xiao Lu? Comrade Xiao Lu?"
Hearing the noise outside, Lu Fangfang quickly went out.
Uncle Guo sat in the carriage, turned around and pointed, saying, "Comrade Lu, I was afraid there wouldn't be enough wheat straw, so I brought you some more."
"Uncle Guo, that's enough, that's enough. There's enough clay too. Thank you so much for your help, Lao Xu."
Lu Fangfang took the sack, went inside to dump the wheat straw, and then went out with Uncle Guo to dump the soil off the cart.
With four cartloads of clay, plus the two carts pushed by Old Xu, there's enough to build not only a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove), but also a small house.
After unloading the soil, Uncle Guo drove the cart and asked with a smile, "Comrade Lu, where's Old Xu?"
"He's in the yard, Uncle Guo, why don't you come inside and rest?"
As Lu Fangfang was speaking, Xu Huayun came out of the yard with a steamed bun in her hand.
The two large steamed buns were now reduced to just a little bit in his hand.
Uncle Guo saw him and joked, "Hey, Old Xu, you're eating now? Hurry up and come on over, let's go back."
Xu Huayun felt a little embarrassed. He swallowed the last bit of steamed bun and then climbed onto the carriage.
"Hey? Uncle Guo, Comrade Xu, wait for me a moment."
Lu Fangfang quickly ran into the house.
She found a clean cloth and placed the steamed bun on it.
She tied her hands together and quickly ran to the courtyard gate.
Inside the carriage, Uncle Guo and Old Xu were chatting when they saw Lu Fangfang run out, and they both looked over.
"Uncle Guo, Comrade Xu, I made some steamed buns. Take them back and try my cooking."
"No, no, this is too valuable, we can't accept it."
"Yes, Comrade Lu, I am an old rightist, someone who needs to be reformed, I..."
Lu Fangfang waved her hand, took the bundle, and forcefully pushed it into Old Xu's hands. Then she slapped the horse's rump hard, "Smack!"
"Whoa whoa."
With a neigh, the big blue horse pulled the carriage and started running.
"Uncle Guo, once I've finished making the adobe bricks, I'll return the wooden mold to you."
Lu Fangfang stood at the door and waved to Uncle Guo and Old Xu.
"No rush, take your time using it."
Uncle Guo turned around and called out, and the carriage quickly drove out of the family compound.
On the way back, Uncle Guo sat in the carriage and looked back at Xu Huayun. "Old Xu, what do you think of Comrade Lu?"
"She is a good person."
Uncle Guo nodded. Most people would be grateful if Old You didn't mind, let alone give him food.
"Old Xu, look at that other person's yard, aren't you envious?"
Xu Huayun shook his head; he didn't want to think about anything right now.
"Old Xu, when the opportunity arises, I'll find you a wife. A home only feels complete with a woman."
"Brother Guo, don't joke around, I am an old rightist."
"So what if someone is a rightist? Does that mean they have to be a bachelor for life? Humph, even rightists need to eat, drink, and relieve themselves..."
...
When they returned to the sixth team, Uncle Guo drove his horse-drawn carriage and stopped at the entrance of the stable.
Xu Huayun jumped off the carriage.
Seeing that Lao Xu was about to unpack the bundle, Uncle Guo waved his hand and pushed it back, saying, "Take these steamed buns back and keep them for yourself. I have some at home."
"Brother Guo, this is from Comrade Lu, for both of us. How can I accept it for myself?"
Xu Huayun shook his head. He hurriedly untied the bundle and took out half a steamed bun.
He put the rest on the carriage, then turned and strode quickly into the stone courtyard.
"Hey? Old Xu? Old Xu?"
"Hey, you bookworm."
Uncle Guo shook his head, somewhat helplessly. He cracked his whip and drove the carriage into the village.
...
Family compound.
The freshly steamed buns are soft and delicious.
Lu Fangfang didn't install the full set for Lao Xu and Uncle Guo; she kept two for herself.
She ate lunch with some pickled vegetables.
After drinking some hot water and resting for a while, she went outside.
The water in the small mound had all seeped into the soil.
Lu Fangfang picked up a shovel, shoveled in the wheat straw, and then started mixing it with mud.
When she felt the mixture was almost right, she shoveled up a handful of mud and carried it back to the yard.
She looked up at the west wall, went inside, found an empty bottle, and smashed it in the yard.
Standing on a chair, Lu Fangfang used clay to stick broken glass into the wall.
Lu Fangfang is a woman of her word; if she says she'll break a glass, she breaks it.
"It shouldn't rain heavily here, right?"
Looking at the broken glass on the yellow mud, she felt uneasy. Taking a shovel, she went out and shoveled up more yellow mud, piling it all on the top of the wall.
After inserting the broken glass, Lu Fangfang felt a sense of security. From now on, Yang Yufeng would no longer be able to spy on her home at will.
Next, she prepared to make adobe bricks.
Zhuang Mingcheng's mother will be arriving in a few days, so she needs to prepare in advance.
Holding the wooden mold, Lu Fangfang studied it for a while. She had seen others make adobe bricks in her previous life, but this was the first time she had done it herself.
The mold for making adobe bricks is very simple. It consists of two rectangular wooden frames with a piece of wood in the middle, which divides the frame into two parts. This way, two adobe bricks can be made at once.
The mold has ropes tied to both ends, so when you pull it, the mold can be lifted up, leaving only the mud bricks on the ground.
Once the adobe bricks have dried, they can be used to build walls.
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