Time flies, and half a month has passed in the blink of an eye. Winter has officially arrived in the mountains.
The air felt like it was carrying cold knives; the wind stung my face when it blew.
The children, unlike in previous days, were no longer running wild all over the mountains and fields; they were all quietly warming themselves by the fire inside the house.
They all gathered in the main room of Old Liu's house.
His house was the largest ever built, so naturally the fireplace table was also the largest.
The group sat around the fire table in the main room, but it didn't feel crowded. Once the door was closed, the inside and outside seemed like two different worlds.
A cold wind was blowing outside, but it was warm and cozy inside.
Little Nuan'er was warming herself by the fire inside the house, wearing a fluffy rabbit hat, which made her cheeks rosy and made her look incredibly cute.
Wang Fengqin found it amusing and simply reached out to take the hat off her. "Aren't you hot? I can see you're sweating."
Little Nuan'er just shook her head and said in her childish voice, "Little Nuan'er isn't hot, Little Nuan'er likes this hat."
As he spoke, he took the hat from Wang Fengqin's hand, but instead of putting it on his head, he just held it in his hand and played with it.
The fluffy hat even had two tiny rabbit ears sewn on it, and with those black eyes, it looked extremely cute.
Daya, Xiaoye, and Tiedan each have one. Daya and Xiaonuan'er both have rabbit head hats, while the two boys have tiger head hats.
The three of them had taken it down early because they found it too hot, and it was now on the table.
Tie Dan was fast asleep in his cradle, and the lively atmosphere in the room did not wake him at all.
Zhang Li's injuries have healed considerably recently, and he has become quite familiar with everyone. Right now, he's enthusiastically recounting his past experiences catching petty thieves at the yamen.
He was quite eloquent and spoke with great emotion, which captivated everyone.
The men, in particular, all had longing expressions on their faces, and even Chen Tiezhu listened with great interest.
Sure enough, men are inherently drawn to things like saving lives, healing the wounded, and punishing evil.
"You don't know, that little thief actually stole from Master Zhang's house. If Brother Zhao and I hadn't passed by outside the mansion and noticed something was wrong, I would have kicked him and he would have run away with the silver."
Gou Sheng asked with sparkling eyes, "And then?"
Zhang Li tilted his head back triumphantly, took the water that Wang Xiaohei had so eagerly offered, drank it all in one gulp, and laughed loudly: "Of course, he was later arrested by me and Brother Zhao."
You wouldn't believe it, that petty thief was a notorious master thief, not only incredibly skilled in martial arts but also exceptionally cunning. Even the authorities couldn't catch him, yet Brother Zhao and I managed to capture him. Isn't that amazing!
Gou Sheng and Wang Xiaohei quickly flattered Zhang Li, saying how impressive he was, which only satisfied Zhang Li's vanity.
After taking a sip of water, he began to talk about other cases.
While listening to stories, snacks are naturally indispensable. There are plenty of walnuts, chestnuts, roasted soybeans, and melon seeds on the table.
Jiang Yimian took the melon seeds out of her spatial storage. She only said that she had found them as medicinal herbs on the mountain before and didn't expect them to be edible. No one doubted her, and after learning how to eat them, everyone ate a handful.
In the past, at this time of year, they would mostly eat fried soybeans. Although they tasted very good, they were easy to cause bloating, so they would just eat a few to satisfy their cravings.
After eating the melon seeds, they found them very fragrant, especially sweet, and they couldn't stop eating them.
Combined with Zhang Li's story, everyone burst into laughter.
Seeing everyone's excitement, Old Liu curled his lip. This time of day used to be when he was telling stories, but now it was Zhang Li's turn.
Well, we should give young people a chance. The affairs of the government are indeed more interesting than his stories.
While straining to listen to Zhang Li speak, he silently took a sip of the hot tea in his hand. The bitter, sour taste made him frown.
"Yimian, what kind of tea is this? Why is it both sour and bitter?"
Jiang Yimian simply smiled and said, "Chrysanthemum and hawthorn tea can clear heat and aid digestion."
Winter weather is dry and can easily cause internal heat. People are also reluctant to move around because of the cold outside, and they often snack on things. Sitting for long periods of time can be fine for adults, but children are prone to indigestion.
She specially brewed some for everyone to drink.
Upon hearing that it was good for one's health, Old Liu immediately stopped complaining and listened to the story while adding firewood to the stove hole of the fire table.
Such leisurely days were something I had never experienced before.
Although there isn't much work to do in winter, the biting wind only makes people dizzy. At most, you can light a pile of damp firewood indoors to keep warm, but the pungent smoke makes it even more unpleasant to go outside and feel the cold wind.
Although dry firewood produces less smoke, it burns quickly, so nobody wants to use it. After all, a bundle of dry firewood can be exchanged for some copper coins in town.
Chopping firewood on ordinary days is also a troublesome task. The firewood outside the mountain is long gone, and no one dares to go into the mountain. As a result, even firewood has become a rare commodity.
Many people carefully take the corn stalks home after harvesting corn to use as firewood, as straw is also a common fuel for burning.
Just as things were getting lively inside, a panting voice called out from outside: "Zhang Li, Master Liu, where are you? Come and help!"
The crowd was engrossed in the story and didn't hear the shouts from outside.
Jiang Yimian still heard some noises.
She quickly got up and left the house, and Old Man Liu followed her.
As soon as you step outside, the cold air makes your face sting, more painful than a slap from a stepmother.
The dense forest in the small depression had become bare branches, and through those branches, one could see Zhao Da carrying a basket on his back, carefully descending the steep slope from afar.
Old Liu quickly tightened his clothes and said, "Yimian, go inside and warm yourself by the fire. It's cold outside, don't catch a cold. I'll go help you."
As he spoke, he hurriedly ran over.
Seeing this, Jiang Yimian had no choice but to wait where she was.
The road was too narrow, and because of the cold weather, it was covered with a thin layer of ice mixed with moisture. She was afraid that if she went over there, she wouldn't be able to help and would only cause trouble.
With Old Liu's help, Zhao Da was finally able to carry the basket down the steep slope.
Last time I didn't find it this difficult, but this time I carried a big basket of things and walked for almost two hours on the mountain road. I felt like I was going to be blown away by the cold wind.
My face was numb from the wind, but my body was sweating profusely.
Jiang Yimian looked at the basket full of things wrapped in cloth bags and asked curiously, "Brother Zhao, what are you carrying?"
Zhao Da quickly put down the basket on his back, rubbing his face as he said, "Rice, flour, and a dozen catties of meat, the magistrate asked me to deliver them. Oh, right, there are also five taels of silver. It's not much, the magistrate himself brought it to you. Thank you for saving Zhang Li."
He reached out and untied the money pouch from his waist, handing it over.
Jiang Yimian accepted the silver without ceremony and thanked her. Just as she was about to ask about the hundred taels, the door behind her was opened from the inside.
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