Yesterday, Tian An asked Chen Qiang to arrange for people to dig winter bamboo shoots. Unfortunately, it started to drizzle this morning. Originally, they thought that since it was raining, they should not go digging.
But unexpectedly, before lunch time, a farmhand came to the house wearing a straw raincoat and carrying baskets of winter bamboo shoots.
Winter clothes hadn't been distributed yet, so the farmhands were still wearing their autumn clothes. On rainy days, the dirt roads in the village were muddy, and they rolled up their trouser legs to their knees, leaving their exposed calves covered in wet mud.
After piling the bamboo shoots into the warehouse, they picked up their backpacks and prepared to return to the bamboo forest to carry more. As they left, they couldn't help but breathe on their dirty, cold hands, rubbing them together a few times. Just as they were about to step forward, Tian An called out to them.
"It's raining today and the weather is cold. Go get everyone else back when you go back and go dig another day!"
The farmhands at the door were stunned for a moment, then delighted. It was freezing cold and raining, but no one wanted to work outside. Not only was it cold, but the road was also slippery, and if they weren't careful, they'd fall flat on their faces.
After a long while, a farmhand spoke up, "Thank you, young lady, but we've all been out today and our clothes are already soaked. We might as well dig more. We don't know how long the rain will last. If we delay any longer, the bamboo shoots will get old.
We can dig more today. When the rain stops, new bamboo shoots will grow again and we can continue digging."
Several other farmhands also echoed this.
Tian An thought about it and agreed, "Okay!"
At the same time, they were reminded: "If it rains heavily, you should come back quickly."
Several farmhands said "OK" and turned to walk into the rain and fog, quickly heading towards the bamboo forest.
Tian An went to find Chun Xi and asked her to inform Zhen Niang to pick some chickens and send them to the main kitchen. She then asked the cooks to stew the chicken with winter bamboo shoots for the farmhands in the evening. They also made some ginger soup for everyone at noon to ward off the cold.
Then she asked about the progress of the winter clothes and whether she had received the quilt she ordered.
Chunxi replied, "Miss, the winter clothes will be finished by this afternoon. The quilt was just brought back yesterday."
Tian An nodded. "When the winter clothes are finished this afternoon, they'll be distributed along with the quilts. I'll write a prescription for preventing colds later. Give it to Chen Qiang and have him buy it. He'll make it for everyone to drink every few days."
The weather was cold, and it was easy to catch a cold, which in this day and age could be fatal. While a simple cold wouldn't be a problem with her around, it still made people suffer. Prevention was essential.
After taking another look at the drizzling rain, Tian An returned to his room to write a prescription. After handing it to Chun Xi, he continued to teach the three of them how to make handmade soap.
Lipsticks, face washes, hand creams, and so on have all been made in large quantities. The store will open in about ten days, and they have been working tirelessly these days to produce skincare and cosmetics. They should have enough by the time the store opens, and after that, they will just make up for any shortfalls.
"It's almost lunch time, so finish what you're doing and get ready to eat!"
As soon as Tian An walked out of the room, she saw Han Xun and Xiaokang coming back from the village school. As soon as she saw Tian An, Xiaokang rubbed her hands and jumped towards her, without any trace of the reserved and calm attitude she had in front of her teacher.
"Sister, it's cold outside. Let's not stand outside anymore. Let's go inside!"
Tian An rubbed his head in annoyance: "Where are the etiquette you learned! How can you walk in front of the teacher!"
Xiaokang suddenly realized what was going on and hurried back to apologize to Mr. Han: "I'm sorry, sir. I was so excited when I saw my sister that I was rude. Please forgive me." Then he made a gesture of invitation and followed Han Xun into the corridor.
Tian An shook his head helplessly. But he didn't criticize him. It was children's nature; it was better for them to be lively. He just needed to learn propriety, righteousness, benevolence, wisdom, and trustworthiness and memorize them.
The weather is cold, so it's hard to set up the meal in advance. We wait until everyone is gathered before serving the dishes.
Everyone had lived a hard life and knew that food was hard to come by, so except for festivals or when there were guests, they usually had five dishes and one soup, which was just enough for the six of them and nothing would be wasted.
As soon as the hot dishes were served, Tian An hurriedly greeted everyone to eat: "Mr. Han, Granny Qin, Brother Yiming, Xiaokang, come and eat! The weather is cold, and the food will get cold if it's too long."
As he spoke, he poured half a bowl of soup for everyone: "The weather is getting colder, drink some of this radish and pork ribs soup to warm yourself up first."
Xiaokang waited quietly for Tian An to serve the soup to the elders before he took his bowl with both hands.
"Thank you, sister. My hands are no longer cold after holding this soup!"
Tian An subconsciously reached out to shake Xiaokang's hand. Sure enough, his hands were as cold as ice.
"Why are your hands so cold?" Tian An frowned.
Xiaokang blew on the hot soup in his bowl and took a sip before saying, "Mine is considered good! I used my sister's hand cream, so it's just a little cold. Several of my friends in the village school have frostbite on their hands! They're swollen like buns and I can't even open a book."
Tian An was surprised: "It's so serious!"
Han Xun continued, "The weather is cold. If it weren't for your hand cream this year, we would have gotten frostbite, not to mention the children."
Tian An also recalled how the original owner had been forced by Qian Shi to wash clothes in the middle of winter, leaving her hands red from the cold. The next day, she developed frostbite, which later broke open and pus oozed out. It was painful and itchy, excruciating.
Tian An was silent for a moment and said, "Teacher, when you go to the village school later, bring some hand cream with you! Apply it to the children several times a day to avoid affecting their studies."
Mr. Han was stunned and reminded her, "Girl, have you thought it through? You have quite a few students, and you have to support them until early spring at least. It's going to cost a lot!"
Tian An smiled and said, "It's expensive to sell it. It doesn't cost much if we make it ourselves."
Mr. Han looked at Tian An for a long while, then made a move that no one expected.
He stood up, left his seat, and bowed to Tian An: "Han thanks you on behalf of those students. It is their blessing to meet you."
Tian An was startled and said hurriedly, "Mr. Han, this is not possible. These are just a small favor, not worth mentioning."
Zhao Yiming, who was standing by, also quickly stood up from his chair and helped Mr. Han along with Tian An, then sat down again.
Mr. Han followed their hands and sat down before saying, "Girl, please don't say it's just a small favor. There are many people who are richer and more capable than you, so why haven't you seen anyone willing to raise their hands?"
Then he turned to Zhao Yiming and said, "Yiming! You must protect this girl! She is kind-hearted and will suffer losses easily."
Tian An wanted to say that she wasn't being kind at all. It was just that giving the children some hand cream was a simple task, and it didn't cost much. If it cost more, she definitely wouldn't do it.
Zhao Yiming didn't know what Tian An was thinking. He looked at Tian An seriously and said, "I will protect you with my life."
Caught off guard by the confession, Tian An blushed slightly and awkwardly invited everyone to eat: "The food is almost cold, let's finish the meal first!"
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