After dinner, Li and Zhang Dahua helped to clean up the dishes, and Wang helped Zhang Hulan to make the bed.
A piece of fence was placed on top of the bed frame, then dry thatch was laid on it, and then matting was placed on top of that.
It's still very hot now, so I don't need a quilt yet.
Shanzi did not refuse to move into Zhang Hulan's house.
Last night, he slept alone in his room and cried for half the night.
In the middle of the night, he dreamed of his grandmother. She told him to be well, and he promised her that he would be well...
Shanzi could also feel that Zhang Hulan was really kind to him. He couldn't let Auntie Lan down, he also needed this kindness.
He knew in his heart that the most important thing for him now was to live well. He remembered Aunt Lan's kindness to him and would repay Aunt Lan double in the future.
Zhang Xiaobing was very envious of Shanzi and even wanted to exchange identities with him, but he didn't dare to say it.
After Zhang Hulan made the bed in one room, she said to Shanzi, "Shanzi, you will live in this room from now on. Just tell me if you need anything."
Shanzi nodded, "Well, thank you Aunt Lan!"
The three sisters Zhang Xinyao, Zhang Xinyi and Zhang Xinyue are particularly happy today. They will have their own home in the future and they will also have their own rooms.
In the afternoon, Zhang Hulan helped Shanzi move his things over.
There isn't anything valuable in their house, probably just some pots, pans, and utensils.
There were still some uneaten Pueraria root at home, and they were all moved to Zhang Hulan's house.
After moving all the things to Zhang Hulan's house, Shanzi handed a bag of copper coins to Zhang Hulan, "Auntie Lan, this is the salary I earned last time. It's all here."
Zhang Hulan asked: "Why are you giving it to me? Just keep it for yourself."
Shanzi said, "Auntie Lan, I know you are really kind to me, but I can't live and eat for free.
Aunt Lan, if you have any work to do in the future, just let me do it. If you don’t let me do anything, I will feel uncomfortable living here.”
Zhang Hulan smiled and pinched Shanzi's face, "Okay, from now on, I'll let you do all the dirty and tiring work, so don't complain when the time comes."
Shanzi smiled and said, "I'm not afraid of being tired."
In the end, Zhang Hulan kept Shanzi's money. She would definitely not use his money, so Zhang Hulan just kept it for him.
…
The rain did come, and two more rains fell in the following days. But the rain came too late, and the rice in many villages could not be saved.
The rice in Daping Village is in good condition. There was water supply before, so every family can still harvest some.
Just a few days before the rice harvest, a lot of people came to the outside of the village. They were the villagers who had fled the famine and returned.
They were all surprised to see the rice in the fields by the roadside.
"Our millet..."
"Oh my god... these millets, millets..."
The villagers were all excited. They had never thought that the millet in their fields was still alive.
When the water from the mountain was first brought down, Zhao Guoliang said that he would take care of the millet in his own fields first, but later he asked others to help bring the water over.
I thought that if those who went out came back, there would be some food. If they didn't come back, the grain would be divided among them.
There are also people working in the fields. When it is time to harvest the millet, all the water in the fields has to be drained out.
All the people who were working in the fields came out, and they could hardly recognize those who were coming back.
They were all ragged, pale and skinny, and covered in dirt.
The people who stayed in the village, although not rosy-cheeked, all looked very energetic.
Zhao Guoliang asked: "How did you get into this state? Where did you go? Where are the others?"
At that time, there were about three hundred people who left the village one after another, but now only more than a hundred people have returned.
The villagers who came back replied: "Some died, some got lost..."
A villager answered, "We were walking all the way to the city, and we met many people fleeing famine. When there were too many people, there would be chaos. They would grab anything edible and fights would often break out. Many people were injured and died because they had no money to see a doctor."
"We finally made it to the city, but they wouldn't let the refugees in. Then we heard that local government offices were going to distribute relief food, so we headed back. We've been on the road for the past month."
Zhao Guoliang sighed and said, "Alas... I told you to wait a little longer, but you wouldn't listen. You could have left one day later and we would have brought water down from the mountain the next day."
Zhao Heigou was also in the crowd. He asked, "Uncle, is there any shortage of food in the village?"
Zhao Guoliang said: "This is all thanks to Hu Lan. We brought water down, and then Hu Lan told the villagers about something edible. There is a lot of that in the mountains, so everyone has survived until now."
Zhao Heigou said, "Since she knew there was something edible, why didn't she tell us earlier? She caused everyone to run outside and so many people died."
When Zhao Guoliang heard what Zhao Heigou said, his face suddenly turned dark.
Zhang Hujun and Zhang Hubing were also in the crowd, and the two brothers immediately became angry.
Zhang Hubing stepped forward and grabbed Zhao Heigou's collar, looking fierce and said, "Zhao Heigou, can you say that again?"
"My sister owes you?"
"Did my sister ask you to leave?"
"If you dare to say that again, I'll beat you to death..."
Zhang Hujun also looked at Zhao Heigou with unfriendly eyes. This grandson was looking for trouble as soon as he came back. He really deserved to be punished.
Some villagers also spoke up, "Black Dog, don't bite people as soon as you come back. Hu Bing is right, you were the ones who wanted to leave. The head of the village advised you so much, but you didn't listen, and now you blame others. I have never seen someone as shameless as you."
"Exactly. Who forced you to leave?"
Everyone in the village remembers Zhang Hulan's kindness, and since Zhang Hujun and Zhang Hubing are both here, they will definitely stand on Zhang Hulan's side.
In fact, the people who stayed in the village should thank Zhao Heigou. If these people didn't leave, there would be hundreds more people in the village to distribute things, and they would get less, and they might even starve.
The people who had come back together also felt a little resentful of Zhang Hulan for not telling them earlier that there was food on the mountain, but when they saw that everyone in the village was speaking for Zhang Hulan, they dared not say anything.
Zhao Heigou had been hungry for so many days, and his body was already very weak. Zhang Hubing grabbed him, and he had no strength to resist.
Zhao Heigou asked Zhao Guoliang for help, "Uncle, they..."
Zhao Guoliang didn't treat Zhao Heigou well and said, "Heigou, Hu Lan has done a favor to the village. If you continue to speak without restraint, I guess the village will not tolerate you."
Zhao Guoliang pointed at the rice in the field and said sternly: "These millets can be saved because Hu Lan led everyone to find water in the mountains. All of you owe Hu Lan a favor. If you think you don't owe Hu Lan a favor, that's fine too. You can just give up the millets in your fields."
Zhao Guoliang then looked at Zhang Hubing and said, "Hubing, let him go. If he talks nonsense again, I will drive him out of the village myself."
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