"Hey, hey!" Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru quickly got to work, and soon they had piled all the sweet potatoes in a corner and covered them with dry grass. They also covered the rice bags with small pieces of tarpaulin and weighed them down with stones.
Even if someone came into the cave, as long as they didn't run around rummaging through everything, they wouldn't discover that the Li family actually had so much grain.
After the two sisters-in-law finished their work, they looked at each other with obvious joy.
Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice!
They are responsible for cooking every day, and they worry whenever they see a bag of rice, wishing they could count every single grain of rice before putting it into the pot.
Now things are much better; at least I won't have to worry about food and drink for a month.
"We should gather more mountain produce tomorrow. There are many people in the family, so it's always good to prepare more," Grandma Li instructed.
"I understand, Mother."
Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru agreed and went to the cave entrance to call out to Li Laosan and Li Laosi below, urging them to hurry up and transport stones to build an earthen stove.
In the canyon, most of the villagers were still busy around the campfire.
The night was cold, but everyone's heart was warm.
Weaving straw mats, fetching and boiling water, cooking and washing—they were always busy with chores and had endless things to talk about.
Li Laosan had already mixed a pile of mud. Hearing his wife's shouts, he called Li Laosi, Jiayi, and Jiahuan, and together they went to the foot of their cave.
Jiayi climbed up the rope ladder in a few quick movements, carrying a bucket of mud.
Then, he stood at the entrance of the cave, and Li Laosi began to throw stones upwards.
Each stone was about the size of a small ceramic bowl, but in the hands of the uncle and nephew, they were as light as sweet potatoes, and they threw them all up as they played.
Other families, seeing this, were envious and came to ask for help.
So, after throwing away their own stones, the uncle and nephew went to help in each of the caves.
When they returned home, Li Laosan and Jia Huan had already built the earthen stove and started a fire.
On the earthen stove were two small pots, one for boiling water to make porridge and the other for cooking sweet potatoes.
However, there was no curtain at the cave entrance, so the mountain wind blew in, and the smoke rushed in, causing everyone to cough.
Li Laosan scratched the back of his head sheepishly, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"Tomorrow we'll fill in most of the hole, cover it with straw mats, and then find some wood to make a chimney so the smoke can escape."
"Okay, that's good enough. After we eat, put the baskets and hampers at the door to block the wind."
Grandma Li comforted her son, saying that compared to spending the night in the woods, this was already much better.
Soon, Jia'an and Jiaxi, the two mischievous boys, also returned.
It's rare for the whole family to get together and have a quiet dinner.
Grandma Li was delighted and cut up three salted duck eggs. The family ate them with sorghum porridge and boiled sweet potatoes, enjoying the meal immensely.
The cave was very simple, and the entrance was drafty, so it wasn't very warm.
But the family is already incredibly content that they don't have to worry about wild animals suddenly appearing or insects and snakes crawling on them.
Nothing happened that night, and everyone was even busier the next morning.
After a quick bite to eat, the group went into the woods together.
Chopping firewood, cutting grass, gathering mountain produce, and even felling trees to dig wooden barrels and make chimneys—every household was bustling with activity.
After all, we're going to be staying here all winter, and we know that heavy snow will block the mountain passes. If we don't hurry up and stock up on firewood and food now, we're practically courting death.
Except for Old Mrs. Li, who was carrying Jiayin to watch the house, everyone else from the Li family went downstairs.
Li Laosan thought the cave was too small and not conducive to his activities, so after cutting down trees, he started tinkering around at the bottom of the cliff.
He was also skillful with his hands; he not only made a chimney, but also nailed together a square table and several small stools.
Fearing that Jiayin was too small to sit still, we made an extra small chair with a backrest.
Jiayin lay on the grass mat at the entrance of the hole, peeking down to watch the commotion.
Actually, she had quite a few of these wooden items in her space, but it wasn't convenient to take them out right now.
Not to mention that Liu the镖头 and his son would definitely be in constant contact, there was also the ever-watchful Doctor Zhang.
If her secret is discovered, no one will do anything to her, but she's always causing trouble for her family.
As for the grains, fruits, chestnuts, dates, and the like in the space, we can just replenish them for the family as needed.
This is also why she didn't insist on going into the mountains with her parents.
Everyone worked like diligent ants, trying their best to improve their cave little by little.
The Li family not only had to look after themselves, but also had to lend a hand to the Liu family.
Because the village chief's wife was in poor health, and Uncle Zhao and the others were either lame or disabled, it was always inconvenient for them to do their work.
Add to that Dr. Zhang, who, aside from being good at treating illnesses, is completely incompetent at everything else.
Ultimately, the only able-bodied people in the neighboring cave were Liu Biaotou's family and the village chief.
Perhaps God is indeed showing some favoritism towards everyone, as the weather these past few days has actually been warmer than before.
This gave everyone plenty of time, and the piles of firewood under the cliff rose up from the ground, with three piles in total.
Especially the one next to the Li family's house, which is almost level with the cave entrance and built against the cliff, not only blocks the wind but also allows you to reach firewood, which is very convenient.
Of course, when the fire was almost finished burning, they still had to go down to get more firewood, but this already satisfied Zhao Yuru and Tao Hongying.
Li Laosi led the able-bodied men of the village into the mountains to hunt every day. They didn't catch any large prey, but they caught plenty of rabbits and pheasants.
After skinning and gutting them, they are rubbed with coarse salt and placed outside the cave entrance, where they will air dry in two or three days.
In winter, a big pot of stewed dried vegetables is enough for the whole family to enjoy.
With nothing else to do, Jiayin also started thinking about how to help.
While she and her grandmother were alone in the cave, she took out two worn-out mattresses from the small courtyard and quietly placed them under the withered grass.
This completely blocks out the cool air coming from below, and it's not easy to notice. Then, by laying down tarpaulin and blankets, the bed becomes much thicker.
The two hot water bottles that I brought to Jiaren from the academy earlier were also carried by Jiaren along the way, but with so many people in the family, they were simply not enough.
Jiayin then found some more glass medicine bottles in the space, the old-fashioned kind with rubber stoppers plugging the mouths.
Actually, this was saved by her grandparents in her previous life.
The elderly are frugal and will keep everything they think might be needed, which has now really helped their granddaughter a lot.
The rubber stopper at the bottle opening has weathered, but it can still be used by shaving off a few pieces of cork.
The glass bottle was filled with hot water, and it felt a little hot to the touch.
Grandma Li skillfully sewed the cloth bag, with a drawstring at the top.
Every night, scalding hot, simple heating pads were stuffed into the blankets, one for each person, young and old.
Stepping on the icy feet quickly warmed everyone up, and everyone sighed with relief.
Jiaxi and Jia'an are mischievous and very curious. They even tried to open the bag to take a look, and each of them got a tap from Grandma Li.
"If you dare to open it and spread rumors, you can forget about eating candy again."
Jiaxi and Jia'an immediately became well-behaved, huddled under the covers with only their little heads sticking out, and occasionally whispered secrets to each other.
Jiayin was tired from all the day's activities and was feeling drowsy, but her brother was disturbing her sleep, so she gave each of them a candy ball, and the cave immediately became quiet...
That night, the third heavy snow fell, and when the villagers went down into the cave the next morning, the snow was already above their knees.
Everyone was glad they hadn't slacked off earlier, otherwise they would have been completely helpless in a situation like this.
Fortunately, the small waterfall had plenty of water, and the pool was not frozen, so everyone could fetch water once a day without worry.
After lying idle for three or four days, Li Laosi couldn't stay still any longer.
He climbed to the neighboring cave and discussed with the village chief and Liu the镖头 (bodyguard) about going out to take a look.
Hunt if you can, and it would be even better if you came across human settlements. You should at least ask what the situation is like outside.
Otherwise, after the New Year, if you go out and run straight into the arms of barbarians, things will go wrong.
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