He was both highly skilled and daring; he jumped down from that height without hesitation.
This startled Mrs. Liu in the group, who exclaimed in alarm, fearing he might fall and hurt himself.
The women around couldn't help but laugh. Mrs. Liu blushed and quickly took a few steps away.
Soon, everyone arrived at the foot of the cave.
Liu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), cupped his hands in greeting to the crowd and introduced himself to them with a smile.
“I’ve been inside all these caves and cleaned them up a bit. Perhaps because of their high location, no wild animals have gone in to stay, there’s only some bird droppings. But they’re right in the wind, so it’s very windy inside. If we’re going to stay here, we’ll probably have to block the entrance.”
The village chief nodded happily, "Thank you so much for finding such a wonderful place. It's like it was made just for us; we finally don't have to worry about freezing in the winter!"
Uncle Zhao and the others were also happy. "These caves should be enough for us. Chief镖头 Liu, tell us how big each one is and how many people it can hold. Let's hurry up and settle our luggage. There's still a lot of work to do."
Liu, the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort), counted from left to right: "The first and second ones are about the same size, each accommodating twelve or thirteen people. The third one is the largest, accommodating more than thirty people. The fourth one is slightly smaller, but can still accommodate six or seven people. The fifth one is around twenty people, and the sixth one is about a dozen people."
Everyone in the village looked up at the cave. From the outside, they all looked pretty much the same, with no difference in quality, and they all faced the same direction.
The village chief thought for a moment and then said, "Young lady Li, your family has exactly twelve or thirteen members. How about living in the first house on the left?"
Grandma Li, carrying her granddaughter on her back, was also pondering this matter. The whole family lived in a cave, without outsiders interfering, making everything convenient.
The village chief's words were exactly what she wanted to say, so she replied, "Okay, thank you, village chief, we'll stay here."
The village chief then pointed to a second cave, "The one next to Lao Si's family's, that's where my wife and I, Lao Zhao, six of us, Doctor Zhang, and..."
He hesitated for a moment, then ordered Liu the镖头 (bodyguard) and his family of three.
"How about adding Liu the镖头's family? It'll make things easier to discuss!"
“Okay, then the three of us will live with the uncles.”
The Liu family was very familiar with the Li family; they couldn't all fit into the same cave, so it was better for them to live closer together.
The village chief simply handed the remaining four caves to the group, saying, "You can choose your own companions. Just remember those who survived together through thick and thin. Don't settle down and then start arguing over trivial matters all day long."
"Don't worry, village chief, there's no one who's so unreasonable," the villagers all replied.
After nearly a month of running around, their bodies and energy were already on the verge of collapse.
Everyone was eager to settle down and quickly found companions without delay.
But the problem is, the entrance is too high, how do we get up there?
The village chief, holding up his pipe, shouted, "A bunch of idiots! You think a high cave entrance is a bad thing? It's not easy for you to climb up, it's not easy for the wild animals either, and it's not easy for a bad guy to come and steal from you! This way, sleeping up there is the safest place, and you don't even have to keep watch at night!"
The villagers blushed and quickly nodded, "Uncle, we know this cave is good, but... how do we climb up and get in and out?"
Liu, the镖头 (bodyguard), laughed heartily and cleared up the mystery for everyone.
"That's easy. Everyone, find some vines and weave a rope ladder. I'll go up and tie it up for you. Get the elderly and children up first. Later, when you need to fetch water or go in and out, you can use the willow baskets to pull yourself up and down!"
"Oh, that's a good idea."
"I'll go cut down the vines right now!"
"Together, together!"
The villagers are never lacking in initiative or fear of hard work; they're just used to following orders and aren't very quick-witted.
Once an idea came to mind, they got busy.
The women were also busy; while the children were left in the care of the elderly, they hurried off to cut hay to make the beds later.
They also had to chop firewood and prepare meals, keeping them incredibly busy.
Soon, the rattan ladders were all woven together. Liu Biaotou took a few steps back, leaped nearly ten feet high, grabbed the protruding rocks on the cliff, and jumped into the cave in a few moments.
Once the rope ladder was secured, the men eagerly climbed in, then slid down the willow baskets and pulled the elderly and children inside as well.
Thinking that they would be coming and going frequently in the future, the women tried to climb the rope ladder by themselves.
As a result, some screamed while hanging in mid-air, while others fell after climbing only ten feet, making a complete fool of themselves.
The canyon became incredibly noisy and bustling for a time.
The village chief and Uncle Zhao watched with smiles, and most of the anxiety and unease that had been building up in their hearts finally dissipated.
After a busy day, as darkness fell, everyone finally quieted down a bit.
The Li family's cave was kept spotless by the diligent Tao Hongying and Zhao Yuru, with not a single pebble left.
The cave is about the size of two rooms, divided into an inner and an outer section.
The area closest to the cave wall was lined with a thick layer of dry grass, on top of which was tarpaulin, and then bedding was laid out.
This is where Grandma Li, her daughter-in-law, Jiayin, Jiaxi, and Jia'an sleep.
Later, a straw curtain was used to separate the two sides, and the outside was where Li Lao Er, Li Lao San, Li Lao Si, and Jia Ren and his brothers would sit.
Further out, about seven or eight steps away, is the cave. The family plans to build a clay stove in this area, as it gets too cold in winter, and they will cook in the cave.
This way, you can also keep warm inside the cave without having to go up and down.
Grandma Li was packing up the packages and baskets in the house, while Jiayin followed along, occasionally making some small gestures.
For example, fill up the sorghum bags, sweet potato baskets, and rice jars...
Originally, everyone would gather their grain together on the road to make cooking easier.
Now that the families live separately and the caves are inconvenient to access, the grain has been distributed separately as well.
The Li family received only about ten jin of sorghum, more than thirty sweet potatoes, and the rice jar was almost empty because they had to feed all the children in the village special meals.
Grandma Li spread out her clothes, shoes, and socks on the bedding, preparing to air them out to dry.
She turned around and instructed her daughter-in-law to gather more mountain produce when they went into the mountains tomorrow. After all, there were so many people in the family, and they needed to be quick to avoid going hungry in the winter.
As a result, once her mouth was open, she couldn't close it.
The sack of sorghum rice in front of her was overflowing, the sweet potato basket was almost buried under sweet potatoes, and the jar of rice was also overflowing...
Why worry about finding mountain produce to fill our stomachs?
Jiayin, holding onto the wall, walked unsteadily, and finally jumped into her grandmother's arms with a big smile.
Grandma Li came to her senses and hugged her granddaughter tightly.
Although she was used to it, her heart still raced and her eyes stung from time to time when her granddaughter made her...
“Fu Niu, once our family is completely settled, Grandma will definitely set up a memorial tablet and kowtow to God every day. You are God’s precious gift to our family! Grandma can close her eyes in peace right now!”
Jiayin didn't want her grandma to say such things, so she raised her little hand and stuffed a candy ball into her grandma's mouth, and of course, she didn't forget to feed herself one as well.
Grandma Li was both amused and exasperated, knowing that her granddaughter couldn't stand her saying discouraging things.
So she sat on the bed, holding her granddaughter, feeling the warmth in her arms, the peace in her heart, and the sweetness in her mouth…
Tao Hongying was busy nailing straw mats while standing on an overturned willow basket. When she turned around and saw the grain and sweet potatoes all over the ground, she stumbled and almost fell.
Zhao Yuru hugged her tightly, and the two sisters-in-law managed to stand up with great difficulty.
Grandma Li quickly waved her hand, her expression a mixture of joy and caution, and greeted them in a low voice.
"What are you staring at? Get a basket and hide everything inside. Be careful someone comes along!"
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