Chapter 76 Sweeping Snow and Building a Snowman: Tidying up the yard, playing in the snow, and inviting guests.
The heavy snow fell intermittently throughout the night, but thankfully it stopped by daybreak.
Early in the morning, Lai cleaned the fireplace. As soon as he opened the door, the cold winter air rushed into the house. Before he even stepped outside, a puff of white breath escaped his lips.
Outside, sunlight shone on the pristine snowdrifts, scattering tiny sparkles among the snowflakes. Everything around was covered in a thick blanket of white snow.
A snowfall overnight transformed the village into a silver-clad world.
After emptying the ashes, Lai returned to the house, lit the stove again, and boiled a pot of water.
Neil, wrapped in a thick blanket, staggered down the stairs. He was clearly not fully awake yet.
Good morning, brother.
Good morning, Neil.
"It's so cold today, brother."
"The fire was just lit; it will be warm soon."
Neil yawned widely, his mouth agape.
"Why did you get up so early today? Did you wake up from the cold?"
Neil shook his head, somewhat embarrassed.
"I drank too much water last night."
"Then hurry up and go, wear warm clothes, it's very cold outside."
"Okay, brother."
Neil went upstairs, got dressed, and went out. When he came back, he was refreshed and full of energy.
The hot water is ready, so I can wash my face and brush my teeth now.
"I won't cook breakfast. I'll just make myself some oil tea noodles, bread, and biscuits. Remember to add firewood to the stove."
"good!"
After giving his instructions, Ray put on his hat and gloves and went outside.
I found a shovel and a large broom and started shoveling snow.
Overnight, the snow in the yard piled up quite thick. The snow was already ankle-deep, about seven or eight centimeters thick, and it was quite difficult to clear.
Fortunately, there's still plenty of time, and we don't need to go to town today, so we can work slowly.
After finishing breakfast, Neil put on a thick coat and went to deliver breakfast to Gug. He saw that Lai was cleaning the courtyard and had already swept out a path that people could walk on.
"Brother, slow down your work. I'll come back and help you shovel snow."
"Okay, go quickly. Guge must be hungry too."
"good!"
Laiyi didn't throw away the wood ash that was cleared out this morning; he piled it up by the yard wall so that he could spread a layer of ash on icy or slippery areas to prevent them from getting wet.
Actually, salt might be more effective, but given their current financial situation, they are not so extravagant as to use salt to melt snow.
Neil carried a small basket to Gugge's house.
The main roads in the village were also covered in snow. Some families with more members and who were more diligent had already cleaned their yards and swept the road in front of their houses.
Such road sections are relatively easier to travel on.
Although they got up early, there were people in the village who got up even earlier, and their big footprints were left on the main road of the village.
Neil followed the footprints so he wouldn't step directly into the snow and get his shoes wet.
He quickly arrived at Gugge's house, knocked on the door, and heard Jenny jumping around by the door and the muffled sound of her tail wagging excitedly and banging on the wooden door.
"It must be Neil who has arrived."
Old Guge muttered as he opened the door.
Old Guge is old and has trouble sleeping, often waking up naturally at the crack of dawn. Unable to fall back asleep, he simply gets up and finds something to do.
"Today's meal is oil tea noodles, bread, and cookies."
"Oil tea noodles? That sounds delicious."
"My brother made it himself; it's very filling and delicious!"
Neil skillfully found a large cup, a plate, and clean hot water, and brewed a cup of oil tea for Guge. He then placed the cup and the plate containing bread and biscuits on the table.
"Eat up, Grandpa Guge."
"good."
The room was warm, and firewood was burning in the fireplace. Judging from its appearance, the wood inside had been burning for a long time.
Neil discovered that there wasn't much firewood left in the house, so he slowly brought in more wood, bit by bit.
“No need to carry so much, Neil, I can manage by myself.”
"No, no, Grandpa Guge, it snowed heavily outside last night, and the roads are very slippery. What if you fall again?"
Neil insisted on getting enough firewood for Gug before leaving his house.
On a cold winter morning when you can see the sun, you can feel good.
Neil quickly returned home, where Ray had already cleared a one-meter-wide path in the yard.
"Brother, I'm back!"
Neil waved to Ray, and Ray waved back.
Neil went back inside to put his things down and then started helping Ray clean up the snow in the yard.
Because he frequently needed to hitch a ride to the market to sell bean sprouts, Lai had to clear most of the snow from the yard, otherwise it would be quite troublesome to stop the mule cart back and forth.
After working for another hour, they pushed cartloads of snow away, and Neil's cheeks were red from the cold.
"Go back inside and rest. I've almost finished here. I'll just wrap things up and that'll be the end of it."
"Okay, sure."
Neil agreed and helped for another ten minutes or so before being forced to leave by Ray.
The snow in the yard has been mostly cleared, but the loose snow that can't be collected still needs to be swept away. Otherwise, the melting snow will freeze and make it even harder to walk on.
Besides the yard, the snow in front of the gate and on the village roads also need to be cleared.
Snow is beautiful, but cleaning up after it is a huge undertaking.
If the snow on the road isn't cleared away, it will be trampled down by people passing by, making the road so slippery that it's impossible to walk. You'll trip and fall every time you try, and in the end, you'll be the one who suffers. It's better to clean it up now.
"Brother Lei, is Neil home?"
About four or five children gathered around, and the one who asked the first question was Helen, whom Ray knew quite well.
"It's inside, come in."
“Okay, Brother Lei.”
The children entered the house one after another, with a somewhat timid and introverted boy walking at the very back.
"Good morning, cousin."
He spoke softly, but greeted Ray politely.
Ray examined his face closely.
The eyes and nose look a lot like Brian's; he must be Brian's child, Danny. He's a year older than Neil.
"Good morning, Danny, coming to see Neil?"
Danny, a little shy, smiled bashfully and nodded.
"Come inside quickly and ask Neil if he has any cookies left from last night, so he can share them with you."
"good."
Neil answered weakly.
Ray suddenly realized that he was making things difficult for the kid by asking Danny to ask Neil about the cookies.
The children stayed inside for about ten minutes before coming out all at once, along with Neil, who was fully armed.
"Brother, Helen and the others want me to go play in the snow. Can I come along?"
Five or six children looked at Ray with expectant eyes. How could Ray refuse the children's request?
"Go."
"Yay!"
The children began to cheer.
“But,” Ray interrupted them mercilessly.
"You can't play on the ice. The ice isn't frozen solid yet. If you fall in, you'll never see your mom and dad again."
"Don't worry, Brother Lai, I'll take good care of them!"
Helen, the tallest of the group, stood at the front and made a promise to Ray.
Although she wasn't the oldest among her friends, she always considered herself an older sister and felt it was her duty to take care of them.
"Thank you, Helen, you're such a reliable child."
Ray never hesitated to praise himself.
The little girl blushed with excitement after being praised.
Of course, it could also be from the cold. In any case, the little girl was very happy to be praised.
Go!
"good."
Let's go!
The children excitedly ran into the snow.
"Brother, I'm leaving!"
Neil ran a few steps and stopped, turning back to look at Ray, who was standing with his shovel.
"Go on, go on. You won't be able to catch up in a moment."
Neil looked back at his teammates who were already far ahead.
"Wait for me!"
"hurry up!"
Neil turned back to look at Rye.
"Go quickly!"
Ray started urging Neil to hurry up.
Neil didn't say anything more in the end, and buried his head in running to catch up with Helen and the others who had already run quite far.
After resting, Lai continued shoveling snow until the section of road in front of his house was cleared.
Back in the house, he began to enjoy his hot tea.
The chairs around the dining table in the living room are crooked and twisted, probably because the children have taken a short rest on them.
It was soon noon, and Lai started preparing lunch. The main dishes were sugar triangles and steamed buns; the side dishes were sweet and sour pork ribs and garlic-flavored greens.
The food was cooked and left to cool for a short while before Neil finally returned.
He had a happy smile on his face, but his forehead was covered in sweat.
"Wash your hands and eat. Are you going out to play this afternoon?"
“Go ahead. Helen said she’ll build a snowman and play in the open space across from our house this afternoon.”
"Yes. Don't take off your hat when you get hot while playing outside. The sudden change in temperature can easily cause you to catch a cold."
"Okay, brother."
The two began to enjoy their lunch. The sweet and sour pork ribs were just to Neil's liking. Although he was missing a few teeth, it didn't stop Neil from happily gnawing on the ribs.
In the afternoon, several snowmen appeared in a row under the big tree opposite Lai's house. They were all different in shape and were obviously made by different people. Two sturdy and cute little snowmen also appeared next to Lai's front door.
In the afternoon, Neil returned home early, his little hands red and tinged with cold. He went inside and saw Ray sitting by the fireplace reading a book, and slipped a few beautifully wrapped candies into his hands. Ray was a little confused.
"Who gave it to you?"
"The mysterious man is back, and we had a snowball fight over his house. Brother, we didn't play on the ice because the snow there is the cleanest, and no one has stepped on it."
Neil quickly explained.
“He gave each of us a few candies to eat, and he gave me the most. I secretly put them in my pocket and brought them back for you.”
Little Neil smiled slyly.
"He told me to tell you to come to his place when you have time, because he needs to talk to you about something."
Temujin wants to see me? It must be something important, otherwise he wouldn't have sent someone to find me.
Lei thought to himself.
"Brother, do you know what happened?"
"I don't know, we'll find out when we get there."
Ray was about to go check on him when he put the candy back into Neil's hand.
"Your brother has already eaten it, so you can keep it and eat it slowly."
Neil knew that Ray would never accept his candy, but he insisted on peeling one open and holding it to Ray's mouth.
"Brother, you have to try it, it's really delicious, incredibly delicious!"
With the food already pressed against his lips, he had no choice but to put the candy in his mouth, and a pure milky aroma spread across his taste buds.
Ah, it's milk candy.
It seems I need to reassess my living situation here.
I used to think this place was still in the primitive agricultural era, but now...
Lei fell into thought.
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Author's Note: Character: Temuqi
Skill: Forging
Weapon: Double axes
Race: Dwarf-human hybrid
Favorability rating: Four stars
Items obtained: Steamer, Bone Knife, Juice Press, Old Beijing Hot Pot, Barbecue Grill
Note: The creative dwarf blacksmith will randomly drop various tools!
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