"This is good. I can bring some potatoes and sweet potatoes from home and roast them to warm my stomach."
"My family planted a lot this year, so I'll take some too."
"The river is frozen, otherwise it would be better to catch some fish with a net."
The rest of the villagers responded, chattering away. Life was already tough, and patrolling was a tough job—after all, it was cold, hungry, and required late nights.
But now we have enough food, and we have the thickest cotton-padded jackets, cotton pants, and cotton shoes. When we can’t sleep in the long night, we can get together and chat, and we can also keep the family safe. How nice!
After talking like this for a while, everyone dispersed.
Of course, Mr. Tai Sanye was not as easy to fool as the villagers. As soon as he entered the house, he began to question his old brother.
"Sixth Brother, what's going on? That guy doesn't look like a good person!"
At this time, Yang Lihua also came out of the house with Zhuzhu in her arms. Zhuzhu had just taken a nap, and her little face was as red as a red apple. When she saw her grandfather, she smiled and stretched out her chubby little hands, "Grandpa, hug me!"
The old man was a little worried at first, but after he had his fat granddaughter in his arms, he felt relieved.
The granddaughter didn't have any nightmare warnings, which meant nothing bad would happen.
"Zhuzhu, you've woken up. Are you hungry? Ask your aunt to cook. We'll have pie for lunch!"
"It's time for pie. Is it with pork lard filling? Zhuzhu loves it the most!" The fat girl clapped her chubby hands happily and kicked her legs, looking extremely happy.
Yang Lihua was worried that the escaped man would cause trouble for her family.
But as a mother, she was naturally happy when her child was happy, so she temporarily put this hidden worry behind her and replied, "Dad, I'll go help the second son's wife. Call me if you need anything."
Old Master Tai waved his hand and said, "Go ahead, go ahead, make a few more and leave some for your uncle to eat together!"
Mr. Tai Sanye quickly declined, "No, no, I've prepared dinner at home!"
"It's cold, let's have a meal together, third brother, don't refuse!" Grandpa Tai pulled his elder brother to sit down and talked about what happened just now.
"That man just now is indeed the descendant of a colleague in the border defense army, but he is not an ordinary person either. In fact, he is the cousin of the general!"
The general's cousin?
Master Tai San took a while to react, and stood up in shock. "What? The general's cousin? We just chased him out and beat up his servants..."
Old Master Tai quickly comforted him, "Don't worry, Third Brother. This guy isn't liked by the General, or maybe the two families still have a grudge. He doesn't even dare to go to the General to complain! It was also this guy's father's fault that the old general passed away!"
Master Tai San didn't understand the twists and turns, but he knew that "the hatred for killing one's father is irreconcilable"!
As long as the current general does not support this man, the Tai family will not be afraid.
As for why this person came to visit, Mr. Tai San naturally thought it was because of corn seeds or cashmere clothes.
After all, Taijia Village only has these two good things. You can't say that people come here just to covet a few shabby thatched houses in the village!
So, he let go of the heavy stone in his heart and stopped asking. Instead, he praised the boy at home, "We have a good child at home. He is really helpful at the critical moment! Just now, it was Yonglu who ran to the village to call for help, because he was worried that you, Jizu and Jiye would suffer!"
Only then did Mr. Tai understand why the villagers arrived in time, and he couldn't help but feel a bit proud.
"That brat is quite sensible. Even though he's not good at studying, he's kind-hearted enough to prevent his wife and children from starving to death in the future!"
"Haha, you just talk big! All the boys in our Tai family are good boys!" Uncle Tai San took out his pipe and wanted to take a few puffs, but when he looked down and saw the fat girl blinking her big eyes, he put the pipe away again.
The boy from the Tai family is a good treasure, and this fat girl from the Tai family is the treasure among treasures!
Soon, the meal was ready in the kitchen.
The fragrant sauerkraut and oil residue pie is baked golden on both sides and served on a large plate. Just tear off a piece and you will find the hot and sour aroma of sauerkraut, the greasy texture of the oil residue and a light burnt aroma. One bite will make you dizzy with the delicious taste.
Paired with snow-white rice porridge, the kind with finely simmered rice grains and a layer of rice oil, and finally a plate of cold mustard greens, a plate of garlic-flavored cowpeas, and a plate of frozen Chinese cabbage dipped in egg sauce, it's a perfect way to relieve the greasiness!
The whole family, young and old, ate to their heart's content. Even Zhuzhu, the youngest, ate two big pies, making her little belly full.
After dinner, the old man took out the wooden sled, tied a large wicker basket to it, wrapped his granddaughter like a cotton ball, and took her out to play and help digest the food.
Yang Lihua was thinking about the backyard, so she went to open the warehouse early, settled the previous wages for each woman, and distributed a lot of cashmere yarn and work.
The women were of course happy to receive their wages, but when they heard that they would have to work at home in the future, they looked sad.
"Sister-in-law, why did you suddenly ask us to go home and work?"
"Yes, sister-in-law, our house is a mess, and I'm really afraid that the cashmere yarn will be dirty."
"It's so quiet at home, it's nowhere near as lively as the workshop!"
Third Aunt was a die-hard supporter of Yang Lihua. Upon hearing this, she immediately said, "You guys are really in trouble. It's winter, and we finally have a chance to stay home. Who doesn't want some peace and quiet? You guys are always here chirping and chattering, but why don't you see how much effort your step-grandmother-in-law puts in? Even Dong Niang has to make two extra buckets of soup for lunch and boil tea for you all the time. She's so busy! What's wrong? Are you so used to being served that you can't live a simple life at home?"
Tiedan's mother chimed in, "That's right, the house is dirty, and we don't want to waste the cashmere yarn, so we should clean it up. It's not difficult to wipe it off! Does that mean we don't have to clean the house if we're not knitting clothes at home?"
The women from each family were embarrassed and blushed after being scolded. They didn't dare to ask to stay. After all, they really wanted to take advantage!
Of course, Yang Lihua couldn't say that she didn't want her children to be affected. It just so happened that the visitor today gave her a good excuse.
"Everyone likes the hustle and bustle and wants to stay in the workshop to work, which is of course a good thing. Although we are a little busy at home, we can still persevere. Even as everyone saw, another unfriendly guest came today. I guess he wants to learn how to knit cashmere clothes, trying to get something for nothing.
"If everyone was working in the backyard workshop all day, we wouldn't be able to lie. But when everyone goes home, we can just say the workshop has stopped working and that we're no longer in the cashmere clothing business, and that's how we cover it up."
I see!
The women all suddenly understood and nodded in unison.
In this way, after working for an hour, they finally persuaded the women to go home willingly.
The old man also came back with the fat girl, giggling.
As the sky gradually darkened, the family lit the oil lamps and chatted while doing some small chores, just like any other day and night.
But in the best inn in the county town, in the best room, the middle-aged man who had been driven away by the Tai family during the day was pacing around...
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