Chapter 82: Great! Even God is helping us
"When burning a fire, there must be ventilation, otherwise it is easy to die from poisoning."
"Don't worry, girl. I'll keep an eye on it. Besides, it's warm in the cellar. The fire will go out in a short while. There's no need to keep it burning."
With Chen watching over her, Ruan Mian felt more at ease.
So she continued to walk into the darkness with the torch in hand. It was obvious that the cellar was dug temporarily, and there was nothing inside except for an unusual smell.
There was an indescribable dampness and a faint smell of fermentation, but it was not the rotting smell of dead animals.
Ruan Mian looked carefully along the earth wall and suddenly found a layer of relatively moist and dark mud.
She leaned in and sniffed it. Isn't this natural peat? This is good stuff.
Ruan Mian immediately took out tools from the space and dug some things into the space.
Natural peat is too humid and cannot be used immediately, but it cannot be dried on a large scale outside the shelter camp. Considering the unique sunlight and climate in this space, the effect will definitely be twice the result with half the effort.
Ruan Mian planned to dig some every day and store it in the space. After drying, he could use it as fuel.
It is inexhaustible and can be used endlessly.
In addition, when farming comes in spring, the peat can be used as fertilizer.
There are even other uses.
Ruan Mian stopped her actions until she heard Cuizhu calling her outside. She then took out a piece of smoked bacon and some newly grown tomatoes from the space.
Worried that it wasn't warm enough, he took the opportunity to look for supplies and took out a few more quilts from the space.
As Cuizhu finished building the fire, he saw the bacon in Ruan Mian's hand and was shocked.
"Mianmian, when did we have such a big piece of meat left?"
When they arrived at Longchang Post Station, there were not many supplies left. Ruan Mian just made an excuse, but the others didn't think too much about it.
Only Mr. Ruan looked at her a few more times.
Ruan Mian fried some bacon, made some soup with it, and put some dried vegetable leaves in to boil.
He also boiled two eggs from the supply box and gave them to Chen and Rui Ge'er.
Everyone gathered around the fire, eating delicious bacon, and the room suddenly became warmer.
It is easy to feel sleepy after eating and drinking too much, so since there were no tasks assigned on the first day, everyone took the time to rest.
This was the first time in a while that they had slept in such a warm house without being affected by the cold.
However, Mr. Ruan called Ruan Mian aside and asked her in a low voice with a serious tone.
"Mianmian, how come you have so many good things? Take that piece of bacon for example. Dad saw the supply box at the post station, and there was no bacon in it, nor so many beds and quilts. How did you bring it in?"
Mr. Ruan looked worried, but he couldn't help but feel doubtful.
Perhaps, he had already noticed that something was wrong with Ruan Mian.
Where else can you find fugitives like them who eat well, live well, and have an endless supply of food on the road?
Mr. Ruan is a meticulous person. He has been in business for many years and is very careful with his money. It is not surprising that he could notice it.
Ruan Mian then whispered to him, "Dad, since that's the case, I won't hide it from you. Actually...someone has been secretly helping me."
"Who?"
"The former Prime Minister, Lord Xie. I was indebted to him before, so I ask him to look after me. Lord Xie is a good official. Although he has been framed and demoted, he has not forgotten his kindness to me."
At this time, Xie Huaian was like a universal brick, which could be moved wherever needed.
It's better than just telling Mr. Ruan that you have space.
Xie Huaian's reason was tenable, and Mr. Ruan believed it.
But for her sake, he still said a few more words: "Mianmian, if that is true, then Lord Xie has been very kind to our family. Now that we have arrived in Wuheng, we should not be under his care for no reason."
"Dad, I know my limits. Don't worry, we won't be trapped here forever."
"As long as we work together, we will definitely be able to leave the internment camp. Once we move into the straw huts behind the post station, we will have local household registration and no longer need to be slaves."
"Okay, Mianmian, thank you for your hard work along the way! Dad has been taken good care of by you. Now I feel much better. In the days to come, Dad will share your hardships."
"Dad, don't say that. We are all family. I just hope you are safe."
It seems that those medicinal herbs and spiritual spring water really played a big role. Ruan Mian hadn't noticed it before, but now he sees that Master Ruan's health has indeed improved a lot.
"Dad, you should get some rest early and get enough rest. We still have hard work waiting for us tomorrow!"
Seeing this, Mr. Ruan didn't think much about it.
Everyone fell asleep in this rare warmth.
…
Before dawn the next day, officers and soldiers were already outside urging everyone to come.
All the prisoners were released. Some were taken to Longchang Mountain to build the city wall, while others were taken to the forest farm on the other side of the mountain to cut wood.
It is not spring yet in Wuheng, and the ground is covered with ice and snow, making it unsuitable for farming. They mainly do hard labor.
The team that had just arrived yesterday was assigned to the forest farm.
The knee-deep snow made it difficult to walk, but they still had to use some rusty axes to cut down the trees, and after they were cut down, they had to carry the trees down the mountain one by one.
Just going up and down the mountain takes a lot of labor.
Each person was assigned a task. If they failed to cut the corresponding number of roots, they would not have food tonight and would be whipped on the spot.
As a result, wailing was heard everywhere and no one dared to be lazy.
Seeing this, Ruan Mian took advantage of everyone's inattention and found a few hard axes and soft saws from the space behind the bushes. These were all looted from the Qi Mansion's armory.
Now it comes in handy.
She distributed these to her family, saying that they were tools obtained from the officials. Ruan Qingsong and the others did not doubt it. The new tools were extremely sharp, and the two of them working together with the soft saw could cut wood faster.
Ruan Mian came up with another plan. After telling Ruan Qingsong about his idea, Ruan Qingsong decisively sawed one of the wood into pieces and fixed them with ropes to form a smooth cart.
Several trees can be transported at a time, which is much faster than moving one or two at a time.
So they complete the task faster than anyone else.
Everyone in the Qi and Bo mansions secretly complained, especially Qi Nanfeng. He had been spoiled since childhood and had never done hard labor. He was not very strong and was exhausted after chopping down less than one tree.
He simply sat down on the snow and gave up completely.
No matter how Liu urged and shouted, he remained indifferent.
Liu saw that if they failed to complete the task before dark, she would also be whipped. She became extremely anxious and cried out in pain, hugging her maid.
Qi Nanfeng became annoyed just by listening to them, so he simply moved away from them and went to another place to cut down trees slowly.
But at this moment, he saw Ruan Mian and Cuizhu gathered around an old tree. Cuizhu was very excited.
"Girl, girl! Can we have a good meal again today? That's great! Even God is helping us!"
Hearing this, Qi Nanfeng's ears immediately pricked up.
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