"We are very careful when cutting now. We cut at intervals and don't sweep all the way. Is it still not working?" Tian sighed.
"I think we have quite a bit of wood, so it should be enough. If you don't allow us to cut it, then don't cut it. After we earn this money, we can wait for the New Year in peace. It will be enough for the New Year."
"It's more than enough, it's enough to last for several years."
Everyone felt a little happier.
In the afternoon, except for Chunxiao and the children, everyone else went up the mountain again. She kept dragging wood, chopping wood, and drying wood in the yard. In order to save time, she basically handed over the drying work to the children.
In the evening, the family came back after dark. Chunxiao had been busy and had no time to cook, so everyone ended up frying two pancakes for Chunxiao to eat.
We don’t have to go up the mountain tomorrow, but all the wood we cut today must be sorted out and dried in the sun.
"Dad, I checked, there should be more, don't worry."
"As long as the number is enough, it's good." They were busy chopping every day and had no idea how many there were in total. They felt relieved when they heard Chunxiao say that.
"I want my brothers to deliver a portion tomorrow. There are so many that we can't deliver them without dividing them into batches."
"Okay, we'll go deliver it early tomorrow morning. If we come back early, we'll do another delivery in the afternoon. That way, 300 kilograms a day won't be a problem."
"Your sister burned charcoal all night yesterday and didn't go to bed until 6 a.m. We also stayed up half the night. I'm afraid it will be like this for the next few days. Tomorrow, my two daughters-in-law will help to process and dry the remaining wood. I will catch up on my sleep tomorrow morning. I'm old now, and I'm afraid I won't be able to make it through the night if I don't. Your mother is the same. We've all been working hard these past few days. Once we earn some money, we can have a good rest."
"Dad, just sleep peacefully. We know what's going on."
"Chunxiao, how do we calculate the money? Does he have to pay it now or can we pay it all at once after the delivery?" Dashan asked. This had not been discussed before.
"Brother, that's fine. They have a shop in town, so we're not afraid of him running away. If he wants to settle the bill at the end, just ask him to give you a receipt stating the weight he received."
"Okay, I understand."
The group returned home in the dark. It was later today than the previous day, and with no extra space in the yard, they had to build a stove with charcoal. After another busy night, Yan Bingfa slept until six and went home to sleep again. When Chunxiao woke up, the two brothers had already returned, bringing with them a receipt that read, "157 kilograms collected."
Zhou had also gotten up and was cooking in the kitchen.
Yan Bangfa did not come during dinner time. Zhou was afraid that he was too tired so she did not ask anyone to call him. The two brothers agreed to go to the town after dinner. Although they were tired on the way there, fortunately they came back empty-handed and could rest.
After dinner, Chunxiao was sent back to bed by Zhou. She had stayed up the longest and would continue to do so that night. When she woke up again, the sun was already fading. It felt like she had slept for a very long time. She went outside to see Yan Bingfa, Zhou, and the sisters-in-law. They all smiled at her.
"Little sister, did you sleep well?"
Chunxiao nodded sheepishly. "The sun is almost setting. Day and night are reversed." She looked at the wood covering the ground. "Are you done with everything?"
"It's done. It's all here. It should be all dried by tomorrow."
"This is really God's gift, and we are lucky."
"Brother and the others haven't returned yet?"
"It should be about the same time now, so just send the charcoal off and leave. It won't take much time in town."
"Sisters-in-law have worked hard these past few days. You can have a good sleep tomorrow."
Tian's face was full of smiles. "That's what Mom and Dad said. They told us to come over later tomorrow afternoon to help collect the wood. We're actually fine. We didn't stay up late, so we're not that tired."
"What do you mean by not tired? How could I not be tired after working so much for so long? I'm just happy because I can earn some money." Zhou laughed at her, "There won't be much work after tomorrow, so you should rest now."
"Mom, after we get the money, if the weather is good, let's go to town together. Take Shuwen and the others with us."
When the children heard that they were going to go to town, they all gathered around her, having fun. "Auntie, are you taking us to the town?"
Chunxiao looked at their expectant eyes and said, "I can't take care of so many of you by myself. I can't afford to accompany you if you get lost. Let's see if your grandma can go."
The children surrounded Zhou again.
"Okay, there's a big fair on the 15th of the month. If the weather is good, we can go together then."
The children ran away cheering.
A few people were standing in the yard watching the wood and chatting. When the sun went down, they started to move the dried wood to the shed at the back of the yard and stack it.
Yan Bingfa looked at the shed with some emotion, "It's a shame that this shed is built but can't be used."
"What's the big deal, Dad? I'm going to cool off in this shed in the summer. It will always be useful."
The Yan Dashan brothers came back, and they looked very tired, after all, they had made two trips back and forth, but they looked very happy, as they had finally completed the task.
"It was 152 kilograms this afternoon. Keep the note. Shopkeeper Sun said we still have three days to spare, so we should hurry."
"It shouldn't rain in the next two days, so the wood will be ready tomorrow. Three days is just right." Chun Xiao looked at their legs. "But if you keep running twice a day for two more days, I'm afraid your legs won't be able to handle it."
"It's okay. This is much better than a rainy day. Go back home and soak for a while tonight. You'll be back to normal tomorrow."
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