The rain got heavier and heavier and didn't stop until midnight.
In the early morning, the water level in the creek had risen a lot, and the men were planting thorn cages.
"Let's plant these thorns first. Next spring, when we put up the fence, we can weave them all together. It will look beautiful and serve as a courtyard wall—the best of both worlds!"
Someone immediately chimed in: "Not only that, the thorny flowers smell so good! I think the whole village can smell it!"
"Hey... stop gossiping and get to work. We have to put the tiles on the roof today no matter what!"
"Oh my God... Yesterday, our family hid in the kitchen, and the other rooms were all flooded. We're still bailing out the water!"
"That's not the case, but my family is also..."
"Fortunately, some beams had already been built at that time, otherwise the adobe wall would have collapsed!"
"This rain is still a bit cold!"
So everyone stepped up their efforts!
It only took one morning to plant all the thorns.
However, everyone looked at the limp thorn cage and decided to go up the mountain again later. It seemed that this was not enough!
Tang Youyou and his family huddled in the kitchen, warming themselves by the fire.
"Mom, how come the weather has turned cold so suddenly?" Xiao Si muttered softly.
She frowned, looked at the thin clothes on the children, and sighed slightly in her heart.
Although she now has shoes to wear, her clothes are all thin shirts. In the current situation, she doesn't know what the situation is in the county town. She can't go there, and she can't just conjure up clothes.
"Everyone, go put on some more clothes. Wait a few days, and I'll go to the county to do some shopping!"
The children shook their heads.
"Mom, we're not cold. The county is too dangerous right now. Please don't go!"
"We go collect firewood every day, and if we roast it for a while longer, it won't be cold anymore!"
"That's right, Mom, we don't feel cold at all. It's not even as cold as back home in autumn here!"
Tang Youyou looked at the children with a look of relief, and suddenly remembered that everyone slept on wooden boards last night, without even bedding!
She wanted to take a trip to the county town.
Just then, the village chief came.
"Oh, you're warming yourself by the fire? It's quite cold!"
The children stood up and gave him their seats.
He nodded with satisfaction, thinking to himself: The Tang family has very good education, and the children are well-behaved and polite!
"Village chief, have some water!" Tang Youyou handed over a bowl of hot tea!
The village chief's eyes narrowed with a smile, "Although the tea leaves are a little broken, they taste really good!"
He looked at the children and suddenly sighed, "I don't know what's going on in the county right now. The weather has suddenly turned cold. We've been running for our lives and lost all our belongings."
"Village Chief, right now we can only focus on clearing the wasteland and collecting firewood until the crisis is over!"
"You're right, three months. Half a month has already passed. Time waits for no one!"
"Fortunately, our land is sandy, so it's easy to reclaim!"
The village chief nodded in agreement. "Maybe there will be mushrooms after this rain. Let's have all the villagers go up the mountain and take a look!"
Tang Youyou remained silent and talked for a long time. What on earth was the village chief here for today? It couldn't be that he was here to chat, right?
As expected, the village chief suddenly changed the subject: "There is something I still need to rely on my niece for!"
Tang Youyou raised an eyebrow, "The village chief is talking about the refugees?"
The village chief stroked his beard and said apologetically, "Our village has just been built, and I'm afraid these refugees will unite! There are so many of them, and I'm worried..."
He didn't say any more unlucky words afterwards.
"Uncle Village Chief, the refugees are entering the village because the government is inaction. Don't be afraid, everyone. They are just taking advantage of the chaos in the government and can't do anything about them! How long can they survive with this lucky mentality?"
"Once the imperial court recovers, they will be the first to be dealt with! We are only acting in self-defense. They are a bunch of ignorant refugees, nothing to be afraid of!"
The village chief was a little surprised as he rarely saw her look so stern.
"Let's just follow the suggestion. This time is just a warning. If they do it again, we'll make an example of them! They're just relying on their lack of options, acting like dead pigs that are not afraid of boiling water. They'll die sooner or later, so they might as well die with a full stomach!"
The village chief laughed dumbly. "While your words may be crude, they make sense. I'm narrow-minded. More than half of my clan has perished along the way. I'm afraid! Today, on behalf of the entire village, I thank you!"
As she spoke, she stood up and was about to bow. Tang Youyou did not dodge. Along the way, she had already done everything she could to protect and do everything she could. She could accept this bow.
"Village chief, send someone to go with me to the mountains to look for mushroom sticks the day after tomorrow!"
"Okay, okay! I'll do as you say!"
The village chief's heart was filled with comfort, and Tang Youyou seemed to have become the most respected person in the village.
From then on, whenever important matters were discussed in the village, her words carried great weight, but that is a story for later.
After the village chief left, Xiaoshan scratched his head and asked the question in his heart: "Mom, didn't you say that younger generations can't accept the etiquette of elders, but why did you..."
Tang Youyou glanced at him with admiration. This kid was studious and smart. Then he turned to look at the others.
"Do you know why?"
Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads.
She also smiled slightly, "The village chief is representing the villagers this time. I can accept this gift. If I don't accept it, he will feel very guilty."
Then he patted Xiaoshan on the shoulder and said, "The village chief is a very good person. I don't want him to have too much psychological burden!"
Xiaoshan suddenly understood. "I understand now. The village chief is a good person. Mother thinks we can be close friends, so we can be treated as equals!"
Tang Youyou chuckled. The first half of the sentence was good, but the last sentence was so unique. She gave him a slap on the head without hesitation.
"What's going on in your head, kid? Listen more and think more, and you'll understand!"
Xiaoshan was completely despised. Everyone was smiling with their lips pursed. He pouted, feeling a little aggrieved.
Lin Huahua stepped in to smooth things over: "Oh... Third Brother is still young, please don't make fun of him. I'll steam some buns later. Who wants to eat? Raise your hands."
So everyone started talking again, forgetting what had just happened.
Tang Youyou listened to the chirping sounds and found them very pleasant to the ears.
I was in a good mood and suddenly interrupted: "Can I eat steamed buns?"
"Okay, okay, okay, just listen to mom and eat steamed buns today!" Lin Huahua made the final decision.
Everyone: So he was just making fun of us? All this discussion about steamed buns was in vain?
Tang Youyou covered her mouth and laughed secretly. She felt that the atmosphere was very good. Being with a group of children, she felt a lot younger without realizing it.
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