Qiaoyun was very happy to see the cloth she had woven herself dyed in beautiful colors.
She was simple-minded and could learn the methods her mother-in-law taught her, so that she could weave beautiful clothes for herself and Xiao Caixia in the future.
Beside the terraced fields, Xu Errui was fighting with a wild boar.
Jiang Zhi was dyeing cloth and worried that the pork belly would cause trouble, so she tied the pig to a tree trunk outside with a rope.
The pork belly was from a wild boar, and it had never been restrained like this before. It cried out in frustration.
Seeing that it was pitiful, Xu Errui took it to the edge of the terraced fields and worked with it.
Because Xiaoman's family is going to repair their house, Xu Errui is helping Xiaoman soak wheat straw in yellow mud a day in advance so that it can be used to plaster the walls and make them strong and durable.
With a wild boar nearby, he couldn't work properly. He had just poured a bucket of water into a hollow in the mud pile when the wild boar used its snout to dig up the soil around it, and the water gushed out.
Enraged, Xu Errui chased after him, but Xiao Wuhua circled the mud pile, leaping and bounding nimbly.
However, his legs were too short, and he accidentally failed to jump over, plunging headfirst into a pile of mud, covering his nose and eyes completely.
Struggling to get out of the mud pile, he was covered in mud and water, his pork belly turned into a sauce, making Xu Errui laugh until his stomach hurt.
The little wild boar was also vengeful. When it was mocked, it turned around and chased after the people with its head covered in mud. Xu Errui didn't dare to get covered in mud, so he also jumped around the mound of earth.
For a time, the humans and pigs fought fiercely and had a great time.
In the end, Xu Errui had to hold the little wild boar and coax it gently, then take it to the ditch and give it a nice bath before it was over.
The next day, Xiaoman's family started building their house.
The previous charcoal shed had been partitioned off. This time, a separate bedroom for the couple was built next to the charcoal shed, which is what Xiaomanye called a "private room".
Because there's no need to raise the beams, you only need to extend a section of the eaves gutter, making construction very convenient.
The two families gathered together, first laying down a ring of stones, and then using straw and mud to build the wall.
This room is for Xu Dazhu. Jiang Zhi suggested that it be floored with wooden flooring, since he has difficulty moving around, so he won't have to worry about getting cold even if he sits or lies on the floor.
If wooden planks are to be laid, a kang (heated brick bed) cannot be built inside; instead, a stove and fire wall should be constructed for easy heating.
The gaps between the ground and the wooden planks should have been sealed with lime to prevent moisture.
There was no lime on the mountain, but charcoal was readily available, so we decided to use moisture-proof charcoal to fill the gaps.
There aren't enough charcoal blocks right now, so we'll have to wait until later and burn a few kilns of charcoal on a cloudy, rainy, or foggy day.
The earthen kang (heated brick bed) in the charcoal shed has also been dismantled; it almost collapsed during a summer downpour.
In addition, Grandpa and Grandma Xiaoman are getting old and still prefer to use a bright, open wooden bed with a suspended bottom, covered with soft straw, for comfort.
Because wooden planks were to be laid, the ground was only roughly leveled, which made the work go smoothly for the group.
A wall half a person high was built in half a day; judging by the progress, it will only take two days to complete.
Under the sunlight, Nini and the little wild boar ran wildly in the yard, their six short legs moving nimbly.
The two are evenly matched in combat, and they would fight for half a day over a single tree branch.
However, they can only play with the wild boars for a short period of time. Once the baby wild boars are three months old and their markings fade, they will become wild beasts that can bite people. At that time, the clumsy baby wild boars will need to be separated from the children.
The people on the mountain were happy and joyful, while down the mountain, Li Laoshi was suffering from a headache and was very upset.
Ever since he was driven out of his shack by Zhang Juntou and forced to gather herbs, a group of refugees have followed him.
Whatever he does, those people will try to imitate him.
He had just touched some grass, and after taking a few steps, he turned around and the grass roots were gone. It had been snatched up by a group of people, and the refugees grinned when they saw him discover it.
Li Laoshi felt a chill run down his spine. The people who were usually laughing and joking had now turned into a swarm of giant insects, their blood-red mouths wide open, ready to devour him.
A group of people followed me as I walked around the village.
A walk around the village revealed a group of people following them, leaving nothing but barren land in their wake.
Li Laoshi's brain was almost dried up. He didn't know much to begin with, and if this group of people followed suit, not only would they learn everything, but he might also lose the medicinal herbs he had.
I'm an honest person, but I can't do honest things!
So Li Laoshi spent a whole day wandering around the ditches and field ridges outside the village, and the people behind him followed him for the whole day.
When it got dark, Li Laoshi, exhausted from walking, picked some wild vegetables to take back and cook into a porridge...
The same thing happened the next day...
Enraged at not receiving the medicine, Zhang Juntou issued an ultimatum to Li Laoshi: if he didn't get the medicine, he would be beaten with military sticks.
Li Laoshi knew that he had gotten into trouble because he was greedy for those pancakes, and now it would be difficult for him to deny that he knew how to identify drugs.
On the third day, before dawn, Li Laoshi secretly climbed up the hillside next to him.
This time, only three or four people followed behind him.
Li Laoshi and his group have been living in the village for more than a month, but they rarely go up the mountain.
The mountains around Xujia Village are not particularly majestic or towering; they are just like the surrounding mountains, with dense forests, crisscrossing ravines, and endless stretches.
But... here are the towering oak forests, the blackened hillsides of the village, and the charred remains of the few families in the mountains...
The entire mountain appeared desolate and dilapidated, lifeless and like the boundary between life and death, inspiring fear in people.
Li Laoshi and his fellow villagers were just ordinary farmers who could risk their lives for small gains but dared not take great risks, and were even more afraid of people dying for no reason.
Ever since they learned that two households with more than ten people had been burned alive, even though Zhang Juntou and his men had already buried the rotting remains, these refugees still huddled in the village, not daring to take another step.
Chunfeng knew about this back in the village, which is why she was so surprised and delighted to see Xiaoman and know that they were on the mountain.
Now Li Laoshi wants to climb the mountain and scare the people following behind him back, but the people behind him think the same way, and everyone wants to persevere to the end.
So, the group walked further and further away.
The mountain road was rugged and difficult to travel, and was also frequently interrupted by landslides and mudslides, forcing them to constantly change routes.
Several people walked one after another through the lush wild grass and forest, only concerned with what herbs or medicines the other was picking, and did not bother to look up and pay attention to the terrain. As they walked, they gradually got lost in the mountains.
As the sun set and twilight descended, Li Laoshi and his companions, having wandered aimlessly all day, had long since lost their way down the mountain.
Thinking of those who had been burned to death, and with darkness approaching, they were filled with fear and had no choice but to gather together.
The tall, thin man with a thick beard who was the first to follow Li Laoshi said, "Li Laoshi, everyone's tired after running around all day. Let's just speak frankly."
From now on, we'll gather herbs together. You just need to give instructions, and the rest of us will do the work. The food will be divided equally among the four of us.
Li Laoshi was dissatisfied: "Who needs your help? I can pick them myself!"
If you pick it yourself, why let others take most of it?
Another disheveled man said, "Li Laoshi, if you don't agree, we'll stick with you like this and none of us will leave. Let's see if Commander Zhang will punish you!"
Li Laoshi gritted his teeth, knowing that if he didn't agree, he wouldn't be able to leave the mountain today. With a quick chuckle, he agreed: "No problem, no problem. From now on, you brothers will help me gather herbs, and everyone will have food and drink."
He spent a whole day wandering around the mountain, but couldn't find a single herb he recognized. He could only randomly pick a few familiar ones to get by.
Since these people are pestering me, let's all go to Zhang Juntou's place to receive our punishment!
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