Chapter 328 Daily Life on the Island
Xia Juanjuan was stunned for a moment, then she looked up at Li Zhan and realized that Li Zhan must have lied because he couldn't find her. She could only smile vaguely and said, "Mom... didn't go out. What are you doing with Dad?"
The triplets were distracted and said proudly, "We are growing vegetables!"
Xia Juanjuan smiled and patted their heads, saying, "Good boy! You are really capable!"
As he spoke, he handed the seeds to Lizhan, asking him to distribute them to the triplets, who then scattered the seeds in the dug vegetable patch in an orderly manner.
The triplets were so happy that they couldn't stop smiling.
For the three kinds of vegetables, I planted two beds of radish and cabbage, and planted more spinach. I irrigated them with spiritual spring water, and then all I had to do was wait for them to sprout and grow.
There is not much arable land on the island, so food, vegetables, meat, eggs, etc. are in short supply. The main source of protein is fish, shrimp, shellfish, etc., and the others are kelp, seaweed, etc.
Therefore, every household here grows some vegetables in their yard for their own consumption, similar to the private plots in Qingshui Village. In addition, when the group goes fishing at sea, after leaving enough for the group, each family can also get a share, which is the daily source of food.
Most of the food is still shipped in from outside the island and is usually distributed to the communal fisheries. The communal fisheries use the fish, shrimp, shellfish or other seafood they catch to transport to the mainland in exchange for food.
As for pigs, cattle, and sheep, there are basically no free-range ones raised by each household on the island. Sheep, needless to say, need to eat grass, and there is not enough arable land on the island, and there is not enough grass to feed them. The commune does raise a cow as a tool for ploughing the land. As for pigs, they also need to eat grain and groceries, and ordinary people don't have leftovers, so they can't afford to raise them.
There is a pig farm at the station. It is not large, with about four or five pigs. They are fed with swill, wheat bran, rice bran and other things from the station canteen.
As for chickens, ducks and geese, every household seemed to feed a few of them to the best of their ability. After all, fish entrails, shrimp shells, shells of shells and the like, as well as peeled vegetable leaves, were the favorite foods of birds, and every household had them.
At noon, Xiaowen, Xiaowu and Beibei came back from primary school. Xia Juanjuan took the fish out of the space, and also made some bean sprouts with soybeans, and cooked a pot of hot fish soup with radish cubes.
I also took out some fresh shrimps, boiled them in water and made a sauce.
The freshly cooked shrimp has a sweet taste and is delicious even without the sauce.
There is also a fried squid
The triplets were too young, and we were afraid that they might get fish stuck in their throats, so we fed them shrimps and chopped squid.
Li Zhan looked at the table full of seafood and guessed that it was probably brought out by Xia Juanjuan from the space.
After all, it was only their second day on the island, how could there be so much seafood at home?
That is... when I accidentally entered Xia Juanjuan's space before, I knew that she had stored a lot of food and meat in her space, but I didn't expect that there was even seafood!
Xia Juanjuan was in a good mood.
In the past, in Qingshui Village, the seafood in the space could only be used to eat fish and shrimp occasionally. There was no place for squid, octopus, clams, scallops, razor clams, flower crabs, jellyfish and the like.
Now I can finally eat it openly.
After a while, when you've settled down, you can eat oysters, abalone and the like from time to time.
However, whether it is Lizhan or the children, they all grew up in the inland, and it is definitely not suitable for them to eat only seafood. Therefore, pork, beef, mutton and other things in the space will be taken out from time to time to change the taste.
After lunch, Liu Huifang and Lin Qiaomei came over as planned to take Xia Juanjuan to familiarize herself with the island.
Zhou Qingqing didn't come this time.
Xia Juanjuan did not refuse and followed them out.
The island is not big, but it is quite far to walk on. We first went to the well and told Xia Juanjuan how to fetch water.
Xia Juanjuan listened with humility. She would definitely come to fetch water in the future, but the spiritual spring in her space was enough for the drinking and drinking water at home.
Then we went to the dock, the post office for sending and receiving letters and parcels, and the telegraph station.
When they arrived at the telegraph station, Xia Juanjuan sent a telegram to Xia Shuangshan, Lin Yuru, and the Fu family.
If Fu Nanzheng goes back, he should be able to bring a letter back. However, considering how much trouble they had on the way here, it is estimated that the telegram would be faster than Fu Nanzheng getting home.
Afterwards, we went to the on-site cafeteria and a market-like place where supplies were distributed on-site.
The families of the soldiers on the island were also issued food coupons and meat (fish) coupons. If they did not want to cook at home, they would go to the local canteen to get meals with the food coupons. If they wanted to cook at home, they would use the food coupons and meat (fish) coupons to go to the place where supplies were distributed and exchange them for food and the like, such as fish, shrimp, pork, and eggs.
While walking, Liu Huifang and Lin Qiaomei also talked a little about the climate on the island.
"When it's cold in winter, the sea here freezes, and sometimes it's difficult for fishing boats to go out fishing. But there is a larger icebreaker stationed here, which goes out to fish regularly to replenish fish and shrimp supplies and distribute them to residents on the island.
However, the quantity is definitely not enough, so we should take advantage of now to dry more fish, dried shellfish and the like, which will be a supplement for the winter.
There is also a state-owned fishery on the neighboring Emerald Island, and the local resident sometimes directly buys supplies from there.
In summer, the wind and waves are strong, and there are sometimes typhoons, so be sure to close the doors and windows.
Also, you have to keep an eye on the kids at home. Don't let them go to the beach for fun. In previous years, there were children who were swept away by storms, and the adults at home cried their hearts out.
The garrison will have regular sea patrols, you can ask Captain Li to take you up there for a tour someday."
Xia Juanjuan also listened with a smile.
After walking for several hours, the two finally finished their enthusiastic introduction.
When Xia Juanjuan returned home, her heels were aching, but her impression of Liu Huifang and Lin Qiaomei had improved a lot.
This island is not very big, and you can see it everywhere if you look up, so it’s best if there is nothing awkward about it.
Two days later, the troops really brought a large wardrobe and a bed by boat, which supplemented their furniture.
Some wood was also sent over.
When Lizhan came back, Xia Juanjuan asked, "Did you apply for the timber?"
Li Zhan smiled and said, "Well. Even if you have some in your space, you can't just take it out for no reason. I applied for some and told the old carpenter on the island to help me with it."
Xia Juanjuan felt sweet in her heart. This rough man was considerate and knew how to cover for her.
Xia Juanjuan took out some more wood from the space, and the next day, she invited an old carpenter to come over and help her make another bed, two tables, and five chairs.
When the old carpenter was helping here, Xia Juanjuan was naturally in charge of the meals, which included mixed-grain steamed buns, fish and shrimp every day, and some radishes and cabbages - she said they were sent by other people on the island, so she just got away with it.
When the old carpenter finished his work and went back, Xia Juanjuan took another piece of bacon, secretly wrapped it up, and asked the old carpenter to take it back.
The old carpenter looked at it and refused to accept it. Pork and other items were in short supply on the island. It was only after Xia Juanjuan forced them into his tool bag that he accepted it.
The sawdust and other things shavings from the yard were taken to the kitchen and used as firewood. Some leftovers were given to the kids at home to play with.
There was a bed, but Xia Juanjuan still sent Lizhan to sleep with Xiaowen and Xiaowu every night, which made Lizhan very depressed and sighing.
Later, he couldn't bear it anymore, so he waited until the kids at home fell asleep, then ran to pick up Xia Juanjuan and went to the next room to make love.
Xia Juanjuan was also a person of low temper, but she was afraid that if she fought, she would wake up the children, so she had to punch him twice in anger, and tried hard not to make any sound.
If I had known this earlier, I would not have made this third bed. Now, he tortures himself every night. I don’t know where he gets such good physical strength!
The days passed by like water. The Fu family sent things to me several times, including food and some cotton clothes.
As for Xia Shuangshan and Lin Yuru, Xia Juanjuan also sent some money back to them, wrote letters back, asked about Yang Qiushi's situation, and instructed them not to send anything to them, but they also asked Secretary Zhao to help them write letters and send them.
The transportation and communication here are not very convenient, and letters and parcels sometimes have to be delayed for several days.
As for Shen Wanxue and Rong Zhenbang, Xia Juanjuan still asked Luo Cheng to find someone to secretly help look after them from time to time.
In the blink of an eye, it was midwinter.
Because it is a marine climate here, it doesn't snow in the winter, but it is still damp and cold.
Both coal stoves in the house were lit.
Even the coal here has to be transported from the land. Xia Juanjuan stored some in the space, but it is not a renewable resource, so it has been almost used up over the years.
Fortunately, firewood is inexhaustible, so we changed to burning charcoal to keep warm.
Of course, when burning charcoal in the house, one must pay attention to safety and keep two windows open at all times.
In winter, we put a small iron net on the stove, put oysters, squid tentacles, etc. on it, and slowly roast them.
The oysters are served with minced garlic, ginger, sauce and other condiments, and are eaten with the grilled sauce.
The squid tentacles are sprinkled with pepper, salt, cumin, etc., which makes them extremely delicious.
There are also rice cakes. Watching the plump rice cakes expand and then burst with a "pop" sound, they are baked. They are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The kids all complain about their hot mouths and keep eating them.
As the year drew to a close, the troops killed three New Year pigs. In addition to leaving enough for the local canteen to enjoy during the New Year, each family of the troops also received about ten pounds of meat, and the rest was distributed to the residents on the island.
The sea near the shore was indeed frozen, and the ship that ran every ten days had also stopped running, so there was no need to think about going back to Beijing for the New Year, and I could just celebrate the New Year on the island.
Although the island is not big, the atmosphere of the New Year is still there. Some firecrackers were transported here before the New Year, and every household put up couplets to suit the occasion. Firecrackers were popping non-stop.
The cubs have already become familiar with the other children on the island. The older ones pull the younger ones, and each of them, wearing a thick, round cotton-padded jacket, takes the wolf cubs out to visit and play.
Although people eat more fish here, dumplings are still needed during the Chinese New Year. Xia Juanjuan made dumplings with pork and cabbage filling, and pork and dried bamboo shoots filling. In addition, there were other seafood-based New Year's Eve dinners such as steamed flower crab, crab fried with rice cake, stir-fried shrimp, steamed fish, and clam and abalone soup.
On New Year's Eve, after putting the kids to sleep, Lizhan tormented her in another room. The two of them were sweating and lying on the bed. Xia Juanjuan couldn't help but calculate the time in her heart. It had been more than four years since she traveled through time. In just two years, the college entrance examination would be resumed, and she had to start studying and preparing.
Otherwise, it would be embarrassing if I failed the exam.