After working for a while, he started sweating. He took off his cotton coat, put it on Chuchu's body, and continued to sweep the snow.
A long piece of the long cotton coat draped over little Chuchu fell to the ground. The icy and snowy ground was not stained with dust even when the coat was mopped. Chuchu happily wrapped herself in the coat and followed Wei Ling.
Chuchu looks funny and cute like this.
In the house, Qin Qingman opened the boxes while listening to the conversation between Wei Ling and Chu Chu in the yard. There were two large boxes, and she opened the outermost one.
There were many things in this box, including summer bedding and Chuchu's clothes. She guessed that Chuchu must have hidden her pen in this box.
Sure enough, after lifting up the few clothes and beddings, Qin Qingman saw the pen wrapped in paper by Chuchu at the bottom.
The paper is a yellowish-brown hard paper with a faint medicinal scent.
It is estimated that it has been wrapped with medicinal materials.
Qin Qingman guessed that it might have been left behind by the original owner's mother during the time she was taking medicine and seeing a doctor, because she saw several other carefully smoothed sheets of yellow straw paper in the corner of the box.
Yellow straw paper is strong and durable, but it is not waterproof.
Qin Qingman saw a pool of blue ink smeared on the yellow straw paper. The amount was very small, and fortunately it had not stained other objects.
She quickly took out the yellow straw paper and the pen.
After opening the yellow straw paper, Qin Qingman realized that the pen cap was not tightened. Not only that, Chuchu probably pinched the pen tip, causing a lot of ink to spit out into the pen cap. It was not suitable to preserve the pen in this way.
Qin Qingman took the pen to the hall.
Pour warm water and start cleaning.
Qin Qingman first changed the ink in the pen several times, cleaned it out with water, shook it out, and then cleaned the refill, pen barrel, and pen cap one by one. After washing, she did not put them back immediately, but placed them next to the stove to dry. Only after they were completely dried did she install the parts. Finally, she wrapped them in a piece of yellow straw paper and put them in the box.
After doing all this, Qin Qingman returned to the hall.
She didn't plan to tell Chuchu about this. There was no need to make the child worry about such a small matter.
After cleaning up everything, Qin Qingman washed the dishes before going out to look at Wei Ling and Chu Chu.
Seeing Chuchu in the long cotton coat, Qin Qingman smiled immediately.
"Sister, does it look good?" Hearing the laughter, Wei Ling and Chu Chu both looked over. Chu Chu knew that Qin Qingman was making fun of her and did not feel embarrassed. Instead, she happily shook her long sleeves.
Just like an opera singer swinging his sleeves.
"It looks good. Our Chuchu looks good in any outfit." Qin Qingman laughed so hard that she couldn't straighten her back. Then she said to the two of them, "We have almost finished sweeping the snow. Come back and warm yourself by the fire. Don't get frozen."
They should not stay outdoors for a long time this winter, otherwise they are prone to hypothermia.
Hypothermia can kill people.
"Okay, I'll be right back." Wei Ling also knew the harm of staying outdoors for too long. He shoveled up the last bit of snow with a shovel and threw it on the high fence wall before he picked up Chu Chu with one hand and carried him back with the shovel in the other.
"Go and warm yourself by the stove."
Qin Qingman went forward and hugged Chuchu.
"It's okay, Chuchu is not heavy." Wei Ling did not intend to let Qin Qingman bear the force, but handed the iron sledgehammer in his hand to Qin Qingman.
You don't need to put the shovel back indoors, just put it outside.
Qin Qingman did not rush to hug Chuchu. She took the iron sledgehammer handed to her by Wei Ling and leaned it against the wall under the eaves, then opened the curtain to let Wei Ling and Chuchu in.
There was a world of difference between inside and outside the house. As soon as Chuchu entered the house, she started to take off her clothes.
Not only did he take off Wei Ling's cotton coat, he also took off his own cotton coat, and also took off his hat, earmuffs, and gloves and hung them on the hanger.
Then he rubbed his hands and did not go to the stove to warm them immediately, but went to drink water with Qin Qingman.
warm water.
After drinking the water, he rubbed his hands until the blood flowed smoothly, then sat down by the fire and called Wei Ling, who had just finished drinking water, to come over and warm himself by the fire.
"Sister, there are a lot of people sweeping snow outside today. I heard them talking about how many days it will be sunny in a row. Everyone wants to go up the mountain to hunt for some good meat." Although Chuchu is small, she has sharp ears and is quite gossipy. She got a lot of information before she even left the hospital.
After hearing what Chuchu said, Qin Qingman looked at Wei Ling.
"The mountain is relatively safe now. The division headquarters has patrols every day, and there are no ferocious animals such as bears and wolves for the time being." Wei Ling knew what Qin Qingman meant by looking at him. Although he was on vacation these days, he was well-informed.
Qin Qingman breathed a sigh of relief, "Now we just have to wait for the weather."
Large-scale hunting in the mountains cannot be done in just one or two days. We have to wait until there are several consecutive sunny days before we can go up the mountain.
"I can ask the soldier in charge of weather." Since Wei Ling and Qin Qingman lived in Kaoshan Village, they didn't plan to become too estranged from the village, as it would be detrimental to their lives. It just so happened that their division headquarters had a special meteorological department, so it wouldn't be against the rules to ask.
Although it may not be accurate, it can still give a general idea.
Qin Qingman didn't hold much hope for weather forecasts. In that era, my country's technology was relatively backward, and weather forecasts were often not very accurate in later generations, let alone now.
After thinking for a while, he said, "Our old hunters have been hunting for most of their lives and are very familiar with the climate in the mountains. I think it might be more reliable to ask both sides."
"Old hunters are more aware of the weather in the mountains."
Wei Ling agreed with Qin Qingman.
Even though these hunters were illiterate and had never been to school, they were able to predict the weather better than their division headquarters based on the experience of their ancestors, and the meteorologists in their division headquarters were willing to listen to their advice.
"Wife, I have three days left before I go back to the division headquarters. I may not be able to go home during future missions, but if I just lead the group for training at the division headquarters, I can still go home after I finish my work in the evening." Wei Ling had prepared this sentence many times in his mind, and now that he saw that the atmosphere was good, he said it out loud.
Qin Qingman was shocked.
Being with Wei Ling every day these past two days made her forget that Wei Ling's vacation time was limited. With reluctance, Qin Qingman looked at Wei Ling with a lingering gaze.
Wei Ling also couldn't bear to leave his own wife.
But some things need to be made clear early so that you can be mentally prepared and avoid complaints.
"Wife, I'm at the regimental level, so I don't have to be on duty at the division headquarters every day. I should be able to go to get off work and get off work at normal times for half a month. After get off work, I will come back to be with you." Wei Ling gently grabbed Qin Qingman's hand.
Qin Qingman glanced at Chuchu who was standing beside her. In the end, she did not shake off Wei Ling's hand. Instead, she nodded in understanding and said, "Ah Ling, please pay attention to safety during work. Chuchu and I will wait for you at home."
"Okay." Wei Ling felt relieved.
"Wife, the division's convoy went to the provincial capital yesterday and should be back tomorrow. The coal and new stove we bought should be there, so we can keep warm at home. Don't let Chuchu freeze. We have enough to burn, so don't skimp."
"Yes, I understand."
Qin Qingman nodded, and at the same time was thinking about how to take care of Wei Ling's health in the next few days.
With Hericium erinaceus, you can stew a bear paw and eat it.
Thinking of bear paws, Qin Qingman couldn't help but think of the wolf pack that went up the mountain. It had been several days since they last saw each other, and she didn't know how Xiao Hei, his wife, and the children were doing. "A Ling, go visit Xiao Hei's family when you have time."
She didn't ask about Wei Ling's job scope, she just gave him this reminder.
"Okay." Wei Ling knew that Qin Qingman had feelings for Xiao Hei's family, so he nodded and promised.
"A Ling, tomorrow is the winter solstice, let's have a good celebration at home. If Du Hongyi and the others are on break, ask them to celebrate with us." The winter solstice is an important festival in the north. People usually eat dumplings and mutton on this day. Qin Qingman thought that Wei Ling and several of his comrades were far away from their hometown, so she decided to prepare a big celebration.
Wei Ling was stunned for a moment before he realized that tomorrow would be the winter solstice.
The Winter Solstice is indeed about family reunion. Wei Ling came from the capital last winter and also spent the Winter Solstice here. Last year, his wife didn't care about him, and it was his turn to be on duty, so he spent a reunion holiday without eating dumplings.
"Wife, I will go to the division headquarters later to see who is free tomorrow. If they are free, please come to our house for a reunion dinner." Wei Ling likes his wife's generosity.
At the same time, they were also thinking that someone would help them move coal tomorrow.
"Brother-in-law, when are we going to carve ice lanterns?" Chu Chu waited for Qin Qingman and Wei Ling to talk for a long time before asking what she was most concerned about.
"Let's go now." Wei Ling rubbed Chu Chu's head.
"That's great, sister." Chuchu jumped up and looked at Qin Qingman.
Qin Qingman originally planned to make ice lanterns with Wei Ling and the others, but when she found out that Wei Ling only had three days of vacation, she suddenly didn't want to make the ice lanterns herself anymore. Anyway, she definitely couldn't carve out an ice lantern with her strength.
After figuring this out, Qin Qingman shook her head slightly and said, "You and A Ling go make the ice lanterns while I tidy up the house."
There are too many things piled up in the west room now, and there is a bathroom guard living in it, which is very inconvenient. She plans to move all the things to the empty east room.
The stove she asked someone to buy will arrive tomorrow, and she has to reserve space for it in the west room.
The sewing machine also needs to be placed.
"Wife, do you need my help?" Wei Ling asked with concern.
"No need. It's not something big. I can move it. You go and keep Chuchu company. Ever since she knew she had to make ice lanterns yesterday, she has been making them in her dreams." Qin Qingman handed Chuchu over to Wei Ling with confidence.
"Okay, let's make three ice lanterns. It won't take long."
Wei Ling planned to make a quick decision and use his own kung fu.
"Okay, one cup per person." Qin Qingman understood what Wei Ling meant.
"Yes, one cup for each person." Wei Ling wrapped up Chu Chu and himself and went to the yard with the tools.
Three large blocks of ice that were retrieved yesterday stood quietly beside the well. The clean water made the ice crystal clear, and one could see the person on the other side through the ice.
"Brother-in-law, what shape of ice lantern should we make?"
Chu Chu was eager to try.
Although he couldn't help much, his little gloved hands kept touching the ice.
"Make a little animal." Wei Ling had already made plans.
"What little animal?" Chu Chu was very curious.
"Carve a snake." Wei Ling glanced at Chu Chu and started chiseling quickly with the chisel. The broken ice flew in the air, like a rain of ice and snow.
Chu Chu stared at Wei Ling's actions blankly, her little mouth opened wide.
This was the simplest and easiest ice lantern carving he had ever seen, because even with his skill in focusing, he could make out the rough shape of the ice lantern.
A chubby little snake, still with some baby fat.
"Snake!" Chu Chu almost let the broken pieces hit the ice lamp without paying attention to the edges.
"Yes." Wei Ling wiped off the broken ice on the ice lamp and began to carve it carefully. This step requires delicate work and cannot be done too quickly.
Chuchu's big eyes were filled with joy, "Brother-in-law, is this a sculpture of me?"
"Yes, it's carved very beautifully." Wei Ling laughed. He liked the cleverness of children.
"Brother-in-law, you are so amazing. You knew I was born in the year of the snake, so you carved a snake ice lantern. This is the cutest ice lantern I have ever seen. It is not cold at all, but very cute. It must be very warm when the oil lamp is lit. Very warm." Chu Chu kept circling around Wei Ling. He wanted to touch the ice lantern, but was worried about disturbing Wei Ling's carving, and even more worried about damaging it.
"Because Chuchu is so cute and warm, I was able to carve such a lovely and beautiful snake-shaped ice lantern."
Wei Ling saw the child's eagerness, grabbed Chu Chu's hand and touched the unfinished ice lantern.
Ice is something very hard and cannot be damaged by touching.
"So beautiful." Chu Chu was satisfied when she touched the Bing Deng she had been thinking about. Then she carefully withdrew her hand and looked at Wei Ling and asked, "Brother-in-law, is there another tiger Bing Deng?" He remembered that Qin Qingman was of the tiger zodiac.
"Yes, Chuchu is really smart." Wei Ling praised the child.
"Brother-in-law, what is that last lamp?" Chu Chu didn't know what Wei Ling belonged to.
"Monkey, little monkey." Wei Ling is 26 years old and was born in the year of the monkey.
"Little snake, little tiger, little monkey, wow, it would be very beautiful if the zodiac signs of our family were made into ice lanterns and hung under the eaves." Chu Chu was so happy that she hugged the busy Wei Ling and rushed back to the hall.
He wanted to share this joy with Qin Qingman.
"Sister, sister, my brother-in-law wants to carve ice lanterns of little snakes, little tigers, and little monkeys." Before Qin Qingman was seen, Chuchu's loud voice filled the room.
Qin Qingman, who was packing things in the west room, immediately understood what was going on.
"Sister, sister, come and see, come and see." Chuchu dragged Qin Qingman's hand and walked out of the house. When passing by the living room, she was worried that Qin Qingman was cold, so she went to the clothes rack to get her cotton coat, scarf, and gloves.
Being pestered by Chuchu, Qin Qingman was also curious about what Bingdeng, under Wei Ling's command, looked like. She followed the child out of the hall, wrapped tightly.
In just a short while, the snake-shaped ice lantern in Wei Ling's hand became more delicate and clear.
"So beautiful." Qin Qingman was stunned by Wei Ling's craftsmanship.
This is definitely not just an ice lantern in Wei Ling's hands, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is a work of art, because the carved little snake is very anthropomorphic and can be associated with Chu Chu at first glance. It is an integration of Chu Chu's temperament into the ice lantern.
"Wife, what kind of little tiger do you want?"
Wei Ling looked at Qin Qingman. There were pieces of crushed ice on his eyelashes, which shone with colorful light in the sunlight and softened the shape of his face.
It looks very warm, with a nostalgic tenderness.
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