Wang Yuqiao knew her daughter's lighthearted tone was meant to comfort her, so she said, "I know what you're saying, but Yuhan, food is so precious these days, it's not easy to get it. Don't make things difficult for us. It's okay if we eat less; other families aren't even as well-off as we are."
Besides, everyone else is starving and emaciated, while our family members are all shiny and healthy. Doesn't that look suspicious? We'll inevitably attract unwanted attention."
Du Yuhan realized this was indeed a problem. Everyone in the village was starving and emaciated, but the Du family was different, which would definitely attract attention. It would be troublesome if someone couldn't bear the hunger and plotted against the Du family.
In the face of life and death, many moral standards may have no bottom line.
It seems she has to help this old river bend village, at least to ensure the villagers don't go hungry.
Wang Yuqiao took out the last dried rabbit she had at home. When a family goes to someone else's house for a meal, they should bring something practical.
Besides the rabbit, they also took some cornmeal, cabbage, and vermicelli.
The whole family arrived at the Liang family's house before it was time to eat. Wang Yuqiao and Du Yuhan helped Li Shuzhen cook, while the men chatted inside.
Du Haifeng thoughtfully tended the fire in the kitchen, while his second brother played with his younger brother.
Li Shuzhen also liked the three children of the Du family very much. They were all very sensible and knew how to care for adults.
She looked at Du Haifeng, who was sitting by the stove tending the fire, and smiled, "Yuqiao, you are a lucky man. You have three sons who are all very sensible, and a daughter who is as sweet as a cotton-padded jacket. You can just wait to enjoy your life from now on."
Wang Yuqiao smiled and said, "I'm already thinking about my children's future. Yuhan has helped this family so much. Without Yuhan, we wouldn't have the good life we have today."
My three boys were raised by Yuhan from a young age, and she deserves more than half the credit for how sensible they are now. Although we're suffering from a disaster and not having enough to eat right now, this disaster will eventually pass. Even so, it's still better than being back in our hometown. Sister-in-law, what more could I ask for?
Your daughter and son are both very sensible. Look how sensible Jingyun is.
Several women were cooking in the kitchen, while He Zhendong told Uncle Liang about Du Yuhan's ordeal and her future plans.
Liang Shouzhen said, "Since Xiaohan has made this decision, we will support her. Many people in the village know that you and my family are related, so it makes sense that Xiaohan is related to the Du family. From now on, she should be called He Muhan in public, and we shouldn't mention the name Du Yuhan anymore."
I reckon that Han Yixian you mentioned will definitely come looking for the Du family. Their daughter died in their territory; he'll have to give them an explanation. Don't worry, we won't let Yuhan slip through our fingers.”
Du Lianqiao said with some concern, "Do you think Xiaohan can forget about Han Yixian? Xiaohan is a very sentimental child. She has suffered such a great injustice, she can't keep it bottled up inside. I think if you don't think it's possible, you can introduce her to someone. Maybe she can forget about Han Yixian faster."
He Zhendong shook his head and said, "Xiaohan definitely won't find a new partner before she lets go of Han Yixian. But I'll keep an eye out for her. I have several good candidates around me, no worse than Han Yixian."
Besides, Han Yixian is about ten years older than Yuhan, so the women I find will definitely be younger than him.”
Liang Shouzhen said, "It's good that she's helping your mother take care of the two kids now. It'll be better once she goes to medical school after the New Year and makes new friends."
Time heals all wounds; she'll naturally forget Han Yi in time. You should all show her more care and encouragement. I think Yuhan is a fine child.”
The lunch at noon was very lavish.
Looking at the food on the table, Liang Shouzhen said, "We're celebrating the New Year early today. Come on, let's have a couple of drinks, and Jiajun can have a drink too."
Upon hearing this, Liang Jiajun happily said, "Thank you, Dad."
He was finally allowed to drink alcohol, which means he's grown up.
Du Yuhan was taking care of her six-year-old brother, Du Haisheng, as he ate. The little guy was very attached to his older sister.
After a hearty lunch, Wang Yuqiao asked her eldest son to take her two younger brothers home to play while she and Li Shuzhen cleaned up the kitchen.
Liang Jiajun and Liang Jingyun, one a senior in high school and the other a junior in middle school, both had a lot of homework and were being urged to go back to their rooms to do it.
Du Yuhan had something to say to Uncle Liang, so she didn't leave the house. Seeing that only a few of them were left inside, she said, "Uncle Liang, does your team have any money? If you could use the money to buy grain, would you buy it?"
Upon hearing this, Liang Shouzhen immediately replied, "Buy, of course I'll buy. Do you need grain coupons?"
Du Yuhan said, "I don't need food coupons, just money. I'll try my best to lower the price for you. It'll definitely be cheaper than the black market."
When Liang Shouzhen heard Du Yuhan say she didn't need grain coupons, he became even more excited. These days, even if he wanted to buy grain on the black market at a high price, he wasn't guaranteed to succeed. Besides, it was extremely dangerous; if he got caught, it would be disastrous.
Liang Shouzhen said, "As long as we can buy grain, our brigade will definitely be willing to buy it. And it doesn't even require grain coupons! Where else can you find such a good deal? Xiaohan, do you really have a way to get grain?"
Du Yuhan nodded and said, "The grain I got is all good grain, probably even better than the seed grain you have in your brigade's warehouse. You can keep this grain as seed grain and eat the original grain."
I can guarantee that these are high-yielding varieties, and under the same conditions, they can increase your harvest by at least 20% compared to your original grain varieties.
Upon hearing this, Liang Shouzhen's eyes widened, and he asked, "Are you telling the truth?"
Du Yuhan said, "Would I dare lie to you? This concerns the lives of the villagers in an entire village."
Liang Shouzhen said, "Xiaohan, then I'll trouble you to pull some strings for us and buy some grain. Just spend whatever it costs. It doesn't have to be seed; as long as it's edible, it's fine."
Du Yuhan said, "Alright, then I'll contact them and try to sell us as much grain as possible. But Uncle Liang, we haven't had much snow this year, so you should be prepared for another drought next year."
Upon hearing this, Liang Shouzhen frowned and said, "We common folk rely on the heavens for our livelihood. Even if we carry water to irrigate the land, the limited manpower means we can't irrigate much land."
Du Yuhan said, "Our village is not far from the river, which is a great advantage. We can make full use of the river water to irrigate the fields."
Liang Shouzhen said, "It's not that easy. We all carry water from the river to irrigate our fields. The fields closer to the river are a little better, but we can't take care of the ones farther away at all."
Du Yuhan asked, "Then why don't you dig irrigation ditches and use them for irrigation?"
Liang Shouzhen said, "The water carried by hand is not enough to supply the irrigation canals. We carry water directly to the seedlings in buckets, and even that can only save a small portion of the crops."
The weather is so dry. Even if you water the fields, they dry out very quickly. It's heartbreaking to see those crops wither and die.
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