Coming out of Hongxia's house, Mu Huaixi's mind was still buzzing. First Battalion Commander Guan Xingguo actually had seven children! The one who had just greeted her was their eldest daughter, Guan Jichun. Playing in the yard were their twin sons, Guan Wen and Guan Wu, and the boy-girl twins, Guan Nan and Guan Bei. They also had their second son, Guan Jiqiu, and their youngest daughter, Guan Jixia, in Hongxia's arms. It was a truly prosperous family.
"No wonder Sister Hongxia wants to make a bed," Mu Huaixi shook his head, trying to get rid of the evil noise in his ears. After all, the twins are about the same age as the boy-girl twins, at the age when even dogs hate them. Coupled with the loud crying of the baby, the Guan family is even more lively than a zoo.
Their family was large, and even with the addition of a room on the second floor, where the drying platform was, it still couldn't accommodate them. The first floor was damp, and without a kang (kang), the children wouldn't be able to sleep well squeezed into two rooms. The battalion commander's wife's brother-in-law was also staying at his house, and he couldn't eat in the cafeteria every day like Mu Huaixi did. Sister Hongxia thanked her profusely for the fish and promised to make her kang bright and airy!
Mu Huaixi knew a thing or two about kangs. Hulu Valley was, after all, surrounded by mountains, so even if it was cold, it wouldn't be as cold as in the Northeast. There was no need for a fire wall; all she needed to do was build a good kang and a good flue. That way, when she got home at noon, she'd light the stove and start cooking. Then, when she got home from work, she could warm herself on the kang and have hot water to wash her face. It was like killing two birds with one stone!
However, there were not many people who were as willing to accept the kang as she was. Only four or five families agreed to build a kang with the Guan family. Even when Sister Hongxia promised not to charge for the kang work, Mu Huaixi was the first to agree. Sister Hongxia even put her first in line, "You have nothing at home, so an empty house is easy to clean up. We have too much stuff at home, so we need to clean it up first!"
Wang Hongxia was really straightforward, and Mu Huaixi also handed over the keys readily to make it easier for Sister Hongxia to start work. His house now has doors and windows installed. If he wasn't afraid of snow or animals from the mountains breaking in, there would be no need to lock the door!
She handed over her new home and prepared to go up the mountain with a bamboo basket on her back and borrowed fire tongs. When she got out of the guard post at the pass, she saw Li Fengjuan waiting there with a bamboo basket on her back.
"Doctor Mu," Li Fengjuan greeted her with a smile. Suddenly, another person appeared behind her and waved at her. It was Wang Xiaohua who was also carrying a bamboo basket.
Mu Huaixi was startled. Before she could ask why she was here, she heard Li Fengjuan explain, "Doctor Jiang had to go to Jiangcheng on an urgent matter. We sprayed disinfectant in the health center early this morning, so everyone is resting today."
There aren't any weekends these days. The health center only has one day off per week, and one day off per month for disinfection. Of course, you can save up your time like Wang Xiaohua did so you can go home. Mu Huaixi hadn't originally planned to take a vacation, but yesterday, while Fengjuan and Xiaohua were roasting a fire and eating peanuts, she heard them talk about going up the mountain in the fall to pick wild pears, chestnuts, and mushrooms. She was envious. Fengjuan happened to be taking a day off tomorrow, so she took it too and made an appointment to go up the mountain together.
"Why didn't you call me for disinfection?" Mu Huaixi didn't expect that Dr. Jiang was so concerned about the pagoda candy, but he was still very happy to have a day off.
"What are you doing?" Wang Xiaohua rolled her eyes. "There's no time to come and call you. We've already done it, Fengjuan, don't you think?"
Li Fengjuan smiled and said, "Didn't you say that Dr. Mu should get some more sleep? Why do you only dare to feel sorry for him behind his back?"
"You!" Wang Xiaohua didn't expect her best friend to "make a move" on her. Then, her eyes met Mu Huaixi's. Her face flushed red as she stammered, "I, I just did that because I knew she was a lazy beddler! She couldn't get up!"
Mu Huaixi really wasn't one to stay in bed, but she didn't refute Wang Xiaohua. After all, Wang Xiaohua was being stubborn. She nodded and took out two buns and handed them over. "You've worked hard. Eat a bun to replenish your energy."
They are going to Yinjiao Mountain today. According to Li Fengjuan, since the military camp was built on Hulu Mountain, not many people have gone to Jinyinjiao Mountain and Hulu Mountain inside it, so there must be good things left there.
"Don't run around when you go up the mountain. Xiaohua and I will lead the way. Doctor Mu, please watch your step." Li Fengjuan was worried that there were still snakes on the mountain. However, Wang Xiaohua felt that in such a cold day, the snakes would have burrowed into the soil and taken a nap. At worst, there was still Doctor Mu's spirit-repelling powder!
"Doctor Mu," Wang Xiaohua suddenly leaned over and asked in a low voice, "Have you heard of the terrifying legend about me entering the Golden Horn and Silver Horn?"
Mu Huaixi knew at a glance that she was full of bad intentions, so she deliberately ignored her and turned to ask Li Fengjuan about the precautions on the mountain. After all, she hadn't been in the mountains for a long time.
Wang Xiaohua was extremely depressed, so she could only come over and tell her the story of how the King of Gold and Silver Horns was dissatisfied with being demoted to the mortal world, so he specifically called out people's names in the mountains and captured and ate them.
"If you hear someone calling your name from behind in the mountains, don't answer. It's also best not to shout other people's names in the mountains. If the Golden Horn and Silver Horn hear you, they'll remember your name and take you away!" Wang Xiaohua was furious, but the two people in front of her were very calm, so she could only fast forward to her goal. "So! When we go up the mountain today, we all have to give each other code names. I'm the oldest of the three, so I'll be called Wang Lao Da, Fengjuan will be Xiao Erjuan, and Doctor Mu will be, haha, Mu Xiao San!"
Wang Xiaohua's true intentions were exposed, and she looked at the two of them triumphantly, but Mu Huaixi just looked at her expressionlessly. She felt like she had been poured with a bucket of cold water, and tremblingly discussed, "How about, Doctor Mu, you be the boss? I, I'll be second..."
Before Wang Xiaohua could finish her words, she heard Li Fengjuan say coldly, "Xiaohua, my bed may not be able to accommodate two people tonight."
“Don’t!”
Wang Xiaohua's room had just been sprinkled with medicine powder, so she could only stay in Fengjuan's room for the past few days. She was determined to "retaliate" against Fengjuan in a few days, but the situation was too strong for her, so she could only be Wang Laosan with grievance.
Although Yinjiao Mountain is not high, it is famous for its steepness and strangeness due to the numerous trees and rocks.
Mu Huaixi followed the two of them and soon reached the "end" of the mountain road. Further up was dense forest and rocks.
"It's been a while since anyone has been here," Wang Xiaohua said, beating the withered weeds with a bamboo stick while looking around. "I see a streak of red in the woods to the west. Could it be a persimmon tree? Should we go west?"
Li Fengjuan didn't say anything, but just asked Mu Huaixi with her eyes. She came here to accompany Dr. Mu today, so naturally she had to see what she thought.
Mu Huaixi has been dazzled since she went up the mountain. It’s not that she didn’t recognize anything because she hadn’t been to the mountains for a long time, but everything looked extraordinarily different. The dead grass by the roadside was silent, but the roots underground were trying hard to drill down. The big trees beside her were silent, but the branches and leaves were happily stretched towards the sky. Wang Xiaohua only saw a touch of red in the woods to the west, but she felt the sweet fragrance of maturity and the joy of birds and beasts.
"Then let's go to the west," Mu Huaixi wanted to verify his vague feeling, so he followed Wang Xiaohua's advice.
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