Having rested well, the old man was clearly in a good mood, letting Liu Gang serve him by washing his face, brushing his teeth, and getting dressed. The way Liu Gang took care of him was almost unbearable to watch, yet the old man seemed to enjoy it immensely.
The sudden transformation of a taciturn old man into a kind and gentle man was quite a shock to Liu Weimin. However, judging from Liu Jiaxiang's nonchalant attitude, it was clearly not the first time.
"Gangzi, check this side too, yes, this is it, oh, good, good, that feels good!"
"Gangzi, you go too. Take a good shower with the hot water. Once we get home and can get out of bed, we'll take another bath."
"Why!"
The two village chiefs watched as Gangzi spun around like a little top, helping him wash his face, get dressed, and then serving him porridge and chopsticks, placing the pickled vegetables in the nearest spot, and even handing him dry rations—they were practically feeding him.
That's even more meticulous than how your own wife takes care of your children.
Liu Jiaxiang had seen this father and son being so affectionate in the village before, and it made him so jealous he just grimaced.
"Look, look."
Liuzhen was very comfortable, and he ate his dry food, porridge, and pickled vegetables to his heart's content.
He didn't have any external injuries. Liu Gang had sprained his ankle, but for people like them who often bump into things while climbing mountains, this kind of injury, which mainly requires rest, isn't considered a serious injury.
He wasn't too worried.
Once the dining table was cleared away, he leaned against the headboard.
"Jiaxiang, what brings you here?"
"I've come to pick you up!"
In fact, Liu Jiaxiang hadn't thought that far ahead at all. He was so frightened when he heard the news that he didn't think about anything else. He practically grabbed his cotton-padded coat in one hand and Liu Jianshe in the other and rushed out.
When the old man asked him this question, he blurted it out and then froze, as if he had come alone.
Liu Weimin has now become the sensible one.
“Grandpa, there’s not much work to do in the dead of winter. If you’re not in a hurry, why don’t you stay here for a few days, rest and recuperate before going back?”
Liu Jiaxiang immediately objected.
"No way, the old man is from Liujiatun, don't even think about it."
Liu Weimin naturally knew that these two people weren't seriously injured, so there was no reason for them to recuperate at someone else's house.
It's just a habitual bickering.
"Oh, so things still went wrong?"
"That's because... I didn't notice, was it?"
"You said you were here to pick someone up, are you planning to carry them back?"
In the end, Liu Weimin naturally gloated again. Third Master Liu drove the oxcart to Liujiatun and took the two sick people back. Before leaving, he showed them to Li Yan. As for the life-saving grace, he naturally had to express his gratitude.
It's said that the mountains are blocked by heavy snow, but it's not really that bad. In particular, troops stationed here come here from time to time for training exercises, and the roads have been worn down almost by footsteps.
Jian Dan had only been in this world for less than half a year, and this was the first time she had experienced such a winter in both her lives. She was quite interested and even made some steamed buns. But then she started thinking about other things, recalling what people in the countryside did in winter, as seen on TV.
Oh, and there are also famous frozen vegetables, frozen dumplings, frozen meat, frozen pears, roasted melon seeds, peanuts, and potato slices on the stove lid. Thinking about it, there are quite a few interesting things.
The kang (heated brick bed) in her room was connected to the stove with the large cooking pot in the kitchen. However, there was also a small stove in the corner of the room. If she didn't want to get up and go to the kitchen, she could add firewood directly to this small stove. However, the stove was small and could only burn corn cobs. Corn cobs are easy to burn but don't burn for long. There were some simple firewood sheds, but not many, so she used firewood from outside more often. The small stove in the room was usually just used to warm a pot of water for washing her hands and face, which was convenient.
This little stove, to be honest, has never been used properly yet.
Thinking it over, he went inside, took the kettle off the ground and put it aside. He then used the stove hook to lift the iron stove lid that was standing on one side and placed it over the spot where the kettle had just poured out.
He went to the woodshed and brought back a basket of corn cobs. He took a handful of corn cobs, lifted the stove lid, and threw them in. The cold air caused the flames in the stove to flicker. After several minutes, it finally caught fire. The corn cobs were burning bright red, which was the perfect level of fire.
Seeing this, Jian Dan threw down two more handfuls, then got up and went to the kitchen to take out a few potatoes. Without washing them, he cut them into thick slices and placed them on the heated stove lid. With a puff of white smoke and a sizzling sound, the barbecue began.
Using a small shovel, I tested it out, and soon, a crack appeared on the side that was touching the stove lid. Then I flipped it over.
The second side was much better; it was almost cooked when it changed color only slightly. This was based on my experience of simply burning a few pieces.
There are no seasonings, but the taste is completely natural and sweet. The outer crust is slightly crispy, while the inside is hot, soft, sweet and glutinous. The more you eat, the more you love it. The lid of the oven is soon covered with potato slices of various degrees of doneness.
Then, Jian Dan even found some barbecue seasoning and sprinkled it on top.
The consequence of eating too many snacks was that she couldn't eat anything for lunch. She leaned against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) with her bloated stomach, feeling drowsy, when there was a knock on the door.
Simple and groggy, she was jolted awake by the gust of wind as she pushed open the door. She instinctively pulled her coat tighter around herself and hurried towards the door.
"Coming, coming! Who is it?"
As soon as she opened the door, she was met with a smiling face flashing bright white teeth. Jian Dan immediately took a few steps back, and the other person quickly reached out to steady her.
"Hey, Jian Zhiqing, what's wrong?"
"Don't you recognize me?"
Simple steadied himself and looked carefully for a long time before he could vaguely make out a familiar outline.
"Are you that person, that person from that day?"
Big White Tooth chuckled and nodded repeatedly.
"Yes, yes, it's me. You still recognize me?"
To be honest, I don't know them.
The unshaven, filthy, half-dead look she had that day was hard to reconcile with the clean-cut, sunny, and smiling person in front of her. She only dared to recognize her by the still-familiar outline.
So, he simply and honestly shook his head.
"We don't really know each other."
Cheng Chao's smile froze.
Two soft laughs came from behind.
"Ahem, Little Jian, a former educated youth."
Jian Dan leaned out of the door, holding onto it.
"Captain Lin, Political Commissar Cheng?"
He blinked a few times before finally snapping out of his daze.
"Why are you here?"
It's only a little past noon now, and there are still quite a few children playing outside. Some of them are already looking this way. After a quick thought, I decided not to make things more interesting for others to see, and instead, I opened the gate.
"Why don't you come in first?"
Feeling wronged, Cheng Chao took the lead, followed by two smiling adults.
The small house was only so big, and the group stopped in the kitchen. The fire in the stove had never gone out, so it wasn't cold.
He simply squeezed into the house, poured bowls of hot water for everyone, and placed them on the stove.
"Have some water first. My room is small, so please make do with this small stool."
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