After finishing the table saw, Lin Ying applied tung oil to the wood to prevent moisture and insects. If it rained, she would disassemble it and take it home.
Every day, Lin Ying's family is either sawing wood or chopping timber.
These days, everyone goes up the mountain to gather firewood, so Lin Ying's act of cutting down trees isn't too strange.
More than half a month passed and Zhao Qinghuai did not return. Lin Ying originally planned to discuss the house repairs with him, but since he was not there, she simply took matters into her own hands and did it without informing him first.
After asking Li Yue'e where there was plenty of Ula grass, she went to cut Ula grass every day. Because Ula grass was still growing and lush in this season, she needed to cut it and dry it before she could use it.
Considering that mud would be needed to repair the roof, it was impractical to fetch water from a distant river, so Lin Ying went to the army's logistics department.
Upon hearing that Commander Zhao's house was leaking, Zhang Shanlin, the head of the logistics department, immediately apologized, saying that it was their fault for not paying attention to this issue and that they would resolve it for her as soon as possible.
Lin Ying quickly waved her hand and showed Zhang Shanlin what she had written in advance.
“My husband Zhao said that because of the construction of the Great Northern Wilderness, the troops have been very busy lately, and we military wives should support the construction of the troops. I can handle this kind of small thing myself. However, because our place is the farthest from the river where we fetch water, it is not very convenient. So I am asking if we can dig a water storage tank at home so that we can collect rainwater for use.”
After reading it, Zhang Shanlin quickly replied, "No problem, Comrade Lin Ying, thank you for your understanding. With a wife like you taking care of the home front, Lao Zhao can make more contributions to the country! Don't worry about this small matter, just do it with peace of mind. But, do you really not need me to find someone to help you?"
Lin Ying took out a pen and paper and wrote: "No need, no need. Old Zhao isn't home. If others go over, they'll inevitably gossip. I can take my time."
As the head of the logistics department, Zhang Shanlin is also in charge of the family compound, so he naturally knows that these old women have nothing better to do than gossip about this and that.
"Alright, Comrade Lin Ying, if you need anything, just let us know, and we'll do our best to help you with it!"
Lin Ying waved her hand: "The army is already very good. They allow us to go up the mountain to collect things freely. I have prepared a lot of things for repairs, but we don't need them for the time being."
Zhang Shanlin was surprised that Lin Ying had actually gone up the mountain and collected all the materials needed for repairing the house. He couldn't help but give her a thumbs up: "Comrade Lin Ying is really amazing."
After returning home, Lin Ying started digging a hole.
Besides the vegetable garden at home, Lin Ying dug a pit in front of the house for convenience.
Li Yue'e heard that Lin Ying wanted to help with the house repairs, but Lin Ying refused, saying that she could do it herself and that Lin Ying also had to make a living. She didn't know how long it would take for Lin Ying to work for her.
However, before repairing the house, Lin Ying decided to rebuild the kitchen first, partly to practice her skills and partly because she needed a place to rest at night if she were to tear down the roof.
In case it suddenly rains, there will be a place to put furniture and other items.
So, Lin Ying thought of the kitchen.
Another thing is that the wood was boiled before when we made the table saw, and it turned out really well. Lin Ying plans to build a new stove and make a large rectangular steamer for steaming the wood.
For this reason, Lin Ying even went to town to buy a large iron pot.
The kitchen was also made much larger. However, to avoid causing trouble, she still made it a shed, not a house.
However, it's not like they didn't find loopholes.
For example, the old shed was supported by four wooden beams. Now, Lin Ying brought back a large pile of stones, demolished the kitchen, laid a foundation, and built a one-meter-high wall. The roof is still supported by wood, but Lin Ying made a frame for the roof, fixed wooden planks, and then used yellow mud mixed with straw to coat the planks before laying down the woven Ula grass.
The method of weaving Ula grass was taught to her by Li Yue'e, who also taught her how to lay it in a way that would make it waterproof.
Lin Ying built the ladder and frame for the kitchen herself, and it took her a whole week to finish. The stone cabinets she had made before were fine, but she hadn't touched them when she was making the kitchen. Now, after cleaning up, she rebuilt the stove and paved the floor with stone slabs that she had chopped herself with an axe.
Although it was made of yellow mud, it was quite sturdy.
Lin Ying expanded the kitchen to twice its original size. The kitchen was in the east-facing room, and the door opened to the left from the inside. To the right of the entrance was the stove, and directly opposite the entrance were the kitchen cabinets.
Further inside, Lin Ying had made a partition, a half-wall, and inside she had built a 1.5-meter bed. Since it was temporary, she didn't plan to make it too nice; as long as it was sturdy enough to sleep in, that was fine.
Then there's the outer wall. To prevent rain from blowing inside, Lin Ying installed straw curtains on all four sides.
Taking advantage of the sunny day, Lin Ying moved her belongings into the kitchen.
As for the family's important valuables, Lin Ying installed a hidden compartment in the cupboard. From the outside, it was impossible to tell the difference.
After moving her things over here, Lin Ying rested here. Although the soundproofing here wasn't great, the houses in the residential compound were all quite far apart, and apart from animal noises, there was nothing else.
Furthermore, this was a house that Lin Ying completed independently. She carried every stone down from the mountain herself, and she chopped every piece of wood by hand, so she naturally felt a great sense of accomplishment.
Thinking that her roof would be much sturdier than the one she had just covered with straw, Lin Ying decided to do the same for her house. Considering the amount of wood needed for just one kitchen, she estimated she would need a considerable amount of materials to make the whole house look like that.
Although the furniture has been moved to the kitchen, Lin Ying still needs to prepare more materials before she can start working because she doesn't have enough.
Timber needs to be prepared, as does Ula grass. Even yellow mud is needed. Preparing all this will likely take at least a month. The roof beams especially need reinforcement, and the planks need to be laid flat. The timber also needs to be steamed, dried, and then painted.
Each of them takes time.
However, Lin Ying did not expect that the next day, as soon as she returned from carrying the tree down the mountain, she would see a group of people pointing and talking outside her door.
From a distance, Lin Ying could hear people talking about her background.
Lin Ying's heart skipped a beat, but she still walked up. Just as Lin Ying was considering whether or not to speak,
A large group of men and women, wearing red armbands, looked at Lin Ying arrogantly and said, "You're Lin Ying?"
Lin Ying put down the wood on her shoulder and nodded.
One of the men, wearing glasses and a Zhongshan suit, looked Lin Ying up and down and said, "As expected of a capitalist's daughter. These days, there aren't many people who can fatten you up like this."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
