Lin Ying knew that Li Yue'e was actually feeling a little embarrassed about how irritable she had been with the child before, and didn't really mean to complain.
"Girl, let me tell you, you haven't been to the supply and marketing cooperative these past few days, so you don't know how quiet our compound has been. Those troublemakers don't dare to cause any trouble now. Especially those who always bring up your class background, none of them dare to mention it anymore."
Lin Ying asked, somewhat puzzled, "What happened?"
Speaking of this, Li Yue'e couldn't help but laugh: "Let me tell you, that day you went to town with them, didn't Cheng Jiaojiao cause you trouble? When you came back, you bought two large cartloads of things, and some people were extremely envious."
I heard about this from Minister Zhang's wife. Originally, Cheng Jiaojiao's comments in front of outsiders were detrimental to unity. Minister Zhang was already furious enough. Who knew she would go and accuse you of being a capitalist roader, buying so many things for yourself, in the logistics department?
She didn't know that openly buying and selling things in the commune meant it had permission from above. The commune was established last year because people were struggling to survive; it was a project receiving strong support. Now, Cheng Jiaojiao's report was blatantly labeling anyone buying things there as a capitalist roader. Would Minister Zhang allow that?
You know, it's no wonder Cheng Jiaojiao was so unlucky. She went to town and made things difficult for you, which embarrassed the Revolutionary Committee, so naturally they were angry. They sent that huge pile of—and I'm not exaggerating—a whole bunch of complaint letters to Minister Zhang.
Minister Zhang's face darkened as he looked at the various letters of complaint.
I can't cause trouble for you women comrades, but that doesn't mean I can't cause trouble for you men. Right then and there, I showed the complaint letters to every officer above the battalion commander level. Everyone knows what a wife's handwriting looks like, right? That night, several regimental officers asked for leave to go home.
Minister Zhang said that anyone who felt he was not performing his duties properly could raise their concerns at any time, and could even report him to higher authorities. Anyone who bypassed him and the military headquarters to report these matters elsewhere would receive a public reprimand. As for Battalion Commander Cheng, he was specifically named and warned: if Cheng Jiaojiao causes trouble like this again, her military dependent status will be revoked!
Seeing how excited Li Yue'e was, Lin Ying quickly poured her a glass of brown sugar water.
Li Yue'e was stunned after looking at it.
Lin Ying said, "I knew you were on your period, so I drank something warm."
Li Yue'e was moved again: "Sister, really, it's my blessing to have met you in the compound!"
Lin Ying smiled and said, "Then how did we get onto the topic of my background?"
Li Yue'e snapped out of her reverie and continued, "Oh, right, it was also Minister Zhang. He issued a written notice directly, saying that your class background is fine. Although your maternal grandfather was a capitalist, he was a national capitalist, and he had already donated his assets to the country. He also said that your great-grandfather, your grandfather, and your husband were all good comrades of the revolution. Your political background check was conducted rigorously by the military. Anyone who brings up this kind of thing again, or who is not conducive to harmony in the compound, will have their military dependent status revoked!"
After saying this, Li Yue'e was genuinely happy for Lin Ying: "Sister, that's great! Let's see who looks down on you now."
Lin Ying didn't think much of it. In fact, a kind and understanding person would never kick someone when they're down, and those who deliberately cause trouble would never get along with her no matter what she said.
She's very calm and rational right now. She won't force herself to get what she can't have, and she won't make things difficult for herself by trying to please others. She's not money, and even if she were, some people would consider money worthless.
Therefore, whether they change or not has nothing to do with her.
Lin Ying chatted with Li Yue'e until noon, and only left when Xiao Qiang called her hungry.
Lin Ying has a big appetite, so she doesn't have the problem of cooking too much and not being able to finish it. Besides, she already has rice, so what's there to be afraid of? After enjoying a delicious lunch, Lin Ying continued to process the remaining medicinal herbs.
After finishing, Lin Ying started considering digging a cellar. However, digging a tunnel would be too obvious, so Lin Ying decided to build a shed on the back wall first.
Setting up the shed was simple; first, a frame was constructed using wooden planks. To prevent the shed from collapsing under the weight of snow in winter, Lin Ying chose relatively thick timbers. Moreover, Lin Ying wasn't sure how heavy the snowfall would be here; her knowledge of such matters came entirely from Mo Zi's memories.
Worried that the shed might collapse if it relied too heavily on the back wall of the house, Lin Ying specially erected several pillars at the base of the wall. This way, there was no need to worry about the heavy snow on the shed causing the house to fall over.
Fortunately, Lin Ying had prepared enough wood, and after two days, she finally managed to install the back shed.
She planned to attach the remaining mats along the eaves once the weather got a bit colder. They would simply hang vertically down.
After the shed was set up, Lin Ying started transporting stones and burning lime again.
The materials were prepared for five days in a row. It wasn't that no one saw Lin Ying's actions, but because of what happened last time, both those who were looking for trouble and those who weren't were reminded by their husbands, so no one dared to say anything.
After finishing these tasks, Lin Ying began digging. She planned to build up the entire basement with stones, especially the base of the walls, which definitely needed to be reinforced.
Lin Ying was strong, and with her small cart, she worked on two carts in a row, and dug a large pit that was five meters long, two meters wide, and three meters high.
The two busiest things in winter are lighting a fire and cleaning out the ashes.
So, she wanted to try to be lazy.
To avoid the well, Lin Ying's room was moved forward by about a meter. Combined with the original meter or so to the back wall, there was at least three meters of space behind it.
Lin Ying plans to build a basement. She'll install a stone slab under the stove, just like the chimney valve she made, so that ash can fall directly into the basement. However, this will require her to build a large passageway from top to bottom.
The basement door was made into a ramp, so that small carts could be pushed down.
Lin Ying spent another three days building the surrounding walls. Especially the side closest to the foundation, Lin Ying built a very thick wall and also built a mortar channel.
In this way, all the ashes from burning throughout the winter can be cleaned up.
As for the roof, Lin Ying laid out eight-centimeter-thick boards and secured them on all four sides. She also put a thick board over the entrance. There's absolutely no problem stepping on it.
The top was filled with soil again, and apart from the addition of a wooden door, everything else remained the same as before.
After the underground warehouse was set up, Lin Ying moved all the ingredients she had prepared at home, as well as the various pickled vegetables she had made, there.
Of course, with the space available, Lin Ying only needs to put the items into the space all at once, and then take them out again.
Before long, the warehouse was filled with many items.
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