Chapter 94 Still alive!
The courtyard is the same as before, but also different from before. In the past, no one would enter here, but now the group of friends who are good friends with Shen An can play in the front yard.
Because the children could learn some words by playing with Chen An and Chen Ning here, Chen Youtian took the initiative to help make a number of small stools for them to sit on in the yard.
Shen Jin and Shen Yin entered the courtyard. They were both familiar partners. They had reclaimed wasteland together, delivered stones and peeled hemp here. When the two brothers came in, no one looked at them strangely.
Chen Tie's face was wiped clean by Chen Ning, and he was already eating the sweet and sour crystal jerky with sobs. The tears on his eyelashes had not yet dried, and his sobbing had not stopped, but it did not stop him from putting the crystal jerky into his mouth and taking small bites.
Shen An entered the house at some point, and when he came out he gave one to each of him and Shen Yin.
The two cousins haven't played together for a month and a half since the end of September. Perhaps they knew that he would be beaten if they got too close, so they had to ask Chen Xiaoya to secretly deliver food to him.
This was the first time they stood together, Shen Jin and Shen Yin felt a little awkward, but Shen An smiled, handed over the things, and said thank you sincerely.
Others didn't understand, but Shen Jin knew that Shen An was thanking him for reminding him that time.
He was in a complicated mood. He was reminded that he had sent his parents to work on the road...
Shen Jin couldn't raise his hand to take the crystal breast, but Shen Yin didn't feel any pressure at all. After he called in, no one looked at him strangely. Shi Tou, A Xu and San Niu, who were of the same age as him, called him excitedly in a low voice. Shen Yin was extremely happy.
He took the two pieces of crystal breasts from Chen An's hand and smiled with his eyes curved: "Thank you, second brother."
Then he took one piece for himself and stuffed the other into Shen Jin's hand: "Third brother, this is yours!"
Shen An laughed, and a group of people clamored to continue reading.
Those who read well can go home and recite to their parents and grandparents in the evening. Not only will they be praised, they might even get an egg or something as a reward. Besides, it’s like playing house with so many people around, so it’s so much fun. So even if they have no idea what they are reading, a group of children will still read happily.
Chen An was the one who was most willing to teach everyone, because he was reading while teaching. The more he taught, the faster he could remember. And because he was afraid of teaching wrong, he would read several times with his sister-in-law every night, learning and teaching at the same time. He was very enthusiastic about his job as a little teacher and immediately asked everyone to sit down.
The group of children each had a small stool. Hu Zi picked up a round wooden stool and gave it to Shen Jin, pulling him and saying, "Come here, sit on this."
Shen Yin also had his own friend who brought him a small wooden stool. As for Shen Tie, he was the most comfortable, so Shen Ning brought him a small square stool from the house.
The sound of reading started again, paying attention to the three new members, Shen Jin, and Shen An started reading again from the first sentence.
Shen Jin held the crystal breast in his hand and sat on a small wooden stool. He saw Shen An holding a roll of bamboo in his hand, shaking his head and teaching very seriously.
He then looked at Hu Zi and the others beside him, who were laughing and shouting along, and moved their lips several times. It was not until Shen An read to the part where the cold and the hot came and went that Hu Zi beside him touched his elbow, and he hurriedly followed suit and read aloud.
I didn't dare to speak too loudly, but after reciting a sentence, and then a few more, it seemed to become easier?
This was the scene Sang Luo saw outside the yard when she came back from cutting a large bundle of withered cattails. She said nothing and did not go into the yard. She quietly walked to the chicken coop outside the yard holding the cattails.
The days are getting colder day by day. The nests for chickens and ducks need to be padded and covered with thick woven straw mats around and on the top. A goose shed also needs to be built in the runway for the geese. Otherwise, they won't be able to survive the winter with just that little bit of down. The down is waterproof but not windproof, and they will be freezing when the wind blows.
There were small benches in the yard, and there were several large stones outside the yard. Most likely, they were made into benches by Erniu, Huzi and other older kids. Sang Luo sat on one of the large stones and weaved a straw mat.
It is not difficult to weave straw mats. Listening to the children reading in the yard, Sang Luo turned the large bundle of cattail into three thick straw mats in her hands. She first added two pieces to the roof of the duck shed and the other piece to the roof of the chicken shed. Then she took the sickle and went to cut cattail.
A group of children finished their reading time and came out to find changes in the chicken coop outside. They went back to their homes, took out their sickles and teamed up to cut cattail. When Sang Luo was weaving the second batch of straw mats at home, a group of little kids came over, each carrying a large bundle of cattail.
The little teacher is Chen An, and the real teacher is Sang Luo. All the children know this. Their parents and grandparents at home have always taught them to be prudent, to be able to find work, and to help with more work.
Cutting cattails was not hard work, so Sang Luo accepted it calmly. She thanked them with a smile and rejected the offer of a group of children to help weave straw mats. She told them to go and play while she continued to be busy.
After a busy day, the chicken coop and duck coop were all upgraded for winter. She also dismantled a long section of the goose run. She washed the bamboo poles in the mountain spring pool and built a two-square-meter goose shed next to the courtyard wall. Except for a small door, there were bamboo poles and double-layer thick straw curtains on all five sides. The ground was also covered with boards like the chicken and duck coop to isolate the cold and dampness from the ground. It could be considered a luxurious greenhouse.
The three big geese watched their master tearing down the house. Xiao Yuan had confusion and bewilderment in her eyes, but soon she watched her master build a new home.
New home!!!
Sang Luo was still laying dry cattails inside, and the geese took advantage of the gaps to peek in, trying to get in to visit the new house. As soon as Sang Luo made way for them, they lined up and went into the new house. Ha, this time they felt it was much more luxurious than the original one which had no roof or bottom and was leaky on all sides.
Each of them found a good feng shui spot to lie down and not come out.
It’s great, no longer needing to envy the kids next door for having a house. They’ve been eyeing that house for a long time, but the door is a little small and they can’t squeeze in. Now they have a more luxurious one! They puffed up their chests with pride!
Sang Luo was happy to see that the new goose shed was very popular. The goose shed actually had a door, but Sang Luo didn't use it. Although the snakes were hibernating now, the three geese were still wary of strangers and animals, and they had sensitive hearing, so they were responsible for guarding the house. Closing the door would affect the three warriors from going out to respond to the call. Anyway, the goose shed was big enough, and the wind couldn't blow in to the specific area.
Sang Luo built the greenhouse for the chickens, ducks and geese in her home very promptly. As soon as late November came, it was very cold in their area even if they were wearing thick coats outside. Except for the children who were better off and had thicker coats at home and dared to run outside, most people wanted to stay in the house and spend the winter.
Sang Luo's family had made sufficient preparations for the winter, but in fact she didn't have to make any preparations herself. There was enough rice, grain, salt and oil. As for firewood, since the first day the children started studying with Chen An, the three families would come to her house every few days to carry firewood. There were bundles, chopped firewood, and pine needles for starting a fire. Now there is a firewood shed in Sang Luo's backyard, which is full of firewood.
The three families sent a large basket of dried vegetables, as if they had discussed it beforehand, and kept the mulberries in an empty jar.
The cold-resistant vegetables in the vegetable garden behind their houses are now ready to be eaten, so they can spend the winter in peace.
The first snow of this winter came at midnight on November 22nd.
Sang Luo felt a little cold in the middle of the night. When she opened her eyes, she found it was a little bright outside the window. She was startled and stunned for a moment. She immediately sat up and hugged the quilt, thinking that she had slept too late.
As a result, when I looked out the window again, I saw a small area of snow flying in the air outside the window.
She put on her coat, got out of bed, unbolted the door, opened it a little and looked out. There was a thick layer of snow in the yard.
Sang Luo was a little surprised. They were both from the south, but she rarely saw snow in her previous life in the south. When it snowed, not even a layer of white snow could accumulate on the ground, and it would stop snowing. She could only watch the snow on WeChat Moments.
Could the snow in the south at this time and space be so thick?
She was a little happy and a little excited. Her first reaction was to call Shen An and Shen Ning to see the snow. She turned around to see the two little ones sleeping soundly, but she held back and looked through the thin gap in the door for a while. She was afraid that the cold wind would come in, so she closed the door, took off her coat and went back to bed.
Chen An and Shen Ning got up at four o'clock in the morning to make tofu. They have always been together and have formed a biological clock. They woke up at the appointed time and felt that the sky outside the window was much brighter than usual. When they heard Sang Luo smiling and saying that it was snowing outside, they were so excited that they put on their clothes, shoes and socks and rushed out.
It was a bit cold at first, but grinding the mill is strenuous work and those who didn't have their turn to grind the mill were also making fire, so it wasn't really cold. While grinding the beans, the brother and sister were excitedly discussing playing in the snow with their friends when the sun came up.
…
The first snow is a sight of joy for those who have made adequate preparations for winter, but a calamity for those who have not.
There were about seven or eight families in the village who had to survive. The whole family might have only one or two cotton-padded clothes, or even no cotton-padded clothes at all. Their jackets and quilts were filled with not-so-warm cattail and reed fluff, mixed with chicken and duck feathers picked up from everywhere.
Yes, those who are so poor that they cannot afford to wear a coat naturally cannot afford to eat chicken and duck at home, but there are many people in the village who raise chickens, ducks and geese. These things are not objects that can be left there and not moved. They run around the village, fighting and quarreling for no reason, and their feathers are bound to shed. Such things are treasures for children from poor families. When they see them, they will rush forward to pick them up and take them home to save them. In fact, they cannot save much in a year, but when used together with cattail fluff and reed flowers, a little warmth is a little warmth.
However, such coats and quilts were not very comfortable to wear, because at that time most families in the countryside could only afford linen. No matter how finely the linen was woven, it was not very fine. Among the chicken and duck feathers collected, there was only a small amount of down, and most of it was hair. This stuff could penetrate the cloth and run out, which could prick people.
But who cares about being pricked at this time? Just being warm is good enough.
Those who are poorer have to worry about their roofs in the middle of the night. If the snow is heavy, the roofs can easily collapse.
As soon as the sun rises, the first thing to do is sweep the snow, the snow on the ground and the snow on the roof. In the morning, everyone sweeps the snow in front of their own door and goes up the ladder to clean the roof.
In the afternoon, Zhou Cunzheng would go around each household, calling on men who had jackets and could go out, to help clear the snow off the roofs of those families in the village where there were no male members but only the elderly, the weak, women and children. If they came across a roof with rotten straw, he would have to get some straw and tie it into fine straw mats to help replace it.
They went by one household at a time, and by the time it was the last household at the entrance of the village, it was already time for feeding.
People of Chen Youtian, Zhou Laizi and Old Man Chen's age were making straw mats downstairs, while lighter and more agile young men like Zhou Sanlang and Lu Sanlang climbed up the ladder to stand on the roof, while those who were a little heavier, like Shi Erlang, Lu Dalang and Zhou Dalang, climbed the ladder to help pass the straw mats up.
When Zhou Sanlang took the straw mat handed to him by Shi Erlang, he turned around and was about to put it on the roof. He glanced around and saw four people coming from a distance. Each of them was carrying a bag or something on his back.
Zhou Sanlang stopped moving and reminded the teenagers on the roof and Lu Dalang and others standing on the escalator: "Look, is that a stranger?"
Influenced by Zhou Lizheng, the Zhou family is still quite wary of strangers.
Several people looked over when they heard the voice, and when the person got closer, Shi Erlang's eyes gradually widened!
"That's, that's..."
He rubbed his eyes and looked again. His hair was messy, his beard was untidy, and the clothes on his body seemed to be animal skins wrapped randomly, but it really looked like his eldest brother!
"My brother, it seems to be my brother!"
He climbed down the escalator quickly, and if he hadn't been holding his back, he would have almost jumped down the last few steps.
Everyone was stunned, and Lu Sanlang on the roof suddenly shouted: "Brother, brother, it's my second brother!"
Suddenly, people on the roof and on the escalators ran down. Even Old Man Chen, Chen Youtian, Old Man Lu, and Zhou Cunzheng, who were weaving straw mats, were stunned for a moment before they reacted, turned around, and ran towards the people coming over.
What a chaotic scene.
Some ran back to the village shouting to report the news, some hugged their relatives and cried loudly after seeing each other, and some heard the noise and ran over to see what was going on.
Chen Lie looked over and didn't see his family. He was a little anxious and hurried home with his bag on his back to see his younger brothers and sisters.
Zhou Cunzheng finally reacted and grabbed him: "Alie, is it Alie? You're still alive!"
He had grown too tall, his facial features were sharper, and his whole temperament had changed a lot. For a moment, he didn't dare to compare him with the boy he used to be.
Chen Lie nodded, his eyes still frequently looking in the direction of home, wondering if Xiao An and Aning had heard the noise and had come out.
"Yes, Uncle Zhou, I'll go back and see Xiao An and An Ning first."
Before Zhou Cunzheng could say anything, a villager who had come over interrupted and said, "Alie, you are still alive. Everyone thought you were dead. Your brothers and sisters were separated and are now living in your old house."
Shen Lie's pupils shrank, and his eyes flashed with a cold edge for a moment: "What did you say? Where are Xiao An and An Ning?"
As he asked the question, he looked at Zhou Cunzheng.
Zhou Cunzheng was busy explaining: "In the summer, your uncle and aunt found you a wife. Within half a month, Xiao An and Aning were separated and lived separately. Now we are two families."
Chen Lie didn't really listen to what his wife said. All he could hear was that his younger brother and sister, who were only nine years old this year, had been sent out to live on their own in the summer, and had been sent to that shabby thatched house in the mountains?
He nodded hurriedly, strode through the crowd towards the hill where the old house was located, and his pace was so fast that he was almost running after just a few steps.
They were rushing towards here after hearing the news: Mrs. Chen, Qin Fangniang, Mrs. Gan, and Mrs. Lu...
Chen Lie didn't care about anything. Behind his ears was the sound of the wind, and the faint voices of the villagers' discussions coming from the wind.
"Chen Lie is still alive. Shen San is finished now."
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