They really ate it all! Each person ate more than three pounds of rice and vegetables. Where did all that food go? They all look so tall and thin.
After finishing their meal, they rushed to finish all the work, without even eating the mooncakes. Last year, each person in the village only received one piece, so the extra one this year must be Zhang Hongmei's own.
"Hongmei, we're leaving now. You can keep the mooncakes for yourself. I ate all four on the night of the fifteenth, and they were especially delicious." Dashan was particularly happy to have eaten four mooncakes.
The next morning, Zhang Hongmei steamed a pot of three kinds of steamed buns, took ten of them, put the meat basin into a cloth bag, and rode her bicycle to the municipal government compound.
This time, I waited for Liu Changhai and the others at the door, exchanged some polite words, delivered the gifts, and then went home.
School starts on Monday, and this is my daily routine.
In fact, Zhang Hongmei was particularly concerned about the village's autumn harvest. It had already rained five times, and she really didn't want it to rain again during the harvest season.
But how can things be done exactly as you wish?
There were two more big fish catches in October. I wonder how many wheat seeds the village received? How much wheat can be planted?
In October, I also received a letter from Liu Jingze and vegetable seeds sent by Wang Xiaoshun. Carrots were out of the question, but cilantro would do, so I planted a row of cilantro in the yard.
In November, Liu Maocai and Li Cuihua came to bring Zhang Hongmei a bag of sweet potatoes, a bag of sorghum, a cotton-padded coat, and a pair of high-top cotton shoes.
The elderly couple waited at the door until 8:10 before Zhang Hongmei finally arrived.
"Third Uncle? Third Aunt? What brings you here? Come in quickly."
Why are you so late getting out of school?
"I have to be at school by six in the morning, so I'll start cooking right away."
"You rest, I'll do it."
“Let’s make egg pancakes together, mother and daughter. Hurry up. I’ll go scoop out the flour, and you go to the yard to cut some chives, Auntie.”
After washing her hands, Zhang Hongmei scooped out two large bowls of flour from the storeroom and added four eggs. She also added a small spoonful of salt. Li Cuihua then picked, washed, and chopped the chives.
Zhang Hongmei put the chopped chives into the bowl and mixed them well.
Li Cuihua lit the fire, saying, "I'll set up the stall."
"Okay, I'll go pick some cilantro for you guys to try."
Delicious egg pancakes and cilantro and egg soup are served.
Only then did Zhang Hongmei have a chance to ask Liu Maocai, "Third Uncle, did you come to deliver grain to me?"
"Well, this year's harvest isn't great, but we should have enough grain stored up to last until next year's wheat harvest. We planted 800 mu of wheat this year, and it's already grown to about a foot tall."
"I can't go back until the end of January when I finish my exams. But you can take the sorghum rice with you. I have enough here. Otherwise, I'll have to carry it back myself after the exams."
"No need, I'll come pick you up."
"Hongmei, you can't cut these chives anymore. Otherwise they'll freeze to death in the winter."
"I know, I just realized we didn't have much food at home today, so I remembered the chives. Auntie, try this soup, it's cilantro, isn't it delicious?"
"I was wondering what this tasted like. It's alright, but the flavor is too strong."
"This soup can be sprinkled with some special flavoring after it's cooked, and it can also be eaten raw."
Carrot seeds are also available. You can plant more in the yard during the New Year and give them to Shitou and Sanya more often so they don't always have mouth ulcers.
"There are such good things? I'll plant them all for the New Year."
Zhang Hongmei tidied up the house for the elderly couple and boiled water for them to wash up.
"Auntie, I'm going to school early tomorrow. Just lock the door when you leave."
The next morning, when Zhang Hongmei got up, Li Cuihua had already cooked the sorghum porridge. She hadn't even heard a sound; it's always good to have a mother.
It started snowing heavily in mid-December, with a heavy, blanketing snowfall that lasted all night.
When I woke up the next morning, I thought I was late, since it was already so bright. But when I looked around, I realized that the heavy snow had been falling all night.
Zhang Hongmei found a pair of brown snow boots. She didn't wear the cotton shoes Li Cuihua had brought; she was afraid they would get soaked with snow by the time she got to school, and cloth shoes would get wet too easily. She put on thermal underwear, down-filled cotton trousers, and a cotton-padded coat. She could just slip the trousers on. On top, she wore the cotton-padded jacket Li Cuihua had made, then a vest, and finally a military overcoat. She wrapped a scarf around her neck, put on a cotton hat, and fully armed, she walked to school.
When Zhang Hongmei arrived at the school, she saw all the boarding students, whether they were in the first or second year of high school, as well as the teachers of each subject, shoveling snow.
Zhang Hongmei realized she hadn't shoveled the snow at home yet, so she'd have to wait until she got back that evening. She put her schoolbag in the classroom, looked around but couldn't find a shovel, so she took out a broom and started sweeping behind them.
But the heavy snow kept falling, and no matter how much you swept, the ground would immediately turn white again.
Chen Sheng came over and called all the second-year high school students away. "Even if it rains sharp knives from the sky, you all have to hold on. There are only forty days left until the exam, which is a major event that concerns your entire lives. You all need to hurry up."
With the teacher's encouragement, the students worked even harder.
Zhang Hongmei walked ten minutes longer than usual after school. Although it wasn't impossible to walk, the snow was more than a foot deep, and there was no sign of it stopping or decreasing. How was she going to get to school tomorrow?
Should we stay overnight? Thinking about this, Zhang Hongmei deflated. How would she keep warm? She was just too delicate.
Zhang Hongmei was ready at 4:30 the next day, but she couldn't open the door. She hadn't slept outside the night before and had stayed in the space the whole time.
Although I was a northerner in my previous life, I've never experienced such heavy snow! Oh no, what am I going to do?
Back inside, I tried pushing the window open, and thankfully it opened. I quickly jumped out; going to school is so difficult.
It was still snowing outside, and my shoes were already filled with snow. I quickly went into my spatial storage and found a pair of tall boots, but they weren't enough. Finally, I found a pair of black tall leather boots and put them on. I also carried a pair of snow boots with me, so I could change into them at school; otherwise, these leather boots wouldn't be warm enough. The air inside was covered in frost.
Try asking the teacher for leave today. If that doesn't work, then stay at the dormitory, the kind where you can stay alone.
The gate to the courtyard was locked again. Did I have to jump over the wall myself?
Zhang Hongmei just wants to cry her heart out right now, but it's too difficult.
"Whatever," I said, taking a snow shovel from my phone and clearing the snow from the doorway.
Finally, I breathed a sigh of relief. I still had to go to school, even if I had to ask for leave. I had to go today.
Resigned to his fate, he shoveled away the snow at the front door before opening it. The snow outside immediately poured into the doorway, requiring another round of shoveling.
An hour has passed. Looking back at the snow on the roof, I hope the house won't collapse when I return. I hope it's strong enough. It must be waiting for me to come back.
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