The snow didn't stop on the second day, which meant that the educated youth couldn't go up the mountain that day either.
Upon waking up early, Chen Shuning first emptied the ashes from the stove, added more firewood, and then went back into her space to wash up. After having breakfast, she leisurely strolled out of the space.
After arming herself, Chen Shuning planned to pour the ashes she had taken out that morning into the vegetable garden in the backyard. However, when she opened the door, she was shocked by what she saw. Now she finally understood why Shen Dahe had suggested that she open the door inward when the house was being built.
There was a good 40 or 50 centimeters of snow, so the door that opens outwards couldn't be pushed open. After closing the door and going back inside, she found the cotton gloves that Chen Ma had made for her.
She trudged along the woodshed next to her, where Grandpa Wang had given her a snow shovel made of wood when he made furniture.
At first, Chen Shuning didn't understand why Grandpa Wang would give them this, but now he finally understands how useful it is.
Just as Chen Shuning found the snow shovel, the doors of the houses next door opened one by one. Shen Wenge and Dong Weibing came out of Zhong Lingling's house first, each holding a snow shovel of the same style as Chen Shuning's.
It seems that their furniture was a gift from Grandpa Wang when they bought their own furniture. It was a simple design with a wooden pole attached to a wooden board. It didn't require any special skills or materials, so Grandpa Wang would give one to every educated youth who went to buy furniture.
Behind the two men, Zhong Lingling and Liu Shumei were carrying wooden basins, seemingly intending to transport snow out.
Yang Wanqiu hasn't come out yet, but judging from the disappearance of the shadows through the window, she should have drawn the curtains.
Further inside is the room that He Chaoyang often rents for short periods of time, but it's currently unoccupied.
Inside, Tian Mi and Zhang Tingting also got up and went out. However, looking at the two of them empty-handed, they excitedly rushed into the snow as soon as they stepped out. It seemed like they were just playing in the snow and didn't seem to want to shovel it at all.
Inside, Gao Hongyuan and Wang Zhi were much more serious. They went out and started working, one shoveling and the other carrying, and in no time they cleared a path in front of the house.
Gu Xinyi was also busy, wrapped up tightly, but since she had a boyfriend to rely on, she wasn't in a hurry to work. She would make snowballs or build a snowman, just like Tian Mi and Zhang Tingting.
Everyone was working hard in the backyard, and the front yard was also bustling with activity. Although the wind and snow showed no signs of stopping, it did not dampen everyone's good mood in the slightest.
As they were fighting, no one knows who threw the first snowball, which sparked a war.
What started as a fight between two people escalated into a melee, then into a war between the front and back yards, and finally into a chaotic battle where everyone was an enemy.
The courtyard of educated youth was filled with laughter and chatter. Even Dong Weiwei and Guo Dan, who had had a bit of a disagreement with everyone yesterday, joined in the laughter and joking around.
They were all just young people in their late teens or early twenties. Even the hardships and arduous labor during those difficult years could not diminish their hope and enthusiasm for life.
They chased each other and in no time they all turned into moving snowmen.
When Wan Guixiang entered the courtyard, she saw this chaotic scene. However, feeling the youthful and energetic smiles and enthusiastic shouts of the educated youth, Wan Guixiang was also happy.
After nimbly dodging a snowball thrown at her, Wan Guihua searched the yard before finally spotting Feng Baoguo, who was being held down in a snowdrift.
He quickly shouted, "Alright, alright, stop for now, stop fighting, everyone hurry up and pack up to go to the brigade headquarters to collect this year's wages."
It turns out that the reason they didn't see Shen Baogen despite the commotion at their youth settlement yesterday was because the old man went to a meeting at the county commune and received the award for being an advanced brigade this year, as well as the brigade's wages for the year.
The brigade headquarters was so poor that it didn't even have a decent cabinet. No one would feel comfortable leaving so much money with anyone else, so early this morning, all the village cadres went to the brigade headquarters to busy themselves calculating wages.
The family members of the brigade officers also came out to notify everyone to come to the brigade headquarters to collect their money.
There was no other way; the village was poor and had no electricity, so it was impossible for them to have the kind of electric loudspeakers that the commune used.
So when something urgent happens in the village, they bang a gong; when it's not urgent, they go door-to-door to notify everyone.
Upon hearing that there was money to be made, everyone forgot about the snowball fight and threw down their snowballs to run towards the brigade headquarters.
To avoid standing out too much from the others, Chen Shuning smiled and went back to the backyard to lock the door, then followed the group towards the brigade headquarters.
The snow in the village had not yet been cleared, so the journey from the educated youth settlement to the brigade headquarters was not easy.
Chen Shuning, who came out last, followed in the footsteps of the people in front of her, walking slowly and laboriously.
Even though I felt I was well-protected when I went out, the howling north wind and icy snowflakes still managed to seep into my neck.
My ankles were already freezing cold. I was so busy having fun during the snowball fight that I didn't notice until now that I realized there was a lot of snow in my shoes.
What usually takes about ten minutes took them more than twenty minutes to reach the brigade headquarters.
The educated youth compound was a bit far from the brigade headquarters, so by the time they arrived, most of the villagers had already gathered.
The line to collect the money stretched from the entrance of the brigade headquarters office all the way outside.
Although it was still terribly cold, everyone's faces were beaming with enthusiasm as they discussed in small groups how much money each family would receive and what they would buy for their homes.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
