Chapter 50 Chapter 50 House Renovation in Progress
After harvesting the corn, they need to thresh it, dry it in the sun, and store it in a warehouse. When the harvest is over, they need to prepare to pay taxes. They don't have to pay any more money this season, and they estimate that there will be a surplus after the harvest.
Miao Ying originally thought that threshing was difficult, but he didn't expect that there were already more mature threshing tools. It seemed that his worries were a bit unnecessary. However, no matter how good the tools were, it was still hard not to feel tired when he woke up every day and saw the corn piled up in the yard.
It’s really the patience of the elderly. My grandmother and mother used to sit in the yard doing needlework for a whole day, and now they are even more patient when it comes to their favorite food.
Seeing that Miao Ying was losing his temper, his grandmother laughed at him and said he was still like a child. She didn't restrain him and let him play by himself.
After shelling the corn kernels, my grandmother dried the corn cobs and piled them up. They were excellent firewood. Their yard was not big, so the corn kernels were sent to their homestead to dry. Although the people of Rongshu Village were simple and honest, my grandmother was still worried about theft, so she basically stayed there during the day.
Li Hongying went to the fields and brought home all the dried corn stalks, which could also be used as firewood.
After Huo Xing finished with the harvest, he also had to put the house repair work on the agenda. He took advantage of this time to repair the house first. It would be autumn planting in a while, and there would be a series of trivial matters after planting. It would be better to speed up the repair of the house now so that he could live in the new house during the New Year.
During the days when they were harvesting crops, Li Jun had already drawn the structural diagram of their house and was waiting for their approval before starting construction.
After most of the villagers had finished harvesting their crops, Huo Xing found the village chief and told him about repairing his house.
After the crops are harvested, there is some free time, so it is of course good to have work to do.
Huo Xing was the one who took care of everything that happened afterwards. Miao Ying had thought that he was a taciturn person who didn't know how to communicate, but he didn't expect that he did everything very well and meticulously, which made Miao Ying the person who didn't have to worry about anything except giving money.
Everything has been finalized and the groundbreaking date has been chosen. We are just waiting for July 23rd to start building the house.
There are also some etiquettes for breaking ground. Miao Ying and her grandmother cut red paper, dyed peanuts red, mixed them with grains, and scattered them on the ground on the day of breaking ground, hoping that everything would go smoothly.
They did not hire Li Jun's workers, but people from the village. Rongshu Village was very united, and such things had happened many times in the past. In this hot season, it was good to earn a few dollars.
Each person's daily wage was twenty cents, including one meal. From the beginning of the construction, Miao Ying was busy at the stove every day.
They did not hide the matter of renovating the house from Miao Ying's parents. When Miao Dahai got the news, he was very happy and asked Miao Dong to carry a lot of meat and some bare bones.
Miao Ying looked at Miao Dong. He had been losing weight quite effectively recently. His face had become thinner and his belly had also become smaller. Miao Ying refused to take the meat he brought, saying that the weather was too hot and he couldn't finish it in one go, and it would be a pity if it went bad.
Miao Dong sat in the yard and drank water in big gulps, then said that he would not take it back anyway, otherwise his mother and father would scold him and make him very tired.
Li Hongying kept thanking Miao Dong, but she was really worried about how to cook so much meat.
Miao Ying said that he would discuss with the villagers to see if the meat could be used to replace the wages for that day. Those who wanted money could take it, and those who wanted meat could cut the meat. If there was any left, they could use it when cooking in the next two days.
Miao Dong didn't care about all this. He had his meal here and then took a look around at the progress of the house renovation so that he could go back and tell his parents. When he left, he was hesitant again.
Miao Ying looked at him, and he said, "My wedding will be on August 19th."
Miao Ying laughed and said, "No problem. I will definitely come and cook for you when the time comes."
Miao Dong just laughed and said, "Just take a rest. Who wants you to be the chef?"
After seeing Miao Dong off, when Miao Ying was about to return to the village, he saw two figures, one old and one young, on another road. He hurried over and found that they were Carpenter Yao and Xiao Mu Tou.
Miao Ying asked in surprise, "Master, why are you here?"
"I heard that your family is renovating your house and needs carpenters, so I brought Xiao Mu to help."
Because Carpenter Yao came in a hurry and their yard was too small to accommodate him, fortunately a temporary shed was built on the side where the house was being repaired to store the things needed for the repair. Huo Xing put the things in order and he and Carpenter Yao stayed there at night.
Miao Ying slept in their room with Xiao Mu.
In the evening, in order to thank Carpenter Yao for his help, Miao Ying prepared a sumptuous meal. Little Mu stayed by Miao Ying's side and helped him with his work diligently.
At the dinner table, Huo Xiaobao met Xiao Mu for the first time. Xiao Mu was three years older than him, but he was very thin and only a little taller than Huo Xiaobao.
Huo Xiaobao was also a man who had studied for a few days. When he heard everyone in the family calling him "Little Wood, Little Wood", he pretended to be an adult and said, "The teacher said that our current names are just nicknames, and we need a real name."
Miao Ying laughed: "Why? Isn't the name Xiaobao a good one?"
"Brother, the teacher said that was my nickname. He said he would give me a name when I turned five." Huo Xiaobao straightened his back and looked at Little Mu. "Brother Mu, I can also help you pick a name."
Little Mu Tou was a little timid and moved closer to Miao Ying. Miao Ying hugged him and looked at Huo Xiaobao: "So what are you going to name Brother Mu Tou?"
Huo Xiaobao took a bite of the dish and thought for a moment, "Let's choose the word 'Lin'."
Carpenter Yao looked at him, questioning and inquiring: "Why did you choose this word?"
Xiao Bao scratched his head and said, "Master said that wood grows when it meets water, and there are two wood characters below, which is very suitable for Brother Mu's nickname."
"Yao Lin." Carpenter Yao smacked his lips. "This name is very good."
Xiao Mu also looked at Huo Xiaobao and said thank you to him in a soft voice.
Huo Xiaobao came close to the little wooden stick, wanting to show off his knowledge, so he dipped his finger in water and gently wrote the word "Lin": "Look, brother, this is your name."
Little Wood looked at the words, the traces of which were almost gone, and felt that he had not seen enough. Huo Xiaobao hurriedly said, "Brother, after dinner I will take you to write on the sand."
So they ate much faster, and soon Huo Xiaobao took Xiao Mu to the yard to write on the ground.
The remaining adults talked about adult matters.
"When you have nothing to do, you can try making something yourself," said Carpenter Yao.
Huo Xing nodded: "I know, if you come to help, what about the shop?"
"I didn't have much work anyway." Carpenter Yao used to run a shop and used all his earnings to pay off his son's gambling debts. Now that the debts are paid off and Little Mu's future is settled, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He was old now, and could not make things as fast as he had done in his youth. His former customers had gone elsewhere, and after he had finished what they were owed, he closed the shop.
He knew his physical condition and that he didn't have much time left to live, so he wanted to do something for the Huo family so that when they lived in this house in the future, they would remember his kindness and be nicer to Xiao Mu.
Huo Xing went up the mountain from behind and cut down a lot of wood. Carpenter Yao taught him how to identify wood, so he didn't worry that the wood he cut down would be bad.
The weather was too hot, so the construction work started very early. When the temperature gradually rose, they were allowed to rest. Then in the afternoon, they waited until the hottest time was over and worked until it got dark.
Carpenter Yao and Huo Xing were in the new house, and Miao Ying and Li Hongying were very tired of cooking every day. Li Hongying didn't let Miao Ying cook small pot dishes, so she cooked big pot dishes instead. Miao Ying went to the butcher to buy fresh meat every day to cook. The weather was too hot, and if she bought too much, it would go bad if it was left for a while.
Their logistical work was very good. In addition to one meal a day, Miao Ying also boiled mung beans to relieve the heat. He boiled them before dawn in the morning and let them dry in the afternoon when they were ready to drink.
Little Mu also helps them every day. Although he is small, he is very thoughtful.
The more my grandmother looked at him, the more she liked him.
The house was built slowly and steadily. Miao Ying went to deliver meals every day and watched their house slowly emerge from the ground. On the other side, Huo Xing and Carpenter Yao also did the carpentry work piece by piece, and soon the vacant land looked like a home.
On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, they took a day off from building the house. After all, apart from the Spring Festival, the most grand reunion is the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Miao Ying got up early in the morning to prepare. These days they had been eating from the big pot while the house was being renovated, and he had long wanted to have a meal cooked by himself.
The braised pork is rich in oil and red sauce, the twice-cooked pork is distinct in fat and lean parts, the meat slices are fried until slightly curled, the stir-fried vegetables are crispy, the steamed egg custard is tender and smooth, and the bone soup is thick and white.
Now they no longer have to crowd into the kitchen to eat; the table is placed in the yard.
The moonlight on the fifteenth is extremely beautiful, so clear that it looks like a huge night pearl hanging in the sky.
Xiaobao and Xiaomutou were writing on the sand on the side. He learned this in school. In the past, only Miao Ying listened to him. Now that he has brother Mumutou, he can teach him everything he has learned.
Miao Ying, Li Hongying and her grandmother were cooking in the kitchen, while Huo Xing was sorting wood with Carpenter Yao.
The sounds of children reading, the crackling of firewood, mixed with Miao Ying's occasional laughter, and the voice of Carpenter Yao scolding Huo Xing with a weak voice, became the most pleasant sounds on this moonlit night.
There was also wine on the table. Miao Ying had not drunk any wine since he traveled through time, so he didn't know the difference between ancient wine and modern wine.
Seeing that he was interested, Huo Xing poured him a glass of wine. The wine that ordinary people drank didn't have any elegant names. Huo Xing didn't drink either, but his hunter master loved it, and he had been pouring wine for him since he was a child.
Miao Ying took a sip and said it was wine, but in fact the taste was very light. He felt that he could drink the whole jar by himself.
Seeing that he was drinking too quickly, Huo Xing took his glass away and said, "Drink less."
Of course, this amount of wine was no problem for him to drink, but Miao Ying liked the feeling of being under someone's control, so he smiled and said he didn't want to drink anymore.
Carpenter Yao had no worries for the first time. Looking at Xiao Mu and Huo Xiaobao talking together, he couldn't help but drink a few more cups. When the moon was at its zenith and the grandmother took the two children to sleep, Miao Ying helped his mother clean up the mess, and Huo Xing sent Carpenter Yao to rest.
After cleaning up, Miao Ying didn't rush back to his room to sleep. The night breeze felt very comfortable on his body. He also felt a little drunk or tipsy, and he felt very good.
Usually Huo Xing always slept in the new house with Carpenter Yao, but today, Miao Ying had a strong premonition that Huo Xing would come back.
A gust of wind blew by, and Miao Ying heard the rustling of leaves, followed by the sound of steady footsteps. He raised his eyes, and a starry sky fell into Huo Xing's eyes.
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