Chapter 90 Old Man Xu Dies
Lin Qi went to the deep mountains and visited two bamboo forests. She originally planned to bring back only five or six bamboo rats, but she was lucky and discovered several bamboo rat burrows. She caught twenty-six of them, filling up the cage that Xu Hexiao had woven.
In addition to catching bamboo rats, she pulled out two bamboo shoots with roots in the two bamboo forests.
Back in the planting area, Lin Qi planted bamboo shoots on the steep slope in the north and helped them grow. The steep slope was quite large, covering hundreds of square meters, and it took Lin Qi more than ten minutes to grow bamboos all over the area.
When the bamboo grew out, Lin Qi thoughtfully used vines to open a dozen holes, then placed the cage in the middle of the bamboo forest and opened it.
Then Lin Qi ignored them and turned to walk towards the cave.
There are so many things to eat in the planting area, and each one is extremely delicious. The caves where people often walk around have become the most unpopular places for animals. Even mice avoid this place. Of course, there is also a reason why Lin Qi deliberately left her scent in the caves and the area near the caves.
The stronger the strength, the greater the deterrent effect of the aura.
That night, Lin Qi stayed in the cave. The quilt and mattress on the bed had been patched up. The quilt was a ten-jin cotton quilt, and the mattress was still the same as before, made of rabbit fur, which was sewn by Xu Hexiao for her, and a small pillow was also made for her.
The fire in the cave was still burning. Lin Qi got up twice in the middle of the night to add firewood. When she got up in the morning, there was still a little flame in the fire. Above the fire were four wooden racks full of smoked meat, which was prepared for the New Year.
Lin Qi stared at the smoked meat in a daze. The day before yesterday, Jian Tong asked her if she would go back to Zhoucheng for the New Year. Jian Tong and a few others planned to take a leave to go back, and asked her if she wanted to go with them. She hesitated and hadn't decided whether to go back.
Mother Lin asked this question in the last letter she sent. It is not difficult to see from Mother Lin’s words that Mother Lin, Father Lin and Brother Lin all hope that they can go back.
She took over someone else's daughter's body, so logically, she should go back and reunite the Lin family, and let Lin's father and mother see her current self so that they can rest assured.
But she was worried about leaving Xu Hexiao. Grandpa Xu had been in a coma recently and his lucid time was getting less and less. It was hard to say when he would pass away. She didn't want Xu Hexiao to suffer the pain of his only relative passing away alone.
And her plantation. The animals there are so hungry now that she has to stimulate the growth of crops and vegetables every two days. She doesn't feel comfortable leaving for too long.
Lin Qi thought about it for a long time, still struggling between whether to reply or not.
Forget it, there are still eight days until the Chinese New Year, I'll see then.
After breakfast, Lin Qi started to pack vegetables and pick various melons. She picked ten baskets in total, and there was a basket of peppers, onions, ginger, and garlic alone.
The meat can be hunted at night and will still be fresh.
As for the candied fruits, dried fruits and jams, a large batch of them were sold some time ago. Although the cave has increased its inventory, it is not easy to take them out again.
The reason is that it is difficult to explain how she can work and still have time to pick wild fruits and make them into preserves, dried fruits and jams, after all, these processes are extremely time-consuming.
In the evening, Brother Tan drove the truck again.
He got out of the car and saw the two big wild boars on the ground. The wild boars were so big that they looked like a small mountain lying on the ground.
Brother Tan walked around the wild boar and exclaimed in amazement, "I have lived for more than 30 years, and I have never seen such a big wild boar. This size and weight is equivalent to a bull!"
Not to mention Brother Tan, Xu Hexiao was also a little confused. How come it felt like the wild boar had grown a lot bigger in just a few days?
"I guess he eats too much." Lin Qi said calmly, pointing to two jars beside him. "It contains pig blood. I thought it would be a waste to throw it away, so I brought it to you. Can you sell it?"
"Of course you can, but I'm really curious, how do you manage to hunt the wild boar and bleed it at the same time? Also, when you go hunting, why do you carry two jars with you?" Brother Tan was anxious and wanted to know the answer urgently.
Lin Qi simply glanced at Brother Tan and said, "I'll knock them unconscious and then kill them."
Brother Tan: “.........”
It’s really cold today. Did he forget to put on an extra piece of clothing? Otherwise, why is he shivering so badly?
In addition to the two wild boars, there were also four wild goats. Although the goats were not as big as the wild boars, they were nearly twice as big as the sheep outside, and each one still weighed more than 100 kilograms after death.
Brother Tan was so happy that his face was grinning from ear to ear. Mutton is even harder to get than pork.
In addition to pork and mutton, there were more than twenty fat, brightly colored pheasants and more than thirty wild rabbits, each weighing more than ten kilograms.
"Is the food in the mountains so good now? How come they are so big?" Brother Tan was very confused. Normally, wild chickens and rabbits should not be as big as domestic ones, but these are the opposite. Ten-pound pheasants and nearly twenty-pound rabbits, who wouldn't be confused? Did they eat some magic medicine in the mountains?
"They ate what Qiqi grew." Xu Hexiao said lightly.
Brother Tan glared, "Such good things, you feed them to wild animals!!!"
It's such a waste of resources!
"You also said they are wild animals. They can dig holes and fly. How can we defend against them?" Xu Hexiao said calmly, "Besides, they eat Qiqi's food. Qiqi can sell them to make money, so it's not a waste. Not to mention that their meat is delicious. It's not an exaggeration to say that it's a delicacy on earth. It's worth wasting some fruits and vegetables."
If Brother Tan knew that those vegetables could grow overnight, he probably wouldn't feel so bad about it, Xu Hexiao thought numbly.
Brother Tan still felt heartbroken after hearing Xu Hexiao's explanation, "That's money!"
Xu Hexiao spread his hands and said, "There is no other way unless someone is there to watch over it 24 hours a day."
In the end there were dozens of fish.
Lin Qi picked the big fish, the largest of which weighed 13 or 14 jin, and the smallest weighed 7 or 8 jin. The scales of each fish were intact and beautiful, without any scratches.
"On New Year's Eve, every household wants a fish. You can get more fish. I have a way to sell them at a high price." Brother Tan said. The drought in the past few years was too severe, and there were almost no fish of this size on the market.
"It's so cold, it's good to have these dozens of fish." Xu Hexiao said bluntly, "If you want more, you can go to the river and catch them yourself."
The corner of Brother Tan's mouth twitched. If he had that ability, let alone a cold wind, even if the river was frozen, he would break the ice and jump in to catch fish.
But he didn't dare say this out loud, otherwise Xu Hexiao would definitely get even angrier, and there might be no fish next time.
Tsk tsk, he’s already protecting her before they even get married. If he gets married, he’ll be a complete wife slave.
On the night that Brother Tan shipped the freight, a cold front arrived, the temperature kept dropping, and snow began to fall from the sky.
Lin Qi was awakened by the cold. Instead of continuing to sleep, she put on thick shoes and socks, a military coat, a hat, went out and walked towards Xu Hexiao's house.
At this moment, she felt vaguely uneasy, thinking that Grandpa Xu might be in trouble.
Xu Hexiao's house was very quiet, but the kerosene lamp in the room was already on, indicating that Xu Hexiao was awake too.
No movement, is everything okay?
Lin Qi walked quietly to the door, but heard suppressed crying. Her heart suddenly ached, "Ahe, open the door."
The crying in the room stopped, followed by footsteps and the door creaking open.
Lin Qi quickly squeezed in and quickly closed the door, and asked anxiously, "How is Grandpa?"
"Not awake, but breathing is already——"
Barely audible.
Xu Hexiao choked and couldn't say the rest of the words.
Lin Qi didn't bother to comfort him. Instead, she quickly walked to the bed, grabbed Old Man Xu's hand, and transferred the supernatural powers in her body into Old Man Xu's body as if they were free.
cough--
Old Man Xu coughed lightly and opened his eyes.
"It's Qiqi~" Old man Xu's voice was hoarse, and it seemed as if he used up all his strength to say every word.
"It's me, grandpa." Lin Qi held old man Xu's hand tightly, as if trying to grasp the only bit of life left.
"You are not an ordinary person." It was not a question, but an affirmation.
Lin Qi nodded. There was no need to deny it at this time.
Old Man Xu smiled. "No wonder. I felt like I was dying, but I managed to hold on for two months. Thank you for letting me have no pain in my last days."
"I'm not strong enough to save you." Lin Qi felt a little guilty. If she had paid more attention to improving her abilities, Grandpa Xu could have lived another month or two.
"Birth, aging, sickness and death are the laws of nature and cannot be avoided. You have done enough for me." Old Man Xu said, looking at his grandson beside him, "But before I die, I shamelessly ask you for a favor."
"Grandpa, you say." Lin Qi also looked at Xu Hexiao. She could probably guess what Grandpa Xu was going to say.
"Qiqi, can you accompany Ahe in my place, okay?" There was deep attachment and reluctance in old man Xu's eyes.
"Okay." Lin Qi said without hesitation.
"Then how about you marry Ah He? I will give you the entire Xu family." Old man Xu felt that this was probably the most shameless time in his life, as he made things difficult for a girl who was not even seventeen years old.
"Okay." Lin Qi agreed again, still without any hesitation.
When Old Man Xu heard her agree, his eyebrows and eyes relaxed, "That's great, old man, I have no regrets~"
With this little girl, the Xu family will have no problem becoming wealthy in the future. He has a hunch that this little girl will lead the Xu family to an unprecedented height, far exceeding the Xu family's peak period.
Unfortunately, he couldn't wait for that day.
Lin Qi handed Old Man Xu's hand to Xu Hexiao, stood up and walked out of the room, leaving the space to the grandfather and grandson.
"Qiqi agreed. She will marry you and accompany you on behalf of grandpa and protect you. Grandpa feels relieved with her around." Old man Xu smiled.
Xu Hexiao hummed, "I know."
"You should be more considerate of her and don't care about the rumors outside. It's not shameful for a woman to be strong and a man to be weak. You should be extra nice to Qiqi." Old man Xu advised.
Xu Hexiao hummed again.
"Besides, my grandson is not weak either. When the time comes, I know you will be able to spread your wings and soar into the sky. You just need to wait patiently and lurk patiently. Never give up on yourself or abandon yourself at any time. Do you understand?" Old man Xu's eyes had begun to become cloudy.
Seeing the light in his eyes begin to fade, Xu Hexiao hurriedly shouted, "I know, Grandpa."
"Grandpa, I'm leaving~"
Old man Xu closed his eyes peacefully. Even until the last moment of his life, he did not suffer any pain.
Nowadays, weddings and funerals cannot be held in a grand manner, and for people like Old Man Xu, who belong to the five black categories, it is even more forbidden. Even if it is held, no one will come to attend.
So Lin Qi and Xu Hexiao never thought about whether to hold a funeral.
Xu Hexiao cut and sewed the shroud himself. He used lake blue brocade with gold edges that was previously collected by the Xu family. There were auspicious clouds and cranes on the brocade, so Xu Hexiao chose it.
In addition to the burial clothes, there were also burial quilts, burial hats, burial shoes... everything that was necessary. Xu Hexiao tried his best to prepare the best for his grandfather.
Xu Hexiao wiped Old Man Xu's body and helped him put on his clothes. Lin Qi went back to her own home, carrying a wild rabbit and a pheasant that she had brought from the mountains yesterday, and walked towards San Ya's home in the snow.
"Sanya~"
Lin Qi shouted at the door; her voice was not loud, but it was extremely penetrating.
"I seemed to hear Lin Qi's voice." San Ya, who was roasting chestnuts by the fire, suddenly said.
"I heard it too. It should be her." Luo Dali stood up and said, "I'll go take a look."
"I'll go too." San Ya also stood up.
The two siblings walked outside together, while the other siblings stayed where they were, looking at each other.
"I'll ask my mother for a spoonful of sugar and a bowl of sugar water."
"I'll go grab a handful of melon seeds and wedding candies for the wedding."
"I'll get a chair."
"Then shall I...sweep the floor?"
They each got busy.
Outside the door, Lin Qi was wearing a military coat that reached her calves, and a matching hat. When San Ya saw it, her eyes lit up immediately, and she was so excited, "Lin Qi, you actually have a military coat!"
Not only Sanya, Luo Dali was also surprised and envious. This was a military coat! He had only seen others wearing it in town!
Lin Qi hummed calmly and handed over the rabbit and pheasant in her hand. "One is for the money I borrowed from Grandpa Luo for the tung oil, and the other is a wedding gift I gave to Brother Dali in advance."
Although it was strange to give a hare as a gift, she didn't have time to prepare anything else now.
San Ya and Luo Dali were a little confused after hearing what Lin Qi said. Before they could come to their senses, a pheasant (rabbit) weighing more than ten kilograms was stuffed into their arms.
"It's cold outside, let's go inside." After Luo Dali came to his senses, he hurriedly invited people into his home.
Lin Qi shook her head. "A relative passed away at home, so it's not convenient to come in."
"What relatives? Qiqi, what happened to your family——"
"Sanya!" Luo Dali interrupted Sanya and ordered, "Sanya, go back and get grandpa's tung oil, and also bring the tung oil brush to Lin Qi."
Seeing her eldest brother's serious tone, San Ya was curious but did not dare to ask more questions. She turned around and ran back home to get her things.
"My condolences." Luo Dali said to Lin Qi.
Lin Qi hummed and remained silent.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Luo Dali asked again.
Lin Qi thought for a moment and said, "Please inform the captain that we can't take care of the cowshed during this period. Ask him to ask other people to look after the cowshed."
Luo Dali agreed, "Okay. I'll go find the captain in a moment. Is there anything else besides this?"
"No more." Lin Qi shook her head.
At this time, San Ya also took out the tung oil, "In addition to the tung oil, there are also grandpa's woodworking tools. Grandpa said that the weather is cold recently and he doesn't want to work. You can keep the tools and use them slowly. There is no need to rush to give them to him."
Lin Qi pursed her lips and said, "Please say thank you to Grandpa Luo for me."
"Qiqi, don't be too sad." San Ya looked worried.
Lin Qi nodded, "I'm fine, I'll go back first."
After saying that, she strode away.
"Brother, who passed away in Qiqi's family?" San Ya asked in a low voice.
"It's not Qiqi's family, it's that old man Xu. Lin Qi came to borrow tung oil, probably for making a coffin." Luo Dali said in a deep voice.
Sanya's eyes widened, "That old man from the black five categories is dead!"
"Saya, be careful with your words and show more respect to the deceased." Luo Dali spoke sharply and turned to walk into the house.
"Where's Lin Qi?" asked the person waiting by the fire.
"Let's go back." Luo Dali said, handing the rabbit in his hand to his brother, "I'm going to the captain's house."
Luo Dali grabbed his hat and hurried out the door.
"What a heavy rabbit! It's as heavy as the rhubarb we used to have!"
"It's rare to see someone this fat!"
"The pheasant I just held was also very heavy, probably weighing ten kilograms."
"Pheasant? Where?"
"Grandpa's side, the bamboo basket is covered."
"I'll go and take a look."
Several people stood up and walked towards grandpa's room.
"Saya, why did Lin Qi send us pheasants and rabbits?"
"Because she wanted to borrow tung oil and a gift for big brother. Oh, big brother just said that old man Xu passed away."
"Ah, old man Xu is dead, so doesn't that mean Xu Hexiao will become an orphan?"
"I don't have my parents anymore, and my grandfather who I depended on for everything is gone too. How pitiful!"
"He is one of the five black categories. Do you feel sorry for him? You can just say this at home. Don't say it outside. Besides, he is not pitiable. He still has Lin Qi, the idol of everyone in our brigade, who is now his girlfriend."
"Lin Qi has never acknowledged their relationship."
"She didn't admit it because of Xu Hexiao's identity. Everyone can see that she has special feelings for Xu Hexiao."
“........”
Lin Qi borrowed the tung oil and came back with Xu Hexiao, who had already dressed Old Man Xu in funeral clothes and other things.
"I'm going to find a tree in the mountains to make a coffin for grandpa. You have to keep watch by yourself tonight." Lin Qi said.
Xu Hexiao hummed and said "thank you". He now found that the word thank you was the most useless, but apart from thank you, he didn't know what else to say.
"Do you have any ideas about the style of the coffin?" Lin Qi asked.
Xu Hexiao thought for a moment and said, "Be more steady and generous."
Lin Qi thought for a moment, "I see."
Lin Qi went out and came back carrying two trees soon. Without going in, she started making the coffin outside the house.
When the captain and others arrived, they saw Lin Qi wearing a military coat and sawing wood in the snow.
"Lin Qi, what are you doing?" the captain asked, looking at the two top-quality fir trees on the ground, curious about where she had cut them.
Such straight and thick fir trees are rare in the mountains.
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