After returning home and washing up, Tian Cai took out the ointment from her pocket and handed it to Luo Xiuyan who was combing her hair. She had just gone back to get it and went to the village chief's house to return the flashlight. "Apply it twice a day after scrubbing. It will be healed in about ten days to half a month."
"Tian Cai, you are so nice!" Luo Xiuyan almost hugged Tian Cai and kissed her. She hurried out to get a basin of water, undressed Tian Cai with her back to her, and washed herself carefully. Then she applied the ointment evenly in front of the mirror.
Tian Cai looked carefully in the light of the oil lamp.
She had only seen a little bit through Luo Xiuyan's collar before, but now she saw that the eczema on her chest was the size of two palms and concentrated between her breasts.
Luo Xiuyan's cheeks flushed as she allowed Tian Cai to examine her. She said shyly, "Originally, there was only a small patch the size of a copper coin in the middle. Later, the more I scratched it, the more it grew, and it became like this."
Tian Cai saw that a lot of the skin on her chest had been scratched. It must have been caused by the exudate from scratching, which led to infection in other places. "My medicine has anti-itching ingredients. It will stop itching after you apply it. A patch as big as yours should be completely healed in half a month. When you run out of the ointment, let me know. It should be healed in less than a month at most."
After thinking it over, I decided to scare her, "Don't scratch it anymore, it's going to leave a scar."
Luo Xiuyan was indeed frightened. The thought of getting a scar made her feel terrible. From then on, she was very cautious even when applying medicine.
The next day, Tian Cai got up before dawn. Today was the day for the beam raising, and she had to go there in advance to take care of many things.
After saying hello to Aunt Du who was cooking in the kitchen, he went towards his yard.
In fact, strictly speaking, what she did could not be considered as raising the beam at all. At most, it could be considered as replacing the beam. However, Carpenter Chen said that the highest central column also needed to be replaced, which was no different from raising the beam.
Nowadays, people are paying attention to getting rid of feudal superstitions, so rituals like burning incense, candles, and paper money are no longer used. However, an auspicious time is still chosen for raising the beam - six o'clock in the morning.
Tian Cai had been busy working in her yard and had no time to eat breakfast, so it was Aunt Du who brought it to her.
"You can continue with your work later," Aunt Du handed her the scallion pancake and poured her a bowl of porridge. "Leave tonight's meal to me. A few other aunts can come and help. We'll see what dishes we want to make. You can pick the leafy vegetables from my garden."
Tian Cai knew quite a few dishes, but she didn't know if anyone could cook them. "It's better for you to decide, Auntie. It's fine as long as it's almost done."
Aunt Du, who prided herself on being the team leader's wife, had plenty of experience in arranging such matters. She didn't refuse and began to think while eating. "Steamed barley porridge will be fine. Braised pork is a must. Then there's pork ribs stewed with beans, and stir-fried pork with chili peppers. I'll have the second son catch two fish from the river, and then some cucumbers..."
Tian Cai took out five yuan from his pocket and handed it over. "Use this money to buy whatever you need. You may also need some wine. I don't know how much it will cost. If you don't have enough, tell me."
Aunt Du: "No, no, the meat is readily available and a meal only costs a few dollars."
Tian Cai pushed the money over again and said, "Don't be polite to me. Food costs money, oil, salt and seasonings all cost money. It's unreasonable for me to ask your family to contribute money to build a house."
Aunt Du took the money with a smile after hearing what Tian Cai said. "Then I'll take it first, and I'll give you the rest later."
Tian Cai nodded and breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what, the debt of favor he owed was getting more and more.
Before six o'clock, the villagers who came to help arrived at Tian Cai's house and quickly discussed the division of labor. Some continued to build the kitchen, and some built the kang. The group of people worked hard, and the adobe bricks stacked in the yard were decreasing at a very fast rate.
It is just the beginning of August now, and it is quite cool in the mornings and evenings. Everyone comes to help before work starts, so that they can earn work points during the day.
Tian Cai picked out some summer-relief herbs from the ones she brought with her, boiled a large pot of medicinal soup, cooled it down, and poured it into a wooden barrel. She planned to take it directly to the field later. Everyone had used their morning time to help her repair the house, so they could only go to work when it was hot.
Today's beam-raising ceremony will be presided over by Zhang Defa and Gao Chuanming. At that time, Tian Cai will be there to pull out the spacers of the beams.
Gao Chuanming is Zhang Defa's brother-in-law. He is very eloquent and the Gao family is also a wealthy family in the village.
As soon as six o'clock arrived, Gao Chuanming poured a glass of wine on the ground and began to recite the poem for raising the beam.
It’s not quite appropriate to say that it’s reciting, there’s also a tune, so it’s more like singing.
Tian Cai didn't pay attention, they were just words expressing hope for a better future.
When he finished singing the last line, "The purple star is shining brightly, it's just the right time to put up the beam", he glanced at Tian Cai, and she immediately understood what he meant and grabbed the piece of wood, pulling it out with a little force. The beam moved slightly, and then stopped firmly on the beam frame and did not move.
After the beam stopped, Gao Chuanming continued to sing a few more sentences before the ceremony was completely over.
Everyone continued to work busily, but Tian Cai, the owner of the house, was the most idle.
The workload at Tian Cai's house wasn't large. Before seven o'clock, the men had already finished most of the work. The kang was already built. Uncle Luo went over to light a cigarette and tested it himself. The flue was fine, with no smoke at all. He then instructed Tian Cai, "Keep burning more of it these next few days. It will be completely dry in three days. You can then lay the mattress."
Tian Cai hurriedly thanked him, handed the stool to Uncle Luo, and brought over a bowl of water.
Luo Xiangli took a sip of the water and couldn't help but say a few more words, "If you want to use thatch on the roof, you have to repair it twice a year and patch up the missing parts. This work has to be done in spring and autumn. Do you understand why?"
"I understand!" Tian Cai understood it after thinking about it. Changing the thatch in spring can prevent leaks during the rainy season, and the same principle applies to changing the thatch in autumn.
Uncle Luo stood up and looked towards the backyard, "Let them help you put up the fence in the backyard in the evening." After that, he didn't give Tian Cai a chance to refuse and called a few people to work.
During the day, Tian Cai cleaned up the waste he had dismantled in the yard by himself. It was almost noon before he delivered the summer-cooling soup, which had already gone cold, to the fields.
The evening meal was prepared by Aunt Du and the village head's wife. There were six dishes in total. The table was borrowed from someone else's house, but there were only a dozen people staying to eat, which just filled the table.
Those who left quietly felt that they had taken two and a half pounds of meat from Tian Cai last night, and they felt bad for not coming to help today, but they refused to have another meal no matter what.
In the end, the two originally planned tables were merged into one, and a group of people sat around in the yard, making it even more lively.
Uncle Luo was a quiet man, so Tian Cai poured him a glass of wine and he ate and drank alone. Gao Chuanming, however, was a lively person and insisted that everyone have a drink together.
Tian Cai was about to say that he couldn't drink when he heard Zhang Defa say, "Why are you doing this? There's still a lot of work to do tonight. Drink less. This is the only amount per person. Any more will delay things."
Zhang Defa has always been quite prestigious in the village, and he is also Gao Chuanming's brother-in-law. After hearing what he said, Gao Chuanming stopped making a fuss and started eating his meal obediently.
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