After saying that, he and Lu Chuan started cutting down trees together. They continued cutting until it got dark before calling the dogs to go home.
When Xu Han got home that evening, she first took out some beef shank from her spatial storage and soaked it in cold water to remove the blood, so she could make braised beef the next day.
After soaking the vegetables, I went to the kitchen to cook. Tonight, I'll just have a simple chive pancake with congee!
Another day passed. The next morning, Lu Chuan was doing the final waterproofing work on the reservoir in the backyard, while Xu Han was preparing to make braised beef.
First, wash the beef that was soaked in water yesterday to remove the blood. Then, pour in soy sauce and poke some small holes with bamboo skewers so that the beef can absorb the flavor better during marinating.
Marinate it in soy sauce for a day, and you can start cooking it tomorrow. When cooking, just pour in the soy sauce and add water.
You should also add sweet bean sauce, fermented bean curd, and other spices. After cooking, let it soak for an afternoon to make it more flavorful. You can also eat it directly without soaking.
After marinating the beef, Xu Han took advantage of her recent free time to prepare other dishes, cooked them all, and stored them in her spatial storage.
Life went on at a leisurely pace. Xu Han was in charge of cooking, and Lu Chuan was in charge of waterproofing. They were both busy with their own things...
Before they knew it, it was already the thirteenth day of the first lunar month. Xu Han and Lu Chuan got up early in the morning, preparing to set off for the prefectural city today, just in time for the Lantern Festival.
After tidying up the house and settling the livestock, the two closed the courtyard gate and set off for the prefectural city.
"Have you ever been to the prefectural city? I haven't been there yet!" Xu Han asked.
“I’ve been there a few times before, so I have a general understanding of the city. This time, I’ll show you around.” Lu Chuan said as he walked, holding Xu Han’s hand.
"I'm going to buy lots and lots of delicious food and fun things, and have a good time exploring. I've never had the chance to do any of these things before!"
"Okay, we'll buy some good food and fun things when we come across them. After this trip, I guess we won't be able to stroll around the city like this for a long time."
"Then we should take this opportunity to explore as much as possible!" the two said as they walked toward the county town.
The prefectural city is quite far from the county town. We need to stay in the county town tonight and set off for the prefectural city early tomorrow morning. Otherwise, we will have to spend the night in the suburbs if we don't get there before dark.
After arriving in the county town, they first went to a restaurant for lunch, and then began to stroll leisurely through the familiar streets. Xu Han clearly felt that the county town was much quieter this time.
Finally, in order to find out about the recent situation down the mountain, Lu Chuan and Xu Han went to the teahouse to inquire about the news.
They ordered a plate of melon seeds and peanuts, and a pot of tea. The two of them remained silent, listening intently to the conversations inside the teahouse, hoping to hear something they wanted to hear.
"Have you heard? Last time there was a heavy snowfall, many houses collapsed, and a lot of people died in the slums. The magistrate is currently building houses there!" Man A said.
“You’re out of the loop! The houses over there are already built. People have already moved in,” Man B chimed in.
“We’re lucky to have a good magistrate. He opened soup kitchens and distributed relief food during the heavy snow. Other counties don’t do this,” Man C joined the discussion.
"Don't other counties have them?" Man A asked.
“The disaster situation in other counties is even more serious than here! The government officials don’t care at all, and the casualties are heavy.” Another man, Ding, joined the discussion.
"How do you know? You've never been there. Maybe you made it up!" Man B asked doubtfully.
“I haven’t been there myself, but I heard about it from my wife’s second aunt’s cousin. He does business in that county, and because of the heavy snow, he couldn’t come back for the New Year,” Man Ding explained.
Listening to the conversation on the other end, the two exchanged a glance and instantly understood each other's intentions.
At this moment, Lu Chuan walked over with a plate of peanuts and asked, "I just heard from you guys that many people here have been affected by the disaster. What's the situation? Because we live deep in the mountains, we only came to the city recently and didn't know what happened."
After saying that, he put the peanuts on the table, indicating that everyone should eat them together.
Seeing that Lu Chuan was interested, the others started talking all at once, and Xu Han listened with great interest.
It turns out that the area where the two lived also experienced snowfall every year, but rarely such heavy snow. Many poor or dilapidated houses collapsed under the weight of this heavy snow.
Because of the collapsed houses, many people were killed or injured. When the snow disaster began, the county magistrate arranged for local officials to carry out emergency rescue. Because the rescue was timely, there were not many casualties compared with other counties.
However, due to the slippery roads caused by snow, there were still many remote areas where timely rescue was not possible, resulting in numerous casualties.
Otherwise, the county's losses could have been reduced even further! After the incident, the county magistrate provided timely assistance, building houses and distributing relief grain.
Now the people are all praising the county magistrate as a good official! The public's voice is very loud, and soon news about the county magistrate has spread.
I heard that this magistrate came from the capital and is a person with connections. He came here simply to understand the people's conditions and see the real lives of the common people.
The two stayed in the teahouse for half a day, and after getting the news they wanted to hear, they got up and went back.
When it was time for dinner, we went to a small restaurant together.
"Our county is fortunate to have a good magistrate. Hopefully, he can discover problems in time in the future. Do you think we should spread some rumors? But that would be dangerous, since nothing has happened yet!" Xu Han muttered to herself while eating her food.
“No, now is not the time. If we are seen as inciting others, we might be thrown in jail! We can’t take the risk,” Lu Chuan said.
"Besides, this will take too long. Even if we speak up, we won't get a solution. Seven years! It's not that easy to survive that long," Xu Han said with a worried expression.
"Right now, because of the snow disaster, no one is paying attention to the fact that it hasn't rained for a month. Spring planting is coming soon, and many people will realize this problem and start making plans then. Let's focus on living our own lives first!" Lu Chuan comforted Xu Han.
Xu Han stopped talking. Her own power was too insignificant. If she really told anyone, no one would believe her, and it would only bring her a lot of trouble.
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