Before he could even catch his breath after getting home, Zhao Tingzhang got up and was about to go out again.
Liu anxiously called after her, but received no response.
Braving the heavy snow, Zhao Tingzhang arrived at the home of a family living on the southwest slope. He remembered what He Tiantian had said. If the snow continued to fall like this, it might trigger an avalanche.
This place is the hillside most prone to avalanches.
Without delay, Zhao, the village head, quickly went door-to-door to notify the villagers, urging them to pack their belongings and seek refuge elsewhere.
These thirty or forty households were all original villagers of Changfeng Village, all surnamed Zhao. In ancient times, clan ties were quite strong, so Zhao Tingzhang didn't need to make any arrangements; they took care of themselves and went to stay with close relatives for a few days.
No one dared to disobey Chief Zhao, because he had made his words very clear this time.
Anyone who disobeys will be expelled from Changfeng Village. If an avalanche kills someone, he won't let anyone else from the village come to rescue them.
Everyone is afraid of dying these days, so they quickly packed their belongings and fled the house.
As evening began, the snow outside had fallen so heavily that the roads were obscured. The three people living in He Tiantian's dilapidated temple were Yulan's mother and her two children.
The older of the two girls is named Yulan, and she is eight years old, just like Zhao Denglong. The younger one is named Shuixian, and she is six years old.
Six people and four little rabbits now lived in the small, dilapidated temple.
In the evening, He Tiantian started cooking with the newly bought big pot, and Yulan's mother brought out all the grain in the house.
"Wanzi's mother, I'm sorry to trouble you with my stay here with the child these days." Yulan's mother was very embarrassed, as she always disliked troubling others.
"Don't talk about trouble or not. Besides, I didn't build this dilapidated temple. We're both in the same boat." He Tiantian smiled bitterly to herself, thinking that fate was truly a mysterious thing.
This Yulan Niang is Liu Yonghe's wife, and just a few days ago, Liu Yonghe kindly asked He Tiantian to send the child to his home to help take care of him.
Now that's bad, when she goes to work in the mine, she'll have to trouble Yulan's mother to take care of her at home!
Yulan's mother started chopping vegetables. She was just an ordinary village woman, uneducated. She couldn't understand the new words that He Tiantian occasionally used.
He Tiantian was busy kneading the dough; she planned to make noodles for the children tonight. Although they were dark buckwheat noodles, wasn't this exactly the kind of healthy food that modern people advocate?
The secret to delicious handmade noodles is to knead them several times, which makes them chewy and springy. Of course, adding a couple of drops of peanut oil and an egg would make them even tastier.
As He Tiantian kneaded the dough, she daydreamed, her mouth watering.
Unfortunately, their family doesn't have that kind of means right now...
Yulan's mother stewed a pot of radishes, adding extra water to make more broth.
Don't wash the radish after stewing it in a big pot, because there will still be oil residue from cooking. Oil is very precious these days.
Add three spoonfuls of water directly to the pot and bring it to a boil. Once the water boils, He Tiantian sprinkles all the kneaded noodles in and cooks them until done.
Each child had a bowl of dark buckwheat noodles, mixed with some radish soup, and ate heartily with satisfied expressions.
"Boom..."
A muffled thud gradually came from not far away, causing the already dilapidated temple to shake slightly.
He Tiantian and Yulan's mother exchanged a glance, and the four children looked at each other, their little faces full of panic.
"What's wrong?" Yulan's mother put down her bowl and got up to go out and check.
He Tiantian also put down the noodles she had half-eaten and told the four children to stay in the house and not go out.
It was pitch black outside, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.
He Tiantian and Yulan's mother stood at the door, gazing at the pitch-black night.
“It’s an avalanche…” He Tiantian’s voice was deep and heavy, which made Yulan’s mother feel a little scared.
"Good heavens! This...this will kill people!" Yulan's mother patted her chest cautiously. She had heard that an avalanche could bury people more than ten meters underground, making it impossible to find them in such a vast area.
He Tiantian wasn't sure either; she just hoped that Zhao Tingzhang had already evacuated those people.
After waiting for quite a while, there was still no movement from the village. He Tiantian finally breathed a sigh of relief. "It's alright, let's go back to sleep."
Yulan's mother didn't know why He Tiantian was so certain, but she unconditionally believed in He Tiantian.
At night, the two adults and four children slept on the straw laid out on the ground.
Yulan's mother took out all the bedding in the house, laid half of it down underneath, and kept the other half to cover herself.
The four children played all day and soon fell asleep on the ground.
He Tiantian stared into the dark night, preparing herself for a long time. Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard Yulan's mother's hushed voice, "Wanzi's mother, are you asleep?"
"Not yet, what's wrong, sister-in-law?"
"I just wanted to ask how far along you are in your pregnancy. Your belly doesn't look very big..." Actually, Yulan's mother wanted to ask this during the day, but she forgot about it when she was distracted.
"It seems to have been more than five months." He Tiantian didn't remember the exact time.
"Oh dear, your due date is in June or July. It will be hot then, so you'll have to be careful." Yulan's mother exclaimed in surprise, then said warmly, "But don't worry, I'll deliver the baby. I'm very experienced in this."
It's not that Yulan's mother is exaggerating; she delivered half the babies in Changfeng Village.
Of course, besides babies, she also helps old sows and old goats give birth.
He Tiantian felt incredibly embarrassed. She was a transmigrator. As a 23-year-old college student, she had never even had a boyfriend, let alone know how to have a child!
This definitely requires an experienced person to provide guidance.
The two chatted about other things, and before they knew it, they had fallen asleep.
The next day, before dawn, He Tiantian had to get up and go to work.
She entrusted everything at home to Yulan's mother, and she was completely at ease with everything.
Ever since she had a frank talk with Erhua's mother last time, Erhua's mother doesn't seem to be as hostile towards her anymore. Today, when she went to work, she even greeted He Tiantian very warmly.
The lunch served in a large pot was still radish and cabbage, and He Tiantian's pickled cabbage wouldn't be ready to eat for another two weeks.
Mo Zhu brought over some ingredients, which were Director Song's lunch.
He Tiantian took out the ingredients to wash: a chicken and a section of lotus root. These things were nothing special to He Tiantian in the 20th century, but Erhua's mother couldn't take her eyes off them.
"My goodness, I recognize this chicken. But what's this other one? It's white, and has so many holes..."
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