Affection for Sidaogou during the Famine

Qi Mudan's eyes lit up. Her family didn't have rain boots, and when the rainy season came, three pairs of shoes would not be enough for her to go to work.

"Oh, this is a good idea! Especially when you mix it with cowgrass and twist it into a rope, it can also prevent slipping!"

Aunt Qian slapped her thigh and said in surprise.

"Instead of adding nylon thread, you can twist waste cloth strips into ropes and make them into mesh uppers. They will definitely be cool and comfortable to wear as sandals in the summer."

The three women started brainstorming and thinking about developing new varieties of shoes while working.

The old lady and Han Zhaozhao looked at each other and smiled. They were mesh sandals, which her family had worn two years ago!

It feels great to be one step ahead of others. Even though the old lady's fingers are wrinkled, she still has a happy smile on her face.

At noon, people's skin hurts when exposed to the sun.

Only then did everyone decide to hide under the tree to rest and eat.

They are all old neighbors with good relations, and everyone puts the food they brought together and eats it.

Han Zhaozhao was more experienced. He brought a large tarpaulin, spread it under the tree, and piled various foods in the middle.

There were steamed buns made of various wild vegetables and cooked sweet potatoes contributed by the Niu, Qi and Wei families, steamed buns made of three-grain flour contributed by the Qian family, and cornmeal pancakes and a bag of shredded pickles contributed by the Han family.

There was also a small bag of peanut and vegetable dumplings brought by Mr. Guan.

They say that too many people make for a bad meal. Sure enough, as soon as the old man and the old woman said the word "eat", the boys rushed over, each of them grabbed a steamed bun and a few pickles, and started to eat voraciously under the tree!

"These little brats are eating me into poverty! Oh, these kids really love to eat!" Aunt Niu sighed and whispered.

She has many children in her family, and as a housewife, she knows best how much food it costs to raise so many children.

"It's always like this! Every month's food has to be carefully calculated. If you let your fingers slack for a bit, you won't be able to buy food next month.

We should just bear with it. When the children grow up and can work and earn money, we will be able to relax.”

Aunt Qian had also been through the same thing and could understand Aunt Niu’s predicament very well.

If you don't run a household, you don't know how expensive firewood and rice are. Several women chatted about the daily necessities of life while eating dry food.

Han Zhaozhao was munching on a pancake with his little white teeth bared, listening to gossip happily, when Xiao Sanzi and Niu Xiaoyun came over with a sly look on their faces.

"Zhao Zhao, this is not enough to eat, don't we think of a solution?"

"Ah? What? Think of a solution, what solution?"

Qi Mudan had already talked about the strange stories of a high-ranking KMT official before liberation. She was enjoying listening to the story, but was interrupted by her companions, who were still confused!

Niu Xiaoyun pointed to the middle of the tarpaulin. There was a pile of food there just now, but now there was only a piece of pancake left.

"Nothing to eat?"

"Ah! Didn't you see it?"

"Are you not full?"

"Don't you talk nonsense?"

"If you're not full, won't you go find me? What's the point of looking for me?"

Niu Xiaoyun leaned over to her ear and whispered, "Do you have any private goods in your bag? Please contribute some!"

Han Zhaozhao rolled his eyes. "Yes, but I won't give it to you! There are only a handful of peanuts and a few pieces of dried sweet potatoes left. I have to save them for the kids. Don't try to scheme."

Niu Xiaoyun rubbed her belly and acted pitiful, "What should I do? I'm still hungry and I have to work in the afternoon. I'm afraid I can't do it."

Han Zhaozhao snorted, clapped his hands, and climbed up. He picked up the small hoe and waved his hand, "Come on, follow me to find something to eat!"

Q: Is there anything to eat by the river?

Answer: Yes!

Question: What?

Answer: Live by the mountain, live by the water!

After walking a few hundred meters, Han Zhaozhao finally found something to eat.

In a large mud pit, Han Zhaozhao pointed at a finger-sized hole at the bottom of the pit.

"Go dig! There must be loaches under those holes!"

Xiao Sanzi asked in surprise: "Really? Are you sure?"

Han Zhaozhao raised his foot and kicked him into the pit, "Just do it, I'm sure I'll bite you!"

Niu Xiaoyun also wanted to go down the pit, but Han Zhaozhao stopped her and said, "There are boys who don't want to go down the pit, so why are you, a girl, getting involved?"

"Call your brother to come and dig! After that we can roast loaches for lunch."

"Okay!" Niu Xiaoyun agreed excitedly and shouted at the top of her voice: "Big brother, second brother, come over here and bring a bucket with you."

They were so busy searching that they forgot to bring their belongings.

"What did the three of them find?" asked Aunt Qian.

"Who knows? Never mind her, let's talk about our own things." Among this group of people, the old lady felt the least pressured and she enjoyed listening to gossip more than her granddaughter.

"Why don't you two hurry up and go, don't worry, Zhao Zhao, that girl with a ghost face and toad eyes, is very smart, she must have found something good."

Niu Xiaomin pulled his brother along, picked up the bucket and ran away. Xiaoliang and Niu Xiaolian were also chasing after them. Wu Ni ran a few steps but failed to catch up, so she turned back dejectedly to look for her grandmother.

Forget about taking her. She just fell into her grandmother's arms and took a nap. She was also sleepy.

The old lady smiled, pinched her chubby face, patted her back, and hugged the child to let her sleep.

"Aunt Han, is Wu Ni fully recovered? I see she has gained some weight on her face."

The old lady smiled, "All right! This child has drunk a lot of bitter medicine, spent a lot of money, and suffered a lot, but he finally saved his life.

To be honest, it was all thanks to the doctor that Master Zhao Zhao found. He was really capable. After three visits, the illness was cured."

Talking about this, the old lady was very grateful to Doctor Dong and Doctor Liu. The more capable the doctor is, the less arrogant he is.

"Mudan, you are not too old. If it doesn't work, you can go see a doctor. Maybe he can cure it. Then you can find a man who knows you well and marry him. Then you can have a child and your life will be complete."

All the old neighbors knew about Qi Mudan's situation, and Aunt Qian did not shy away from it and advised her.

“When we first came out, the government took us to the hospital for a checkup and they said it was incurable.

Well, I decided not to bother with that. I am living a good life now. I have a job and a salary, and the factory will provide pension for me when I get old. It is better than having children."

Qi Mudan was not without regrets, but there was nothing she could do. People like them had their bodies ruined by the old society, and they could have the life they have now, so they didn't dare to ask for anything more.

Aunt Niu also advised: "It's hard to be a woman! Mudan, the doctor that Aunt Han found should be a very good one. In my opinion, you should find some time to let someone take a look at you.

I don't ask for a child, but I just want to see if there are any other problems with my body.

It’s not obvious when you’re young, but when you’re old some minor problems can turn into major problems, and you’re the one who suffers, and no one can replace you.”

Qi Mudan took this to heart. She knew her own body, and she really had some problems that she couldn't tell others about. Thinking of this, she made up her mind.

Time passed quickly while they were chatting. After a while, the children came back with a bucket full of loaches.

The loach, which had been lying limp at the bottom of the mud, regained its vitality after entering the bucket of water. It tried to twist its body, which scared Qi Mudan.

"Ouch, is this a loach? Why does it look like a snake? No, I'll stay away from it. It makes me dizzy and nauseous."

Women may be born afraid of mollusks. Although the old lady and other women were not afraid, they were unwilling to start cleaning them up.

Uncle Niu and Uncle Guan were not afraid. The two grown men were very happy. "This loach is great! It has few bones and lots of meat. Where did you find it?"