New ink fragrance in old times

Before the first ray of dawn completely opened the veil of night, Lin Sizhe's eyes, full of curiosity and vitality, had already opened.

He lay in bed, his heart filled with anticipation for the new day. In his small body, it seemed as if he contained infinite power, and he couldn't wait to greet this brand new day.

Lin Sizhe quietly got up from the bed and woke up Shen Xin who was sleeping beside him: "Mom, get up quickly, it's dawn."

Shen Xin helped him put on simple, thick but warm clothes, and Lin Sizhe tiptoed out to the kitchen following Shen Xin.

The people from the Lin family also got up one after another and came to the kitchen.

Lin Sizhe followed closely behind Shen Xin, his eyes fixed on Shen Xin's every move.

"Mom, when are we going to eat meat?"

Lin Sizhe finally couldn't help himself and asked. His voice was full of childishness and expectation. He had asked this question countless times, but every time he heard the answer, he would be excited.

Shen Xin was a little annoyed by the question, but when he saw his son's eyes full of desire, the anger in his heart was extinguished instantly.

She smiled and touched Lin Sizhe's head, and said gently: "Eat breakfast, Shilang, don't worry."

Hearing this answer, Lin Sizhe was so happy that he almost jumped up. He nodded repeatedly, then found a comfortable place to sit down by the fire and continued to roast the fire with a happy smile on his face.

After hearing Shen Xin's words, Xing'er, Hua'er, Lin Sinan and Lin Siheng's eyes were also filled with joy.

They all sat obediently by the fire, enjoying the rare warmth. Lin Sinan and Lin Siheng, the two younger children, huddled close to Lin Sizhe, their faces filled with longing and anticipation for the meat.

Xing'er and Hua'er, the two older children, behaved more calmly, but the light in their eyes revealed their inner joy and excitement.

In the kitchen, the firelight danced, illuminating everyone's face.

Lin Mo slowly woke up from his deep sleep, his consciousness still immersed in the edge of dreamland and reality. His body was tightly wrapped in the warm quilt, as if the whole world was surrounded by this tenderness.

He turned over lazily, his eyes meeting the hazy sky outside the window, and a strong desire to not leave this warm nest surged in his heart. Every inch of air in the quilt seemed to carry a magic, making people intoxicated and unwilling to wake up.

However, this tranquility did not last long. From outside the door came the steady and familiar voice of his father, Lin Xuejin: "Sanlang, get up and warm yourself by the fire. The fire is big and warm!"

This sentence was like a warm current, penetrating the crack in the door and also penetrating the laziness in Lin Mo's heart. He responded with a voice that was a bit lazy, not yet fully awake:

"Got it, Dad."

Despite this, the body began to move involuntarily, as if being pulled by an invisible force.

Lin Mo slowly sat up, feeling the warmth draining away from the quilt, and couldn't help feeling a little reluctant.

He reached out and touched the cold clothes beside him, muttering to himself: "The weather is getting colder and colder." Despite this, he still plucked up the courage and put on his clothes one by one until he was completely wrapped up tightly. Only then did he muster up the courage to open the door.

As soon as he opened the door, a biting cold wind blew towards him, as if countless ice needles were gently scratching his skin, making Lin Mo shiver involuntarily.

He took a deep breath, trying to let the cold air wake his body, which had not yet fully awakened. Before his eyes, a silvery white world came into view. Snowflakes danced in the air like countless light feathers, making the entire world look like a dream.

"Snowing!"

Lin Mo was startled, then filled with delight. He cautiously stepped out of the yard, the snow creaking under his feet, leaving deep footprints with each step. Snowflakes gently drifted down his hair and shoulders, bringing a hint of coolness.

He looked up into the distance and saw snowflakes falling. The mountains and trees in the distance were covered with snow, a scene of silver and beauty beyond words.

Lin Mo felt an inexplicable emotion in his heart, as if at this moment, all his troubles were purified by this whiteness, leaving only inner tranquility.

Lin Mo quickly crossed the yard and came to the kitchen.

As soon as he entered the door, a warm breath hit him in the face, making him feel warm instantly.

He walked straight to the fire, squatted down, stretched his hands towards the flames, and felt the warmth from nature.

The flames jumped and made crackling sounds, as if welcoming his arrival.

Lin Mo closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and sat by the fire for a long time before he came to his senses.

Lin Wenhong coughed lightly, as if disturbed by the winter chill. The jumping flames reflected Lin Wenhong's gray hair and his face full of traces of time.

He turned to look at Lin Mo, who was warming himself by the fire with a relaxed look in his eyes, and asked softly, "Sanlang, is it still snowing outside?"

Lin Mo looked up at Lin Wenhong and replied, "Grandpa, it's raining heavily."

After hearing this, Lin Wenhong nodded slightly and turned his gaze to Lin Xuejin and Lin Xuebao who were busy at the side. "Second brother, third brother, when the snow stops, you two go shovel the snow in the yard and make a small path to make it easier for us to get in and out. The roads are slippery in the snow, don't let anyone in the family fall."

Lin Xuebo frowned slightly, looking out the window at the raging snowstorm. He muttered to himself, but couldn't help but say, "Dad, it's still snowing heavily outside, and I don't know when it will stop. If this snow keeps falling, I'm afraid we won't even be able to leave the yard."

Zhao Yue'e listened from the side, a smile on her lips. She put down her needlework and said softly, "As the saying goes, snow doesn't stop until noon. Just be patient. This snow will eventually stop."

Lin Xuebo was stunned for a moment, then scratched his head and said with a smile, "Mom, why haven't I heard anyone say that? If the snow is really as you say, then we don't have to shovel our yard anymore."

Zhao Yue'e smiled gently, her eyes gleaming with wisdom. "There's so much to learn in this world, and there's so much you don't know. Just like the weather, sometimes it seems fierce, but in reality, it disappears in the blink of an eye."

After that, Zhao Yue'e roasted the fire for a while, her body surrounded by the warm flames. She stood up, shook the hem of her clothes, and said to Shen Xin beside her: "Old Wife, it's almost time to cook. Let's have a bowl of hot rice and warm ourselves up."

Shen Xin nodded, stood up and walked towards the stove.

She opened the lid of the pot and picked up the ladle to add water to the pot. However, as soon as she opened the lid of the water tank, a gust of cold air hit her face, making her shiver.

Looking closely, I saw that the water in the tank had actually formed a thick layer of ice.

Shen Xin couldn't help but frowned, then turned to Zhao Yue'e and said, "Mom, the water is frozen. How can we cook? What if we can't even get hot water to drink in this snowy weather?"

Zhao Yue'e put down the fire tongs in her hand, picked up a small rolling pin, walked to the water tank, gently poked the ice, listened to the sound, and frowned slightly: "This is frozen quite thick."

After saying that, she turned to Lin Xuejin and Lin Xuebo and said, "Second and third brothers, stop being busy for now. Go to the backyard and see if the water in the well is frozen. If it is, we won't be able to eat our meal for a while."

Lin Xuejin and Lin Xuebao looked at each other, then picked up the buckets and strode towards the backyard.

Shen Xin and Zhao Yue'e were not idle either. They picked up rolling pins and vigorously chiseled the ice on the surface of the water tank.

Zhao Yue'e, while vigorously chipping at the ice on the surface of the water tank, said to Shen Xin, "I think the well is frozen too. The weather is really getting colder."

Shen Xin said puzzledly: "Mom, we have been covering the well recently. I even added a few extra layers of straw. Usually the water in the bucket freezes, but the well is fine. It shouldn't freeze."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Xuejin and Lin Xuebao came back from the backyard.

Their faces were filled with fatigue. They put down their shoulder poles and buckets, and while warming themselves by the fire, they said to Zhao Yue'e, "Mom, the manhole cover is covered in ice. We tried several times but couldn't get it open."

After hearing this, Zhao Yue'e stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Lin Xuejin and Lin Xuebo. A trace of heartache flashed in her eyes. "Thank you for your hard work. Take a break first. We'll come and dig this open later, and then we'll find a way to solve the problem with the well."