Traveling Through Farmhouses: Taking the Baby on a Famine Escape

After Zhang Xixi came out, she looked around at all the identical tents. Although there was still some distance between each tent, she thought for a moment and took out the moonstone and hung it on the tent where she was staying.

When someone in the village saw it, they asked, "Da Bao's mother, why did you hang a stone on there? Is there any significance to it?"

Zhang Xixi said with a smile, "Sister Qian, it's nothing special. I was just worried that it would be embarrassing if I couldn't find my own tent when I came back at night!"

"Oh, I thought... I'll go find something to make a mark too."

Seeing this, the other women marked their own tents to avoid the embarrassment of going to the wrong one.

At night, everyone slept in tents, and it was surprisingly warm inside. There was no need to build a heated platform bed, and most people slept soundly until dawn.

The next day, the villagers cut down some trees and built a kitchen not far from their lodgings. Zhang Xixi also thought about building a house, putting up a kang (a heated brick bed), for Xiao Jin and the others to live in. Besides, once the ducklings came out, they would need a place to live; they couldn't keep living in the tent with them forever!

Zhang Xixi told Zhang Wenhong about her idea, and Zhang Wenhong immediately agreed.

"Little sister, let me finish this house first before you start working on this!"

"Row!"

"Second brother, do you know how to build a kang (heated brick bed)?" Zhang Wenhong shook his head.

"I can't, but Brother Zhou can!"

"Second Brother!"

"Yes, back in the village, he and his team built the kang (heated brick bed) for us."

"Then I'll have Yujie go and invite him!"

Zhang Wenhong quickly replied, "No need, I've already gone to see him, he'll be here in a bit."

Zhang Xixi asked in confusion, "You also have a kang (heated brick bed) in this house? I thought it was for storing miscellaneous items!"

"No, your second sister-in-law is about to give birth, this is for her. It'll be warmer if we put up a heated kang!" Zhang Wenhong said with a happy face.

Zhang Xixi sighed inwardly. So this was a delivery room. In ancient times, there was no heating or air conditioning. Giving birth in the summer was still manageable, but giving birth in the winter would be a real ordeal. A heated kang bed would be good, as it would create a warm and comfortable environment for the mother to give birth, making the delivery process easier for her.

"Second brother, after the house is built, it still needs to be disinfected."

“I know that. The lime and mugwort are ready!” Zhang Wenhong smiled.

"That's good!" This second brother is quite heartwarming at crucial moments!

A short while later, Zhou Dahai arrived with his men.

"Hongzi, how are you going to set up this kang (heated brick bed)?"

"Brother Dahai, could you take a look at this room for me? Try to make it as big as possible, a bigger kang (heated brick bed) will dissipate heat faster!"

Zhou Dahai went into the room and looked around. "A bigger kang (heated brick bed) is fine, but a bigger kang will use more firewood. You'd better think it over!"

Zhang Wenhong laughed and said, "It's alright, there's no fear of not being able to find firewood in these mountains. Brother Dahai, just keep building as much as you can. Just make sure the stove hole is outside, in case the smoke is too strong!"

"Row!"

Zhou Dahai and his team got to work, with Zhang Wenhong helping out as well. They finished in no time!

Seeing that Zhou Dahai had some free time, Zhang Xixi immediately stepped forward and said, "Second Uncle, I would also like to ask you to build a kang (heated brick bed) for me."

"Sister-in-law, what are you doing making the kang (heated brick bed)?"

“Bao and the others picked up some duck eggs by the river. My mother said they will hatch into ducklings. I was thinking that the weather is getting colder and colder, so I thought it would be better to build a kang (heated brick bed) for them to live in so they could be raised more easily!”

Zhou Dahai was stunned. How could his sister-in-law's brain be so clever as to come up with such a method?

“Sister-in-law, your idea is good. My family also collected some wild duck eggs. I’ll get one when I get back.”

"My little one seems to have collected some wild duck eggs too, I wonder if they'll hatch into ducks!"

Zhang Xixi quickly tried to prepare, saying with a smile, "This just came to mind suddenly. I've never tried it before, so I don't know if it will work. Don't blame me if it doesn't!"

Zhou Dahai and the others had great confidence in Zhang Xixi and planned to have the child find wild duck eggs and raise ducks on a heated brick bed when they got back.

"Sister-in-law, where do you plan to build it?"

Zhang Xixi looked around and pointed to the area to the north where several outhouses had been built. "It's better to keep them a bit further away from where we live!"

Zhang Xixi led Zhou Dahai and the others to build a kang (a heated brick bed), thinking that the size of the kang would determine the size of the house to be built. The roof would be better, and the sides would be simpler, as long as it could provide shelter from the wind and rain.

After the kang (heated brick bed) was set up at noon, Zhang Xixi gave each person a few kilograms of grain as wages, but no one accepted it. They took their tools and went home, saying that giving them wages would be disrespectful.

Zhang Xixi felt helpless; these simple and honest villagers!

In the afternoon, Zhang Dacheng took Zhang Wenhong and Zhang Wenbo to build the house, while the rest of the people went to collect firewood, as it might snow and they needed to prepare more firewood.

Zhang Xixi took her big knife and started chopping. She chopped down the dry trees in just a few strokes, while Zhou Yujie carried them back. The others picked up some dry branches nearby.

In one afternoon, Zhang Xixi and the others collected about dozens of loads of firewood, filling the kitchen to the brim. Luckily, the kitchen was built relatively large, otherwise it would have had to be piled up outside!

Dinner was dumplings again, and Zhang Xixi looked annoyed. Although the dumplings were delicious, she was already sick of the cabbage filling. Couldn't they have changed the recipe?

I still need my mom to make the kimchi, then I can eat it with rice. Eating without chili doesn't feel very appetizing!

Fortunately, chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns are readily available in this era, and seasonings are quite comprehensive. I'm confident that as long as I provide an idea, my mother's culinary skills will definitely allow her to figure it out.

Then, all sorts of spicy kimchi dishes will be available. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water, hehe!

Seeing Zhang Xixi holding chopsticks in one hand and smiling like a fool, Chen and the others were puzzled. What was wrong with their daughter (Little Sister)?

"Little sister, do you think there's anything wrong with what I said?"

Zhang Xixi snapped out of her daze and looked at Zhang Wenbo. "Ah! Um, sorry, what did you say, brother?"

"Little sister, your brother wants to build a school here to teach children to read and write. He'd like to ask for everyone's opinion," Zhang Wenhong reminded her.

"That's a great idea, I support you, brother!"

"I can also provide you with a tent like that. The light inside is decent during the day, and it's quite warm inside."

Zhang Wenbo stood up excitedly and looked at Zhang Xixi: "Little sister, thank you!"

"Don't mention it, we're all family!"

Seeing Zhang Wenbo sit down with a furrowed brow, seemingly troubled, Zhang Xixi asked, "Brother, now that the venue is sorted out, are there any other problems?"

"We can ask the villagers to help make tables and chairs, but what method should we use for writing?"

Zhang Xixi thought for a moment, "We can make a sand table and write on it with twigs!"

Zhang Wenbo slapped his forehead. "That's a great idea! How come I didn't think of that!"

The onlooker sees more of the game than the player!

Zhang Xixi thought to herself with self-satisfaction, "Who told me to have a broader perspective than you guys!"

"Since we've already discussed it, let's eat first. The dumplings are getting cold!" Chen said.

Zhang Dacheng then reminded him, "Boss, go and discuss it with the village tomorrow. If they agree, then do it; if they don't, then forget it."

"Got it, Dad!"