Chapter 192

A seven-year-old boy is at the age where he can eat the most; how could he be full drinking thin porridge every meal? It can be said that ever since Lin Zhao moved back to the new house with the four cubs, Tie Dan hadn't eaten a full meal. It was good enough if he could eat seven-tenths full every day.

Huang Huang Xiulan was silent, her face full of embarrassment, "Third Sister-in-law, I've let you spend money again. When we move, I'll invite you and the four cubs to eat."

"Hmm?" Lin Zhao's eyes were surprised, "... Planning to build a new courtyard?"

"Yes." Huang Huang Xiulan's heart was full of hope.

Lin Zhao: "If you're short of anything, come find me, no need to be a stranger."

"Okay."

Huang Huang Xiulan took the iron pot and went home happily.

Not long after, the whole village knew that Lin Zhao had given her sister-in-law a new pot.

Their hearts were full of emotion.

"Gu Chenghuai's wife is really generous, that's a pot."

"She works at the supply and marketing cooperative, so it's convenient for her to get anything."

"Don't say, in the whole brigade, only the Gu family's daughters-in-law don't often make a scene. I heard their family just split, and it went so smoothly. In other families, they could fight for a whole day over a bowl."

Zhao Zhao Liuniang saw that pot and couldn't help feeling sour. Did Third Sister-in-law look down on her? She even gave Eldest Sister-in-law a pot.

She was straightforward, and thinking this way, it showed on her face.

Huang Huang Xiulan laughed at her, "Don't be sour, Third Sister-in-law prepared one for you too. Look at you being sour, you're such an adult, why are you like a child."

Zhao Zhao Liuniang was stunned, then her face showed joy, "Really? I have a pot too?"

"How could it be fake? Third Sister-in-law said it herself." Huang Huang Xiulan chided.

She squatted down at the kitchen door and washed the pot with a serious expression.

"Oh my, Third Sister-in-law is really good. I... I don't know how to thank her. How about giving her money? Since we just split the family, we have money on hand." Zhao Zhao Liuniang felt embarrassed. If it wasn't valuable, it would be one thing, but a pot costs several yuan.

"Third Sister-in-law wants to make a few quilts and asked me to help. If you feel bad, let's do it together and finish it early to send to her." Huang Huang Xiulan said.

Zhao Zhao Liuniang helped pour water, and the ash on the pot was washed off, "Okay, making quilts so early?"

"Probably making a lot." Huang Huang Xiulan guessed.

Zhao Zhao Liuniang sighed, "It would be great if we could get a few jin of cotton."

The second branch's cotton quilts and cotton clothes weren't warm.

After Huang Huang Xiulan left the Gu family's third branch.

Tie Dan ate five oil cakes in a row and drank a bowl of white porridge full of rice grains; his stomach, which rarely felt full, finally tasted something substantial.

He consciously cleaned up the bowls and chopsticks, not even willing to wipe his mouth, wanting to let that meat fragrance stay for a long time.

When he got to the village, he couldn't help showing off to his little friends.

Little friends: "..."

Hate, hate.

Gu Gu Yuanshan went to the brigade headquarters to talk about dividing the land. There were many empty lots in the village, and the brigade leader told him about a few places. Gu Gu Yuanshan didn't rush to decide and went home to discuss it with his wife.

The children were all there.

After he finished speaking...

Li Bao raised his dark eyes and looked at his father and mother expectantly, "I want one close to Xiang Yubao!"

Huang Huang Xiulan laughed, "Is it close or not here?"

"It's okay, but it would be better if it were closer." Li Bao frowned his little eyebrows, his expression solemn.

Huang Huang Xiulan didn't oppose her youngest son having a good relationship with the third branch. Tie Chui was honest, and the twins were clever. With those two, Tie Chui wouldn't be bullied. And this bond of growing up together... if Xiang Yubao and Gu Hangbao had a bright future... could they not pull him along?

Third Sister-in-law always said, choice is greater than effort.

They were a couple without much ability; since there was a ready-made thick thigh to hug, why not hug it?

"Okay, close it is." Huang Huang Xiulan said, and she looked at Gu Gu Yuanshan, "Let's choose the land close to the third branch."

Gu Gu Yuanshan had no opinion, "Okay, I'll go reply to the brigade leader."

As he spoke, he rushed out the door.

"Money, take the money." Huang Huang Xiulan shouted.

Gu Gu Yuanshan walked back, took the money, and left.

Li Bao followed happily; he didn't go to the brigade headquarters but went to find Xiang Yubao and Gu Hangbao.

"Xiang Yubao, Gu Hangbao, our family is going to build a new house." As soon as he entered the courtyard, Li Bao's excited voice rang out, "It will be more convenient for me to find you in the future."

Gu Hangbao was even more excited than him, "Where, where?"

Li Bao scratched his head, "I don't know yet, my father went to find the brigade leader."

"Oh."

Time passed quickly in Li Bao's anticipation.

After a few days, the eldest branch's adobe house was built. After airing it for a few days, the whole family moved into the new house.

By the time Lin Zhao came back from work, most of the things had already been moved.

There was no one at home, and it was easy to guess that they had all gone to join the fun.

Lin Zhao carried the things and walked toward the eldest branch's new home.

The new courtyard was very lively.

There was chattering, among which Gu Hangbao's voice was the loudest.

"Wow, Li Bao has his own room too."

Li Bao smiled honestly, "You and Xiang Yubao can come stay too."

"Okay." Gu Hangbao said unceremoniously.

Hearing this conversation, Lin Zhao entered the door.

"Mother!" The twins' tone was happy, and they shouted in unison.

Lin Zhao responded with a smile.

She put the things on the table, "Eldest Sister-in-law, this is a congratulatory gift."

"Is it food?" Tie Dan hadn't eaten enough for a few days and was greedy for everything.

"Yes, chicken cake." Food without oil or fat doesn't keep you full, and Tie Dan was growing and hungry quickly. Lin Zhao didn't think he was greedy; the child was very sensible. After eating the oil cakes, he had sent firewood for three consecutive days.

"Chicken cake?" Tie Dan swallowed hard and looked at Huang Huang Xiulan, his eyes expectant.

A growing boy eats his parents out of house and home, Huang Huang Xiulan thought to herself.

She thanked Lin Zhao and divided a piece for each of the children.

Xiang Yubao said sensibly: "Eldest Aunt, just give us one piece, we'll share it, we're about to eat."

"... Done."

Tie Dan thought Xiang Yubao was stupid and taught him, "It would be so good to keep it to eat at night."

He always felt hungry at night and wished he had a piece of chicken cake to pad his stomach.

"Ah?" Xiang Yubao looked over blankly, "You can't eat after brushing your teeth at night, especially sweet things. If you don't brush your teeth after eating... your teeth will go bad."

Troublesome.

Tie Dan was eating the chicken cake and only focused on one thing, "Aren't you hungry?"

"Not hungry, I'm not hungry after eating. If I'm hungry, I can find something to eat, but I have to brush my teeth again." Xiang Yubao divided the chicken cake among his younger brother and sister, solemn as if doing something very important.

Tie Dan: "What is there to eat?"

"Beef jerky, rice cakes, shrimp-flavored candies, small bread..." Xiang Yubao counted on his fingers.

Gu Hangbao sighed, "I like dry noodles the most, they're crunchy, they go crunch when you bite them, Mother doesn't let me eat much."

Tie Dan: The little cake in his mouth suddenly wasn't fragrant anymore; why did he ask so much.

"That's really good." He said with an envious tone.

This sound was too melancholy. Lin Zhao wanted to say she would make some dried sweet potatoes to pad their stomachs when they were hungry, but it wasn't a good time to say it now; she would talk about it when there was a chance.

She looked around.

An ordinary adobe house with four rooms, a kitchen, firewood in the front yard, and a vegetable garden and latrine in the back yard.

"The courtyard is not bad."

Huang Huang Xiulan was quite satisfied, "As long as we can live here."

Although this house couldn't compare to the third branch's, it was their own nest, and it looked very comfortable.

When the vegetables in the back yard were ripe and red peppers were hanging from the beams, life would be even more beautiful.

Gu Lan came out of the room with a dust-proof hat made of newspaper on her head. Seeing Lin Zhao, her dark eyes were filled with smiles, "Third Aunt."

With the nourishment of chicken soup and eggs every day, the wound on her head healed very quickly, and no scar was left; even the skin on her forehead was much more delicate.

Because the skin on the little girl's forehead and face formed a layer, Lin Zhao couldn't help but give A-Lan a box of vanishing cream, and after a few days of care, her face was much more delicate.

"Everything is packed, right?" Lin Zhao asked.

Gu Lan smiled shyly, "Almost."

Lin Zhao pointed to another package on the table, "There's a bed sheet inside, it's for you."

The feeling of being an elder is really refreshing, especially when dealing with this kind of scene; it's very useful.

Gu Lan was stunned, and after coming back to her senses, she hurriedly waved her hand, "Third Aunt, I..."

Knowing she was going to say something to decline, Lin Zhao interrupted, "An elder's gift cannot be refused."

Gu Lan was at a loss and looked at her mother.

Huang Huang Xiulan looked at Lin Zhao, but Lin Zhao didn't look at her, looking around, clearly not paying attention.

She said: "Accept it, and remember your Third Aunt's kindness."

"Mm." Gu Lan responded and looked at Lin Zhao again, her voice carrying the unique sweet softness of a little girl, "Thank you, Third Aunt."

Lin Zhao waved her hand. She had been in Gu Lan's room; the bed sheet was patched again and again, rotten beyond recognition, and she had long planned to give her a bed sheet.

In Li Bao's room, the lively voices of children rang out.

"Li Bao, where is your desk?" Gu Hangbao saw that his good brother didn't have a desk, and his eyebrows twisted.

"It's not done yet." Li Bao said.

Glass is expensive, and large pieces are even more expensive. The eldest branch didn't have much money and didn't get the kind the third branch had. They installed the most ordinary grid windows; the lighting was fine, just not as transparent. They didn't install cloth curtains, hanging adjustable bamboo and grass curtains instead, which had a very pastoral feel.

Xiang Yubao thought this curtain looked good and called Lin Zhao to see.

Lin Zhao entered the room upon hearing the sound and looked over; it was indeed not bad.

She looked down at her own big treasure, "Do you want one?"

The child thought for a moment, "Forget it, our house has curtains." And they were colorful too.

Lin Zhao saw he liked them, or perhaps he wanted to follow suit. A soft smile appeared on her glowing face, "If you like them, we'll get them. Go find your grandfather later, you can change them and hang them up."

Xiang Yubao's eyes brightened, his baby-fat little face full of happy smiles, "Okay, Gu Hangbao and I will go find Grandpa."

"Alright."

Li Bao held Xiang Yubao and Gu Hangbao's hands and shook them a few times, "I'll go too."

He leaned his little head toward the twins and smiled, "We can use the same curtains now."

The twins also became happy.

Children are like this; using the same things as their little friends can make them happy for a long time.

Li Bao's bed was made of wooden boards, and the bedding wasn't thick, revealing a sense of coldness.

Lin Zhao always felt a few more points of love and heartache for him, thinking that when the weather got colder, she would get Li Bao a thick quilt. The bedding at home needed to be changed, and the cotton inside the old bedding could be re-fluffed, which would be enough to make a new quilt.

Leaving the eldest branch's new courtyard, Lin Zhao walked home slowly.

Xiao Hu Po hopped and followed by her side.

Round and round, sniffing everywhere, looking cute.

Without anyone urging, it could always keep up with its owner.

Back home, Lin Zhao took out dog food to feed Xiao Hu Po and added clean water to the basin; Xiao Hu Po wagged its tail straight.

"Eat slowly." Patting Xiao Hu Po's dog head, she went to the water pool to wash her hands and was just about to cook when she suddenly wanted to eat canned food, so she turned back to the room to get it.

The courtyard was very quiet.

Song Song Yun Jin and the Lin sisters had each returned to their own homes.

The boy-girl twins were at Gu Mother's place and usually wouldn't be sent back until after four o'clock.

Just as she came out of the kitchen with a spoon.

The twins came back hopping.

"Canned food?" Gu Hangbao had sharp eyes and captured the canned food the first time, sliding over as if his feet were greased, "Canned yellow peaches! Is it for us?" An excited, clear voice rang out.

Xiang Yubao's eyes were also shining.

"No." Lin Zhao shook her head deliberately, "I plan to eat it all by myself."

Hearing this, Gu Hangbao widened his eyes and was directly stunned.

He didn't think eating alone was excessive, just twisted his body and acted like a spoiled child, "Mother is eating canned food, leave a few mouthfuls of canned water for me and brother, okay?"

He used his fingers to measure a short gap and elongated his tone, "Just a little bit is fine, Mother."

Xiang Yubao said: "It's okay if you don't leave any, Gu Hangbao and I will drink water. Mother works hard, Mother eat."

Hearing his brother say this, although Gu Hangbao was greedy, he didn't make a scene and nodded in agreement.

Lin Zhao's heart felt like it had been swept by a feather, numb and tingling, and she smiled: "Let's eat together."

Surprise appeared on the two identical faces, and they went to get spoons.

The little brothers soon returned, sitting upright.

Lin Zhao's voice was light and slow, "Don't eat too much, we're going to eat soon. Eat half and leave half, eat the rest at night."

"Okay."

The mother and her two sons happily ate the canned food, smiles on their faces.

"What do you want to eat?" Lin Zhao asked when she had a chance.

Xiang Yubao answered on behalf of them, "Anything is fine."

What's the difference between this and "whatever"? Lin Zhao suddenly wanted to eat noodles and said: "Then let's have tomato and egg noodles, add a few more eggs, it'll be fragrant."

Gu Hangbao wasn't a picky eater and clapped his hands full of expectation, "Okay, I like eating noodles."

Lin Zhao looked at him with a smile; you little child love to eat everything.

After eating.

The sound of gongs rang out in the village.

Gu Hangbao hurried out to join the fun. The little guy was flexible and squeezed into the crowd, hearing the brigade leader say the village was going to install power lines.

Before others could react, he said: "Grandpa Brigade Leader, is it to get electricity?"

The child's voice suddenly rang out, and everyone was stunned for a moment before laughing out loud.

"When did Gu Hangbao squeeze to the front?"

"Oh my, Gu Hangbao even knows about electricity."

"Gu Chenghuai's wife's family is really bold."

The brigade leader replied with a smile: "Yes, our brigade is going to get electricity."

"Got it, thank you, Grandpa Brigade Leader." Gu Hangbao thanked him politely, squeezed out of the crowd, and ran home.

When he got home, he was panting.

"Why run so fast, aren't you afraid of getting a stitch?" Lin Zhao gently smoothed Gu Hangbao's back.

"Mother, our village is going to install power lines." Gu Hangbao's tone was happy.

"Is that so? That's a good thing." Lin Zhao rubbed her son's chubby cheeks, "Everything will be convenient after getting electricity."

Xiang Yubao still remembered the television, "Can we use a television after getting electricity?"

"To buy a television, you must have a television coupon. Television coupons are very hard to get, so we can't buy one for a while, but your father and I both remember, and we'll buy one when there's a chance." Lin Zhao's voice was soft.

"Okay." Xiang Yubao was very expectant and comforted his mother sensibly, "Listening to the radio is the same."

Getting electricity in the village was a big deal. Power lines cost money, and not everyone was willing to pay. The brigade was noisy for several days before finally deciding on the time to install the power lines.

On this day, the Harvest Brigade finally installed the power lines.

The notice the commune members received was that electricity would be turned on at eight o'clock in the evening.

The whole village was waiting.

Lin Zhao and the four cubs, two dogs, and one monkey sat in the courtyard waiting.

The twins were very expectant and didn't even say a few words, just staring at the light bulb on their own roof beam.

"Mother, what time is it?"

Gu Hangbao had asked this no less than five times.

Lin Zhao answered patiently, "Seven fifty-six."

Gu Hangbao: "Four more minutes."

"Yes." Waiting idly was boring, so Lin Zhao spoke up, "Do you want to eat watermelon?"

Before the twins could speak, Seeing Yaobao threw herself into Lin Zhao's arms and said repeatedly: "Eat, eat."

The boy-girl twins had grown teeth and could slowly eat more things; they found everything delicious, would bend their eyes and smile when they tasted something good, and would happily shake their legs.

"I'll go cut the melon." Lin Zhao got up and went to the kitchen, lit the lamp, opened the cupboard, took out the watermelon inside, and since it couldn't be kept overnight, she cut it all.

She brought it to the courtyard.

"I cut a whole melon, we can't finish it, you two send half to your grandpa, grandma, and uncle." Lin Zhao looked at the twins.

"I want to see our house's electric light shine, I'll go later." Gu Hangbao said.

"As you wish."

The cubs picked up the watermelon and ate it crunchily.

Even Song Qian Bao and Seeing Yaobao were divided a small strip, and the little brother and sister were so happy they showed their little white teeth.