Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 535 Ice Fishing
After finishing the formalities, Gao Dashan took a nap in the morning. During lunch, he told Zhang Ye how to identify people and asked her to guard the gate for him for a while.

The Women's Federation dormitory has only two buildings, each with five floors, plus the small bungalow on the north side, with a total of more than one hundred households. There are not many people and the environment is not complicated.

Gao Dashan's work is not usually busy. Most of the time he just has to look after the yard and occasionally clean up fallen leaves, dust and other garbage.

Considering Gao Dashan's disability, he was able to get such a good job.

It is not difficult to identify people. If they look suspicious, nervous, or evasive, they must be stopped. They are most likely not from this hospital.

There are some people who carry baskets, bundles, and have patched clothes. We need to ask them, as they might be relatives of certain residents.

Most of the other time, you don't have to worry about it.

After explaining everything to Zhang Ye, Gao Dashan finished his meal, found a sewing needle and bent it into a fish hook. He then found an old bucket, stuffed the bucket with fishing line, a stool, and an axe, wrapped himself in his coat, and went out.

It is now the 29th day of the lunar calendar and all the lakes have frozen over. You can no longer fish with a fishing rod at this time, you have to do ice fishing instead.

The so-called ice fishing is to drill a hole in the ice, and people sit next to it, watching the hole and fishing.

Although Gao Dashan had never been ice fishing before, he knew a thing or two, but most of it was hearsay.

There are many things to pay attention to when fishing in ice, such as the bait. It has to contain meat: meat in spring, vegetables in summer, and natural bait in autumn. Fish are most greedy for meat bait when fishing in ice.

There was no meat at home, so Gao Dashan mixed two drops of sesame oil into the cornmeal when preparing the bait.

Although Gao Dashan told Zhang Ye that there was a lake in Sijiu City, he had difficulty walking, so he went out and headed west, intending to try his luck at Tongzi River in Donghuamen.

Tongzi River used to be used for defense, fire prevention, ice extraction and water supply. There have always been steps leading down to the river, but there were not so many in the past.

When Puyi still lived here, Tongzi River was at least repaired. But later it fell into disrepair and gradually became a place for adults to fish and children to play.

Although it was renovated again after liberation, the small paths that people often used to go down to the river were not built again. After all, it could enrich people's entertainment life.

Although the weather was cold, there were always families with little food left who came out to try their luck, and there were also children who were not afraid of being beaten and slipped on the ice.

Gao Dashan walked along the path to the river. There were already people guarding a hole in the ice waiting for fish to take the bait, but there were not many people.

Gao Dashan chose a spot and hammered away with an axe, finally carving out a 20-centimeter square hole in the ice.

After drilling a hole in the ice, Gao Dashan sat on a stool, hung the bait on the fishhook, threw it into the hole in the ice, then rolled a cigarette and took a break to smoke.

It’s not that Gao Dashan is lazy or doesn’t understand, but “don’t rush to put the hook down, wait a while after you chisel a hole in the ice to cast the bait.”

The fish must have been frightened by the clanging sound just now and fled into the water, so you should use the smell of the bait to lure the fish back instead of rushing to cast the hook.

Gao Dashan looked at other people's ice fishing equipment and marveled at it. It was so exquisite. Not only did they wear thick clothes, but they also had to step on wooden boards. Unlike himself, he only stepped on the axe handle.

Fishing is a job that requires patience. Gao Dashan felt as if he was back on the battlefield, lying in ambush in a snow pit, waiting for the prey to take the bait.

Maybe it's because ice fishing is like playing mahjong, there is also a protection period for novices. Gao Dashan's fish were not caught in small quantities, but they were not big and did not look good.

Gao Dashan’s equipment is poor, but that does not affect his ability to reel in the fish, and the fish he catches are often stuck very deep.

It was freezing cold and his hands were numb from the cold. Gao Dashan did the same thing as Wang Jingmin did when he was catching a fish. He just stepped on the fish with his foot and then exerted force, and the fish head came off.

Although the fish head fell off, Gao Dashan would not waste it. He picked it up and threw it into the bucket.

Others were certainly envious of the fish on the high mountains, but no one came forward to inquire about buying them.

The water of Tongzi River flows from the front sea of ​​Shichahai in the north. There are people fishing almost constantly in Shichahai upstream, and there are several fences blocking the middle of the river. By the time it reaches Tongzi River, there are almost no big fish.

People who want to buy fish usually go to Yandaixie Street, where there are big fish. Very few people come here.

After fishing for an entire afternoon, although it was a bit cold, Gao Dashan looked at the fish in the bucket and felt confident: it seemed that it wouldn't be difficult to support one more person. It would just be a matter of working harder and going out fishing every day.

When Tang Zhitong got home, he found half a sack of corn as usual, and the clay jar at home was already full.

"Mom, that's all. We finally brought it all back." Calculating the amount to bring home, Tang Zhitong decided to do so this year as a supplement to the fixed amount. If there are no accidents, this big jar will be enough for the two families to eat for a year.

"Well, these are quite a lot. If we save them a little, they can last us for nearly two years." With food in her hands and no panic in her heart, Zhang Guifang gently touched the pottery jar as if she were treating a baby.

"It's up to you how we eat it." Tang Zhitong placed the sack next to the pottery jar. He didn't plan to mix it with the food distribution. He would just prepare some supplementary food later. It didn't matter if all of this was eaten up. He still had some left. He could find an excuse to take it out later.

"There are lotus roots in the grocery store today. I heard they were shipped from other places. They look good, so I rushed to buy some." Zhang Guifang tied the sack and placed it on the ceramic jar, fearing that it would be harmed by rats.

"Lotus root? It's really rare. Where is it? Let me take a look." Tang Zhitong was a little surprised. The local lotus root is not very delicious and is usually available in autumn. This is the first time he has heard of lotus root from other places.

"I heard that it was shipped from the south. It's so cold in winter to dig lotus roots." Zhang Guifang pointed to her son and said.

"Who said it wasn't? There's a purchase limit on lotus roots, right?" Tang Zhitong followed the direction his mother pointed, walked to the bucket, reached out and scooped out a piece of lotus root. It had nine holes and was crispy and sweet when eaten raw.

Tang Zhitong put the lotus roots into the bucket. They looked like they were from Hubei. Hubei is known as the "Province of a Thousand Lakes". The only place that could produce lotus roots in this month was probably from there.

Hubei has been the province with the largest lotus root production since ancient times. Many lotus root varieties have been selected by several generations and taste particularly good. Precisely because of the historical foundation, the people there are particularly good at eating lotus roots. Dishes with lotus roots as ingredients are varied and endless, and many cooking methods are things that people from other places have never heard of in their entire lives.

"It's limited. Our family can only buy three kilograms at most. I bought within the upper limit. If there were no purchase limit, would I have bought this half one?" Lotus root can be kept for one or two months in water in the winter if it is not bumped or soaked in water. But it will be useless if it soaks in water and its shelf life is only about a week.

"Hey, Mom, shall we make dumplings tomorrow?" Lotus roots are most delicious in late fall, but in winter they are dormant deep underground and basically do not consume any energy, so the taste is not much worse. If you chop them up and make dumplings with them, they will still be crispy after cooking and will not become soft even after long cooking. They taste especially delicious.

"Okay, then I'll go buy some meat tomorrow morning." Although his son had just eaten dumplings yesterday, he rarely told her what he wanted to eat. Now that he said it this time, there was no reason for Zhang Guifang not to support him.

"Oh, let's eat dumplings!" Fengzhi, who was playing with Beibei at the side, became excited when she heard her mother agree to eat dumplings.

"Go do your homework! You catch the cat and play with it as soon as you get home from school. Can't you see that Beibei doesn't like you?" Zhang Guifang grabbed Fengzhi's ears and pulled her up. The mother and daughter had a tacit understanding. One didn't use much force, and the other cooperated very well.

Beibei was now free and ran to Tang Zhitong's feet and meowed. "I'm going to rest tomorrow, I'll go, you can rest at home for a while." Tang Zhitong ignored Beibei and was busy worrying about his mother.

It's so cold, and the queue might take a long time. Since I have time this time, I don't want to let my mother go through this.

"We finally get a day off, you and Jingwen should sleep a little longer. Fry the sauerkraut first." Zhang Guifang instructed her son.

"Okay!" Tang Zhitong couldn't take care of the meowing Beibei for the time being. Things had to be prioritized and he had to complete the task assigned by his mother first.

In just two or three days, Beibei had become accustomed to Tang Zhitong feeding him silverfish every night, and this was the time he looked forward to most every day.

Just after frying the sauerkraut, Xiao Wang and Feng Zhen came home. Bei Bei squatted at Tang Zhitong's feet, meowed at them twice, and continued to wait patiently for Tang Zhitong to finish his work.

"What happened these two days? Why is Beibei sticking to you?" Xiao Wang was very surprised after entering the room.

"Maybe you were charmed by my charm?" Tang Zhitong served the sauerkraut, put the pot aside and left it alone.

"You're so conceited!" Xiao Wang rolled her eyes at her husband, squatted down, and clapped her hands at Beibei: "Beibei, come here."

"Hey, I'm going to go out and smoke a cigarette." Tang Zhitong said, and opened the door. As soon as he stepped out, classmate Beibei followed him out.

Fortunately, Xiao Wang did not come out. Tang Zhitong lit a cigarette and pulled out two silver fish as usual. Beibei found a place to squat and eat by himself, for fear that others would snatch them from him.

For the first time, Tang Zhitong felt that it was not a bad idea to keep a pet that was so human-like.

Not feeling tired today, after dinner, Tang Zhitong made up for the Russian class he had missed in the past two days.

Due to the recent improvement in food, the hemisphere has expanded a little, showing signs of regaining its former glory. However, it is precisely because of the improvement in food that variables are added, and it is still impossible to verify the relationship between the hemisphere and gravity and its expansion through massage techniques.

"Go to sleep, go to sleep. I have to get up early tomorrow to queue up to buy meat. Mom has bought lotus roots. We'll have lotus root and meat dumplings tomorrow. I've been thinking about this for a long time." Tang Zhitong didn't smoke his cigarette, but brought it over with hot water.

Student Xiao Wang jumped up and took over the cleaning work.

It's strange to say, the couple is very close and have seen everything before. But after Wang was "trained" by Tang Zhitong and became familiar with the business, he refused to let him help him clean. Instead, he had a lot of fun when he did it himself.

Have you ever seen someone who plays with fire and gets burned? The young man was very energetic and scored twice without being careful. Tang Zhitong even thought she was trying to trap him.

After finishing the cleaning work for both of them, Xiao Wang went straight into bed, snuggled into her husband's arms with her eyes closed, and the dimples on her face became quite obvious.

But the scene on the Gaodashan side is quite different.

Zhang Ye was the one who cleaned the fish. Even though Gao Dashan was only allowed 8 taels of oil a month, the fish could not withstand frying, so she finally chose to stew it.

Because the fish was too small, Zhang Ye did not process the internal organs, but Gao Dashan thought it tasted pretty good when he put it in his mouth.

After dinner, Gao Dashan lit a cigarette and stared at Zhang Ye while he was washing the dishes.

"Brother Dashan, let's... let's go get the certificate tomorrow?" Zhang Ye had her back to Gao Dashan, but she felt hot on her back. She was a little shy, but she brought it up very boldly because she didn't want her brother Dashan to sleep in the tool room again.

"Ah?" Gao Dashan looked away when Zhang Ye asked him this, and replied, "It's not that simple. We need letters of introduction from both sides. It will take quite some time for you to go back and forth. Just stay here and wait until after the New Year to talk about it."

Gao Dashan was still hesitating. He had to send money to the families of other fallen comrades, so how could he afford to support his wife? He still planned to let Zhang Ye get familiar with this place first. When she could earn money to support herself in the future, she would definitely be able to find a better one. As a disabled person, he was not worthy of such a good girl.

"I have already prepared it. Yours is the only one left." After washing the dishes and hands, Zhang Ye wiped them clean, took out a piece of paper from the bundle at the end of the bed, and handed it to Gao Dashan with a blushing face.

"This... this is a letter of introduction for finding a job." Gao Dashan took a look at the letter and saw that it was really a letter of introduction for a marriage certificate! But this did not stop him from lying with his eyes open.

"You lied to me. I can read and it was you who made me attend the literacy class. Brother Dashan, do you look down on me? As long as you say so, I won't cause you any trouble." Zhang Ye felt very aggrieved when she saw that Gao Dashan was still unwilling, but Gao Dashan asked her not to cry yesterday, so she held back her tears.

For some reason, Gao Dashan got a little nervous when he saw Zhang Ye crying. He stopped smoking and threw his cigarette on the ground, like a child who had done something wrong. He rubbed his hands and pleaded in his words: "Don't cry, listen to me.

Look at my appearance. If we stand together, I can be your uncle. Besides, I have a lame leg. You are a young girl, why do you want to date someone like me? It's really unfair to you."

"I don't feel wronged. I just want you. Even if you can't walk, I don't mind. I'm young and strong. I'll carry you wherever you want to go." When Zhang Ye saw Gao Dashan's helpless look, the grievance in his heart immediately disappeared, and he laughed out loud. Tears fell from his eyes as he laughed.

"There's one thing I haven't told you. I have a salary, but after deducting the money for food and drink, most of it is sent to the families of our fallen comrades. Even if we get married, we'll still have a hard life." Seeing that Zhang Ye was stubborn, Gao Dashan revealed the last of his secrets.

"Then I think you are a better person. I am not wrong and I don't mind. If your salary is not enough, you still have me. Didn't you say it? I can earn money as a nanny, and I will give you all the money I earn." Zhang Ye said very firmly.

Zhang Ye’s answer surprised Gao Dashan. He opened his mouth in shock, but was speechless.

"Brother Dashan, are you...engaged to another comrade's sister?" Zhang Ye was a girl after all, and seeing that Gao Dashan still disagreed, she started to think too much.

"No, no, you think too much." Gao Dashan shook his head and denied it decisively.

"Then it's settled. You're unmarried, and I'm unmarried. I've got the certificate, and you can get one tomorrow, too, and we can get married." Zhang Ye never thought that she would be so bold one day, and actually take the initiative to ask a man to marry her...

"Ye Zi, can you give me two days to think about it, okay?" Gao Dashan, who had never been scared on the battlefield, now scared and begged.

"Okay! You think about it!" Zhang Ye picked up his bag and was about to go out angrily.

"Where are you going?" It was late at night, and Gao Dashan was afraid that Zhang Ye would run away alone, so he jumped up anxiously and grabbed Zhang Ye's arm.

"I'm going to the tool room." Seeing the concerned and fearful expression on Gao Dashan's face and how much he cared about her, Zhang Ye smiled again, and this time it was even sweeter.

"How can I let a girl like you sleep there? You sleep over here and I'll spend the night over there." Gao Dashan didn't let go, but turned his head away, not daring to look Zhang Ye in the face.

"It's cold over there too. I'm used to it at home and I don't want you to be cold." Zhang Ye gently held Gao Dashan's hand, trying to take his hand away.

"That won't work either. Once you get here you have to listen to me." After the hands touched, Gao Dashan shuddered and let go timidly. He had never been so scared when facing the Japanese.

(End of this chapter)