The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 145 Helping in times of need
"Bata."

"squeak"

The gate of courtyard number 36 in Anpingfang was pushed open after being unlocked.

Zuo Chixia and Fatty looked like two fat loaches, and they slipped through the crack in the door in a flash.

Children are more curious about their future home than adults.

Soon.

Then I heard the two kids making all sorts of exaggerated noises.

Wow, the house is so big, and the kang (heated brick bed) is huge!

"Oh dear, there's nothing here except for the kang (heated brick bed)!"

"Ptooey, ptooey, so much mud and ash!"

"."

The two men in charge were busy checking the sturdiness of the yard walls and roof, worried that the thick snow would cause the roof to collapse.

Women are most interested in the principal wife.

The doors to the three main rooms, each about twenty square meters in size, had already been opened by the children.

Well, how should I put it.

The phrase "a family with bare walls" used to be an adjective.

The phrase "bare walls" is now an exclamation!

It's like an old-fashioned unfinished house, with absolutely no interior decoration.

Gan Minglan had something to say about this, but before she could express her opinion, the little Yuanyuan in her arms woke up.

She slept soundly like a little pig the whole way while I carried her, but as soon as she opened her eyes, she started whimpering and snuggling against my chest.

What can a baby bottle-serving tool girl do?
I quickly went to the right side chamber to breastfeed the baby.

Only Mrs. She and Mrs. Luo remained, their hands clasped together, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Today is Lunar New Year's Eve, and tomorrow is the first day of the Lunar New Year!

The supplies that the border troops helped purchase along the way will take at least half a month to be delivered. Where will we buy food and drink for the next half month?

Just as the two were at a loss, Tian Jiu arrived at No. 36 Courtyard with more than a dozen border soldiers.

Behind them were six large flatbed carts, fully loaded.

"Scholar Zuo, Scholar Zuo, are you home?"

Zuo Wenkang and Zuo Wenxuan walked to the door together.

Upon seeing the person approaching, Zuo Wenxuan automatically took a half-step back.

On a snowy day, Tian Jiu not only delivered half a cart of charcoal but also a cart and a half of firewood.

They also sent:
Twenty sheets of Tan sheepskin, thin as thick paper but exceptionally tough and soft, two inkstones, a box of licorice, and a box of goji berries.

As the border soldiers carried the goods into the courtyard, Tian Jiu explained, "These are all local specialties of our border town. They weren't worth much at the original price."

What he didn't say was that the local specialties he sent to Gan Minglan were top-quality products, which would have cost no less than two hundred taels of silver in previous years.

Besides.

There were also several large rolls of tung oil paper for pasting windows, two large iron pots, fifty catties each of rice and flour, ten catties each of salt and oil, fifty catties each of carrots and scallions, and some Sichuan peppercorns, black pepper, and ginger.

There were even ten Tan sheep, skinned and frozen solid.

Tian Jiu, the person in charge of product selection, had already considered the daily necessities needed for a new home quite thoroughly. Tian Jiu didn't want to get entangled with Zuo Wenkang, a man he had mixed feelings about, and stated directly:
"These are all the resettlement supplies that the General gave to the Scholar's wife. She hasn't even finished her postpartum confinement yet. Take advantage of the fact that you don't have time to repair walls and clear land during the first month of the lunar year to give her a good rest."

Of course, it goes without saying that he added those ten sheep himself.

The Jade-Faced Rakshasa saved him several times on the battlefield. Isn't his life worth more than ten sheep?

They were raised on our own farm, and we didn't spend any money to buy them.

His mother and wife heard that this was to be given to their savior, the very person who had helped their son get a promotion.

They almost dug out all forty-odd sheep that were buried in the snow in the yard.

He had to persuade them repeatedly, saying that there was plenty of time to repay their kindness in the future, before the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law finally stopped arguing.

Ten sheep were their last line of defense!

If it's any less, they'll have to come and deliver it in person.

Generous and hospitable are the characteristics of people from Northwest China!
These were worthless items to Tian Jiu's family, but to Zuo Wenkang, they were a valuable gift.

Zuo Wenkang: "Supplies are also in short supply in the border town. The General also has to worry about the food and drink of the border troops in the five guard posts."

Tian Jiu interrupted him, saying:

"We didn't give you extra rice or grain. These sheep were all raised by our military households. They all froze to death a while ago!"

The sheep that froze to death couldn't be sold, and every household had dozens of them frozen.

"Since there's not enough grain, we have to eat more mutton. Don't complain that the frozen sheep doesn't taste as good as freshly slaughtered ones."

After listening for a while, Luo quickly interjected, "No problem, no problem! People who dislike mutton will be struck by lightning!"

With his mother's eyes glued to the mutton, what could Zuo Wenkang do?

In the end, all that could be said was:

"Thank you for the suggestion, General Tian. I will tell the clansmen this good news as soon as I get back, and let them buy some from the military households with more sheep. Being able to eat such delicious Tan sheep meat will make those boys extremely happy."

"Alright! It's good that we know you live here. We just came up to familiarize ourselves with the place. My men and I have all received great kindness from the scholar's wife, so please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything."

While the two were talking, a dozen young men had already carried all the items on the cart to the east side room.

Zuo Chixia and Fatty, who had just finished rolling around in the snow in the backyard and had a snowball fight, saw that the house, which had been empty before, was now half full.

The two kids had their mouths wide open, looking adorable as if they'd never seen anything like it before.

After Zuo Wenkang saw Tian Jiu and the others off at the door and returned, Luo announced the allocation of the three main rooms.

She pointed to her son and said:
"You four can stay in the east side room; keep all those good things safe and put them away yourselves. Xia Ge'er and I will stay in the middle room."

Upon hearing this, Lady Lü, who had been keeping a low profile, finally spoke:
"The east side room is the most honored, and the middle room is the reception room. Shouldn't our family of four stay in the east side room?"

"Pshaw!" Madam She sneered without any politeness.

"Do you still think you're that legitimate young mistress from Leyuan County? Don't you know who we're being treated like this in the border town? Aren't you aware of that? A reception hall? Do you think you're decorating your own home? Three main rooms, one for each household, just right!"

Luo was very satisfied with what She said; it was not appropriate for her to say such things.

But she had witnessed everything her nephew's wife, from the direct line of descent, had done along the way. It was utterly appalling!

Thinking of this, she turned to Zuo Wenkang and said:

"The kitchen is located in the east wing. The room is quite large, but one stove is definitely not enough."

Let's leave the old stove to Wenxuan's family, and our family and Xia'er will build a new one! We're not like we were on the road anymore; from now on, we'll each live our own lives.”

“Auntie is right. How much have we taken advantage of Brother Xia’s master’s wife along the way? We can’t keep pretending not to know. From now on, we should only take what we are capable of.”

The two men's coordinated attack left Madam Lü speechless, her face ashen as she stood there.
(End of this chapter)