1970s: Transmigrated into a cannon fodder female supporting character in a lucky koi novel!

Li Xiangxiang took out the little leather shoes and looked at them again and again, her face then showing worry.

"This must be expensive, right?"

Wen Li also had two similar pairs of leather shoes, "They should cost around twenty yuan!"

Li Xiangxiang quickly and carefully put the little leather shoes away, afraid of bumping or damaging them, her brows furrowed into a deep frown.

"This is far too valuable!"

"Just accept what she gives you. When spring comes, send her some more mountain produce; city folks love that!"

Although Li Xiangxiang liked them, she was hesitant because they were so expensive—over twenty yuan a pair!

But this was a token of Chen Yan's affection, and the shoes were her size, so she couldn't very well return them.

"I'll send Chen Yan some more sausages and dried chicken, otherwise I'd really feel bad accepting such expensive gifts!"

"Chen Yan sent you this gift hoping you'll wear these shoes happily on your wedding day, not because she wants you to feel burdened or pressured!"

Li Xiangxiang understood, but she still felt a little guilty.

"Okay, I understand. I'll write to her right away!"

"Okay, take your time writing. The snow's getting heavy, I'm going back now!"

"Okay, I'll come find you to play after the snow stops!"

"You should just stick to making quilts!"

Upon hearing about making a quilt, Li Xiangxiang let out a scream and nearly collapsed.

After Wen Li finished her mischief, she ran out of the brigade leader's house with a smile!

On her way back, she passed by the village chief's house. The door was still open, and she glanced inside casually and saw Jiang Lao Er sweeping snow in the yard.

Old Jiang sat at the doorway and lit the stove.

More than a month had passed since they last met, and Jiang Laosan had become so thin that he was practically skin and bones; Wen Li almost didn't recognize him.

Upon seeing Wen Li, Jiang Lao Er stopped what he was doing, smiled, and greeted her, "Wen, where have you been?"

After what happened last time, Jiang Lao Er greeted Wen Li warmly every time he saw her.

"I went to the brigade leader's house!"

"The snow is so heavy, come in and warm yourself by the fire!"

Old Jiang said softly, "Come in and sit for a while!"

Wen Li smiled and waved her hand, "No, I need to go back and heat the kang (heated brick bed) too!"

As her figure receded into the distance, Wen Li could still hear Jiang Lao San coughing and Jiang Lao Er advising him to go back to his room to rest.

Jiang Laosan is now almost sickly, but given how dangerous the situation was back then, it's already a miracle he survived.

It's a good outcome that he can only be kept at home now.

I heard that his marriage was also called off. The woman's family was worried that Jiang Laosan would become a sickly person, so they dared not marry their daughter to him. So they quickly married her off to someone from their village.

Wen Li felt a sense of shared misfortune. If she hadn't come, the original owner's fate would have been a hundred times more tragic than Jiang Laosan's.

Back at the educated youth compound, Wen Li immediately lit a fire to heat the kang (a heated brick bed), and as the flames rose, the chill on her body gradually dissipated.

Su Hao: "Wen, the educated youth!"

"What's wrong?"

"We happened to come across someone selling wild goat meat, so we bought a few pounds. Let's have hot pot tonight!"

"Sure, I have some fresh cabbage and potatoes here, perfect for blanching the hot pot!"

"Did I put the soup on the small stove in your room?"

Wen Li got up and opened the door. A gust of cold wind blew in, and she couldn't help but shiver.

"Bring it in, I just happened to light it!"

Su Hao and Zhou Yu took the prepared meat into the house. The fire had just been lit and the stove was not yet hot. Wen Li added cooking wine and ginger to the pot to remove the odor.

Before long, the pot started bubbling and gurgling.

The aroma gradually filled the air. The group had prepared some potatoes, cabbage, bean sprouts, and radishes. These were the only vegetables available this season, and Wen Li didn't dare to take out any green vegetables from her spatial storage.

"Should I call Yin Jiao over to eat together?" Su Hao wanted to ask Wen Li's opinion, since Yin Jiao was quite fierce when she first arrived.

Wen Li nodded, "Sure, it'll be more lively with more people!"

Yin Jiao was surprised that they invited her to their dinner party. She was a little flattered when Su Hao came to call her.

She felt embarrassed to come empty-handed, so she returned carrying two bottles of Moutai.

Wen Li: "Why did you bring so much alcohol?"

"I don't have any vegetables, so you guys provide meat and vegetables, and I'll just bring the wine!"

Deng Wei: "Then you've really lost out!"

Yin Jiao was always generous, and she knew that everyone was only inviting her because of Xu Yuan.

"How could that be? I've had this wine for a year. I don't even like drinking, and it's just sitting there anyway, so I might as well give it to you!"

Deng Wei: "No, no, no, this is too expensive. Besides, it's just the few of us tonight. I have a bottle of Erguotou here; let's drink that tonight!"

Zhou Yu carried the still bubbling pot to the living room, and Su Hao brought over the stove.

After putting everything away, Wenli arranged the bowls, chopsticks, and vegetables, and the rich aroma instantly filled the entire room.

"Come on, everyone, the soup is ready! Let's eat!"

The five people were already drooling from the aroma, so they sat down and started cooking the meat.

Wen Li took a bite, and the taste was simply amazing. It was a pity she couldn't take out the scallions and chili peppers from her spatial storage, otherwise the taste would be even better.

"Su Hao, do you still have any mutton?"

"I bought five pounds of meat, and the seller gave me the offal. I've left it here, and I don't know what to do with it!"

"Give it to me, I'll use it to make some meat sauce!"

Actually, she planned to secretly cook hot pot by herself in her space next time. Tripe and other such things are good. Eating only meat is not very satisfying. It would be better to cook some vegetables as well.

Especially in the cold winter, a sip of soup warms you up from head to toe.

"Okay, I'll clean it for you tomorrow!"

Wen Li felt a little embarrassed to take advantage of him. "Okay, I'll trade you a bottle of mushroom sauce!"

Su Hao was surprised by the unexpected delight. Although he had also learned how to make his own mushroom sauce, it wasn't as delicious as Wen Li's.

"Okay, okay!"

We only started drinking after everyone had eaten their fill.

Wen Li, having had a good chat, also had a drink, and everyone sat together chatting about all sorts of things.

Outside, snow was falling heavily, but inside their warm house, they were enjoying a hot pot meal and some wine. It couldn't be more pleasant.

The five of them ate for almost three hours before leaving.

Wen Li had already filled a bowl with the bone broth before it was ready. Su Hao and Deng Wei both knew about Wen Li's relationship with the cowshed, so they pretended not to see it.

Once the educated youth compound had quieted down, Wen Li asked Zhou Yu to take the soup that was warming on the stove to the cowshed.

Although there was no meat, Wenli added some spiritual spring water to the soup, making it very nourishing. Several old men were able to sleep well after drinking it.

The snow had stopped by then, and a thick layer of snow had accumulated outside. The white snow made the whole earth bright and clear, and he walked through the snow, sometimes sinking deep into it, sometimes sinking into it.

The cowshed had quieted down by now, and everyone was heating the kang (a heated brick bed), so it wasn't cold at all.

Zhou Yu left the soup behind, chatted with his grandfather and the others for a few words, and then left.

On his way back, he saw two tall men enter the village.

Those two were clearly not from the village.

He immediately lay down on the ground, too afraid to move. Only when he saw the two men climb over the wall and enter the He family's house did Zhou Yu quietly return to the educated youth compound.