Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

Liu Xiangyang asked the villagers who had gone to the roof, and they said the roof would be finished soon. So he went and invited Village Chief Zhang, Captain Wang, and Accountant Li over.

After the three men were invited, the women had already set up the table, and the other villagers were already seated. Liu Xiangyang invited the three men to be the host and guests, respectively.

Each table has a large bowl of braised pork with vermicelli, a bowl of cubed pork, stir-fried pork slices, stewed eggplant, scrambled eggs, and a bowl of cold dishes. The staple food is unlimited white flour steamed buns and cornbread, and each table also has three catties of loose white flour.

After the men were seated, Liu Xiangyang noticed that the older women who had come to help were still holding bowls and not sitting down. So he borrowed another table and arranged for the older women and a few children to sit at it, serving the same dishes as the other tables.

"Liu Zhiqing was really a social butterfly."

"Liu Zhiqing is a straightforward person."

"Liu Zhiqing is really particular."

……

When the villagers who helped saw the six large bowls of food and wine, they all praised Liu Xiangyang and his three companions for being generous, particular, and capable in handling matters in a way that was both practical and respectable.

The older women praised Liu Xiangyang and his group highly. According to the local custom, women are not allowed to sit at the table; they are served a few bowls of food and eaten on the side.

Liu Xiangyang, still thinking from the future, couldn't stand this bad habit, but since he didn't lack the meat and money, he did it his way. Xue Bingbing, Le Qi, and Le Yao all agreed to do it.

They also said that as the great man said, "Women can hold up half the sky, so why can't they sit at the table to eat? This is an old-fashioned custom that must be changed."

Liu Xiangyang's courtyard was bustling with activity, filled with the sounds of drinking, eating, and shouting. The noise reached the educated youth settlement, and Liu Xiangyang and his three companions were scolded for an unknown amount of time.

He's been called a spendthrift, a sycophant, and someone who doesn't know how to unite the educated youth. He'll get what's coming to him later. Some people are even saying they're going to report Liu Xiangyang for his extravagance and waste.

Liu Xiangyang didn't know, and even if he did, he wouldn't care. He was using "legitimate" money and his family could afford such a thing, so he wasn't afraid of being investigated.

As darkness fell, everyone had eaten and drunk their fill and dispersed, fully embodying the spirit of the "CD operation."

The women packed up the pots and pans, and together with the borrowed tables and chairs, they hauled them away on a cart to return to their respective homes.

Liu Xiangyang, Xue Bingbing, Le Qi, and Le Yao gathered together to discuss the matter. The house was all built, and they would heat the kang (a heated brick bed). Since it was the hottest time of summer, the mud bricks would dry in a day or two. They decided to go and chop some firewood together tomorrow.

Le Yao: "I want to move in right now. I really can't stand that oppressive atmosphere anymore."

Leqi said, "We also need to put some newspapers or something on the wall to block it, otherwise dirt will fall off."

Xue Bingbing: "I couldn't wait any longer either. I also want to thank Liu Xiangyang, otherwise we would have had to share a room with them and put up with their bad temper."

Liu Xiangyang: "Everyone should inquire about the firewood tomorrow. I heard from the villagers that the temperature starts to drop here in late October and won't end until March next year. If there isn't enough firewood, people can freeze into icicles."

"Everyone's staying home all winter, and no one will even know if someone freezes to death. When you go to work tomorrow, ask around where you can cut firewood."

"No matter what, we must store up more firewood; that's the most important thing."

Liu Xiangyang returned to the educated youth settlement, didn't speak to anyone, washed up and climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), and slept soundly again all night.

The next day, ding ding ding ding ding! Liu Xiangyang heard the work bell ring, got up, washed up, took out two white steamed buns from his spatial storage, and ate breakfast with cold water.

While picking up tools at the village office, I asked the woman next to me, "Auntie, where do we cut our firewood for the winter? Do we just go up the mountain to cut it?"

"Yes, just go up the mountain and cut them down. As for those dead trees, just drag them back. As long as you're willing to put in the effort, you won't lack firewood."

"You can't go into the mountains alone, you might run into a big tiger. A few years ago, one of Accountant Li's cousins ​​was carried away by a tiger, and when they were found, only his skeleton was left."

Liu Xiangyang: "Didn't the commune organize a tiger-hunting team?"

"Why wasn't there an organization? We went many times, but we just couldn't hit it. Later, we didn't see any more tigers hurting people, so we just let it go."

"Moreover, there are not only large insects in the mountains, but also many bears, wild boars, wolves, and leopards. There are also traps set by the villagers. If you step on one, your bones can be broken."

"There's enough firewood for you on the outskirts, and it's safe there. Don't go into the mountains alone, it's not worth it."

Liu Xiangyang thought that his space allowed him to store things from 15 meters away, so he planned to try his luck in winter and catch a few tigers and leopards to play with.

During lunch, Liu Xiangyang and the others compared the information they had gathered, and since it was all about the same, they agreed to go up and chop firewood together after work.

After finishing work in the afternoon, Liu Xiangyang took a look at his detached house and returned to the educated youth settlement with a happy heart. He picked up a rope and a machete and met up with Xue Bingbing and the other two girls to go up the mountain.

When we reached the foot of the mountain to the north, there were quite a few people. Most of the children in the village who didn't have to work were here, picking wild vegetables and gathering firewood.

Behind them, there were also middle-aged women who had just finished work coming over, all to gather firewood and dig wild vegetables to add some food to their homes.

Liu Xiangyang: "Then let's split up. That will be more efficient. You guys stay with them, but make sure you don't go into the mountains. I'll be nearby."

Liu Xiangyang left the crowd's sight and walked towards a secluded place, arriving at a grove of trees with many oak and birch trees. Liu Xiangyang used his decomposition ability to knock down ten trees with a diameter of twenty or thirty centimeters, cut off the branches with a machete, and put the trunks and large branches into his spatial storage.

Once we get back to our lodgings, we'll pile them up in the yard to air dry, and then they'll be ready to use in winter.

They then tied the remaining branches together with rope, piled them into a large heap, and carried it towards the crowd.

Xue Bingbing and Le Qi were diligently gathering firewood, and when they saw any familiar wild vegetables, they would dig up some as well.

After collecting firewood for a while, Le Yao complained of being tired. Seeing that Xue Bingbing and her sister ignored her, she ran to a place where there were more children and asked them to exchange candy for firewood.

Before long, Le Yao called for a stop. Children in this era could only get one or two candies during the New Year. Now, hearing that Le Yao could exchange one candy for a bundle of firewood, they were overjoyed. Soon, Le Yao didn't have enough candies to exchange for the firewood, so she had to call a stop.

They emptied Xue Bingbing and Le Qi of all the candy before finally sending the children away.

The children were quite honest; they didn't try to fob Le Yao off with thin twigs, but instead used firewood as thick as an arm.

The three men looked at the pile of firewood in front of them, wondering how to transport it back, when they saw Liu Xiangyang carrying a huge bundle of firewood that almost buried them in it as he walked over.

Le Yao: "Liu Xiangyang, did you stir up a fire? How did you get so much? I bet you won't need to come and collect firewood for a month."

"I was lucky. I went to some further into the mountains and found two trees that had just fallen. That's how I got so many. You guys are amazing, how did you manage to collect so many?"

Leqi: "Yaoyao traded candy with the children, and she even emptied my and Bingbing's pockets."

"I'm having trouble figuring out how to get it back."

Xue Bingbing: "Liu Xiangyang, you're carrying so much, take a rest first. You've already worked all day, don't overwork yourself."