Chapter 005: New Home

Just climbed up a ridge

The autumn harvest is quite satisfactory for the new home; for it, even a tree hollow serves as a place of refuge, let alone a mud-brick house

Now, Sang Bai's goodwill towards the villagers of Willow Tree Manor has suddenly increased

Sang Bai Dao: "Then you go ahead with your work, there is no need to worry about me here"

Lü Qingyao said: "I apologize, everyone is so happy. Come, I will take you to the place where you will be settled. Please do not mind it, just make do for now..."

Lü Qingyao said: "Come over and lend a hand, it's all contributed by everyone, not anything good, but it is our small gesture. Without those two wild boars, we may be able to get through the coming days, but it will still be difficult..."

"It's nothing, it's nothing, quite good," Sang Bai said with a smile

The entire courtyard and the village are roughly the same, with walls made entirely of mud bricks. The roofs are thatched with grass, and perhaps due to the passage of time, one wall is propped up by several tree trunks as thick as a bowl. Upon closer inspection, a large crack has formed on the side wall.

Lü Qingyao replied, "The place is simple, so please do not be too particular. It is not that our village is inhospitable, but rather that there is simply no other space available. Even within the village, it is unlikely to be any better than this. Later, I will bring you some items; please make do with your stay. When spring arrives, we can think of ways to renovate this small courtyard."

It has been a long time since anyone lived here, but the house is still in good condition. Previously, it was a place for the commune to raise livestock. On the west side, there is a livestock shed, directly facing the main entrance is a hall for people to live in, and on the east side, there is a place for cooking and storing fodder

Lü Qingyao continued speaking

Grandpa Lv Er is back!

We will also defeat the American imperialist paper tiger

It will take about another hour to go, but the remaining road is much easier to traverse

Sang Bai stretched his neck and searched for a while but did not find any signs resembling a village.

Looking at these things with his eyes and listening to Lv Qingyao's ramblings with his ears, Sang Bai felt a slight touch of emotion in his heart

Upon seeing the village, the remaining path indeed became easy to traverse

"You are too kind," Sang Bai said again

Chen Dongsheng stood at the gate of the courtyard, smiling and shouting.

Lü Qingyao reached out to push open the wooden gate of the courtyard. When the wooden door panel lightly struck the wall, a cloud of dust fell down, causing Lü Qingyao to fan the air while walking inside.

Because he was completely in the dark about the events of 1981, he had no idea what the situation outside was like; he only knew that the country was facing economic difficulties and that the farmers were having a hard time.

From what I learned from Chen Dongsheng on the road, the villagers of Liushuizhuang are not wealthy. Let alone two quilts, even those two small bags of rice and flour are rare good items. Even during festivals, some families may not have the opportunity to eat such grains

After turning around, Sang Bai gently touched the large head of the autumn harvest and said

However, there is no pot on this earthen stove, only a pot hole

Autumn harvest, from now on this will temporarily be our new home

Do not be too polite, our village is poor and has nothing impressive to offer, and we know you are not accustomed to this, but...

Soon, the villagers all came out, and everyone wore a beaming smile of happiness upon seeing the items brought back by Lu Qingyao

Sang Bai greeted.

Everything has been arranged in place, and the pot has also been delivered. After teaching Sang Baisheng how to start a fire, Lu Qingyao and Chen Dongsheng finally left

Old Master Lü

The voices of a group of children suddenly shattered the tranquility of the small village

At this moment, Chen Dongsheng resembled a joyful little sparrow, incessantly chattering with Sang Bai.

With mountains and water, this place is sure to attract many urban hermits in over forty years. However, currently, no one comes here, and the mountains behind the village have been stripped bare, with hardly a few trees remaining.

As he walked into the yard, he extended his hand to introduce this place to Sang Bai

In this way, you gifted two pigs, and the other party, appreciating your kindness, sent over their belongings. Aside from having seen cypress in television dramas, I have not really encountered it in reality.

Therefore, Sang Bai stood at a distance with the autumn harvest, while Chen Dongsheng had already joyfully rushed into the crowd.

I do not know whether it was excitement or something else, but the one-hour journey seemed to pass without any sensation.

The lamp is old, but the wick is new

Sang Bai listened with a smile, having asked all the questions that should be asked along the way, and even those that should not have been asked. Now, there truly were no more questions to pose to this young man.

Sang Bai saw more than twenty objects resembling small mounds lined up on the small hillside in front of him. If he were not paying attention, he might have mistaken them for the burial mounds of some family.

The only thing that piqued Sang Bai's interest was a line of revolutionary slogans still left on the wall; some words were clear, but it could still be deciphered: Workers of the world, unite.

Then you stay here for now, I will go back to the village to get busy," said Lü Qingyao

Moreover, it is also somewhat distant from the village, at least there is some private space

The small courtyard is enclosed by a wall that is not very high, barely reaching the height of a person. Most of the straw used to shield the wall from the rain has already disappeared. After years of being washed by rainwater, the remaining sections of the wall are now at some places less than waist height.

Sang Bai's primary task at the moment is to find a place to settle down, preferably with some form of background, such as obtaining an identification document. Sang Bai believes that wandering around the country without an ID is not an easy task.

They are back! Grandpa Lv Er and the others are back!

As he watched Old Master Lü walk away for about twenty to thirty meters, Sang Bai turned back and continued to examine his new nest.

It has been almost two months since I last saw any signs of human presence. After three days and two nights of traveling through wind and rain with Lü Qingyao and his group, we are now approaching a small village, and surprisingly, a hint of excitement welled up in Sang Bai's heart

In the era when Sangbai lived, such meticulous villages were truly rare, where everyone kept to themselves; if you do not show me warmth, I will not be kind to you either. It was sufficient for everyone to maintain a cordial relationship of merely nodding to each other upon meeting.

Where is it

Although the rice is not completely husked and there are still some grains mixed in the white flour, which is not so pure white, in the mountain village, this is considered top-quality grain, and it is not something one can easily have during festivals or celebrations

The only highlight in the room is the portraits of four great figures affixed to the wall directly opposite the door of the main hall. The sense of age is truly profound.

Sang Bai was momentarily at a loss for words

As for simplicity, the rural areas that Sang Bai has visited have little to do with these two words; some people only engage in actions that harm others without benefiting themselves.

"It's quite good, really good!" Sang Bai said repeatedly, his voice slightly excited, but not to the extent that it could be easily detected.

It is unclear how much time has passed, but suddenly Sang Bai heard some noise from outside. He stood in the courtyard and saw that Lu Qingyao and Chen Dongsheng were hurrying over with a donkey. The donkey had two large wicker baskets strapped to its sides, both filled to the brim.

Sang Bai stood in the courtyard, gazing at the backs of an old man and a young boy through the circular wall, and said softly, "Why do I feel like I owe them something now? Don't you think so, Qiu Shou?"

Each household has only this little poultry; not to mention being scared to death, even if they are frightened to the point of not laying eggs, it would still be a significant loss for these struggling villagers

Following Lü Qingyao, instead of entering the village, they walked up the small path leading up the mountain. After taking more than twenty steps, they turned west and walked for about one hundred meters, when a solitary little earthen courtyard came into Sang Bai's view

After exchanging a few polite words with Sang Bai, Lv Qingyao finally left the small courtyard

I will have Dongsheng bring the pot over shortly; they are currently cleaning it for you over there. The old pot hasn't been used for a long time and has rusted, so I am afraid you might not know how to use it properly

Perhaps worried that Sang Bai would not notice, Chen Dongsheng deliberately ran back from the front and personally pointed it out to Sang Bai

Upon seeing the wooden sled, the children knew that this hunting trip had yielded great rewards

"What are you talking about? I would be very grateful to have a place to stay," Sang Bai said politely

Although these two baskets of items were not valuable in the era when Sang Bailai lived, now these items represent more than just monetary worth. They embody the heartfelt intentions of the villagers

The sound of Chen Dongsheng's call reached Sang Bai's ears, infused with a strong sense of joy that instantly captivated Sang Bai

However, this commotion has nothing to do with Sang Bai; he cannot even approach it, as the physique of Qiu Shou is truly intimidating. Even if a person could overcome it, the chickens and ducks raised in the village would certainly not withstand it

The people of Liushuizhuang received two pigs from Sangbai, so they had to think about returning the favor. Although the villagers were poor, they were all very simple and honest, selecting the best items they could offer and sending them to Sangbai.

Goodness!

Quite good

However, the natural environment of the village is truly pleasant, surrounded by trees. Although it appears somewhat desolate at the moment, when spring arrives and the leaves begin to grow back, it will surely be a lush green canopy.

Over there

Mr. Sang Baige, we have brought you something

Creak!

Holding a piece of mud brick, Sangbai sat at the door of the house, carefully contemplating what to do next. After thinking for a while, he could not come up with any good solutions.

There is actually only one reason: you have not provided them with a direct benefit. To put it more clearly, if you let them take home two bags of cement, they might say something nice about you. However, after a night's sleep, you will still not be regarded as anything in their eyes

This ... ...

In another basket, there are two quilts, with bright red peony covers that exude a strong sense of the times and are very festive. The quilts are new, and it is evident that they are not intended for someone preparing to marry off their child.

Under the basket are two small bags of grain, one bag contains rice and the other bag contains flour

While speaking, Lü Qingyao was unloading the items, at which point Sang Bai realized that both baskets were filled with daily necessities

This added a touch of desolation to the small village

As Lü Qingyao and the other two left the village entrance, they were soon spotted by several young girls and boys playing at the village gate. Their sharp eyes quickly caught sight of the simple wooden sled being dragged by the mule.

This made the simple young man, who had always lived in the mountain village, suddenly develop a sense of reverence for Sang Bai

On top of a basket are several jars and bottles, all of which are made of black pottery. One jar contains about half a jar of oil, another jar holds approximately half a pound of coarse salt, and yet another jar is filled with kerosene. With kerosene, there is naturally an oil lamp, which is a small bowl-shaped object that holds a piece of white cotton string about ten centimeters long.

However, this matter holds little reference value for his future life. Even if the entire nation cannot have enough to eat, can we still let the empty-handed mulberry tree go hungry?

Ahead is Liushu Village

It is now 1981, and naturally, the home of Sang Bai no longer exists, so the land where the original public rental housing stood now has not even a single concrete block left

Chen Dongsheng indeed enjoys spending time with Sang Bai, as he feels that Sang Bai knows an immense amount. Whether it is questions about airplanes, trains, or the large cities beyond the mountains, Sang Bai can quickly provide a clear and concise response.

How can one not be moved when the villagers of Liu Shu Zhuang, in order to repay your kindness, take out their best possessions?

Sang Bai is somewhat satisfied with such an environment, although the room is as dark as a cave, and little light is seen even during the day. However, Sang Bai does not intend to truly live in this house; during the day, he stays in the yard, and at night, he sleeps in the space. These few dilapidated houses are merely a facade.

After looking around, Sang Bai replied with a smile

The room is very dilapidated, and it is also quite dark inside. As for furniture, there is even less to mention; there isn't even a bed. Inside, there is only a rectangular earthen platform made of mud bricks, which seems to serve as a bed. As for tables and stools, one can forget about them. The so-called cooking area does have some semblance of a kitchen, as there is at least an earthen stove.

For instance, if you build a road in the village, no one will appreciate your efforts; either someone will complain that the road is too narrow, or another will grumble that it is too short

After about ten minutes or so, Sang Bai saw Lu Qingyao walking towards him

There is a small river that meanders with several gentle bends, flowing past the front of the village

For the villagers, their daily sustenance consists of cornmeal and sweet potato slices, with perhaps a handful of leafy greens added. As for meat, it is a luxury that is only enjoyed during festivals or birthdays, and is otherwise absent from their meals