Chapter 163

Chapter 163

The crowing of roosters broke the tranquil dawn, and after a while, there was movement in the courtyard at the foot of the mountain.

A dog emerged from its kennel, yawning with its mouth wide open, then stretched its body with a lazy yawn. After standing up straight and shaking its fur, it barked towards the tightly shut gate of the courtyard, as if urging someone to open it.

The barking caused some unease among the hens in their coop, who clucked softly a few times. Soon, the dog stopped barking, and the henhouse fell silent again. The plump hens remained huddled together, cushioned by thick layers of straw that protected them from the chill of autumn frost outside.

With a soft creak, the door of the eastern room opened, and Pei Yan walked out. The main room's door was still locked from the inside, and since it was early, the windows were closed, making the interior dimly lit.

After opening the main room's door, the cold air rushed into the room that had been sealed for the night. The sudden chill brought a jolt of alertness.

"Woof!"

The dog, with its keen ears, heard the commotion inside and barked again, urging for the gate to be opened.

Pei Yan walked towards the courtyard gate and noticed a layer of white frost on the ground, especially in the small vegetable patch where the leaves were frosted over. Recently, the vegetables had gradually withered; those that could be dug up or pulled out had been harvested, leaving only the spring greens showing a hint of greenery, though not for long.

The courtyard was enclosed by a fence, acting as a second gate. At night, the gate was definitely bolted, and since the hens were outside, the dog was chased into its kennel to sleep. The kennel provided shelter from wind and rain, and a sack had been stuffed inside, making it no worse than sleeping in the main room.

"Woof!"

Seeing the courtyard gate open, Huazi raised his head and barked at Pei Yan before trotting in.

Gu Lanshi happened to witness this scene and said with a smile, "Why did you get up so early?"

Huazi was the youngest and usually not as clever or quick-witted as Dahai and Huahua. He was silly and focused on being affectionate, sometimes lazing around and sleeping in. It was indeed surprising when he occasionally showed some diligence.

The dog couldn't understand what he said but came over and rubbed its head against him.

Gu Lanshi patted the dog's head and then pushed Huazi away. Seeing Pei Yan carrying firewood into the kitchen, he didn't need to light a fire to boil water, so he picked up the large broom leaning against the wall. As he swept the courtyard, he asked, "What are we having for breakfast?"

Pei Yan placed the firewood on the ground and took out a handful of wheat stalks from the basket, laying them on the ground. On top, he placed another layer of dry and light grass fluff. Picking up the nearby flintstone, he struck it a few times, and soon sparks flew, landing on the grass fluff.

"Heat up a few steamed buns and slice two salted duck eggs," he said. The grass fluff ignited easily, and the sparks quickly grew into flames. With both hands cupped around the burning wheat stalks, he waited until the fire was strong enough before placing it in the stove.

He added another piece of firewood, waiting for the fire to fully blaze. Then, he inserted thin pieces of wood, ensuring several sticks were alight before getting up to scoop water into the pot.

Smoke rose from the stove as Gu Lanshi finished sweeping the front yard and took a feather duster to clean dust and cobwebs inside the house.

Taking advantage of the fire under the stove, Pei Yan lit the clay stove and placed a water jar on top. He then scooped water to wash his teeth and face.

After finishing his tasks, Gu Lanshi came out and saw Pei Yan washing up. Yawning, he said, "I'll wait for the water to heat up before I wash. Have you put the buns aside?"

When it wasn't this cold, he would generally wash up first before starting work. But now that the weather was colder, the water was icy, and sometimes he didn't want to use cold water.

Splashing water inevitably splashed outward, so Pei Yan wiped the water off his face before speaking, "Yes."

"Okay," Gu Lanshi replied.

After breakfast, the sun came up, and the white frost on the ground melted away. Pei Yan carried a bundle of hemp rope and a long axe, while Gu Lanshi brought a small axe and a bamboo basket. Together, they headed up the mountain.

After selling the eggs a few days ago, they had only managed to save about thirty more. Vegetables and fruits were nearing the end of their season, and the yield wasn't large. They had taken a few baskets to town the day before, so there was no need to go again today. Instead, they needed to gather firewood for the winter.

The quality of the vegetables wasn't as good as before, but Chef Jiang accepted all of them. As winter approached, fresh vegetables would be limited to a few types like Chinese cabbage and radishes. Gathering more was necessary to make dried vegetables to cope with the scarcity during winter.

Gu Lanshi had been drying vegetables since summer, including wild and homegrown varieties. Various types of dried vegetables filled bags, accumulating quite a bit. The storage room was almost full, and there were about twenty bags and sacks of various sizes in the western room.

For large households with many people, this might not seem enough, causing unease. However, for just the two of them, it was more than sufficient. Not only could it last through one winter, but it might even be enough for two winters, considering the abundant Chinese cabbage and radishes planted in the field, which were harvested at the end of autumn.

Gathering these items kept them busy every day, especially this year. From spring to autumn, they hardly had any breaks except for rainy days.

Pei Yan had informed the restaurant and tavern that once the autumn vegetables were completely harvested, they would still have dried vegetables to send. The exact amount would be determined later in consultation with Chefs Wu and Jiang.

The fallen leaves on the ground were thicker than before. With the leaves gone, the forest seemed more spacious and desolate.

Several birds flew high overhead, and in the woods, Pei Yan chose a tree. He threw the hemp rope on the ground, moved his shoulders slightly, and swung the long axe to start chopping.

The sound of chopping trees wasn't quiet, and Gu Lanshi watched from the side. Even though the sun was up, the mountain was still cold, and he felt the chill seeping in. Without saying anything, knowing that chopping the tree would take some time, he looked around for a bit, then avoided the direction where the tree would fall and went ahead to look for wild vegetables.

Underneath the fallen leaves, there were always some wild vegetables that hadn't yet turned yellow. The mountains were covered with various types of trees, and the distant red leaves were very beautiful, but to someone who had seen them all their life, they weren't particularly remarkable.

Casually digging up a few wild vegetables and tossing them into the bamboo basket, Gu Lanshi didn't venture far. He could still hear the sound of the axe chopping the tree. There weren't many wild vegetables nearby, so he turned around, picked up the bamboo basket, and headed back. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of something red beside him.

At first, he thought it was just a red leaf that had fallen onto a low shrub, but upon turning his head to look, he discovered it was a cluster of withered red berries hanging on a branch.

He immediately changed direction, walking over with delight. The tiny berries were smaller than the tip of his little finger, hanging in scattered clusters on the dry branches. Some of them were already shriveled.

He recognized this fruit. Before his second sister got married, the two of them had eaten it on the mountain. Although it didn't have much moisture, it was quite sweet. However, because of its small size, the sweetness faded quickly after biting it between his teeth.

Gu Lanshi picked one berry and casually rubbed it between his fingers before popping it into his mouth. Sure enough, a hint of sweetness spread across his lips and teeth.

He didn't hesitate with the remaining berries, picking a small handful in his palm and clenching them as he went to find Pei Yan.

Seeing Pei Yan still chopping the tree, he approached with a smile and said, "Take a break. Here."

Holding the axe in his hand and with such tiny fruit, Pei Yan simply bent down and took a small berry between Gu Lanshi's two fingers, putting it in his mouth. Without resting for long, he bit into it, savoring the sweetness as he continued chopping the tree.

Boom!

After the tree fell, the two of them, who had moved out of the way, gathered around.

This tree wasn't too thick, and Gu Lanshi told Pei Yan to rest while he took the small axe to trim the branches. Shorter ones were placed in the bamboo basket, while longer ones were tied with hemp rope. They could drag them down the mountain, all serving as firewood.

Today, they didn't team up with others to chop firewood. Otherwise, having a few more men to help carry the tree trunks would have been much more convenient.

However, they weren't in a hurry. They had chopped firewood twice recently, and while gathering grass outside, they also collected some firewood. The firewood storeroom wasn't lacking in supplies.

After taking a break, Pei Yan came over with an axe and began chopping off the longer branches, saying, "Let's start with this tree. Just cut off the excessively long branches; we can leave the shorter ones. We'll drag it down the mountain and slowly deal with it in the courtyard. Once we're back, we can discuss how to tidy up the west room."

"Alright," Gu Lanshi agreed, following his instructions by first cutting down the obstructive long branches. When they would drag the tree down the mountain later, the long, hard branches could get caught on other trees.

Working on the mountain was no easy task. The two of them exerted themselves to drag the tree and the chopped branches back down to the foot of the mountain, leaving them in the courtyard without further ado. They sat down to rest first.

The dogs circled around the freshly cut tree, sniffing it incessantly. Huahui picked up a branch, which Gray noticed and bit onto the other end, trying to snatch it away. Both dogs growled threateningly in their throats, neither willing to yield.

Pei Yan couldn't be bothered with them, deciding to intervene only if they actually started fighting.

Gu Lanshi drank half a bowl of lukewarm water in one go, wiped the traces of water from his mouth after putting the bowl down, and said, "It's easy to manage the dried vegetables stored in the west room; just stuff them into the utility room. The tables and chairs are also manageable. The only issue is moving the grain jars out; that's quite laborious."

Pei Yan brought over a clay pot to refill their water, then said, "I'm not afraid of the effort. We need to find a place for them, but the utility room is already full."

As they spoke, their eyes scanned the courtyard. Their home consisted of only a few rooms: apart from the east and west rooms where they lived, there was a kitchen, and opposite that, a firewood shed and the utility room.

"If worse comes to worst, we'll have to build another room next year," Pei Yan pointed towards the utility room, saying, "Right there. There's still space, and the location isn't bad. It won't encroach on the threshing floor."

He thought for a moment and added, "We won't rely on the utility room's wall. We'll build a new mud wall instead. The utility room has been around for some years, and a newly constructed wall will be sturdier."

"Is it for the hens or for storage?" Gu Lanshi asked.

"For storage. The west room already has a ready-made kang bed; otherwise, we'd have to build one." After Pei Yan finished speaking, he added, "We should check if the west room is suitable this year first."

What they were discussing was about raising chickens in the west room during winter.

To make the hens lay eggs in winter, the chicken coop had to be kept warm. No matter how much straw was laid down, it wouldn't be enough. They had to think of ways to heat the kang bed so that the hens could stay indoors, keeping warm day and night. Then, they could grind summer-dried eels, loaches, and fish into powder and mix it into the chicken feed. With better nutrition, the hens might start laying eggs again.

"That's true," Gu Lanshi nodded. They were only starting this year, so they didn't know what to expect.

After pondering for a while, he said, "If we're going to heat the kang bed every day, we'll need to prepare more firewood. I'll ask Father later if he needs any. If he does, we can go together. With more hands, it'll be easier. If not, we can call Dog to help."

"Mm-hmm," Pei Yan nodded. The price of eggs was high in winter, but making money wasn't as simple as talking about it. They did indeed need to gather more firewood. This wasn't a difficult task; it just required physical effort, something he was well-versed in.

Thinking about eggs, Gu Lanshi turned to look at him and said, "Last year, we didn't inquire much. I remember one winter when Mother said that an egg could sell for almost ten cash coins. In such freezing weather, even if the price was high, very few eggs could be collected. They were truly precious."

Pei Yan smiled slightly and said, "I guess the eggs saved from autumn were gradually consumed. By mid-winter and the New Year, the hens stop laying eggs, so the prices naturally rise."

Gu Lanshi laughed and said, "If we can sell our eggs at a high price, let's not even talk about ten cash coins. Even if it's eight cash coins per egg, we could earn a decent amount."

Making money always brought joy, even if it was just a thought.

Seeing him propping his chin with one hand and grinning foolishly, Pei Yan reached out and gently flicked his forehead, laughing, "Snap out of it, it's time to get to work."

With the prospect of earning money, Gu Lanshi was brimming with enthusiasm. He got up and walked with Pei Yan towards the west room. First, they moved everything out to clear the space, making it easier to raise the hens inside.