After dinner, Dai Yifeng and the three of them looked around the house. Although it seemed unsuitable to inspect the girls’ bedroom, since they hadn’t moved in yet, Xu Qinghuan and the others didn’t mind much.
It had to be said, they were so envious it was almost unbearable.
The three of them came from good family backgrounds; who would want to squeeze onto a communal bed with a bunch of people?
And they had to eat from a communal pot. If there was something tasty, they’d have to sneak around like rats in the middle of the night to take a bite when everyone was asleep.
Zheng Siqi couldn’t help but say, "I wonder if the production team has any more houses. Maybe we can rent one and move out?"
Qiao Xinyu shook her head, "No, even if other production teams have, the brigade won’t let you live that far away."
That’s true. Xu Qinghuan was able to rent this house because it’s very close to the educated youth point, less than a hundred meters away.
You could say this is the most suitable house.
Seeing the three of them look as if they missed out on a fortune, Xu Qinghuan suggested, "If you really want to move out, you don’t necessarily have to rent a house. You could build one yourself, of course, assuming you won’t be returning to the city for the time being."
Who would think of returning to the city just after arriving?
Besides, with so many educated youths being sent to the countryside, returning to the city was a one in ten thousand chance.
Even though the three families had decent conditions, returning to the city wasn’t something money could solve; it was equally as unlikely.
"Build a house?" Dai Yifeng was inevitably tempted, "How do we go about that?"
Xu Qinghuan explained the situation to him, "If you build a house, you have to be prepared that you can’t take it when you return to the city. Also, if you decide to build a house, give some money to the brigade office. In the countryside, people generally build houses themselves, and you can have the brigade office arrange for members to help you build. Mudbrick houses aren’t troublesome; they can be completed quickly, depending on the cost."
These insights were common knowledge shared by Xu Qinghuan’s best friend when discussing plot ideas in her previous life.
Zheng Siqi had other considerations. He frowned and asked, "Will the brigade support us building our own houses?"
Xu Qinghuan replied, "There will be more educated youths coming; we’re not the last batch. The educated youth point will quickly become too crowded. Plus, when you return to the city, the house can’t be taken with you; it remains as an asset in the village. Why wouldn’t the brigade support you building houses?"
That makes sense.
Chen Dewen obviously didn’t want to live with so many people. It didn’t bother him before, but now seeing Xu Qinghuan and the others living so comfortably, how could he not be tempted?
Xu Qinghuan also said, "Actually, building a house yourself might not be more expensive. You pay the full amount at once; it’s like we’re doing instalments."
The three glanced at each other, clearly having already made up their minds.
After they left, Yu Xiaomin hurried to wash the dishes, but Xu Qinghuan urged her to tidy up the room instead, "Rest a bit more at noon; there’s plenty of time. Why rush!"
Yu Xiaomin had to give in.
Although the guest room wasn’t as good as the ones in the front, it was still bright and clean, and the furniture and furnishings were complete. The kang could sleep three or four people without any problem. She planned to buy two more kang mats, sleep on one herself, and use the other two to store things.
Sleeping alone in the room, quietly, without those annoying people causing disturbances all day long.
Quickly, Yu Xiaomin was lost in dreams.
It seemed like just the blink of an eye before the work broadcast sounded. She hurriedly got up, still feeling a bit disoriented.
Xu Qinghuan also woke up. She could still rest for two more days and didn’t plan to go to work. Instead, she decided to explore the mountain.
Da Shan is a treasure trove. Who wouldn’t want to explore such a treasure trove when right in front of it?
But before that, she needed to prepare a bit.
The Qi Replenishing Pill she had in her space over these last few weeks had been gradually scraped and consumed, and she had eaten about half of it.
Originally, it was about the size of an adult’s thumb.
Her body had seen some improvements.
But if she wanted to avoid beast attacks within Da Shan, that was obviously not enough.
For safety’s sake, Xu Qinghuan found one Bone Tempering and Muscle Strengthening Pill, scraped a bit, ate it, and instantly felt her muscles and bones pulling apart, almost tearing apart, causing her to sweat profusely and emit a foul odor from her body.
Xu Qinghuan bit her lip and endured it. After about half an hour, the pain slowly eased, and her body was covered in a layer of black grease, nearly disgusting enough to kill.
Xu Qinghuan quickly slipped into her space, swam around in the hot spring pool, and cleaned herself from head to toe before coming out with fresh clothes on.
Her hair hadn’t dried.
She used a silk ribbon to tie it up and tossed it behind her head.
With a basket on her back, Xu Qinghuan locked the courtyard gate, passed by Jiang Xingye’s house, and headed up the mountain.
Children at the foot of the mountain, digging wild vegetables and cutting pigweed, stood up to watch Xu Qinghuan as she walked past.
"Fairy sister, where are you going?" asked a little boy with a missing front tooth, smiling at Xu Qinghuan.
The children were very skinny, with messy hair, and their faces were all uniformly flushed like highland red; their clothes were ragged, typical of the era.
But the kids had a sparkle in their eyes.
Even if they couldn’t eat enough or wear warm clothes, they had a certain vitality within them.
This was different from children in later generations who were constantly studying and taking supplementary classes, with no time to go out and play during weekends and holidays.
Xu Qinghuan immediately liked these children, and when they called her "Fairy sister" and gathered around her, she was very happy, giving each of them a candy, "I want to explore the mountain; is that okay?"
The children of Da Shan were also its owners.
"Fairy sister, there are bears and wolves and wild boars in the mountains; it’s very dangerous. You better not go." Shuanzai, who looked like he was seven or eight, the leader of the group, earnestly advised.
"But I really want to go!" Xu Qinghuan was a bit troubled, wrinkling her nose slightly; her charming appearance made the children’s hearts ache. This fairy sister was more beautiful than the prettiest flowers blooming in spring, simply captivating to the eyes.
"How about I just turn around the outskirts?" Xu Qinghuan gently pointed at Da Shan with her slender finger.
Shuanzai frowned and thought for a bit but couldn’t bear to refuse, "Then, Fairy sister, if you encounter danger, yell loudly, and we’ll come save you."
"Alright!" Xu Qinghuan laughed.
She took out a handful of fruit candies, giving one to each of them.
The children wanted to eat but were reserved, crowding together without reaching out for them.
Xu Qinghuan placed the candies in their dirty little hands, "Wash your hands before eating, or you’ll get worms in your tummy. You’re very caring, and these are thank-you gifts from me, so take them quickly!"
Each took a candy, looking happily at Xu Qinghuan. The fairy sister was kind, and they wanted to protect her, making sure she didn’t encounter danger.
Thus, under Shuanzai’s leadership, the children followed up the mountain, but they adhered to their elders’ teachings and only dared to stay in the outskirts.
Seeing Xu Qinghuan head into the mountain, the children gathered around to stop her.
Xu Qinghuan had no intention of venturing into the depths of the mountain on the first day and laughed, "I’ll just have a look up front. You go down the mountain quickly, and when I come out, I’ll give you more candies. If I encounter danger, I’ll call for help loudly, and you can quickly shout for someone to save me."
"Fairy sister, you must promise not to go deep into the mountain." Shuanzai solemnly reminded her.