Time passed like water, silently. The men around helped Carpenter Li turn over the wood a few times, and then dispersed to find other smaller trees that could be used.
The remaining women began to make household chores, and along with Sister-in-law Xu, people seemed to have less prejudice against her.
Looking at the night, Mu Wan'er felt a little embarrassed. She took the tea she had just made and came to the simple middle-aged man.
"Master Li, take a rest. It's late today. It's not too late to do it tomorrow."
Carpenter Li nodded and took the tea cup. He also smiled honestly and without any extra words, shook his head, then raised his head, drank the tea, put it aside, and started working again.
Except for the few young people who wanted to learn the craft secretly, almost all the others were women and children in the village. Shen Zui followed those strong men to cut down small trees not far away.
After more than half an hour, the sky was getting dark and his vision began to become blurry. Carpenter Li stopped what he was doing, took out a large piece of spliced oilcloth from the box, and covered the wood that had begun to take shape.
"Master Li, let's have dinner at home tonight. Everything is ready."
Mu Wan'er stepped forward to ask.
Carpenter Li couldn't help but speak now. He shook his head with a smile, but still had a simple and honest look on his face, "No, no, no, go home and eat. You guys should hurry up and eat too."
"Master Li..."
Before Mu Wan'er could try to persuade her to stay again, Carpenter Li packed up his belongings at an astonishing speed, put the box on his back and walked away along the path.
Granny Chen was smiling from ear to ear, "It's okay. Carpenter Li is just like this. No matter what, he only has one meal at the master's house, which is really hard for him. His house isn't too close, so I'm afraid he will have to wait until he gets home. It will take more than half an hour.”
The speaker has no intention, but the listener has intention. Mu Wan'er made up her mind that even if she couldn't keep Carpenter Li at home for dinner tomorrow, she would have to prepare some food for him to take home to eat.
Otherwise, when he gets home, the pot will be cold and the stove will be cold, and he doesn’t know how long it will be before the meal is ready.
"Wan'er, look, we have collected a lot of small trees, but they are used as supports for window lattice or walls."
The intoxicated voice was extremely recognizable. No matter how noisy the environment was, that warm voice could always easily enter Mu Wan'er's ears.
Behind Shenzui were a large group of men wearing simple clothes, and everyone looked in high spirits.
Mu Wan'er took two quick steps and came to her sweetheart, "Are you tired?"
"It's not tiring, it's really fun."
Even though he was drunk, he couldn't hide his excitement. Then, when no one was paying attention, he gently whispered into the girl's ear, "This is much more interesting than planting fairy grass and spiritual plants in the sect."
Mu Wan'er was a little unbelievable. You must know that you can actually do almost anything by just relying on magic without spending any effort.
But now that she had to roll up her sleeves and do it herself, it was really hard for her to understand that she could still be so happy.
"You don't understand, work requires more people to be interesting." Shen Zui then suddenly sang a work chant like a child, "Beautiful little lady, look over here, there are many strong men here. Xiaoshan Those arms can lift a thousand pounds, and even an ox can't pull him back when he's working!"
Mu Wan'er was amused by his completely different demeanor from usual, and poked Zhen Zui with her elbow.
The men next to them who had just followed the chants glanced at each other and began to cheer again. The slap made a loud sound.
"Okay, let's all go to Grandma Chen's house to eat egg noodles. Shen Zui and I will make them for you."
Mu Wan'er waved her hand, and the men quickly said yes.
It's just that the women who were waiting there were not happy. Those with a family grabbed their men's ears, while those without a family were poked and poked by their sisters or elders.
"Carpenter Li didn't even eat at my house, are you sorry?"
"How much work have you done? There are just these small trees. Each person can chop down one at most. You can just lick your face and eat the food, and go home with me quickly."
The crowd burst into laughter again, and soon they all dispersed, leaving only Granny Chen, Sister-in-law Xu, Mu Wan'er and Shen Zui.
"Sister-in-law, it's all thanks to you today, otherwise we wouldn't know what to do. Carpenter Li is also an honest man and has a lot of skills, so I have to thank you too."
Mu Wan'er stepped forward and took Xu Shan's arm, speaking sincerely.
Sister-in-law Xu shook her head and then said, "These are nothing. If you have anything, just come to me. Although I don't have a good reputation, I am definitely more familiar with people from all over the country than you."
"Sister-in-law, don't say that, I believe in your character."
Shenzui came to the two of them and said in a deep voice.
Xu Shan smiled lightly and said, "I am very lucky to be praised by the young master. Come on, you guys should go back with Granny Chen quickly. I'm leaving too."
Granny Chen waved her hand, "No, her sister-in-law, you can eat here. It's all ready. It would be a waste if you don't eat."
"How fun is this? I'd better go home and eat."
Mu Wan'er stepped forward, grabbed Xu Shan's hand, and dragged her towards Granny Chen's hut regardless of whether she was happy or not.
Even though Mu Wan'er couldn't compete with other village women, she was quite confident about Xu Shan.
After a while, several people came to sit down in a small hut not far away while pushing and pulling.
Granny Chen didn't just watch Carpenter Li trimming the wood. Instead, she had prepared meals long ago, even for the villagers.
It's just that it hasn't been put into the pot yet, and it's autumn and winter again, so it can still be put away.
In just half a cup of tea, a burst of aroma came from the kitchen. Even the simple gnocchi smell exceptionally good.
This is because everything is natural, without any additives or preservatives.
This is much better than Mu Wan'er's previous world. At that time, it was considered good to be able to eat delicious pre-made dishes, but there were endless problems with fraud and food safety.
She once complained to her colleagues that if things continue like this, ordinary people really don’t know what they can eat. It’s all about technology and hard work.
Simply add water to flour, beat a few eggs, add a few fresh vegetables, and finally add a refreshing side dish.
Only modern people who have experienced the destruction of their taste buds can understand how precious this kind of food is.
Sister-in-law Xu Shan was holding the rice bowl and eating a plate of pickles with Mu Wan'er and Granny Chen, while Shen Zui had a separate plate.
It's not that Shen Zui doesn't want to eat with everyone, it's just that it's not good after all with his daughter around. Even if Mu Wan'er and Shen Zui didn't think anything was wrong, they still had to consider Sister-in-law Xu's feelings.
"Tomorrow let's go with the women in the village to collect some thatch, pile it up in the yard in advance, put something on the bottom, and cover it with something on top, so that we won't have to worry about whether it rains or snows. These two days The weather is nice, so it’s a good time.”
Mu Wan'er just put a piece of sweet and sour ginger into her mouth. She nodded fiercely when she heard this. She struggled to pull out two bites of dough, "Sister-in-law Xu is very thoughtful in thinking about things. She is much better than the person next to her."
Mu Wan'er used her elbow to push against Shen Zui who was immersed in eating, and then she couldn't help but laugh first.
Xu Shan looked at Shen Zui, a little shy. Grandma Chen, on the other hand, showed her withered mouth with few teeth left and giggled non-stop.
"Look at this girl, she's hurting her husband before she even gets married. I'm afraid Mr. Shen will suffer a lot in the future."
Granny Chen took her chopsticks and nodded at Mu Wan'er opposite.
The girl pretended to be angry, "Mother-in-law, I didn't agree to marry him. Whether it can happen or not is still a matter of debate."
Shen Zui then answered: "That's not okay, otherwise these heart-piercing words would be in vain."
"Geez, you're so annoying."
Mu Wan'er, who is usually carefree, really can't compare to the intoxication of a man when it comes to love.
Every time she indulged in some love words or some ambiguous words, her face seemed to be as red as the hot red firewood in the furnace.
