The north wind whistled past, and there was a heavy snow like goose feathers in the sky. The old lady of the Li family sat in the stove, filling the stove with firewood, and smoking a cigarette bag, her face showing A bit of sadness. Suddenly, the cotton door curtain was lifted, and Li Mingnan, Li Mingnan and Li Mingbei came in from outside, bringing in a cold wind and flakes of snow.

    Seeing the old lady sitting in the stove, Li Mingbei shouted before taking off his thick gloves: "Milk, my brother and I caught two fish."

    As soon as she finished speaking, the little old lady stood up from the front of the stove, raised her leg and knocked the cigarette bag and pot against the sole of the shoe, while opening her mouth and saying with a smile: "Really Hurry up and show it to me, I haven't seen any fish for a long time."

    Li Mingnan handed the two two-pound carp strung with hemp rope to Mrs. Li, picked up the water scoop, scooped half a spoon of cold water from the water tank, and drank it go in.

    "I haven't caught such a big fish this summer." Mrs. Li looked at the two fish in her hand to and fro, and her mouth could hardly close with laughter: " It just so happens that your mother is about to give birth, and your elder brother is tired of reading, so I stewed the fish to make up for them."

    Li Mingbei hummed and asked, "My mother will give us a sister this time?"

    Thinking of her grandchildren, Mrs. Li was also a little worried, and sighed: "I hope to have a girl, I'm upset when I look at you stinky boys who can eat poor old men. ."

    Li Mingbei laughed and asked Li Mingnan to squat in front of the stove to bake together. Suddenly, the two boys wrinkled their noses, looked at each other, grabbed the hook of the stove on the ground, and with a few strokes, they pulled out two roasted, charred potatoes from the stove. Regardless of the heat, the two of them hurriedly picked up the potatoes and put them on the stove.

    When Mrs. Li turned around, she saw that the two baked potatoes had been half eaten by her grandson. If it was usual, she would definitely have scolded a few words, but today her grandson has caught two big fish, and she doesn't feel distressed anymore. Instead, she laughed and scolded: "Like what it looks like, go to the West Room to eat, and ask Osmanthus to come out to stew the fish."

    The two boys responded, and while pouring the still hot potatoes with their hands, they shouted at the top of their voices: "Sister-in-law, milk let you come out to cook."

      what?"

    "Boiled fish! Boiled cabbage and potatoes!" Mrs. Li said loudly, leaning on a cane.

    Although the two boys of the Li family call Osmanthus a sister-in-law, in fact, Wu Guihua has not yet married Li Mingdong, the eldest son of the Li family. Wu Guihua's family came from a landlord, and because of the poor composition, life was very sad. When Osmanthus was seven or eight years old, the family really couldn't get enough to eat, so I thought about selling the big girl Osmanthus in exchange for something to eat, but the few who came here were unwilling. It happened that the old lady of the Li family passed by the Wu family with relatives. She saw that Osmanthus was good-looking and had a cheerful personality. The Wu family also knew that the old Li family was kind, so the two discussed it and exchanged half a bag of soybeans for Wu Guihua. Child brides-in-law.

    This sweet-scented osmanthus stayed in the Li family for ten years. When I first came, I followed it for a few years and learned a few words. When I was thirteen or fourteen, I stopped reading it. Help I cook, wash and clean up the house.

    Mr. Li sat on the small stool in the stove, watching Osmanthus swiftly kill the fish and remove the scales, and poured a little oil into the pot, then got up satisfied and said: "The stew is more fragrant, and Dongzi doesn't eat meat and fish sometimes."

    The sweet-scented osmanthus responded with a crisp sound, threw the long braid behind her, and cut the potatoes nimbly. At this moment, there was a sudden cry of pain from the east room, and Mrs. Li forgot to take the walking stick. She ran to the east room in three steps and two steps, and asked anxiously, "Dongzi, mother, is it? Isn't it activated?"

    

    "Oh, I have to endure this, why didn't I tell you earlier?" Mrs. Li took a look and immediately shouted: "Mingbei, hurry up and find your third aunt to help. "

    Li Mingbei grabbed the leather hat and buckled it on his head, wrapped his coat and rushed out. Osmanthus in the kitchen heard the movement, quickly boiled a pot of water, and brought all the prepared things into the room.

     Beicha District is a small town surrounded by mountains. Although Li's family is in a town, the population is sparse, so they don't live close to each other. Fortunately, Li Mingbei had neat legs, and he ran to his third aunt's house without much effort.

    Liu Xiulan, the third daughter-in-law of Mrs. Li, was cooking corn gooey when she suddenly heard a string of dogs barking in the distance. She stood up and poured chopped kohlrabi into the gooey and stirred it. While calling his son: "Photon, see if the elder brother of your second uncle is here."

    Li Mingguang opened the door and took a look, just when he saw Li Mingbei pushing open the door of his house, he quickly turned around and said, "Mom, my brother Beizi is here."

    "It must be your second aunt who is about to give birth." Liu Xiulan wiped her hands on her clothes and turned to call his eldest son: "Mingrong, come and look at the pot, I'll go to your nanny's house. One trip." Said he hurriedly followed Ming Bei.

    Mrs. Li's second daughter-in-law, Wang Sufen, has already given birth to four children, so although she is older now, the birth canal is opening faster. When Liu Xiulan from the third family arrives, Wang Sufen has already giving birth soon.

    I hurriedly washed my hands, Liu Xiulan came over and touched Wang Sufen's belly, and said to Mrs. Li, "Mother, take a rest, I am here."

    Mr. Li took advantage of the situation to sit on the kang, made room for the third daughter-in-law, wiped the sweat on her head and said, "When you are old, you can't exert yourself. When your second sister-in-law gave birth to Beibei When I was a child, I delivered the baby."

    Liu Xiulan pushed Wang Sufen's stomach and said, "Beizi is already eight years old, so when will that happen."

    Wang Sufen wanted to laugh when she heard it, but she was afraid of venting her energy, so she bit her lip and pressed down hard, Liu Xiulan hurriedly shouted: "Oh, I see my head, second sister-in-law, you can use it again. Be strong." Wang Sufen gritted her teeth, holding her breath and pressing down.

    The unbearable pain made Wang Sufen groan uncontrollably, the sweat on her forehead wet her hair and stuck to her face. Just when Wang Sufen felt that she couldn't hold it any longer, a warm current revolved from her abdomen, and as the blood flowed away, Wang Sufen slowly regained her strength, and her spirit felt much better.

    "Wow wow wow..." A crisp cry echoed in the mud tile room, Liu Xiulan caught the red-covered baby and glanced at her, and suddenly burst into laughter "Mother, the second sister-in-law gave birth to a girl!"

    "Really? I'll take a look!" Mrs. Li leaned over, Liu Xiulan had already cleaned up the child swiftly, wrapped the prepared quilt and handed it to Mrs. Li arms.

    Mr. Li opened the quilt and took a look inside, then said with a smile: "It's really a girl, I gave birth to four boys, thinking about the life without a daughter, I would also have a granddaughter. Cheng, you look at you, and you have sons one after another, I just think I can't hold a granddaughter in this life."

    "Second sister-in-law has a good life, and my daughter will be in pain in the future." Liu Xiulan smiled, and quickly helped Wang Sufen clean up, washed her hands, picked up her clothes and said, "Mother, then you are busy , I'm back"

    "Don't go back, let's eat here." Mrs. Li hugged her granddaughter without raising her eyelids: "You will go home now and there will be nothing left in the pot, today I will let Osmanthus stewed cabbage and potatoes, and boiled it to a pulp."

    Wang Sufen was lying in the bed and persuaded: "It's not that outsiders are polite. Brothers and sisters can eat here."

    Liu Xiulan drank a few sips of water in the morning. At this time, her stomach was rumbling. She has always been cheerful and has a good relationship with Wang Sufen's concubine, so she is not hypocritical, and said with a smile : "Let the second sister-in-law spend money."

    "What's the matter?" Mrs. Li said indifferently: "If there is such a big event in the past, why would I have to cut some meat and come back and make some dumplings to satisfy my cravings. Alas, it's all my fault. Every year is not good, I haven't received enough food in the past few months, if I hadn't opened up the wasteland and planted some vegetables, I'm afraid even my stomach will not be full."

    "No." Liu Xiulan also sighed: "I heard from Mu Sen that the grain harvested in the countryside this year is quite a lot, but all of them have gone to the outside of the mountains, so we only brought There is no food supply. If Ting Niang’s family also planted some land, I’m afraid we can’t even eat corn mash now.”

    Ms. Li came from the old society. She had a hard life when she was a child. She had an extreme desire and anxiety for food. Although the Li family has a household registration and can take the grain book to get the food supply every month, Mrs. Li still felt uneasy, so she took her son and grandson to find a flat place in the ravine a few years ago. In the famine, crops such as corn, soybeans, cabbage, potatoes, and sweet potatoes were also planted. When supplies were abundant, these things could also improve people's lives. Now that there is a sudden shortage of food supplies, the Li family is barely hungry because of these crops.

    In the kitchen, Osmanthus has already cooked the rice with her hands and feet. She stewed a pot of cabbage and potatoes, cooked a pot of corn batter, and posted a pot of cornmeal pancakes.

    The fish caught by the two brothers from the north and the south were stewed in a pot with tofu and vermicelli, and the oil was full of aroma. The remaining one boiled a large bowl of milky white soup, which was for Wang Sufen to drink milk.

    Li Muwu came back from get off work and heard that his daughter-in-law had given birth to a girl, so he quickly took off his coat and went to the east room to see his daughter-in-law and the newly born little girl.

    Osmanthus picked up the fish soup, supported Wang Sufen to sit up, and then handed her a bowl of fish soup.

    Li Muwu looked at his daughter's face with great satisfaction, and his voice was a little more gentle than usual: "Drink more soup, and have enough milk to keep our girl full."

    Wang Sufen smiled reluctantly: "How old are you, how can you still have milk? When you gave birth to Beizi, you didn't give much, so she still led the sheep back to feed Beizi alive. You go to work and ask around to see who raises sheep, and if we buy some goat milk every day, it’s better than feeding Mumu.”

    Li Muwu gruffly hummed and said, "Tomorrow, I will go to set up a household registration for our daughter and see if I can bring milk powder and brown sugar back."

    Wang Sufen lowered her head and ate half a bowl of fish soup, and when she looked back, she saw that Li Muwu was poking at the little girl's pink face with rough fingers. The girl was sleeping sweetly. Wang Sufen was afraid that he would cry and ask for milk if he woke the child up, so he hurried him out: "Don't stay here, eat quickly."

    Li Muwu stood up with a smile: "For such a happy event, I have to take out the wine I have saved, and I have to drink a cup with my mother."

      Li Muwu came out of the East Room to get the wine pot first. Li Mingdong quickly picked it up, took out two small wine cups of two taels, and poured a glass of wine for Mrs. Li and Li Muwu each.

    Mr. Li took a sip of wine first, pointed to the pot of fish and said, "Dongzi eat more fish to nourish his brain, and now he will be admitted to university."

    Li Mingdong pushed the glasses on the bridge of his nose, showing a gentle smile: "I haven't seen meat and fish in the house for a long time, how can I eat it alone, you can eat milk first." It's too much to clip, and I have to clip it to Liu Xiulan.

    Liu Xiulan hurriedly held the bowl to avoid and said, "I can't read or read, so don't waste things, I'll eat the vermicelli in the chopsticks for a while and soak it in the taste."

    Li Muwu saw that his son was going to put fish for him, so he quickly waved his hand and said, "If you give me the fish head, the wine is the best, and the meat will be left to a few of you to eat."

    Li Mingdong then took a chopstick for himself, and the three younger brothers quickly took a large chopstick and ate with relish. Li Muwu took a sip of wine and took a bite of the fish head. As soon as he gnawed the fish head, only the bones were left, when he heard the cries of a tender baby next door. Li Muwu couldn't help laughing: "My daughter is awake."

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