Returning home with Mi Guo, Gu Qingcheng dried her slightly damp hair and changed into dry clothes.
Gu Qingcheng brightened the charcoal stove and brewed a pot of tea with goji berries, longan, red dates, and ginger.
On a day like this, a warm cup of nourishing tea was incredibly pleasant.
Once the tea was brewed, Gu Qingcheng poured out two bowls, giving one to Mi Guo.
Mi Guo was quite afraid of the taste of ginger, but couldn't refuse her sister's enthusiasm. She picked up the bowl, pinched her nose, and drank it all in one gulp.
Shortly after finishing, Mi Guo sneezed several times. She felt a sense of refreshing comfort throughout her body and smiled, saying, "Sister, your ginger tea really works. Drinking it prevents colds."
As Mi Guo spoke, she wiped a clear trickle of snot from her nose.
"It's fine for those living in houses, but I wonder if those in the shacks will get wet," Gu Qingcheng worried.
"Why not let them move into the wooden houses to shelter from the rain? Actually, the wooden houses aren't full yet," Mi Guo suggested after a moment's thought.
"I think that's a good idea." Since the houses were hers anyway, she could arrange it. Gu Qingcheng then said, "Oh, right, let's call Gui Xiang and her son to come live with us. Especially Xiao Jun, he's a bit younger than you, he can play with you."
Gu Qingcheng felt that Mi Guo didn't have a playmate, which was why she had this idea.
"What are you talking about? I'm not as young as him! I'm already an adult," Mi Guo retorted, clearly displeased.
Gu Qingcheng chuckled and said, "Alright, you're an adult and he's a child. You can teach him, right?"
It wasn't until evening that the rain, though a fine drizzle, had not stopped. Looking at the sky, it was already late spring, and the chill was palpable. The saying about the late spring chill proved true; it felt colder than before the rain.
Gu Qingcheng, holding an umbrella, went to the shacks to find Gui Xiang and her son.
Gui Xiang was currently worried. The rain wouldn't stop, and the shack was on the verge of collapsing. She feared they would be drenched if they slept there tonight and might catch a cold.
It wouldn't matter if she got sick, but she was afraid Xiao Jun would be affected.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, Young Master Gu appeared by their shack.
"Gui Xiang, come back and live with us. I've already arranged for the villagers to have everyone living in the shacks dispersed among the wooden houses of various families."
"Okay. Thank you so much," Gui Xiang, in her early twenties, and Gu Qingcheng, still a young boy, had no need for pretense. Hearing there was a place to take them in, she was overwhelmed with gratitude.
"Is there anything you need us to help you bring?" Mi Guo asked.
"Young Master Gu, can my neighbor He Hua and her daughter come to your house to stay with us?" Gui Xiang boldly made a seemingly excessive request. She would feel more at ease if He Hua and her daughter could stay together.
"Certainly. I happen to have two empty rooms there. Let's all go together," Gu Qingcheng agreed readily.
Gui Xiang quickly went to call He Hua. He Hua was sheltering from the rain in her shack, also worrying inwardly. The rain wouldn't stop, and the shack was about to become completely wet. Tonight would be difficult. She hadn't expected Gui Xiang to arrange accommodation for them.
So, He Hua quickly gathered their rice, flour, grain, and oil from both her and Gui Xiang's homes, and hurried to follow.
Upon arriving at Gu Qingcheng's house, it was He Hua's first time visiting a wooden house in the village. She couldn't help but exclaim, "This house is so spacious and can shelter from the wind and rain. It's wonderful."
"The village couldn't finish everything in time, otherwise you would have been allocated one too," Gu Qingcheng said generously.
"What? We could have a house like this ourselves in the future?" He Hua's mouth hung open in disbelief.
"Young Master Gu, in Phoenix Village, there's nothing you can't think of that Young Master Gu can't do. Young Master Gu, you are truly a good person! So much better than those corrupt officials in Wang Chun City. We begged them for a whole day outside, and they wouldn't even let us enter the city." Speaking of this, He Hua couldn't help but become furious.
"Discussing state affairs can harm oneself and others," Gui Xiang quickly stopped her. She had often heard her father and husband say at home that the corrupt officials had many spies, and discussing state matters too much could bring disaster. At this moment, she said instinctively.
"That's right. If we curse these corrupt officials and someone reports us, it will bring disaster to the village. Don't worry, I won't say anything when I go out," He Hua quickly shut her mouth.
Gu Qingcheng smiled, unconcerned. Let alone corrupt officials, even the Great Zhou Dynasty would be wiped out in a while. This place would then become Ark Base. He Hua and Gui Xiang felt lucky now, and they would likely feel even luckier later.
The ginger and red date tea was now boiling, emitting steam with a "gurgling" sound. Gu Qingcheng poured a bowl for each of them, four in total, to warm them from the cold. The tea was sweet. Mi Guo disliked the ginger flavor, but Xiao Jun and Xiao Lian quite enjoyed it. Children were fond of sweetness, and the slight spiciness of the ginger was negligible to them as long as there was sweetness.
"This is delicious!" Xiao Lian said after finishing her tea, her eyes lingering.
Xiao Jun quickly poured his remaining half bowl of tea for her, saying, "Little Sister Xiao Lian, drink more. You're a young lady, you're weaker."
Gu Qingcheng couldn't help but smile. Xiao Jun was truly a little warm man, understanding how to take care of girls at such a young age. What would he be like in the future?
With more people in the house, there was more warmth and liveliness. Mi Guo was also very happy.
At night, Gu Qingcheng went out with an umbrella to inspect. She saw that Dai Fa had already organized the villagers to take the new villagers from the shacks to their accommodations. Just then, the hunting party also returned, their clothes soaked. Yan Xin said that there were not many prey in the rain, and they had only caught two wild rabbits and one wild sheep. This was still a good harvest. Gu Qingcheng quickly told them to change into dry clothes first, and then go to Mei Xiang to get a bowl of ginger and brown sugar water. She instructed Yan Xin to salt the day's catch for preservation, or to dry it into jerky. It was always good to have more provisions.
Liu Ding was in the communal mess hall, giving ginger soup to a group of villagers who worked the land. Seeing Gu Qingcheng, he quickly reported that they had already scattered the millet into the seedling fields today. In another week, once the seedlings grew, they could be transplanted. They had already planted ten mu of land today, and tomorrow they would continue planting sweet potatoes and potatoes. Since the oxen were brought back to the village, the pace of land reclamation had quickened considerably. After burning the mountains, the grass roots were burnt away, and the pests in the fields were also killed. Afterwards, they spread a layer of manure on the land. Liu Ding was now much more confident about this area of mountainous land.
Gu Qingcheng told them to continue reclaiming land after finishing planting and to sow other seasonal crops.
"What else should we plant?" Liu Ding asked casually.
"Plant traditional Chinese medicinal herbs. Anyone who sees herbs on the mountain should dig them up, root and all. I want to set aside a medicinal field to grow herbs specifically."
"Okay, I'll inform everyone." Liu Ding also felt this was necessary. Everyone would get headaches and colds, and the mountains were lacking medicinal materials.
Gu Qingcheng felt she had too many crops to plant. She also wanted to plant some fruit trees, and said, "Later, we'll need to go down the mountain to buy some fruit saplings. We should also plant fruit trees, like peaches, pears, and oranges, they are all good."