"Sister, your fire hasn't even started, so dinner won't be ready anytime soon," Huang Ying said with a smile.
Cui Hongyu felt a bit embarrassed at being found out by Huang Ying.
"I was just embroidering, and I lost track of time."
Huang Ying stepped forward and took her hand, "Let's go, Du Juan, the meal is ready."
Cui Hongyu waved her hands repeatedly, "No, no, I'll be done soon."
Huang Ying reached out again and pulled Chen Qiao'er along, "Alright, the two of us, why be so formal and distant? Eating over there is all the same, isn't it?"
After speaking, the two looked at each other, and then burst into laughter.
Cui Hongyu smiled and said, "Alright then, I'd be happy to accept. I'll eat at your place today."
Huang Ying also smiled in response, "What's 'my' or 'yours'? Aren't we all eating Xiao Bei Ge's food?"
They both laughed again.
"Hong Yu Jie Jie, from now on, let Du Juan cook lunch. Qiao'er will come with me, and you can come over to eat too. It's not worth cooking for yourself at home."
Cui Hongyu didn't refuse, as they were family anyway.
Du Juan indeed prepared a lavish lunch, with three or four dishes. The four of them ate and chatted happily.
Before they could finish eating, hurried footsteps were heard outside, and Chen Xiaowen rushed in.
"Hong Yu Sao Zi, hurry and take a look, Da Chun Ge is injured."
Upon hearing this, Cui Hongyu shot up from her seat, put down her chopsticks, and ran out.
As they walked, Chen Xiaowen quickly explained the situation. It turned out that Chen Dachun was leading people in building houses, but in their haste, the scaffolding wasn't secured properly. Chen Dachun accidentally fell from it.
Seeing him lying there unable to move, no one dared to touch him, so they sent someone to call for Cui Hongyu.
Cui Hongyu arrived at the scene and could hear Chen Dachun groaning in pain from across the crowd.
Seeing Cui Hongyu arrive, the crowd automatically parted to let her through.
Chen Dachun lay on the ground, clutching his lower back and groaning incessantly.
"It hurts, it hurts so much."
Cui Hongyu stepped forward, crouched down, and gently patted Chen Dachun's shoulder, "Da Chun Ge, don't be afraid. Tell me, where exactly does it hurt?"
Chen Dachun pointed to his lower back, "Right here, this, my back, it hurts."
Cui Hongyu frowned, her heart tightening.
She pointed to Chen Dachun's left leg, "Try to bend this leg."
Chen Dachun tried and shook his head slightly.
"Now try your right leg."
Chen Dachun struggled for a moment and still shook his head.
Seeing this,
Cui Hongyu's heart sank, and she thought, "This is bad."
He fell and it seems his back is seriously injured. Both legs are immobile. If it doesn't recover, he'll be bedridden for the rest of his life.
But she didn't dare to say these words now, as perhaps after recovering from this, his control over his lower limbs might return.
So, she could only turn to the village guards beside her and say, "He must have fallen very hard. First, weave a stretcher with some branches and carry him back to rest."
The crowd began to shake their heads and sigh, "Alas, Da Chun was just in a hurry to get home for dinner and missed his footing."
"Alas, Da Chun can go home to a hot meal, but I have to go home and boil water and cook for myself," someone complained resentfully.
Unintentional words, but intentional ears. Cui Hongyu frowned.
Indeed, many people in the village were still unmarried.
They had to cook for themselves when they went home. She suddenly remembered something. Not long ago, she had proposed to Chen Xiaobei that the women in the village be organized to form a mutual aid group.
While the men were out working, most of the women in the village were idle at home. Now was a good opportunity! Women could be self-reliant and earn some money even while staying at home.
Thinking this, Cui Hongyu stood up and said to the crowd, "Alright, everyone, don't complain. I have an idea."
"We women can help you cook, but it won't be for free. You'll have to pay us."
"Yes, yes, of course, we will pay. Hong Yu Mei Zi, just tell us how much silver."
"As long as you agree to pay, then it's easy to discuss. As for how much, we'll have to discuss it."
"My idea is that once the meal is ready, you can come over and eat after you finish work. After eating, you go back to work. You won't have to buy ingredients or wash dishes and pots. What do you think?"
Upon hearing this, the bachelors were naturally happy. For them, washing dishes and pots after eating was even more troublesome.
"Great, great, then count me in," the strong men responded one after another.
Even some of the soldiers working nearby came to join the fun.
Although they had professional cooks, due to the disorganization of their units and re-establishment, the cooks weren't fully equipped. For them, a hot meal was a luxury.
Of course, Cui Hongyu was very cautious in dealing with these soldiers.
"Esteemed officers, if you want to eat, I'll have to discuss it with your leader first. If you want us to cook for you, you'll have to pay us."
Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.
Soon, Chen Dachun was carried home. Second Aunt Xiu Mei and Cui Hua saw Chen Dachun being carried back and cried, their eyes red and tearful.
Cui Hongyu couldn't help but sigh, secretly praying that Chen Dachun would escape this calamity and overcome this difficulty.
Most importantly, Chen Dachun had no children yet. He had even been planning to take a second wife a while ago. If he were to become disabled now, that plan would fall through.
Returning home, Cui Hongyu picked up her brush and wrote out a prescription, instructing Chen Xiaowen to go to the county town to get some medicine. The most important thing wasn't the efficacy, but rather to provide psychological comfort to Second Aunt Xiu Mei, Cui Hua, and Chen Dachun.
After sending Chen Xiaowen off, Cui Hongyu began to contact the women in the village one by one to see how many were willing to cook for these men.
Of course, this wasn't just simple cooking; it was setting up a canteen. After all, Cui Hongyu and the others would have to be responsible for buying the ingredients.
The women in the village were anxious. Winter was approaching, and they had nothing to do at home. The soldiers were going up the mountain to transport supplies, which had nothing to do with them. Women couldn't do the work of burning charcoal or building houses. Other than cooking for their own husbands and children at home, there was nothing else for them to do.
Some even suggested that they cook for themselves and let their husbands and children eat there as well, using their wages to offset part of the cost.
Seeing everyone so enthusiastic, Cui Hongyu was secretly delighted. A few days ago, Chen Xiaobei and Huang Ying had their wedding, and the stoves were still there. Especially those two large pots, they were very powerful for cooking porridge or stir-frying. Su Dan Novel Network
After a census, over thirty people in the village were willing to work with her.