Bianshanhan [farming]

On this day, it was a sunny day, the sky was blue and blue, and there was hardly a cloud in sight.

The tall trees are covered with frost and rime, far away, those tiny icicles are shining silver-white in the sun, flickering, undulating, like surging waves, and the whole forest is the surface of the waves. A huge ship as stable as a mountain.

Many of the people on this trip, regardless of their age, saw the forest for the first time. They were shocked by the vast forest under the ice and snow, and even had some timid thoughts.

Are they really going in here?

Even if the driver was distracted, the horse would obediently follow the sledge ahead, and thus approached the edge of the forest little by little.

Li Qingwen and Li Qingfeng did not miss the direction on the road, but they were a little uncertain when they saw the forest. They guided the way according to memory and arrived at the edge of the forest. They always felt that the forest seemed a bit dense. It seemed that they had never been here before. Where to get into it.

When they got here, Jiang Cong and Jiang Liping both rode forward, and each took out their weapons, bows and arrows. The villagers who followed were still stunned, not knowing how much danger was hidden inside.

Before entering the forest, they carefully observed the surroundings and determined their location. They had never been here before, and they had to walk for a few more days to get to the place where the oil fruit grows.

Although unfamiliar, but this is the edge of the forest, all the way through diagonally to the northeast, it is expected that there will be no obstacles.

Therefore, after the discussion, Jiang Liping and Jiang Cong led the way, the sledge followed closely behind, and the others rode on horseback to guard the sides. The group entered the forest on the first snow.

The snow in the forest is not as thick as outside, and some places are even bare. I don't know whether it is covered by the branches and leaves above or blown away by the wind.

While walking, Qi Min came to tell the neighbors about the various dangers in the forest, told the big guys not to stray, to shout when something happened, don't light a fire in the forest, don't eat unfamiliar things and so on.

Everyone listened carefully. When they arrived in this strange land, they would not move around, but would listen carefully.

The snow in the forest was not very smooth, and after the sledge passed by, it left imprints of horseshoes and wood, making creaking noises.

When I was outside, I only felt that there was no sound in the quiet forest. After entering, I realized that it is actually very lively here.

As the sledge went in, the trees on both sides were slender and tall, and a kind of bird was climbing on the trees. They had long beaks, and they kept pecking at the trunk with their beaks, making a "bang bang bang" sound.

There are also some unlucky people who accidentally got their mouths stuck in the cracks in the trees, struggling hard...

There are various paw prints on the snow, and sensitive little figures can often be seen among the low branches. In this season of the forest, there are still small animals that are persistently storing food or looking for a place to spend the winter.

Not only humans, animals also have the same deep fear of severe cold and hunger.

Where the trees are a little sparse, the shrubs grow very vigorously. Li Qingfeng got off his horse and led people to pick the fruits in the shrubs. At this time, the fruits were ripe but not frozen to death. They were cold and sweet.

Li Maoqun came back after picking one dulu, gave the red fruit to Li Qingwen, and shared the rest with everyone.

Without putting it in his mouth immediately, Li Qingwen looked at it for a while, and felt that the fruit was a bit like red bean bilberry, and when he threw it into his mouth, the sweet and sour juice filled his mouth, delicious!

The red fruit in the shrubs was immediately conspicuous in the snow. The villagers looked at the fruit and didn't get off the sledge.

They have just been told not to eat something they don't know, it may be poisonous, and they have never seen this thing before...

When Lao Sun saw that they wanted to pick it but did not dare to do it, he smiled and said, "This is edible, if you want to pick it, you can pick it."

As soon as these words were said, the man on the sledge jumped down immediately, his rough hands passed through the bushes, and carefully put the picked fruits in his pockets.It doesn't matter if they eat or not, if they want to take it back to their daughter-in-law and children, if they eat well, that's enough.

Because of picking fruit, Jiang Cong and the others slowed down a little in front, passed through the bushes, and recovered.

Sleeping in the forest is warmer than in the wilderness. Even without the dense leaves, the thick trunks and branches can resist the cold wind.

Because of the need to guard the surroundings, one after another linen tents are closely next to each other. At night, people sleeping in the tents are often awakened by the sound of "bumping". Icicles fell on top of the tent.

Fortunately, there is a tent to support it. If it hits the head directly, it will be unbearable.

The big guy had hardly seen anything in the forest before. He stared at the place where the oil fruit grew.

Even though they lived here for a few months before, after everything was covered by snow, every place in the forest seemed to be uninhabited.

Jiang Cong's horse stopped, and Li Qingwen blinked his eyes and looked around, but he didn't see any familiar faces for a long time.

Here is the same as the rest of the forest, unnamed trees, weeds struggling to break free from snow, bare bushes...

It wasn't until they saw oil fruit nearby, and took out pottery pots and bowls and chopsticks from the tree hole, that everyone had a look of "ah, it's really here".

Jiang Cong and the others began to set up camp, and the people behind the plow came down in a panic, and followed them to work awkwardly.

Although they learned a lot about camping with the people in the village and Jiang Cong along the way, they were not as proficient as those who went out every winter.

Some set up tents, some swept snow, some cut dead branches, some picked oily fruits, some dug traps... Li Qingwen dug out the stones that had been licked black by the flames from the snow, arranged them in a triangle shape, and picked up a pile of dead grass put it in.

The pottery pots and other things stored here last year are still there, but they are filthy. In addition to soil and dead leaves, there are also various large and small feces. I don’t know why these clever ghosts in the forest Go to the tree hole to use the toilet.

Turn over all the pots and bowls, pour out the dirty things inside, then wipe the snow with dry grass, and put them on the stone stove set by Li Qingwen after wiping.

Dry grass is the best thing to burn. As long as the wind is not strong, the fire scythe and the fire switch can be ignited a few times. The orange-red fire ignites and emits a wisp of faint smoke, which is almost invisible.

After the withered grass burns for a few breaths, put the shrub branches on it. With the fire base, add dead branches and so on, and the fire will burn more and more vigorously.

More than a dozen clay pots were set on fire. The snow in the pots first turned into a puddle of water, and then slowly began to steam.

When the baskets of oily fruits were picked back, the water in the pot boiled, and the thick hot air went straight to the sky, and people beside the pot could not be seen even if they walked far away.

This time there were a lot of people, and they brought a lot of things from the camp, and they piled them up in the tent at this time.

The oily fruit over there was crushed, and immediately threw it into the pot to cook. Everyone ate a few mouthfuls of fried noodles, and Jiang Liping and the others drove their horses to patrol in all directions.

Until the sun was hanging on the top of the tree, a mark was made on the tree next to it, and the man and the horse turned around and returned.

On the way back, I was not as vigilant as when I came here. I picked bags of fruits and gnawed them as I walked.

At this time, eat more of what you can eat. When the ice slag is frozen in the fruit, the teeth of older people will not be able to bear it.

The villagers watched Li Qingwen's movements intently. They were here to make candles.

For farmers who are reluctant to use oil lamps, candles, which do not require refueling, do not need to dial the core, have no pungent smell, and are brighter, were unthinkable in the past.

Now they not only think about it, but also do it. They are so excited that they dare not blink their eyes at will, for fear that they will miss something.

When Jiang Cong came back, it was already dark, and the fire outside the tent could be seen from a distance, and his tough face softened instantly.

When he came back, he didn't rest, and instead of Li Qingwen, he taught the big guy how to extract the oil from the fruit, while Li Qingwen ate the fruit he brought back.

After eating two sweet fruits, the taste was very familiar. Li Qingwen stopped and looked carefully at the firelight. They were round, like Huojing persimmons.

It was dark and did not delay the snow shoveling. Li Qingfeng and the others took shovels and shoveled out an open space around them. Although it was not that wide, it was still a simple firebreak.

They boiled until midnight, and the sleepy people returned to the tent one after another. Li Qingwen stared at the dusty roof of the tent, unable to fall asleep for a while.

He came here on a tight schedule this time. It is not difficult to teach the villagers to make candles. There are two other important things to do. After finishing, he must return to the camp in the border town with the candles. He can't delay the trip to the capital.

Those two important things were related to Liu He.

Maybe it was because he missed Liu He too much. After Li Qingwen fell asleep, he heard a dog barking several times in a daze. He simply didn't sleep. He got up and went outside the tent, but saw that many people were still awake and still looking at the fire. and oil on the stove.

Someone was already dipping in wax and starting to make candles, and Jiang Cong watched from the side, occasionally giving pointers.

Dragging his tired body, Li Qingwen walked behind Jiang Cong and wanted to rest his chin on his brother's shoulder, but found that he had to rest his feet. He exhaled two puffs of white air from his nostrils angrily.

They worked until dawn, and the villagers followed the old grandson to cut down trees. Jiang Liping and Jiang Cong were looking for a suitable place where they wanted to build a wooden house.

Not surprisingly, I will have to stay for a few months every year in the future. It is not convenient to live in a tent all the time. If I have a house, I may be better off against wild animals.

The most indispensable thing in the forest is trees, but trees are not cut randomly, at least not in the vicinity, and then according to the sparseness of trees in a certain place, choose the appropriate age, and save as much as possible.

Even though they have been here many times, Jiang Cong and Li Qingwen have always maintained awe of this place. In fact, they are no different from the fallen leaves and shrubs on the ground, and they are also protected by this forest.

Needless to say, sheltering from the wind and rain, collecting fruits and various foods to satisfy their hunger, and there will be various surprises and frights from time to time. They are taught how to live better here.