novelraw Chapter 287 The Beginning of the Snow Disaster
Chapter 287 The Beginning of the Snow Disaster
Chapter 287 The Beginning of the Snow Disaster
Whom should I take my anger out on?
Her second sister will punish both of them equally!
"If you complain, I'll complain too! Then neither of us will be able to escape!"
"I'm not afraid, I'm thick-skinned, I can handle it." Ah Gou said nonchalantly, as thick-skinned as a mule, making people's teeth itch!
Gu Ping'an's face turned green!
This person is not only shameless, but also extremely shameless!
Ah Gou calmly and slowly pressed Gu Tang's head, showing no fear whatsoever. He was playing a psychological game, figuring out who would back down first if they became afraid.
In the end, Gu Ping'an, who was young and inexperienced, backed down.
With a dark face, he stormed off to the kitchen.
Watching him leave, Ah Gou secretly breathed a sigh of relief; he was young and easy to fool.
……
Gu Tang took a nap for about an hour. When she woke up, there was no one else in the room except for herself.
A pot of hot water was warming on the stove beside me, and a small basin of cold water was on the table. After adding hot water, it could be used for washing up.
Lifting the blanket off her body, Gu Tang got up, stretched, and poured hot water into the basin with the kettle.
Her hair was completely loose. Ah Gou didn't comb it for her. Gu Tang casually tied it up a few times, secured it with a hairpin, and then washed her face with the warm water in the basin.
After getting myself ready, I went to open the door.
The moment the door opened, the scene outside truly stunned Gu Tang.
She hadn't understood what Gu Ping'an meant by "snowflakes" before, but now she did.
The term "snowflakes" is not a metaphor or an exaggeration, but a true and realistic description!
The snowflakes falling from the sky were as big as a baby's palm!
No wonder it's called "snowflakes".
A lot of snow had blown into the corridor, and judging from the marks on the ground, it must have been swept once before, but now there was a thick layer of snow again.
Gu Tang walked along the wall, afraid to step on the snow for fear of slipping.
She went to the main room first, but strangely, there was no one there.
She also checked the east and west rooms, but there was no one there either.
Remembering what Gu Ping'an had said earlier, that her father had gone to help rescue people, could it be that her third uncle had gone as well?
As I came out of the main room, I caught a glimpse of a head peeking out from the kitchen.
Turning my head, I saw Gu Ping'an.
Gu Ping'an also saw Gu Tang at this moment, and rushed out with a smile, waving to Gu Tang: "Second sister, come quick! There's something delicious!"
Hearing this, Ah Gou in the kitchen quickly put down his spoon and went outside.
Gu Tang was already walking over. "What delicious food can you cook? By the way, where are Father and Grandfather? There's no one in the main room."
Gu Ping'an opened his mouth, about to answer, but was interrupted by A'Gou, who came out a step later.
“My uncle went to help rescue people and hasn’t come back yet. Grandpa was worried, so he went with him.”
"What are you doing? Why are you interrupting me? Second Sister is asking me!" Gu Ping'an immediately shouted in dissatisfaction.
Ah Gou blinked, remembering that he must appear harmless in front of Gu Tang, and immediately apologized in a good-natured manner.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you wanted to say something. I heard my cousin ask about it and just blurted it out. If you don't like me speaking first, I'll definitely wait for you to finish speaking next time."
Gu Ping'an stared at him with suspicion, puzzled as to why this person had suddenly become so easy to talk to.
He didn't give an inch back in the west wing!
Under Gu Ping'an's glare, Agou looked uneasy, constantly glancing at Gu Ping'an as if trying to gauge his expression.
Gu Ping'an was disgusted by his attitude: "What do you want now?"
Ah Gou remained silent, still maintaining his usual demeanor.
Gu Tang, who witnessed this scene, was completely speechless.
She casually walked up to the two of them and told Gu Pingan to go back to the kitchen to get her some rice, as she was hungry.
"Alright!" Gu Ping'an ignored Ah Gou and happily returned to the kitchen.
After everyone left, Gu Tang stepped on Ah Gou's foot and scolded him in a low voice, "Where did you learn this from? Neither of us are good people, we both know each other! Who are you trying to fool by pretending to be a green tea innocent flower?"
Ah Gou removed the nervousness from his face and put on an innocent look: "I'll show you."
Gu Tang: "...Do you think I don't know what kind of person you are? Do you think I would believe that?"
"I don't believe it, but what if it is? There's always a chance of something going wrong."
Gu Tang choked up, not wanting to talk to him anymore.
She rolled her eyes at him and replied with a single word: "Get lost!"
Stepping into the kitchen, she saw Gu Ping'an scooping meat out of her mouth with a spoon.
Gu Tang glanced at the large, rough porcelain bowl next to her; it contained no soup, only meat.
Gu Pingan continued to add meat to the bowl.
Gu Tang's eyelids twitched as she watched, and she quickly told him to stop: "I don't eat meat, I'll just have some soup. By the way, have you boiled any eggs? I want to eat eggs."
"It's cooked, simmering on the stove." Gu Ping'an took another bowl, ladled out more than half a bowl of soup, and placed it on the small table.
The bowl of meat was also placed on the small table, along with eggs, which were taken out of the earthenware pot and put into a small basket, all of which were placed in front of Gu Tang.
"I almost forgot!" Putting down the basket, Gu Ping'an went to the stove, lifted the lid of another pot, and took out a bowl of porridge.
"This is yam porridge, cooked by Gu Sanlang. We've all eaten it, but this bowl is for you."
Gu Tang took a bite and found the temperature was just right for eating, so she forgot about the soup and meat and started eating the porridge.
When Ah Gou returned to the kitchen and saw that she enjoyed the yam porridge, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"I didn't know if you liked it before, so I didn't dare to leave you too much. If it's not enough, I'll cook more for you."
"One bowl is enough."
A bowl of porridge, an egg, and two pieces of meat—that's enough to make a satisfying meal.
After Gu Tang finished eating and drinking, A Gou brought a comb to re-comb her hair, as using a hairpin to tie her hair up was not suitable for her age.
Ah Gou styled her hair into twin buns and adorned her with green plum blossoms, making her look both delicate and charming, a truly delightful sight.
"What kind of flower is this? It looks so real." Gu Ping'an looked at it with great interest and wanted to reach out to touch it, but Ah Gou slapped his hand.
"Don't move it! If you mess it up, you'll have to put it back on!"
Take out the bronze mirror and let Gu Tang take a look and see if she is satisfied.
I don't know where Ah Gou got this bronze mirror from, but it can show people's faces very clearly, and it's not much different from a mercury mirror.
Gu Tang looked at herself in the bronze mirror and was immediately stunned: "Why is this flower green?!"
“This is a green calyx plum,” Ah Gou explained. “It’s a type of plum blossom, quite rare, very precious, and highly sought after.”
She knew about green calyx plum blossoms, and she also knew that green calyx plum blossoms were precious, but what she was dissatisfied with was the color!
"Change the color! No green!"
"Excuse me, as a soul from the 21st century, I refuse to wear anything green on my head, as it reminds me of a certain word and a certain event." Although Ah Gou didn't understand why she had to change, he didn't ask a single question. He simply and gently plucked the green plum blossom and placed the dressing case in front of Gu Tang.
"Take a look, is there a color you like?"
Gu Tang reached out and rummaged around for a while before choosing a pair of orange-pink gradient peony velvet flowers.
"This is the one."
"These are great! The colors are so bright!" Ah Gou exclaimed as he took the velvet flower.
Gu Ping'an stood to the side, full of questions. If this pair was so bright, why didn't they choose this pair earlier?
Gu Tang was already used to Ah Gou's praise and didn't even blink, telling him to hurry up and put it on, as she had things to do.
Ah Gou pinned one velvet flower on each side of her hair and asked her curiously if there was anything else.
"Someone died in the village, I'm going to take a look. I'll also go see my dad and grandfather while I'm at it; they haven't come back for so long, things must be complicated."
As Gu Tang looked in the mirror and talked, she shook her head from side to side, carefully examining the velvet flower on her head.
When Ah Gou heard her say this, his heart sank. At this point, she was still thinking about going to see dead people?
Gu Ping'an perked up: "Let's go together! I heard someone caught a rabbit at the foot of the mountain yesterday that had fallen into a snowdrift and was too frozen to run! Let's go and try our luck!"
Gu Tang wasn't interested in that; she just wanted to go out and see what was going on in the village.
We're already facing a snow disaster, and the situation is expected to worsen. I just hope things don't get too bad for the village.
This is just the beginning. If the snow doesn't last longer, the ice won't thaw until February after the Lunar New Year, under normal circumstances.
With the snowstorm lasting nearly three months, no one knows what will happen if it gets out of control.
The only saving grace is that Ah Gou has settled down here, so if a riot really breaks out, his safety isn't too much of a concern.
Before setting off, the three of them went back inside and put on their hats.
It's too cold. You don't need to wear a hat at home because there's a stove. But if you go out, you must wear a hat.
Gu Ping'an and A Gou's hats were both made of rabbit fur, but Gu Tang's was not; her hat was made of brown fox fur.
This was a gift from Ah Gou; it fits perfectly to cover her ears when she wears it.
While putting on the hat, Gu Ping'an said with a regretful look, "It's a pity that the velvet flower is covered up. If it were spring, summer or autumn, and Second Sister wore the velvet flower out for a stroll, all the girls in the village would be green with envy!"
Gu Tang rolled her eyes at him: "Being too conspicuous is not a good thing."
After feeling along the brim of the hat to make sure it wasn't crooked, Gu Tang wrapped a scarf around her neck.
This is also made of fox fur, and it's very warm when you wear it.
Gu Ping'an followed suit and pulled out a rabbit fur scarf to put on.
Ah Gou hadn't originally planned to wear a scarf, as the temperature was alright and he wasn't feeling too cold.
But after Gu Pingan put on the scarf, he looked around and realized that he was different from Gu Tang, while Gu Pingan's attire was very similar to Gu Tang's.
He silently went back into the house, took out a scarf from the bottom of his trunk, and wrapped it around his neck without saying a word.
After putting on their hats and scarves, the three of them put on wide-brimmed straw hats, then took their keys and locks and left the yard one after the other.
The collapsed houses and the places where people froze to death were both at the end of the village. As soon as the three of them stepped out of the yard, they saw traces of people walking on the village road.
The tracks were half-buried by the newly fallen snow, and the three followed the tracks toward the end of the village.
The snow on the road was already above Gu Tang's knees, and if this continued, it would soon reach her thighs.
Under these circumstances, walking is extremely difficult.
Some snow is frozen solid and can withstand a person's weight when stepped on, while some snow is not so solid. It is still hard when stepped on, but as soon as you put force on it, with a "plop," you sink right in!
There was still a small patch that wasn't frozen solid; the snow was soft from the outside in.
This is even harder to step on!
If Ah Gou hadn't been supporting her, she would have been lying in the snowdrift long ago.
Even so, things didn't end well; from the waist down, my entire lower body was covered in snow!
Fortunately, the cotton-padded trousers they were wearing were made of leather. After the snow that stuck to their trousers melted, although they were wet, it did not soak into their clothes.
The journey was so difficult that Gu Tang regretted it soon after leaving the house, but she still had some self-respect. She had already come out, and she couldn't give up halfway.
No matter what, we have to persevere.
Ah Gou is just too annoying!
He was buzzing incessantly in his own ear like a fly!
"The snow is too deep, it's difficult to walk, shall we go back?"
"Not going back? How about I carry you on my back?"
"You won't let me carry you? If you keep being so stubborn, you'll definitely feel unwell when you get back."
……
Gu Tang was too tired to talk, but he kept nagging in her ear!
Exhaustion and irritability caused her to radiate resentment, which startled Ah Gou, who immediately shut his mouth.
With Ah Gou no longer nagging in her ear, Gu Tang felt a little better and gritted her teeth and continued walking forward.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, I finally heard a noisy commotion.
Looking in the direction of the sound, I could vaguely see a dark patch not far ahead.
"We've arrived?" Gu Tang asked hopefully.
"They should have arrived by now. We'll know once we go and take a look." Gu Ping'an took the lead, panting heavily as he moved with difficulty toward them.
Ah Gou helped Gu Tang walk behind him, and soon the three of them entered a small courtyard. Then they saw a group of people covered in snow digging things in the snowstorm.
Everyone was wrapped up very tightly and covered in snow, making it impossible to tell who was who.
Gu Tang listened carefully to the voices and heard Gu Liushu's voice as well as Gu Dazhu's voice.
As for her father's voice, Gu Tang couldn't hear it clearly; it seemed like she heard it, but also seemed like she didn't.
Suddenly, Ah Gou, who was beside her, pointed to a figure from behind and told Gu Tang, "That's your father. I just heard him speak."
Gu Tang looked in the direction Ah Gou pointed and indeed saw a tall figure from behind.
But no matter how she looked at him, she still couldn't be sure if he was her father.
The figures all looked similar from behind, and their clothes were covered by snowflakes, making it impossible to tell them apart.
Gu Ping'an found the old man under the porch and happily told Gu Tang to follow him: "Grandpa is standing under the porch, along with the clan chief and elders. Let's hurry over there!"
"A corridor? Didn't this house collapse? Then what corridor is there?"
"This is Gu Dumiao's house. His main room is made of bricks and tiles, while the east and west wing rooms are made of adobe. Today, the east wing room collapsed, but the main room and the west wing room did not collapse."
Gu Dumiao?!
Is this a name or a nickname?
Gu Tang flipped through the original owner's memories but did not find any memories related to Gu Dumiao.
Suppressing her curiosity, she followed Gu Ping'an to the corridor of the main hall, where she appeared right in front of her third uncle, startling the old man into widening his eyes!
"W-how did you all get here?!"
“We were worried because we hadn’t seen you and my father come back for so long, so we came looking for you.”
After saying this, Gu Tang turned around and greeted the clan elders again.
Besides the clan elders, there was an elderly woman in her forties or fifties and a young girl at the far end; judging from their appearance, they were probably mother and daughter.