The Li family's neighbors to the west also began construction, with Yang Jianjun bringing his 13-year-old son to help his two younger brothers.
The third house was on the homestead of Squad Leader Ou’s youngest son, Ou Junfei, and Squad Leader Ou brought his eldest son, Ou Junqiang, to assist.
The lively scene at the end of the village abruptly stopped when the Tian family arrived.
There are traditions when building houses in the countryside; it’s best to avoid arguments to ensure a smooth life after moving in.
Tian Jing didn’t care about such things. If the Tian family wanted to get close to her or take advantage of her, it was impossible.
"Tian Liwen, Tian Liwu, Tian Lifu, Tian Ligui, you don't think I'm going to tolerate this today, do you? I'd rather not build a new house than put up with you. Get lost, quickly."
"Little sister, we... ah." Tian Lifu’s words were cut short as Tian Jing shoved him.
Seeing that Tian Jing was unmoved, Tian Liwen quickly waved his hands, "We just came to see if you needed any help."
"You? You don't think I have no connections in Kushan, do you? Are you blind? Can’t you see the people helping my family? Get out immediately. I'm busy lately and don't have time to visit. Don't force me to come and 'visit' Old Man Tian and Old Lady Tian."
Tian Liwen and Tian Liwu helped the downed Tian Lifu to his feet, and motioned for Tian Ligui to leave with them.
Tian Jing clapped her hands, "Continue. I’m not that particular. If I were, I would have started with the main house."
...
Ma Changying’s eyes were filled with envy as she looked at the Li family’s cement, stones, and red bricks topped with blue tiles. Others were building new houses, and her family was also building, so why was there such a big difference?
Even their stones weren’t as good as the Li family’s. The Li family’s stones were almost perfectly uniform, while hers were irregular slabs of varying sizes. "Tian Jing, where did you find these stones?"
"Deep in the mountains."
Ma Changying... she really couldn't be envious.
In five days, the Li family’s two east side rooms were completed.
With stones, red bricks, and blue tiles, the side rooms already looked magnificent. When the main house was built, wouldn't it make people even more envious? That was Ma Changying's thought.
It was time to dismantle the kitchen. No matter how grand the new house was, it could only temporarily serve as a kitchen.
Li Min pulled her sister-in-law aside and whispered, "Sister-in-law, we're out of grain and meat."
"Why didn't you say so last night?"
Tian Jing glared at her. With so many people around, how could she discreetly fetch grain and meat from the mountain without causing gossip?
Li Min lowered her head, afraid to speak. She had forgotten.
When Li Zhengguo found out, he suggested, "Let’s cook at the Chen family's house. We've already dismantled the kitchen anyway."
"Okay. Let's dry out the east side rooms these few days. When we dismantle the main house, they can temporarily serve as bedrooms."
Chen Suozhu quickly ran home to tidy up the kitchen.
Grandpa Chen heard that the Li family was going to cook at his house and also helped with the tidying.
Chen Suozhu was a bit surprised, "Grandpa, your health seems to have improved quite a bit."
"You just noticed? Not only has it improved, but I've even gained some weight. I'll tidy up, you go help with the moving."
The Li family's kitchen belongings were gradually moved into the Chen family's house. There were quite a lot of things, both those Tian Jing had purchased and the shelves Li Zhengguo had made. It took several trips to move everything, filling the Chen family's kitchen to the brim.
Li Mu and her daughter organized the items, mixing them with the Chen family's things. The kitchen was now accessible.
Grandpa Chen didn't mind; the two families were practically one anyway.
Li Mu and her daughter used the Chen family's grain and meat to cook. Her son had said to cook together, so there was no need to be too particular for now.
The afternoon was spent dismantling the west side room and then organizing it.
After dinner, Tian Jing and Li Zhengguo secretly went up the mountain to fetch grain and salted meat.
There wasn't much grain left on the mountain. With two big eaters at home, over two hundred catties of grain could last two months, especially with meat.
Seeing a basket of salted meat strips, Chen Suozhu’s mouth dropped open in surprise. "Brother, these should be stored in the main house."
"You take care of storing them. There's still plenty on the mountain. Eat to your heart's content. If you run out, we can get more."
"I understand."
Tian Jing handed him the grain basket. "Let’s put it all away."
After they left the Chen family's house, Chen Suozhu quickly bolted the courtyard gate and began storing the items.
The next day, Tian Jing, hiding in the west room, conjured several old pumpkins. She called Li Min to help her carry them to the Chen family's house.
Facing her sister-in-law, Li Min had learned to remain calm. She even looked forward to the day she could see her sister-in-law's true form so she could make a wish.
The few pumpkins were carried in two trips, concealed in baskets.
With ample provisions secured, Tian Jing felt relieved and continued to supervise the new house construction.
Building the west side room took six days. It was already the first day of the second lunar month, and the production team's list for land adoption had been finalized.
The production team kept a hundred mu for communal use, and the rest was distributed.
Li Zhengguo’s application for six mu remained unchanged. Among other members, one person with a bold disposition adopted two mu.
Those who were timid only adopted one mu each. Most people were hesitant and didn't dare to adopt more.
Someone started gossiping, "If you want to adopt more, there isn't enough land in the team, is there?"
"Impossible. The secretary knows our production team's land is just over one mu per person. I should have been bolder and adopted two mu. If I want more next year, it'll definitely be gone."
"Your courage is lacking. Li Zhengguo, along with Chen Suozhu, adopted six mu."
"Are you doing this on purpose? Why bring Zhengguo into this? You also said it's just over one mu per person, and with the hundred mu the team kept, it's basically one point two mu per person."
"Did Zhengguo take more than his share? Considering his sister and Old Man Chen, six mu isn't even enough, is it? Get out of here. Stop talking nonsense here, you're just envious."
The voices of these two were not quiet, and everyone gathered around the entrance of the team office heard them.
Those who felt the previous speaker had a point had their dissatisfaction disappear.
No one knew what those who were jealous of the Li family's sudden, rapid changes were thinking, because such petty people wouldn't voice their jealousy.
Li Zhengguo didn't go to the team office to look at the list; he was too busy.
Everything for the main house had been moved to the east and west side rooms. A simple bed was temporarily made in the east side room for the three women to stay in.
The west side room used various cabinets pieced together to form Li Zhengguo’s temporary sleeping bed.
There were still many materials needed for the main house. Tian Jing asked Yang Lei to call Lin Guangde.
Lin Guangde arrived with Yang Lei soon after. He was happy that Tian Jing needed his help.
Tian Jing asked him to go to the county town to find Ouyang Lei to purchase grain, tiles, and glass. Preferably, he could also get another two tons of cement. She could 'chop' mountains for bricks if they ran out, but she couldn't do anything about the cement.
Lin Guangde returned in the afternoon with Ouyang Lei and a truckload of supplies.
Seeing the pile of stones, Ouyang Lei smiled, "Didn't Sister say she wasn't building the main house?"
Tian Jing shot him a look, "Can't I change my mind?"
"Yes, of course, you can. I not only brought you cement, glass, tiles, and grain, but I also brought you six thousand bricks, as well as the essential red cloth and firecrackers for building the main house."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. It's just about the vegetables... hehe, Sister, plant more."
"Don't worry. Once the house is built, I'll immediately clear the wasteland to the south and build plastic greenhouses."
"Wasteland?" Ouyang Lei looked south. "Will that work?"
"The soil quality is the same as the plastic greenhouses from before the New Year. I have a way, so don't worry. In any case, you'll get half the amount of vegetables."
"I believe you, Sister. Do you need any help here?"
"No, you don't. After unloading the goods, you should leave quickly. My home doesn't have space to host you."
Faced with the messy Li family, Ouyang Lei indeed had no intention of staying. "I'll come to warm the house then."
"Don't bother. I'll be busy with farming and won't have time to specifically warm the house. If you really want to visit, come after the spring plowing."
After the goods were unloaded, Ouyang Lei was sent away. Lin Guangde was allowed to stay and help. Tian Jing didn't turn him away.
This made Lin Guangde’s heart swell with excitement. He had been recognized by the great hero!
Great Hero Tian Jing... 'Thinking too much is a disease.'