The north wind is strong and the temperature is getting lower and lower. When people are outside the house, they can only feel some warmth by standing under the sun.

After the winter break, Zhao Xueer took everyone to dig sweet potatoes in their own plot while the sun was shining at noon.

Yun Xiaotang put on her new cotton shoes and squirmed in the yard. She was full of embarrassment and said, "I'll replace my shoes with old cotton shoes first. I'm afraid the new shoes will get dirty."

After saying this, everyone laughed.

When Zhao Tianer heard this, he agreed very much and said, "My sister is right, I also want to change to old cotton shoes."

After saying that, he quickly ran into the main room, followed his sister, and changed into new shoes.

Zhao Xueer and Dou Hongxia looked at each other and changed their shoes.

Afterwards, everyone carried the tools together and headed to the private plot.

On the way, I met many commune members who were going to the back mountains. Everyone took advantage of the good weather to collect some firewood and go home.

In winter, firewood consumption is high, so not only the earthen stove must be kept, but also the brazier must be used to warm the fire.

In this era, there were no other heating tools. The cotton batting at home may have been covered for more than ten years, and it has become tattered cotton batting, and it does not provide much warmth.

During the coldest days, it would be difficult to survive the winter without a fire to keep warm.

...

After greeting the members I met, I walked to the private area.

The sweet potato leaves are green and lush, which is a rare touch of life in winter.

"The tender tips on the sweet potato leaves can be fried and eaten. They are called sweet potato tips."

As Zhao Xueer walked into the sweet potato field, she reached out and pinched a sweet potato tip in her hand and showed it to everyone.

Dou Hongxia came over, pinched off the sweet potato tip and looked at it, "This sweet potato tip is quite tender, and it's good for making soup."

Yun Xiaotang and Zhao Tian'er squatted down and began to pinch the tips of the sweet potato and got busy.

Zhao Xueer and Dou Hongxia followed behind and pulled sweet potatoes, and the four of them worked together in this way.

Xiao Ping'an squatted on the ridge of the field, pulling up dead weeds on the ground. He was having fun pulling out the weeds, and he was laughing there by himself.

The sweet potatoes in this field are growing really well. The sweet potatoes pulled out one after another are fat and big. They may weigh twenty or thirty kilograms in two bamboo baskets.

"This winter, I don't have to worry about eating these sweet potatoes." Dou Hongxia joked with a smile.

"This sweet potato looks very sweet. I can make it into sweet potato steamed buns and eat it when I go back."

Zhao Xueer squatted down, picked up the bamboo basket filled with sweet potatoes and said.

"Sister, there are roasted sweet potatoes as well. Roasted sweet potatoes are delicious." Upon hearing this, Yun Xiaotang quickly interjected.

Zhao Tian'er nodded in agreement. The roasted sweet potatoes were delicious, fragrant and sweet.

"Okay~ There are also roasted sweet potatoes. I'll bake them for you tomorrow."

Seeing her younger siblings blinking at her, Zhao Xueer felt extremely soft in her heart.

How many winter days did they cling to each other and live on roasted sweet potatoes.

When she got home, Zhao Xueer washed a sweet potato, peeled it and cut it into pieces for everyone to try.

Yun Xiaotang picked up a piece and ate it, it made a "kacha" sound, it was crispy and sweet.

Zhao Xueer washed a few more sweet potatoes, cut them into pieces and steamed them in a pot until the sweet potatoes were cooked and glutinous.

While the sweet potatoes were steaming, she began to wash the picked sweet potato tips. After washing the vegetables, her hands were also red from the cold.

At this time, a steaming enamel cup was raised in front of her.

As soon as she lowered her head, she met her sister's smiling face.

"Sister, please cover your hands to keep them warm. Your fingers are all red."

Zhao Xueer took it with a smile. She originally wanted to rub her sister's head, but was afraid that her hands would freeze her.

Instead, Yun Xiaotang took the hand she extended and covered it with her two small hands, trying to make her warmer.

Zhao Xueer held a cup in one hand and her other hand was held by her sister, standing in the winter yard, feeling the warmth at this moment.

"Yeah, the sweet potatoes should be steamed."

Zhao Xueer suddenly remembered that there were still steaming sweet potatoes in the pot, and hurriedly put down the cup and ran to the kitchen to take a look.

Dou Hongxia came out of the main room and walked quickly to the kitchen, "I'll go take a look."

When I opened the lid of the pot, white steam came to my face. The bright yellow sweet potatoes had been steamed. I picked up the kuai and poked them. They were soft and waxy.

Put the steamed sweet potatoes into the basin, Dou Hongxia took a spoon and pressed the sweet potatoes into a lake-shaped sweet potato puree.

He took out the cornmeal from the cabinet, scooped two spoons of it and put it on top of the mashed sweet potatoes.

Next, just put them together and knead them into a dough.

Zhao Xueer also entered the kitchen at this time and helped make the noodles together.

The dough was quickly kneaded, cut into balls, rolled into balls and steamed in a pot.

Today, they cooked dinner very early, and the sun had just moved to the west.

A ray of sunset shines through the dead branches of the elm trees in the yard, leaving mottled marks on the ground.

Yun Xiaotang, Zhao Tian'er, and Ping An moved stools and sat at the door of the hall. The three of them sat in a row, looking at the sky in that part of the yard.

Pingan was sitting on the stool, and her cartilage would slide down after a while. Yun Xiaotang helped her straighten her body and sit up.

Ping An grinned again and pointed to the sky, "Sister, bird~"

Yun Xiaotang followed her hand and saw that a few geese were flying rapidly to the south.

It's this time of year, and this bird looks like it's alone.

...

In the kitchen, Zhao Xueer and Dou Hongxia were sitting next to the earthen stove, adding firewood and looking at the pot of steaming sweet potato buns.

The orange flame burned the earthen stove brightly, and the whole kitchen was very warm.

Zhao Xueer looked at the firewood pile and saw that there was not much firewood left. They had to take advantage of the good weather to pick up more firewood and come back.

It’s time to burn a brazier at home.

The steam overflowing from the pot became thicker and thicker, and the water in the pot gurgled and rolled violently.

She lifted the lid and saw that the water in the center of the pot was almost dry, and the buns on the edge of the pot were all steamed.

Take out the buns and put them into a basin. One side of the buns is still crispy, it is the side that is close to the pot for steaming.

After that, she added water to the pot and prepared to cook the wild cabbage soup.

Let Aunt Dou guard the soup while she carries the steamed buns back to the main room.

As soon as I walked out of the kitchen door, I saw three children sitting in a row at the door of the main room, looking very well-behaved.

Zhao Xueer couldn't help laughing, "Chun'er, Tian'er, take away the stools, we're going to have dinner."

Yun Xiaotang and Zhao Tianer immediately stood up and moved the stools back to the table.

Ping An also struggled to slide down from the stool, and was hugged by Yun Xiaotang, helping her to stand firm.

Zhao Tianer was behind and helped move the stool back.

At this time, Dou Hongxia came out of the kitchen with the sweet potato tip soup. The sweet potato tip was tender and did not need to be cooked for a long time. If cooked for a long time, the leaves would become old and the taste would not be good.

Eat a mouthful of steamed buns and drink a mouthful of sweet potato soup, and your stomach will feel warm.

After dinner, it was getting dark, and the winter night sky was pitch black.

When the kerosene lamp was lit, there was light in the house.

Zhao Xueer boiled hot water to scald everyone's feet. After scalding their feet, they locked the door and went back to their rooms to sleep.
Chapter completed!