After being jilted, the entire neighboring village was filled with deep regret.

Chapter 23 Su Ming Gets Sick
The noodle soup with rabbit meat and wild vegetables was no longer the watery soup that used to be so thin you could see your face in it. Everyone ate their fill, and not only the children, but even the adults were as happy as if it were New Year's Day.

Before Shen Yi left, Su Chunlin insisted on stuffing half a basket of eggs into his hands, which shocked Su Tai.

"Mom, where did Dad get the eggs?"

Han chuckled, "Isn't it because Shen Yi gave so much grain that your father kept thinking about it? He knew that even if he was given money, he wouldn't accept it, so he secretly found someone to exchange it for eggs and has been saving them up for a while now."

These days, people can't even get enough to eat, and very few families can afford to raise chickens. Eggs are very precious. This half basket of eggs was bought with copper coins or exchanged for grain. It's worth at least five hundred coins.

After seeing Shen Yi off, Su Chunlin and Su Zhan closed the fence gate of their house tightly and bolted the wooden door of the main room, officially beginning their hibernation.

From now on, family members should stay in bed and huddle under the covers to reduce activity. If they don't move around, they won't go hungry, so they can eat less and save food.

This makes it convenient for Su Moss to work in the soil.

Currently, Tu Shikong only has one mu of land. The upgrade requirement is to submit 1,000 jin of crops. Tu Shikong has already deducted 250 jin of wheat, leaving 750 jin short. There are no variety requirements for this crop, so she now needs to allocate one-third of the land to grow vegetables.

Vegetables have a shorter maturation cycle than wheat, which helps her level up and accumulate virtual currency quickly. The wheat seedlings that were cleared out were not wasted; they were sold directly to the automated trading platform, earning her 30 virtual currency.

After planting the vegetables, Su Tai felt much more relaxed and began to plan how to get through the long winter.

The Su Chunlin couple next door were discussing how to manage their household food supplies.

“Honey, Shen Yi originally gave us forty catties of grain, and with what we had saved before, we still had fifty-six catties left. If our whole family tightened our belts and saved, we could still make it until spring. But you took ten catties to exchange for eggs, and with what we’ve eaten during this time, we now only have forty-three catties left. I’m afraid we won’t last until March!” Madam Han sighed, her brows furrowed with worry.

Su Chunlin frowned as well, "We still have some silver on hand. If all else fails, I'll go to Shen Yi to buy some more grain."

Since I've already lost face once, I'm not afraid to do it again.

These words eased Han's brows somewhat, but she dared not truly relax, and instead asked, "Will your eldest brother's family come back for the New Year?"

If Su Chunsen's family were to return to the village for the Spring Festival, they would have to prepare more food.

Su Chunlin shook his head decisively, his expression serious. "You ask this every year, and I answer it every year, but when have you ever seen my eldest brother's family come back? Besides, they have nowhere to stay even if they come back!"

Although half of the house he lives in was built with the help of Su Chunsen, there is really no extra room in the house. Su Zhan and Su Ming, the two brothers, are still crammed into one room.

Han sighed helplessly, "If we had extra money, we would have to build two more rooms. Putting aside everything else, Zhan is getting older and will have to get married in the future. We need to prepare a new room for him. I don't care about other families' situations, but our family must leave a room for Xiaotai. Otherwise, she will have nowhere to rest when she goes back to her parents' home."

We also need to prepare one or two guest rooms. If there are extra rooms, you can confidently invite your older brother to come back for the New Year, right?

These words deeply moved Su Chunlin.

As the couple talked, they rolled into the bed curtains.

Su Tai had been listening intently, but the more she listened, the more uneasy she felt. Her face turned as red as a ripe shrimp. She secretly thought to herself, "No wonder there are so many pregnant women in ancient times in spring. It seems that couples locked up together in the dead of winter have nothing else to do for amusement except this activity."

This situation is likely to continue, and to avoid eavesdropping, she needs to help the family earn money as soon as possible.

Once she has money, her parents' wishes can be fulfilled, and she can also have a quiet little house of her own.

A month later, the vegetable seeds that Su Tai had planted sprouted and grew, and she realized that they were cabbages.

The maturity cycle of cabbage is related to the sowing season, variety, and various growing conditions. The planting conditions in Tu Shi Kong are optimal. In just thirty days, the cabbage has grown to almost full size. It seems that Shen Yi gave her an early-maturing variety, and it can be harvested in about half a month.

Su Tai was delighted and silently calculated the harvest time.

Before she could even enjoy her happiness for a few days, the Su family's door was pounded on loudly, startling the family who were hibernating.

Su Chunlin opened the door first and went out. Seeing that it was Su Changxi, he quickly invited him inside, "Why did you come out in this cold weather?"

Su Changxi heard the worry in Su Chunlin's words and shook his head solemnly. "I have to come out. There's a cold outbreak in our village. Three elderly people died five days ago, and since then, more and more people have died every day. Seven more died today. I really can't sit still anymore. I'm going from house to house asking, 'Does anyone in your family have a sick person?'"

Su Chunlin was shocked and shook his head repeatedly, "Our family doesn't have it, are other families' cases serious?"

"It's serious! How could it not be serious! Six babies are gone, one of them wasn't even a month old! Poor thing, first there was the drought, and now there's the cold. Why is it so hard to live!" Su Changxi lamented, wiping away tears and slapping his thigh.

Seeing that Su Chunlin's family was alright, she quickly wiped away her tears and went to the next house.

Han was frightened. As soon as Su Changxi left, she immediately checked each of the children.

At first everything was fine, but in the evening, Su Zhan suddenly rushed into Su Chunlin's room in a panic, shouting, "Father, Mother, my little brother has a fever."

Su Chunlin was so frightened that he rolled off the bed onto the floor, and Han Shi burst into tears before she even got off the bed.

The commotion was so loud that Su Tai was also awakened.

When she finished dressing and came out of the house, candles had already been lit. Only Su Chunlin and Han Shi were in Su Ming's room. The couple refused to let Su Zhan and Su Tai in no matter what they said.

The two could only stand outside the door, anxiously looking around.

"Father, Mother, is my little brother's condition serious?" Su Tai asked worriedly.

Han looked like the sky was about to fall and couldn't answer the question at all.

Su Chunlin's voice was muffled, "I have a fever."

"Is his forehead very hot? Did he say he was afraid of the cold, or how was his mental state?" Su Tai continued to ask.

Following Su Tai's words, Su Chunlin examined Su Ming and said, "He's not in good spirits. He's very tired and cold."

That means the temperature is still rising. In ancient times, when medical conditions were poor, a cold could really be fatal.

Thinking of this, Su Tai hurriedly said, "Father, we can't just sit here and wait to die, we have to find a doctor."

"Yes! Find a doctor, find a doctor quickly!" Madam Han seemed to have grasped at a straw, her face filled with urgency.

Su Chunlin reassured him repeatedly, "Okay, okay, we'll find a doctor. I'll go find a doctor when it's light."

"Dad, I'll go with you. The more people there are, the more help we can have," Su Tai said through gritted teeth.

Mrs. Han initially wanted to object, but then she thought that her daughter had recovered and was more composed than her husband and daughter when faced with problems. Letting her daughter go with them might not be a bad thing, so she did not stop her.

(End of this chapter)