The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

"Wonderful! The mechanism is not complicated, you could even say it's very basic, but the ingenuity is truly amazing!" Xiong Bo quickly figured out the principle behind the hot pot and stove.

"What is that solid alcohol? May I take a look?"

"Here you go, Uncle Bear." Ya Ya took out another lump of solid alcohol and handed it over.

Xiong Bo looked at the small square wrapped in silver paper in his palm. The paper felt brittle and was somewhat like iron. He wondered how it was made.

He carefully unwrapped the silver paper, staring at the translucent, white, paste-like object in his palm. His brows furrowed tightly, and his nose twitched slightly.

Everyone else in the room watched him silently. This Xiong craftsman was knowledgeable and extremely capable. He quickly disassembled the flashlight into pieces. He was quick-witted and resourceful. If he could keep thinking about it, the village's electrical gadgets could be put to use as soon as possible.

Xiong Bo carefully touched the alcohol with his fingertip, then immediately withdrew it and brought it to his nose to sniff. It smelled of alcohol, an extremely strong smell of alcohol!

It had an even stronger aroma than the strongest liquor he had ever smelled.

How could this be?

Wine is all flowing water, how could it possibly solidify into such a paste-like consistency?

Alcohol?

A spirit transformed from wine?

"May I try lighting it with fire?" Xiong Bo asked, pointing with his finger.

Fang Tiesheng took a lighter out of his pocket and handed it to him, saying, "This will light up as soon as you press it."

Xiong Bo looked at him with an expression that said, "Why didn't you tell me you had this? You're being so wary of me." He took the lighter, pressed it lightly with his hand, and a flame shot out.

The moment a spark touched it, a pale blue flame suddenly flared up, sticking firmly to the paste called alcohol, and a wave of heat wafted out.

"Hiss, oh oh oh oh oh~~~~"

Xiong Bo looked at the flames erupting from his hand, feeling burned and regressing to his ancestral state. He couldn't bear to throw away the alcohol, so he held the alcohol block and howled wildly.

Fang Tiesheng reacted quickly, grabbing the damp cloth he had used to wipe his hands and wrapping it around the fire, extinguishing it in no time.

"How could you be so reckless? You just lit it while holding it in your hands! It's one thing if you get burned, but what if it spreads to the house!" Zhao Hu jumped up, his thick eyebrows bristling.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm used to it." Xiong Bo calmed down and quickly bowed to the people in the room to apologize.

His hands were fine, the fire went out quickly, and he had thick calluses on his hands.

Ya Ya stared at the bear uncle in shock. Was this the same bear uncle who did the juggling before? Jumping so high, holding fire in his hands, and still unharmed!

The village chief frowned. This person needed to be kept at a distance; he shouldn't cause trouble all the time and hurt others.

"How can such a thing be true? Water can carry fire and solidify into a form... Could it be the mystery of the Mustard Seed containing Mount Sumeru, or perhaps... our village can communicate with a celestial realm, and this is something from the celestial realm?! Did the immortals seal the fire in the wine into this paste? Could it be..."

Xiong Bo muttered to himself, his eyes growing brighter and brighter. Suddenly, he looked up and exclaimed, "You are all people who can communicate with the celestial realm?! Oh! So that's it! I understand now. No wonder there are so many inexplicable things in our village—they are all immortals! Which immortal would like to take me as a disciple? Immortal Fang, Immortal Master Fang, please accept me as your apprentice!"

Fang Tiesheng: ...

Zhao Hu: ...

The village chief stroked his beard. "As long as you are sincere, there will be more to come. First, learn to read well with Tiesheng and master that book as soon as possible. Also, get our village's solar power generation and pulse grid working properly. Consider this a test for you."

Xiong Bo: "Your disciple will remember this!"

Fang Tiesheng's expression was subtle. "You little rascal, trying to fool me, Little Bear."

After noting down the gist of what Nannan said, the village chief and his group went back to their own houses.

Tomorrow is the day when the food is cooked, the last day before the fire ban, when fires can be lit.

The next day is Cold Food Festival, and the ban on fire will be lifted after the festival.

(In ancient times, each family kept a fixed fire source throughout the year. The ancestors believed that accumulating old fire over the winter would breed disasters and epidemics. In spring, when the dragon star rises in the sky, it is easy to start wildfires. Therefore, a ritual was established that all old fires should be extinguished in mid-spring every year, and after a fire ban for several days, new fires should be obtained by drilling wood.)

This custom gradually evolved over time into a story commemorating Jie Zitui.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Prince Chong'er of the State of Jin was in exile for nineteen years, and his minister Jie Zitui followed him all the way. On the way, Chong'er fainted from hunger, and Jie Zitui cut off a piece of his own leg, cooked it, and fed him.

Later, when Chong'er became Duke Wen of Jin, he rewarded his followers, but Jie Zitui refused the reward and went into seclusion in Mianshan with his elderly mother.

Duke Wen of Jin wanted to force him to come out of the mountains, so he ordered the mountains to be set on fire on three sides. Jie Zitui and his mother hugged a willow tree and burned to death in the mountains.

Duke Wen of Jin was filled with grief and remorse, and decreed that on the day Jie Zitui died, no fires should be lit throughout the country, and only cold food should be eaten in remembrance. This is the origin of the Cold Food Festival.

After the Song Dynasty, the Cold Food Festival and the Qingming Festival gradually merged, and the custom of abstaining from fire slowly faded.

The villagers need to get up early to prepare enough food for the upcoming fire ban period. They'll be very busy and need to rest early.

……

Fine, dry grass was burning in the stove, and the flames silently licked at the firewood, sending warm, cozy smoke drifting out through the chimney.

Zhao Hu and Da Niu each carried two buckets of spring water and carefully placed them beside the stove.

"We need to get that well at the village entrance repaired in the next couple of days. Is your shoulder injury fully healed?" Zhao Hu asked Da Niu in a low voice.

"Dr. Chen said it's alright, I'll go with you in a bit. I checked when I came back earlier, the collapse wasn't deep. Now we have bricks, cement, and an entrenching tool, it'll be quick." Da Niu patted the small bag at his waist, turned around and carried half a bucket to the vegetable garden in the backyard, carefully watering the vegetables along the rows.

Ji Chuntao had already taken the pre-sifted flour out of the cellar and placed it on the round table in the yard.

Grandma Wang, Grandma Zhao, Niu Cuihua, Gou Ya, and a few others gathered around the table. There were also several bags filled with dried goods nearby. Fang Tiesheng and Xiong Bo were helping to sort the dried red dates.

After mixing warm water in the wooden basin, Ji Chuntao and Gou Ya rolled up their sleeves and started kneading the dough. Their hands were steady, and their fingertips pressed and kneaded repeatedly.

The initially loose flour gradually clumps together and is slowly kneaded until it becomes firm and smooth, and then it stops when it no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Cover it with a coarse cloth and let it rest for a while.

The sky outside the courtyard was still covered with a layer of bluish-gray, and everyone moved very quietly.

In a corner at the other end of the yard, Zhao Hu took some time to find a few old planks and dry grass, and led Xiao Douzi to build a new chicken coop.

Little Bean's eyelids drooped, sleepiness made his head nod, his steps were unsteady, and his little hands gripped the branches and stuck them into the soil. He would dig up small insects and throw them to feed the wild chickens.

"Why are you up so early?" Zhao Hu found it amusing.

"I... I'm waiting for the chicks to come. Grandpa Village Chief said he'll bring them back today." Little Bean yawned.

Zhao Hu reached out and ruffled his hair. "The chicks will arrive when it gets light."

The bluish-gray sky slowly dissipated, revealing a faint, pale white hue, and the sunlight gradually streamed into the courtyard.

Footsteps sounded outside the courtyard gate, and the village chief walked quickly over, carrying a small bamboo basket lined with dry grass.

When the basket was lifted, two fluffy, yellow chicks huddled together.

"Little chick!" Little Bean was instantly wide awake.

Gently take the chick from the village chief's hands, hold it in both hands, and slowly place it into the newly built chicken coop.

The chicks huddled together in the hay, occasionally flapping their still-developing little wings, their soft chirping filling the yard and adding a touch of lively energy to the quiet dawn of Lotus Village.