She Only Cares About Cultivation-Chapter 887 - 811: Famine Era 52

"But the weather over there, I’m afraid you’ll,"

"If my little sister can take it, why can’t I? Even if my body can’t handle it, it’s okay, as long as my spirit isn’t broken."

"Huanhuan, maybe you’re overthinking it, no one has that much time,"

You’re wrong, there really are people who have that much free time, even some of the top leaders went down during that **, let alone you?

Ye Huan couldn’t speak plainly, and could only insist on making these demands of him.

After this incident, Ye Huan became more vigilant around her colleagues, and her daily life became more low-key. Even when going out at night, she worried about being followed and was extremely cautious because she had decided to leave; she was determined to go, and after the summer harvest, the price of grain skyrocketed.

After no one was interested in the fruit from her family, they switched to selling grain, trading it for milk powder tickets, cloth tickets, tobacco and alcohol sideline foods, or medicines. Of course, if there were antique goods like gold and silver jewelry, she would accept those too.

For instance, twenty-one jin of grain on the market, she sold it for ten yuan per jin, eight yuan per jin, much cheaper than others, so naturally her business was extremely good.

Every time she went out, she would disguise herself, but not at the unit; instead, she would do it in a deserted place. If she discovered someone was following her (and someone really was following her), she would change her disguise to shake them off. So while others were still searching for her all over the streets, she might have already returned to her dorm to take care of the child.

Thus, after a certain year’s autumn harvest, the price of grain soared even higher, and reports of people starving to death or being poisoned emerged in various places.

Ye Huan’s family, because of the grain they had stored in previous years, though still going hungry, at least wouldn’t starve to death. At most, they were just not full, and Ye Huan occasionally sent a few things back home secretly, so the Ye Family fared relatively better that year.

At the end of the * year, Tong Zhan received approval to transfer, allowing him to be reassigned to a position as a regiment leader in an independent regiment in Xinjiang. Although it was not the same place as Ji Huzi, they were both part of the Xinjiang Construction Corps. The rank of Colonel meant Tong Zhan’s rank was higher than that of a typical regiment leader.

Due to this transfer order, Ye Huan couldn’t return to her hometown that year, and in fact, there was a disaster at home, with chaos everywhere, making it impossible to bring the child back; the journey was too taxing.

So, Ye Huan sent a bag of sweet potato slices to her home, along with a letter about their plans to go to Xinjiang after the new year.

The family now knew that the couple had adopted a pair of twins, so not returning home for the new year seemed understandable to them.

That year was spent in the midst of Ye Huan and Tong Zhan’s handover. On the 10th day of the first lunar month, the couple finished handling their family affairs and various relationships, gave away what needed to be given, packed what needed to be packed, and boarded the train to Xinjiang with a group of sent-down youths.

At the beginning of the * year, Liu Hongqing was four and a half years old, Danfeng Chaoyang was nine months old, Ye Huan was 30, and Tong Zhan was already 40 years old.

The train to Xinjiang was packed with people in each carriage, with no seats in these freight train carriages. When the train first started moving, it was filled with cries.

These were soldiers going to such a distant place for the first time; the male soldiers were the majority and the female soldiers the minority, naturally, it was the female soldiers who were crying, though the situation among the male soldiers wasn’t good either.

It was their first time away from their parents, away from their hometown, and as the cries reached their carriage, Ye Huan also sighed.

Due to Tong Zhan’s rank, the higher-ups assigned the couple a separate sleeper carriage. After all, they were bringing several children and were both going to support frontier development, so a certain amount of preferential treatment was given.

They were headed to Xinjiang, where it’s especially cold in February. Everyone wore heavy cotton clothing, and though their carriage was somewhat better since they had quilts, the young soldiers were not so fortunate. Using the toilet and other facilities was inconvenient, with people and bundles packed tightly in the carriage.

Supporting frontier development, for an unknown number of years, left everyone’s emotions low, which was a normal emotional response.

From time to time, Tong Zhan had to attend meetings outside, so Ye Huan stayed in the carriage with the three children, tending to their food and drink, ensuring they didn’t run or climb around.

When boarding, she carried one child in her arms, had another on her back, and Tong Zhan also carried one in his arms with luggage on his back. Two soldiers helped them with two large bundles of luggage, allowing them to laboriously board the train.

Ye Huan didn’t know if this step she took was the right one, but she knew that this decision not only spared Tong Zhan from disaster but also maintained his current position. She could also contribute what she had learned. Yes, enduring hardships was inevitable, but trading that for the peace and simplicity of the latter half of life seemed worthwhile to her.

So, whether right or wrong, since she had already decided, there was no room for regret.

Before leaving, she had steamed a lot of plain flour steamed buns. When the children were hungry, she would scrape off a little, soak it in hot water, sprinkle some sugar, and let them eat it. There was no oil or dish, and the white flour was for the children; the couple ate hard, difficult-to-chew vegetable nests, swallowing them with hot water.

Even though Tong Zhan was a regiment leader, in the face of grain shortages, everyone received only vegetable nests and hot water; wanting better food was quite difficult.

After all, the Construction Corps in the * year was actually tougher than in ’68. Back then, some places had been developed, whereas when they went, it was likely a barren wasteland.

By chance, Tong Zhan and his group were going precisely to open up a new corps.