She Only Cares About Cultivation-Chapter 902 - 819: Famine Era 60 (Second Update)

Due to harsh conditions, Xiao Xiao’s entire pregnancy was quite difficult. Since she had average food intake and was already a slender person, her belly didn’t show much as the months went by. During Spring and Autumn, it wasn’t noticeable, but in summer, one could somewhat see her protruding belly.

The couple finally found happiness after hardship, but few people knew the inside story. Outsiders said that their family didn’t resemble one another and even had different surnames. Xiao Xiao just smiled and said nothing in response. She told outsiders that the eldest son had Tong Zhan’s real surname, the second son had the surname of Tong Zhan’s adoptive father, the daughter had Xiao Xiao’s surname, and when asked about the third child, Xiao Xiao smiled and said, "If it’s a boy, the surname is Liu; if it’s a girl, the surname remains Xiao."

Cultivating land in Xinjiang was extremely arduous, not only due to the harsh local weather, but also because the farming tools were not handy and the land was hard.

Large harvesters and tractors had not yet been matched up here. Since it’s a newly developed area, everything was the result of the warriors’ hard work, using hoes and shovels.

All were eighteen or nineteen-year-olds. It’s a pity they were born in this era; under circumstances where they could barely take care of themselves, she didn’t dare to stand out too much.

If we’re talking about the 1990s, she could start a small business, earn some money, and happily help others out. In this era, if she did such attention-grabbing things, she would surely be reported. After all, everyone’s wages were fixed, so why would you have spare money to help others? Where did your spare money come from?

Together, the couple had an income of eighty yuan a month.

Before Xiao Xiao came, space accumulated a lot of things, so until now, there had been no opportunity to spend anything. The family of four lived at the team headquarters, spending thirty yuan a month on food and receiving thirty or forty jin of food stamps. Although there wasn’t much oil and food quality wasn’t great, there were many grains, which made them satisfactorily full.

Xinjiang’s summer scenery was beautiful, but unfortunately, they hadn’t started breeding livestock here yet. Otherwise, the children might have had the chance to drink fresh dairy products.

According to Tong Zhan, in the Hetian Region where Ye Yu lived, they had already started raising cattle and sheep, and every household’s children received subsidies. It seemed that eating meat in Xinjiang was more convenient than eating vegetables, but due to the size of the area, the situation varied slightly from place to place.

For example, here, if the land was suitable for cultivation, there wouldn’t be any herding. Even if there was herding, only a certain range would be fenced off, not the whole area.

This year, every household’s earth cave front was planted with vegetables, such as zucchinis, tomatoes, cucumbers, chili, etc. The group headquarters planted watermelons, melons, tomatoes, and other vegetables, along with wheat and various beans and crops. The diversity was much greater than last year because the land area increased compared to last year.

The area in front of the house was quite large, and if they couldn’t finish the vegetables harvested, they’d secretly store them in space to keep fresh. When the weather turned cold, they didn’t have to worry about having nothing to eat.

Life quietly passed, working when the sun rose and resting when it set, in a very plain manner. Everyone was busily engaged with their life. Every day, both adults and children were occupied with their own tasks, without thinking about anything else. Because the moment they finished their work and lay down on the hot bed was the most comfortable time each day.

In November 1961, Xiao Xiao gave birth to her first son with Tong Zhan, Liu Zhengrong, at the team headquarters’ infirmary, inspired by the phrase "The towering crimson clouds in the west, below the sun’s foot, flat ground," hoping this child would grow to be a courageous man like a majestic mountain peak.

Xiao Xiao didn’t trouble anyone for her postpartum period because Tong Zhan personally attended to her, from cleaning to taking care of the child. He handled everything himself, washing the diapers personally. He didn’t get the chance with the previous kids, but this time he couldn’t possibly let his wife undergo hardship.

Fortunately, Xiao Xiao’s milk supply was abundant, with no problem in feeding the baby. As her postpartum period happened during the winter retreat, the room had a heated bed, yet still felt drafty at times. To protect herself from catching postpartum ailments, Tong Zhan tried many ways to insulate the room.

Since winter required no labor outside, and there was thick snow on the ground, they didn’t need to haul water from outside. The snow water collected could be melted and ensure their water needs during winter. This era had no pollution, so the snow water was very clean, even suitable for drinking.

Xiao Xiao’s postpartum month was entirely spent staying indoors. During the winter retreat, Tong Zhan had no tasks, allowing her a good chance to rest. After all, with a newborn being so restless, it made it difficult for both big and young ones to sleep well, especially Xiao Xiao. Whenever the baby slept during the day, Tong Zhan would urge her to sleep promptly.