readsfreenovel Chapter 41 officially begins!
Chapter 41 officially begins!
She said this, but her eyes swept over the three faces, and she secretly chuckled as she saw the gossip gleam in their eyes.
Once this gets out, she won't need to embellish it further; people will naturally spread it even more outrageously.
Sure enough, the atmosphere in the family compound was a little different the next morning.
Many aunties started saying that something seemed off about the marriage of the Bai brothers.
However, these words have not yet reached the ears of the person in question.
Another day passed, and the toilet repairs officially began.
Early that morning, Bai Rongbei and Bai Si'an got up before dawn, went to the battalion headquarters to borrow tools, and asked a few comrades with whom they had a good relationship to help them.
The three who arrived were young officers, all of whom were technical backbones of the regiment and familiar with Bai Si'an.
One of them was named Chen Jianjun. He was tall, had a dark face, and a loud voice.
One of them was named Liu Aiguo, who wore glasses and was very polite.
There was another one named Zhao Dayong, who was burly and strong.
"Technician Bai, you're really something! Starting such a major construction project right after moving in!"
As soon as Chen Jianjun entered the yard, he started shouting. His eyes lit up when he saw the mountain of materials. "Wow, cement! Bricks! And chamber pots! What are they building? A bathhouse?"
"Fix the toilet," Baisian said, handing over a pack of cigarettes.
The three comrades took the cigarettes and were stunned.
"Fixing...the toilet?" Zhao Dayong scratched his head. "You called all of us brothers here just for that?"
"Hmm." Bai Si'an nodded. "I'm not used to dry toilets, let's get a clean one."
Liu Aiguo adjusted his glasses and smiled, "I understand. Your wife is from the city, right? It's normal for her to be a little particular."
Just then, Lin Weiwei and Su Wanwan came out of the house.
Both of them changed into old clothes. Lin Weiwei wore a faded blue cotton shirt, while Su Wanwan wore a dusty gray shirt and had her hair wrapped in a towel, looking like she was about to get to work.
"Hey, sister-in-law!" Chen Jianjun greeted them first, his eyes sweeping back and forth between Lin Weiwei and Su Wanwan, his expression somewhat subtle.
He had obviously heard rumors too.
Bai Rongbei walked over and gave a brief introduction: "These are Chen Jianjun, Liu Aiguo, and Zhao Dayong. They are all technicians from the regiment, here to help out."
Lin Weiwei waved generously: "Hello, comrades! Thank you for your hard work!"
Su Wanwan also said softly, "Thank you everyone."
"It's no trouble at all!" Zhao Dayong smiled憨厚ly. "We're all comrades-in-arms, it's what I should do."
Liu Aiguo glanced at the two girls, then at the Bai brothers, a knowing look flashing in his eyes, but said nothing.
All the tools were brought over: shovels, picks, trowels, mortar buckets, spirit levels, and a few saws and hammers.
Bai Rongbei called everyone to the middle of the courtyard and began assigning tasks.
"Da Yong and I dug the hole, Si An and Ai Guo laid the bricks, and Jian Jun mixed the mortar. Lin Weiwei and Su Wanwan..."
He paused, then looked at the two girls, "You two are in charge of handing things over and helping out."
"Sure!" Lin Weiwei rolled up her sleeves. "We'll do anything you ask!"
Su Wanwan nodded, "We will definitely study hard."
Before starting work, Bai Rongbei first used lime powder to draw lines in the yard.
The toilet was located in the southwest corner of the yard, about ten meters away from the house, downwind.
According to the drawing by Bai Si'an, a pit 1.5 meters square and 2 meters deep should be dug, with bricks laid at the bottom and cement plastered on top, and a house built on top.
After Bai Rongbei finished drawing the lines, Zhao Dayong picked up a shovel and went upstairs.
"Watch this!" He shoveled down, sending yellow earth flying.
Bai Rongbei also picked up a pickaxe and began digging.
The soil in the Gobi Desert is hard, with a sandy surface layer and then compacted loess mixed with gravel.
The two worked hard and were soon drenched in sweat.
Lin Weiwei and Su Wanwan stood by and watched, wanting to help but unable to get involved.
"Um...should we mix the ash first?" Lin Weiwei asked.
Bai Si'an and Liu Aiguo were tidying up the bricks when they heard this and looked up: "You don't know how? Wait for Jianjun to come."
Chen Jianjun is already mixing cement.
He poured cement and sand onto the ground in the correct proportions, piled them into a small hill, dug a pit in the middle, and poured water into it.
"There's a trick to this job," he explained as he worked. "The water can't be too much or too little. Too much water makes the mortar too runny and it won't hold together properly; too little water makes the mortar too dry and it won't stick."
Lin Weiwei leaned closer to look: "What's the ratio?"
"The usual ratio is one to three: one part cement to three parts sand," Chen Jianjun said, mixing the mixture with a shovel. "If you're plastering a wall, you'll need to add some lime paste for a smoother finish."
Su Wanwan listened attentively, and although she didn't understand, she remembered it.
Over there, Bai Rongbei and Zhao Dayong had already dug half a meter deep.
As the pit narrowed, Zhao Dayong simply jumped in and stood in it, throwing dirt up.
Bai Rongbei took over from above and piled the soil to one side.
"Commander Bai, you've got some stamina!" Zhao Dayong laughed, panting. "You've dug this deep without even breaking a sweat."
Bai Rongbei didn't say anything, took a shovel of soil, and poured it onto the mound.
He took off his military jacket, leaving him in only a white vest, his back already soaked with sweat.
The muscles in his arms tensed and became clearly defined with the movement.
Su Wanwan glanced at him secretly, her face flushed slightly, and she quickly lowered her head.
Lin Weiwei ran over to Bai Si'an to watch him lay bricks.
Bai Si'an and Liu Aiguo have already started building the bottom of the pit.
First, lay a layer of cement mortar as a base layer, then place the bricks one by one on it, tamp them down with a trowel, and then level it with a spirit level.
He worked very carefully, making sure each brick was aligned perfectly, scraping off any excess mortar from the joints and patching up any missing mortar.
When his right leg is inconvenient, he squats or kneels on one knee, shifting his weight onto his left leg.
Lin Weiwei noticed that his right leg would tremble slightly every time he changed his posture, but he would quickly adjust and continue working.
"Here's some water." Lin Weiwei handed over the water bottle.
Bai Si'an stopped what he was doing, took the water bottle, and tilted his head back to drink a few mouthfuls. His Adam's apple bobbed, and sweat streamed down his neck.
"Thank you." He handed the kettle back.
Lin Weiwei took it and asked softly, "Does your leg hurt?"
Bai Si'an paused, glanced at her, and shook his head: "It doesn't hurt."
He lowered his head and continued laying bricks, without saying another word.
Lin Weiwei pursed her lips and didn't ask any more questions.
She knew he didn't want to talk about it.
As the morning sun rose higher, the temperature on the Gobi Desert began to soar.
The courtyard was bustling with activity; people were digging holes, laying bricks, and mixing mortar, all drenched in sweat.
Lin Weiwei and Su Wanwan were also busy, handing bricks to one person and water to another, and even learning how to mix mortar.
The first time I mixed it, I added too much water, and the mortar was as thin as porridge.
Chen Jianjun was both amused and exasperated: "Sister-in-law, are you trying to play with the mud?"
Lin Weiwei blushed: "I...I'll try again."
The second time, too little water was added, and the mortar became so dry that it couldn't be mixed.
Su Wanwan whispered, "Weiwei, how about... we let Comrade Chen do it?"
Lin Weiwei was unconvinced: "I'll try again!"
The third time, she carefully added water, little by little, stirring as she added it.
Finally, the mortar reached the right consistency.
"It's done!" Lin Weiwei exclaimed happily.
Chen Jianjun came over, took a look, and nodded: "This time it's good. Not bad, you learn quickly."
Lin Weiwei winked at Su Wanwan triumphantly.
Su Wanwan smiled and gave her a thumbs up.