Although it was impossible to set up a greenhouse with the current conditions, it was still possible to grow some things indoors.
As soon as she thought of it, Shen Xiaoyan immediately rummaged through the leftover vegetable seeds.
But where to plant them?
Shen Xiaoyan looked around the room. The floor was paved with black bricks, and she couldn't possibly pry them up, could she?
Putting the seeds on the kang table, Shen Xiaoyan rested her chin on her hand and pondered.
Seeing her deep in thought, Luo Luo didn't disturb her and lay obediently by her side, closing her eyes to sleep.
Shen Xiaoyan's thoughts led her directly to Zheng Wei.
When Zheng Wei entered the room, he saw Shen Xiaoyan sitting there, her face full of contemplation, wondering what she was thinking. He couldn't help but ask, "Mimi, what are you thinking about?"
"You're back?"
Hearing Zheng Wei's voice above her head, Shen Xiaoyan instinctively raised her head and then saw Zheng Wei looking at her with concern.
"Nothing, where did you go? What time is it now?" Shen Xiaoyan asked quickly.
"Nothing much, just went for a walk. It's only been half an hour," Zheng Wei said, sitting down beside Shen Xiaoyan.
He had originally planned to go out and see the situation outside. Since they lived far away and there were no other houses around, he was stunned as soon as he stepped out of the courtyard gate.
The snow outside was very deep, perfectly flat, with not a single footprint. It was clear that no one had been there, not even animals.
Stepping onto the snowy ground, Zheng Wei's foot sank in.
He spent a little over half an hour, but he didn't get very far. Looking at the main road, it was all white snow, and he couldn't see a single person.
The snow on the main road was also very thick, making it impossible to drive a carriage. It seemed they wouldn't be able to go to town either.
There was no other way, so Zheng Wei had to return home.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the house, he saw Shen Xiaoyan sitting there alone, her face lost in thought, wondering what she was thinking.
After Shen Xiaoyan heard Zheng Wei's account of the situation outside, she became even less inclined to go out.
She might as well figure out how to grow vegetables, as it might be a good way to earn money.
Immediately, Shen Xiaoyan shared her idea with Zheng Wei. Zheng Wei agreed that it was a good idea, but then asked, "It's a good idea, but won't it be very tiring?"
He wasn't afraid of hardship, but he was concerned about Shen Xiaoyan. He felt sorry for this little woman.
Seeing that he agreed, Shen Xiaoyan became even more excited and immediately said, "What's tiring about it? It's not much effort. Besides, we'll start by planting a small amount. If it's successful, we can plant more later, which will be less troublesome?"
Since they both agreed, they immediately started thinking about where to plant them.
"How about we use wide wooden strips to make some shallow boxes without lids, fill them with soil, and use them? That should be perfect," Shen Xiaoyan suggested. After thinking for a moment, she added, "But where can we find someone to make them at this time?"
As Zheng Wei had just said, they couldn't go out. This situation would last for at least a few more days.
Zheng Wei thought for a moment and said, "Since we're just experimenting for now, let's weave one with bamboo strips. We can pad the bottom with a wooden board, and we don't have to worry about the soil leaking."
This was a good idea. They still had a lot of bamboo and wood at home, which they had cut back before but hadn't used up.
After Zheng Wei finished speaking, he went to the side courtyard and soon returned with a bundle of bamboo and wood.
He split the bamboo and wood into strips and then began to weave.
Shen Xiaoyan's craftsmanship wasn't very refined, so she just watched at the moment and didn't help.
Before long, Zheng Wei wove a square box about a foot wide.
Shen Xiaoyan took it and examined it carefully. She couldn't help but want to laugh. It was indeed exquisite, but it was too small. How many vegetable leaves could grow in it?
Zheng Wei saw her expression and knew what she was thinking. He then said, "I'm just showing you how it's done. If you think it's okay, I'll weave a larger one."
Shen Xiaoyan then realized she had misunderstood. She felt a little embarrassed but didn't say anything, just urged Zheng Wei to hurry up and weave.
After another half hour, Zheng Wei wove three more bamboo boxes, each about a meter square. Shen Xiaoyan exclaimed that they were great. Then Zheng Wei went to find wooden boards to pad them. The remaining task was to find soil.
There was soil in the courtyard, but it was currently covered by the heavy snow. To dig up the soil, they would have to shovel away the snow first.
Shen Xiaoyan looked outside. The snow was still falling, but she really wanted to get started now. What could she do?
Zheng Wei saw Shen Xiaoyan's thoughts and found it amusing.
This little woman was like this. No matter what she started, she had to see it through completely, or she would feel restless.
Since this was the only request the little woman had, what could he refuse?
"Shall we go out and dig for soil?" Zheng Wei asked.
Shen Xiaoyan's eyes lit up when she heard this. "Can we?"
Zheng Wei nodded emphatically. "Of course."
Since Zheng Wei agreed, Shen Xiaoyan immediately ran outside excitedly.
Zheng Wei followed behind, watching Shen Xiaoyan's figure. He thought to himself that perhaps the little woman didn't know how captivating she was when she looked at him with bright, expectant eyes.
The two of them came to the courtyard together. After Shen Xiaoyan stood in the snow, she realized she hadn't brought anything.
Shen Xiaoyan felt awkward. What should she do? Use her hands?
Turning her head, she saw Zheng Wei walking towards them with two shovels in his hands.
Taking a shovel from Zheng Wei, they began to bend down and shovel snow.
They focused on one spot, clearing away all the snow there. Shen Xiaoyan then quickly returned to the house and took out the three large and one small box she had prepared earlier, shoveling soil into each of them.
Shen Xiaoyan used a small trowel to level the soil in the boxes, ensuring that the soil surface in each box was about two to three centimeters from the top edge of the box.
As Shen Xiaoming walked out of the house, he saw his eldest sister and brother-in-law standing in the courtyard without umbrellas, busy with something.
Walking over quickly, Shen Xiaoming came to their side.
"Eldest sister, brother-in-law, what are you two doing?"
The soil in the boxes had been leveled. Zheng Wei put down the two shovels and walked onto the veranda with Shen Xiaoyan.
"Your eldest sister wants to grow some vegetables indoors, so we're digging up some soil," Zheng Wei said, gently patting the dirt off Shen Xiaoyan's shoulder.
"You can still grow things in this weather?" Shen Xiaoming looked at them suspiciously.
Shen Xiaoyan snorted, "You'll know if they grow or not in the future."
After speaking, she ignored Shen Xiaoming and, with Zheng Wei, carried a box towards the house.
Seeing this, Shen Xiaoming also bent down and picked up the small box, about a foot square, and carried it directly into the house.
All four boxes were carried into the study and placed directly on the kang bed.
This kang was not for sleeping, but for eating or sitting and talking.
Fortunately, the kang was large enough. Otherwise, if these boxes were placed on it, there would be no room to sit.