The snow did not stop. It settled, a heavy, suffocating blanket that turned the world into a silent monochrome of white and gray. For three days, the village was cut off. The paths vanished, and the only sound was the wind howling through the rafters like a grieving spirit.
Inside the Chen household, the rhythm of life had narrowed to a single, desperate focus: the socks.
"One hundred pairs," Liu Shi announced, tying off the final thread with trembling fingers. She sat on the *kang*, her face illuminated by the dim yellow light of the oil lamp. The air in the room was thick with the smell of lanolin and the stale breath of too many people crowded into a small space.
Chen Yuan looked at the pile. It was a mountain of gray wool, each pair dense and scratchy, but undeniably warm.
"We finished," Chen Mei, the younger sister, whispered. Her eyes were red-rimmed and exhausted, but a small smile played on her lips. She rubbed her swollen knuckles.
"Good work," Chen Yuan said, his voice raspy from the dry air. He stood up, his joints popping. The stiffness in his body had become a permanent fixture. "I'll take them to Captain Liu tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" Wang Shi looked up from where she was mending a torn coat. "The snow is still deep. The cart won't move."
"The bull will move it," Chen Yuan said firmly. "The soldiers at the garrison need these now. If we wait for the snow to melt, the deep freeze will pass, and they won't need them as desperately. The price of warmth is highest in the heart of the storm."
He walked to the window and scraped a peephole in the frost. Outside, the wind was still whipping the snow into drifts.
"Prepare the bags," Chen Yuan ordered. "Little Stone and I will shovel a path to the main road tonight. We leave at dawn."
* * *
Dawn broke grey and silent.
Chen Yuan stepped out of the house, the cold instantly biting at his exposed cheeks. He was wrapped in layers of cotton and sheepskin, looking more like a bear than a man.
In the yard, Hei Tan was already hitched to the sled. The bull snorted, clouds of steam rising from his nostrils. He stamped his hooves, impatient.
"Easy," Chen Yuan said, patting the bull's neck. He checked the bindings on the sled. The sled was better than a cart in this weather—it slid over the snow rather than sinking into it.
Xu Tie walked out, carrying a spear. "I'm coming."
"Brother Xu, your leg..."
"My leg is fine in the cold," Xu Tie grunted, though he walked with a slight limp. "Better than in the damp. Besides, if we hit a drift, you need someone to dig."
They loaded the sacks of socks—bundled tightly in oilcloth—onto the sled.
"Let's go."
The journey to the village militia station was an arduous trek. The path Chen Yuan and Little Stone had shoveled the night before had partially filled in again. The sled groaned as it crunched over the hard-packed snow.
Hei Tan pulled with a steady, unstoppable force. His massive shoulders bunched as he leaned into the harness. The bull didn't hesitate. He simply walked, crushing the snow under his hooves.
As they passed the village entrance, a few faces peeked out from behind curtained windows.
"Look at that beast," a neighbor whispered. "Chen San Lang really tamed a monster."
"He's making money while we freeze," another grumbled, though there was envy in their tone.
Chen Yuan ignored them. He focused on the road.
* * *
The militia station was a scene of organized misery.
The soldiers were huddled around a bonfire in the courtyard, their hands shoved into their armpits. They wore thin cotton jackets, standard issue for the autumn, useless against this sudden freeze.
Captain Liu stood by the gate, his face chapped and red. When he saw the massive black bull emerging from the white mist like a demon from legend, his hand went to his sword.
"Halt!" he barked.
"It's Chen Yuan, Captain!" Chen Yuan shouted, pulling on the lead rope.
Hei Tan stopped, snorting.
Captain Liu walked over, his eyes wide as he took in the bull. "By the heavens... I heard you bought a killer beast. I thought you were mad. But look at him. He doesn't even shiver."
"He has a thick hide," Chen Yuan said. He climbed onto the sled and began untying the oilcloth. "The socks, Captain. One hundred pairs."
Captain Liu's eyes snapped to the bundles. "You made it?"
"We made it."
The Captain grabbed a soldier passing by. "Get the Quartermaster! Now!"
They unloaded the sled quickly. The soldiers gathered around, eyeing the wool socks with hungry eyes.
"Pay him," Captain Liu told the Quartermaster. "Full price. Five taels of silver."
*Five taels.*
It was the agreed-upon price. 5000 copper coins. A heavy weight in silver.
Chen Yuan took the pouch. It was cold. "Thank you, Captain."
"You saved us a lot of frostbite today, Chen Yuan," Captain Liu said, his tone warming. He looked at the bull again. "That animal... I want to buy him."
Chen Yuan paused. "He's not for sale, Captain."
"I'll give you twenty taels," Liu offered. "He's strong enough to pull a siege engine. I need that kind of power."
"He's a breeding bull," Chen Yuan said, shaking his head. "He is the foundation of my ranch. Without him, I have no future. Gold can't buy a future, Captain."
Captain Liu stared at him for a long moment, then laughed heartily. "Hahaha! You have guts, boy. Refusing a Captain's silver. Fine. Keep your beast. But remember this favor. If you ever need help... send word."
"I will remember."
As Chen Yuan turned the sled around, the Captain called out one last time.
"The pass is open to the city! The Governor sent a team to clear it for a supply train! If you have goods to sell, go now! The road won't stay clear long!"
Chen Yuan nodded. *The road is open.*
* * *
The return trip was faster.
They arrived back at the hill by midday. The sun was actually trying to break through the clouds, sparkling off the snow.
"San Lang," Xu Tie said as they walked. "We have five taels. Plus the leftover from the soil. We have capital again."
"Yes," Chen Yuan said. "But winter is long. We need to diversify. The socks are good, but they depend on the militia. The soil depends on the City Lord. We need something for the common people."
They reached the shed.
The puppies, Hui Hui and Hu, came bounding out of the snow. They were growing fast, their legs long and gangly. They barked at the bull, bouncing around his legs.
Hei Tan ignored them, used to their antics.
Little Stone ran out to help unhitch the bull. "Boss! Lunch is ready! Wang Shi made stew!"
"Stew?" Chen Yuan's stomach growled. "What kind?"
"She bought some tough beef from the market," Little Stone wrinkled his nose. "Said it was cheap."
"Tough beef," Chen Yuan muttered. An idea formed.
He walked into the house. The smell of boiling meat filled the air. It was hearty, but as he sat down, he watched his father try to chew a piece of the meat. Chen Dazhong struggled, his jaw working overtime.
"It's... filling," Chen Dazhong said, putting down his chopsticks. "But it takes a strong man to eat it."
The family ate in silence, enjoying the warmth. The five taels of silver were hidden away, a cushion against the world.
After lunch, Chen Yuan didn't rest. He went to the storage shed.
He pulled out a small bag of the "Spirit Soil" he had kept back—a prototype batch he had mixed with crushed charcoal and sand, intended for aeration.
He took a handful of the Ryegrass seeds he had saved.
"Little Stone," he called. "Bring me the pots. The clay pots from the kitchen."
"The cracked ones?"
"Yes."
He was going to test something. The Captain said the road to the city was open. The City Lord's wife wanted flowers for the Winter Banquet.
If he could grow something now... in the dead of winter...
*System, simulate greenhouse effect.*
**[Simulation: Clay Pot + Oil Paper Cover + Spirit Soil.]**
**[Result: Microclimate creation. Temperature increase of 3-5 degrees. Germination possible for cold-hardy varieties.]**
He filled the pots with the dark soil. He planted seeds—not grass, but a hardy winter herb he had found in the system database: *Winter Savory* and a variant of *Chrysanthemum* that bloomed in the cold.
"Boss, what are you doing?" Little Stone asked, watching Chen Yuan carefully place the pots near the warmest part of the animal shed, where the compost pile generated heat.
"I'm planting hope," Chen Yuan said. "But this time, it's flowers."
He carefully placed oiled paper over the pots, creating mini-tents.
"If these bloom in two weeks... we can sell them for the New Year."
* * *
That evening, Chen Yuan sat with his family.
The house was quiet. The wind had died down.
"Father," Chen Yuan said, pulling out a small bundle. "I bought this in town."
He unwrapped a set of brushes and ink. "For Ming."
Little Ming's eyes widened. "For me?"
"You've been working hard with the socks," Chen Yuan said. "A scholar shouldn't neglect his studies because of manual labor. Practice your calligraphy."
Little Ming grabbed the brush, his face full of joy. "I will! I'll write the best couplets for the New Year!"
Chen Yuan smiled. He looked at his sisters. "Mei, Lan. I have a task for you two."
"What is it?" Mei asked.
"I have some pots in the shed with seeds in them," Chen Yuan said. "They need to be watched. The paper must be lifted for a few hours every day to let them breathe, then put back. Can you do that?"
"Of course," Lan said. "We like plants."
"Good."
He leaned back against the wall. He was tired. The kind of tired that went all the way to the bone.
But he looked around the room.
Wang Shi was counting the silver again, a peaceful look on her face.
Chen Dazhong was smoking his pipe, watching Little Ming practice.
Xu Tie was cleaning his spear by the door, a silent guardian.
And outside, in the shed, a pregnant cow and a fierce bull slept in the warmth of the hay they had gathered.
They were surviving.
"San Lang," Chen Hu asked. "Do you think the snow will melt soon?"
"It doesn't matter," Chen Yuan said, closing his eyes. "Whether it snows or shines, we have work to do. And now... we have the means to do it."
He drifted off to sleep to the sound of the wind, dreaming not of the office he left behind, but of green pastures stretching to the horizon, dotted with herds of gray, humped cattle.
The winter was long. But the spring was inevitable.