Zhou Yiding saw that he was serious and had no choice but to nod, "Okay, okay! I'll take it! Such an expensive sewing machine, I won't let it go to waste!"

Wang Zhen looked at the two brothers with some envy and said, "You two have such a good relationship!"

Zhou Huaian put his arm around Zhou Yiding's shoulders and said with a smile, "That's the bond we established when we were wearing open-crotch pants and covered in piss and mud. It's absolutely unbreakable!"

Zhou Yiding also patted Zhou Huaian on the shoulder, "We went up the mountain to dig sweet potatoes, stole fruits, went to the river to fish, and were stung by leeches together..."

When he said this, he suddenly remembered that when he was five years old, he was bitten by a leech on his penis. It was Chili Pepper who helped him get rid of the leech. He blushed and his heart started beating fast. He was worried that Chili Pepper knew too much about his embarrassing experiences and it would be difficult for him to maintain his status as a husband!

Wang Zhen looked at the two people arm in arm with envy, "You guys were more fun when you were kids. When I was little, I was in poor health and couldn't run or jump. Grandpa saw that I was bored, so he taught me to identify herbs and recite medicine books."

"The kids on this street say I look like an old man and they don't like to play with me. I don't like to play with them either, because I think the games they play are boring."

"You don't look like you're in poor health!" Zhou Huaian said, looking at him with admiration, "No wonder you can prescribe medicine and see patients at such a young age. It turns out you've been learning since you were a child."

"I had some heart problems when I was a kid, and my grandfather nursed me back to health."

"With the old man here, any problem can be solved!"

"You can't say that. As the saying goes, medicine can't cure fatal diseases, but Buddha can save those who are destined to be saved!"

"That's true."

The three of them chatted as they arrived at the clinic. Zhou Huaian saw that the old man was still inserting needles, "Doctor Wang, has my grandfather's eyes improved?"

"The old man's eyesight is better now. I'll change the prescription for you. Bring him here for acupuncture in a week or so. With the help of medicine, he should be fine."

"That's great!" Zhou Huaian looked at the old man happily, "Surgery is not possible there, so it would be best if he can recuperate."

As they were talking, Yang Weiguo also arrived, and the few of them exchanged pleasantries again.

After the old man had finished the acupuncture, he went to buy what Yang Chunyan wanted, and then went to the vegetable market to buy some meat and vegetables. Then, they went to the guesthouse to call Huang Yongcai and went to the agricultural machinery station.

The group arrived at the agricultural machinery station and saw more than a dozen brand new tractors parked in the yard.

Zhou Yiding walked forward curiously, touching and looking around, "Youngest, which one is yours?"

"I don't know either!" Zhou Huaian said, looking at Huang Yongcai with excitement, "Brother Huang, these have been decided by others, right?"

"Yes! I heard from my brother-in-law that these were ordered before yours, and they are only now getting the goods! Right now, the tractors are in short supply, and the manufacturers are working overtime."

Huang Yongcai paused for a moment and said, "The tractor was still in the factory, but the quota was snatched away by various purchasing companies. It was really snatched away! He delivered the tractor yesterday, and left early this morning to guard it at the Red Star Machinery Factory."

"No wonder it's hard to buy. It turns out that the people at the agricultural machinery station also rely on snatching to buy." The old man touched the tractor carefully. "Such an expensive thing still has so many people scrambling for it, which proves that their machines are really useful."

"Yes, everyone likes good things. It would be better if the price could be cheaper."

Yang Weimin took a look around and thought the new tractor looked more agile than the old one. But then he thought again, the price difference was almost twice as much, and he could repair it himself, so it would be more economical to buy the old one.

After a while, someone from the agricultural machinery station came to check Zhou Huaian's receipt and took him to a tractor at the edge.

The tractor's cargo bed was loaded with a plow wrapped in straw ropes and straw mats.

"This is it. Can you drive it?"

"Yes! I brought my master with me."

The man took the bills, handed one to Zhou Huaian and left.

Huang Yongcai opened two firecrackers and walked around in front of the tractor. "I wish the youngest brother good luck and hope he can earn back the money he spent on the tractor as soon as possible!"

Zhou Huaian clasped his fists and said, "Thank you, Brother Huang!"

"We are all brothers, why be polite!" Huang Yongcai took out a lighter and lit the fuse.

Crackling, bang, bang~ the warm and festive sound of firecrackers rang out, and a smell of sulfur and saltpeter spread.

The old man looked at the brand new tractor and his high-spirited grandson, and his nose felt a little sour. He looked up at the sky and said to himself, "Old lady, did you see that? Our youngest son has made it big and bought a tractor!"

Zhou Yiding turned around and saw that the old man's eyes were red. He smiled and said, "Second Grandpa, you should be happy!"

"Happy! Happy!" The old man patted his shoulder, "You all have to be fine. Your mother and second grandmother will be relieved too."

"I understand."

After the firecrackers were set off, Zhou Huaian thought that Huang Yongcai had no time to go to Fu Niu with him, "Brother Huang, let's go to the restaurant and drink two liang!"

Huang Yongcai smiled and said, "I still have to go to work. You drive the tractor back first. There will be plenty of opportunities after drinking."

Zhou Huaian had no choice but to clasp his fists again, "Yes, I will drink it well next time!"

When he saw Huang Yongcai off and came back, Yang Weimin had already filled the diesel tank. He smiled and said to the old man, "Grandpa, get in first and sit down. We are going home."

"Yes!" The old man walked towards the truck bed.

Zhou Huaian and Zhou Yiding pushed the bicycles into the truck bed and parked them aside. Zhou Yiding also sat down next to the old man.

Yang Weimin watched Zhou Huaian start the tractor with the crank, "thump...thump...thump..." the unique motor sound of the tractor sounded.

He nodded with satisfaction, "Go ahead! I'll watch you drive."

Zhou Huaian nodded and walked towards the driving platform. After sitting on it, he turned his head to look at the old man and Zhou Yiding who were sitting on the truck bed. "Let's go!"

Zhou Yiding nodded and said, "I'll hold on to the carriage board firmly. If anything goes wrong..."

The old man smiled and patted him, "Children's words are innocent!" He looked at Zhou Huaian happily, "Don't worry about driving, you will get home smoothly!"

Zhou Yiding rubbed his head and smiled at him, "Yes, everything is going smoothly, just drive with confidence."

Zhou Huaian nodded and drove the tractor out of the yard of the agricultural machinery station.

*****

Yang Chunyan and her friends are still harvesting soybeans in their private plots. After the summer vacation, the kids also help at home every day. The children help pull the soybean stalks, and the adults carry them home and spread them out in the yard to dry.

Li Xiaoping came to Zhou's house with a basket full of herbs on his back. "Aunt Yang, are you still harvesting herbs today?"

"I collected them!" Yang Chunyan looked at the plump Li Xiaoping and stepped forward to help take the basket. "It's hard to find herbs in the village now. Where did you find so many?"

"I went to my mother-in-law's place to look for them. No one there would buy them, but they have plenty of herbs." Li Xiaoping said as he took out a small cloth bag from his trouser pocket. Inside it were several bags wrapped in straw paper. "These are grass seeds. My mother-in-law said there are radix scutellariae, violet gentiana, and plantain... Do you want more?"

Yang Chunyan took a look and found that there was not much of each item, and the total amount was only about three or four taels at most. "I collected them. The price of herbal seeds is not bad. These can be sold for five yuan."

Li Xiaoping looked at her happily, "Really?"

"Really?" Yang Chunyan rubbed his head, "Do I have to finish cutting grass for pigs every day before going to school?" (End of this chapter)