"Look at him being a hammer!" Zhou Huaian said in a low voice, "Didn't you see that a large group of criminals were strung together like grasshoppers and paraded through the streets as a warning to the public!"

Zhou Yiding regretted it so much after hearing this, "If I had known I would have gone into the city with you today."

Xu Hongbing curled his lips, "If a person behaves like this, his ancestors would be so angry that they would come back to life."

Zhou Huaian: "Ding Ding Cat, the camera that Wang Zhen helped me buy has arrived. My mother knows about this and scolded me for being a spendthrift... If she asks you, don't let it slip."

Zhou Yiding: "I understand. I am the same as an old man. I always think everything is too expensive. I just cut the price in half when I report it."

"Hahaha!" Xu Hongbing laughed, "All mothers are like this. During the Chinese New Year, I bought two pieces of fabric for my mother, the fabric cost 6 yuan per meter, and I told her I bought it for 3 yuan per meter.

But the next day she took her aunt next door to the town to buy cloth. Why would anyone sell it to her? When she came back she scolded me profusely. "

Zhou Huaian thankfully said, "Fortunately, I bought them all in Ning'an, otherwise I wouldn't be able to hide it."

When they were going back to eat after work, Zhou Yiding got the camera and couldn't let it go, turning it over and over again, "Youngest brother, do you know how to use it?"

"... Go back and read the instructions." Zhou Huaian handed him another roll of film. "There are more than 30 photos. Take whatever you want."

"Okay, okay, I'll go back and take a picture for my youngest son." Zhou Yiding happily left with the camera.

The Zhou family kids all gathered around Zhou Huaian, "Dad, take a picture for us."

Zhao Huifang glared at the children and said, "Come and eat quickly. Your dad is so busy every day, how can he have the time to take pictures of you?"

"Your mom is right. After we are done with this busy period, dad will take you to the back mountain to take some good photos." Zhou Huaian thought that after the busy period, the dendrobiums in the big pit would all bloom, so he would take his wife and children with him to take as many photos as he could.

Zhou Jialiang nodded and said, "I want to take a photo wearing the military uniform that Aunt Yao bought for me."

Zhou Xiaowen: "Dad, we want to wear flowery dresses and wear garlands when taking photos!" Zhou Xiaoqian and her sister also nodded.

Zhou Jiakang was busy pulling his sleeve, "I want to take some pictures of catching mountain crabs!"

"Okay, I'll take pictures any way you want!" Zhou Huaian agreed readily.

"Come and eat quickly." Yang Chunyan held a small wooden bowl and sat in front of the sedan chair where Xiao Jiuer was standing. She took the frog and wooden spear on the sedan chair aside and said, "Xiao Jiuer, it's time to eat."

"Eat, eat!" Xiao Jiuer threw away the little tiger in her hand, sat back, and made "yayaya" gestures towards the small wooden bowl she was holding.

"Here it comes. You're always in such a hurry!" Yang Chunyan said with a smile, scooping some food with a wooden spoon and handing it to his mouth. "The porridge cooked by Rou Rou is delicious. Come on, ah, take a big bite."

Little Jiuer opened his mouth wide, took a big bite of the spoon, the minced meat and vegetable porridge was cooked soft and sticky, the little guy chewed a few times, licked his mouth, swallowed, and opened his mouth again...

Yang Chunyan looked at her son's pink little face and lotus-like hands with great joy, thinking that since he could only eat a small bowl of porridge at a meal, it was time to wean him.

During the lunch break, Yang Chunyan held the sleeping Jiu'er in her fist and put him on the crib. "Huaian, I plan to wean Jiu'er while it's not too hot or too cold."

"Let's break it off. It's time to break it off." Zhou Huaian held her in his arms. "Let's sleep for a while. We still have to go up the mountain in the afternoon!"

Yang Chunyan lay beside him and said, "When you go to Ning'an tomorrow, remember to bring back some milk-suppressing medicine." After taking the milk-suppressing medicine, she had to stop him from taking it even if she felt sad.

"Hmm!" Zhou Huaian hugged her and fell asleep soon.

Yang Chunyan woke up from her nap and told Zhou's mother about the weaning. "He doesn't think about it much during the day, but he still thinks about it when he goes to bed at night."

Mother Zhou smiled and said, "This is easy. When I was weaning my youngest child, I smeared bitter melon on it and gave it to him once. He wouldn't eat two more."

Yang Chunyan thought about the fact that there was no bitter melon now, "Huaian will bring the medicine back tomorrow, and I will apply some coptis root on it."

Mother Zhou looked at her grandson who was lying on her shoulder and was still half asleep. She thought of the time when Zhou Huaian was a child, covering his mouth and shaking his head. She found it a little funny, "Yaoyao, there will be no more grandma to drink tomorrow!"

"Grandma will hold him. Mom has gone up the mountain." Yang Chunyan handed Xiao Jiuer to Zhou's mother, "Give him some rice porridge later."

"Yes!" Zhou's mother carried him towards the kitchen.

In the afternoon, after work, Zhou Huaian went to Zhou Datian to get a letter of introduction. He went home and said to his grandfather and parents, "We will go to the provincial capital in ten days. I have already issued the letter of introduction."

Before leaving, Zhou's mother couldn't bear to leave the chickens, ducks and pigs at home, and was also worried that Huang Yongcai would not be satisfied with the things Zhao Huifang and the other two had bought. "Are you really going? We are old farmers, country bumpkins. We don't know what to do with our hands and feet. It would be embarrassing for your sister-in-law!"

Father Zhou also said, "Youngest, your sister-in-law is getting married, you guys should go, wouldn't it be a shame for us old guys to join in the fun as well?"

The old man nodded, "Yeah, how about I forget it, and you take Jiuer out to play for a few days?"

Yang Chunyan smiled and said, "Grandpa, you go and congratulate them. My sister and brother-in-law are so happy, what's wrong with that?"

"That's right. Last time I told you guys, you all said you wanted to go and have a look." Zhou Huaian put the letter of introduction in front of the three of them. "I've already written the letter of introduction, and Wang Zhen has also booked a train ticket with someone, but you guys said you didn't want to go. This is not good!"

After hearing this, the old man looked at his son and daughter-in-law and said, "The tickets are already bought. It would be bad if we don't go. Let's go for two days and broaden our horizons."

"Then go and play for a few days." Since the old man had spoken, Zhou's father and mother had no choice but to agree.

…

The next day, Zhou Huaian gave the letter of introduction to Wang Zhen and asked him to get some medicine to stop lactation. After Yang Chunyan boiled and drank the medicine, she went to the medicinal field on the back mountain and dug up a piece of Coptis chinensis for future use.

At night, when the little one was sleeping, he was whining and crying for milk. Yang Chunyan took the cotton swab handed by Zhou Huaian and smeared the coptis juice around the nipple. "I don't know if it will work!"

The little guy just put it in his mouth and spit it out. He looked at his own rations and put it in his mouth again, but found that it was still bitter "Puff...Puff...Wow..."

"What a sin!" Zhou Huaian smiled and picked him up. Seeing him rubbing his tongue with his hands, he smiled and said, "It's bitter! This time you are really dumb and can't express your pain!"

Seeing the child with tears still on his face, hugging Zhou Huaian and sobbing with a wronged look on his face, Yang Chunyan couldn't help but feel distressed, "Just comfort him, it will be fine when he falls asleep."

Zhou Huaian nodded, took the child out and walked around the yard a few times, finally coaxing him to sleep.

The next day, Xiao Jiuer woke up and kept nudging Yang Chunyan's chest. When she fed him, his little mouth pouted and he refused to eat.

Even at night, Zhou Huaian had to hold her and walk around the yard for a few laps before she would go to sleep.

…………

The Wang family's house is still under construction in full swing, and new saplings have been planted on the vacated land in the new forest that the Zhou family has leased.

It has not rained since the New Year, and only a small stream of water remains in the ravine. Even if a gate is used to block the water, the accumulated water can only cover the rocks at the bottom of the ravine, and it cannot irrigate the medicinal fields, let alone flow to the Hundred Flowers Forest to water the saplings.

Zhou Huaian followed and carried water for two days, but he got tired of it. He thought that since the electricity was not yet connected, he could forget about using a water pump to pump water. According to the old people in the village, this year it might be dry again and it would not rain until after the Dragon Boat Festival. Carrying water for irrigation all the time was not a solution...

He and Zhou Huairong went to the ravine close to the bamboo forest and took a look. The water flow in this ravine was slightly larger than the one next to the medicinal field.

"Brother, go back and call the old man and the third brother to come and block this ditch. Let's go cut some big bamboos and bring the water to the forest."

Zhou Huairong nodded, "It would be best to build a reservoir in the low-lying area. When you need water in the future, you can just pull out the plug and irrigate."

"Let's divert the water there first, and ask my third brother to pull a tractor full of yellow bricks. Then buy two tons of cement and build one over there on the medicinal field."

"Yes!" Zhou Huairong looked at the bamboo forest opposite, "Go back and call Xu Hongbing and Li Wu as well, it will be done in two or three days."

"Yes."

The two brothers went down the mountain, and Zhou Huairong went to find Zhou Huaishan and asked him to go to the brick factory to buy yellow bricks and cement. Zhou Huaian then rode his bicycle to Xu Hongbing's house and told him about building a reservoir to get water.

"Okay, wait for me." Xu Hongbing went into the house, put on his yellow rubber shoes, sat on the back of the bicycle, and the two of them walked towards Li Wu's house. "I heard that Wang Chunhua asked Secretary Zhou to approve the foundation."

"Secretary Zhou?" Zhou Huaian reacted after a moment, "How did you know?"

"My mother is so well-informed!" Xu Hongbing said with a smile, "Guess what the Wang family said?"

"How should I know!"

"The Wang family said that although they are not as rich as Zhou Laoyao's family, they can still buy a house for their sister in town. The brothers can help burn some bricks and tiles for their sister and still have the energy to repair a few houses."

"I love to hear that. You don't even care about your own sisters, and you expect others to help you care for them!"

"That's because Sister Yumei is a good person. If it were someone like that, you would want to stay away from her if you try."

"That's true." Zhou Huaian remembered something and asked in a low voice, "Is your second son here?"

In the last ten days of the first lunar month, the couple followed Zhou Huaian to Ning'an and asked Wang Zhen to prescribe some medicine, hoping to get their bodies in good shape and have their second child.

Xu Hongbing laughed and said, "You think you are sowing cabbage seeds? Just scatter them and water them and they will grow."

Zhou Huaian turned his head and glanced at his lower body, winking at him, "I still have some deer blood wine at home, can I get some for you later?"

"Get lost! It's not like I can't do it." Xu Hongbing punched him. "Some things depend on fate. Shouldn't you understand that?"

"Yes, yes, yes. It's not our destiny yet. If it is, it would be great to have a son and a daughter."

"I don't care. One son and one daughter are good, but two sons are more comfortable. They will have someone to help them in the future if they have a fight."

"Ha, isn't it the same to find a son-in-law nearby? You should work harder and give birth to a daughter for my little Jiuer."

"I won't do that. If the two children grow up to be incompatible, the girl will always suffer." (End of this chapter)