Chapter 274 The Joy of Showing Off Your Child

After finishing here, Lin Heng took a hoe and went over to tidy up the corner where he was going to build the musk deer breeding pen. This side was not hardened and was full of weeds.

After clearing the weeds, Lin Heng looked at the terrain and made a simple plan.

This place is a small slope, the texture is hard limestone and it is difficult to dig flat. But fortunately, the slope is not steep, so he can build a platform with bricks and stones, which is about 30 to 40 square meters in size, enough for raising musk deer for the time being.

After removing the grass, Lin Heng dug a few more trenches until he reached the rocks below. After he was ready, he built a stone embankment from the trench upwards.

"Would you like me to help you?"

Xiulan came over wearing a hat and gloves and asked.

"I've finished it. Let's find a good day to do the rest." Lin Heng grinned.

"Then wipe your sweat." Xiulan took off her gloves and handed over a square blue indigo handkerchief.

Lin Heng wiped his sweat with a scented handkerchief, went back to the house and put down the hoe. Then he drove back home, as it was too hot at noon to work.

"Dad, you have to hold the fish. I want to feed the little turtle."

Xiaoxia knew she had to leave, and pointed at the fish in the basin.

"I'll never forget it." Lin Heng responded with a smile.

"I'll go with you to get something." Lin's mother said, holding a hat.

"Okay." Lin Hengdian agreed.

Xiulan collected the dried clothes, Lin Heng packed up Xiaoxia's fish, and they drove back to the village.

“Woof woof~”

Since Xiongba had no seat, he could only run behind, and when he was having fun he was no slower than the car.

As soon as Xiaoxia returned home, she ran to the backyard, poured the caught fish into the turtle basin, and looked at them.

The topaz box turtle immediately retracted its head when it saw Xiaoxia. The little grass turtle retracted its head slowly, as if it had some thoughts about the fish.

Xiaoxia puffed up her cheeks and looked unhappy. She just wanted to watch the turtle eat, so she found a small stool and sat beside it, waiting with one hand on her chin.

Lin Heng entered the house and first looked at the venison that was drying in the sun. It was basically dried.

Gently tearing it, you can see distinct red meat strands, which smell rich of venison and spices. If it wasn't still raw, Lin Heng would have wanted to eat it directly.

He looked at his wife and said, "This venison can be steamed. After it is steamed, let it air-dry for two days and then it can be stored."

Because the amount of salt used is relatively high and the food is dried and free of water, there is no problem eating it in a plastic bag for half a year.

Xiulan looked at it and nodded, "It is indeed OK. Then go to mom's room and get the big steamer."

"good."

Lin Heng nodded, turned around and went out to get it.

The big steamer in the old house is made of bamboo, with a diameter of 60 cm and three layers. This steamer was there when Lin Heng was a child and his grandmother was still alive. It can be said to be an antique.

The one his family bought when they built their new house was much smaller, with a diameter of only 30 centimeters. After all, there were only three people in his family and they didn't need such a big steamer.

Lin Heng gave the steamer to Xiulan and went to see Xiaoxia. He found that she was sitting under the eaves in the backyard, looking unhappy.

"Dad, the turtles won't eat the fish~" Xiaoxia was very worried. Why wouldn't they eat the fish that her dad had worked so hard to catch?

"I have a way." Lin Heng smiled mysteriously, walked over, scooped up the fish, kept two, and put the rest in a scoop net and kept them in the secondary reservoir.

Although this thing seems to be very hardy, it actually has very high requirements for oxygen and cannot be kept alive in a pot.

Then he cut off the tail fins of the two remaining groupers in the basin, took Xiaoxia into the house, took away the things on the windowsill, opened the window, and held her while lying on the windowsill to watch.

"Shh, keep quiet, you will soon see the turtle eating the fish." Lin Heng whispered.

Xiaoxia nodded obediently, looking at the turtle in the basin in the distance with her big eyes curiously.

After finding that there was no one around, the little grass turtle was the first to stick its head out. After a while, the topaz box turtle also stuck its head out and started crawling in the water.

These guys haven't eaten fish for a long time, especially the little grass turtle, which hasn't had a proper bite since the end of hibernation.

After seeing the brook grouper, it instinctively chased it and, because the brook grouper lacked a tail fin, it was quickly bitten and killed, and then eaten.

Xiaoxia had never seen this scene before and her mouth opened in surprise.

"Don't talk, otherwise you won't be able to see it." Lin Heng whispered while hugging her.

Xiaoxia nodded and leaned in Lin Heng's arms, staring blankly. The turtle looked stupid, but it was actually very agile. The topaz box turtle saw the grass turtle kill the brook grouper and ran over to grab the snatch.

The two turtles pulled and the stream grouper's belly was soon bitten open, and the two turtles shared the food and ate it with great relish.

The father and daughter were enjoying themselves when Xiulan pushed open the door to the courtyard and saw two people leaning against the window with a puzzled look on their faces: "What are you doing?"

"Oh, Mom, you're so annoying. We were watching the little turtles eat." Xiaoxia looked at her mother angrily. Her disturbance frightened the two little turtles so much that they shrank back into their shells.

Lin Heng also helplessly spread his hands: "We were enjoying watching it, but now there is nothing to watch."

Xiulan shook her head and said, "Just spoil her. She's grown up and still wants to watch turtles fight."

"Then let's wait and see." Lin Heng carried Xiaoxia down, closed the window and put things back in place.

"I want to see more."

Xiaoxia walked out and pushed her mother into the house, then stood by the door and watched quietly.

Xiulan shook her head helplessly, looked at Lin Heng and said, "I've cleaned the steamer, come and help me get the meat."

"good."

Lin Heng nodded and went out to help get the meat.

It takes two or three pounds of fresh venison to produce one pound of dried meat. Ninety pounds of fresh venison meat is now reduced to more than thirty pounds, and the three-layer large steamer can just hold it all.

After the meat was steamed, Xiulan said, "Let's take the bacon down from upstairs and hang it on the first floor. The second floor is too hot in the summer."

"I wanted to get it before, but I forgot about it."

Lin Heng nodded and went upstairs with Xiulan to move the bacon. There were twenty pieces of bacon and three hams. The two of them ran four times to get them all down.

Xiulan put the meat in a dustpan and looked at it carefully. Although it was bright red, there were still many mold spots on the edges. This was inevitable. Even if it was dried in the sun, it would still grow. You could still eat it after peeling off the inside.

"It's really hard to preserve meat in the summer." Xiulan sighed. In the summer, if the meat is not preserved properly, it will not taste good or even be inedible.

"Why don't we buy a refrigerator?" Lin Heng said as he looked at the bacon. Without a refrigerator or freezer, preserving meat is indeed a problem.

Xiulan shook her head and said, "Forget it. Three or four thousand is too expensive. You still have to keep our money to buy feed and other things."

She and Lin Heng went shopping in the mall and saw that big refrigerator. Although it was nice, the price of three or four thousand was too scary.

Lin Heng thought for a moment and said, "If we make some money this year, let's buy a refrigerator and a washing machine for the New Year."

In fact, there is no problem in buying it directly. They have 25,000 in cash stored in the house, and Lin Heng has 2500 in his passbook, not to mention the money in the passbook used exclusively for the purchasing station.

"Let's wait until the end of the year. There's no rush for those things. Money is so hard to earn, there's no need to spend it recklessly." Xiulan shook her head and said.

As she said that, she opened the big cabinet and asked Lin Heng to help shovel the millet. In the past summers, bacon was preserved by burying it in the millet.

But this year there is obviously not enough space for so many, so I buried five of them in the millet, and the rest can only be placed directly in the big cabinet. It is very dry in there, and they are not likely to go bad if preserved.

After putting the bacon in place, the venison jerky was almost cooked, and the whole room was filled with the aroma of meat. Xiulan took it out of the pot and let it cool down. Lin Heng took a five-spice one and tore it open to taste it.

"tasty."

After taking a bite, he nodded repeatedly. The spices had completely blended with the meat. The rich aroma of meat mixed with the flavor of spices was irresistible.

The only drawback is that it is a bit salty, so you need to drink more water after eating it. But there is no other way, if the salt is not enough, it will not be good for preservation.

“It’s really good.”

Xiulan also tasted it and nodded.

"Wait until it's completely dried and then it'll be delicious when you chew it." Lin Heng said as he ate, and did not forget to give one to his daughter.

Lin Heng came to the backyard and found Xiaoxia still looking at the turtle. He couldn't help but be surprised at her concentration.

"Thank you, Dad." Xiaoxia grabbed the dried meat and started to bite it. The meat was just right for her after being steamed.

Lin Heng caught another creek grouper and threw it into the turtle basin, thinking Xiaoxia would continue watching, but she ran away with the meat.

Only when I reached the main room did I see her climb onto the small wooden cart and drive it.

After Lin Heng finished eating the dried meat, he went to help hang the steamed meat up to dry in the sun.

After sunbathing, the two went back to the house to rest and wait for the hot midday sun to pass.

Lin Heng took out the ground trap that he had used once before and looked at it. Then he searched around and found that there was still a lot of leftover mesh. He also cut some bamboo strips to make a few shrimp catching nets.

Xiulan looked at his movements and asked curiously, "Didn't you say you were going to buy shrimp? Have you changed your mind and decided to catch them yourself?"

"Yes, I plan to buy it, but I also plan to try catching it myself." Lin Heng nodded.

It is hard to say what the situation will be like when buying broodstock, so he has to be prepared for both situations.

"When are we going? I'll go with you. I used to go shrimping when I was a kid." Xiulan asked. She was more interested in shrimping than fishing.

"Then let's do it tomorrow." Lin Heng said after thinking for a while.

"Okay." Xiulan nodded and came over to help Lin Heng make a shrimp net. The two of them used up all the gauze nets and made a total of five nets.

When you get to the river, combine them with bamboo strips and use them to catch shrimps.

After finishing and putting the things away, Lin Heng found a cool mat and spread it out. The two of them lay down on it to rest. Xiaoxia played with her little toys beside them, and from time to time she would run over to the two of them and ask them to play with her.

When the sun got smaller, around four o'clock, Xiulan got up to feed the chickens and livestock, while Lin Heng prepared to go see how the water was doing at Hongfeng Mountain.

"Dad, wait for me." Seeing Lin Heng go out, Xiaoxia trotted over and grabbed him.

"I'm going to my grandparents' place. It's very far." Lin Heng looked at her.

Xiaoxia tilted her head and said, "I'm not afraid as long as my dad is with me!"

"Let's go." Lin Heng nodded with a smile, took her to tell Xiulan, and then the father and daughter walked towards Hongfeng Mountain hand in hand.

Arriving at the breeding base, Lin Heng checked the water and found that the aeration pool was full, so he started to release water into the pond below.

He turned on the aerator and took Xiaoxia to look around the edge of the pond. The water was still shallow, only 30 centimeters deep, and normally the depth needed to be 80 centimeters for shrimp farming. He told his father that 50 centimeters of water would be enough for now, and then the depth would be gradually increased later.

After looking around, he walked back with his daughter. Xiaoxia was jumping and playing on the road, chasing grasshoppers and then shrinking back when scared by small lizards.

When they arrived at the village, they could hear the sound of a group of children playing in the distance. Xiaoxia followed the sound and saw a group of children playing with sandbags. She immediately shouted, "Dad, I want to play this too."

"That's very dangerous. It will hurt when it hits your body." Lin Heng looked at her and shook his head. Although the sandbag was filled with fine sand, she couldn't play these games played by children aged eight or nine.

"Then I'll go hunt the goose!"

Xiaoxia pointed at another group of children who were fighting with geese with wooden sticks.

Lin Heng held his forehead and wondered why the children in the village were playing such a dangerous game. Children of three or four years old actually dared to compete with a big goose.

When he thought about it carefully, he remembered that when he was a child, he dared to poke a hornet's nest, which seemed even more dangerous than this. But he always couldn't bear to let his fair and tender daughter play these games.

"You should wait for a while before talking." Lin Heng pulled her aside and said.

There were three children, two boys and one girl, fighting with the goose in the distance. The girl was about four or five years old. She walked in front with a wooden stick and hit the majestic gander not far away with the stick.

"I'll beat you down today, you damn goose!!"

He said viciously while beating the little girl.

"Kill you!"

"I'll beat you to death!"

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The other two children also rushed over and prepared to take a bite.

Apparently this goose had offended these kids before.

“Ga ga ga!!”

The goose reacted quickly and spread its wings, clucking as it pounced towards the three people. Its ferocious posture frightened the girl so much that her hands trembled and the stick was pecked off.

“Ga ga ga!!”

"Woooooa ...

“Ahh, it hurts~”

The girl was so scared that she ran away, and her little brother immediately turned into a pile of sand and ran around, being chased by the big goose and bitten on the butt, making loud and sharp screams.

And two big red roosters also joined in, and the screams suddenly became louder.

Lin Heng looked at Xiaoxia and asked with a smile: "Do you still want to play this game?"

"No, no, I don't want it!" Xiaoxia hid behind Lin Heng, shaking her head like a rattle.

The goose was so scary that she lost her courage in an instant.

"It's okay, Dad is here."

Lin Heng said with a smile, and walked over with Xiaoxia. The goose and the rooster were no longer so arrogant when they saw Lin Heng, because the arrogant one last time was already on the table.

Not long after he walked away, he heard the sound of tears and discussions.

"Let me tell you, my baby can walk on his own at the age of two. I am so happy."

"Hehe, my daughter has learned to speak these past two days, and she speaks those long sentences very sincerely. I think she will be able to go to school in the future, but it's a pity that she is just a girl."

"You guys are doing great. My son doesn't wet the bed anymore. He even calls me when he pees."

"My baby is three years old now and can wash his face and dress himself."

When I got closer, I saw that it was the women from the village who were playing here with their two or three-year-old children, showing off and chatting with each other.

They showed off their children to each other, one trying to outdo the other. Zhang Yue, the woman who spoke first, was the worst off. She wanted to show off, but ended up being outshined by the others.

Seeing Lin Heng coming with his daughter, her eyes suddenly lit up and she shouted loudly: "Lin Heng, your daughter Xiaoxia is two years old now, isn't she? She still doesn't wet the bed?"

Before Lin Heng could say anything, Xiaoxia spoke up herself, saying crisply, "Xiaoxia has stopped wetting the bed a long time ago. I can eat and dress myself. Xiaoxia can also tell stories, cut paper, draw, and identify plants and animals."

Zhang Yue was speechless when she heard this. She had heard from books before that the girl from Lin Heng's family was very smart, but now she was shocked when she heard her speak. Not only did she speak Mandarin, but her pronunciation was so clear.

When her two-year-old son was just calling “Dad” and “Mom”, the other words he said were unclear and inaudible.

"You're so awesome! Then tell your auntie one." Zhang Yue said with a smile. However, she was happy that Xiaoxia was awesome, so she wanted to suppress all the other children.

Anyway, it's normal that my child is still young and can't compete. If your child is older than mine and still can't compete, then you are just bad. Don't show off in front of me. She was also very proud.

The other women couldn't help but look at Zhang Yue, a little speechless, wondering what she was doing.

Then they turned to look at Xiaoxia. Although she was only two years old and spoke more coherently than their own four-year-old children, they did not believe that she could draw, cut paper, and tell stories.

"Then Xiaoxia, tell us one."

"Auntie hasn't heard the story yet."

Lin Heng glanced at a few people, then looked at Xiaoxia and said, "Then Xiaoxia, tell the aunts one."

"I want to tell you about Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf." Xiaoxia said happily. She glanced at the aunts and the children and said, "The story goes like this. Once upon a time there was a beautiful little girl who was loved by everyone. She liked to wear a little red hat..."

Xiaoxia was acting out the story vividly while she was telling it. She imitated Lin Heng's way of telling a story, pretending to be the howling Big Bad Wolf and the whimpering Little Red Riding Hood.

As she was speaking, some five or six-year-old children who were playing games nearby came over and pricked up their ears. When Xiaoxia talked about her grandmother being eaten by the big bad wolf, she turned pale with fear. When she talked about Little Red Riding Hood being eaten, some children started crying.

"Woo woo woo, the big bad wolf is so bad!"

"That's right, Little Red Riding Hood is so miserable."

"Don't worry, there's more to come." Xiaoxia patted the crying child like an adult and continued, "The big bad wolf was too full after eating two people in a row, so he lay down and fell asleep. At this time, a hunter came over and heard the snoring..."

Xiaoxia continued to tell the story, and when everyone heard that Little Red Riding Hood was saved and the Big Bad Wolf was killed, even the adults cheered.

"Wow, good thing the Big Bad Wolf died!"

"That's right, the Big Bad Wolf is so abominable."

Xiaoxia tilted her head and smiled: "I have finished my story. Thank you everyone."

She found that telling stories to everyone was really interesting and she kind of started to like this feeling.

"Xiaoxia's story is so good. Tell me another one."

"Tell me another one, please, Xiaoxia!"

Several children surrounded Xiaoxia, looking at her in admiration and shaking her hands, begging her to tell another one.

The children in the village had never heard of such stories, and the adults didn’t know much either. At most, they would tell them a story about the wolf and two other mythological stories, and that was it.

The fairy tales Xiaoxia told were so fresh in the countryside at that time that the children were completely fascinated by them.

"That's amazing! Is she really only two years old?" Zhang Yue said in surprise.

"Yeah, you speak better than me."

"How clever! Is he really only two years old?"

The women nearby all showed expressions of amazement. Compared to last year when Xiaoxia only knew about flowers and plants, this year Xiaoxia was obviously much better. They no longer had any desire to compare with her.

"Two years and two months." Lin Heng said with a smile. He had to admit that Xuanwa was really happy.

Xiaoxia next to them was telling them the story of the three little white rabbits and the big bad wolf.

"That's amazing! How did you teach him?" Zhang Yue looked at Lin Heng curiously and asked.

"I didn't teach her much. I just read stories to her and answered her questions over and over again." Lin Heng said with a smile.

"That's impossible. There must be some secret."

"That's right. I saw Teacher Tian Yan often came to your house. Was she the one who taught you?"

Several women did not believe what Lin Heng said, thinking there must be a secret. Lin Heng was a little helpless, the facts were what he said, although he read more books, including books on education and other books specifically for educating children, Xiaoxia also ate better and developed faster than ordinary children.

But as long as you are patient and teach step by step, it is actually not difficult to become like Xiaoxia. Language skills and cognitive abilities can be developed.

But it is obvious that these women do not have the patience to teach day after day, and they have not read any books. They just let the children do what they want, and only say a few words when they remember.

This naturally widened the gap between her and Xiaoxia.

"Okay, the story of the three little white rabbits is over."

Xiaoxia clapped her hands and said with a smile. There were already eight or nine children gathered in front of her, some six or seven years old were reading and listening to the story.

"Wow, Xiaoxia is amazing!"

"That's amazing! Tell me another one!"

"Please tell me another one!"

The children looked at Xiaoxia with admiration and kept asking her to tell them another story. It was as if Xiaoxia's stories had opened the door to a new world for them, stories they had never heard before.

Xiaoxia was already a little tired and a little thirsty, but the feeling of being admired and praised was so good that she wanted to continue telling the story.

"Okay, let's just talk about two today. If you want to listen, let Xiaoxia tell you tomorrow."

Lin Heng interrupted the child, then looked at Xiaoxia and said with a smile: "Don't you want to play hopscotch? You can go play now."

"Xiaoxia, I'll play hopscotch with you."

The little girl Yang Qing in the crowd was the first to jump out and pull Xiaoxia towards the ginkgo tree.

"Great!" Xiaoxia cheered and ran over with Yang Qing. Soon, a group of children started playing hopscotch happily.

Lin Heng had taken Xiaoxia out to play before, but it seemed like today was the day she had the most fun.

They played until after six o'clock, when she felt tired and followed Lin Heng home.

"Dad, I think I got my clothes dirty!" Xiaoxia said softly while looking at her clothes.

"It's okay. It's dirty. You didn't do it on purpose. Dad will wash it for you." Lin Heng said with a smile, patting his chest.

"Yeah, Daddy is so nice!" Xiaoxia happily hugged Lin Heng's thighs and acted coquettishly.

"She talks as if I beat her for getting her clothes dirty." Xiulan's voice came from the front, looking at the father and daughter unhappily.

"That's right, Lin Heng deserves a beating, Xiulan, you have to teach him a lesson." Tian Yan laughed and cheered.

Lin Heng smiled and spread his hands, saying, "My wife can't bear to hit me."

"Mom, I just told a story to other kids!" Xiaoxia said as she saw her mother happily sharing.

"I know, I saw it from a distance. Xiaoxia is so amazing." Xiulan touched her daughter's face and praised.

She and Tian Yan saw everything from a distance, but Lin Heng and Xiaoxia didn't notice them.

"Then I'll tell it again tomorrow." Xiaoxia said happily. The recognition from the children and her father made her feel a sense of accomplishment in storytelling.

(End of this chapter)