Chapter 038 Chapter 38 Natural Disaster and My Mother

After the dam was destroyed, the rain gradually subsided.

The next afternoon, the sun finally came out.

The flood came and went quickly, leaving only the small stream in the south of the village that flows to Dongwozi. It became several times larger and you can still see the traces of the heavy rain.

Taking advantage of the good weather, everyone spontaneously went to the fields today to check the condition of the crops.

These days are the sorghum harvest season. It rained so hard before that everyone was worried and no one dared to go up the mountain. Now that it is finally sunny, everyone is eager to harvest the grain today.

The mountain road was slippery and difficult to walk on after the rain. I don't know if it was because it was autumn and there were many grasshoppers on the road. The children were very happy and ran to the roadside to catch grasshoppers. The dogtail grass that was everywhere on the roadside was now destroyed by the wind and rain and was lying on the ground. The children caught the grasshoppers and pulled a piece of dogtail grass to string a bunch of grasshoppers together.

The adults didn't really care about these naughty kids, and were happy for them to catch more grasshoppers to satisfy their hunger. If they ran too fast and got covered in mud, the adults wouldn't get angry, as long as they didn't run around, they would just let them do what they wanted. Some adults were so greedy that they would grab a couple and put them in their pockets, waiting to go home and roast them on the fire.

The relaxed atmosphere did not last long. Lin Yue and his companions were still halfway up the mountain when they heard anxious shouts.

She followed the sound and saw a few people in the fields in the distance anxiously checking something. A little further away, Zhang Shoucang jumped over the pile of dirt that was in the way and rushed into the fields.

Lin Yue found something wrong. This field was planted with sorghum. Normally, she should be able to see it from a long distance away, but today she didn't see even a shadow of sorghum.

Several others also reacted and climbed up quickly.

They climbed up a steep slope in a few steps and finally saw the four or five acres of sorghum field they were responsible for.

It hadn't rained so hard a while ago, so we could still go to the fields in the rain to check and drain the water in time. But it rained so hard these days, and it didn't rain for three or four days. The sorghum in the fields was broken by the wind and rain and lay on the ground. The water in the fields had gathered into small ponds, and the heavy sorghum ears were immersed in the water, which was already green and covered with small buds.

This is their most important food! This year, the policy was finally changed and the farmers were about to get through the hard times, but then a natural disaster struck again.

Lin Yue felt very upset. She stood there not knowing what to do. Some of her companions had already sat in the water, crying loudly. She listened to the crying, as if it came from her own mouth. This was the food they had worked so hard to grow for three or four months, and it was all in vain.

The yield of sorghum is high, nearly twice that of wheat, and wheat accounts for a much higher proportion when paying public grain. Therefore, in rural areas, people mainly rely on sorghum and sweet potatoes to fill their stomachs.

Now that they have been soaked by the rain, they have all sprouted. How can we not feel sad?

Lin Yue thought again that the corn stalks were not as thick as those of sorghum. If the sorghum was blown down, no one would know what would happen to the corn.

Zhang Shoucang asked someone to go back to the village to report the news, and soon organized people to carry out the looting.

In the later generations when Lin Yue lived, no matter what kind of food it was, if it sprouted, it could not be eaten, fearing that it might be poisonous. But now it is different, these are life-saving food, and no one is willing to let them rot in the ground.

The people who went to check the cornfield came back and found that the corn had indeed fallen to the ground. It was not yet time to harvest the corn. It looked full, but it was actually full of water. When it dried up, there would be nothing left. But we couldn't just let it rot in the field, so we had to harvest it along with the sorghum.

Zhang Yuandong was taken to the county yesterday afternoon and did not return at night. When he returned to the village today, he heard about the situation in the village. He and Aunt Su rushed over and joined everyone in the harvest.

There was a lot of water in the fields and the crops were blown all over the place by the wind, making it very difficult to harvest. We worked until dark before we managed to harvest only a small piece of land.

It was gradually getting dark and it was no longer possible to work in the fields. Lin Yue was worried about the children at home. The adults were not at home, leaving only a few children at home. She was really worried and hurried back.

The mountain road was slippery, especially in places with a lot of grass, which made it even more difficult to walk. Lin Yue was wearing a pair of straw sandals and almost slipped when passing a steep slope. Fortunately, someone helped him from behind.

She turned around to thank him and found that the man was Zhang Yuandong.

The man's hands were steady and powerful. He half lifted and half supported her until they reached a flat road. He then let her go and told her, "Don't worry. Walk slowly. I can walk fast. I'll go back and take a look first."

Lin Yue felt like she was being carried down like a chicken. She felt a little embarrassed and touched her ears uncomfortably. When she heard someone say that she had to leave first, she was eager to separate from him and quickly responded with a "yes".

Zhang Yuandong looked back at her several times and felt that she seemed to be shy, with her ears turning red.

When Lin Yue returned home, Zhang Yuandong was not there. There were only four naughty monkeys playing in the water in the yard.

At that time, the yards in the countryside were not paved with cement or tiled. When it rained, the yards were full of mud.

Aunt Su's house was better, with a path made of stones and bricks in the yard, so it wasn't so muddy. Several children jumped happily in the puddles, splashing mud all over their clothes and pants.

During the day, the sun was shining, so they had no worries about playing like this. But now that the sun had set, Lin Yue was afraid that these naughty kids would catch a cold, so he quickly took them into the house to change clothes.

Several kids were laughing and giggling, and they couldn't even change clothes quietly. If you moved me, I would pull you. They were still shy. When they saw others taking off their clothes, they pretended to close their eyes, poked their faces with their fingers and shouted loudly: "Diudiu, you are not ashamed of being naked!"

Zhang Linghan was a little girl, and Lin Yue was conscious of teaching her to pay attention to her privacy, so he asked her to wait outside the house first. But she was impatient, and when she heard the noise in the house, she pushed the door open and ran in, shouting, "No shame in being naked, no shame in being naked!"

Children don't know that adults' worries come from the heart. Lin Yue was infected by them, and put aside all the fatigue and anxiety of the whole day, and laughed along with them.

Several children changed their clothes and came out of the house, just in time to see Zhang Yuandong standing in the yard. He was holding a bunch of beans in his hand and was being pulled out by Zhang Xiaoxi.

When Zhang Yuandong saw Lin Yue, he discussed with Zhang Xiaoxi, "I have to tell your sister-in-law anyway, don't worry."

Zhang Xiaoxi didn't listen. When he saw Lin Yue, he came up even more aggressively and grabbed him tightly, "Why did you tell her? I called you, not her. Big brother, hurry up, I'm getting impatient!"

At this time, Aunt Su and her family just happened to come back.

Aunt Su happened to hear Zhang Xiaoxi's last words. She took the beans from Zhang Yuandong's hand and said, "Go quickly. You finally came back. You should go to the old house first. You were delayed yesterday. Now is a good time for the whole family to have a reunion dinner."

Zhang Xiaoxi curled her lips, but didn't dare to say anything more. She just glared at Lin Yue secretly.

Zhang Yuandong nodded and pulled Lin Yue into the house first.

He found his own package and took out a bunch of supplementary food to show Lin Yue, "Pick a few and take them to your parents, and put the rest away."

Zhang Yuandong's attitude this time was completely different from the last time. And I don't know what was going on in his mind, but his eyes looked like a big dog waiting for his owner to praise him.

Lin Yue shuddered and quickly deleted this unrealistic idea.

She pushed the food back and said, "Take your pick. We haven't finished the food you sent back last month. Take a look at what your parents-in-law and your brothers and sisters like to eat and bring some over."

Zhang Yuandong touched the back of his head, feeling a little lost. He took a few candies and maltose, grabbed a handful of preserved fruits, packed them in a cloth bag, and went out with Lin Yue.

Aunt Su's house was not far from Sun Hongmei's house, and the two of them quickly arrived at the old house with their children.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, Sun Hongmei hurriedly ran out of the house. She grabbed Zhang Yuandong's sleeve and started to shout in a loud voice: "You unfilial son, you didn't even come to see your parents first when you came back, and you ran to someone else's house to show your courtesy! Come in, mother has something to ask you!" She didn't care about Lin Yue and her two sons, and dragged her eldest son into the house.

Lin Yue didn't expect to see Zhang Xiaohui here again. She was wearing a blue floral dress and the same pair of plastic sandals she wore yesterday. Her dark hair was braided into two pigtails and hung in front of her chest. She stood quietly at the door. If it weren't for the shock on her face, she really looked like a painting.

Lin Yue has never liked Liu Jianhua's lucky sister-in-law. It's not that they have any conflicts, they have hardly ever spoken to each other. It's mainly because of the way this girl looks at him, which makes Lin Yue always feel like he owes her millions. And she has a kind of condescending feeling that is hard to find in the nearby villages. She looks at everyone as if she is giving alms, so Lin Yue is even more reluctant to have too much contact with her.

After entering the main room, before everyone had settled down, Sun Hongmei couldn't wait to ask, "I heard that you were discharged from the army and transferred to civilian work? How much was your transfer fee?"

Zhang Yuandong guessed it was this and said calmly, "There is no transfer fee."

His mother choked and immediately jumped up and down: "How can there be no demobilization fee! Zhang Shouben was demobilized last year and received 100 yuan in demobilization fee. You have been a soldier for so many years, how come you are not as good as him who has only been in the army for three years? I am your mother. If you dare to hide the money and not give it to me, I will sue you for being unfilial!"

Seeing that Zhang Yuandong ignored her, she said angrily: "You don't have to lie to an old woman like me. I've heard that you won first-class merit this time and broke an arm. You have made such a great contribution, how can you not be paid a penny! If there is really no money, I will go and make a scene!"

Zhang Xiaohui was shocked when she heard this, and her face turned pale. This old thing, does she have no eyes? The person has been here for such a long time, can't she see if he is injured or his arm is broken? What a stupid question!