In the blink of an eye, Leng Yue had been in this place called Anqi Village for a month. During this time, she finally figured out what kind of place she had come to.
Anqi Village, located inland, is a small mountain village, but it boasts beautiful scenery and a simple and honest folk culture.
1988 was the 1980s that Leng Yue had never witnessed firsthand.
As the saying goes, "Those who live near mountains live off the mountains, and those who live near water live off the water." Anqi Village has a good geographical location, and the village chief, Leng Dazhu, is a visionary. He led the villagers to clear the mountains and plant fruit trees.
They regularly transport the produce to the city to sell, and the villagers' income is increasing, and their lives are getting better and better.
Beautiful houses began to spring up in the village one after another, made of reinforced concrete, standing tall and looking good. A few even built multi-story houses, making them among the most well-off in the surrounding area. Even Da Zhuang's family, whom Leng Xiaoyu had mentioned, used to be the poorest in the village, but now they live in a neat, tiled house…
Only Leng Xiaoyu's family lives in a mud-walled house, far from the village.
After Leng Yue arrived, she worked alongside the villagers. Leng Xiaoyu's family's land was gone; it was said that after the original owner fell ill, no one managed it, so the village took it. However, every harvest season, they would give Leng Xiaoyu's family the newly harvested grain as payment.
When Leng Yue found out, she went to see the village chief. Seeing that she had indeed recovered, the village chief didn't say much and returned her two mu of rice paddies.
By this time, the rice had already been planted in the fields. However, it would still be some time before the rice matured, and Leng Yue and the others couldn't go without food!
So, Leng Yue went up the mountain to work with the villagers every day. Sometimes she helped in the orchard, and sometimes she went with the adults to clear land. While clearing land, Leng Yue even saw real wild wolves!
When Leng Yue encountered the wild wolf pack, her first reaction was to call the police, and her second was that wolves are protected animals and should not be killed. However, the villagers immediately grabbed their hunting rifles and fired.
Finally, the whole village carried the wolf back, and each family shared it and ate it. That was the first time Leng Yue realized that in these seemingly short-lived eras, people actually had vastly different ideas.
Fortunately, people got along quite well during this time.
After working with everyone for a month, Leng Yue became familiar with the villagers. The villagers took good care of Leng Yue and her siblings, and would always lend a hand to Leng Yue when they were working.
"Xiaoyue, your house is uninhabitable, isn't it? I'll have your uncle find someone to fix it for you. Don't wait until the rainy season and you and Xiaoyuer have nowhere to live." The speaker was Li Guilan, the village chief's wife. She was a big, strong woman with a loud voice, and although she looked fierce, she was actually very kind.
"Yes, yes, I'll have your Uncle Niu go too. Your house really is in bad shape. It needs to be repaired properly!" This was Zhao Caifeng, Leng Tieniu's wife. She wasn't usually talkative, but she was a kind-hearted person.
Upon hearing this, the women working together all wanted to join the house repair team.
Leng Yue had never seen anything like this before. She was always the one begging others, and they would always make excuses. She had never seen anyone offer to come and do the work for her.
"Uncles and aunts, although our house is dilapidated, it's still habitable. Besides, there's still some time before the rainy season, so I can fix it myself..." Leng Yue said shyly.
“No, we’ll listen to you and your wife. We’ll fix the house tomorrow,” Leng Tieniu retorted with a frown before Leng Yue could finish speaking.
"But won't this interfere with the village's work?" Leng Yue was a little troubled; she really didn't want to trouble others.
When she first arrived, she thought everyone was shunning them because the original owner's family was poor. Later, she discovered that the villagers had been secretly taking care of them all along. It's just that the original owner was too mad to know it.
As for Leng Xiaoyu, he was only a five-year-old child. Most of the time, he was still confused and didn't know where the food at home came from or what he should do.
Even now, baskets full of food occasionally appear in front of Leng Yue's house. Leng Yue is sincerely grateful to the villagers. Although everyone's lives are better than before, they have no obligation to take care of them.
Leng Yue felt too embarrassed to keep accepting gifts from others!
Hearing the discussion, the village chief, who was resting not far away, also came over. "I heard what you were saying. Let the siblings live in the three tiled houses in front of us."
The village chief glanced at Leng Yue. "That house of theirs is no longer habitable. Another downpour, and something terrible is sure to happen!"
"Guilan, don't overthink it. We're not giving it to them, we're just letting them stay here. We'll come back once they build their new house." The village chief concluded by trying to reassure his wife.
“What are you thinking? Do you think I, Li Guilan, am that kind of unreasonable person? I like Xiaoyue and Xiaoyuer. They can stay as long as they want, I’m happy to!” Li Guilan retorted in a booming voice, but she kept smiling.
In married life, what could be more satisfying than being respected by one's husband? Although Leng Dazhu was the village head, in charge of all village affairs, he would still consult with Li Guilan when it came to matters concerning his family.
Just like now, Leng Dazhu did not make a forceful decision in front of outsiders; he still cared about Li Guilan's thoughts.
Everyone burst into laughter. The men laughed at the village chief for being henpecked, while the women looked on with a hint of envy.
The village chief didn't mind, and waited until everyone's laughter stopped before continuing, "How about this, let's send two people to help Xiaoyue move tomorrow."
"Uncle Dazhu, Xiaoyu and I are fine, we don't have much stuff anyway." Leng Yue didn't refuse the house, because it really wasn't safe at home. The roof had been constantly shedding dirt lately.
"Silly girl, how long will it take you and Xiaoyuer to move? I'll go help you with your aunts tomorrow, so you can pack in advance." Li Guilan took it all on.
"Guilan, you're so thoughtful. Okay, you guys don't need to come tomorrow, anyway, the weeds are almost all cleared." As the village chief made the decision, he didn't forget to praise Li Guilan.
This caused another round of light laughter from the crowd. Li Guilan smiled sweetly as well, and sure enough, Leng Yue did see a hint of romance.
In this not-so-open era, people are quite unabashed when it comes to showing affection!
After discussing the matter, everyone continued working. As the sun was about to set, they went down the mountain to go home. It wasn't safe to be on the mountain late!
Because of the work, the family had some income. Leng Yue bought rice, flour, oil, and salt, and would cook different delicious meals for Leng Xiaoyu every day.
Sure enough, from afar, they could see Leng Xiaoyu waiting for Leng Yue. "Sister, you're back! What are we having for dinner today? The scallion pancakes you made this morning were so delicious, I ate them all at lunchtime."
Looking at the increasingly chubby Leng Xiaoyu, Leng Yue asked, "Little Fish, can you write the number ten yet?"
Leng Yue didn't want to raise Leng Xiaoyu to be a foodie; in this day and age, education is important.
"I've got it, sis! I can write up to fifteen now!" Leng Xiaoyu was extremely proud, standing tall and waiting for Leng Yue's praise.
"Okay, okay, then I'll make you something delicious as a reward, how about that?" Leng Yue replied with a smile.
Upon hearing about the delicious food, Leng Xiaoyu smiled happily. Shallow dimples appeared on her chubby little face. Leng Yue chuckled and shook her head, then went to prepare dinner.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com