Chapter 408 Chapter 409: Scared of being poor
Zhou Huaian is now more imposing than he was in June. In addition, he has been infected with evil spirits after hunting bears and killing wild boars in the mountains in the past few months. He is full of murderous intent when he points the gun at Curly.
"..." Curly looked at the black barrel of his gun and held the knife, not daring to move.
The gangsters who followed him were also dumbfounded when they saw the gun pointed at Curly. Wasn't he just a herbal bastard? How could he have a gun?
Zhou Huaian said to the gangsters, "Brothers, go away. This is a feud between Curly and I. It's none of your business!"
Zhou Yiding held a wooden stick and pointed at a few hooligans, "I'm telling you, in June, Curly tried to rob, but three of us couldn't beat him. If you keep following this scoundrel, you'll end up digging the river and building dams sooner or later!"
A few gangsters turned their heads to look at Curly, then at Zhou Huaian and the other man, and said, "Let's go!" Then they ran away along the path.
Seeing that several people were running away faster than rabbits, Curly said to Zhou Huaian, "Forget it this time, but don't let me meet you again next time!" He also wanted to run away as he said that.
"Stand still!" Zhou Huaian pointed a gun at him, "If you dare to run, I'll open a hole in your chest for fun!"
Curly Hair stopped and didn't dare to move. He turned his back to Zhou Huaian and said, "Brother, I was wrong. Please don't. Can't I put the knife down?" As he said that, he put the knife on the ground.
Zhou Huaian stepped forward and pointed a gun at his back, saying coldly: "I'll shoot you, at most I'll hide in the mountains for a few years, what about you? This day next year will be your death anniversary!"
Curly was so scared that he started shaking like a sieve and cried, "Brother, I just wanted to scare you and get a few dollars. I swear, I didn't mean to do anything to you."
"I'll let you go this time. If you dare to do something like this again, I'll take you to the police station and hand you over to the police. You know how long you'll have to stay in jail for robbing a tractor with a knife? Yeah!"
Curly nodded his head rapidly, "Understood! Understood! I won't dare to do it again next time."
Zhou Huaian took away the gun that was pressed against his vest and kicked him, "Get lost~"
Curly staggered a few times, didn't even dare to turn his head, and ran away.
Zhou Huaian picked up the machete and said, "Yes, the one in the old house is chipped and I am reluctant to buy a new one. This one is perfect for him."
Zhou Yiding put the stick back under the seat cushion, waited for him to take the gun back and put it away, and then covered the seat cushion. "When did you prepare these?"
Zhou Huaian got on and sat down. "Just the last time Curly and a few others... plus the other day my third brother was transporting goods for someone, and I heard from another master that a tractor was robbed there."
"The master was beaten and stayed in the hospital for half a month. He almost lost his life. The tractor has not been found yet. When I found out, I put the shotgun under the seat cushion for self-defense."
"Thanks to you for scaring them with the gun today, otherwise we would have to go to the police station again." Zhou Yiding said, pulled the handbrake and drove the tractor back.
"That's right!" Zhou Huaian held the railing behind him. "There are more and more young people with nothing to do on the streets. It doesn't look peaceful at all."
Zhou Yiding thought about the past, "We used to be just like them, wandering around the village like wandering souls. Maybe the villagers also looked at us like that, right?"
Zhou Huaian thought about it and said, "That's right, even my mother and old man don't like me, not to mention others. Damn it, to be honest, we haven't done anything bad, right? Why are we so disliked?"
"Everyone is working in the fields like cows all day long. One or two of us are tanned brighter than loaches. We are the only ones with delicate skin and tender flesh. How can others not be disgusted by us?"
Zhou Yiding said as he turned around and glanced at him, "Especially you, why can't you get tanned?"
Zhou Huaian said proudly: "My grandma said that when I was a child, she often secretly squeezed goat milk from the brigade and brought it home for me to drink and to smear on my face."
Zhou Yiding said in surprise, "Really? When I have a son in the future, I will buy two ewes and milk them to clean his face. I'll see if I can raise him to be fairer and tenderer."
Zhou Huaian thought it was right, "Let me try it on my son first, then you will have experience."
Zhou Yiding nodded happily, "Okay, you and your son have both tried it, so it's probably right."
Zhou Huaian looked at him with dissatisfaction, "Bah! My father and I have tried it, and it's only 80%? It shouldn't be 100% right?"
Zhou Yiding said honestly: "The problem is that Xuejiao and I are not fair-skinned! If we give birth to a son with fair skin, it will be troublesome!"
"Get lost!" Zhou Huaian glared at him angrily, "What do you mean, kid? I'm telling you, my skin is like my grandma's. My grandma had fair skin when she was young. You know about the inheritance of genes from previous generations?"
Zhou Yiding looked back at him, and thinking of his father whose skin was darker than a loach, he couldn't help but laugh, "You're overthinking it! There's absolutely no other meaning!"
"Hmph!" Zhou Huaian snorted coldly and ignored him.
"Stingy! I really didn't mean anything else!"
Zhou Huaian rolled his eyes, "I'm not angry yet, just drive your tractor!"
"Ha ha!"
Zhou Yiding drove the tractor to the carpenter's house in the town. When Zhou Huaian saw the polished tree stumps, he realized that he had also prepared a few sections of wood and asked the carpenter to polish them smooth and make a few round stools.
"Not bad. It looks better when placed together like this than with straw stools."
"I saw someone at the forest farm did this and it was pretty good, so I sawed some unwanted logs and sent them over!"
"Yes, the things he makes are better looking than those made by Carpenter Li."
"The things made by the village carpenters are only about durability, not beauty!"
"That's true!" Zhou Huaian saw that the rocking chair made by the carpenter was very well made, so he bought another one.
The two of them went out to the house next door that made rattan weaving. After Zhou Huaian tried the rattan chair, he thought it was good, but a little expensive, costing more than ten yuan for one chair. So they each bought two.
Zhou Huaian carried the rattan chair and walked towards the tractor, sighing as he walked, "I'm making money faster than I'm spending it."
Zhou Yiding glanced at him and said, "Are you worried that your sister-in-law will scold you when you go back?"
"Your sister-in-law won't scold me!" Zhou Huaian thought about it and hurriedly reminded him, "Ding Ding Cat, if my mother asks you how much this chair cost when you get home, just say five dollars. No, just say two dollars."
Zhou Yiding rolled his eyes after hearing this. "The bamboo chairs I made at home don't cost a penny. I just cut some bamboo and made a few. I think you'll get scolded even if you say two dollars a piece."
"That's much better than ten yuan a bunch." Zhou Huaian sighed, "They are afraid of being poor, and asking them to spend money is like cutting their flesh.
Look at my brother and his family. They moved to a new house but the kids are still sleeping on wooden beds. They are reluctant to even build a bed.”
The two men were driving a tractor back to the village. As soon as they reached the brigade's dam for drying the sun, they were stopped by an uncle from the same clan named Zhou Huaijin, nicknamed Big Head.
"Youngest, when you and Yiding went hunting in the mountains, did you dig traps or go to the old forest to hunt?"
"We didn't dig any traps. We didn't dare go to the old forest." Zhou Huaian said with a smile, "We just happened to come across it when we were looking for herbs."
The big head curled his lips, "Why haven't we encountered this before?"
Zhou Yiding: "Big head, the youngest one didn't lie to you. We plan to go up the mountain to dig some herbs to sell. If we are lucky, we may encounter a python swallowing a wild boar..."
"Oh, it's so real." Big Head looked at the two of them unhappily, "What's the matter? Are you afraid that we will rob you of your wealth?"
"Believe it or not!" Zhou Huaian responded unhappily, pulled the brake and drove away.
Zhou Huaijin watched the two walk away, "Bah! Two second-rate guys made a little money and even forgot their last names."
Someone complained sourly: "Big brain, they still rely on the wild animals and herbs in the mountains. If there were no mountains, where would they make money?"
"Do you think hunting is that easy? Cai Ermei and her friends almost lost their lives the last time they went into the mountains!"
"That's right. No one is stopping you from going. If you have the ability, go up the mountain and hunt wild boars!" said someone who was on good terms with the Zhou family.
Zhou Huaian parked the tractor in front of Zhou Yiding's house, and the two of them moved their things into the yard. "Want to go together?"
Zhou Yiding looked at the time and said, "I'll take a nap and it will be around 5:30."
“Yes!”
Zhou Huaian left the yard and drove the tractor back home. He saw that the gate was locked. "Fortunately, my mother is not here. Let's move the things in and put them away."
He took out the key, opened the door and drove the tractor into the yard. Wangcai and Lai Fu came to greet him, wagging their tails.
Zhou Huaian turned off the engine and went downstairs, gently kicking the two dogs, "Where's your master?"
"Woof woof!" The dog wagged its tail and barked twice affectionately.
"Damn it, he knows everything except how to speak. It would be great if he could speak!"
Zhou Huaian shook his head as he spoke, moved the rattan chair into the room, placed the rocking chair in the main room, and moved the tree stump and log stool downstairs and placed them there, then on second thought he took out the teapot and placed it on top, and thought it looked pretty good.
Wangcai and Laifu followed him in and out, wagging their tails.
Zhou Huaian closed the gate and went to the back hill, where he saw Yang Chunyan holding a dustpan in the field. "Yan'er, what are you doing?"
Yang Chunyan turned her head and smiled: "I scattered the remaining grass and flowers."
Zhou Huaian opened the fence gate and said, "Why are you sowing the grass here? We have to sow the herbs after the New Year."
"It's fertile land, and we can also harvest pig grass." Yang Chunyan saw him coming and said hurriedly, "Don't come in, or you'll step on mud everywhere!"
Zhou Huaian waited for her to finish spreading the last handful, then came forward and said with a smile: "I pulled the tree stump back, bought a rocking chair and two rattan chairs, which are quite comfortable to sit on."
"Rattan chairs are more comfortable to sit on than chairs." Yang Chunyan closed the fence door. "Have you sold the snake meat?"
"Brother Huang has bought everything." Zhou Huaian followed her down the mountain, "Have my brother and his family finished building the fence?"
"Well! Third sister-in-law's brother and sister-in-law are here today..."
"Why would I bother with such a shameless person? I'll kick him out if I find a big stick."
Yang Chunyan rolled her eyes at him and said, "Are you a bandit? All you know is fighting and killing."
"Hey!" Zhou Huaian closed the backyard door diligently, "I bought it for Xiaoqian..."
"Yes!" Yang Chunyan put down the dustpan, "Go to the kitchen and scoop the pig food out of the pot into the bucket. I'll go and peel a bowl of peas and rice and stir-fry the peas until they're soft."
"Wait a minute!" Zhou Huaian pulled her towards the front yard, "Let's go check out the table made of a tree stump first."
"Wouldn't it be different if we wait and see? He won't run away there!"
"I think it's pretty good, let's go take a look first."
“Really?” Yang Chunyan patted him in disapproval, but still followed him to the front yard. Seeing the polished and oiled tree stumps and log stools on the steps, she nodded repeatedly, “Purely natural things are pretty nice!”
"Where did you get such a big tree stump?" Zhou's mother went up the steps with a basket of vegetables and touched it. "It must have taken a lot of effort to polish it so smooth, right?"
Zhou Huaian's mind raced, "Yiding said he was bored when he was at the forest farm."
"It's pretty good if you make one when you have nothing to do!" Zhou's mother smiled and handed the basket to Yang Chunyan, "I cut some leeks, picked some pea tips, coriander, and garlic sprouts and brought them here."
Yang Chunyan took the basket and asked, "Will you guys come over to eat with us tonight?"
Zhou's mother laughed and said, "No, I'm not coming. I've only moved in a few days, and I've only come to your house to eat a few meals. How can I handle your little food?"
Yang Chunyan looked at her with a smile, "We'll go to your place after we finish our meal!"
"You wish!" Zhou's mother laughed and said, "I'm back!"
"Yes!" Yang Chunyan walked towards the kitchen with the basket in her hand. Zhou's mother walked a few steps and then turned back. "When I came here, I heard Ma Chunhua say that many people in the village were talking about going up the mountain to hunt wild boars."
Yang Chunyan thought for a moment after hearing this and said, "It's probably because he saw Huai'an and Yiding selling wild boars and got jealous."
She knew that since their new house was built, many people in the village had been stimulated. Today, when they saw Huai'an and Yiding selling wild boars, they all wanted to go into the mountains to hunt wild animals to make a fortune!
Mother Zhou nodded and said, "I have to talk to Huai'an and tell him not to make trouble with those people. Hunting wild animals is not that easy."
"Don't worry, Mom!" Zhou Huaian came out and said, "We'll go up the mountain to look for wild beehives. If we see pheasants or rabbits, we'll kill two. We'll never go after wild boars."
Zhou's mother: "Yiding, you should also talk to him and tell him not to follow those young people in making trouble."
"Got it!" Zhou Huaian thought of the things he bought for them, "I bought two bunches of leaf tobacco for Grandpa and also weighed some peach cakes. You can bring them over."
"Just buy some tobacco leaves for grandpa, why buy cakes and biscuits?" Zhou's mother gave him a sidelong look and said, "Don't buy them anymore in the future. Save the money and take it out when you need it."
"Yes, yes!" Zhou Huaian ran to the tractor, took out tobacco leaves, cakes and the machete from the bamboo basket and handed them to her, "There is also a machete."
Zhou's mother wanted to say that the machete at home could be used, but seeing his smiling face, she didn't say anything and reminded him again: "It's not easy to make money, don't spend it recklessly."
"Got it!"
Mother Zhou happily carried the things back to the old house and saw three women from the same clan standing in the yard. Luo Haili was standing on the steps looking at them.
She walked forward with a smile, "Hey! Why are you all here together today?"
Zhou Huaijin's mother Wu Caixiang looked at her affectionately and said, "I'm here to ask for your help!"
Mother Zhou put the basket of vegetables on the steps, turned around and looked at them, smiling: "No one in my family is an official, and no one in charge of things, how can I help you?"
Wu Caixiang looked at her with a smile, "Your youngest son! I heard that he and Yiding never go up the mountain empty-handed. They have earned a lot these days. Why don't you take our kids with you?"
"How could they hunt wild animals? They just happened to encounter the wild boar today when they went up the mountain to collect herbs!" Zhou's mother skipped the matter of looking for wild honey and told the few people what had happened.
(End of this chapter)
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