In the blink of an eye, the Southern New Year has passed, and there are only five days left until New Year’s Eve.
During this period, the number of truffles sent from Huangqinggou was much less than before, but a lot of Gastrodia elata, Paris polyphylla, Codonopsis pilosula, and wild animals were sent.
Zhou Huaian made two or three hundred yuan from running around a few times. Qu Qiulin also listened to his advice and bought a few cattle from Fangtian Brigade and brought them back to the village to raise them.
Yang Chunyan and Zhou Huaian made money and were very grateful to their boss in the provincial capital and Wang Zhen. They bought two legs of venison from Village Chief Qu and gave one leg to Wang Zhen.
There was another leg that Wang Zhen had frozen in the refrigerator, and he also added an old ham that Huang Yongcai had helped buy and two wild goat legs that he had smoked himself at home, and asked Wang Zhen to help deliver them to the provincial capital.
Zhou Huaian felt that Wang Zhen and his sister-in-law got along well. Last time he went there, he saw the two of them reading medical books together, talking and laughing...
He could see that Dr. Xiao Wang had some interest in his sister-in-law. With his introverted personality, he was suitable to be with someone like his sister-in-law who loved to talk and laugh.
Just like him and Chunyan, she doesn't like to talk, but he loves to talk and laugh, and he can often make her happy...
The amount of truffles collected from Baicaoping and Baicaopo has also decreased. The good thing is that there are people from Bailing Mountain in Baicaopo who are following them to deliver truffles.
On the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhou Huaian got up before dawn and put the shotgun and rifle he had prepared last night on the tractor. Wangcai and Lai Fu excitedly circled around him.
Today, he and Zhou Yiding put away the truffles and asked Zhou Huaishan and the others to drive back. The two of them and the second son of Secretary Zhang went up the mountain to hunt, looking for Ganoderma lucidum, Coriolus versicolor and Paris polyphylla.
Yang Chunyan warned worriedly, "Be careful, don't go to the old forest, and come back early after going down the mountain."
Zhou Huaian nodded repeatedly, "Don't worry, we will be back after we get down the mountain."
Yang Chunyan looked at the dogs spinning around excitedly and said, "Look, even these two look like you!"
"I brought him back, so of course he looks like me!" Zhou Huaian proudly called the dog to jump onto the tractor, and said to the old man, Zhou's father, and Yang Chunyan, "I'm leaving now!"
"Be careful and come back early the day after tomorrow." The three of them warned in unison.
"Got it!" Zhou Huaian started the tractor and drove out of the yard, picking up Zhou Huaishan and Zhou Yiding and drove towards Baicaoping.
…
After dawn, Zhou's mother and Zhou Yumei, holding the child, came to Yang Chunyan's house. "There is a market in town today. Let's go buy some New Year's goods. What do you want to eat? We will buy it for you."
After Zhou Yumei's full moon, the Zhou family held a grand celebration for her. Almost all the relatives in the village came, and someone even proposed marriage to her, but was rejected by Zhou's mother and herself.
These people saw that the Zhou family was now prosperous. Although Zhou Yumei had returned to her parents' home, they had a large yard in the town and a newly renovated brick house.
Zhou Yumei listened to the advice of Yang Chunyan and his wife, and Zhou's father brought craftsmen to tear down a wall of the courtyard facing the school and the street, and built a spacious shop. They planned to open the shop with Luo Haili after the New Year.
"No, we have them at home." Yang Chunyan looked at Zhou Xiaoxi, "It seems to have grown again."
Zhou Yumei said cheerfully, "They have grown up. They eat and sleep every day, and then eat and sleep. They are just like the four little pigs at home who grow with the wind!"
Mother Zhou took Zhou Xiaoxi and said, "Let's carry her and leave quickly. If Xiaolin and the others find out, we'll be in trouble."
Yang Chunyan smiled and said, "Qian Chunhua said that the town has been very busy these days, with so many people that even the heels of shoes are about to fall off!"
Zhou's mother said angrily, "Not only are there many people, but there are also many kidnappers. I heard that a kid was kidnapped at the construction team." Then she picked up the backpack and said, "Let's go, let's go. If Xiaolin sees us later, we won't be able to leave."
"Great!" Zhou Yumei took the scarf and handed it to Yang Chunyan to cover Zhou Xiaoxi, then said goodbye and left.
When the mother and daughter reached the brigade's drying dam, they heard someone shouting from behind, "Guilan, wait, let's go together."
Mother Zhou turned around and saw Qian Chunhua panting after them, carrying a backpack on her back. "We are going to the Baima fair. Where are you going?"
Qian Chunhua is very nice to the Zhou family now. She hates to hear anyone gossiping about Yang Chunyan and Zhou Huaian. She even had a fight with Xiong Da's wife two days ago.
"I'm going there too. Hongbing came back last time and said that more and more people are coming to the forest farm to look for truffles, and it's getting harder to find truffles in the mountains. They're going down the mountain this afternoon." Qian Chunhua looked at her gratefully, "Thanks to your youngest wife, my Xiaofang went to Ning'an to find Doctor Wang to prescribe some medicine, and she's feeling much better now."
Zhou's mother smiled and said, "It's just a matter of showing me the way, there's no need to thank me!"
Qian Chunhua said sincerely: "Not only that! If it weren't for your youngest son showing me the way, how would we have the money to buy medicine and food this year. Many people in the village say that your youngest son did a great thing, and that you two know how to teach your children!"
Zhou's mother was delighted when she heard this. "How can we teach? We are just like everyone else. If they don't listen, we just beat them and scold them and they will behave themselves."
Qian Chunhua smiled and said, "There's an old saying that good people grow up under the yellow broom. If they don't obey, they won't be punished!"
Zhou's mother recalled what Zhou Huaian used to say, "Some kids just don't accept being beaten. The more you beat them, the more they go against you."
"My Hong Bing is like this!" Qian Chunhua said, looking at her with a gossipy face, "I heard that the Xiong family split up again today, did you know?"
"Re-divide the family?" Zhou's mother looked at her strangely. "Didn't his family split up a long time ago? Why is it splitting up again?"
"Think about it, who would be willing to stay home and serve Old Xiong when he is paralyzed in bed?" Qian Chunhua said, pointing in the direction of the Xiong family. "When I came out, I saw Old Third Xiong calling his two uncles out. They are all home now."
Zhou's mother turned her head and saw Zhou Dalin and Zhou Dashi following Xiong Laosan into the yard.
Qian Chunhua sighed, "People are most afraid of getting sick when they get old. Even if they are sick, it's fine as long as they can walk. But if they are paralyzed in bed like an old bear, their future life will be difficult!"
Zhou's mother: "As the saying goes, there are no filial sons for a patient who has been sick for a long time, let alone a patient who is paralyzed like the old bear."
…
At the Xiong family, the Zhou Dalin brothers felt unhappy when they saw Xiong Dahai coming out.
Thinking about how capable he was before, and how he has lost his human form in just such a short time, it would be better if he had died right away than to have lived like this.
"Alas!" Zhou Dalin sighed and asked Zhou Sufang, "What happened? The third brother didn't explain it clearly."
Zhou Sufang said with a sad face, "The youngest and third sons are repairing the house. The old man got sick and the family's money is almost gone. The doctor said that stroke can't be cured in a short time and needs to be taken care of slowly, so we brought him back home. There was nothing wrong in the first two days after he came home, but the eldest son and his wife started to make trouble a few days ago."
"One moment he said that when the youngest brother was in the army, he pocketed all the allowances he received. The next moment he said that the youngest brother had said before that he would give the new house to the eldest family and that he would live with us old couple in the future. The two brothers had quarreled several times, and I don't know why they started fighting last night."
Zhou Dashi's face was gloomy. "When you split up the family, I told you that you should do it like other families, and when one of you gets married, one of you should go out. You should send the second and third sons out, and keep the eldest and the youngest son at home. Now you are building a brick and tile house for the youngest son. Aren't you just looking for lice crawling on your own head?"
Zhou Dalin said: "Why are you still talking about the past? How are you going to divide it now?"
Zhou Sufang, who was sitting with her head down, looked up at the two of them and said, "I've told them to separate the yard. The old man and I will live on our own. The second son is not at home, and the three of them will provide us with food and pension money!"
After the old man had a stroke, the youngest son was fine at first. He was sent to the county hospital to stay for a few days, where he took medicine and had acupuncture. His mouth and eyes were not as crooked as when he had the stroke, but his hands and feet were still shaking so badly that he couldn't even stand steadily.
Before he was discharged from the hospital, the youngest child was still considerate to the old man. But when he came back from the hospital, his father-in-law came over and instigated something in front of him. But the youngest child's attitude changed...
Alas! Fortunately, I am still alive. If I were gone, I would probably die in bed and stink without anyone knowing!
Zhou Dalin glanced at Xiong Laosan who was squatting at the door and said with a sullen face, "You called us to divide the family property, but where are the eldest and youngest? Why aren't they here?"
Just as he finished speaking, the elder Xiong and his wife and the youngest Xiong walked in, "Uncle, uncle, you're here!"
Both of them had bruised faces and noses, and it looked like they had put in a lot of effort in the fight last night!
Xiong Laosan also stood up and followed him into the main room.
Zhou Dalin nodded, and after the four of them sat down, he said, "Your mother said that they will live on their own from now on. Did you hear that?"
"I heard it!" the three Xiong brothers responded.
Zhou Dalin asked: "Since you heard it, what are your plans? Your old man can't move now, and he has to take medicine every now and then. How much pension do you plan to give him every month, and how much food do you plan to give him in a year?"
Xiong Laosan looked up and said, "Uncle, there are also sick elderly people in the village. We will give them the same amount as they gave when they divided the property!"
Boss Xiong said hurriedly, "Of course, but there is one thing. The three of us who are older all live in mud brick houses, and the youngest lives in a brick and tile house. He has to pay the extra money for repairing the house, or we can draw lots again, and whoever draws the lot will pay."
The youngest Xiong said, "Brother, even if we had a fight yesterday, you can't speak against your conscience, right? You clearly know that mom and dad only gave us money to build the mud brick house. I used the money from selling cattle and the money from my retirement allowance to add to the brick and tile repairs, and mom knows this."
Zhou Sufang glanced at him and nodded, "The boss knows it himself."
That sick cow was only sold for 500 yuan, and the family only got 100 yuan. Your retirement allowance is only 200 or 300 yuan. Your mother and husband didn't give you money for a coffin. It would be strange if you could afford to build a brick house!
But at the beginning, they thought he could become the brigade secretary, so they didn't care so much. Now, not only did he fail, but he also dragged them down, blocking their way to dig and sell truffles.
Boss Xiong glanced at his two uncles and said unwillingly, "Your sister-in-law and I have been doing odd jobs for you for so long, you should pay us the wages!"
The youngest Xiong said slowly, "I can pay you, but the last time Wu Caixiang asked you for the money from selling truffles, I gave it to you out of my own pocket. You have to deduct the twenty-five dollars when you calculate the wages." (End of this chapter)
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