Chapter 432 Chapter 434: Hitchhiking
Before dark, Zhou Huaian and his companions came down the mountain carrying truffles. Zhou Huaian handed a very large truffle to her and said, "Yan'er, take a look. I got a big one today. It weighs at least two kilograms."
Yang Chunyan took it, looked at it, and then looked at Zhou Jiaming: "It's almost as big as Jiaming's head."
"Compare it!" Zhou Jiaming came forward and compared it, "Wow! It's really as big as my head!"
Zhou Huaian said with some regret: "It would be great if we could dig this up earlier. I guarantee they will be satisfied if we send it to the provincial capital!"
Yang Chunyan smiled and said, "Once the price is decided over there, we will send a few large ones over. We should be able to make a lot of money from the price of this kind of goods!"
Zhou Huairong said worriedly: "You guys don't seem to be worried at all. I've been worried these past few days. If they don't want to buy it, we can only use it to make wine or feed pigs."
Zhou Huaian patted him on the shoulder and said, "Brother, we didn't spend a penny on this. We just spent a few days of effort and energy. What do you have to worry about?"
Zhou Huaijun said, "I'm worried too. Let's send Ning An to Doctor Wang tomorrow morning. We'll get a response from them sooner so we can get to work! Otherwise, those overripe truffles will rot."
Yang Chunyan smiled and said, "Second brother, just dig as much as you can. I think they will definitely accept the goods after seeing them."
Seeing her confident look, Zhou Huairong and the others felt relieved. "Okay, we'll continue up the mountain tomorrow."
"Let's go back and change our shoes. The boots are freezing cold and not comfortable at all."
After Zhou Huairong and his two brothers left, Zhou Huaian scooped up some hot water to take a bath.
Yang Chunyan was worried that the largest truffle would be difficult to dry, so she quickly cleaned it and placed it on the part of the fire wall with the highest temperature to dry.
Zhou Huaian came out of the bathroom and saw her sitting there chopping green onions. "What's for dinner?"
Yang Chunyan smiled and said, "Your favorite braised spareribs and boiled vegetables."
"Okay, I can finally eat something delicious." Zhou Huaian said happily as he went to hang up the towel and came back, "Yan'er, let's go to Ning'an together tomorrow morning and ask Doctor Wang to take your pulse!"
"Hmm!" Yang Chunyan put a pinch of chopped green onion in the dipping sauce and put the rest into the braised spareribs.
Zhou Huaian helped to bring the ribs to the table. "Ding Ding Mao, bring the chain saw down tomorrow. I want to cut down the miscellaneous trees on the mountain, leaving only the pine trees, the green oak trees, and a few chinaberry trees."
"That's right! Copy the land and transplant the Magnolia officinalis and the laurel trees next year."
Zhou Huaian picked up a piece of cinnamon bark and said, "Is this the bark peeled off from the Sichuan cinnamon tree?"
"Hmm!" Yang Chunyan put the dipping water on the table, "And there are also costusroot seeds, get a few and plant them."
"Okay, I'll dig up whatever my wife wants to plant and plant it." Zhou Huaian handed her the rice. "You're the one who always talks a lot, but in the end you don't eat much."
Yang Chunyan laughed and said, "Are you talking about those jujubes?"
"That's right, I went to check again and again, but in the end I didn't pick a single bunch!"
"I brought back so many from my mom's last time. We don't make jujube wine, so I'll leave the ones from the mountain for others!"
Before the two put down their bowls, Zhao Huifang and Zhang Xiuxiang came to wash the truffles, "What's delicious to eat?"
Yang Chunyan pointed at the pottery bowl and said, "Boiled vegetables and braised spareribs. You can have some too!"
Zhang Xiuxiang smiled and shook her head, "I don't like eating bones, I like eating twice-cooked pork."
"You two take your time eating, we'll go to the bakery first." Zhao Huifang said with a smile.
After Zhou Huaian finished his meal, he helped wash the dishes and feed the pigs. Then he and Zhou Huaishan went to the old house and saw that a basket of vegetables had already been packed.
Zhou's mother and Luo Haili were warming themselves by the fire while bundling vegetables. "Where are Grandpa and the old man?"
Zhou's mother said, "Grandpa had a cough and went to bed early. You, old man, are squatting in the toilet."
"Let me take a look." Zhou Huaian went into the room and saw the old man leaning against the bedside listening to the radio. "Grandpa, what's wrong with you?"
The old man turned down the volume of the radio. "I have a dry cough due to internal heat, but it's nothing serious!"
Zhou Huaian sat down on the edge of the bed, "How about you stay at my house tonight, and come with us to Ning'an to see Doctor Wang tomorrow morning to get some medicine?"
The old man shook his head and said, "No, why would I go to the doctor for such a minor problem?"
Zhou Huaian looked at him, "Are you really okay?"
"It's okay!" the old man asked with a smile, "Will the boss of those provincial truffles really want them?"
"It didn't cost a penny, it doesn't matter whether you want it or not!" Zhou Huaian said with a smile, "I want to tell you something, don't tell my mom and my husband first."
The old man glanced at him and asked, "Are you in trouble again?"
"Hey! Look at you!" Zhou Huaian came forward, "I bought a piece of land in Ning'an. After the New Year, we will go to Ning'an and we will have a new house to live in."
The old man looked at him in surprise, "Really?"
Zhou Huaian nodded heavily, "Really, Dr. Xiao Wang and Yiding have both bought it, and they are in the middle of my land."
The old man thought about it and asked with some concern: "We have rural household registration. Is it okay for us to buy land and build a house in the city? Those people above are always changing things. What if the wind direction changes again in the future? All the money we worked hard to earn will be wasted."
"No!" Zhou Huaian whispered, "Yiding and I want to build the house quietly, and then we can hide there when we want to have a second child."
"One child is too few!" The old man sighed, "If that's the case, it's better to hide in the city. Doctor Xiao Wang is here too, so he can help if anything happens." He whispered, "Be quiet, don't let anyone know."
"Yes!" Zhou Huaian agreed and then said, "Do you know that the third brother's family has a third child?"
"I understand!" The old man sighed again, "It's normal for the third brother's family to want a son. A country family doesn't have a boy to support the family. If the brothers don't help, they will be bullied no matter how much money they make."
Zhou Huaian glared, "With us here, who dares to bully them?"
The old man patted him with satisfaction and said, "I know you two brothers have a good relationship. You are young and have not experienced it. You don't know how pitiful it is for people without sons.
Before liberation, families without sons would be eaten up by their own clansmen. Some families even had their own brothers come to divide up their property. They could only watch helplessly as their property was divided up by others, and they could not even complain! "
After hearing this, Zhou Huaian said: "No wonder the old society was a cannibalistic society!"
The old man nodded and said, "Our lives as farmers have been hard in every generation! Even though life has been hard after liberation, at least we are not being bought and sold like animals!"
"You're right!" Zhou Huaian said with a smile, "I'll send truffles to Ning'an tomorrow morning and buy you some cough medicine."
The old man waved his hand and said, "No need. Wait for your husband to go into the mountains and get some loquat leaves tomorrow. Boil some water and drink it and you'll be fine."
Seeing that he was determined not to do it, Zhou Huaian said, "I'll go ask Doctor Wang what to eat for your cough, and then pick some loquat leaves to boil and drink."
"Cough, cough!" The old man coughed dryly a few times and said cheerfully, "Okay! It's frosty, so be careful when riding your bike in the morning."
"Got it!"
Zhou Huaian closed the door and went out. Zhou's mother and the others had already packed the dishes. "Mom, Chunyan and I will go to the city tomorrow morning. Go and help me feed the pigs while we wait for my third brother and the others to build the pond."
"That's right!" Zhou's mother took the key, "It's foggy this morning, drive slowly!"
"Oh!" The two brothers were walking back with the vegetables on their shoulders. As soon as they walked out of the field path, they saw Li Wu walking hurriedly towards the grove.
He saw Zhou Huaian and hurriedly stopped. "Zhou Laoyao, are you going to drive the tractor to Ning'an tomorrow?"
Zhou Huaian nodded, "Yes! What's the matter?"
"I heard that your grandfather had his eyes checked by a doctor in Ning'an, and the results were pretty good. I want to take your tractor and take my mother to have her eyes checked." Li Wu added hurriedly, "I'll pay for the fare!"
"Yes!" Zhou Huaian thought for a moment and said, "You'd better go to the hospital to see a doctor to see if it's cataracts. If it is, I heard that surgery can be performed!"
After hearing this, Li Wu thought that since he brought his mother home, he could save 40 to 50 yuan a month from the wages he earned from carrying coal. So far, he has saved more than 200 yuan, which should be enough for the surgery.
Li Wu said gratefully: "Thank you! I'll wait for you at the brigade's sunbathing area tomorrow morning?"
"Okay! Remember to wear something warm, it's very cold in the morning!" Zhou Huaian told him the departure time, and then he and Zhou Huaishan carried the bamboo baskets back home.
Wangcai, who was lying at the door waiting, saw them come back and welcomed them in, wagging his tail.
Yang Chunyan and her four sisters-in-law were still in the baking room washing the truffles they had dug today.
The temperature inside the baking room was very high. The four people worked inside wearing spring and autumn clothes, and they were sweating from the heat.
She and Li Qiuyue scooped the washed truffles into a colander, drained the water, poured them into a bamboo basket, and spread them out on a bamboo rack.
The Zhou Huaian brothers put the bamboo baskets on the eaves, covered them with straw mats, carried the chicken and duck cages to the cowshed, and went to the baking room to help.
Zhou Huaishan looked at the truffles in the basket and asked, "How many are left to be washed?"
Zhao Huifang pounded her aching waist and said, "This is the last time. You and the youngest brother should take the water out and pour it out. We will just wash it again."
Zhou Huaian took a look and thought of the remaining water pipe at home. "It's too troublesome to carry it out every time to change the water. I might as well build two sinks in the oven and connect the faucet to one to save trouble."
After hearing this, Yang Chunyan thought for a moment, then went out and pointed to the wall next to the stove, "Huai'an, it will be just as warm if you build a sink next to the stove."
Zhou Huaishan said, "Why hire someone to build a pond? I'll call my eldest and second brothers tomorrow and they'll build it in a short while. We'll also build a shed over the pond so that we don't have to work outside on rainy days."
"Okay, you guys come build it tomorrow, Chunyan and I will go to the city to buy two faucets."
Zhou Huaian said as he picked up the truffles in the colander and went to the sink. It didn't take long for them to wash out the remaining truffles, pour them into bamboo baskets, spread them out on bamboo racks to dry.
After seeing off a few people, Yang Chunyan soaked her feet and felt hungry again. "Huaian, I want to cook some noodles. Do you want some?"
"I'm not hungry!" Zhou Huaian stepped forward and held up the foot basin, "I'll wash you a handful of pea tips to cook noodles."
Yang Chunyan looked at him with a smile, "I found that I get hungry very quickly recently. I eat so much every day, I don't know where all the food goes."
Zhou Huaian said with a smile: "My son ate it! You are feeding two people by yourself now, how can you grow meat?"
(End of this chapter)
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