"Mom and Dad, I've come up to pick some fruit. Didn't you go to Uncle's house with that old man?" Mingjing said, then walked towards the field.
The mountain climate is humid, and the soil is just the right amount of dry; Mingjing didn't get muddy at all when she stepped in.
"I couldn't be bothered to talk to your second uncle. I took some people there and came right back. You have no idea how green your second uncle's face turned when he heard they bought us cell phones."
The rice harvest isn't finished yet, and your brother's nowhere to be seen, so your mother and I came to harvest the wheat.
Ming Dahai was somewhat smug at first, but his words later carried a hint of resentment.
"Mom and Dad, how much more can I help you with?" Mingjing rolled up her sleeves, ready to lend a hand.
"Three mu of land, the weather has been good this year, maybe we can get a good price."
Mingjing bent down and followed her parents to cut rice.
Seeing that his daughter was willing to help, Ming Dahai was overjoyed. But when he thought of that brat Mingliang, he got angry again, feeling that his son was not as considerate as his daughter.
The three of them worked all morning, and by noon there was still one mu of land left. Mingjing sat down to rest at the edge of the field, glanced at the rice, and estimated that there would be at least ten sacks.
[Unlocking the rice variety has earned you 20 points.]
The sudden sound piqued Mingjing's curiosity.
She knew that seafood could earn points, so could unlocking other species also earn points?
"Mingjing, it's getting late. Your mother and I can finish the rest of the work in a little while. You can go back now," Ming Dahai waved his hand.
He couldn't bear to see his beautiful daughter working in the fields; she wouldn't look good if she got tanned.
Looking up at the sky through the mirror, the sun hangs directly overhead.
"Mom and Dad, I heard there are wild peaches around here. I'll go pick some and take them home to eat."
“Okay, go ahead. It’s just ahead. Nobody usually cares about it,” Sun Yunmei said, pointing to the peach tree in front of her.
Mingjing stood up and looked back into the distance. In front of her was a peach orchard, with large, round, red peaches that seemed to weigh down the branches as if they were about to break.
Several children are picking up fallen wild peaches under the tree.
Mingjing stepped forward, picked one up, and tasted it. The peach was juicy and sweet, and each one weighed about a pound.
This is not cheap in mainland China.
The mountain roads are rugged and infested with snakes, insects, and rodents, so few people come up to pick them up. As a result, a large number of wild peaches fall from the trees every year at this time.
Mingjing turned around and picked up a wooden frame that was lying idle at the edge of the field. She and a few children picked up the wood together. Many of the wood frames under the trees were rotten and inedible, attracting a lot of ants.
Fortunately, the tree wasn't tall, and Mingjing could reach the fresh peaches by simply raising her arm.
In no time, the group had gathered a small mountain of food. The children took half a basket, and the rest was left for Mingjing. They then went down the mountain together.
As the sun began to set, the rice was bundled into small squares and piled on a carrying pole. Ming Dahai and Sun Yunmei carried more than half of it down the mountain in one trip.
Mingjing had never carried a shoulder pole before, so he could only stay and watch over the wheat and peaches.
On the last trip, Ming Dahai carried all the peaches down the mountain, weighing about a hundred pounds. Ming Jing couldn't carry that many, so she could only take some water bottles and other items.
Mingjing was exhausted and collapsed in the yard after finishing her work at 2 p.m.
"Dad, what should we do with all this rice?"
"Let it dry for now, and I'll go to the city in a few days to ask about the price. Rice prices were low in previous years, but they might be higher this year."
The rice was spread out in the yard, but there wasn't enough room inside, so it was spread out on the road. At two o'clock in the afternoon, when the sun was at its strongest, Ming Dahai was pounding the rice with a shovel.
Fishermen passing by would occasionally strike up a conversation with Ming Dahai, hoping to steal some rice and wild peaches to take home, but Ming Jing would always chase them away with sarcastic remarks.
"Dad, ignore them, they're a bunch of lazy good-for-nothings."
Mingjing had a loud voice, and the few shameless guys were too embarrassed to stay any longer, so they quickly left.
"Dad, there are too many wild peaches. Doesn't the village chief grow fruit trees? Does he want some?"
Mingjing pondered, "Instead of giving the wild peaches to those gossipy women, why not exchange them for money?"
"These are too few, and the village chief is an acquaintance, so it's difficult to ask for a higher price," Ming Dahai said, bending down to arrange the rice, sighing with a hint of worry.
Mingjing picked up two peaches and carefully handed them to Sun Yunmei and Ming Dahai.
"Then we'll take them to the city to sell and see if the fruit factories want them, or we'll set up a street stall."
Mingjing was determined to sell the peaches; she couldn't let those gossipy women profit from them.
"Okay, I'll call a car. There are no more boats to the city, so we can only take the bridge." Ming Dahai put down his work and got up to walk towards the village chief's house.
A short while later, Ming Dahai arrived at the Ming family's door in his car. He rolled down the window and said, "Mingjing, bring the peaches up. Your Uncle Daguang is heading back to the city."
The driver opened the door and got out of the car. He was a bald man in his forties named Huang Daguang, who transported seafood and fruit to and from the city for the villagers.
"Mingjing, you've really become quite capable now! You can fish, pick fruit, and I heard you even saved someone?"
“Hmm, I can’t just sit around doing nothing all the time.” Mingjing was tired of people always calling her all show and no substance, that was the original owner of the body, not her.
Huang Daguang nodded without saying anything.
Mingjing struggled to lift the peaches, which weighed over 100 pounds. Just then, Mingliang came out of his house and helped Mingjing with a cold face.
Mingjing glanced at him, then turned to her and said, "Dad, you stay home and turn the rice, I'll go sell it. I've never been to the city before."
Upon hearing this, Huang Daguang sneered inwardly and glanced at Mingjing with disdain.
He wondered why this girl had suddenly become so diligent; it turned out she wanted to take Ye Tao's money to go to the city for food, drink, and entertainment—that's what she always does.
"Let me explain, Mingjing, these peaches don't actually fetch much money, you..."
“Then go ahead, be careful on the road. I still need to go up the mountain to pick up the fallen wheat ears,” Ming Dahai interrupted him, looking at his son.
"Mingliang, come with me up the mountain!"
Huang Daguang was stunned. Mingjing turned around and went back into the house. "Uncle Huang, wait for me."
She turned around, went back into the house, took out the savings hidden under the mattress, stuffed them into her pocket, and got into the car.
"Uncle Huang, bring me back for ten yuan."
Huang Daguang travels between the island and the city every day. This trip is on his way, and if he is to return to the island too late, he will have to pay extra.
"Ten yuan?" Huang Daguang asked with a cigarette dangling from his lips, his eyes filled with disdain. "A trip of forty or fifty kilometers, do you know how expensive gasoline is these days?"
Mingjing twitched his lips. In the 1990s, the most expensive gasoline was only a few dollars. In later generations, gasoline cost tens of dollars per liter, and people still managed to live.
How many do you want?
"thirty!"
Helpless, Mingjing took out another twenty yuan and handed it to Huang Daguang, thinking that she would definitely buy a car for herself when she had money.
After paying the money, Huang Daguang stepped on the gas, kicking up a cloud of dust, and the two of them didn't arrive at the fruit factory in the city until evening.
It's currently peak season for fruit, and there are quite a few people queuing up to buy fruit at the factory gate. However, a sound coming from the factory gate has attracted everyone's attention.
"My loquats are of such good quality, and you only give me two hundred yuan? Who are you trying to fool? The factory manager is my own daughter!" The old lady stood at the factory gate and yelled at the young man.
A hemp rope was tied around the child's waist.
The young woman, her face flushed, explained with a wronged expression, "Auntie, these loquats of yours are either rotten or pecked by birds; two hundred yuan is too much."
Besides, if you were the factory manager's own daughter, would you need to bring loquats to sell here?
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