Chapter 144 Young stall owner
After Lin Heng changed his clothes, Xiaoxia hugged his legs: "Dad, lift them up!"
"Okay, lift them up high!" Lin Heng held her legs, lifted them up and turned them twice in the air.
"Great!" Xiaoxia cheered.
"Daddy, do it again!" She wanted to come again as soon as Lin Heng put her down.
After playing three times in a row and kissing each other, Xiaoxia finally lay quietly in Lin Heng's arms.
"You don't have to work so hard here." Xiulan said with concern as she looked at the mosquito bites on his arms.
Lin Heng smiled and said, "I feel itchy even if I don't hit him. But I will stop after hitting him today. I will play quietly tomorrow."
Hunting, like fishing, is addictive. The feeling of playing games with animals makes people forget themselves and can't stop.
"That's perfect. Tomorrow, August 15th, let's go to the village to play. There will be a gathering." Xiulan nodded.
Outside, the men were still having a heated discussion, the women had gone to the kitchen to boil water, and the children were drooling over the wild boar.
As soon as Lin Heng appeared holding Xiaoxia, he immediately became the focus.
Xiulan's father and three brothers admired him very much, and some neighbors in the village looked at him with admiration and envy.
"Lin Heng, what should we do with this wild boar? Kill it and pickle it into bacon. You and Xiulan can take some back." Father Chen looked at Lin Heng with a smile on his face.
"We can eat this wild boar here. I have killed two wild boars this year, both of which are bigger than this one. I have more at home." Lin Heng said with a smile.
"Bigger than this?" Father Chen was stunned.
"Yes, one weighs more than 300 kilograms, and the other weighs more than 150 kilograms." Lin Heng nodded.
"More than 300 pounds? How big is that? How long will it take to eat?"
"No wonder he was able to kill with one arrow, it turns out he has experience."
"Tell us how you got it!"
A group of people were extremely curious and surrounded Lin Heng, asking him to tell them what happened.
Lin Heng briefly explained it, and everyone couldn't help but give him a thumbs up.
At the same time, I couldn't help but feel envious. How long would it take to eat so much meat?
If they knew that Lin Heng made lard from pork to make soap, they would probably be so heartbroken that they would be speechless.
It was completely dark at this time, but it was not dim at all and everything in the yard could be seen clearly.
Because today's moon is very bright, the sky is blue, and the stars are sparse.
The neighbors watched for a while and then left reluctantly. Fish can be eaten here frequently, but meat is only eaten once every ten days or half a month.
"I've taken a look at this wild goose. It's not sick, but its partner has died and it doesn't want to live anymore. Xiulan, how do you want to eat it?" Father Chen looked at Xiulan and asked.
Although Chen's father loved Xiulan in the past, he was the one who had the final say at home. Now he couldn't help but ask Xiulan and Lin Heng for their opinions.
This was naturally because Lin Heng was capable. He secretly acknowledged the fact that his daughter and Lin Heng were more capable than him.
"Let's stew half of it and fry the other half." Xiulan said after thinking for a while.
"Okay, your mom and the others are boiling water. We'll kill it first and let your mom cook it." Father Chen nodded and agreed with a smile.
When the water boiled, Xiulan's fourth brother went to deal with the geese, while her father and her eldest and third brothers slaughtered the pig for soup.
Xiulan took Lin Heng's dirty clothes and shoes and washed them with hot water. They were stained with mud, but they were not stubborn stains and were not difficult to wash.
Lin Heng held his daughter and watched Chen's father and others slaughter a pig.
After wiping the pig hair clean, they found a scale to weigh it.
"Fifty-six pounds, that's not small." Several people grinned.
"The main thing is that the pork is tender and delicious." Lin Heng nodded.
This wild boar should be less than one year old, and its meat is much tastier than those big wild boars.
The roast suckling pig last time was so delicious that I couldn’t stop eating it.
"Indeed, piglets are the most delicious." Chen Guodong nodded.
When Chen's father was cutting open the wild boar's stomach, Lin Heng handed over his 100-forged steel dagger: "Dad, use this to kill it."
Father Chen took the knife and tried it, and said in surprise: "Your knife is really good, it's so fast."
"It was made of Bailian Steel and cost five dollars." Lin Heng smiled.
"No wonder, this knife is good." Father Chen nodded and took the knife to cut open the pig's stomach.
After the pig's stomach was cut open and the lungs and heart were taken out, the damage caused by Lin Heng could be clearly seen.
The pig's lung was pierced through and its heart was pierced three centimeters deep. The pig's stomach was full of black blood, which was internal bleeding caused by the sharp arrow.
"It's really amazing. Two years ago, an old man from the Wang family in the village also shot one with a hunting rifle, but it didn't die at the time. We searched for it for three days but couldn't find it."
Father Chen looked at the pig's heart and shook his head with emotion. The more he looked at it, the more he understood how accurate Lin Heng's arrow was.
After all the internal organs were taken out, the pork was quickly cut into strips, coated with heavy salt, placed in a wooden barrel and sprinkled with pepper, fennel seeds and white wine, marinated overnight, and ready for smoking the next day.
After the pig was slaughtered, the food was almost ready. We fried wild boar meat and stir-fried wild goose meat in the evening. We didn’t have time to stew the soup because we ran out of time.
After taking a bite, Lin Heng nodded involuntarily. The taste of wild goose was indeed extraordinary.
The taste is delicate and mellow, not greasy or astringent. Even though Xiulan's mother's cooking skills are not very good and the goose meat is fried very well, you can still feel its delicious taste.
Of all the bird meat he had eaten, the only one that could compare to goose meat was the golden rooster, but a golden rooster weighs less than two kilograms, while a goose can weigh five or six kilograms.
“No wonder there’s a saying that goes ‘When gods smell the fragrance of goose meat, their hearts would break’. It’s really delicious.” Lin Heng exclaimed.
It’s a pity that the wild geese didn’t rest near Hongfeng Village, otherwise I would have liked to catch two more to eat when I go back.
"Lin Heng, drink some!" said Chen's father, raising his glass.
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded and took a sip.
Because they were eating by candlelight, everyone didn't think about drinking for too long. They just had a few drinks, ate rice, and prepared to wash their feet and rest.
Lin Heng held his daughter in his arms and told her stories. He had told those fairy tales so many times that he could recite them by heart.
"Lin Heng, I see you are feeding our daughter and coaxing her to sleep. Are you doing all these tasks?" Mother Chen looked at Lin Heng and asked.
"Yes." Lin Heng nodded and deliberately did not explain.
Chen's mother immediately blamed Xiulan, holding her hand and saying, "My daughter, this is your fault. Lin Heng is tired enough making money outside, and this work should be done by us women.
You have to learn to feel sorry for your man. What will you do if such a good man gets exhausted? "
Xiulan: "...No, he volunteered. He wouldn't be happy if I took him with me."
She looked at Lin Heng, wanting him to help explain, but Lin Heng just blinked, as if he didn't hear or see anything.
"Don't try to bully my son-in-law in front of me. Look how well-behaved he is. You used to be very well-behaved. Is it because Lin Heng is too well-behaved that he spoiled you..." Mother Chen said earnestly while holding her daughter's hand.
Xiulan glared at Lin Heng fiercely. She realized that she was now an outsider.
"You're still glaring at him? Stop glaring at him. Come out and I'll talk to you in detail." Mother Chen glanced at her.
She could only nod and agree, and promised her mother, who said a lot of things before sending her out of the room.
After sending her mother out, Xiulan locked the door. She looked at Lin Heng with her beautiful eyes, walked slowly to him, and smiled: "Is it fun, husband?"
"No, I'm telling the truth." Lin Heng grinned. Seeing that his wife wanted to come up and teach him a lesson, he quickly said, "My daughter is almost asleep."
"Then you should coax her to sleep first." Xiulan glared at him fiercely.
The three of them went to bed to rest. Lin Heng put his daughter in the innermost position. After coaxing her to sleep, he just lay down when his wife's soft little hands turned his head over.
"My mother asked me to take good care of you, saying that you are still young. From now on, I will hold you in my arms when I sleep and take good care of you." Xiulan said softly.
"No, I will explain to mom tomorrow." Lin Heng said quickly.
"No explanations allowed. The more you explain, the worse it gets. Just go to sleep quietly."
Xiulan patted his face, pressed half of her body on him, and put her long legs around his waist, but did not allow him to move.
She knew how to control Lin Heng. He couldn't sleep at all like this, and his erection became harder and harder as he slept.
There is no need to be angry when a gentle woman tortures people, she understands it too well.
"I was wrong, wife!" Lin Heng bit her ear, and his wife's body immediately went limp.
"Don't mess around, Mom and Dad are sleeping on the floor in the main room."
Sensing Lin Heng's moving hands, Xiulan grabbed them.
She put her cheek against his again and said softly, "Be good, let's go back to our own house. There's not even toilet paper here."
Lin Heng thought so too. He couldn’t just wipe the clothes at the end.
At this time, many rural areas use corn cobs as toilets, and not many people have toilet paper.
His family bought these things after he was reborn, even if they were expensive. Those rough corn cobs were more terrifying than sandpaper.
He exhaled and gave his wife a deep kiss to satisfy his craving.
They pushed their limits until both of them could no longer hold their breath.
"Take a break. If you move again, I'll slap you."
Xiulan was out of strength and took two deep breaths. She was afraid that if she continued she would not be able to control herself.
The next morning, Lin Heng woke up and found his wife leaning against him again. Looking at his sweet and soft wife, he couldn't help but kiss her.
Xiulan was awakened by her kiss. She rolled her eyes at him and put her head under his arm and took a nap for a while.
On the other side, his daughter Xiaoxia also woke up. She threw herself on Lin Heng's chest and giggled foolishly, her saliva almost falling on him.
"Get up. After breakfast, I'll take you to the party. These two days are going to be fun." Xiulan sat up and put on her white bra, which was messed up by Lin Heng yesterday.
Then they helped Xiaoxia put on her clothes, and the three of them got out of bed together.
Xiulan's parents had already gotten up and were now making breakfast.
I made four simple dishes in the morning. Everyone was eating when a man and a woman walked in from outside the yard carrying things.
"Dad, Mom, we're here to see you." The woman shouted into the house, her voice full of energy.
This woman is Xiulan’s second sister, Chen Xiuhua, and her home is in the next village.
She married a good husband and was capable herself, so she lived a pretty good life, barely making it to the level of a 1,000 yuan household.
"Have you eaten? Come and have a bite." Father Lin came out and greeted him with a smile.
"Come and have dinner quickly. Your sister Xiulan is back now, so you two sisters can catch up and reminisce about the past." Chen's mother also said with a smile.
"What, Xiulan is back too?" Chen Xiuhua was shocked when she heard this.
He hurried into the house to see how Xiulan was doing.
She didn't want to reminisce about the past. She wanted to see Xiulan's miserable state and let her beg her for help so that she could give her some more alms.
However, when she entered the room, she instantly lost her composure and her eyes popped out.
How come Xiulan is dressed better than me and is wearing a watch?
She felt like she was dreaming. She saw that Lin Heng, the man Xiulan married, was a second-rate guy, otherwise she wouldn't have traveled so far to get married.
How come he is living better than her now? She couldn’t accept it for a moment.
"Second sister!" Xiulan nodded slightly, her tone not being very enthusiastic.
"You seem to be living a good life, why did you only come back to your parents' home this year?" Chen Xiuhua looked at him again and again and asked indifferently.
There was no other reason why she hated Xiulan, it was because Xiulan inherited all the good looks of her parents, while she inherited only the bad looks.
In addition, her parents treated Xiulan better than herself since she was a child, so she naturally hated her.
But in fact, when she was a child, Xiulan was very attached to her sister who was seven years older than her. She had no idea about her parents' preferences, and she couldn't even notice that her sister disliked her.
As a result, she was often bullied by her sister, who deliberately led her into trouble. Later, when she grew up and understood these things, Xiulan gradually distanced herself from her.
"I'll come back when I have time." Xiulan smiled.
"Hurry up and sit down and drink some water. Have you finished your meal? I'll make breakfast for you." Chen's mother came over and said hurriedly.
"No, we had breakfast before coming here." Chen Xiuhua shook her head.
Xiulan finished her meal in two bites, stood up with the bowl and said, "Mom, I'm taking Lin Heng out to the fair. We'll be back later."
"Second sister, second brother-in-law." Lin Heng greeted them and went to the kitchen with his daughter.
Putting down the bowl and chopsticks, Lin Heng changed into his still slightly damp shoes and was pulled by Xiulan towards Baisha Township.
She didn't want to talk much to her sister so as not to embarrass her parents.
"Mom, did you kill a pig?"
Chen Xiuhua's husband Zhao Houjun asked curiously as he looked at the meat marinated in the wooden basin.
"Killed a pig?" Chen Xiuhua was also stunned. Her parents were so rich? "This was killed by Xiulan's husband Lin Heng in the reed marsh yesterday afternoon. He also killed a wild goose." Lin's father said with a smile.
"Was he beaten?" Chen Xiuhua's tone became a little tense.
Lin Heng can also hunt, why hasn’t she heard of it before?
"Not only that, he has become a really rich man now. He opened a purchasing station and bought a lot of gifts for his parents." The sister-in-law Zhang Shuiqin next to him said with emotion.
"Opened a purchasing station? You are not bragging, right?" Chen Xiuhua didn't believe it. How much capital would it take to open one?
"How can I brag? Even if I brag, I can't let everyone wear a watch and give gifts worth forty or fifty yuan."
Zhang Shuiqin smiled. She had long been fed up with Chen Xiuhua's bossy attitude every time she came back, so she deliberately said something in a sarcastic way.
"Xiuhua, sit down and have a rest. It's good to have a rich relative." Zhao Houjun pulled her and signaled her not to get excited.
Chen Xiuhua sat down, drank some water, and calmed herself down.
After chatting with her mother for a while, she couldn't help but look at the gifts that Xiulan and the others brought. Whether it was clothes or wine, it made her speechless.
Not to mention that she killed a wild boar yesterday. Even if she wanted to compete, she didn't have the financial support.
"Don't worry, they haven't been back for a long time. We're all happy that you can come back even if you don't take anything."
Mother Lin took her hand and said with a smile.
"I know, mom." Chen Xiuhua shook her head, feeling very uncomfortable.
How come I was easily surpassed by my younger sister despite my efforts, just because she was prettier than me? How could this happen? Chen Xiuhua couldn't calm down. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that God was unfair to her.
Thinking back to Xiulan's greeting just now, she felt that it was a naked mockery.
However, neither Xiulan nor Lin Heng had any such intentions. She was just petty and overthinking, and could interpret a simple greeting as someone mocking her.
On the other side, Xiulan took Lin Heng to the riverside pier, stopped a small boat, and headed to Baisha Township.
The land of Lushui County is flat and the water is very calm, so you can take the water route whether you are going to the county seat or Baisha Township.
"It's over. My second sister will definitely think we are targeting her. If I knew she would come back on August 15th, I would not come."
Xiulan looked at the water and said helplessly that she knew her second sister too well. Although she was hardworking and capable, she was also very stingy and narrow-minded.
"Who cares about her? Just don't argue with her in person. As for what she wants, let her do what she wants." Lin Heng said with his hands spread out.
Many women in rural areas are like this. Don't try to explain or change them, it's useless.
"You're right." Xiulan blinked and was no longer embarrassed.
It took more than half an hour to reach Baisha Township by water. After paying 30 cents for the boat fare, the couple got off the boat with their daughter.
There is soft white sand on the shore, which is also the origin of the name of Baisha Township.
Walking on the sand, the two arrived at the village. The liveliness here was comparable to the New Year gatherings in Huangtan Town.
Lushui County is a good place with many people. Xiulan's family of more than ten people was divided into 30 acres of land and 50 acres of forest.
Nanping County has many mountains and few people, so each person gets more.
"It's so lively." Lin Heng said with emotion as he looked at the streets of Baisha Township.
There were all kinds of hawking sounds on the streets, including those selling fruits and vegetables, tables, chairs and benches, snacks and desserts, as well as cats, dogs, and other animals, and all kinds of small gadgets. There were many more varieties than in Huangtan Town, and there were also several streets.
Lin Heng held Xiaoxia in his arms and followed Xiulan, wandering around.
"Dad, it's delicious!" Xiaoxia pointed at the candy stall and looked at Lin Heng eagerly.
"I just had dinner. I'll buy more later." Lin Heng shook his head. He couldn't always satisfy her.
"I'll take you to a place where you can display your strength." Xiulan said with a smile, pulling Lin Heng.
"Where?" Lin Heng was curious.
"You'll know when we get there." Xiulan pulled Lin Heng and soon arrived at a street selling various small items.
There are hoop-tossing and archery games here. If you hoop or shoot the target, you can take the item away.
This trick has existed since ancient times and is not uncommon.
Xiulan brought Lin Heng to an archery stall.
There are quite a few things placed here, including jewelry, some daily necessities, and some educational toys such as Luban locks.
The most valuable first prize was a jade hairpin, and Xiulan obviously took a fancy to it.
The stall owner saw that Lin Heng was interested, so he quickly came over and said with a smile: "Do you want to play? It's five cents a time. If you hit the designated target, you can take the corresponding item."
"Is that jade hairpin real or fake? Which target should it hit?" Lin Heng asked, pointing at the first prize.
"Of course it's real. If it's fake, I'll pay you ten times. If you want to get it, you have to shoot the farthest target that's ten meters away. If you hit it ten times in a row, you can take it away."
The stall owner smiled and said that his hairpin was just a gimmick. It has been there for three years and no one has been able to take it away.
"Then I'll try it. I'll give you a one-dollar bill first." Lin Heng handed Xiaoxia to Xiulan and handed her a one-dollar bill.
Some people who were watching from all around also looked over curiously. No one had been able to take anything from the boss this morning.
(End of this chapter)
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