The trees at this time of year are generally light green, and on the hills along the highway grow clusters of shrubs with small white flowers.
The white van quickly drove into Huangtan Town along the rugged mountain road, and then took the dirt road back to Hongfeng Village.
Unlike the rape flowers in the plain areas of the city where they have all withered, the rape flowers in the mountains are in full bloom.
The roadsides are lined with colorful wild flowers, and the tender green forests are dotted with wild peach trees with pink flowers. It is exactly the time when 'the beauty of April on earth is gone, and the peach blossoms in the mountain temple are in full bloom'.
"Our village is so beautiful now, there are even cement roads." Xiaoxia cheered in surprise as she walked into Hongfeng Village.
There are many red maple trees planted along the roads and rivers in Hongfeng Village. In the past three years, these trees have grown to four or five meters tall, looking straight and tall, with their newly sprouted leaves still bright red, contrasting with the gray-white cement road.
"Yes, I really want to go down and play now." Du Heng stuck his head out of the car window.
He and his brother Luming are now six-year-old boys, both over 120 cm tall. Under the guidance of Lin Heng and Xiulan, they are very smart and polite, and not as naughty as other six-year-old children.
Xiulan pulled his head back a little and smiled. "It will be more beautiful in autumn. I will bring you back to see it then."
In addition to red maples, there are other trees with beautiful autumn colors, such as cotinus, poplar, and ginkgo.
In recent years, the village has been distributing seedlings of these trees to villagers for planting, and the wood used for firewood and charcoal is usually other ugly miscellaneous woods, making the already beautiful village scenery even more pleasant.
Lu Ming looked at the scenery outside for a while and asked curiously: "Mom, why are the roads in Baima Village still dirt roads?"
"Of course the road wasn't built because the people of Baima Village were unwilling to pay a penny. Building roads costs money." Lin Heng replied.
Then he told the children what happened. Last year, Tian Dongfu had been looking for village cadres from Baima Village and Shimen Village to discuss the issue. 70% of the funds were allocated and the other 30% were raised by the villagers. However, both sides pushed the blame, saying they had no money, so they just used their own people to repair the road in their village.
In many places, the villagers helped to do the work. They said that since Hongfeng Village also wanted to follow the path of Baima Village, they should help.
Finally, people from their village helped to repair the road. However, Baima Village was unwilling to pay a penny for paving the road with cement, so it became what it is now. It is said that the road is still under construction recently, and I don’t know if it can be repaired in the end.
As for Shimen Village, there were not many people there to begin with, so they widened the road to allow traffic to pass through. They couldn't afford to build a cement road, so they said they would do it later.
"It's so complicated, Dad. Why can't we all unite and fix the road?" Lu Ming tilted his head in confusion.
"The adult world is so complicated. Every family has its own difficulties and ideas." Lin Heng smiled slightly, stepped on the accelerator, and could drive fast on the cement road without any worries.
After turning a 180-degree turn, you will reach the center of the village. Here, the banks of the river are wider, and it looks like a small basin when viewed from the sky.
The basin is now full of golden rapeseed flowers and green wheat, and the river meandering through it looks calm and beautiful.
The fruit trees, medicinal herbs, and tea leaves in the village are all planted on the higher mountains. The better fields on both sides of the river are mostly planted with crops. Only the corners are orchards and medicinal herbs, and now there are two reservoirs for irrigation.
The roadside looks better than the entrance to the village. In addition to red maple and ginkgo, there are also winter jasmine, rose and other flowers. In front of the villagers' yards, there are all kinds of beautiful flowers and trees such as peony, peonies, and azaleas.
Since the village party secretary Tian Dongfu got the idea from Lin Heng, all the money earned by the cooperative has been used to carry out this kind of environmental transformation, except for the repair of public facilities. In just three years, good results have been seen, giving people a feeling of being in a fairyland.
It was already six in the afternoon, and most of the incense burning and ancestor worship had been completed. The tops of the earthen houses were mostly stone slabs, covered with moss, which looked gray-green from a distance, but at this time, smoke was rising from the chimneys, and it was obvious that everyone was preparing dinner.
The most eye-catching things in the village are naturally the two small Western-style buildings of the Lin family, which stand out among the many loess houses.
Of course, the most eye-catching one is Red Maple Mountain.
The small basin in the center of Hongfeng Village has a huge 180-degree turn at the bottom entrance. It has no name, and the top exit is Hongfeng Mountain.
After turning from Hongfeng Mountain, the river becomes narrower on both sides. It goes all the way up to the center of Shimen Village before forming a smaller basin like a small waterway. The two villages connected together look like a big gourd.
The original Red Maple Mountain was a pile of rocks and thorns, but now it has become the symbol of the village. The mountain is very beautiful at this moment.
At the foot of the mountain, sixteen fish ponds are arranged neatly, looking like emeralds from a distance.
The middle part is a neat terrace, which has been planted with small fruit trees, pasture and crops, and looks lush and green.
Further up is the garden-like residential area. The largest villa in the entire Hongfeng Village is located here. It seems to be watching over the entire village, appearing quiet and lonely.
At the top is a tall forest with several small wooden houses located in it. Gray and white paths run through the forest. There are many bees in the forest, and under the forest are medicinal herbs such as ginseng and Polygonatum.
The small reservoir is slightly higher than the villa and a little below the top of the mountain. The water is clearer and colder than the fish pond at the foot of the mountain, and is only light green.
Although it is so high, there are actually many higher mountains behind Hongfeng Mountain. The top of Hongfeng Mountain is only about two-thirds of the way up these mountains.
Next to Hongfeng Mountain is the ecological farm that Lin Heng built for his parents. Various animals live there, and it is one of the children’s favorite places to play when they come back.
If you observe from a distance, the first thing you can see is the circle of roses surrounding the wall of Red Maple Mountain. Over the past seven or eight years, they have grown more and more luxuriantly. From a distance, they look like a huge colorful wreath. Many roses grown by people in the village come from here.
Inside the wall, the most beautiful thing is the garden surrounding the villa. Cherry blossoms, peach blossoms and apricot blossoms can be seen from afar. These big trees were transplanted.
Other shorter ones include rhododendron, forsythia, azalea, hydrangea, wisteria tulip, as well as some small flowers such as dandelions and pansies blooming in the lawn.
You can feel the beauty of this place just by seeing it from a distance, and you can't help but want to explore it up close.
"Wow, Dad, our new home is so beautiful!" Xiaoxia tilted her head and uttered the first exclamation.
Lu Ming also pointed at the big villa and exclaimed: "Dad, you are so amazing. You built our house so beautifully!"
"Mom, can we move into our new home today?" Du Heng really wanted to move in right now.
"You can't stay here today, but you can take a look. We can't move in until the ninth day of the first lunar month."
Xiulan said, paused for two seconds and then said with emotion, "Your father has put a lot of effort into transforming Hongfeng Mountain into this state. Now I guess only Xiaoxia can remember what it looked like before."
Xiaoxia, who was sitting in the passenger seat, tilted her head to look at her father and smiled brightly, "Of course I remember. It used to be all weeds and rocks, with no fish ponds or flowers. Dad had people repair it bit by bit."
There seemed to be little stars in her eyes when she spoke, and her admiration for Lin Heng was even higher than that for her two younger brothers.
She still remembers the process of her family's transformation from poverty to wealth, which was all brought about by her most awesome father, who is the most awesome father in the world.
"Yeah, it took a lot of effort." Lin Heng said with emotion. After so much hard work, he finally made some achievements.
Soon the car arrived at the door of the house in the center of the village. Lin's father and mother and the eldest brother's family had already come out from the gate of the upper yard. They had heard the noise early and came out to wait.
"Hello, Grandpa and Grandma, I'm back to see you again!"
"Grandma, I miss you!"
"Grandma, I want to eat something delicious."
The children called out through the window before the car stopped.
"Grandpa and grandma miss you too. The delicious food is ready and you can eat it soon."
"Yes, let's go burn incense for your great grandfather and then come back to eat chicken. We killed a big rooster today."
While talking to their grandchildren, Lin's father and mother gestured to Lin Heng to drive the car into the yard.
As soon as the car stopped in the yard, the children got out and threw themselves into the arms of their grandparents. Lin Heng Xiulan got out of the car and chatted with everyone for a while.
The flower beds in the yard are full of yellow flowers, which have now grown buds, and there are dried day lilies on the bamboo winnowing basket.
After drinking some water and resting, Lin Heng said, "Let's go quickly and visit the grave first."
"The firecrackers, fire paper, and incense are all ready. Just carry them up the mountain." Lin's father said. Lin Heng had already called to say that he would be back today, and he had prepared everything.
Several people went up the mountain. The mountain was filled with fresh air. The children ran happily and picked many small flowers and held them in their hands.
Soon they arrived at Huangliupo. This place has been renovated. The original stone tomb has been rounded with blue bricks and a stele has been engraved.
A small cemetery was built around these graves, and some cypress trees were planted, which looks quite exquisite.
He took the children to burn incense and paper money and set off some firecrackers. The ancestor worship ceremony was completed. The grass on the ground had been pulled out by his third father in the morning.
Today was quite tiring, so they did not go to pick Chinese toon or mushrooms and went home early. While their mother and sister-in-law were cooking, Lin Heng and Xiulan followed the children to wander around the village.
The village has changed a lot now. Both the main roads and the small roads are paved with cement. Many stone tables and stone benches have been built around the ginkgo tree in the center of the village that is so big that one person cannot hug it. When they came over, many old people and children were playing cards and games here.
"Hello, Boss Lin. You're back."
"Well, come back and play." Lin Heng said with a smile.
He and Xiulan stopped to chat, and the children had gone to play with other children from the same village.
Now most children in the village are going to school and no one drops out.
The most important impact is that everyone is now relatively wealthy. The second is that Caiyun and Liu Ciwen were admitted to university, which gave the villagers hope and made them feel that poor people can also go to university.
In addition, the village committee allocated money to renovate the primary school so that it can accommodate more students. Following Tian Dongfu's example, every family donated money to the primary school to buy some books.
In addition to this place, the Taoist temple halfway up the mountain has also been renovated, and the area nearby is planted with red maples and cotinus coggygria. In addition, the platform has been widened, and it has become a small tourist attraction. Some villagers who have nothing to do like to go there and listen to the Taoist priest preaching.
Lin Heng was chatting with someone when Tian Dongfu came down from above holding a glass and asked with a smile, "Lin Heng, the village is pretty good now, right? I think it will have the potential to become a scenic spot in a few years."
It can be said that he invested all the money earned by the cooperative into infrastructure construction, which led to such great changes in Hongfeng Village.
"Very good, I want to live here and never leave. Thanks to you, Uncle Tian. Without you, the village would not be like this." Lin Heng responded with a smile.
Tian Dongfu has both prestige and means, and the most rare thing is that he is really dedicated to making this place a better place.
Tian Dongfu shook his head after hearing this and said, "I think you are the real hero. Without the connections you brought with you, the village cooperative and the medicinal materials processing factory would not be able to open at all."
If it weren't for Lin Heng, the village wouldn't be as rich as it is now, and naturally there would be nothing to build the village.
"Yes, Lin Heng, you are a great contributor to our village."
"There was a landslide at that time, and my family would not have recovered without your help."
"It's because of your orchard and medicinal herb planting and aquaculture that we can see the way forward. Otherwise, we wouldn't know what to do."
"We also bought the book you wrote. We will be very proud if we go out and say that our village has produced a great writer and a rich man."
…
As Tian Dongfu spoke, the villagers nearby nodded in agreement. The villagers all admired and respected Lin Heng very much. Most of them had received help from Lin Heng to a greater or lesser extent, directly or indirectly.
Compared with the low-key and kind Lin Heng, Zhao Hu and others who were once wealthy but are now unknown whether they are still alive are simply no match.
"Stop praising me. You became rich by relying on your own hands. It has nothing to do with me." Lin Heng smiled and waved his hand.
After chatting enthusiastically with the villagers for a while, as the sunset became redder, he took his wife and children home for dinner.
On the way back, we met Jin Yan. She was leading a cow towards us. Several people stepped aside to let the cow pass first.
Jin Yan saw Lin Heng's family of five, smiled at them, nodded and walked away.
She now looks more cheerful than before because she remarried last month and married Liu Sheng who returned to the village.
As Lin Heng's childhood friend, Liu Sheng is a nice person even though he doesn't have much of his own opinions. He doesn't have bad habits like domestic violence or gambling. He is now working hard, and Jin Yan is happy after remarrying him.
I don’t know if it was because she was scolded by Lin Heng for seducing him before, but Jin Yan finally settled down in this life and did not end up in a dissolute life like in her previous life.
Lin Heng felt that this was a good thing. He had no ill will towards Jin Yan and hoped that everyone could live a good life.
When he came back last month, he looked for Liu Sheng and said that if he didn't have a job, he could help find one.
Even though Liu Sheng once chose to be with Zhao Hu, he still had good intentions towards his childhood friend.
Liu Sheng's expression was a little bitter at the time, as if he regretted that he had repeatedly made wrong choices and followed the wrong people, and he seemed shocked by Lin Heng's magnanimity.
But in the end he rejected Lin Heng again, but this time he chose to stay in the village and live a good life with Jin Yan, and didn't want to go out for the time being.
At that time, Lin Heng didn't say much, but just smiled and patted his shoulder, saying that if he wanted to find a job, he could come to him at any time, and he could arrange it for either him or his wife.
Before leaving, he also asked about Zhao Hu's news. Liu Sheng only knew that he finally ran away with someone to a black coal mine in northern Shaanxi to dig coal. It was said that his father Zhao Xiancheng went to look for him last year but couldn't find him, and there is no trace of him now.
Lin Heng was silent for three seconds, then he let the matter go and stopped thinking about it.
Seeing someone smiling and waving, Xiaoxia instinctively waved and said with a smile: "Hello, Auntie!"
"Hello, Auntie." Lu Ming and Du Heng also shouted in unison.
"Okay." Jin Yan responded, seeming a little envious. She didn't have a child with Zhao Hu, and she hoped to have one with Liu Sheng.
After they finished talking, they walked back quickly. Xiulan didn't feel anything strange holding Lin Heng's hand because she absolutely trusted him.
As soon as they entered the yard, they could smell the aroma of fried bacon. Father Lin looked at them and said with a smile, "Come in quickly, the food is ready."
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded and walked into the house with Xiulan. The children had already run in.
We had dinner at my eldest brother’s house. They had now moved to a large round table that could easily seat more than a dozen people. On the table were recently picked wild vegetables such as toon and shepherd’s purse.
It was already 8:30 or 9:00 in the evening when they finished their meal. Lin Heng and Xiulan took the children back to the small mud house where they had lived for many years.
The children are older now and sleep separately from them. The three beds are in the study, but Lin Heng and Xiulan still need to accompany them before going to bed.
Sometimes they want Lin Heng to read to them, sometimes they read to Lin Heng and Xiulan, and sometimes they lie down and read by themselves, but they want both of them to be by their side before going to bed.
Tonight the three of them read by themselves. After they fell asleep, the two of them covered them with quilts before going out and returning to the bedroom.
After taking off her clothes, Xiulan still leaned on Lin Heng's chest as usual and they talked for a while.
Both of them are now in their thirties and thirty-one years old, but thanks to regular exercise and maintenance, they look no different from before, with only a change in temperament.
Lin Heng's body is still as strong as an ox, and he is even healthier than before because he has found a professional coach to train with him in the past two years.
Xiulan's elegant and gentle temperament became more and more intense, and her body became more mellow and charming, giving Lin Heng a completely different feeling from when she was in her twenties.
Xiulan lay on Lin Heng's side, holding his neck with one hand and said softly, "Let's take Xiongba to pick mushrooms tomorrow. We haven't picked mushrooms for a long time. I think it will rain on Tuesday."
"Okay, I'll accompany you if you want to go." Lin Heng looked at her pretty face and smiled, with his other hand around her waist.
Xiulan suddenly turned over and kissed Lin Heng. Unlike before when she always closed her eyes, now she looked at him lovingly.
…
In the blink of an eye, it was the next morning. The two got up early, had breakfast, and took the children to the mountain.
Also along with them were Lin's father and mother, who mainly helped take care of the three children.
At this time of year, the thorny old shoots of Toona sinensis on the mountain are only about ten centimeters long, which is a good time to pick them.
The children were keen on finding this. Lin Heng and Xiulan were taking Xiongba to look for mushrooms under the woods, just like they did a few years ago.
"Honey, come on, we found morels here."
After a while, Lin Heng called out to Xiulan.
“Here it comes!”
Upon hearing this, Xiulan smiled and walked over.
"Look here, there are quite a lot of them."
Lin Heng waited for her to come over before going to pick mushrooms together, turning over the leaves, and feeling the joy of picking mushrooms together.
"You are so lucky." Xiulan squatted down in surprise and started picking.
Lin Heng pushed aside the surrounding leaves, trying his best not to leave any possible mushrooms behind.
After a while, they had collected more than two kilograms of mushrooms. Xiulan said with a smile while holding the mushrooms, "Xiongba seems to have found something new up ahead. Let's go quickly."
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded and walked towards that direction. Even though he was not hunting anymore, Xiongba was still so awesome.
But it is eight years old now and has entered middle age like him.
They ran in the mountains the whole morning and it was already past two in the afternoon when they got home. They all gained a lot.
Lin Heng and Xiulan picked up more than eight pounds of morels and more than ten pounds of pine mushrooms. The three children all picked a lot of Chinese toon, which added up to thirteen pounds.
There are relatively few prickly ash buds, all picked by Lin's father, about five pounds in weight.
They saved all these things and did not eat them, intending to enjoy them on the day they moved into the Red Maple Mountain Villa.
After lunch, Lin Heng took Xiulan and the children to Huangtan River to fish in the afternoon.
They got up early on Sunday morning. There were two main things to do today: slaughter cattle and sheep and prepare for tomorrow's party.
After breakfast, they went to the farm with their eldest brother and others. His third uncle also came to help. It would be difficult to get the job done without enough people.
The farm is very fun. There are chickens, ducks, geese, cows, sheep, pigs, rabbits, musk deer and sika deer.
Lin Heng bought the sika deer, a male and a female, from a breeding farm and raised them on the farm.
The place is big enough and there is pasture planted with grass, so they can eat themselves out even if they are not fed, and it doesn't take much effort for Mr. and Mrs. Lin to do it.
As soon as the children arrived, their mothers took them to pick eggs and catch rabbits. Killing cattle and sheep is quite bloody and is not suitable for children to watch.
Lin Heng and others have arrived at the living area of the farm. It is a two-story blue brick house. It looks rather simple and was specially designed.
Father Lin pointed to a large yellow cow tied under a cherry tree and said with a smile: "Look, this yellow cow is quite big. I bought it in Shimen Village a few days ago. It is already 12 years old. Because of its age, the price is relatively cheaper."
Lin Heng nodded and said, "There's nothing wrong with old beef. It tastes chewier."
He originally said that he could just buy some beef in the city, but Lin's father insisted on spending his own money to buy a whole cow, saying that this would be more cost-effective as he could have any part of the cow he wanted to eat, and the rest he could just sell in town.
"Has this cow not been fed in the past few days? Its stomach is flat." Lin Yue said while looking at the cow's stomach.
"Maybe the cow knew it was going to die, so it refused to eat or drink after coming back." Lin's mother said nearby.
"Then we have to kill it quickly to avoid any problems." Third father Lin Xutao looked at the two long horns of the big yellow cow and said, "It has to be tied up well. If the horns butt someone, it will be troublesome."
"No need to be so troublesome, just use electricity." Lin Heng said.
He asked his father to lead the cow to the faucet, turn on the water to wet its body, and then he went into the house and connected two electric wires.
"Everyone stay away." Lin Heng said, and after making sure that everyone was away, he threw the wire onto the wet ground.
All of a sudden, the big yellow cow twitched and lay down with its eyes rolled back. Lin Heng waited for a while before turning off the power.
"Okay, let's bleed now." Lin Heng said after putting away the wires.
Next, several people lifted the cow, placed it in a safe place, and started bleeding it directly.
Put the cow's blood in a basin and prepare to feed it to the dog later, because cow's blood tastes too fishy and almost no one likes to eat it.
It took several people nearly an hour to skin the cow, and then they chopped off its head, opened its stomach and took out its internal organs.
After the cow's internal organs were taken out, they were temporarily placed in front of the faucet while Lin's father and third father were processing them.
Lin Heng and his elder brother began to cut up the beef, using a sharp knife to cut it into pieces. It was not a difficult task as long as the knife was sharp enough.
Just when they divided the beef in half, Lin's father suddenly exclaimed: "Son, come and see if this is bezoar."
"Ah, bezoar?" Lin Heng was stunned and turned his head to look.
I saw that my father was holding a yellowish-brown mud ball-like thing in his hand, which he had just taken out of the beef tripe.
"That's for sure, Dad, you are so lucky. You can even make a fortune from this." Lin Yue came over and took a look, and said in shock.
Lin Heng took a look and nodded, "It is definitely bezoar. No wonder this cow doesn't eat grass. This may be the reason."
"Hurry up and look again to see if it's still there." Lin's mother patted her husband excitedly and said.
Lin Heng took the bezoar, fetched tools to clean its surface and placed it on a plate. After a while, he would wrap it with rush and place it in a cool place to dry.
"There are two more. No, three."
Father Lin took out two small ones and one large one after a while, and confirmed that there was nothing left in the blinds. Lin Heng said, "Look in the gallbladder, maybe there is some too."
When the gallbladder was turned out, there were indeed two pieces of bezoar inside.
They gave up only after searching thoroughly. There were a total of six pieces of bezoar on the plate. The two largest ones were as big as Lin Heng's fist, the smaller one was as big as a steamed bun, and the remaining three were only as big as mineral water bottle caps.
Mother Lin weighed it on a scale and grinned, "This bezoar weighs three catties and two ounces. Can we be considered rich?"
Lin Heng smiled and said, "I guess so, but it would have been better if I had gotten it a few years ago."
If it were a few years ago, he wouldn't have to go through so much trouble to engage in breeding or the like, as he would have had the original capital directly.
But it was also strange. In his previous life, he had never heard of anyone in Shimen Village whose cow produced bezoar, nor had he seen anyone suddenly become rich.
He figured that it was probably taken away by the cattle dealer and then driven out, so he didn't know.
But no matter what, this is bezoar that can be sold for more than 100,000 yuan, which is also a huge fortune.
"What are you talking about? You look so happy." Xiulan walked over from a distance with her child and asked curiously.
"My dear wife, there are three pounds and two ounces of bezoar in this cow's stomach. It can be sold for more than one hundred thousand." Lin Heng said with a smile.
"Ah! You guys are so lucky."
Xiulan was stunned at first, then she walked over quickly and exclaimed with her mouth wide open.
"Your father is lucky. He was the one who discovered ginseng." Lin Xutao smiled enviously.
"Grandpa, you are so awesome!" Xiaoxia understood what he said and kept praising him.
Father Lin laughed and said, "This shows that we will have a bright future. We are about to move to a new home and get such a fortune."
They chatted excitedly for a while, and then began to process the bezoar, wrapping it with rush and then with white cloth, and finally putting it in a cool and ventilated place to dry.
They are not planning to sell this thing for the time being. They don't lack the money now, but it is difficult to get such a rare medicinal material.
After the bezoar was prepared, Lin's mother took a piece of beef to cook, and when the rice was cooked, they had cut the beef into pieces.
Lin Heng cut some of it into two-centimeter square tofu cubes and put them into a large basin to marinate in advance, ready to be grilled tomorrow.
They tried the aged beef for lunch and it tasted no different except that it was a little chewier, and the meat was even more fragrant.
After dinner, they were busy slaughtering sheep in the afternoon, but this was much simpler and was done in more than an hour. The mutton was still prepared to make kebabs, as they did not have the skills to roast a whole sheep.
There was too much beef to eat, so in the afternoon, Lin's father sold the beef bones and some of the meat at a very cheap price. Now that people in the village are relatively wealthy, many are willing to buy some to try.
When the afternoon work was done and the sun was setting, Xiulan looked at Lin Heng and stretched out her hand, saying, "Let's go for a stroll by the river."
"OK."
Lin Heng nodded and walked over with her.
The water in the Shiban River is very clear at this time of year, with almost no moss. It is very comfortable to wash your feet and hands by the river.
Xiulan took off her shoes and soaked her feet in the water. Lin Heng groped under the rocks for a while and caught a stream grouper. He smiled and turned back to show off, "Wife, it seems that my fishing skills are still as good as ever."
"That's amazing," Xiulan praised, and then pointed in the direction of the road and said with a smile, "Your son, daughter and the other three are coming down."
Lin Heng looked back and saw three children running towards him along the path at a very fast speed.
"Dad, I want to catch fish too!"
"I want to catch fish to feed the little turtle!"
Their voices can be heard before anyone else arrives, because playing in the water is their favorite thing.
"Slow down," Lin Heng shouted, and he would take them to fish after they came down. However, the three of them were rookies and they couldn't catch any fish despite his many instructions.
After playing for nearly an hour, when they returned home the sky was already filled with red clouds and the sun could no longer be seen.
Although they were tired today, they did not rest at night. Instead, they took the children to the back mountain with flashlights to catch cicada monkeys.
The children loved watching the process of the cicada monkey turning into a cicada. They found it very strange every time and discussed it enthusiastically when they got home.
The next morning, Lin Heng and Xiulan got up even earlier and prepared breakfast. After breakfast, Lin Heng smiled and said, "Let's go, take a bus to Hongfeng Mountain. We're moving to a new home today."
"Let's go, to move to a new home!" Xiaoxia walked over excitedly with her toys and books.
"I'm going to live in a new house!" Lu Ming ran out without taking anything.
"Wait a minute, brother. I have so many things." Du Heng took a bunch of little gadgets he had collected and ran a little anxiously.
Seeing the children go out, Lin Heng smiled and said, "Let's go, let's pack up and go over."
They actually just took some daily used odds and ends, and put all the other furniture, books and so on here. There are brand new ones over at Hongfeng Mountain.
The antiques and other items that had been stored there had long been moved away, and only the treasure compartment under the bed still contained some valuable gold and stamps.
After packing up their things, they drove over there first. When they arrived at Red Maple Mountain, they called their parents who were on the farm, and the whole family got in the car and went up the mountain together.
Opening the black fence gate, they drove up. In the light green pond, fish jumped out of the water from time to time. The terraces were covered with green grass and golden rapeseed flowers, and dotted with various uncooked fruit trees.
"Wow, it's so beautiful, even more beautiful than it looked from a distance, just like a princess' castle in a fairy tale!"
"Our home is so beautiful, I want to live here forever!"
"This is more beautiful than the house in the cartoon!"
As soon as they walked into the garden area where the villa was located, the children exclaimed.
It is still early in the morning and the sun has not yet shone. There are still crystal clear dewdrops on the leaves and grass. The colorful flowers covered with dewdrops appear more delicate and beautiful.
"It's a tree that we spent money on. The flowers have been blooming for half a month and haven't fallen yet." Lin's mother also sighed.
"Yes, I have lived for so long and never thought that our house would be so beautiful." Father Lin also sighed.
Xiulan sat in the passenger seat and looked at the scenery outside the window, mesmerized by it. Lin Heng had taken her to see many such scenery before, but this one was the most different because it belonged to them alone. It was her and Lin Heng's home.
Soon the car drove to the open square in front of the villa. The three-and-a-half-story villa came into view, with snow-white walls and blue floor-to-ceiling windows, looking exquisite and clean.
"How about it, beautiful, right?"
After getting out of the car, Lin Heng put his hand on Xiulan's shoulder and asked with a smile.
"It's beautiful, so beautiful. I never thought I could live in such a beautiful place!" Xiulan nodded repeatedly.
These words made Lin Heng feel relieved. He had been planning all of this when he was just reborn, and now he finally heard what he wanted to hear.
He took the key and walked forward to open the black door of the villa. Looking up, he saw the smooth solid wood floor and snow-white walls with various beautiful decorations.
There is an exquisite crystal chandelier on the ceiling and various high-end furniture are placed in the living room. You can feel the luxury at just one glance.
Lin Heng stood at the door, bowed, and invited everyone with a smile: "Dear hostess, parents, and my lovely babies, please come in. This will be our home from now on!"
"Of course, you, the most important male host, have to be there to go in!" Xiulan smiled and took his hand and walked in first, and then her parents and children came in.
Everyone had seen the interior design of the house, but it was the first time that anyone except Lin Heng had seen it in such good condition. When it was finished, Lin Heng didn't let them see it, just to preserve the feeling of surprise.
"It's so beautiful, this house is so beautiful!" Xiulan exclaimed after just one look at the living room.
"Come on, I'll take you to see each place one by one." Lin Heng said with a smile.
Today is the first day we move in, so naturally we have to take things one step at a time. The first place we visit is the basement, which can be entered through the study on the first floor.
Go to the study and press the hidden switch. The two innermost bookshelves will shift apart, opening a large entrance to the basement. As the bookshelves open, the lights inside will light up. This is an underground staircase leading to the basement.
"Wow, this is amazing!!"
When the children saw this scene, they jumped and cheered. It was so attractive to them.
Even Xiulan and Lin's father and mother showed curiosity. Such a design was still very shocking to people of that era.
"This electric system was designed in the factory." Lin Heng explained with a smile and pulled Xiulan, "Come on, I'll take you down to have a look."
After walking down the stairs for five or six meters, I was blocked by a huge black iron door. It not only had a digital code but also a knob code that needed to be turned.
Lin Heng walked over, pressed the password a few times and turned the knob. After two seconds, the door opened automatically. The door weighed 1,200 kilograms, so it could be pushed open by manpower but it was very difficult.
As soon as the door was opened a crack, the children rushed in first, and then let out another scream.
"So there's a library in here. There are so many books, Dad!"
"No, no, there are antiques and treasures."
"This is a treasure room. Dad, you are so awesome. I want to hide my New Year's money in here too."
The three children ran inside excitedly.
As the door was completely opened, Lin Heng and the others went in. It was indeed a huge library with tens of thousands of books.
There are also various collections, including antiques, stamps, precious medicinal materials, gold, wine and other things that Lin Heng thinks are worth collecting.
"Isn't this place nice?" Lin Heng asked with a smile as he looked at Xiulan and his parents.
"That's great! I will come here to study every day." Xiaoxia rushed over and hugged Lin Heng, her face flushed with excitement.
"I want to hide all my treasures here."
"I want my dad too. I want to read here too."
Lu Ming and Du Heng also jumped up excitedly and said.
"Of course, you can all collect your own things." Lin Heng took them to the cabinet against the wall.
There are three cabinets with their names written on them. Every child can store his or her own treasures here, and the keys are kept by themselves.
Seeing that Lin Heng had prepared such a surprise, the three children were so happy that they were speechless. Their father really understood them. Which child has not dreamed of having a treasure room of his or her own?
Xiulan looked at Lin Heng and smiled, "You must have wanted to build this treasure room a long time ago."
She also likes this place very much. It is private and quiet, and it is very suitable for reading or storing some precious items.
"Yes, I have always dreamed of having such a perfect underground secret treasure room." Lin Heng smiled. In fact, what they saw now was only half of the treasure room. The other half contained some more valuable things, but he couldn't tell it directly because the child was still young.
"Son, please get me a cabinet so I can store my valuables here," said Father Lin with a smile.
"Of course you can. There are empty cabinets over there. You and my mom can put things in them. The door of this basement can't be blown down even by a bomb." Lin Heng said with a smile.
The family watched in the basement for a while, and Lin Heng told the children to keep the secret together before going upstairs.
After seeing the first floor, you will come to the second and third floors. This villa has rooms with various functions, including sports room, study, fish room, private cinema, music room, painting studio, chess and card room, massage steam room, wine cellar, etc.
Everyone has their own room, and the decoration inside is designed according to the style they originally chose, and it is all designed with great care.
It can be said that as long as there are enough supplies and energy, staying here is extremely comfortable.
As I looked at each room, I soon reached the roof of the third floor. This villa has three and a half floors, and most of the roof is a balcony, where I can drink tea in cool weather.
The view here is extremely broad. Not only can the small basin in the center of Hongfeng Village be seen, but also many mountains in the lower reaches of Shiban River can be seen clearly.
"How about it? This house is pretty good, right?" Lin Heng took a chair and sat down, looking at his family and smiling.
"Great, Dad, I love this house!" Xiaoxia smiled and kissed Lin Heng on the cheek.
"We like it too!" Lu Ming and Du Heng nodded in unison.
Xiulan sat down next to him and smiled softly, "It's more than good, it's far beyond my expectations. But no matter how big the house is, it's meaningless if you don't have your family with you."
She was wearing a white printed dress today, a pair of crystal lace-up sandals on her feet, and her thick black hair was loose. She looked extremely elegant and beautiful, and the tenderness in her eyes was all focused on Lin Heng and the child.
"Yes, Xiulan is right. No matter how big the house is, we must keep our family well." Father Lin sighed as he looked at the seemingly eternal green mountains in the distance.
The mountains and waters were like this when he was born, and they remain like this now that he is almost in his twilight years. In the endless flow of time, it seems that the only people who are truly meaningful to people are their loved ones.
Lin Heng didn't say anything, but just hugged Xiulan. At this time, the sun was rising from the mountains in the northeast corner, and the soft light shining down dyed people's hair into a beautiful golden color.
Mother Lin looked at her son curiously and asked, "Son, how much did it cost to build this house?"
Other people were also curious about this question. Lin Heng did not mention it when the house was built, and Xiulan was probably the only one who knew the answer.
Lin Heng glanced at Xiulan, then looked at his parents and responded, "It's just that the main part of the house didn't cost that much. It was mainly the interior decoration and furniture that were more expensive. In total, it cost nearly 950,000 yuan."
The land here is free, but the construction and decoration of the house cost 950,000 yuan, which is an astronomical figure in this era. After all, this is an era where a millionaire is considered a great figure.
"What about the money for the farm outside and the land preparation?" Lin's mother asked after taking a deep breath.
"The land preparation outside and the farm cost less than 300,000 yuan, so the total cost is about 1.25 million yuan. As for the small Western-style house in the village, it was not decorated much and cost only 50,000 to 60,000 yuan." Lin Heng replied.
Mother Lin took a deep breath again, and sighed with a smile: "More than one million!"
She had thought as high as she could, but it was still beyond her imagination. She had never seen so much money in her life.
"Mom and Dad, don't worry. This money is not much for me now." Lin Heng said with a smile.
The five hundred thousand he invested in the stock market has now increased to one million and a half million, and this money alone is enough to build a house.
From a rational point of view, it is irrational to spend a huge amount of money to build such a villa in the deep mountains. It is destined to depreciate more and more. But if a person can always think rationally, he will no longer be a human being.
But this was Lin Heng's dream since childhood, something that a young man could never have, and now that he had money, he was determined to make it come true. He also felt safe leaving his collection of treasures here.
"Let's go, let's go downstairs and prepare things. Our relatives and friends will be here soon." After staying on the roof for a while, Xiulan stood up and said.
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded, and everyone stood up and walked downstairs.
After going downstairs, the children moved their toys into the house first. Lin Heng and Xiulan went to the two-story building next door to get the barbecue tables, chairs, benches, barbecue grills and other things.
There are two side buildings on the left and right of the main building of the villa. One is a garage and the other is a house for storing various sundries. Both buildings are connected to the main building.
They placed the table near an area in the garden where there were many cherry blossoms. It was close to the garage, so the environment was naturally nice. When the sun was strong, the trees could provide shade so the table wouldn't be too hot.
Before they were done, the eldest brother and his family arrived.
Lin Yue was driving a truck with a big pine tree on it. He stopped the truck and walked over with his wife and children and said with a smile, "Brother, I wish you a prosperous new home with lots of gold and jade. I dug this pine bonsai tree on the mountain especially for you. I also got two pots of orchids for Xiulan."
"Brother, you are too polite. We are all family." Lin Heng said with a smile.
Lin Yue patted his shoulder and responded with a smile: "I only give these because we are family. If it was an outsider, I would have given a red envelope directly."
"Thank you, big brother. I won't be polite with you. Come over and help me quickly. We really need manpower here." Lin Heng said with a smile.
He and his elder brother first went to unload the pine bonsai. The tree was quite large and weighed at least four or five hundred kilograms in the pot. Lin Yue had been raising it for almost a year and was only bringing it over after making sure it was alive.
The whole tree was in the shape of a Welcoming Pine. It was very natural and had not been carved much. Lin Heng called his father over and the three of them worked together to lift it down. When more people came, he asked everyone to help move it to a suitable location.
After finishing this, he asked his eldest brother and father to get charcoal for the barbecue. He drove with Xiulan to get the beef, mutton and other ingredients. Although there were refrigerators and freezers here, they were not here yesterday.
When they came back, Sandie's family had already arrived. They looked at the villa and the garden with expressions of amazement.
When they saw Lin Heng and the others coming back, they all came over to help.
Lin Heng distributed gloves to everyone, and everyone put them on together. The two large pots weighed a total of 120 kilograms, which was enough for so many people to barbecue today.
In addition to barbecue, other dishes are naturally indispensable, including various spring wild vegetables such as Chinese toon. In the kitchen, Xiulan, Lin's mother and others are cutting vegetables and will start cooking after everyone arrives. As for breakfast, there is only milk and eggs for everyone to fill their stomachs.
After a while, more people came outside. They were Lin Heng's eldest uncle and third uncle. They brought their wives and children and set out here early in the morning.
Aunt Zhang Gaolian was looking around with her son. It was the first time she had seen such a luxurious house and garden. She wanted to appear calm but she couldn't.
Yang Li, my third aunt who was holding her son next to her, was not in a much better condition either, and was also looking around.
"Lin Heng Xiulan, congratulations on moving into your new home." The uncle walked over with a smile, handed a red envelope to Xiulan and said with a smile.
He didn't have anything good, so he just gave him a red envelope.
"Yes, congratulations. This house is so beautiful. Your third uncle and I also got you two pots of orchids." Yang Li also smiled and handed a red envelope to Xiulan.
"Uncle, aunt, you are too polite. We are family, why do we need these?" Xiulan smiled and shook her head.
After politely declining, she finally accepted it. Not accepting the gift at this time would be considered disrespectful.
Father Lin came over and started chatting with them. Lin Heng poured them tea and milk tea, and went to sit in the living room first, waiting for everyone to arrive before taking them up to see the movie.
However, even the living room made everyone feel a little cramped, because the house was so exquisite and beautiful that they didn’t know where to put their feet when wearing their Liberation shoes.
After a while, Lin Heng's aunt and her family also came over, including his aunt and uncle, Li Shiwei and his wife, Li Shilei and his wife, and their four children.
At this point, almost all relatives and friends have arrived. Everyone is gathered together in a lively atmosphere, and the children are as noisy as monkeys.
What Lin Heng didn't expect was that the village party secretary Tian Dongfu was also here.
It was around nine o'clock when all the skewers had been put on and were about to be grilled that a truck drove up.
"Brother Lin, we are not too late." Lin Hai said with a smile as he got out of the car.
Tian Yan held the child in her arms and looked around the villa and Lin Yuan, saying with a smile, "Boss Lin's villa is so magnificent. I'm really envious."
"Brother Lin, congratulations on moving into a new house." Wang Zhou also shouted with a smile, but he came alone and did not bring his wife.
"Stop being polite and come over to help. You can eat soon." Lin Heng said as he walked over with a smile.
Now that everyone is here, Lin's mother starts cooking, and outside they put more meat in and start grilling.
Lin Heng poured water for everyone, and then he and Xiulan took them on a tour of the villa. Places like the basement were family secrets, so they naturally would not take them out for a tour.
“It’s really impressive.”
After the visit, everyone had the unanimous opinion that Lin Heng’s house was beautiful.
"Then everyone please come visit us more often. You are all welcome to come and visit. You can all stay." Lin Heng said with a smile.
Tian Yan smiled and nodded, "Anyway, I don't care whether you are being polite or not, I want to stay here for a few days."
"You don't have to worry about him. I have the final say. It's okay for you to stay here as long as you want." Xiulan said with a smile, holding Tian Yan's hand.
"Then I'll come and stay for a few days too." Aunt Lu Hongyun also laughed and joked.
After everyone chatted and laughed for a while, Father Lin came in and shouted, "The barbecue is almost done, let's go eat."
The food outside was indeed almost ready. It was already past eleven o'clock, and they had to put four long tables together to barely seat everyone.
The prepared dishes and grilled skewers were served on the table. The adults prepared beer and the children had juice. Lin Heng smiled and picked up the cup and said, "Come on, everyone, have a drink. Let's eat and drink well today."
"good!"
Everyone responded while smiling and raising their glasses. After taking a sip, they picked up the skewers on the table and started eating. Needless to say, the taste of the freshly slaughtered beef and mutton skewers was delicious, even with just a little bit of salt.
In addition to these, there are other dishes such as cold shepherd's purse, eggs made with Chinese toon, fried bacon with mushrooms, etc. Everyone chatted while eating and drinking, and everyone's face was filled with happy smiles.
After eating half full, the children ran to the side to play hide-and-seek in the garden. The adults drank and chatted while grilling skewers by themselves.
The older generation like Lin's father had their own topics, and Lin Heng, Lin Hai, Li Shiwei and others also had their own topics. Everyone sat together and talked heartily.
"You know what, this Chinese toon and beef taste pretty good when grilled together." Lin Heng took a bite of the grilled skewer he invented and then passed it to Xiulan's mouth.
"It's really good." Xiulan took a bite and nodded, then handed the grilled beef intestines with green onions that she had made to Lin Heng and said with a smile, "This is also very fragrant, you try it."
Lin Heng showed a surprised expression as soon as he ate it and said, "It's really delicious. Bake one for me too."
"Okay." Xiulan nodded and went to work on it.
Lin Heng discovered that she loved eating this, and recommended it to Tian Yan and others. Everyone thought it was good after tasting it, and started grilling it.
When they had almost finished eating, everyone started playing chess and cards and had fun together. It was not until around three o'clock in the afternoon that everyone started to leave one after another.
The adult world is always like this. Although everyone wants to get together and play, various things force everyone to separate.
The mountain became deserted again, with only seven people from Lin Heng's family left. Unfortunately, Caiyun was at school and couldn't make it back.
It was already past five in the afternoon when we finished packing up. We had eaten too much at noon and didn't feel like eating anything else at night. We only had some hawthorn cake to aid digestion.
In the evening, the family came to the roof of the third floor again and watched the sunset on the balcony. Today the clouds were particularly dense, half of the sky was red, and the remaining half of the sun on the ridge looked big and red.
"It's so beautiful!" Lin Heng exclaimed.
"It's so beautiful!" Xiulan leaned on Lin Heng's shoulder. The happiest days are when all her relatives are around her and everyone is healthy and happy.
The sun sets today and will rise again tomorrow as usual, and their family will live happily until they grow old.
Now we don’t have to worry about food and daily necessities anymore. We can enjoy life and pursue poetry and distant places together.
Lin Heng held Xiulan's hand, and both of them were very sure that this was the life they wanted.
【End of the book】
ps: I have been thinking about this for several days. I felt a little melancholy and reluctant when I finished writing it, but the story must have an ending, just like life.
There will be several free extra chapters later to complete this book. Thank you for your support along the way. (End of this chapter)
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