Chapter 97 The Dog is Gone
Time flies, and several days have passed. Xiulan stayed at home because of the pain in her feet and did not go out for a walk.
She was busy either making soap or weaving straw hats.
Lin Heng didn't go hunting, but he went fishing occasionally. Every day he took Xiongba for a walk around the neighborhood, hoping to catch a rabbit or a pheasant or something.
But every day when he came back he only brought two frogs and a few green prawns. He was too lazy to eat them himself, so he fed them to Xiongba.
Maybe we have killed too many green-billed crickets this year, so now we see fewer and fewer of these birds.
Lin Heng had no choice but to give up and stop killing the frogs. After all, they were creatures that were beneficial to farmland.
But poor Xiongba has no meat to eat recently and can only eat corn porridge and leftovers.
Fortunately, I still have a wild boar head at home. I originally wanted to eat it, but the wild boar hair is difficult to clean.
In the end they had to cut off their ears and tongues and eat them, and boiled the rest and fed them to Xiongba.
However, the tusks of this wild boar are quite long. After being sawed off and polished with sandpaper, they look very beautiful in snow-white color.
Lin Heng originally wanted to make a hairpin for his wife, but it was too curved, so he could only make two pendants.
He cut a few more bamboos and tied them together with wild boar teeth to make a wind chime and hung it in the backyard.
Whenever there is a breeze, you can hear the crisp sound of the bees hitting the flowers, which forms a natural melody with the buzzing of bees.
The Linshui black pine placed behind the old house also survived, and Lin Heng and his eldest brother carried it to the backyard.
The backyard is now very rich in plants, including dozens of orchids, black pines, small pyracantha trees dug from the mountains, gardenias, roses, lilies...
Lin Heng arranged these plants according to his own ideas and added some strange stones. Even without a lawn, this small garden is now perfect.
Although the house is made of mud, this place is not mud at all.
That afternoon, Lin Heng was taking a nap in the pavilion with his daughter in his arms. He listened to the sounds of water, bees, and the occasional wind chimes, and felt so comfortable that he didn't want to move.
Xiulan was picking honeysuckle nearby and didn't say much. The family of three just wasted time leisurely.
"Sister Xiulan, open the door."
Suddenly there was a knock on the back door.
"It's coming."
Xiulan said something and took the initiative to go over and open the door. Her ankle sprain had healed. Although the scratch on her foot had not healed yet, it was no longer a problem.
"Caiyun, why are you here?" Xiulan opened the door and asked with a smile.
"I knew you were in the backyard." Caiyun smiled, walked into the yard and commented, "My second brother is good at eating, drinking and having fun. This backyard is beautifully decorated."
Lin Heng: "...If you can't speak, you can go out."
Caiyun laughed and said, "My sister-in-law and niece won't chase me away, right, Xiaoxia?"
"Auntie!!" Xiaoxia got down from the chair and ran into Caiyun's arms.
Caiyun hugged Xiaoxia and kissed her before she told her the reason why she came here: "Sister-in-law, I actually came to share with you the interesting things I saw these days."
The so-called interesting things are gossip.
"What's the matter?" Xiulan didn't know much about the village gossip, she just heard about it occasionally.
"I recently went to Teacher Tian for extra lessons and became good friends with her because she also likes reading and is much more knowledgeable than me."
Caiyun said with a smile, looking very happy.
"Then, these past two days, Teacher Tian often played chess for a long time by himself, and I didn't know why at first.
It was not until today that I discovered this, it is really a shocking secret." Caiyun suddenly stopped talking here and kept the secret.
"What secret?" Xiulan was a little curious.
Before Caiyun could say anything, Lin Heng spoke first: "I guess it's because she can't beat others, so she studies it herself."
When Caiyun heard this, she couldn't help but widen her eyes: "Second brother, how did you know?"
"Guessed." Lin Heng smiled and spread his hands.
"You guessed it right then."
Caiyun didn't think much about it and couldn't wait to announce the answer: "The big secret I discovered is that every afternoon after school, Teacher Tian would play chess with others in the classroom.
And I lost every time, so I got so angry that I had to study the chess pieces myself."
"And the person playing chess with Teacher Hetian is a man. Guess who it is?" Caiyun kept the suspense again.
Lin Heng shook his head: "I'm too lazy to guess."
"Caiyun, please tell me quickly. I can't guess it either."
Xiulan's curiosity was aroused, and she shook Caiyun's hand and urged.
"Hey, this person is very close to us, and his surname is also Lin." Caiyun said with a smile.
Xiulan suddenly had an idea and asked, "Could it be Lin Hai?"
"How did you know, sister-in-law?" Caiyun was surprised. How could Xiulan guess so accurately?
"Because Lin Hai is so good at playing chess, even your second brother is no match for him." Xiulan said with a smile.
"I see, that's not surprising, cousin Lin Hai is really good at chess.
I watched it secretly, and Teacher Tian was defeated miserably every time. Teacher Tian was so angry that he wrote about him in his diary.
I feel like Brother Lin Hai is pursuing Teacher Tian, but he is too straightforward and doesn’t know how to give in a little.”
Caiyun's gossip-filled soul was burning, but she didn't dare spread it everywhere. However, she wanted to find someone to share it with, so she found Sister Xiulan.
Because she never talks nonsense, she wanted to come and share.
"By the way, brother, don't talk nonsense. I trust Sister Xiulan." Caiyun said again.
"I understand." Lin Heng shook his head and squinted his eyes to rest.
Next to them, Caiyun was still chatting with Xiulan.
The two of them had no idea that the culprit behind all this was right in front of them.
After hearing what Caiyun said, Lin Heng felt relieved. Lin Hai was quite reliable and could strictly follow what he said. He was a promising talent.
They chatted for a while, and Lin Heng sat up and looked at Xiulan and asked, "Are you really not going to come with me when I go down to the city tomorrow?"
Xiulan shook her head: "I'm not going. Please go and come back soon. I'll wait for you at home."
Lin Heng was helpless: "Well, is there anything you want to eat? I'll buy you something."
"No, and don't buy me clothes or anything like that. If you spend money indiscriminately, I won't let you into the house when I get home." Xiulan warned.
Caiyun was watching from the side and laughed, but was slapped on the head by Lin Heng.
Caiyun said angrily: "Second brother, you beat me up and made me stupid, so I will not leave your house."
Lin Heng sneered: "If you don't leave, I will feed you and Zhu Shuan together with the pig food."
"I'm so angry. I'm leaving now and I won't let you herd sheep again."
Caiyun put Xiaoxia down and turned away.
Halfway through the walk, he turned back and said with a grin, "Brother, don't forget to buy a few more old books tomorrow. I'll return them to you when I make some money."
"Ah! I see."
Lin Heng stretched, stood up, and went to pack the things he was going to take into the city to sell.
All the items were packed in opaque snakeskin bags. It was unsafe these days and money couldn’t be leaked out.
The next morning, July 7th in the Gregorian calendar and May 20th in the lunar calendar, was the beginning of the Lesser Heat.
Because Lin Heng was going to the city, Xiulan cooked rice for him, and the dish was pork fried with sour shredded radish. It went very well with rice, and Lin Heng ate two large bowls of rice.
When he left, Xiulan sorted out his clothes, looked into her eyes and said:
"Be careful and don't buy anything for the house. You don't need anything. Otherwise, I really won't let you into the house."
Lin Heng grinned: "Do you really have the heart to not let me into the house?"
Xiulan glared at him and said, "You'll know when the time comes."
"Don't worry, I won't buy anything random." Lin Heng squeezed his wife's hand, took the things and left.
Coming over to the old house, Brother Lin's father was carrying wheat onto a newly made wooden cart. He had to go to the town to pay the public grain tax today.
Not only did they have to pay public grain, but they also had to grind flour. There were large flour mills in the town, which were much better than grinding flour with a stone mill at home.
"Dad, big brother, I'm leaving first." Lin Heng looked at his father and big brother and said
"Do you want us to wait for you in Huangtan Town?" asked Lin's father.
"No need, I'll come back by myself when the time comes." Lin Heng shook his head.
"Okay, be careful." Father Lin nodded.
"rest assured."
Lin Heng waved his hand and left with his things on his back.
Today is the day when their village has to pay the wheat tax, and the roads are filled with wooden carts carrying grain.
Walking to the front, Lin Heng found that the village party secretary Tian Dongfu was giving orders. He did not bring any food, probably because he was preparing to pay the money.
"Uncle Tian."
Lin Heng greeted him with a smile. Tian Dongfu was a respectable man who had devoted his entire life to leading the villagers to prosperity.
Especially after two years when his son graduated from school and was assigned to be a civil servant in the county, he could have gone to Nanping County to enjoy life with his son, but he still chose to work hard here.
"Lin Heng, aren't you with your dad?" Tian Dongfu asked with a smile.
His attitude towards this young man has changed recently. He likes people who are down-to-earth.
He felt that Lin Heng only had a junior high school education and had a promising future as long as he worked hard.
"No, my brother is with my dad, and I'm going to sell some medicinal herbs." Lin Heng said with a smile.
"Oh, then go ahead, live a good life and keep your feet on the ground."
Tian Dongfu said with a smile, very amiable.
"OK."
Lin Heng nodded, thought for a moment and said, "Uncle Tian, there are a lot of snakes and insects recently, you must be careful when you walk."
He just remembered one thing. It seemed that Tian Dongfu had been bitten by a poisonous snake recently in his previous life.
Although the snake's venom was not strong and the man was rescued in time, his physical condition has plummeted since then.
"Okay." Tian Dongfu was a little surprised as to why Lin Heng reminded him, but he still kept this sentence in mind.
After giving the reminder, Lin Heng walked away quickly. He didn't know the exact time when he was bitten, so he could only give a reminder, which he thought was the most he could do.
Today is not a market day, so the town is rather quiet.
Lin Heng looked around but didn't find any hitchhiker, so he walked towards the school and prepared to take a shortcut to the city.
"Lin Heng, where are you going?"
When he was near the school, Lin Heng suddenly heard someone calling him.
Turning around, I saw a young man in his mid-twenties with a crew cut and wearing a black leather jacket.
"Hello, Teacher Guo. I'm going to walk to the city to sell some herbs." Lin Heng responded with a smile.
This person was Guo Xu, a teacher who was transferred to him the semester before he dropped out of junior high school. He had advised him several times with earnest words when he dropped out of school himself.
"Going to the city? Then you can wait. Today is Friday and I have a class in the morning. After class, I will go back to the city and I can take you with me."
Guo Xu casually said that his family was well-off and he had his own motorcycle at a young age.
"Teacher Guo, aren't you from Nanping County? How do you get to the city?"
Lin Heng asked curiously.
Although Huangtan Town belongs to Nanping County, it is farther from the county seat than Taibai City, and the road is not easy to travel, so he chose to go directly to the city to sell medicinal materials.
"I'm going to the city to visit an elder. Stop being so fussy and come with me to school. I'll take you out of town after nine o'clock."
Guo Xu's tone was unyielding; he felt that Lin Heng was a little afraid of him.
He also wanted to know the current situation of the student whom he failed to persuade.
"Okay, thank you very much, teacher." Lin Heng could only walk over, take out a Daqianmen cigarette from his pocket and hand it to Guo Xu.
"Have you had breakfast? If not, I'll go to the school cafeteria and get you some."
Guo Xu took the cigarette and asked again. It was only seven o'clock now. He had just finished breakfast and came out for a walk to digest his food. He saw Lin Heng by chance and stopped him to chat.
"have eaten."
Lin Heng nodded and followed the teacher into the school.
"Are you making a living by farming at home now? Is it very hard?" Guo Xu asked.
He felt that Lin Heng must be regretting it now. If he had continued to study and passed the technical secondary school entrance examination and been assigned a job, it would definitely be much better than farming.
"I guess so. I also learned how to hunt, and my life is pretty good now."
Lin Heng nodded without saying anything grand.
"Hunting?" Guo Xu was a little curious that Lin Heng had this ability.
Walking to Guo Xu's office, Lin Heng sat down and briefly talked about his daily hunting routine.
Guo Xu couldn't help but be a little shocked: "You can shoot badgers and muntjacs with a bow and arrow? Tell me in detail."
"Yes." Lin Heng also showed him the suede.
He was not worried that Guo Xu had any bad intentions, because people would not look down upon his little money.
When Lin Heng told him about his experience, Guo Xu felt a little envious. Hunting seemed like a lot of fun.
"I didn't expect you could find a way out again. If you have time, make me a fishing rod. I also want to try fishing. I'll pay for it."
Guo Xu patted Lin Heng on the shoulder and said, but he still felt it was a pity that hunting could not be a livelihood for long.
Lin Heng smiled and said, "Bamboo is not valuable and is everywhere. I will bring one to you when the time comes."
After chatting for a while, Guo Xu felt that Lin Heng had changed a lot. He even looked a little bit like a young man in his twenties. He was no longer as impetuous as before, and his knowledge seemed to be higher than before.
"I'm going to class first. You can rest here for a while. We'll leave after the class."
Guo Xu said with a smile.
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded and took a book to read.
After watching for a while, he got up and went to the back of the school to check on the remaining dogs.
After searching for a while, Lin Heng couldn't find any trace of the dog. He didn't know whether it had run away to some other place or was caught by someone again.
He asked some people in the school, but they all said they hadn't seen him for a long time.
"Oh." Sighing, Lin Heng walked back with his hands behind his back.
Looking at this dilapidated campus and listening to Lang Lang's reading, he felt a little emotional. Sometimes the encounters in life are just like this dog. Once you miss it, you can never find it again.
After returning to the teacher's office, he casually flipped through the Records of the Grand Historian.
An hour passed quickly, and Lin Heng had already read through more than a thousand years of Chinese history.
Guo Xu returned to the office with the textbook and saw Lin Heng reading. He smiled and said, "You still like reading now."
"Haha, I watch some occasionally." Lin Heng smiled slightly.
"It's good. Reading is a good thing." Guo Xu said with a smile. He felt that Lin Heng was reminiscing about his school days.
As one of his first students, he had quite a bit of affection for Lin Heng and felt it was a bit of a pity.
Putting the book down, Guo Xu packed up his things while chatting with Lin Heng.
"You said you caught a turtle that was more than 30 years old. Is it still there?" Guo Xu asked with a smile.
Lin Heng smiled and nodded: "It's still there, I'm keeping it at home."
"How much can you usually sell it for?" Guo Xu asked again.
"At least thirty yuan, depending on whether the person needs it or not." Lin Heng said.
"Then sell it to me. I'll buy it for fifty yuan. I'll take it back and make soup for my grandfather to nourish his body." Guo Xu said with a smile.
Lin Heng was a little surprised. He didn't know whether the teacher bought it on purpose to help because he felt that it was not easy for him now, or he really bought it as a gift.
Guo Xu looked at Lin Heng without saying anything and asked, "Why, do you think it's a bargain?"
"No, teacher, if you want to buy it, thirty is enough. If you want more, I won't sell it to you." Lin Heng shook his head. He didn't want to make money from the teacher.
Guo Xu was unhappy and said with a straight face: "Why, do you think I'm giving you alms? Fifty is fifty, I bought it for my grandfather, I can't let you lose money."
Without waiting for Lin Heng to speak, Guo Xu said, "I have packed my things. Your husband is at home, right? I'll ride my bike and we'll go get it."
Lin Heng had no choice but to nod and follow him out.
Guo Xu's motorcycle is a very classic Honda CG125, which costs about 1,500 yuan. Even in the 21st century, many people still ride this motorcycle.
The red paint looks very handsome and is definitely a sign of wealth in this era.
Lin Heng didn't know what Guo Xu's family did, but he knew he was very rich.
"Sit down."
Guo Xu said something, and with the roar of the engine and a puff of green smoke, the motorcycle sped out.
It's already thirty degrees now, and it's so comfortable to ride a motorcycle and feel the wind.
Lin Heng pointed out the way, and it took only more than ten minutes to get back to Hongfeng Village.
"Teacher, this is my home, a newly built house." Lin Heng said with a smile, pointing to the earth wall inside the road.
"Very good." Guo Xu nodded, parked the motorcycle, and followed Lin Heng upstairs.
Many people in the village heard the roar of the motorcycle and came out to watch from afar, full of curiosity and envy.
"My wife doesn't seem to be at home. Let's go in directly." Lin Heng found that the door was locked, opened it, and invited the teacher in.
Guo Xu nodded and walked into the yard with curiosity.
"Is this the badger cub you mentioned?" Guo Xu looked at the badger in the pen curiously. This was the first time he saw a captive badger.
"Yes, we caught him by setting a trap." Lin Heng said as he opened the door and went to get a cup to pour water for the teacher.
"You are indeed much more mature than before." Guo Xu took the water with a smile.
Looking up at Lin Heng's house, he was a little surprised that it was plastered inside and the ground was paved with stones.
"Where is the old turtle? Let me see." After taking a look, Guo Xu said again.
"In the backyard." Lin Heng took him to the backyard.
After passing through the somewhat dark corridor, the backyard appeared in front of the two. Guo Xu couldn't help but show a look of shock when he looked at the backyard of Lin Heng's house.
"Did you arrange this yourself?"
He was stunned by the beautiful backyard.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
