"Yes, as long as we are connected as mother and son, nothing can defeat us. Don't worry, Mom, as long as we work hard, we will definitely reap rewards." Xiao Youchen said to Shumei confidently, cheering her up.
Although they are not biological mother and son, they are better than biological mother and son. They support each other and their relationship is no less intimate than that of Xiao Shuangning and Shumei.
At night, Shumei began sleeping in the chicken coop. The conditions in the chicken coop were no better than at home, lacking even the most basic shelter from the wind and rain, and the air was filled with the lingering smell of chicken manure.
To allow for air circulation in the chicken coop, the four walls were left half-open. In the middle of the night, a wind blew in, and although it was only early autumn, it felt quite chilly.
Shumei was woken up by the cold. She wrapped herself in the quilt, turned over and prepared to continue sleeping.
At this moment, she heard a noise from the chicken coop. She got up, flipped on the light, and went inside with a flashlight to carefully check. She found nothing unusual, then returned to her nest, turned off the light, and went back to sleep.
The next day, Xiao Youchen and Xiao Shuangning got up early as usual.
Shumei had already prepared breakfast for them. The first thing Xiao Youchen asked when he saw Shumei was, "Mom, did you sleep well last night?"
"Very good, hurry up and wash up and come over for dinner."
"Is there anything unusual about the chicken coop? Are there any fewer chicks?"
"I did hear some noises last night, but I checked and didn't find anything."
"I'll count them when I get home from school this afternoon, and I'll know if there's anything missing." After saying this, Xiao Youchen put away the face towel in his hand and walked over to help Shumei carry the steamed buns back to the living room.
Little Shuangning took a steamed bun from the basin held by Xiao Youchen and said as she bit into it, "I'm telling you! You're just worrying too much. There are so many layers of chickens here, how can those chicks fly away? Look at my Xiaobai, he's just in a cardboard box, but he didn't fly away. That chicken coop is so smelly! Mom, I tell you not to listen to your brother and just move back home."
She looked disapproving, always thinking that Shumei and Xiao Youchen were too cautious and were asking for trouble.
The family sat around the square table, eating steamed buns and drinking sweet potato porridge.
"I didn't ask you to sleep in the chicken coop, so don't interfere. I check on the chicks several times a day. Mom and I know if there are any missing. As the saying goes, it's never too late to mend. We have to find the problem."
"Huh..." Xiao Shuangning made a face at Xiao Youchen and ignored him.
This child is simply heartless and doesn't take anything to heart. I hope you can maintain this mindset when you grow up and live a carefree life. Shumei looked at the innocent little Shuangning and felt deeply moved.
Xiao Youchen carefully counted the chickens in the chicken coop several times yesterday. Although this method is a bit stupid, it is the most direct way to get the answer he wants.
He was in a hurry to go to school and didn't have time to count them. When he got home from school, he would be able to verify his guess. Were there really fewer chickens, or was he just overthinking it?
During the day, Shumei went about her business as usual, checking in on the chicken coop three or four times a day and adding feed and water. The rest of the time she worked in the fields, her days so busy she wished she could be split in half.
After school in the afternoon, Xiao Youchen went home, put down his schoolbag and went to the chicken coop as soon as possible. He took a notebook and a pen, and counted while taking notes, "one, two, three, four... one hundred and eighty, one hundred and eighty-one, one hundred and eighty-two..." He patiently counted the chicks in the chicken coop several times.
Little Shuangning was muttering beside him, "Brother, can you please stop looking for trouble? There are so many chickens, are you sure you can count them? Are you sure you can't count them wrong? Stop playing..."
"Ningning, could you please be quiet? You're chattering all over the place and it's disturbing me. You... look at you. You haven't even put down your schoolbag yet, and you're running here to meddle in other people's affairs. Um, why don't you go check on your Xiaobai? Don't let it grow wings and fly away..."
Before Xiao Youchen finished speaking, Xiao Shuangning seemed to have thought of something and quickly hugged her legs and ran into the house.
Now that Xiao Shuangning was not here, he could finally count with peace of mind. Looking at Xiao Shuangning's back as she hurried home, he smiled and shook his head, then continued to count seriously from the beginning.
He made a record in his notebook yesterday, and he also made a record when he counted today. The result was the same every time. There were indeed three fewer than he counted yesterday.
While he was wandering back and forth in the chicken coop, wondering, Shumei came back from work in the fields carrying a hoe. Seeing that Xiao Youchen was worried, she leaned the hoe on her shoulder against the big elm tree at the door and walked into the chicken coop.
"Youchen, the air in this chicken coop is not good, don't go in here as soon as you come back."
The smell in the chicken coop was so bad that Shumei was afraid it would affect Xiao Youchen's health and didn't want him to stay in the chicken coop for too long.
Her life was saved. As long as it is good for the children and the family, she doesn't care about anything. She has long put life and death aside.
"Mom, I'm fine. You really want to raise me like a city kid! I'm not that delicate. Haven't we been smelling this chicken shit since we were little?"
"What are you doing? Counting again?"
"Yes!" Little Youchen quickly walked over to Shumei and showed her the notebook in his hand. "Look, Mom, I counted four times, and every time it was the same. There are three fewer chicks than yesterday. If this continues, the chicks will be stolen before they grow up. We must find this thief."
It is indeed not an easy task to count these thousands of chicks accurately.
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