My 1995 Small Farm

   Chapter 99 Frogs

When Chen Ling rushed over, Wang Lixian's family had already started to collect them. They had already driven their son-in-law's ox cart to the house four or five times. In fact, they also picked some back yesterday evening. Even so, the melon fields are still there. There are more than five acres of watermelons that have not been picked.

Seeing Chen Ling driving the ox cart to help, Wang Lixian nodded and said nothing, but Liu Yuzhi and Danier looked very happy, with deep gratitude in their eyes, seeing that it was going to rain heavily. Without help, the watermelon must have been soaked in the ground by the rain.

  Compared with wheat, in fact, there is no need to rush to harvest watermelon, but I am afraid that the rain before the wheat harvest will keep falling.

When there is too much water, the watermelon is prone to collapse and cracks appear. If it rains heavily for several days, it will rot in the ground. Wang Lixian is downhill again. The terrain is low and the drainage is not good. The watermelon will not be sweet. Yes, the taste is not good, the price cannot be sold, and it is certain to lose money.

Watermelon pays attention to seven days of sun and three days of rain, and the rain should not be too much. Originally, the weather in the mountains, the temperature difference is large, the watermelon will be very sweet and can sell for a good price, but if it is soaked by the heavy rain before the wheat harvest, the watermelon will absorb enough water. The sweetness dropped immediately.

   The sky was overcast, and there was a faint thunder.

Everyone dared not delay, so Chen Ling and Wang Lixian were five adults, plus Liu Nier and a little boy, and the seven people started to get busy. Wang Lixian was not good, but he was not slow in his work. Along with Ernier's son-in-law, the ox cart was filled up in no time.

At this time, it was too late to transport it home, so I directly pulled it to the wheat threshing field outside the village, and then covered it with plastic sheets. Anyway, the wheat in the village has not been harvested at this time. The place is very large, and a few acres of watermelon are more than enough. .

   After transporting one car back, Liu Yuzhi and her two daughters, Da Ni'er and Er Ni'er, had already filled the second car.

   They also worked very hard.

  In rural areas, women are a labor force that cannot be ignored, and they are no worse than men when it is their turn to contribute.

   After a while, Wang Jusheng got the news out of nowhere, and also came to help with his donkey cart from Laozi's house.

Rural people are sometimes very simple. You know who you have a crush on. When you are in trouble, you don’t have to go to the door to look for it. Someone will help you spontaneously, especially when it comes to weddings, funerals, and marriages. The family will lend a helping hand, the owner will provide a few dishes and dishes, and the western family will provide a few tables, chairs and benches, and the things to entertain the guests will be all live.

  In this way, two ox carts and a donkey cart, hurriedly, finally finished harvesting the five acres of watermelons before the heavy rain fell.

   It was just that the last two carts of watermelons had just been pulled to the threshing field before the plastic sheets could be covered, and the rain had already started. Accompanied by bursts of lightning and thunder, the torrential rain came as scheduled before the wheat was ripe.

A few people covered the watermelon, then pressed the plastic sheet with bricks and stones, and went to Wang Lixian's house together. Originally, Chen Ling and Wang Jusheng refused to go when they saw the rain, but they were dragged by Wang Lixian. past.

The two of them made great efforts today. If Wang Lixian didn't entertain him, he would feel sorry for him. In desperation, the two of them couldn't refuse any more. Arrived at Wang Lixian's house.

   Wow, the rain is getting heavier and heavier.

   Standing under the eaves of Wang Lixian's house and looking out, all he could see was a vast expanse of white, with strings of blisters splashing on the ground.

Wang Jusheng picked up a large bowl of tea and drank it, wiped the rain on his face, and when he saw Chen Ling standing outside the door watching the rain, he couldn't help laughing and joking: "I really didn't see it, you are rich and precious. The guy is very sturdy. You are the fastest to pick watermelons. Today, you picked at least two acres of melons on the five acres of land. You are still blushing and breathing. You are the same as Yang Gangdan back then. There's a fight."

"Well, Fugui really has the strength. Two days ago, when I was a gelding sheep, Fugui overturned our big ram with one hand, and pinched the sheep's head with both legs, and he couldn't move, Yang Gangdan. I guess that's how it was when I was young."

  Wang Lixian followed suit.

  Chen Ling was at a loss when he heard the words. If you are strong, you should be strong. What is the comparison with this Yang Gangdan? Besides, who is this person? He had never heard of it.

  Wang Lixian smiled: "Speaking of Yang Gangdan, that is a legend. You haven't heard of him. You didn't tell you his story. I'm afraid I will teach you badly."

   Who is Yang Gangdan?

   Twenty years ago, it was Changle Township, and even the entire Lingyun was a famous fierce man, tall and strong, with infinite strength.

This person is from Yangtougou. Back then, Yangtougou was short of cattle, horses and other large animals. There were widows and a few children who were alone and without a pillar. The men in the village were afraid that people would gossip and no one dared to help. During the season, I was always worried about ploughing, so I asked Yang Gangdan to help.

  In those days when there was not enough to eat, there was no need to pay extra, just steamed a large pot of miscellaneous noodles, there were about 30 eggs, and Yang Gang could eat one meal.

   Then, with one person holding a sickle, the wheat of six or seven acres of land can be harvested in just one day.

   When it comes to ploughing, it's even faster. This guy puts on the rake himself and asks the widow to follow the plow. He can plow out four acres of land in half a day, which is really better than an animal.

But this is not what made him famous, but this guy is not only strong and strong, but also has a pair of golden waists. I don't know who spread this thing out. Anyway, as long as the young daughter-in-law from ten miles and eight villages could not give birth to a baby, They all went to Yang Gangdan. As long as the mother-in-law is not in bad health, she can conceive seeds within two times. From then on, Yang Gangdan didn't need to go to the ground again, and he could live a very nourishing life just by being a stallion.

  Yang Gangdan's nickname came from this, but the good times didn't last long. Within two years, he was jealous and reported, and he was taken to the city for the crime of durian. Although Yang Gangdan is dead, his story is widely spread, but now the younger ones don’t know it anymore, and the elders in the family don’t tell it, for fear that the teaching will ruin the child and go down the wrong path.

  Chen Ling was a little bit dumbfounded after hearing Wang Lixian's speech. Good guy, he compares himself with a big stallion. How could he dare to compare this kind of thing?

   "Then Liu Tiedan in our class is like Yang Gangdan, can he pull a big plow when he grows up?"

   At this moment, Liu Nier stuck out her little head from the side and asked curiously.

  The scene suddenly fell silent.

   Originally, a few of them were talking outside. Liu Yuzhi took her two daughters to the kitchen to prepare meals, so she didn't care much when they chatted. Who knows, she forgot that Liu Ni'er was listening by the side.

  Good guy, Wang Lixian might also feel embarrassed to ask him so coldly.

  No, he had already started to take off his shoes with a sullen face. Seeing this, Ernier's husband hurriedly stopped his father-in-law and turned around and said to Liunier: "Sir, you are not allowed to listen, hurry back to the room and do your homework."

   "I'm on wheat leave, and the teacher asked the family to work, so I didn't leave homework."

   Liu Ni'er had been beaten for a long time. Seeing that her father's face was wrong, she hurriedly hid behind Chen Ling and replied in a sullen voice.

   As soon as these words came out, Wang Lixian's face became even darker, but with Chen Ling protecting Liu Ni'er, he couldn't do anything well, so he made a secret note in his heart.

   Afterwards, the conversation of the few people was obviously restrained, but it was raining too hard today, and before we could chat a few words, the southeast wind poured down the eaves along with the rain.

   had no choice but to hide back in the room around the table, chatting while drinking tea, and waiting for dinner.

Wang Lixian's house is more than 20 years old. There are yellowed newspapers and faded New Year pictures on the walls. There is no furniture in the house, only a table of the Eight Immortals, a heavy black lacquered wooden cabinet and a five bucket. The closet, as for the bed, is in the east back room, separated from this side by a floral curtain.

If you look closely, you can see that the four corners of the large black lacquered wooden cabinet are covered with iron armor, and the surface is nailed with rows of round nails. There is also a porcelain ink painting inlaid on the two cabinet doors, which depicts Songhe Yannian. , There are red-crowned cranes, there are red sun, there are mountains and rivers, and there are pine trees.

   There is a month card on the chest of drawers, and a huge portrait of a great man hangs on the back wall. The old man waved his hand with a kind smile. Against the background of the red sun and auspicious clouds, the people are working hard.

Chen Ling looked up at the furnishings in the house, and felt that it was much more flavorful than his own. His house was a new house. Although he had been married for two years, everything still seemed too new. The furniture was all made by Chen Sangui. Where to go, it may be because of the lack of these two paintings.

   Several people drank tea and chatted.

After a while, Liu Yuzhi's mother and daughter brought the food, two large porcelain bowls with wide mouth, fried pickled rabbit meat and stewed pheasant soup, and then a few porcelain bowls filled with fried leeks Eggs, roasted tofu with pheasant blood, stir-fried April melon, and a pot of soy melon white.

  According to Liu Yuzhi's idea, I had to make a few more dishes, but it was too raining to go out to buy. Chen Ling and Wang Jusheng must have been in a hurry to go home after eating, so they had to make these first and serve them.

After starting to eat and drink, although a few dishes tasted very good, Chen Ling, a person who would not feel wronged by eating and drinking on weekdays, obviously felt that there was too little oil in the dishes, but this was just his first reaction. He was no slower than anyone to move his chopsticks.

The wine was the small sorghum wine brought by Wang Lixian's second son-in-law. It had a lot of stamina, and just two cups of Wang Jusheng was already on his face. But the first time he came to Wang Lixian's house, he just refused to admit it, and he waited for a meal. After he was full, Chen Ling sent him back.

However, after eating and drinking happily, I slept soundly that night. In the morning, the rain had become less, and the yard was full of puddles. Chen Ling raised his umbrella and looked at the fish in the lotus pond, but he was not washed away by the heavy rain, perhaps the first The second time it rained, the little bunnies were in high spirits, playing with Chen Ling in the puddle in the courtyard, getting wet, and then when they returned to the house, they rubbed against Chen Ling again and chased away. Couldn't get away a few times.

   The shoes and trouser legs were covered with muddy water, so angry that Chen Ling pulled their ears and put them in an empty water tank under the eaves, so that they could not climb up.

After breakfast, the rain finally stopped, but the sky was still gloomy. I could only hear the sound of frogs croaking everywhere. From a distance, I could see the village was shrouded in a layer of mist, which merged with the smoke of the morning cooking. Together, hazy, it looks very poignant, and people's hearts gradually calm down.

  Chen Ling looked up at the misty sky and listened to the crisp birdsong in the mountains after the rain.

   thought: "Summer is coming soon."

   (end of this chapter)