My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 234 Difficult Sutras
"Uncle Fugui, Uncle Fugui, look, these are the baby birds I found in your orchard. Look how many there are, there are more than a dozen!" Liu Nier, shirtless, wrapped a bunch of featherless chicks in her clothes and ran to Chen Ling to show off.

"You've collected so many! Quickly, feed them to the dogs." Chen Ling, holding his son, glanced at them. These baby birds had all fallen from the tree and were beyond saving.

The past few days have seen several intermittent rain showers and strong winds, which have caused hardship for the birds that have made their home in the orchard. The chicks that have just hatched in their nests cannot withstand the wind and rain. Every morning, a layer of grass falls into the orchard, and you can see one every few steps.

This is because the fruit trees in the orchard are still too small.

A large tree with lush foliage and a thick trunk would certainly not behave this way.

However, these birds couldn't resist the allure of the farm. The water, flowers, trees, insects, and fish there were all incredibly tempting to them. Mountain birds and water birds flocked to the area to build their nests. Wang Cunye spent all day shooting at them with his slingshot, but nothing he did could drive them away.

There's nothing we can do about it.

“Feeding the dog is such a waste. I’ve collected more than Liu Ni’er. Uncle Fugui, why don’t you raise Rui Rui? When he grows up, you can roast him and eat him.” Zhuwa tied a string of bare baby birds with grass and came over to hand them to him.

Chen Ling was both amused and exasperated: "Rui Rui is still too young to eat this. Besides, if you throw this bird and it spills its intestines out, I can't save it."

"Huh? Uncle, you can't save him? Then forget it, let's just feed him to the dogs."

The piglet was immediately disappointed, and then a group of children went to the back of the farm to feed the dogs.

These mischievous kids often come to play here after the farm was built. Firstly, it's cooler and more fun here, and secondly, their parents don't scold them when they come here. After all, there are always people at the farm, which is better than going to other deserted places to play wildly.

"Auntie, have you finished your test paper? Let's play jump rope."

"Wait a little longer, I only have two questions left."

Listening to the children's shouts, Chen Ling carried his son to observe the section of the canal where the fine-scaled salmon lived.

These fish are much bigger than when they were first caught from the mountain, now almost 20 centimeters long, but they are still too thin and don't look very meaty.

Chen Ling untied the wire mesh, waded into the water with one hand, and grabbed a fish. The fish was slippery and struggled vigorously in his hand.

"You need to work harder. The fine-scaled salmon inside the cave have already started to reproduce, and you haven't made a single move."

Chen Ling muttered to himself, put down the barbed wire, and continued to stroll along the irrigation ditch with his son in his arms.

The irrigation ditch was clear and green after the rain, and schools of fish swam back and forth on the surface. Birds would occasionally come to drink, startling the fish and causing them to scatter.

The fish are getting bigger and bigger, and apart from waterfowl, other birds can no longer eat them.

However, this is not a big problem.

There was no shortage of food in the orchard, especially since Chen Ling would pour several buckets of spiritual water into the irrigation ditch every two days. After being diluted, the water would naturally flow through the ditch to various parts of the orchard, causing the wild grass to grow wildly. Crickets, grasshoppers, and worms also grew to be enormous. Even earthworms, which were usually hard to find, were crawling all over the ground after the rain. They were long and black and were being pecked at by all sorts of birds. With such a feast, how could the birds bear to leave?

Despite the fact that many chicks have died in the wind and rain, given the environment around the farm, they would be much better off breeding than in other places, and they would reproduce much faster.

Chen Ling wanted to go for a walk, but her son started crying loudly, and when she touched his diaper, it was dry.

"Rui Rui is hungry, right? Wait a minute, wait a minute, don't cry yet, let's go find your mother."

Whether it was the sound of the voice that attracted his attention or something else, the little guy really stopped crying as soon as Chen Ling spoke.

However, it only lasted for a very short time before it started wailing again with its mouth wide open.

"Oh, why are you crying again, Rui Rui? Are you in a hurry to eat? Okay, we're here now."

As Chen Ling walked upstairs, he talked to the little guy in his arms. And sure enough, as soon as Chen Ling spoke, the little guy stopped crying immediately, as if he was really attracted.

The baby, who was only twenty-odd days old, certainly couldn't really understand what was being said, but this performance was enough to make Chen Ling happy.

"What's wrong? Did you pee or are you hungry?" Gao Xiulan asked as she watched him rush upstairs.

"She's hungry and wants to nurse."

Chen Ling smiled as he entered the room and handed his son to Wang Susu.

The little guy immediately squinted his eyes in satisfaction, drank it down in one gulp, and then went back to sleep without stopping for a moment.

"I'll take Rui Rui out for a walk again, you can rest a bit more."

Chen Ling smiled at his wife, then gently picked up his son and walked out.

In just a few days, the baby would be a month old, and she could take him out for a short walk. Wang Susu naturally knew what her husband was thinking, so she wrinkled her little nose at him and lay back down on the bed to rest.

For the first few days, she always wanted to get out of bed. But recently, as her son has grown bigger, he has been drinking milk more and more frequently and crying more often. She has started to feel physically and mentally exhausted. Now she tries to rest whenever she has a spare moment, otherwise, if the weather gets hotter, she won't have the energy to take care of her baby.

"You just had milk, so be careful not to let Rui Rui catch a cold from the wind," Gao Xiulan said with a frown as she watched him holding his grandson and rocking him back and forth.

"Okay, Mom. I'm all wrapped up in the blanket. I won't go far." Chen Ling chuckled and held his son in his arms. Rui Rui's soft little body exuded a faint milky scent. Taking a gentle sniff made his father incredibly happy.

……

"Fugui, have you told your aunt about the baby at home?"

In the afternoon, Wang Lixian and Wang Jusheng brought over some tables, chairs, and benches for the upcoming baby's one-month celebration. Several families in the village contributed, and after they were brought over, they were set up in the corridor by the lotus pond.

"I already said, the letter was sent a long time ago." Chen Ling led them into the bamboo house. The first floor of this north-facing bamboo house was used as a living room. After entering, they poured water, washed a few peaches, and the three of them sat down to talk.

Everyone in the village who was close to Chen Junying knew about her. She married far away and rarely came back. Moreover, after Chen Ling's father passed away, she never came back for holidays or festivals.

As the saying goes, a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative. No matter how close the relationship is, it will become weak if there is no interaction.

But as a junior, Chen Ling certainly wasn't speaking ill of his elders. With a new addition to the family, he couldn't just leave without giving them a heads-up.

Considering that his aunt lived far away and the road was difficult to travel, he sent the letter several months in advance, sending three letters in a row.

One letter informed me of my wife's pregnancy; another when she was admitted to the hospital; and yet another after the baby was born.

As the younger generation, we can't let outsiders speak ill of us.

After all, my uncle is quite petty, and my aunt is indecisive. If he hadn't informed me, who knows what he would have said about her.

"That's fine."

Wang Lixian nodded.

Then Wang Jusheng asked, "Fugui, you must have invited quite a few people to your baby's one-month celebration this time."

“Yes, besides those from our village, there’s also Dahai and his family. My brother-in-law’s two families are also coming.” Chen Ling thought for a moment and said, “They live all the way from here. When they told me, they were worried about the weather and said they would arrive early, in the next day or two.”

"In that case, we'll need to find someone to cook. The addition of a new member to your family is a joyous occasion, so please don't spend this time around the stove."

At this point, he chuckled and said, "My brother Jukun asked me to ask if you need any help. If you do, he'll bring his apprenticeship to help you."

Two days ago, Chen Ling went to their chickens and ducks to get vaccinated without charging them. They felt really bad about it, so they asked Wang Jusheng to inquire about it.

"You're back after completing your studies? Great! I'll go over to their house tomorrow and tell them to bring Ju Kun and his son, along with Mao Dan."

Chen Ling immediately understood what was going on. However, he and Wang Xuecheng had been classmates for many years, and Wang Xuecheng had helped with the house construction last year. They had resumed their contact, but the boy was often away working and not in the village.

As for Wang Xuecheng's father, Wang Jukun, he is Cui Quezi's brother-in-law and the eldest son of Wang Laishun's elder brother. This old man and Maodan from the southwest corner of the village are the cooks of Chenwangzhuang. Whenever there are weddings, funerals, or baby showers in the village, they will be asked to cook.

The three chatted for a while, then left the farm and wandered around.

“You still don’t have enough here. There are only about three hundred chickens, ducks and geese in total. If you spread them out in such a big place, you can hardly see them,” Wang Lixian said.

"Haha, let's leave it at that for now. We can manage with a small number. I'm planning to buy a few more sheep later."

As Chen Ling spoke, he pointed to the fields where wheat and rapeseed had been harvested. Compared to the farm and orchard, the terrain there was slightly lower and undulating, extending into the steep slopes in the distance. Now it was covered with lush weeds, and even the vegetable garden was barely visible.

"There's so much grass, it's almost overgrown. The sheep at home can't even finish eating all the grass in the orchard. We should buy more sheep. It's the same whether we graze one sheep or a whole flock, and it's easier than raising chickens and ducks."

Chen Ling had already made this plan. Sheep are easy to manage. With a dog around, you don't have to worry about the lead sheep. Raising ten or twenty sheep is not a problem. At the end of the year, keep a few and sell the rest. You can raise more next year.

"That's fine, but you're not going to grow anything on this land?"

"We'll plant later, let's finish up this period of work first."

Chen Ling decided to plant sunflowers as planned. They are drought-resistant and much easier to manage than corn, so planting them is very worry-free.

As the three walked through the area, talking and going up the slope, Wang Jusheng suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the field below the slope and saying, "Brother Xian, look, who is Liu Ni with in your field?"

Chen Ling glanced at it and was immediately stunned. Why was this little lamb here again?

Wang Lixian's face immediately turned cold, and he strode over.

Chen Ling and the other person hurriedly followed.

At this moment, the little lamb is talking to Liu Ni'er.

Is all of this your land?

"Yes."

"Wow, this is a huge area, and there are so many vegetables!"

"This is nothing. My family also has greenhouses. Don't step on it. This is garlic. You can stir-fry it with eggs or pork."

"This is chives, for making dumplings. This is broad beans, you can boil or fry them..."

Liu Nier rattled off a list of pumpkins, loofahs, and green beans, then looked up at the little sheep and asked, "What do you want to buy?"

The little lamb scratched its head in confusion and pointed deep into the field, asking, "What's in there?"

"My mother and grandmother are inside."

The little lamb was even more confused. Liu Ni'er's accent was a bit heavy, and he didn't quite understand, so he asked, "Huh? What can you stir-fry this with?"

Liu Ni'er stumbled upon hearing this, turned around and glared at him: "Fry my ass! I didn't believe you for a second. You didn't come here to buy groceries, you came here to cause trouble."

As soon as she said that, Liu Nier saw the person behind Little Sheep and her face turned pale: "Da, what brings you here?"

Wang Lixian, his face ashen, strode over aggressively: "Who told you to bring him to our land?"

Then he glanced at the little lamb, which made him tremble with fear. The little lamb stammered, "Uncle, Uncle, I've come to buy some vegetables. Xiao Jing said she wants to taste the flavors of home. If you don't want to, I can pay for them."

"Not selling, get out."

Hearing this, Wang Lixian became even angrier: "You didn't learn anything good outside. Who are you trying to fool with these little tricks? Do you think everyone in the family is stupid? You want to taste the food at home? If you really wanted to taste it, why didn't you come back to taste it before? Now you have the nerve to say such things? Get out, get out of here right now."

Sanni'er hasn't shown her face lately, instead sending this little lamb to come forward, trying to find all sorts of reasons to ease tensions, hoping that Wang Lixian will soften his heart this time.

Wang Lixian was extremely annoyed, but today Liu Ni'er softened her heart. When she heard that her third sister wanted to eat vegetables and that Little Sheep was willing to spend money to buy them, she figured the family wouldn't object, so she took it upon herself to bring the person to the field.

After learning what had happened, Chen Ling and Wang Jusheng quickly tried to persuade Wang Lixian not to be angry.

Wang Lixian was still furious, pointing his finger at the little lamb and telling it to get lost. But the anger wasn't actually his fault; the root of the problem lay with his ignorant daughter, Sanni'er.

Otherwise, Wang Lixian wouldn't have gotten so angry.

"There are dogs, and I'm afraid of dogs."

The little lamb looked into the distance and saw the little yellow dog and a large group of village dogs running around on the dirt road. He was terrified.

"Okay, I'll take you there."

Chen Ling walked over and led him to the edge of the field. Once they were far away from Wang Lixian, he said, "Don't come here recently. If you really have no choice but to come here and can manage, come back after the New Year next year. Don't come and cause trouble this year."

This year, Si Ni'er is getting married, and San Ni'er keeps urging this kid to come back and cause trouble. No wonder Wang Lixian doesn't give them a good look.

"It's almost the seventh month of the lunar calendar, you can't even wait half a year, can you?"

"No, no," Little Sheep waved her hand. "I need to go back and discuss it with Xiaojing."

"Haha, is this something to be discussed or not? If you want things to go well, don't come back for the next six months, or you'll get beaten up again."

Chen Ling walked him for a while, then stopped and didn't walk him any further.

What happens to this kid is none of his business. He's only here because of Wang Lixian, looking for an opportunity to speak up for him. Every family has its own troubles. Wang Lixian has helped him a lot, and he can't just stand by and watch, otherwise Wang Lixian's family won't be at peace either.

"Oh, I understand, thank you, Uncle."

Seeing the little lamb sincerely thank him, Chen Ling couldn't help but laugh. This guy did his homework well and found out quite a few connections.

(End of this chapter)