My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 709

Rui Rui dislikes Yu Qi'an especially because of the turtle's hibernation.

But the older kids, the more sensible ones, really enjoyed playing with Yu Qi'an.

Since everyone in the village was resting and had nothing to do today, these kids ran towards Chen Ling one after another.

Some people would give food to Chen Ling and his wife when they came.

Some of them would invite Chen Ling to their house for dinner that night, saying they were cooking meat.

Some came and complained about why the sky wasn't clearing up yet; they wanted to catch wild geese and also wanted to follow Chen Ling to block the badger's den.

Others were still asking Chen Ling what to do with the livestock now that the packhorses had been transported away. They were suggesting that Afu and Ashou be raised to have a bunch of tiger cubs, or that the sika deer be raised to have fawns sooner.

In short, the courtyard was bustling with activity.

Just then, Kang Kang and Lele woke up. The two pink and tender little ones were being held in the arms of Wang Susu and Jiang Xiaoqing respectively by the upstairs window, yawning with their round little mouths open.

Jiang Xiaoqing and Han Chuang's child is still young and smells very much like milk, so Kang Kang is still happy to go to her and let her hold him.

The mischievous monkeys in the yard were chattering and making too much noise around Chen Ling.

The two little ones had just woken up and, upon hearing the noise, became irritable, pouting and whimpering, looking like they were about to cry.

Seeing this, Chen Ling called all the little monkeys out and brought Han Chuang and Yu Qi'an out as well.

Follow him to Wang Lixian's greenhouse on the east side to unload the goods.

As soon as he arrived, many people went to help him.

A few days ago, the villagers knew he was going to build a greenhouse. When they saw that he had bought all the building materials today, they knew that he was serious and wasn't just saying it, so they all went to help.

He Jiawen and his group had just returned from the mountains, covered in rainwater and mud. Since they didn't need to change their dirty clothes, they rushed over to help.

Expecting university professors to do manual labor is definitely not going to get much done.

I just assisted them.

It was mainly Chen Ling and Han Chuang who worked with the villagers, young and old.

For Chen Ling, having this intention, whether or not he can actually help, is more important than anything else.

He loaded most of these things onto the truck himself in Wangbacheng.

With his physique and strength, this little bit of work was just enough to loosen up his muscles and bones.

So today, these people finally witnessed firsthand the terrifying brute strength that everyone in the village had been talking about all day.

While they were still working, they all rushed to his side in surprise, unable to resist touching his arms and body. Chen Ling didn't look fat or strong, so they couldn't understand how he could have such strength. This made them even more curious than seeing a tiger living peacefully with a human.

After all that work, Chen Ling still had to go to the city to pick up Wang Zhenzhen.

I told them that if they didn't have anything else to do, they should go home and wash up first, and then come to my house for dinner that night.

We made dumplings at home, and we also have all kinds of meat, but we haven't eaten the beef or steak yet.

As a result, no one wanted to go.

Everyone says we should wait until he officially starts building the greenhouse before making any decisions.

He Jiawen and the others also said they wouldn't go.

It wasn't that they weren't tempted by the food at Chen Ling's house.

The ingredients in Chenwangzhuang are really different from those in other places.

They've been living at the school recently and cooking for themselves every day, and they all feel that their cooking skills have improved significantly.

Just like the beef and pork here.

A pot of water, a sprinkle of salt, and it'll taste delicious.

You don't even need to add any of the ingredients for stewing meat, like scallions, ginger, or garlic.

There's no need to say anything else.

Of the three female teachers who came, two of them couldn't cook.

The main problem is that I don't know how to add salt and seasonings accurately, and I can't control the heat well, so I gradually become more and more hesitant to cook.

At the beginning, Chen Ling took the opportunity of roasting bamboo rats to tell them that stir-frying dishes could also be done with the same sauce as roasting bamboo rats.

Take a bowl, put in salt, soy sauce, and mix together any seasonings you like.

When stir-frying vegetables, add them little by little with a small spoon.

Taste it to see if it's salty, and add more as needed.

With practice, you'll become skilled.

They really learned this trick.

Gradually, they all started to do things quite well.

Sometimes I research food recipes on my own.

You can also make your favorite food.

The sense of accomplishment from doing this is far more tempting than going to Chen Ling's house for a free meal.

Female teachers are like this, and male teachers are like this too...

The environment can affect people.

I don't usually like cooking, but I'm really determined to show off my skills when I get home.

"Brother-in-law, those people are so mean. They stole our family's recipe for spicy strips and tried to steal our business. Their spicy strips aren't even as good as ours... I told my classmates that I'll take Erhei over tomorrow and chase them all away."

Wang Zhenzhen stood in front of the small courtyard in the south of the city and said angrily.

The words she mentioned earlier were actually told to her by her second sister-in-law, Guo Xinping. Recently, people have been gradually figuring out how to make spicy strips.

This thing isn't difficult to make.

Even if the spicy strips made with Chen Ling's recipe don't taste as good, they still give you a pleasant surprise with just one bite.

But...

These days, most people prefer milder flavors.

As long as it's heavily oiled, salted, and seasoned, spicy strips won't taste too bad.

The key issue is that many people are so eager to grab business that they sell at very low prices, resulting in very little profit.

However, even with lower profits, they would find ways to deliver to small shops around the market and schools. If they sold more, they could still make a decent amount of money.

"It's alright, let them steal our business. We'll have machines soon, and the spicy strips we make will taste even better and be made faster."

Chen Ling chuckled and patted the little girl's head: "Look at you, isn't the money you've saved up enough for you to spend?"

"She's never short of money in her little stash. Aunt Hongyu gives her some every now and then, and Director Qin and Xiaoyun also give her some. Your sister-in-law and I have never seen her spend any of it."

Like the rats in the wheat field, they've disappeared without a trace.

Wang Qingzhong smiled and reached out to pat his younger sister's shoulder: "Ling Zi, look how thin she is. Her family feeds her so well every day, yet she doesn't gain weight. She must be running around like crazy at school every day."

Wang Zhenzhen flung him away, glared at him, and snorted, "You're the rat, you're the one who doesn't grow fat."

Chen Ling said with a smile, "It's good that you're growing taller. You've grown quite a bit taller, haven't you? But I also think that at your age, it's better to be a little chubby. Look at Rui Rui, he's so chubby, so cute."

Wang Zhenzhen immediately deflated, shaking Chen Ling's arm and calling out in a long, distressed tone, "Brother-in-law, will that spicy snack machine really work? I get angry just thinking about how people were scrambling to buy spicy snacks at the school gate."

Chen Ling and Wang Qingzhong were both amused and exasperated: "Why are you worrying about this at such a young age?"

"I'm not convinced, I want to unleash the dogs on them," Wang Zhenzhen said indignantly.

The little blue horse, obediently following behind Chen Ling, poked its head out and looked at Wang Zhenzhen curiously, revealing its big white teeth and its big eyes flashing with a strange light.

Wang Zhenzhen is so quick-witted! She noticed the strange look on the little blue horse at a glance and angrily swung her arm to hit it, saying, "Little blue horse, you're making fun of me too!"

"Alright, stop fooling around. Once Second Sister-in-law locks the door, we'll go home for dinner. Your brother Han Chuang is here. He made dumplings today. Their factory has a new spicy snack machine. I'll go try it out tomorrow."

If the weather clears up tomorrow, Chen Ling will go test the spicy strip machine and also pick up two truckloads of bamboo poles along the way, as they are essential for building the greenhouse.

Guo Xinping packed her things, locked the door, and looked somewhat worried.

Chen Ling advised, "Second sister-in-law, don't worry. Let them take it. It's been raining a lot these past few days, and the weather is bad. You can take a break for a couple of days. You've been busy for quite a while now."

"That's right, what's there to worry about? Lingzi is family, she won't blame us. This year, Lingzi has led us to earn much more than in previous years. There's never enough money."
Take a break, and help Susu take care of the baby.

I'm going back to visit my older brother and sister-in-law these next few days, and I'll bring Xiaodong's two kids over to play for a couple of days.

Wang Qingzhong also comforted her, saying that women are just very calculating and reluctant to give up this or that.

My brother-in-law not only gave them opportunities to make money, but also taught them the ways of doing business.

He wasn't like Wang Jusheng, someone who had never done business before.

The couple used to collect and exchange grain in various villages every day.

I've seen plenty of scams and swindles.

His mind works faster than Wang Jusheng's.

At this stage, Wang Jusheng was still working hard without much thought, but he had the skills. After experiencing more things, to put it bluntly, after being cheated a few times, he gained experience, learned how to deal with it, and learned how to do business.

Didn't you see that your brother-in-law only offered suggestions, and nobody else cared about the rest?
It means letting people like us figure things out on our own and carve out our own path.

Guo Xinping's expression brightened immediately upon hearing this: "That's right, that's right, it's time to take a break. When we were harvesting grain before, we worked for half a year and rested for half a year."

Chen Ling took the reins: "That's right. Let's go home and have some dumplings."

"Brother-in-law, it's time to eat dumplings. Should we call her Auntie?"

Chen Ling shook his head: "Let's not shout anymore. There are quite a few people in our family today. They are old, so we don't want to make a fuss. I'll bring them some fresh dumplings tomorrow."

A light rain fell, and the weather turned cold. Friends and family gathered together for a meal, creating a pleasant atmosphere.

Today, Han Chuang and his family of three came.

Besides Yu Qi'an and Han Chuang, Wu Fei and the others also helped transport the fish fry and packhorses.

Let's call everyone over and make dumplings.

Since everyone was idle due to the rain, the villagers were also thinking about food and drink.

The rain did not diminish the charm of Chenwangzhuang.

The sky was dim, shrouded in a thin mist, and wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys. Dogs ran happily in the wheat fields, while water buffalo, one white and one black, walked slowly along the riverbank, surrounded by wild ducks.

An old man on the hillside carried a whip, driving the flock of sheep. Every now and then, he would wave the whip and shout, and the stray sheep would quickly catch up.

This kind of scene is undoubtedly very attractive to people who don't often come to the countryside.

Especially those people from Taiwan and Hong Kong Island.

Suddenly, I felt a sense of peace settle down.

After they arrived in the village, the two groups separated. Although the two places had much closer exchanges than the mainland, they were in a new place and the two groups were mostly of different ages, so it was better to play separately.

They found places to stay and were hosted by other families in the village.

Later, the friends on Hong Kong Island had difficulty communicating due to the differences between Cantonese and the local dialect, so they had to turn to their friends on Taiwan Island for help.

They strolled around the village and its surroundings.

At the same time, there was also a group of people from CCTV.

They originally thought that having two professors in the village was already quite remarkable, but they didn't expect that people from Hong Kong Island and Taiwan Island would also come.

In those days, even CCTV had a very different view of these two places, because their economic development was indeed better than that of the mainland at that time.

So, my spirits immediately weakened a lot.

I greeted them when I saw them.

To my surprise, no one paid any attention to me, and I was met with a cold shoulder.

It's not that the people from Hong Kong Island and Taiwan Island are unfriendly; it's just that they encountered too many scammers when they came here, so they're a bit too wary.

I am unwilling to have much interaction with these strangers who are obviously from out of town.

Meanwhile, someone in the village spread the rumor that the group from CCTV who came this time didn't get along with Chen Xiaoer, who lived on the south slope, and that they had even cheated Xiaoer before. Who is Xiaoer? He's one of our own fellow villagers!
His wife, Teacher Wang, and Teacher Wu Fei are such good to the children, how could they let outsiders bully them?
Good heavens, as soon as the villagers heard about this, they drove those people out the very next day.

Only that old woman, Liang Guizhen, has eyes only for money and can't see anything else. Besides, these people are from CCTV...

Wang Laishun wouldn't allow her to bring people home, so she wanted her youngest son, Wang Juxiang, to entertain them.

But... those people from CCTV have all been driven away by the villagers, how can they still have the face to stay here?

(End of this chapter)