My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 77 The Hawk
Chen Ling hid in the corner and eavesdropped for a while. Only after Chen Erzhu left did he emerge from the shadows.

He was also puzzled. Qin Dongmei was far inferior to her sister Qin Qiumei, and even to Sun Yanhong.

How did Erzhu get involved with her?
What an oddity!

Before entering his house, Chen Ling couldn't help but glance at the opposite door again. He shook his head and didn't think much of it. Anyway, he wasn't interested in this kind of trivial matter, so even if he bumped into it, he would just pretend he didn't see it.

So when he got home, Chen Ling put the falcon into a bamboo basket under the eaves and went inside to sleep.

Just as dawn was breaking, perhaps the falcon had recovered considerably, because it started arguing with the family dog, constantly emitting hoarse and piercing cries, keeping Chen Ling and his wife awake.

"Susu, lie down for a while longer. A hawk came into the house in the middle of the night last night. I don't know who set it in a trap. It was half dead. After I took the trap off it, I left it under the eaves and didn't care about it. Now, judging from the noise outside, it's probably recovered."

"Huh? Why didn't I hear anything during the night?"

"There was hardly any activity to begin with. Last night, that eagle looked like it was about to die. It didn't even have the strength to cry out, and the dogs ignored it."

Chen Ling got out of bed, dressed, and went out.

In the yard, the falcon ran out of the bamboo basket, spread its wings, and bristled its feathers as it confronted the two dogs.

Behind the two dogs were several rabbits, constantly twitching their noses as they watched the strange, large bird.

Upon seeing Chen Ling emerge, Heiwa called out first, as if seeking Chen Ling's opinion. After all, the large bird was brought back by its owner, and without Chen Ling's permission, they dared not act rashly.

If it were any other creature that had broken into the yard, it would have been bitten to death by now.

"It's just a scruffy bird, just ignore it."

Chen Ling called the two dogs to his side, and several little rabbits followed closely behind, running to his feet.

However, during this brief moment, Chen Ling suddenly noticed that the falcon's gaze was fixed on the little rabbit, staring intently at it and moving with the rabbit's every move.

Upon seeing this, Chen Ling immediately understood.

After a good night's rest, the falcon must have recovered its energy and spirits considerably. Feeling hungry, it set its sights on the family's little rabbit.

But Heiwa and Xiaojin kept a close watch on their belongings, and these little rabbits often played with them, so they wouldn't let a strange, scruffy bird hurt them.

So there was the scene just now.

"Huh? That's not an eagle, it's a hawk."

At this moment, Wang Susu also came out. Upon seeing the appearance of the falcon, she exclaimed in surprise.

"A hawk? Isn't that a type of eagle?"

Chen Ling examined it closely. The large bird had grayish-brown feathers and a pale yellow, hooked beak. At first glance, it didn't look much different from a hawk or falcon, so he shook his head and said, "Anyway, I can't really tell these things apart..."

Wang Susu laughed when she heard this: "That's because this hawk is two sizes bigger than a normal hawk. If you don't believe me, look at its eye rings. Hawks have yellow eye rings, but this one is obviously not."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ling crouched down to take a look, but the hawk seemed startled, letting out a sharp cry and swooping down to peck at Chen Ling's wrist.

That was lightning fast; an ordinary person would have had a piece of skin pecked off.

Fortunately, Chen Ling's physical abilities had improved in all aspects, and his reaction was extremely quick. He dodged the attack with a flick of his wrist and then grabbed the hawk's head.

Although it was being held, the hawk still cried out and struggled, its claws reaching out to grab Chen Ling.

Chen Ling was furious. He grabbed its head and threw it aside, saying, "Damn it, I kindly saved you, and you, you feathered beast, still want to bite me."

To everyone's surprise, after being shaken off its grasp, the hawk merely stepped on the ground before flapping its wings and laboriously flying to the roof of Chen Yuqiang's house in front of it, staring down at Chen Ling and his companion with terrified eyes. Wang Susu glanced up at it twice, then turned to Chen Ling and said, "It has a wound on its belly; it must have been shot by a hunting rifle. Hawks like this are very afraid of people; they won't survive if we keep them."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ling realized it was similar to being a bird startled by the mere twang of a bow, and his anger gradually subsided.

"Actually, hawks are nothing. When I was a kid, I caught a lot of white-faced birds. They were really temperamental. If you didn't release them in time, they would die within half a day."

Wang Susu said with a smile.

Chen Ling had caught one when he was a child. The white-faced bird is called "white trembling bird" or "Zhang Fei bird" in some places. Its scientific name is "white wagtail". It has a very bad temper. If it is caught, it will often die of anger after being kept overnight.

The young couple were talking and didn't notice when the kite on the eaves had slipped away.

Chen Ling didn't mind, and just patted the two dogs' heads: "You two have been behaving well these past few days, so I'm giving you a day off today. Go out and have some fun."

Upon hearing this, Heiwa and Xiaojin were overjoyed, excitedly whimpering and nuzzling into his arms, their tails wagging like two brooms.

Although he sent the two puppies away, Chen Ling still had something to do today.

We've collected quite a few medicinal herbs these days. In the morning, I'll help Wang Susu dry them, and in the afternoon, I'll go to the fields to encourage the growth of some vegetables so I can sell them when I go to the county town to sell the herbs.

However, during breakfast, the village loudspeaker announced that Erzhu's greenhouse would be completed in about half a month, and that the villagers could relax and watch a movie tonight.

"Goodness, the village just had a festival a while ago, and he's here again. Is he celebrating having a new love interest?"

Chen Ling glanced at the door across the hall, but still didn't think about anything else.

After breakfast, the young couple took out the medicinal herbs to dry.

After finishing these tasks, Chen Ling continued to relax in the recliner and read, while Wang Susu tended to the grape trellis in the yard. As for the novels Chen Ling had bought, she hadn't read them much.

However, she also explained to Chen Ling that she actually enjoys reading anecdotes and stories, especially folk tales about medicine, and is extremely interested in stories about saving people with miraculous remedies and those with a mystical element.

This was influenced by her grandfather when she was young.

Chen Ling kept this in mind and planned to see if there were any similar books when he went to the city next time. If not, he would buy a few sets when he had the chance.

At noon, Heiwa and Xiaojin returned from playing outside, covered in grass and mud, each with a half-grown pheasant in their mouths, no one knew where they had caught them.

Once home, it barked excitedly around Chen Ling, wagging its tail and circling him eagerly, showing off its spoils.

"Susu, we've got our lunch sorted for today! It's going to be absolutely delicious..."

Wang Susu had just visited Yuqiang's house and borrowed two handfuls of vegetable seeds from Yuqiang's wife. She planned to plant them in the backyard so that she wouldn't have to keep going to the fields once they grew.

Before Wang Susu could even speak after entering the courtyard, a large head popped out from behind her.

"Come on, let me see what delicious meal you're planning to make for lunch, Fugui."

Wang Susu laughed along, "Brother Jusheng needs to talk to you, so I'm afraid I'll have to eat lunch by myself."

"Hey, Jusheng, you can drink now? That's just a coincidence. Heiwa and Xiaojingang brought back two half-grown pheasants. We'll have a whole stew of pheasants and mushrooms for lunch today."

Chen Ling got up and saw that Wang Jusheng was carrying two bottles of wine behind him. He was surprised for a moment, then said happily.

"No, no, these are two bottles of good wine that I just bought from Cui the Cripple."

Wang Jusheng hurriedly waved his hand, then smiled and said, "Director Qin came over today. I managed to get him to come to my house with great difficulty. I want to thank him because I can't drink alcohol and I'm not good at cooking, so I can only ask you for help."

(End of this chapter)