Dressed as a farmer's widow, she brought her daughter to stock up on food and reached the top

Xiuying's family has nine acres of land. One acre produces 4,000 kilograms of rice, so nine acres means 36,000 kilograms of rice. Xiuying simply contracted the land to the villagers to harvest it and exchanged it for the broiler chickens in the chicken coop.

Anyone who helps with the harvest can exchange their local chickens for Xiuying's broiler chicks. One old hen can be exchanged for two broiler chicks.

The villagers joined Xiuying's harvesting team one after another. Strength lies in numbers. More than ten men and more than ten women were full of energy.

The morning sun shines on the golden rice fields, and the breeze blows gently, causing the heavy rice ears to sway in the wind.

The people in the village came to the fields early. The men rolled up their sleeves, rolled up their trouser legs high, held sickles, bent down, and skillfully cut handfuls of rice.

The sound of rice being harvested comes one after another, as if playing a melody of harvest.

The women followed closely behind, placing the harvested rice in neat bundles on the ridges of the fields.

In the harvest field, a rice windmill stands there quietly. It is a great helper for the villagers to harvest and thresh rice.

The body of the Valley Windmill is made of thick wood. After years of wear and tear, the surface has become slightly mottled, but it still exudes a simple and tough beauty.

There is a large funnel on top of the vehicle body, which is used to pour in freshly harvested rice.

The villagers poured baskets of full rice into it, and the grains slid down the funnel with a rustling sound.

The hand crank of the Valley Windmill, polished to a shine by countless hands, was gripped tightly by a strong man, whooshing it hard. A creaking sound echoed as the blades inside the Valley Windmill whirred rapidly, sending a whooshing breeze.

The lighter chaff and impurities were blown to one side by the wind and drifted out of the side opening, forming a small wisp of grayish-white smoke. Meanwhile, the fuller, heavier grains fell straight down, pouring out of the lower opening like a golden waterfall into the baskets that had been prepared long ago. Gradually, the baskets filled up, and the grains piled up into a small hill.

The children gathered around the windmill curiously, their eyes sparkling with excitement, while the women sorted the baskets nearby, their faces filled with the joy of a good harvest.

The whole scene was lively and orderly. The sound of the windmills turning in the valley and the laughter of the people intertwined into a wonderful harvest melody.

The children were also busy, running around in the fields, helping to pass tools and picking up missed rice ears.

The giggles echoed across the fields.

The elderly sat by the fields, watching the lively scene, their faces filled with gratified smiles, and they kept saying, "This year is a good year!"

The whole village was immersed in the busyness and joy of harvest, and the air was filled with the fragrance of rice and people's laughter.

Some were happy and some were sad. Zhao Cunliang naturally would not help Xiuying with the harvest. He and his sons were arguing in the fields. The grains were clearly full, but why were they empty inside? The entire twelve acres of fertile land were empty shells.

Zhao Cunliang's face flushed with anxiety, his eyes wide open: "What the hell is going on? Oh my God, this is going to end my life!"

His sons also looked frustrated and angry. The eldest son, Guangzong, stamped his feet and said, "Dad, what should we do? We have worked so hard for nothing this year!"

The second son, Yaozu, complained, "It's all your fault. You didn't listen to Xiuying and insisted on growing the crops yourself."

Zhao Cunliang was so angry that he raised his hand and slapped Yaozu: "You useless thing, you are still saying these things at this time!"

The third son, Dafu, squatted on the ground, holding his head: "It's over, it's all over, I can't live like this anymore."

An atmosphere of despair and regret permeated the fields.

Just when the father and his two sons were feeling depressed, the laughter of women came from the ridge of the field.

"Zhao Cunliang, do you still remember the oath you made?"

"You said that if these seedlings were stolen, you would get nothing."

Zhao Cunliang's face turned pale in an instant, and he felt both embarrassed and annoyed.

"You bunch of gossipers, stop making sarcastic remarks!"

The women laughed even louder: "Humph, who made you do that wicked thing in the first place? This is karma!"

Guangzong stood up and shouted at the women, "Shut up, what's so funny?"

The women were not afraid at all: "Oh, you are not allowed to say it, you did something wrong and you are not allowed to say it!"

Yaozu muttered in frustration, "Dad, we really shouldn't have stolen Xiuying's rice seedlings."

Zhao Cunliang glared at him fiercely: "What's the point of saying this now!"

Dafu squatted on the ground, covering his face and crying.

Zhao Cunliang kicked him on the butt.

Dafu cried out "Ouch" and cried even louder: "Dad, why did you kick me!"

Zhao Cunliang shouted angrily: "Cry, cry, cry, you just keep crying, I'm not dead yet!"

Guangzong and Yaozu quickly grabbed Zhao Cunliang and said, "Dad, calm down, calm down."

Zhao Cunliang was breathing heavily, looking at the barren rice fields in front of him, feeling filled with regret and anger with nowhere to vent.

I could only utter two words: "Go home!"

After saying that, Zhao Cunliang hung his head and walked towards home first.

The three sons also followed dejectedly. No one spoke along the way, only their heavy footsteps could be heard.

……

Zhao's mother, who had suffered a stroke, lay in bed, her face pale and her eyes revealing helplessness and pain. Her mouth was slightly open, and she wanted to say something, but only mumbled.

Daughter-in-law Tian Guilan stood by the bed with an impatient look on her face.

She held a bowl of cold porridge in her hand and rudely poured it into Zhao's mother's mouth: "Eat, eat quickly!"

A lot of porridge flowed out of Zhao's mother's mouth, but Tian Guilan didn't care: "What a troublemaker, all you do is drag people down all day long."

She slammed the bowl down on the table with a loud thud.

Tears welled up in Zhao's mother's eyes, and her body trembled slightly with fear and sadness. Tian Guilan didn't even look at her, turned around and walked away, muttering, "Hmph, don't expect me to serve you well."

The room was filled with a depressing and sad atmosphere.

Zhao Cunliang came back and smelled burnt food as soon as he entered the house. He walked into the kitchen with a frown and saw something cooking in the pot. He immediately got angry.

Zhao Cunliang shouted loudly: "What kind of shit is this? They can't even have a decent meal!"

Tian Guilan was washing clothes in the yard. When she heard Zhao Cunliang's roar, her dissatisfaction suddenly burst out.

She threw the clothes in her hands and rushed into the kitchen: "How dare you say that? I have to take care of your paralyzed mother in bed and do housework. I'm lucky to be able to do this!"

Tian Guilan put her hands on her hips and her eyes widened.

Zhao Cunliang glared at her: "You woman, it's your duty to take care of the elderly, and you dare to complain!"

Tian Guilan refused to give in: "Duty? I'm exhausted all day long, who will understand me?" Her voice was tearful.