country bumpkin

The next day, Li Fugui drove smoothly to Fengshou Village.

The road through Shuiwa Village was bumpy a few times, but it didn't affect the driving speed.

Upon arriving at the entrance of Fengshou Village, one can immediately feel the festive atmosphere.

The village is mostly fertile land, with bumper harvests every year. Even the small mounds on the mountain can grow saplings laden with wild jujubes.

Therefore, the first village chief named the village "Harvest Village".

This fertile land didn't come about by chance. It was cultivated through various channels during the communal dining era of previous years.

At that time, the village chief and the brigade leader organized the villagers to collect eggshells, vegetable leaves, wood ash, and other such items from the kitchen to make compost.

There were also cow dung, chicken dung, pig dung, sheep dung, and human excrement all put into a big pit for composting.

Every spring, people are organized to cover the ground with leaves, straw, and wheat chaff. If that's not enough, they supplement it with wood ash.

Only through repeated application of these methods can the land in the village become more fertile than the land in other places.

At the village entrance, a few women were chatting and gossiping. Several children were running around happily playing games.

The children here are all chubby and healthy. Their clothes don't have a single patch.

Even the elderly people who pass by from time to time have rosy cheeks.

Li Fugui parked his car at the village entrance, attracting a group of villagers who came to watch the spectacle, including his older sister's children.

A little girl, about 5 years old, had chubby cheeks that were rosy red like ripe apples.

She had two small braids and was wearing a thick cotton-padded jacket and trousers as she walked this way.

A three-year-old boy followed behind. His big, bright eyes stared at the minivan, practically sparkling.

The little boy just liked things like guns, cannons, and cars.

As soon as Li Fugui opened the car door and got out, the little girl could see who it was.

Overjoyed, he rushed forward and greeted him, "Uncle, Uncle."

The boy who ran up behind also shouted loudly along with his sister, "Little... Uncle, Little Uncle."

Li Fugui looked at the two children in front of him and carefully examined them for a while before recognizing them as his older sister's children.

He chuckled and said, "Oh my! Isn't this Xiang Hong? You've grown so tall!"

After saying that, he compared her height to his own and asked, "How old are you now?"

The little girl grinned and replied, "I'm five years old this year. Uncle, you don't recognize me after only a year? Is it because I've grown up quickly, gotten taller and prettier?"

Li Fugui said affectionately, "Yes! Our Xiang Hong has become so tall and beautiful."

Then he saw the little boy behind him and asked, "Is that Xiangyang following behind you?"

Nie Xianghong nodded, "Yes!" Then she cupped her hands around her mouth and called out to her younger brother.

"Xiangyang, come here quickly~ Hey, hurry up! Come over and call your uncle."

Hearing his sister urging him on, the little guy ran even faster.

With a "thud," he fell to the ground, taking a big, flat fall.

The child didn't cry. He paused for a second, then got up, dusted off his knees, and ran over.

Li Fugui wanted to help him up after he fell, but the little guy didn't even give him a chance.

She came up to her uncle, opened her little mouth to reveal a small tiger tooth, and kept calling out "Uncle, Uncle..." in a very affectionate way.

Li Fugui liked his little nephew very much. He bent down, picked him up, and called to Xiang Hong to go home together.

"Come on, let's go home and find your mother and your grandmother." After saying that, they walked home.

He had been to his sister's house several times before, so he knew the way and arrived at the front door. Only then did he realize that he hadn't brought a gift.

It wouldn't look good to come empty-handed, especially since I hadn't seen my brother-in-law and sister for a year; I felt a little embarrassed.

He had just turned around to go back and get the gift when the front door opened from the inside. It was his sister who opened the door.

Li Chunmei heard a noise at the gate and thought the children had returned, so she came to open the door.

When I saw my younger brother, whom I hadn't seen for a year, he came back, I was overjoyed. My face was beaming with excitement, and I grinned from ear to ear.

Li Fugui was overjoyed to see his older sister and asked her with concern, "Sister, I'm back! Are you alright?"

Li Chunmei hurriedly said, "Yes, yes, everything's fine! Parents are fine too! Come on, let's go inside." As she spoke, she reached out and grabbed his arm.

Li Fugui was carrying his nephew, followed by his niece. His sister then pulled him into the courtyard.

He put his nephew down at the doorway. He chuckled and scratched his head, saying, "I was so busy talking to Xiang Hong and Xiang Yang that I forgot to bring the gifts."

Li Chunmei said politely, "My home is your home, why bring a gift when you come back to your own home?"

Suddenly remembering something, he asked, "Hey! Wait a minute, where did you put the gift? Don't let anyone take it. Bring it back later to nourish our parents."

Li Fugui knew his older sister was frugal and would definitely be upset if she lost something.

He quickly replied, "Oh! It's in the car. It's fine, the windows are all locked, no one can open them."

Li Chunmei was relieved. Then she asked suspiciously, "Whose car did you borrow? You're so generous, you even dare to lend out a car worth tens of thousands of yuan."

Li Fugui looked at his older sister with amusement and said, "Don't worry, sister, this is our own car. We made some money this year, so we bought a car. It's convenient for getting around and for work."

Li Chunmei's mouth dropped open in shock. Before she could say a word, her younger brother said, "Sister, I also bought a mobile phone. You can call me if you need anything in the future."

After saying that, he took his phone out of his bag and showed it to the older woman.

His nephew, niece, and older sister stared intently at the phone in his hand, frozen in place.

Just then, footsteps came from the backyard; his parents had returned.

They were talking about how some of the vegetables in the backyard garden had been damaged by the frost. Then they saw their precious son standing at the doorway talking to their daughter!

His mother, Fang Jinxiu, dropped the shovel she was holding and rushed over, hugging her son tightly and sobbing, "Waaah...waaah, you silly boy, you still know how to come back!...Waaah...it's been a year, and you didn't even call the village. Don't you know how worried your mother was about you?"

His father, Li Weixiu, also had tears welling up in his eyes. He walked over, patted his son's shoulder, and said with a smile through his tears, "You're getting stronger and stronger, hmm! Good, it's good to be back!"

Fang Jinxiu cried for a while, then laughed, echoing her husband's words, "Yes, yes, it's good that you're back, it's good that you're back!"

The eldest sister, Li Chunmei, recovered from her shock.

He said with a smile, "Mom, my little brother has made a fortune outside. He's bought a car and even has a 'big brother' cell phone now."

The elderly couple were also shocked, but quickly recovered and said, "This child, earning money is not easy, why buy these things? Isn't it a waste of money? You should save the money to find a wife!"

Li Chunmei said, "Mom, how much does it cost to get a wife? My younger brother's cell phone only costs 20,000 yuan, enough to get two wives!"

Fang Jinxiu felt extremely distressed and scolded her son with regret: "Oh dear! This small, dark brick is so expensive! You really don't know how to manage money!"

His wife, Li Weixiu, advised him from the side, "You don't know anything about this, don't feel bad about it. Since our son can afford these rare things, they must be useful and will definitely help him earn more money."

Li Fugui looked at his father approvingly, "Yes! Mother, my father is right. These things can help me find connections and build relationships, and they can also make me look good."

Fang Jinxiu could only listen to her son's explanation; she felt that her son had truly made something of himself this time.