Song Tan's Notes

Tielian rode her tricycle down the mountain in a flurry of activity.

Old Chen was turning over the fermenting fertilizer with his machine. The smell in the air was unpleasant, but because it was in a depression in the river bend, it didn't spread.

He's been doing it for a long time, and now he's gradually gotten used to it.

I was just a little curious, looking at the pile of withered branches and leaves in the tricycle, which was clearly not yet high enough.
"Didn't you say you were going to the peach grove today to tidy up properly? Why are you back so soon?"

Orchards also need regular pest and weed control.

Some weeds can grow quite a bit in just three days. If you leave them unattended for two days, not only will they breed more insects, but they will also affect ventilation, making them more susceptible to diseases.

This year, there were no fishermen doing volunteer work, and the scale of the operation on the mountain has increased, so we have to spend time every day having the staff tidy it up.

But now.

The tricycle bed contained little peach leaves, withered branches, or weeds; instead, it was filled with withered branches and wild grasses that had been piled up and fermenting.

That's why Old Chen asked this question.

Tie Lian exclaimed "Oh dear!" and hesitated, then said, "I'll go later. We're going to hatch another batch of ducklings, so I'll keep an eye on them here."

Old Chen: ? ? ?
It's early morning, a time for work. The ducklings have an incubator, so what else do we need to do?
Humph.

He thought to himself that Tie Lian was definitely going to slack off.

But I've also slacked off before, so I won't criticize my second brother.

In fact, when Tielian entered the incubation room, she was sweating profusely from the heat, but as she looked at the duck eggs that were about to hatch, she couldn't help but smile.

Damn!

oops! ! !

Although my own marriage is unhappy, watching someone as beautiful as a fairy fall in love still makes me feel sweet inside.

Sure enough, this thing only really feels good when others talk about it.

Especially amidst the layers of peach leaves, the young couple walked hand in hand on the grass, their trousers slightly damp with dew. Every now and then, they would reach out and brush against a peach branch, turning their heads away to avoid it, their faces adorned with soft smiles as they whispered something to each other…

Oh dear, she's so shameless; even a casual glance makes her feel like she shouldn't have looked.

It's strange, but now when I watch TV dramas, and the men and women are hugging and kissing each other, I don't get that feeling anymore!
The middle-aged woman didn't know what ambiguous entanglement was, but her pounding heart had already given her a taste of it.

that's nice!

If her daughter could find a boyfriend like that in the future, that would be wonderful!

But after idly imagining the future, he realized that the duck egg in front of him had already been turned over once, so he walked away again.

A cool river breeze instantly brought my mind back to the important matter.

She has recently saved up some money and is planning to buy a car.

This morning, while I was on the bus, I overheard the driver saying that several young people who had recently started working at the clinic also wanted to buy it.

I've heard that young people often look up all sorts of data online. Although she has a driver's license, she doesn't know anything about this, so she'll have to ask around during the meal.

Tielian timed it perfectly, and after another half hour, she continued riding her bike up the mountain.

When you're so sweaty from working that your clothes are soaked with sweat, it means it's time for breakfast.

She entered the cafeteria and, sure enough, saw the unfamiliar face from the clinic.

I was just about to go over and say hello when I saw the other person already shoveling several spoonfuls of rice into the bowl with a large ladle, then quickly slamming the lid on and rushing out again.

Tie Lian: ...

She also wanted to ask about the car!
Little did anyone know that Dr. Wu, on her first day of officially starting work, also had unspeakable hardships.

The rural clinics I imagined should be extremely quiet, with hardly any customers.

But that expectation was shattered when they came for their interview yesterday.

But that was only the first day!
Moreover, most of them are Mr. Song's relatives and friends, so how can that be considered valid?

But why are there even more people today?

The difference is that today, Saturday, fewer villagers came to visit, which made Dr. Wu gradually have less free time.

But Dr. Guo was unusually busy.

The clinic was packed with people on all three physiotherapy beds.

Moxibustion, acupuncture, cupping, scraping...

Everyone's busy running around in circles!

Occasionally, there would be minor problems, and he would try to take over, but the patients didn't want him.
"I came here specifically to see Dr. Guo, Dr. Guo, please don't send this new doctor to deal with me."

Dr. Wu: ...

To be honest, his educational background is actually higher than Dr. Guo's! They even spent half a year working in the emergency room!

But at this village clinic, nobody cares about that.

Therefore, his leisurely attitude seemed out of place.

In the end, he was also conscripted and made to work there, diligently watching over people's needling or cupping...

Sigh! After years of hard study, I still ended up taking a few more detours!
But no matter what he said, the thought of the free meals and accommodation, and the exceptionally delicious food in the canteen, made him throttle his electric scooter with even more energy!

……

Meanwhile, Tie Lian, having gotten no answers, could only regretfully return to the riverbank.

Seeing this, Old Chen asked her, "Are you really going to buy a car?"

Yeah.

Tie Lian nodded: "I've inquired, and you can buy a used car for only ten or twenty thousand yuan. I don't mind if it's old, as long as it can be driven."

"When my daughter comes back, I can drive to pick her up."

The two worked together after all. Although Old Chen was a bit of a opportunist, he didn't have any major flaws overall.

Once everyone got to know each other, they understood each other's situations very well.

Tielian originally thought that Lao Chen could offer some advice, after all, the other party was so skilled at riding motorcycles—they were all vehicles, so he should be able to understand everything.

But then she saw Old Chen looking at her mysteriously:
You really haven't heard?

what?
Tielian looked somewhat bewildered.

"It's about our boss wanting to acquire land in town to build houses!"

Of course they've heard about it. Everyone in the entire Yunqiao Village has heard about it.

It's strange, really. Even though we haven't actually gotten our hands on that land yet, everyone in our conversations is so confident, as if it's a sure thing.

"Then why are you buying a car?"

Old Chen said to her, "You're divorced now, aren't you? Your daughter will have a house and money from her father, so you don't need to worry about her. But you need to take care of her in her old age!"

"We can't do this kind of physical labor until we're seventy or eighty."

The boss has paid for the five social insurances and one housing fund, but since they are old, a large sum of money will be needed to make up for the pension insurance!

The two of them have therefore hesitated and haven't made a move yet.

Tie Lian frowned: "What does this have to do with our boss's house? You want to buy it?"

Old Chen was able to accurately identify such a stable job from among the many unemployed people in the town. Putting aside his ability, his information and ideas were quite different.

"Haven't you noticed? There are more and more out-of-town patients coming to Dr. Guo's clinic in our village."

“I count every time I walk through the parking lot. It’s only a little past 9 o’clock today, and 11 out-of-town cars have already driven here.”

They're all from outside the province.

"If all these people have a serious, difficult illness that requires recuperation, wouldn't they need to find a place to stay?"

A guesthouse is an option, but even Zhang Yanping's guesthouse with its special offer still costs 3000 yuan a month.

There are many empty houses in the village, but city dwellers who are used to living there may not be able to adapt.

The main problem is that most people haven't renovated their houses yet. Apart from the Song family, the newest house they built was more than ten years ago.

But it's different in town.

Not only is there public transportation to and from the area, but it's also convenient to drive.

Although they live in town, it's just an ordinary old house, nothing like the apartment buildings they live in.

"Anyway, houses are cheaper now, and Boss Song said it's for employee dormitories, so let's get a discount if we buy a certain amount."

"I'll see how the market goes. If the number of patients is this high, I'm planning to buy one."

I can't expect it to appreciate in value anymore, but I'm getting old, and with a large sum of money in hand, I can't bear to hide it from my children when they have some difficulties.

Giving this and not that can easily lead to disputes.

Before you know it, you'll probably be broke before you can even walk anymore.

When something really serious happens, you end up having to beg your child.

Old Chen couldn't stand that!

He was mentally calculating: "When I have a house like this, the monthly rent won't be much, 800 yuan will be enough for my food and drink, right?"

Of course.

There are also cases where losses are increasing.

But the house is still nowhere to be seen, isn't it?
He thought it over first; having the money ready was never a bad thing.

When Tie Lian realized he needed to spend 20,000 yuan to buy a car, he felt completely out of his mind.

What's the point of having a car? You can take the bus every day without worrying about it or spending money on maintenance.

It's so convenient to take public transportation in the city now, like picking up and dropping off my daughter!

Moreover, the child is in college and only comes home a few times a year.
Even ordinary people have their own wisdom for survival.

Old Chen's ideas may not be far-sighted, but he thinks much more deeply than Tie Lian.

“And another thing,” Old Chen taught her, “look at us, we’ve worked ourselves to the bone our whole lives and haven’t made much money. But our boss’s friends are all very capable.”

"You know, the rich make their money so fast. If we can't make up our minds, we should just watch what the rich do."

If this house becomes popular, I'll definitely buy one.

If it's not in high demand... well, for those of us from small businesses, we'll just have to wait and see.

In short, you buy a car for 20,000 yuan, and then the air conditioner breaks down and you have to repair it for several hundred yuan.

Adding oil, cleaning and maintenance, and all sorts of inspections and checks... I heard you even have to get insurance...

"You said you'd spend at least 1 yuan a year on this car, right?"

If you have to worry about gas costs wherever you drive, then frankly, you might as well not buy this car.

In short, based on Old Chen's survival wisdom, he strongly advises against this approach.

Tie Lian was greatly shocked.

We're all just working people, how come some people can think so much?
Honestly, everyone who saw her praised her for beating up her ex-husband at his workplace and securing a house and a large sum of money for her daughter…

She was very pleased!

Old Chen isn't a very honest person, and she actually grumbled a bit about it.

But now we really have to look at them in a new light!
But as she pondered, Tie Lian suddenly frowned and asked Old Chen again:

"But I heard that you recently saw a used motorcycle that costs more than 1 yuan!"

Old Chen's face stiffened.

“That’s a motorcycle, it’s different. Besides, I’m just looking, I’m not buying it.”

Can a man not have any hobbies?
snort!
In short.

He angrily emphasized, "I'm just looking, I'm not buying anything."

Tie Lian glanced at him with a hint of distrust:
"You'd better not buy it. You've forgotten that when you first started commuting to get off work on a motorcycle, your boss didn't want you."

We even bought him a short-term insurance policy separately, so he's much safer taking the bus now, right?

"Your bike insurance is a bit more expensive."

It was bought for all the employees together, and the cost per person wasn't too high. But the problem isn't the scarcity, but the unequal distribution.

Other brands' products cost tens or hundreds of yuan, but his is more expensive, so it doesn't seem right for people to hear that.

Old Chen: ……

Old Chen fell silent. (End of Chapter)