Song Tan's Notes

No man can resist a straight stick.

No.

But is it possible that even dogs can't resist it?

For example, right now, the princess's big tail has almost swept away all the dead leaves in that area, and the ignorant boy is still showing off with a stick.

He finally caught a glimpse of the princess and wanted to come over, but then hesitated:

"Sigh, don't dogs usually fear people with weapons? If I come over with this stick, won't it think I'm going to hit it? What if it bites me?"

Everyone chimed in with their opinions, and finally decided to pass the stick on to the next person who would play with it briefly.

The leader stepped forward, attempting to get a photo or a handshake with the princess.

but--

You are very insensible.

The princess looked down on him with a single glance! She was very dissatisfied with his lack of tact!
At this moment, forget about taking photos or shaking hands, even if someone squats next to you, the dog's nose will let out a heavy hiss.

"Hey!"

The dim-witted man was completely unaware that he had turned on the camera at that moment.

Unexpectedly, the princess barked again and turned her head away, determined to continue her non-cooperation.

Now everyone look over here—

"Why are you suddenly unhappy?"

"I know, it must have seen you with a weapon! You have ill intentions towards it!"

"That's right! The princess is so beautiful and has made great contributions, yet you pointed a weapon at her—this weapon is mine! You're ordered to appease her properly!"

"Nonsense, this weapon should rightfully belong to me..."

They were fighting over that one long, straight stick.

Song Tan: ...

If you like it that much, why don't you go cut down some sugarcane later!
Or, when cutting down corn stalks in the field, break off a stalk and make sure each one is straight.

But right now, the princess's anxiety was almost showing.

She was bound to show favoritism, so she asked loudly:
"Didn't you come here to help? Are you still going to pick the peaches?"

oh oh oh!
The male students realized what was happening, quickly placed the long, straight sticks next to a tree, and then ran over:

"Let's pick them right now!"

Picking peaches is not difficult; you can just grab and twist them off. The eagle beak peaches are a good size, and when you put them in the basket along with the paper bag, it doesn't take long for the basket to be half full.

The leader's head and back were covered in sweat, especially the back of his clothes, which were soaked through in just a short time.

Of course, it wasn't just him; Secretary Wang was the same way.

Others too...

Secretary Wang glanced at Qiao Qiao, who was also quickly picking peaches with a basket. She was wearing a white t-shirt and looked clean and tidy from head to toe. Except for a little sweat on her forehead, nose, and around her lips, she didn't look as disheveled as they did.

This shouldn't be the case!

Secretary Wang thought to himself: Although he is a bit old, he runs around every day and even exercises when he has time after work. He can't be that useless, right?
Let's look at a few college students—college students aren't very relevant, since they're always running around, never still even when picking a peach.

"Boss, would you like some water?" "No, it's fine." The boss waved his hand. "I'm not tired. It's just hot, sweating is normal, and I've only picked a few peaches..."

He simply waved to Secretary Wang:

"Wang Qing, come and look at these peaches. I just picked them casually, and they're all about the same size."

He exclaimed, "No wonder there are so many different kinds of fruits now. With scientific management, this level of development is to be expected."

As the two were talking, Qiaoqiao suddenly shouted, "I'm going to go live!"

After a pause, the two men, carrying baskets, moved tacitly towards the edge of the area. Village Secretary Xiao Zhu, also carrying a basket, walked over with a smile.
"It's too hot, so we'll just have a taste of it. Normally, fruit picking wouldn't start at this time; it usually begins around 5 a.m.

"Boss, how about we go to the side and rest for a bit? We can watch Qiaoqiao's live stream then."

These peaches look so delicious! My mouth is watering just thinking about picking them, wouldn't that be unbecoming? I'd better wash a couple and try them first!

The leader paused for a moment, ultimately worried that the camera would capture him, so he stepped aside.

Everyone carried their baskets back to the peach orchard. Secretary Zhu instructed the two to remove the paper bags, and then pile the peaches in the basket in front of Qiaoqiao.
Handle with care, so as not to damage its appearance—but then again, damage is nothing, it will only make it more attractive.

The camera will focus on this pile of peaches for most of the time during the live stream, aiming to attract attention.

The group worked quickly, piling the peaches up neatly. There were still six or seven peaches left in the basket, and Secretary Zhu didn't hold back at all.
"We won't release these; let's just have a taste."

To be honest, the leader had never actually tried their peaches before, but just as he was about to ask about the price, Qiaoqiao started loudly announcing, "Kids, let's pick peaches today!"

Even from a great distance, they could still see the massive, dense barrage of comments on the screen.

The three of them retreated a little further away.

Party Secretary Xiao Zhu looked at the peaches in his hand and pointed ahead: "There's a tap over there, I'll go wash these peaches now."

That location used to be a pigsty. The king and the others used that tap to cook pig feed here. The downside is that it's a bit far from the peach orchard.

However, it gets quite cold here in winter, and outdoor water pipes are prone to freezing and breaking, making maintenance quite troublesome, so they didn't install any extra ones.

"It's alright," Secretary Wang said, taking a peach from the basket and scooping some water from the red bucket next to him, then washing it thoroughly several times.

After confirming that the furry sensation had disappeared, he laughed and said, "We've lived in both rural and county areas before, so we don't really have to be so particular about things in life."

The leader also laughed, his voice filled with emotion:
"When I was little, we picked peaches... Back then, resources were scarce, and peaches were a precious treat. We'd pick those wild, fuzzy peaches, wipe them on our clothes a few times, and then stuff them into our mouths..."

Although there was a difference in the years between them, they had both experienced the hardships of life. Now, as they chatted and laughed and reminisced about the past, they felt quite nostalgic.

Party Secretary Xiao Zhu opened his mouth, looked at the bucket, then at the princess in the distance, who was walking back and forth in the woods with a stick in her mouth—being blocked—and then retreating to continue walking back and forth. He really didn't know what to say.

Finally, she shut her mouth.

Looking again at Secretary Wang, he had already handed the peach to the leader:
"You eat first."

The leader laughed: "Why are you giving this to me? We can wash our own. You can give this one to Secretary Zhu. Look how she's drying it... Rural development is indeed quite remarkable, and it's also been quite an achievement!"

Party Secretary Xiao Zhu: ...

She gritted her teeth and quickly followed suit, scooping water from the red bucket to wash the peaches.

—What else is there to say?

Ugh.

Let's eat. (End of Chapter)