My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 201 Transporting Building Materials

Not to mention Wang Chunyuan got on his bike and slunk away.

When Chen Ling returned home, Qin Rong couldn't help but say, "This guy is shameless enough to visit someone during mealtime and even force his way into the kitchen. Can he really do that?"

Liang Hongyu nodded and said, "Yes, judging from his appearance and attire, he seemed quite upright."

"I heard he's related to Qiu Mei?"

"Yes, this is her brother-in-law. He used to work at the township health center."

Chen Ling wiped his hands, sat down and said, "Her sister is no good either. She used to think Su Su was easy to bully, so she spoke very rudely to her."

Upon hearing this, Liang Hongyu's expression immediately turned sour.

Wang Susu, her niece-in-law, was virtuous, good at managing the household, kind, and gentle; she liked her very much.

The thought of her being bullied in the village made Liang Hongyu feel a surge of anger.

Pointing at Qin Rongxian, he said, "Why does Qinwan always produce people like this?"

Qin Rongxian looked helpless upon hearing this and complained, "What's the use of telling me? I haven't been back for so many years."

Liang Hongyu remained cold: "If anyone from Qinwan comes to us for business again, just kick them out."

"It's okay, Auntie. Ah Ling stood up for me. She almost pushed her into the latrine."

Wang Susu chuckled, "Dongmei is arrogant and always thinks she's capable. She looks down on us farmers. She's been married into the village for a few years, but she's not well-liked by anyone there."

"That's why the couple wants to rebuild their house, but they can't find anyone to help them."

"They deserved it."

Liang Hongyu snorted and said to Wang Susu, "You are too soft-hearted and live far away from your parents' home. If you suffer in the company of women, don't keep it to yourself. Discuss it with Fugui first. If Fugui is not good at handling women's affairs, come to me and I will stand up for you."

"Do you know?"

"Okay, Auntie. Don't worry, we'll live our own lives and not bother anyone."

Wang Susu smiled gently.

Although she said that, Liang Hongyu's care and protection still warmed her heart.

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. The congee is ready. I'll go get it and we can start eating."

Chen Ling got up and went outside to bring the pots and pans back into the house.

Today, apart from fried quail, everything else was light and simple, mainly to cater to the tastes of Wang Susu and Liang Hongyu.

Although Liang Hongyu and her husband don't look old, appearing to be in their forties, they are actually getting on in years and can't eat rich, fatty foods all the time.

I usually eat home-cooked meals, which are good for my stomach and make me feel comfortable.

After meal.

After drinking two cups of hot tea, Chen Ling took the two dogs and went with Qin Rong to graze cattle and sheep outside the village.

Meanwhile, Wang Susu and her sister, along with Liang Hongyu, sat in the courtyard peeling walnuts.

The two bags of walnuts that Chen Ling brought back from the mountain a while ago, originally with green walnut shells, have now become wrinkled and dry after being exposed to wind and sun for a while, and are easy to peel off.

Pecans are a good thing; once shelled, they can be eaten, sold, or used to make desserts.

……

One or two o'clock in the afternoon is the warmest time of day in early winter.

The two cotton carders were still busy going from house to house in the village.

It's cold on the mountain in winter, so when we're putting on cotton quilts, we make sure they're quite thick.

However, cotton quilts will stop keeping you warm after two years of continuous use.

At this point, you should remove the quilt and fluff the hardened old cotton batting twice. This will make the quilt soft and warm again.

Although it can't compare to new cotton, this kind of cotton can last for several years without having to buy new cotton, saving a lot of money.

"Eat it, Uncle Fugui."

Today, the cotton fluffer was at Chen Yingqiang's house. When he saw Chen Ling and the other person passing by the door, he came out to talk to them.

"After eating, I came out for a walk."

Chen Ling also stopped, put the slingshot behind his back, and looked into the yard.

Two large wooden bows vibrated and hummed in the courtyard, causing cotton wadding to fly everywhere, as an old man and a young man busied themselves with their work.

Qin Rongxian, also holding a slingshot, came over to look. "Do they still fluff cotton like this in the countryside?"

"Yes, that's how it's done. It's cheaper than the cotton gins in the county town, and you can use it with peace of mind."

Chen Ling responded.

After all, whether or not the cotton gin can be cleaned properly is up to the manufacturer.

Fatty meat will leave a layer of oil on your hands after you handle it.

Even if you keep a close eye on it and check the machine, you can't do anything about it.

If you're not careful, you can end up with half a pound of cotton.

If there are more cotton fluffers, people can save up a few more ounces of cotton.

Therefore, ordinary people generally do not go to the county town to find machine gun bullets unless they are in urgent need.

The two watched the cotton-fluffing process for a while, chatted with Chen Yingqiang for a bit, and then continued walking towards the village entrance.

The big sheep led the little lamb behind the little white calf. He didn't need to pay attention to them. The two of them walked along, holding slingshots, looking for birds to shoot.

Qin Rongxian had nothing much to do. At home, besides reading, he would wander around hunting birds and feed the ones he caught to the family's civets.

This time, he also brought Chen Ling a large bunch of high-quality rubber bands, saying that if they broke, he could use them as replacements.

They replaced the rubber bands and also replaced the leather padding for the bullets.

I had rabbit skin at home, so I cut it into small pieces, sanded it until it was thin and soft, and it was very lightweight.

After upgrading his equipment, Chen Ling's slingshot accuracy improved significantly.

They hit both far and accurately.

"Heiwa, go chase the birds away."

Upon arriving at the dam, Chen Ling pointed.

There are many sparrows on the dam, and taking advantage of the warm sun, they flutter around, creating small sand pits on the sand dunes on the north side of the dam.

Heiwa immediately rushed over, and with a whoosh, dozens of sparrows took flight.

Chen Ling and Qin Rongxian had already gripped their bullets, ready to fire as soon as they saw the situation.

"Smack—", "Smack—"

With the sound of the two rubber bands snapping back.

A sparrow landed diagonally on the ground.

Unsurprisingly, it was Chen Ling who hit him.

Heiwa ran over and picked it up.

Qin Rong shook his head: "No, even with the new rubber band on my slingshot, it doesn't go very far. It can only hit birds in the trees nearby. The bullets just drift away when they go far."

"Uncle, the leather pad on your slingshot is a bit too big. Cut a piece off when we get back."

Chen Ling picked up his slingshot, glanced at it, and offered his suggestion.

Chen Ling made this slingshot stand for him; Liang Yuemin also has one.

Exquisite and beautiful, the bow arch is also fine.

Chen Ling's family didn't have any rubber bands, so the two of them took them home and bought their own to tie them together.

Otherwise, if Chen Ling had tied him up, there definitely wouldn't have been a problem.

Whether a slingshot can travel far depends on the bow, rubber band, and rubber pad.

The bow is fine, and the new rubber band is good too.

The reason it can't shoot far is that the leather padding for the bullets is too thick, too wide, and too big.

If it's too big, the slingshot won't be able to shoot very far.

Qin Rongxian even specially picked out a piece of cowhide.

It still doesn't work.

Even little kids who've played with this a lot know it; there's no other way but to figure it out over time through trial and error.

"Look at me, just cut it to about the width of a finger, then soften the leather a little with sandpaper, and it will definitely shoot far."

"Oh, I see. I was worried that if I cut it too thin, it wouldn't be able to hold a bullet."

"That's alright, try mine and you'll see how it feels."

...Qin Rong first tried it out with Chen Ling's slingshot a few times.

His accuracy improved considerably, and he shot down two wild birds in no time.

Taking advantage of the warm weather, Chen Ling wanted to visit the orchard, since they were preparing to start work in a few days and he hadn't been there yet since he came back.

So they leisurely strolled over with the cattle and sheep.

At the foot of the mountain, the orchards were piled high with fallen leaves, and the streams were only shallow.

Chen Ling and his companion walked around inside. Only the areas where things had been planted were in better condition; the soil in most places was still not very good.

However, upon closer inspection of the soil beneath the fruit trees, after removing the fallen leaves, there was no significant improvement.

Chen Ling wasn't in a hurry. After taking a walk around and getting a sense of the situation, he let the little white calf lead the sheep around.

The four lambs, two black and two white, are now about a month old. They hop and skip around, full of joy, running back and forth on the fallen leaves in the forest, making a series of pleasant crackling sounds as they step on the leaves.

When they got tired of playing, they would follow behind their mother sheep, lower their heads, and nibble on leaves.

Chen Ling looked at the four little guys, stroked his chin and pondered: "It doesn't matter if the soil isn't fertile. Let's raise the little ones at home first. Next year, we'll have chickens, ducks and sheep in flocks. Once the estate is built, the place will be even bigger. This is good enough for now. We can think about other things after the New Year."

“Fugui, there are quite a few wild pigeons here. Try to catch a couple. Food is scarce now, so take them back and raise them for the winter. Maybe you can tame them.”

Qin Rongxian had been shooting birds with a slingshot all the way, and at this moment he pointed to a flock of wild pigeons in the ditch to the west and showed them to him.

Some soybeans and peanuts still remained in the field, as they weren't completely cleared away at the time.

Grey and purplish-brown wild pigeons pecked at the food on the ground while occasionally twitching their little heads, watching them warily.

"No, we can't hit them. Wild pigeons are just like magpies, very clever. As soon as you get ten meters away from them, they fly away immediately, giving you no chance to aim."

Chen Ling shook his head. This thing was very wary; it would fly away as soon as someone entered within three zhang (approximately 10 meters).

Like magpies, they can even tell if you are hostile.

When they don't have a slingshot or a gun, they chatter incessantly in front of you; but as soon as they see you have a slingshot, they run faster than anyone else.

In comparison, pigeons and doves are far inferior, so people often call them silly doves.

“In the past, there were wild pigeon nests on our dam, row upon row. Later, the village kids used to go and block people’s nests at night, so they stopped making their homes there. Now most of them live on the lower earthen cliffs and mountain cliffs in the mountains, and they are very difficult to catch.”

"Can we use traps to catch them?"

"Sure, I'll come over tomorrow and try a few. I'll scatter some grain, and even if the pigeons don't come, other birds will. I won't be disappointed."

Chen Ling smiled and said, "If we're lucky, we can get a few pairs of female pigeons for the family."

Then, the two took their slingshots and went closer to test them. Sure enough, the pigeons would fly away immediately if they got within ten meters.

Hunting birds, herding sheep.

As the sun gradually set in the west, and the afternoon sunlight slowly lost its warmth, the two led their cattle and sheep home.

……

After visiting her parents' home for two days, Chen Ling's family returned to their normal lives.

The next morning, he sent his sister-in-law back to school and then went to the east of the city to take a look at building materials.

As luck would have it, they ran into Wang Chunyuan, who was looking for his older brother, Wang Chunsheng.

His older brother, Wang Chunsheng, runs a small timber factory in the east of the city. He knows many acquaintances in the neighborhood, so he can find cheaper building materials when he wants to build a house.

Chen Ling met up with the others, and the two greeted each other with smiles before going about their own business.

Wang Chunsheng, however, remained as enthusiastic as ever.

After finding two acquaintances for Wang Chunyuan, he offered to take Chen Ling for a visit.

Chen Ling didn't refuse, but after looking at only two places, she felt they weren't quite right.

"Forget it, Brother Chunsheng, the things in our county are still a bit lacking. I'll go to Wangbacheng tomorrow and take a look."

Chen Ling spoke frankly, not because he was disrespecting Wang Chunyuan, but because he was being disrespectful. "You should have heard that Erzhu also got his greenhouse materials from there, and they are indeed better than what we have here."

Wang Chunsheng knew about this and said, "The things in Wangbacheng are good, but they are very expensive. In such a big place like yours, if things are a little more expensive here and there, you will spend a lot more money."

He meant well, but Chen Ling wouldn't stoop to the level of being stingy about such a small difference in money.

He politely declined, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and then rode his bicycle toward the small courtyard in the south of the city.

Although I don't come to the small courtyard in the south of the city often, it is quite useful.

Moreover, it's right next to the county high school, so the location is quite good.

If the children in the family don't want to go to school far away and can attend middle school in the county, then home is just a short walk away.

I don't like the school food anymore; it's so convenient to eat at home.

So Chen Ling thought he should talk to the elderly landlord couple and buy the courtyard.

These days, houses in small county towns don't cost much.

That way, I won't have to worry about paying rent.

Chen Ling went to the landlord's house and discussed it.

Overall, the home buying process went relatively smoothly.

In the end, they gave me an extra 500 yuan.

The elderly couple were not short of money; their eldest son worked in a government agency in the city and held a fairly high position.

The elderly man is sentimental and a little reluctant to part with the old courtyard.

In order to finalize the matter as soon as possible, Chen Ling was willing to bleed a little more.

After finishing this matter in the morning, I changed the lock on the gate at noon without having lunch, mainly because I found that there were quite a few rats in this new house.

He used to plant sweet potatoes in the yard, and some of the smaller ones that he didn't dig up have now become food for the rats.

There are rat holes every few steps along the base of the east wall.

Not only in the yard, but there were also rats upstairs, chewing holes in the corners of the doors and the window screens.

These aren't ground squirrels, so Chen Ling didn't have any good ideas. He was too lazy to buy rat poison or rat traps, thinking that he'd bring the weasels over in a couple of days, and they'd get what's coming to them.

When I got back in the afternoon, I found a phone booth and called Zhao Dahai to tell him that he was starting to prepare building materials and that the construction team could arrive by the end of the month.

Zhao Dahai readily agreed.

……

After returning home, Chen Ling first went to the brigade and informed Wang Laishun that he would need to use the tractor for the next few days to buy building materials in Wangbacheng.

The tractor was rarely used in the village, so Wang Laishun told him to drive it as he pleased and just fill it up with gas whenever he didn't need it anymore.

After leaving the brigade, Chen Ling wandered around outside the village again. Near the orchard, he found a spot to set a few traps, hoping to catch some wild pigeons.

Then they entered the Sun and Moon Cave.

Chen Erzhu wanted to cause him trouble, so he planned to steal eels from his house at night.

In a fit of anger, Chen Ling packed up all the things he had used to build the greenhouse, including cement pillars, plastic sheeting, thatched roofs, and even beams, and put them into the cave.

Now, after browsing through the cave, I found that there are still many things that can be used.

As for the ones that aren't needed, they can be sold in Wangba City this time.

Wangbacheng is a county located north of Lingyun.

It was originally called Wang Mang City, but after Wang Mang was defeated by Liu Xiu, it became known as Wangba City.

However, the term "Wangbacheng" is just a colloquial term; you can't actually say it to the people on that side.

"A turtle lives in a turtle city" is an insult.

If someone hears this, they'll probably get beaten up.

That area is now called Gucheng County. It is rich in mineral resources, with many mines and coal yards, so naturally there are many wealthy people there.

In the past, lime, bricks and tiles were all bought there, but now that they are available locally in Lingyun, the quality is not as good as those from there.

Having made up his mind, Chen Ling packed up his things inside the cave, arranged them in a clearing deep in the woods, and then withdrew.

On October 18th, he drove his tractor to Wangbacheng.

Wangbacheng is not close; if you walk along the mountain road, it will take more than 40 miles to cross the mountains and valleys.

If you were to drive a tractor on the main road, it would be even farther, requiring you to take a detour of over 70 li (approximately 35 kilometers).

Therefore, Chen Ling could only make one round trip a day.

The first two days went relatively smoothly. We sold most of the plastic film and other items that we didn't need, keeping only a small amount for backup.

After making two trips over two consecutive days.

Unexpectedly, they were targeted on the third day.

Damn it, we actually ran into a road bully.

(End of this chapter)