My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 231 The Shy Boy
On the 18th day of the sixth lunar month in 1996, Chen Ling's family moved to the farm.

The farm is fully furnished with all kinds of furniture, and there are no shortage of pots, pans and utensils, so it is enough to just bring Wang Susu and her child there.

Now only the pigeons and the little white calf are left in the house.

The pigeons are fine, but the baby pigeons haven't left the nest yet, and the mother pigeons are protecting their young and won't let anyone get close, so it's impossible to move them in a short time.

As for the little white calf, it's simply a case of being homesick.

I've kept them at home ever since Chen Ling brought them back; I feel more at ease at home than anywhere else.

It's like a sentimental young woman.

Even Heiwa and Xiaojin moved away, but it just wouldn't leave.

Chen Ling knew his ox's temperament, so he didn't force it and let it stay at home to guard the house for the time being.

Anyway, it's not far away. I take it out every morning to let it eat grass and play in the water, and then bring it back in the evening. I can also feed the pigeons while I'm at it.

He's a free man, so this isn't much of a problem for him.

"Uncle, you'll be living here on the farm from now on, so we can't be neighbors anymore."

Today, Chen Yuqiang brought his family to the farm for a visit, and they were quite reluctant to leave. In the past, if they wanted to drink, they could just take the wine and walk out to find Chen Ling to drink with, and even get a good meal. But now, it's not possible anymore. If they want to drink, they have to leave the village and run to the foot of the mountain.

“Hey, it’s not like we’re not going back to live here. We moved here, but we still go back every day. It’s not far from here. It gets cold here in winter, so we can just move back whenever we want.”

Chen Ling didn't seem to care. He gave Xiao Sen a peach and told him to go upstairs to play with Wang Zhenzhen.

Then, carrying a large watermelon, I went to the shade of a tree by the lotus pond, placed the watermelon on the table, and cut it up.

"Come on, Yuqiang, have some melon seeds."

Chen Yuqiang took a slice, tasted it, and found it refreshingly cool, followed by a mouthful of sweet juice. Eating a slice of iced watermelon on a hot summer day was truly delightful.

After taking a few bites, he looked up at Chen Ling and said, "Moving back in the winter? It's such a hassle to move back and forth like that."

"What's the trouble? It's said to move back, but we already have all our things at home, so we don't need to move anything. If we want to go back to live here, we can just go back."

Chen Ling chuckled as he ate watermelon, "I also have a small courtyard in the county town. I'll make a set of furniture for that place later, and we can live wherever we feel comfortable."

"...Wow, Uncle Fugui, you're really rich and powerful. Now we won't have to worry about not having a place to stay wherever we go."

Chen Yuqiang wiped his mouth and gave him a thumbs up.

I wondered how much money Uncle Fugui had made last year to dare to spend it like this.

They're building farms and buying houses in the county town.

“What do you mean by being rich and powerful? The kind of rich and powerful is Erzhu, who contracts out the villagers’ farmland and charges a premium of 100 yuan per mu, just to make sure he’s not showing off his wealth.”

Chen Ling smiled. Nowadays, houses in the county town are not even as expensive as farm machinery. He bought it for convenience, which is not really a sign of being rich and powerful.

"Ha, Erzhu relies on his wife, Uncle, you earned everything yourself. How can he compare to you?" Chen Yuqiang said disdainfully.

Then, hearing the cheerful laughter and lively chatter from upstairs in the distance, he chuckled and said, "I'm not going to watch anymore, I'm going upstairs to check on my little brother."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ling immediately stood up. "Come on, I'll take you to see him. This brat sleeps all day long, all he does is eat and sleep, from morning till night."

No matter how many times Chen Yuqiang praised him, he didn't seem to care, but when his son was mentioned, he immediately perked up.

More than half a month has passed, and the little guy's face has grown out. Chen Ling spends a long time watching the crib every day. The more he looks at him, the more pleasing he becomes. He can watch him for half a day without doing anything. Unfortunately, the little rascal still sleeps a lot.

"Sleep is good. The more a baby sleeps, the stronger they will grow up."

As Chen Yuqiang spoke, he followed Chen Ling up the bamboo building and walked to the mother and baby room on the right side of the second floor of the north bamboo building.

Upon entering the room, Wenli and her son, along with Gao Xiulan, were gathered around the crib teaching Wang Zhenzhen how to change the baby's diaper, while Wang Susu lay half-reclined on the large bed, watching with a smile.

Seeing Chen Ling come in, Wang Susu said, "You've come at the right time. Come here quickly and smell your son's stench. It's suffocating."

Chen Ling leaned over to take a look and realized that he had defecated.

Upon closer inspection, wow, it really did stink.

"Brother-in-law, quickly help me take this diaper out." Wang Zhenzhen handed him the used diaper.

Chen Ling quickly pinched his nose, took the bag, and threw it into the laundry tub outside.

Back in the room, panting, she glared at the little guy whose diaper had just been changed and said, "You pooped so smelly, you really are a stinky boy."

"Uncle, you're speaking so loudly, don't wake the child," Chen Yuqiang gently reminded him.

"It's alright, he's exhausted from crying and is sleeping soundly now. Our talking won't disturb him," Wang Susu said with a smile.

The little guy cries when he peees, just like he did. After he finished peeing, he cried and then nursed. After nursing, he fell asleep again. He was sleeping soundly at that moment and couldn't hear what the adults were saying.

"Oh my, my little brother is so well-born! It's so hot, but he doesn't get any rashes or prickly heat. Look how smooth and beautiful he is."

Relieved, Chen Yuqiang went over to Chen Ling to look at the baby in the swaddling clothes.

After he finished speaking, Xiao Sen looked up at Wen Li and said, "Da, you call the little boy 'brother,' but when the little boy grows up, will I have to call him 'uncle'?"

Everyone was taken aback at first, and then they all burst into laughter.

"Yes, the little boy is your great-uncle's son, so of course you have to call him 'little uncle'."

Wenli smiled and patted her son's head.

"Oh my god, another uncle!" Xiao Sen immediately looked miserable. He was of a lower generation in his family, and all his childhood friends were his uncles.

Now finally a little one has arrived, but unexpectedly, this tiny baby turns out to be an uncle.

For a moment, I almost felt like I had no will to live.

It made everyone laugh non-stop.

……

Today, Chen Yuqiang's family came over. As neighbors, they came over to sit and visit the farm and see the children after Chen Ling moved.

After chatting and laughing for a while, it was almost noon when they decided to leave without staying for lunch.

Suddenly, a loud cry rang out, interrupting everyone's conversation. Wang Susu quickly picked up her son and saw that he had wet himself.

"I'll change the diaper, I'll change it." Wang Zhenzhen hurriedly stepped forward. She didn't mind the baby's pee and loved her little nephew very much.

Moreover, he always competed with Chen Ling to change his diapers, which meant that Chen Ling changed his son's diapers very few times in the past two weeks.

Seeing his sister-in-law try to snatch it again, Chen Ling had no choice but to go over and take the soiled diaper out and put it in the laundry basin to soak.

"Look at Zhenzhen, she's fiddling with this again. You enjoy doing this so much, why don't you become a nurse in the future?" Gao Xiulan couldn't help but laugh as she watched her youngest daughter intently changing the baby's diaper.

"No way, I won't serve other people's dolls."

The little girl flicked her braid and said without looking up.

"Come here, Zhenzhen, let me hug the baby too."

Wenli found it interesting, and after Wang Zhenzhen changed the baby's diaper, she reached out and gently picked up the little one.

However, to everyone's surprise, as soon as Wenli held the little guy in her arms, he started crying loudly.

"Oh dear, why are you crying? Is your little one already recognizing people?"

Wenli was startled and quickly handed it to Wang Susu, saying, "Auntie, you should hold it."

Wang Susu quickly took the little one and held him in her arms. Sure enough, he immediately stopped crying and fussing. He just frowned, his little mouth was tightly closed, and his little fists were clenched tightly, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

It surprised everyone who saw it, and they all said that the child had a bad temper.

Just then, Wang Cunye returned from herding sheep. Hearing the commotion inside, he asked what was going on. After asking, he still didn't believe it and decided to try it out.

However, the little one was only held by his maternal grandfather a few times after he was born, and now he cries loudly whenever he is held.

"That's strange, this child is really shy around strangers." Gao Xiulan walked up to him, took a look, and frowned slightly.

“Our four children all started recognizing people at four or five months old, but this little rascal is different; he recognized people before he was even a month old.”

"Hehe, yes, he got his temper from his father, he's hard to manage." Wang Cunye chuckled as he glanced at his son-in-law.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ling scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly.

He was notoriously difficult to manage when he was young, but recently, after his father-in-law and mother-in-law became familiar with the village elders, all his dark history was dug up.

“There’s no such thing as being difficult to manage. I’ve never heard of a baby who recognizes people before it’s even a month old. I don’t believe Lingzi was like that before she was a month old,” Gao Xiulan said.

The earlier a child recognizes people, the more tiring it is for the mother. The child cries as soon as someone else holds them, and even if someone else helps take care of them, it's not enough.

Wang Susu held her son in her arms and shook her head: "It's not uncommon; there have been cases even earlier. I heard a doctor at the hospital say that before the New Year, there was a baby girl who started recognizing people just four or five days after she was born. She could distinguish between the nurses who gave her injections and those who drew blood, and she would cry when the nurses who gave her injections and drew blood came, but she was fine when the other nurses came. Her mother could only hold her with her right arm; she would cry if she switched arms. Those are much harder to manage than my son."

"Wow, there really are such people. They are indeed difficult to please."

Everyone was astonished upon hearing this.

They chatted for a few more minutes, then saw Chen Yuqiang and his family off. Gao Xiulan went to wash clothes and diapers, while Chen Ling went to the kitchen to cook, and his father-in-law went to help him.

It's hot now, and ordinary families usually don't cook at noon. They just make do with something simple like cold steamed buns or cold noodles. But with a pregnant woman in their family, they can't make do. Chen Ling cooks a variety of dishes every day, and Wang Cunye and Gao Xiulan feel for him just by seeing how different the dishes are.

But Chen Ling was enjoying himself immensely. His excitement hadn't waned all month, and he became increasingly skilled and enthusiastic in cooking.

If it weren't for his mother-in-law being there, he would have taken care of all the diaper changing and washing.

It's true that you feel one way before a child is born and another way after it's born. All your previous plans are now in disarray, and you're even doing things you don't want to do with great enthusiasm.

As evening fell, Chen Ling's family had dinner in the small courtyard outside the bamboo house. At this time, the little white calf, which had been playing in the stream at the foot of the mountain all day, took advantage of the setting sun and led the muddy little yellow dog slowly back to the farm. Then it walked to Chen Ling's side, bit Chen Ling's trouser leg and gently tugged at it, reminding him that it was time to take the calf home.

"Wait, no rush, let me eat something first."

Chen Ling patted the little white calf's big head and then ate it with slurping sounds.

Although the farm was cool, he was still too hot to eat after cooking lunch at the stove, so he ate the most at dinner.

He drank bowl after bowl of the pickled cabbage and fish soup noodles for dinner, which made Little White Cow impatient and tug at him again.

"Hey, one is a shy brat, and the other is a homebody little white cow. You two are the hardest to please in our family."

Chen Ling laughed and cursed, got up, wiped the sweat off his upper body, draped his vest over his shoulders, called the two dogs, and led the little white calf home in the gentle evening breeze.

-

Something came up today and I have to get busy tonight, so I'm writing 3,000 words in advance and posting it early. I'll finish it tomorrow or the day after when I have time.

In addition, the use of traditional Chinese characters and unusual fonts in the chapters is for anti-piracy purposes, so there's no need to worry.

(End of this chapter)