My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 232 The Son's Name

The joy of becoming a father for the first time is something that cannot be explained to outsiders.

Chen Ling didn't know how other people felt when they first became fathers, but he found the mountains beautiful and the waters melodious. Even the sweltering heat that others found tedious was quite enjoyable to him.

In short, he now sees everything as good. Even when he led the cow home and encountered Wang Chunyuan, who was enjoying the cool air outside the door, he smiled and nodded in greeting, making Wang Chunyuan feel somewhat flattered.

He wanted to approach Chen Ling to make a good impression, but seeing the two large dogs behind him with their tongues lolling out and looking menacing, he hesitated and didn't dare to go forward. Instead, he pushed his daughter and made the little girl call Chen Ling "Uncle."

Chen Ling happily agreed.

Despite being in a good mood, he had no intention of engaging in much conversation with the man. He opened the door and went into his house, then took a roll of plastic water hose from the storeroom. He went to the hand pump, connected the hose to the water pump's outlet, and pumped the water, squeezing the hose with one hand. Using the water pressure, he sprayed the water like a water gun, making the water gush out extremely far. He did this all over the yard, and for places he couldn't reach, he had Heiwa carry the hose back and forth, cooling down the land that had been baking in the sun all day.

After draining the water, I also gave the calf and two dogs a bath. During the day, they always like to play in the stream. The sun doesn't shine on them at the foot of the mountain, and there are orchards to provide shade. The water is quite cool, but there are a lot of insects in the water in the summer, so it's better to wash them. Also, now that we have children at home, it's definitely not good to neglect the hygiene of the livestock.

"How does it feel? More comfortable now?"

Seeing the dog and cow squinting their eyes and tilting their heads back as they rinsed themselves in the cool water, Chen Ling also splashed water on his face and head to cool off.

"Come here, let me brush your fur again so that no bugs can crawl inside."

The three of them were very obedient at this time, lining up to let Chen Ling brush their fur. The cool water flowed and Chen Ling brushed them as if tickling them. Even Xiao Jin, who didn't like to be spoiled, was humming comfortably. Heiwa and Xiaobai Niu were even more comfortable, wanting to lie down and roll around on the ground.

"Alright, alright, get up now. I'll wash you tomorrow night."

After washing them, Chen Ling called out to them, then got up to clean the water pipes, washed his hands again, and went to feed the pigeons.

He's been like this lately; he looks busy, but he's actually just playing around.

I'm happy every day. After finishing one thing, I go and do another. I don't feel like I don't want to do anything just because it's hot.

Having a child gives him all the energy to work.

I took the eggs to the market twice, then tidied up the two acres of vegetable garden, rolled them up haphazardly, and sold them at the morning market as well.

The weather has been hot lately, so the morning markets in the county town are crowded, while the large markets are less so. However, Chen Ling doesn't need to worry too much about this. He goes to both the morning markets and the large markets, and he has been selling things quite regularly over the past few months. People he knows still remember him.

Many people also went to the small courtyard to look for things, and there was no shortage of goods to sell.

In addition, the fish fry raised in the irrigation ditch on the farm have also grown. Over the course of two months, they have been constantly eaten by birds, which has made them unusually alert and wild, and they have become more and more voracious in their eating.

Because the water quality is so good, the aquatic plants in the canal are extremely abundant, and there are a lot of frogs and toads that croak and croak all night long. The canal is also teeming with tadpoles, one after another, more than fish.

In this way, not only will omnivorous and carnivorous fish have plenty to eat, but even chickens and ducks can eat their fill every day.

When Wang Cunye got excited, he used a strainer to scoop out tadpoles, making a special treat for the chicks and ducklings.

Free-range poultry don't grow fast; after three months, they're only about half-grown, but their appetite is astonishing.

No matter how much Wang Cunye fed them, they would devour it all in no time. Fortunately, there were tadpoles everywhere in the ditch, and a quick scoop with a strainer would yield about half a pound, which was more than enough to feed them.

Later, the chickens and ducks got tired of eating, especially the ducklings. They would follow the goslings around all day, swimming and playing, from the irrigation ditch to the river, and then from the river to the stream at the foot of the western hill. They were so busy playing that they stopped eating.

This was also due to the hot weather. Seeing this, Wang Cunye became too lazy to care. Every day, he would lead his sheep around the orchard to graze, while also using a slingshot to scare away birds. When it was time to eat, he would return to the farm to help Chen Ling cook.

Now his eldest grandson is becoming more and more attached to people. Apart from Wang Susu and Chen Ling, even Gao Xiulan doesn't really want to be with him anymore. He can't even hold him anymore, and he can only go to see him a few times a day.

That's enough to make the old man happy.

He is an honest man who likes to joke around. Even at his age, he often grins and makes funny faces to amuse his grandson, which often annoys Gao Xiulan, who says that the child is too young to know what he is doing, but he never tires of it.

The family isn't large, but it's lively every day.

……

The weather is getting hotter every day. Under the scorching sun, the leaves of the trees are drooping, and the leaves of crops and vegetables are curling up.

After several days, perhaps the heat has finally built up enough.

On June 21st, not long after lunch, a gust of wind suddenly blew in from nowhere, carrying a hint of coolness.

The heat from the ground mingled with the cool breeze, carrying a slightly fishy, earthy smell, and when it blew onto people's faces, it felt both cool and hot.

The wind grew stronger, and in just a short while, dark clouds rolled in, covering half the sky.

Standing in an open space and looking up at the sky, the eastern half of the sky is covered with dark clouds, while the western half is still under a clear blue sky, creating a very impressive and unique spectacle.

But gradually, a strong wind blew in, and dark clouds swept in, quickly obscuring the sun in the western sky.

At this moment, only a sliver of light peeked through the sky, with layers upon layers of dark clouds, some bright and some dim, forming a vortex in the gale, as if some great disaster was about to befall us.

The sky darkened visibly, with rumbling thunder and flashes of lightning occasionally rumbling through the dark clouds.

Soon, lightning flashed and thunder roared, and large raindrops began to fall in a pattering patter. In the blink of an eye, it turned into a torrential downpour.

In summer, if it rains, it's never a light drizzle.

A strong wind was blowing, and dense raindrops were hitting the roof at an angle, making a series of crisp sounds. Chen Ling's family stood on the bamboo house, watching the rain outside getting heavier and heavier, and chatting idly.

"It's been almost a month, and the rain has finally come!" Wang Cunye said with a beaming smile, standing on tiptoe to look around.

Chickens, ducks, and geese were running frantically back to their nests, dogs and cows were frolicking in the rain, and lotus leaves and flowers in the lotus pond were swaying in the wind and rain, splashing up countless tiny bubbles.

The anxious heart was finally washed away by the rain.

"Yes, let it rain for a few more days, otherwise the heat will make people feel irritable." Gao Xiulan took down the diapers that were hanging outside to dry and brought them back inside.

Chen Ling excitedly went to the room and brought his son out, followed by his sister-in-law who was playfully teasing the child. The whole family stood upstairs watching the rain.

Unfortunately, the little guy was still too small. He opened his big, dark eyes, like black grapes, and looked at Chen Ling for a couple of moments before yawning amidst the increasingly violent rain. He then closed his eyes and continued to sleep soundly in his swaddling clothes.

"The brat is asleep again. I wonder when he'll be able to walk and play again." Chen Ling was looking forward to his son growing up quickly, otherwise he wouldn't be able to play with the toys he had prepared for the little guy, nor could he take him around.

This made him, as a father, feel somewhat uneasy.

He dreamed of taking the kids to chase mountains and rivers, to catch birds and fish.

Looking at the little guy sleeping soundly with his eyes closed, Chen Ling clicked his tongue, realizing he still had a long way to go.

Gao Xiulan laughed upon hearing this, "This child changes every day, he grows up so fast. Don't be fooled by how small he is now. Once he can run and jump and run around and cause you a lot of trouble, you'll realize how big he's grown up so quickly."

“Who says otherwise?” Wang Cunye happily moved a bamboo chair over, sat down, and crossed his legs. “Let’s not even talk about your older brothers and Susu. Just look at Zhenzhen. Your mother and I didn’t really notice anything. In the blink of an eye, this little rascal is about to enter fourth grade, and he knows more words than I do. Can you believe how fast he’s gone?”

“Yes, I was only forty-one when I gave birth to her, and you were thirty-nine. Now time flies, and you’re fifty years old.” Gao Xiulan shook her head and sighed, “Halfway down to the grave.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhenzhen wrinkled her little nose, stuck out her tongue, and made a funny face at the two elders to amuse them.

She was still young and didn't like hearing her parents say that they were getting old.

"Hey kid, it's raining and the weather's cooler now, go do your homework."

Wang Cunye glared at her.

"I finished writing a long time ago. Now all that's left is the teacher's test paper. I'll go get the dictionary, and we can continue naming the brat."

The little girl's eyes lit up, and she ran to her own little room, took out her dictionary, and then moved a few bamboo chairs for everyone to sit down, continuing to look for a name for the baby.

She's on summer vacation now, and she's been busy with naming things. Otherwise, if she keeps calling him "brat" like Chen Ling, it'll be hard to change his name once he gets used to it.

It's just that the hot weather lately has put me in a bad mood. I wrote several pages of names, but I'm still not very satisfied.

"Why don't you just not give him a double name? Just like you, a single-character name would be fine," his father-in-law suggested to Chen Ling.

Chen Ling paused for a moment, then quickly nodded: "Okay, single characters are fine. I was thinking of naming the child after Xiaotong and the other two, but I forgot that the child can also be called by single characters."

Then I went on to look up words in the dictionary.

"Um……"

"How about we call him Chen Shuai?"

Chen Ling flipped through the pages and suddenly a name caught his eye. The name Chen Shuai was quite fitting for someone born in the 90s.

The word "handsome" also fits their family's image.

"Chen Shuai? That name doesn't sound very mature."

The father-in-law and mother-in-law shook their heads. "Let's write it down first."

Wang Zhenzhen then quickly jotted it down in her notebook.

"How about Chen Yan? Would that work? Having him around during this hot summer would be quite memorable."

Chen Ling thought for a moment and then said.

"Your name is Chen Ling, Ling as in ice, how can your son be named Chen Yan? One is water and the other is fire, they don't mix. Do you two want to fight in the future?"

The father-in-law's eyes widened upon hearing this.

"Huh? This works? My 'Ling' is the 'Ling' of 'Soaring Clouds,' not the 'Ling' of 'Ice Crystal.'" Chen Ling exclaimed in astonishment.

"I don't know, but your father told me it was the 'Ling' in 'ice ling'."

The father-in-law stubbornly insisted.

He respected Chen Ling's father very much, not only because he had saved him once, but also because he felt that it was not easy for the older brother to raise Chen Ling all by himself.

"Write it down, write it down first."

Gao Xiulan smoothed things over.

Wang Zhenzhen obediently wrote it down.

So things went back to the way they were before. I'd come up with a solution and then realize it wasn't right, but I couldn't bear to throw it away, so I'd write it all down in a notebook and keep it.

Soon another page was filled with dense writing.

The four of them sat together, staring blankly at each other, and were troubled once again.

"It's raining so hard, why are you all making such a racket outside?"

At this moment, Wang Susu's voice came from the room.

"Sister, you're awake! We're naming the little rascal."

Upon hearing her sister speak, Wang Zhenzhen immediately ran inside, grabbed a small notebook, and handed it to Wang Susu, saying, "Look, so many more have appeared."

Recently, due to the hot and humid weather, and with Wang Susu worried about her baby, she couldn't get a proper rest.

The rain this afternoon finally cooled her down, and she felt sleepy, so she took a nap in her room.

I fell asleep to the sound of the rain, and I slept very comfortably.

Now that I've woken up and rested well, my mind is clear. I picked up the draft notebook my sister handed me and glanced at it. "This time it's single characters, why are there so many?"

"I can't find a suitable one. I'll write them down as I go, otherwise I'll have to start looking from scratch." Chen Ling said helplessly, holding his sleeping son.

The father-in-law and mother-in-law valued their grandson very much. They always thought that even if they couldn't give him an earth-shattering name, he should at least have a name that sounded good and had a good meaning. Putting everything else aside, it should at least be easy to pronounce.

"Susu, you pick one and see which one you like. The more we think about it, the more confused we get. Maybe you're the one who can make the best judgment," Gao Xiulan said.

“Okay, I’ll pick one.” Wang Susu glanced at her husband, smiled, and looked down to examine it carefully.

Then she picked out a few of her favorites, wrote them down on another piece of paper, tore them into small pieces, and crumpled them into small balls.

"Hey, no, you actually drew lots to name your child? I was just kidding before."

Chen Ling thought to himself, no wonder his wife glanced at him before they chose the name. He had used this method before the baby was born and selected the names Ziyu and Xixi. Later, Zhong Xiaoyun said that there were too many babies named Ziyu and did not recommend using it, so they did not use it.

But that was before the baby was born. Now that the baby is born, Chen Ling values it more than anyone else. How could they choose the baby by drawing lots? That would be so undignified.

"Don't be angry yet, Ah Ling, take a look at these names and see if you like them before you say anything," Wang Susu said with a light laugh, handing him a few crumpled pieces of paper.

Chen Ling took the son from the bed and put him on it. He looked at the names his wife had chosen and found them to be very much to his liking.

So he nodded.

“I like them too, but I can’t pick the one I like the most, so I’ll just do the method you suggested before.” Wang Susu winked at him.

"Okay, you give it a try first."

Chen Ling thought it made sense, so he crumpled up the paper and had his wife throw it away.

Wang Susu held the ball in her hand and tossed it a few times before drawing lots again. "Hmm, I drew the same lot twice out of five times. It's this one, Chen Rui."

"Ah Ling, try catching it a few times."

Chen Ling also made several attempts, then selected and looked at them. "I've drawn two names, one is Chen Rui, and the other is Chen Zhao."

"Chen Rui, Chen Zhao, both sound very good."

Wang Cunye asked curiously, "Why didn't you notice it just now?"

"There are still too many names. It's dizzying to look at them all together. Try calling them out individually; they're all nice-sounding names," Gao Xiulan snorted and said.

They put a lot of thought into naming their grandson, and every name they chose was a good one.

“Let’s choose between Chen Rui and Chen Zhao. This should be easy. Dad, Mom, Zhenzhen, come and vote. One vote each,” Chen Ling said.

"Chen Zhao, it sounds impressive," Gao Xiulan said after thinking for a moment.

“I choose Chen Rui. I think Chen Rui sounds more sophisticated, and Rui Rui or Xiao Rui would sound nice as a nickname.” Wang Cunye gave a very good reason.

“I also choose Chen Rui. Rui Rui sounds better than Zhao Zhao,” Wang Zhenzhen raised her hand.

Chen Ling and Wang Susu exchanged a glance, repeatedly muttering the two names to themselves.

"Chen Rui, Rui Rui, Xiao Rui, that's really good. As for Chen Zhao, Zhao Zhao is a bit of a mouthful. Xiao Zhao sounds like a little girl, like Zhang Wuji's Xiao Zhao."

After thinking for a while, Chen Ling said, "Then let's follow the majority and call him Chen Rui."

"Okay, I'll do whatever you two say."

The two elders agreed.

Wang Susu nodded gently and smiled at her son in the swaddling clothes, saying, "Rui Rui, we have a name now, Rui Rui."

Seeing this, Chen Ling also went over and gently called out to her son.

"Wow, wow, wow..."

Unfortunately, after only two calls, the little guy started crying out loud.

"Are you hungry or have you peed?"

Chen Ling reached out and touched the diaper. It was warm and wet, and he immediately knew that the diaper had been wet.

Then I carefully changed my son's diaper.

Little did I know, I had just taken the diaper off.

The son's little sparrow immediately shot out a stream of clear water, splashing his arm.