My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 233 The Illness After the Rain
The heavy rain washed away the summer heat, and it even got a bit chilly at night. Wang Susu initially covered herself with only a thin sheet, but she soon woke up from the cold. She had to wake Chen Ling and ask him to find two thin blankets with a flashlight so that she and her son could cover themselves with them and avoid catching a cold at night.

It was cool that night, and Chen Ling, who rarely slept with his wife and son, happily covered himself with the blankets, put down the mosquito net, and listened to the continuous rain outside the window. The three of them slept comfortably all night.

When I woke up in the morning, the rain had subsided. The water vats and buckets under the bamboo house were all overflowing, and water was flowing freely on the bluestone slabs in the courtyard, washing the farm clean and finally flowing into the lotus pond.

After changing his son's diaper, Chen Ling went downstairs to cook. He didn't even use an umbrella; it was just a little rain, so getting a little wet wasn't so bad.

As I went downstairs, I saw the little yellow dog running around in the rain, sniffing around everywhere. After a while, it picked something up from the rain, took small steps, ran to Wang Zhenzhen under the eaves, put down what it was holding, and barked "woof woof" to show off.

Wang Zhenzhen picked up the things on the ground and threw them into the small bucket next to her. Then she patted the little yellow dog's head, and it excitedly rushed into the rain again, sniffing and picking things up everywhere.

Chen Ling walked up to the little girl and took a look. It turned out she was picking snails. Her bucket was more than half full, and she had specifically chosen the big ones, with shells the size of farm eggs.

"Did you get up so early just to pick up this?"

"Yeah, they've all crawled out since it rained, and they're all so big, with lots of meat on them. It would be a shame not to pick them up." Wang Zhenzhen didn't even look up as she squatted down, using a ladle to scoop water into a small bucket to wash the snails.

Just then, the little yellow dog brought her a large snail and placed it in front of her. After being petted a few more times, it went back into the rain to catch more snails, seemingly enjoying itself immensely.

Chen Ling chuckled, "You're quite capable, making the dog fetch for you. Go ahead and fetch some, I'll cook you snails tomorrow."

The snails in the water around the farm are relatively clean, and the little girl loves to eat them. Before we moved here, she would often go to the river to catch some.

However, the snails in those ditches had many parasites and were difficult to clean, so he was reluctant to let his family eat them. After moving to the farm, the water here was better, and the snails were much cleaner than those in the ditches. Over time, they gradually grew and multiplied, just like tadpoles.

You couldn't see them when it was hot, but now that it's rained, they've all crawled out.

"So, what are we having for breakfast, brother-in-law?"

"Hmm? What do you want to eat?"

"I want to eat vegetable buns."

"Go away, who has time to steam vegetable buns for you so early in the morning? It's cool today, you might as well ask your mother to steam a couple more batches for you, they're much tastier than mine."

Chen Ling was right; Gao Xiulan's steamed vegetable buns were delicious, as were her steamed cakes—the taste was simply superb.

Wang Zhenzhen's eyes lit up. "Okay, I'll have Mom steam some vegetable buns for us at noon."

"Then brother-in-law, you can make egg drop soup later. Your soup is the best."

"Okay, I'll make you some soup. You're quite good at ordering people around."

Chen Ling shook his head and smiled, then walked towards the kitchen behind the farm.

After breakfast, the rain gradually stopped, but the sky was still overcast. All that could be heard was the croaking of countless frogs in the orchards and ditches. Standing on the bamboo house of the farm, I could see wisps of smoke rising from the village in the distance and hear a few scattered barks of dogs. The whole village was shrouded in a hazy mist after the rain.

Everything was so peaceful and serene.

Meanwhile, at the farm, the chickens, ducks, and geese were all squawking noisily. Chen Ling went down and, together with his father-in-law, took a broom and swept up the water and fallen leaves in their nests.

As soon as I opened the door to let them out of the chicken coop and duck pen, the ducks and geese waddled out and ran off, splashing happily into the ditch to swim in the orchard, stepping on the wet fallen leaves and grass.

The chickens seemed a bit listless. Chen Ling picked up two hens and a half-grown chick to examine them. There was nothing seriously wrong with them; they were just a little stressed from yesterday's thunderstorm.

Free-range chickens are wild and like to fly up into trees to sleep on summer nights, unaware of wind or rain.

It's only because Chen Ling's family has dogs watching over them, and they always head back to their kennels when it gets dark. Over time, they've gotten used to it and know to go back to their kennels. Otherwise, with this kind of heavy rain, there would probably have been a lot of losses.

However, even so, a minor incident still occurred after a thunderstorm.

"Oh my, which chicken is this? Why is it laying thin-shelled eggs?" Wang Cunye exclaimed in surprise.

Chen Ling hurried over and saw that it was indeed a soft-shelled egg. The shell was covered with chicken droppings and was very thin and soft. When his father-in-law held it in his hand, the egg white had already seeped out.

"It's probably not just one chicken, but it's not a big problem. Let's put these listless chickens in cages for isolation. I'll give them a few injections and they'll be fine."

Chen Ling had specifically gone to the livestock station to ask Director Li for commonly used veterinary medicines and vaccines for poultry and livestock. After Director Li gave him some, he bought some more himself, just to prevent this situation from happening again.

Yesterday's rain was extremely heavy, and the thunder at night was terrifying.

Free-range chickens are easily startled by thunder and may exhibit stress reactions, with laying soft-shelled or thin-shelled eggs being a typical symptom.

In addition, chickens are prone to developing head-turning disorder after being rained on.

In short, if any chicken shows any abnormalities, it must be isolated immediately, otherwise it could easily cause a large-scale outbreak.

Chen Ling remained calm and composed, not only because he had prepared vaccines, but also because he possessed the powerful weapon of his "Dongtian" (a magical cave). He isolated the person, mixed some spiritual water into their food, and fed them in this way for a few days until they recovered.

"Then you should get a few injections quickly. Eggs are so expensive. You can't keep laying thin-shelled eggs."

The father-in-law picked up the two limp eggs and gasped in distress.

"Okay, I'll go get the first-aid kit and the chicken coop."

Chen Ling got up and went back to the farm to get the chicken coop and medicine box. He injected several listless chickens with vaccines, fed them with diluted spiritual water mixed with wheat bran, and then put them in the chicken coop to isolate them and left them alone.

"Are the ducks and geese alright?"

Wang Cunye was still a little worried and asked again.

"It's alright, Dad, don't worry. Look how happy they are playing; they're perfectly healthy," Chen Ling said with a light laugh, pointing to the ducks and geese splashing around in the ditch as they bathed.

Ducks and geese are different from chickens. They are domesticated waterfowl. You don't need to worry about thunderstorms. What you need to worry about is hot and humid weather. If it's too hot, or if it's hot for too long, they are more likely to have problems.

"If you think it's okay, then it's fine. We don't know much about this stuff. We also raise chickens and ducks on the mountain, but we don't raise many. It's not quite the same as what you're doing."

"Yes, that's true. No matter what it is, if you raise a lot of things, it's a completely different story from just keeping some at home."

The father-in-law and son-in-law chatted as they returned to the farm, sweeping up puddles and fallen leaves from the corners.

The weather is cool today, and a gentle breeze makes me feel refreshed and comfortable. It's so pleasant that I don't feel hot even when I'm doing some work.

At this moment, Heiwa and Xiaojin stretched and ran out of the woodshed. Although they often acted spoiled in front of Chen Ling, they were much more mature than the little yellow dog, and they were the most worry-free during this season.

Since there was no shortage of food in the mountains, Chen Ling didn't need to feed them at all. Instead, they would often catch some pheasants and rabbits to improve the family's meals after filling their stomachs.

However, it rained for most of yesterday and didn't stop at night. Chen Ling was worried that the two of them would go hungry, so he put down the broom and went to the kitchen to get some cornbread for them to eat.

When the little yellow dog saw Chen Ling feeding Heiwa and the other two, it ran over and jumped around Chen Ling. Wang Cunye had fed it at breakfast, and now it was just here to join in the fun.

"Go, go, go."

Chen Ling gave it a light kick. This guy had been picking snails in the rain since early morning, following Wang Zhenzhen's instructions, and was soaking wet. Now it was running over and trying to rub against him, and he couldn't get rid of it no matter how many times he tried.

After the two dogs finished eating, it ran happily to Heiwa, jumping and hopping, leaping to the left and then to the right, sometimes crouching down, sometimes wagging its tail and whimpering, and occasionally panting as it ran around the yard before returning to Heiwa to fawn over him.

After eating, Heiwa sprawled out on the ground, its posture mirroring its personality: two front legs forward, two hind legs backward, the dog lying in a "木" (wood) shape, quite unceremoniously chewing on leaves beside Chen Ling. It didn't seem bothered by the little yellow dog's antics, seemingly quite fond of its little brother.

The little yellow dog is actually an adult now, with a tiger-like head and cat-like ears, a broad forehead and wide mouth, a large head, golden fur, a curly tail, and a smiling face with its tongue sticking out. It looks very lovable.

Compared to Heiwa, it was too small, not even in the same league.

After all, Heiwa is twice and a half the size of a regular Hutouhuang. He can pounce on wolves as easily as pounce on chicks. Compared to him, the little yellow dog looks like a little kid who hasn't grown up yet.

Moreover, he was too carefree. After coming with Wang Cunye, he didn't learn anything good from Heiwa. Instead, he picked up all the mischief and naughtiness and was always up to no good.

But it also has one fear: it is very afraid of Wang Zhenzhen.

The little girl never scolded or hit it, but as long as she said something, it was more effective than Chen Ling and Wang Cunye.

That's quite strange.

"Is wealth and honor at home?"

"It's Aunt Xiuju! Come in and have a seat."

The newcomer was Chen Ze's mother, an old, nagging woman. She was very tall and had a prominent black mole on her left eyebrow. She spoke in a very loud voice and stood in the pavilion in the bamboo grove, looking into the farm. She was wearing black rubber shoes.

Seeing Chen Ling and his son-in-law busy sweeping, he smiled and said, "I won't go in, Fugui. I have something I want to ask you. Can you treat the chickens in our house that are sick?"

The village already knew last year that Chen Ling was a veterinarian at the township's animal husbandry station.

Furthermore, in the past six months, after he cured Wang Laiyun's donkey, his reputation gradually spread. Now the villagers all know that he is skilled at treating livestock injuries and come to him for help.

"It's just a minor illness, nothing to worry about. But what's wrong with the chickens, Auntie? Are they laying soft-shelled eggs too?"

Chen Ling asked with a smile.

"Yes, the wind and thunder last night scared the chickens. It wasn't just one or two chickens, but several hens. When I got up this morning, the nest was full of thin-shelled eggs. It's really upsetting," Aunt Xiuju said with a worried look on her face.

It's not uncommon for free-range chickens raised in the countryside to be frightened. Wolves, weasels, civets, and even rats can terrify them and cause them to exhibit a series of stress reactions.

This stress comes on quickly and goes away quickly.

For example, after being frightened yesterday and causing panic among the flock, the chickens started laying soft-shelled eggs today. However, after treatment, the condition subsided quickly, and they returned to normal in one or two days, or at most three days.

The premise is that the correct method must be used.

"Actually, I wouldn't bother you if I scared one or two, but there are so many like this. They look so listless, all droopy and like they've caught a cold. Who knew they'd be like this? The rooster is even leading the fight, its neck tilted and swaying back and forth. I don't know what's wrong with them."

"Oh, it must have been caught in the rain and it's gotten crazy. It needs to be treated quickly."

Chen Ling immediately knew what was going on. It was a combination of stress-induced panic and head-turning madness, with the rooster's symptoms being particularly pronounced. "Auntie, please sit down for a moment. I'll go back and get the first-aid kit."

The chickens he raises on the farm know to return to their roosts when it gets dark, unlike the many free-range chickens in the village. They roam the fields for food every day, and over time, they develop a wild spirit and yearn for freedom. At night, they like to live in groups in trees, unafraid of wind and rain.

If someone didn't even seek shelter from yesterday's heavy rain, it would be strange if they didn't get sick.

"Auntie, did you raise quite a few chickens this year?"

Chen Ling, carrying a medicine box, walked towards the village with Guo Xiuju.

“Yes, Fangfang and her husband are hiding here from the family planning policy, so they've raised some too. It looks like there are too many compared to the ones we used to have,” Guo Xiuju said.

"Oh, that's how it is."

Chen Ling nodded. Chen Fang didn't go out often, except during busy farming seasons when she would help out at home and share the burden with her brothers, Chen Jiang and Chen Ze. Otherwise, it wouldn't be good for a married daughter to just stay at her parents' house doing nothing, as it would easily attract gossip.

The country path was a bit muddy after the rain. Fortunately, Chen Ling saw that Guo Xiuju's rubber shoes were covered in mud, so he wisely changed into a pair of rubber shoes as well, otherwise it would have been too difficult to walk.

At this time, many villagers also came to the cornfields to drain the water, pulling carts or carrying shovels. Before the corn seedlings took root, they were not resistant to flooding and could not withstand deep water. Otherwise, they would have drowned in two or three days.

The villagers greeted Chen Ling and his companion warmly, asking them all sorts of questions out of curiosity.

They were surprised to see Chen Ling carrying a medicine box.

"Oh my, Fugui went to treat the chickens at Old Niwai's house. That kid is amazing. When Laiyun scared the donkey, he was the one who cured it. He was cured in just a few days. He's really getting more and more capable."

"I just don't know what's wrong with Lao Niwai's chickens. It rained so hard yesterday, I don't know if my chickens are alright."

"Goodness, now that you mention it, I'll have to check it out when I get back."

After Chen Ling walked over, they started discussing it.

Let them talk; Chen Ling didn't care. He went to Old Niwai's house and saw that it was indeed pretty much as he had guessed.

It's fortunate that it was discovered early; if it had been two days later, it certainly wouldn't have been saved.

Without saying a word, Chen Ling started vaccinating the chickens. Lao Niwai also came out to help. The vaccination of more than twenty chickens of all sizes was completed quickly. Chen Ling then asked them to go to Chen Guoping to get some disinfectant to spray twice to prevent infection of other poultry. That was it.

But after Lao Niwai finished at home, Chen Ling hadn't had time to leave yet, and others who had heard the news came looking for him.

Since these families don't raise many chickens, and the symptoms aren't severe—most of them just lay soft-shelled eggs after being frightened—it's easy to manage.

The most serious case was Chen Baoliang's family. They must have been affected by the heat before the rain, which caused them to start getting sick. Then, after being hit by the alternating thunderstorms, they were really in a terrible state.

Fortunately, Chen Ling's skills were decent; otherwise, he would have been completely helpless against these chickens.

His excellent performance naturally earned him a warm welcome from the villagers.

The key point is that they all feel that Chen Ling can now make money and still be available whenever they need him, which is really different from what they expected. No one can find fault with him.

"What's wrong with you? This guy is rich and powerful, and you don't even offer him a cigarette or pour him tea. Are you just standing there like an idiot selling sweet potatoes?"

However, after Chen Ling left, Chen Baoliang's wife scolded him at home.

"I'm just a little upset about this. The whole pig theft incident before the New Year was pretty embarrassing. Dirty Kid was anxious, and when he saw that Fugui had a wild boar caught in the trap, he wanted to sneak it away. Baoshuan and I didn't stop him; we even went up to help..."

Chen Baoliang shook his head and sighed: "This is really not a fair thing to do. Now that the chickens at home are like this, if you go over and call them, Fugui will still come over to give them injections and treat them. It's really embarrassing for me to go up to them and offer them cigarettes. My face is burning."

"..."

"You, a man, have more petty thoughts than a woman. He's magnanimous, why do you keep nagging about this?"

Chen Baoliang's wife was more open-minded. "Well, Fugui's baby is almost a month old. When he does, bring two extra pounds of pork to celebrate. It's all from the Chen family. Don't be like Baoshuan and the others, who turned everyone in the village into enemies. Their children will never be able to hold their heads up high again."

"Oh, I got it."

Chen Baoliang got up and went back to his room impatiently, but in reality, he had already taken his wife's words to heart.

(End of this chapter)