My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 331 The son eats the egg yolk, Susu eats the egg white.

Speaking of heated brick beds, every village here has people who specialize in making them.

It's quite a hassle to make this yourself.

It's more convenient to have someone else do the work.

However, starting from the mid-to-late 1980s, many local families dismantled their heated kang beds over the past decade or so.

The trend of replacing the kang (a heated brick bed) with a new bed became a fad.

If you go to the market now, you'll see mostly brightly colored bed sheets for sale, while the traditional earthen mats are becoming less common.

But it's not completely nonexistent, maybe half and half.

The young ones were fine; they were fashionable and trendy, so they just dismantled their heated brick beds.

The elderly can't handle it; they get cold easily and still need a heated kang (traditional Chinese bed) in winter.

Moreover, the technology used to build this kang (heated brick bed) has become much more advanced in recent years than in previous years.

The heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) made of a pan is not only easy to heat, but also produces no backdraft smoke.

Unlike the old earthen kang beds of the past, which sometimes filled the room with smoke and made people's eyes water.

Even fanning myself with a fan on the kang (heated brick bed) as if it were a doorway didn't work; it was incredibly uncomfortable.

Chen Ling's family didn't have this kind of thing before, mainly because the iron stove his father had made was very warm.

In winter, pasting paper on the windows and letting the chimney lead outside allows smoke to escape while keeping the warmth inside, making it just as effective as a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed).

It won't interfere with cooking.

Moreover, it saves a lot of money compared to heating a kang (a traditional heated brick bed).

Now, besides keeping warm, there's also the serious business of raising fish.

Furthermore, once you have a baby, they'll soon be able to run around on the ground. If you're still keeping the iron stove burning in the room, it's not good if they get burned.

Let's replace the heated kang bed.

"These little fish are quite pretty. Are they goldfish fry?"

Chen Ling fiddled with the water tank, changing the water for the fish fry, while Wang Susu watched from the side, holding her son.

When it gets cold, if the fish fry are still too small, it's generally not necessary to change the water for them.

Chen Ling was using spiritual water to raise fish, so naturally he didn't need to follow any rules.

"Hmm, it's a goldfish. Doesn't it look prettier than a fighting fish?"

Chen Ling reached out and scooped up a handful of tiny fish fry, putting them into the basin for her and the child to play with.

Wang Susu nodded: "I think these little goldfish are prettier."

Although it's called a goldfish, it actually contains both goldfish and koi.

When Chen Ling released the fish fry, he couldn't separate the goldfish and koi.

After all, when freshly caught fish fry are put into the water, all you can see are two black eyes. They move around in the water like shrimp, without any obvious features.

It's been two months since I started raising them, and now I'm slowly able to tell them apart.

Koi are too small; people who don't know much about ornamental fish will mistake them for goldfish.

Although the fry haven't fully grown yet and look rather ordinary, their red, yellow, and mottled colors are generally considered more beautiful than betta fish.

"Can this be sold for money?" Wang Susu asked.

She knows Chen Ling very well; most things in the house, unless he particularly likes or cares about them, have other uses.

It may be edible, it may be sold, or it may be for aesthetic purposes.

For example, Chen Ling might like birds, but given his temperament, he would never like fish because fish are not smart and won't interact with him. After feeding them and enjoying their company, he would find them boring and uninteresting.

Wang Susu knows this about him best.

Therefore, these fish must have been raised for sale.

"Of course they can be sold. As long as they are well cared for, both the fish and the fighting fish can be sold for a good price."

Chen Ling changed the water in the water tank and placed it in the sun to let the warm sunlight shine on it.

Under the sunlight, clear water ripples gently in the tank, and small fish of various colors—red, black, and mottled—swim back and forth along the tank walls, bathed in the warm winter sun.

Wang Susu really liked the little fish. She held her son, looking at them and feeding them. The two of them had a great time.

Just then, Chen Ling said, "Have you settled the accounts for this year?"

"I've calculated it. Apart from a TV and a house in the city, which are the biggest expenses, there's not much else to spend money on."

Wang Susu pursed her lips. Buying a house in the city is nothing. It's just a house, and it's a place to live anyway.

But since the television cost so much money, she couldn't bear to say anything to her husband, but she also felt it was too wasteful.

We only have a little over 10,000 yuan left at home. Next year, we'll buy some farm machinery for 5,000 or 6,000 yuan, and then there won't be much left.

Chen Ling was naturally aware that his wife was somewhat resentful of his spending money recklessly.

After realizing that the money spent on the big color TV would be used to pay off a loan for a house, he had a really tough time with himself that night.

It's just that my son is too young to understand things. If he were more mature, wouldn't the brat make a fool of himself?
Afterwards, Wang Susu gave him money to pay it back as soon as possible.

Chen Ling explained that there was no rush and that it would be the same next year, but Wang Susu still wouldn't let him touch the money, treating it as if it had already been spent.

"It's okay, it's okay. Money is worthless. We can earn more when we run out, right?"

Seeing the resentment in his wife's eyes, Chen Ling quickly comforted her, "Come on, let's eat first. Since Mom and Dad went back, we've been eating slower and slower. It's so warm today, you and the child can take a nap after you finish eating."

Looking at her husband's gentle smile and her son's innocent, wide-eyed gaze fixed on them, Wang Susu couldn't muster any resentment.

So he handed his son over to Chen Ling to take care of, and went to get rice and make some supplementary food for his son.

In the blink of an eye, this little thing is already six months old.

Chen Ling had baptized his son in the grotto, so he was never worried about the little one's condition. He wasn't afraid of malnutrition or any adverse reactions from eating complementary foods.

He let Wang Susu clean up after him.

The two new parents have made rapid progress in all aspects over the past six months.

At first, when I was feeding my son complementary foods, I only gave him egg yolks.

But Rui Rui is such a greedy little rascal. He'll eat as much as you feed him, often swallowing it all in one gulp.

You can't eat egg yolk like that. He enjoyed it, but the discomfort came quickly.

I choked twice and then never dared to eat like that again.

Fearing that he might choke again, Chen Ling and the other man mixed the egg yolk into a paste with millet porridge and fed it to him.

This little one can eat two egg yolks in one sitting, and after eating, he will play for a while or sleep for a while, and then he will pester Wang Susu to nurse him.

Wang Susu bluntly stated that her son resembled his father, having always had a large appetite since childhood, and would definitely grow tall in the future.

Wang Susu served the food and set it on the table. Chen Ling put his son in the stroller and, together with his wife, prepared food for their son.

The freshly steamed eggs were a bit difficult to peel, so the two of them rolled them in cold water a few times and slowly peeled off the shells.

Then break the tender, fresh egg white apart, and put the remaining yolk into Rui Rui's special little bowl.

Put two egg yolks on the plate. If you can finish them, eat them; if not, Chen Ling will give them to his son.

Wang Susu watched as he poured in the rice porridge and began to mash the egg yolk with a spoon, stirring it into a paste. She then took a bib and tied it around her son's neck.

Rui Rui, the little guy, was half-lying in the stroller. He knew that his parents were preparing food for him and were about to feed him. He happily squinted his eyes, waved his little hands, and patted the railings on both sides of the stroller, making "hoho" laughter.

Wang Susu reached out and pinched her son's cheek. "You little rascal, I'll make sure you fall out of there soon."

"Be a good boy/girl, and Daddy will feed you today..."

As she spoke, she picked him up, placed him on her lap, and had Chen Ling feed him with a small spoon specifically for infants.

This isn't the first time Rui Rui has eaten like this. Every day, either his mother or his father feeds him. He learns quickly, and he's gone from being unaccustomed to the spoon and needing his parents to feed him with their fingers, to now happily opening his mouth and waiting for food when he sees his father coming over with the spoon.

"Little Rui Rui is such a good boy. He's eaten his fill, so he'll grow up quickly."

Watching her son happily munching on his food, Wang Susu's face beamed with a blissful smile.

Chen Ling smiled as well.

Especially after the little one finished eating half, she became happier and happier, even complaining that he was feeding her too slowly. She stretched out her little hands and craned her little head, trying to pry his hand holding the spoon closer to her.

Chen Ling laughed even harder, "Oh, you're complaining that Daddy's feeding you too slowly? Our Rui Rui can really eat. He's going to finish two egg yolks today."

Wang Susu wiped her son's mouth and said, "Here, have two egg yolks and take a nap."

When the couple first started feeding their son complementary foods, they were worried that the weather was cold and the farm wasn't very warm, so eating too much might cause indigestion.

But after several attempts, they managed to find out how much their son could eat.

This little rascal has a problem: he not only eats more than most babies, but he also digests food quickly. After eating, he takes a nap or plays for a while, and then he needs to poop very soon.

Gradually, Wang Susu stopped worrying.

Chen Ling was feeding her son when she saw him happily swinging his little feet and twisting restlessly on Wang Susu's lap. He was clearly enjoying the meal, so she deliberately teased him by lifting the spoon she was feeding him and feeding him into Wang Susu's mouth.

"Aww."

Wang Susu also swallowed it in one gulp, deliberately making an "ah-woo" sound at her son.

The little one stared in surprise, then looked at his father. On his mother's lap, he twisted his body anxiously, waving his little hands, looking very impatient.

"Fine, you little ingrate, you're unhappy that your mother is eating a little bit of your food?" Chen Ling said with a stern face.

Wang Susu, however, knew her son better than he did, and laughed, "That's not what you're saying. He just wants to learn how to feed people with a small spoon like you do."

These words surprised Chen Ling. Seeing the little one reaching out his little hand towards him, he was both amused and exasperated, and had to admit that his child's thoughts were different from other children's.

You thought he was being possessive of his food, but little did you know he just found the little spoon interesting and wanted to play with it.

Wang Susu then reminded him, "Don't give it to him. Whether you can catch him or not is another matter. If you do catch him, see him put it in his mouth."

That's how little kids are; whatever they get their hands on, they'll put it in their mouths to taste it first.

Chen Ling nodded and said with a smile, "You're still too young. You can use a spoon when you're older. Daddy will feed you now, okay?"

As he spoke, he scooped up a spoonful of egg yolk puree and fed it to Rui Rui. Rui Rui opened his mouth and ate it, but his bright, dark eyes were still fixed on the small spoon in Chen Ling's hand. After staring for a while, he suddenly stretched out his little hand and pointed at Wang Susu with "hmm, hmm".

This time Chen Ling understood, "Oh, Rui Rui wants me to feed Mommy too?"

"Okay, I'll feed Mom."

When Wang Susu saw her husband about to hand her the spoon again, she quickly waved her hand and said, "No, don't feed me this, it doesn't taste good."

Sometimes she doesn't really like the food these kids eat.

"Then let's eat egg whites..."

Chen Ling knew this about his wife, so he used a small spoon to break off a piece of egg white and fed it to Wang Susu: "Come on, open your mouth."

Wang Susu glanced at him, smiled, and ate the egg white.

When Chen Ling fed her, the little one in her arms tilted her head up and stared intently. After she finished eating, she hummed happily and then opened her little mouth to Chen Ling, indicating that he should feed her.

"You little rascal, you sure know how to get things done. You feed your mother first, then feed the baby, right?"

Chen Ling was amused; her son was indeed quite clever.

Wang Susu chuckled and pulled her son closer to her: "You little brat, Rui Rui, how old are you? I don't know how your little head works."

Chen Ling suddenly felt a great sense of accomplishment. He enthusiastically scooped out a spoonful of egg yolk puree and fed it to his son, then fed a piece of egg white to his wife, humming a little tune as he said, "Rui Rui eats the egg yolk, Su Su eats the egg white, come on, open your mouth."

He was busy feeding his wife and kids, but he didn't even have time to eat himself.

(End of this chapter)