Exciting 1979!

Chapter 148 Panda Charmer Lao Wei (Guaranteed 2 more monthly tickets required)

It took almost two more days to get home. When we arrived in Chengdu, it was already afternoon. If we didn’t get back to the village in time, we would have to find a place to spend the night.

Brother Lao Wan’s jeep had probably been returned long ago, so my uncle took them to the bus station and caught the last bus back to Ya’an.

It was dark when we arrived in Ya'an. My uncle found a donkey cart from Ya'an back to the town. He chose a place closest to the village to get off. When he walked home, it was already 10 o'clock in the evening.

Everyone in the house was asleep, but the three of them came back and lit the lights, and the house became lively again.

The three of them hadn't eaten dinner yet, so my aunt and Xu Shufen immediately went to make arrangements: "I'll save some meat for you."

The old lady looked over expectantly, only to see her son shaking his head silently.

There was a trace of sadness in her eyes, but she still comforted him: "It's okay, we can always find it."

Wei Ming also said: "Grandma, there are a few more suspected places. I will go there a few more times during the summer vacation."

Hearing their conversation, Xu Shufen, who was busy cooking, sighed.

"Where are Dad and Xiaohong? Are they sleeping so soundly?" Wei Ming noticed that a few people were missing.

Xu Shufen brought out the dishes and said, "I almost forgot, your father helped your uncle catch a giant panda, and Xiaohong is also busy with it."

"What!" Wei Ming and Long Xiaoyang stood up immediately. After hearing the news, they couldn't eat anymore.

Long Xiaoyang was purely curious, while Wei Ming was worried that Old Wei would become an outlaw.

Wei Ming wondered if it was the one he and Xiaoyang saw that night, so he quickly ate a few mouthfuls of food and went to watch the fun. However, his uncle no longer had such curiosity and now just wanted to talk to his mother and second sister.

And Xu Shufen just happened to have something to tell him.

Before leaving, Wei Ming asked again: "Where's Yunyun? Is she also at my uncle's house?"

My aunt glanced at her room and said, "Her marriage has been cancelled, and she is feeling very upset."

"Oh, it's already blown?" Wei Ming was very happy and asked with concern, "Why did it blow?"

My aunt did not hide her happiness at all. She said to Wei Ming, "After you left, they came to propose marriage again. Before your uncle left, he said that it couldn't be settled without his approval, so we said we would wait a little longer. The other party was not angry, but just kept talking to your husband."

"What did my old man say?"

"Your husband just told them the truth and said he was just a farmer. They didn't believe it. They said farmers can be picked up and dropped off by car. Your husband said it was just a coincidence and they gave me a ride out of kindness. Then they changed their attitude and forced me to get engaged. The conditions they offered were a bit bullying."

Wei Ming nodded: "What happened next?"

"Later, our county chief came and said he wanted to see you. The news spread to their village, and then their attitude changed again, becoming even more polite than before."

My aunt snorted, "Now that stupid girl Yunyun has seen clearly what kind of family that is. It's fine that she took the initiative to propose this marriage, but she still feels a little uncomfortable."

Wei Ming said: "Once you get out there and see the world, you won't think that's a big deal anymore."

A gleam of light flashed in my aunt's eyes. My second sister had already told her that she wanted to take us to live in Hebei, and also wanted to take Yunyun with her.

In their opinion, that place is rich and close to Yanjing. With a capable cousin like Wei Ming to take care of them, they might be able to become residents of the capital in the future.

Although it is too far away, as long as the children are living well, it doesn’t matter if it is farther away.

So she has already agreed, and the next step is to convince Wei Ming's uncle.

~
Wei Ming and Long Xiaoyang returned to their aunt's house excitedly, only to see a kerosene lamp hanging in the sheep pen and a lot of people gathered outside. They were not sleepy at all even in the middle of the night.

Long Xiaoyang snorted, "I hope you won't eat my lamb!"

When I got closer, I saw that the lamb was tied outside and was safe.

"Brother!" Wei Hong spotted them and said excitedly, "Make way, my brother is here!"

Xiaohong pushed the crowd aside to let Wei Minglong and Xiaoyang squeeze in, and then saw Lao Wei in the sheepfold holding a giant panda the size of a lamb.

So big? Wei Ming was dumbfounded: "Dad, is this the giant panda you caught?"

He thought Lao Wei was so powerful that he could fight the iron-eating beast alone!
Old Wei was holding the giant panda and was so adorable: "Xiao Ming, please take a picture for me!"

Wei Ming: "Maybe tomorrow. It won't be clear in this light condition."

Lao Wei: "Okay, take a color photo of us tomorrow."

Wei Ming: So this is my new brother!

My aunt and uncle were a little tired, so they dispersed the crowd of onlookers. Before leaving, the village party secretary repeatedly reminded them: "You must ensure the safety of the pandas. Don't harm them, and don't let them go. People from the forestry department will come to deal with it tomorrow."

As soon as the people left, Wei Ming hurried into the sheepfold: "Dad, let me touch it!"

"Don't scare it." Old Wei rocked the little giant panda in his arms, as gently as when he held Xiao Ming and Xiao Hong when they were children.

Wei Ming touched it gently. The panda looked at the person who touched it and it would do whatever the panda wanted. It would just do whatever Old Wei touched, but it would grimace when Wei Ming touched it.

But it was too small, and Wei Ming just thought it was so cute.

Wei Ming asked: "Is it the one that came to steal the sheep?"

"No, it was its mother, but she was scared away by us and she didn't take it with her when she ran away, and then she was captured by me." Lao Wei talked about the specific details of how he captured the panda cub.

It was originally a very dull story, about a sheep thief who brought his child to commit a crime, but was so panicked after being discovered that he left the child at the crime scene. But after he told the story, the story became doubly exciting.

Wei Ming thought of his aunt who had been lost since childhood: "It would be best if she could be sent back to her biological mother."

Old Wei: "The branch secretary has already reported it. We can't handle it ourselves now." As he was speaking, Long Xiaoyang came in, holding a plate of venison cut into strips that he brought from his uncle.

Next, Lao Wei was responsible for feeding it meat. It also recognized Lao Wei and would show its teeth when Wei Ming and Long Xiaoyang fed it.

Lao Wei has been dealing with animals for many years, and it seems that he has a smell that makes pandas feel at ease.

"Dad, do you sleep with it like this at night?"

Old Wei said nonchalantly, "When I was delivering babies for the animals in the village, I often slept in the cowshed or sheepfold. I just spread some grass and slept. It was no big deal."

Wei Ming: "Then Xiaoyang and I will accompany you."

Long Xiaoyang: "Ah, why is there something about me?"

Wei Ming reached out and pulled him over: "Come on, Xiaoyang."

If you don't sleep with us, where will Xiaohong sleep?

In this way, the three grown men spent the whole night in the sheepfold, chatting all night, and the panda cub would occasionally call out to echo them.

Wei Ming first told Lao Wei about his unsuccessful trip to Yunnan to find his relatives.

Long Xiaoyang: He didn’t say that he has an actress friend in Yunnan, who is so beautiful!

Then Wei Ming asked Lao Wei to talk about his memory of his grandfather Wei Senhao, so as to enrich the details of his new novel.

"As for your grandfather, I suspect he was doing underground work. Although I have no evidence, he went to big cities like Shanghai and Harbin during the Anti-Japanese War. A serious Eighth Route Army soldier would not have gone there..."

~
The next day, when the warm sun shone on Wei Ming's face, he woke up, but Old Wei Xiaoyang and the panda were still sleeping.

He stood up quietly, opened the cover of the camera around his neck, found an angle, and with a "click", it was done!

The photo was taken in color. Although the panda is black and white, Lao Wei is wearing blue.

The panda expert from the forestry department arrived very quickly. Xiaohong had just helped Wei Ming take a photo with the panda when they arrived, and they came from Chengdu.

They wanted to take the panda away, but since it had been separated from its mother, it could only be taken to a panda protection institution for artificial breeding.

However, some problems arose in the process of Lao Wei handing over the panda. The panda stayed in Lao Wei's arms and was very repulsive to the experts.

Lao Wei joked: "If the country provides bamboo, I can definitely grow it into a plump and white one."

The expert also laughed: "Brother, did you give it some kind of drug to make it so close to you?"

Old Wei said proudly: "I am naturally attracted to these things."

"From the accent, he doesn't look like a local."

"We are from Hebei and come here to visit relatives." Wei Ming said.

Lao Wei: "How about letting me hold it again? You guys should go back to Rongcheng today. It's perfect. Let's go together. I'll give it to you when it's asleep in Rongcheng."

The expert thought for a moment and said, "Okay, but you can't leave here now."

Wei Ming then returned to his uncle's house, packed his luggage and prepared to leave, including the luggage of his grandmother and cousin Yunyun.

Although my eldest uncle was reluctant to let my mother go to a strange place, my second sister also missed her, and my mother said that she would come back after staying for a while.

Wei Ming said to his mother, "Mom, we have to go to my aunt's house to pick up my dad. He is having a good time with his naughty son right now and can't come over."

Wei Hong also said sourly: "That's right, when we were little, did dad also hold us like this all night? No."

Xu Shufen poked her forehead with a smile, "Of course you didn't. When you were a kid, you had colic at night and cried all night long. You could only sleep well if I held you. Your father and I held you all night long, and we would walk while holding you. If we stopped, you would cry."

Wei Hong said awkwardly: "Is there such a thing?"

Wei Ming: "I seem to have the same impression, did I hold him there too?"

"Yes, your brother also held you through the night, and he was so sensible even at the age of wetting the bed."

Wei Ming and Wei Hong were embarrassed now, and hurriedly urged: "Let's not talk about that anymore, let's go."

When the panda experts saw the large group of people, they were shocked: "Our car can't accommodate so many people!"

The uncle and his friends followed, and Wei Ming said with a smile, "It's just a few of us, the others are here to give away."

There were four people when we came, and two more when we left.

Because they misjudged the size of the pandas, they drove a small truck that was big enough to take so many people away.

Finally, there was another round of reluctance to part. Grandma and her children and grandchildren were reluctant to leave, Yunyun and her parents, brothers and sisters were reluctant to leave, and Long Xiaoyang was the most reluctant: I also want to get out of the mountains!
"Shufen, no, you can't take this money!"

At the last moment before getting on the bus, Xu Shufen suddenly took action and stuffed a handful of money into the eldest brother's pocket, leaving him no chance to refuse.

"Brother, you guys take care of yourself and don't delay Pingping and Fangfang's schooling!" Xu Shufen shed tears and waved goodbye to her brother's family.

The eldest sister's family is better off, so Xu Shufen didn't take action. But if the eldest brother's family doesn't take action, their lives will be too hard. He has suffered for too long, so let him have a taste of sweetness!

……

(Please give me a monthly ticket!)

(End of this chapter)