Back to 1984: I built a chicken farm on a barren mountain.

Chen Shouyi asked the young man who sold water vats to bring two vats to his home. He then filled the two vats with water and carefully inspected them. He found a small flaw in one of the vats. Water vats in this era were made of coarse pottery and were not well-made.

This minor flaw wouldn't affect its use, but Chen Shouyi felt that a new tank should look like a new tank. Although he wasn't a meticulous person, he figured that since he had bought six tanks, he had to get the young man selling the tanks to charge him a little less.

The young man selling the water vats was honest; he said he would settle the bill once the other four vats were transported up the mountain.

Chen Shouyi wasn't in a hurry. After all, he had the money, and he was the boss; who was he afraid of?

By the time the other four vats were transported to Jiming Mountain, it was past lunchtime.

After the young man selling the jars delivered the four jars, he was also exhausted and soaked in sweat. Chen Shouyi didn't even have time to eat, so he asked Old Sun to bring out the leftovers from lunch.

Old Sun brought over a plate of scrambled eggs, a bowl of cabbage stew with vermicelli, and pancakes as the main dish.

Rather than leftovers, it's more accurate to say that food is left out normally. People in Jiming Mountain usually cook a lot of food at noon. Sometimes, when people are buying or selling eggs, they don't make it back in time for lunch, so they often have the habit of leaving food for others.

Chen Shouyi invited the young man selling water jars to sit down and eat. The young man, seeing how good the food was, felt a little embarrassed and said:

"Uncle, this food is so good, I feel bad if I don't pay, but I also feel bad about paying."

Seeing that the young man was honest and straightforward in his speech and actions, Chen Shouyi smiled and said:

"All farmers are one family. It's only natural that we'd treat them to a simple meal here!"

Chen Shouyi was actually telling the truth. Back then, people were simple and honest, and if you asked for water or food, people would be willing to help you.

The young man stopped being polite and started eating with Chen Shouyi. Chen Shouyi asked Old Sun if he had any beer, and Old Sun took out two bottles of beer, opened them with a bottle opener, and handed them to Chen Shouyi.

Chen Shouyi stepped aside for the young man, who politely replied:

"I don't drink alcohol anymore. Is this beer? I heard it's very expensive."

"It's not expensive, you can give it a try."

The young man drank a small bowl of beer at Chen Shouyi's hospitality, but he didn't quite like the taste.

Chen Shouyi recalled the first time he drank beer, and remembered his wife Wang Guizhi saying that beer tasted like swill, but now she could drink quite a lot of it.

People always need to embrace new things.

Although Chen Shouyi had a big appetite, it was not as good as when he was young. Besides, he had drunk beer. He wrapped an egg in a pancake and ate two pieces before feeling full.

When the young man selling the jars saw that Chen Shouyi wasn't eating anymore, he swept all the food up.

Chen Shouyi was astonished by the young man's appetite. Good heavens, he ate even more than he did when he was young!

The young man selling the jars had intended to leave some, but the food was delicious, and he was genuinely hungry, so he couldn't control himself and ate until he finished, feeling quite embarrassed. He said to Chen Shouyi:

"Uncle, these four jars are fine to keep on the mountain. The one at home has a slight defect, I'll give you a discount of 5 yuan."

Chen Shouyi thought he could just give up one or two yuan, but he was surprised to find that the young man who sold the jars gave up five yuan. He was very happy and gave the 80 yuan to the young man who sold the jars.

It was clear the young man was also very happy. Seeing that the chicken farm was built on the mountain, he suddenly asked:

"Could our village, Black Fox Valley, be just behind that mountain?"

"This is Black Fox Valley. We're quite destined to meet. If I need anything on the mountain in the future, I can ask you to buy it for me."

Hearing Chen Shouyi's promise, the young man was even happier. He grinned, revealing his white teeth, looking extremely honest and kind.

......

......

When Chen Shouyi returned home, Wang Guizhi was tidying up the house. She had just returned home after visiting Jiang Chunying earlier that day.

She was puzzled by the sudden addition of two water vats to the house, and when Chen Shouyi returned, she quickly asked him about it.

Chen Shouyi said his son bought them; one was for pickling sauerkraut, and the other was for bathing.

"Are we landlords or rich people? We bought two water vats in one go."

"It's not two water vats, it's six! There are four more on the mountain!"

Six mouths! Wang Guizhi wanted to check if Chen Shouyi had a fever, since he had bought so many for no reason.

Chen Shouyi said with a clear conscience:

"Anyway, your son is spending money, shouldn't you, as his mother, be happy? Haha!"

"I'm happy, but speaking of which, how much did these six water tanks cost?"

"Eighty-five yuan!"

That's really expensive; eighty-five yuan is equivalent to half a year's wages for a farmer.

Although she said that, Wang Guizhi was still very satisfied with the addition of household items. Women, after all, love to add things to their homes.

Chen Shouyi was even more pleased. Not only did his household gain more belongings, but he also pocketed five yuan.

He wasn't usually a very calculating person, but ever since Chen Wenfeng started earning money for the family, Wang Guizhi has become very strict with money, saying it's for Wenfeng to find a wife. Matchmakers have been knocking on the door, but they haven't found anyone yet. The children have their own ideas, and he doesn't want to rush things.

It turned out that Wang Guizhi disliked Chen Shouyi for being showy, so she didn't tell him about Chen Wenfeng and Zheng Xuejiao.

Wang Guizhi and Zhang Caifeng are truly best friends; they're both incredibly tight-lipped.

"Achoo, achoo!"

Zhang Caifeng kept sneezing at her parents' home. Who was talking about her?

She couldn't help but curse, guessing it was probably that good-for-nothing Zheng Dali again.

A few days ago, Zhang Caifeng's father fell ill, so she took Zheng Xuejiao and Xiaodouzi back to her parents' home to visit him. When Zheng Dali arrived, Zhang Caifeng asked him to take her daughter and son home, and she stayed at her parents' home for several days.

In the past few days, Han Laosi and Qin Xiaofen seized the opportunity to make a move against Zheng Dali.

Back then, Qin Xiaofen was always close to Zheng Dali, buying meat every few days. But as she bought meat, Qin Xiaofen noticed that Zheng Dali seemed to be less interested in Zheng Xuejiao's marriage.

Although Zheng Dali didn't refute anything she said, he was a straightforward guy who wore his thoughts on his sleeve.

How could Qin Xiaofen not understand?

She knew that it was probably impossible for her to arrange a marriage for Zheng Xuejiao; all that buying of meat had been for nothing!

Qin Xiaofen was unwilling to give up, so she went to Li Cuie again. Li Cuie still had the same tone: it was okay to take Han Laosi's money, but it was not okay to touch the girl from Chenjiazhuang!

Damn, you have principles, you're high and mighty, you think you're so great!

Seeing Qin Xiaofen looking worried, Han Laosi came up with a terrible idea.

He set up a betting scheme to make Zheng Dali lose big time. Zheng Dali didn't dare tell his wife about losing money, so he had to find a way to win her over with a high dowry.

And so, taking advantage of Zhang Caifeng's visit to her parents' home, Han Laosi had Chen Shouxin arrange for Zheng Dali to meet with him.

Of course, despite all his calculations, Han Laosi overlooked Chen Wenfeng.