Back to 1992, slingshot hunting skill points!

"Brother, brother, fireflies, let's go catch fireflies!"

Lin Chuan looked up and saw that there were indeed specks of firefly light floating in the shadows of the bushes and shrubs.

"Okay, Xiaoyang, do you have any canning jars?"

"Yes, I'll go get it."

Lin Yangxing ran back and grabbed two canning jars.

Canned food is a common New Year's gift here; every household has the can.

The current canned goods have roll-top lids, not screw-on lids. Once the roll-top lid is pried open, it's useless, so there are no lids.

However, Lin Yang carefully took two pieces of cloth, which showed that he had a lot of experience in catching fireflies.

To catch fireflies, you need to put some grass or twigs in the bottle so they have a place to crawl, otherwise they will easily die.

Lin Xue and Lin Yue excitedly grabbed a bottle and headed into the woods. Lin Yang handed another bottle to Lin Chuan, who smiled and took it, patting Lin Yang on the head.

Touching someone's head would seem rather abrupt and disliked by many people in later generations, but in this context, it's a way of expressing affection.

Lin Yang chuckled twice after being touched, and ran forward to catch fireflies.

Lin Chuan followed behind, watching him and Lin Feng catch the prey while he took over the catching.

Laughter came from the woods from Lin Xue and Lin Yue, which puzzled the girl; they seemed to get along very well.

The men were a bit less talkative; Lin Feng and Lin Yang were both quiet, but under Lin Chuan's direction, they slowly started to speak.

"You two go over there, there are more people there."

"Second brother, shall I grab it from this side, and you grab it from that side?"

"Okay, hey, Xiaoyang, squat down. There are several of them huddled together under you. Oh no, they flew away."

"Second brother, you have some down there too, yes, right there, there are some on the left side as well."

With Lin Feng and Lin Yang working together, Lin Chuan quickly accumulated quite a few glass bottles, which glittered inside.

Lin Chuan covered the bottle opening with a cloth, lay down on the withered pine needles, and patted the side:

"Xiao Yang, come here."

"Eh."

Hearing Lin Chuan call, Lin Yang immediately ran over and lay down next to him at Lin Chuan's signal.

Lin Chuan felt a sense of closeness to the chubby-faced Lin Yang. This boy was ten years old this year, seven years younger than him.

The two didn't have much interaction in later years, only meeting during the New Year. Mainly because Lin Chuan didn't come back often after that. By the time he returned and settled down in the bay, Lin Yang had moved to another place.

However, when they interacted, Lin Yang always treated him with respect, and their relationship was not bad.

Most importantly, Lin Yang is a really nice person. One year he brought back a local snack that Lin Chuan said was delicious. After that, he brought it back for Lin Chuan every year, and would send it back even if he didn't come back.

In addition, because of his uncle's relationship with Lin Yang, Lin Chuan felt increasingly close to him the more he looked at him.

"Here, give me your hand."

"Brother, what are you doing?" Lin Yang asked, but his actions were not hesitant as he reached out his hand to Lin Chuan.

"Here, this is for you."

Lin Chuan took off his digital watch and put it on Lin Yang's wrist. Children can't hide their eyes, and this kid had already been sneaking peeks at him with those longing eyes countless times.

"Brother, I can't take this. My dad will scold me."

"It's okay, I'll go talk to your dad and ask him not to scold you."

"But, but this is too expensive. I... I'd better return it to you. I can't accept it."

The old man's family toiled in the fields all year round. They never went hungry, but they also never made much money.

Especially now that Lin Yang and Lin Yue have started school, we need to be even more careful with money.

Adults' attitudes toward spending money can influence children. Although Lin Yang liked it very much, he thought it was too expensive and dared not accept it.

"Hmm~, how about this, I'll lend it to you for a few days, and you can return it to me when you leave, okay?"

Lin Chuan already had experience with this; he would delay things if necessary.

Let them wear it for a few days first. In these few days, hunt more wild boars and make some money for them. Once they've seen money, they won't feel that the 40-yuan watch is expensive.

As his own family members, especially those who were good to his family, Lin Chuan naturally hoped that they would also have a better life.

When Lin Chuan asked to borrow it, Lin Yang's chubby face contorted into a bun. After Lin Chuan said a few more words, he finally put it on.

"elder sister."

After putting it on, Lin Yang became more and more satisfied. He told Lin Chuan, "I'm going to see my sister," and ran off.

Lin Chuan knew he wanted to show off, so he didn't stop him.

A moment later, Lin Yue emerged from the woods, holding a watch in her hand, and handed it to Lin Chuan:

"Brother, why did you give him the watch? He can't accept it."

"Sister, no, I mean, I mean, I'll lend it to you."

Lin Yang whispered behind Lin Yue, his face dejected. He hadn't expected that showing off would have such serious consequences.

Lin Yue ignored him and continued holding up the watch. Lin Chuan took the watch, pulled Lin Yang over, and put it on his wrist again.

"I'm the older brother, it's fine for Xiaoyang to wear it for a few days," Lin Chuan waved his hand when he saw Lin Yue still wanted to speak.

"Okay, I'll talk to your dad about it later. That's all for now."

Lin Chuan hadn't expected Lin Yue to react this way. In the later years, Lin Yue married far away and rarely came back, so the two didn't have much interaction and didn't know anything about each other's character.

But judging from this incident, he is someone who has his own opinions and principles.

Around six o'clock, as darkness began to fall, Lin Chuan led them back.

When Lin Chuan returned, he saw that Lin Yue had gone to find Lin He, and sure enough, his uncle came looking for him shortly afterward.

He didn't look for Lin Chuan, but went straight to Wang Yang, reaching out his hand to him:

"Give it to me."

Wang Yang pouted and reluctantly took off his watch and handed it to his father.

"Uncle, Xiao Yang likes it, I'll let him wear it for a few days, it's fine."

"Just because Xiaoyang likes it doesn't mean I don't?"

Lin He didn't hand the watch to Lin Chuan; he put it on his own wrist, glanced at it a few times, nodded in satisfaction, and then walked away happily.

"Wife, wife."

Lin Yang's face was grim. It would have been better if he had returned it to Lin Chuan, but his own father hadn't returned it either and had taken it himself. The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt, and tears streamed down his face.

"Alright, it wasn't yours to begin with. If it's gone, it's gone. Don't cry."

Lin Yue stepped forward to comfort him, but her words only made Lin Yang angrier:

"It's all your fault! If you hadn't called Dad over, nothing would have happened. You little devil, boohoo..."

The more Lin Yang thought about it, the angrier he became, and he finally burst into tears.

Lin Yue was also furious. She felt that she hadn't done anything wrong in disciplining her younger brother.

They were in a corner of the yard. When they saw the adults looking over, Lin Chuan quickly gave Lin Feng a wink.

Lin Feng walked towards Lin Yang, while Lin Chuan pulled Lin Yue along.

Lin Yue was being led forward by Lin Chuan, her head always down. After walking for a minute, she suddenly looked up at Lin Chuan:

"Brother, did I do something wrong?"

"No, you did the right thing."

The girl in front of him had a stubborn expression and her eyes were misty. She was only one year older than Lin Yang, just eleven years old.

Lin Chuan patted her head:

"Your intentions are good. Xiaoyang is still young, and as his older sister, it's definitely right for you to guide him."

"Then why is he blaming me?"

Lin Chuan betrayed Lin Yang without hesitation: "He's just young and doesn't know any better."

When Lin Yue heard Lin Chuan say this, she thought of her immature brother and unreliable father, and felt that things were too difficult.

The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt, and tears streamed down her face.

(I originally wrote a lot of reasoning here, but it was too wordy, so I'll just sell Lin Yang in the end. Next chapter is about hunting wild boars; no more daily tasks.)