The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 90 Zhang Hong

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(Two questions, one about "dedication to the country," this is setting the stage for what's to come, and I certainly won't say why now.)

The second issue concerns extraterrestrial creatures. Although Yang Ming purchased 400 species, he only released six. The rest are still in the warehouse. Besides, isn't there a large tortoise there? It's so big; it can only be placed in the sea. Where would you put it on land? Just like the Gray Spirit Rats he bought, they stayed in the warehouse for a long time. Items purchased through the sales system first go into the warehouse. While inanimate farm tools can be stored after being taken out, living creatures cannot. Once captured, they go directly into the farm space.

Zhang Hong was the physical education teacher assigned to Zhengjia Village. She was a rather clever and beautiful girl with a tall figure and a pretty face. Like an orchid, she was gentle yet strong.

The teachers' dormitory in Zhengjia Village was actually a small single room partitioned off from the school. It was just right for Wang Li to live alone. If there were more people, it would be too crowded. Therefore, Zhang Hong was arranged by Zheng Dabao to live at Liu Sao's house. After all, there were three women in Liu Sao's house, and the kang (heated brick bed) was spacious enough. It wouldn't be a problem for one more person to live there.

Zhang Hong's meals were also provided by Liu's family; the village gave Liu a suitable subsidy every month.

That evening, Zheng Dabao, Wang Li, and several village officials gathered at Yang Ming's house to welcome Teacher Zhang back. It's said that the food at Yang Ming's house was the best in the village.

Also present at the banquet were Yang Ming, Wei Qingqing, Aunt Liu, Liu Nannan, and Xiao Bao'er. However, Xiao Bao'er was rather reserved and not as lively as usual. It is said that all primary school students are rather afraid of their teachers.

Everyone stayed up until 10 p.m., when Zhang Hong deliberately yawned a few times before Zheng Dabao left with a few village officials, taking Wang Li back to her dormitory on the way.

"Teacher Zhang is sleepy, let's go to sleep," said Aunt Liu.

"Great! I've wanted to sleep on a heated kang bed for ages, but I've never had the chance. This time, my wish will finally come true!" Zhang Hong said excitedly.

"Mommy, I want to sleep at my godfather's house," Xiao Bao said pitifully, pulling on his mother's hand.

"Okay, okay..." Aunt Liu readily agreed, knowing that her daughter would find it very uncomfortable to sleep in the same room as her teacher all of a sudden.

"Little Bao'er, be a good boy/girl while you sleep, okay? Tomorrow, your teacher will wake you up so we can exercise together." Zhang Hong pinched Little Bao'er's little nose.

"Oh..." Xiao Bao'er responded timidly.

"Brother Yang, Sister Wei, see you tomorrow..." Zhang Hong greeted Yang Ming and his wife with a smile, and then left with Aunt Liu and her niece Liu Nannan.

As night deepened, Xiao Bao'er fell asleep at the head of the kang (heated brick bed), while Yang Ming and Wei Qingqing lay at the foot of the kang, talking quietly.

"Something suddenly came to mind when I saw the dairy processing machine today." Yang Ming hugged Wei Qingqing tightly.

"What is it?" Wei Qingqing asked.

"Processing machines! We have textile machines, dairy processing machines, and if we also have meat processing machines and egg processing machines, as long as our livestock aren't discovered, we can openly sell our agricultural products," Yang Ming said.

Since Xiao Bao'er was asleep inside, Yang Ming still spoke ambiguously, even though he knew Bao'er was asleep, as long as Wei Qingqing could understand him.

"What you said makes sense. As long as you can't tell the original appearance, it doesn't matter how we sell it. For example, if the meat tastes really strange, we can't just say it's artificial meat, can we?" Wei Qingqing said.

"That's right..." Yang Ming whispered excitedly.

"But we're not short of money, why raise so many kinds of livestock?" Wei Qingqing said.

"Your husband is of noble character, isn't he? We'll gradually disperse these livestock so that everyone can have more delicious food on the table..." Yang Ming said smugly.

"Hmph, I don't see anything noble about him. He just seems foolish and always causing trouble. Be careful he doesn't attract attention."

"Hmph, that's how society is. If he needs to know something, you can't hide it from him; he can guess pretty much anything. If he doesn't need to know something, even if you explain it all to him, he might not believe you," Yang Ming laughed.

"Nonsense..." Wei Qingqing rolled her eyes at Yang Ming, then buried her head in Yang Ming's arms and fell asleep comfortably.

In the dead of night, the sky was pitch black, without a single star in sight. Suddenly, a frantic barking of dogs rang out. Yang Ming quickly turned on the light, got up, threw on his clothes, and ran outside. He recognized the barking as coming from his own backyard dog. The dog's fierce barking meant that someone had sneaked into the backyard. This both shocked and enraged Yang Ming. His backyard was home to quite a few alien creatures; what would happen if they were discovered?

"What happened?" Wei Qingqing was also surprised and uncertain, but she did not go out. Instead, she comforted the little baby who had been awakened.

Yang Ming went to the back garden and saw a group of puppies squatting on the ground, barking wildly. However, he didn't see any people. Judging from the position of the puppies, they were all facing outwards. Obviously, the thief hadn't entered the back garden to investigate before being stopped by the puppies. Otherwise, these puppies wouldn't be so leisurely; they would have already given chase.

"..." Yang Ming looked around but found nothing suspicious, so he could only go home in a huff. When the puppies saw their owner leave, they all went back to their resting places and went to sleep.

"What happened?" Wei Qingqing had just finished putting Xiao Bao to sleep and was about to go out when Yang Ming returned and asked hurriedly.

"Someone got into our backyard, and the puppies spotted him, but they couldn't catch him," Yang Ming said, somewhat annoyed.

"Then, do you know who it is?" Wei Qingqing asked.

"I don't know, but I guess it has something to do with Zhang Lanhua's family." Yang Ming took off his clothes and got onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Should we call the police?" Wei Qingqing said worriedly.

If we involve the police, we can simply put those alien creatures into the farm space for a while.

"What's the use of calling the police? We don't have any concrete evidence against them. Are we just going to let the police arrest them based on guesswork?" Yang Ming crawled into bed.

"What should we do then?" Wei Qingqing turned on the light, plunging the room into darkness once again.

"What do you mean, what do we do? We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Our little bastard may be an animal, but he's not stupid. If there's a next time, he'll definitely make that guy suffer," Yang Ming said.

"We came to Zhengjia Village hoping for some peace and quiet, but we've run into all sorts of trouble," Wei Qingqing complained.

"That's life, that's how it is. Life has five flavors, so savor it." Yang Ming sighed deeply.

"You're just too soft-hearted. Yesterday... no, the day before yesterday, you shouldn't have let them get away with it. They dared to come to our house. They've gone too far." Wei Qingqing was still resentful that she couldn't fight alongside her husband the night before last, which was the root cause of her constant picking fights with Aunt Liu.

"Nonsense, do you know how many of them there are? About a hundred. How many dogs do we have? Not even fifty. How are we going to deal with them?" Yang Ming rolled his eyes, but Wei Qingqing couldn't see it.

"Hmph, if our Big White could come out, it could take care of them all by itself." Wei Qingqing said somewhat unconvinced. The Big White she was referring to was the male Alaskan Malamute puppy, while the female one was named Little White by her.

"Big White is too big, won't it be mistaken for a monster?" Yang Ming said.

"No matter how big it is, it's still a dog..." Wei Qingqing said.

"Yes, yes, yes, next time I encounter something like this, I'll definitely bring out Big White to help." It's already late at night, and waves of sleepiness are washing over him, so Yang Ming just went along with the conversation.

It was still dark outside, but a ray of golden dawn shone through the sky, immersing the entire village in the fresh morning sun. A new day had begun.

knock knock...

A knock on the door startled the three people who were fast asleep inside. They turned on the light and checked the time: 5:30.

"Bao'er, wake up, let's exercise together with your teacher..." Zhang Hong's voice rang out from outside the door.

"Hmph..." Xiao Bao'er looked miserable and refused to get out of bed.

"Alright, alright, get up..." Wei Qingqing pinched the little one's pink and tender cheeks, pulled her up, and dressed her.

"Mommy, it's still early before class, I want to sleep," Xiao Bao'er pleaded, pouting.

"No way... The teacher has already blocked your bed, and you still dare to sleep in."

"Mmm..." the little one began to whine.

"Being cute won't work," Wei Qingqing said as she put her socks on. "But Daddy can keep you company..."

"Why me?" Yang Ming asked, his face contorted in pain.

"Since it's time to make breakfast anyway, why don't you get up a little earlier?" Wei Qingqing pleaded.

"And you?" Yang Ming asked.

"Me? Women who don't get enough sleep will get dark circles and eye bags," Wei Qingqing said.

"I'm a woman too..." Xiao Bao'er protested.

"You don't count, you're still a little kid," Wei Qingqing said.

After sending the father and daughter away, Wei Qingqing crawled back into her warm bed and started to take a nap. Sleeping on the warm kang (heated brick bed) was exceptionally comfortable, and in such an environment, it was easy to have sweet dreams.

Yang Ming told Xiao Bao'er to go wash her face first, and then went to greet Teacher Zhang Hong.

"Is it good that you're sleeping on a heated kang bed for the first time, Teacher Zhang?" Yang Ming greeted Zhang Hong as he opened the door.

"It's alright, it's just not very quiet at night. The dogs bark and it never stops," Zhang Hong said with a smile.

"Hehe, we caught a petty thief last night. He was trying to sneak into our backyard and harm our livestock, but our dog found him," Yang Ming said with a laugh.

"So that's what happened? Then... is this village not very safe? There are only a few women in Liu's family, will they be bullied at night...?" Zhang Hong looked worried.

"No, no one in the village dares to bully Sister Liu..." Yang Ming said.

"So you mean the thief from last night was from this village?" Zhang Hong asked with surprise. "It seems there are still deep conflicts within Zhengjia Village."

"Uh..." Yang Ming didn't know what to say for a moment.

"Teacher, I'm done washing..." Xiao Bao'er walked over timidly after washing her face.

"Brother Yang, Bao'er and I are going to exercise..." Zhang Hong called out, grabbed Bao'er and ran out. The two jogged to the gravel road and ran back and forth on it.

"Is this girl really stupid or just pretending? She doesn't seem innocent at all..." Yang Ming frowned and pondered as he watched Zhang Hong's retreating figure.

Seeing that it was still early, Yang Ming went to the farm to milk the cows.

Today, we milked less milk than yesterday, only 100 kilograms. We set aside 150 kilograms as welfare for the greenhouse workers, and the remaining 50 kilograms, along with goat milk and dog milk, were put into the dairy processing machine by Yang Ming to be processed into beautifully packaged boxed milk.

There's a trick to distributing benefits to workers. For example, when it comes to milk, it's best to have each family bring a large thermos and fill it up. This is similar to the distribution method used in the communal dining era, which can create a sense of cohesion. If you just give out boxed milk directly, this sense of cohesion won't be as strong.

Yang Ming picked up a carton of milk and looked at it. On the outer packaging of the milk was printed an adorable cow. The printing quality was very good, and it looked extremely realistic. With a gentle shake, the thick milk made a gurgling sound.

Remove the straw, insert it into the small hole on the box, and gently suck to fill your mouth with rich, fragrant milk.

After finishing a carton of milk, Yang Ming then drank a carton of goat milk and a carton of dog milk, and immediately felt refreshed and full of energy.

After finishing all this, Yang Ming glanced at his watch and realized it was getting late; it was time to make breakfast. So, he picked up a few boxes of milk and headed home.

It's easy for women to be enemies, but it's not difficult to be friends either; this skill transcends age.

Previously, Xiao Bao'er was extremely afraid of Teacher Zhang, but after exercising with Teacher Zhang for a morning, she completely accepted Teacher Zhang and started laughing and playing with her. Her silvery laughter sounded exceptionally clear and pleasant in the quiet morning.

Smoke curls from the chimneys, and the aroma of cooked food fills the air.

"Dinner's ready..." Yang Ming stood at the gate of the courtyard, calling out to the two women, one big and one small, who were having a blast.

Since Wei Qingqing was still sleeping in the east room and the windows were not open, the air was not circulating and some body odor was quite unpleasant. Therefore, the kang table was placed on the floor of the outer room. There were two cups of hot milk, a plate of scrambled eggs, a plate of pickled vegetables, two peaches, and two bowls of thin porridge. Overall, today's breakfast was quite light, but nutritious.

"You guys eat, I'm going to take over and go to sleep." Yang Ming washed his hands and went into the east room.

Zhang Hong and Xiao Bao'er had played all morning and were quite tired, so they sat down at the table to eat.

Looking at the breakfast on the table, which was light yet had an enticing aroma, Zhang Hong's expression changed.

"This milk smells so good..." Zhang Hong said after taking a sip of milk.

"Teacher, the milk from my dad's house comes from Inner Mongolia, and it's the best-tasting." Xiao Bao'er also picked up the milk and took a sip.

"Inner Mongolia?" Zhang Hong's eyes lit up, but then disappeared. "Hmm, it does have that feel to it..."

"Teacher, have a peach..." Xiao Bao'er handed a big peach to Zhang Hong.

"Oh, thank you, Bao'er. I really didn't expect to be able to eat peaches in this season..." Zhang Hong exclaimed.

"Dad said it was transported from the south, and Dad's family also grows it in their greenhouse..." Xiao Bao said.

"Hmm..." Zhang Hong nodded.

"Teacher, you're eating scrambled eggs. Dad added something to them, so they taste different from regular scrambled eggs..." Xiao Bao put a big piece of scrambled eggs on Teacher Zhang's plate.

Zhang Hong took a small bite of the scrambled egg and felt that apart from being more delicate than a regular egg, the texture was not much different. However, the taste had a strange flavor. This strange flavor rolled on her tongue and made her mouth water. She couldn't help but praise it as delicious.

After the two finished their meal, they went to the school together. Yang Ming, who was hiding in the room, frowned.

At noon, a black Mercedes stopped under the big willow tree in front of the house. Amidst the barking of puppies, Wei Jianguo and Xue Hua got out of the car together.

"Yang Ming, Qingqing, how's my little yellow dog?" Wei Jianguo shouted at the top of his lungs as soon as he got out of the car.

"We're here to look after our daughter and son-in-law, why are you always thinking about your lousy dog? What will our daughter and son-in-law think of you as their elder if they hear this?" Xue Hua said with dissatisfaction.

Xue Hua had lived here for a while, and he led Wei Jianguo into the house with ease, only to find that there was no one inside.

"Where are they?" Wei Jianguo asked.

"If he's not inside, then he must be at the hot spring pool..." Xue Hua said, pushing open the back door and walking towards the hot spring pool.

"The back garden? Why is this area fenced off?" Xue Hua asked, puzzled.

"What? Wasn't it circled before?" Wei Jianguo asked.

"Hmm!" Xue Hua nodded, pushed open the back garden gate, and went inside.

"Why are they all fenced off?" Xue Hua looked at the rows of fence gates, quite puzzled. He only understood slightly when he saw the livestock inside. "I don't know what they're thinking, why are they raising so many animals?"

"Hey! They're not short of money, they can just keep them around for fun..." Wei Jianguo said.

"Woof woof woof..." A dog barked, and a small yellow puppy excitedly rushed over, landing at Wei Jianguo's feet and frolicking happily.

"Haha, it's Little Huang..." Wei Jianguo recognized his Little Huang at a glance. In just a few days, the guy had grown quite a bit bigger, and his fur was as smooth and shiny as satin.

Wei Jianguo squatted down and stroked its back. Little Huang happily lay down on the ground, rolled over, and exposed its soft belly.

"You can stay with your little yellow dog..." Xue Hua rolled her eyes at him and walked towards the hot spring pool on her own.

"Hey! Wait for me..." Wei Jianguo hurriedly followed. When Xiao Huang saw its master leave, it also jumped up and followed closely behind.

Upon arriving at the small valley where the hot spring pool was located, they saw that the gate was locked from the inside, which meant that the two people were inside.

"Yang Ming, Qingqing," Xue Hua called from outside.

"Hurry up and open the door..." Wei Jianguo shouted.

Meanwhile, Yang Ming and Wei Qingqing were soaking in the hot spring. It was late autumn and the weather was quite dry, so soaking in the hot spring made them feel comfortable, warm, and incredibly refreshed.

"It's my parents' voices! Why are they here?" Wei Qingqing exclaimed in surprise.

"How come they've all learned to launch surprise attacks?" Yang Ming couldn't help but complain.

Last time it was Yang Zhengfang and Zhang Shufang, who caused the cabbage incident with a surprise attack. This time it's Xue Hua and Wei Jianguo again... I wonder what kind of incident they'll cause this time.

"Isn't it all your fault? Didn't you give them a surprise attack back then?" Wei Qingqing rolled her eyes and went ashore to get dressed.

"You weren't involved? Even though I was the mastermind, you were an accomplice too..." Yang Ming muttered to himself, but chuckled aloud, "Heh, I really didn't know they would be... so petty..."

Yang Ming also went ashore and put on his clothes.

"What are you saying?" Wei Qingqing rolled her eyes at Yang Ming. "I'll go open the door for them. You go and put away all those conspicuous things."

"Those conspicuous items have already been put away," Yang Ming said.

"Go check it again, we must make sure it's absolutely perfect." Wei Qingqing said, and went to open the door for her parents. Yang Ming went into the wooden house and began to check it carefully.

To be honest, Yang Ming used to keep things really clean; there wasn't a single thing that would catch the eye.

"Mom and Dad, why are you here today? Isn't it Friday?" Wei Qingqing's voice came in.

"The third graders had their exams today, so they took up our classroom. We're all on holiday now. What? Don't you welcome us, little girl? If you don't welcome us, just say so, and your mom and I will leave right away..." Wei Jianguo said.

"Look at what you're saying! I haven't even said anything to you yet. On the 10th, when the new son-in-law came to visit, why didn't you even provide him with a meal?" Wei Qingqing complained.

When Wei Qingqing complained, Wei Jianguo immediately fell silent. He knew that he had been too impolite that day. Not counting the day his daughter returned to her parents' home, the 10th was Yang Ming's first visit as the new son-in-law. As his parents-in-law, they should have warmly welcomed him, but they had all rushed off to Beidaihe.

Xue Hua blushed slightly; he had indeed gone a bit too far that day.

"Mom and Dad are here? You must be tired. Come in, I've prepared some milk for you, have a sip to soothe your throats..." Yang Ming opened the door of the wooden house and came out to greet them.

"Do you think we're children? Still drinking milk?" Wei Jianguo muttered. Seeing his son-in-law reminded him of the embarrassing situation when he was suddenly attacked, so he wanted to antagonize him and find fault with him.

"Drink it or don't, it's up to you," Wei Qingqing said angrily.

"Qingqing, how can you talk like that? You have no manners! Apologize to your father!" Yang Ming said sternly.

"Dad! I'm sorry, I misspoke," Wei Qingqing quickly said.

Wei Jianguo's feelings were truly complex. Happy? His son-in-law was still quite respectful, which naturally made him happy. Infuriated? He'd never spoken to his daughter like that before, and this brat dared to bully her like this right in front of him. What if he wasn't in their presence? Wouldn't he have attacked her? Disappointed? His precious daughter, who used to be his darling, was now someone else's, treating their words like gospel. No wonder he felt disappointed…

"Hmm hmm hmm..." Wei Jianguo hummed twice, giving Yang Ming a rather unfriendly look.

"Your son-in-law prepared milk for you, and you still have so many complaints? If you don't drink it, I'll drink it all. Drinking milk is good for your complexion..." Xue Hua glared at Wei Jianguo with dissatisfaction.

"Mmm..." Wei Jianguo nodded repeatedly, looking like he was humbly accepting instruction.

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(End of this chapter)