Era: Started from raising livestock in the mountains

After a long journey, we arrived at the boundary of Lushui County at around eight o'clock.

At this time, the sun had come out and the temperature was gradually rising. Both Xiulan and Xiaoxia put on their hats.

"There is a small river ahead. Let's go there and have a rest. Hong Zao is also tired." Xiulan pointed to a small river not far ahead and said.

"That's what I think too." Lin Heng nodded, and his hair was wet with sweat.

"Hey!!"

Pulling the reins, the carriage stopped under the shade of a large willow tree by the river.

"hiss!"

Hong Zao was breathing rapidly and gasping for air. He was exhausted after running for nearly three hours.

Lin Heng tied it under a tree to rest temporarily, and then took it to drink water after the heat dissipation calmed down. Drinking water now is not good for it.

"Dad, where are you!" Xiaoxia got off the carriage and looked around curiously with her big eyes.

"On the way to grandma and grandpa's house." Lin Heng said with a smile.

"What are grandma and grandpa?" Xiaoxia was even more confused. She had never seen her grandma and grandpa since she was born.

"They are mom and dad. You will know when you get there." Lin Heng said with a smile.

He took his daughter to the river. Xiulan had already soaked the towel she was carrying, wrung it out and handed it to Lin Heng.

Lin Heng wiped Xiaoxia's face first. Because he was afraid that she would catch a cold, he dressed her in thick clothes. There were a lot of sweat beads on her forehead.

The three of them wiped their faces and sat under the tree to rest. Xiulan took out the soft cakes baked yesterday and shared them.

But this time there were only soft pancakes, no spicy fermented bean curd and spicy and sour potato shreds.

Lin Heng ate and looked at the scenery around him. The creek was clear and translucent, and the bottom of the water was full of colorful stream stones, which were very beautiful.

Xiulan looked at her watch and said with a smile: "At eight-thirty, we are already at Plum Blossom Stone Town. After walking two more towns, we will reach our Baisha Township. It is estimated that we can arrive before twelve o'clock."

"It's definitely no problem. Hongzao is such a good horse and very fast."

Lin Heng nodded, looked at his wife and said, "What's wrong? You're a little worried."

"Yes, after all, I haven't gone back for three years." Xiulan nodded. She didn't know what the situation was like at home now.

In the past two years, she had always wanted to go back after giving birth, but she was always busy with various things and had no time.

Lin Heng held his wife's soft hand in his palm: "We will find out when we go back and see. When we make money tomorrow or the year after next, we will buy a pickup truck. When we have a car by then, it will only take less than two hours to return to our parents' home. "

In the past few months, Xiulan didn't have to work as hard as before. She also applied hand cream, and her hands became much whiter and softer.

In addition, her fingers are already slender and beautiful, and it is very comfortable to hold in her hand.

Seeing her parents holding hands, Xiaoxia also put her little hand over and said in a sweet voice, "Let's hold hands together!"

Xiulan looked at my husband and daughter and couldn't help but smile, feeling warm in her heart.

"It costs a lot of money to buy a car. If you have a carriage, you can come back once a year." Xiulan shook her head and said.

"Not only is it more convenient to come back, but it is also more convenient to go to the city. Doing business must also require a car, otherwise it will be too inconvenient. I will not come here blindly. I will wait until I have enough money." Lin Heng said with a smile.

"Okay, let's work together to raise fish and shrimp next year." Xiulan nodded and said.

After eating the soft pancakes and seeing that the jujube was almost rested, Lin Heng came over and untied the rope and took it to the stream to drink water.

"Huh?"

Just as he was about to untie the rope, Lin Heng noticed something was wrong and quickly turned back to get the bow and arrow.

"What's wrong?"

Xiulan was stunned for a moment, thinking something had happened. There was no one around here.

"I'm going to take a look. I don't know if it's a hare or a pheasant." Lin Heng pointed to the soybean field across the creek and the location against the mountain.

He saw something moving, and the soybean tree was obviously abnormal.

After saying that, he quietly walked over, stopping for a moment. It took him more than ten minutes to reach a position where he could barely set up a bow and shoot an arrow.

The soybean leaves blocked his view, and he still couldn't see clearly what it was. He wasn't sure whether it was a pheasant or a hare. It couldn't be a human anyway.

Lin Heng set up the sharp arrow and began to aim. Now they were twenty meters apart, but they could no longer get closer.

With a hiss, he drew a full bow, and the sharp black arrow flew out, piercing the soybean leaf and piercing it.

"rabbit?"

Lin Heng heard the clear popping sound of piercing into flesh and blood.

I quickly ran over and opened the soybean leaves. I saw a big gray rabbit lying on the ground. Its legs were still trembling, and the arrow just penetrated its back.

"You brought the right bow and arrows!" Lin Heng grinned and ran back quickly with the rabbit in hand.

"Such a big rabbit!" Xiulan couldn't help but be pleasantly surprised when she saw the rabbit.

I just watched my husband hunt, and I was a little impressed by how handsome she is. She is calm and decisive, and can kill with one arrow. She is so handsome.

"Daddy is so awesome, such a big rabbit!!"

Xiaoxia ran over happily, clapped her little hands, full of admiration for Lin Heng.

Even though she is young, she already knows that this is food.

"Don't touch it, be careful of blood getting on you."

Lin Heng said with a smile, handed the rabbit to his wife and let her hold it while he led the horse to drink water.

"This rabbit is fat, weighing six or seven pounds." Xiulan looked at the big gray rabbit and sighed.

"Of course, everything in autumn is fat." Lin Heng said as he untied the horse's rope.

Xiulan looked at the rabbit and said, "The rabbit meat was eaten at my dad's house. Let's take the skin back and make a hat for Xiaoxia."

She had already brought enough things to her parents, and she felt there was no need to give the rabbit skin too.

"Give it to your mother, she doesn't need it."

Lin Heng led the horse to the river. Xiulan was undoubtedly on his side. It was just a rabbit skin, so he didn't care much.

He wanted Xiulan to be glorious and make her parents proud of her.

Hongzao drank the water for several minutes, and then was reluctant to leave the grass by the stream.

Lin Heng touched its head and said, "Let's go. I'll feed you well when we get there."

After that, he led it back to the road, put the rope on it, and continued on his way.

"Hold it!"

Lin Heng patted the horse's butt gently, and it ran again.

……

……

On the other side, in Liulin Village, Baisha Township, Lushui County, Chen's yard.

The 300-square-meter house is home to Xiulan's parents, the eldest brother and his wife, the third brother and his wife, the fourth brother and his wife, and five children, including three from the eldest brother's family, two from the second brother's family, and one from the fourth brother's family.

The house is of course a loess house. There are more flat land and water systems here. In addition to farming, farmers often go fishing in the river.

The overall living conditions are better than those in Huangtan Town.

However, with so many people in the family, farming and fishing can barely make ends meet. It is good enough to not starve.

In this era, the poorer you are, the more you have children, and the poorer you are. It is common for a family to have four or five children, and it is not uncommon for a family to have six or seven children.

At twelve o'clock noon, the family came back from the fields. Xiulan's father and three sons collected the ground cage fishing nets from the river and picked them under the eaves.

The ground cage caught a lot of shrimps and catfish, but the five-finger big fishing net only caught some small carps and crucian carps, but no big ones.

The one-finger white stripe net is pretty good, and it caught a lot of white stripes and green snappers.

Xiulan's father and three older brothers were picking fish, Xiulan's mother and three daughters-in-law were picking vegetables, and the grandchildren were playing in the mud in the village.

"Tomorrow is August 15th. I wonder if Xiulan will come back this year. This kid really doesn't miss home at all after getting married." Xiulan's mother sighed while picking vegetables. She missed her little daughter.

Xiulan's father looked at his wife and said sarcastically: "At the beginning, we said that Xiulan would marry to the village, but you insisted that she could marry whoever she liked. Now you know that you want it?

I think that Lin's kid is unreliable. Who knows how miserable your daughter is now? Working all day long, how can she have time to go back to her parents' home."

Xiulan's parents are good-looking. Xiulan inherited her mother's oval face, small mouth and good figure, and inherited her father's big eyes, high nose bridge and height.

Therefore, her parents like her little daughter very much. When Lin Heng asked for marriage, Xiulan's father did not agree at all. It was her mother who persuaded him and finally agreed reluctantly.

"Mom, don't even think about it. I don't think she will come back this year. Maybe she will ask our family for help when she comes back. The place she married to is not a good place."

The speaker is Xiulan's sister-in-law Zhang Shuiqin, who has a big mouth and a rough voice like a man.

She doesn't get along with her mother-in-law, and her words are sarcastic and thorny. She was the first to agree with Xiulan's marriage.

Because she can't come back after marrying far away, so she doesn't have to take things from home.

A 1.7-meter-tall, thin woman like a bamboo pole also made a joke: "That's right, mom, it's useless to think about your little daughter. I guess she can't bring you anything good when she comes back. She might even ask for things. You might as well think more about your son and us. I'll get you some meat for the holidays."

Although this woman is tall, her teeth are a little crooked, which makes her appearance much worse. This is Xiulan's fourth brother's wife Liu Hua.

The only one who didn't speak was Xiulan's third brother's wife Liu Xue, who lowered her head and picked vegetables silently.

Xiulan's mother looked at her eldest and fourth daughters-in-law and was furious.

Both of them were lazy and greedy. They could not do much work and were always talking. They were the first to eat something delicious and started to slack off when there was work.

She was so tired in the past two years that she could not even straighten her back, otherwise she would not have thought of her youngest daughter Xiulan.

In order to get her son married as soon as possible, she ended up marrying these two pieces of trash. Don't mention how upset she was.

The two sons were useless and were henpecked. They dared not say a word when they were controlled.

Only the third daughter-in-law made her feel relieved. She was quiet and hardworking and would not complain about the family's poverty all day long.

"Alas!" She was too lazy to argue with these two people now.

Seeing that the mother-in-law was silent, the two women were a little proud, as if they had won.

Xiulan's father Chen Changxia looked at the two daughters-in-law, and they restrained themselves a little.

At the entrance of Liulin Village, a group of children molded mud into a square shape, dug a hole in the middle and threw it against the stone slab. There was a loud bang, just like a cannon, and they were having a lot of fun.

A group of children were having fun when they suddenly saw a tall and majestic red horse pulling a cart from a distance.

They quickly moved to the sides of the road and looked over with curiosity.

There was a man, a woman and a child in the car behind. The three of them were dressed very brightly. The man and woman even wore a watch on their wrists.

There were many things in the car, especially a big rabbit hanging on the side of the car, which made them swallow their saliva.

These three people were naturally the Lin Heng family who came non-stop.

"You are Chen Xin, right? I am your aunt. Don't you recognize me?"

Xiulan looked at a little boy of eleven or twelve years old on the side of the road and shouted with a smile. This was the child of her cousin.

Lin Heng quickly stopped the carriage and smiled at the little boy.

"Are you Xiulan's aunt?" The little boy looked at Xiulan carefully. He felt that she looked a bit like her just now, but he didn't dare to say hello.

"It's me. Are my parents home?" Xiulan looked at him and asked with a smile.

"My uncle and aunt are at home. I will lead the way for you." Then he ran to the front of the carriage.

"My aunt is back, my aunt is back!"

He ran wildly on the road with a group of children, shouting as he ran, so that many people in the village heard the noise and went out to check the situation out of curiosity.

"Who is this? Is she from the city?"

"She is dressed so beautifully and wears a watch. She must be from the city."

"Chen Xin's aunt, this seems to be Chen Xiulan who married to Nanping County three years ago. How come she is getting more and more beautiful."

"Didn't they say she married to the countryside? Did she remarry? How did she become so rich?"

"No, it's the man who married her three years ago. His surname is Lin. I have seen him!" Lin Heng's rival shook his head.

Seeing that the woman they once loved became so happy after getting married, these people felt bad.

Look at her attire and clothing. Even if she is not from the city, she must have become rich.

Whether it is a horse, a watch or clothes, they are all somewhat out of tune with the rural environment.

"Go and see, she is really the youngest daughter of the Chen family. The Chen family really found a good in-law for their daughter."

"Yes, let's go and see!!"

The villagers of Liulin Village walked towards the Chen family while talking.

Lin Heng in the car was helpless. The child's voice was too loud. It was really the same for children in all places, with loud voices and noisy.

Fortunately, he brought Xiulan back home in glory, otherwise it would be embarrassing.

In the Chen family yard, a group of people who were picking vegetables and sorting fishing nets heard the cheers of the children outside.

"This Chen Xin is yelling to death. He should be beaten." Zhang Shuiqin, the wife of Xiulan's eldest brother, said dissatisfiedly.

Liu Hua, the wife of Xiulan's fourth brother, frowned and asked, "It seems that he called his aunt back. Which aunt?"

"Aunt Chen Xin? Isn't this Xiulan?" Xiulan's third brother Chen Zhiliang looked up and said.

"Xiulan is back?"

Xiulan's mother was stunned, dropped her work and ran out.

Xiulan's father Chen Changxia also hurried out of the yard and walked to the road.

Others also put down their work and followed. Whether they like it or not, they haven't seen Xiulan for three years and want to know how Xiulan is now.

"Aunt, my aunt is back!" Chen Xin ran over with a group of children.

Then the tall and mighty red-maned horse pulled the car and appeared in everyone's sight.

When the horse approached, they were all stunned when they saw the people in the car.

No matter how they dressed or dressed, they were too beautiful and eye-catching. The style and texture of the clothes looked extraordinary, not to mention the watches on their hands. The three people in the car were dressed more beautifully than those people from the city.

"Is this really Xiulan and her man?" Xiulan's eldest sister-in-law Zhang Shuiqin was dumbfounded and couldn't believe it.

She looked at herself with a dusty face and patched clothes, and then looked at Xiulan and Lin Heng in the distance, and couldn't believe it.

They were obviously not dressed well three years ago, but now they are wearing watches. How rich are they?

"Could it be that Xiulan remarried in the city?" Xiulan's fourth sister-in-law Liu Hua stuttered.

Although Chen's father Chen Changxia couldn't believe it, he still said affirmatively: "It's Xiulan and Lin Heng, she didn't remarry."

He couldn't help but feel happy in his heart. At first, he felt that this kid was unreliable, but now it seems that his daughter married the right one.

"Huh!!"

As Lin Heng pulled the reins, Hongzao stopped. He jumped off the carriage, took his daughter and wife, and walked towards his parents-in-law.

"Mom!!"

Xiulan ran over quickly and held her mother's hand. Tears rolled in her eyes. From a distance, she saw that her mother's waist was much more hunched.

"Xiu Lan, it's good to be back, it's good to be back." Xiu Lan's mother Wang Zhi held her hand, tears flowing down uncontrollably.

"Mom, don't cry!" Xiu Lan quickly took out a towel to wipe her mother's tears. She knew that her mother must have suffered in the past few years.

"Mom, don't cry, don't cry either!" Chen's mother Wang Zhi wiped her tears and wiped Xiu Lan's.

"Dad, big brother, big sister-in-law, three, and fourth brother!"

Xiu Lan came over and held her father's hand again, and then greeted her three brothers. She didn't know the two new sisters-in-law and didn't dare to call them randomly.

"It's good to be back. This is your third sister-in-law Liu Xue, and your fourth sister-in-law Liu Hua." Lin's father looked at his daughter and said with a smile.

"Dad, mom, big brother... This is my and Xiu Lan's daughter Xiao Xia."

Lin Heng also came over and greeted with a smile, and then looked at Xiao Xia and said: "Call grandpa and grandma!"

"Grandpa, grandma!" With Lin Heng around, Xiao Xia was not so shy and called crisply.

"Haha, OK!" Chen Changxia, Chen's father, happily agreed.

Chen's mother, Wang Zhi, smiled and asked, "Xiaoxia is so beautiful, how old is she?"

"One and a half years old!" Xiaoxia said in a baby voice with her eyes wide open.

"She's so smart, she can talk at such a young age!" Chen's mother, Wang Zhi, touched Xiaoxia's face, and loved her more and more. She looked like Xiulan when she was a child.

"Don't talk about the past here, let's all go inside." Chen's father, Chen Changxia, smiled and said.

"Oh, by the way, Mom and Dad, these are the clothes, wine, moon cakes and candies that Lin Heng and I bought for you. This rabbit was caught by Lin Heng on the road."

Xiulan turned around and took the gift and handed it to her parents.

"So many things, you kid..."

Father Lin was shocked when he saw the gifts. Apart from other things, this bottle of Sanliangye liquor costs twelve yuan a bottle.

"That's right, how much does it cost? It's too expensive." Chen's mother Wang Zhi also opened her mouth wide. This gift is too generous.

Xiu Lan's brothers were also stunned. When Lin Heng came to marry Xiu Lan, he was a poor boy who was not as good as them. How come he is so rich now?

Several sisters-in-law next to him were drooling with envy. How rich must he be to come back for a festival and give so many gifts.

Just two bags of sugar can make them drool with envy, not to mention clothes and wine.

So compared with these things, the rabbit caught on the road seems insignificant.

"It's not much money. Mom and Dad, just take it. Let's go back to the house quickly, otherwise it will be bad for people to see it." Lin Heng said with a smile.

"Okay, let's go back to the house." Chen's father Chen Changxia nodded repeatedly.