69novels Chapter 70 Running around the county town
Chapter 70 Running around the county town
The noise from road construction on the barren mountain woke Zhang Niu up every day.
I wake up with a messy, unkempt hairstyle every morning, just like every day. Can't road construction even let people sleep in peace? Thankfully, in a few more days the construction will be over once it's gone. It seems the construction on the barren mountain across the way is almost finished too; they're already building their seventh bamboo house.
Early in the morning, Zhang Niu planned to go to the county town to buy some lotus seeds and water chestnuts to plant in the pond near his bamboo house. He planned to use some bamboo to create a square enclosure in the middle of the pond to prevent the fish from surfacing or even drowning if the weather was bad.
Zhang Niu, who was washing his face, heard shouts outside. "Coming," Zhang Niu mumbled as he washed his face.
Entering the front yard was Old Zhang, a beekeeping expert who frequently traveled between villages.
Springtime is the perfect time for beekeeping. A month or two later, around early April, the rapeseed flowers in the villages near Zhangniu will bloom in abundance, creating a vast, golden sea of flowers.
"Zhang Wa, I've come uninvited today," Old Man Zhang said, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.
Zhang Niu couldn't figure out why the old man Zhang had time to come here today. "Come in and sit down. What's the matter?"
"No, thank you. It's just a small matter; we can talk about it outside." He declined Zhang Niu's invitation.
Seeing that Old Zhang didn't intend to come inside and sit down, they let it go. "Then tell me what's wrong, and see if there's anything I can do to help," they said.
"Xiao Mang. You know I'm a beekeeper, right? You have such a big plot of land, and you've planted fruit trees there. They'll be in bloom soon. So I'd like to put some beehives here."
"So it was to knock down my flower buds." Zhang Niu finally figured out why this guy had come so early in the morning.
Zhang Niu pondered this for a moment. He'd heard that beekeeping was supposed to increase yields through pollination. He wondered if it was true or not. But since he was going to release bees, he figured, "Let him release them."
"Okay, find a place to stack them together yourself," he said after thinking for a moment.
Old Zhang smiled and said, "Thank you. I just wanted to let you know today. The beehive placement will have to wait a few more days."
After Old Zhang left, Zhang Niu remembered the bees that had moved into his space a few days ago. He wondered how they were doing and decided to check on them later, lest the whole tree turn into a honeycomb.
Riding his tricycle along the road, Zhang Niu noticed that the village was having cement roads built. He thought he might as well buy a men's motorcycle on his way to the county town. With the roads improved, buying one wouldn't be bad; the village chief's was quite nice, he'd heard it cost around four thousand. However, Zhang Niu didn't really like the color; if he were to buy one, he'd get a black one.
I happened to see Er Gou starting up his tractor at the village entrance. I smiled and asked, "Uncle Er Gou, where are you going so early in the morning starting up your tractor?"
Uncle Er Gou, who was still focused on starting the truck, looked up and saw Zhang Wa. "I'm going to the county town to buy some fertilizer. This truck is throwing a tantrum at me again," he said with a wry smile.
Upon hearing that Uncle Er Gou was going to the county town, Zhang Niu was also prepared to offer a ride, "Could you wait a moment? I also want to go to the county town."
"It's okay. If you're lucky, this car will start right away. If not, it might take up to half an hour to start. You should go home first," he said to Zhang Niu.
Zhang Niu's parents were still eating breakfast when they saw him pulling his tricycle back. "Have you eaten breakfast? There's still noodles in the pot."
"No, I have to go to the county town later. Uncle Er Gou is waiting for me at the village entrance."
"Then hurry up and go! Don't keep people waiting," said Dad, who was eating a big bowl of noodles.
"Is there anything you need to buy?" Zhang Niu asked again as he walked through the doorway.
"There's nothing else we need to buy for the family," Mom replied.
"Brother, I want candy," the little sister said quickly, swallowing her noodles hastily.
After noting down what he wanted to buy, he also grabbed a bottle of plum wine from home to give to that gluttonous guy, Fatty Qian. He told Zhang Niu to take all the other bottles of wine from his storage space home for his dad, and he kept two bottles for himself at Happy Little Abode.
At the village entrance, Uncle Er Gou had already started the tractor, which was emitting black smoke and making a noise.
Uncle Ergou's tractor only had one seat in the front, so Zhang Niu had to stand in the back of the truck bed. The village dirt road was under construction, so they had to take a smaller road to get to the county town. Standing in the truck bed made Zhang Niu very uncomfortable, and he kept complaining about how bad the road was. Uncle Ergou, who was driving, laughed heartily.
After a long and bumpy ride, Zhang Niu finally made it to the county town. Standing by the roadside, Zhang Niu's face was pale, all from shaking. After spitting out a few mouthfuls of water, he felt much better. Damn it. He'd never ride that tractor again, even if you paid him.
I hailed a rickshaw to take me to Fatty Qian's orchard. There were already quite a few vehicles parked in front of it; it seemed like the orchard business was doing well this year.
Zhang Niu had been here a few times before and found Fatty Qian's office without any trouble.
The door was ajar, and Zhang Niu barged in without knocking. Pushing it open, he saw a young girl sitting on Qian Pangzi's lap, embracing him. Zhang Niu was startled; it seemed he had disturbed them. "You two continue, I'll be right out."
The young girl straightened her clothes, picked up her small bag, and went out. She even gave Zhang Niufei a wink.
After closing the door, Fatty Qian chuckled, "You came, but you didn't even call. Look, you've scared all the girls away."
"Who knows? You even locked the door yourself. You're really bold."
He placed the wine on the writing desk and said, "Here, this is the plum wine you've always wanted."
Fatty Qian had wanted plum wine for a long time. Zhang Niu didn't have any on hand, so he hadn't given it to him. Ever since he'd had some last time, he'd been craving it.
After putting away the plum wine, he said, "Look what you've done in town again. Do you need any help?"
Do you have any lotus and water chestnut seeds?
"You're not planning to plant this again, are you?" Fatty Qian asked, somewhat surprised.
"The pond is rather deserted. Planting some trees will surely add some atmosphere, right?"
Fatty Qian gave a thumbs up. "Great idea! I'll call and ask around for you."
Zhang Niu picked up the dedicated phone next to him and dialed it, but he didn't listen to the call. He figured he'd find out the result soon, so why was he in such a hurry?
After hanging up the phone, he said, "I do have lotus seeds, but not water chestnuts. However, I just asked someone to look for some for you, and they should be available soon."
Zhang Niu was also happy to hear this news. At least he wouldn't have to spend time searching for them himself. "What varieties of lotus flowers do you have? Do you know?"
Fatty Qian hadn't expected Xing Niu to ask such a question. "Well, I just heard from my assistant that they have white lotus, friendship peony lotus, and large water lotus, etc. I don't know which one you want."
Ugh... This answer left Zhang Niu a little unsure of which to choose. What Zhang Niu didn't know was that Fatty Qian had many more lotus seeds, but Fatty Qian didn't seem to remember them very well.
Zhang Niu wondered if he should buy some of everything. "Give me some of everything, it looks nice mixed together," someone said.
"Okay, I'll have someone wrap it up later."
After agreeing on the terms, Zhang Niu got up to say goodbye, saying he had other things to attend to but actually wanted to look at motorcycles.
As Zhang Niu walked out downstairs, he saw the girl again. He guessed this was Fatty Qian's assistant secretary. He remembered that it wasn't this girl the last time he came. It seems they change staff quite quickly these days.
After leaving the building, he headed straight for Dianli Road, which is below the bus station. That road is lined with shops selling motorcycles, both men's and women's models. Standing there, Zhang Niu didn't know which shop to choose.
Looking at the GG brand of Dayang Motorcycles in the distance, Zhang Niu felt that the products produced in his province were the most trustworthy. With this in mind, he went into the Dayang Motorcycles dealership.
The shop, with its heater on, made Zhang Niu feel much warmer than outside. "It's a pleasure to have you here, sir. May I ask what kind of motorcycle you'd like to buy?"
While Zhang Niu was still sighing, he heard a soft, gentle voice. He turned around and saw that it was a waiter from the store, holding a cup of hot water.
"Let me take a look first," Zhang Niu said, taking the hot water offered and taking a sip. The shop had a wide variety of motorcycles: bright red, black, silver, and blue—a dazzling array of colors that left Zhang Niu a little overwhelmed.
The saleswoman next to Zhang Niu explained the vehicle's features, using a series of industry jargon. Feeling dizzy from listening, Zhang Niu bought a black Dayang brand motorcycle.
After getting the receipt and paying, Zhang Niu finally hopped on the black motorcycle. He took it for a quick spin and felt great; it seemed like a worthwhile purchase. He'd heard getting a license plate in the county was difficult; Zhang Niu couldn't even pass the written exam. He figured he'd have to talk to Fatty Qian and the others later to see if they knew anyone who could take the exam for him and pay them a little extra.
This driver's license isn't actually needed in town; most people who buy motorcycles in the village don't register them. And even if you pay, you might not be able to get one. There's not much trouble traveling from the village to the town. It's just that there are frequent police checks on the roads to the county seat. Motorcycles without license plates generally don't dare to go into the county seat.
Zhang Niu, riding his motorcycle, was still lost in thought. But the gear on his motorcycle was still in the wrong place, so an accident occurred. With a "thud" at the bend, even the somewhat confused Zhang Niu realized he had hit someone.
A girl with long, flowing hair, wearing a white coat and white jeans, was squatting by the roadside. She was bending over, clutching her knee, and tears welled in her eyes; she seemed to have been badly injured.
The blue recreational bicycle on the ground was slightly deformed, and its rear wheel was still rolling.
"Are you alright? Let me take you to the hospital to get you checked out!"
Before the girl could speak, Zhang Niu hailed a taxi, helped her into the car, and then went to tie the bicycle to the back of the motorcycle. He followed behind the taxi.
Riding on his bike, Zhang Niu was a little worried, seeing that the girl was in quite a bit of pain. He hoped it wasn't anything serious; he'd just bought the bike and already run into someone. If his dad found out, he'd definitely give him a good scolding.
The girl in the taxi was clutching her knee. Looking at Zhang Niu following outside, she realized she'd been so engrossed in her phone conversation that she hadn't noticed and bumped into him. Before she could even explain, Zhang Niu had already hailed a taxi to take her to the hospital. It seemed this young man was quite nice.
Upon arriving at the county hospital, Zhang Niu helped the girl in to register. Still worried, he took her to get an X-ray. He was afraid of anything else, but he was especially afraid that there might be a problem with her bones, which would be no small matter.
The X-ray won't be ready until after 2 PM. After the orthopedic doctor examined it, he prescribed anti-inflammatory medication and some other drugs, saying there was nothing wrong.
After coming out and sitting on a chair in the aisle, Zhang Niu finally felt relieved. Thankfully, it was a minor issue. Once he was calmer, Zhang Niu said to the girl next to him, "I'm so sorry I bumped into you while riding my bike. Please forgive me."
"I should be the one apologizing. I wouldn't have bumped into you if I hadn't been careless." She said, revealing a shallow dimple.
Zhang Niu had only glanced at her briefly on the way, but now, seeing her up close, he realized that the girl was indeed beautiful and in no way inferior to Zhang Ting and the others.
The two sat there without saying a word. After a while, a girl came in. "Huichao, are you alright? Did this person bump into you?"
Hearing the girl say that, Zhang Niu felt a headache coming on. This girl's tone was too aggressive!
"Zhu Zhi, it was my fault for running into him, not his," the girl said hurriedly.
Looking at the girl in front of me, who seemed to have a fiery temper, I figured it would be best for her to leave since her friend was here.
Zhang Niu handed over a bag of medicine, saying, "This is the medicine from earlier. Remember to take it on time. Don't forget to take the X-ray." He also gave her his phone number, saying she could call him if she had any problems.
After leaving the hospital, Zhang Niu rode his motorcycle to Qian Pangzi's place to get the lotus seeds. He had spent quite a bit of time in the hospital and was only now starting to feel a little hungry. It seemed he needed to get off and find a place to eat.
It was already two o'clock in the afternoon when Zhang Niu arrived at Fatty Qian's place. Remembering what happened last time, this time Zhang Niu knocked first before entering. Fatty Qian was sitting in a leather chair, drinking the plum wine Zhang Niu had brought that morning. He was enjoying it immensely.
"The seeds have all been prepared for you. They're downstairs, you can pick them up later," Fatty Qian said.
Zhang Niu, who had just sat down to rest, exclaimed, "So fast..."
"It's just a little bit of lotus and water chestnut seeds. It's nothing. But this wine of yours is really potent," he said, swirling the bright red liquid in his glass.
"The strong aftereffects make it even more exciting for you, don't you? Look at you, you're not even blushing or anything, you must be able to drink a thousand cups without getting drunk."
"That's a huge exaggeration." He patted his beer belly.
"Do you know anyone in the traffic police in your county?" Zhang Niu asked, remembering he still had something to ask.
"Did they impound your tricycle?"
"I have a motorcycle and I want to take the driving test. Do you know anyone here?"
"That's easy. Just give me a picture of the motorcycle, the vehicle registration number, and a three-inch photo of the rider," Sisuohui said.
Zhang Niu borrowed a digital camera from Fatty Qian and took pictures of everything. He put them in an envelope and handed it to Fatty Qian.
Although there had been an accident earlier, the driver's license issue put Zhang Niu at ease. He rode past the trees on the road.
Zhang Niu rushed home in about forty minutes and parked his bike in the front yard. Only then did he realize that the damaged blue bicycle was still tied to the back. In his haste, Zhang Niu hadn't taken it off. Now, not knowing her address or anything, it seemed he could only wait for her to call before returning it to her.
After taking the bike off the scooter, I found that only the front was slightly bent; everything else was fine. I estimate this bike would sell for several hundred yuan. Things for city girls are especially expensive.
The little sister ran out after hearing the noise and saw the blue bicycle. She ran to the bike and touched the handlebars. "Brother, did you buy this for me?"
Ugh... "Someone else left this here; you need to return it to them later."
"Can I ride it normally without breaking it?" Looking at the girl's eyes, he knew he had no choice but to agree.
"Then you'd better keep a close eye on it, otherwise if you return it to someone else later, people will talk about your brother because it's so rubbish."
The younger sister nodded. "When can I use it?"
That's way too impatient. "I'll let you learn later after I fix the front of the car."
My little sister is always so clingy, but all the kids in the village walk to Wangjia Village for school; there's a primary school there with a few teachers. It's the only primary school in the area. Of course, my little sister was very happy to have a bicycle.
The dad, who came out from inside, also saw the newly bought motorcycle. Smoking a cigarette, he said, "Not bad, not bad. Stylish design."
My dad, who's usually quiet, still cares about his son. After exhaling a puff of smoke, he said, "I didn't expect you to buy it so soon. Mom and I were planning to buy you one later. You're all grown up now, and most of the poor young men in the village have bought a motorcycle to help them find wives. So we've been making arrangements at home."
Zhang Niu never expected his father to start thinking about him. He hadn't paid much attention to the young men in the village who rode motorcycles before. He thought he was just comfortable, and his father, though he didn't say anything, started taking action.
"Keep an eye on your car. Things haven't been peaceful in the village lately. People have been stealing it... especially in the town area," Dad warned.
My mom and dad can both ride motorcycles, but my dad can't control the throttle well. He says he's too old and it's better to walk.
He quickly straightened the slightly crooked handlebars with a toolbox and adjusted the seat slightly. Zhang Niu had read about this in a book. It said that children in the south always raise their bicycle seats to help them grow taller. He didn't know if it was true or not.
The black seat cushion had the words "Li Huichao" written in small characters. Perhaps it was because there were so many identical cars in the city that they were afraid of picking up the wrong one. How interesting.
Riding the motorcycle back to Happy Little Abode was much less strenuous. Just as they reached the pond in front of the door, Little Black wagged its tail and rushed out, jumping and bouncing in front of the motorcycle. This forced Zhang Niu to stop and drag the motorcycle back. Every time he returned, a large group of piglets would come out and surround Zhang Niu as a welcome.
In just a few days, the chubby little bird had already grown yellow down. However, it still lazed around with Big Red all day, making Zhang Niu wonder when the bird would ever learn to fly.
These past few evenings, Brother Ma has been coming up the path to chat on the hillside of Maotou Mountain. Today was no exception.
Brother Ma didn't have much to do that day; he just corrected some mistakes, which was quite easy.
"You're here really early today," Zhang Niu said, throwing out a string of empty words.
"It's almost finished, isn't it? The last seat should be done in another three or four days," Ma replied, eating a sweet potato.
"You'll be finishing up soon too. Do you have time to help set up anything later?"
"Could it be that they're thinking of a bamboo house again?"
"Building that requires money. We don't have much money in our pockets right now. We already have three, why would we build so many more? You know those two ponds by the entrance?"
"I know. What's the deal with closing that pond?" Brother Ma, who hadn't thought much about it, asked, puzzled.
"It means that when you finish work on your side, you can come over and set up some scaffolding to go into the pond."
"Oh. I just want to build a narrow little bamboo bridge, with a small bamboo pavilion on top, so we can fish in the summer," Brother Ma quickly came up with an idea.
"Yes, that's the idea. This pond isn't small, so two small structures will suffice. We still have quite a bit of bamboo left over from last time, which should be enough."
"That's easy, a small matter. Just wait a few more days, and I'll bring people over."
Zhang Niu hadn't planted the lotus seeds he brought back yet; he planned to sow them after building the small bamboo pavilion. He'd seen this idea on TV a while ago, describing a scenic spot. It made Zhang Niu want to build one at his own place. After all, there was a pond with eels, loaches, and blackfish, and the fish with forked tails weren't too densely packed, so there wasn't much chance of them surfacing.
At that time, Lotus will also be able to sit in the bamboo pavilion and stretch out a bamboo pole to catch some water chestnuts or fish. Fortunately, the pond that was dug was quite large.
A few days later, Old Man Zhang brought a truckload of beehives to Zhang Niu's Happy Little House.
Besides Old Zhang, a few people came to move beehives today, but Zhang Niu didn't go to see them; he's gotten a little scared of bees these days. He didn't allow them to put the beehives away, near the bamboo house or the large tiled house.
Old Zhang and his men put all the beehives in the corner, piled up in groups of ten or so, and covered them with a tarpaulin. Standing in front of the door, Zhang Niu looked at the truckload of beehives. Several hundred hives was the minimum; there were probably many more.
It took all morning to stack all the beehives. Each stack had to be covered with a tarpaulin. Although Zhang Niu's hives hadn't bloomed yet, they would soon. There were quite a few wildflowers blooming around here.
Every day, many bees can be seen flying in and out of Zhang Niu's orchard. A few even flew into his house while he was eating lunch.
Zhang Niu killed all the bees that flew into the house with a large palm-leaf fan. "Come on, come on, I'll kill as many as you want." The bees that landed on the ground were pecked up by Da Hong and thrown to the fat bird. This guy had been at Zhang Niu's house for half a month and still ate as much as ever. He usually nestled under Da Hong, and Zhang Niu had to pull him out and tease him every time he saw him.
The construction of the eight bamboo houses on Brother Ma's side was officially completed. They started laying cement in front of them. Brother Ma, packing up his things, led the workers along a small path to Zhangniu to begin building a small bamboo pavilion.
Thankfully, it's not winter, otherwise underwater stake planting would be strenuous work. Fortunately, most of these people had worked on the bamboo house project before, so they're relatively easy to talk to. In the afternoons, Zhang Niu rides his motorcycle out to buy sesame cakes and beer to treat them; before, not having a car was a problem.
They ate meat-filled flatbreads in the afternoon, which gave them energy for their work. The two small bamboo pavilions were built in just three days, and all the bamboo left over from last time was used up.
One pond and one building, facing each other from afar. Looking at them, Zhang Niu exclaimed, "Great! It's exactly the style I wanted!" Ma Ge, having finished construction, was in a hurry to get to other places. Business had been booming lately.
The small bamboo pavilion is only three meters from the shore, and the handrails are all made of bamboo. The pavilion isn't very big either, about three meters wide. It's just big enough to fit a table, making it a good choice for dining in the height of summer.
After sunset, I scattered the lotus flowers and water chestnuts that had been soaking at home overnight into the pond, with Zhang Niu scattering the most near the small bamboo pavilion. I hope they will grow lush and abundantly.
I sowed about the same amount of lotus seeds in both ponds. I planted the small bag of lotus seeds I bought in the water. How many will survive depends on luck.
This bamboo pavilion was built. Wild boar cubs all came to climb on it. Some of them especially liked to jump into the water. The bamboo bridge was always slippery because the bamboo had just been laid out and hadn't dried off yet. Even after a while, it was still a bit slippery. Zhang Niu had no choice but to take iron nails and some wood veneer he bought from the sawmill and nail it across one by one.
Second update. I originally wanted to break it down into two thousand words, but I thought I'd let everyone read it all at once. How about some donations?