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Let's go out to eat! Ha~ha! When you're happy, you need good food and drink. Village Uncle and the others are celebrating, and she is thinking happily about her feast.
However, Village Uncle tightly clutched the cloth bag full of money and said, "That won't do. Everyone is still waiting. We need to head back soon. Yezhi, Uncle will treat you to white noodles and steamed buns. Next time, I'll treat you to a meal!" Cart Master and Uncle Zhou also looked eager to return. After hearing Village Uncle's words, she lost all desire to dine out; the villagers must be anxious waiting for them, so they should set off early and get back!
Sitting in the shaking stagecoach, Yezhi tapped her fingers to the rhythm while listening to the lively duet of folk songs sung by Village Uncle, Cart Master, and Uncle Zhou. The authentic folk tunes are not something today's singers can replicate; perhaps it's due to a lack of life experience. No matter how skilled they are, the essence is lost. As Yezhi puts it, it's too modern.
Suddenly, Village Uncle shouted, "Oh no!" This was not part of the song lyrics. Cart Master called out to Village Uncle sitting at the front of the cart, "What's wrong?" It turned out that all the money from selling peaches was in whole bills, and they couldn't break it down for their return. Fortunately, there was the Rural Credit Cooperative at the Commune.
Arriving at the Commune, which is equivalent to today's rural government agency, they found it bustling with activity. Yezhi and the others went to the cooperative and exchanged for a bundle of small bills. Village Uncle emptied his military green cloth bag used for carrying grain and neatly packed the small bills inside. Uncle Zhou and Cart Master flanked him on either side as they tightly held onto him. His nervous and alert expression made Yezhi follow suit until she climbed onto the cart.
The wheels of the stagecoach rolled along as Zhoujiatun drew nearer. After crossing a small river, a group of kids waiting by the river erupted into loud cheers. The kids rushed onto the small bridge, running alongside the stagecoach, while dozens of villagers at the village entrance smiled widely.
The stagecoach stopped at Team Dam. Village Uncle jumped down from the cart with a beaming smile as a group of children and Aunties surrounded him. With great enthusiasm, he shouted, "Step back! Step back! How am I supposed to distribute this money?" His words ignited excitement among the kids and Aunties.
The Old Accountant took out a small red book and called out names while Village Uncle counted money and distributed it one by one. Soon enough, his once bulging cloth bag became deflated. Some villagers received five or six yuan while others only got one or two yuan. Regardless of how much money they received, everyone clutched their colorful bills with excitement written all over their faces—happier than when they received meat!
Aunt Ren Er repeatedly counted her cash with a thoughtful expression on her face. Yezhi was being chided by the kids: when would they get to eat round fish? How could a teacher go back on her word? Yezhi promised them that they would definitely have it next Sunday. Upon receiving this assurance, the mischievous kids immediately dispersed to find their mothers for more treats.
Aunt Ren Er pushed through Xiao Shuan who was shouting about buying candy and pencils to approach Yezhi. "Yezhi, what do you think about planting peach trees in both my front yard and backyard?"
Yezhi couldn't help but look at Aunt Ren Er with admiration; she was definitely going to be a strong woman in the future—insightful, hardworking, and resilient. Yezhi thought for a moment: why not help the villagers even more? She clapped her hands to gather everyone's attention as they were reluctant to leave the dam while chattering among themselves. "Fellow villagers, everyone has tasted the sweetness of selling peaches now."
Xiao Mu's Mother smiled and said, "Yezhi, we haven't properly thanked you yet!" The villagers chimed in enthusiastically as Village Uncle decided that Yezhi and Aunt Zhou should come over for dinner later.
Yezhi cleared her throat and said with a smile, "If we sell 100 jin of peaches for six yuan each, what if we sell 1,000 jin or even 10,000 jin?" The crowd began contemplating.
Among all of Yezhi's ideas, this one seemed least feasible! Village Uncle hesitated and said, "Yezhi, you aren't suggesting that everyone plant peach trees now? What about our staple crops? What will we eat?"
"Village Uncle," Yezhi replied confidently, "aren't there barren hills around our village? The accountant uncle even suggested I could contract them! I'll take charge of contracting the hill behind my house!" Yezhi's words were astonishing.
Actually, she had already bought the saplings and was planning to find a time to get this done. Now, with this opportunity, she decided to change her plans a bit; planting peaches would be nice! As for the saplings? There are always barren mountains that Everyone doesn't want; she could gather them later for reforestation.
Everyone was surprised by Yezhi's words. It wasn't that they underestimated her; it was just that this girl had no experience in farming. Could she really grow fruit trees? Besides, her family only consisted of two women and children. That mountain was quite large; could they manage to plant there?
Aunt Zhou was also stunned and took a while to regain her composure. Village Uncle didn't respond to Yezhi, but instead asked, "Spring Flower, what do you think?" Yezhi inwardly cursed; she hadn't discussed this with Aunt Zhou yet!
"My family... girl, since you want to do it, let's do it!" Aunt Zhou's unconditional support made Yezhi, who was used to being independent, feel embarrassed!
That night, many villagers in Zhoujiatun tossed and turned on their beds, unable to sleep. After washing away her fatigue, Yezhi leaned against Aunt Zhou's back and excitedly talked about reforestation, about planting peaches, about going to school... about her unformed dreams. She continued until the candle burned out, finally satisfied and falling asleep.
Aunt Zhou lay on the bed but frowned: Why didn't the girl mention when she would get married or what kind of person she wanted to find...! Black Treasure lowered the two chubby hands resting on her round ears: "Mama Bear" finally quieted down.
The next day, Yezhi and Aunt Zhou approached Village Uncle to finalize the matter regarding Contracting the Mountain. Village Uncle smiled and said, "What I say counts!"
Of course, Yezhi wouldn't just accept that; she pulled Village Uncle into the team and formally signed a contract, paying a "high price" of twenty yuan for the contract fee. This was mainly to avoid others saying she was taking advantage of the situation; paying a "high price" would silence any future envious remarks.
With the contract in one hand and holding onto Aunt Zhou with the other, Yezhi excitedly discussed their plans. Aunt Zhou said that a year's plan depends on spring; when spring arrives, they would work hard! Yezhi nodded and replied, "Okay!"
...
Days passed slowly for a week. During this week, Xiao Fang reminded her every day that the seasonal supply was coming up, forcing Yezhi to think of ways to gather money. In the end, she went to One Gun Brother's house and told him that she didn't want the money from selling bear skin and bear bile; instead, she wanted him to give her the tiger whip. One Gun Brother repeatedly asked what she wanted the tiger whip for. After holding back for a while, Yezhi said two words that left One Gun Brother in stitches: "For collection!"
Holding the three-dimensional tiger whip with an imposing aura, she went with Xiao Fang to the Cosmic Auction House. In front of Old Man with Long Beard, she made a gesture indicating 1. The old man was overjoyed. Thinking he might believe it was 1 million, she cleared her throat and shouted, "It can't be less than 10 million."
With a sly smile, Old Man with Long Beard said, "Deal!" This item was something men truly needed—especially for someone his age—exclusive in the universe and not priced at his discretion!
Holding onto the money with stars in her eyes, Xiao Fang felt moved when Yezhi gave her cash vouchers as pocket money, causing tears of joy to well up in her eyes. Although earning this 10 million was easy, spending it would be even easier. Yezhi began to feel that she had been too impulsive; after all, one couldn't just run up a mountain to hunt tigers whenever they felt like it. Moreover, she couldn't bring herself to do it either; there were animal protection laws in place... abusing animals for money would lead nowhere! She needed to think carefully...
After thinking all night without any clear ideas! Just as she was sleeping soundly, outside came the triumphant laughter of One Egg: "I told you that Sister Ye is a big lazy pig; you all didn't believe me!" The chatter among the Kids, discussing her laziness made Yezhi feel ashamed. What business did she have being a teacher? It made her feel guilty even for wanting to sleep in on a Sunday!
Fortunately, her family’s Black Treasure warmly welcomed the Kids, and Yezhi quickly finished washing up and set off with the Kids towards the beautiful Wetland.
Returning to the Wetland felt like stepping into a fairyland. A thin mist wrapped around the winding river, and the sunlight refracted through the fog, shimmering in a rainbow of colors. The lush green grass and vibrant flowers concealed the silhouettes of cranes and swans.
Black Treasure excitedly rolled down the hillside into the water, splashing water all over Yezhi's face. One of the Kids shouted "Charge!" and they all jumped into the water, instantly filled with laughter and screams.
The loudest scream came from Yezhi; there was no helping it—her hair, clothes, and pants were all soaked! Furious, she stepped into the water and splashed at the Kids, but she was too inexperienced to compete with them. In the end, she shamelessly threatened, "Do you still want to eat Fish Balls?" before they stopped.
Yezhi called Xiao Fang out to play! When Xiao Fang saw Black Treasure, it happily blinked its square eyes and followed closely behind. One Egg, a skilled fisherman, quickly speared a large grass carp with his spear. The dog also managed to catch a fish. Er Zhu was fishing in the distance using sorghum as bait; Yezhi found this quite novel.
Suddenly, the Kids gasped in surprise. Yezhi rushed over to see Black Treasure biting a green fish, shaking its round bottom as it walked towards her. "Black Treasure, amazing!" Er Niu patted its plump rear. Black Treasure responded to Er Niu very friendly by nudging him with its round head before spitting out the fish at Yezhi's feet. Yezhi patted Black Treasure's head, feeling a sense of pride as if her child had just grown up. Xiao Fang was very happy to capture this warm moment in a photo.
One Egg picked up the green fish at Yezhi's feet and weighed it in his hands before turning around to swap it for a larger fish he had just caught from the bucket, placing it in front of Black Treasure. "Black Treasure, your fish is too small; I’ll trade you!"
Black Treasure bared its teeth and lunged forward at One Egg for taking away its green fish. One Egg felt wronged. "Sister Ye, why is Black Treasure still mad at me?"
Yezhi took the green fish from the bucket and placed it into a small Cloth Bag in front of Black Treasure while stroking it. She said, "Let’s go home and stew it; we’ll eat together!" Black Treasure seemed to understand, shaking its round bottom as it swam back into the water. The Kids were amazed; Black Treasure was so smart! They all jumped into the water around Black Treasure.
One Egg stayed put with a pout. Yezhi laughed and said, "One Egg, no matter how small that fish is, it's still our Black Treasure's catch. It doesn’t understand why you would trade a big fish for a small one; it only knows you took its fish." One Egg thumped his head; he realized he was being foolish trying to please Black Treasure… who knows how long it would take for it to forgive him!
When Yezhi returned home with the Kids carrying buckets full of catches, Village Uncle approached her with a serious expression and whispered in her ear, "Yezhi, what’s going on? Two police officers from the county are looking for you!" Yezhi furrowed her brows: What could the police want with her? Hopefully not another scam!
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