Taoxi Village caught up with the busy farming season and harvested all their own rice.
Taking advantage of the fine weather, the grains were dried and loaded into warehouses.
On the drying field in the middle of the village, the millet of each family is spread out in patches, exposed to the scorching sun, and villagers can be seen raking the millet everywhere.
At the very end of the grain drying field is an abandoned auditorium made of mud and tiles.
In the past, the village held meetings, watched movies, etc. here. Later, due to disrepair and little use, the auditorium gradually fell into disuse.
Today's function is only to provide a shade and cool place for people drying millet.
At this time, a group of old women looking at grain gathered in the auditorium and chatted.
"Our village also had a bumper rice harvest this year. It's not like in previous years when half of the rice was shriveled. My family has more than a dozen sacks per acre of land!"
"When I was selling watermelons, I was thinking that we have had a bumper harvest of watermelons and sweet potatoes. Maybe there will be a surprise when we harvest millet in October. Hey! I guessed it!"
"As soon as the millet dries, I will grind the rice and taste what the rice we grew this year will taste like."
"What else can rice taste like? It can't taste like watermelon or sweet potato, right?"
The women laughed together.
The rice harvest is the only happy event in Taoxi Village's recent downturn.
The land in the village is not good, and everyone knows what the harvest of rice grown in previous years will be.
But this year is really different. First, watermelons sold at good prices, sweet potato production doubled, and now even rice has a bumper harvest.
It feels as if Taoxi Village has suddenly turned into a Feng Shui treasure land.
"Thinking about it this way, it's really mysterious. Why didn't such a good thing come sooner?"
"People can't be too greedy. This is already very good."
"Yes, yes, and our village will definitely get better and better in the future. As for other irrelevant things, don't think too much about it."
…
In the small courtyard of the fence, Zhang Xifeng was also talking about the good rice harvest.
It was noon, and the sun was very bright outside.
The old man and the young man had nothing to do, so they sat at the door of the hall and unwrapped old sweaters.
"Your second uncle said that after the millet is dried and milled, he will send two loads to our family." Zhang Xifeng's eyes wrinkled slightly and he said with a smile, "He has planted a lot of paddy fields. This year is a good time, and one acre of land
There is a lot more food than in previous years. Not only your second uncle, but other families in the village who have planted rice have also harvested a lot more this year."
Qiqi looked forward to it, "Mother-in-law, can we sell the extra grain in our village for money?"
"Then we have to see how much more there is." Zhang Xifeng couldn't help but laugh, wondering why the little kid was always obsessed with money. "When the millet is dry, every household must first go to the grain. After the grain is harvested, they will have enough food at home.
of food, and the rest will be sold.”
"Is that millet worth anything?"
"A load of millet is worth about thirty yuan."
A load of millet weighs one hundred catties, Qiqi knows.
How much does a pound of millet cost?
Little Eggman, "About three cents."
Qiqi's little face fell.
One pound of millet can be exchanged for three steamed buns?
Why is it so difficult for the village to make money?
"Why don't you come in? What are you doing here?" A burst of angry shouts sounded outside the fence.
Qiqi looked up and saw the village chief grandfather walking into the courtyard with his hands behind his back, followed by a little boy with a bruised nose and face.
"Grandpa village chief? Brother Hua Zi?" Qiqi didn't dare to recognize him. He hadn't seen him all morning. Why did Brother Hua Zi become like this, with his face green and green?
Hua Zi lowered his head and said nothing.
But lowering his head was of no use to Qiqi. Qiqi was short and his deformed face could be seen when he raised his small neck.
"Brother Hua Zi, are you fighting with someone again?" Qiqi asked quietly behind the adults' back.
Hua Zi didn't answer, didn't look at anyone or pay any attention to him, he was stubborn and angry.
Zhang Xifeng was a little confused by the situation. She got up and invited the old village chief into the house, "Village Chief, what's going on? Hua Zi was beaten outside, or did you beat him?"
The old village chief frowned tightly, and the anger in his voice remained, "He fought with others outside! I don't know who heard that his parents were working outside and couldn't get their wages back."
If he doesn't come, he won't be able to compete with others, so he starts to fight. The school will let him go home to think about his mistakes, you bastard!"
After scolding him, the old village chief sighed, "I see that he has not been thinking about his studies recently. He is probably really worried about his parents, so he thought of coming to your place to make a call and let Hua Zi talk to his parents.
He is at peace."
Hearing this, Hua Zi, who had never responded, moved his eyes slightly and straightened the corners of his mouth.
The old village chief took out a small phone book from his coat pocket, rummaged through it to find the numbers, and pressed the numbers one by one on the landline.
This is the pager number his son left for him.
In more than a year, he has only fought twice.
The wait for the flight back seems to be extremely long.
Qiqi saw that Hua Zi kept picking at his nails, and the edges of his nails were already red from his repeated picking.
Ring ring ring——
The moment the phone rang, Hua Zi's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Hello, San'er? Hey, you're still at work? There's nothing going on at home, just Huazi. Huazi misses you and wants to talk to you. Is it convenient for you?" the old village chief said to the other end of the phone.
After finishing the sentence, the microphone was handed to the stiff grandson, "Your dad is on the other end of the phone. Say a few words to him."
Huazi held the microphone, and a familiar yet unfamiliar voice kept ringing in his ears.
He opened his mouth to call daddy, but tears burst out first.
"Dad, our watermelon sales are really good this year. They cost several thousand yuan... more than your and my mother's wages combined."
"If you come back with my mother, our family can open up some more land and grow more watermelons next year, so we won't be short of money."
"Also, our rice has been harvested, and our whole family can't finish the milled rice in a year."
"Dad, are you coming back? Can you and mom come back?"
There was an oppressive silence on the other end of the phone.
"Why would you rather suffer hardship outside than come back?"
Hua Zi burst into tears and asked in a sharp and fierce voice, "Are you really doing it for me? Are you really doing it for me!"
"You were not here when I needed you! I will have grown up by the time you come back!"
"I won't need you then!"
"I don't need you anymore!"
Qiqi stood aside blankly, looking at Brother Hua Zi who was crying hysterically.
She didn't know what the person on the other end of the phone said, but if they saw Brother Hua Zi crying so sadly, they would definitely be even sadder, right?
The phone call ended with Hua Zi running away crying.
But Qiqi often thinks of the little boy's eyes that seemed to light up when the phone rang.
There is more than one child like this in Taoxi Village.
When can parents and children be reunited?
At that time, will the child still be the same child who longed for his parents?