Chapter 237

·

·

·

Protagonist:

Chai Mi

"But that's not what my grandfather said..." Chai Mi hesitated a little, but in the end decided not to bring this up.

After all, Chai Zhongxiao might not know about this matter either; this matter was surely done by Che Lianyun.

This belonged to spending not a single cent of one's own money, first cheating the village out of it.

"Is he awake?" Chai Mi asked the most crucial question.

"I don't know... I don't know this either. I just heard that on the way to the hospital, he became muddled... After that, I didn't hear clearly whether he was muddled or in a coma. But there hasn't been much news lately; let's wait for news. He probably hasn't woken up yet. If he wakes up, Chai You De himself should know exactly who hit him, who hit him harder. By then this matter will have a result. Otherwise, what others say is useless; everyone thinks in favor of themselves."

"Ah, right. Sun Yuguang and those two children went home, Chai Chunfang was taken to the funeral home. A forensic doctor should come in half a day. Sigh, they're just making a fuss. Someone hanged themselves—what's there for a forensic doctor to examine? By then they'd still have to cut open the belly and chest. For what?"

"For money, of course. At least cheat Chai Zhongxiao out of a funeral expense." Chai Mi said coldly: "Chai You De's matter isn't clear, this matter is even less clear, just making a fuss."

Chai Youqing's complexion wasn't good either; he wanted to stop Chai Mi from speaking: family disgrace should not be aired publicly...

But he couldn't say it out loud.

After all, this matter had already been made a huge fuss.

The whole village, men, women, old and young, had basically been eating the Chai family's big melon lately.

This family disgrace had long been known to everyone.

Chai Mi simply said a few more words. Since Chai You De's situation was unclear now, and the village had already fronted the money, Chai Mi didn't need to think too much.

Actually, it was more or less what Chai Mi had thought at first.

At first, Chai Mi thought Che Lianyun had money, and Chai Zhongxiao borrowing money was a scam.

Now actually Che Lianyun had cheated the village out of money, so Chai Zhongxiao borrowing money was still a scam.

As for this Chai Zhongxiao... whether he truly didn't know or was pretending not to know, it was unclear.

However, judging by Chai Mi's understanding of Chai Zhongxiao, he should know the village had taken the money, but was pretending not to know.

After a few more unrelated words, Chai Mi and Chai Youqing left.

Afterwards Chai Mi went home and began discussing with the family where to dig the well.

"Mom, you go take a look too... Otherwise, if the well location isn't good later, you'll say I chose the wrong place."

"Mm, fine."

Chai Mi naturally knew her mother was always very concerned about farming matters.

Afterwards Chai Mi said: "That Xiu'er, when you go to your maternal aunt's home, is your cousin at home? Is he busy lately?"

"Oh, cousin... he's at home. He seems to have nothing to do. He said the weather is hot lately and fruits don't sell well, only watermelons sell well, but there are more watermelon sellers than watermelons, so no money is made. So he plans to rest for these two days..."

Liu San's fruit business indeed hasn't been good lately. The weather is too hot; stocking too much easily spoils, stocking too little doesn't earn money. In this era there are no refrigerators, and fruits during the dog days can't be kept, so it's not easy to handle, and Liu San is resting.

Chai Xiu had just taken some vegetables to her maternal aunt's, played for a while, and just came home.

"Then go again, and ask your cousin to come help dig the well." Chai Mi ordered.

"Ah?" Chai Xiu was stunned for a moment. Although she complained in her heart why Chai Mi didn't say it together just now, but instead made her run an extra trip. But she honestly said with her mouth: "Sister, will Sister-in-law come too?"

"She's not afraid of tiredness; let her come exercise her body." Chai Mi smiled and patted Chai Xiu's head.

So Chai Xiu went out again to her maternal aunt's home.

Chai Mi, together with her father Chai Youqing and mother Su Wan, went to their family's plot of land at Fangxia.

In the Northeast, names for plots of land are relatively simple, without the poetic sentiment of the South. "Fangxia," as the name suggests, is under the village houses.

That is, a relatively low-lying plot of land in the village.

However, due to the drought lasting for quite a while, this plot of land was actually already dried to an unseemly state.

To describe it in the local dialect: the crops have all become soft and limp.

Meaning the corn has become soft like willow branches.

Su Wan held the child. Her body had recovered well recently. Looking at the crops about to fall, she felt distressed: "Oh my, it hasn't been this dry in these years. What can these common people do?"

As the saying goes, food is the first necessity of the people.

Now although this era has already undergone Reform and Opening-up, the economy is better, and there is no situation of people starving to death. But the local common people, most still rely on these few mu of land to live.

The good or bad harvest of the crops actually relates to how much the family will have for food, clothing, and daily use in the coming year.

Life was merely an era from being full to eating well.

"No way... if the sky doesn't rain, no one can do anything." Chai Mi took it quite openly: "People can conquer nature to change some things, but if the heavens keep not raining, then everyone is helpless."

Actually, in the past period of time, some rain had fallen, but because this year's temperature was too high, the rain that fell was very small. Almost if some light rain fell in the morning, by afternoon the fields were already dry.

The rain that fell was more or less perfunctory.

"Even if a soaking rain falls, it would do. But it just doesn't rain. I heard them say: the weather forecast keeps forecasting rain..." Su Wan had nothing to do, occasionally went out for a stroll, and neighbors mostly said things related to the weather.

She actually cared more about whether it rained or not.

And was very concerned about this matter.

The family originally had a radio, but forgot to buy batteries, so it wasn't used. Therefore, what Su Wan heard was what the neighbors said.

"The weather forecast says it will rain, but this well still has to be dug. It can't not be dug. If we wait too long, these crops will basically be ruined." Chai Youqing said.

Chai Mi didn't want to talk about this topic anymore. Since they were already preparing to dig a well, there was no need to listen to any weather forecast.

She entered the field, and according to her memory from her previous life, finally drew a circle one meter square in size, more than ten meters from the north side of the field edge, relying on the place next to the west neighbor's field. Then she called Su Wan: "Mom, I think there's water here."

Su Wan didn't quite understand this either, but felt the dug-out soil had nowhere to be placed, and would finally occupy the field's space, and would also ruin the crops: "Then the dug-out soil... what to do with it?"

"Hehe, this isn't your concern. You just say whether this place is okay or not."

"Fine. Anyway I don't know how to look. Digging a well is like gambling. Who knows if there's water underground? If it doesn't work, dig another one. Anyway your dad is idle anyway."

Chai Youqing beside him didn't talk back either, so Chai Youqing took his sickle and cut the corn around Chai Mi's circle first.

By now the corn had grown as tall as a person, listless and drooping, not even forming ears, hardly different from grass.

Digging a well is actually both a skill and a matter of luck.

Though it hasn't rained now, no one irrigates the fields either... so the groundwater level is still fairly ideal.

The common wells locally are still the pressurized well type, like the well at Chai Mi's home, which is also a pressurized well.

But coming to the fields to dig a well, it's another kind of well, locally generally called: Yuan Shui Jing.

It's a well where the outer circle is enclosed with a mold.

The place had already been decided, and these two had no objections; what remained was to start digging the well.

Chai Youqing took an iron shovel and began digging shovel by shovel.

Digging a well is physical labor; at the start it's on the ground, where it's all soil, so it goes fairly fast.

By the time Liu San and his wife arrived, Chai Youqing had already dug more than two meters deep himself.

"Third Aunt is here..." Liu San greeted the others.

Afterwards Liu San picked up an iron shovel himself, called Chai Youqing up, and jumped down to start digging the well himself.

"Chai Mi, look at this, your eldest male cousin is born to work, he doesn't even need to be told, he knows to do it himself." Zhang Hailan said with a smile: "Just your eldest male cousin, these past two days he's been idle as can be; if you have work, let him do it—perfect, I don't even have to manage his meals anymore, how good."

"That's why we look for him; he's good at work, I don't have to manage anything, he can dig a well by himself."

Saying this, both laughed happily.

After a while Chai Mi said to Chai Youqing: "I'll go to the Town to buy two bags of cement; this afternoon we'll probably set the mold. As for bricks... I think our lower Courtyard has some; three or five hundred bricks will do. You go scoop a cart of sand from the He Tao ditch up there..."

Actually, digging the well goes fast, but setting the mold is especially troublesome and time-consuming besides.

Of course, digging the well was only just decided, a sudden idea forced by the drought, so besides having people, nothing else was prepared...

After saying that, Chai Mi felt it wasn't quite proper, and then said: "That... Father, you stay here and dig the well. I'll go handle the rest."

Chai Mi was somewhat worried about Chai Youqing having too much work, and still felt doing it herself would be more reassuring and less trouble.

"Sister-in-law, the two of us will go back and first haul a cart of sand; as for cement, I'll pass by up there later and ask Qiu Shui to help buy it."

This division of labor should be more reasonable than just now.

"Mom, go home. Don't always let Xiu'er watch the child; she's not quite up to it. You go home and help watch the child, and while you're at it cook some food, make more hard dishes."

"Mm."

With the division of labor clear, each went to do their own.

Chai Mi also ran to the well mouth and said two words to Liu San: "Big Brother, work slowly, rest if you're tired; this isn't too urgent, don't wear yourself out."

Indeed, Chai Mi's advice was fairly right.

Liu San is a person who works quite honestly; though his own family doesn't have much land and doesn't do much physical labor anymore, he works without sparing effort, a good hand at work.

"You go busy yourself; this bit of work I can finish alone, no need for my Third Aunt's husband..."

"Mm."

Chai Mi didn't say too much to these two, and then with Su Wan and Sister-in-law Zhang Hailan went home first.

"Your male cousin really knows how to brag... Chai Mi, later you just let him work... until he's too tired to stand." Zhang Hailan said with a smile. "Go home and collapse on the Kang, that'll be good."

"Digging a well is terribly tiring, not like working up there; the deeper it gets, the worse it feels. Take it slow; anyway, my father and him both love to brag, let them come."

After the several people returned home, Su Wan went first to check on the child, then busied herself with cooking and such.

Chai Mi herself harnessed the Ox Cart, took two iron shovels, and went out with Zhang Hailan.

South of Chai Mi, at the place above the Village Entrance, there is actually a small path. It used to be a small He Tao, but long ago it had no water.

That path was actually the original riverbed; when the Village needed sand in small amounts, they'd come here to get some.

Afterwards they'd fill in the dug hole.

Anyway, if it rains heavily, the mountain over there will wash down some sand.

No need to worry; digging sand won't make the road impassable.

Of course, mainly the Ox Cart is narrow, with a small gap, and it can pass.

The two worked for over half an hour, gathered one Ox Cart of sand, and then headed back.

Passing by Song Qiushui's House, Chai Mi had Zhang Hailan drive the Ox Cart back first, while she herself went to Song Qiushui's House.

"Is Qiu Shui up yet?" Chai Mi asked Meng Shi, who was idling in the Courtyard.

Meng Shi pouted: "No, she's asleep... I keep saying her father is good for nothing, insisting Qiu Shui go catch scorpions, and she got worn out; it's past ten now and she still hasn't woken..."

"No, you supported Qiu Shui going too? Why blame me for everything?" Song Qingshan muttered unhappily.

"Ah... if not you, then who? If you were capable and had money at home, would my Qiu Shui have to go catch scorpions in the middle of the night? It's not because you, this father, are good for nothing, only know how to eat, don't earn a cent, causing my daughter to suffer with you? With such an incapable father, how can you be ashamed to live... why don't you just drop dead..." Meng Shi began scolding Song Qingshan.

"Qiu Shui told me when she came back; you only know how to hold a flashlight, you don't do any work at all, so what are you following them for? Wasting the oil money..."

Song Qingshan: "If I don't go, who will drive for them?"

Meng Shi, hearing Song Qingshan actually talk back, immediately unleashed her full fury: "They can't drive, won't the car drive itself... it's obviously you, only you know how to drive the Tractor; I'm telling you, even if you tied our dog to the steering wheel, the Tractor wouldn't fall into the Dagou. And you still talk back, you're not that, I'm telling you, you... you're just a Rice Bucket/Useless Person, good at nothing, first in eating."

Song Qingshan turned his head: Forget it, forget it, I'll go out...

Afterwards Song Qingshan went out.

"Aunt, what you say, my Uncle isn't completely useless..."

"Oh give it a rest, he's good for nothing. Chai Mi, you don't need to speak for him; if he had any ability, wouldn't Qiu Shui already be eating well and living well?"

"He still has some strengths, like his good eyesight, marrying a good Daughter-in-law like you..." Chai Mi said with a smile.

"Heh, that's my bad luck for eight lifetimes... he's at least decent in that, not blind at least." Meng Shi said, her mood improving a bit, and continued cursing toward the Door: "Song Qingshan, what are you going out for? You don't like hearing me say it? You only got me; if it were someone else, they'd have left you long ago."