Chapter 1385

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Protagonist:

Li Xiulan

Time gradually moved toward noon in the blink of an eye, the sun climbing overhead.

Wang Chang had already finished cooking the rice and dishes.

The Changjiang Village Committee's 8 natural villages had a total of 9 low-intelligence poverty-stricken households; among these low-intelligence poverty-stricken households, aside from Zhao Congming who left descendants, the others were almost all single men.

Besides their low IQs, they shared another common trait: relatives and friends didn't care about them, leaving them to fend for themselves.

As for female low-intelligence persons, it's not that there weren't any, but those who existed had been married off.

In rural areas, as long as a woman still had fertility, she truly had no trouble getting married.

Of course, "married" is just a nicer way of putting it.

A phrasing closer to the truth is "sold."

"Director Wang, it's almost 12 o'clock and no one's come yet."

Wang Chang, holding a spatula, came over to ask Wang Xiaohua.

Wang Xiaohua said:

"In a bit we'll go door-to-door to bring them over; at first they might not even know how to get to the village committee!"

No sooner had Wang Xiaohua's words fallen than two figures appeared outside the village committee.

It was none other than Zhao Congming, leading his son Zhao Duozhi with a rope, walking over with a grin.

Zhao Congming's wife Wang Aidi had died; her corpse had long been taken away by the police, yet Zhao Congming and his son Zhao Duozhi were still cheerful all day long.

Because the word "death" simply didn't exist as a concept in their heads.

"See, they're here, aren't they?"

Seeing Zhao Congming and Zhao Duozhi, He Zhixiong hurried over to greet them:

"Congming, Duozhi, you father and son are the first to arrive today; later we'll reward you with chicken legs!"

Zhao Congming grinned foolishly:

"Where's my wife? Is she coming to eat? I, I heard them say fools can come eat too; my wife is also a fool, so she should come as well, right?"

He Zhixiong was momentarily stunned, not knowing how to answer for a while.

It was Guo Dafu, carefree and blunt, who spoke directly:

"Your wife is dead; you don't need to wait for her anymore."

Zhao Duozhi asked:

"What does 'dead' mean?"

Guo Dafu teased him:

"Dead means either reincarnating or turning into a vengeful ghost; your wife died a wrongful death, so she'll likely become a vengeful ghost, lingering in your house, only drifting out at night! Behind your back, blowing cold air, calling, 'Son~ son~ I'm your mom~~'"

Guo Dafu thought describing a ghost so vividly would scare Zhao Duozhi.

However, Zhao Duozhi was a fool; he fundamentally couldn't be judged by normal human thinking.

Only to see Zhao Duozhi not only fail to show a trace of fear, but instead grin foolishly with a face full of anticipation:

"Then I'm not sleeping tonight; I'll wait for my mom to come back!"

Seeing this, Wang Xiaohua hurried over and said to Guo Dafu:

"Village Chief Guo, stop teasing him!"

At this moment Zhao Congming asked Wang Xiaohua:

"My wife, she, will she come back tonight?"

Wang Xiaohua couldn't help feeling sympathy for him, and could only tell him a kind lie:

"Your wife went to a very, very far place; she probably won't be back tonight."

Zhao Congming's face immediately showed disappointment:

"I was thinking, if she comes back, I, I'll bring some food back for her to eat tonight."

Zhao Duozhi then asked:

"If my mom isn't coming back tonight, when will she come back?"

Wang Xiaohua said:

"I don't know either; anyway it won't be that soon, you two come to the village committee every day, and when she's back we'll tell you."

Zhao Congming hurriedly said:

"Okay, okay, then from now on, bring my son along every time!"

Wang Xiaohua arranged Zhao Congming and Zhao Duozhi, father and son, to sit at a table.

Before long, another fool from a different village arrived.

Then after a while, yet another one came.

The fools trickled in one after another.

In a flash it was 12:30; almost all of them had arrived.

Only the last one remained: Li Daibao from Shanxia Village.

Li Daibao was 33 years old; he had suffered from microcephaly at birth, with congenital intellectual deficiency.

Now at 33, it's no exaggeration to say his brain couldn't even compare to a 3-year-old child's.

For this kind of congenital small-brained fool, there's basically no way to recover.

Especially in rural areas, after this kind of person's parents die, they are basically in a state of abandonment.

And Li Daibao's parents passed away one after another in earlier years.

Now in Shanxia Village, he survives entirely on the villagers' relief, eating food from a hundred households, wandering around the village like a dog.

Seeing Li Daibao not coming for a long time, Xiao Hua said to He Zhixiong:

"Secretary He, lend me your motorcycle, I'm going to Shanxia Village to take a look!"

He Zhixiong, however, didn't think much of it:

"What are you running to Shanxia Village for? That Li Daibao, his IQ is about the same as a dog's, he probably forgot your instructions from yesterday long ago, it's normal for him not to come."

But Xiao Hua said:

"No matter what, I still have to go take a look."

He Zhixiong didn't say anything more.

He just felt Xiao Hua was responsible to an excessive degree, truly unnecessary.

Xiao Hua rode He Zhixiong's motorcycle, driving all the way to Shanxia Village.

Just as he arrived at Shanxia Village's entrance, he saw Li Daibao playing in the water in the small river nearby.

Xiao Hua shouted to Li Daibao:

"Li Daibao, I called you yesterday to come to the village committee at noon today to eat, why didn't you come?"

Li Daibao looked up at Xiao Hua, a sharp, tiny head, plus big eyes and big mouth, looking a bit like the orcs inside The Lord of the Rings, a bit scary.

But Xiao Hua didn't feel fear or rejection because of this, instead communicating with Li Daibao patiently.

Li Daibao's face showed a slightly ferocious smile:

"I don't know the road, walked halfway, got scared, turned back."

He wasn't being ferocious on purpose, but congenital developmental deficiency caused his current facial appearance.

Hearing this, Xiao Hua felt a bit like crying and laughing:

"You've never been to Changjiang Village Committee?"

Li Daibao touched his little head and smiled:

"Never been, I don't know the road."

He repeated saying he didn't know the road.

But it wasn't lying, it was the honest truth.

Actually Li Daibao has lived thirty-plus years, the farthest road he's walked is only leaving Shanxia Village's entrance.

Walking any farther, he gets scared.

Xiao Hua then said:

"Get on, I'll take you to the village committee to eat lunch! There's big chicken legs to eat!"

Li Daibao immediately smiled excitedly:

"Okay okay!"

Then he came to Xiao Hua's front, excited like a dog, but didn't know how to get on.

Xiao Hua then said:

"Put your foot here, then push up, and you can get on!"

Li Daibao tried several times, but couldn't get on.

Xiao Hua got off the motorcycle, demonstrated once for him, and only then did he climb onto the motorcycle with great difficulty.

"Hold onto me, I'm going to drive!"

Xiao Hua was really afraid that while driving, Li Daibao would fall off the vehicle.

After all, a fool has no danger consciousness, anything could be done.

Fortunately the things Xiao Hua worried about didn't happen, all the way Li Daibao was very scared and nervous, clutching Xiao Hua's clothes tightly.

Very quickly, Xiao Hua delivered Li Daibao to the village committee.

Then served him a large plate of rice and dishes to eat.