Chapter 1189

Xiangxiang is a pig that is independent yet adaptable.

It has been exactly two days since it arrived at the old Song family's place; a separate area in the pigsty on the back mountain was partitioned off for it to adapt, and incidentally, to isolate and observe it as well.

Away from its Daddy Dabao and its grandparents, Xiangxiang no longer had fruits like apples, bananas, and pears, nor did it have the carefully prepared pig meals every day.

All it got was the same wheat bran and rice bran mixed feed as the other pigs.

The mixed feed might be vegetable leaves, it might be vegetable stalks, or it might be vegetable roots.

But...

Its pig life had never eaten such delicious things—crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch!!

Xiangxiang, wearing its big red floral padded jacket, instantly adapted to the life of sleeping on a pile of straw.

If one had to say there were any shortcomings... it would probably be that it could no longer be led by its grandparents to stroll through the fragrant market.

However, this mountain is also quite fun; strolling around, one can also root out some dry acorns and fruit pits near the pigsty, which is equally fun.

Xiangxiang looked at its simple cement trough; what it was thinking about right now wasn't the beautiful carved white porcelain basin at home, but—

Why hasn't the food come yet, hasn't come yet, hasn't come yet!

Everyone had gone to the mountain to get busy; Grandpa Seven was working part-time on the task of feeding the pigs. At this moment, he put down the pig feed bucket and stared at the big red jacket on Xiangxiang that was already a bit dirty, unable to help but mutter:

"Shouldn't this clothing be taken off?"

This foreign pig is just flashy, and what it wears is also flashy.

After being brought over and separated by a pigsty, the big white pig at home hasn't even looked at it straight for these two days; it's clearly disdainful of this lineage, and the wild boars don't bother with it either.

Can it still work out if things go on like this?

If it doesn't produce eight or ten piglets next year, the family's meat will still be in short supply; how miserable would that life be?

Just as he was pondering, he saw Zhang Yanping riding an electric scooter down the mountain.

Grandpa Seven asked: "Yanping, how about we take off this pig's jacket? It's always wearing it in the pigsty, rooting in the mud and the ground, and rooting in these withered branches and rotten leaves; how filthy it is."

Zhang Yanping thought that was true, but Grandpa Seven was old, and he didn't feel at ease letting an old man go to take the clothes off the pig, so he stepped into the pigsty himself:

"I'll do it. I heard Xiangxiang has a pretty good build and isn't afraid of the cold; it shouldn't catch a cold, right?"

"It won't." Grandpa Seven nodded confidently: "Didn't Yan Ran and the others check and say everything is quite good? It's been isolated for two or three days, and it's a domesticated one; what danger could there be?"

"If you ask me, once the clothes are off in a while, we can put them in the same pen."

We must hurry to get piglets!

Zhang Yanping thought that was true.

"Alright, they have to get along eventually."

He said this as he opened the door and entered the pigsty, carefully coaxing Xiangxiang to take off its clothes.

And Grandpa Seven looked at Xiangxiang's 600-jin big frame again, unable to help but shake his head with a tsk.

"People nowadays are idle; they really dare to raise anything!"

A 600-jin pig—it's fortunate that they can make room in their courtyard.

Looking at the time again, it was about time to prepare lunch, so he greeted them and went back himself.

And at this moment, his troublesome apprentice, Chef Bai Yan, also got off the car at the entrance of the village, and was currently staring at the driver in dismay.

"It only took an hour to drive from the high-speed rail station to here, and you're asking me for 400; aren't you ripping people off?"

The driver wasn't happy either.

Ripping people off is one thing, but where is there a taxi driver who doesn't rip people off?

The pigs should be fine, right? Aren't they eating quite happily? I could even hear them oinking hungrily this morning.

He then also said loudly:

"How can you say that? If you didn't agree, you should have bargained with me at the beginning! You acted rich when you agreed at the time; I thought you weren't short of money. Now that you've arrived at the destination, you want to renege, right?"

"Oh my!" The driver deals with different passengers every day; what kind of person can't he handle? At this moment, he said mocking words as soon as he opened his mouth:

"Looking at you, you're also of a certain age, and you can't even take out 400 yuan? It's the New Year... fine, fine, fine, I'll accept it; I'll give you a discount of five yuan."

Chef Bai instantly became furious: "Am I short of those five yuan?"

The driver also stared at him with wide eyes: "If you're short of the remaining 395, that's even worse! Looking at you, you're also of a certain age; how come you can't even take out this travel expense?"

"Aren't you... what are you doing coming to this village? Looking for relatives and friends? That's fine, you make a phone call and tell them to come and pay this money; I can wait."

Chef Bai was almost about to faint from anger.

You can wait?!

Do you know how much salary and dividends I had a month before? Is 400 yuan a big deal here? If it weren't for mortgaging the house to invest in the Youran Ecological Base, with all kinds of burdens weighing on his heart, would he be haggling with someone over 400 yuan right now?!

Furthermore, his main goal today was to leave a good impression on Master Song; what does it count for to be haggling here over 400 yuan?

He thought for a moment, and finally took out his phone angrily: "Fine, fine, fine, 400 is 400. I don't care for that five-yuan discount."

The driver held up his phone, looking at him while muttering, thinking that five yuan is money; this old man really knows how to act rich!

It's just that looking at him... he doesn't look like someone returning home in glory either.

But no matter what, it's fine as long as the money is received.

So he closed the car door, changed his face instantly, and said enthusiastically to Chef Bai again:

"I just gave you my phone number on the road; if you need a car on the way back, just call me, and I'll come again—don't worry, I'll give you a cheaper rate this time."

Chef Bai was so angry he couldn't speak: "No need, you go."

Watching the taxi go far away, he then reacted slowly—

That... where does the original Master Song live now?

How come this village has changed so much?

And it's really strange; in broad daylight, how come I haven't seen a single person on this road?

Chef Bai began to feel uneasy.

And at this moment, the whole village is concentrated on the hillside.

The able-bodied workers staying in the village today are going to plant orange trees.

Compared to those surprisingly large apple trees from before, the orange trees are relatively small and exquisite after pruning; while planting them into the pits dug earlier, everyone is chatting:

"If we plant oranges here, won't they all be those thick-skinned oranges? Others with thin skins aren't frost-resistant; I guess they won't survive."

"Are those thick-skinned oranges easy to sell?"

"They should be okay, right? Didn't Shitou Slope sell them for 1 yuan a jin this year? Pick them yourself. If delivered to the door, it's 2 yuan a jin."

"But the radishes and cabbages from the old Song family can sell for sky-high prices; these oranges definitely won't be just that little bit."

Everyone was talking at once, and suddenly regretted: "If I had known, I would have planted one or two in front of my door too."

Indeed, the Song Sancheng family even hires experts to farm, and they are very famous old experts.

These seedlings must have been selected well too.

Or else...

"Shall we ask around the village later to see whose family wants to plant them? See if they can help us buy some too?"

The most important thing is that this tree doesn't take up much space.

Nowadays, everyone has carefully cultivated the empty land in front of their doors and behind their houses, just waiting for the old Song family's vegetable seedlings to be ready to be planted.

Other fruit trees are too much in the way when planted, but these orange seedlings aren't big; they should be okay, right?

Everyone was discussing in twos and threes, and then pondering:

"They say they need a lot of people to pick vegetables this year, and they also need manpower... looking at how their whole family is on the mountain packing vegetables now, I guess they're quite short of people this year... how about I don't go out to work?"

Someone next to him also agreed: "I don't want to go out either; I'm getting old, and whenever there's an inspection, I'm in the way, and I don't get the good spots. Last year I went out for a year and changed three or five factories, just running on the road."

"Hey, you say they're planting orchards and vegetables at the old Song family's; will they have some kind of picking activity like those in the city?"

"If there really is one, I wonder if it would work if we set up a farmhouse restaurant here."

"That's probably tough. People eating at the old Song family's—isn't it better than what we make in a few strokes?"

"That's not necessarily true," the person speaking pondered: "You can't bring everyone home, right? There are only two people busy at the mountain canteen right now; it won't be manageable if there are too many people."

"I actually think there's something to it. Look at Song Tan's partner; I heard he can also earn tens of millions a year. And her cousin, aren't they both preparing to run a homestay in the village?"

"If it doesn't make money, why would they do this?"

"But you can't just do it blindly. My skills definitely can't make a farmhouse restaurant; I'll just do some work and earn some money, that's enough."

Everyone was talking at once, chattering, each with their own heart's desire.

Until someone looked at the time:

"Yo! It's 12 o'clock; we have to tidy up and go eat."

"Alright."

Having done physical labor all morning, everyone was a bit hungry; at this moment, they nimbly took their own farm tools and walked toward the canteen.

While asking: "We shouldn't need these hoes and shovels in the afternoon, right?"

"Not needed; I heard the afternoon is to re-till the vacant spinach field and sprinkle some fertilizer..."

"That's fine; after eating, take these things back, tidy up, and sleep for a while."

Must sleep for a while.

Their spinach field hadn't been shoveled for a large area yet, and they were specifically instructed to come later.

Everyone was carrying shovels, hoes, and rakes in twos and threes, walking toward the mountain canteen in a lively manner.

Nowadays, even the old men and women in the village are working, so naturally, no one could answer Chef Bai's question.

He kept looking at the playback on his phone, attempting to find the landmark building in the group.

Finally! Saw the old Song family's small white villa!

After walking for a long while, he saw a small shop and hurriedly went in to ask:

"Boss, how do I get to this house?"

The person in the small shop was scrolling through Tremolo; he took the phone, looked at it, and said nonchalantly:

"Go straight along this big road; when you see the bamboo forest, turn and go over, and that's it."

Thinking for a moment, he raised his head and looked at him curiously: "Are you here to deliver seedlings or to pack vegetables?"

Chef Bai felt a burst of frustration in his heart; at this moment, he shook his expensive coat: "Neither; it's mainly to talk about a collaboration."

"Oh."

The other party sized him up, thinking that this person's attitude is much worse than those who came to talk about collaboration before.

"Then you've come at an inconvenient time; their family is busy right now, and I guess they don't have time to talk."

How rare! Selling spinach, they sold more than 50,000 jin in one day, and all the old and young in the village were pulled over.

Nowadays, the only ones left in the village who aren't working are probably just me.

Sigh, guarding this small shop, I haven't earned much money, but it really delayed quite a few job opportunities.

Chef Bai became even more depressed upon hearing this.

Do you know what the vegetable prices at Chang Le Ju have risen to now?

The spinach here is clearly good stuff, and they're actually selling it for 20 yuan a jin, and it includes shipping?!

This boss really doesn't have half a business mind.

But then again, after all, being able to get mixed up with his former master, his previous ideas were very old-fashioned.

Learning to cook, this won't do, that won't do; this material is particular, that material is also particular...

Sigh, in the fast-food era now, who cares about that? Can't you just make the dish?

Thinking for a moment, he cheered up again:

Taking advantage of the fact that these vegetables haven't been sold yet, I must go and taste them. If the quality is good, he can buy all of them for 20 yuan a jin, and save on shipping costs too.

At worst, I still have a little bit of face left; once the vegetables are placed in front of people, I don't believe I can't earn a price difference!

Thinking of this, he asked again: "Is there also a Master Song in the village?"

Master Song?

The boss thought for a long time before finally reacting: "Oh, you mean Song Tan's Grandpa Seven? Yes, isn't he at their house? What exactly are you here for? Asking about this and that, and you're not even willing to buy a pack of cigarettes; really..."

Chef Bai didn't feel the other party's impatience; at this moment, he just smiled confidently:

"His son hasn't been back for so many years, right? It's not easy for the old couple in the village!"

The small shop boss looked at him, rolled his eyes silently, and didn't speak.

—Not speaking isn't that the same as agreeing?

Chef Bai also smiled confidently and stepped out the door again.

However, the other party did point the way correctly; walking straight along the big road... in the deep winter, he was wearing leather shoes, and his soles were aching from walking.

Only then did he see that bamboo forest, and the small villa with white walls and gray tiles vaguely revealed behind the bamboo forest.

Chef Bai is really a bit tired now, and a bit disheveled.

He has lived in luxury for so many years, and whenever he goes out, he has a car; now it's fine, he hasn't been back for decades, and he didn't expect the village to change so much now, so he couldn't find the way.

Secondly, he didn't expect that the village, which was vaguely very small in his memory, would be so big to walk through now?

But that's fine too; make myself look a bit more weathered and haggard. Cry a few times later, Master. Even if you don't recognize me, I still have some face. As long as a person softens their heart, won't the relationship be able to be drawn closer slowly?

Chef Bai pulled himself together. He shook himself again and set off forward with high spirits.

Grandpa Seven was sitting there with a knife, smashing garlic, when he suddenly felt his eyelids twitching and couldn't help but be stunned.

Aunt Lianhua happened to be carrying dishes; seeing this, she asked curiously: "Grandpa Seven, what's wrong with you? Did you get garlic in your eyes?"

"A little... oh my, this garlic is really potent! Tantan must plant more onions and garlic this year; they're really indispensable in daily life."

As he was saying this, he slapped the cutting board flat with a "bang," which happened to coincide with a wailing sound from outside.

"Master, Master! You've suffered all these years."

The three people in the kitchen looked at each other.

Even Grandma Seven asked curiously:

"Has a beggar come?"