Chapter 129: Chapter 74: Draining the Fishpond (Part 3)

Little Shitou looked up at her and said, “Maybe it burrowed into the mud. Turtles are sneaky. As soon as they hear a noise, they pull in their necks and don’t move.”

Juhua looked down at him and smiled. “We’re the sneaky ones, thinking about eating it all day. Are we not even going to let it hide?” Little Shitou couldn’t help but laugh when he heard that.

Juhua saw Zhao San holding a basket filled with many black water caltrops. She quickly said, “Oh my! Shitou, look at your dad! He’s gathered so many water caltrops. These are delicious when they’re boiled.”

An old granny nearby turned and smiled at her. “You can’t eat those—they’re for seeding. After they’re done with this pond, they have to be thrown back in so more water caltrops will grow next year. The grass carp will have something to eat, too.”

Juhua had a moment of realization and was filled with admiration. ’These simple farmers really know how to live in harmony with nature. They never take everything and ruin things by digging up the roots.’ She looked again at the withered, yellow artemisia around the pond. ’In the spring, they’re sure to sprout tender green leaves, surrounding this pool of clear water. The surface will be dotted with newly emerged, duckweed-like water caltrop leaves. That would be a beautiful sight!’

Just as she was thinking this, a loud cheer erupted from below. She quickly looked over—it was Zhang Huai, holding a large carp over two feet long. The fish’s tail thrashed wildly from side to side, splashing him all over with mud, but his face was lit up with a brilliant smile.

He looked up at Juhua on the bank and saw that she was also watching him with a delighted surprise. He happily lifted the fish and brandished it at her before quickly pulling it back—he had almost lost his grip.

Li Changxing laughed. “I’ve been scooping up small fish for ages and have even gathered a good number of loaches. How was there still a big fish like that hiding in there?”

Big Mouth Zhao shouted, “Maybe it hid the same way last year, and it almost got away today, too. If Huai Zi hadn’t caught it, it would probably turn into a spirit by next year.”

Everyone burst into laughter. Spurred on, they all started searching more carefully for any fish that had slipped through the net.

The men digging up the pond mud also collected a lot of loaches, all big ones as thick as a finger. The small ones were, of course, thrown back.

Once that puddle was cleared, the group immediately moved to another one. They sent the buckets filled with big fish, small fish, and loaches up to the pond bank and lined them up in a row. Then they bailed the water from the second puddle into the one they had just finished, returning the fish that were meant to be released.

And so, a new round of clamor began. The people continued to cheer and shout, unable to contain their excitement.

Juhua was thrilled as she watched. Every so often, Qingmu or Zhang Huai would hold up a big fish for her to see. ’I really want to go down there and try it for myself,’ she thought. ’Just watching them catch fish isn’t satisfying at all.’ But she knew this wish could never come true. It wasn’t just because of her poor health; even able-bodied girls didn’t go into the water. In fact, not even the married women went in.

All she could do was stand there with regret.

Liu Xiaomei was talking to her when they suddenly heard Meizi exclaim in delight, “Sister Lanzi, what took you so long to get here? They’ve already caught so much. Look over there—” She pointed at the row of buckets on the bank for Lanzi to see.

Lanzi smiled and said to them, “I came out after washing the clothes. Haven’t you gotten cold standing here for so long?” She looked specifically at Juhua.

Juhua, prompted by the question, suddenly realized her feet were ice-cold again. She stomped them vigorously and said, “Oh my! I was so caught up in the excitement, I really am cold.”

Lanzi took out a shoe sole and, right there on the crowded pond bank under the big sun, began to stitch it with a “SHHH-RIP, SHHH-RIP” sound. She smiled at Juhua as she worked. “If you watch all day, you’ll freeze, won’t you? We’ll have hot pot for lunch. A bowl of hot soup will warm you up.”

Meizi laughed. “Can’t you take a break? You’ve always got a needle and thread in your hand. Are you saving up for your dowry?”

Liu Xiaomei and Juhua couldn’t help but laugh.

Lanzi shot her a look. “Not everyone is as lucky as you—doing nothing all day, and your mother still dotes on you like crazy.”

Juhua watched Lanzi talk, her hands never stopping for a moment. She was stitching with extreme care, always aligning the needle perfectly before pushing it through the sole to ensure the stitch wasn’t crooked, only then looking up to speak with them. ’She’s such a virtuous and capable woman,’ Juhua thought. ’I wonder who will be lucky enough to marry her.’

As they were chatting, they suddenly heard a loud “YOOO-HOOO…” from below, immediately followed by a chorus of “Whoa!”, “Oh my!”, and other exclamations and shouts. They saw Big Mouth Zhao standing in the middle of the muddy water, holding a black, mud-caked object the size of a washbasin with both hands. He was grinning foolishly, showing off a mouthful of white teeth. Everyone around him crowded in, jostling to get a look and even reaching out to touch it, not minding the dirt at all.

Meizi was so anxious she was craning her neck, turning her head this way and that, asking, “What’s going on? What did they catch? What is that thing?”

But the people standing in her area were just as clueless; no one knew what Big Mouth Zhao had caught, so of course, no one could answer her.

Little Shitou eagerly volunteered, “I’ll go see! I’ll come back and tell you.”

Just as he was about to head over, the people below gave them the answer—Big Mouth Zhao shouted loudly toward Juhua’s group, “Juhua, we found a huge turtle—it weighs about ten jin!” He pushed through the crowd, walking toward their side of the bank and splashing muddy water with every step.

Liu Xiaomei was so excited she started speaking incoherently. “Oh my! I’m already looking forward to eating it. Juhua, you have to cook some for me!”

Meizi laughed. “You gave me a scare! I thought you were going to eat it right this second.”

Juhua saw everyone looking at her with kind smiles. Her heart was also filled with an uncontrollable joy. She waited quietly for Big Mouth Zhao to reach the bottom of the bank before she looked at the old, mud-caked turtle.

’Now *this* one really looks like a millstone!’

Compared to this one, the soft-shelled turtle they ate last time was like its great-grandchild. The old turtle was so covered in mud that she couldn’t make out its color, but on its half-extended, jet-black head, its pair of small eyes were remarkably bright. It was even staring right back at Juhua and the others—not at all like a typical turtle that would immediately retract its neck at any disturbance.

A note from the author, Chou Ju: Thank you for your support, dear readers! Please vote with pink tickets and subscribe! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian.com and cast your recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep