Chapter 208: Chapter 114: The Starting Point of Qingnan Village (Part 2)

Mr. Zhou smiled. “See? You’re quite the planner!”

Li Gengtian was even happier to hear that.

Qingmu thought for a moment and added, “My sister has already dug up quite a few and planted them by the courtyard. She specifically picks chrysanthemum seedlings from dense patches, digging up a few so it doesn’t leave the original spot bare.”

Li Gengtian nodded repeatedly. “That’s exactly right. Otherwise, if we just dug up all the chrysanthemums from the fields and planted them in our courtyards, wouldn’t that just be robbing Peter to pay Paul? It wouldn’t help at all and would just be a waste of effort. It’s like taking off your pants to fart—a totally unnecessary hassle. Thinning out some seedlings while leaving others in the original spot is the only way to actually increase the total number. As for planting these chrysanthemums, I’ll let everyone decide for themselves. They can plant them if they want, and if they don’t, that’s fine too. At most, I’ll just make an announcement.”

The group chatted for a while longer before Li Gengtian took his leave. Mr. Zhou then led the two students to their lesson.

The next day, Li Gengtian led Li Changming, Li Changxing, Big Mouth Zhao, Sun Tiezhu, and others to Little Qing Mountain to plant bamboo. He also called on some of the wives to go harvest bamboo shoots. Since Qingmu was in class, Zheng Changhe went on behalf of the Zheng Family.

Even though the wheat harvest was approaching, no one felt bothered about being called out for this task. On the contrary, because the village chief had led them in several projects this year that had all benefited the village, they could practically see a better life waving at them.

Therefore, everyone was in high spirits and had no objections at all to Li Gengtian’s arrangement for each household to take turns cutting grass to feed the fish.

Seeing his prestige in the village growing day by day, Li Gengtian was also very pleased and became even more dedicated to planning for the village’s future. He carefully explained the uses of wild chrysanthemums to the villagers, letting everyone choose for themselves whether to plant them or not.

As it turned out, most people said they wanted to.

They said that even if the flowers couldn’t be sold, planting them by their doors and in their courtyards would look nice, wouldn’t it? Besides, they could also be used to make tea and stuff pillows.

People are prone to following trends. Before, when the wild chrysanthemums were just growing in the fields, no one thought to dig them up and replant them for their looks. Now that they heard the flowers could be used for tea, for stuffing pillows, and might even be sold for money, who wouldn’t go dig them up?

Juhua watched the young wives digging up wild chrysanthemum seedlings all over the fields and couldn’t help but smile.

’When the time comes and every household in Qingnan Village is surrounded by golden wild chrysanthemums, what a sight that will be!’

In the bamboo grove, Li Changxing was digging up old bamboo stalks while saying to Big Mouth Zhao, “Big Mouth, you won’t have to worry about finding a wife this year, huh? I reckon our income will be a lot higher. Just you wait to hold your new bride!”

The people around them burst into laughter.

Big Mouth Zhao chuckled happily. “That’s for sure. I’m feeling energized too. I can’t say how much money we’ll make, but we’ll definitely be able to have more fish and meat for the New Year. That way, my new wife will have a good celebration when she joins the family. We won’t have done the girl wrong.”

Zhao San heard this and laughed loudly. “Hey now, Big Mouth! Your wife hasn’t even walked through the door and you’re already doting on her?”

Big Mouth Zhao said without a hint of shyness, “What’s wrong with doting on your wife? A girl marries you so you can dote on her, isn’t that right?”

Li Changxing, Li Changming, and the other young men heard this and couldn’t stop snickering.

Li Changming’s smile slowly faded. He thought, ’Where’s my wife? I’m hardworking and willing to put in the effort, so why isn’t anyone willing to marry their daughter to me?’

As bitterness filled his heart, the image of Meizi crying her eyes out appeared in his mind. He quickly shook his head to banish the image.

’She’s a girl I could never hope to marry. Gou Dan’s mother treats her like a precious treasure. My family is not only poor, but I’m also much older than her. Her mother would never, ever marry her off to me. Besides, I know everyone in the village dislikes my mother. Who, knowing our family situation, would be willing to marry their daughter to me?’

Thinking about all this, he couldn’t bring himself to smile anymore and just focused on digging and planting bamboo in silence.

Then he heard Li Changxing say, “We’ve got to work hard for a couple of years and save up to get married. If we don’t find wives soon, Big Mouth’s son will be born before we know it. Then if our sons are much younger than his, won’t they just get bullied by his kid?”

“HAHAHA…” Everyone roared with laughter, doubling over.

Even Li Gengtian couldn’t hold back a chuckle. Watching these young men hopping around with such energy, he started to miss his own sons—Changfeng and Changyu hadn’t been back for over two months.

Shorty Zhou then laughed. “Changxing, you just focus on saving up some money. My wife has a few nieces on her side of the family. I can put in a good word for you with one of them.”

Li Changxing laughed. “Uncle Zhou, you’re not just pulling my leg, are you? What if I save up all this money and you just turn around and say, ’Oh, it’s not a good match, the age is wrong’? How old are these nieces of yours? They’re not still toddlers, are they?”

This sent everyone into another round of boisterous laughter.

Shorty Zhou cursed in mock anger, “Keep running that smart mouth of yours! I see you don’t actually want to find a wife. Let me tell you, all my wife’s nieces are virtuous and of a suitable age for you. Hmph! The real question is whether you have what it takes for one of them to choose you.”

One of the other young men chimed in teasingly, “Uncle Zhou, hurry up and find one for me, too! I’m so hardworking, I’d make a great son-in-law.”

Zhao San shouted, “When did these young lads get so thick-skinned? Not like in our day! We were so honest and simple, we wouldn’t even dare to lift our heads when meeting a potential bride’s family.”

Li Changxing asked disbelievingly, “Third Uncle, that doesn’t sound like you at all! I bet you were always showing off in front of Third Aunt back in the day, and that’s how you tricked her into marrying you, right?”

Zhao San retorted with a laugh, “Nonsense! We’d only met twice before we got married. What do you mean ’tricked’? You think everyone’s a sweet-talker like you, with a mouth full of honey?”

The men digging and planting bamboo continued to laugh and joke, and in the bamboo grove, the wives harvesting shoots found their banter amusing. They broke off shoots from the densest clumps, leaving only a few sturdy ones to grow into bamboo. These stout shoots were as thick as a child’s wrist, completely unlike the wild shoots Juhua and the others had gathered.

Moving back and forth through the bamboo grove, they constantly startled birds, which took flight with a flutter of wings. This forest had probably never seen so many people at once, and its peaceful tranquility had truly been disturbed. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my biggest motivation.)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep