HLnovel Chapter 491 Daily Life After Returning to the Village (12)
Chapter 491 Daily Life After Returning to the Village (12)
After eating candy and seeing the mountains, the three returned to Shilipu. Xia Mo and Ling Chuan had a brief conversation with the village chief of Shilipu, and then drove their carriage away in the afterglow of the setting sun. By the time they arrived home, the bright moon was already high in the sky.
Xiao Anyu was still a child after all. He had been running around with them all day and had even climbed a mountain, so he was a little tired. After returning home and having dinner, he washed up and went to rest not long after.
Xia Mo and Ling Chuan didn't sleep or meditate; they talked while lying in bed.
The breeding farm was taken care of by Huang Yan and his wife, so they didn't need to worry about it. However, they still needed to oversee the planting on the hillside. After discussing it, the two decided that apart from the peaches and longans that Xiao Anyu mentioned, the rest of the land would be planted with jujubes.
“If we plant only saplings, it will take several years for them to flower and bear fruit. Why don’t we take a few trees that can bear fruit and mix them in?” Xia Mo said.
Ling Chuan thought it was possible. Practice makes perfect. If sugarcane seeds could be grown out of thin air, then bringing back a few large trees wouldn't be out of the question.
"That works too. We can just say we bought it or dug it up from the mountains."
Xia Mo pondered, "Then let's set off for Lizhi Township tomorrow, and bring them all back together. The sooner we plant them, the sooner we can finish. After that, we can leave the orchard to them."
"Hmm." Ling Chuan wanted to laugh a little. When they first got together, the young man really wanted to do business, but he didn't dare to be too ambitious because of his family's financial situation. Now that he has more shops under his name and things are coming one after another, the young man's interest is not as great as before. He just wants to be a hands-off boss.
"It will take two days to get to Lizhi Township, and several days to go back and forth. Let's take Anyu with us."
"Yes, it's time to take him out to see the world and build his courage. Brother Chuan, let's find him a martial arts instructor when we get back. Otherwise, when the business grows bigger, he won't be able to stand on his own and will be bullied to death."
"Okay, I'll listen to you." The child is already nine years old. Although it's a bit late to start learning martial arts now, it's not impossible. He felt the child's physique and it was alright, but he might have to suffer a bit if he really started practicing.
After thinking for a moment, Ling Chuan said, "You told him today that you would plant the fruit tree he likes, which moved him deeply. This child has suffered too much in the past, so he is too easily satisfied and easily moved. This is both good and bad."
Xia Mo frowned slightly. Of course he knew this, and he could even understand Xiao Anyu's feelings. After all, he had also been an orphan, and Xiao Anyu was even more miserable than him. A little light might make him fly like a moth to a flame.
Sigh, the children are still so young, and they're already worrying about the future. Is this the trouble of raising children?
"What should we do then?" Xia Mo threw the question back at him; he was also a new parent.
After much thought, Ling Chuan concluded: "Raise children with ample resources, teach them reason, and help them distinguish right from wrong."
Upon hearing the first two words, Xia Mo inexplicably thought of the stories about spoiling daughters, which she had heard before, and couldn't help but chuckle. She turned to him with a smile and asked, "What? Afraid that he'll be kidnapped by some little toy in the future?"
"Aren't you worried?" Ling Chuan asked back. Although even if the child was deceived, it wouldn't hurt them in the slightest, since they had raised the child, they should raise him well. The family had the means, so there was no need to make him suffer without hardship.
Xia Mo imagined the scene of an innocent and handsome young man being deceived by an unscrupulous woman or man, losing his body, his heart, and his money, and then crying miserably to them. He immediately shuddered.
“I’m worried, very worried. Brother Chuan, you’re right. It seems we need to add another course for Xiao Anyu.”
"What course?" Ling Chuan asked curiously.
Xia Mo glanced at him and said in a pretentious tone, "Appreciating tea and lotus flowers cultivates one's character."
Upon hearing this tone, Ling Chuan knew it wasn't as elegant as it appeared. He chuckled softly and then said, "Made by A Mo?"
"It must be a high-quality product."
"Pfft... I don't believe you for a second."
"Hehe, you got it right, too bad there's no prize."
Xia Mo smiled, her bright and lively eyes curving like hooks.
Ling Chuan flipped over, pressing down on him, his breath hot as he looked down at him: "You think there's no prize? I'll take it myself."
"You..."
The two argued for another night.
Xiao Anyu, fast asleep in his room, was unaware that in addition to the lessons taught by his teacher, he would have two more courses to take in the future.
The next day was a bright and sunny day. As soon as Xiao Anyu got up, he learned that his two uncles were going to take him to the famous Lizhi Township. He jumped up with joy.
They were gone for five days, and when they came back they went straight to Shilipu to arrange for people to plant trees. Including the two days they spent in the county before, they were away from the village for ten days, which made the people in Liujia Village who were anxious to find them very worried.
Didn't you say you wouldn't travel far? Why haven't you come back for so long?
Some people were jealous, some were worried, and some secretly cursed Xia Mo for being scheming and keeping his distance from them, saying he didn't want to make money with them.
But no matter what, none of this affected Xia Mo's family, nor did it affect Liu San taking the work contract Ling Chuan gave him and the evidence he collected to Liu Gaosheng's house, demanding that Zhou Xiaomin compensate for the sugar mill's losses.
Since Xia Mo and Ling Chuan were not around, Liu Gaosheng's family had nowhere to ask them for leniency. They could only rely on the fact that Liu San was an outsider and had no right to interfere, so they threw a tantrum and refused to pay compensation. In the end, they were ruthlessly suppressed by Liu San and Gong Ming, who directly tied up Zhou Xiaomin and wanted to take her to the authorities.
That's right, Gong Ming is back, and Ying Ying is back too. However, Ying Ying doesn't have a house in Liujia Village, so she lives in the county and helps out at the shop, just like before.
At that time, the Ling family was at the height of their power, and with their maternal uncle's family backing them up, no one dared to speak up for Liu Gaosheng's family. Moreover, after the troubles that had happened to the Liu family, the young master of the Zhang family was tricked and reported to the authorities by the Zhang family's master, and Liu Yuxiang was almost imprisoned by the matchmaker's family some time ago, the villagers were no longer as resistant to seeing officials as before.
Well, we've all become numb to it. Whether the village has a good or bad reputation, it doesn't really matter, as long as it doesn't affect them.
Seeing that no one was helping them, Liu Gaosheng's family knew that they would still have to pay compensation if they went to court, so they compromised and agreed to pay money.
In the end, with Liu Zheng as a witness, Zhou Xiaomin compensated the sugar mill for its losses in accordance with the contract. Although the matter was closed, it served as a warning to those who had signed the contract.
Xia Mo received a good sum of money as soon as he returned to the village, and was in a very good mood. He was also very patient with those who came to inquire about sugarcane seeds.
Of course, it's impossible to lower the price. As the saying goes, what's given away for free is worthless, cheap goods are no good, and if it's too expensive, people will complain... Let people complain if they want, anyway, this is the price of their sugarcane seeds this year.
Almost half a month has passed since the news about sugarcane was released. First, those who were just acting on impulse and getting carried away were eliminated, then those who thought the price was too high were eliminated. In the end, not many people decided to plant sugarcane. However, a few bold people saw that the people who were on good terms with the Ling family had planted two or three acres of land, so they gritted their teeth and followed suit.
As for Liu Youde, after Xia Mo and Liu Zheng learned about his character and situation, they decided to give him a job so that he could work with the skilled workers they hired to take care of the sugarcane fields.