A small plot of land in a mountain village

Chapter 64 The Barren Mountain Across the Way

Zhang Niu, who was sleeping in bed, was awakened by the noise outside. He put on his clothes and went out. It turned out that the sun was already high in the sky. When he reached the open space in front of the pond, he saw firecrackers going off in unison on two other barren hills near Maotou Mountain across the water.

Unable to see clearly from the pond, Zhang Niu walked to Maotou Mountain. Standing at the top of the slope, he could clearly see several black sedans parked on the barren hillside. For Zhang Niu, who didn't know much about cars, black sedans were fine. There were also several excavators there, and the sound of firecrackers was coming from that spot.

It's unclear who has booked this barren mountain. Zhang Niu originally planned to book it later as well, but the village chief refused, saying someone else already wanted it. Turns out, it's been booked by this group. Maybe it's some rich guy. Looks like things are about to get interesting.

The roar of excavators filled the air all afternoon; it seemed they were going to completely transform this barren mountain. Zhang Niu wasn't too worried, as long as they didn't dig all the way to Maotou Mountain.

Zhang Niu spent the whole afternoon digging holes and replanting fruit saplings. Now, tender green buds are sprouting from the branches of the fruit trees. He hadn't expected them to be budding so early in spring. After checking many of the fruit trees, Zhang Niu confirmed that all his trees had started to bud. It seemed that many on the hillside behind his house hadn't yet developed buds.

As evening fell, Zhang Niu went up the hillside to check on the progress of the guy working on the bread mountain. In just one day, he had built a dirt road leading out of the village. It seemed this guy was quite capable, knowing to get the road done first. Three ponds had also been dug along the roadside. People were busy building bamboo sheds by the ponds, and others were cooking. It seemed the wealthy were indeed different, managing on two fronts at once.

After dinner, Zhang Niu also started to take a walk. A large group of piglets were frolicking energetically in the open space outside. In the spring, the baby turtles and other small creatures returned to the pond. They no longer hid indoors all day long like they did in winter.

The "thug" had stayed in the space all winter, and when it came out, even Zhang Niu was taken aback. This guy hadn't grown at all during the winter; in fact, it had shrunk. Now it was a tiny creature about a meter tall. Zhang Niu had to take a closer look before he could confirm that this was indeed the "thug."

The "thug" was very unhappy about shrinking and kept crawling to the edge of the pond to take a closer look. When it saw the giant turtle with the character "王" (king), it roared a few times, and the old turtle, which had been squinting its beady eyes, opened them. Then it slowly crawled towards the thug.

It seems they really are neighbors, otherwise the old turtle with the character "王" wouldn't pay any attention to them, and neither would Zhang Niu. They usually stay motionless at the bottom of the water, and someone who doesn't know any better might mistake them for stones sunk to the bottom of a pool.

The next morning, the birds in the forest were already acting as roosters, chirping away all morning. Zhang Niu, clutching his pillow, had to admit that the sound was louder than an alarm clock, but the little one seemed oblivious, still fast asleep with his head in his hands.

This morning I had to replant the saplings that hadn't been planted yet. I've walked through all 100 acres. It's hard to find the ones that were damaged by frost, but what can you do when Zhang Niu is all alone? It's pathetic...

Just as Zhang Niu was about to head out with his shovel, he saw the village chief leading a young man in a suit and tie.

"Get ready to go out, Zhang Wa."

Zhang Niu put down the shovel. "Yes, I was getting ready to replant some fruit seedlings. You're here so early in the morning, is something the matter?"

"Come here. Assistant Zhang, this is the contractor of Happy Cottage," the village chief introduced.

"Hello, I'm Assistant Zhang from the barren hill across from yours that's under construction. We'll be neighbors from now on, so I came over to take a look," Assistant Zhang said with a smile.

"Don't stand outside in the cold, come inside and sit down!"

The village chief waved his hand. "No, thank you. I just brought Assistant Zhang here today to take a look around. It'll be good for everyone to get acquainted so there won't be any conflicts later."

Zhang Niu chuckled and said, "I know. If you need anything, just come over and call me. May I ask who your boss is?"

"Zhang Wa, why are you asking this? The contractor will find out later," the village chief said before Zhang's assistant could speak.

Zhang Niu didn't think anything of it, assuming the village chief was worried he might be impolite. "I was just a little curious. Don't take offense."

"We'll be going now. Assistant Zhang, let's go down this way!"

As he left, Assistant Zhang glanced at the person a few times, wondering if this was someone the higher-ups were keeping an eye on... Full of questions, he followed the small path leading down into the village.

Zhang Niu, still standing at the door, suddenly realized what had happened. He only had a few ponds on a contracted plot of land, raising ducks and such on a small business. Why would they come looking for him first? But the village chief seemed a bit off today. He racked his brains but couldn't figure it out, so he gave up. He'd better go plant the fruit seedlings first.

The once bustling, barren mountain is now taking shape. Following Zhang Niu's example, eight bamboo houses have been built. The same man, Brother Ma, is responsible for their construction. I was thinking of going to ask him about it, but Brother Ma came over from the other side first.

The two sat on the hilltop and started chatting.

Sitting on the hillside, smoking a cigarette, Brother Ma said, "Thank you for the plum wine last time. I feel much better now than before."

Even though Brother Ma didn't mention it, Zhang Niu almost forgot that he still had several bottles sitting untouched in his storage space. It seems he should find some time to take them home for his parents to try.

"No need to thank me, it's just a few bottles of wine."

"Is there anything wrong with your bamboo house? We have plenty of time to help the boss across the street build a bamboo house on that hill."

"It's fine, no problem at all, I sleep comfortably."

After exhaling a heavy puff of smoke, Brother Ma said, "This time was really tiring. Building eight at once is even more tiring than what you did back then."

"So you've had a big income this year. I heard the guy across the street is a big boss, have you met him?"

"It's tiring, I didn't see the boss. It seems like it's all that young man, what's his name, Assistant Zhang, and the village chief who's been busy," he said, taking a deep drag on his cigarette. "That pale-faced young man is unpleasant to look at, he looks like a pretty boy."

Surprisingly, Brother Ma still had something to say. Zhang Niu gave him a thumbs up. "Impressive, brother, those words are really bold. Only someone like that could say something like that in this place."

"I know. It's infuriating to watch them work." For those of them who often build bamboo houses, the supervisors are usually big men who are easy to talk to, but this assistant... He looks alright, but seeing him all clean and white just doesn't put them in a good mood.

He stood up and brushed the dirt off his backside. "I'm going back first. Those bastards won't work properly if I don't go back. They won't work hard unless I go and yell at them."

"Come up and sit for a while when you have time. I'm usually at home." He called out to the back of the figure.

Zhang Niu became interested in the owner of the barren mountain. Who would be so bored as to invest money in clearing this barren mountain and building bamboo houses? It would be understandable if he were living there himself.

Looking around the foot of the mountain at the thorny trees, those planted in late autumn have all taken root. They're gradually forming a green wall of thorns, making Zhang Niu look shorter than him. It seems I wasn't wrong. These thorny trees are truly suited to mountainous terrain.

Second update. 6,000 words today. Still requesting to add to your favorites and recommend.