20demayo Chapter 8 A Joyful and Harmonious Moment
Chapter 8 A Joyful and Harmonious Moment
After finishing their meal and clearing the table, Zhao Yuan led the two sisters, Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi, to the pigpen.
"Look, this is the piglet I bought today. It's a female piglet, and it will have many piglets in the future. You all need to learn how to feed it well."
"Oh, okay."
Hearing the sound of people coming, the little pig jumped up and ran happily around the pigpen, grunting.
"When raising piglets, be careful not to overfeed them at the beginning, as their digestive system is not yet mature. Cook the pig feed before feeding them."
Start by feeding four times a day, in small amounts frequently. As the child grows older, gradually reduce the feeding frequency to three times a day, then twice a day. Overfeeding can upset their stomach and intestines.
The pig troughs need to be cleaned frequently. In this weather, add more straw to keep them warm. The pigpen also needs to be repaired regularly. In this kind of weather, it's best to avoid drafts to prevent the piglets from getting sick.
In his past life, Zhao Yuan invested in a close friend's ecological pig farm. He often heard about pig farming in meetings and had a certain understanding of scientific pig farming. So today, he shared this knowledge with Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi.
Zhang Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi listened attentively and agreed with "okay, okay," while pondering in their hearts:
"Is this my dad? How come he's raising pigs?"
"This weekend, I'll take you to the Xinhua Bookstore in the county town. They have all kinds of books there. You can bring paper and pens and write down what you need to remember. Only by reading can you broaden your horizons and change your destiny."
Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi nodded earnestly, their hearts overflowing with joy. The two sisters rarely even went to town, and now their father was saying he would take them to the county. They were overjoyed.
Zhao Laidi tugged at her sister's sleeve, widened her eyes, and smiled with a pout.
The two sisters were still timid in front of their father.
After explaining the details of raising pigs, Zhaoyuan went to the main room and began weaving bamboo baskets.
Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi held hands and laughed quietly in front of the pigpen, jumping and spinning around a few times.
"Mom, Mom, Dad said he'll take us to the county this weekend."
"Wow, wow, wow, we're going to the county! I'm so excited!"
Zhao Laidi ran to her mother, jumping and clapping her hands, overwhelmed with joy.
The two sisters happily gathered around their mother's room, unable to hide their joy.
"Great, you two hurry up and do your homework, it'll be dark soon."
Lin Fangfang also felt a sense of happiness rising in her heart, and she smiled as she urged the two sisters on.
Thinking about Zhaoyuan's changes over the past two days, Lin Fangfang was still afraid that he would suddenly lose his temper, but she preferred to believe that the Zhaoyuan she used to love had returned. Thinking this, a long-lost smile appeared on her face.
Everyone was busy and silent.
......
"Zhaoyuan, have you cooked?"
A loud greeting came from outside the door. Then Zhao San and Li Dawen stepped in, carrying a bottle of wine.
"We finished eating a long time ago, and we've already cleaned up the dishes."
Zhao Yuan didn't even look up as he gave a perfunctory reply and continued weaving the basket quickly.
"Finished eating? I just got back from Fir Village, so I bought a bottle of wine with Li Dawen to keep you company."
As he spoke, Zhao San raised the glass in his hand toward Zhao Yuan.
Zhao Yuan looked around and saw Zhao Di and Lai Di engrossed in their homework, while Lin Fangfang sat in the room with her child in her arms, the door open.
The mother and her two daughters never greeted Zhao San; they loathed him, and Zhao San knew it all too well.
Every time Zhao San and his group came over for drinks, the house would be in complete chaos.
"I'm in a hurry to finish the order, I've already eaten today, and I've given up drinking, drinking is bad."
Zhao Yuan didn't even look up, his hands moving quickly as he wove the bamboo basket.
"What are you talking about? You've quit drinking. What's the point of life if you don't drink?"
Zhao San stood next to Zhao Yuan and said with a smile.
"I've really quit drinking. My husband got injured this month, and I have to catch up on 200 other things. There's a lot going on this month."
After Zhao Yuan finished weaving a bamboo basket, he took out a tobacco pouch from his pocket and handed it to Zhao San.
Then, pick up bamboo strips and bamboo filaments and begin weaving the next bamboo basket.
"You smoke."
Zhao San took the pipe, rolled his own, and handed it to Li Dawen, who also lit a pipe. The two of them moved a long bench and sat down next to Zhao Yuan, smoking as they watched him rapidly weave bamboo baskets.
Looking at the man in front of them, they suddenly felt that they didn't recognize him.
There was no communication, only the faint sound of bamboo strips weaving through the bamboo.
"Let's go home. Zhaoyuan has already eaten and is too busy to keep up."
After finishing his cigarette, Zhao San stubbed it out. He then tugged at Li Dawen, and the two of them, carrying the bottles of liquor, headed towards the door.
"Walk slowly."
Zhao Yuan kept his head down, weaving bamboo baskets, and only said one polite sentence.
.......
The two sisters, Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Zhaodi, were finishing their homework and preparing to put it away.
"Wait a minute, let me take a look at your homework."
Zhao Yuan put down his work and walked over to the two sisters.
Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi stood there, stunned, unable to react for a long time.
In rural areas, it's unheard of for parents to check homework.
Zhao Yuan walked over and opened Zhao Zhaodi's homework first. Zhao Zhaodi is in the fourth grade of elementary school, and her homework is very simple. For Chinese, it is nothing more than copying a poem, reading the text a few times, and writing a few words.
Zhao Yuan carefully read it through and pointed out a few typos, telling Zhao Di to rewrite it and rewrite the typos 10 times.
He also got a math word problem wrong, and Zhao Yuan patiently explained it to him and corrected it.
Zhao Laidi is still in the first grade of elementary school. Her homework consists of writing and arithmetic problems.
Lai Di's handwriting was crooked and many strokes were not connected.
Zhao Yuan patiently gave him corrections one by one, and asked him to write it several times.
This was the first time in the two sisters' lives that their homework had been checked at home and they had to rewrite it. The two sisters did not dare to slack off and worked until almost dark before they finished their homework.
While the two sisters were copying their homework again, Zhaoyuan chopped pig feed, cooked pig feed, fed the pigs, and fed the chickens...
Lin Fangfang sat beside her, her heart filled with a long-lost sense of happiness.
After finishing her homework, it was getting dark. Zhao Zhaodi lit a kerosene lamp and took it to the main room, placing it on a table not far from Zhao Yuan.
Zhao Zhaodi still picked up the bamboo and prepared to split it.
"Zhaodi, go and fetch a basin of hot water for your mother to soak her feet. You don't need to do things like this anymore. Just focus on your studies and help with the housework."
"Oh."
Today, Zhao Zhaodi no longer doubted her father's words and turned to go to the kitchen to boil water.
Recalling the events of the past two days, and his attitude towards Zhao San and Li Dawen, who he used to drink with often, shows that my father is changing.
A sense of happiness rose in Zhao Zhaodi's heart.
"Zhaodi, Laidi, you two come here."
Hearing their father suddenly call their names, both sisters looked at their mother, fear rising in their hearts.
Go ahead, don't be afraid.
Lin Fangfang said to her two daughters.
The two sisters stood timidly in front of Zhaoyuan.
"Move a stool and sit down."
Zhao Zhaodi quickly dragged over a long bench and sat awkwardly next to Zhao Yuan with Zhao Laidi.
"You need to be more careful when doing your homework in the future. Zhaodi, after you finish your homework, check your sister's homework and urge her to correct it. If she makes a mistake, she has to copy it 10 times."
Lai Di, you need to be more careful when you write. Many of your characters don't even look like characters. If you spend time rewriting them, you're just wasting your time.
From now on, I will only check Zhaodi's homework. If Laidi's homework is not done well, it is your responsibility as the older sister. In addition to you rewriting your own homework, you also need to rewrite your younger sister's homework that you didn't check.
The two sisters lowered their heads and listened attentively to their father's words.
"Okay, we understand."
Go to bed early.
Zhao Zhaodi and Zhao Laidi went to bed early.