Free Web NovelChapter 446: Chapter 234: Herding Chickens and Ducks (Part 2)
In the distance, the village was lush with trees. Farmhouses peeked through the dense foliage, and plumes of smoke curled into the sky. Although no sound could be heard, one could feel the bustling energy of life.
She quickly cut a good amount of green grass, clearing three of the four ridges of the square rice paddy. Looking at the piles of green grass behind her, she set down her sickle with satisfaction, then pulled up a handful of rice straw and, just as she’d planned, sat down on the ridge.
Although the rice had been stored in the granary, the straw hadn’t been carried home yet. It was tied into bundles that stood in the field like cones. The chickens would occasionally peck at the bundles, perhaps having found unthreshed grains of rice or insects hiding in the straw.
Occasionally, a chicken’s leg rope would get tangled in the straw. The chicken would struggle free with a hard tug, pulling the bundle down. It would startle itself and hastily hop away.
There were indeed many things to eat in the field. The chickens’ crops swelled up as if inflated. Eventually, they stopped pecking at rice grains and started hunting specifically for grasshoppers and other insects. It seemed they preferred meat, too. The ducks, on the other hand, were more like they were out for a stroll. Even after eating their fill, they refused to stay in the empty paddy. Peeking around, they spotted water in the next field and were about to cross over.
In the next field, Zheng Changhe was shouting at his water buffalo as he plowed.
He saw his daughter herding the ducks, not even forgetting to bring a sickle to cut grass, and his heart ached for her. He wanted to say a few words, but he was afraid of delaying his work—the family was waiting for him to finish so they could plant the seedlings.
Juhua saw the ducks running toward the flooded paddy and quickly called out, "Duck-le-le..."
The ducks stopped, cocked their heads, and listened. When they realized it was indeed Juhua calling them, they quickly turned and, with their big webbed feet, waddled toward her with surprising speed.
When they reached Juhua, they found no special reward, so they just went back to darting about in the field ditches, gobbling up everything from river snails to frogs without hesitation.
The sun had risen, a big, crimson orb radiating light that bathed the fields in a brilliant glow. The unharvested paddies were especially beautiful, their golden rice grains shimmering with captivating color under the sunlight.
Seeing that the chickens and ducks were full, Juhua got up to herd them home. But now came the trouble. A few of the chickens were disobedient, forcing her to chase them all over the field, sending them flying and hopping everywhere.
The ducks, however, were very obedient. She called them over, picked up their ropes to lead them, and then went back to chasing the chickens.
Seeing this, Zheng Changhe called out loudly, "Juhua, stop chasing them! You head back first and let your mother round up the rest. You still need to carry that grass home, too."
Juhua thought he was right; she couldn’t lead so many chickens and ducks by herself anyway. So, she led the ones she had in hand and headed for home, leaving her mother to come and carry the grass and catch the remaining chickens.
After breakfast, while they were washing clothes by the river, Meizi heard Juhua mention she had taken the chickens and ducks out that morning. She quickly asked, "Juhua, can I go with you this afternoon to graze ours? We haven’t harvested our rice yet, so there’s nowhere to let them roam."
Although they lived next door to each other, they were too busy to talk during this busy time. They usually only managed to catch up while doing laundry.
Juhua smiled. "Of course! It’s no problem at all, just bring them along. We should go a bit earlier, or we won’t be back in time to cook dinner. Don’t worry, the chickens and ducks will get full in no time once they’re in the field—there’s all sorts of stuff for them to eat."
Meizi beamed. "That’s great! If my ducks can feed like this for a few days, they’ll probably start laying eggs. The chicks I hatched this year have already started laying, so the ducks should be next."
Juhua swished the clothes in the river water as she replied, "The first eggs a hen lays are very nutritious. They’re best when steamed."
Meizi smiled. "Isn’t that the truth. And with the rice harvest coming up, they’ll make for a nice side dish."
When her husband’s family assets were divided, she didn’t take a single laying hen, leaving them all for her mother-in-law. Gou Dan’s mother had told her daughter that sometimes it’s better to be generous. Those things weren’t worth much, and taking them might lead people to say Li Changming was unfilial. It was better to take nothing but the land, leaving no room for gossip.
That was why her mother had helped her get her piglets and hatch her chicks. Juhua had helped her hatch the ducks. Now that they were finally grown and able to lay eggs, she was exceptionally happy—after all, she had raised them with her own two hands, day after day.
Juhua recalled the morning scene in the fields and found herself looking forward to going again in the evening. ’I’m just like the chickens and ducks,’ she thought. ’I love getting out for some fresh air.’ It was a way to find a leisurely moment amidst the tense, busy farming season.
That afternoon, she and Meizi finished all their housework, washed all the vegetables for dinner, and got everything ready. Once the sun was a little weaker, they led their chickens and ducks out to the fields.
Juhua’s mother was carrying bundles of rice straw home. When she saw the two of them arrive, she smiled and said, "Come to this field—I’m almost done clearing the straw from here, so it’ll be easier for the chickens and ducks to run around."
The Zheng Family’s ten mu of land formed a single, continuous plot next to Jing Lake. They had bought it all at once the year before last as a large piece of wasteland, which they then cleared and divided into smaller, one-mu plots.
Juhua pulled the poultry into the field—with dozens of chickens and ducks, how could she not pull them?—then went to help her mother drag the straw onto the ridges so it would be easier for her to bundle and carry home. Meizi came over to help too.
Her mother quickly stopped them. "This straw will make you itch—it’s so dusty and irritating. I’m done for the day anyway, so I can just take a bath when I get back. You girls still have to go home and cook dinner, so don’t bother."
Juhua replied, "I’m not hugging it, just dragging it to the ridge with my hands. It won’t get on me. Meizi, don’t worry about it. Just help watch the chickens and ducks. They’re wild and run all over the place."
Meizi had no choice but to stop and go watch the poultry.
Juhua helped her mother drag the last of the rice straw onto the ridge before turning back to talk to Meizi.
Just then, she heard Meizi exclaim in pleasant surprise, "Oh! Juhua, your duck laid an egg! And a chicken did too!"
Juhua was startled. She ran over to look, and sure enough, there they were. The chickens and ducks were laying eggs wherever they pleased, as if they were just relieving themselves.
Staring at the brown-shelled chicken egg and the blue-shelled duck egg lying in a shallow puddle in the field, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She finally understood why she sometimes couldn’t find all the eggs—the little rascals really were laying them outside. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote for it with recommendation votes and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
