After the seventh day of Li Zhaokun's death, Wang Yulan went to mow and dry the grass every day. From morning to night, there seemed to be no time for her to rest.
Occasionally, the afternoon sun would approach 40 degrees. Li He's heart ached at the thought of it. He had to risk being scolded to pull her back.
On both sides of the river were messy weeds that reached his waist. There was no wind today, but the weeds swayed.
Li He did not need to think to know that Wang Yulan was inside. He shouted, "Mother, it's so hot. Why aren't you going home? I'm starving. I didn't have breakfast this morning."
After a while, a head wearing a straw hat popped out from the grass. It was Wang Yulan.
She placed the bunch of weeds that she had just cut on the ground. She wiped the sweat off her forehead with the hand holding the sickle and looked at Li He.
Li He said, "Be careful with the sickle. Don't cut yourself."
He was scared out of his wits.
Wang Yulan said unhappily, "I'm not a child."
Li He said, "Then let's go home first and come back in the afternoon to mow. There's plenty of grass. It won't grow legs and run away."
In the entire village, no one else was willing to mow the grass except for them. Even if they gave it to others for free, they would not want it. Weeds were the least resistant to heat.
There was a shovel on the ground. He picked it up and carried it on his shoulder.
Wang Yulan followed behind him. Halfway there, she said, "Give me the shovel."
Li He looked at the poplar trees by the side of the road and said, "I'll do it. You can go home and rest for a while, okay?"
She wanted to use the shovel to cut the branches of the poplar trees and dry them for firewood.
Wang Yulan looked at the glaring sun and ordered, "I'll finish it in one go."
Li He had to agree even if he did not want to. Otherwise, it would be even more incessant. He nodded and said, "Don't worry. I'll cut as much as you want."
Under his mother's gaze, he raised his head and held the shovel. He found a branch and shoveled it. After a few clicks, a branch that was as thick as a wrist drooped down and was attached to the tree bark.
He put down the shovel and pulled with both hands, pulling the branch off.
"So stupid," Wang Yulan muttered and turned to leave.
Li He did not dare to stop, for fear that his mother would be dissatisfied and turn back, so he shoveled two more.
When he couldn't see Wang Yulan's figure anymore, he stood under the shade of the tree, panting. He finally had the time to wipe away the sweat on his forehead.
He felt that this was not the way to go. On such a hot day, it was really tiring.
He took out his phone and called Pan Guangcai.
Pan Guangcai said, "I'm at home. Just come over. Do you want to have a drink? I'm eating."
Li He said, "Hurry up and eat. I'm chopping branches at the riverbank. Help me ask if anyone has a chainsaw and bring a ladder over. If we rely on shovels, we won't be able to shovel much."
His palms were scorching hot, and he might even get blisters if he continued.
Moreover, the shovel was getting duller and duller.
Pan Guangcai teased, "You really have nothing better to do. You're finding things for yourself to do."
Li He said angrily, "Do you think I'm doing this voluntarily? It's not like you don't know what's going on with my Old Madam. Hurry up, I'm waiting. "
Just as he was about to hang up, he said anxiously, "Don't be in such a hurry to hang up. Wait. Also, bring the tractor over. I'll pull it home and dry it at the door."
Pan Guangcai said, "Just wait. I'm going to Fatty Chen's place. He has a chainsaw, but we still need to find diesel."
Li He said, "Go to Da Zhuang's house. I saw their warehouse the day before yesterday. There are a few barrels of diesel there. You can just move them over."
Pan Guangcai said, "Got it. Just wait."
Li He hung up and took off his shirt. It was wet in the water, and he used it to wipe his face. Then, he shook it in the water and put it back on.
He lit a cigar and leaned against a tree trunk. Just as he was about to close his eyes, he felt a pain in his back. He reached out and pinched his back. It was a black ant.
The ant had climbed up the tree trunk. When he looked down, he saw a layer of black ants on the ground. They were densely packed, moving in and out of the cracks in the ground.
He admitted defeat. He flicked the ant in his hand and hid under another tree.
Pan Guangcai, Li Hui, Chen Yongqiang, and the others each drove a hand-guided tractor over. The Sang brothers, Da Zhuang, and Chu Yang were also sitting in the tractor.
Before the tractor came to a stop, Li He shouted, "Are you guys crazy? Why are there so many people?"
Pan Guangcai stopped the tractor on a road by the roadside and said with a smile, "If there were so few people, who knows how long it would take. The weather is so hot. Let's finish early. "
Li He helped Chu Yang move the ladder down and asked with a smile, "Why did you have time to come over today? Aren't you busy?"
Chu Yang smiled and said, "He Laoxi has been in the provincial capital for the past few days. I just happened to come back today, so I brought him back. When I left his house, I saw Li Hui driving a hand-guided tractor. I asked him what he was doing, and he said he was chopping trees, so I followed him. It's not a big deal anyway."
Li He smiled and said, "Then don't leave. Let's have a meal together tonight."
Li Hui said, "I planted that row of poplar trees. You can just chop them down. It's troublesome to pull out the branches."
Li He said, "I don't need that many. Such thick branches can only be used to stew meat. The thin branches can be roasted normally. It's such a pity to just chop them down."
Chen Yongqiang had a strong body. He held the chainsaw with one hand and climbed up the ladder. In a few moments, the tree trunk had been sawed down, and five or six branches fell.
Li Hui, who was holding the ladder, was almost hit by the branches.
He said unhappily, "Slow down. You scratched my head. You really have to pay for my medical expenses."
Fatty Chen said, "You're afraid that I can't afford it?"
Following the roar of the chainsaw, another branch fell.
After sawing off a tree's thin branches, Li Hui took over the chainsaw and slowly retreated from the ladder.
Li He smoked his cigar leisurely as he instructed Pan Guangcai to throw the branches into the truck.
Pan Guangcai said, "No wonder you're the boss. Look at you."
He was a completely hands-off boss.
Li He said embarrassedly, "I'll treat you guys to a good meal tonight."
Pan Guangcai said disdainfully, "It's hard to say if you can get your own food."
Li He said, "Is the restaurant just for show? I'll treat you guys to a restaurant."
Li Hui said, "If you can do it, I'll go to town just to buy you a meal."
Sang Yongbo said, "Don't go to town. Go to Old Pan's fish pond and catch an old turtle. We'll stew it tonight."
Pan Guangcai said, "Taking something from my family to do you a favor. You're really good at scheming."
Sang Yongbo said, "Saying such words hurts our relationship. Who are we brothers?"
Chen Yongqiang finished sawing another tree branch and rested for a while. His arms still felt sore and he asked, "This thing is heavy. Who wants to do it?"
Sang Yongbo said, "I'll do it."
Just as he took it from Chen Yongqiang's hands, he felt his hands sink. He couldn't carry the chainsaw with one hand and climb the ladder with the other. He could only climb the ladder first and then lift the chainsaw with both hands.
.。 m.
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